The Bonding (3 page)

Kiri was on the verge of tugging Davin to the bed of leaves blanketing the forest floor when a low-pitched bellow shattered the stillness of the woods, followed by a shrill scream. She wrenched herself from Davin's embrace and ran for the meadow. He followed closely behind her.

The scene that greeted them was of unimaginable horror. Jarrell lay on the ground, a strange shape hovering over him. He was writhing and howling. Near him, head in her hands, Eliada screamed, “No…no…I freed you. You can't harm me!”

The figure rose from the fallen swordmaster and turned. Kiri froze in shock. It was the female creature Shara, blood and entrails dripping from her iron teeth. She must have torn poor Jarrell's gut out. The wounded man moaned piteously. Animated, the creature proved even more disgusting than her consort in stasis. Shriveled like rotten fruit, her skin had a gray and waxy cast. Her eyelids pulled horrifically against the black stitching that held them shut. Long iron claws on both hands reached out with an accuracy greater than sight towards the cowering councilwoman. The claws sank deep into Eliada's back and she screamed again.

“Stupid woman,” the creature hissed through her sharpened fangs. “You thought in your great pride that you would rule beside me, control me? I know your kind. You are only good enough to be my slave for a moment. After that, you're nothing but food.” The iron fangs flashed and Eliada's shriek of terror ended in a gurgle as the creature tore her throat out.

* * *

Sickened, panicked, Davin contemplated what to do. They were unprepared for this attack. Looking around for a means of escape, he realized that Kiri no longer stood beside him. The courageous girl had used the creature's distraction to sneak over to where Jarrell lay. Softly, she murmured something over the fallen swordmaster and slit his throat with a small dagger. Noiseless as a cat, she slipped past the creature to the mouth of the cave. Turning, she met Davin's eyes and mouthed his name. Another moment and the monster's attention returned to her first victim. Davin ran like he had never run before, crossing the clearing at a speed no one would have guessed he possessed. He reached the opening as Shara let out a howl of rage, having discovered Jarrell was dead. She lunged in Davin's direction, a single iron claw tearing his shirt sleeve open, but he shot through the entrance and into the cave. He slammed into the wall full force, but the narrowness of the passageway prevented them from falling. The crystals in the passage wall assaulted Davin's senses as his magic was ripped away, but he welcomed the sensation. If the creature followed them, she would be blind and totally powerless. He regained his balance and scuttled deeper into the cave.

A terrifying hiss followed him into the tunnel. “I know you are there little wizard. You can't stay forever. Bring me my consort, and I will allow you to live as my slave. Defy me, and I will devour you.”

Shuddering, Davin pressed on towards the chamber. There, just in the doorway lay a good sized pile of wood.

“Bless Jarrell,” Davin murmured.

Inside the chamber, the crystal facets flashed their multicolored light onto Kiri's face and clothing. She was leaning heavily against the wall, both hands on her face. Davin swallowed convulsively, willing himself not to gag. That, without a doubt, had been the worst thing he had ever seen. He exhaled heavily. Kiri's head shot up. She made a soft sound and launched herself into his arms. He held her tightly.

“Oh gods,” she whispered. “You're safe.”

She was breathing hard, almost hyperventilating. Davin ran his hand gently over her back. After a long moment, she began to calm down.

“Kiri,” he said in a lame attempt at humor, “I might almost think you liked me.”

“Of course I like you, idiot,” her voice was muffled as she pressed her face into his shirt.

“As hard as you've tried avoiding me…”

“I told you. It's forbidden. I never said I didn't like you.”

“Well, there's no one here to object.” He raised her chin with one finger. Her scars were white, but no tears marred her deeply grooved cheeks. He kissed her hard, his tongue pressing into her mouth. She relaxed and let him explore her, opening to his invasion willingly.

After all too short a moment, Kiri pulled back. Davin let her go, reluctantly.
She's right. This is not the moment. There's work to be done.
Seeming to read his thoughts, she began to pile the wood near the stone slab that held their immobilized enemy, directly under the crack in the ceiling, so they wouldn't choke on the smoke. She watched approvingly as Davin arranged several smaller sticks on top of the pile. Finally, she opened a pack and took out a small traveling pillow, which she tore apart, sprinkling downy feathers and strips of cloth over the logs.

