They met Teasel and Dennis Thorndyke in Champion's Field, a wide, flat area of frozen, snow-covered grassland used in the warmer months for sporting events. Now, though, it was a carpet landing area. The ten carpets were spread out on the snow, each one with a small number of team members gathered around it making sure they had all the equipment and provisions they’d need before setting off.

     Two carpets were taking off as the five members of Centaur team passed through the wooden gate, and they paused for a moment to watch them climb up into the clouds and speed off into the west, towards the distant peaks of the Black Mountains.

     “I wonder where they’re going,” said Shaun, staring after them dreamily.

     "They say there's nothing beyond those mountains," said Arroc, staring at them with his ruddy, bloodshot eyes. “Nothing at all.”

     "There must be something beyond them," said Thomas. "Even if it's only desert or ocean."

     "I'm just saying what ah've heard," said the trog. "You humans spread across the continent like a plague. You reached this far two thousand years ago and then stopped dead and nobody knows what's beyond. As if, in all those centuries, not one person ever bothered to go and look.”

     “I expect people have been to look and found only land impossible to colonize,” replied the wizard. “A great ice sheet or something.” A faint feeling of annoyance was coming over him, though, as though the trog was distracting him with trivialities when there were much more important things to think about. He moved away from him, therefore, to deliberately end the conversation. Fortunately, Arroc also seemed to have forgotten the matter already and was looking across at where Jherek was speaking to his new team mates.

     An usher showed them to their assigned carpets, consulting a crude, hastily drawn map as he did so, and they found two figures already there waiting for them, dressed in warm furs like everyone else. Not that it was that cold at ground level. The air was barely below freezing, but it would be a hell of a lot colder at the altitude at which the carpets would be flying.

     One of the figures was a human male, a soldier. He was dressed in Beltharan uniform like Shaun but with the badge of the Kenestran infantry on his breastplate and a longbow and a quiver of arrows slung across his back. The other was tiny, no larger than Jerry, and female. She was plump and cheerful looking with rosy red cheeks and a dimpled chin, and her hair was blonde and straggly, sticking up at all angles and looking as though it would defeat the efforts of any hairbrush.

     She was sitting on the edge of the carpet as they approached, one of her boots off as she massaged her foot, and Arroc gave a groan of dismay when he saw her. “The Gods preserve us!” he exclaimed. “A Pastoran nome!”

     The nome gave a cry of joy when she saw them, pulling her boot back on and jumping to her feet. “Hi!” she said in a cheerful, burbling voice. “Are you Centaur team?”

     “That’s right,” replied Shaun. “And you must be Teasel.”

     “Teasel Tatterwell at your service and your family’s.” She held out her hand and the soldier shook it gravely. “And this is Dennis Thorndyke, a worthy sort of chap all the way from Kenestra. We were getting to know each other while we were waiting for you.”

     The soldier came forward and shook hands with them while examining them critically. He frowned at Thomas, and the wizard wondered whether he was as offended by all the enquiries he’d been making about him as Grizzly Brown had been. The soldier just nodded at him, though, before moving on. His eyes widened in appreciation when Diana greeted him, and Shaun moved hurriedly in front of her, holding out his hand to make it seem a friendly invitation to shake hands.

     Dennis frowned, recognising Shaun's protective stance and visibly offended by the implication that he might be a threat to the cleric, but then he saw Naomi, who aroused his interest even more. Shaun relaxed, and Thomas, who'd feared there might be trouble between the two men, did as well. Perhaps he’ll go after her and leave Di alone, he thought.

     Then the Kenestran accepted Shaun's invitation to shake hands and they looked each other up and down, critically eyeing each other up. Dennis didn’t let go of Shaun’s hand but held onto it, something Thomas had seen soldiers do before. They were feeling the size and hardness of each others' calluses, as a guide to how much he had practised with the sword, and despite himself Dennis seemed impressed. "You practice a lot,” he said, “but how good are you?”

     “Good enough,” replied Shaun, pulling his hand back. “I can hold my own with an ordinary sword. And with this...” He indicated the Sword of Zebulon, returned to him now that they were leaving.

     Dennis smiled condescendingly. “Ah, a magic sword,” he said. “Well, anyone can be good with one of them.”

     “I’ll match you with an ordinary sword any day,” replied Shaun, growing a little irritated. “Perhaps a friendly match, just so we can gauge each other’s abilities...”

