Fire Study - Study 03 - Мария Снайдер

“How many are there, and what do the Vermin plan to do?” Oran asked me.

“Nine. And it doesn’t matter what they plan. The Vermin have Esau and your scouts. We need to rescue them!”

Oran hemmed and hawed. “We should consult Councilman Bavol—”

“Bavol’s at the Citadel. It will take weeks to get a reply.” I suppressed the desire to wrap my hands around Oran’s thin neck.

“We can’t leave our homestead unprotected,” Violet said. “We’ll call a meeting and request a few volunteers.”

Sitians! I thought in exasperation, couldn’t do anything without consulting a committee. “Fine. Call your meeting. Do whatever.” I shooed Oran and Violet out the door.

“Yelena—” my mother began.

“You can scold me later. We’re leaving now.”

Leif and Moon Man looked at me as if waiting for orders. “Get Tauno and Marrok. I’ll catch up to you at the base of the ladder.”

“Where are you going?” Leif asked.

“To get our distraction.”

They hurried from the room and I was about to follow when my mother grabbed my arm.

“Just a minute,” she said. “There are only five of you. What are you planning? Tell me now or I’m coming along.”

That Liana stubbornness radiated from her and I knew her threats weren’t idle. I sketched a brief outline of my plan.

“That won’t work without some help,” she said.

“But I’m going to—”

“Need more incentive. I have just the thing. Go. I’ll meet you at the base of the ladder.” Perl rushed off.

After a few minutes of frantic searching, I found what I needed. By the time I slid down the ladder, the others were ready. Shafts of bright moonlight pierced the darkness of the jungle floor, giving just enough light to make out the shadowy shapes of the tree trunks.

I told Tauno and Marrok how to approach the Vermin camp and guards and instructed them on where to position themselves nearby. “No noise. Keep your distance. Wait for my signal before attacking.”

“Signal?” Marrok asked. His face hardened into grim determination, but uncertainty lurked behind his eyes. Even though Cahil had issued orders to his men, Marrok had really been the one in charge.

“Something loud and obnoxious,” I said.

Marrok frowned. “This isn’t the time to joke.”

“I wasn’t joking.”

After a mere moment’s hesitation, Marrok and Tauno set off.

Moon Man stared after them. “What about us?”

There was a faint rustling from above as someone took hold of the rope ladder. A few heartbeats later, Chestnut joined us on the jungle floor. He wore a dark-colored tunic and pants, and his drum was tied to his belt. The green paint and dye had been washed from his hair.

“I’m glad I could help,” Chestnut said. “But you need to know I’ve never done this before.”

“Done what?” Leif asked. “Yelena, what’s going on?”

“I’m hoping Chestnut will be able to call a few necklace snakes to join the Vermin’s party.”

“Ah. Your distraction,” Moon Man said.

“How close do you need to be?” I asked Chestnut.

“Probably within a mile, but it’ll all depend on how many snakes are around.” He hesitated. “I’m used to chasing them away, not calling them. What if it doesn’t work?”

As if on cue, the rope ladder swung with the weight of another person. Perl descended. She moved as graceful as liquid, and I would have bet Nutty hadn’t been the only Zaltana child to drive her parents crazy by learning to climb before she could walk.

“Here.” My mother handed me ten grape-size capsules and several straight pins. “Just in case your first plan fails.”

“What if the second plan fails?” Leif asked.

“Then we’ll storm the camp and hope for the best. Come on.” I put the capsules in my pocket, put the pins through my shirt so they didn’t stick me, adjusted my pack so its weight rested between my shoulder blades, and pulled my bow.

“Be careful,” Perl said.

I hugged her before setting off. While I had told Marrok and Tauno to take a wider more circuitous path to the Vermin, I wanted to lead the three men straight toward them. Once again I made a light mental connection to the bats flying above us. Guided by the bats’ shape map of the jungle, I moved with ease through the tight trail even though the tree canopy blocked the dim moonlight in places.

The jungle’s night sounds echoed in the damp air. A howler bat cried in a loud staccato. Valmurs climbed and swung through the trees. The rustle and shake of branches and bushes hinted at the unseen activity of other night creatures.

About a mile from the Vermin camp, I halted. Chestnut leaned his forehead on a nearby tree and power brushed my skin.

“There is only one snake nearby,” he said. “He is waiting for the men in the trees to stumble into his trap. Necklace snakes are not active hunters. They prefer to lie in wait, using the element of surprise.” Chestnut looked at me. “And I don’t want to teach them how to hunt.”

“That is a good point,” Moon Man said.

“Now what?” Leif asked.

“I’m thinking,” I said.

“Think faster,” Leif urged.

One snake wasn’t enough. Time for Perl’s suggestion. I handed everyone two capsules and a pin. “Get as close to the guards as you can. Poke a small hole in the capsule and squirt the liquid near them. Don’t get it on you,” I instructed.

“Why not?” Leif asked.

“You’ll have a necklace snake trying to mate with you.”

