"We will be free of this confined space soon enough, Morueme," Zasian replied.
As soon as Myshik had donned his armor, they resumed their travels. As if to prove the priest a prophet, they rounded a bend and discovered light seeping from the next turn ahead. Zasian quickened his pace and reached the opening of the tunnel. Stepping free of it, he took in the surroundings.
Much like at the other end, the trio stood within a narrow gorge of rich, dark wood rising up to either side of them. The trail continued out of sight ahead. Also similar to before, gray mist filled the air, casting a pall over the place. Unlike the moist air that hung within the House of the Triad, though, the mist was much more silvery.
Eventually the canyon walls began to drop away from the sides, until at last the priest and his companions stood upon what appeared to be a great ridge of the same woody landscape. Much of the ground was bare, but in spots, the same large, angled trees jutted from it. Lush green tangles of some sort of thick bracken covered other large stretches.
The ridge did not rise from some larger plain, however. Instead, it just fell away to either side, its edges seeming to grow steeper as it faded from view, making the whole thing round, like some gargantuan barrel. The crown of the ridge ran off both ahead of and behind them into the distance, eventually fading from sight into the pervasive silvery light. The narrow gorge from which they had ascended appeared as a crack in the surface behind them.
Zasian halted and took it in for a moment. He scanned the horizon in every direction, as far as he could see. I'm actually standing here, he thought, pleased. I'm actually standing on the World Tree. It is grander than even I could have imagined.
"What is this place?" Myshik asked, peering around in wonder.
"The World Tree," Zasian answered. "Or rather, a single branch of it."
"Where does it lead?" the half-dragon asked. "Why are we here?"
Zasian glanced at his companion, irked. Can't you even appreciate the grandeur of this place? Do you not grasp what a monumental moment this is? He shook his head in disgust. "It leads everywhere," the priest explained with a sigh. "And we are following it to get… elsewhere." He stared at the hobgoblin with a steady gaze, as if to say, Do you really wish to keep testing my patience?
Myshik returned the stare with displeasure, but he didn't press the issue further. Instead he asked, "Which way do we go?"
Zasian studied each direction before deciding on the path leading back alongside the crack. It seemed to him that the ridge grew larger in that direction, whereas the route in front of them became the slightest bit narrower. Without a word, he set out along that path.
The trio walked for some time, passing numerous thick, angled tree trunks. Zasian recognized them as other, smaller branches jutting from the larger one upon which they strolled. In some places, great fanlike expanses of green material as large as a ship's sails clung to them.
Ah, the priest realized, leaves. Magnificent, monumental leaves. Extraordinary!
They skirted large patches of undergrowth, and eventually, he recognized the dense, tangled vines as oversized clumps of moss.
Before long, unease replaced Zasian's elation. For a while, he thought it was simply a wariness of the unfamiliar place, or an expectation of encountering some hostile denizen of the tree, but eventually he knew it was something else entirely.
No wind blew and no sound reached the trio other than their own footsteps. The odd, silvery surroundings were utterly devoid of any noise, any hint of life.
I guess I keep thinking I should hear birds singing and breezes blowing through the leaves, he decided. On the other hand, he added wryly, I don't really think I want to see the bird that nests in this tree. Stifling the chuckle at his own grim joke, Zasian refocused his attention on the trail, the offshooting branches, and the moss. Many things could hide in those places, waiting to spring out and attack them.
The trio walked on in utter silence. The landscape never changed, although it was very clear to Zasian that the thickness of the branch upon which they hiked had grown considerably since they had set out. That observation convinced him that he had chosen the right way, and that they were, indeed, headed toward the trunk.
"Look," Myshik said, and Zasian glanced back at the half-dragon to see him pointing off into the distance, ahead and to one side.
Zasian peered into the silvery murk and spotted what the hobgoblin had noticed. A second great branch was just beginning to become visible, running at an angle and from a slightly higher plane such that it would most likely join with their own branch within a few more moments of walking.
Zasian nodded. "Yes, we draw ever closer to the nexus of the World Tree, to its trunk. Its branches spread throughout the Astral plane, connecting to every location in the cosmos."
"How will we know which new branch we will need to follow?" Myshik asked.
"Why, we'll have to hire a guide, of course," Zasian replied. "I'm certain we will run across a local inhabitant of the Tree very soon."
In another few moments, the trio neared the point where the two branches intersected, and Zasian smiled to himself. Ahead, right at the junction, he spotted clear evidence of habitation. A whole series of elevated structures, like children's tree houses, filled the branches rising up from the larger one. Ladders and bridges of rope hung between the different levels, making the whole place a tiny interconnected community.
As they grew closer to the small tree village, Zasian could make out the distinct forms of creatures. A small group of them were emerging from the mist and approaching the trio.
"Perfect," the priest said softly, still smiling in anticipation. "A welcoming committee."
Aliisza parried a strike from one of the hound archons trying to surround her and took another step back. The celestial warrior closed the gap and swung his sword at her again. Her foe wasn't trying to injure her. His attacks were slow, methodical, not designed to slip past her defenses so much as wear them down.
