Midwinter

Silverdun sat proudly on his roan, though he kept the cloak tightly hooded. "There are several different types of shifting place; I studied them extensively in my Academy days. Some are rents in the very stuff of matter. These are lethal, quick moving, and the hardest to spot. Riding into one of them is like riding into a brick wall. Others are fields in which time moves at a different rate from our own. Some are slowed, some are quickened. The quickened places tend to be narrow and stretch for many miles. If we can successfully ride into one of them, a day's ride within might be the equivalent of three or four days' ride at a normal pace."

"Apparent physical impossibilities aside," said Satterly, "it sounds like a great trick. What's the catch?"

"The difficulty is crossing the shifting place's border. If you ride through quickly, at a direction perpendicular to the boundary, you may experience nothing more than a brief headache. Take the crossing too slowly, or at too great an angle, and you could be shredded like a cabbage by the shearing forces of the boundary."

"But we can't even see them," said Satterly. "How do we know to make our approach?"

"I will be your eyes," said Silverdun. "The thing can be done; I've seen it before at the Academy. They have great engines there capable of producing such rifts."

Mauritane nodded. "Ordinarily, on a volunteer mission such as this, I would ask anyone who felt uncomfortable risking his life in such a manner to except himself. Here, though, your chances of survival in the Contested Lands alone are small at best. We ride as one, or we give up now and the rest of you make your escape."

"The rest of us?" said Mave. "Why wouldn't you come with us if we chose not to go?"

"I have my responsibilities," said Mauritane, his eyes on Raieve, who pretended not to notice. "I cannot absolve myself of them. You, however, have not taken the vows that I have."

"Well," said Satterly, "I've come this far. It seems dumb to turn back now."

"For once I agree with the human," said Silverdun. "I'm already receiving bruises; I at least want a chance at the prize."

"I have nothing to return to," said Mave quietly.

"And I have no wish to die alone," said Raieve.

Mauritane frowned. "Fine. It's decided. We ride in five minutes. Be ready."

Silverdun rode far ahead of the rest, carrying a bag of river stones in one hand. He moved slowly, at a walk, whistling out to the left, then to the right, then in front of him. Every so often he would take a stone from the bag and toss it sidearm in the direction of his last whistle. He'd carefully monitor the stone's spinning progress until it landed and fell still, then move on.

After an hour, their campsite was still in plain view behind them. Mauritane sensed that the anticipation of danger was beginning to wear thin, and he continually reminded them to remain alert. Every so often a stiff hot wind would burst forth from some unseen source, or a rain of ice crystals. Some of the shifting places produced eerie sounds, howls and keening wails, some sounding almost Fae or human. Overhead, the sun passed back and forth behind the swiftly moving clouds and the land grew dark and light in strange intervals.

Finally, Silverdun brought his mare to a halt. He threw one stone over his right shoulder, then another.

"This is it," he called back to Mauritane.

Mauritane rode up and stood beside him. He watched Silverdun throw a third stone. It left his hand at a leisurely pace, glinted silver for an instant, then seemed to explode toward the ground at an unbelievable speed. It hopped once, with the same unusual rapidity, then fell to the earth.

"May l?" said Mauritane.

"Be my guest." Silverdun dropped a handful of the water-smoothed stones into Mauritane's palm.

Mauritane threw one, watched the effect repeat, and then tossed the entire handful at once. The stones reached the boundary of the shifting place at minute intervals, and a series of bright silver flashes delineated the periphery of the oblong shifting place.

"It seems to be elongated toward the west," said Silverdun. "Just what we're looking for."

"Good," said Mauritane. "Let's get everyone inside. I'll go first, to show them how it's done and you guide the rest of them."

Silverdun nodded. "Watch closely," he said to the others, whom he waved toward him. "I've got Mauritane aimed precisely perpendicular to where the shifting place will be in a few moments. They don't call them shifting places for nothing, so you must be precise. On my signal, you start moving and I start counting. If you're not in contact with the boundary when I get to three, you're dead." Silverdun threw another stone, so Mauritane could see his target. Mauritane noted the location of the silver flash. He looked forward, seeing nothing, finding it difficult to believe that he was about to risk his life.

"Now," said Silverdun.

Mauritane kicked Streak into motion.

"One," said Silverdun.

He increased his speed, trying to gauge the distance just right.

"Two."