Fire Island: Book 3 of The Chatterre Trilody (Chatterre Trilogy) Read Online Free PDF Page B

the air at the market.”
    Though that sounded confusing, it also sounded promising. Tem-aki took off her helmet and cautiously sniffed the air. Ew, rotten fish. Fortunately, there was also the scent of wood smoke and something oddly herbal.
    Unfortunately, without the haze from the condensation, she confirmed that the white things were in fact humanoid skeletons. She didn't know what to think about expending all her energy to get to a cemetery, but assured herself that the good news was that if there were dead humanoids laid out in hand-hewn crevices, others should still be alive and hopefully they could help her find Thunder and Raine, or maybe just direct her straight to Larwin.

Chapter 4
    Cameron knelt on a rough, woven reed mat in front of the fire and tried to focus on the proper tones and phrases for petitioning the creators, but odd sounds, from deep within the tunnels' black unknown depths kept distracting him. At first he thought he heard splashes, so he moved to the side, so he could see around the fire, but he still could not see into the darkness.
    So, he knelt on his mat, again and spent several minutes listening, but the only noise was from the gases in the burning wood popping and spitting. Certain that his imagination was playing with him, he began the chants, again.
    As his muscles relaxed, a high-pitched voice said something garbled in the depths.
    Cameron jumped up, looking for whoever had dared to enter this sacred space. In the gloom, he saw something pale near the water's edge. Squinting, he realized that Saphera was crouched near the waterline. With a sigh, he knelt and began the ritual, again.
    Just as his forehead touched the reeds, he felt a rush of air and felt thuds on the ground, as Saphera ran past him, then threw herself onto the dusty ground behind him, as if she was trying to hide her five-hundred-pound bulk behind his one-hundred-eighty-pound form. Dear companion that she was, Saphera had always shown excessive caution, which was why he often joked that 'fear' was the middle of her name. In fact, many snickered and called her a 'frady cat', but this was ridiculous.
    She was merely cautious.
    A moment later, from the other side of the blaze, he heard what sounded like snippets of conversation. At least it sounded like two voices uttering consonants and vowels, but there had not been one intelligible word.
    Were the creators testing him because they sensed his doubts?
    Testing poor Saphera, because of her timid ways?
    Squaring his shoulders, Cameron focused on his duty as mediator between the creators and the faithful and began to pray, only to hear a high-pitched voice rasp, “Yes. It is very similar to the air at the market.” Chills ran down his spine at the high, thin clarity of the voice.
    Were the creators speaking to him?
    Why couldn't he understand what they were saying?
    Unable to focus on his devotions, Cameron sat up, and saw a brief glimpse of something azure, where Saphera had been looking prior to her latest panic attack. Azure was the most sacred color. Why would she run from that? He stared without blinking, the fire's heat making his eyes water, then, he saw the apparition again. Closer this time, and fully out of the water, it knelt in front of the bones of most ancient dracos, as if paying homage.
    Heart slamming against his ribs, mouth dry, Cameron forgot to breathe as he watched the miracle.
    After the deity set aside its offering to the dead, it almost looked human. Then it made some odd movements and seemed to be taking off its round, crystalline crown.
    The flames leaped, blocking his view.
    With a gasp, he remembered to breath and then, he cautiously moved to his right, so he could see around the fire. The vision in azure was still there, and with the round hat-thing off, it had the face of a beautiful woman. Deity, really, judging by the golden halo. But it also seemed to have a second face; at least he thought the mangled mess was a face, beneath a mess of horrid,