The two focused their lenses on each other.

  “Fake it,” Favew flashed.

  “Pretense,” Wavef agreed.

  Then both lenses oriented on Nydia. “This seems feasible,” Favew flashed.

  “Thank you,” Wavef flashed.

  The two departed. Nydia turned off the translator.

  “Congratulations,” Vol said, this time aloud. “You have empowered them much as you have me. You are a remarkable woman.”

  “Your advice helped,” Nydia said, speaking to all of them. But her knees felt weak. It had been a close call. In the background—no, closer, the middle ground—was her private pleasure at being called a woman, not a nymph.

  “Now kiss him,” Wanda said. “His knees are strong.”

  Nydia had to laugh, internally. She went to Vol and soundly kissed him. That was just the beginning.

  The boundary between the Water and Air sections of GEH was a brutal desert. Dry heat radiated from it. Windblown sand mercilessly pelted the barren landscape, and any dunes that might have considered forming had evidently been intimidated into nonexistence. The same was true of clouds; the sky was bare where it could be seen at all. There were no plants. There seemed to be no coherence. In fact, just venturing out into the desert could get their skins flayed by the flying sand. This was dangerous.

  “Uh,” Nydia said, but her thought, if she had one, was blown away before it could emerge.

  “There is very little contact between our towns at present,” Wavef flashed. “We get along with our Air Zone neighbors when we encounter them, but have to take advantage of random lulls in the action. There could be one in the next moment or the next eon.”

  “My turn,” Aery said, her sky-blue hair and eyes firming.

  “Ain’t she something,” Moonroe said admiringly.

  “I haven’t done anything yet,” she snapped at him.

  “I was referring to your appearance.”

  “That’s the handiwork of Ecstasy. She made my body.”

  He took it in stride. “Nevertheless, your body reflects your spirit. I love it.”

  That stifled her retort. It was evident that he knew how to handle her.

  Aery raised her arms in a “heed me” gesture. The wind abruptly halted. They would not be blown away as they crossed.

  Except that it was still horrendously hot. Flame was no longer with them to cool it, nor was Flood. What were they to do?

  “I am not finished,” Aery said, answering Nydia’s unspoken thought. “I have merely asserted control. Now I will use it to accomplish my purpose.”

  The others were silent and flashless, waiting to see what she had in mind.

  Aery made complicated gestures, as if conducting a hidden orchestra, concluding with a whirl. The wind stirred, this time forming a circle. A sandy column formed as it accelerated. Was it a tornado? The column rose high into the sky, darkening. A spray of water flung out.

  “Waterspout,” Moonroe said. “I told you she had something cooking.”

  Indeed she did. Apparently the whirl was sucking moisture from the air above, as there was none below. The waterspout expanded, spraying droplets onto the ground. The sand hissed and steamed. And cooled. She had done it.

  Nydia realized that the Elements were not entirely restricted to their own variants. A storm consisted of air and water, just as a fire needed air to breathe and a volcano needed fire to heat and move its rock.

  The column moved across the desert, making a wet path. They stepped out on it. The sand was warm and wet, but not boiling. They could handle it.

  They followed the waterspout across the desert. Along the way, Nydia saw monsters similar to the one Flame had driven off, pausing in place, as if uncertain what to make of this phenomenon. What indeed!

  “What is that encumbrance on them?” Moonroe asked.

  Now Nydia noticed. There was a sort of vine or rope attached to the solid portion of each monster, as if they had gotten tangled in something and been unable to shake it loose. Two of them, actually, with a smaller one above. That was curious, as the void suction head should have been able to eat it off.

  “These are steeds,” Wavef explained. “The Air Zone uses tamed monsters to navigate the desert, as they can handle it. The harness is embedded and can’t be removed except by the use of specialized tools. It also can’t be sucked, as it contains antimatter that will explode the creature’s snout if there is direct contact. The steeds quickly learn to leave it alone. That is how the Air Zone citizens normally cross to contact us. But only in the lulls. Even so, the riders wear protective armor.”

