"I have a bad feeling about this."

Seiren squeezed Madeleine's hand as Martel Solidor's neighbours readied their two horses with enough supplies to get them most of the way. Her money bag sat empty at her hip; the last of their coins had gone towards purchasing these horses. Kaim's group had taken the horses that had brought them to Leitholm and left the night prior; there was no trace of any of the four now. Even if Kristen didn't end up killing the twins with her revived magic, they would probably end up starving or dying from exposure.

"Bairnkine is a city built out of clusters of settlements atop a sandsea," Martel said in a low voice. "Horses will only get you so far, and then you'll have to continue on foot across the rigs built by the ancestors."

"A sand... sea?"

"Ah, you've never been to eastern Hanna or Moakai, have you?" Seeing the twins shake their heads, Martel pursed his lips. "It's a large stretch of desert, but the sand moves like water. It's a peculiar phenomenon found only in the east. To survive out there, our ancestors built rigs that drilled deep beneath the surface of the flowing sand. The sandsea levels fluctuate every year and old structures get buried deeper."

"Makes for a perfect burial place no-one will find," Seiren murmured.

"There are still people living in Bairnkine?" Madeleine said.

"Yes. Not many, but enough to keep the area alive."

"But why?"

"Beneath the sandsea are valuable resources, most notably liquid Hannite. When refined and crystallised, and ground to dust, it becomes summoner's dust. So you see, Bairnkine, despite its desolate location, is very much the backbone of Hanna."

The neighbours slotted the last of the water-rich horse feed and human food onto the horses' backs.

"Right. So we head northeast?" Seiren squinted at the sky.

"Travel only when there is light. The further east you go, the more wild animals there are. For a good thirty miles east of Falnash and before you head into the outskirts of Bairnkine there is no civilisation. Don't get injured, or the battle is lost before you even get there. I hope you have a strategy."

Seiren exchanged a look with Madeleine. All night, she'd been whispering into Seiren's ear, trying to dissuade her from gallivanting without the insurgents east. Heading west first would at least guarantee them safety in numbers. Eleia could summon and Kaim's group was armed. Although Seiren had her rune and flash and Madeleine her rune and burst, if they faced more than one Daemonium member it was unlikely they would last for very long. Seiren was reminded vividly of how easily Gulmore, the Daemonium member, executed Kaim's group when they attempted to assassinate Fautos.

But time was against them. If Kristen got to the burial site of Hanna and somehow got her magic back — there could be no other reason Prince Magus could be moved so suddenly that way — it would be the end. Martel had said only those with royal blood could open Hanna's tomb; Seiren was willing to bet her magic Kristen was travelling with Magus with the aim of using Magus's blood to gain access. Kristen had defied what was thought possible by reanimating Pollin's corpse for over six years. Seiren could only imagine what she could do with the body of one of the original twins, allegedly with summoning magic beyond imagination.

Seiren bade Martel goodbye and strode towards her horse, a tall, majestic, dark brown creature with a flowing black mane like Hannan hair. It was taller and broader than she'd expected; she only came up to its chest. Intelligent dark eyes surveyed her. It didn't make a sound.

"Are you sure you're up for this?" grunted the neighbour. "These are hardy horses, but they're not the most friendly."

"I'm not looking for a daemon," Seiren said, running a hand over the leather saddle. She hooked her foot in the foothold like she'd seen Eleia do and hopped onto the horse. She caught the tip of her other boot on the saddle as she swung it over and almost toppled straight back off again had the neighbour not caught her and shoved her back on.

"Holy—! Little girl, you're not cut out for a journey to the sandseas if you can't even get on a horse," said the man, aghast. "You won't last a day!"

"Watch me," Seiren said with a scowl, adjusting her bottom. The horse smelt of hay and sand, its skin glossy in the sunlight. Madeleine sat demurely on the horse behind her, which was grey with a dark mane. Seiren could feel the horse's strength between her legs, along with every breath through its wide chest and every thump of its heartbeat. Not cut out for this? She'd prove him wrong.

She dug her heels into the horse's flanks the same way she'd seen Kaim and Eleia do. Without a backward glance, they trotted out. The sandstone walls of Leitholm disappeared, replaced with endless stretches of sand and stone. The sun had barely risen; the sky was a pale grey.

When they'd put sufficient distance between Leitholm and themselves, Seiren passed Madeleine the runes she'd designed overnight, almost falling off as she reached across the gap between them. There was no quick way of making the journey easier; neither of them had the build for nor the experience of long-distance riding. Seiren had barely seen a horse up close in her life. She pressed the rune to the saddle and snapped her fingers. It glowed violet and seeped into the shiny brown leather, spreading over the surface and then over the inside of her trousers. She placed the second one over her trousers and the sheepskin stiffened, moulding into the saddle.

