only been brought up an inch or two. There was padding in the seat and thighs, just enough to make riding slightly more comfortable, and Lara suspected her gratitude, already significant, would know no bounds before the journey was over.
She was escorted by the two elfin warriors—escorted, becauseshe was the most likely to fall off her horse. Ioan and Aerin rode close to either side of her, even though Aerin had once again worked the magic that kept Lara stuck in the saddle. Less stuck than before, though, Aerin had said: Lara would never learn to ride properly if she trusted magic over her own talent and instinct.
Lara muttered “What instinct?” again now. They had been riding for a long time, but with only magic-born globes like those from the Seelie citadel for light, she had little idea of
how
long. Long enough to make her thighs and back ache, but at her skill level, that had only taken a few minutes. Her discomfort was worsened by the supply packs strapped across the horse’s haunches. Intellect told her they were far enough back not to disturb her ride, but she kept edging forward in the saddle, trying to give them more room.
Ioan reached over to pat her horse’s shoulder. It turned its head toward him agreeably, but continued forward without missing a step. Lara, though, clutched its mane when its head moved, then felt patient glances from not only Ioan and Aerin, but their horses as well. “We don’t ride horses as a matter of course in my world.”
“Do you not travel, then?” Ioan edged his animal further forward, so they rode abreast of one another instead of with Lara at a slight point. That made more sense: he knew the path they were taking, though for the moment there was no choice in the stone-cut road they followed. It was struck through sheer stone, a pathway tall enough that its ceiling was lost to vision, though echoes suggested there was a roof. Lara glanced up as she had dozens of times already, wondering if one of the globes of light might be sent skyward to show how tall the enclosure was, but once again dismissed the idea with a shiver. She could almost imagine it reached to sunlight if she didn’t
see
that it closed above them.
“We travel,” she said firmly, eager to take her thoughts away from the enclosed roadway. “Just not on horses. We use … self-propelled carriages called cars. There were several of them on the road whenyou came through to fight the hydra. The wheeled boxes in different colors?”
Ioan squinted, then grunted in surprise. “Those would keep a rider dry. How do they work?”
“With what we call an internal combustion engine. Technology, instead of magic.” Lara shook her head. “I could explain a steam engine to you, but not a combustion engine. And I wouldn’t anyway.”
“To keep us simple?” Aerin asked archly.
Lara risked a dirty look over her shoulder. The horse ambled along, undisturbed by her motion, and triumph lanced through her before she answered. “To keep the air clean, maybe. The fuel those engines burn smells terrible and is bad for the atmosphere. But even if I understood them well enough to explain it, they’re made of steel. Seelie couldn’t make them anyway.”
“We could use another metal, perhaps.”
“I think the whole point of iron and steel is that once it’s molded it can be reheated without losing its integrity. Most metal is too soft.”
“Is this?” Aerin tapped her moonlit armor, and dismay splashed through Lara.
“I don’t know. It’s at least as strong as the plate mail my people used to use, but it’s lighter, so maybe it’s harder, too.” Lara wrinkled her nose. “Anyway, I really can’t tell you how they work, because I honestly don’t know. Mostly in my world we have mechanics to take care of car problems. People don’t fix them themselves, if something goes wrong.”
“You must have some idea,” Ioan said dubiously. “There’s no one here who can’t check a hoof for stones, or rub
She was escorted by the two elfin warriors—escorted, becauseshe was the most likely to fall off her horse. Ioan and Aerin rode close to either side of her, even though Aerin had once again worked the magic that kept Lara stuck in the saddle. Less stuck than before, though, Aerin had said: Lara would never learn to ride properly if she trusted magic over her own talent and instinct.
Lara muttered “What instinct?” again now. They had been riding for a long time, but with only magic-born globes like those from the Seelie citadel for light, she had little idea of
how
long. Long enough to make her thighs and back ache, but at her skill level, that had only taken a few minutes. Her discomfort was worsened by the supply packs strapped across the horse’s haunches. Intellect told her they were far enough back not to disturb her ride, but she kept edging forward in the saddle, trying to give them more room.
Ioan reached over to pat her horse’s shoulder. It turned its head toward him agreeably, but continued forward without missing a step. Lara, though, clutched its mane when its head moved, then felt patient glances from not only Ioan and Aerin, but their horses as well. “We don’t ride horses as a matter of course in my world.”
“Do you not travel, then?” Ioan edged his animal further forward, so they rode abreast of one another instead of with Lara at a slight point. That made more sense: he knew the path they were taking, though for the moment there was no choice in the stone-cut road they followed. It was struck through sheer stone, a pathway tall enough that its ceiling was lost to vision, though echoes suggested there was a roof. Lara glanced up as she had dozens of times already, wondering if one of the globes of light might be sent skyward to show how tall the enclosure was, but once again dismissed the idea with a shiver. She could almost imagine it reached to sunlight if she didn’t
see
that it closed above them.
“We travel,” she said firmly, eager to take her thoughts away from the enclosed roadway. “Just not on horses. We use … self-propelled carriages called cars. There were several of them on the road whenyou came through to fight the hydra. The wheeled boxes in different colors?”
Ioan squinted, then grunted in surprise. “Those would keep a rider dry. How do they work?”
“With what we call an internal combustion engine. Technology, instead of magic.” Lara shook her head. “I could explain a steam engine to you, but not a combustion engine. And I wouldn’t anyway.”
“To keep us simple?” Aerin asked archly.
Lara risked a dirty look over her shoulder. The horse ambled along, undisturbed by her motion, and triumph lanced through her before she answered. “To keep the air clean, maybe. The fuel those engines burn smells terrible and is bad for the atmosphere. But even if I understood them well enough to explain it, they’re made of steel. Seelie couldn’t make them anyway.”
“We could use another metal, perhaps.”
“I think the whole point of iron and steel is that once it’s molded it can be reheated without losing its integrity. Most metal is too soft.”
“Is this?” Aerin tapped her moonlit armor, and dismay splashed through Lara.
“I don’t know. It’s at least as strong as the plate mail my people used to use, but it’s lighter, so maybe it’s harder, too.” Lara wrinkled her nose. “Anyway, I really can’t tell you how they work, because I honestly don’t know. Mostly in my world we have mechanics to take care of car problems. People don’t fix them themselves, if something goes wrong.”
“You must have some idea,” Ioan said dubiously. “There’s no one here who can’t check a hoof for stones, or rub
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