Daughter of Ninmah

by Lori Holmes

  “She is herself again, her mind has recovered.”

  Daajir cast his eyes towards Ninmah. “Thank you,” he whispered.

  “Perhaps Baarias will let you see her today,” Nyri encouraged. “Perhaps you could tell her about your plans-”

  Daajir grabbed Nyri by the shoulders and planted a kiss on her forehead. “Yes!” He bounded off before she even had chance to be shocked. “Maybe if she knows I have found a way to protect us…”

  “Actually, perhaps you should wait,” Nyri called after him, wishing now that she had held her tongue. “She’s still fragile. You need to be careful.”

  “I can be tactful,” he said and was gone.

  “Since when,” Nyri murmured to the empty space. She hoped Baarias would not be angry with her for sending Daajir his way. At least her distraction had worked better than she hoped; she was now free to do what she needed. Nyri moved to the edge of the tree and looked down. Daajir had already disappeared. She dropped easily to the ground.

  To her surprise, Sefaan was waiting on the edge of the outer forest.

  “They are more wary since the attack, girl.” She gestured into the darkness and Nyri could feel the presences of the sentries shadowed in the trees. She swallowed. “Don’t worry.” Sefaan touched her arm. “I will deal with them. You do your best to hide your presence and I will do the rest.”

  “Thank you, revered Kamaali.” Nyri plucked up the courage to squeeze her hand. “By the way,” she whispered. “Why did you not take the honey Daajir brought?”

  “Because he is another that needs distracting,” Sefaan answered cryptically. “Now go, there is no more time to lose. May the Great Spirit guide you.”

  Stealing herself, Nyri set off into the forest. She fought to concentrate as she neared the sentries, doing her best to blend in to her surroundings. Her efforts were almost shattered when the sudden screeching of a maamit troop burst into life overhead. The tiny creatures swayed and swung through the canopy. Cries of surprise told her the sentries had been as startled as she had been. Taking that as her signal, Nyri ran.

  As soon as she was cleanly away, her pace slowed to a crawl. She was not looking forward to what was coming in the slightest. Her anger might have dissipated, Sefaan might have given her renewed purpose, but that did not mean her fear was any less. She remembered the feel of his hate lashing against her senses and shuddered, clutching the red berries close. You must try, she told her quailing heart.

  She arrived at the Pit and hesitantly started to pull back the coverings.

  The snap of a twig behind her made her start violently. Golden eyes peered out of the foliage before the entire furry form emerged from the trees. Batai. Nyri let out a breath of relief and almost chuckled.

  The wolf trotted over and nuzzled her hand. She scratched his ears. He was curious as to what she was doing. She really should send him away but couldn’t find it in herself to do so. She felt very much alone and she was afraid of what she was about to face. Batai’s presence was familiar and comforting. She faced the Pit again. “Well, here goes nothing, Batai.”

  The wolf blinked and lay down, watching Nyri in his usual pose. Bolstered by his patient presence, Nyri finished pulling the covers back from the Pit. For my people, she vowed even as her muscles tensed, bracing for the onslaught.

  It never came.

  A gasp of horror choked off in Nyri’s throat at the sight that greeted her.

  Juaan was lying face down upon the ground, unmoving. At first glance, Nyri thought him to be dead. No! Pain lashed through her. Her own blinding, personal pain. The conviction that she was doing this only for her people’s sake slipped. Juaan…

  Then her higher senses came to bear and she breathed once again. His life force was still there. Barely. The deprivation had finally overwhelmed him; every bit of food she had previously brought remained untouched, lying where it had fallen. She cursed. Foolish, stubborn…!

  She paced agitatedly up and down the edge of the Pit. He was slipping away before her eyes and there was nothing she could do to prevent it.

  Not if she didn’t go down there.

  To Ninsiku with it all!

  Before she could think, she found her root, still coiled where she had left it and threw it over the edge. After the slightest hesitation, she started down.

