Glory Alley and the Star Riders (The Glory Alley Series) (48 page)

“What about three million?
I bet you could scrounge that up even without magic.”

“And
then
ye would return
the
Elboni?”

“
If I had it, and I’m not saying that I do, but heck
yeah
, I’d return it for three mil
.”

“I will bring your offer to Lady Gost,
”
Needle shook his head.
“B
ut I am certain it will be rejected.”

“Why’s that
?
”

“Interfering with another planet’s government, monetary system, or institutions of trade be strictly prohibited. We cannot simply take three million credits from somewhere on Tullah and hand them to ye.
Unless, of course, we be directed to do so by the Elboni.
”

“
You’d let Wybb die over some stupid
rules
?
”
Glory
tried
to hide her
building
frustration
.
“Why
are you
so stingy with the
wishes?
”

The
Wybbil
s cringed.

“Watch your tongue,
Rock Collector
.
”
Bone’s voice was stern. “
Magical requests
.
”

“Oops, I keep forgetting.”

“
Not
stingy,
but
obedien
t
.
Obedience brings order to our world, protecting it from chaos, keeping everything predictable, like a shape. The
one around the Elboni
serve
d
as a barrier against words that might otherwise gain power over us”

“You mean the shape blocks magic spells?”

“Not exactly,” White Feather said. “But she has the right idea.” White Feather said.

“
If it wasn’t
for the ritual,” Bone said. “
Star Riders would
be
come
slaves to every creature seeking the object of
its desire and that’s no way to live.
"

“I suppose
not
.
”
Glory
studied the force
field and asked aloud, “
But rules can make you a slave too.
”

The Wybbils
grumbled to each other, but didn’t have a comeback
.
She noticed shapes engraved all over the walls. Circles, squares, ovals, rectangles, and triangles. Some appeared to be made of metal, others seashells, many were made of vines. They must have some hidden meaning.

“Tell me about the shapes I see, all made of different substances. What does it mean?
”

Needle
cleared his throat and explained like a primary school teacher, all patient and such, like he was glad to remedy such ignorance.

“Shape and substance matter very much.
Material that never had life
be
a barrier to
magic
. It keeps it in, or out, depending on the perspective.

“
Living material creates the strongest bond with
the
magic,
but it
behaves most unpredictably
.
One must be very careful when using magic on living things, especially people.

“
That’s why
organic material,
things that once had life, but do
n’t
any longer,
make
s
the best vessels for
conducting
magic.
The blueprint of life is there, but neutralized, making the consequences predictable.”

“
Interesting.” Glory made a mental note to write that down. “
But why
a rectangle
?
Could the force
field be shaped like a circle and still work?”

Needle and White Feather burst out laughing
.

"A circle
—ha!
” Bone said
.
“
Everyone knows a circle be for magic
.
Square be for logic
.
Oval be for abundance
.
Rectangle be for death
.
”

“What!”
Glory
said in surprise, noting the rectangular transparent box housing the empty pedestal
.
“Are you trying to kill the
Elboni
?”

The three
Wybbil
s eyes went wide
. They laughed at her again.

“Silly Tullahn.” Bone rolled his eyes.

Good, they were sharing information with her unguarded.
Wybbils thought Tullahns were so ignorant, so
beneath them, if she lined up her game pieces just right, their arrogance might just
cost them a wish.

“No,
Rock Collector
,” Needle replied
.
“
A rectangle be for death
, of course, b
ut
death comes in many forms
.
T
he
shape of this particular barrier kills spells and nothing else
.
There
be
rectangles that are designed
for physical death
, but not this one.”

“So, if the force
field was, let’s say a circle, it wouldn’t kill a spell—it would make it stronger?”

“It depends
, but
ye have
the
basic notion.”

“What’s the rectangle around the Elboni made from—something dead?”

Just then
,
the sound of a trumpet pierced the air. Everyone jerked to attention
.

Two tall doors swung open and a couple dozen guards entered
.
Some had
wormy
black beards, others brown
.
All had saggy cheeks like the emissaries
.
Dressed in forest green uniforms, studded with silver buttons, they marched in unison through the cathedral
.
A
small
woman
with smooth skin,
and
cheeks that didn’t sag,
followed behind them
.

“All make way for the Guardian of Sacred Things!” a loud voice
echoed
.

G
uards marched
protectively around a
dainty woman
in a sil
k
y white gown with a train so long it dusted the floor
several feet behind her
. She walked slow
ly
and proud
ly
like a dignified bride
confidant of her beauty
.
She held a
maroon book gilded
with
gold high above her head
.
Shocking white hair cascaded over her shoulders down to her knees
.
Her reddish smooth face was neither young
n
or old, but timeless
.

“It’s Lady
Gost
,” Needle whispered out the corner of his mouth to
Glory
.
“So behave yourself.
”

“What!”
Glory
squeaked
.
“She’s a ghost?”

“No,
Rock Collector
.
Not
a
ghost
—
GOST
.
T
he
Guardian
o
f Sacred Things
.
She guards
T
he
Book
o
f
Law
s
among other things.”

“Is she your boss?”

“
Her husband has put her in charge over all
of Wybb
, so yes, she’s the boss
.”

The rest of the guards formed two straight lines. Glory nervously eyed the scabbards at their sides. Lady Gost, Guardian of Sacred Things, walked through their ranks
to stand just a few feet
in front of Glory. Even though
she was a head shorter than
Glory
,
she felt
small in her
presence.

L
a
dy Gost’s huge
dark eyes
f
elt like spears
piercing
Glory
’s
very soul
.
T
he
star riders
took off their hats and bowed deeply
.
The woman
stood before them, book hefted high, lips moving as if in prayer. When she lowered the book, the lead guard shouted.