Hunters Unlucky Part 61

"Yes, I-I remember." Shaw had said that. Over and over. But I thought she was just trying to ease the blow.

Sauny trotted a ring around Storm. Her limp was gone. She turned back to Arcove. "You're not as big as I remember."

"You're bigger."

"Let him sleep," muttered Storm. "He'll never win a fight like this. He's running into things and repeating himself. What did Keesha do to him?"

"I'm not sure," said Sauny in a guarded voice. She was still watching Arcove. "He doesn't sound confused."

"Arcove, do you know my name?"

"Storm," said Arcove quietly. "You were going to tell me why you're here...or did I just forget?"

Storm sighed. "Because I need you to kill Treace. Because I'd rather deal with you and your cats than with his."

Arcove said nothing.

"Why did you save me from the curbs?" asked Storm.

"Because Treace needs to prove to Leeshwood that he can do what I can't...or didn't."

"Kill me?"

"Just so," said Arcove. He thought for a moment. "What happened after the avalanche?"

"You're repeating yourself," said Storm.

Arcove grimaced. He laid his head down on his paws and stopped talking.

Sauny was watching him with an unreadable expression. Storm wondered whether she felt avenged. He couldn't blame her for wanting to see Arcove hurt, but he couldn't say that he'd enjoyed it. He wasn't sure why. He felt that he ought to have enjoyed it.

Storm tried to picture the raids. Instead, he saw a pair of desperate green eyes, illuminated by flashes of lightning, a scream so close to his ear that it nearly deafened him, fur and blood in his mouth. Storm shook his head. His nose still stung where Teek had scratched him. And then...then he forgave me. How could anyone forgive that? Did he not understand when I told him? But Storm remembered the look on Teek's face when he'd blurted out the truth on the council ledge. He understood perfectly.

Arcove had grown very still. Storm had to look closely to see that he was breathing. The telshees chased him. Then he tread water for who-knows-how long. Keesha held him under and he struggled until he pa.s.sed out. Or died. Is that what happened back there? Did Keesha bring him back to life? Storm shivered.

Storm sat with his sister in awkward silence, watching Arcove sleep. Sauny stretched out on her belly and rested her head on her hooves. Storm wanted to ask her questions. He wanted to tell her things. But he didn't dare. After a while, he put his own head on his hooves and dozed.

Storm woke to Valla's excited voice. "Sauny, we found it!"

Storm jerked to his feet, blinking, before he quite knew what was happening. Valla and Shaw were both beside them in the tunnel. Sauny was dancing back and forth between them. "Thank you, thank you!"

"Don't thank me," growled Shaw, "just go before Keesha notices it's missing." Storm saw that Valla was wearing a familiar glossy blue stone around her neck.

Arcove had staggered to his feet, and he snarled at Shaw, white teeth bared to pink gums. Shaw took one look at him and turned away with a dismissive sweep of her head. She didn't even bother to bristle. "Storm," she said, "for the sake of the friendship between us, I will do this for you, but in return, I ask that you do something for me."

Storm was bewildered. "You'll do...what?"

"The herd," said Sauny. "You said that Treace wanted to eat them."

"He does," said Storm. "He's taken them away into the forest. No one knows where. Arcove and Roup said that he wants to make them into a food source for creasia."

Shaw dipped her head. "You may use the Shable to open Kuwee Island. Send the ferryshaft there and make them safe while the creasia are at war with each other. When the blood stops flowing, you may be a free people again. But this thing between Keesha and Arcove-stay out of it."

Storm took a step back. "No."

Shaw growled at him. Storm didn't think he'd ever seen her look at him that way. "Why?"

"Because this is our business," said Storm. "This is land-animal business, not yours."

"You don't know what you're talking about," said Shaw.

Storm did not relent. "The creasia war affects the place where I live. Whoever rules Leeshwood will have a direct impact on me and my herd. You can come back here to Syriot when it's over or swim to distant sh.o.r.es and forget about it; I can't!"

