“Anthryl probably,” said Coll. “Maybe everything we have – there are no resources out here.” He frowned. It felt weird to agree with Brann.
“Well, they’re right about water,” said Rieka. “We’ve barely enough to make it back out, and if we do, the townsfolk could be waiting for us. We need to find some.”
“We could take their water,” suggested Brann. “Why not? Cub’s bigger, we’ve got more crew.”
That had been Coll’s thought too. But something about the Beetles made him cautious. They were tougher than they made out, he was sure. They were hiding something.
“Well, I think they’re nice,” said Fillan stubbornly. “And Kevin likes them too, don’t you, Kevin?” The Ant looked up at Fillan and rubbed its antennae.
“If you want to find Wolf, they might be our only chance,” said Rieka. She yawned. “Look, it’s late. Let’s sleep on it, decide in the morning.”
Coll nodded. “Yeah.” He stared at the other Construct. “But we sleep on deck in shifts. Someone awake at all times.”
The others groaned, but nobody argued.
The next morning, Dolen laid a battered map on the ground and pointed out their route with a scrap of metal.
“South first, to the Ribbon – here,” he said. “That’s a smooth patch; it’s easier travel. Then east, till we reach the Steel River. It’s a day and a half maybe.”
“The Steel River?” said Coll. “I’ve never heard of it.”
Namir said, “There’ll be game near the river, a bit of vegetation – we can stock up on food and water. Then we’ll send you on your way and you can find your Wolf.”
A day and a half of travelling would use up almost all their remaining supplies. If there wasn’t water at the end of it… Coll turned to Rieka and she gave a tiny nod.
“All right,” Coll said. “We’ll go with you.”
Dolen grinned. “Glad to have you with us. Ain’t that right, Mrs B?”
“Oh yes,” said Namir.
She didn’t smile.
They set off, and Coll was impressed by Beetle’s pace. Dolen and Namir must be powering it just by themselves, but it scrambled over the rough ground without stopping, its six short legs sure and quick. Soon Cub started to drop behind. His paws could run endlessly over grass, but struggled on the loose sand, slippery glass and metal spikes. Beetle slowed to let them catch up, but still the pace was relentless.
“Got to reach the Steel River in time, see?” said Dolen, when they stopped for a very short rest.
“Why?” asked Rieka. “What’s there?”
But he just grinned again. “You’ll see.”
They reached the area Dolen called the Ribbon. Here the sand was densely packed like a road, which was easier to walk along, and Cub was able to speed up. They weren’t the first to go along this route; scraps of plastic and metal littered the sides. Beetle stopped and poked at some as they passed.
“Look at that, Mrs B!” called Dolen, holding up a torn canister. “Bit of work, that’ll be good as new.” He lifted a panel in Beetle’s large body and threw the canister in, then beamed up at Coll. “Can’t be too fussy out here, you see,” he said. “You survive long enough in the Glass Lands, you get so’s you’d bottle your own sweat!”
The clouds had lifted, but the sun that beat down was harsh, reflecting off the glass in thousands of piercing lights, and Coll’s head ached. The Beetle crew put on wide-brimmed hats and Dolen shrugged off his jacket, but Namir kept her shawl on, its heavy layers covering her shoulders and arms. The afternoon went on forever. Fillan started to doze off, and Brann’s endless one-two-three-four sank into a mumbled drone.
But at last Beetle slowed and pulled off the road by a small hill. The Construct settled into its shadow and lowered its flat black body to the ground.
“Phew!” said Dolen, stretching. “I reckon that road gets longer every time we takes it, Mrs B.”
Namir chuckled. “That it does, Mr B, that it does.”
Cub settled in beside them and flopped to the ground in exhaustion. Its pistons and hydraulics gave a sad slow whine as they cooled. But the Beetle crew didn’t stop – Dolen heaved out a cooker and set it up, and then rummaged around inside Beetle’s body, removing some packets wrapped in greasy paper. Namir brought out a machine covered in pipes and placed a bottle underneath it. After a few minutes, a thin trickle of water started to pour from the machine. Namir watched it carefully, guarding each drip, and snapped the machine off as soon as the bottle was full.
“Does that machine make water?” asked Fillan.
Namir shook her head. “Recycles it,” she said. “That means it makes it out of old water.”
“Oh.” Fillan’s forehead wrinkled. “Where do you get the old water?”
Dolen gave a sudden booming laugh. “Best not to ask that, young ’un,” he said.
Brann leaned down and whispered something in Fillan’s ear, and the boy blinked in astonishment. His expression flickered between disgust and fascination.
“Can’t waste anything in the Glass Lands, see,” said Dolen.
“Why live out here, then?” asked Rieka.
“It’s just what we do,” he said cheerfully. But for a moment he seemed to glance at Namir, and she glanced back.
Rieka frowned.
“Grub’s up,” said Dolen. He lifted two sticks from the cooker, with some kind of roasted meat on each of them. “Glass rat. Bit tough, but good eating. Who’s first?”
