by P. C. Cast
“It’s hard to believe,” Mari said. “But I’m looking forward to seeing them.”
“When they charge across the plains in their herds, they make the ground shake,” Antreas said, gaze distant with remembrance.
“Sounds frightening,” Jenna said.
“Not if they’re your friends,” Antreas said. “Then you know that charge is your protection. There’s nothing that can stand against them, not even a swarm.”
“Great Goddess! Not even a swarm?” Sora asked.
Antreas shook his head. “They can outrun it.”
“Impressive,” Nik said.
“It’s something to look forward to seeing, that’s for sure,” Davis said. He stood, wiping his hands on his pants. “I’m going to relieve Sheena so she can eat. And I think I’ll stay at the birthing burrow again tonight. I like it here, too.” He whistled sharply, and Cammy sprinted from the bone-gnawing group to join his Companion, tongue lolling in a doggy grin.
“Is he ever not happy?” asked Isabel as she reached a tentative hand out to pet the little blond Terrier, who instantly diverted from his path to Davis to allow the girl to scratch behind his ears.
“Nope, Cammy pretty much chooses to be happy, especially now that he doesn’t have to worry about Odysseus bullying him. And feel free to pet him anytime, Isabel. He loves the attention, especially from pretty girls.”
Showing off, Cammy huffed and jumped around Isabel as she giggled.
“He’s a flirt,” Rose said, grinning at the little canine.
“That’s part of his charm,” Davis said. “But that’s enough now. Time for us to go to work, Cammyman!” Davis picked up his empty wooden bowl and tea mug, and with Cammy trotting beside him he headed toward the central bonfire to drop them there before relieving Sheena.
“I have to get more of this wapato,” Mari said to Sora. “I don’t know what you did different to it tonight, but it’s even more delicious than usual.”
“I managed to find a stash of salt in the back of the pantry. That with the garlic makes it scrumptious,” Sora said.
“Well, scrumptious is the right word, and I’m getting more,” Mari said. “Be right back!” She leaned down and kissed Nik, not even realizing how oddly natural it had become to kiss Nik—hello, good-bye, see you soon, or just because she liked kissing him—until she straightened and felt eyes on her.
Nik smiled and squeezed her hand, pulling her gently down so that he could whisper, “You do you, Mari. Ignore watching eyes.”
She squeezed his hand back and stood a little straighter, ignoring the curious stares.
The wapato roots were buried in an ember pit, not far from where the image of the Earth Mother rose from the fertile ground. Mari was crouching to begin the process of plucking a steaming-hot root from the glowing embers without burning her fingers when a motion at the corner of her eye shifted her attention. She glanced to the side and saw a man standing before the Earth Mother, head tilted back, gazing up at her. Beside the man sat a little blond Terrier.
Why’s Davis with the Earth Mother? Mari thought, curiosity moving her toward him. When she was just a few feet from him, Davis crouched down and pried a small section of moss from the ground in front of the idol. Then he took something out of his pocket and put it in the hole created by the uprooted moss before pressing the green carpet back into place. He stood again, gazing up into the Goddess’s serene face.
Mari made a small sound in her throat and Davis jumped a little. “Oh, Mari. I didn’t see you there.”
“Hi. I was just getting more wapato root, and I saw you over here with the Goddess.…” Her voice trailed off as she realized how intrusive she must sound. “Not that I mind you being over here. That’s not what I meant.”
Davis nodded. “I know what you meant. You’re curious about what I’m doing.”
“Well, sure, but I shouldn’t intrude. This is your business. Yours and the Goddess’s.”
“Does she talk to you?” Davis asked, his voice sounding wistful.
“She hasn’t yet. But she talked to my mama a lot. And I think she talks to Sora.”
“Do you think the Goddess might ever deign to talk to someone who isn’t an Earth Walker?”
As Mari answered, she heard Leda in her words and it brought her great comfort, as well as a wave of longing for her mother. “I think the Great Earth Mother belongs to everyone, not just Earth Walkers. So, sure, I do think it is possible. Davis, you don’t have to tell me if you’d rather keep it to yourself, but what did you just bury there?” Mari pointed to the spot directly in front of the Goddess.