     “That would be interesting,” agreed Dennis, but Thomas missed the rest of the exchange as he saw Jerry running towards him. “Tom!” he cried. “Di! Shaun! Couldn't go without one last goodbye!”

     Thomas grinned with delight. “I was hoping for a last word,” he agreed. “Although we'll be seeing each other again. Between missions and when this is all over.”

     “If the Gods spare us,” said the tiny nome. “I hate to put a damper on things, but every parting now might be the last parting, so it has to be a good one…”

     The tiny nome cursed himself as he saw the other wizard glancing in the direction in which Unicorn team, Lirenna's team, was readying themselves for departure. “Oh, Tom!” he said in anguish. “I didn’t mean you and her! Of course you’ll both be back safely! The Gods would never be so cruel as to take one of you and not the other.”

     Diana looked as though she was about to say something, but stopped herself. Thomas gave her a glance and she averted her eyes awkwardly. Tom turned back to Jerry. “Yeah,” he said, trying to believe it. “They're a good team. Good people. They've promised to look after her, and she's got Matt.”

     “Yeah,” agreed Jerry. “So don't fret. She’s going to be fine.” A voice called his name and Jerry waved back that he'd heard. “Gotta go,” he said. “They want to be off.”

     “Be safe, Jerry,” said Shaun, shaking his hand. “Take care of yourself.”

     “Yes, take care,” agreed Thomas. “Forgive me. You came over to say goodbye and I made it all about Lenny. I care about you too, you know. You don't have a Matt to provide a familiar face. You're all alone among strangers.”

     “Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet. Don't you worry about me, lad. I'm gonna be just fine.” He reached out to take Tom's offered hand but, on a sudden impulse, Thomas gathered him up in his arms and gave him a tight hug. The tiny nome tensed up momentarily. Like all his race he was generally averse to that kind of physical contact, but then he relaxed and hugged the other wizard back.

    After a moment Thomas realised what he was doing and released the other wizard. “Sorry! I, er…”

     Jerry laughed. “I shall take it as a sincere demonstration of affection and friendship,” he said. The voice called his name again and Jerry backed away, waving again to the distant caller. “I really have to go now. Bye Tom! Bye Di! Shaun!”

     “Goodbye, Jerry,” said Shaun. “Good luck.”

     “The Gods go with you, Jerry,” said Diana, raising a hand in farewell.

     “Until we meet again,” said Thomas, waving.

     “Until we meet again,” the tiny nome agreed. He gave one last wave before turning to run. Thomas watched as he rejoined his new teammates, one of whom looked to be scolding him, but not very severely. They then climbed aboard their carpets and, after a bit of shuffling and settling, they lifted into the air.

     The three Claimjumpers of Centaur team continued to wave as the carpets gained height, but Jerry didn't wave back. He was casting a spell, Thomas realised, and a moment later the two carpets of griffin team were leaving trails of fire behind them as they sped across the sky. Everyone looked up, gasping in appreciation, and Thomas thought he heard Jerry’s high pitched laughter as they disappeared into the north. “Goodbye, Jerry,” he said to himself, finding himself to be happy and sad at the same time. “Take care, and see you again one day.”

     Then Captain Wain was there, having just overseen the departure of another team. “Ready to go?” he asked cheerfully.

     “I think so, Sir,” replied Shaun. “We’re all here, and we all have everything we need.”

     “Good, good,” said the Captain. “Well, you’ll be wanting to be off then.” He paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words. “I don’t know all the details of this mission you’re going on, as you know, but there are certain basic principles applied to all missions, big or small, and the most important one is this; don’t make things more complicated than they need to be. Just take the shortest route to wherever you’re going, obtain the information and give it to Resalintas using the Farspeaking spell. That’s all you’ve got to do. Understand?”

     “Yes, Sir,” replied Shaun, nodding. Thomas hid a smile as he imagined the soldier's thoughts. We know a good deal better than you do, mate.

     “Good,” said the Captain, who still looked a little irritated at not being told where they were going. “Well, when you’re ready then, off you go. And good luck.”

     “Thank you, Sir,” said the soldier.
They took their places on the carpets. Shaun sat next to Diana on the lead carpet, and Naomi and Arroc sat behind them, leaving Dennis, Thomas and Teasel on the second carpet. Thomas looked around for Lirenna, hoping for one last word of farewell, but she was nowhere to be seen. He briefly thought about leaving the carpet and running about, searching for her. Surely the others wouldn’t begrudge him the time, it would only be a minute or two. The two carpets were already rising, though, and the wizard gave a sigh as the ground receded below them, already too far down to jump.

