The Secret Of The Unicorn Queen -The Dark Gods (8 page)

    Nervously, Sheila reached back to touch her backpack. So far its "magic" had protected her. But how could anything from the world of science possibly help her in this world of dark sorcery? 

    Sheila turned around in Morning Star's saddle to look nervously about for maybe the hundredth time that day. Had anything changed? 

    Ugh, no. 

    The Samarnan landscape still surrounded her. And what a dismal land it was! No grass, no trees, not even the soothing calm to the eye that the sweep of an open plain could provide. Hour after hour it had all been the same: nothing but hot, empty sky; great mounds of broken red rocks that kept the eye from seeing more than a few lengths on any side; and narrow, winding paths twisting their way between those rocks—tricky, slippery paths over which the unicorns picked their careful way with obvious distaste. 

    Sheila sighed. So far everything she had seen of Samarna had been like this. It looked as though someone, long, long ago, had dropped the sorcerous version of a bomb on it. 

    Could that "someone" have been the Dark Gods. . . ? 

    Oh, no, she wasn't going to start thinking about them again! Besides, maybe this place wasn't quite that bad. What Samarna really looked like, at least so far, was a more rugged version of the Red Rock area of the American Southwest that her family had visited many years ago. But then, of course, she hadn't had to worry about Things jumping out at her, or weird sorceries striking, or— Oh, this is silly! Sheila chided herself. No one has even tried to hurt us. 

    How could they? There was no one here! There was nothing here! 

    Still, it was a little bit eerie to think that the unicorn riders had been able to slip across the Samarnan border so easily, without a single soul to stop them. It was even eerier that so far they hadn't seen anyone at all. They hadn't even seen any animals, other than one small, terrified lizard that had scuttled frantically away from the unicorns' hoofs. 

    Nanine still didn't seem worried, though. Glancing back over her shoulder, she gave Sheila a reassuring smile. "Don't be afraid, child. I know where I'm going." 

    "Are you sure? I thought your people lived in the forests farther south, near the sea.” 

    "Oh, they do. But that doesn't mean I never had any geography lessons." Nanine hesitated, as she always did when the subject of her regal past came up, then shrugged. "Royal children do get the best of tutors, you know. Whether we-ah-they want them or not." 

    "Poor things," muttered Myno sarcastically. "A slave's lucky if she gets any education at all." 

    Nanine sighed. "I wasn't boasting, believe me.” 

    "I know." Myno shrugged. "When you stop to think about it, I guess you could say that in a way, a princess is as much a prisoner as any slave." 

    "Why do you think we both ran away?" 

    “Well, anyhow, I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just that this place is giving me the chills." 

    "Me, too," admitted Darian. "It's just so . . . empty." 

    Myno nodded. "And that's what's bothering me the most. If we're going the right way, toward Erech-ban—a bustling capital city, for the love of Light!—there should be crowds of people coming and going, right? So? Where is everybody?" 

    Nanine laughed. "My dear Myno, do you think me a fool? How, pray tell, could we possibly pass among other folk as innocent, ordinary travelers while riding our horned friends here?" 

    "Oh, of course. I forgot about that." 

    "We are going toward the royal city, I promise you. But this region through which we ride is far from the standard trade routes. Though there is water enough for our small party, there isn't enough to support whole caravans. And the going is rough on camel legs or horse hoofs." She gave her unicorn an apologetic pat. "And, as for natives, without the wealth from those caravans to support them, why would anyone choose to live here?" 

    "Why, indeed?" Pelu murmured, looking about with a shudder and pulling her cloak more tightly about herself. "Oh, why, indeed?" 

    Only the unicorns seemed undisturbed by their inhospitable surroundings. 

    Well, that's a good sign, thought Sheila. 

    Unless there was some sort of danger that even the unicorns couldn't sense…

    Night fell sooner than Sheila would have liked, catching the small group in a canyon formed of stony walls and spires. The rock was dull red in color, and had been eroded by wind and sand over the ages into strange, twisted shapes through which a faint, monotonous breeze moaned and whistled forlornly. 

    Sheila couldn't imagine actually trying to sleep in this uninviting place, but it was too dark to ride any farther. Besides, they weren't likely to find a better campsite. Nanine had pointed out a clear little stream running through the canyon, and there was enough greenery on either side of the stream to give the unicorns some decent grazing. 

    While Sheila and the others set up camp—which meant simply finding enough twigs for a fire and clearing the pebbles from a large span of ground so everyone could sleep more comfortably—Darian and Myno went off scouting. 

    Time passed. Just when Sheila was beginning to get the tiniest bit worried about them, Morning Star raised her head from grazing and gave a whinnied greeting. Myno's unicorn whickered a reply. 

    "Hey, everyone," called Darian cheerfully, "we're back! And we've brought dinner!" 

    Grinning, he and Myno held up their catch: two lizards, a snake, and something that looked like a large reddish mouse. 

