“What of Belsas Exzal?” sighed Chandrey. “Is she incapable of emotions now as well? Does her post control her so completely?”
“My personal feelings run second to my post. They always have. I can have no regrets, no remorse, no doubts over what I have done in the line of duty.”
Chandrey’s skirt’s twisted when she rose with a force echoed by her angry tone. “Well, I can! You sent my baby, my LaRenna, my only child to face the Creiloff twins, knowing what they did to me during the war. I hate you for that, almighty, unfeeling Taelach of All and I’ll never, ever forgive you for it!” Chandrey stormed from the room. She had stood by Belsas and supported all her decisions for nearly thirty passes. Now, the one time she truly needed her guardian to be there for her, only her, Belsas shunned her. Chandrey kept a stoic appearance until she reached the deck’s corner set meditation lounge. There, in the room’s dim light, she knelt at the Mother Maker’s small shrine and wept, begging her creator for the strength to understand and forgive.
On the battle deck, Krell threw her mourning sash to the floor. “She’s not dead. I know it. Why won’t any of you listen to me? She’s hurt. She needs me. She needs us!” Krell turned toward Firman. “You believe me. Don’t you?”
“Try to be realistic,” he replied. “She was in poor condition before the crash happened. There was no way she could have survived.”
“Here!” Krell retrieved the sash from the deck. “You’re so damned convinced, you wear it!”
Firman removed the sash from her clenched fist and laid it on the worktable. “I know you loved her, Krell—”
“Love, not loved,” she sputtered. “You don’t speak of the living in the past tense. It’s bad manners.” Krell ran her palm over the picture of Saria Four spanning the wall viewer. “Where do you think we should begin looking? Listfeindale? The lower Reisfall ranges?”
“They’ll have tracked the crash to a hundred-kilometer radius within the hour,” he sighed.
The level lift doors slid open with an airy swoosh, admitting Tatra. She glided across the room to give Krell a compassionate embrace. “I am so sorry. She was such a sweet girl.”
“She’s not dead, Tatra. She’s down there.” Krell tapped the view-screen, intent on the picture.
The Healer glanced at Firman. He shrugged and shook his head in similar bewilderment. “Denial,” he whispered.
“There’s nothing to deny!” exclaimed Krell, pushing Tatra away. “LaRenna is very much alive. I know it. I feel it in my heart.”
“You’re positive she’s alive?” A physician’s analytical tone seeped into Tatra’s alto. Her concern for Krell now extended beyond the usual grief counseling and into her actual mental status. “How do you know? All indications are to the contrary.”
Krell gazed at her in astonishment. “She’s near. Can’t you feel her? I hear her voice. Smell her scent. She’s close, Tatra. Getting her back is all I can think of.”
“Do you dream of her?”
“Every time I close my eyes.” Krell’s expression darkened. “Mostly nightmares as of late.”
“Tell me about them.”
Krell stepped back when she noticed the detached clinical expression on Tatra’s face. “I don’t need any of your psychoanalytical jargon trying to convince me I’ve lost my senses. I know she’s alive. I know it!”
“Chances are she isn’t.” Tatra glanced again to Firman. “You have to face facts.”
“Facts?” Krell’s denying expression shifted into indignation. “You physicians think you’re above error. You know what you can do with your facts, Healer Wileyse?” Krell overturned one of the worktable chairs in a lunge that shoved Tatra against the wall. “You can shove them and that self-serving, know-it-all analysis up your bony ass!”
“Krell, release me—please. Your personal pain doesn’t give you the right to attack another.” Tatra chewed at her bottom lip. “I only wish to help.”
“Back off, Krell.” Firman laid a hand on his sister’s shoulder. She shrugged him off and shoved Tatra into the wall again.
“Pain? Woman, you’ve no idea the pain she’s endured!”
“Krell, NO!” Firman jerked back with all his might, tumbling them both over the worktable. Tatra retreated to the corner nearest the lift and watched, gasping as Firman turned his sibling’s anger. “Come on, Krell, it won’t be the first time I’ve dropped you a peg.”
