The Second Marvellous Device

"You had to be either trapped or unconscious, because you weren't moving."

Astra gave Fred a puzzled look. What did he mean? How had he known that she hadn't been moving, or indeed where she was to be found?

He went on: "It seems that the person who made this metal man was quite the inventor. I discovered another strange device in the library. It's a sort of big box with a flat top surface covered by a pane of glass. Luckily, it too had an instruction manual lying nearby. Reading it, I found out that if I turned the machine on, it would display the location of all nearby humans, superimposed on a map of this part of the caves. Apparently it won't work for creatures that aren't fully human: such as teen-dogs, intelligent pools of water, or dragons. I suppose that it must work by magic. Anyway, to cut a long story short, when I turned on the machine I spotted not just one but - to my surprise - two glowing dots indicating the presence of people. The dots were close together and they weren't moving. So I made a note of the route that I would need to take to reach you - assuming that you must be one of the dots - and came looking for you."

Astra was quite impressed by Fred's resourcefulness, especially considering that he was an Allarian. In contrast, Ardua seemed very impressed. At this rate, she'll be cuddling him before long, Astra thought, with a trace of jealousy.

1. They arrive at the library.
2. They hear barking, and Velus appears out of a side passage.

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