“I don't suppose you have enough magic in here to light this?” she asked.

“Not even a drop. However, I do have fire stones.”

He reached deep into his pocket and drew out the two stones, and in moments the feathers and fabric flared to life, igniting the sticks.

As the flames began to take hold of the larger branches, Kiri slumped against the wall to wait. Davin joined her.

“I take it,” he said casually, “that you didn't know what your partner was up to?”

“Of course not,” she cried, shaking her head violently, so her dangerous braid made scraping sounds against the crystal behind her. “I would never have allowed her to get away with waking the creature. Even though it would have cost my life, I would certainly have reported her.”

Davin grimaced in dismay. “And to think I showed her where Gorn was located. She must have brought the creature with her. We led it right to the spot.”

Kiri's lips tightened, which did uncomfortable looking things to the scars that split them, but when she spoke, the warrior was fully in control. “I think the best thing to do is for you to remain in the cave. I'll leave in the morning and get reinforcements. I think I can get past her, since she can neither see nor sense me. Just tell me where the nearest town is.

Such a clever plan, my practical Kiri. If only it could work.
“There's nothing nearby,” Davin told her. “All the surrounding villages are small. They might have a wise woman, or a minor mage, but no one with any great power.”

“In other words, while I looked for help, she would descend on them and devour everyone, making the wise women and mages her slaves.”

Davin nodded gravely.

“Damn.”

“Reinforcements are already on their way from the capital,” he pointed out. “They should arrive in a week or so. In the meanwhile, we can destroy this thing,” he indicated the immobile figure on the slab, “and we must keep the creature busy so she doesn't attack any towns.”

“We would be lucky to last a day.” Kiri's bleak voice matched her hopeless expression.

“I know, but we have to try.” Davin leaned his head back against the wall and sighed.
Damned hopeless situation. Trapped liked rats between starvation and becoming dinner.
He thought of those iron claws and fangs and shuddered.
That's not how I want to go.
“If only we had a magic leaf, we could at least attempt to neutralize her.”

Kiri's eyes narrowed. She rose without a word and stalked to the far wall where all the travel packs were sitting. Rummaging deeply into one, she withdrew a smooth stone box. With shaking hands, she opened it. Something deeply green flashed inside.

Davin swallowed. “So, it's up to us then, isn't it? In the morning, we take the fight to her. Maybe we can stop her before she gains any further strength.”

Kiri nodded her agreement. Carefully she set the box on the floor, then straightened, holding herself taut. Her breathing was still far from steady.

And no wonder. We just watched two people die. We die tomorrow. Let's not pretend. This time tomorrow, we'll both be dead.
His belly clenched.
I don't want to die. I want to explore this woman, to see if she's all she seems.
So many questions he wanted to ask, and no time to ask them. He cut right to the heart.

“Kiri,” Davin said gently, “Can you tell me why you're under a death sentence?”

Her head shot his direction with an audible clunk. Her face contorted into lines of dismay. “I can't tell you.”

He met her eyes and sent her a pleading look.

Her lips tightened and little lines of strain crinkled the corners of her eyes. “You are the first man who has shown me any kindness in years. If I tell you, you'll hate me, and I couldn't bear that.”

Even a warrior woman is still a woman,
Davin thought, suppressing his grin. “I doubt I could hate you. You just saved my friend from unbearable suffering. You are brave and beautiful and strong. I care deeply for you Kiri. Please tell me.”

“This fire is ready,” she told him, and drew her dagger again.

Frowning, Davin pulled a long knife from his belt and joined her. Knocking the glass dome aside, they began the grisly work of dismembering Gorn and dropping his desiccated remains into the fire. Davin's frown turn into a grimace.
The stench is disgusting. At least there's no blood.

“How on earth can a woman as small as you handle a broadsword?” Davin asked, making idle conversation.

“It's specially designed for me. It's very light despite its size. I'm stronger than I look too.”

Of course. That much is plain.
“I know. How often did you let Jarrell win at sparring?”

“Every time but the first. How did you know?”

“I was watching,” he replied unabashed.

