Lupi 04 - Night Season

automatically to point it out to Fire, he swayed, losing his focus. Damn! Have to…what was that? Something large leaped out of the forest to take down his prey. It looked like…he blinked, trying to focus.
    â€œHey.” Cynna’s arm came around him. “You can stop now. They’re mostly dead, except for a few that want to get away at least as bad as we want them to leave.”
    â€œYou and the shooter left me little enough to deal with,” came Tash’s voice from behind him. She might have been disappointed. “Wen broke the group mind when they grew few enough.”
    Cullen blinked again and focused on Cynna’s face. He didn’t see any blood. “You’re okay, then. Good.” He nodded, frowned, and added, “Better let go now.” And passed out.

TWELVE
    K AI leaned against the runneled bark of an oak taller than her apartment building back home, breathing through her mouth. The mage light behind her head, the one she controlled, was bobbing in agitation. Her stomach hurt, her mouth tasted like something had died inside it several days ago, and her throat burned. And the smell…
    Nathan had a water bottle in one hand, their small spade in the other. His colors were calm, the usual pool of indigo and purple with silvery thoughts swimming through them. The smell didn’t bother him. The flaming bodies hadn’t, either. Her vomiting had, but only because it was a sign of her distress.
    He handed her the bottle and knelt in the leafy loam to use the spade, digging a hole next to her vomit.
    Kai rinsed and spat the first two swigs, then sipped cautiously. Humiliation tasted almost as sour as what she’d just ejected, but was it harder to get rid of. She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I should at least be cleaning up after myself.”
    Nathan looked over his shoulder. “Why are you apologizing?”
    â€œI’m betting you didn’t puke your guts out the first time you killed.”
    â€œNo, but humans are often squeamish. It’s odd, considering your innate violence.” He finished covering the former contents of her stomach with dirt and stood. “You didn’t kill, Kai.”
    â€œThey were killed because of me. Because I played with their minds, sending them here—where they damned near killed a whole bunch of people. If they hadn’t had that Fire mage with them—”
    â€œBut they did, though I’m not sure he’s a mage. Have you grown omnipotent while I wasn’t watching?”
    â€œAll right, all right. I couldn’t have known those people would be so close to the forest. But if I hadn’t been messing with the dondredii they wouldn’t have burned.” Trying to learn how to use her Gift. That’s what she’d been doing.
    â€œIf they hadn’t been here being killed, they’d have been somewhere else killing. That’s what they do. They are predators. Not very efficient predators,” Nathan added, moving to the stack of saddles and saddlebags at the edge of the small clearing. He slid the spade back in one of the saddlebags. “Individually, they’re weak and nonsentient. In group mind they approach real sentience, but—”
    â€œTheir group mind is insane. Yeah, I noticed. I didn’t do their sanity much good.”
    â€œYou have much to learn. That’s why you were practicing on them rather than on true sentients. Kai, will you be all right by yourself for thirty or forty minutes?”
    She nodded, though part of her wanted him to define “all right.” In some ways she hadn’t been all right for quite a while. “Why?”
    â€œThe people the dondredii attacked didn’t wander too close to the forest. They gated in.”
    â€œOh. Oh, shit. Though I guess I’m glad we found them.”
    â€œI need to make sure this is the group my queen spoke of.”
    â€œOf course. Go slink around. Ah…I guess you can be sure they won’t see or hear you?”
    Nathan’s smiles always looked freshly minted, as if he’d just discovered the expression. This one blended amusement with pleasure: she didn’t need to worry; he was glad he mattered to her. “I can be sure of that.”
    â€œShould we…a couple of them are injured. I know we’re not supposed to contact them, but it feels wrong to do nothing.”
    â€œThey have called the Ekiba, who have healers. You will