Quest for the Moon Orb: Orbs of Rathira (21 page)

Karma’s words rocked Zakiel.  He wondered for a moment if she was trying to flatter him, as Marene often did.  The thought nearly made him smile.  Karma...no...
Lady Techu
, would never offer false flattery.

Karma saw his cool eyes, his emotionless expression, his stiff posture, only this time she realized that he was not angry.  He was uncertain, maybe even nervous.  “Thank you, Prince Zakiel, for coming to my aid,” she said, changing the subject.  She hid her smile when he immediately relaxed.

“No thanks are necessary, Lady Techu,” he said.  “It was my honor to assist you.”

Nikura sat a few feet away from her, calmly cleaning one paw with his rough, pink tongue, his long claws nowhere to be seen.

“Thanks, Nikura,” she said.  “That thing would have had my staff if not for you.”

“Don’t expect me to do that all of the time,”
Nikura said, placing his paw on the ground before lifting the other one to his mouth
.  “I heartily dislike getting blood on my fur.”

“I suppose I can’t blame you for that,” Karma said.  She shook her head and turned back to Zakiel. 

 “So what are those things?” she asked, gesturing toward the remains of the creatures lying on the sand around them.

“Desert harpies,” he replied.  “I’ve never seen them this far south before.  They usually stay in the deepest part of the Duat.”

“They were after the Ti-Ank,” she said.

Zakiel jerked his eyes to her in surprise, then nodded grimly.  “I am a fool not to think of that.  The attack on the caravan was a diversion.”

“Oh my, brains and beauty,”
Nikura said. 
“What a comfort to be led by one of such penetrating tactical insight.”

Karma shot a glare at the Sphin, but held her tongue.  After all, he had just saved her neck.  Literally.

She turned around and began making her way back to the line.  “Kapia!” she called, worried when she couldn’t see the Princess beneath her diplo any more.

“I’m fine, Karma,” Kapia said, stepping out from between Dippy and Goldy. 

Karma breathed a sigh of relief which turned into a startled squawk when she felt strong arms scoop her up from behind.  Before she had a chance to fully register that she was in Zakiel’s arms, he was setting her down beside Kapia.

“Um, thanks,” she mumbled.

A sharp, piercing whistle had her spinning around, her staff ready, her body shifting so that she was standing in front of Kapia as her eyes scanned the sky for danger.

“Easy, Lady Techu,” Zakiel said.  “That was me, calling the Hunters.”

Karma glanced at him, noting that his stripes were nearly gone, then scanned the skies again before relaxing when she heard the sound of running feet approaching.  Within moments they were surrounded by warriors, all of them with weapons drawn.

One vaguely familiar man with red hair carrying two swords like Zakiel’s arrived a moment later and pushed his way through the circle of Hunters to the front.  He glanced at Zakiel to be sure his Prince was well, then turned his gaze on Kapia and Karma.  One look at Karma’s disheveled appearance and the blood on her staff had the man bowing his head and falling to his knees.

“There is no excuse, my Prince,” he said.  “We were taken in, and raced to the battle that, I now see, was a diversion.  I offer my life for this error, which I take full responsibility for.”

“I nearly fell for it myself, Cousin Bredon” Zakiel admitted as he gestured for the man to rise.  “We are lucky that Lady Techu is a Master of her chosen weapon.  The harpies were after the Ti-Ank.”

Bredon hissed angrily as he rose to his feet and flung his swords into the twin scabbards at his hips.  “We shall not fail again, Highness,” he said.

“As you were not ordered to act as bodyguards to Lady Techu and Princess Kapia, you did not fail,” Zakiel pointed out.  “However, I believe that must be remedied.  Please select five Hunters to guard Princess Kapia and Lady Techu for the remainder of this day.  After that, I want five Hunters guarding them on a rotating basis from now on, both day and night.  Without both of these women, the Orb Quest is meaningless.”