  “Antimatter,” Vol said, impressed. “They must have mastered the art of clothing it with neutral substance, which in turn would be clad with normal matter, so it can be safely handled.”

  “They have,” Wavef agreed. “It’s a process they reserve to themselves, trading clothed items to other zones for special items or favors.”

  “Favors?” Nydia asked.

  “Some Droms are more physically appealing than others. They are able to put a price on breeding.”

  “Ah. We humans have similar variances. Ecstasy, for example, is extremely comely in our view.”

  “She obviously is,” Oakley agreed. Ecstasy just smiled. She still enjoyed being stunning.

  They moved on, leaving the steeds watching. In due course, they reached the far side of the desert, where mountain slopes led up to cooler air and vegetation. Now the alien ferns seemed comfortingly familiar. They paused to harvest some edible fruitcakes and waterballs, then moved on.

  The wind had eased somewhat, but remained fairly stiff. The ferns grew braced against the constant air pressure. This was indeed the Air Zone.

  Nydia noticed that Noe and Vinia were now walking together, being girls of similar age, while Lilith was beside Santo, in fairly constant dialog. Respect might actually be becoming friendship. Lilith’s body might not fascinate him, but she had vast historical experience Santo could well find interesting. Woe Betide was back in her floating crib, tuning out the dull details of traveling. Apparently the two demonesses did not feel any special kinship. They had probably known each other, in one form or another, for eons, and needed no further interaction at the moment. The assorted members of the Quest were getting comfortable with one another.

  They came to a more organized section where the ferns were planted in rows. A Drom was there. Favew and Wavef went ahead to meet him while the main group stayed back. There was no point in alarming an innocent local. There were flashes and sounds. To the farmer, it might be like two regular folk escorting a contingent of weird creatures. Well, that was close enough.

  Favew turned his lens to Nydia to report. “He is a food farmer serving the local town. This path leads directly to it. He says there is some kind of disturbance or problem caused by the fluxes, so they are distracted, but will be courteous to polite visitors.”

  Nydia smiled. “We shall be polite.” She hoped that the problem would not impede their progress across this zone.

  Now the path descended into a mountain valley. When the massive town wall came into view, Favew and Wavef flashed it, and soon received responding flashes. By the time the group reached the wall, their nature and mission would be well understood.

  It was. They were welcomed into the town. The wind stopped the moment they entered, cut off by the wall and solid stone barricades. The locals knew how to handle wind, at least in their solid enclosure.

  The problem turned out to be a recent storm of unprecedented force that blew away the enclosures for the steeds used to cross the desert. The creatures were essentially wild because fully tame ones soon lost their capability to handle the desert effectively. So when the enclosures went, the steeds bolted. Now they were wary, avoiding any townsfolk who tried to approach them. They still wore their harnesses, but those were useless without riders. The steeds needed to be caught and corralled; then they would behave. In fact, the capture of one steed would do it: the leader. The others would follow him. The proprietors did not want to risk hurting him or any other steed because that would make them less useful. A trained steed was valuable.

  “We should help them,” Rob said telepathically. “It would make for excellent intergalactic relations.”

  “Surely so,” Oakley agreed. “But this is obviously not our field of expertise.”

  “Unfortunately,” Moonroe agreed.

  “We remaining Elements have powers,” Eartha said. “But taming alien steeds is not among them.”

  “It seems the answer is blowing in the wind,” Aery said with a smile.

  “We do have to be practical,” Ecstasy said. “We can’t do everything ourselves.”

  “I hate to pass up a chance to assist our friends,” Noe said.

  “You’re dithering,” Lilith said. “Sometimes you just have to accept your mortal or elemental limits.” Santo, beside her, nodded.

