Kahuel stopped her awkward strike and corrected her grip on the weapon. “You hold it like this.” He pulled out his own dagger and demonstrated for her how to strike. “Why not pick all the eggs?”
“So the birds you spare can grow and make their own nests to lay more eggs for the next season.” Talina watched him intently, imitating each move. She replicated them to perfection.
Once again Kahuel wondered whether she was reading his mind, but maybe she had an acute sense of observation. “Very clever husbandry to leave eggs in each nest.” Kahuel stopped his demonstration and gazed in the general direction of their destination. “How far are we from the sacred cave?”
“Not far.” Talina tucked the dagger back into her belt with a smile of obvious satisfaction. She pointed north, along the black cliffs. “It's just beyond that crooked outcrop.”
“I see it.” It would be another two-hour ride. “How do we cross the river?”
“When you follow the stream, there is a ford marked by bird feathers. We can walk across safely there and follow the path. It leads to a clearing with a large rock slab forming a shelf in front of the cliff. It hides the cave entrance.” She knelt by the water's edge and washed her hands and face.
“Sounds simple enough.” Kahuel could picture it just from her description. He knelt to drink. The cool water refreshed his parched throat.
Talina rose. “I'll go pick a few berries to nibble on the way.”
'I'd rather you not go, at least not alone.” But when Kahuel looked up, he only saw her retreating back. “Come back! It's not safe.”
“Don't worry. I know this place,” she called over her shoulder as she ran.
“Of course, you do.” Kahuel shook his head. It seemed silly to give advice to someone who'd grown up in this forest. Yet he worried about Talina more than he'd ever worried about any woman he'd ever known. He watered the horses and walked around with Diablo, making sure his warriors were rested and ready for a possible confrontation.
The riders prepared to leave, but Talina had not returned.
Diablo growled a warning.
Kahuel scanned his surroundings but could see nothing amiss. “What is it, Diablo? Is it Talina?”
When the jaguar took off in a leap, Kahuel ran after him. Diablo stopped short in a clearing, near a bush full of red berries and sniffed the air. Kahuel caught up with the jaguar and noticed a small pile of picked berries dropped on the ground. Talina's tracks stopped cold. Other than theirs, no other foot or paw imprinted the virgin floor of the forest clearing.
An ominous weight compressed Kahuel's chest. “Talina!”
His call met with utter silence... as if the entire forest held its breath. Not a bird chirp or monkey cry.
“Talina!” But Kahuel had a dreadful sense of loss. She was nowhere around. No tracks indicated no predator, no human attack. As if a bird had swooped her up in the air. He looked up at the sky. It couldn’t be a bird. Talina spoke with birds. Had her tribe captured her? They could be stealthy. Did they want to punish her for helping his people? He turned to Diablo. “Where is she, my friend?”
The jaguar sniffed the ground and growled. Then he shook himself and hung his head sadly. When Diablo turned around, Kahuel raced with him back to the river bank, his heart heavy as a stone.
The old cavalry captain caught sight of them returning. “What happened to our guide?”
“She is gone.” And just saying it made it more real and ominous.
“Gone?” The officer frowned.
Kahuel leapt upon his stallion. “The Chosen may not be as peaceful as she says they are. We are going to find out. I know where their sacred cave is.”
A rider took Talina's horse to the back of the reforming column, and the beastmasters fell into step with their felines.
Kahuel shuddered as he gave the signal to depart. If Talina was hurt in any way, whoever was responsible would pay dearly.
Chapter Ten
Kahuel easily found the location marked by the feathers Talina had described, but they met no natives. Were they watching from the trees? From the surrounding jungle? He forded the shallows at the head of his party, twenty riders and ten beastmasters with felines. He stole furtive glances at Diablo, who swam alongside the stallion, but the jaguar didn't seem alarmed.
As they emerged on the other bank, Diablo shook himself. Kahuel drew his sword as he watched the end of the column reaching the shore. He expected to see the natives anytime. Vanaru would pay dearly if he'd harmed Talina in any way.
