Page 43 of Heart of Night and Fire

As the guard wailed, the egg made a wet, crunching sound, devouring flesh and bone. Bile rose in Zarya’s mouth as the guard sunk to the middle of his forearm. The egg was anchored to the ground, resisting every attempt to dislodge the man from its vise.

“Someone, do something!” she screamed. He was almost to his elbow now, but the guard had stopped screaming, shock setting in. His face was white and covered with a thin sheet of sweat. Vikram and Zarya tugged and heaved, but it made no difference.

Zarya saw Suvanna approach from the corner of her eye, the merdeva pulling out the sword anchored to her back.

“Stand aside.” She raised the sword over her head, and Zarya realized what Suvanna intended.

“No! Gods, stop!” she screamed.

“He’s going to die otherwise! Move out of the way!” Suvanna curled a lip, her eyes glowing vividly blue.

Zarya looked into the soldier’s terrified face, her eyes filling with tears, understanding Suvanna was right. She nodded and leaned away from the soldier, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Look at me.” He turned to her, his eyes rolling in his head. “Keep looking at me.” She willed him to be brave. She willed herself to be brave. Zarya gripped his free hand, holding it against her heart.

She locked eyes with him, trying to ignore the nauseating flash of steel, the whoosh, the sickening crack. The guard fainted as blood gushed from his severed appendage, and Zarya clung to his limp, free hand. Then they all watched in grim fascination as the egg devoured the remaining stump with a squelch. A collective shudder ran through the clearing as Zarya collapsed to her knees, trying not to retch.

“Healers!” Suvanna shouted. “Help him!”

Vikram strode towards Suvanna, his jaw hard enough to crack stones. “Who do you think you are? My soldiers aren’t yours to dispose of at will. I will have you arrested for this!”

Suvanna put a hand on her hip, the other gripping the bloody sword dangling at her side. “I did what was needed. Your queen wants us to stop the blight using any means necessary. Try to arrest me, Commander. See how far that gets you.”

Suvanna and Vikram stood inches apart, noses almost touching. Suvanna was several inches shorter, but she managed to fill the difference.

“Arrest or no arrest, if you ever try something like that again, I will have the queen throw you out of Daragaab. Permanently,” Vikram said, his teeth bared.

Suvanna stepped back, her lips pursed into a thin line. She said nothing else before she turned away and stalked into the forest.

“How could you do that? That man was innocent!” Zarya shouted at Suvanna’s back. A healer had swooped in and was busy bandaging the comatose soldier’s arm.

Suvanna stopped and turned to glare at her. “I don’t need to explain myself to you, little girl. Just because the others trust you doesn’t mean that I do.”

Zarya recoiled as if struck, with no idea how to respond.

“Ensure the entire affected area is barricaded to prevent anyone wandering too close to these things,” Suvanna said to no one in particular before she disappeared into the trees.

SEVENTEEN

“Why can’t I come?” Zarya asked Yasen as she followed him through the streets of Dharati the following day.

“Because,” was all he said as he walked, his long legs eating up the distance. With Row’s sword strapped to her back, Zarya had to scramble to keep up. This thing was heavy, but it had become like her security blanket, coming with her everywhere.

“But you know I can fight! I want to help.”

After the attack on the city, the Khada had chosen to hold an emergency round of the admission trials with the goal of rapidly shoring up their elite force. Today would be the first of several testing rounds, and hopefuls from all over the queendom were eager to throw in their lot. Zarya included.

“I’ve been training just like everyone else has.”

Yasen stopped so suddenly she practically crashed right into him before he spun around to face her.

“It’s dangerous,” he said, his brows drawn together. “You don’t know what’s out there.” He gestured in the direction of the high stone wall that served as their main line of defense. But its effectiveness had been thrown into question when the kala-hamsa had breached it yesterday.

“I lived out there!” Zarya said as Yasen continued walking. “I know that better than anyone.”

Yasen stopped again, whirling on her. “Yes. And don’t you think that’s a little suspicious? What are you hiding, Swamp Girl? You’ve been keeping secrets ever since you arrived. How am I supposed to trust you?”

“I’m not hiding anything,” she snapped. “Row used his magic to protect us.”