by Janet Woods
The edge induced euphoria, and there was a feeling that if you stepped off you would float. It was not possible, of course. If she took a step forward she’d be swiftly drawn away from Truarc by the greater gravity of Cabrilan and perish through lack of air to fill her lungs.
The noises were strange here at the edge, the air currents sounding sometimes like a sigh or a moan, and sometimes like laughter. There was no daylight, just a constant and deep velvety, blueness, eerily lit by bright stars that seemed to go on forever. No wonder the people of the edge towns stayed away. Assinti was shining brightly in the corner of her eye, as if gaining Sybilla’s spirit had added a new sparkle to it. Beltane was red and sullen.
She yawned and put Atarta on alert. This was a fine place from which to hide from Kavan, but she must be on her guard if her sire had posted a reward.
She lay down on her blanket. The hawk perched on a nearby rock. In the starlight its eyes were liquid mercury. It gazed at her in a speculative manner, the expression disconcerting, as if the hawk regarded her as prey. She hadn’t been able to befriend the bird, and she had the feeling it put up with her company.
“You need not stay with me,” she said, and it hunched into its feathers and hooded its eyes. The studs on the hawk’s collar winked in the light. She focused on them. Gradually, her limbs filled with lassitude, and even though night was a long way off, soon, her eyelids began to droop.
Her body wouldn’t obey the command to move. It was heavy, keeping her pinned to the ground. The hawk fluttered from the rock and came to sit on her chest. It stared at her, its molten eyes unblinking and predatory. Dust swirled around them, and laughter, a low chuckling sound that made her hair stand on end. She saw the razor sharp beak and remembered Kavan’s threat.
“No,” she cried out, and although she tried to close her eyes the lids wouldn’t move.
The hawk’s head moved back, then the sharp beak struck downwards towards her eye.
Her silent scream released her paralysis. She scrambled upright and gazed wildly about her for the hawk. It was still on the rock, its head sunk into its body but its mercurial eyes open. Atarta was still on alert, between her and the cave entrance. All seemed as normal, but she sensed something had changed.
Did the sky seemed denser? She rose, and taking a firm grip of Atarta moved to the cave entrance. A whole line of stars seem to have disappeared from view. Dust was being whipped up by a wind that sent plumes skywards. To the left, Cabrilan hung motionless. She’d never seen it from this angle before. It looked as though someone had taken a jagged bite from its side, and that jagged bite was Truarc.
She shivered. The very rock she stood on fitted into that bite. For the first time she realized how very small Truarc was when compared to Cabrilan. Below her, the void was full of sound and small, loose rocks were being pulled from the surface to spin out into space. The ground beneath her trembled and she knew she was in danger.
The hawk flew from the cave and landed on her head. Giving harsh cries, its feet tangled in her hair.
“Release me, savage one,” she cried out, “I’m too big to fit in your stomach.”
The hawk’s grip tightened and her scalp nearly parted company with her skull. The pain was intense. She staggered forward under its pull and still holding on to Atarta, tumbled over the edge and into the void.
Over and over she fell, being pulled in all directions. Legs and arms spread-eagled, her robe flattened to her body and her breath rattled from her lungs. Her eyes bulged as her heartbeat slowed. She couldn’t take a breath. She experienced a moment of panic until she thought of her spirit being united with Sybilla again. Immense calm filled her. She was smiling when she lost consciousness.
* * * *
The hawk’s harsh cry woke her. Scrambling to her feet she snapped her fingers. The bird fell from Atarta’s mouth. Its eyes were reproachful. They were already losing their luster as if death approached.
She picked the bird up, feeling its body warm and heavy in her hands. Its collar was purple with little silver studs. Dismayed, she remembered where she had seen it before. “You are Lord Kavan’s lady hawk?”
The bird gave a melancholy trill and made a feeble attempt to fly away. Her heart was beating so frantically against Tiana’s fingertips that she thought it was set to burst.
Tears came to her eyes. “I will not hurt you, little bird. You were following your master’s orders and I cannot blame you for that. Come, you are not injured only frightened. I will calm you and you will fly free, as is your right.”
