Soon they reached the village, which was a dreary, unhappy place. All of the doors and window shutters looked to be made from rotted driftwood. Sheep milled about the main street beside the beach, munching on the brittle grass that sprouted amid the sand and cobblestones. It smelled of salt and Springtime and a lot of manure.

“This is the town of Knunx,” Runa declared. “It’s the closest Elsewheres town to the Sea.”

Just like Dullshire, Barclay thought.

In fact, a lot about Knunx reminded Barclay of Dullshire. The villagers he passed ogled their group suspiciously, and even without their Beasts roaming free, Barclay knew their group must look peculiar. Barclay’s shoulder-length black hair hung wild and tangled from the winds up on the cliffs. Viola clattered with each step. And Runa’s menacing presence made every shopkeeper avert their eyes.

Seeming to sense the unease around them, Runa halted at the edge of the docks along the beach, which bustled with sailors and fishermen. Her gaze swept over Barclay’s untamed hair and Viola’s bizarre coat, then rested on Tadg’s simple blue sweater.

She pointed at Tadg. “You’re going to ask these sailors for passage to the Isle of Munsey.”

Tadg’s usual scowl deepened. “Couldn’t Orla send a ship? No one here will agree to take us.”

“Orla has been preoccupied. We’ll need to find a way there ourselves.”

As they spoke, one of the sailors—a burly man with a coil of rope slung over his shoulder—bumped hard into Tadg’s side. Tadg looked daggers at him as the man strolled away.

“I better come with you,” Runa said hastily. “I’m not sure we’ll be welcome here for long.”

While the two strode off down the docks, Barclay asked Viola, “What’s the Isle of Munsey? Who’s Orla?”

Viola, being the daughter of the Grand Keeper, the leader of the Lore Keeper world, always knew these sorts of things.

“The Isle of Munsey is where the Sea’s Guild headquarters is,” Viola replied matter-of-factly, “and Orla Scudder is the High Keeper.” High Keepers were each in charge of one of the six chapters of the Guild, and they answered to the Grand Keeper. “You would know this if you did the reading Runa assigned you.”

Barclay loved reading and rarely failed a challenge when it came to homework. But because Barclay was an Elsie, he had a lot more to learn about the Wilderlands than Viola and Tadg. And so during their journey, Runa had assigned him the grueling task of catching up.

“I am doing the reading,” Barclay said. “But if I have to memorize one more fact about the Great Capamoo War or the Ickypox Plague, my head might explode.”