Warnings came three months later.
Metkayina scouts, ranging far from the reef, returned with urgent news. The sky-people were building again—this time on the coast, less than a day's swim from the village. A new base, larger than the last, with landing platforms and barracks and weapons emplacements.
"They're coming," Rial said at the council. "Sooner than we hoped."
The council was held on the largest platform, with representatives from both Metkayina and the Omaticaya survivors. Kaelen sat beside Seri, his face grim.
"How many?" he asked.
"Hundreds. Maybe thousands. The scouts couldn't get close enough to count."
"Thorne?"
"His symbol flies over the base."
Kaelen nodded. He had expected this. Dreaded it, but expected it.
"We need to hit them first," a Metkayina warrior said. "Before they're ready."
"And do what? Kill a few? They'll send more." Kaelen shook his head. "We need a different approach. Something they won't expect."
"Like what?"
He thought for a long moment. Then, slowly, an idea began to form.
"The tulkun," he said. "They came here for the tulkun. For whatever they can harvest from them. That's their mission—not us, not the land, the tulkun."
"So?"
"So we protect the tulkun. We make it impossible for them to hunt. We make the cost too high." He leaned forward. "The tulkun are intelligent. They can communicate. If we warn them, if we work together, we can drive the hunters away."
"And if that doesn't work?"
Kaelen's eyes were hard. "Then we make sure every hunter who comes here never goes home."