A Girl From Nowhere (The Firewall Trilogy #1) - James Maxwell Page 0,50

through the crowd of marching figures, she saw the skinny mantorean, Rei-kika, return her stare. She concentrated on her breathing. Soon she would be leaving behind the area. She had to act now.

“Group Leader,” she said, pleased when she managed to keep her voice steady. “I think I can cast something up ahead but I’m not sure.” She looked behind her. “Can I speak with Rei-kika?”

For a moment Vail didn’t reply. Instead she watched Selena, her reptilian eyes narrowed and calculating. “What is it you can see, mystic?”

Selena was prepared for the question. “Tall figures in the shadow of a cliff . . .” She made a show of hesitating. “They might just be sentinel cactuses.”

Selena’s plan was to walk toward the mantorean, but rather than stop, she would pick up speed and keep going until she joined Taimin and Lars. By the time the nearby skalen realized what was happening, the three humans would already be making their escape.

As Vail considered, Selena tried to conceal her growing panic. She had expected the old skalen to agree; after all, Selena was only doing what was asked of her.

“How many can you see?” Vail asked. “Are they moving?”

Selena thought furiously. If she said there were a lot of them, Vail would question why she was finding it difficult to decide what they were. “Just three. They aren’t moving at the moment.”

Vail made a decision. “Then you stay with me.”

“But—”

“I have enough warriors to deal with them, whatever they are. In case you have not realized for yourself, I want to see what you are capable of on your own.”

Selena struggled to keep her face blank. Without Group Leader Vail’s permission to leave her side, she would never get free. As time passed, Selena cast frequent glances to the right, toward the smoking terrain the firestorm had left behind. Her opportunity would soon be lost forever. She could only hope that Taimin and Lars had the sense to go without her.

Almost as soon as she had the thought, a commotion broke out farther back. As her heart began to beat rapidly, Selena couldn’t stop herself from turning, but it didn’t matter; she wasn’t the only one.

She held her breath. The wait was excruciating. But then joy burst inside her. She saw two figures, Lars and Taimin, race away from the column and into the heat. The pursuing skalen faltered and then stopped.

Selena’s relief was overwhelming. Taimin and Lars had made it. They were free.

At the same time, without any possessions, she knew they would find it difficult to survive. She had no doubt that Taimin would try to find her, but before he risked his life she had to do everything she could to escape her predicament herself.

Three days later, in a region where the tall mountains loomed over low hills, Vail’s scouts returned with news that they had found a series of caves. The younger scouts told their leader with a breathless excitement, and for once Selena saw the skalen around her smile with relief, as if they had been given a gift.

“We will rest for a time and recover from the journey,” Vail instructed those around her. “These suns are getting to all of us.”

The skalen shook their weapons and gave something like a cheer, and with renewed vigor the group marched to follow the scouts who led from the front. There was a climb involved, an arduous ascent up the hills to a place where dark mouths indicated openings in one of the mighty peaks. Even Selena fixed her gaze on the caves with longing, and although she was breathless by the time she reached the heights, she plunged inside the largest entrance and sighed with pleasure as the cool interior enveloped her.

The skalen settled in, posting sentries, laying out blankets and mats, and sending out parties to search for water. Selena watched as two skalen hunched over a pyramid of sticks and set down some glowing green fragments at the base of the kindling. One of the pair used a rock to smash the bits of aurelium together, and immediately there was a puff of smoke, followed by long tendrils of flame that caught onto the tinder in moments.

With everyone busy Selena found a quiet place to be alone and sat with her back against the rock. For once she wasn’t trudging through the dirt and dust, and no one appeared to expect anything from her. Of their own accord, her eyes began to drift closed, but then