The forest seemed peaceful as Kahuel led his small company along the worn path at a quick pace. The clicking of scabbards, stomping of hooves and the snorts of horses blended with the natural sounds of the forest. When the path widened, Kahuel reined in the black stallion.
He let the old cavalry captain catch up with him. “We should be very close.”
The grizzled officer surveyed their surroundings. “Where are the natives?”
“Good question. I expected little resistance, but this almost feels like a trap.” Kahuel didn't trust the Chosen. Pacifists could be more dangerous than war-like tribes. At least, he always knew what to expect from warriors.
The old man glanced up. “Will wild animals drop upon us from the trees?”
Kahuel shook his head. “I don't think so. Diablo and the other felines seem relaxed enough.”
As they advanced, the sound of an agitated gathering began to filter through the trees. Faraway voices shouted and argued. Thick muttering punctuated words muffled by the underbrush. Were the Chosen quarreling about what to do with Talina? Hot rage blazed pathways through Kahuel's skull. He prompted his mount with both heels, determined to extricate Talina from whatever doom her brother meant for her.
Kahuel lead the entire company in a charge. They surged into a clearing as clansmen, children and old women scattered with frightened cries. When he reached the center of the clearing, Kahuel halted his black stallion and hung on to the mane. His mount reared and whinnied, baring white teeth. Diablo emitted the coughing roar of the Jaguar. Other felines snarled and crouched, baring their fangs.
The Chosen stopped running away but remained at a safe distance at the fringe of the clearing, among ferns and saplings. Fear widened the white of their eyes.
Kahuel recognized the sacred place from Talina's description, with the black stone slab at the far end of the clearing, footing the black cliff. But Talina was nowhere in sight.
The slab crawled with giant albino snakes. Kahuel shivered at the memory of the previous day's battle against the reptiles. These snakes, however, didn't rush to attack. Their large ruby eyes seemed watchful... Guardian snakes. The relics must be close.
But at the moment, Kahuel cared more about Talina's safety.
Atop the black shelf, a young man in long white robes and a gleaming shaved head emerged from a tall, jagged opening in the black cliff behind him. He strode easily among the reptiles. His golden skin and striking turquoise eyes marked him as Talina's brother. Blast the man.
“What have you done with our women?” Vanaru shouted in Kahuel's direction.
A murmur of indignation rippled through the natives who slowly emerged from behind the ferns and shrubbery at the fringe and ventured back into the open.
“Me?” What kind of game was Vanaru playing? Kahuel signaled for his warriors to stay and prompted his black stallion forward. Diablo followed at his side. The gathered clansmen who had started to reassemble cleared his path. Men, children and crones... no young women among them. “What have you done with Talina?”
Standing at the edge of the black rock slab, Vanaru frowned. “Talina?”
“Yes, Talina, the sister you banished from your clan.” Kahuel halted the stallion at the base of the rock slab, as thick as Kahuel was tall. “You took her from me. Where is she?”
Vanaru peered down from the rim. His striking turquoise eyes grew large and round. “If you could read my mind you would know that I did not take Talina. And all of us Chos
en can tell from your thoughts that you didn't steal our women either.”
Blast the prying natives for invading his mind at will. But since they had no weapons and seemed more fearful than hostile, Kahuel sheathed his blade with a resounding click. “What happened to your women?”
“They all disappeared about two hours ago.” Vanaru's voice cracked and Kahuel realized the man truly cared about his people. So why had he so viciously banished his sister?
“That's when Talina vanished as well.” Kahuel dismounted and marched toward the steps carved into the right side of the slab, Diablo keeping up with his long strides.
When Kahuel emerged to his level on the platform, the native leader stood almost a head taller than him.
Vanaru turned to face them. “We can't even reach their minds. They can't be dead, we would have felt it. Which means they have to be farther away than the second mountain range, far beyond the horizon.”
