by Dory Perlman
"I told you she was a sorceress!" cried the second guard. He whipped out his crossbow and took aim, but Laric was too quick for him. Before the arrow left the bow, one powerful wing knocked the bow from the guard's hands, and the other wing swatted him to the floor.
Two more guards charged into the cell. Cam and Laric were busy with the first two guards. Instinctively Sheila snatched her small dagger. With one heedless dash she came up fast on a third guard, who aimed a steel-tipped arrow at Laric as he flew overhead. Her dagger caught him in the shoulder.
"Aaaaaaahhhl" he shrieked, dropping his bow and clutching his arm,
Sheila staggered back, stunned by her own actions. As she stood staring at the bloody gash she had inflicted on the guard, a sword descended toward her from behind.
"Broaaaaaaaaaa," Laric screamed, swooping toward the attacking guard, He lifted him from behind, his talons sunk into the guard's thick shirt. He picked the guard up and dropped him with a thud to the ground, knocking him unconscious.
Cam had sent the remaining two guards fleeing for help. The coast looked clear for them to make their escape. The two eagle warriors settled on the sill and pecked frantically at the third bar they had almost loosened. Sheila scrambled up quickly to join them.
Cmnnnnnnng, the third bar fell to the floor.
"Brooaaaak!" Cam cried triumphantly. Re squeezed through the window and hovered in the air just outside, Sheila scrunched through behind him and edged herself out to the comer of the sill to make room for Laric. She was summoning the courage to jump down the six feet to the ground when she heard a strangled shriek of pain behind her.
Turning, she saw Laric plummet to the ground. More guards had rushed into the cell and one had fired at him, piercing his wing.
"Land" Sheila shouted, freezing in place. His injured body lay perfectly still . . . as still as a corpse.
"Rffflfaaak!" Cam cried. He flew over her and one sharp talon caught her tunic. With amazing strength, he flipped her onto his back and instantly took flight.
"No!" Sheila cried uselessly as Cam flew higher into the sky. They couldn't leave Laric behind!
An arrow whistled past her ears. Then another. But Cam was too fast, He lifted into the night, and not one of the barbs found its mark.
Sheila held on tight. The image of the eagle prince's deathly still form burned in Sheila's mind. She buried her face in Cam's downy soft neck and let the tears pour down her cheeks.
9
Preparing
Lianne bent the bow back, pulling with all her strength. Thwang! The arrow sailed through the bright morning sunlight toward the painted straw target a hundred yards away… and fell twenty feet short.
A small moan escaped from Lianne's throat. "Ohhhhh," she groaned. "I'll never be able to do this,"
"Don't worry"' said Sheila. "It can be frustrating at first. Believe me, I know."
When Sheila had arrived at their warrior camp on Cam's back early that morning, the other unicorn riders had already been hard at work. Illyria had barely given her a chance to rest after her ordeal in the jail before assigning her chores to do—which meant honing her archery skills, as well as helping Kara prepare Lianne for the upcoming battle that evening.
Kara turned away from the fallen arrow and, stepping up to her sister, gave her a gentle hug. "Don't feel bad about missing the target," she said patiently. "It takes practice, Lianne. This is only your first lesson. Of course you're no expert yet."
Lianne frowned. "But this band is a team. If we’re going to free those unicorns tonight, everyone has to shoot well!''
A look of despair passed over Lianne's tender features.
Watching her, Sheila recognized that mixture of dejection and hopelessness. After all, it hadn't been long ago that she had been the one learning to shoot. She knew how it felt when the lesson wasn’t going well, when your arms ached from hours of target practice, and it seemed as if you would never get it right.
"It's hard to concentrate today—for all of us," Kara said. She dropped her bow onto the grassy ground and sank down on the green beside it, sighing.
"We don't even know if Laric is alive," Sheila said, dropping down beside her.
"I hate Dynasian and his horrible city," Lianne said emphatically.
Sheila understood exactly how Lianne felt. She gazed out across the grassy, wooded hills spread before her. Just beyond them and out of sight was Campora. Campora, where the unicorns waited patiently to be rescued.
