'Kaanyr!' Aliisza cried out as she struggled to where her son lay panting. 'Leave him alone!' she growled as she hovered over him protectively.
'You see?' Vhok said, feeling anger rise. 'That's what I'm talking about, lover. Always more worried about them than me. I sure won't miss that.'
Then he bent down and looked her squarely in the eye. 'Would you sacrifice yourself, use the last of your 'immeasurable power,' to strike the killing blow on me right now? Do you even have anything left to expend?'
Aliisza returned his gaze with a hateful glare. 'Yes,' she said in a voice barely above a whisper. She reached one hand up toward him. 'Come here and let me show-' The strain of her effort sent her into another coughing fit, and she crumpled down again atop Kael.
'That's what I thought,' Vhok said, rising again. He saluted the four of them with his blade, eager to get out of there before Aliisza decided to try again to unleash her fury at him. He truly didn't want to have to be the one to kill her. 'It's been grand,' he said, then he turned and departed.
It was, for a brief moment, very hard not to turn and look back at Aliisza one last time.
CHAPTER TEN
Aliisza remained draped over Kael for several long moments. The agony of Kaanyr's words washed through her over and over again, mingling with the physical pain of her dying body. During all the years she had been his consort and his lieutenant, she had known he might turn on her one day. She had never imagined it could hurt so much.
The prophetic words of a conversation, spoken long before and in a very distant place, came unbidden into her mind. 'It's dangerous, caring for others,' she had said at the time. 'You leave yourself open to… to pain.'
'Yes,' Tauran had replied so long ago. 'It is hard to care for others, because you give something of yourself in the process. And you fear that it will come back to injure you if you let it. Everything we do in life, we do out of fear. Fear of betrayal; fear of pain. In the end, those fears materialize despite our efforts.'
'Despite our efforts,' she repeated, fighting the tears as she buried her face in her hands atop Kael's chest. I've tried it both Kaanyr's way and Tauran's, and despite everything, this is how it ends. In pain and misery. Why did I bother? That had been her reply so long ago, too, when she and Tauran had discussed the vulnerability of caring in that enchanted garden.
She repeated the question aloud. 'Why bother living at all? How does making myself vulnerable change anything? It only makes it worse!'
She felt a cool touch upon the back of her neck. She started, at first fearing that Kaanyr had returned, but his touch had always burned with his inner fiendish fire. She shifted around as best as she could and found Zasian kneeling next to her.
'You're hurt,' he said. He shifted his hand to her forehead, then blessed comfort poured into her. The pain in her gut faded somewhat, and she felt renewed strength return to her limbs.
Zasian looked pained as he withdrew his hand. 'You're dying,' he said simply. 'But not yet. I've helped.'
Aliisza looked back at the priest and smiled. 'Thank you,' she said. Such kindness from…
Zasian sat still and stared beyond her, at nothing.
'You called me your son,' Kael said.
Aliisza blinked and sat up. 'What?' she asked, sniffing and wiping her eyes.
'When you first arrived,' Kael answered. 'You told that thing'-the half-drow jerked his head in the direction of the gorilla-demon-'to 'get away from my son!' You've never called me that before.'
Aliisza shook her head. 'So? I don't understand.'
'I think he's trying to answer your question,' Tauran said, his voice very weak. 'It's why you-why all of us- bother.'
'Exactly,' Kael said. 'I'm sorry for what Vhok said to you. He's a fool. I'm proud to have you as a mother.'
Aliisza smiled faintly. Kael smiled back, and gladness welled up inside her, pushing aside some of the hurt Kaanyr had inflicted upon her. He's my son, she beamed. And he's proud of it.
But they were still doomed. Kaanyr had made good on his promise to punish Tauran and Kael for their manipulations. He was free, and they were all trapped, dying in a deep hole in the ground.
'How could you do that?' Aliisza demanded, turning to where the angel panted, his eyes closed. His blond curls lay plastered against his pale skin, soaked in sweat. He looked terrible. 'How could you free him like that? You've just sealed our fates,' she said, anguish welling up once more.
'I had no choice,' Tauran replied. 'I gave him my word. A guarantee of my own well-being was not part of the bargain.'
'Tauran, that's insane!' Kael said from across the room. 'Surely there was some way you could have maintained the letter of the agreement a little longer. Are you that ready to die?'
'Death may be a blessing for me after everything that's happened,' Tauran murmured. 'The demons will not slay me for a long time, if they can help it.'
'No,' Aliisza said, fighting to control her emotions. 'I won't let that happen.'
Tuaran opened his eyes and looked at her. 'I welcome whatever intervention you wish to provide, but it is as Kaanyr said. Where are we to go?'
'We can still try, damn you!' Kael said. 'If you just want to lie there and wait for them to come for you, then you're not the creature I believed in. That's not the Tauran I know.'
Tauran closed his eyes again and sighed wearily. 'Would that I could still be that person for you, my friend. But too much has been lost. I cannot muster the strength or will to continue the fight.'
'Nonsense,' Aliisza said, rising to her feet. 'That's this place talking. You're succumbing to it.' She tried to adapt a brusque, practical tone, but inside, she fought to avoid falling apart. Kaanyr had everything he wanted, had every advantage. And he had been right; they were all liabilities.
Maybe he'll come to his senses, she hoped. Maybe he'll reconsider. Then that false hope vanished. She knew nothing would change the cambion's mind. He had been through too much. Too much suffering, too much humiliation. He intended to extract a heavy toll from everyone who had gotten in his way, everyone who had thwarted even a tiny bit of his ambition. The four of them would be nothing, trying to stand against him.
Something inside Aliisza resolved itself then. Something powerful, something that had lain in wait for her to finally see the universe as it really was. Kaanyr's words had stuck with her. Would you sacrifice yourself? he had asked.
He's a fool, she realized. He will never understand. I'd rather die with these two by my side than waste another moment grieving over him.
Clarity had come.
Aliisza knew what she must do.
She knelt next to Kael and muttered a simple spell, touching the locking mechanism of his manacles as she did. An audible click accompanied the shackles coming apart and dropping from his wrists. A wave of pain shot through Aliisza's gut as her blue glow filled the cave, and she doubled over for a moment, gasping. When the discomfort subsided, she manipulated the spell a second time, freeing the knight's legs.
Kael stared at her. 'Is it bad?' he asked, and the gentle concern in his eyes warmed Aliisza's heart.
Aliisza smiled. 'No,' she lied. She reached out and caressed his face. 'I'm fine.'
The half-drow snorted. 'The Hells you are,' he said. 'You look like you're about to pass out.'
Aliisza shook her head and resumed her officious attitude. 'There's no time for worrying about me,' she replied. 'We've got to get Tauran free and out of here. This place is killing him.'
Kael stared at her for a moment, but then he nodded. 'I'll do it,' he said. 'Whatever you've got in mind, get started. Vhok won't be long in returning to finish his betrayal.'
Aliisza shuddered, hearing her son's words. He's not blaming me, she insisted. He's just right. Swallowing the guilt, she stood and headed toward the tunnel leading out. 'I'm going to find your weapons,' she said softly. 'I'll be back soon.' With that, she left them.
Kaanyr, she thought as she prowled along the passage, why did you do this to me? I did still love you, you