“I don’t mind telling you, but it might be silly,” Davis said. “I found a pretty piece of shell years ago and I didn’t know why until now, but I’ve carried it everywhere with me ever since. And when I heard talk about how Earth Walker men court Clanswomen, I realized why I’d never traded away the shell.”
When Davis just stood there, staring up at the idol, Mari prompted, “Why didn’t you trade away the shell?”
“Because I had to give it to the Great Goddess, of course. Clanswomen always choose their men, but only after their men court them properly. I gave the shell to the Goddess to court her favor. Maybe, if I court her nicely enough, she’ll accept and speak to me, too.”
Emotion clogged Mari’s throat and tears stung her eyes, but before she could tell Davis what a lovely sentiment that was Adira stepped from the shadows on the far side of the idol. She was studying Davis intently, as if secret words might be written on his soul and if she looked hard enough she could read them.
“Who told you to bring the Goddess a gift?” Adira asked, though not in an unkind voice.
Davis moved his shoulders. “No one. It was my idea. I didn’t mean to be disrespectful. Forgive me if I—”
Adira brushed away his apology. “You need not ask forgiveness. We often leave the Goddess gifts. I was just surprised to see a stranger, especially a Companion, doing it, too.”
Davis’s gaze moved back to the Goddess’s face. “I don’t know why, but she makes me feel like I’m not a stranger.”
“Yes, that can happen. It’s a great blessing to feel at home in the presence of the Goddess. Listen in the wind for her voice; she’s most easily heard there. Brightest blessings to you, Davis.” Adria nodded slightly to Davis, then bowed with formal respect to Mari before moving back into the shadows.
“I didn’t think she liked any of us Companions,” Davis said.
“I don’t think she did—until now. Good job, Davis.”
“But I didn’t do anything.”
“I think you just did more than you could ever know,” Mari said.
She patted Cammy affectionately on the head before going back to the ember pit, where she quickly plucked two succulent roots, and then returned to her little group, taking her place beside Nik. Rigel, Laru, and Fala had joined them, and Sora had finally surrendered Chloe to her mother, though the young Moon Woman’s gaze kept returning to her nursing pup.
“Do you think the Earth Mother speaks to others—I mean, people who aren’t Earth Walkers?” Mari asked Sora.
“I don’t see why not. We call her Earth Mother, not Earth Walker Mother,” Sora said.
“I guess that makes sense,” Mari said, still considering what she’d just witnessed. Adira seemed to be in agreement with Sora. And when Mari really thought about it, she had to agree as well. She was the Great Goddess—Life herself—and not some shallow, limited deity. Leda had raised Mari to believe in her divine compassion, and even though Mari had never heard her voice or felt her presence, through her beloved mama she’d witnessed the strength of the Goddess’s love.
“Mari, Sora, may we speak with you for a moment?”
Mari mentally shook herself, refocusing on the now and then to see Adira standing nearby with several other Clanswomen beside her. Mari blinked and realized there weren’t just several Clanswomen with Adira—all of the Clanswomen except for Danita were with her.
; “Yes, Adira? What is it?” Sora said.
“Of course you may speak with us,” Mari said.
“Should we leave you in privacy?” Nik started to rise, with O’Bryan and the other Companions following him.
Adira lifted her hand, staying them. “No, what we have to say you should hear, too.” Then she addressed her Moon Women, saying, “The Clanswomen have made their decision about joining your new Pack and journeying with you to Wind Rider territory.”
As Adira paused, Mari held her breath.
“We would like to join you,” Adira said.
“How many of you?” Mari asked.
“All of us,” Adira said firmly. “With the very strange help of that Companion named Davis, and the Goddess, we have remembered ourselves. We want to make a new life where we can live in peace without fear of being captured into slavery again, whether just some, or all of us, are captured. We don’t want to live like that again.”
“We also want more, and we believe the Goddess wants more for us,” a younger woman spoke up behind her, and the group nodded in agreement.