     He searched for Lirenna again, and suddenly there she was. About a hundred yards away, busy fishing around for something in her backpack. She’s not going to see us! thought the young wizard in despair. She’s not going to see us go! I’m not going to get a chance to wave goodbye!

     Matthew saw them, though, and tapped her on the shoulder, pointing at the rising carpets. The demi shae looked up, puzzled, and then cried out in delight when she recognised the carpet’s occupants. They waved to each other and shouted parting messages to each other, even though the distance was too great for them to hear, and they continued to wave while they shrank with distance, only stopping when the carpets entered a layer of low clouds and they lost sight of each other.

     “See you soon, Lenny,” Thomas said wistfully, and then he settled down for the long journey.

☆☆☆

     They emerged above the cloud bank, and Teasel gave a gasp of wonder at the brilliant white cloudscape stretching all the way to the horizon in all directions. “Oh! How wonderful!” she cried, beaming with delight. “I had no idea it would be so beautiful!”

     “Is this the first time you’ve flown?” asked Thomas, shivering as he pulled his furs tighter around his body. The air was bitterly cold.

     “Yes,” replied the nome. “I was a little worried about it. I’m a little scared of heights you see, but now I wouldn’t have missed this for the world!”

     “Have you flown before?” Dennis asked Thomas.

     “A couple of times,” replied the wizard, a little smugly. “Once on a carpet like this, and once in a shayen bird of paradise. You know? The flying ships?”

     “I’m acquainted with them,” replied the soldier, smiling secretly.

     Looks like we’re not the only ones with secrets, thought Thomas ruefully. “What about you? Ever flown on a carpet before?”

     “Not on a carpet, no,” replied Dennis, “but I rode on a dragon’s back once.”

     Thomas stared in astonishment. “You what? But I thought dragons refused to carry passengers, even the friendly ones. They consider it beneath their dignity or something.”

     “These were exceptional circumstances,” replied the soldier, who then went on to tell the story in full while towering mountains of white cloud passed by on either side of them. Halfway through it Thomas realised he’d heard it before, told second or third hand by a fellow wizard back in Redhill, although he must have missed out the bit about riding on a dragon’s back. Dennis must have regaled all his friends with the tale during his stay at Redhill, he realised, and the tale had acquired a life of its own, spreading throughout the complex, just as the Claimjumpers’ tales of their own adventures must be. That meant that Dennis had probably already heard all about the quest for the Sceptre of Samnos and the Sword of Retribution, even though he might not know that Thomas was one of the people who’d taken part in them.

     As soon as Dennis had finished his story, therefore, Thomas told of their own adventures, and this time it was the soldier’s turn to stare in astonishment. “That was you?” he asked in amazement. “You’re the ones who were led to the Underworld by a slaver?”

     “Yep,” replied the wizard, smiling smugly.

     “What was it like? I mean, to talk on friendly terms with one of mankind’s deadliest enemies. What did you talk about?”

     “All kinds of things,” replied Thomas, his eyes becoming curiously unfocused as the memories came flooding back. “The things they know, the amount of knowledge locked up in their slimy, purple heads. Talking to it, you get the impression that the world is full of secrets, some wonderful, some terrible. Things that we know almost nothing about but which the cthillians have studied for centuries. You get the feeling that if only it would start talking, such wonders would be revealed that you’d never see the world the same way again. There was one time it mentioned a race of beings known as the Glomi. It just mentioned them in passing, before moving on to another subject. An entire race of beings, totally unknown to us but so familiar to them that they can dismiss them with a single casual, throwaway word. It was like that all the time. Travelling with it made us feel like, like children. Small, ignorant children who’d been granted the privilege of living with a wise old sage for a while. It was humbling, I can tell you that. Deeply humbling.”

     The wizard fell silent and stared out at the passing cloudscape, deep in thought. Dennis tried to ask him more questions, but Thomas was too wrapped up in himself to hear him, so after a couple of minutes the soldier gave up and talked to the nome instead. Teasel also had her share of stories to tell, it turned out, but Thomas barely heard her as he continued to stare silently at the towering mountains of cloud around them, his thoughts a million miles away.