Quest for the Moon Orb: Orbs of Rathira (53 page)

“After my mother died, my father was so sad, so alone.  I asked him once if it was worth it, to love someone so much that when they were gone, he could never love another.  He said that it was.  I didn’t understand it.  But even though I questioned it, I still I wanted what they had, so I followed his advice and waited.  I have never regretted it, and now I
do
understand what he meant.  We are very blessed, Karma, to have found each other.  ”

Karma raised her head to kiss him, not realizing that there were tears on her cheeks.  “Thank you,” she said softly. 

Zakiel leaned down and kissed her tears away.  “Thank you,” he whispered softly before nibbling the tiny dent in her lip.  He would never tire of that dent.  He knew that now.  Just as he knew he would never tire of her husky laugh, or the way her touch made him shudder.

Karma’s arms wrapped themselves around his neck and pulled him closer, and he deepened their kiss.  There was no telling what tomorrow might bring.  But he wouldn’t think about that now.  Now was for loving his wife.

Chapter
27

Kapia watched with tears in her eyes as Bredon saluted her, head to heart, his green eyes suspiciously bright.  She knew how difficult it was for him to remain behind, knowing that she was going into danger, but there was nothing that could be done about it.  Worrow had been clear that only she, Karma and Zakiel would be allowed to approach the Cradle of the Orb.  Bredon must stay behind with the others.

“Do not worry, my friend,” Zakiel said to Bredon in a low voice.  “I will allow no harm to come to her.”

“Allow none to yourself, or your bride, either, Cousin,” Bredon said gruffly.  Zakiel nodded, then joined Karma and Kapia where they stood at the edge of the water.  The sea was calm and flat, the skies bright, winds calm.  A small wooden boat floated a couple of feet out, Worrow standing knee deep in the water beside it.  Zakiel lifted Karma, then Kapia from the sand into the boat so that their feet would not get wet.  As soon as Karma was in the boat, Nikura leapt in and sat down in the space between the two benches.

“I am not sure if you will be allowed to travel with them, Nikura,” Worrow said.

“He must go,” Karma said.  “We cannot be so widely separated from one another for such a long time.”

“I suppose we will soon see what happens,” Worrow said.

“Don’t worry,”
Nikura said.
 “There will not be a problem.” 

Karma met Nikura’s gaze and nodded with relief as
Zakiel took the seat next to her.  Kapia sat on the bench opposite them and reached out to rub Nikura’s ears in an effort to calm her own nerves. 

“When you are ready, Princess Kapia, close your eyes and clear your mind,” Worrow said.  “Think of going to the Moon Orb.”

Kapia nodded, smiled nervously and took a deep breath.  “All right, I can do this,” she whispered to herself as she closed her eyes and folded her hands in her lap.  They waited quietly, the only sound an occasional bird song, or a voice drifting down from the village.

The boat began to move, so slowly at first that Karma wasn’t sure if it was the tide or Kapia.  A few moments later it began to pick up speed, going faster and faster until it was barely skimming the water.  Kapia opened her eyes and smiled at her success.  A moment later they were all clutching the benches they sat on, worried that they’d fall out of the boat if it were to hit a wayward wave. 

Zakiel watched the sun as it crawled across the sky, surprised that it was taking so long to reach their destination.  They’d traveled three hours by his guess when the boat began to slow down.  They searched the sea around them, but it was another half hour before they saw what looked like a big rock sticking out of the water.  The boat came to a dead stop about twenty yards from the atoll, and they sat there for a few minutes, wondering what to do next.

Karma heard a sound and turned toward it, her eyes fixed on the water just beyond the bow of their boat.   She saw nothing but still water reflecting the cloudless sky, and frowned.

“Greetings, Lady Techu,”
a voice said.  Karma looked at Kapia and Zakiel, but clearly neither of them heard the voice, though from the way Nikura stared at her, he heard it. 

“I would be most grateful of you would use the Ti-Ank so that I may speak with the Maiden of the Moon,”
the voice said, with an undercurrent of humor.

“Of course,” Karma said as she picked up the Ti-Ank and sent a thread of energy into it.

“I greet you, Vatra, son of Vatra,
” the voice said, heard now by all of them. 
“I greet you, Maiden of the Moon.  I am Karaken.”

“Greetings, Karaken,” Zakiel said.  “Will you show yourselves to us?”

“I’ve no wish to frighten you,”
Karaken replied.

“We have been told a little about your appearance,” Zakiel said.  “We shall accept you as you are.”

“Very well, as you wish,”
the voice replied.  A moment later a gigantic orange head, easily three times the size of the boat they sat in, rose slowly from the water, revealing one large, lidless green eye.

“It has been my duty to guard the Cradle of the Moon Orb these many centuries,”
Karaken said. 
“Now that you have come, I almost think I will miss it.”

“How do you know that we are the three you have waited for?” Kapia asked curiously.

“
I was given to know by the scent of your blood,”
Karaken replied casually. 
“Only the blood of the Maiden of the Moon can open the Cradle anyway, so even if you weren’t who I believe you to be, it would do you no good.”

 “How do we get from here to there?” Karma asked.

“I could push your boat to the atoll, if you like,”
Karaken replied. 
“Of course, for such an effort, I might wish to be recompensed.”

“Recompensed?” Karma asked.  “And what exactly would you wish in exchange?”

Karaken floated in the water for a few moments, as though considering
.  “I think I would like a feather from the Vatra,”
he said at last. 
“Yes, I do believe that would be a nice token to have.”

Zakiel sighed and shrugged.  He would need to ask Karma to help him transform, but other than that, he saw no problem with it.  He opened his mouth to agree when Karma held up one hand and shook her head sharply.  He closed his mouth, frowning as he watched her.