She couldn't ask for a carriage to take them to Bairnkine, and the last thing either of them needed was to be flung off a horse due to poor balance and break their necks, so she'd create carriage seats to attach to the horse instead.

She jabbed her ankles in the horse's flank and it sped up. With the stiffened trousers attached securely to her saddle, Seiren had no chance of falling off. Her stomach muscles clenched, struggling to keep her upright. She leant forward, shoulders tense, eyes squinting against the wind and grains of sand breezing past. The veil protected most of her face and the headscarf prevented the sun from scorching her skin. Holding the compass in her hand to ensure they headed northeast, Seiren took in a deep breath and urged the horse on. They were in for a long ride.

****

Pain.

Her mind had gone blank. All she could register was the hot pain rippling through her body, flying over her stomach and chest and down her back. Her neck was stiff. Her shoulders complained endlessly. As night began to fall, they sought shelter for the night. A cluster of fallen rocks, their surfaces smooth from erosion, made a good spot to camp. Madeleine dispelled the rune and slid off the horse, clinging onto the saddle with a surprised yelp as her knees gave out. Seiren's horse panted, its sides heaving, as Seiren slid off. The impact of her feet striking the ground shot up her hips, making her grunt. To her surprise, her body dropped and she landed on her bottom on the sandstone.

The horse huffed and moved away, shaking its head at her almost as if in disappointment.

Seiren dragged herself to the front of the cluster of heaped rocks. Madeleine had just lit an orange rune and ambled about, looking for wood to add to the fire before the magic wore out. Seiren groaned, peeling off her sweat-laden clothing. Her groin throbbed. Her back ached. Muscles whined from areas she didn't even know had muscles. Even turning over from on her belly to lying on her sides hurt. How could a crippled girl like Eleia remain upright for the days they'd ridden from Falnash to Leitholm, and now she was off again west?

Seiren lay on her back, staring up at the starry sky. The temperature fell along with the sun. Even though it had been a scorching day with dry wind and no clouds, the nighttime felt more like autumn evenings in Karma. The cool sweat evaporated off her skin, leaving her with a chill.

"Seiren." Madeleine hobbled back, wincing with every step. She dropped a pile of wood at the entrance to the small shelter the rocks made and threw two logs at the fire. The flames lapped up the dry wood at once. "We need to feed the horses."

"What about feeding us?" Seiren grumbled, forcing herself onto all fours with a groan. "Oh, rune me to hell. Do Hannans really ride all day every day? Why can't they have runed motors or trains or... something?"

"Because horses are quicker, I suppose. And more convenient than laying down rails." Madeleine unpacked the water-rich feed the Leitholm folks had given them and fed her horse. It munched with appreciation, giant teeth grinding sideways over the greens. "It's a good opportunity to experience a different culture. Hannan children learn to ride from very young and a lot of families travel about for food and shelter because their land is so devoid of resources. They're not unlike the nomads in Moakai. The travelling aspects of their cultures are quite similar."

"Whoop-de-doo," Seiren muttered, gesturing at her horse, who gazed back at her with haughtiness. "Come here, you little..."

They tied the horses down after they were all fed and watered and curled together beneath the rocks for shelter overnight. The fire continued to burn, keeping wild animals at bay. Seiren stared at the flickering fire. Madeleine, her back pressed into Seiren's, began to snore. Red, hungry eyes stared at her with resentment from afar, as if cheated of a good meal. She couldn't see their outlines, merely the movement of the eyes as they floated about, always fixated on the two of them.

If she were asked a year ago if she'd see herself illegally travelling in Hanna under the noses of the Hannan royal family, she'd have thought the idea crazy. And yet here she was, once again chasing after someone who should have died, who had thwarted death. Keep my daughters safe, please. Kristen's final plea. Heartfelt as if she'd truly believed she was going to die — but Seiren knew better than to believe those words. Kristen had, with equal compassion, urged Seiren to abandon her cause and join the king's mages side as they exterminated the entirety of Karma bar a select few. No doubt those sweet words of promise and sincerity had worked their magic on Fautos Tophalis, too, to encourage him to use his own brother to open a tomb their father sealed.

When the time came, Seiren was ready — at least, she thought she would be — to put Kristen down at the first opportunity. She doubted she would make it out alive if they came up against the Daemonium. But seeing the anger on the protesters' faces at King's on the day of the graduation and Madeleine's guilt and self-blame, the least Seiren could do was fix what she couldn't at the end of last year.

If luck or fate or whatever was on her side, her only hope was that Madeleine would survive, out of the two of them.

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