[ Athessa herself is fond of animals, and though she's a decent hunter there is still a difference between killing for food and killing for ritual. Not that the halla will go to waste; she'll have to make sure that the animal doesn't suffer, and use ever part of it to honor its sacrifice.

But it's still nerve-wracking. What if she does it wrong? ]

Supposedly when we die, our spirits walk the paths in the Beyond until they reach the Eternal City, where they'll live forever among the gods and receive the answers to life's mysteries.

[ It's one of those things where the more you think about it, the less sense it makes. She laughs, rueful. ]

I wish I'd paid more attention to the stories the Keeper told us, now.