Where was Laric—dead or alive?
A few flashes of brightly colored tunics caught Sheila's eye as the warriors wove in and out of the trees, doing chores and caring for their own battleready unicorns. Their fatigue didn't seem to slow them down in the least. They just kept working at whatever needed attention, preparing for the hard operation ahead of them.
Further down the hillside, beside a small brook and beneath a sun-bleached weeping willow tree, Illyria sat alone, bent over her work. Thick strands of hair had escaped from the mass of plaits coiled on top of her head. They hung like trails of a silver vine over her shoulder. Holding a rock in one hand and her sword in the other, she drew the flat edge of the blade repeatedly over the stone. The Unicorn Queen was sharpening her weapon.
Sheila turned back to Lianne. "If you think it's hard for us, think about Illyria. She's in love with Laric,"
Lianne's eyes widened, “I've noticed. Yet she doesn't even seem sad or afraid. It's… it's almost as if she doesn't really care about him."
Kara shook her head. "Of course she does! She feels the loss, deeper than any of us. Still, she knows her grief won't serve Laric. There's too much to do before tonight. She shows her love by preparing to fight for it."
Under the shade of another tree Cam and some of the men discussed the feasibility of going in search of zanga nuts. "Laric was our strongest flier," Sheila heard Cam say. "He was the only one who could have flown to the south, found the zangas, and brought them back in time.''
Lianne heard them, too. "Then all hope is lost," she said.
Sheila paused for a moment, studying Lianne. The other girl was voicing Sheila's own fears.
Sheila sighed. Despite all of her warrior training she had no encouraging words for Lianne.
Kara laid a hand on Sheila's shoulder. "Let me explain this." Looking at Lianne, Kara continued. "If we don't do our best tonight Dynasian wins everything. If the unicorns are killed, the plagues and famine that follow will kill thousands of innocent people. The land will be utterly blighted. Losing Laric is a sad and terrible thing. Losing the unicorns is disaster."
There was a moment of silence, broken by the twittering small birds as they flew through the blue sky above. How blissfully unaware of the unicorn riders' dilemma they were, Sheila thought.
Lianne pushed herself to her feet, grabbing her bow. "Well, I'll try," she said, "but I doubt I'll hit anything."
Sheila stood, too. "Maybe a little demonstration will help you get the hang of shooting." She took the bow from Lianne's hands, then held it out toward Kara. "Let a master archer show you how it's done."
But Kara shook her head and didn't take the bow. "No, You're the one who should show her, Sheila. After all, you couldn't even bend a bow when you first found us. Let Lianne see what can be accomplished with practice.''
Sheila smiled. She knew Kara was paying her a tremendous compliment.
Sheila turned to Lianne. "The thing Kara taught me was to pretend that you are aiming at someone or something you're really angry at. It's amazing how much it makes you want to hit the target."
"So, show us how it's done. Let one fly for me—right at the guard who shot Prince Lanric!” Lianne said,
"If only it were that easy to get revenge…” Sheila said. Projecting the image of the guard on the target, she drew the bow and fired, The arrow sailed through the air, straight and true—thunk! The tip sank into the straw of the target just a few millimeters beneath the bull's-eye
"Great!" cried Dari
an, who had come over to join them. Sheila smiled at him.
"Beautiful shot, Sheila!" Kara seconded. "If we all fire that well tonight, we won't have a thing to worry about! Victory is as good as in the quiver.
"That did feel good," Sheila agreed, "but there's someone else I want to take a shot at."
She reached down and picked another arrow from Kara's lot. As she fit it into the bow, she could feel the certainty and self-assurance pouring into her arms.
Raising the bow, she cried, "This one's for Mardock!" The sorcerer's simpering smile flashed through her mind. Of all the evil characters who kept the land enslaved, he was the worst because he knew what would happen when the unicorns were killed. Besides, it had been his idea to murder them in the first place. Pulling the bowstring back just a bit more, Sheila let the arrow fly.
