Peta (An Elemental Series Novella, 3.5) (10 page)

“Yes, but I’ve stopped her before, I can do it again. Just hurry. Get those kids out.”

I had to trust her. No matter how much I wanted to protect her, I also had to know when to let her lead even if it scared me.

This was one of those moments, and I was terrified I was going to lose her.

In my leopard form, I slunk toward the dungeons, taking a less used entrance. The steam from the rooms rose in great wafting clouds of heat, sinking through my fur to pool against my skin with the high humidity. Keeping my belly to the ground, I worked my way forward carefully, fully expecting there to be a trap waiting.

But there was nothing. And at first I thought perhaps there weren’t even any children.

“Peta?”

Tinder . . . that was Tinder’s voice.

“Little lizard,” I swung my head toward his voice. He was hunched down against the wall farthest from me, a wall of steam between us that spit up in big gusts. His face was twisted. “The steam is too hot, we can’t get through.”

I approached slowly, my mind racing. Get them out, that was what I was to do. If the steam was burning them, it would burn me too.

But I could heal, and the only way they would be safe would be to get them out. Bunching the muscles in my back legs, I leapt forward, as high as I could and through the top of the steam. The searing heat scorched through my fur as if it were flames and not hot, humid air. I landed lightly, a grimace twisting up my lips. In front of me were close to thirty children.

“Three at a time on my back,” I said. Tinder helped the smaller children up first. The littlest one began to cry. “Hang onto her fur. Peta will get us out of here,” Tinder said.

His faith in me was enough. I turned carefully, and leapt up and through the steam. Back and forth I went ferrying the children across until they were all out from behind the wall of steam. My belly and legs were scorched clean of fur and my skin oozed with burn pustules.

Breathing hard, I struggled not to limp with the children at my side. Tinder noticed, turned and put a hand on my back. “Peta, you’re hurt bad.”

“Yes. But I will heal.”

Indeed you will.
The mother goddess’s voice rolled over me and with it the burns on my body receded and fur replaced the pustules. A matter of seconds at most. Tinder nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world to see the mother goddess’s hand at work on a daily basis. “Let’s go.”

Urging them forward, Tinder and I herded the children out of the dungeon to the tunnel that led to the firewyrms’ cavern.

“Tinder, follow this passageway. Cactus and the Terraling man will be waiting for you,” I said, pushing them with my nose into the tunnel.

“Where are you going?” His eyes met mine and then his hand brushed along my head. “Aren’t you coming with us?”

“Lark needs me,” I said. “Be brave, little lizard, and look out for the others.”

As soon as the last of them disappeared into the tunnel I spun and ran for the throne room. Pushing the door open with my nose, I peered in. Lark stood in front of the black cloaked one.

Neither moved, and for a moment fear flashed through me that Lark had been hurt or transfixed.

She turned and saw me.

“It’s safe. She’s taken care of,” she said, motioning to the black cloaked one. “Actually, she’s playing some kind of game here. Won’t talk, won’t respond to anything I say.”

I sniffed the air, not liking the lack of scent around the woman. Perhaps it was what she wore that blocked her scent. “I still can’t smell her. Can you take that cloak off?”

Lark reached out and grabbed the cloak, only it dissolved as her hand passed through it, as if it never were.

“No, no it can’t be,” Lark whispered, horror flickering through her and into me—a lightning bolt of emotion.

The girl’s mouth was slack and her brown eyes were empty of emotion. Long tendrils of dark brown hair flowed around her face and her features had some similarities with Lark’s, though they were subtle. Somehow I didn’t think it was because they were both Terralings.

Breath seemed to be coming hard to Lark as she went to her knees. Tears streaked her cheeks and I moved to her side, giving her what comfort I could with my presence. “You used Spirit on her, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” she said, her voice wavering. “What have I done?”

How did I explain to her that what she’d done was exactly why the Spirit Elementals had been all but wiped out? Though they seemed like they were weak in many respects, they were the deadliest of any of the elements.

A sigh slipped out of me and I settled for a small piece of the truth. “My first charge, he learned to use Spirit, but it is tricky. A powerful tool. When you use it without really knowing, it can burn someone else out.”

“Burn them out?” She stared at the girl, her emotions and thoughts racing. “Can it be reversed?”

Hope flared in her and I hated to dash it, but there was no avoiding the truth.

“I don’t think so.” I pushed my head against her but she pulled away. I understood the need to be alone when a mistake was made. That was something we shared.

We didn’t speak as we pushed through the tunnel to the firewyrm’s home. There was no room for words.

When we emerged into the large cavern, the children were waiting for us. Tinder saw Lark first before anyone else. His eyes sparkled, the fear of being snatched from his family already fading. A Salamander trait: to live in the moment and forget the past with a speed that left others spinning. Waving wildly, he ran to greet us.

“Terraling, the bad luck cat saved us. I couldn’t believe it when I saw her, but she saved us.”

I leaned out and gave Tinder’s face a lick. “You’re welcome, little lizard.” At least that had gone right. In itself, it would be enough to win the queen over, of that I was sure.

As a group we worked our way to the entrance where the children were reunited with their families and the queen finally spoke the truth. But we were not done by a long shot.

nce the lava flows returned to their natural place, the Salamanders got busy putting their world back as it should be.

We stood with the queen after Lark and Cactus created an oasis and Fiametta softened more than I’d ever seen her.

A soft cough made us all turn to see Jag walking toward us.

She looked away from him and Lark put a hand on her arm. “You should listen to him. The only reason I survived is because I took Peta’s advice. Your familiar . . . if he cares for you even half as much as Peta cares for me, you are in good hands.”

I had to fight the swell of emotion in me and ended up tucking my head against her neck to hide the pooling tears. “Larkspur, how can you know that?”

She didn’t answer me, and she didn’t have to; I felt it between us. Our bond was strong, our understanding of each other better than most familiars had after a lifetime of being with their charge. Because of one thing and one thing alone.

Trust.

She trusted me, and in turn I trusted her with my heart and soul. The mother goddess could not have gifted me with a better charge than the half-breed Terraling; even though I
knew
she would push me to the edge of my abilities and then beyond.

From the Pit, we Traveled with Cactus and Ash to the Rim, the home of the Terralings. The smell of the forest was instant, diving into me and striking a chord deep within my bones.

I was home.

Then again, it could have been that I was with Lark. I had a feeling that wherever she was, that would always be home.

Clinging to Lark’s shoulders, I was with her as she entered the Spiral, the seat of her father’s power.

But it was her older sister, Belladonna who oversaw things in the absence of their father. That he was missing was bad. That he couldn’t be found? That was unheard of in the elemental world. Leaders didn’t go missing.

I watched as the two sisters spoke, as they clung to each other.

As Belladonna asked Lark to break rules that would have her punished at best, and banished at worst. My heart began to thump so loudly I was sure that Lark would hear it and know the fear that curled through me. To seek out a supernatural for help was a very bad idea, in particular when it was a Tracker. Trackers carried the same blood as Lark, and trouble was bound to double when they were together.

Though it seemed Lark could find enough trouble on her own, I knew it was possible that it could get worse.

She went to one knee and bowed her head. “It will be done.”

And with those words I knew I hadn’t seen the worst of what could come our way. The only thing I could do was cling to Lark and guide her.

Somehow, I had to believe we would come through this together, and in one piece.

Mother goddess let it be that way. I bowed my head and whispered to myself. “What I can do to save her . . . it will be done.”

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