After two days, the storm was finally abating. The gatherers, pent up with energy after the equivalent of seven Earth days cooped up, were itching to get back to work; the hunters had been working all the way through, of course, as the storm had a nice tendency to spook some of their prey.

Luke sat in the library, flipping through old parchments, trying to learn yet another alphabet. It was getting easier; the Tribe’s writing was a mishmash of Archavian characters, characters that looked to be runic in nature, and some characters that they appeared to have invented. But like Archavian and English, it was a phonetic alphabet; once he’d memorized the sounds he could decode most words. And while the tribe’s alphabet was unique, they spoke and wrote in what was clearly Archavian, with some minor grammar and vocabulary idiosyncrasies.

In the past week, he’d been amazed by the level of technology the Tribe possessed. They had borrowed and imitated the Titans, and in some cases had innovated themselves; the result was a home that was far closer to nineteenth-century technology than a small band of hunter-gatherers had any right to possess. There was running water, basic sanitation, and food stores; sophisticated metal weapons, including quite impressive swords, spears, and crossbows. (They had gunpowder, but used it sparingly; it was loud, and loudness is not helpful when your existence depends on stealth.)

But of all he’d seen, it was the library that impressed Luke most. The chronicles of the tribe were quite an amazing read, a mixture of history and myth retold throughout the volumes. As literature alone they were quite enthralling; the history they covered was remarkable.

This was not to say that he had abandoned the idea of returning to Aisell and Lezah; he was still quite keen to do so, when the opportunity presented itself. But he was finding that it was awfully nice to sit in a chair built for a human, reading a scroll written by humans for humans, wearing clothing that was designed by humans with humans in mind. He enjoyed not shouting up at people just to be heard. He loved being able to get from his bed to the bathroom without having to ask for assistance. It was a joy, just for a while, to fit properly into the world again.

Besides, his reading had made it clear why The Tribe was wary of Titans, even if they shouldn’t be wary of the Maris sisters. The earliest volumes Thurfrit had shown him made it clear that the Tribe had already been long-established; the chronicles themselves covered the last forty Archavian years – or two hundred sixty Earth years. The population had been up to almost three hundred before the great disaster – when The Tall Man and The Angry Woman wiped out hundreds of their number. Twenty or thirty had survived, and had rebuilt the Tribe by the time Eyes Of Metal and Hair Like Shaar moved in, thirty years ago.

Since then, they’d welcomed visitors – the People of the Rock, who must’ve lived on a nearby farm; some pets, including a couple of the Maris family’s. Their population had grown back slowly and steadily, with occasional struggles thanks to brutal winters or droughts.

He understood why they had to be careful. It was a scar that ran through The Tribe, the echo of their lost families. He didn’t know how he could convince them that Aisell was different. He didn’t know if it was worth it even to try.

He rolled up the last chronicle by Freyna the Chronicler, Thurfrit’s immediate predecessor, and looked over at the chronicler. Thurfrit had been contentedly doodling while Luke read; Luke had shown him the Archavian alphabet, and he was busy teaching himself to write and read it. It would be a useful skill for a chronicler to have – the ability to read the language of the monsters would allow him to understand their communications with each other. He was tempted, very tempted, to try to go back to the house, and see if he could learn anything. But one thought of Quendra put that out of his mind.

“Thanks, Thurfrit.” Luke said, rolling the scroll up.

“Think nothing of it. Can I get you another?”

“I don’t think so.” Luke stood up and stretched. “I think it’s about time for lunch, isn’t it?”

“It is,” Thurfrit said.

“Well, we should get going then.” Luke said. “Roasted tupp today?”

“Indeed.” Thurfrit said, straightening his necklace. “It should be quite delectable.”

Luke chuckled; he actually was looking forward to broiled mouse. What a strange world he was living in.

He got up, and stretched, and looked over at Thurfrit. “You know, something I haven’t read about yet – the necklaces.”

“Necklaces? Ah, yes. Our adornments. There is a scroll about them, I can get it for you.”

“Not right now. All the adults seem to have them. Are they religious?”

“No, no.” Thurfrit said, chuckling. “They are given to us when we are of age; you can see on mine, they spell out our name, and symbolize our profession.”

Thurfrit spun a few beads around, and Luke could now clearly see his name, as well as a bead that looked to be a stylized quill.

“And those?” Luke asked, pointing out other beads on the string.

“They’re awards; I have won a few.”

“Aha.” Luke said. “I guess that’s why Quendra has the second necklace.”

“Well, yes. She has earned many awards, and another name – ‘Screams like Kipp.’ And so she was given a separate strand, though they are woven together – all of us have but one adornment, no matter how many strands may be woven with it.”