Aware the device that opened up the portal was humming from the depths of a cave just a little way off, she plucked out the small knife she always carried in a concealed pocket and cut the collar from the hawk’s neck. It was vibrating. Kavan controlled the bird and he’d known her every movement from the time it had joined her.
Dropping the collar on to a rock she ground it under her heel, then laid the hawk on its back and stroked its downy chest. The creature’s heartbeat slowed and she relaxed. The hawk rested a while, then its eyes opened and it flew to the nearest rock. A note so lovely poured from her throat that Tiana ached at the sound.
“Go now,” she said, because she knew she was on Cabrilan and she’d heard voices. She didn’t want to be found in the vicinity of the portal.
A whistle pierced the air. The hawk’s eyes gleamed and it cocked its head to one side.
“Take wing. Be yourself and fly free, little one,” she urged.
The hawk looked at her, gave a soft trill and soared into the air, where she floated over a high hill on the currents of air.
The whistle came again, but the bird continued flying high. With Atarta by her side Tiana scrambled into the shadowy base of a broad-leaved shrub and buried her face in the dirt.
“Her collar must have broken.”
“See, Javros, the collar is here and it was no accidental break.”
Kavan! She’d recognize his voice anywhere! Tiana carefully lifted her head to peer at him through the undergrowth. From her low vantage point he seemed larger than she remembered and twice as threatening. As his glance raked the terrain his sword slashed idly at the undergrowth, missing her nose by a fraction. For a moment his eyes seemed to pierce hers and then they moved on. Keeping a warning hand on Atarta’s neck she shrank back.
“That lady hawk was the best hunter I’ve ever known,” he said softly. “It took me many hours to train her and Tiana will be punished for setting her free. Tell the troopers to find Tiana and then bring her before me. She can’t have gone far.”
“What if she’s fled to the High Place?”
“The climb’s too steep for a girl, but if by chance she has . . .?” The deep chuckle he gave sent shivers racing up her spine. “By my beard! I should like to be there when the Alchemist’s slumber is disturbed.”
The voices faded, replaced by the one called Javros shouting orders.
Tiana’s glance went to the hill. It was covered in green plants, some of which she recognized from her studies. Ferns hung over a rainbow, which in turn arched over water pouring down the side into a lake at the bottom. A creeper covered in purple flowers trailed over a rocky ledge.
She’d seen the place before, in an ancient book in the library at the temple. It was a hill said to no longer exist – yet it did exist and it was more beautiful than she’d imagined. Hah! Kavan had sadly underestimated her if he thought her too feeble of limb and wind to scale its heights. She had scaled steeper slopes in the wilderness.
Smiling to herself she whispered instructions to Atarta then headed for the hill at a low run. With the Pitilan leading the chase in the opposite direction, she’d be safe there once she’d gained the top.
She laughed in derision when a hue and cry went up.
Chapter Three
Tiana stood on the high place, a slender shadow against the moon.
Below her the water’s fall tumbled and foamed, then fanned incandescent across the lake to where Kavan’s manor sh
immered in the rising mist.
There came a soft, eerie call of an owl as Kavan gazed up at her, his night vision as honed as the nocturnal bird of prey that mocked him. She was a temptress, even in the unflattering brown robe she wore. The shining ripples of the glorious hair he remembered were tightly braided into a waist length rope. Her eyes glittered like that of a furious cat, all spit and fury. No wonder his troopers had called him from his dinner now she’d been cornered. Not that it would do him any good.
“I see you, Tiana,” he called, his voice tight with anger because he’d never imagined she’d outwit him, or have the strength to climb to the high place. “You’ve taken sanctuary in a place on which no Cabrilan can set foot, and have defiled it with the Pitilan’s presence.”
“Be gone, Bramble-face. Take your troopers and leave me in peace.”
Bramble-face? Kavan thoughtfully stroked his beard as she picked up a rock and held it awkwardly above her head. He knew it was meant only as a threat, but it proved too heavy for her to support. He jumped back and swore when it bounced down the slope and shattered not far from his feet, peppering his legs with shards. Cheers and whistles went up from the troopers. Lanterns held aloft, they were enjoying the confrontation.
