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golden as sunshine, skin as smooth and pale as milk. Beneath the thick covers she
could still see that he was thin, but his arms showed the corded muscle already
there, the promise of breadth to come.
Innocent now, his strength building. But not ready yet.
Do not fear, she said softly. I will do my duty as your Guardian.
The warmth in her kyrat flooded through her, almost a heat that didn t burn but
sought something with intensity.
It caught her by surprise, bringing her to her knees beside the cot. Without
conscious thought she reached out and touched his forehead, and the flicker of heat
swept down her arm, her kyrat glowing brilliantly in the cave.
A splintering of multi-colours sparkled before her eyes, dimming her vision for
several seconds, and she felt something tear from inside her, a harsh ripping that
had her gasping in pain. She couldn t move, the splintering of multi-colours now
tearing through her vision, through her head, deep into her, swirling into her kyrat.
She didn t fight it. This was part of her duty, this was what the Guardians were
trained to do.
The multi-colours circled wildly inside her, the topaz of her kyrat sending a
mixed rainbow of light throughout the cave.
In a ball of hot colour, the multi-coloured light was forced from her kyrat to
slam into the forehead of the sleeping male. He arched up in the bed, his body
twisting under the onslaught as the multi-colours burned into his forehead.
Suddenly his hands came out and clamped either side of her face, his eyes
opened and an intense green gaze bored into her, seeming to see her right down to
her very soul.
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She saw them then, scattered over the country, but there, each one hidden, each
so young. The future Guardians of the chosen one, but too young and vulnerable,
untrained. They had to be kept safe.
He closed his eyes, his hands fell away, and he was unconscious, the vision
fading with him. In the middle of his once smooth forehead was a black kyrat.
Slumping back on her heels, Tasi leaned one elbow on the cot and sucked in
deep breaths, fighting the dizziness that made black dots dance before her eyes.
A hand came down onto her shoulder. Are you all right, Guardian?
Yeah. I m fine. She looked at the tear-drop shaped black kyrat now embedded
in his forehead.
It is not his time yet, Melan repeated.
No. Getting to her feet, Tasi rolled her head and eased a kink from her
shoulder. And until then, I am his Guardian. Melan looked soberly at her and
Tasi knew what she was thinking. It s what I have to do.
I know. I just wish... Melan glanced away, and when she looked back tears
glittered in her eyes. I just wish there was an easier way.
Sheesh, let s not get soppy about it. Tasi pasted a teasing smile on her face.
Taking her cue from her, Melan smiled back. Stars forbid I get soppy over a
Guardian with her duty to face and a war to wage.
Wow. Tasi wrinkled her nose at her. All before dinner?
Oh, I think we can let you eat and sleep first.
Gosh, thanks.
The moon was high in the sky when Tasi saw the battle cruiser flying in the
distance. Seated on an outcrop of rock but sheltered by the overhang of rock shelf
above, she watched as it wheeled before disappearing into the black night. Long
after it vanished, she stared in its direction.
The night sky was filled with stars, and the moonlight picked out shadows from
the rock and sand that made the desert. All was silent, not a murmur could be
heard.
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She wondered what Heddam was doing. He d be awake now, and he wouldn t
be happy. Would he hate her? Yell, scream, swear? Curse? She had no doubt he
would feel betrayed.
Sorry, she whispered. But you can t be a part of this. I don t want you to see
me doing what I will do.
Thinking of what she had to do was something from which she didn t shy.
Thinking of Heddam and feeling his loss keenly was something she wasn t
ready for, and she wasn t prepared for the shimmer of tears that blurred her vision.
Blinking them back rapidly, she rolled her head on her neck and drew in a deep
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