  Nydia wanted to help. But how? She knew nothing about riding any steed, let alone an alien monster with deadly suction. She doubted that any other member of the party did either. Their cautions were well taken.

  Then her private companions spoke. “Surprise is the key,” Knight Knife said. “For victory, do what they don’t expect.”

  “Use a shield of illusion to get close,” Wanda said. “Illusion can make a thing invisible as well as falsely visible.”

  “Then use my contact telepathy to pacify it,” Anthem said. She played a chord. “Especially if it appreciates music.”

  Then the three looked at her expectantly, mentally.

  “Me?” Nydia asked, aghast. “I’m almost as unlikely a hero as I am a rider.”

  “Exactly,” Knight said. “Surprise.”

  “Attainment,” Wanda said. “No illusion.”

  “I like the challenge,” Anthem said, sounding another chord.

  It seemed that Nydia had been nominated, at least by her private companions. She discovered that she didn’t want to disappoint them any more than the Quest members. Was she a fool, or was there some other guidance? Did it matter? She took an unsteady breath, then spoke aloud. “I volunteer.”

  The others looked at her in unison, amazed.

  “To do what?” Ecstasy asked.

  “To catch and tame a steed. Probably the leader, so the others will fall in line. Then the town will be back in business.”

  “Nydia, you are the head of the Quest,” Ecstasy said. “You must not put yourself at serious risk. It would leave the Quest leaderless.”

  She was making sense. She always did. But Nydia had already plunged into the fray. “If I perish, you must take over the Quest, Ecstasy, and see it through to completion. I’m sure Oakley will steer you on the obvious track.”

  “Well spoken,” Moonroe said. “I’m sure we all will support Ecstasy.”

  Nydia didn’t give them time to dither further. She marched to the town elder Drom. “I will try to catch and tame the leader steed. Do you have a replacement corral for it and the others?”

  He oriented on her. “Those steeds are feral,” he flashed. “Even if you could catch it, it would be dangerous for you.”

  “I know. But I have to try.”

  He paused, assessing her—which, of course, was not easy, considering their totally different types. “If you can do this, it would mark your person, your species, and your galaxy with favor here.”

  Perhaps for a while, she thought. “But mainly, it’s that you need this done.”

  “Give us eight hours, and we shall make sufficient repairs,” he flashed appreciatively.

  “Time for us to rest and sleep,” Vol said, taking Nydia’s elbow.

  They retired to their new chambers, where those who needed sleep took it.

  “As I come to know you better,” Vol murmured as he held her close, “I am increasingly glad that you are the one who tamed me. You are an excellent woman.”

  She didn’t try to argue. She still basked in being considered a woman. Tomorrow, as it were, she would do or die. More likely the latter. So she relaxed in his embrace and slept. She had acted to ease his loneliness; he was doing as much for her by his support.

  In the “morning,” they gathered by the hastily repaired corral. Nydia wore heavy pants, shirt, gauntlets, and a helmet, all provided by Vol. Would they be enough? She was about to find out.

  Ecstasy approached her. “If you fail, you are still evincing more sheer courage than anyone I have seen in decades. If you succeed, voila!” Then she hugged and kissed her. Nydia liked this endorsement too. It was actually nice being a woman.

  The Droms flashed the feeding signal. The steeds came in, hungry but wary. If any Drom tried to approach them, they would scatter. They were much larger than Droms, but they had to be to serve as steeds. They were surely formidable, but not actually predatory monsters.

  Nydia nerved herself and walked out toward them. The creatures lensed her uncertainly. She obviously was not a Drom, but what was she? They did not scatter, but they did avoid her.

  Then she got an idea. “Make me look like a steed,” she told Wanda.

  “Illusion has power,” the wand agreed.

  She saw it herself: suddenly she looked like a steed, clothed in a cocoon of illusion. The steeds paused, then decided that the stranger was worth ignoring. They stopped avoiding her. It was working! It was incidentally interesting that the illusion evidently worked on these completely different creatures.