He closed his eyes and called on the gods to give him patience. It was no good trying to use logic with Tiana. She was the most unreasonable and contrary woman he’d ever had the misfortune to meet. She was also the most exquisite. No longer a child, her face still retained the innocence he remembered so well. Slight of form, her breasts surged gently and her buttocks were a hint of roundness under the loose, brown robe. She should have been in his bed this night, not mocking him from the high place.
“Come down, Tiana,” he said, his body responding to the thought. “I promise not to harm you.”
“I don’t believe you. I heard you threaten to punish me for freeing your hawk.”
His mouth tightened. How in bane had he missed her if she’d been close enough to hear that? Damn her for freeing his hawk. She’d been a goddess among hawks, a highly trained hunter with eyesight so sharp she could spot prey from many leagues above. Look how easily she’d found Tiana in the Truarc wilderness, something neither he nor his spies had been able to do.
His words had obviously scared her, and he must remember she was gently reared. The thought of such weakness in her touched him. He would be lenient with her. A light beating perhaps, and in private . . . just enough for her to learn who her master was.
“I will not punish you much –”
“I’ll see you in bane before you punish me at all,” she hurled at him. “Freedom is every creature’s right. Whose is the greater sin when you stole freedom from the hawk and I simply returned it?” Small stones and clods of earth began to pelt around him. “Be gone, or my Pitilan will make a meal you.” A bloodcurdling howl from the beast added weight to her threat.
Kavan was no coward, but the thought of the Pitilan set loose amongst them made him quake. For certain his troopers would eventually defeat the beast, but at what cost? Despite their undoubted courage the carnage would be enormous, and to what purpose? So he could take one feisty girl into his bed.
Slanting his head to one side he thought about it for a few minitix. The prime objective was to fulfill the prophecy and save them all from extinction. He must remember Tiana had been chosen by the Gods. The quarrelsome creature was not his personal choice for a mate. The fact that the sight of her heightened roused his lust was nothing to do with it. It was just a bonus.
He gazed up at her, cloaking his annoyance with a smile dragged reluctantly up from his depths. By Christos! He was used to being obeyed. He ruled this planet, he shouldn’t have to feign friendship to obtain what was his by right.
“Hah!” she scorned, “Your smile does not fool me, barbarian!”
“Ouch!” A small stone bounced off his head and he retreated to the bottom of the hill to the catcalls of his men.
“Back to the barracks, you rabble,” he roared and they scattered. He turned back to Tiana. “You have Beltane’s own temper, wench. Be careful I don’t come up there and drag you down by your hair.”
“You’re no rock goat, you just look and smell like one,” she threw back at him.
That was it! He’d had enough of her insults. She could freeze up there for the time being. When he finally got his hands on her he’d hang her by her thumbs in the market square for a week. Then he’d take a whip to her and flay the skin from her back, then when she’d healed . . . well, then he’d think about bedding her. He wouldn’t do her the honor of being too gentle with her, either.”
He stroked his matted beard again. Cursed Bane, his whiskers did resemble those of a rock goat! As for his smell, what else could she expect when he’d been on the road looking for her these past few days, and not a spare drop of water to bathe in on that cursed planet she called home? Bramble-face! she’d called him, Barbarian! Savage! He’d show her just how refined he could be if he tried.
He must have followed her through the portal with tix to spare. She’d been lucky. She’d hit the portal before full power had been reached and the transference record had revealed she’d survived disintegration by only a heartbeat or two.
A clod of mud hit him in the face. He spluttered, wiped it away with the back of his hand and gave her one long, threatening stare. A peal of laughter rent the air. He swept away without another word, his dignity in tatters.
* * * *
Shivering a little, for the air had grown chill and she had no blanket, Tiana seated herself against a rock, drew her knees up under her chin and wept tears of quiet despair. Despite her show of bravado she felt frightened and lonely.
