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Kai’s shoulders slu adolescent ‘I’m more bound by physical constraints,’ he mumbled ‘And I can’t actually force one of those creatures out if it’s already inside et in or out’
‘Yes, but how large an area?’ Vale pressed ‘The whole of London?’
‘Maybe,’ Kai said ‘If you gave ht And I’d have to, ah, it would attract attention’
‘From whom?’ Irene asked ‘The Fae?’
‘My relatives,’ Kai said He looked as if he’d like to shrink into a corner at the thought He see the right thing, co the rees for the next decade She wondered how old – or how young – he was in ter He was soin others
Irene frowned ‘Well, I can ward an area against chaos by attuning it to the Library That ht force Alberich out of an area if he’s already in it – but I can only cover a relatively small area that way And there are issues of power’ Yes, that was one way of putting it Warding Vale’s roo to block a larger area of reality, as it were, would take h description of the area that she was trying to ward But there had to be some way that she could use this
The zeppelin rocked, throwing Irene off her feet So whirred and chittered like locusts in the air outside Kai grabbed her round the waist, catching hold of a hanging strap with his free hand Valeon?’ he shouted in Mrs Jenkins’s direction
‘We’re under attack,’ Mrs Jenkins snapped back She didn’t look away froht hand was locked into the middle of a brass and pewter orrery, and her left hand was pulling at a range of levers She tugged at soan stop, and frohen it wouldn’t respond ‘Trouble to starboard!’
Irene and the others crowded to the
‘I can’t see anything,’ Irene said The only things in sight were rooftops and ser ‘See that vapour trail?’
‘So over Irene’s shoulder ‘But I can’t sense any Fae interference’
‘You forget the Iron Brotherhood,’ Vale interrupted ‘They have their agents after us too’
‘Hang on!’ Mrs Jenkins called fro sideways in a painful, ungainly movement that shook the cabin like a dice cup Irene and the two ths of rope that hadn’t been strapped to the walls swung out and flailed in the air, and an unsecured teacup bounced fro a trail of cold tea droplets
‘There he is!’ Vale exclaimed A man had flown into view He was strapped into some sort of erously close to his head, and earing an oil-smeared leather helmet and overalls In one hand he held a heavy pistol, with a cable running fro strapped to his lower back He bobbed in the air, steadying the pistol with his free hand as he tried to line up a shot
‘Is there so to smooth competence
‘Over here’ Vale leapt into the cockpit and wrenched at a panel above Mrs Jenkins’s head She ignored hi the zeppelin ‘The weapons are kept here on museum vehicles – ah, here they are’
He pulled out a brace of pistols, tossing one to Kai and another to Irene, asn’t too confident about popping off shots at a flying target ‘Isn’t there anything larger on board?’ she asked ‘A flare pistol or so ato give her a sharp look ‘Really, Miss Winters! A flare pistol on a zeppelin? I thought you wereI’ve ever studied,’ Irene ht ideas to herself for theout of theand could certainly do so without her assistance She staggered forward to the cockpit ‘How much further to the library, Mrs Jenkins?’
‘Al to be a rat’s ass of use, because we can’t land with thatat us I don’t knohat sort of stories you’ve heard about what zeppelins can and can’t do, miss, but I need to hover while someone throws us a line and makes us secure And that’s e call, in aviator parlance, a ‘sitting target’ So I hope your friends are good shots, or I’ north until we lose hi with the streets this busy’
Vale shouldered over to grab Irene’s arone wide ‘Miss Winters, can your abilities be of use here?’
Irene shook her head ‘I can’t affect hiear They can’t hear e only works on the universe if the universe can hear it,’ Irene snapped She was sure that she’d explained this to him earlier Perhaps she hadn’t ‘I can affect this zeppelin, but I don’t see what good that would be--’