Even before the arrow reached the mark, Sheila knew she had hit the bull's-eye dead in its center-thank! The arrow sank deep into the target. Not even Kara could have hit it more truly.
"Amazing!" Lianne shouted. "And to think you were no better than I am just a month ago!"
Despite the feat she had just accomplished, despite the good feelings, Sheila knew there was another sensation pulsing through her, too. Something was bothering her, whispering madly like a frightened mouse in the back of her brain. True, she had shot the imaginary Mardock unerringly, but could she hit the real sorcerer when the time came?
"Illyria asked me to tell everyone that we meet in two hours to discuss her plan," Darian said, rising from the grass. "She says to rest as best you can until then."
Kara and Lianne took their leave and strolled off arm in arm.
"I'm glad you're safe," Darian said softly when they were left alone. "I wanted to join Cam and Laric, but the plan called for them to fly in, so…”
"Thanks," Sheila said. "I know you would have come if it had been possible."
Without speaking further Darian and Sheila began to amble toward a thick patch of trees, Behind them the eagle warriors argued over how to save Laric and find the all-important zanga nuts. The unicorn riders, too pent-up to rest, continued to prepare to infiltrate the crowd that would throng into Campora that night. Pelu sewed disguises. Nanine drew copies of a map of Campora. Myno fed the unicorns, talking to them soothingly. And the Unicorn Queen continued pounding the edge of her sword, making sure it would cut clean and quick.
“Sheila, we don't know how it will go tonight," Darian said, suddenly turning to her. "I want you to know . . . to know…”
Sheila waited for him to finish, gazing up into his handsome face, "Know what?" she asked gently.
"To know this . . ." he said, stepping close and kissing her lips. 'Their eyes met, and they kissed again.
10
Festival of Darkness
The sun sank low in the sky, bathing everything in gentle golden light. Sheila watched four small red-winged birds dip and swirl as they headed toward their nests for the night. There will be no rest for me tonight, Sheila told herself, thinking of all that lay before her in the royal city of Campora on this fateful night.
She stood on the hillside outside Campora dressed in a scratchy gray tunic that fell well below her knees. Earlier that day, outside the gates of the city, Illyria had bartered away some of the valuable jars and boxes that had contained Dynasian's luxurious foods in exchange for the clothing all of them now wore.
These plain, dull garments made them look like typical peasants of the area.
Illyria came up behind Sheila. It seemed to Sheila that she had never looked more beautiful despite the faded black cloak she wore over her armor. Maybe it was the look of calm determination on her face—it illuminated her with an almost mystical quality.
Sheila and Illyria didn't speak. They watched silently as the plain outside Campora began to swell with people traveling to Dynasian's "celebration," They looked like flecks of many-colored confetti against the dry green-brown ground.
"Why are they even going?" Sheila asked at last, unable to bear the thought that Dynasian really did have followers who had allegiance to his rotten empire.
Illyria laughed mirthlessly. "The way the public notices were worded didn't give them much choice," she said. "The emperor Dynasian demands that his subjects appear for a celebration of their loyalty to him. Any not attending will be considered disloyal and will suffer the standard punishments for treason along with all the members of their family."
“They'd be imprisoned?" Sheila asked.
"Dynasian would think that an act of mercy," Illyria scoffed. "No, treason is punished by being slowly lowered feet first into a vat of boiling oil."
The horror of that image turned Sheila ashen, and she gulped hard. "Now I can, uh, see why they're making an effort to show up for the main event here."
"Exactly," Illyria said, putting her hand on Sheila's shoulder. "Sheila, this quest has not been of your choosing, indeed, not even of your world, yet you have served it courageously." Illyria met Sheila's eyes and smiled into them warmly.
"It hasn't been boring, that's for sure," Sheila answered lightly.
"Here is what I've been thinking," Illyria continued. "I pray we are victorious tonight, but we must all face the fact that we may not return. For us, it will mean a warrior’s proud death in a noble cause. And though we love our lives, we have long been prepared to lose them fighting for this cause. And I . .I would give my life gladly if there was even a chance that Laric is alive and I can free him."
