“Then we won't be tied together. We climb close, but uncoupled. I'll not take you with me if I fall, and if you fall—”

“I won't fall,” she said, and that simple statement seemed to cut through her uncertainties. She was unsettled, yes, but she was a Serian.

And me? Ramus thought. Am I really that sure? He closed his eyes and his head swam, the weight of the growing badness behind his eyes leaning him forward toward the Great Divide. No, not sure at all. But I don't have any choice.

The slope of the ground increased, the surface soon became more rock than soil, and the shadow of the cliff lured them on.

NOMI AND BEKO debated leaving one of the Serians with the horses, but Nomi did not like the idea. Whoever they left—and either Noon or Ramin was the obvious choice—would be on their own, relied upon to defend the horses from whatever threats may exist down here. Several times they had spotted creatures circling high above, as if watching their group approach. No one could identify them, but they acted like birds of prey. There were also the tumblers they had seen on the plains, rogue marauders that might come far enough south to wander the foot of the Divide and whatever other dangers existed here that had not yet made themselves apparent. Planning the voyage, it had been easy to suggest leaving a Serian to guard the horses. But now that they were here, the immensity of the Divide made the climb seem something even more treacherous than Nomi had imagined.

Besides, Konrad was dead and Lulah had left with Ramus. She did not want to lose anyone else.

They decided to let the horses go. When they came back down they would be faced with a long, hard march northward, through those seemingly endless forests and back to the Pavissia Steppes. But once there, they could trade or steal horses. And there was no telling just how long their ascent and whatever may follow would take.

While Noon and Ramin unloaded the horses and went about making a store for the equipment they would leave behind, Nomi, Beko and Rhiana stood staring up at the solid gray wall before them. None of them spoke for a while; no one was used to the sight yet, and Nomi guessed they never would be.

“Edge of the world,” Rhiana said at last. It was almost a whisper.

“Maybe not,” Nomi replied. “Maybe it's just the beginning of another.”

The cliff before them was streaked with smears of pale plant growth. Rhiana had suggested that this was a good sign because it indicated there were crevasses, cracks and ledges upon which soil had accumulated. But there were many places where the sun never touched the cliff surface, and Nomi was worried that the plants would be brittle, or slick with damp.