  She was under no illusion that she was gambling with her life. Even weakened, he could kill her. He had threatened to do just that if she ever came near him again. She pushed her apprehension away and placed her feet on the ground. If she was to save his life and save her people, she must put his threat to the test. Nyri could hear him breathing softly; his life force was so weak it was frightening.

  Grabbing the nutshell she had given him from where it lay untouched, she rushed to the aquilem vine. Extending her will, Nyri caused the plant to start drawing water through the fleshy tube; it poured forth into the waiting bowl. She returned to Juaan’s prone form.

  His face was turned to the side. Very carefully, she tipped the water onto his mouth. His cracked lips twitched and started to move, unconsciously seeking the nourishment. He swallowed a couple of times, slow at first, then more eagerly.

  His eyes snapped open.

  This time Nyri was prepared. She dodged backwards as his arm shot out. Quick as she was, his fingers still managed to brush her shoulder. She bounded away, sure he would follow and catch her. But he made no further move; he hissed in pain as his lunge proved too much for his tender body. He rolled over and doubled up on himself.

  “Careful,” Nyri murmured as she stood tense by her root. “You won’t have fully healed yet.”

  Green eyes fixed upon her as he propped himself shakily into a sitting position. His hand moved to his ribs and he winced, almost doubling up again.

  “Juaan,” Nyri stepped forward automatically. “Are-”

  He was on his feet before Nyri could draw breath. “I warned you!”

  For her own life, Nyri could not move as he hurled himself towards her. She watched as he came, unable to take her eyes from his. So, this is what death looks like. In a different situation, the cause of her demise would have been laughable. Juaan was going to kill her. Juaan was…

  He was but a stride away when something inside Nyri snapped. All of her fear, all of her anger, all of her love and pain, suddenly broke loose. Defiant, she set her feet.

  “Kill me then!” she screamed up at him. “Go on! Be rid of me! Kill me!”

  Her rage brought him up short, one hand stretched forward as it reached for her throat. Nyri lifted her chin, inviting.

  “Go on,” she hissed. “Free me from my bond, there is no other way. You’ll be doing me a favour.”

  The fingers brushed against her flesh. She felt them quiver, somehow unable to take their deadly hold. The green eyes flickered. Nyri kept her own locked daringly upon them, challenging him with all her might. If he was going to kill her, then so be it; she was not going to fight. She took half a step forward into his grip.

  And he stepped back. The green resolve shattered before her steady gaze. His hand fell from her throat as he collapsed to the ground, huddling back against the Pit wall at her feet. His head bowed between his arms as if he no longer had the strength to hold it up.

  “What spell have you cast on me, she-elf?” His voice cracked. “Who are you?”

  Nyri’s muscles were still locked in position. For a moment, she was unable to move so much as a finger. She found her voice first. “I told you. I am Nyri.”

  His fists tightened around his knees at the sound of her name. “And why do you insist on tormenting me like this?”

  He sounded so vulnerable in that moment it tore at her heart. Oh, Juaan… “Please, I do not mean to torment you. I only want you to recover.”

  “You are an elf.” He lifted his head and eyed her wearily. That look was back. The one that questioned her sanity. “I am nothing but an abomination in your eyes. I know that well enough.”

  “You’re wrong!” she
blurted. “You are everything to me, Juaan!”

  “I told you before,” he snapped as harshly as he could manage. “My name is not Juaan. I do not know who you have mistaken me for. My name is—”

  “Khalvir. Yes I know.” Careful. You can’t let your heart run away with you. This is for your people. Don’t push him. She had just gambled with her life, there was no need to take further risks.

  They stared at each other in loaded silence. She watched as his eyes went from her face to the dangling root and back. He was assessing his chances. Nyri became terribly aware of just how very alone she was down here with a being nearly half again her size and who knew how many times her strength. She would not be able to stop him if he tried to escape. She watched as he came to the same terrible conclusion.