“Gee, Yelena. I’m so glad you’re home,” Leif grumbled. “It’s good to know Mother is doing something useful with her time.”

“I thought your mother made perfumes,” Moon Man said.

“It all depends on how you look at it,” Chestnut said. “To a male necklace snake, that stuff is a perfume.”

“There are six guards. Moon Man, Leif and I will each spray two,” I said. Taking off my pack, I stashed it behind a tree. “Chestnut, you stay back here. Can you keep the snakes from grabbing us when they come?”

“I’ll try. They have an excellent sense of smell so get clear once you spray that stuff.”

“What about the guards in the trees?” Leif asked.

“Aim high and be quiet about it.”

Leif muttered to himself as the three of us fanned out to approach the Vermin guards. Chestnut stayed behind to communicate with the predators while we moved into position. Once our distraction arrived and the guards became busy dodging amorous snakes, Leif and Moon Man would find Marrok and Tauno and await my signal. I would spy on the Vermin in the camp.

I crept through the trees, seeking a sign of the guards. I disconnected with the bats and reached out with my mental awareness, searching for the Vermin.

Beyond the outer guards, I knew the camp held six people, three Daviians and three Zaltanas, yet I couldn’t detect them, which meant someone had erected a null shield. At least one of the Vermin was a Warper and he could be performing one of the Kirakawa rites while we snuck around in the dark. It was then I realized the sounds from the jungle had ceased.

My heart drummed a faster beat as my stomach cramped with fear. A presence hovered above me and I connected with a man crouched in the lower branches of a tree. His mind was alert for signs of intruders, but he hadn’t detected me. Poking a hole in one capsule, I sprayed the liquid along the tree’s trunk, and then slipped away.

Five minutes later, I found my second guard. She failed to notice my approach and I squirted some of Perl’s snake perfume on the bushes near her. I hoped she would rub against them at some point.

As I retreated, I tripped over a buttress root and fell. I turned over on my back in time to see her aim an arrow at me.

“Freeze,” she shouted. “Hands up.”

So much for being quiet. I raised my hands and cursed myself for not reestablishing my link with the bats. Through their eyes, I never would have tripped.

She called to another guard.

“Stand up slowly,” she ordered. “Leave your weapon.”

My bow rested on the ground within reach.

She stepped closer and peered at me in the semidarkness. The guard gasped and said, “Soulfinder.”

I rolled as her weapon twanged and snatched my bow. The arrow stuck the dirt. I jumped to my feet, swinging my staff in a wide arc. The end of my weapon caught her behind her ankles. I yanked her feet out from under her. She went down with a loud oath. The black shape of her partner grew bigger as he ran toward us. Great.

The air filled with a strange rasp as if a person had pulled a rope from a wooden holder very fast. The noise grew louder and came from all directions. The three of us stopped. All thoughts of fighting banished as we searched for the source of the sound.

A necklace snake slithered past my legs. It aimed for the female guard and wrapped around her with amazing speed. All my preconceptions about a slow-moving creature dissipated.

The other guard looked at his partner and bolted. Another snake slid after him. The vibrations of the necklace snakes and Chestnut’s drum thrummed in my chest.

I projected into Chestnut’s mind for an update. He kept the creatures from going after us, but he didn’t know how long he could maintain control.

Faster is better, he said.

Right. I switched my awareness to Moon Man. He and Leif had marked the other four guards. They waited with Marrok and Tauno for my signal.

Running toward the campfire, I avoided snakes, terrified guards and broke through the null shield. I stumbled for a moment as an array of thoughts and emotions washed over me. The air was charged with magic and fear. My panic pressed on my back, but I forced myself to slow down.

When I reached the edge of the Vermin camp, my blood turned to ice. Three men pulled out the stomach of one of the prone forms on the ground. The Vermin turned their attention to me, their surprise evident in their openmouthed gapes. I had moved without realizing it and stood in the middle of their camp, screaming at them to stop.

CHAPTER 10

WE BLINKED AT EACH OTHER for a stunned moment. Blood and gore dripped from the Vermin’s hands. The three men then returned to their macabre task, ignoring me. Astonished, I moved toward them, raising my bow to strike when a blistering force slammed into me from behind as if I’d been struck with a red-hot iron pan.

I hit the ground hard. My bow flew from my grasp. My breath whooshed out. Searing pain clung to my back; I rolled over, convinced my clothes were on fire. Gasping for air, I thrashed on the ground until I spotted what had attacked me. I froze in horror. The Vermin’s campfire had grown to three times its previous size. A man stood in the midst of the roaring bonfire.

The man stepped from the burning wood. Scorched black from head to toe, small flames clung to him like feathers. He advanced toward me. I broke my paralysis and scrambled away from him. He stopped. A trail of fire linked him with the campfire.

“Did I surprise you, my little bat?” the man asked. “Counted nine when there really were ten. Hot little trick.”

He knew my consciousness had flown with the bats. But who was he?