“The bitch, she’s sending to me!” Carrie muttered, pushing Kaid aside as she picked up more thoughts pertaining to her alienness and corruption of Kusac.
Kaid held her back.
“Patience,” he said. “Remember what we’ve taught you. Keep your emotions out of the arena. The first to lose her self-control will lose the fight. Remember that and you’ll do all right.” His fingers touched her cheek fleetingly, then were gone.
Once again she heard the quiet voice in her mind, this time wishing her luck.
Kaid beckoned Meral over. “I’ll leave you with Meral for now,” he said. “I have to see to security. We don’t want any journalists here, do we?” He hoped she’d forgotten the second killer was still at large.
Meral stood back a little from them, giving them a last moment of privacy. T’Chebbi was already standing beside Rala and her brother while Rala’s two Warriors waited for Kusac.
Kusac pulled Carrie around to face him and began to lace up her leather jerkin, the only form of body protection the combatants were allowed.
“Shield yourself fully from her,” he said. “Don’t let her use her hate to distract you. Stay calm and think of it as a practice with Kaid or Meral.”
Carrie could feel Rala’s anger mounting because of Kusac’s obvious partisanship. She risked a glance round Kusac’s shoulder at the Sholan female. Rala’s face was contorted in fury. Her ears were flat, and at her sides her hands clenched into fists as the hair rose on her neck and shoulders. Her tail swayed like an independent entity, bushing out to twice its normal size.
Enjoy it while you can, Terran, because it’s the last time he’ll touch you! came the vitriolic thought before Rala pointedly turned her back on them. He’ll be mine five minutes from now!
Ignore her, Kusac sent as he reached the top of the jerkin and tied off the cord, tucking the ends safely away before looking at her. His arms went round her and he held her close, almost crushing the breath from her. His mouth found hers in his equivalent of a kiss. Remember you are as precious as life to me. Do whatever it takes to win.
He released her reluctantly, going over to Rala’s warriors and her brother.
She watched him walk away, suddenly realizing that in this crowd of furred Sholans, she was the only human. She began to panic as she rubbed her hands together. They felt strange to her, lacking a covering of fur. Her thoughts began to fragment into his/her reactions, then Meral came up to her with the weapons.
With an effort, she forced back the panic and tried to focus on the task ahead of her. Her errant thoughts wandered again, this time worrying how Kusac would react if she did lose the child. Instinctively, she tugged at the jerkin, easing its fit across her stomach.
You are the important one, was the fierce reply as he turned to look at her.
Meral handed her the shield, his presence pulling her back to the moment. “You’re winning already,” he said quietly. “Look at her. She’s hyping herself up with anger. She’s going to make mistakes. Don’t worry.” He helped her fasten the shield on and handed her the short sword.
She balanced it in her hand, giving it a quick spin to loosen her wrist. It was a vicious weapon, resembling a reversed claw. The spine of the blade went from a T-section near the enclosed handle to a diamond shape at the tip, with a secondary cutting edge on the upper surface. The blade extended along the base of the grip, again with a razor sharp edge to it.
No delaying it any more, she thought, stepping onto the sand. She waited for Rala, realizing that most of the fear had gone now that the adrenaline was beginning to take over. Similarly equipped, Rala stepped into the circle.
Carrie remembered what Kaid had said. “Don’t see her as a person, see her as an obstacle between you and your Leska.”
Carrie moved nearer the center, crouching down and watching her opponent. At a signal from Kusac’s father, Rala took a guard position and began to pace around her.
Chapter 20
The stone was really beginning to hurt now, its jagged edges cutting into his hip. It was no good, he had to move. Everyone’s attention was focused on the combat circle anyway; he was unlikely to be seen. Cautiously, Chyad eased his stomach and hips upward, shifting his legs a few precious centimeters to the right. His movements disturbed the bird that had been perched in the bush. Shrieking and scolding, it fluttered angrily up through the branches above him and flew off.
