Quest for the Sun Orb (11 page)

“Would it be all right for me to name this one?” Tiari asked.

“Of course,” Kapia replied.  “You can name him whatever you want.  If you like him, we’ll let the head drover know that he is to be yours from now on.  If you don’t like him, you can select another one from the herd.”

“No, I think I like this one,” Tiari said.  “I’d never seen a diplo before yesterday, and I was scared, but he didn’t take off running or try to bite me.  I think that’s a good sign.”

“So do I,” Kapia said approvingly.  “My diplo is Goldy, and Karma’s is Dippy.”

“Is this one female or male?” Tiari asked, smiling as the diplo lowered his head further so that she could scratch its ears. 

“They’re all male,” Kapia replied.  “Females are not as large, or as strong as males.  There are also very few females.  Only one in a hundred domesticated diplo is born female.  They are closely guarded and pampered, and would never be risked on a dangerous journey like this.”

“One in a hundred?” Tiari asked, surprised.  “That must be hard for the males.”

“Not really,” Kapia replied.  “Only one in a hundred males is what we call a
breeder
.  They’re always born with pure white skin.  The rest, like this guy here, are infertile.”

“Good morning, Cousin Kapia, Hara Tiari,” Tomas said, pausing several feet away and bowing politely.  “Please forgive me if I’m interrupting.”

“Good morning, Cousin Tomas,” Kapia said.  She wasn’t sure what it was about him that had changed, but she didn’t feel the tension she generally felt in his presence.  “How are you this morning?”

Tomas’s eyes widened in surprise at the question, causing Kapia to wince inwardly.  It suddenly occurred to her that, perhaps, some of Tomas’s past behavior was a result of the way she’d treated him.  Not that she’d ever treated him badly, but she had been cool and distrustful of him.

“I’m well, thank you,” he replied.  “I came to ask Hara Tiari if she would like assistance mounting her diplo.”

“Yes, I would,” Tiari replied.  “Princess Kapia was helping me to get acquainted with the diplo.”

Tomas wasn’t sure what to say to that, so he said nothing which, in itself, was unusual for him.  He’d always felt it necessary to say something, anything, to be noticed.  Being noticed had lost its appeal in recent weeks.

“Tomas, have you heard where we are going next?” Kapia asked, surprising Tomas once again.

“No, I haven’t,” he replied. “I didn’t know our next destination had been determined.”

“Yes, last night,” Kapia replied.  “
Yamun Sennet
.”

“The Hidden Sister?” Tomas asked in surprise.  “We are to travel to a place that no longer exists?”

“Yes, impossible though it sounds,” Kapia said.  “I have no idea how Zakiel will manage this one.”

“And yet, I have every confidence that he will manage it,” Tomas said.  “One way or another, he will make it happen.  Zakiel never fails.”

Kapia was stunned.  She’d never heard such quiet, assured praise for Zakiel, or anyone, come from Tomas’s lips before.  Yes, he had definitely changed.  For the better.

“I agree,” Kapia said.  “If anyone can lead us to where we need to go, it’s Zakiel.  If you two will excuse me, I think I’ll go greet Goldy now.”

Tomas nodded, then watched as Kapia left.  He noticed that almost everyone was ready to leave, so he stepped forward and held his hand out to Tiari.  She took it, smiling shyly as she placed her small, warm hand in his. 

“You are very kind and thoughtful to come and help me this morning, Sir Tomas,” she said.  “I’m sure you must have more important things to do.”

“In that, I’m afraid, you are mistaken, Hara Tiari,” he said.

“Please, call me Tiari,” she said.  “I understand that it is a politeness, but whenever anyone calls me
Hara
I barely know who they’re speaking to.”

“I am honored, Tiari, but you must call me Tomas in return,” Tomas said with a smile.  “And may I say, Tiari, that you look very beautiful this morning.”

Tiari’s cheeks heated with a mix of embarrassment and pleasure.  “Thank you, Tomas,” she said.  “I’m sure it’s this outfit that Kapia was kind enough to give me.  I’ve never worn anything half so beautiful.”

Tomas glanced down at the light blue top, vest, and divided skirt that Tiari was wearing.  Though Lashi and Caral had altered it so that it fit her reasonably well, it was still slightly too large for her thin frame. 