"Surrender," the archon said, raising his sword for another two-handed strike. "It's only a matter of time before you must. Save us all some aggravation."
Aliisza smiled and whipped her more delicate sword up and out to block his. The blow rang in the mists of the forest, and it sent a tingling up her arm, but she didn't let that show. Instead, she took another step back until she pressed against a tree. Out of the corner of her eye she saw two more archons closing in. They held a net between them.
Aliisza followed up her parry with a feint to the archon's knees, then used the space she had created to duck around the tree. She heard the creature's blade strike hard against the trunk, but she was already sprinting toward a fallen log with another clump of bushes, nearly as thick as she was tall, nestled against it.
The archons had relentlessly pursued her since she had become separated from Tauran and Kael. Kaanyr had gone off in his own direction, but the other three of them tried to remain together, closing ranks to defend themselves from the swarming onslaught of archons. They could not maintain their positions, though. The creatures utilized a clever tactic to divide them through rapid and repeated teleportation. They used their attacks to drive her to one side or another, then they popped into the area she had just vacated, becoming wedges, separating her from her allies. They were herding her away from her compatriots.
Once Aliisza had realized their intentions, she abandoned her efforts at staying near the other two and sprinted through the forest, ducking and weaving in haphazard directions to evade their attacks and confound their strategy. The new tactic prevented them from closing in on her initially, but they had the numbers necessary to surround her.
The alu nearly took to the air then, thinking to outrun the archons by winging her way into the canopy and beyond. She had gotten only a few feet off the ground when that innate sense of danger she sometimes experienced washed over her. She peered up into the trees and spotted devas awaiting her there.
Giving up on fleeing by wing, Aliisza returned to the
branch, where the archons continued to close in. Over and over, she managed to evade the creatures, but each desperate maneuver took her farther and farther away from her companions.
She no longer even heard the sounds of distant battle ringing through the misty forest to indicate where they might be.
She was alone in her fight.
Nothing you can do about it now, she chided herself. Find them later. If they're still standing.
"Surrender," the one chasing her demanded.
Aliisza did not turn around. She leaped and spread her wings. She glided over the low scrub brush and came to rest atop the fallen log. She turned to survey her pursuit.
The archon closest to her took one faltering step before drawing up at the edge of the scrub. He eyed the greenery as if considering how best to get past it, then he shrugged and blinked out of existence.
Aliisza had anticipated his tactic, and when he appeared next to her atop the log, she muttered a quick arcane phrase and looked away. A flare of magical light flashed right upon the tip of the archon's nose. He yipped in surprise and flinched, falling backward. He swatted at the afterimages dazzling him, but Aliisza was already moving away.
She sprinted the length of the log and leaped, spreading her wings to soar over the other archons closing in. The pair with the net tried to unfurl their rope trap in time to throw it up and over the alu, but she lunged past them and glided to the ground on the far side.
Her newfound freedom didn't last long. Once again, the archons materialized ahead of her, cutting her off. No matter which way she turned, they appeared there. It was maddening.
Can't outrun them, she decided. Got to outsmart them. Got to hide, slip away.
Aliisza turned to sprint in yet another direction, aiming for a small draw between two large and rather prominent trees. Her sense of foreboding warned her that something menaced her from above the hollow, but she ignored the sensation. If she executed her plan well enough, she might be able to slip away undetected.
The alu darted into the shallow depression and flourished one hand in the air as she uttered a magical phrase. A cloud of mist arose, thickening into an impenetrable veil that obscured Aliisza from everything around her.
In the next breath, she reached within her tunic and pulled out two different bits of material needed for another pair of spells. The first one, a small lump of a sticky substance, she squeezed between her thumb and forefinger as she verbalized the magic needed to render herself completely invisible.
Once she had vanished, she took the second one, a small fragment of fleece, and tossed it to the ground near one of the two trees. Instantly, an image of herself appeared. The illusory version of the alu crouched down next to the bole of the tree as though hiding.
Satisfied, Aliisza turned and pushed herself up from the ground as quietly as she could and spread her wings wide. Just as she was rising from the thick, cloaking mists in which she had hidden, the first of the archons drew near. With one last mental command, the alu sent her illusory image aloft, causing it to wing its way in the opposite direction from her own path. The mirage version of the half-fiend appeared from within the mists and shot forward.
The closest archon gave a shout and pointed, and other celestial warriors took up the pursuit. Giving a small, silent sigh of relief, Aliisza flew away.
She hadn't made it twenty feet before she became visible again.
Above and slightly behind her, a commanding voice yelled, "Here! She's trying to sneak away!"
Cursing, Aliisza glanced up and spotted one of the angels swooping toward her. He was pointing at her and motioning for the archons to pick up their pursuit again. A heartbeat later, several of the archons appeared nearby, teleporting into positions to surround her once more.
Aliisza cursed again and drew up into a hover. She spun and flew straight at the deva, hoping to catch him off guard.
You're not taking me back there, she swore. Not so you can play mind games with me.
The deva, who wore his golden hair trimmed short, started at the sight of the alu rushing at him. Aliisza thought she might have stunned him enough to feign an attack and zip away, but the angel recovered and opened his mouth to speak.