Arcove spoke behind him. "He has a point, Shaw." Storm felt at once relieved and alarmed to hear the focus back in Arcove's voice. When he glanced over his shoulder, he saw that the sharpness had returned to Arcove's eyes, and he was holding himself with the poise Storm remembered.

Shaw did bristle then. "You are a dead thing," she growled.

Arcove stretched, his long claws flexing against the stone. "Not yet." He smiled at her, and Shaw hissed. Arcove turned away. "Let's go, little ferryshaft, Coden's foals. I believe you wanted me to kill someone for you."

Storm trotted after Arcove. The creasia was moving with near-perfect coordination. "Do you remember the way out?" asked Storm.

"No, but I can follow my own trail."

"You'll go straighter if you follow me." Storm was a little unnerved by Arcove's sudden return to lucidity, although he told himself that it was a good thing.

"And who might you be?" asked Arcove as he slowed to let Storm go ahead. He was looking at Valla.

She bristled nervously and danced back.

"She's my beta," said Sauny.

Arcove snorted. "Two years old and you have a beta. You are very like your sire, and you definitely need to return to the herd."

"I liked you better when you were too weak to stand," Sauny commented.

"Likewise," said Arcove.

Storm thought that that might make Sauny too angry to talk, but she piped up again a moment later. "Why do you keep calling us Coden's foals? Storm and I didn't even have the same father."

"He was your great grandsire," said Arcove as he jumped over a pool. "His foal, Lirsy, was your mother's mother."

Storm was astonished. "How do you know that?"

"Charder," said Arcove. He was all-but-running now, and Storm saved his breath. When they reached the final stream, all three ferryshaft were panting. Storm explained that they would need to walk upstream for a distance and then climb. Arcove considered this. Before stepping into the water, he hesitated. "Am I-" He licked his lips and did not look at Storm. "Am I still repeating myself?"

Storm felt sorry for him. "Not since you woke up."

Arcove splashed into the stream.

Chapter 10. Decisions to Be Made.

Here it comes, thought Lyndi, after Storm had disappeared into the cave. Roup and Halvery, decisions to be made...and no Arcove.

"Go to Arcove's den and see what kind of support we have there," Roup said in a tight voice. "I'll wait here."

"Don't you even want to see how badly Sharmel is injured, sir?" snapped Halvery.

Lyndi couldn't remember ever hearing Halvery call Roup "sir," before, and it didn't sound like deference now.

Roup rounded on him. "If you've got something to say, say it, Halvery."

Storm's cub, Teek, looked between them, wide-eyed. Lyndi considered how to get him out of the way if they leapt at each other. She growled to remind Halvery of her presence. If you engage now, Halvery, it'll be two against one. Don't think for a moment that I won't help my alpha.

Halvery hissed at her to show his disdain for her gesture. He was making a low, sustained rumble. Fine, thought Lyndi. Let's do this.

"Halvery." Sharmel's voice.

Roup, Halvery, and Lyndi did not take their eyes off each other, but Lyndi saw Sharmel limping towards them out of her peripheral vision. The two ferryshaft-Charder and Kelsy-were with him. "Halvery, a word," said Sharmel, his voice weak but persistent.

Halvery did not stop growling, but he cut his eyes sideways at Sharmel. Lyndi risked a glance at him as well. Sharmel looked wobbly, and he had dark stains around his mouth and chest. He would not be much use for fights in the near future...or perhaps ever again. He's old, thought Lyndi. Cats have been whispering for years that Arcove should replace him. Perhaps they were right.

"Halvery, please," Sharmel's voice was even. "A moment."

Halvery turned away from Roup and Lyndi, walking stiff-legged, and still bristling. He and Sharmel retreated a little distance and began muttering. Roup turned his back on all of them and returned to the mouth of the cave. He'd already stopped bristling. He doesn't care, thought Lyndi. He never cared about rank. But he could win that fight with Halvery...even without me...if he wanted to.

