The Darkness Before the Dawn - By Ryan Hughes Page 0,125

bugs. They advanced on her, waving pincers and tentacles and chittering with made-up sound that Jedra stole from the squeak of his own armor as he moved.

Run from them, he mindsent. That’ll give us time.

Kayan obeyed, backing away in horror. She didn’t have to fake it; Kitarak’s words had shocked her to the core.

Jedra had gotten a better fix on the tohr-kreen. He glanced up to the center of the eastern stand and saw him there, his oversized insectile body literally dwarfing the person beside him: a dead ringer for Lothar, the dwarf Jedra and Kayan had fought two weeks earlier. Jedra mindsent to Kitarak, What do you mean, kill her? I can’t do that!

You must, if she is to escape, Kitarak replied. There must be a death, but she cannot kill you because Kalak would never let her go afterward, despite his promise. You must kill her, and she must enter the crystal world you wear around your n—

His voice cut off in midsentence. The psionicists had evidently decided that there was too much communication going on between Jedra and Kayan and the audience.

Jedra looked down at the good-luck charm he wore on a thong around his neck. Of course, the crystal! Kayan could live forever inside it.

Jedra was so excited that his illusory bugs faded away, leaving Kayan halfway across the arena running from nothing. The audience booed and pelted her with more fruit, and this time a few harder missiles as well. She dodged them as best she could, holding her shield over her head while she ran back toward Jedra.

Kitarak is crazy! she mindsent. She slashed at Jedra again as soon as she came within range, no doubt hoping to still the torrent of garbage being thrown from above. Jedra blocked her sword with his own, amplifying the clang for the crowd.

No, he sent. You could live in there, and—

And go crazy, like Yoncalla? Or get stabbed by children in a bizarre city? That’s not my idea of survival. She swung at him for emphasis with every phrase, and they battered away at each other again—this time less predictably—until the audience quieted. Of course being less predictable also made it more dangerous; Jedra got another cut—this one on his left arm, and he split a big wedge out of Kayan’s shield.

The sword wound was nothing compared to the emotional letdown he felt, for of course Kayan was right. Life inside a crystal would be a poor substitute for the real thing; if that was all the help Kitarak could offer them, then he was hardly any help at all.

The audience didn’t stay quiet for long. They had come to see a battle to the death, not a couple of inept sword fighters giving each other practice-field wounds. This battle had already gone on longer than most, and it was proving to be a big disappointment.

Thousands of people, all of them with the same wish, were evidently too strong for the psionicists to control completely. Jedra felt his arms and legs jerk again as people fought to control him, and he had to be extra careful not to harm Kayan with a crowd-induced twitch at the wrong moment. But if the crowd could get through to him, he might be able to get through to the crowd…

He glanced up toward Kitarak, but before he could mindspeak to him, the dwarf beside him waved, and a different voice in his mind said, Hello, traveler. We meet again! Only this time, I am the explorer in your world.

The last time Jedra had heard that voice, he’d been escaping in a whirlwind through a crystal sky. Yoncalla, he thought as he faked an attack toward Kayan’s head. Kayan, Yoncalla’s here!

I know, she said distractedly, making a halfhearted block with her notched shield. The immortal must have been mindspeaking to her, too. Sure enough, a moment later she said, Hah, he’s still crazy, too. He wants—wait a minute! That’s Lothar’s body. He’s alive again in Lothar’s body! She swung excitedly at Jedra as she mindspoke, catching him by surprise and landing a solid blow to his left side. He felt the blade bite through his armor and into the soft flesh beneath.

“Yeow!” he shouted, leaping back. Watch out!

Sorry, she sent, but she didn’t sound sorry at all. She sounded jubilant as she said, But Kitarak is right; you’ll have to… do worse to me. But it doesn’t have to be permanent.

What do you mean? Jedra demanded, parrying another blow. Dead is