“So, we swear our oath to you, our Moon Women.” Adira knelt as she spoke, bowing her head and extending her arms, palms facing outward. Each Clanswoman knelt behind her, mirroring her actions. “We are no longer Clan Weaver, but we belong to something bigger now. And now we will call ourselves Pack.”
“I swear to the Pack!” came the combined shouts of the women.
“And we accept you!” Sora cried, clapping her hands.
“With great happiness!” Mari added, clapping with her friend.
Then all of the Companions stood. “To our Pack!” Nik cried.
“To our Pack!” the Companions shouted, and then everyone broke into cheers and barks.
Mari felt enfolded by the love and security of the Pack as Nik took her into his arms and, laughing, swung her around with a victory shout.
Maybe, just maybe, we can create a new world, Mari thought. Thank you, Goddess, for touching Davis, and for reminding the Clanswomen that love is stronger than fear or hate. When the music began, Nik grabbed her hand and twirled her across the clearing while Mari laughed and, for the first time since her mama had been taken from her, felt as if she belonged to a family.
CHAPTER 27
Dove knew the God had returned even before He bellowed for food and drink. It was like the sensation of someone’s breath on the back of her neck just before they spoke. She didn’t need to see or hear Him to know He was there.
Her Attendants scrambled to obey his commands as his heavy footsteps sounded closer and closer to where Dove sat, quietly sewing tufts of boar hair around the hemline of one of her skirts.
“Dove! Your God returns victorious!”
She put her sewing down just before He lifted her roughly to her feet and pulled her into His arms, kissing her passionately. She forced herself to go soft and compliant under His touch, though she noticed that now even the taste of Him was different from that of her usurped beloved.
When she was free to speak, she bowed to Him, saying, “Congratulations, my Lord. Would You like to sit with me on the balcony while You eat, and tell me of Your victory?”
“Actually, I am hungry for more than food and drink.” He hooked one massive arm around her, lifting her off her feet, while He groped her body.
Dove could hear the shocked gasps of her Attendants and feel their stares on her. She wanted to break away from Him and run to the private area she and Dead Eye had made their bedroom chamber—and then curl up and disappear. But Dove could not. Even if she escaped His unwanted embrace, He would just chase her as if she were an errant child—or, more accurately, a slave. And Dove had no way of gauging what He might do to her if He lost patience. So she submitted, though it humiliated her to know the young women who served her were witnessing the God’s rough treatment that was so, so unlike how Dead Eye, her Champion, her beloved, had been with her.
“You are soft and young. That delights me,” Death murmured into her ear. “You will make a lovely vessel for my Consort, whether the Great Goddess is ready to awaken or not.”
Dove felt a flush of hope. “Does the Goddess not wish to awaken, my Lord?”
“My Consort can sometimes be overly cautious, but I am very persuasive. Do not worry yourself, little bird. She shall awaken within you. I insist she shall.”
“Wh-when will that happen, my Lord?”
“Are you eager or afraid?”
“Both,” she told a half-truth.
“Four nights from now as darkness falls we will take possession of the City in the Trees. Once the city is ours, I will infect you with the skin sloughing disease. It takes hold quickly, which pleases me. I have waited long enough for my Consort,” He said. “Within just a day or two after being infected you will begin to show symptoms. Once you do, I will choose the finest doe in the forest to join with you. When you have merged with this queen of the forest, then I will make blood sacrifice and force the Goddess to awaken.”
“Blood sacrifice? Whose?” Dove asked, though she felt the answer in the pit of her stomach before He spoke it.
“Yours, of course. Just as Dead Eye awakened me with his blood, so shall you awaken the Great Goddess with yours.” He nuzzled her neck and bit her soft flesh painfully. “You will rule for an eternity by my side!”
No, Dove told herself silently as He continued to grope her unresisting body. I won’t be here, just as Dead Eye is no longer here.
“Kiss me, little bird!”
