Delivered by the Defender (Kindred Tales)

“You liked? You had a good time?” the Ma’shorkan on the pier asked, as he helped them off and took their vests.

“It was wonderful!” Selena gushed, smiling at him. “I’ve never done anything like that—I loved it!”

“Ah, you’re a brave little Mistress, so you are!” He nodded in approval. “So many females, they scream and they cry to come back to shore the minute Sahsha starts her diving. But you—you just keep going! Just keep riding!”

“I loved it,” Selena repeated, grinning. “I’ll never forget it.”

“Maybe you’d like to give Sahsha a treat, then?” the rider asked, smiling at them. “She likes a little tip now and then—we sell sholah fish, if you want to feed her one.”

“Oh, can we?” Selena looked up at Valen hopefully. “I mean, if it doesn’t cost too much…”

He grinned at her.

“Of course, little one—if you want to.”

“Oh, I do—please!”

Valen gave the Ma’shorkan on the pier more money and the man opened a large, insulated trunk filled with gleaming silver fish as long as Selena’s entire arm.

“Oh, they kind of look like giant sardines,” she remarked, selecting one and picking it up by its fan-like tail, as the Ma’shorkan showed her. “How do I feed it to her?” she asked, walking back to the edge of the pier.

“I’ll tell her she gets a tip,” the rider said, answering her question. “Sahsha will open her mouth and you just drop it on in. You ready?”

“Yes.” Selena nodded eagerly. “Tell her to open up!”

“Sahsha! You got a tip!” the rider bellowed. As he spoke, he manipulated the reins again and leaned forward.

After a moment, an enormous snout poked itself out of the water. And then a vast maw opened, showing multiple, circular rows of shining silver teeth as long as knives.

“Oh my God—it’s like staring down into the Sarlacc pit!” Selena muttered to herself, craning her neck to see more. She wondered if the enormous glave would even taste the fish in her hand. It seemed quite large to her, but it really was like a sardine to Sahsha.

“Be careful, little one—you’re leaning out a bit too far.” Valen’s voice behind her sounded worried. He put his hands on her waist, steadying her. “All right—feed the damned thing her ‘tip’—just don’t jump in yourself.”

“Don’t worry—I have no wish to jump into that,” Selena promised him. But she liked the feeling of his big, warm hands steadying her as she leaned out over the water and dropped the long silver fish into the vast mouth.

When the fish hit her tongue—which was a mottled dark blue and as big as a car—Sahsha made a deep, bell-like gong that seemed to come from somewhere inside her. Then she closed her enormous mouth again and sank back below the surface of the water in apparent satisfaction.

“There you go!” the Ma’shorkan man on the pier said, smiling. “Now you can tell everyone back home you rode and fed the biggest predator on all of Ma’shorka Centra!”

“Oh, I didn’t know she was a predator!” Selena murmured. Though with teeth like that, what else could the glave be?

“Have you had enough excitement for one afternoon?” Valen asked, smiling down at her. “Had enough of the beach?”

“Oh, is it time to go home now?” Selena couldn’t help being a bit disappointed. “Couldn’t we hang around a little bit longer?”

“I’m afraid not. If we do, we’ll miss our reservation,” Valen told her.

“Reservation? Where?” Selena asked, looking up at him.

But he only shook his head mysteriously.

“You’ll see, little one. Come on.” And, taking her hand, he led her down to the end of the pier.

Selena wondered what in the world he had in store for her next.

39

There were huge drying machines at the end of the pier—giant boxes you could actually stand inside while gusts of hot wind buffeted you until you were completely dry. They got inside one and Selena laughed as her hair flew up like she was in a hurricane. It reminded her of the bathroom at the spaceport, only much nicer.

“Now, where are we going?” she asked, when they finally stepped out. “And are we going to go home and change first? I mean, we can’t go to a restaurant dressed like this, right?” She nodded down at her revealing beach harness and blushed a little bit.

“No change of clothes will be necessary—you’ll see,” Valen said, smiling. “Come along—it’s further up the beach.”

He took her hand again and refused to answer, even though Selena peppered him with questions as they walked along.

Just as she was finally giving up on asking where they were going next, they came to a holo-sign that said, “Mountain Lift.”

“This way.” Valen tugged her past the sign, down a long path that led from the beach, onto a wooden boardwalk made of the same faded lavender wood as the pier.

“But where are we going? Are we going up the mountain?” Selena gestured at the tall peak rising right behind the beach. It was enormous—towering above them like a slumbering giant with a white nightcap on.