betrayed everything we stand for. And I grieve for him when he realizes it.'
'How are you certain Zasian came this way?' Kaanyr asked. The cambion trudged along behind Tauran, who was leading the group. Aliisza followed Kaanyr, and Kael brought up the rear.
As they hiked, the alu surveyed the surrounding terrain. To her, it seemed like they followed the crest of a great ridge that stretched on indefinitely in each direction, swallowed up in the odd, silvery haze that surrounded them. To either side, the ridge became a gentle slope dropping away. The path they followed passed through largely open ground, spotted in places with the occasional copse of trees or scrub. No sky showed through, nor any sense of the direction of the sun. Everything seemed isolated, enclosed in the mist.
'There are really only two ways they could have gone,' the angel said over his shoulder. 'And this path leads to other places. If we had followed the other direction, we would eventually find ourselves on the tip of this great branch, at a dead end.'
'How can you even be sure he walked?' the cambion retorted. 'For all we know, Zasian magically transported himself in an instant. I've seen the kind of divine power he wields. I know his methods.'
'For the same reason we can't just fly to where we want to go,' Tauran replied. 'It's too easy to get lost in the Astral plane if you leave the branches. The World Tree has bizarre properties; geography doesn't work on it the way you think it should. He didn't whisk himself away magically.'
'We never even determined who else was with Zasian when he passed from the House,' Kael said as he trudged along behind Aliisza. 'Those other sets of bootprints continued right into the passageway we took to escape. I checked.'
'You could see prints on the ground, in the dark, while running,' Aliisza said. It was more of an incredulous statement than a question.
She could hear the half-drow chuckle softly behind her. 'I inherited my father's eyes, too, you know,' he said. 'But the ground was very soft there, and it was easy to make out.'
'So who is it?' Aliisza asked.
'That is a question that will have to wait a while,' Tauran said. 'Until we catch up to Zasian.'
'The important thing to remember is that he has allies,' Kaanyr said. 'Wherever Zasian is going, he could accumulate even more. We must be on watch.'
'A fine point,' Tauran said. 'And one that we should…' The angel's voice trailed off and he slowed to a stop, a look of unease on his face.
The rest of the group caught up to him and peered where he stared into the gloom ahead. Aliisza could not make out much, but the air was filled with a cloud of gray, something slightly darker than the surrounding silver.
'What is that?' she asked.
'I don't know,' Tauran replied, still staring. 'But I fear it does not bode well for us.'
'We should not all approach it,' Kael said. 'It could be dangerous, or even a trap laid for us.'
'I'll scout it out,' Kaanyr said.
The offer caught Aliisza by surprise. She stole a look at her companion and noted that his expression seemed genuine. He was frowning as he stared at the smudge of blackness in the distance, but he sensed her stare and turned to look at her.
'What?' he asked. 'I can avoid being seen when I wish it. You know that.'
'Yes, of course. But since when have you volunteered to do anything around here?'
Kaanyr's smirk was fleeting. 'Since the three of you came back for me,' he said. At Aliisza's widening eyes, he added, 'I've come to figure that perhaps the best way to survive this escapade is to make sure it succeeds. Don't go thinking I'm getting all soft and caring, fool girl. I just don't want to spend the rest of my days trapped here.'
Tauran studied the cambion for a moment. 'Very well,' he said. 'Sneak up a little way and see what you can find out. But at the first sign of something dangerous, you slip away again and return. No exceptions.'
Kaanyr's smirk returned. 'Well, since you put it that way, I guess I have no choice, do I?' he said. 'I'll be back in a moment. Make yourselves comfortable.' With that, the cambion slipped away, quickly disappearing among the lush growth.
Kael led the three of them down into a partially concealed hollow surrounded by scrub brush and trees. He sat and pulled a bundle free of one of his satchels. He unpacked some dried meat from it and popped a chunk into his mouth. He held the bundle out to Tauran, but the angel just shook his head. Kael next proffered some of the meat to Aliisza. She took a couple of thick strips and nodded in thanks.
Tauran turned away and found an outcropping of rock. He plopped down on it and hunched over, placing his face in his hands. The weariness in his body made him wilt in the alu's eyes. He sat there unmoving for several moments.
'Rest, my friend,' Kael said, rising to his feet again. 'You've pushed yourself hard and need the respite.'
'I'll be fine,' Tauran mumbled. 'Everyone else is tired too.'
'Tauran, I mean it,' Kael said. 'The grief wears you down. I know. I've been there.'
Aliisza started when she heard that. She looked up at her son's face. What have you grieved for? she wondered. Me, perhaps? That thought strangely comforted her.
'Please,' Kael said. 'You're no good to us exhausted. I'll keep watch for a while.'
Tauran sighed. 'Very well, but only for a few moments. Wake me when Vhok returns.'
With that, the angel slid down from his rocky seat and stretched himself on the ground, using the stone for a pillow.
'I won't be far,' Kael said to Aliisza softly. 'I'll stay in sight. You can rest too, if you want.' He turned and climbed out of the little depression and walked a few paces out from it, where he proceeded to begin circumnavigating in a casual stroll.
Aliisza watched her son for a few moments, but his gaze seemed always outward, away from their hidden haven. He was an enigma to her, and one that piqued her curiosity in new ways every day. For what do you truly grieve? she pondered again.
Aliisza turned her attention to Tauran. The angel lay still, and the alu wondered for a moment if he actually slept, but just when she decided that he must be dozing, he sighed and shifted around. In his new position, Aliisza had a better look at his face, and what she saw wounded her. Lines furrowed his expression, and his eyes seemed clouded and watery. He stared at nothing, sadness radiating from him.
Aliisza got up and moved close to the deva. She knelt down next to him and took hold of his face. He raised it up to look at her, and she leaned forward to kiss him on the forehead.
'Aliisza, I can't-'
The alu placed her finger upon her lips. 'Shh,' she said softly. She guided his head toward her and urged him to place it upon her lap. 'Just rest,' she whispered. 'Close your eyes.'
She began to stroke the angel's head, then, twining her fingers in his golden locks. Occasionally she would run her hand down the back of his neck, squeezing gently in a reassuring way.
At first, Tauran lay rigid, his body stiff and his muscles corded. He couldn't seem to get comfortable. After a time, and with Aliisza's gentle caresses, he began to relax. He let out a series of small sighs, and his body seemed to melt into hers and into the ground. In another few moments, his breathing had become the slow and even exhalations of one asleep.
I can't begin to imagine what you've sacrificed for this, Aliisza thought. Or even why you would do it. Nothing can be worth that, can it?
Thoughts of the lessons he had tried to teach her, when she had been his prisoner, crossed Aliisza's mind. The only way to truly know love is to give in to it, she recalled. You have to be willing to expose yourself, make yourself vulnerable, to reap the rewards.
Whom do you love so much? Tyr? Is a god worth loving like that?
A pang of jealousy hit Aliisza. She wasn't sure why she would be jealous of Tauran's love for Tyr, but slowly, as she dug deeper into the emotion, she realized that she wanted the angel's love for herself.
Why not me? she thought. Am I any less deserving of that kind of devotion and dedication? At least I'm not some lofty, mysterious, obscure being no one understands, she sniffed.
And I would love you back, she silently told the angel. I would give you everything you ever wanted. Let's just