Dove did as He commanded, though it turned her stomach. As soon as she was able she broke off the kiss. “My Lord, You need to feed Your strength. Shall we go to the balcony? I can smell the food. My Attendants must have it almost ready for You. We can sit, eat, and You can tell me of Your successes today. Then we can retire to our bedchamber.”
“I don’t need a bedchamber to have my way with you,” He said gruffly.
Dove couldn’t stop herself from tensing. She resisted Him, pushing against His massive chest until the God put her down.
“My Lord.” She spoke softly, for His ears alone. “I know You don’t need a bedchamber, but I do. I would be much more comfortable there, and much more able to please You.”
“And do you truly care about pleasing me, little bird?”
“I do, my Lord,” she said earnestly. But only because I care whether I live or die, she added silently.
“And would you have asked your Dead Eye to wait for his pleasure?” The God’s voice was low but had a dangerous edge to it.
“I wouldn’t have had to, my Lord. He would not have insisted I please him in front of my Attendants. He would show me more respect than that.” She held herself very still after she’d spoken the words that seemed to spill from her lips without her volition. Will He kill me now? Or will He simply just hurt me more than He usually does?
Many footsteps pounded against the tiled floor, causing the God to turn from her, though He kept one hand clamped tightly around her slim wrist.
“Ah, Iron Fist! You have come and brought the other Reapers more quickly than I anticipated. Good! You may all join me on the balcony to eat and drink as we discuss what is to come.” His attention returned to Dove. “Have your Attendants bring more food and drink, and then you may join me, but only if you are truly with me.” He paused and lowered His face close to hers. “I feel your apathy. Do not imagine you are hiding it from me. I grow weary of it, little bird. Always remember, I am a God—fully awakened. I need a vessel for my Consort, but I do not need an Oracle.”
Dove swallowed her fear and lifted her chin. “That is only true if there are no other Gods but You, my Lord.”
Death laughed, long and heartily. “Your courage is entertaining, little bird. Now do as I command before I become weary of it, too.” He loosed her wrist with a shove that had her staggering away from Him.
Lily was by her side in moments. “Mistress?”
“Death commands you bring enough food and drink for His Re
apers. Please do so.” Then she lowered her voice. “How many Reapers have joined Him?”
“All of them, Mistress,” Lily replied in an equally quiet voice. “It is Iron Fist and the eight others.”
“Lizard is not with them?”
“Lizard did not return with the God,” Lily said.
“Where is our food and drink?” bellowed the God.
“Go!” Dove said. “Quickly.”
“Yes, Mistress.” Lily hurried away, calling to the other Attendants.
Dove smoothed back her hair and went to the part of the chamber where her Attendants always kept clean freshwater in troughs, wooden bowls, and buckets. She took one of the buckets, dipped it into a trough, and then felt for the dry, clean cloth that hung nearby. Folding it neatly over her arm, she carried the bucket to the God’s balcony, pausing at the entrance.
“Little bird, I am pleased you decided to join us,” Death said.
“My Lord, if You allow, I would wash Your hands and feet in preparation for Your meal.”
“I will indeed allow. And when you have finished with me, you may wash each of my Reapers as well, starting with my Blade, Iron Fist.” His voice changed as He addressed His men so that the God sounded almost jovial. “Though do not get accustomed to my Dove serving you. When the Great Goddess resides within her body, she will serve no one except me.”
Dove made her face neutral as the Reapers all chuckled along with their God, though her thoughts were whirring. Life serves Death? That doesn’t seem right. Doesn’t Death ultimately serve Life? No matter His bravado now, I heard Him say that He was going to force the Goddess to awaken. But can a Goddess be forced to do anything? Keeping her thoughts to herself, Dove felt her way to Death and knelt before Him, gently washing each of His hands as He ignored her and spoke to His men as if she were deaf as well as blind.
“We take the city of the Others four nights from now,” Death said. He paused then, as if waiting for questions. When there were none, He continued, and Dove could hear the smile in His voice. “Very good. Very, very good. And because you show the trust you have in me by not asking, I will gladly explain. Today, Lizard made a noble sacrifice. Tell the Reapers, Iron Fist.”
