TOMIAR'S THOUGHTS WOKE LOI LATER, when the others began to stir.

'Wakey, wakey, plant lady.'

'Morning, Tomiar. Sleep well?'

'No. But every day is closer to the surface. How about you?'

Particularly well for the last hour or so, Loi thought smugly to herself, but to Tomiar she thought, 'As well as you can on a bedroll.'

'In a cave,' added the griffon.

'Yup.'

Strangely enough, or perhaps not, Loi found the caves comforting. With all her ...