The night above the tabernacle remains was silent, but it was n't still. The stars had changed. Layla satcross-legged beside the blank tablet, fritters resting on its cool face. The others slept in uneasy packets of cloth and packs, but Layla kept her surveillance. The tablet was empty, yet bucketed with a slow, steady twinkle she could feel in her bones. When she looked up, the sky was a black ocean.