“And it won’t be the first time I’ve kicked your fool ass either!” Krell swung at him, stumbling forward with the effort. Firman grabbed her arm as she moved, twisting it high on her back.
“If that’s the best you can do then I’m disappointed. LaRenna could have done better than that.”
“You bastard!” Krell wrapped her foot around his ankle and jerked hard, careening him to the floor. Firman pulled her down as he fell then rolled on top, neatly pinning her with his knees.
“Stupid move, Kimshee. LaRenna would’ve known better.” Firman pushed his knees deep into Krell’s back, encouraging the string of curses she threw at him. “Come on Taelach, you too weak to fend off a mere Aut? How do you expect to care for a mate when you can’t whip me?” Firman hauled Krell’s head back by the hair then bent close. “If this is the best you can do,” he whispered in her ear, “then maybe she’s better off dead.”
Krell bent with uncontrollable wrath, throwing Firman off her back. “You sorry son of a bitch, I told you she’s not dead!” She grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and swung him headlong into the viewer’s control board. The impact scattered an arcing electrical spray across the room. “She’s alive!”
“She’s dead and you know it!”
“NO!” Krell grabbed him again, throwing him across the worktable and into a far chair. “Had enough, old man?”
“Not on your life. This is just getting interesting.” Firman reached across the table, snagging Krell’s tunic. “Come here, kid. Let me knock a little reality into that thick skull of yours.” He ducked a punch and landed his fist squarely in Krell’s face, sending her sliding back across the table. “Your woman is gone. Deal with it.”
Krell quickly shook off the blow. “You’ll have to do much more than that to convince me she’s anything but alive.” Her sweet right toppled him to the floor.
“Whoa!” A grin crinkled the skin surrounding Firman’s stinging eye. “It’s about time you put some energy into it. Put that much effort into finding LaRenna and you just might get her back.”
“What?” Krell stumbled back and dropped her arms.
“You heard me.” Firman threw his arm around his sibling in a bear-grip hug. “I haven’t put up with your crazy notions for thirty-nine passes without learning they have an annoying habit of being true.” He shoved Krell to the floor and collapsed on top of her, his deep laugh shaking the floor. “Come on. Hit me again. I haven’t tussled with you in ages.”
Krell chuckled and lightly punched his arm. “So, you’re going to help me?”
“You know it.”
“Have you lost your minds?” Tatra exited her corner to face them, one hand on her hip, the other shaking a critical finger. “You try to kill each other one minute then laugh together the next? I don’t understand!”
“You wouldn’t.” Krell clouted Firman’s back. “You don’t have a sibling.”
“Think of it this way, Tatra.” Firman scrubbed affectionately at Krell’s head. “She was going to blow regardless. Would you rather have been tossed around?”
“Certainly not,” warbled the healer. “I’m no fighter.”
“That’s obvious,” he snickered with a wink her direction. “You’re all bone, no flesh. That crash would have snapped a twig like you.”
Tatra gaped. “You mean to tell me you think she’s alive, too? Ockson said she was in a bad way before the launch ever went down.”
“Ockson is a fool who’d never seen LaRenna before today,” interjected Krell.
“True,” agreed Firman. “I’ve seen her work. That little
Kimshee left more than one mark on Cance’s face. If Krell’s convinced she’s alive then I am, too.” He patted Krell on the shoulder and winked at Tatra. “Hey skinny, did Ockson say when the search teams were setting out?”
“They’re assembling in an hour on landing deck two and I am not skinny.” Tatra ran a lean hand down her side in demonstration. “My proportions are perfect for my framework.” She gave each of them a disbelieving glance then sighed. “Guess I’ll be going as well.”
“Why?” asked Krell. “Belsas didn’t call for you to join the teams.”
“I know, but if you have to insist so solidly that LaRenna is alive then I’ll have to give you the benefit of the doubt.” Tatra stepped onto the level lift then turned back, holding the door long enough to return Firman’s wink. “I’ll see you in an hour.”
Firman elbowed Krell’s ribs as the lift door slid shut. “You see that? She’s flirting with me. Me!”