“The outfit is pretty, and the color looks very nice on you.  It matches your eyes perfectly.  But it is you who are beautiful, not the clothes,” Tomas said.  Then, fearing he had said too much, he turned and placed his hands at her tiny waist.  “Are you ready?”

“Yes,” she whispered so softly that only he could hear. 

He lifted her up and held her easily as she swung her leg over the diplo’s neck.  “Comfortable?” he asked, releasing her.

“Yes, thank you,” she said, wishing she could think of something better than that to say.

“Would you mind, Tiari, if I rode up to visit with you later today?” he asked. 

“I would like that very much, Tomas,” she said, blushing again. 

“I will look forward to it then,” Tomas said with a smile before he turned and walked away.  She watched after him for a moment until she realized she was in danger of falling out of her saddle.  She laughed softly at herself, drawing her diplo’s attention.  He turned his head, arching his neck so that he could look at her with one of his big dark eyes. 

“Nosy thing, aren’t you?” she asked.  “I think that’s a good name for you.  I will call you Nosy.”

Nosy rumbled softly and twitched his ears before turning his head forward as Karma and Kapia rode up to take their places on either side of her.

“Good morning, Tiari,” Karma said brightly.  “Are you ready to begin your first adventure?”

“Actually, I thought I already had begun,” she replied.  “Everything is so new to me that I wonder how I will ever learn enough to fit in.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Karma said.  “I was a complete stranger to Isiben, their customs, everyone and everything here just a few short weeks ago.  Trust me, Tiari, you’ll catch up before you know it.”

“Truly?” Tiari asked in surprise.

“Yes, truly,” Karma said.  “I understand how difficult it is for you, but these are good, kind, honorable people.  They will help you along as much as you let them.”

“Thank you, Karma,” Tiari said, feeling something inside of her relax a little for the first time since she’d opened the door to Karma and Kapia the day before.  She took a deep breath and looked around herself, smiling.  These
were
good people, she could see that from their auras.  They would not scream at her, or strike her, or belittle her.  She had nothing to fear.  Not here.

 Karma smiled as she watched Tiari accept what she’d said, then looked up in time to see Zakiel raise his arm from the head of the rough column that had formed in the clearing.  The diplos began walking, their pace easy, but still much faster than a man could walk.  She turned to her right, but didn’t see Nikura and his diplo in their accustomed place, and started to turn around to look for him. 

“I’m coming, I’m coming,”
Nikura said. 
“Don’t panic.”

“Panic?”
Karma asked
.  “Honestly Nikura, if your head gets any bigger your ears are going to fall off.”

“Whatwasthat?”
Nikura demanded, his head whipping around to face her as his diplo took its place beside Dippy. 
“What is this about my ears falling off?  Explain at once, please.”

Karma stared at his ears for a long moment, keeping her face perfectly straight.  Then she raised one shoulder in a half shrug
.  “I suppose you’re safe,”
she said in the most serious tone she could manage. 
“For now.”

Nikura’s eyes narrowed in suspicion
.  “I suspect that this is one of your leg pulling exercises.”

“I’m impressed, Nikura,”
Karma replied.
  “You are much smarter than you look.”

“Hmmph,”
Nikura replied.  Karma grinned at him as he turned his back on her, curled up on the broad platform that served as his saddle, and pretended to go to sleep. 

“Karma,” Kapia called.  She turned away from Nikura and leaned forward to see Kapia on the far side of Tiari. 

“Yes?”

“How did Zakiel take the news of our destination?”

“He thought I was joking at first, but eventually he took me seriously.”

“Did he figure out how far it is?” Kapia asked.

“He told me this morning that we’ll need to travel north through these forests that border the Kytherian Sea,” Karma said.  “When the forests veer west to follow the coast, we’ll continue north across some open plains, then cut between a range of hills that surround the Three
Sisters
. 
About three weeks, he said
.”

“That’s far less time than it took for us to cross the desert,” Kapia said, smiling. 

“Yes it is,” Karma agreed.  “Since we won’t have to weigh down the pack diplo with barrels of water as we did while crossing the desert, we’ll be able to travel faster.”

“And bathe more often too, I hope,” Kapia said.

“Yes,” Karma said.  “Zakiel says that there’s plenty of water to be found in streams, rivers and creeks along our route, even at this time of year.”

“That’s great news,” Kapia said.  “Don’t get me wrong, I love the desert.  It’s my home.  But traveling for weeks on end while wearing, eating, and breathing sand is not pleasant.”

