Page 72 of Unleashed

The creatures scurried off into new hiding places with startling speed. But, less than a moment later, she saw them peeking out of their hiding places, watching as though to see if there’d be any follow-up to Vortok’s threat.

Nina wiped sweat from her brow. “They’re waiting to eat us.”

“They’ll be disappointed,” Aduun said. Nina glanced over her shoulder to find him much closer. His amber eyes narrowed as he watched the critters.

When the group resumed walking, Aduun remained only a few feet in front of Nina, and Vortok and Balir dropped slightly behind her, creating a living barrier between her and the creatures.

Nina closed her eyes briefly, lapsing into concentration as she attempted to send out a warning to their pursuers. She maintained her mental shields as she sent out a psychic pulse; after her experience with the worm, she had no desire to connect with the minds of these creatures.

The critters’ leisurely pace faltered, and the distance between them and Nina’s group increased steadily. Eventually, the creatures thinned out, many abandoning the hunt in favor of shady spots in which to hide. Only a handful continued to follow, keeping far back from the valos.

The desert heat intensified as they walked. Nina’s head was soon throbbing thanks to maintaining that psychic pulse to hold the critters at bay, and her skin was hot and had taken on a pinkish hue. She knew that being exposed for much longer would turn her minor burn into something far more serious.

“Vortok, I need the cloak,” Nina said.

“You will be even hotter with that on,” he grumbled.

“My skin is burning. I need it for shade.”

His grunt was expressive enough to tell her that he’d looked down and seen the truth of what she’d said. A few moments later, he handed her the cloak. She unfurled it and raised it over her head, pulling it down just enough to shade her face and chest. The hide seemed to grow heavier as they traveled, and, though she drank when her valos pressed her to, the heat came to be too much. Soon, all her mental energy was taken by keeping the creatures at bay and forcing one foot in front of the other.

Nina lifted her gaze, gritting her teeth against the wave of dizziness that overcame her, and squinted to look over the desert.

“There,” she said, pointing to a place along a nearby cliff where a large recess in the stone created a pool of deep shade. “We can rest there.”

The valos made no argument. Vortok and Balir remained close at her sides, occasionally placing their hands on her arms to steady her as she staggered toward the cliff. The relief she found in the shade was instantaneous. She allowed her legs to give out and sank onto the cool sand, sighing when it touched her heated skin. She closed her eyes and let go of the projection she’d maintained.

The sound of a gentle gust of wind over the rocks preceded a series of grunts, growls, insect chitters, and squishy, wet cracks. She didn’t bother opening her eyes again; she didn’t need to see how many critters her valos had just killed to make this place safe to rest in, didn’t care how many of the dead creatures had been following them or how many had been hiding in this precious bit of shadow.

Someone brought the spout of a waterskin to her mouth; she sensed Vortok through that deep, subtle connection they shared through the heartstones. Nina drank gratefully.

“We can get moving again in a minute,” she said. “Just need to rest my eyes for a little while.”

“Rest, Nina,” Balir said from nearby.

“We’ll rest here until nightfall,” Aduun said.

Vortok snorted. “If it ever comes.”

Nina dozed off, though her sleep was interrupted several times by cursing valos or pleading, disembodied voices.

She opened her eyes when Balir brushed his fingers over her cheeks.

“Drink, Nina,” he said, offering her the waterskin.

She accepted it. The container weighed far less than what it had when they’d left the cave. “I’m going through too much, too fast, and you three haven’t hadany.”

“We will make do,” Balir replied.

Nina laughed without humor and sat up, shaking her head. “I canfeelyour thirst, Balir. And Aduun’s, and Vortok’s.”

“But we are changed, Nina,” said Vortok.

“That doesn’t mean you should suffer!”

“Our suffering will mean your survival,” Aduun said. “Your—”

“That makes me feelsomuch better,” she said sarcastically.

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