“How is that even possible?” The idea of traveling that distance in such a short time boggled Kahuel's mind, since the dampening field prevented the use of flyers or other known technology. He hardly noticed the large snakes rolling out of his way as he strode toward Vanaru, until Diablo grunted his frustration behind him.
The Chosen leader pressed his full lips together. “If none of us took these women, who could have? And why?”
“How should I know?” It suddenly occurred to Kahuel that if no one knew where Talina was, she might be lost forever. His heart flinched painfully at the sweet memory of her smooth body cradled in his arms.
Vanaru's face darkened to bronze and his brow knitted as he glowered up and down at Kahuel, his lips curling in disgust. “You, filthy foreigner. You defiled my sister.”
Kahuel took one step back. Blast the man. “That's not your concern. She is not your sister anymore. She chose to become one of us.”
“You, vile, promiscuous abomination.” Vanaru's eyes glittered with unrestrained rage. “How dare you take her royal maidenhood?”
Shocked gasps and disapproving murmurs rose from the natives standing below. The riders and beastmasters at the center of the clearing glanced at each other, lines of worry etching their faces. Several drew their blades. Felines hissed and horses pranced restlessly.
“What's so terrible about that?” Kahuel didn't have to justify himself to the Chosen, but their reaction seemed excessive. “Every girl has to become a woman sometime.”
“You stripped her of any future as a queen. Now all she can ever be is a pariah.” Vanaru spat the word as if it burned his mouth.
“You did that when you banished her.” Kahuel had enough of the righteous attitude. “I don't care about your primitive rules anyway. Talina and I happen to love each other.”
“That word means nothing to the likes of you.” Vanaru squinted at him. “You lied to her by hiding your dissolute past.”
Kahuel hated to justify himself, but he couldn't let Vanaru revile him in front of his warriors. “I didn't mean to hide anything, and I certainly did not lie. Besides, she was more than willing.”
Vanaru shook his head furiously. “Only a chaste prince can claim a royal maidenhood, and she knows that. When she learns of your dirty hidden past, she will surely kill herself or die of shame, rather than remain attached to you.”
Fingers of hot rage burned a trail up Kahuel's neck and stung his cheeks. Could there be truth in Vanaru's words? Had he committed the unforgivable in Talina's eyes? Even if he found her, would she hate him? Leave him? He couldn't stand the thought of losing her. “In any case, we are not attached. We are both free.”
“How can that be?” The surprise on Vanaru's face could have been comical in other circumstances. “You consummated the sacred bond. You are mated for life.”
“For life?” Kahuel suddenly understood why Talina had been so willing, why she spoke of herself as his consort. She believed they were life mates... but it couldn't possibly be true. “You are trying to confuse me.”
“Unlike filthy foreigners who hide secrets, the Chosen do not lie... or play games.”
Behind Kahuel, Diablo growled a warning. One of the giant white snakes hissed and rose its hood at Kahuel's side, but Kahuel didn't care. A choking wave engulfed him. He clenched his fists, stomped toward the arrogant brother and threw a punch at the impudent face.
The hooded snake flared up between them so fast, Kahuel's fist connected with hard scales. His gaze met the spellbinding ruby stare of the hissing reptile, who didn't seem affected by the punch. In the wide-open mouth, a forked tongue flicked between long, sharp, venomous fangs.
Jumping back, Kahuel drew his sword in a wide arc, ready to defend his life. Icy rivulets ran down his spine. Diablo leapt to his side, ready to pounce, snarling at other Guardian snakes that slithered toward them.
Vanaru caressed the giant snake's head and whispered to it gently. The reptile swayed and lowered its head then undulated away as the other reptiles also lost interest. “You have much to learn, foreigner. Your profane violence disrupts the sacred harmony of this holy place.”
“Blasted harmony.” Kahuel hid his embarrassment under a smirk as he sheathed his sword with a resounding click. “You pretend to be peaceful, but you are the violent one. You sent sharks to kill my divers. You ordered your reptiles to attack my camp. Five warriors and a feline died yesterday, not counting over a hundred of your precious reptiles.”