    Yuck! thought Sheila. Still, it was better than going hungry. And at least the unicorns had grazed their fill.

    With the setting of the sun, the dry earth quickly gave up its heat. Pulling her cloak up about her face, Sheila closed her eyes and doggedly set about trying to sleep. 

    ''Hey!” 

    The indignant cry brought Sheila halfway to her feet, hand groping for her sword. 

    "Nanine? What is it? What's wrong?" 

    "Nothing so alarming. It's just that. . . only a moment ago I put my bracelet, the golden one with the emerald, right here." Nanine's hand slapped a flat rock. "And now it's gone!" 

    "Maybe it slipped off the rock." 

    "Maybe. It's hardly likely that there'd be thieves wandering around in the middle of nowhere! Never mind, Sheila. I'll find it in the morning." 

    But when morning came, the bracelet was nowhere to be found. And while Nanine and Sheila were reluctantly giving up their search, a second cry of outrage rang out, this time from Myno. 

    "What is this?" she exploded. "Last night I put my sandals right here, both of them. Now there's only one!" 

    "Wait a minute, Myno," called Darian. "Here's the other one, under this rock." 

    "That's impossible! It couldn't have walked there by itself!" Myno stalked over to retrieve the sandal, then paused, glaring at the others. "All right. Is one of you trying to play a trick on me?" 

    "Yes," added Nanine, "and on me, too?" 

    "No, of course we aren't," Pelu soothed. "But what else could it be? The unicorns would have warned us if anyone else had approached." 

    "Maybe some little desert animal thought the sandal was something to eat and tried to carry it off," Sheila suggested. 

    "And tried to eat a gold bracelet, too?" Nanine scoffed. "Strange animals they have in this land!" 

    The mystery remained unsolved as the warriors mounted and rode on. But they hadn't gone more than a half-morning's ride before Morning Star gave a snort of surprise and stopped short. 

    "What's the matter, girl?" Sheila began, then gave a startled yelp as she felt the saddle slipping sideways beneath her. Quickly she jumped to the ground. 

    "The girth must have come loose," Pelu suggested. 

    "No. I checked it myself, twice. I always do, before-" 

    She stopped, frowning. "Okay, who's the joker? Come on, now! Somebody pulled the tongue of this buckle loose so the whole saddle would fall off, and I want to know who did it!" 

    "Now, Sheila, you know none of us would do something so foolish." Pelu's voice was stern. "We know better than to play such dangerous tricks. And I—Hey!" The healer looked down in alarm at the kit that contained her medicines. "The lid's unfastened! But I always make sure it's shut, particularly when-" She broke off and began rummaging through the little vials. "One of them’s missing!" Pelu glanced up, more angry than Sheila had ever seen her. "All right, that's enough! Whoever is playing these pranks has got to stop, here and now!" 

    "But, Pelu!" protested Dian. "We wouldn't waste time like this! Not with Illyria's life at stake!" 

    Uneasy, the riders set off again. Strange things continued to happen all that day. Dian found that someone had removed the clasp from her cloak. The hem of Pelu's spare tunic had been unraveled. And one of Myno's hair pins turned up stuck into the sheath of her dagger. But still the unicorns seemed untroubled. Maybe there was some sort of peril even they couldn't sense.

    By the time the warriors had to stop for the night, they were all on edge. Settling down as best she could, Sheila was glad they had decided to post human sentries instead of just depending on the unicorns. 

    As Sheila was dozing off, a quick flash of greenish light caught her eye, down at the level of her backpack. It was funny, she mused groggily, how moonlight could play such tricks of reflection. 

    Wait a minute! Sheila thought. What moonlight? That wasn't a reflection at all, but the gleam of two bright green eyes! A lizard? A desert mouse? Or . . . Hardly daring to breath, Sheila lay perfectly still; watching intently from half-lidded eyes as a small, five-fingered hand touched the backpack. A second hand followed, fumbling for the buckle. 

    It's on the other side. If the Whatever wants to get it open, it'll have to climb up where I can see it, Sheila thought. 

    Sure enough, there was the tiniest of grunts, a heave—And suddenly Sheila found herself almost face to face with a strange little creature, standing upright like a man, but no taller than a human toddler. It was scaled like a lizard, horned like an imp. Its bright green eyes stared at her out of a broad, flat-nosed face, while a long, pointed tongue flicked nervously out and in. 

    Trying to decide if I'm really asleep, thief? Well, you little imp, or whatever you are—I’m not! 

    And Sheila pounced. For an instant she felt a cat-supple body under her hand. Then her fingers lost their hold on the slick scales, and the creature, screeching in fright, went scuttling off into the night. 

    "Sheila!" The warriors were already springing to their feet, weapons glinting. "What's going on?" 

    Sheila grinned fiercely. "I just scared off a would-be thief, that's all!" 

    But other green strangers were out there in the night, chittering in excitement.