  Nydia oriented on the lead steed, who was focusing on the proffered feed. She took hold of his harness. She held on to the upper band and put one leg through the lower one, then the other. This equipment had not been made for human use, but would serve as long as she was careful. She half sat on the upper portion of the lower band.

  Now the steed realized that something had changed. Wanda let the illusion dissipate; it had served its purpose. Nydia was mounted, in her fashion.

  The steed bolted as if it had discovered a bug on its back. Close enough. It lurched out of the pack and into the wind of the desert, shaking her violently. Nydia clung to the bands, knowing that if she lost her grip and fell off, all was lost, probably including her life. She was doubly glad for the armor that protected her skin from the sand blast, and especially for the gauntlets that clamped desperately tight. She couldn’t have lasted even this long without them.

  The steed danced on the dirt, not so much moving forward as, well, bucking like a nervous horse. Nydia’s template memories made the analogy: it was trying to throw her off. It would have succeeded if she hadn’t been clinging for dear life, anticipating this. Already her arms felt strained and her legs were chafing despite the armor. She couldn’t hold on much longer.

  “Don’t give up,” Knight said. “Victory is mostly grit.”

  “The illusion of defeat dooms many,” Wanda said.

  “My turn,” Anthem said. “Put your bare finger on its hide so I can make contact. Then I can send pacifying thoughts.”

  Nydia discovered that the gauntlets actually left the tips of her fingers bare so she could touch things directly. She managed to angle one hand so that a forefinger poked the creature’s hide. She felt a tingle.

  “Oh my!” the ant exclaimed. “It’s sapient!”

  It took Nydia most of a moment to absorb this. She knew the word, but the context seemed wrong. “It’s what?”

  “Smart,” Wanda clarified helpfully.

  “But it’s an animal!”

  “It’s an intelligent animal,” Anthem said. “The same as you are.”

  “But Rob checked their minds when we passed. He would have told me if they had been other than simple animals.”

  “Indeed I would have,” Rob said in her mind. “This is news to me too. But I see it via Anthem’s contact. This creature is indeed sapient.”

  The bucking steed became aware of this other contact. He paused his violent motion. “What is this?” he demanded. “Make yourself known.”

  She understood him through Anthem’s contact telepathy. His thoughts were coming to her mind and being translated to words without passing through the mechanical translator. Her thoughts were similarly going to him. This was a truly private dialog, limited to the two of them plus Rob, Anthem, Wanda, and Knight.

  Nydia plunged in. “I am the alien creature who is riding you. Some of you saw us as we crossed the desert. My name is Nydia Nymph. What is yours?”

  Surprise registered. “We did see you, Nydia. I am Seven Steed, leader of the pack. How did you abate the winds?”

  “The personification of the Element of Air is a member of our group. She has power over moving air.”

  “Amazing. I would not believe it if I had not seen the wind mysteriously drop, and if this direct mind contact did not make you credible. But it does not feel perfect.”

  “It is facilitated by my associate Anthem Ant, who possesses the power of contact telepathy and a trace of larger awareness. Tell him, Anthem.”

  “It is true,” the ant said. “Nydia lends me her powerful mind, for I am relatively tiny, without the substance for big thoughts. I lend her my telepathy. That makes us both smart and telepathic to a reasonable degree. We are of quite different species, but we work as a team. Somewhat the way you work with the Droms, each contributing expertise.”

  “I am impressed.” He returned his focus to Nydia. “Your thoughts are honest. There is no deceit in telepathy. Why are you here?”

  “We have a vital mission to accomplish if we can. We are making our way to the Void, where we believe the Demoness of Change resides, hoping to persuade her to stop these fluxes.”

  “And why are you riding me? I have had no contact with the Demoness of Change, though I know of her.”

  “The Droms need you back so they can navigate the desert and keep lines of communication and trade open. I volunteered to help. I did not know you were intelligent.”