Vanaru gazed back into Kahuel's eyes, his face impassible, devoid of any emotion, almost like a snake. “I obey the Star People in all things. I must.”
“Why? What kind of hold do they have on you?” Kahuel couldn't control the edge in his raised voice. “And what kind of ruler obeys blindly some galactic louts bent on exploiting his clan?”
“You blaspheme.” Vanaru's jaw muscles clenched, but his voice remained even. “The Star People have always protected us. You and your friends are the irritating grains of sand in our peaceful society. You ruin everything you touch.”
“Enough, both of you!” Gliding among the undulating snakes, white robes floating around her booted ankles, Princess Esperana came out from the cave entrance.
The deep feminine voice washed like a wave of hope over Kahuel, cooling his anger. “Princess Esperana! How did you get here?”
She came to stand behind Vanaru, her white complexion and long flaxen hair contrasting with his golden skin. Next to him, she didn't look so tall. She exchanged friendly smiles with the Chosen leader and laid a familiar hand on his silk-clad shoulder, a rare show of affection for a Mutant. Had she turned against Kahuel?
Esperana furrowed her brow in mild reproach. “When you two are done behaving like children, maybe we can address the problem at hand.”
Kahuel should have known Esperana was up to something. He hoped she could help. “You know where Talina is?”
“Yes. I think I know where the women of the Chosen are.”
Hope billowed like a white sail inside Kahuel's chest.
* * *
“What happened?” Talina mumbled with a thick tongue. Her head hurt like when she'd binged on fermented purple berries, not the red berries she'd been picking when she fell. Had she bumped her head on a stone and lost consciousness? No. She opened her eyes wide, but she could barely see. Slowly, her pupils adjusted to the dark, pulsing glow, like a moonless night over an indigo pond on a hot summer night.
Vaguely aware of others awakening on the smooth, spongy floor, Talina rose to explore this strange place, but her body bounced, like in a dream. The large blue cave had straight vertical walls and a flat ceiling. She ran her hand on the smooth, warm wall. Definitely not rock. Rock would be cold to the touch.
A soft drone filled the air, like the muted buzz of a bumblebee. It reminded Talina of the relics humming in the sacred cave. But here, the air smelled hot, not musty.
“Where are we?” A clanswoman huddled with a few others against a wall. She watched Talina with big dark eyes, ready to jump like a doe at the slightest sound or movement. B
ut all the women moved with unusual grace, like in a slow dance. It looked unreal.
Talina didn't know this group... probably from another village. But she understood their fear. As far as she could see, this cave had no entrance. They were sealed in, like in an ancient royal tomb. “What I don't understand is how we came to be here.”
“I was washing clothes at the river,” said the same young woman.
“And I was cooking tubers,” another volunteered from the dark blue shadows. “I tried to reach my mate through mind-talk, but I can't.”
“Don't talk to her!” A tall woman from Talina's village stepped in front of the small group and overshot her move. She corrected for the unusual lightness and faced the others. “She is not our princess anymore. She was banished. Look at her. She dresses like a foreigner and she wears a forbidden blade.”
The women from the other village cowered and retreated into the shadows.
“It doesn't matter here.” Talina had to stop any dispute. “We are all in the same situation and maybe we can help each other.”
The tall woman faced her bluntly. “I don't see what you can do.”
Ignoring the tendrils of panic snaking along her spine, Talina forced a reassuring smile. She couldn't let the fear leaching from the others' minds get to her. A princess should always offer reassurance, even in the direst situation, even if she no longer belonged with the Chosen. “Maybe this is all just a bad dream. But don't worry. Even if it this is real, since we came in here somehow, there has to be a way out.”
The challenging woman's gaze darted right and left. “I don't see any.”
“Oh, it's here somewhere.” Talina could now distinguish a few more details in the sea of blue as the darkness gradually dissipated, or maybe her eyes adapted to the gloom, like looking from a fire into the dark jungle. Long linear indents decorated parts of the wall, surrounded by markings that looked familiar... “I've seen these before.”
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