Priestess of the White

heavy. Perhaps he would have to haul it up a tree or a cliff before launching himself into the air.

That wouldn’t impress people, however. He had decided he wasn’t going to show anyone this new harness until he’d had several successful hunts. Whenever he brought a creature down he would let it sleep off the drug, but when the time came to prove himself he would butcher his catch and carry meat back to the Open. When the other Siyee saw his family feasting, their jeers and mockery would stop.

He paused to sigh. If only his cousins had followed him quietly instead of telling other Siyee what Tryss had claimed to have done. Then only they and Drilli would have been present when Tryss arrived to find the yern gone. Since that day the story of his wild claim had spread throughout the Open. He was teased constantly, sometimes by Siyee he didn’t even know.

A prick of pain stung his arm and he jumped. The gut string slipped from between his fingers and flicked away. He cursed and examined his arm. A small red dot had appeared. Had something stung him? He looked around, but could see no insect buzzing nearby that might have made such a bite.

Just as he was searching the ground for crawling insects he felt another sting, this time on his thigh. He looked down in time to see something small and round fall to the ground. Bending closer, he noticed a winnet seed among the stones of the rock face. They were bright green and hard to miss, especially as winnet seeds weren’t found this high up in the mountains. The small tree grew alongside creeks and rivers, not on dry rocky slopes.

A small click brought his attention back to the harness just in time for him to see another seed fall from the frame to the rocks, then roll away. He slowly disentangled himself from his invention and stood up, casting about. In the corner of his eye he saw a movement and felt a sting on his shoulder. He spun around and started toward a large rock near where he had seen the movement.

Then he heard his name whistled from above.

Looking up, he felt his heart jump as he recognized Drilli’s wing markings. He searched the sky quickly, but there was no sign of his cousins. His heart began to beat faster as she circled lower.

There was a broad grin on her face. “Tryss!” she called. “I think I lost...” Her gaze shifted away and he saw her smile change to a look of outrage. At the same time he felt another sting, this time on his cheek. He cursed in pain and put a hand to his face.

“Fools!” she shrieked. Tryss caught his breath as she dropped into a dive and landed beside the rock he had been heading toward. She disappeared and Tryss heard a slap, then a Siyee staggered out from behind the rock, arms raised to protect his head as Drilli swiped at him again and again.

Ziss! Tryss heard laughter from behind him and turned to find Trinn climbing up the rock shelf toward them. Drilli stormed over to him and snatched something out of his hands.

“I told you not to use them on Siyee!” she said. “What if you tore his wings? Stupid girri-brain! If I’d known you’d do something like this I’d never have made them for you.”

“We wouldn’t have got his wings,” Trinn said. “We’ve been practicing.”

“What on?” she demanded.

Trinn shrugged. “Trees. Rocks.”

“Girri?”

He looked away. “No.”

“It was you, wasn’t it? And you watched me spend half the night weaving string-reed mats to console Aunt Lirri. She thinks her girri died from neglect.”

“She was going to eat them anyway,” Ziss protested.

Drilli whirled around to glare at him. “You two disgust me. Go away. I don’t want to see you again.”

The cousins exchanged a look of dismay, though it was clear Ziss wasn’t as bothered by her words as Trinn. He shrugged and turned away, running a few steps then leaping into the sky.

“Sorry,” Trinn offered. When Drilli turned to glare at him he winced, then followed his brother.

Drilli watched them until they were small dark marks against the distant clouds near the horizon, then she turned to Tryss and grimaced.

“I’m sorry about that,” she said.

He shrugged. “Not your fault.”

“Yes, it is,” she replied, anger returning to her voice. “I know what they’re like. I shouldn’t have shown them what the pipes were for, let alone made them a set.”

He looked at the object in her hand. It was a long piece of reed. “Pipes?”

“Yes.” She smiled and held the tube out to him. “A blowpipe. We started using them in our village to hunt small animals. You put a missile in here and—”

“I know how they work,” Tryss said, then winced at his own terseness. “But I haven’t seen one used before,” he added in a more encouraging tone. “Could you show me?”

She smiled and plucked the tube from his hands. Taking something from her pocket, she slipped it into the pipe. He heard a faint click as it met with something else inside that must have prevented it from coming out the other end. She turned and pointed.

“See that rock over there that looks a bit like a foot?”

“Yes.”

“See the black stone oh the top?”

“Yes...” He glanced at her doubtfully. It was a long way away.

She put the pipe to her lips and blew into it quickly. Tryss barely saw the missile, but a moment later the black stone bounced off the rock and disappeared over the other side.

Tryss stared at Drilli in surprise. She’s not just pretty and strong, he thought. She’s clever as well. She looked back at him and grinned, and suddenly he didn’t know what to say. He felt his face beginning to heat.

“So is this where you disappear to?” she asked, her gaze sliding to the harness.

He shrugged. “Sometimes.”

She moved over to the harness and gazed down at it. “This is how you caught the yern, isn’t it?”

So she believed he’d actually caught one. Or was she just saying so to be nice.

“Um... yes.”

“Show me how it works.”

“It’s...it’s...” He waved his hands uselessly. “I’m changing it. It’s all in pieces.”

She nodded. “I understand. Another day, then. When you’re finished.” She sat down beside the harness. “Mind if I watch you work?”

“I suppose. If you want.” He dropped into a crouch and, conscious of her attention on him, rummaged in his pockets for more gut strings. She watched silently, and soon he began to feel uncomfortable.

“How long have your people been using blowpipes?” he asked.

She shrugged. “Years. My grandfather came up with the idea. He said we have to go backward instead of forward. Rather than trying to find a way to use swords and bows like the landwalkers, we should go back to simpler weapons.” She sighed. “It didn’t help, though. The landwalkers still drove us out of our village. We got a few with poisoned darts and traps, but there were too many.”

Tryss glanced at her sideways. “Do you think it would have turned out differently if you had been able to attack them from the air?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe; maybe not.” She looked at the harness. “Don’t know until we try. Are you... are you going to the Gathering tonight?”

Tryss shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“I’ve heard a landwalker arrived last night. Climbed over the mountains to get here. He’ll be at the Gathering.”

“They didn’t kill him?” Tryss asked, surprised.

“No. He’s not one of the people taking our land. He’s from far away.”

“What does he want?”

“Not sure exactly, but my father said something about this man being sent by the gods. To ask us to join something. If we do, other landwalkers might help us get rid of the ones taking our lands.”

“If they can do that, then they can take our lands themselves,” Tryss pointed out.

Drilli frowned. “I hadn’t thought of that. But the gods sent him. Surely Huan wouldn’t allow that if it meant we’d all be killed.”