Othermoon (30 page)
Authors: Nina Berry
Her fiery orange hair, striped with black and white, wrapped around her in the breeze,
revealing a pale face nearly the twin of mine. She wore a long dress, green and gold
like her eyes, that looked like it was made out of interwoven leaves. The light from
the pool flickered up around her with an unearthly glow.
revealing a pale face nearly the twin of mine. She wore a long dress, green and gold
like her eyes, that looked like it was made out of interwoven leaves. The light from
the pool flickered up around her with an unearthly glow.
“It is time for you to come home,” she said.
“Mother.” My voice was a whisper. “You’re
not
my mother.”
not
my mother.”
The smile spread slowly across her face. “There’s nothing for you here anymore.”Her
voice was throaty, a growl. “Come back. We need you. We love you still.”
voice was throaty, a growl. “Come back. We need you. We love you still.”
There’s nothing for you here.
That was true. I’d failed everyone. Siku was dead, November devastated, Caleb gone.
That was true. I’d failed everyone. Siku was dead, November devastated, Caleb gone.
My biological mother held out her hand. “You have always wanted to know me. Throw
away the artifact we gave you, which now resembles a blade. Forsake it, and you may
cross over to be with your family again.”
away the artifact we gave you, which now resembles a blade. Forsake it, and you may
cross over to be with your family again.”
“The Shadow Blade?” I put my hand on its hilt, feeling the cool calm it emanated stealing
over me. “You gave it to me?”
over me. “You gave it to me?”
She nodded. “To keep you safe, we decided to send you across the veil. Morfael agreed
to take you. But we needed an item of power that would anchor you there until it was
safe for you to return. It takes on whatever form you need, but you need it no longer.
Morfael refuses to bring you back. Now is the time, daughter. Destroy or drop the
blade and come with me. We are in danger. Our world may not survive. Only you can
help us.”
to take you. But we needed an item of power that would anchor you there until it was
safe for you to return. It takes on whatever form you need, but you need it no longer.
Morfael refuses to bring you back. Now is the time, daughter. Destroy or drop the
blade and come with me. We are in danger. Our world may not survive. Only you can
help us.”
“Don’t believe her!” Lazar’s voice rolled out over the desert. He pounded up to halt
at my side, breath coming fast. “You don’t know who that really is, Dez. You can’t
trust her.”
at my side, breath coming fast. “You don’t know who that really is, Dez. You can’t
trust her.”
The woman in the pool laughed. “She knows me well. She called me here, where the veil
is thin. And I have answered. She is more powerful than she knows.”
is thin. And I have answered. She is more powerful than she knows.”
I couldn’t help staring at her—so like me and yet so different. Could I ever look
like that, sound like that��
be
like that? If I did, maybe I wouldn’t feel so small, so sad, such a terrible failure.
like that, sound like that��
be
like that? If I did, maybe I wouldn’t feel so small, so sad, such a terrible failure.
Lazar grabbed my face with one hand and turned it, forcing me to look at him. “Dez,
listen to me. You belong here. You’ve defeated Ximon. You’ve begun to unite the different
shifter tribes! We need you.”
listen to me. You belong here. You’ve defeated Ximon. You’ve begun to unite the different
shifter tribes! We need you.”
“Fool,” said my biological mother. “You may need her, but my daughter doesn’t need
you. She needs me. She needs her true family. Come, Sarangarel. You’ll find everything
you need here with me.”
you. She needs me. She needs her true family. Come, Sarangarel. You’ll find everything
you need here with me.”
Sarangarel
. “Is that my name?” I asked. She was right. I needed to know who I was. “What’s your
name?”
. “Is that my name?” I asked. She was right. I needed to know who I was. “What’s your
name?”
“
Dez!
” Lazar took me by the shoulders and shook me. “You can’t leave. Think about your
mother! Remember what this . . . thing did to her!”
Dez!
” Lazar took me by the shoulders and shook me. “You can’t leave. Think about your
mother! Remember what this . . . thing did to her!”
My mother.
Something in me snapped awake, as if the light from the other moon had sent me into
a dream.
a dream.
My mother had nearly died because of this woman. And now she stood there smiling,
expecting me to leave everything behind, for her.
expecting me to leave everything behind, for her.
Lazar’s brown eyes widened as he saw realization come to me. “That’s it. Remember?”
“I remember.” I turned to my so-called mother. “You used my mother like some kind
of puppet. You could have killed her.”
of puppet. You could have killed her.”