Suddenly the form of a woman who vaguely resembled Karma appeared beside the boat, a stern expression on her face.  The glow from the Ti-Ank instantly extended itself to her.

“Karaken,”
she demanded angrily,
“have you decided to dishonor our bargain?”

“Of course not, Techu Samyi
,” Karaken replied, bobbing in the water, sending tiny ripples toward their boat. 

“I heard your request for a feather from the Vatra,”
she said. 
“If you do not honor our bargain, you will be torn from Rathira and left to float among the stars forever.”

“I did not demand a feather,”
Karaken objected. 
“I suggested only that it would be nice.”

“Indeed, I am sure it would be,”
Techu Samyi said wryly
.  “Nevertheless, you shall not receive one.”

“Not even as a gift?”
Karaken asked hopefully.

“Beware, Karaken,”
the apparition said before fading away.

“Well, you cannot blame me for trying,”
Karaken said with another sighing sound. 

Kapia suddenly knew that dealing with this creature was her task.  She wasn’t sure why, or how she knew it, but she did.  She took a deep breath, stood up, and turned to face the gigantic orange head.  “I call on you, Karaken, as Maiden of the Moon, rightful claimant of the Moon Orb,” she said, not knowing what she was going to say until the words left her mouth.  “Tell me true the bargain you made with Techu Samyi and the creator of the Moon Orb.”

“You are much as your ancestress,”
Karaken said with a sigh. 
“Very well then, in return for the privilege of living in the Kytherian Sea which, I might add, is a truly lovely ocean, I promised to guard the Moon Orb, to see the rightful Maiden of the Moon safely to it, and to guard you until you return to the Sirelina.”

Kapia crossed her arms in front of her and glared at the giant green eye. 
“I also promised to tell you that only the blood of the Maiden of the Moon can claim the orb.”

Kapia’s eyes narrowed, but that seemed to be all. 

“Thank you, Karaken,” Kapia said politely.  “If you will, please take us to the atoll now.”

“As you wish, Maiden of the Moon,”
Karaken replied.

A long, thick orange tentacle with curved claws embedded along its length rose from the water behind them.  Kapia sat back down as the arm gently bumped against the back of the boat, then began pushing them slowly toward the atoll, Karaken’s head keeping pace alongside them.  When the boat was inches from the rock, he released it to bump gently against the atoll. 

Now that they were close to it, they saw that, rather than one large rock sticking straight up, it was actually a series of rocks that gradually built up toward the center.  It would not be difficult for them to climb up the gentle slope to the top, though they would need to be careful of their footing on the smooth, rounded rocks.

Zakiel stepped out of the boat first, then handed Kapia and Karma out.  Nikura leapt onto the rocks last, his ears back.  He clearly did not like being on a rock in the middle of the ocean. 

Zakiel pulled the front of the boat onto the rocks so that it wouldn’t drift away.  As he started to turn around, he caught something out of the corner of his eye and spun back, his eyes widening in surprise and horror.

“Karma, Kapia,” he said tightly, “we have company.”

“What in the nine hells is that?” Karma gasped, her grip tightening on her staff as she watched what looked like a serpent with wings flying toward them with two figures on its back.

“Demon,”
Nikura said, hissing furiously.

“It’s Marene,” Kapia said.  Karma glanced at Kapia in shock, but Kapia’s expression was as cold as any she’d ever seen on Zakiel’s face.  Karma turned back to the flying demon, but she was unable to make out the faces of those on the back of it.  She didn’t doubt Kapia though.  The girl was too certain.

“And the other figure?” she asked.

“Saigar,” Zakiel said.

Karma took two steps to the side, placing herself slightly behind and to Zakiel’s right.  She sent a thread of energy into the Ti-Ank, and held it before her in both hands, ready for battle.  She tested the balance, having never practiced with the ankh attached to the staff before, and shifted the staff a few inches in her hands.  Satisfied, she glanced over to see Kapia follow her lead and take up a position opposite her own, her staff held before her, feet set, shoulders relaxed. 

Karma felt a surge of pride in her student, and offered her a warm smile before turning her attention forward as Zakiel glanced over his shoulder at them.  “I’m not sure how we’re going to deal with that demon,” he said.  “Any ideas?”

Karma cocked her head and listened. 

“Karaken will take the demon when it comes in to land,” Karma said.  “You and Nikura take Saigar, Kapia and I will take Marene.”

“She’s the source of the demon arts,”
Nikura said. 
“She will not be easy to take out.”

“I have the Ti-Ank against her magic,” Karma said, winking at Kapia with a smile.  “That might even things up a bit.”

The four of them waited, weapons ready, all eyes on their enemies as they grew larger and larger in the sky.

“I’m curious about something,” Karma said. 

“What’s that,
valia
?” Zakiel asked.

“How do they know where we are?”

“I do not know,” Zakiel replied.  “Nikura?”

“I know that you do not have anything tainted by demon arts,”
Nikura said to Karma. 
“And I’ve been through all of Prince Zakiel’s belongings as well.”

Karma repeated what Nikura said, then looked at Kapia, who was glancing down at herself, going over everything she wore, item by item.  She looked up at Karma and started to shake her head, then her eyes widened.

“My ring!” she gasped, holding up the hand that wore the golden serpent ring.

“But that belonged to our Mother,” Zakiel said, glancing over his shoulder at her. 

“Yes, but after I was abducted, Marene took the ring to have the poison well refilled for me.  She did not return it until the next day.”

“It’s a good thing you did not need the ring to protect yourself,” Karma commented.

Kapia looked confused for a moment, then understanding hit her.  “Yes, I’m sure that whatever is now in the ring is not poison at all,” she said.  “I do hate that woman.  I’m sorry I ever considered that you might one day wed her, Brother.”