“No, it isn’t,” Karma agreed.  “Especially when every drop of water must be used for drinking only.  By the way, I thought that since we’ll be traveling again, we should return to sparring on a regular schedule.”

Kapia dropped her eyes and turned her head away, surprising Karma.  “You don’t want to continue working with the staff?”

Kapia swung back toward Karma.  “Yes, I do,” she said emphatically, though she looked unhappy.  “Very much, in fact.  I’ve learned a lot, but I’d really like to learn more.”

“Then why the sad face?”

“It’s just that Bredon was going to start teaching me how to use a sword,” Kapia said in a low voice. 

“Zakiel wanted to teach me the same thing,” Karma replied.  “I’ve tried blades before and have no talent for them.  I know it won’t be the same as learning from Bredon, but I’m sure that your brother will be happy to teach you, instead.”

Kapia thought about that for a few moments, then nodded.  “Yes, I think I’d like that,” she said.  “Until Bredon returns.”

“Yes, until Bredon returns,” Karma replied, trying not to sound as doubtful as she felt about that.  Kapia was holding up very well so far, and she had no wish to make it any harder for her by revealing her doubts.  If Worrow was able to help Bredon, he would, and Bredon would rejoin them as soon as he could.  If Bredon never showed up, then the worst would have to be accepted.  Until then, there was still reason to hope for the best.

“Excuse me,” Tiari said.  “What is
sparring
?”

“Karma has been teaching me the use of a weapon called a
staff
,” Kapia said, reaching for her own staff and slipping it from the loops on her saddle to show Tiari. 

“This is made of wood,” Tiari said as she reached out to take the staff.  She ran her hands over the smooth surface, and weighed it in her hands before handing it back.  “Why is there a hinge in the middle?”

“Before we left Ka-Teru, one of the weapons instructors made this for me so that I could carry it at my belt if I wanted to,” Kapia said, working the mechanism and folding the staff in half to demonstrate.  “Most of the time I keep it extended and in the loops of the saddle, but it does come in handy sometimes.”

“That’s very clever,” Tiari said, watching Kapia unfold the staff and lock it into place before returning it to the loops on her saddle.  “Is it a good weapon?”

 “Very,” Kapia replied.  “Plus, it doesn’t have any sharp edges so it’s safe to learn.  You can’t really hurt yourself with it unless you bonk yourself on the head.”

“That’s good,” Tiari said, grinning at the sudden mental image she had of herself doing just that.  “Did it take you a long time to learn?”

“No, it didn’t,” Kapia replied.  “Karma is a great teacher.”

“Kapia has a natural talent for it,” Karma said.  “She’s learned exceptionally fast, and she’s very good.”

“You are lucky,” Tiari said wistfully.  “I cannot imagine what it must be like to know you can protect yourself.”

“Would you like to learn?” Karma asked.

Tiari’s eyes widened in surprise at the offer.  “I would love to learn,” she said.  “Do you think that I can?”

“There’s only one way to find out,” Karma replied.  “When we stop to camp this afternoon I’ll give you a lesson, and we’ll see how you do.”

“Karma,” Tiari said, “I’m very grateful that you would do such a thing for me.  But, please, don’t feel that you must.  You have all done, and are still doing, so much for me already.  It would be wrong of me to accept more.”

“I understand, and appreciate, what you’re saying, Tiari,” Karma said.  “But I like teaching, and if you’re able to defend yourself, nothing but good can come of it.  Even if you never have to use it, you’ll know that you can if you need to.”

“The only problem is, we don’t have any extra staffs,” Kapia said.  “Zakiel has one, but his is too big for any of us.  She can borrow mine, of course, but if she’s going to learn, she should have her own.”

“Actually, I do have an extra one,” Karma said.  “I have a special rod that extends into a staff that I haven’t been using on our journey because I worried that it would draw too many questions.  I think people are familiar enough with me now that I can use it without raising too many eyebrows.  I’ll give Tiari my staff, and use the other one.”

“Yes, I remember that,” Kapia said.  “That’s a great idea.  Then all three of us will be able to do more than cower beneath our diplos in a fight.”

“Not that there’s anything wrong with doing that,” Karma said.  “Staying out of the way and letting the Hunters do what they do best is usually the smartest thing to do.”