After the dance, Luna brought Roh and Kihin around the back of the stage and introduced them to Shodav. Shodav, despite the cold, was covered in sweat. His hair hung down his back in a spiral of braids twisted through with tiny bells and brightly colored string. He grinned at Luna. He was missing his front teeth.

“Hello, maggot,” Shodav said. He collected Luna up into an embrace.

“Hey, stop!” Luna said, laughing. “I’m not that little.”

“Only just,” Shodav said, returning him to the snow. He took in Roh and Kihin. “What, are you collecting a set?”

“These are my friends,” Luna said. “Roh and Kihin. They’re from Dhai. They brought a book to translate, from Ora Dasai.”

“Ah, Ora Dasai. Business.”

Shodav led the party back to his house. There were only three rooms in the house and one hair-stuffed mattress on the floor.

They sat around a low table on cushions, like Dorinahs. The little stone house was well furnished with intricate hangings and rich carpets. It stank of sod and incense. Shodav made them tea.

“I expected Ora Dasai to come himself,” Shodav said.

“He told us to bring you this,” Kihin said, pulling the book from the bag at his hip.

Shodav unwrapped the book from its cloth binding. Turned the first page. Roh saw a blank piece of green paper inside, the sort that official messages in Dhai were written on. But it was blank.

“Ah,” Shodav said, considering the page. “You’re to take this, then.” He went back into the bedroom and returned with another book. He pushed it across the low table toward Roh.

Roh looked at the characters on the front. They weren’t any language he knew. He opened it. The script was unintelligible.

“What’s this?” he said.

“Talamynii,” Shodav said. “Ora Dasai will know where to find the proper translator for it.”

“So, what’s in here?” Roh asked.

“A record of the Talamynii in your country, I believe,” Shodav said. “To be honest, that’s only a guess. It was the best match for the criteria Ora Dasai gave me.”

When all the tea was drunk, Shodav bid them farewell. They rode back out of town and came to a river crossing at dusk. Kihin and Luna rode up onto the glittering ice together ahead of Roh, heads bent toward one another. Roh lingered behind, watching them talk. The wind picked up, pelting him with icy snow. He shielded his eyes.

Roh heard a noise and pulled his hands away from his face.

Luna wasn’t there anymore.

Kihin was off his mount, bending toward a splashing form in the dark water. A jagged hole had opened in the ice.

Kihin’s bear roared and let loose toward the other side of the river.