Edge of Worlds (The Books of the Raksura) by Martha Wells Page A

receive it in the spirit it was meant.
    His expression perplexed, Delin added, also in Raksuran, “I noticed this too, with the Aventerans. Are people simply that blind to detail? I look much like Vendoin, in that we both have two arms, two legs, one head, and so on, but all else is different. It does not seem a survival trait to ignore these facts.”
    “What are you saying?” Rorra demanded.
    Delin let a little impatience show, and answered in Kedaic, “We’re speaking of your willful ignorance in confusing Raksura with Fell.”
    Also obviously nearing the end of her patience, Jade said, “This is entertaining, but you didn’t come here for words of caution. Delin’s given you those, and you’ve ignored them. And he’s already asked, and knows the answers to, all these questions. What do you really want from us?”

C HAPTER F IVE
    C allumkal glanced at Vendoin, and read something off the mask of her face that Moon couldn’t see. Callumkal said, “Very well. Delin told us of your abilities. I think he must have told you that we want your help.”
    Vendoin turned to Delin. “Did you know we meant to ask this?”
    Delin said, “It was a possibility that occurred to me, as a potential method of entering the city. But as I told you, I am undecided about the wisdom of attempting it in the first place.” He eyed Callumkal. “I did wonder if your expedition would be too wary of the Raksura to make the suggestion, once you met them.”
    Callumkal inclined his head to Delin with an air of irony. “I’m glad I could surpass your low expectations.”
    Chime flicked a glance at Heart, and said, “Where is this city? Can you show us a map?”
    Vendoin turned to Callumkal. “I think we must show them, before we continue.”
    Callumkal didn’t answer immediately, clearly reluctant to take that step. Jade folded her arms, her spines taking on an irritated angle. “You can’t ask us to go somewhere with you if you aren’t even willing to trust us with the location.”
    “True,” Callumkal conceded. Rorra drew breath as if to protest, but didn’t speak as Callumkal reached into the flat pouch at his belt and drew out a square of waxed cloth. He stepped forward and knelt on the mossy ground. As he unfolded it, Rorra moved around him and stood close by. Kalam sat beside his father. Callumkal said, “This is a copy, of course. The original is carved into a stone that forms part of the support beneath the Archive Kedmar. We know nearly nothing of the species we call the foundation builders, who constructed it and carved the image. They left behind little else but some writings which are mostly poetry, the meanings of which are greatly disputed by various scholars, and the stone beneath the ruins of their cities.”
    “There should be more. I still believe something tried to destroy everything they left behind,” Vendoin added, not reassuringly.
    Callumkal made what Moon interpreted as an I’m not going to argue with you in front of strangers gesture. Callumkal added, “The annotations were made by the mapmakers who copied it.”
    The map was drawn on the cloth with a dark ink, the place names and directions neatly written out in Kedaic. Heart and Chime both leaned forward to look, Chime from one side and Heart from the other. One of the skills Chime had used as a mentor which he still had as a warrior was copying text and drawings, and Heart was expert at it as well. Arbora who copied books in the court’s library tended to have excellent memories for writing and drawings, something that made the copying go much faster. Moon suspected this one long look would be enough for them to memorize the map and recreate it later.
    Moon sat up on his knees to move closer. He reached for the edge of the map, meaning to tug out the wrinkles in it, and Rorra grabbed his shoulder.
    Jade was suddenly between them. She slapped Rorra’s hand away before Moon had a chance to draw breath. Rorra stepped back and instinctively jerked