Chyad’s head sank back down on his forearms as he cursed quietly to himself, waiting for the inevitable. Nothing, not a sound. They’d not noticed. He began to breathe again. He raised his head, looking out through the foliage. No chance for a clean shot yet, everyone was milling around.
There was the male from the Khalossa, their bodyguard. So, he was one of the Brotherhood, was he? So much the better. He’d stick to his original plan and take one of them out during the fight when perhaps his shot would go unnoticed. His revenge against him would be even sweeter. He’d have to live with knowing that he’d been beaten by an ordinary Forces male.
Now that the damned bird had gone, he could move a little more freely. He reached down and scratched at a halfhealed thorn cut on his leg. He’d been here for the last week, living rough off the land out by the ruined temple until a couple of nights ago. Knowing they’d step up the security in the days before the Challenge, he’d managed to find himself a lair in the middle of this thornbush. It was an ideal location for what he had in mind. Thumbing the power on, he lay there, cradling his pulse rifle, watching, ready to spin the wheel of fortune one final time.
*
Kaid turned his back on the circle, walking the couple of hundred meters toward Garras. There he had not only an uninterrupted view of the combat, but also of the cleared area around them.
“Everyone’s in position,” said Garras quietly. “Anything moves, we’ll see it, and they’ve got instructions to shoot down any autovids.”
Kaid nodded, grateful for his friend’s presence. Garras’ ability to follow his thoughts was even more invaluable now.
“Was it wise to place Dzaka so close?”
“I’ve snipers on the roof. One way or another, I find out today if I can trust him.” Kaid’s voice was bleak. He thumbed the communicator clipped at the base of his throat. “All units, report in.”
The males and females he’d requested from Ghezu reported in one by one. There were ten in all, scattered throughout the grounds and at the entrances to the estate. His people were taking no chances with the renegade male from the Khalossa still at large.
*
Carrie turned to keep Rala in sight, allowing the other to do the work while assessing her movements. The Sholan seemed to have poor shield control, as if she disliked it or had spent more time learning to use the sword.
Deciding she couldn’t tempt the human into attacking, Rala suddenly rushed toward her, sword raised, aiming for her head.
Carrie blocked using her shield, pushing the Sholan back while cutting with her blade to Rala’s left side. It bounced off the other’s shield and she pulled back to feint at Rala’s right, changing direction at the last minute for a shoulder level blow. Rala turned just in time, managing to take it on her sword. Using her greater strength, she pushed Carrie’s blade aside, ramming her in the stomach with her own shield.
Staggering back, Carrie recovered her balance, managing to get her weapons up in time to block the flurry of blows Rala rained about her upper body. As Kaid had warned, she was having to work hard just to defend herself. Waiting for a chance, she shoulder-charged the female backward, rushing in to punch Rala’s shield aside while the other was still off balance. It gave Carrie the opening she needed and with a single cut to Rala’s side, she had taken first blood.
Rala looked at the rent in her jerkin, seeing the blood beginning to seep out. Going down in a crouch, her face contorted by hate, she moved closer to Carrie as Kusac’s father turned to the watching Warriors, waiting for them to declare First Blood.
“If I can’t have h
im, then neither will you,” she growled. “You may be a telepath, but you’re not Sholan! I call the Blood Rite on you!”
Oh, God, thought Carrie, an icy wash of fear running through her, not that, not the death Challenge!
As Rala ran toward her, Kusac moved forward, only to be grabbed by one of the Warriors.
“No!” he yelled, sheer terror in his voice. “Stop her!”
He turned on the Warrior, trying to pull free, but was firmly grasped from the other side as well. Caught between the two, he was unable to move. He felt the gestalt snap into being and hadn’t the time to even curse before he saw Carrie stagger backward under its power.
Meral and T’Chebbi stood frozen, unable to intervene for fear of distracting Carrie. Then it was too late.
Rala’s cut to her thigh went home, leaving a long slash that began to bleed instantly. The shock jerked Carrie back into control of herself just as Rala, seeing her standing wide open, lunged forward with a stab aimed at her heart.
