The trip was fast, though not fast enough for Pisces, who shut her eyes and leaned a shoulder against Caledonia. Caledonia relished the contact. Her instinct was to slip her hand into Pisces’s, let their fingers twine together to offer comfort. Instead, she held herself steady and still for her sister, making herself a stone while Pisces needed the support.

Too soon, the metal grate snapped open, and they were herded through a narrow chamber onto a flat plane of packed earth and scuffed, pale grass. While they’d been down in the channels, the sun had fallen from view. But up here, it was still visible far to the west, making a slow dive toward a ring of snowcapped mountains. To the east, a sloping valley fell away toward a ridge of cliffs and the ocean beyond. It was a breathtaking sight. They were high on the western wall of mountains overlooking the network of merchant tents and family homes that made up the constantly shifting city that was Cloudbreak. From here, the chaos looked almost welcoming, a tangle of threads holding the community together.

And it was cold, a drastic difference from the warmth of the sheltered canals. Caledonia’s breath came in small white puffs and her skin prickled. She shivered, yet her hunger-dulled senses came alive at the shock, and she felt more prepared to meet the Sly King. He would not be tired and hungry and parched. Nor would he be distracted by the thought of an entire crew withering away or worried over the state of a ship. He would arrive with a single goal in mind: to get the best possible deal out of the exchange. And he was going to be disappointed.

The path soon dipped into a valley brimming with short trees bearing needles of the deepest green. The center of the valley had been cleared to make way for a dozen cabins. Each was made of reddish wood, their roofs gleaming with solar panels and their walls lined with small gardens.

“Wait in here,” Mino said, showing them into a large cabin near the center of the compound. The main room seemed to be a dining hall, though it was empty and cold at the moment. There were rows of sturdy wooden chairs and long narrow tables all pushed against one wall. At the back of the room were two doors, one on either side of the kitchen. “There’s water. Help yourselves.”

The door shut behind her, and the seven of them stood speechless for a moment. Water.

Pine was the first to break. He hurried toward the door Mino had indicated, disappearing behind it for several minutes. He reemerged with a pitcher, a stack of seven glasses, and a near delirious grin pushing at his hollow cheeks.