BlackWing: First Ordinance, Book 3 Read Online Free PDF Page B

at the crowd of people and animals they'd pulled away from the marshy lands just before the seas of Vogeffa II began.
    Drake and Drew, my twin Falchani mates, escorted me as we walked toward the Elf King. I'd made the mistake of sending him swift information—not only to get as many people away from Vogeffa II as he could, but that Quin had alerted me to their danger.
    "We have to find out why she hasn't contacted us before," I held up a hand. "There has to be a reason."
    Kaldill is always so calm. Even tempered. There was an expression on his face I'd never seen before. Daragar , I sent, we may need you .
    That's when Kaldill threw back his head and bellowed. Yes, I understood the word— why was shouted in the elvish language as he dropped to his knees.
    Daragar appeared nearby, but he also looked stricken.
    If my sister hadn't arrived to do what she could, I'm not sure I could have done anything at all. It took a tremendous exertion of the power of Love to calm everyone down well enough to speak and behave in a rational manner.

Chapter 3
    New Fyris
    Quin
    The people of Vogeffa II blinked and stared; animals wandered or ran—all of them were terrified on some level. We'd landed in a new place, scattered in the same way we'd been lifted away from Vogeffa II. Fields stretching as far as we could see surrounded us.
    Somehow, too, my call hadn't been interrupted.
    In only minutes, people from other villages began to arrive. Altogether, it took the better part of two days for all to arrive, but eventually they did.
    I wasn't there to see it, although it made it easier for those who greeted the displaced farming population of Vogeffa II. They understood the danger they'd been in, but had no idea how they'd been pulled away from that danger.
    I wanted to weep for any innocent lives remaining on Vogeffa II—they'd likely be cut to pieces by Vardil Cayetes' flying army, once he learned his quarry had escaped.
    * * *
    New Fyris
    Lissa
    "What do you mean, she's only been there for a few months?" At least Kaldill was calmer, now.
    "We've been studying the problem," Breanne sighed. I hadn't seen my sister in several years, yet here she was, attempting to sort a conundrum we hadn't known existed.
    "What problem is that?" Berel worked to keep his voice calm.
    "The Orb problem," Bree explained. "Quin is connected to the Orb, in ways I can't begin to describe. For whatever reason, it flung her five years into the future. We've had to search continuously just to find her, and then carefully put things in place just to keep her alive and protected. That's why LaFranza was there, with the mute Sirenali. Five years have passed for you—you've lived them. For Quin, only a few months have gone by and some of you—well, she thinks you're dead."
    "Where is the Orb now?" Kaldill's voice was soft. Deadly.
    "Kaldill, if we destroy the Orb, we'll destroy Quin with it. Now do you begin to understand?"
    Kaldill cursed. Daragar, who hadn't spoken, placed a calming hand on Kaldill's shoulder.
    "Whatever and however Liron planned all this, I think his intention was to protect Siriaa and its people. When Cayetes fired his weapon at Siriaa, the Orb reacted. I believe it's sending Quin on a suicide mission to take him down, now. If we attempt to circumvent that directive, it may appear and fling her into the future again. We had a hard enough time dealing with this the first time. I don't want to work that hard to thwart the Orb a second time."
    "So the Orb is still working to obey a dead god's commands?" Daragar spoke for the first time.
    "It looks that way. Unless we find a way to disconnect her from that thing, we may never be able to protect her properly."
    "What do we do in the meantime?" I asked.
    "First, we have to find her. Second, I have to do a similar attachment to anyone who wants to stay with her—it means you'll be connected to her as she's connected to the Orb, but the difference will be that I can perform a disconnect if it's desired.