Strange New Eyes

Chapter Nine - Child

The silence between them was as frigid as the air. Dunyasha broke it first. "So. You're just as bad as me?"

"You heard everything?"

"All of it. You two weren't exactly being quiet, were you?"

Aysel pulled the fur blanket they had given her closer around her shoulders. She was still dressed only in the red undershirt and wool trousers she had worn as a disguise, and while it was thick and long-sleeved, it wasn't near enough to keep her warm, even in the windless cave. "I meant what I said. You're a murderer, and now so am I. Nothing more to say."

"But there is more to say," Dunyasha said. She walked over, her bare feet padding on the stone, until she stood looming over her. She bent down until their faces were at the same height, her large jaw getting too close for comfort. Even though she knew Dunyasha wouldn't hurt her, Aysel's muscles involuntarily clenched with instinctual fear. "Thank you."

"What?" This hadn't been at all what she was expecting.

"Thank you." Aysel realized that the odd bend Dunyasha was doing was some sort of bow. "You saved my life, the life of my cousin, and the lives of many other innocents at great personal cost. I thank you for it."

Aysel said nothing. She buried her face in the blanket. Dunyasha had no idea how much that cost had been.

"I know you didn't do it for him," she continued, undeterred by Aysel's silence. "You don't need to tell me what Enrick promised you to get you to come along on this stupid trip, or sacrifice so much to protect him, but no matter the reasons, I think you did a good thing."

"How do you know?" Aysel asked, rising from her furs. "You're not exactly one to talk about good and evil."

"Maybe not," she said. She sat down next to Aysel, close enough to speak quietly to her but far enough away that there would be no chance of them touching. "I still feel it, you know. Every time I kill someone, it's like a little part of me dies with them. But I do what I have to do."

Aysel sighed. "I think we've already had this conversation."

"But we haven't had this one." Dunyasha cleared her throat. "Did I ever tell you I was a Reader?"

"No," Aysel said, confused. "I thought the reason Enrick was your leader was because he was the only Reader in your group."

"Not exactly. When I was a child, the last leader taught me, Enrick, and several other children how to read both smoke and symbols, to prepare us if we were chosen to lead as adults. I was the best at it," she said, her voice rising with the barest hint of pride. "And I looked forward to becoming leader and guiding my people. Enrick didn't care; he was only there because his father made him do it. But I really cared. When I was old enough, I started learning how to fight, because I knew I would have to protect my family as well."

"Protect them from Letters?" Aysel asked accusingly.

"Yes," Dunyasha answered cooly. "You already know that I was raised to hate and fear Letters. I was trained to kill them, too, ever since I was young. We all were. We thought that by going out and killing any Letters we found, we were protecting our families and our homes, but in reality, we were just murdering innocent people for no reason."

"We've had this conversation too," Aysel said. "You said you changed your mind when you had a child."

Surprisingly, Dunyasha laughed. The sound rang out loudly through the cave, bringing some life into it as it echoed off the walls. "I didn't say I had a child! I said a child changed my mind! Oh, Aysel, I love children, but as much as I'd like to have one of my own, the people I'm attracted to don't have the right parts for that."