  Her mind worked quickly and she took another gamble. “Do not attempt to escape,” she said. “I have a pack of wolves up there who do not take kindly to strangers in their territory. It took all of my skill to prevent them from coming down here to chew your head off. You wouldn’t make it two strides.” To drive her point home, Nyri stretched out her will. Batai’s answering howl echoed through the trees above.

  His rich skin paled as his face turned apprehensively towards the surface but he composed himself in the flicker of an eye. His fists clenched threateningly and Nyri took half a step back.

  “Are you going to hurt me?” Her voice came out childlike, small with vulnerability. It was the same question she had asked when they had first met. Was he too the same? The same boy who had always vowed to protect her to the end? Had it been a lie, as Kyaati claimed or did Sefaan have the truth of it? She had to believe in the Kamaali’s words. Her father was no longer here to sweep her away, her mother not here to calm him. If he attacked her again now, it would be over. Even if she managed to get away, she could never return. Not this time. She would truly have lost.

  It felt like forever before he sighed. “No,” he whispered. “I won’t hurt you. I can’t, it seems. For the love of Ea, I do not know why.”

  Relief washed through her. Hope that she might yet overcome the impossible rose in her heart. Unthinkingly, she reached a hand towards him. He leaned away and she drew her hand back. She tasted the energy around her, trying to read his emotions and gauge how best to behave. Nyri felt a ripple of shock. He wasn’t angry now. He was fearful. Confusion flooded her mind; surely, she had more reason to fear him. “Don’t worry,” she murmured. “I won’t hurt you, either.”

  He did not look convinced so Nyri did not push her luck. A fearful animal was always the most dangerous of all. She squatted down at a safe distance of two strides. This was a strange truce but she’d take it. Nyri stared at him, taking in this familiar, foreign face. She did not like all that she saw.

  “What?” he asked brusquely. He might have accepted her presence but he was making it clear that he didn’t have to like it.

  Nyri shook herself. “I’m sorry. I was just thinking, now that we have established we are not going to hurt one another, are you hungry?”

  His face set. “No.”

  Nyri blinked against the sudden moisture starting in her eyes. How many times had they played this game and he couldn’t even remember. “Don’t be stubborn.”

  His mouth opened and closed, shocked by her audacity. “I’m not being stubborn!” he snapped. “Why should I trust anything you give me? An elf like you would rejoice in seeing a creature like me dead.” His gaze hardened. “It is also in your best interest to kill me.”

  “And it is in your best interest to kill me,” she countered. “You could do so so easily. That first time I came here, you had me pinned to the ground and at your mercy. And again just now. You could have hurt me, killed me, but you didn’t. You let me go. Why?”

  His fists tightened once more in frustration and… pain. “I. Don’t. Know.” He ground each word from between his teeth. “By the Sky Gods, I have reason enough.”

  “Well I know,” Nyri stated. “And it is for the same reason I will never hurt you.”

  His green eyes sparked. “Will you stop that, I am not-”

  “Look,” she cut him off. She saw she would have to win this with cold hard logic. “It does not matter who I might have mistaken you for or who you mistakenly think you are. You either trust me or you die. You are dying. I can feel it. I am offering you survival. The choice is yours.” She cringed inwardly at the bluntness of her ultimatum.

  He glowered at her, frighteningly so. Nyri had to remind herself once again that this was a stranger sitting opposite her. She was baiting an adopted Wove in a Pit.

  “I have a surprise for you,” she said quickly. She reached into the folds of her garments for the berries she had brought. She had a sudden, childish urge to tell him to close his eyes but she quashed it ruthlessly. He had never trusted that instruction even when he had known her. She pulled the fruit out for him to see. He recoiled and had to look twice at what was in her hand before he relaxed. Nyri rolled her eyes. “What? Did you think I was going to pull a snake out of there?”

  He snorted. “Who knows with your kind.”

  “My kind?” She was starting to get annoyed. “The Woves you brought here are worse than any snake!”

  “Woves?”

  “Yes. Wove. Raiders and murderers. By all rights, I should be pulling a snake on you. Now do you want this fruit or not?”