“As you command, Highness,” Sir Bredon replied with a bow.  He turned to face the rest of the warriors who now surrounded them and selected five men for the first shift.

“You will all share in guarding these women,” Sir Bredon announced in a booming voice.  “Even when not assigned to them, the safety of Princess Kapia and Lady Techu are your primary concern, exceeded by no other.  I don’t care if the rest of this caravan is attacked by a wave of sand worms.  They are not to be left unguarded for any reason.”

All of the Hunters surrounding them raised their fists to their foreheads, then to their chests, as they shouted something that Karma did not understand.  Then the five chosen Hunters spread around them in a circle, facing outward, weapons in hand as though expecting another dozen harpies to descend from the empty sky at any second.

Karma thought it was overkill but, remembering the harpies attacking her, she decided that, for Kapia’s safety, she could tolerate it.

“Excuse me please, Lady Techu, Sister,” Zakiel said.  “I must go assess the damage.”

Karma and Kapia watched him leave, both hoping that nobody was seriously hurt.  Right after Zakiel left, Lashi approached the circle of guards carrying a tray with water and damp cloths, but they would not allow her to pass.

Karma walked over and told the guard to allow Lashi access to them, and they let her through.  Kapia and Karma were grateful for the water she brought, but they were even more grateful for the damp cloths.  They each spent a few minutes wiping their faces, necks and hands free of dust, sand and sweat.  Karma then wiped the blood from her staff and waded the cloth up in a ball.  She told Lashi to bury it in the sand rather than wash it, and Lashi promised that she would.  A few moments later Nikura approached the circle of guards and they stepped aside, allowing him through without hesitation. 

Lashi poured some water into a shallow bowl for the Sphin and set it on the sand, which the giant cat immediately drank.  Then they waited for Zakiel to return. 

“Nikura,” Karma asked after a while, “why would the harpies want the Ti-Ank?”

“Is that not obvious?”
Nikura asked in return.

“If it was, I wouldn’t have asked the question,” she replied.

Nikura gazed at her for a long moment, then yawned. 
“I keep forgetting you are not of Rathira,”
he said.  Karma knew that was as close to an apology as he was going to give her
.  “I am sure you remember Techu Samyi telling you that demons had passed into Rathira for some time before the tear was blocked.”

“Of course,” Karma replied. 

“Well, didn’t you wonder what happened to those demons that reached Rathira?”

“Not really,” Karma said with a shrug.  “I assumed they’d been destroyed.”

“You assumed incorrectly,”
Nikura said.
  “You do that quite often, I’ve noticed.”

Karma stared at him, one brow arched, but said nothing.

“It is true that many of them were destroyed,”
Nikura said with what sounded suspiciously like a sigh,
“but it is equally true that many of them were not.”

“You’re saying that the harpies are demons,” Karma said.

“Yes,”
Nikura replied
.  “They have the ability to blend in with their surroundings, which makes them very difficult to spot until they are upon you.  And they fly, which men do not.  Because of this, it was not possible to eradicate them, though the effort was made.  They have lived and bred on Rathira for a thousand years now, but they are still demons, and their loyalty is for their own kind.”

“Are there others?” Karma asked, already knowing the answer.

“Of course.  Rathira is a large world with a sparse population of humans and other sentient races.  I’ve no doubt that there are demons here that we have no idea of.”

“Aside from harpies, which ones inhabit the desert?” Karma asked.  She wanted an idea of what to look for.  She didn’t want to be caught by surprise like that again.

“Sand worms, blood snakes, fire ghosts,”
Nikura said,
“to name a few.”

“Do they want to destroy the Ti-Ank, or can they use it somehow?”

Nikura’s ears cocked back the way they did when he was considering something. 
“I cannot think of a way in which the demons might use it,”
he said finally. 
“However, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t one.  Destroying it would be quite devastating enough though.”

“In that case, wouldn’t it be wiser for me to tuck it away in a pocket instead of carrying it around for everyone to see?”

