Lady of the Star Wind Read Online Free PDF Page A

smallest ball of sheer misery possible.
    Murmuring reassurance in a soft, feminine voice, the medic treating him tugged at his right shoulder.
    Mark half opened his eyes to see the woman, preparing to tell her with a blistering string of profanity to let him die in peace. But even through the dizziness and nausea, he was startled to see Sandy, not a Sectors medic. Pressing an inject to his bicep, she said, “I hope when you regain consciousness next time, these symptoms have worn off. I don’t think you were as good a candidate for Traveling as Lajollae thought.”
    Vague memories surfacing, he said, “What happened? All I remember is breaking the globe and then a whole lot of hot wind—like being in a sandstorm.”  
    “Exactly,” she said, pushing him to recline. “Now rest.”
    Before he could continue the conversation, the injection she’d given him took effect, and the world lost focus as he spiraled into unconsciousness.

    As Mark passed out under the influence of the medication, he sighed and rolled onto his side. Sandy studied his face, noting that he appeared younger now that he wasn’t consciously worrying about their safety. She pushed the glossy brown hair out of his eyes. “Hardly regulation, soldier,” she murmured.  
    Pulling the stolen Kliin coat serving as a blanket higher on his body, she watched him for a moment, assessing his condition. When he continued to sleep, snoring a bit, she slid off the dais, or bed, or whatever the piece of furniture might be, and took his blaster from the spot she’d arbitrarily designated as the foot. “It’ll be hours before you wake again and we can compare notes,” she said to his sleeping form. “I’m not going to sit here and watch you breathe. Time to find out where we’ve landed and what we’re facing.”
    His blaster was surprisingly substantial in her hand. The weapon had a dull finish, nothing to attract the eye, and seemed fairly simple to operate, although she’d never fired one and had no true idea of the process. Did blasters have safety mechanisms? She studied the buttons on the grip for a moment. “Not testing this in here,” she said out loud, mostly to dispel the eerie quiet.  
    She had no pockets in her evening gown, no belt, so she carried the blaster as she walked from the chamber where she’d dragged Mark. After they’d arrived it became clear how severely incapacitated he’d was as a result of their traveling. He’d been able to stagger most of the way, leaning on her, although she’d had to speak sharply to get him to cooperate.
    She retraced their steps now and studied the arrival point, not planning to go too near. Who knew how Lajollae’s magic or technology worked? Sandy didn’t intend to travel again and certainly not without Mark. A circular platform denoted the arrival spot, dark black stone veined with iridescent accents. Opal maybe. What interested her right now was the pedestal set into the stone floor next to it. The column was plain black stone, but the top had been carved into the representation of a three-horned animal with a long, graceful face and huge eyes. Two necklaces hung from the outermost horns. When they’d arrived, the place had been cold, pitch black. Mark had been suffering convulsions, and she’d been terrified. Rubbing her arm as she relived those moments, Sandy shivered, although the ambient temperature now hovered in the comfortable range. Trying to locate her bag or his by touch after landing, she’d brushed against the necklaces, and like magic, the lights had come on and the room had warmed.
    Thankful for small mercies in a mad adventure, she’d prioritized Mark’s situation, but now the necklaces drew her. Not liking the utter silence, she spoke aloud. “Keys maybe?”  
    The chain on the one closer to her was a simple set of gold links from which hung a translucent, lavender rectangle incised with tiny characters completely unfamiliar to her. There were cutouts in the stone at