Ventus by Karl Schroeder

Karl Schroeder / Ventus / Page 17
inside boulders and, and hills and such like. They’re mecha,
not monsters. That one was just trying to protect itself."
"What was that silver stuff? It looked alive!"
"Dad told me about that one time. The mothers protect
themselves with it. He said the stuff goes towards whatever’s
wettest. He said he saw somebody get covered with it once; he
died, but the stuff was still on him, so they got it off by
dropping the body in a horse trough."
Emmy shuddered. "That was an awful chance. Don’t do
anything like that again, hear?"
The excitement was over, and the rest of the crowd began
to disperse. "Come, let’s get you cleaned up," she said, towing
him in the direction of the kitchens.
As they were rounding the reflecting pool, Jordan heard
the sudden thunder of hooves, saw the dust fountaining up
from them. They were headed straight for him.
"Look out!" He whirled, pushing Emmy out of the way.
She shrieked and fell in the pool.
The sound vanished; the dust blinked out of existence.
There were no horses. The courtyard was empty and still
under the morning sun.
Several people had looked over at Jordan’s cry, and were
laughing again.
"What--?"
"How could you!" A hot smack on his cheek turned him
around again. Emmy’s dress was soaked, and now clung
tightly to her hips and legs.
"I--I didn’t mean to--"
"Oh, sure. What am I going to do now?" she wailed.
"Really--I heard horses. I thought--"
"Come on." She grabbed his arm ran for the nearby
stables. Inside she crossly wrung out her skirt in a stall,