The roar of the fall was constant, the air had a sharp, clean smell. She reached out to touch a small pool in the rock. It was fed by a drip, and was icy. She scooped some into her mouth. It was refreshing, not like the water on Truarc, which was lukewarm and tasted of salt and dust. Rolling on to her stomach she drank greedily, then splashed it on her face and neck, enjoying the sensation of goosebumps creeping over her skin.
Her pendant dangled in the water and began to pulsate with light. It was a pretty bauble her mother had given her, a three-pointed green star. As soon as she removed it from the water the glow faded. She remembered it had been a gift of love, and began to feel more cheerful.
Tomorrow, she would submerge her body in the water feeding the fall and bathe all over. Then she’d explore her surroundings. She could stay indefinitely in this place. All she needed was a cave to make her home in. There was bound to be grain and fruit she could eat, herbs to gather and fish to catch and dry.
The discovery of the withered cactus apple in her pocket cheered her even further as she planned her future. She ate, then sent Atarta to hunt and curled herself into as small a ball as possible to retain her body heat.
It felt strange to no longer be on Truarc, which from this angle was a small silver crescent in the sky. Cabrilan was moving away from it.
“I’m held captive, but it is not such a bad prison,” she whispered.
Despite the comforting thought she couldn’t sleep. The rock beneath her was too hard after the sand of the desert wilderness, which had accommodated her body. There were unfamiliar noises, water roaring nearby, slithering and sighing and the odd, high-pitched squeal from the direction of the forest. The hallucinatory lily perfume of the wilderness was replaced by a fresh odor of earth and water. The cold, clean air had a sharpening effect, so her brain remained alert to all going on around her.
After twisting and turning half the night she was forced to resort to imagery, imagining herself on a bed of soft, warm blankets, her body growing lighter and lighter. Gradually, the rock beneath her warmed and softened and she experienced the blissful sensation of floating into oblivion.
* * * *
The darkness around her gradually filled with whispers. Had Tiana been awake she might have seen the reflection of glowing eyes which, blinked shut as if o
ne when she murmured in her sleep. Unaware she had companions, or of her levitation, she drifted on the gentle air currents.
Once, at the prodding of its twin, one of the watching creatures scampered to her side. Reaching up, he grasped her long braid of hair and towed her carefully back from the edge of the hill. He secured her hair to a strong sapling growing from a crack, then rejoined his companion.
They whispered together, watching her float above the ground, and seemingly perfectly relaxed. When biting insects approached her, the moon lent her an aura that none could penetrate so her skin was left unscathed.
The watchers were simple hunters, and they didn’t know quite what to make of the situation. But they were under instructions from their lord not to let any harm befall her, so they watched, and they waited.
Just before day broke they heard a high-pitched whistle from their forest companions. They scampered over the rocks and retreated back to their natural element. From a vantage point in the tall trees they saw the Pitilan return to its mistress. It moved slowly. It had gorged itself on eels, and its blood was sluggish with the narcotic juices secreted on the eel’s skin.
The watchers gazed at each other and nodded in satisfaction.
* * * *
Tiana dreamed she was floating. The experience was so pleasant the dream felt like reality when she woke. She smiled and opened her eyes. She was floating! Panicking, she fell. Her head was nearly wrenched from her shoulders when it abruptly jerked back. Someone had grabbed her by the braid, and she knew exactly who it was.
“You thick-skulled bully!” she yelled, twisting round.
She felt foolish when she encountered nothing but a wall of lichen-covered rock. A leafy twig whipped across her face from a sapling she was entangled in. In the half-light of moon shadow her hair glowed with luminosity. Dragging it free from the foliage she gazed at the fall of water in horror. If her hair hadn’t snagged she’d have drifted over the edge and fallen on to the rocks.
As much as it pleased her, she didn’t bother wondering at this new skill as she fingered the welt on her cheek. Sybilla had said her power would increase once she’d learned to fully trust her intuition. Yet to trust her intuition when unconscious in sleep was a frightening thought. She shivered at what the consequences might have been though. Now she must be on guard until she learned to control the ability.
