He was wrong. The lyrinx had no intention of attacking him. It altered course, darted for the side of the balloon and, with a single swipe of its claws, tore through the fabric.

Air hissed out. The balloon plunged toward the rocks, far below.

Ullii stopped screaming.

SIX

Are you all right?’ Tiaan yelled as the second lyrinx lunged towards them. Backing under the overhanging rock, she whacked at it with her rod. The lyrinx retreated a step. She held no threat but it was wary of Malien.

Malien was breathing hard. ‘I’ve not used the Art to defend myself in two hundred years. Just give me a minute.’

Lowering her head, she took several deep breaths. ‘After the last time, I swore I would devote myself to peace. You have undone all that in a day.’

‘I’m sorry –’ Tiaan began.

‘Hush! I’m not blaming you.’

Malien peered out from under the rock. The first lyrinx still lay on its back, one leg moving feebly. The other was three or four paces away, standing with wings spread, watching them. It was a massive creature, many times Tiaan’s weight, and all of it bone and muscle. The armoured skin plates made it difficult to attack, even with sword or spear. The large mouth was agape, revealing hundreds of grey teeth. Its eyes, under prominent brow ridges, shone with intelligence. Beautiful colours shimmered across its chameleon skin, iridescent blues, greens and reds. Skin-speech: used for communication, to frighten enemies, and sometimes just for the joy of it.

‘Even three would not have troubled me when I was in my prime,’ Malien muttered. ‘Of course, that was a long time ago and this is a poor place to defend. If there are more of them around, we can’t hold out. We’ve got to get back inside.’

‘They’ll just come after us,’ said Tiaan.

‘Tirthrax has defences. Keep an eye out for the third lyrinx.’

Edging out from under the shelf, Tiaan scanned the sky. She saw the creature at once, swooping toward the balloon, which was now just a small black teardrop in the western sky.

‘What’s it doing?’ she said as lyrinx and balloon merged. The balloon fell out of the sky and disappeared. The lyrinx turned back towards them.

Tiaan felt sick. For all her hatred of Nish, she did not want him to die that way. Nor Ullii, who seemed harmless and had been kind to her. ‘It’s torn open the balloon. Now it’s on its way back.’

‘Flying drains them. We’d better move before they recover. Give me the rod.’

Tiaan passed it to her. Malien slid her hands back and forth along it, and Tiaan felt the hairs on her arms rise up. Malien pressed forward, holding the rod out toward the standing lyrinx. A silver bead formed at the end, swelling and glowing like molten glass on the end of a glassblower’s tube. When the bead was about the size of a melon, she thrust it at the lyrinx.

The creature clapped its hands together. The globe broke out in bright speckles, like metal filings sprinkled into a fire. Malien’s neck sinews stood up. The lyrinx went rigid, straining to overcome an invisible force. Malien muttered under her breath. The globe burst and the lyrinx went tumbling backwards down the slope.

She fell to her knees, dropping the rod. ‘That hurt,’ she gasped. ‘How are we doing?’

Tiaan picked the rod up. ‘The lyrinx isn’t moving but I don’t think it’s dead. The flying one will be here in a minute or two.’

‘No, it’s not dead. I’m not a killer, Tiaan. Give me a hand.’

They made their way up the slope, Malien’s weight heavy on Tiaan’s shoulder. The flying lyrinx began to circle around them. Tiaan stopped abruptly.

‘What is it?’ Malien asked.

‘I know her.’ Tiaan was staring at the transparent-skinned creature. ‘Her name is Liett. She was one of the lyrinx at Kalissin; a flesh-former.’ That roused unpleasant memories.

‘What will she do?’

‘I have no idea,’ Tiaan said. ‘I spent three months as their prisoner, but I knew little more about them at the end. Though …’

‘Yes?’

‘They are deadly in battle, but when you get to know them … I found them to be honourable creatures.’

‘That’s encouraging,’ said Malien, ‘yet I can’t say I want to get to know them.’

They watched the circling lyrinx, which now turned and flapped towards the two fallen ones. ‘She’s given up.’

‘They know where we are. They can come back at any time, with an army.’

The lyrinx did not attack again, though as Tiaan and Malien made the weary climb up the mountain, Tiaan twice saw Liett circling high above. After they passed into Tirthrax, Liett flew east.

‘What do we do now?’ Tiaan asked as they rested in the entrance.

Malien unwrapped a food packet. ‘Have some filuvior.’

Tiaan took a chunk of something that looked like green, crumbly cheese but dissolved smoothly in the mouth. It had a taste she could not put words to, a combination of aromatic, creamy and acrid. Her mouth tingled afterwards but she did feel better.

‘What is this stuff, Malien?’

‘A tonic for exhaustion, body or mind.’

She took another piece. Tiaan did too.

‘This level of the city is undefendable,’ Malien went on. ‘And that’s a pity, because there are things here I would sooner the enemy never saw, not least of them the wrecked constructs. Fortunately I can seal off the upper and lower entrances. We have greater treasures there. I wonder what brought the lyrinx here?’ She looked questioningly at Tiaan.

‘The amplimet, I expect. They can track such things.’

‘How do you know that?’ Malien said sharply.

‘At the manufactory, when I was an artisan …’ Memories of her lost life came rushing back and for a moment Tiaan could not speak. ‘The enemy were locating our clankers from afar, and we could not tell how. I discovered that they could sense the aura given off by a working crystal.’

‘How? I’ve never heard of such a thing.’

‘I was never sure. They used something that resembled a large, leathery mushroom. I don’t know whether they made it, grew it or –’

‘Flesh-formed it,’ Malien said, with an uncharacteristic shiver. ‘Go on.’

‘I developed a way of shielding crystals from them.’

‘What did you do?’

‘I wrapped the crystals in gold foil, sealed them tight and covered everything with pitch. That cut off the aura and prevented the crystals being sabotaged by heat, too.’ She looked away. ‘I miss my work.’

‘What a remarkable young woman you are,’ said Malien. ‘I wish –’

‘What?’

‘No matter.’

Malien activated sentinels – squat black cones – at the entrances to the lower and upper levels. Tiaan’s eyes lingered on the broken constructs as they went by. The design, and the workmanship, was magnificent. Were they powered by the field, as clankers were, or did they draw on an entirely different source? She wanted to get inside one and find out. Tiaan really missed her craft.

They went up. It was not far, now that Tiaan knew the way, but they had to climb eight long swirling flights of stairs, one after another. By the last, the old woman was shaking.

‘This day has been rather too much for me. I’ll see you in the morning.’ Malien went into her room and closed the door.

Tiaan had a drink of water and sat down until her heart stopped hammering. She was overcome by a deep melancholy. Such a small decision to care about Minis, such mighty consequences. Was the world already at war with the Aachim? Were innocent people being slaughtered while she sat here in luxury?

Tiaan sprang out of the chair. She felt a mad urge to hurt herself, to make herself suffer as a way of connecting with Haani. Flinging the door open, she hurtled up the stairs to Malien’s lookout, rejoicing in the ache in her side. She slapped the opener with her palm. The glass wall slid back and Tiaan pushed out into the gale.