"No, she doesn't," he agreed softly. That was something he'd brought up with Sam before, after all. The old gods might not share things so willingly either, but they also rarely asked for things out of the blue. 'Gather here,' 'destroy this,' 'kill them,' were not commands he had run into before with them. If others had he didn't know about it, but such tasks he knew of tended only to be given when asked for by the mortal praying, and then the point of them was often clear. He hated seeing his friends used like pawns, tools, soldiers for a purpose they didn't understand.
And, at least in Sam's case, didn't question - not to the Voice's face.
It was getting them nowhere, however, and talk of Kiada's quest was more imminent, overshadowing the questions of portals and deaths at least for the moment. "Likely," he agreed with a guilty sigh. "I would have made the same assumption at the time. We were both blighted when she told me of the quest... neither of us was at our best or thinking clearly, and by the time we improved we just... didn't think to question it." He was as much to blame for the oversight as the Harpy, and it made his failure to be enough for her even more wounding.
Not that he could speak to Rexanna of wounds right now, not with her blind eyes and broken ribs. "I suspect... it has something to do with the Spire," he said thoughtfully. "That, or the Underground. It would have to be someplace no natural light ever reaches, and those two places fit that description. Given the similarities to the Spire Demon and the connection to the Ascended, my guess is the Spire, but I've been in it several times since it was opened and haven't come across any sign of them." A mystery. A riddle. One he had worried over for a year without coming closer to the answer.
He started to smile at Rexanna's belief in Kiada, exhaling softly in fond agreement. "My greatest weakness is my inability to trust, I suppose. But... yes, I should trust her mo--" His words cut off abruptly as the room went dim, his lantern's light providing most of the remaining light, his eyes shifting immediately to his fox's gaze as he rose fluidly to his feet and looked around, invisible hackles rising. His hand rested on Rex's shoulder now, not gripping tightly but holding firmly in silent warning.
"Rex, did you feel anything just now?" he asked softly. "The candles just went out..."
And, at least in Sam's case, didn't question - not to the Voice's face.
It was getting them nowhere, however, and talk of Kiada's quest was more imminent, overshadowing the questions of portals and deaths at least for the moment. "Likely," he agreed with a guilty sigh. "I would have made the same assumption at the time. We were both blighted when she told me of the quest... neither of us was at our best or thinking clearly, and by the time we improved we just... didn't think to question it." He was as much to blame for the oversight as the Harpy, and it made his failure to be enough for her even more wounding.
Not that he could speak to Rexanna of wounds right now, not with her blind eyes and broken ribs. "I suspect... it has something to do with the Spire," he said thoughtfully. "That, or the Underground. It would have to be someplace no natural light ever reaches, and those two places fit that description. Given the similarities to the Spire Demon and the connection to the Ascended, my guess is the Spire, but I've been in it several times since it was opened and haven't come across any sign of them." A mystery. A riddle. One he had worried over for a year without coming closer to the answer.
He started to smile at Rexanna's belief in Kiada, exhaling softly in fond agreement. "My greatest weakness is my inability to trust, I suppose. But... yes, I should trust her mo--" His words cut off abruptly as the room went dim, his lantern's light providing most of the remaining light, his eyes shifting immediately to his fox's gaze as he rose fluidly to his feet and looked around, invisible hackles rising. His hand rested on Rex's shoulder now, not gripping tightly but holding firmly in silent warning.
"Rex, did you feel anything just now?" he asked softly. "The candles just went out..."
