Ventus by Karl Schroeder

Karl Schroeder / Ventus / Page 740
were on our way to the mountain, I took some steps."
"What steps?"
"I’ll tell you in a minute. Just don’t disturb me for a bit.
Okay?"
Axel stood with his hands in his pockets, scowling at the
ground. Marya stood wide-eyed, her hand to her mouth. The
Voice returned Jordan’s gaze calmly. And Tamsin, who was
obviously scared, smiled and gestured to Jordan as if to say,
"Go on."
Jordan turned, closed his eyes, and fell into Vision.
The silence had become unbearable. The White Wind
stopped walking, and settled back on her haunches. The music
she had felt in her mind for weeks was gone, and with it the
self-assurance that had kept her going.
She had come to the shore of a giant underground lake.
Its dark waters stretched away to an unguessable distance; only
this thin strip of stony path on the outskirts was lit, and it only
poorly. She knew the ones she had pursued had come this way
because they had left their scent; she had used that scent to
negotiate a maze of pipes, and faith in it had led her into a dark
shaft full of rising vessels. Now she was high above ground
level.
Just minutes ago she had paced along in complete
confidence, knowing she was well watched over and treading
paths prepared for her by ancient and loving creators. Now all
she knew was that she was deep in the bowels of a mountain
whose machineries had come to an unexpected stop. Anything
might happen. The waters might rise. The lights might go off.
Uneasy, she started walking again, more rapidly. An
upward-sloping corridor let off the lake, and she took that. In
the distance she saw daylight, and loped toward it, relieved.