Fire Study by Maria V. Snyder Page A

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