The Realms of the Gods Read Online Free Page A

whirled to do the same to another Skinner. Half out of the earth, it dissolved.
    Five spots near them exploded as Skinners leaped free of the ground. Daine screamed. Numair reached to pull her closer, and discovered that someone else had thesame idea. Two pairs of hands clutched the girl by the arms, dragging her into a patch of air that burned silvery white.
    â€œNo!” shouted the mage, wrapping both arms around Daine. The phantom hands continued to pull.
    Sinking into white pain, Daine heard a man shriek, “Curse you, follow them! Follow, follow, FOLLOW!”
    Unseen by her or Numair, an inky shadow leaped free of the grass to wrap itself around her feet. Girl, man, and shadow vanished into bright air.

    Every inch of her throbbed. Hands gripped her; she fought. “The Skinners! They’ll kill Numair, they’ll kill the People, they’ll kill the crops! Let me go !”
    A female voice, one that she knew, said, “If she doesn’t rest, she won’t heal. He’s just as bad. Both keep fretting about those monsters.”
    â€œI’d best take care of it, then.” The second gravelly voice was even more familiar.
    â€œWhy?” The speaker was an unknown male. “Leave mortal affairs to mortals.”
    â€œNonsense,” barked the gravel voice. Whiskers tickled her face; a musky scent that she knew well filled her nose. “Listen, Daine. Numair is here, with you. He’s safe. I’ll fix those Skinners. I can handle them. Now rest, and stop fussing!”
    She sneezed. “All right, Badger.” If her old friend the badger god said that things would be taken care of, she could believe him, even if all this was only a dream.
    The woman’s voice was fading. “I’ll tell Numair.”
    The next time Daine woke, the pain gnawing at her had turned to a dull, steady ache. Cloth rustled nearby; the faint odor of sweet pea and woods lily filled her nose. Like the female voice she’d heard, she knew that scent well. She opened her eyes.
    A blurred face hung over her. Daine squinted, tryingto see. The face became clearer: blue eyes, a dimple at the corner of that smiling mouth, creamy skin, straight nose, high cheekbones. The whole was topped with a braided crown of heavy golden hair.
    In a second the girl forgot the last four years. She was twelve again, and in her bed in Galla. “Ma?” she croaked. “I dreamed you was dead.” With a frown, she corrected herself—she knew how to speak like cultured folk nowadays! “I dreamed you were dead.”
    Sarra Beneksri—Daine’s mother—laughed. “Sweet-ling, it was no dream. I am dead.”
    Some of Daine’s confusion faded. “Well, that’s all right, then.” She tried to sit up. “Where am I?”
    Sarra moved pillows to help her. “You’re in the realms of the gods.”
    Moving dizzied the girl. “How’d I get here ? And why do I hurt so?”
    â€œWe brought you. Sadly, passage between realms was fair hard for you. Here’s something to drink against the pain.”
    â€œTalk about familiar,” Daine grumbled, taking the offered cup. With each swallow, she felt an improvement; by the time she’d swallowed all of the liquid, her pain was nearly gone. “Your messes have gotten better,” she remarked with a grin.
    â€œIt’s the herbs here.” Sarra pinched Daine’s nose gently. “They’re stronger. Open your eyes wide.” She used her fingers to pull back Daine’s eyelids. “Where were you born?”
    â€œSnowsdale, in Galla. Why are you asking?”
    â€œTo see if your mind’s unhurt—though it being you, I wonder if I’ll be able to tell.”
    â€œMa!” squeaked Daine with laughing outrage.
    â€œHow old are you?”
    â€œSixteen.” Memory returned in a rush. “Where’s Numair? The Skinners—”
    Her mother stopped her from