Guardian of the Storm by Kaitlyn O'Connor Read Free Book Online Page A

and eat. She discovered then that she’d underestimated the little grat’s determination. The long, coarse red hair that covered the animal blended surprisingly well with the dull red sand of Niah’s great desert as it flattened itself against the ground, but she saw it slink down the side of the dune behind them before flattening itself at the bottom of the shallow trough that separated the two dunes.
    Finding she’d lost her appetite at the reminder of how desperately starved the poor little thing was, Tempest casually tossed the remains of her meal over her shoulder.
    “She will continue to follow if you continue to feed her,” Kiran said without glancing at her, a frown of disapproval drawing his dark brows together.
    Tempest flushed, but there seemed no point in trying to deny that she’d just thrown the remains of her meal to the grat. “She’s hungry.”
    “She is a wild thing. She must learn to fend for herself, or die. It is the word of the Great One, Zoe.”
    Tempest glared at him, feeling, right or wrong, that it was a more personal comment than it had seemed, that he was referring to her, not just the grat. “So, only the strong are worthy of surviving?” she demanded tightly.
    Kiran nodded. “Destruction will follow disharmony. The strong live to create others of their kind of equal or greater strength. The weak die to replenish Niah. They do not breed others that are as weak or weaker.”
    The balance of nature it had been called on Earth, and Tempest was well aware from her studies that that law had proven true. Once the meteor had upset the balance, the entire ecosystem of Earth had crashed. It seemed odd to hear much the same from a being of another race on another world, but she supposed it was human conceit to believe the people were the only ones who could understand this immutable truth.
    All the same, and despite the fact that he’d made no reference to the people , she felt his comments were intended to remind her that the people had ignored the law and perished because of it. Or, perhaps, the fact that they’d all died had proven his point. Either way, she resented it on a very personal level, feeling that it was yet another jab at her own weakness, not just the weakness of the people in general.
    Stature didn’t ensure strength anymore than the lack of it implied inherent weakness. “Just because something appears weak, it doesn’t necessarily follow that it is,” she said tightly. “And I wouldn’t think this Zoe you talk about would consider it your decision to make. I expect he does his own deciding.”
    Kiran studied her a long moment. “She.”
    Tempest’s brows rose. “She?”
    “It is the female who gives life. The Great One, Zoe, naturally, is female. It is She who keeps the balance. She does not interfere and we are forbidden to interfere.”
    Tempest was still gaping at him in surprise when he stood, gathered his pack, and set off once more without another word. “The female does not just give life and abandon it!” she called after him. “She nurtures her young until it’s strong enough to fend for itself!”
    Kiran stopped abruptly and turned back to look at her in surprise. “You understand the way of Zoe?”
    Tempest gave him a look. Obviously the Niahians were as conceited in their knowledge as humans, certain no others could be as intelligent, or understand the things they understood. “I understand the nature of the female of the species … I am a woman, whatever you think.”
    Kiran’s lips tightened in annoyance. “You are still more child than woman or you would know what I think,” he growled, then turned away and started off once more.
    This time Tempest gaped blankly at his retreating back for a good two minutes before she shook off her surprise and trotted after him, more thoroughly confused than ever. Her inexperience must be more obvious than she’d thought, or maybe he only presumed she was inexperienced because he could tell she was young?