“When you become more skilled with the Ti-Ank, which may take quite a long time if you do not begin practicing with it, you will find that it is more powerful than you imagine.  There are some demons which the Ti-Ank will warn you of ahead of time.  Others may be harmed only by the Ti-Ank.  Further, the mere presence of the Ti-Ank may ward off some demons altogether.”

Karma nodded, but she sensed there was more to it than what he was telling her.  She thought about it for a few moments before sending her thoughts to Nikura rather than speaking them aloud.

“If I hide the Ti-Ank, rather than carry it boldly, it will be seen as a sign of weakness.”

Nikura stood up, then rubbed his head against her hip in the first affectionate gesture she’d received from him.  Then he leapt nine feet straight up to the cushion on the saddle of his diplo, turned around and lay down.

“You will do,”
he said softly.  Then he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

Karma turned to look at Kapia, noticing for the first time that several of the warriors had turned to watch as she spoke with Nikura.  She felt a little self-conscious, though she wasn’t sure why.  Talking with Nikura was the reason she was here in the first place, or at least one of them, so it wasn’t exactly a secret.  After a few moments the warriors bowed solemnly to her, then turned to face outward again.

She watched as the one called Sir Bredon spoke to one of their guards, then approached them.  He was the one that had been watching Kapia on the boat the day before.  She recognized the name, and the short red hair, though close up she saw that he had pale skin with a smattering of freckles, and green eyes that couldn’t seem to stop drifting toward Princess Kapia.

“It is an honor to hold your safety in our hands, Lady Techu,” Sir Bredon said with a brief bow.  “And yours as well, Cousin Kapia.”

Karma was beginning to feel a little exasperated by all of the bowing and
Lady Techu-ing
, but she did her best to hide it as she watched Kapia smile shyly at Sir Bredon.  She seemed to want to say something, but apparently she got tongue-tied.  After a few moments Karma decided to rescue her.

“Sir Bredon, I would like to talk to Kapia alone for a moment, if you will excuse us.”

“Certainly, Lady Techu,” Sir Bredon replied, speaking to her even though his eyes remained on Kapia.  Karma watched him walk away, then glance back at Kapia with a smile before turning his attention to another Hunter.

“Kapia,” Karma said, stepping closer to the Princess.  “I was just thinking, those tents we have are awfully big for one person.  It’s going to be difficult for five warriors to guard them both.”

Kapia’s eyes lit with understanding.  “You suggest we share a tent?”

“Yes,” Karma replied.  “What do you think?” 

“I think it’s an excellent idea,” Kapia said.  “In fact, I would very much enjoy sharing a tent with you.”

“Good,” Karma said with a smile.  “I would enjoy your company as well.  The tent I used last night had three large sections in it.  That’s enough for each of us to have our own sleeping chamber, and we can use the third as a common room.  Caral and Lashi can cook our meals together, saving further resources, and, if you have no objection, they can sleep there rather than in the common tents.  They are the only females among the servants, and I’d feel more comfortable knowing they were safe with us.”

“I think that’s an excellent plan,” Kapia said.  “I should have thought of that myself, and I confess that I’m ashamed that I didn’t.”

 “It doesn’t matter which of us thought of it,” Karma insisted.  “It matters only that we do it.”

“Let’s do it then,” Kapia said.  “I’ll go speak with Caral and Lashi about it right now so that they can inform the tent setters.”

Karma watched Kapia as she politely made her way between two of the Hunters, who immediately followed after her.  The remaining warriors tightened their circle around Karma.  She gritted her teeth and deliberately thought of the harpies attacking her.

A few moments later Zakiel returned.  “Where is Kapia?” he asked, looking around in alarm when he realized she wasn’t with Karma. 

“She’s speaking with our attendants,” Karma said.  She explained her tent sharing idea, hoping that he wouldn’t be offended by it.

“That is a most thoughtful idea,” he said, surprising her.  “You are correct that it will be much easier for the guards to watch over one tent.  I will also feel better knowing that the two of you are together.”