She stood in front of a crossroads. The spiral's edge was at her feet, and the child-spirit left. Rosa's departure left her chest feeling tight, like a thread pulled taut. Her fingers still burned from the rejected offering.
"Your path diverges here."
That bothered her. "Why does it have to end here? I've been following Lucian for awhile now. Surely..." Alice's voice wobbled, and she felt tears in her eyes. "...he still needs me? I can be his Guide..."
She glanced around and didn't see him anywhere. He didn't look for her, and the fifth spiral's chamber was unnaturally wide.
"Oath-Tender?" Alice felt small and unsteady. Had the paladin always been there? She did say that she would take them through the fifth spiral.
But where was she now? Is this what the diverged path means? Someone separated me from them?
Will they look for me?
She didn't even see the faint thread of Lucian's presence anymore. The Loom had gone with him, and her fingertips only had the golden storm.