There wasn’t time to block, only to avoid. Carrie turned, taking the blade in the upper arm. It sliced into the tricep muscle, tearing the flesh as it was ripped free.
*
For Kusac it was as if everything was happening in slow motion. He experienced the hot flare of pain along her thigh as if it was his, then the agony of the wound in the upper arm. He sagged briefly against the males holding him, then fed the power of the gestalt to Carrie, hoping it would give her the strength to continue. Saving just enough for himself, he turned on the Warriors. The one he had stumbled against had relaxed his hold enough for Kusac to pull free. He turned on the other, hitting him full strength across the side of the head with his free hand. Suddenly he found himself in the midst of his own battle as the first one leaped on him.
*
Kaid kept turning his head to look at the fight, mentally sharing every blow given and received by Carrie. He tried to remember he was supposed to be guarding her, but his eyes kept returning to the combat. That was where her most pressing danger lay for now, and in the circle, he couldn’t protect her. He turned away again, scanning the open area around them, looking for the slightest of movements that would betray the presence of a sniper.
A shout rang out and he looked back at the two females. It was over, and Carrie had drawn first blood. He sighed. Vartra be praised! His mind at ease now, he turned to look back at the surrounding woodland. A glint of light over to his left caught his attention.
Simultaneously, he heard more shouting followed by a cry from Kusac. Around him, all was still. He risked a quick glance back and saw Rala hit Carrie.
Instinct made him look back at the bushes even as his chest tightened in fear for her. There was someone there, he knew it. He scanned the undergrowth, looking for a repeat of the flash. Now was when he’d attack, when they were both made vulnerable by her wound.
*
Carrie gave an involuntary cry of pain as the blade was wrenched free. She staggered back, aware of a sudden heat running far too quickly down her arm. Risking a glance at her injury, she gasped, realizing by the amount of blood she was losing that a major vessel had been severed. Clamping her arm quickly against her side, she looked for Rala. There was no time for fear.
Her vision blurred briefly as the gestalt surged through her again. This time she realized Kusac was not controlling it. She reached out, harnessing the power, using it to stave off the shock to her system and found her dizziness beginning to fade. Keeping her left arm pressed tightly to her side, shield up at chest level, she waited for the Sholan. She didn’t have the strength to waste on going to her.
Rala, knowing that the blow hadn’t been fatal but that Carrie was seriously wounded, came rushing in to finish her off. Carrie blocked with her blade, noticing that Rala’s shield had dropped. Risking everything, she stepped forward, using the gestalt energy to shield-punch at the female’s face with the rim of her shield. The moment she moved her arm, blood began to stream from her wound, falling to be absorbed by the sandy floor of the arena.
Rala whipped her shield up, throwing her head back to avoid the blow, giving Carrie the chance she needed. With the last of her strength, she lunged forward, stabbing up into the other’s rib cage.
The blade penetrated to the grip, stopping only as it hit Rala’s spine. She gave a high-pitched scream of agony and toppled forward, wrenching the blade from Carrie’s hand.
Kusac had laid out one of the warriors with his first blow. The other proved more tenacious and he received a couple of head-numbing hits himself before landing a hard enough blow to keep his opponent down. He swung around just as Rala fell dead at Carrie’s feet.
He ran toward his Leska, seeing her stagger, blood pouring from her arm as he tried to catch her before she fell. Something punched him hard in the shoulder from behind and he stumbled, unbalanced by the dead weight of Carrie in his arms. He crashed to the ground, landing hard on his knees, Carrie cradled close to his chest. Oblivious to his pain, he sat back on his haunches and felt for her wound with his hand, trying to stem the continuous stream of blood. The gestalt was fading now and his head began to swim with her pain and loss of blood. His shoulder ached, too, for some reason he couldn’t comprehend.
Taizia came running up, shouting for her father. She slowed as she saw Kusac bending over Carrie.
“Father,” she said quietly, “the message just came. The Council on Keiss has canceled the Challenge.”
