Ventus by Karl Schroeder

Karl Schroeder / Ventus / Page 119
without working out ways to deal with them?"
Calandria looked out over the grounds again. This manor
was centuries old, and the civilization that had built it was
older still. And the Winds were as constant as their namesake
in these people's lives. Axel could be right. "So how do they
do it?"
"It's actually pretty simple. A couple of their main
religions are ecologically based, right? The inner doctrine
seems to be emulation of the Winds. If you act like the Winds,
they treat you like one of them. And then they'll talk to you."
"Sounds too easy," she said. "And suspiciously
mystical."
He threw up his hands and stood. "Believe whatever the
hell you want! But it makes sense, Cal: the Winds are
confused about humans to begin with. They don't know
whether we're vermin or part of their grand design. How do
you think agriculture gets done on this world? People placate
them. It works. I think we should look into it."
"All right," she said. "You look into it. Meanwhile, I'm
going to work on Jordan, and find out where Armiger is
going."
Axel frowned. "He really is on the move?"
“Maybe. The Desert Voice located the site of the battle
he talked about, but the forces that survived it are dispersed
across hundreds of kilometers of territory. I’m going to try to
get some more lucid descriptions from Jordan."
"And what if Armiger is headed this way?"
Calandria looked out at the forest woods beyond the
manor grounds. "Then Jordan had better be able to warn us
when he's due."