“So everyone’s wearing their name around? Their awards?”

“No.” Thurfrit said, sounding a bit embarrassed. “Indeed…there are times I wish I was not wearing mine.”

Luke followed Thurfrit out the door, confused. “I’m sorry…you lost me.”

“Ah. Of course. Do you – where you’re from, do you take a partner to stand with, to raise children with? A husband or wife?”

“If you want to.”

“Well then. If, say, I were to want to partner with Quendra – I do not,” Thurfrit said, in a way that made Luke think he very much did, but very much knew Quendra was out of his league. “But if I were, I would give her my necklace, folded into this kind of shape,” he said, pausing to turn back toward Luke, tracing an infinity symbol in the air. “If she agreed, she would give me her necklace, and at the next meeting of the whole Tribe, we would announce that we were partners. From that day forward, we would wear each other’s necklaces, as a sign that we belonged to each other. Of course, if she did not wish to partner, she would return my necklace. Which she would most certainly do, if I were to offer her my necklace – which, again, I would never do.”

Luke smiled gently. “Nah, Thurfrit, you can do better than Quendra. In fact – I may be wrong – but I think Ithun the Butcher likes you.”

Thurfrit smiled. “Perhaps. Maybe. Perhaps I should ask her to join me at dinner one day.”

“There you go.” Luke said, patting Thurfrit on the back.

—

Lezah turned into the kitchen, and started; she did not expect to see her sister there. Aisell had spent the last two days trying to search, despite the steady mizzle (Mist wouldn’t sit in high winds, it’d break up. Mizzle would be present in a storm and have the same effect); Lezah didn’t tell her sister it was hopeless, much as she thought it was. She knew Aisell was heartbroken, and trying to work her way through the pain, and besides…Lezah dearly wanted to be proven wrong.

She paused, and backed out slowly, hoping Aisell hadn’t noticed her. They’d been too busy to talk since their fight, and Lezah didn’t want to add emotional weight to her sister’s shoulders. But she had barely started to turn around, when Aisell said, “Hey, Lee.”

“Hi, pup. You get breakfast?” she said, walking back in, carefully, as if not to startle Aisell.

“Wasn’t hungry.” Aisell said, staring at the table.

Lezah bit her tongue; Aisell hadn’t eaten much in the last couple of days, and Lezah had to fight not to admonish her.

Aisell gave the barest hint of a smile. “Wow, I must be a disaster if you won’t even tell me to eat.”

“You’ve got enough to worry about. If you want something, I’ll make it….”

Aisell looked up at her sister, eyes red. “Lee, I doubt it means much, but…I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” Lezah said, pulling up a chair.

“Yeah,” Aisell said, softly. “Lee…I know Luke…probably hates me. If he left, that’s why. But he did like you – as a friend. He had…he had a friend here, and….”

Her voice broke, and she covered her eyes for a second, before she rallied. “Whether he was kidnapped or killed, Luke had at least one person he knew he could trust. And Lee…I’m grateful for that. I don’t want you to ever think….”

“Oh, Aisell.” Lezah said, pulling her sister in tight, “I know. You were mad, and scared, and…and I was too. We both said things we didn’t mean. I…I told you about our conversation in the worst possible way.” she said.

“Huh?”

“Luke and I talked about you taking him from Titan Station. And yes, that included you lying to him. But that wasn’t most of the conversation, or even the important part, pup.”

Aisell pulled back, and looked at her sister, eyes full of tears. “What was?”

“He said he understood why you did it. He said he would have done the same thing in your shoes. Maybe not the same way…but he knew why you did. Oh, pup, he didn’t hate you! Don’t you ever think that. Even when he was angry with you, he didn’t hate you.”

Aisell wiped tears away. “I don’t know where to look next.” she said, quietly. “I keep thinking, but…I looked in the woods the other night.”

“You did?” Lezah said in surprise.

“Yeah, heard that kipp barking. And I went after it,” she said. “And…and if I found it, what then? If it took Luke, what then? If he’s in the woods, he’s dead, and….”

She swallowed. “I don’t know if I’m ready to find his body, Lee. And I don’t know how I could find anything else at this point.”

Lezah sighed. “Well, you never know. He lived on that station for months, you said. He’s smart. There’s always a little bit of hope.”

“A little bit.” Aisell echoed, softly. “Just a little.”

Lezah stood up. “Are you sure you don’t want something to eat?”

“Porridge, maybe.” Aisell said. “But I can….”

“I’ve been making porridge for years.” Lezah said. “No trouble, Aisell. No trouble at all.”

