Page 120 of Tiger's Trek
“Oh no!” Stacia cried.
Wispy clouds obscured her view, so Stacia put her hands on the rope, hoping to pull the little ermine back to safety, but when she tugged, something tugged back. She let go, not knowing what to do, and then tried again a moment later. This time, when she yanked on the rope, it was tighter. She pulled harder and found it was so tight it wouldn’t give at all.
“Belizna!” she called softly over the edge of the scaffolding, but she didn’t hear a squeak of any kind. She stood back, waiting for the clouds to clear a bit so she could jump, and kept herself occupied by thinking of how she’d apologize to Zakhar and Zima for killing their pet, if she herself should survive, when she saw the rope bouncing wildly. A moment later, the little ermine leaped up onto the scaffold and into Stacia’s arms, having climbed the rope on her own.
“You smart girl,” Stacia said.
The wispy clouds cleared then, and the tsarevna could see what the ermine had done. The rope had been secured to some rocks below. “Clever beastie,” she said. “Why don’t you ride down in my pocket, then?”
She put Belizna inside Father Frost’s cloak and then lifted one leg and then her second over the rail. Gripping the rope with both hands, she closed her eyes and prayed her sister wasn’t doing anything nearly as foolhardy or dangerous; then she leaped, wrapping her legs around the rope and sliding down two stories to the top of a mountain in an arena filled with thousands of spectators, wild tigers, and a stag so frightened he’d probably impale her the moment she came too close.
Thankfully, Belizna had wedged the rope between the mountain and a very large boulder. Unfortunately, what was strong enough to hold an ermine wasn’t always strong enough to hold a tsarevna. The rope gave way and came loose when she was just nearing the top. Stacia screamed as she careened out over nothing. Her boots came in contact with a boulder when she swung back, but her hands, which were now raw and blistered from sliding down, threatened to slip off at any second. She bounced and spun out a second time. The third time she was determined to make it meaningful and pushed on the boulder deliberately.
She got enough power behind the push to swing far enough out to kick herself back to safety, but the boulder shifted, and she knew it would fall. Desperately, she dropped the rope and grabbed on to the boulder, finding one handhold but slipping until her boots caught. Quickly, she climbed and leaped just as the boulder tumbled out from beneath her, rolling down the mountainside in a great tumble of rocks and debris.
Stacia!Iriko cried out.
I’m fine, she managed to tell him as she lay in an awkward position, panting. She heard a noise above her and saw the stag, leaping even higher, trying desperately to get away from the newcomer who had just destroyed his ledge of safety.
At least the polar bear fur acts as a nice cushion, she thought as she laid there, trying to assess her body for damage.
Polar bear fur?Iriko said.
I’ll tell you later.
She heard a noise and the sound of claws scraping rock. Scrambling to her feet, she whipped open her coat and pulled out the staff, elongating it and pushing the button that exposed the blade.
Twirling the staff, she held it at the ready, just as not one but three very hungry cats leaped onto the ledge. Stacia knew she stood between them and their dinner. A bit further down was Iriko, struggling up the side of the cliff.
Hold on, Red!he called.I’m coming!
At first Stacia thought she should try to talk to them, but one look in the tigers’ crazed eyes told her there would be no talking. The cream and gold tigers paced, mouths open, saliva dripping, but they didn’t pounce like Stacia expected. Instead, they moved aside, allowing the red tiger to approach.
She stalked toward Stacia, head lowered, her mouth wide, fangs exposed. When she growled, Stacia could feel the vibration in her own chest. Though she expected to feel fear at the sight of so monstrous a creature, especially one ready to pounce, one powerful enough to rip her to pieces, Stacia wasn’t frightened. Instead, she felt kinship. A sense of loyalty and respect. Much as she would when she worked with her soldiers.
She didn’t lower her weapon. Not yet. It was a sign of respect. It showed she knew the tiger was lethal. The other two tigers sat, one on either side. They were watchful. Not relaxed, but not on alert either. This battle was one that needed to be fought between the two of them.
The crowd began chanting, one voice surging into a roar of hundreds, then thousands as they picked up the refrain.
Kill.
Kill.
Kill!
Stacia could almost feel the thrum of bloodlust in the arena. The crowd’s appetite had been whetted. Once, when she’d been younger, a giant wild boar had become crazed, killing everything that crossed its path. When the soldiers finally managed to slay the raging animal in the forest outside the palace, they’d discovered it had smothered its own offspring, likely by accident.
She didn’t know what triggered most people into becoming brutal, but she’d learned something that day. The line was thin indeed. All it took was a simple push. A loss. A wound. A fear. An illness. Sometimes the only thing holding back the monster threatening to break free was an incredible self-will. One that was more powerful than the beast.
When the red tiger turned, Stacia turned with her, angling her body to mimic her movements. This went on for a few moments. Then, finally, the tiger’s fierce growl turned to a softer rumble in her chest, and she sat, keeping her eyes trained on the girl in front of her. Stacia pushed the button, hiding the blade inside the staff.
Finally, she spoke. “It was wrong of me to consider you a curse,” Stacia said. “I’ve missed you. I didn’t think that was possible.”
The rumble cut off, and the tiger lifted a paw and began licking the pad.
“I’ve made mistakes. Many of them. And I’m certain I’ll make more in the future. But I don’t consider you one of them. Iriko’s mother said you were blessings for her people. I don’t know much about that, but I do know there’s nothing a mother or a leader wouldn’t do for her children or her people.”
Stacia set down the staff as the tiger closely followed her movements.