“
She
is not your mother.” Her arched brows frowned dangerously. The faint veins beneath
her pale skin darkened. “You are one of us. We are Amba, and we are at war. Will you
doom your true family to extinction?”
She
is not your mother.” Her arched brows frowned dangerously. The faint veins beneath
her pale skin darkened. “You are one of us. We are Amba, and we are at war. Will you
doom your true family to extinction?”
“I have family here,” I said. “This is my war. And I won’t let you endanger them again.
Go back!” I waved my hand at her, pushing my mind against the dark current of Othersphere
pressing in around me. “You don’t belong here.”
Go back!” I waved my hand at her, pushing my mind against the dark current of Othersphere
pressing in around me. “You don’t belong here.”
Lazar hummed a deep, disturbing note. My biological mother winced, a ripple of fear
crossing her face.
crossing her face.
The note alarmed me too. But I placed my hand on the Shadow Blade and leaned into
the vibration. I found something resonant inside me. “Get out of here!” I shouted.
“Begone! Go! I don’t want you here!”
the vibration. I found something resonant inside me. “Get out of here!” I shouted.
“Begone! Go! I don’t want you here!”
A cloud seemed to pass over the moon as the ambient light around us dimmed. The figure
in the pool writhed. “Look for me!” she cried. “I will send for you.”
in the pool writhed. “Look for me!” she cried. “I will send for you.”
Then she was gone.
I collapsed. I would have fallen completely, but Lazar fell to his knees to catch
me. “You’re here,” he said, his voice soft with happiness. “You stayed.”
me. “You’re here,” he said, his voice soft with happiness. “You stayed.”
He cradled me in his arms and pressed soft lips against my forehead like a benediction.
This time I didn’t pull away.
This time I didn’t pull away.
BEYOND THE STORY
THE TIGER
It is better to have lived one day as a tiger than a thousand years as a sheep.
—C
HINESE
PROVERB
HINESE
PROVERB
Imagine you’re a beautiful striped creature weighing 700 pounds and that you can move
in silence, sprint up to 50 mph, kill a bear with your paws, and crush bones with
your jaws. You live completely without fear and know how to hunt humans better than
they can hunt you. After all, tigers have attacked helicopters; they’ve charged cars.
They learn fast and will change tactics if the situation requires it. They know no
master, and when challenged, will annihilate the threat if they can.
in silence, sprint up to 50 mph, kill a bear with your paws, and crush bones with
your jaws. You live completely without fear and know how to hunt humans better than
they can hunt you. After all, tigers have attacked helicopters; they’ve charged cars.
They learn fast and will change tactics if the situation requires it. They know no
master, and when challenged, will annihilate the threat if they can.
Who wouldn’t want to know how it felt to be
that
?
that
?
But for me the tiger’s allure is more about being a badass. You see, tigers are never
insecure. Wearing a back brace during my teenage years was a recipe for squashing
down my feelings, for worrying that people would think I was a freak. We all know
how that feels in one way or another.
insecure. Wearing a back brace during my teenage years was a recipe for squashing
down my feelings, for worrying that people would think I was a freak. We all know
how that feels in one way or another.
But a tiger doesn’t care what you think of it. A tiger doesn’t have to follow rules
or repress its feelings. It follows its instincts without apology. If it hides, it
does so because hiding fits the tiger’s agenda, not because it is ashamed. Because
of all this, the tiger was the perfect animal for the self-doubting character Dez
to shift into. She and I have learned a lot from tigers.
or repress its feelings. It follows its instincts without apology. If it hides, it
does so because hiding fits the tiger’s agenda, not because it is ashamed. Because
of all this, the tiger was the perfect animal for the self-doubting character Dez
to shift into. She and I have learned a lot from tigers.
I came to care about these great cats even more when I learned they are critically
endangered in the wild. The tiger may be evolution’s ultimate predator, but it is
also terribly vulnerable to poachers and environmental changes. In an attempt to impart
my awe and love for these animals, I’ve compiled a few facts to share with you.
endangered in the wild. The tiger may be evolution’s ultimate predator, but it is
also terribly vulnerable to poachers and environmental changes. In an attempt to impart
my awe and love for these animals, I’ve compiled a few facts to share with you.
• The tiger is the largest species of cat. The Amur, aka Siberian, tiger (designated
Panthera tigris altaica
) is the largest of the five remaining tiger subspecies.