—

“Are you enjoying your tupp?”

“Actually, yes, Quendra, thanks,” Luke said. He was still getting used to the Tribal cutlery – it was related to that he’d known on Earth, but it wasn’t exactly the size he was used to. The fork was a bit short, the knife a bit long – nothing he couldn’t adapt to, but it took some practice.

The huntress sat down next to him and Thurfrit, and sighed. She had hardly interacted with Luke since that first day – she’d let Thurfrit show him around, and focused instead on her hunting. But she couldn’t keep ignoring him; he was her responsibility.

“So…are you enjoying life with us so far?”

“It’s not bad.” Luke said, “But you know, it’s not like I have much choice.”

“No, I suppose not.” Quendra said. “But in time….”

“Look, I get why you don’t think you can let me go.” Luke said. “You think that I’ll go back to my evil giant masters and tell them all about you, and it’ll be the Great Disaster all over again.”

Quendra’s eyes went wide. “You know of the great disaster?”

“Yeah, of course, it’s in your chronicles. And I get it, whoever those folks were, they were awful. But…the people who live on the farm now aren’t the people who tried to wipe you out.”

Quendra sighed. “You know, when they tired of you, they would have killed you. Legend says they even eat us.”

Luke groaned. “You’re right, some do.” he said. “But not the women up at the house. Lezah admitted people did, and called it a despicable crime. Said it was unforgivable in her book.”

“Nice of her to pretend for your benefit.”

“Look, they’re generally pretty nice. Really. You should drop by, say hello. They’d probably think it was funny that there are one hundred and thirteen of you sitting in the forest nearby.”

“They would destroy us,” Quendra said. “They almost did once.”

“’They’ didn’t.”

“Oh, right. Tell me, should we simply trust that these monsters you praise are different?”

“But they are!”

“Maybe. But let me ask you…even if you think Eyes Like Ice is trustworthy…dare you trust them all?”

Luke looked down. “No,” he said, after a long while. “That would be suicide.”

“Exactly. We dare not trust them. Maybe these giants are nicer monsters than the others, but if we approach them, and we are wrong, it means our destruction. Our carefulness has allowed us to flourish for generations and generations. Ask those descended from the People of the Rock, who dared approach the giants who grew food near them – ask them if the few survivors who made it here told of giants’ love…or hatred.”

Luke hung his head. “I…I’m not asking you to like them. I can understand why you can’t. Really, I can. Especially if other Titans attacked you. I just…keep an open mind about them, okay? If you ever cross their path…well, at least entertain the possibility of them being friends.”

Quendra smiled. “Very well – so long as you entertain the possibility that they are not.”

Luke nodded. “I can do that.” he said.

“Good.” Quendra said. She leaned back a bit, waiting to see if Luke would argue further, and was a bit surprised when he didn’t.

“So you’re planning to escape when I’m not looking, then.” she said after a bit.

Luke looked up at her in surprise. “What?”

“Planning to sneak out the gate and rush back to them. You gave up far too easily.”

Luke ventured a sheepish grin. “And what if I am?”

Quendra folder her arms, and smiled. “Well, if you get out on your own, you’ll have to deal with shaars, kipps, and insects that can kill you quickly and painfully. Without a guide, you won’t get back to them alive. Of course, if you want to test it, go ahead. I won’t stop you.”

Luke smiled back. “You made it back and forth to the house a few times, at least. Why can’t I?”

“Because, I know the path, the guideposts. I anoint myself with glowberry leaf, which frightens the insects; have weapons to keep the animals at bay. Even so, it is always a risk.”

“Believe her.” Thurfrit said. “She tells the truth.”

Luke picked a bit of meat off a bone, and frowned. “Yeah, I figured as much. Look, I heard her, the other night. She was looking for me. I…I feel terrible that she doesn’t know where I am. She’s probably worried sick.”

“Perhaps, but you’re just a pet, Luke. No matter what she told you, how can she see you as anything else? She will get over you in time, like Tall As Tree got over losing Fraya the Wise.”

Luke set his knife and fork down and rubbed his temples. If there was a saving grace in all of this, it was that he knew time for Aisell was different than time for him and the rest of the humans. To her, he’d been gone just a couple days. If he came back in a week or two, it would barely seem a blip.

And when he did, he could tell her honestly that he needed to get to know the tribe, to earn their trust. And…and that perhaps he would like to spend more time with them, at some point.

“Well, I’m not an idiot,” Luke said after a bit. “I’m not going to risk getting eaten. But don’t think I’ve forgotten about letting my friend know I’m alive. I have to, eventually. It’s only right.”

