But for Aaru . . . Idris, as he knew the island, was gone. His god had raised himself up, casting countless people into the sea.

I couldn’t imagine what that felt like.

Even if there had been an evacuation, it seemed impossible that everyone would have been saved. Thousands of lives had surely been lost. Tens of thousands. And Aaru, for all his importance to me, did not come from an important family. He came from a disgraced family, one the community leaders wouldn’t prioritize.

Then, slowly, as though he’d forgotten how to move in front of other people, Aaru put his arm around me and drew me closer. We sat there stiffly, but soon our breathing synced and our muscles relaxed.

“Can I tell you something?” I whispered.

He didn’t respond.

Maybe I shouldn’t. Maybe it wasn’t right to burden him any more.

But then he tightened his arm around me. Slowly. Gently. I let in a shaking gasp. He hadn’t spoken a word—not in quiet code, and certainly not aloud—since we’d first seen Idris on the horizon. Well, maybe those prayers I thought I’d heard earlier, but maybe not. When we’d come to the hotel, he’d gone straight into a room and closed the curtains, the door, and sat alone for three hours until Hristo had gone in there with his bags. And later, Altan.

So this—a soft squeeze—was more than anything I’d gotten from him in five days.

I closed my eyes and switched to quiet code, my fingers tapping softly against his wrist. ::I’ve been having dreams since we escaped the Pit. At first, it was only after I used noorestones. I dreamed I was flying.::

Silence. Stillness.

::I dreamed I had great wings and fire.::

Again, nothing.

::But it’s changed since then. Since the ruins. I still dream I’m flying, but I see things. I know things.::

Another faint squeeze, this one in question.

My heart pounded.

::Do you remember when Gerel told us about the Celestial Warriors?:: I left a space for his reply, but he didn’t offer one. ::On Khulan, after the god’s eye, we stopped at an obelisk, and Gerel told us how the Celestial Warriors flew to the mainland on Drakontos titanuses to fight off the clans and kingdoms. I dreamed I was there. And I dreamed I saw the Algotti Empire.::

Aaru was as still as ever.

::I dream about an eclipse a lot—both moons passing in front of the sun, one after the other. And it seems like I’m supposed to know something. Be somewhere. Do something.::

It was impossible to explain the feeling of urgency present in the dreams. Everything seemed so immediate. So imperative. But trying to articulate it always fell short.

::And I’ve dreamed about islands. Ships. People moving toward coasts and building ships. And the other night, I dreamed about dozens of tiny boats dotting the ocean, a little girl inside each one. The girls didn’t speak out loud, but I thought I saw . . .:: My fingers stilled as I reconsidered telling him that I thought they’d been using the quiet code. It might upset him more. ::They’re just dreams, though.::