Broken World Book Two - StarSword Read Free Page A

it.
Sharing its mind, he struggled to put back together the delicate
flesh that was made up of so many complex things. Tiny crystals
that must be aligned in harmony, capillaries that carried sap-like
fluid, vessels that carried blood, little bones that meshed the
skin in the intricate, life-giving pattern. The minute crystals
guided light and warmth from deep within the beast, sending it into
the transparent bones that carried it over the skin.
    The sunlight
stored within the predator resided in its giant flu-stone, the
heart of the animal. This was exposed only when it basked to absorb
light and heat, the rest of the time it was kept hidden deep within
the alien flesh to preserve it. The beast's flesh was rooted to it,
grew from it and fed it, a symbiosis of animal, plant and mineral
unique to this world. Lowmen would consider the shining flu-stones
that littered the seabed priceless. Their ability to store light
and heat was a miracle of Nature and the gods' design.
    Chanter became
aware that he was succeeding in his effort to heal the predator.
The pain faded from the creature's mind as he reunited the sundered
flesh. A million tiny crystals realigned, drew light and warmth to
the skin, completed the broken circle and warded off the frigid
talons of the ocean's cold. With the pain's cessation and the
return of its warmth and life, a rush of joyful emotion suffused
the predator. It started to swim again, undulating the great wings
that propelled it through the water. Its kin sensed its well-being,
and drifted back to their feeding. It made its way alone, the
graceful sweeps of mammoth wings driving it upwards to the light
and warmth of higher waters. Relaxing his control of Shissar,
Chanter found himself mind-locked with the beast.
    Its gentle
psyche had latched onto his with a mind and willpower almost as
powerful as his own, holding him to it for the pleasure of his
company. So much had been erased from his mind that he barely
objected to it. The rush of pure, sweet love ran like a river of
warm joy through him. Deep down, he was aware that this should not
be happening. He had a purpose beyond the call of his own, a goal
that required him to leave this gentle creature and be alone again,
cut off from his true world.
    The predator's
great wings propelled it through the depths, heading back to its
feeding ground. The pain had been forgotten, and now there was only
the joy of life, the pleasure of feeding and sharing with others.
The entire ocean was its kin; the water in which it lived was as
much a part of it as its wings. Now it had a new part, a
strangely-shaped but pleasant attachment, of which it was already
growing fond. Chanter fought the tender entrapment, even though he
longed to stay and share the joy and pleasures of this harmless
beast in its liquid domain of soft currents and the gentle swaying
dance of marching swells. The distant song of the sea washed
through him, a balm for all the hurts he had received in the harsh
world above. This oceanic predator, unlike the one he had met in
the Lake of Renewal, had a wordless language comprised of emotions
and ideas passed to its kin through the water. By touching the
beast, he had created a line of communication so strong that it
threatened to trap him.
    The predator
shared his mind, learning of his experiences even as it told him of
its gratitude for his help and its wish that he stay with it. There
was something else he had to do, however, a reason to quit the
sweet emotions he shared with this creature of the depths. The
predator sensed his desire to leave, and a wave of sadness came
from it, along with a reluctant weakening of the bond. With a jerk,
he broke the mind-lock and drifted away, swamped with sorrow at the
loss. The bereft predator's keening cut through him with a deep
pain that he shared. The creature flew on with its graceful motion,
long wings sweeping as it drifted higher. Chanter turned and swam
downwards, changing his shape for the sake of speed as