“She does have her moments.” Krell’s eyes were back on the viewer. “Enjoy them. They’re few and far between.”
“Well, she needs more of them.” Firman scrambled to catch the next lift. “I think they make her unbearably attractive.”
Chapter Thirty
Sister sister close your mouth
And dare not make a sound
The Taelach hunt is drawing near
Don’t let yourself be found
Help the children cover up
Cloak their silver hair
Take the back way through the caves
We can flee from there
Sister sister close your mouth
And dare not make a sound
If Autlachs find us
Taelach blood will spill upon the ground
—old Taelach teaching rhyme
Several seconds of cold waking fear passed before LaRenna remembered her surroundings. She took a slow breath and rolled back to warm against her brother only to find him gone. “Trazar?” He didn’t reply. Easing up, she quickly silenced her fears and crept to the open window, stopping when a familiar shape caught her eye.
It was Cance’s inhaler, conveniently within reach. She picked it up and held it before her face. One puff and her pain would be bearable. The reaction would be better this time. Her system had acclimated and she would be able to enjoy the full effect. One hit, that was all. It would calm her, soothe away the agony. She’d never let it get to the addictive level of her attackers. Just one.
Go ahead, my beauty. Numb away the hurt. Cance’s echoing whisper knotted LaRenna’s insides. One won’t hurt. Go on. You need it and so do I.
“No!” LaRenna tossed the inhaler outside. Cance’s specter faded along with it but didn’t disappear entirely. She still held a place in the darkest corner of LaRenna’s subconscious. “No dead procker is going to run my life! Get outta my head!” She shook off a chill then leaned out of the launch in search of her brother, desperate for his presence. “Trazar?”
“Just a minute.” He had slid out and to the rear of the craft to relieve himself, hoping to return to her side before she awoke. He had wanted to spare her the fear he now detected in her voice. “You okay?”
LaRenna glanced at the inhaler. It lay in a puddle, contents leaking harmlessly into the ground. “My leg feels huge.”
Trazar trotted over as he retied his waist lacings. In a single fluid movement, he scooped her out of the launch. “Best get you out of there, little sis. By Talmshone’s odor, he’s dead.”
LaRenna crinkled her nose as she became aware of the stench. Trazar laughed at her expression then held her up to view the crash site.
The launch had smashed into the canyon’s rock face and tumbled end-over-end until it had reached a flat area near the sandy bottom. The stream of the night before was now a raging river of mud and debris. “We were lucky to have survived. Your faithful Mother was watching over us yesterday.”
“About time she took a moment for me. My belief was wearing thin.” LaRenna held on to Trazar’s tunic as he settled her onto a long metal panel. “Think they’ll have trouble finding us down here?”
“Doesn’t matter. We can’t stay.” Trazar pointed toward the churning waters, the surrounding area, then the sky. “We crashed onto a wet weather riverbed. Look at those clouds. It’s going to rain again.”
“I know. The storm scent is stronger than Talmshone’s.”
“Another soaking like last night’s and this entire canyon floor will be underwater.” Trazar checked her bandages and loosened the strips securing the brace. He said nothing of the red marks stretching up her leg. “How are your rib bindings?”
“Better than my bladder.” She moaned. “Could you help me find a place I can balance before I explode? The water sound is almost too much.”
“Why didn’t you say something earlier?” Trazar gathered her in his arms and carried her to the launch’s rear. There she balanced on one leg, a disgusted and almost jealous look on her face.
“Sometimes I think life would be easier if Taelachs were physically male.”
“Then you wouldn’t be my sister.” Trazar turned politely away. “Besides, you are what you are for a reason.” He ducked into the launch to gather their supplies. “Call me when you’re through.” Trazar pulled the Iralian’s cloak free of his body and bundled a few things into it, his hand throbbing with every stretch of his fingers. The cut should have received a few stitches but would heal decently enough without them.
“Is there a clean rag about?” called LaRenna. Trazar opened the bundle and removed the remaining piece of Talmshone’s trouser leg for her use.
