Not until far past the halfway point did he
look up from the stone in front of him. Misunderstanding, she pointed
again.
'Put down your arm,' he said in guarded tones. Soon he stood on
the parapet beside her, and only then looked out at the lowering sky.
The girl spoke.
'It's Skither.'
'No. It's not.'
'Then who?' He shook his head.
Soon she too could see that it was not the mantis they had known. It
was smaller, and flew with greater speed but less grace. Also, the feel
of it was different. It was very close now, perhaps a mile off, and
though it struggled in a growing tail-wind, its wing-plates ruffling
badly, it seemed determined not to rest until it had reached the
mountain, where clearly now it was heading. Finally it crossed the
gorge and landed roughly on the ledge, its brownish-green armor looking
unnatural against the stone and snow. Kalus, whose tracks showed
plainly about the entrance, set his jaw and said nothing. Akar limped
out of the enclosure and stood between them, studying the young mantis.
It remained motionless, head down and breath coming hard, oblivious to
anything but its own fatigue. Finally raising its head, it studied the
tracks briefly, then turned towards the three of them with no outward
sign of surprise. At length it raised an unsteady foreclaw and signaled
someone, apparently Kalus, to come down.
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