Exodus of the Xandim (GOLLANCZ S.F.) by Maggie Furey Read Free Book Online Page B

considerable discussion with Ardea, Crombec, and my advisers in the Royal
Council, I have decided that you will be the one to go.’
    ‘Oh! Oh, thank you.’ Wild with excitement Kea leapt to her feet, almost sending her liafa flying. Suddenly realising she was about to hug the Queen, an unpardonable breach of
protocol, she sat down quickly and composed herself, but inside her heart was singing. It had really happened! Her secret plan, her dearest wish and hope, had come to pass.
    If Pandion had looked intimidating before, she was even more so when she frowned. ‘When you go you will constantly bear in mind that you are representing the Winged Folk –
representing me – in a foreign land. You will comport yourself with dignity and decorum at all times. Is that absolutely clear?’
    Kea quailed. ‘Yes, Your Majesty,’ she whispered.
    ‘You must be aware that there was considerable doubt about choosing you. You have worked very closely with Yinze on his project these past few months, and the two of you have become
friends – very close friends, it seems to me. Dangerously close.’ Pandion’s gaze seemed to be drilling right into Kea’s head, as if she was trying to see what thoughts were
concealed within. ‘For this reason, we came very close to deciding against you, for I was not prepared to risk the intolerable scandal of a coupling between our race and the Wizards. But your
mentors, I gather, have spoken to both you and Yinze very seriously about this matter, and both of you have protested very strongly against the possibility.’
    Yinze said that?
Kea felt a stab of sadness at the thought, but there was no time to dwell on it, for the Queen was still speaking.
    ‘Ironically, the very situation which prompted my uneasiness has weighed in your favour. While helping the Wizard, you have shown that you can work well with his kind. Also you, of all the
Skyfolk, have the greatest experience in integrating Earth magic with our own. Therefore I have set my doubts aside. But bear in mind, Kea, that your friendship with Yinze must go no further than
it already has. I will be in regular communication with the Archwizard, and at the faintest hint of a scandal, you will be recalled to Aerillia.’ Her eyes grew hard as flint. ‘And you
will be punished.’ Then her expression softened. She rose, and held out a hand to Kea. ‘Go with my blessings, child. You have already made the Skyfolk proud. Go now, and make me prouder
still.’
    Clearly the interview was over. Once Pandion had left the balcony, Kea could hardly wait to tear herself away from Ardea and Crombec, and their congratulations that she knew would all too soon
turn into more warnings about good behaviour – as if she hadn’t heard enough of that today. She was bursting to tell Yinze her news, and she didn’t want to waste a minute. She
sped across to his quarters, flying recklessly fast, and hurled herself through the door as soon as he opened it. ‘Yinze, Yinze, you’ll never guess . . .’
    His delight at her news was all she had imagined, all that she could have wished. ‘Why that’s wonderful, Kea. Congratulations. I couldn’t be more happy.’ He whirled her
round in an embrace, as he had done once before, and as they spun to a halt, their eyes met; held. Kea’s heart beat faster. Yet, when he lowered his head to kiss her, the Queen’s dire
warnings resounded in her mind. She ducked her face away hastily, and the moment turned to dust and ashes.
    Inside Yinze’s dwelling was a scene of absolute chaos, as he tried to sort out the essentials and pack. His bearers were standing by to take his baggage outside and load
it into cargo nets, ready for transport in the morning, but he couldn’t see that happening any time soon. Looking at it all, the Wizard felt like tearing his hair out. How the blazes had he
managed to accumulate so much
stuff
during his stay here? He’d thought he had managed to sort out the essentials, but unless he