It was hard to see just how large the chamber was even with Primus and Olivia walking its perimeter with their magical light aglow, but Horatio was confident there were no more monsters left in it–at least, no more attacked them for now.

The party settled down to sleep for the night in the chamber, unrolling their mats and blankets and laying them on the cold, uneven stone floor. It was decided that tonight they should sleep all huddled near together, to make use of one another’s bodywarmth, and because the fact that they were underground meant they didn’t need to erect a men’s shelter and a women’s shelter as usual. Ross volunteered to take the first watch, able to see by the very faint blue light of his unsheathed magical sword, and Primus and Olivia extinguished their own lights. After a few moments of nervous banter, silence fell upon the party.

That was when Horatio realised that he was lying in his blanket huddled next to Ceres, facing her. It was unmistakably her, from the way her blue hair and the slope of her cheek took the little light from Ross’s blade. Her eyes were shut. Was she asleep yet?

Horatio wished that he could find the courage to talk to her and tell her how he felt. Fighting monsters and leading the way through an infested Braxian tunnel was one thing, but talking to this beautiful woman was another.

Lying there, shivering in his blanket in the almost total darkness, in a tunnel underground somewhere in Braxia, Horatio suddenly felt very alone. Ceres was only inches away from him. He could feel her breath on his face. And yet at the same time the distance between them was infinite. He didn’t know how to bridge it. And, if they failed in their mission, or perhaps even if they succeeded, soon they would all be dead, and he would have lost his chance.

Come on, Horatio, he thought to himself. Don’t be a coward. Be a hero. You can do this.

He whispered a silent prayer to Qind and gathered his courage. He didn't know how long it took him to find it, but it seemed like a very long time, and several times he opened his mouth but then faltered and no words came out.

Eventually he managed it.

‘Ceres…’ he whispered at last, as quietly as he could so that nobody else would hear.

Silence stretched.

She’s already asleep, he thought. I missed my chance.

Then two pale white orbs appeared in front of him, just barely visible in the meagre light. Ceres had opened her eyes. Horatio’s body tensed.

Yes?’ she whispered back.

‘Are you awake?’ he said.

‘Yes.’

Stupid question.

‘What are you thinking about?’ That was a better question, but still not the one he wanted to ask.

Another moment of quiet. ‘I’m thinking about all the children in Gard who have been left without parents by the monsters or the Braxians. Like Silvia, and Olivia. I’m thinking about who there is to look after them, to take care of them…’

Of course she was. She was thinking about the suffering in the world, and how she might do something to alleviate it. Classic Ceres.

‘Why, what are you thinking about?’ Ceres whispered back.

Horatio twitched. He hadn’t been expecting that. But this was his time. She had asked him directly. It was now or never. ‘Um.. I was wondering,’ he said, ‘when all this is over…if we survive, that is…I was wondering…’ Be a hero. Be brave. Now or never. He bunched his hands together underneath his blanket. ‘…whether you might consider becoming my wife?’

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‘Oh!’ Ceres exclaimed, slightly more loudly, and someone nearby grunted in their sleep at the disturbance.

Horatio regretted his question at once. What had he been thinking? Now he had said it out loud, it sounded ridiculous. There was no way in Gard she would ever want to marry him. Although, she still hadn’t actually said anything in reply…

‘Goodness…’ whispered Ceres, more quietly again. ‘Thank you, Horatio… I am flattered. I’ve never considered the propsect of marriage before. Priestesses of Qind do not marry...’

Ah. Primus had been right.

‘Oh, well, never mind then,’ Horatio whispered quickly, ‘forget I ever said it–’

‘But,’ Ceres went on, ‘I am not technically a Priestess of Qind any more.’

In the upper left of Horatio’s chest a tiny flame of hope ignited.

‘So you’re not bound by that rule any more?’ he ventured.

‘Well, I’m not necessarily bound by it any more. But I haven’t worked out whether I want to go back to the convent or not one day. To tell you the truth, they would probably not have me back. But I’m afraid, all the same, that I’m not in a position to contemplate a marriage proposal right now. It’s not something I’ve ever considered before, and there is just too much going on right now for me to be able to think about it properly.’

The flame in Horatio’s heart died.

Maybe she saw something in his face, because she said, ‘Please don’t take this personally, Horatio. I’m surprised and flattered that you’ve asked me, truly I am. But it’s just not something I’ve ever thought about, and there is too much happening at the moment for me to consider it properly now. It’s nothing to do with you, Horatio–it’s just not something that I could even contemplate in the present circumstances. With anyone.’

That was typical of her: Even in refusing him, she was keen not to hurt his feelings, to put consideration of him before herself.

He took a deep breath of the cold tunnel air. ‘I understand,’ he breathed out.

‘Please don’t be upset,’ she whispered, with genuine concern in her voice.

‘No, please don’t worry, I’m not,’ he lied. ‘I’m alright. Seriously, let’s forget I ever brought it up, and try to get some sleep. I’m going to turn to face the other way now.’

‘Okay,’ she said.

He turned in his blanket. On this side was Ouzo. Wolf-breath. Urgh.

Horatio shut his eyes, and tried to find sleep, but it eluded him at once. The terrible feeling of aloneness was back, stronger than ever. He felt that he would die on this quest, and that this was all that was left for him, and all that there would have really been: cold, solitary, darkness and stinking wolf-breath.

Should he have never bothered risking himself by asking Ceres to marry him? What was she thinking, over there on the other side of him? Had she fallen asleep yet?

After some time he heard the sound of slowed, heavy breathing, like she had indeed fallen asleep. Although it could be the sleep-breathing of someone else nearby–perhaps Egea, or Wyvera.

Horatio ran back over his brief conversation with Ceres again and again in his mind. She had turned him down. But the thing was, no matter which way he looked at it, she hadn’t actually said that she didn’t want to marry him. Unless she had been lying to protect his feelings–would a priestess of Qind lie?--it seemed to have been more that she hadn’t been expecting a marriage proposal, and it had taken her by surprise, and that the idea of marrying anyone wasn’t something she had ever considred…

I turned out that in the dead embers of his romantic hope, there was still a single, tiny, small spark left.

Eventually he fell asleep.

He woke to the sound of Ross shouting that they were being attacked by monsters. Primus’s spell lit them up.

Battle 3 or 4