“Here you go.” He backed toward her, his arm extended behind. LaRenna thanked him and swiftly tended to her personal needs.
“Don’t go. I’m almost finished.” She pulled the nightshirt straight and hobbled over to him, grabbing his shoulder for support. “I’m ready.”
“No you’re not. We can’t have you barefoot in the mud.” A drizzle began to fall as Trazar carried her back to the metal sheet. He set her gently down then scrambled to the shrubs at the water’s edge before Cance’s remains washed away. Her took her belt, bow, and boots, tucking them under his arm as he returned to his sister’s side.
“They’ll be big but they should keep your feet dry.” He pulled a boot over her good foot, lashing the gaping top shut with a strip of the twisted belt leather. The second boot refused to slide over her misshapen ankle. “I’ll fix that.” Trazar split the hide shaft and peeled it apart to the sole. “Now you’ll stay dry.” He carefully wrapped the open boot about her foot and secured the top as tightly as he dared.
“We ready then?” She eyed the rising water.
“Almost.” Trazar draped the Iralian’s cloak over her and snapped the neck closed. Its padded shoulders fell nearly to LaRenna’s elbows, giving her the appearance of a girl playing dress-up. “You’re certainly small to be Taelach.”
“Like I haven’t heard that before.”
“Don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing wrong with your size.” Trazar fastened the front of her wrap. “In fact, I’m glad you’re small. It would be hard to carry you otherwise.” He shoved their meager supplies into his pockets and tossed her the plasma bow. “Is it usable?”
LaRenna examined the weapon then handed it back to him. “The power housing has a hairline crack. The charge could reverse if it’s fired.”
Trazar immediately disposed of the weapon. He knew little of Taelach-style weaponry but enough to be wary of the weapon’s potential for radiation poisoning. “Won’t it leak if the housing is busted?”
“There’s a safety cage around the core tank but I’d rather be safe than sorry.” LaRenna shivered again and sneezed. “I think the weather is getting to me. Let’s go.”
At the suggestion, a torrential downpour began to blanket the area. Trazar pulled her close and hurried away from the rising waters. The going was slick, every direction they took ending in an incline too steep to climb without the use of hands.
&nbs
p; “I think we may be trapped down here.” He brushed the wet hair from her face. “How’s your swimming?”
“Taelachs don’t swim,” she replied through her stuffed nose. “We sink well though.”
Trazar took the ill-timed jest seriously. “We get out of here, I’ll teach you.” He lowered her to the forking branches of a squat tree and stared up the mud-caked slopes. “I can’t carry you in my arms and scale these walls. You’ll have to ride on my back. Feel up to it?”
“Do I have a choice?” LaRenna wiped at the tickling stream that dripped off her chin.
“No.” Trazar bent to her level so she could wrap her arms and good leg around him. He stood up slowly, shrugged to redistribute her weight, then shifted to take the brace into consideration. “Here we go.”
LaRenna twisted her hands into his tunic and leaned into his ear. “When we get to the top, head north. The Taelach Training Grounds are in that direction.”
“You’ve been to Saria Four before?” Trazar latched on to a protruding rock and began his ascent.
“Schooled here.” She stifled another sneeze into his back. “We’re in the Glory Lands.”
“Glorious is not the term I would use. Does it always rain like this?”
“Just in the spring.” LaRenna gritted her teeth as her leg skidded across a projecting stone.
“Sorry.” Trazar continued their dangerous climb. Behind them, the water had risen until it lapped several inches deep inside the launch. LaRenna looked over her shoulder and shuddered. Sharing her fear, Trazar picked up his pace, climbing stone to stone. When they reached a fair-sized outcropping, he set her against the stone face so they could rest.
“You all right?” He squeezed the water from his tunic.
“Freezing.” LaRenna followed his lead, wringing some of the moisture from her weighted cloak. Her hands were streaked in color. The thorough soaking was removing the semi-permanent dye from her skin, returning her to Taelach paleness. She rubbed at one hand with the tail of her wrap and held it, palm forward, to her brother.
Jeanne G'Fellers - No Sister of Mine Page 20