The two ferryshaft appeared to be having their own argument off to her right. Lyndi inched towards Halvery and Sharmel, straining to hear what they were saying. She caught Sharmel's strident whisper. "If you kill Roup, Arcove will grieve himself to death. Do you think we'll survive if he doesn't? Don't you dare, Halvery!"

"I can kill Treace if Arcove doesn't come back," snapped Halvery.

"And if it comes to that, do you really think Roup will fight you for the leadership? Do you think he wants it?"

Halvery said nothing.

"Wait and see," muttered Sharmel.

Halvery's answer was too soft for Lyndi to hear, but she could tell by his posture that he'd calmed down. She glanced back towards Roup and saw that Teek had gone to sit next to him. When she looked back around, Halvery was almost beside her. Lyndi took a swift step back. Halvery snorted as he pa.s.sed. "Do we need to recap that for you, Lyndi? Did you hear enough?"

Lyndi growled. "You don't want a fight."

"I do want a fight," said Halvery. "But not right now."

Roup didn't even turn around when Halvery and Sharmel approached him in the mouth of the cave. "We'll go to Arcove's den," said Halvery. "We'll rest if we can, and if we have reasonable support, we'll go to the Great Clearing this evening. If you and Arcove don't join me, I'll fight Treace."

He waited, as though he expected Roup to say something, but Roup didn't even look at him.

"And that will make me king if Arcove is gone," persisted Halvery. "Unless you would like to fight me for Leeshwood. Roup, are you listening?"

"I'm listening. I wish you joy of your fight," said Roup. "I do not think you will survive it."

Lyndi could tell that Halvery was trying not to grind his teeth. He swallowed whatever he wanted to say and turned away. Sharmel followed him wordlessly through the boulders, heading south towards Arcove's territory. A moment later, the two ferryshaft trotted after them. "Teek," said Lyndi gently, "you should go with them."

"No," said Teek. "I'm waiting for Storm."

Roup didn't argue, so Lyndi didn't, either. The sun was climbing up the sky, and she felt as though she hadn't slept in days. Roup seemed to sense her exhaustion. He looked away from the cave mouth for the first time since the argument with Halvery. "Sleep. I'll watch."

"I can watch," said Teek softly. "I sleep at nighttime."

Roup glanced at him and gave a crooked smile.

Are we going to trust this cub from the ferryshaft herd? wondered Lyndi.

"Alright," said Roup to Teek.

I guess we are. Lyndi stretched out beside Roup, facing the opposite direction. The sun was shining warm on their backs, and the wind sighed through the fir trees. In spite of everything, Lyndi felt a sense of peace. She put her head on her paws, shut her eyes, and was asleep in moments.

It was late afternoon by the time Storm saw daylight. The climb had been difficult. Storm suspected that Arcove was still not quite as coordinated as usual, although it was impossible to tell for sure in the darkness. When they reached the tunnel, Arcove started running again.

Storm caught sight of the entrance a moment later and a pair of creasia silhouettes, getting to their feet. Roup's voice called, "Arcove?"

"Here."

Then they were in the sunshine. Teek ran to Storm, beaming. "I knew you'd get him back."

Storm smiled uncertainly. Don't thank me yet.

Arcove paused long enough to sniff noses with Roup, but then he started off immediately, going south and angling into the trees. "Storm says we're expected in the Great Clearing at evening."

"Yes." Roup kept pace with him. "Arcove-" Storm could hear the relief in Roup's voice, but then Roup seemed to collect himself, and when he spoke again, his voice was level. "You smell like telshees and sea water. What happened?"

Arcove, Storm, Sauny, and Valla were all wet from the river and gritty from the climb. Sauny and Valla jogged along beside Storm, blinking and looking around. Storm suspected they had not seen this much sunlight in quite a while. Roup's beta-Storm could not remember her name-eyed them all suspiciously.

"No time now," said Arcove.