The Plains of Kallanash by Pauline M. Ross

current mood. She stared unseeingly at the words in front of her. She had not expected her encounter with Jonnor to be as romantic as the books she read since he was so deep in grief, but the abruptness of it had shaken her. She felt numb and disoriented, as if she were not quite connected to the women around her. Even the room seemed grey, as if shrouded in fog.
    She jumped when Morsha patted her hand. “Time to go.”
    They were ready in good time, escorted up the stairs by a troop of silent servants and shown where to stand. The sky ships ran to a strict timetable, and if they failed to board their assigned cabin at the correct time, they would be left behind. There would be severe consequences if they missed their first interviews.
    The waiting platform was a miserable place, with no shelter from the weather at all. The Plains of Kallanash were never free of wind, but up here they were fully exposed and their heaviest woollen headscarves were tightly wound to cover all but their eyes. The air was bitter cold, but at least it was clear. The warmer northern Karnings had many advantages, but there the air was always laden with dust blown down from the desert.
    From where they stood, the full length of the sky ship way was visible in both directions, with the huge chains which pulled the ships gliding along in their grooves, and the long line of windmills stretching off into the distance. Before too long, the chains started shaking with a great clanking noise, and in a little while their sky ship came into view, the great metal sails above each cabin angled to slow it down. Between boarding stops the ships moved under their own power, but occasionally the wind was adverse and then the windmills along the way powered the chains and pulled the ship along.
    As the ship drew near, a long snake of connected cabins, it hitched itself to the smaller chains which pulled it slowly through the bay of the boarding platform. As soon as their appointed cabin drew alongside, their little gaggle of servants sprang into action, throwing open the double doors, sliding their travelling boxes under the seats and assisting the women inside as the wagon crept past. Within moments the doors closed again behind them, and almost at once there was a little jerk as they picked up speed.
    The four women leaned back against the cushions and laughed in relief. It was always a tense moment, boarding the sky ship, and its successful accomplishment was occasion for celebration. Morsha scrabbled on the floor to access her box, and drew forth a flask of apple wine and four beakers. Mia liked it better than regular wine, and drank her share as they flew along, giggling as much as any of them at Mista’s jokes.
    Then it was a matter of watching the world go by as they sped along, covering as much ground in an hour as a horse would take all day to accomplish, slowing only occasionally to take on more passengers. Sometimes they were surrounded by the tops of trees, almost leafless now, but mostly they had a clear view of the endless plains – a village here, an orchard there, a Karninghold, then a watchtower away in the distance as they crossed a boundary line between Karnings. Several times they saw Godstowers, small towers standing alone, unused and purposeless, without even a door. Then the emptiness of the barrens, treeless and deserted, left as a reminder of how the whole Plains of Kallanash used to be before the Petty Kings and later the Word of the Gods brought order. Beyond that were the game-filled forests which helped to feed the Ring.
    Mia’s Companions had no interest in views they had seen many times before. Marna fell asleep, and Morsha and Mista began playing a simple guessing game. Mia gazed unseeing through the windows. Usually she loved this journey, skimming the treetops like a bird, or speeding along high above the plains grasses that rippled and waved in the wind. The sky ships were thrilling, her excitement tempered only by apprehension