both had followed the cambion to the food when Kaanyr posed his question. She halted on the verge of pouring a flagon of chilled wine.
'Why? What would that accomplish?' Tauran asked, motioning for them to continue. 'They have no reason to be suspicious of us, nor we of them. This is all just a precaution, I tell you.'
'How can you be so certain?' Kaanyr asked, eyeing his food. 'You can be too trusting.'
'I agree,' Aliisza said, still holding the wine and empty goblet. 'What if this brief detention is nothing but an excuse to keep us here until Micus can come and subdue us? We're trapped in this room.'
Tauran shrugged and moved to one of the couches. He sank down and reclined, closing his eyes. 'Though Mystra holds sway here, many outsiders travel to Dweomerheart to conduct trade. Whatever else motivates her, Mystra benefits when that trade, particularly in all things magical, is lucrative. It's hard to entice travelers to stop over when you make a habit of seizing them off the streets and incarcerating them for questioning.'
'That proves my point all the more,' Kaanyr argued. 'This is too unusual. They have brought us here specifically because of who we are. For all we know, Micus is behind it and will come through that door in a matter of moments.'
'Exactly,' Aliisza said. 'It feels like a set up.' She sniffed the wine in the pitcher but could detect no taint upon it. That doesn't mean anything, she thought.
Tauran didn't open his eyes. 'Suit yourselves,' he said, 'but I know the angels here. They are aware of the disaster within the House and they are just being cautious. They don't want a faction war spilling over into Dweomerheart. Micus is not part of this.'
'What about Zasian?' Kael asked. 'Perhaps he has put something in place to stall us, trap us. This could be his doing.'
Tauran did sit up then. 'Perhaps,' he admitted, though he sounded doubtful. 'But we stopped chasing him to come here. Besides, why would he do that if he did know? He went to all that trouble to lay a trail for us. Why would he do that just to get rid of us here? That makes little sense.'
Kael frowned then finally nodded. 'I suppose you're right,' he said, and he began to prepare a platter with some of the meat and mushrooms.
Kaanyr examined his impromptu selection a moment more, then he, too, shrugged and took a healthy bite. 'I guess we'll see,' he said, his words barely intelligible around the wad of food in his mouth.
Aliisza watched the two men eat, but still she hesitated. If something was going to happen to them, she wanted to be able to react and not succumb to any reagents in the food. Neither Kael nor Kaanyr paid any attention to the alu as they wolfed down the first hearty meal either of them had enjoyed in quite some time.
After waiting several moments and seeing no adverse effects in either of her companions, Aliisza could not stand it any longer. She poured herself some of the chilled wine and sampled it. It was delicious. She grabbed a plate and started in on a piece of poached fish. The stuff practically dissolved in her mouth, it was so tender and moist. She grabbed a clump of fresh, pinkish berries she had never seen before and spied a platter of some sort of glazed pastries. Her stomach rumbling loudly, Aliisza took her meal over to one of the sedans, sank into it, and began eating.
The food tasted every bit as good as it had smelled. The berries were slightly tart and had a hint of honey to them, and the pastries were decadent. The alu gorged herself on all of it. Kael and Kaanyr both went back and piled their plates high a second time, and Tauran even overcame his apparent exhaustion long enough to sample the spread. No one said anything for quite some time as they all preoccupied themselves with bite after bite.
Eventually, feeling sated, Aliisza set her own plate aside and stretched out on the sedan she had chosen. She grew worried once more that they had walked into a trap of some sort. 'It is taking them a long time to come speak with us,' she said, resting her head against the armrest. 'I still think this could be an ambush.'
'I think they must be dealing with a lot of visitors,' Tauran replied, his voice sounding vacant.
Aliisza glanced over to the angel and saw that he reclined again on the couch where he had been eating, his eyes closed. 'Someone ought to stay awake, keep watch,' she suggested, but her eyelids were drooping. 'We don't want to get caught off guard.' She thought briefly how it odd it was that none of her companions answered her, but it didn't really matter. All she wanted to do was sleep.
Kaanyr jerked awake. The lighting was dim, and for a moment, he lost track of where he was. Then he took in his companions, all sleeping soundly on various couches, and it came back to him.
The cambion sat up and peered around. Had something startled him? Had someone come to visit them while they had been out? Or had he simply been dreaming? He couldn't shake the feeling that something had happened, but there was no one else in the room.
How long have we been sleeping? Kaanyr wondered. He remembered seeing an ornate and elaborate candelabra resting on the side table where the food was. He turned toward it and stopped dead in his tracks.
All of the food had been cleared.
Kaanyr reached for his sword, only to remember that he had been forced to leave it behind when Aliisza had rescued him. He slipped his daggers free of their scabbards and scanned the room again. When he was certain there was no one in the chamber, he relaxed slightly and moved to the table. The candelabra was still there, and the candles had burned low. A good amount of time had passed since they had arrived.
That could be a lie, he thought. Whoever came in here and cleared the dishes might have swapped the candles.
Suspicious of why none of them had awakened at the intrusion, Kaanyr decided to investigate beyond the door. He slipped silently across the floor and pressed his ear against the portal, listening.
When he heard no sounds from the other side, he slipped the heavy wooden door open a tiny bit and peered out through the crack. A pair of bobbing, weaving globes of light flitted around just outside. Kaanyr knew they were lantern archons, the spiritual essences of those who had come to Dweomerheart after death and who served in various capacities. They did not seem to react to his presence, so he watched them long enough to confirm that they were deliberately positioned at that particular door.
Guarding us, he realized. The cambion pressed the door closed again and frowned in thought. They aren't powerful enough to stop me from leaving, but it would only take them a moment to summon others. Very clever.
Kaanyr scanned the room again, checking on his companions. Each of them was still in a calm, deep sleep. His gaze fell upon Tauran.
He didn't specifically tell me I couldn't go, Kaanyr thought, trying to justify the act of leaving and avoid the trap of the magical coercion. And sneaking out in order to gather information might be crucial to our plan to stop Zasian, he added, smiling to himself in the dimness of the room. Yes, he decided, a perfect justification. We can all play the game, angel.
Satisfied that he had mentally created a loophole that would allow him to slip away, Kaanyr considered how best to execute his plan. He disliked the thought of leaving the others behind, particularly Aliisza. His gaze swept over her. She seemed so at peace where she slept, he almost wanted to go to her, wake her, and get her to come with him. But the feeling of betrayal still lingered, and when he recalled its source, he started to get angry all over again.
He may be one of the four you love, the cambion silently fumed, but don't expect me to like it. He's a thrice- damned angel, for Hells' sake! You should know better. No, better to be alone right now, he decided. I'll have a better chance if I go by myself, anyway.
He wondered how sensitive the lantern archons would be to his presence if he chose to turn immaterial. Passing through the crack in the door in gaseous form would be a simple matter, but if the glowing spherical creatures had the ability to detect such magical tricks, he would be in trouble.
Noticing me and stopping me are two different things, the cambion decided.
Reaching into the folds of his tunic, Kaanyr produced one of the tiny glass vials wrapped in gauzy fabric that he used for his chosen spell and snapped it with his fingers. He murmured the arcane words to complete the incantation and felt himself transform, becoming an insubstantial cloud. He took a moment to adjust his senses then proceeded.
Settling to the floor, Kaanyr glided to the door. He inched his way forward until he was partially past the barrier, then he watched the archons. They never changed their random flitting or reacted to him in anyway. Satisfied that he went unnoticed, the cambion curled his form around the edge of the doorframe and sneaked away,