  He fell silent, regarding Nyri with his head cocked to the side. He was smiling, she realised suddenly. Not visibly, but he was. “You are a spirited one.”

  “Do you want them or not?” Nyri grouched.

  He eyed the fruit. He wanted to resist; so stubborn, even now. Nyri waited, not daring to breathe as slowly, oh so very slowly, he leaned forward, reaching out towards the berries she offered. Then he stopped.

  “Alright, have it your way,” he said. “But first, put them on the ground and move away.”

  “Why? I’m not going to bite you.”

  “That’s the least of my worries.” The cold expression returned. “You have the audacity to call me a murderer? I know what you could do if you touched me.”

  “Like what exactly?”

  “You tell me, elf-witch.”

  “Elf? Witch?” Nyri frowned. “That’s rather ungrateful. All I have done is try to help you and heal your wounds.”

  His jaws ground together and he growled. “Even so. Move away.”

  “Oh for Ninmah’s sake!” She placed the berries on the ground and backed away.

  He watched her move to a safe distance and then stared at the fruit. He could resist no longer. He descended on the berries. He tasted the first tentatively. His eyes widened at the flavour and the rest were gone in moments.

  “They were always your favourite,” she said softly. She wasn’t sure if he was paying attention. She felt a wave of sadness. His tastes hadn’t changed but he was no longer the Juaan she had known. This man was too bitter, too angry. Her heart cried out for the boy she had loved and she admonished it sternly. What were you hoping for? He has been raised in the company of Woves. Your task is to reach him enough to order the demons away, that is all. He is no longer your friend.

  Leaving the last half of the honey fruit for him, she picked up the half nutshell and drew some more water from the vine, speaking in a louder voice as she did so. “I need to go now before I’m missed.”

  He searched her face silently. She tried to imagine what was going through his mind. Here he was, trapped with an enemy whom he clearly hated but, for reasons beyond his comprehension, he could not bring himself to harm. A stranger who held his entire fate in her hands.

  “What is it that you want from me?”

  For you to remember me. For you to save us. I need you still, Juaan. But she couldn’t tell him that. He couldn’t know that she was using him.

  “Nothing.” She started for the rope.

  “Nothing?” His tone was skeptical. “Well, just how long are you planning to keep me down here?”

  “
I don’t know that, either.” Long enough for me to reach you, I hope. “We’ll just have to see what the future brings.”

  He grumbled, frustrated. “Has anyone ever told you that you are a little monster?”

  His eyes widened in alarm when Nyri started to laugh and cry at the same time. “Yes. You. Several times.” He stared at her as though finally concluding that she was indeed mad. Nyri composed herself. “I must go.” She needed to get back. She needed to see that her friend and her teacher were as well as they could be. “Rest,” she called softly over her shoulder. “You need to get your strength back. I’ll return with more food but I have to be careful. I cannot let my people become suspicious. They would let the wolves chew your head off.”

  She felt his eyes on her back. “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Are you protecting me from your own?”

  Nyri turned and those green eyes were so familiar they made her forget herself. She spoke. “Because no matter what has happened, you are my Juaan and I will protect you to the end.”

  With that she scrambled back to the surface and was gone.

  * * *

  27

  Promises

  Sefaan hobbled to the point where Aardn had called the tribe to attention. She kept a low profile. Nyriaana was still out in the forest trying to get past the sentries. Distracted by the Elder’s call, Sefaan had not been ready for her return. Quickly, she extended her will, dulling the sentries’ senses and concealing the girl as Nyriaana covered her passage with a flock of birds.

  She was through. Sefaan saw her emerge from the trees, flushed and panting. She straightened abruptly at the sight of the gathered tribe and made her way over to them.

  “The Woves have made another breach of our borders,” Aardn announced, drawing Sefaan’s attention back to the centre of the gathering.

  “Then why are we not running?” someone demanded.

  “They did not come near the settlement,” Aardn assured. “We were not their target. Something else is drawing them. I will not abandon our home until it is absolutely necessary.”