The Starlight Lancer

Chapter 106: The Monster in the Woods

"Do you envy the choices my station affords me? I doubt you understand the true magnitude of what leaders face—the harsh realities of choosing our people over theirs every time."

—General Ranthom Forst, in a personal letter to a friend regarding his handling of the Diamosa Crisis

Zaina froze, unsure of what to do. They weren't going to hurt these kids, right? She didn't sign up for that.

Lady Sivanya stepped forward. "Hello, dears. You look a little lost." She turned to the injured child, a young Diveldaran girl standing behind her friend. "You're hurt. Let me take a look."

The foremost child, a young Diveldaran boy with short, brown hair, spoke up. "We're not lost. We know exactly where we are." He glanced toward his friend. "But she is hurt. Can you help?"

Sivanya dropped to one knee and examined the girl's leg. Even from her vantage point, Zaina noticed a deep-looking gash right above the girl's knee. It looked incredibly painful—the girl was sniffing and fighting to hold back tears, but she'd clearly been crying before this.

"Oh, dear," she said. "What happened to you?"

The girl wiped her eyes, sniffed, and then said, "I tripped and fell on an edgreroot. It h-h-hurts."

"This is quite bad," Sivanya remarked, "have you been walking on it?"

The girl nodded.

"Oh, you poor, little thing," Sivanya chirped. Her eyes turned cold for a moment and her brow furrowed as if in thought. A wave of tension emanated from Zaina's chest—what was she thinking about? These kids needed help. There was nothing to ponder.

Then, in a moment, it was gone. The charming warmth returned to Sivanya's face, and she said, "You need to get home, and quickly—but we can't take you, and I can't well expect you to walk, now, can I? So come with us for the night. We'll treat your leg, give you a good dinner and tomorrow we'll figure out how to get you back home."

The boy looked at his friend, as if examining his options, then turned back to Sivanya and said, "Why can't you take us back home?"

Sivanya frowned. "I'm afraid we wouldn't be too welcome where you live. But tomorrow we'll find a way to sneak you back into the city."

The boy's hands fidgeted as he mulled this over. Then, he said, "You promise not to hurt us?"

Sivanya extended a hand with her index finger curled up. "Hook-swear."

The boy wrapped his index finger around hers, and they each gave a light tug. "Okay. But I don't think she can walk the rest of the way."

"Of course not—and I wouldn't expect her to." Sivanya turned her attention to the little girl again. "I'm going to pick you up, now—it's going to hurt for a second, but the sooner we get you back to our home, the sooner we can treat you—all right?"

The little girl nodded and extended her arms toward Sivanya, who scooped her and cradled her against her chest. The girl yelped and tears began to flow from her eyes, but she was trying to stay strong.

"There you go," Sivanya said. "You'll feel better soon—we have great healers."

The little girl sniffed. "Thank you."

"No need," replied Sivanya. "Come, now—let's get going."

They set off walking at a brisk pace through the forest.

"So," Sivanya said, "what are your names, little ones?"

"I'm Kalo, and she's Vika," the boy said. "What about you two's?"