days pass, and the weather slowly returns to its normal heat. The snow melts, and the creeks run full of dirty water.
“Looks like the winters are short, but brutal,” Jennifer says, elbow deep in dinosaur fats that we will boil and strain to make clean-burning lamp oil. “I’m actually not opposed to that.”
I cut a thin strip of dry bark off a branch, braiding it with two others to make material for a wick. “Could be. Short, insane winters and then long, humid summers. I could actually do without the winter part. Or the humid part.”
“Yeah,” she agrees. “But we’ll live with it, whatever happens.”
“We will.” For the hundredth time today, my eyes seek the army camp, hoping to see a large figure leaning casually on the fence and looking in this direction. But for the hundredth time, my heart sinks just a little deeper in my chest when there’s nobody there.
The warriors are milling to and fro as usual, busy with their duties. There are more forges in the army camp now – Brax’tan has ordered some of them to make tubes that can be fashioned into guns. I guess we’re getting ready for a final battle of some kind.
The echo of his music keeps playing in my mind, especially at night.
Jennifer follows my gaze. “Go and see him, Dolly.”
I sigh. “And say what? He knows I’ll be going to Earth as soon as the spidermonkeys let us use the escape ship.”
“You seem very sure about that.”
“Yeah… for a while there I was pretty sure I’d stay. Because – well, you know. Because of him. Now, I have even less reason to stay than before. Even this lab reminds me of him now. He knows I’ll go to Earth.”
Jennifer loads about ten pounds of half-rancid dinosaur fat into a metal pot, ready for boiling. “Does he really? Are you sure he can’t sense that you wouldn’t, if you could be sure about him?”
“I don’t know what he senses. He’s pretty confused, himself. He thinks he’s not able to protect me.”
She drags the pot to the fire and lifts it onto a tripod so it hangs over the flames. “Yuck. This is too disgusting for words. Anyway, I’ve been thinking. You said there was a dragon there. Outside, when you left. And Brank’ox talked about a dragon being there, too. You know they can screw with your mind. Do you think something like that happened?”
“I’ve been thinking about that,” I admit. “But I don’t know what to do about it.”
“Go and talk some sense into him.”
I finish one wick and get started on another. “I’m not sure I can.”
“I’ll go with you. We’ll convince him fine. Also, you didn’t finish your mission. You have to make more gunpowder. Soon.”
I sigh. “That actually irks me a little. Okay, it was the right decision to leave when the snow started. It could have turned nasty, and it probably did, back there. But there are several batches ready to go. It’s all under a roof, too, so it’s still dry. I can have several hundred pounds ready in a week. A thousand pounds, maybe.”
“There you go. March right over there and get the Factory working. Bring a bunch of guys that can carry the finished product back here. Anyway, think about it. Say, is it just me, or is it getting colder again?”
I look up. “I feel it, too. Doesn’t look like it’ll snow, though.”
33
- Brank’ox -
I only sleep a few hours at night, and the days I spend working feverishly.
After several days my work is mostly done.
The snow is gone, and the air is clear and dry. Perfect.
I put on Benen’ax’s gold necklace and the fur coat over it, then go outside to get water.
Isualic follows me, as usual.
“You must tell me,” he says, like he has done for the last ten days. “What were you two doing in there?”
I stroll down the hill. I usually only give him a small, indecipherable clue, or I tease him and say nothing. But today I want him to get it. “I’m sure you’d like to know.”
“Yes! That’s why I keep asking. Are there valuables?”
I tighten the fur coat around me. It’s getting colder again. “The aliens who built that place were your enemies, right?”
“The Inferiors? Indeed, we hunted them to extinction. I murdered many of them, myself. But whatever valuables they had are tainted, sick and useless.”
“Are you sure?” I ask over my shoulder as I walk around a tree and jump over a