“Naturally.” Kiri looked at Davin, considering, and then said, “I've been fighting since I was small, did you know?”

Again she states to obvious.
“I suspected. Skill such as you have only comes with years of practice. You aren't very old. I would guess twenty-five or so?”

She shot him a grim smile.
Like me, she must be striving for calm, for normalcy.
“I'm twenty-seven. They took me from my mother when I was six. Said I had the makings of a great warrior. Especially when my magical tests all came back negative. I trained for eight years and then I was placed in a girls' battalion. Our group was one of the best. We not only made great military advances, but we had the fewest casualties. We watched each other's backs, you see. I fought for two years, eventually becoming head of that battalion, and then I was promoted to trainer when I was sixteen, just after I passed my exams to become a swordmaster.” Her beautiful green eyes met his and then slid away.
Tell me more, sweet girl,
he urged silently.
I want to know everything there is to know about you.

She continued. “Around that time, many of my friends began to take lovers. I didn't feel ready though. I knew that anyone I shared something so intimate with would have to be very special, someone with whom I could picture myself spending a lifetime. So I waited. By the time I was eighteen, I was nearly frantic.” She smiled ruefully, dropping a gory bit of flesh into the flame. “That's when I met Cariano. He was a mage who tested me for magical ability. He was older, a man not a boy, and very good looking. He singled me out, flirted with me, made me feel special. I liked the attention.”

She looked at Davin, and he nodded encouragingly.

“Well, our relationship was getting pretty intense, lots of kissing and caressing. I had just about decided to sleep with him when I noticed the other girls starting to snicker and point when I went by. There was never any shame among us for taking a lover, so I couldn't understand what was wrong with them. Finally I asked one, and she said that she never thought someone like me would be flirting with a married man.” She broke off, gulped, and cried, “Davin, I had no idea he was married, or I would never have…”

“Of course not,” he told her quickly. “So what did you do? Surely kissing a married man doesn't carry a death sentence?

Her laugh almost sounded like a sob, though her eyes remained dry, almost flat, the sparkle suppressed by dark memories. “No. It wasn't that. When I heard what they were saying, I confronted him. He admitted he was married, but said it didn't matter. I had led him to believe that I would sleep with him, and I was honor-bound to follow through. I refused. He used his magic on me. As soon as I told him no, I found myself on the ground, unable to move. He tore my clothing open and…” she cleared her throat. “And… and he had me right then and there.”

“Oh gods, he raped you?” Davin exclaimed, disgusted.
Why do people do that? There are always willing women.

Kiri nodded. “It was horrible. Nothing like what the other girls had said. I hated every second. I tried to scream, to protest, but I was frozen. When he was finished, he released me, smirking, and said that now he had had a taste of me, he wanted more. I should plan to meet him every week, for sex. He reminded me what happened when I refused. I told him that by the gods I would have him brought up on charges. He told me that it sounded like I needed another lesson in submitting to a man. I don't know how it happened, but suddenly my sword was in my hand. He had tossed it aside before the attack, but now I was holding it. I didn't give him a chance to say or do anything. I ran him through and murdered him.”

“Kiri, how can you call that murder?” Davin protested. “That was self defense. He assaulted you. You had every reason to expect he would do it again.”

She bowed her head in acknowledgment. “I tried to use that defense at my trial, but the tribunal decided that as a trained warrior, I should have been able to defend myself and escape without killing. He was notorious, I later learned, for snapping up silly young girls and taking advantage of them. They reasoned that what must have happened was that I, embarrassed about having been tricked into sleeping with a married man, killed him out of revenge. They sentenced me to death. That's where Eliada came in.”

“How did she even know you?” Davin asked as he dropped the last piece into the fire. They both stepped away to clean their weapons and hands.

“She didn't,” Kiri replied, scrubbing at the gummy, foul smelling mess that clung to her dagger's blade. “Everyone knew of me, of course, but the man I killed, Cariano Dulek, was her husband. She told the tribunal that it was her right, as widow, to decide the punishment. They agreed. She was the one who cut my face. She said I would never be able to use my beauty to seduce other women's husbands again. I also became her slave. I was told that if she died for any reason, even natural causes, I would face the execution I had previously avoided.”