Five hundred miles to the north, in the out-of-the-way factory city of Sparkton near the northwesternmost border of Windsor, the doors to an old storage garage swung open and a skeletal mech exited with a hiss of steam. Alyson Hunter sat in the pilot's seat, a pair of goggles over her eyes as she grappled with the controls. The machine was ancient, older even than the street cleaners in Lucien, lacking any of the components that made the vehicles practical. It had a rudimentary gyroscopic balancing system to keep it upright, but other than that it was completely mechanical with no electronic servos or hydraulics to aid in its movement. Also, the limbs were shaky and the joints sounded like they hadn't felt oil in fifty years.

"Hey, Pil!" she called over, lifting the goggles from her eyes. "This thing's a real clunker!"

"It sure is, ma'am!" Pil called back. "Not much more than a walking tea kettle. These suits were made for local mining companies. They're for digging up ore."

"How'd we manage to downgrade our suits again?" Navin moaned, gritting his teeth against the vehicle's jarring movements.

"Cheer up, bucko!" Pil encouraged. "When I was your age I drove a mech built out of soap boxes and coffee cans. This is a limousine compared to that!"

"When you were my age?" Navin repeated. "I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that a robot has parents!"

"Isaak!" snapped the authortive voice of Pil's father Rupert. "When I was their age, we made mobile suits from wood and stone! Even you had it easy, son."

Pil laughed. "Yes, sir!"

"Don't forget that you can always come home when you need us," said his mother, Lara.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Alyson said. "We'll make sure your son stays safe."

"She's such a sweetheart," Lara commented.

"You all just be careful on the mountain pass," Rupert advised. "It's patrolled by elves and traveled by rogues, bandits and monsters, so stay alert."

"We'll do our best to stay out of trouble," Navin promised. "And thanks for the equipment."

"Just make sure they come back in one piece," Rupert said.

"Will do!" Navin waved the mech's hand as he and the others turned away.

As they watched them stomp away, Lara said to Rupert, "You know you're not getting those back."

"Oh, I know," Rupert acknowledged. "Though I'd like to see at least one come back intact."

As they clanked out into the marketplace, Pil said, "Without a transpore, we have a long road back to Lucien. It may take us weeks to get there."

"Do these rust buckets have the fuel to get that far?" Alyson asked.

"It doesn't matter," Navin answered. "We're not going back to Lucien. The others will be long gone by the time we get there. We're going to Valcor—that's where Emily's going to be."

"You think she's taking the fight to the Elf King," Alyson said.

"And we can stir up some trouble inside the hornet's nest. I like it!" Pil exulted. "But we'll need more than these iron suits, kid."

"I know. We're going to need a little help from our friends."


Far to the west, deep in the forests north of Demon's Head Mountain, an insistent beeping noise lit up a panel on the control console. "What did we do?" Morrie worried, his characteristic sweating going into overdrive. "I thought we repaired everything! What more does it want from us!?"

"Sir," interrupted Theodore, "that's a distress signal! Somebody has activated a beacon!" He rolled over to the console on his single wheel. "The signal's coming from Lucien," he said in surprise. "Strange. The city's supposed to be abandoned."

"Then maybe the signal's a mistake," Morrie ventured. "Let someone else handle it."

"That's not something Silas would do. We must act!" Theodore objected, then turned and hopped up the stairs to the command floor. "Let's do this!" He looked at the big boxy robot next to him. "Without Cogsley here to pilot the house, I'll act as your copilot, Bottle. You must take charge, my friend. Let's go." They took their seats, and Theodore flexed his fingers excitedly. "I've always wanted to do this!"

They gripped the controls and activated the power core. The engine rumbled as it started up and steam hissed from the pressure valves. Then they began working the limbs and the house started on the long road northward.