eyes. Our nature is the same , Ruslan had shouted. Kiran had spat at his feet and denied it. And yet in the moment of truth, he’d proved Ruslan right.
***
(Dev)
I climbed back down to Kiran with my blood still buzzing like I’d drunk an entire cask of firewine. I felt light on my feet as a full-fledged Tainter. Almost, I believed I could step off the cliff and float free in the air the way I’d used to. Gods, I hadn’t felt this good in years.
“Got us a decent stone,” I announced. Kinslayer hadn’t disappointed. Several thumb-sized lumps of red crystal waited in my belt pouch. One to peek Pello’s wards, and the rest I could sell for a tidy little sum once back in Ninavel. The more coin I had before trying to slip Melly from Red Dal’s grasp, the better.
“You nearly died.” Kiran’s voice was flat. The tight curl of his body reminded me of the way he’d huddled during the storm, but his eyes were narrowed, rather than wide with fear.
“Aw, did that little slip scare you? Trust me, I’ve come closer to Shaikar’s hells than that.” Not much closer, in truth. I inhaled and stretched, remembering the cold shock of my hand breaking loose. Every fleck of mica on the granite had blazed into knife-edged clarity, every beat of my heart loud as thunder. I’d never felt more alive.
Kiran’s eyes narrowed further. “It wouldn’t have mattered what I said beforehand, would it? You wanted to do that climb.”
“Of course I wanted to do the climb.” What outrider wouldn’t? I surveyed my route up the gleaming arc of cliff, and sighed in satisfaction. Sun winked off my single piton, still jammed in the fingers-width crack beneath the carcabon layer. Every outrider who traveled this canyon would know someone had conquered Kinslayer.
“So it’s all right for you to endanger everything,” Kiran snapped.
I took in his clenched fists and the sweat drying on his temples. Well, I was no stranger to fear-fueled anger. I shrugged back into my shirt. “Difference is, I didn’t take a risk for no reason. Now we can take care of Pello’s charm. You’ll feel better then, you’ll see.”
Kiran twitched and turned his face away. I blinked, puzzled. Anger I could understand, but now he had the shifty-eyed look of a Tainter who’d screwed up an important job. Was he so touchy over his panic after the storm?
“How do we get down?” he asked. He still wouldn’t look at me.
I started shaking out the rope. “I’ll lower you, and then I’ll climb down after you. Just face in to the rock, push your body away from it with your feet, and walk down as I let out the rope.”
Kiran glanced over the edge and swallowed.
“Don’t worry, it’ll be a lot easier than the climb up.” I made sure the rope ran properly through the system of pitons and around my waist, ready for the belay. “When you were, uh, exploring the catsclaw yesterday, did you notice anything unusual?”
“Like what?” His shoulders hunched up even higher.
I waved a hand at the silver-green mass of catsclaw far below. “See those black patches?” I’d confirmed early this morning while getting water that my eyes hadn’t been tricked by the fading light of evening. Whole groups of bushes had died, their leaves withered and blackened as if burned. “None of us have seen anything like it before, not even Jerik.”
“Could it be from...lightning strikes, perhaps?” Kiran wore a frown, but the guilty expression had faded. His twitchiness wasn’t over last night’s disappearing act, then.
“Maybe. But I heard Harken telling Cara this morning that some of the drovers are worried about their mules. Seems they’re off their feed, like they’re sick. And from up here, looks to me like the sick mules are from wagons closest to those burned patches.”
Now he looked upset. “Will they be all right? The mules?”
“Who knows?”
Kiran leaned over to peer down at the convoy, biting his lip. “Will this delay us in reaching
***
(Dev)
I climbed back down to Kiran with my blood still buzzing like I’d drunk an entire cask of firewine. I felt light on my feet as a full-fledged Tainter. Almost, I believed I could step off the cliff and float free in the air the way I’d used to. Gods, I hadn’t felt this good in years.
“Got us a decent stone,” I announced. Kinslayer hadn’t disappointed. Several thumb-sized lumps of red crystal waited in my belt pouch. One to peek Pello’s wards, and the rest I could sell for a tidy little sum once back in Ninavel. The more coin I had before trying to slip Melly from Red Dal’s grasp, the better.
“You nearly died.” Kiran’s voice was flat. The tight curl of his body reminded me of the way he’d huddled during the storm, but his eyes were narrowed, rather than wide with fear.
“Aw, did that little slip scare you? Trust me, I’ve come closer to Shaikar’s hells than that.” Not much closer, in truth. I inhaled and stretched, remembering the cold shock of my hand breaking loose. Every fleck of mica on the granite had blazed into knife-edged clarity, every beat of my heart loud as thunder. I’d never felt more alive.
Kiran’s eyes narrowed further. “It wouldn’t have mattered what I said beforehand, would it? You wanted to do that climb.”
“Of course I wanted to do the climb.” What outrider wouldn’t? I surveyed my route up the gleaming arc of cliff, and sighed in satisfaction. Sun winked off my single piton, still jammed in the fingers-width crack beneath the carcabon layer. Every outrider who traveled this canyon would know someone had conquered Kinslayer.
“So it’s all right for you to endanger everything,” Kiran snapped.
I took in his clenched fists and the sweat drying on his temples. Well, I was no stranger to fear-fueled anger. I shrugged back into my shirt. “Difference is, I didn’t take a risk for no reason. Now we can take care of Pello’s charm. You’ll feel better then, you’ll see.”
Kiran twitched and turned his face away. I blinked, puzzled. Anger I could understand, but now he had the shifty-eyed look of a Tainter who’d screwed up an important job. Was he so touchy over his panic after the storm?
“How do we get down?” he asked. He still wouldn’t look at me.
I started shaking out the rope. “I’ll lower you, and then I’ll climb down after you. Just face in to the rock, push your body away from it with your feet, and walk down as I let out the rope.”
Kiran glanced over the edge and swallowed.
“Don’t worry, it’ll be a lot easier than the climb up.” I made sure the rope ran properly through the system of pitons and around my waist, ready for the belay. “When you were, uh, exploring the catsclaw yesterday, did you notice anything unusual?”
“Like what?” His shoulders hunched up even higher.
I waved a hand at the silver-green mass of catsclaw far below. “See those black patches?” I’d confirmed early this morning while getting water that my eyes hadn’t been tricked by the fading light of evening. Whole groups of bushes had died, their leaves withered and blackened as if burned. “None of us have seen anything like it before, not even Jerik.”
“Could it be from...lightning strikes, perhaps?” Kiran wore a frown, but the guilty expression had faded. His twitchiness wasn’t over last night’s disappearing act, then.
“Maybe. But I heard Harken telling Cara this morning that some of the drovers are worried about their mules. Seems they’re off their feed, like they’re sick. And from up here, looks to me like the sick mules are from wagons closest to those burned patches.”
Now he looked upset. “Will they be all right? The mules?”
“Who knows?”
Kiran leaned over to peer down at the convoy, biting his lip. “Will this delay us in reaching
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