The Desert Spear

flying to strike the demon at the same time as Wonda’s thrown blade and three spears, dropping it before it could take back to the sky. Leesha lifted her skirts and ran to the fallen warrior. The
alagai
was still thrashing, mere inches away, when she knelt at his side. Jardir hurried to join her as Gared and his Spears put an end to the demon and stood watch for others.
    The warrior, Restavi, had served Jardir loyally for years. His armor was soaked with blood. He struggled madly as Leesha tried to look at his wound.
    “Hold him down,” Leesha ordered, her tone no different than that of a
dama’ting,
one used to obedience. “I can’t work with him thrashing about.”
    Jardir complied, taking Restavi’s shoulders and pinning him firmly. The warrior met Jardir’s eyes, his own wide and wild. “I am ready, Deliverer!” he cried. “Bless me and send me on the lonely road!”
    “What’s he saying?” Leesha asked as she cut through his thick robe, casting aside the shattered ceramic plates within. She swore as the size of the gaping wound became apparent.
    “He is telling me his soul is ready for Heaven,” Jardir said. “He asks that I bless him with a quick death.”
    “You’ll do no such thing,” Leesha snapped. “You tell him his soul may be ready, but his body isn’t.”
    How like the Par’chin she is,
Jardir thought, and found himself missing his old friend deeply. Restavi was obviously dying, but the Northern healer refused to let him go without a fight. There was honor in that, and he knew well the insult she would take if he ignored her wishes and killed the man, even at his request.
    Jardir took Restavi’s face in his hands, meeting his eyes. “You are a Spear of the Deliverer! You will walk the lonely road when I command it, and not before. Embrace the pain and be still!”
    Restavi shuddered, but he nodded, drawing a deep breath as his struggles ceased. Leesha looked at the men in surprise, then pushed Jardir aside and set to work.
    “Have the shield wall continue on,” Jardir told Hasik. “I will wait with the mistress as she attends Restavi.”
    “To what end?” Hasik asked. “Even if he survives, he will never lift the spear again.”
    “You know that no better than I,” Jardir said. “It is
inevera.
I will not interfere with my betrothed any more than I would a
dama’ting.
”
    The Spears of the Deliverer remained behind, forming a circle with Leesha and Restavi at its center, but there was little need. Rojer wove a shield of sound around them, and no
alagai
dared draw near.
    “We can move him,” Leesha said at last. “I’ve stopped the bleeding, but he ’ll need more surgery, and for that I’ll need a proper table and better light.”
    “Will he live to fight another day?” Jardir asked.
    “He’s alive,” Leesha said. “Isn’t that enough for now?”
    Jardir frowned, choosing his words carefully. “If he cannot fight, he will likely take his own life later.”
    “Or else he becomes
khaffit
?” Leesha asked, scowling.
    Jardir shook his head. “Restavi has killed hundreds of
alagai.
His place in Heaven is assured.”
    “Then why would he kill himself?” Leesha demanded.
    “He is
Sharum,
” Jardir said. “He is meant to die on
alagai
talons, not old and shriveled in some bed, a burden to his family and tribe. This is why the
dama’ting
do not see to the wounded until dawn.”
    “So the ones injured most deeply will be dead?” Leesha asked.
    Jardir nodded.
    “That’s inhuman,” Leesha said.
    Jardir shrugged. “It is our way.”
    Leesha looked at him and shook her head. “And there is the difference between us. Your people live to fight, while mine fight to live. What will you do when you win Sharak Ka and have nothing left to fight for?”
    “Then Ala and Heaven will be as one,” Jardir said, “and all will be paradise.”
    “So why did you not kill that man when he asked you to?” Leesha asked.
    “Because you asked that I not,” Jardir said. “I made the mistake once of ignoring such a plea from one of your people, and it almost cost our friendship.”
    Leesha tilted her head at him curiously. “The one Abban calls the Par’chin?”
    Jardir’s eyes narrowed. “What did the
khaffit
tell you of him?”
    Leesha met him with a stern gaze. “Nothing, other than that they were friends, and that I reminded him of him. Why?”
    Jardir’s flare of anger at Abban faded as quickly as it came, leaving him feeling empty and sad. “The