Under a Starless Sky

TL took up a quill and with the sharp end pointed to the separation in spectral lines. She replaced the other rune. She pointed to the discrepancy. She swapped it out. She repeated. Erico complained, ‘you seen one rainbow you’ve seen them all’ to which Torny snapped ‘make another sound and the by goddess tree herself, I will sleep you.’ Yaffa asked ‘have you not heard him sleep?’ Tane said: ‘the whole village hears him sleep.’

“Would you all please be quiet?!” Torny demanded. “Loxy, can something that subtle really send you a world away?” Torny asked.

“A universe away.”

“A universe?” Torny said.

“May I add a mark to this stone to denote its change?” TL asked.

“Yes,” Torny said.

“How did it change?” Arne asked.

TL shrugged. “I don’t know. It got dropped? It was damaged in a magical fight?”

The Vikings exchanged glances. They did not share their understanding of it. TL and Shen could only imagine.

“Should we throw it away?” Torny asked.

“Not if you want to come back here,” TL said. “Here let me write our gate recipe…”

“No!” Arne and Torny said.

“I mean, no,” Torny said, softer. “Unless you want all the seers to know your home address, potentially discern ours.”

“Show her, she’ll remember,” Arne said.

“She doesn’t have to,” Torny said. “It should be our address, minus this damaged one.”

“Oh!” TL said, grimacing. “I am so smart I am stupid sometimes.”

“What?” Shen asked.

“I hadn’t considered half tone steps. I have only been considering three dimensional properties- the geometric structures as related to a full tone, not the myriad of potential harmonics,” TL said. “Even one degree of deflection… Again, where do you get your runes?”

Erico pulled at his face. Torny gave him a look. He backed away. Tane was sampling the honey.

Torny looked at Loxy. “You’re not making fun of me?”

“No,” TL said.

“All raised masters can make a single rune,” Torny said.

Torny demonstrated. She took a colorless, unmarked rune from the box, closed it in her hand, and closed her eyes. Light illuminated her hand, escaped from her fingers, bones were silhouetted in glowing flesh, and then the light faded. She opened her hand and dropped the stone into TL’s hand. It was warm.

I am told that with an increase in knowledge and wisdom, my light will change, and my stone will change. I hear that significant events can a change a person’s light. We have an elder who reports having had four changes in light. No one will trade with me because my stone is

stones to open a gate,” TL

Torny said. “What stone do

gems on the floor seemed familiar. “It reminds me of

TL

to having been ‘shushed.’ TL had never done that. She was capable of holding two conversations, and could have come at him internally,

and didn’t own. She changed her mind, rearranged the groupings. She examined individual’s stones illuminating their spectral patterns on the plate. She laughed and made notes in her book. She took the book

“You have more keys

said, studying the floor and her new

“I don’t have any

TL looked at her. “We have

the

“This is too

“Sister,” TL insisted.

made eye contact. “I cannot give you everything I know in one sitting. Even this book will require explanation before you can read it well. This gift

are

the ship,” Arne

higher number. The stone became too bright. She dialed it back. The plate emitted a sound. The crystal on the right vibrated, took on the color of the first. TL opened up the bottom drawer and removed what looked like a nail polish jar. She chose a sparking gold, took out a thin brush, and duplicated the symbol on the newly entrained stone. She return Torny’s stone back to her pile. She did this procedure until she had a copy of each of Torny’s stones that were not in her collection. She handed these to Abby who took them away and returned when she was finished. While Abby was gone, TL made notations in her book.

over. If I do, I will

work? We must show our work, so

I understand correctly, the only

all the stones, and there was always an attendant to speed people on their way. After the fall, most of the relics, especially the

“Well, of course,” Shen said. “Everyone

him. “This is

a joke,”

don’t get it,”

him. Continue,” TL

determined to find them. He has pushed further out to sea than any Captain before

the gate worked. We were returning home to gather supplies and check on our families,” Arne said. “It is my intent to return to that gate, explore the ruins further, and then push on to the next

do you navigate?” Shen

always know where I am. I always know where home is,” Arne said. “I will

always return,” Shen said.

be lost,”

the risks,”

it be funny if the missing stones could only be made

scowled. “What

all things,”

that,” Torny bowed to

the only culture that tolerates men

Arne said. “They are stingy with