Farland, David - Serpent Catch 04 - Path of the Crushed Heart by Farland David

Author:Farland, David [Farland, David]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Science Fiction, Adventure, Genetic Engineering, High Tech, Hard Science Fiction
Publisher: WordFire Press
Published: 2014-04-29T04:00:00+00:00

Tull woke in the afternoon, drowsy. Motes of dust floated in the air, lit by the yellow sun. His lips felt parched, thirsty, though his body was cold, and he was deathly tired. It did not bother him. Instead, beneath the nagging pains, he felt only ecstasy—the steady sense that he needed nothing. Thirsty, naked, nearly dead. Yet he needed nothing.

Tull lay on the floor. He felt no kwea. No fear, no desire. All such things had burned away. If the Blade Kin were to rush in the room and take him back to die, he’d hardly fight them.

Okanjara, I am free.

The sense of perfect freedom would not leave, and Tull realized he had no name for this thing he felt. He tried to sit up, eager to explore this strange new companion. But dizziness forced him back down.

He turned his head. Across the room, Fava slept on the floor in a dark-blue dress. Her hair was braided and slung over one shoulder.

Tull lay watching her, happy to be thirsty and cold, his belly cramped with hunger. He heard footsteps in another room, and Phylomon walked in, dressed in a loose flowing robe.

“How did you get here?” Tull asked.

Phylomon smiled, but there was a look in the Starfarer’s eyes that Tull had never seen before, a haunted animal look. “My skin’s ability to feign death and make a nuisance of itself thereafter seems to have left you all somewhat astonished. Fava tells me that I smelled worse than a family of skunks in a dogfight. To be honest, I had almost forgotten that my symbiote carried that ability.”

Fava woke, stretched, and smiled gently at Tull. “Can I get you anything?”

“Water,” Tull said, “and a kiss.” She got up, gave him the kiss first, then went into the kitchen. “How long have I slept?” Tull asked.

“Six days,” Phylomon answered. “I would appreciate it if you would heal immediately. We need you.” The tone of his voice said that he was serious.

Fava returned bearing a bottle of wine and a goblet. She sat and poured.

“While we were all managing to get captured,” Phylomon said, “Chaa has been trying to learn the minds of the Creators. They have already begun to attack outlying communities around Bashevgo with poisonous snakes, and something far more dangerous—beings who look human, but must dine on human blood. I questioned one of these. Darrissea has been out on the streets. Rumor has it that Tantos plans to lead an army to attack the Creators.”

“I know. I think we should let him,” Tull answered.

“I fear Tantos will not accomplish much,” Phylomon said. “He does not know how to battle the Creators. None of us do, but he knows far less about them than I do.”

“What of the gray birds with their snakes?” Tull asked. “Have they attacked the city?

“Chaa’s prisoners said that millions of gray birds hatched in midwinter. It will take time for them to grow and learn to fly, but if they grow as fast as other birds, I suspect they will be ready to attack this summer, when the skies are clear.

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