Page 110 of The Falconer

‘I’m trying!’

Just then, one of thedaoine sìthon horseback reins in his mount and holds a palm out towards me, fingers splayed.Oh, damnatio—

Light bursts from his palm.

I throw the door open and dive from the locomotive, my body slamming into the ground. I yelp as my wrist cracks under my weight.

The locomotive explodes. I pull my knees to my chest and cover my head as scraps of glass and metal hit the ground. A large, sharp piece embeds itself into the ground right next to my face.

Get up, get up!

I push to my feet, ignoring the sharp pain in my wrist. Kiaran’s powers are already healing it.

Ahead of me, I see a metal horse without a rider. I race across the meadow and leap onto the animal’s back, settling myself astride in the saddle. The horse whinnies in protest and smoke rises from its nostrils. It rears, but I hold on tight to its fine golden mane. Kiaran’s powers stream from my fingertips, glowing brightly. The horse calms.

‘Go,’ I command.

The horse takes off so fast, I can barely keep hold of its mane. It pounds across the Queen’s Park, through grass so wet water splashes high enough to soak my trousers. Beneath me, its hooves thump as loud and fast as its heart. Thumpthumpthumpthumpthumpthump. I lean my body closer to the creature’s back, until we move together.

I don’t dare look back. I’m afraid I’ll turn and find Kiaran dead. I have to trust that our connection through the armour will let me know if that happens.

The galloping hooves behind me only worry me more, but I try to remain focused, tightening my grip on the horse’s mane. I urge it faster, faster. Power snaps around me, blindingly bright.

A bolt of energy strikes the grass close by and the horse screams in protest. It rears up and I almost lose my seat. I channel Kiaran’s power to soothe the beast, to coax it back to running.

The horse’s front hooves hit the ground again and we’re moving with even greater speed, crashing along the dirt path that leads to St Anthony’s Chapel. I feel the buzzing of the device before we reach the archway. Then I’m out of the saddle and racing to the stones. I drop to the dirt and dig to uncover the device again.

I look up. There are more horsemen behind me,sluaghin the sky above me. No sign of Kiaran, but I can’t think about that now.

My digging grows more frantic, the buzzing just as loud as before. Finally, the gold gleams through the mud.

I press my fingers into the indentations along the side of the metal plate, and light explodes from the device just in time.

Asluaghcrashes into the light shield. I’ve never heard a scream like that before in my life, so full of agony. I watch in shock as thesluaghbursts into blue-white flames and erupts in a burst of ice and mist. Then . . . nothing. There’s only frost on the ground to show the creature ever existed.

The faeries on horseback pursuing me come to a hard stop at the edge of the illuminated shield. They circle me eagerly, mist swirling around their feet. There’s still no sign of Kiaran beyond the fae surrounding me.

Lonnrach approaches and regards the light shield calmly. ‘That won’t save you.’

He holds out his hand and gold power bursts from his palm. It hits the light, and ripples across its surface like water. The other fae join in, their powers mixing together to strike the shield. Soon, it will weaken and fall.

I brace my hands in the mud, on either side of theiuchair. The inner rings have changed positions, just as Kiaran said they would. I remember their correct arrangement from my drawing. I turn the inner circles of the compass and align the symbols with the clock. The etchings shine as they line up and click into place.

Now for the rest. The missing piece of the puzzle. My eyes rove over the symbols I’ve connected, searching for a pattern. Still nothing. What do the bloody things mean?

The clang of metal distracts me. I look up. Kiaran! He must have fought through the wall of riders. His clothes are torn and there are open cuts along his arms.

Kiaran thrusts his blade into adaoine sìth’s chest and glances at me. ‘Hurry!’ he says.

Lonnrach’s power slams into the shield again as I return my attention to theiuchair. But the symbols still don’t appear to be sequential. They’re random. Just errant carvings in no particular order, like stars in the—

Can you name them, Aileana? Here now, repeat after me . . .

Crimson suits you best.

I shake my head against the memories. Images of my mother lying dead. A beautiful corpse of the person I once knew.

Can you name them?

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