The next thing Aliisza remembered was spinning dizzily as she fell to the ground. Her ears rang and she could not orient herself so that up was up. She struck the soft forest floor with a jarring exhalation and bounced across it until she finally came to a stop. She lay there, gasping for air.
A pair of archons appeared near her and began to unfurl their net. "Surrender," one of them said dispassionately as he worked to envelop her within the confines of his snare. "It's pointless to keep fleeing. You cannot get away."
To the Hells with you, Aliisza thought, but she had no strength to resist.
Two more archons gathered around her and the deva joined them. As a group, they stretched the net out over Aliisza and pinned her to the ground.
"This doesn't have to be painful," the deva said, and he smiled at her. "We're not trying to kill you. But there are laws here, and you must obey them."
"Rot in the lowest levels of the Abyss," she snarled. "I came willingly before and had the word of one of your own that I was free to go whenever I chose. So don't lecture me about breaking laws!"
"Tauran was not in a position to-"
The deva's sentence died in his throat as Kael dropped to the ground next to him. The flat of the half-drow's blade crashed hard against the back of the angel's head and sent him staggering forward, where he collided with one of the archons holding the net down.
"Get out of here!" Kael shouted, spinning to smack another of the celestial warriors with his weapon. "Now!"
Aliisza stared at the sight of her son waging furious combat with the three archons still surrounding her. He flowed from one stance to another like a dancer, all grace and balance, shifting with the weight of his sword. Even attacking to stun rather than kill, he wielded the sword with exacting precision. The archons were no match for him, but as soon as one was put down, two more appeared.
"Go!" Kael shouted. "I can't do this all day!"
Recollecting her wits, Aliisza tried to wriggle herself free from the netting, but the archons devoted at least a small part of their attention to standing on the snare, keeping her pinned down.
Fine, she decided. There are other ways to depart.
She summoned one of her magical doors beneath herself and slipped through it. Acting as much on instinct as reason, the alu positioned the other end of the magical portal near the corpse of Tekthyrios. Aliisza tumbled through the opening and sprawled upon the loamy earth, hoping none of her pursuers were nearby. When she heard no immediate shouts of discovery close to her, the half-fiend gingerly crawled to the storm dragon's body, seeking a place to hide.
One of the dragon's wings was cocked at such an angle that Aliisza could squeeze under it and nestle up against the impaled beast's body. She slunk into the hiding place and collapsed, still suffering the residual effects of the deva's divine attack. She closed her eyes and sat still for a few moments to allow the last vestiges of dizziness to leave her.
The forest was quiet, though she could discern the sounds of battle continuing in the distance. Aliisza wondered if it was Kael in the midst of that, or Tauran.
It's certainly not Kaanyr, she decided with a grimace. He took off like a roc when Tauran gave the word. He's halfway to Sundabar by now.
The alu sighed and settled back, wondering how long she would be safe where she hid.
What difference does it make? she thought ruefully. Without Tauran here, I have no idea how to get out or where to go. I'll find no friends, either.
Feeling a little bit sorry tor herself, Aliisza tried to relax and wait. Tired, aching muscles reminded her of the harsh fight she had endured against the archons. She wanted more than anything to sleep for a short while, but her worries about being caught kept her on edge, unable to give in to her weariness.
Despite her angst, Alii
sza must have drifted off for a least a few moments, for the next thing she knew she was startled awake by a noise. She jerked forward, then remembered her situation and froze, listening for the sounds of discovery. Whatever had roused her did not come for her in her hiding place, but she could clearly hear something rummaging around near her concealment.
She peered from deep within the shadow of her secret lair but saw nothing. Worried about capture but hating not knowing what was out there even more, Aliisza moved to get a better look. Very slowly, she inched her way forward to the edge of the hollow until she could widen her view.
A pair of hound archons worked nearby, gathering the bodies of the humanoids that had been slain alongside Tekthyrios. The two creatures seemed to be stacking them, perhaps for some form of funeral pyre or similar last rites.
As she studied them, several more arrived in the clearing, appearing magically. The creatures spoke to one another as they worked, but their words were too soft to be understood.
How long before they decide to do something about this dragon? Aliisza wondered. I can't stay here.
But there was nowhere for the alu to flee, at least not yet. A far greater number of the archons were unaccounted for, most likely still roaming the forest around the clearing. And regardless, she had no clue where any of her companions might be.
Careful to remain quiet, Aliisza crept back into the depths of her hiding place and waited. She continued to watch the work being done beyond her shadowy enclave as the celestial warriors passed in front of her field of vision.
Eventually, it grew dark. The warriors never bothered to light lamps or torches, and as Aliisza watched, it became clear that they could see perfectly well without the need for such illumination.
So much for sneaking out under cover of darkness, the alu thought. What a wretched mess this has become.
Aliisza remained huddled in her secret sanctuary. She hoped the angels and their soldiers would eventually move on or settle in for the night and she could find the means to slip away undetected. She dozed from time to time, but always some noise, some shout or shuffling near her spot, jerked her awake again, heart thumping rapidly. Each time she would curse her circumstances, but the celestial warriors were still hard at work, moving around the clearing.
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