“Of course,” Quendra said. “Now…I am a bit curious about something.” she added.

“What’s that?”

“Your home planet.” she said.

“What home planet?” Thurfrit said.

Quendra looked left and right; and seeing too many people around, said simply. “Probably best to talk about it somewhere quieter.”

“What home planet?” Thurfrit asked again.

“So you’re saying you believe me?” Luke asked.

“I’m not saying that.” Quendra said. “I’m saying…I’m curious.”

Luke smiled, and polished off his glowberry wine. “All right,” he said. “Let’s go talk someplace quieter. See ya, Thurfrit.”

Luke got up, and picked up his plate; he set them in the bin in the corner, for the cooks to wash. He followed Quendra out of the Great Hall, wondering why, exactly, it mattered to him that she might possibly believe him.

Thurfrit stared after the two of them and shook his head. “What in the name of Earth did I miss?” he asked, to nobody in particular.

—

Aisell’s pad chimed more than a few times before she sighed, and reached over to get it; she had missed a couple calls from Bedra in the past couple days, and while she wasn’t particularly looking forward to talking with her – not after the events of the past few days – Bedra was her friend. She had to at least let her know why she was avoiding her.

Aisell hit the answer button. “Hey, Bedra.”

“Aisell! I was pretty sure I was going to have to leave a message again. Now I’m not sure what to say! I…what’s wrong?”

“Hmm?” Aisell said.

“Don’t ‘hmmm’ me. Something’s wrong. And not just you running out of the shelter before you got through the lobby.”

“I got through the lobby.” Aisell said, offhandedly. “I know, I remember looking at the humans, and I just…I couldn’t take it.”

“I…no, really, Aisell, you barely got into the place. Honest.”

Aisell sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe. Doesn’t matter. I am sorry I ran out like that; I just….”

“No, I’m sorry; didn’t think it would upset you, and wouldn’t have gone if I did. But then, I wouldn’t have my new human!”

Aisell rubbed her temples. “New….”

“Yeah! She was just a mess, poor thing. ‘Course, she’s a handful right now. Used to be owned by some rich lady, spoiled her rotten, then dumped her at the shelter one day. If she wasn’t asleep, I’d introduce you. But….”

Bedra stopped; she saw the look of anguish on Aisell’s face. And suddenly, she put two and two together.

“Something happened to Luke, didn’t it?” she said.

“How…how did…..”

“I know you, Aisell Maris. What happened?”

“He just…he just vanished, Bedra,” Aisell said. “I got home, and he was gone.”

Bedra shook her head. “Oh, Ais, I am so sorry. Is there anything I can do?”

“Not unless you own a time machine.” Aisell said. “We’ve been all over the farm, no sign of him. Like he just vanished.”

“You know, Degu got attacked a while back. Said they were ‘shadow people.’ I think they were strays, maybe from Lert Prenn’s farm. You don’t think….”

“No, he was inside. Screen was ripped. Lezah thinks it was a kipp, maybe. I don’t know.”

Bedra sighed. “I am so sorry. I know I said that. I wish I could do more than just say that.”

“Thanks,” Aisell said, smiling tightly. “I know you do.”

“Well, you need something, you call me, okay? Even if it’s just to talk.”

“I will, Bedra. Thanks.”

“Now…oh! I was going to tell you my other news…no, never you mind, we’ll talk later.”

“That’s okay,” Aisell said. “What other news?”

“Well,” Bedra said, “I got my new roommate. And you won’t believe who it is!”

“Who?” Aisell said.

“The Wild Girl!”

Aisell looked at Bedra blankly.

“You know…the Wild Girl! Don’t you ever read the news?”

“Not lately.” Aisell said.

“Oh, right. Well, the Imperial Fleet found a Titan living on Earth. Humans had raised her!”

Aisell covered her mouth. “The Imperial Fleet…they went to Earth?”

“Yeah, they did. Picked up Eyrn and a human who’d been guarding her. Funny thing, she really isn’t wild at all. Oh, she’s a bit confused about some things, but…are you okay?”

Aisell felt sick. They’d gone to Earth. A ship had gone to Earth. A ship Luke maybe could’ve caught.

She’d done worse than kill him. In her certainty that he was doomed, she’d prevented him from getting back home. Not just hypothetically – she’d made him miss his ride.

She was aware of stammering out some sort of goodbye, and then she switched off, and curled up on her bed, hugging her knees tightly. She wished she could go back to that last day and give him what he’d asked for – his freedom.

More than anything, she wished she could see him, just one last time, to tell him how truly sorry she was.