Sheila looked at Illyria solemnly. She wasn't sure what Illyria was trying to say.
“But for you it is different,'' Illyria said. ''There is a great possibility that your Dr. Reit will be able to take you home someday. I believe you should stay behind tonight, to save yourself for the future that is your birthright and your destiny."
Sheila let Illyria's words sink in. She was giving her permission to stay out of it. Sheila might never have to risk seeing Mardock or Dynasian again. Eventually Dr. Reit would figure out how to get her home. He would come for her, and everything would be fine—that is, if she lived long enough for that to happen.
For a moment it sounded good, but Sheila knew it was all wrong. "I can’t do that," she told Illyria steadily. "I wouldn't feel right.''
"There would be no shame," Illyria replied.
"For me there would be," said Sheila. "The way I got here was pretty weird, but in many ways it was the best thing that's ever happened to me. If I’d never come here, I might never have felt what it's like to depend on myself and friends for survival. I might not ever have realized I had it in me to fight or stand up to an enemy. I've found a part of me that I like a lot—a part that's new. I've come this far; I'm not going to go backward now.”
Illyria squeezed Sheila's shoulder. "I have come to think of you as a. sister," she said gently.
"That makes me proud," Sheila answered with a lump in her throat. The two stood there for a moment enjoying the warmth of their deep friendship and love for each other, Sheila tried to feel Illyria's calm resolve as if it were her own,
"So be it, then," Illyria said briskly. "We will go and fight together. Let us prepare.”
Sheila knew the plan. One by one they would enter the city, each doing his or her best to get past the guards at the gate without appearing suspicious. Sheila and Illyria walked back to where the others were assembled, joking nervously in their rough peasant disguises.
"It is time," Illyria announced. "We will leave in height order, so that those with the longest and quickest strides will not leave slower ones behind. In this way we will all arrive in Campora close to the same time.''
"Why can't we ride?" asked Dian.
"It would be too obvious. Darian will herd our unicorns in at the last minute, saying they are a tribute from King Martna from the north."
Sheila was the smallest, so she was chosen to leave first. "At the count of one hundred the next will leave, and then the next," Illyria told them. Sheila flipped the gray hood
of her tunic up over her head and took a deep breath. She walked to Morning Star and Careseed the unicorn's black mane. Quickly she looked around and smiled at them all. Even Dian nodded her head assuringly at Sheila.
Darian's eyes held hers for a moment. She remembered their kiss, and she smiled. He smiled back, then she turned away and headed down the hill toward Campora.
As she got closer, Sheila became part of the crowd that was flocking in from the outlying areas from every direction. The closet she got to the gates of the city, the thicker the crowd became.
She was jostled along, soon pressed between a poor peasant woman carrying two live chickens and a rich merchant wearing a silk cape and clutching a pouch stuffed with gold coins. Both the chickens and the coins were presents for Dynasian, Sheila guessed. And they were only two gifts out of thousands that Dynasian's citizens were bringing to their leader on the night of the unicorn slaughter.
The full orb of the moon glimmered down from a stardrenched sky. In a few hours that moon would be eclipsed. By then the unicorns might be dead and their horns ground into a fine powder.
Sheila raised her eyes and saw the iron gates of the city before her, tall, ornate, and forbidding. Nervously she pulled the billowing tunic closer to her body. It itched, but it did make a good disguise, since it covered her armor and the humped form of her knapsack on her back. Sheila could feel Kara's extra bow and a quiver of arrows hanging at her side. She hoped the guards wouldn't spot it,
Ahead of her, a nasty-looking guard was talking to the woman with the chickens. She saw the guard take one of the chickens himself, and then motion the woman through the gates. So that was the story; the guards were taking bribes.
"You, girl!" One of the guards poked at Sheila's shoulder as she neared him. “What are you bringing to the emperor Dynasian?"
Of all the questions he might have asked, this was one she hadn't planned a ready answer for. She hoped she was bringing Dynasian to his ruin, but she could hardly tell that to the guard. And if she didn't think of something fast, she'd be in big trouble.