Panthera tigris altaica
) is the largest of the five remaining tiger subspecies.
• In the 1940s the Amur tiger was on the brink of extinction, with no more than 40
tigers remaining in the wild. Thanks to vigorous anti-poaching and other conservation
efforts by the Russians, with support from many partners, the Amur tiger population
recovered to its current numbers, close to 400.
tigers remaining in the wild. Thanks to vigorous anti-poaching and other conservation
efforts by the Russians, with support from many partners, the Amur tiger population
recovered to its current numbers, close to 400.
• With poachers still able to make up to $30,000 for a tiger carcass, the Amur tiger
and all other subspecies remain in grave danger of disappearing from the wild forever.
and all other subspecies remain in grave danger of disappearing from the wild forever.
• Tigers can weigh up to 720 pounds (363 kilograms), stretch up to 6 feet (2 meters)
long, and have a 3-foot- (1-meter-)long tail.
long, and have a 3-foot- (1-meter-)long tail.
• The mystacial whiskers on the tiger’s muzzle are so sensitive that they can detect
the slightest change of air pressure or help the tiger find the prey’s jugular vein.
the slightest change of air pressure or help the tiger find the prey’s jugular vein.
• Tigers see about as well as humans during the day, but at night their eyesight is
six times better than a human’s.
six times better than a human’s.
• Tigers hunt primarily at night.
• Each tiger has its own distinct pattern of stripes, like fingerprints on a human.
• The word tiger came from the Greek word tigris, which is derived from a Persian
word that means “arrow.” This is probably a reference to the tiger’s speed and deadliness
when attacking.
word that means “arrow.” This is probably a reference to the tiger’s speed and deadliness
when attacking.
• Fast as they are, tigers rely mostly on stealth to hunt. Their ability to vanish
and travel unseen, despite their size, is notorious among the people who live near
them.
and travel unseen, despite their size, is notorious among the people who live near
them.
A tiger will see you a hundred times before you see him once.
—A
SAYING IN THE
R
USSIAN
TAIGA
SAYING IN THE
R
USSIAN
TAIGA
• Humans may be easy prey, but tigers do not consider them a normal source of food.
Most man-eating tigers have been wounded by humans, or are old, infirm, or missing
teeth, which renders them incapable of eating their normal prey.
Most man-eating tigers have been wounded by humans, or are old, infirm, or missing
teeth, which renders them incapable of eating their normal prey.
• In 1997, a male Amur tiger was wounded by a poacher named Vladimir Markov. The tiger
then tracked Markov, found his cabin, destroyed everything containing his scent, laid
in wait for days, and assassinated him.
then tracked Markov, found his cabin, destroyed everything containing his scent, laid
in wait for days, and assassinated him.
Do not blame God for having created the tiger, but thank him for not having given
it wings.
it wings.
—I
NDIAN
PROVERB
NDIAN
PROVERB
• The illegal trade in wildlife is the third largest in the world, after drugs and
arms.
arms.
When you murder a tiger, you not only kill a strong and beautiful beast, you extinguish
a passionate soul.
a passionate soul.
—S
Y
M
ONTGOMERY
, in “Spell of the Tiger:
The Man-Eaters of Sundarbans,”
in the
Washington Post
Y
M
ONTGOMERY
, in “Spell of the Tiger:
The Man-Eaters of Sundarbans,”
in the
Washington Post
• To save tigers, we must save the places they live—Asia’s last great forests. These
incredibly diverse wild lands provide thousands of other species, including people,
with food, freshwater, and flood protection.
incredibly diverse wild lands provide thousands of other species, including people,
with food, freshwater, and flood protection.
• The tiger is the national animal of both India and Bangladesh.
When you see a tiger, it is always like a dream.
—K. U
LLAS
K
ARANTH
, director, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Indian Program
LLAS
K
ARANTH
, director, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Indian Program
• The Tungusic people of Siberia considered the tiger a near deity and refer to it
as “Grandfather” or “Old Man.”
as “Grandfather” or “Old Man.”
• In a poll conducted by Animal Planet, the tiger was voted the world’s favorite animal.
For more information, and to learn how to help preserve these animals in the wild,
visit:
visit:
KTEEN BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
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New York, NY 10018
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2013 Nina Berry
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
means without the prior written consent of the publisher, excepting brief quotes used
in reviews.
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in reviews.
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ISBN: 978-0-7582-7694-0
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