Outside the cave, the wind railed, and branches broke as more bad weather swept in from the Sea of Storms. A loud crack-thump suggested an entire tree falling.
Inside, the cave remained dry and protected from the elements, and people rested after clearing away the corpses of the crawlers. Some had been injured, but nobody complained.Such events were common in the life of the stormers. After all, desirable lairs protected from storms and aerial predators were popular with more than just humans. At least nobody had died during the battle. A couple of people would have been in more dire straits if not for Syla.
Feeling indebted to her, Vorik stood close as she went from injured person to injured person, cleaning wounds and applying bandages as well as her healing magic when the wounded gave their permission for it. Several times, she let herself sink into a deep trance that left her vulnerable. Vorik kept his hand on the hilt of his sword, making sure everyone knew Syla was under his protection. But everyone saw that she was helping their people, and nobody even looked crossly at her. Early in the process, she healed Yavaron, who then started helping her, acting as an assistant more than the master the tribe had relied upon for decades. Yavaron, though she had a great deal of knowledge and experience, didn’t have the gods-gift, the quarter-moon-shaped birthmark that glowed silver from Syla’s hand as she worked.
We are chasing three of the faction dragons down the coast in the opposite direction of the cave,Agrevlari reported, his telepathic voice more distant than before.We fought briefly, but the storm is unpleasant, even for mighty dragons, and both parties may break off to find shelter soon.
Vorik had already told Agrevlari about the attack in the cave. Thanks to the dense canopy outside, and the size of the cave entrance itself, the dragons couldn’t have done anything to help. It was probably only bad luck that both attacks had happened at the same time—it wasn’t as if krakens communicated with dragons—but Vorik wondered, thoughts of the gods arranging things coming to mind again.
Weren’t there four of them?Vorik asked.Did you kill one?
The orange dragon that we flew with to the desert disappeared inland.
She’s probably the one Wreylith sent to find and retrieve Syla. The others are a distraction.
One of the others bit me in the shoulder.
Thus distracting you.
Agrevlari growled into his mind.
Thank you for the update,Vorik said.I’ll keep an eye out for the orange dragon. Igliana, wasn’t it?
Yes.
Hushed voices raised on the other side of the cave. For a while, Jhiton had been over there, speaking with Chieftess Shi, General Amalia, and a couple of tribal elders. More concerned about Syla and the injured, Vorik hadn’t been trying to listen in on their conversation, but Shi sounded angry now. She folded her arms over her chest and glared at Jhiton. Jaw tight, he glared back. It took Vorik a moment to realize they must have switched to telepathy.
Syla leaned back from her current patient—Alecton, the boy who’d almost hit her with a ball—and patted him on the shoulder. “Rest for a time. You’ll be back afflicting your game on passersby soon.”
“All right.” Alecton glanced around. To make sure there weren’t many witnesses? “Thanks,” he said in a whisper.
“You’re welcome.”
Without looking at Jhiton, Syla picked up her kit and moved to another patient, Fria, one of the women who’d been cooking dinner when this had all started. The campfires continued to burn, but someone had moved the soup shells away from the flames so the meal would stay warm but not scald.
As Syla knelt again, cutting away Fria’s torn trousers to examine deep bites along her leg, Jhiton left the meeting. He picked his way past their resting kin and gestured for Vorik to step back a few paces from Syla. For a private word? They had telepathy for that.
Vorik almost objected to leaving Syla’s side, but nobody had threatened her, and she would probably prefernotto have Jhiton looming over her while she worked. She hadn’t even given any indication that she appreciated havingVorikclose. If she remembered the answers she’d given under the influence of the drug—and he had a feeling she had—she might not want to speak with him again. Ever.
As soon as we’ve rested and recovered, Chieftess Shi wants us to return to Bogberry Island,Jhiton said telepathically.
I’ll bet.Vorik couldn’t help but feel sour.
Syla was here,helpingtheir people, and the stormer leaders were still plotting to overthrow hers. Couldn’t they take a break from their war?
As if Jhiton could guess Vorik’s thoughts, he said,We need to strike before the Kingdom queen returns to tell them that we know the shielder’s location.
Returns?Vorik arched his eyebrows.Are you planning to let our prisoner go?
In the morning, we’ll question her again and learn the locations of the other shielders.
Syla wouldn’t like that, but did Jhiton intend to take her home after that? Or have Vorik do it?
That didn’t make a lot of sense since they needed someone with a moon-mark to open the shielder chambers. Syla would be the logical choice.
And then?Vorik asked.
Chieftess Shi agrees that it wouldn’t be right to kill her after this.Jhiton extended a hand toward Syla, who’d settled between one of the fires and Fria, eyes closed as she rested a hand on the woman’s leg.