*
Kaid began to run even as the pulse of energy spat out from the assassin’s cover. No time to check who’d been hit. It was too late now anyway. Either they were still alive, or they were dead. Anger burned within him as he retaliated with a strafing burst of fire that ignited the bushes.
There was an explosion of movement and a figure broke from the undergrowth to dash four-legged toward the deeper cover of the nearest treeline. Kaid shot again, hearing the communicator at his throat issue orders in Garras’ voice. The sound had an eerie quality, alerting him to the fact Garras was close behind.
*
Chyad had made it to the woodland. As he plunged headlong through the bushes at least he had the satisfaction of knowing that he’d hit the male, Kusac. With the trauma from her wound, all it needed was a push in the same direction for him and they’d be caught in their mutual pain. There was no way they could possibly survive. The double shock alone would kill them.
He heard the sound of pursuit crashing through the bushes after him. They’d have to be a lot quieter than that if they planned to catch him. Branches whipped him in the face, tearing at his ears and nose. He ground to a halt as one smacked him across the face, its sharp thorn drawing blood from his forehead and leaving a thorn or two embedded in his nose. The undergrowth was too thick for him to run like this. Rearing up, he swung his rifle off his shoulders and shifted it round into a ready position as he loped off to the right.
The trees were thinning out as he saw the hill looming up ahead of him. Once across the clearing, his aircar waited under the cover of a spiky wintergreen tree. Then he was clear and free.
*
Kaid heard Garras crashing around just behind him. The old magic was still there: Garras had read him and knew exactly what was needed. They’d always made a good team. He took off to one side of the trail, moving quickly and silently. He had a major advantage over their sniper: he knew every inch of this woodland.
His quarry was sweating profusely, and he could smell it. From the direction he was heading in, it was a safe bet he was making for the hill. The woodland petered out there, leaving a clearing of some thirty meters to the bushes at the base of the hill. He increased his speed, playing the hunch, determined to get there in time to stop the assassin.
The clearing came into sight and with it a running figure. Kaid used his powerful leg muscles to propel him forward in a leap that took him a good five meters into the clearing. As he landed, he fired, aiming a slicing burst of energy at the male’s legs. Chyad went down as if poleaxed, the rifl
e flying from his grip as he landed.
Kaid remained where he was, crouching down, ready to fire again if necessary. The sniper lay there making small mewling noises of pain; he wasn’t going anywhere. Kaid stood and walked over to him just as Garras emerged from the trees.
“He’s mine,” said Kaid shortly, gun trained on his captive. “Go back, help the others check the area in case there’re more.”
Garras hesitated, looking at the hideous burns on the sniper’s legs. “Kaid, don’t you…”
“I said go!”
Garras nodded and left them alone.
The male on the ground looked up at Kaid, face contorted by pain, ears invisible against his skull. “Damn you! Aren’t… you going… to… ask… why?” His voice was distorted by his clenched teeth.
“No, Chyad. This time I’m going to make sure I kill you,” said Kaid, his voice like ice as he flicked off the safety switch on his rifle. “Eventually.”
*
She was losing too much blood and he couldn’t stop it. Dazed, Kusac lifted his head and looked around. “Help me,” he said.
As if in a dream, the figures around them suddenly began to move. Vanna was first over, followed by her assistant. She handed Chena the hypoderm, ordering her to give Kusac a shot while she pushed his hand out of the way, applying a pressure pad to Carrie’s arm wound. Holding it tightly in place, she ripped the sleeve open with her free hand so she could work on the injury.
“You faint on me, Kusac, and I’ll kill you myself!” she growled. “I need you to monitor Carrie.” As she fastened the bandage, she spoke to Chena. “Check the other female when you’re done.”
Kusac flinched when the hypoderm was fired against the inside of his thigh, but as the stimulant began to take effect, his head started to clear slightly.
“I can’t give you a psychic suppressant since we need to use your abilities,” she said, working quickly to bind the wound on Carrie’s thigh. “You’re going to have to block her pain yourself.” She glanced up at him. “Kusac!” she said sharply, reaching out to pull hard on his ear.
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