With the involvement of the witch envisioning any potential scenarios riddled with horror hadn't been much of a challenge, but living through any given situation which was meant to instill one particular emotion, namely distress, that in itself let the blood in her veins freeze up in trepidation.

Any available options relied heavily on both time and effect, ultimately weighing choices between torture and a personal encounter with the sole living being she despised and feared more than anybody else at the same time, the one who imprisoned them for the sake of exploiting their powers in order to heighten her own. Typhoon, however, appeared to pursue something of his own, an unknown which he didn't disclose to them straight away in order to keep it a secret. Ridding the world of demons wasn't without risk nor the ceaseless spread of terror which the vile abominations sustained throughout battle given their appearance alone, but she trusted that his course of action would suit their needs perfectly regardless.

Before Flame could get a word in the matter seemed settled, content in following the conversation in silence for the time being. Serving practical purposes above all else, the sorceress simply lacked the vastness of knowledge the venerable members of their group possessed and therefore shared with Typhoon in their blissful ignorance.

Quite possibly there was a whole lot more to the four they set out to challenge, relaying the much needed basics to the select few who never heard of them before until Gale spoke out what Flame considered at the time. "Yes, I think that would be best."

She turned toward Typhoon with an affirming nod. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Besides, I feel that discussing our strategy is more befitting for those with over a century on their clock anyway." An amused remark, naturally, with an ample amount of truth hidden within. Roc and Nicodemus had lived several centuries while gathering experience in the field one way or another, Gale by herself had a longer lifespan than the younger human members of their party and must've been versed in ways neither of the others were given her heritage. "I honestly don't know anything about the Forgotten Four except for what you've told us, so I wouldn't argue about leaving the tactics department to you."

Crimson eyes glanced at Spencer, then Typhoon in anticipation of the plan they'd devised, the sensation intermingled with a healthy dose of nervosity. "We should set things up as soon as possible."

“Agreed.” It hadn't been clear at first though it appeared that the younger members of the troupe being Flame, Typhoon and Spencer would look into Abdul's situation while the others mulled over current maters with the Paraelementals which could be a threat down the road if they were to join with Tori.

There had to be something else there, some reason why Nicodemus wasn't acting straight away though Flame gad to wonder about matters …. had it been what she said to him that had the Angel exhibiting more caution or was there something else?

The three of them broke off a short distance to a hollowed out tree. Inside Spencer retrieved the Reflecting Glass which looked to be similar to the pointer in a Quiji Board save for it was clear and made of glass.

This tree hide some or all of Spencer's treasures and the orange scaled Faerie Dragon gazed at the pair. His gaze moving from one to the other. Before settling on Flame.

“The ritual can be done here or in the privacy of an inn room back with the Pixies and Elves. May I have a word with you before we proceed?”

When it was clear that this was to be a private word Typhoon would dip out and play his harmonica so they knew where they were, that is if Flame accepted. Otherwise he was going to remain present so they could get on with matters as soon as possible. He was dreading this, though throughout the years he had managed a small degree of subconscious control here.

Nicodemus slowly recovered the remaining fragments of his divine power and similar to many unknowns in the realm they travelled, the gradual process would require rest and restraint while he undoubtedly hadn't managed to restore himself to the fullest in what short measure of time had passed between their last encounter in the woods and their assembly here on this very evening. His reasons for not acting on the realisation that their initial plan wouldn't succeed weren't demonstrated right away, but secretly she'd hoped that her request for him to abstain from fighting the witch without certainty of winning remained his prime motive.

Sticking with Typhoon the two of them were guided away from the remainder of the group into what appeared to be some sort of makeshift treasure trove in the midst of a hollow tree, presumably the accumulated riches of the Faerie Dragon as he vanished inside and retrieved the unusual Reflecting Glass which in terms of appearance looked deceivingly similar to an ordinary shard of glass.

"It'll be faster if we stay and commence with the ritual here." Flame concluded that heading back to the inn for privacy would waste valuable minutes, surely none would spy on them all the way out here near the unicorn domain anyway and what they saved in time could be used to discuss matters as Spencer brought to her attention that he wished to talk, nodding in acknowledgement of his request.

"Could you give us a minute, please?" She glanced at Typhoon once more, politely asking for some slight degree of intimacy while he seemed to be stepping out on his own already, leaving the two of them behind. The pleasant melody of his harmonica rang clear in the air, concealing their words from his ears while letting them know where exactly he was at any given time.

Naturally the sorceress suspected what the subject would be, neither had forgotten about the events which transpired last night and it would've been a surprise should his concern wind up being something else.

"What would you like to talk about?" Despite the pressing matters at hand Flame stayed calm and collected, eyeing her diminutive companion expectantly.

“That it would,” Typhoon agreed. He may not have been a warrior like Roc but he had other strengths too and one had been his intellect. Another seemed to be that he was a wiz with that harmonica and as she recalled he managed to obtain one with the guards having knowledge of it too.

He left the two, relieved to hold onto his secrets for a while longer. Intellect told him what was expected of him though it was still an irrational desire to keep his secrets secret.

“Two things,” Spencer held up two scaly claws as he hovered there in the air before her. He glanced away for a moment as if checking that they were still alone. His voice dropping so that it did not carry.

“I am sorry about the other night. When I found you two I could not help myself and sort of forgot that neither of you were Fae.”

He let that issue resolve first before he would move on to the next matter.

Flame regarded Spencer highly for not judging them poorly based solely on their reaction, even seeing the error in his ways all by himself which must've been difficult for the sexually active species. She smiled mildly in face of that confession, shaking her head shortly after in dismissal of his statement as though he'd never have to make it in the first place. "You don't have to apologize for that."

Her voice lowered to match the volume of his, crimson eyes briefly averted his as she glanced at the ground in thought of virtually anything suitable to say, drawing in another deep breath before looking back at him. "I feared that my reaction seemed a little over the top when you didn't return all day, honestly I was afraid we might've driven you off for good. I must admit that I've had a drink or two beforehand and the moment you chimed in on us I simply lost myself." The young sorceress spoke in genuine regret, the thought that he might seek to exact revenge of some sort not the foremost concern on her mind. "I should be the one to apologize for not looking for you the next day and I'm truly sorry I let myself go the way I did."

Even though the sex was fantastic last night as it was in the morning she might've been risking too much. She bowed slightly in her plea for forgiveness, the invitation that he may accompany the fiery beauty in her travels when they finally rid themselves of the witch perhaps rejected entirely given the circumstances, not one but two were given the fondness which he himself sought to gain in some way and she regretted not passing it onto him after the words which left her lips these past few days and the plans they made for their future amongst the Shadows as travellers.

Sheepishly the nubile young woman leaned in the slightest bit closer, wishing to adress him alone as her features gradually mimicked less and less radiant emotions of anxiety and concern. "But you must understand that I'd prefer to keep what you've seen a secret, alright? No one else must know that I've slept with Roc, especially not Nicodemus. Can you do that for me?"

Spencer had the freedom to do whatever he wanted, especially when his actions were driven by common sense although she would not threaten him to keep last night a secret in light of the situation. "I haven't told him that I'm a Construct yet because I want him to stay focused on the task at hand and I merely ask that you do the same."

“It was probably for the best,” he professed the absence had gotten him to think over matters more from another species point of view . He was Fae though unlike other Fae his lifespan had been finite so things like anger blew over quicker in his species though his emotions when they were expressed were far greater than most.

Jealousy had not been among them, however. That notion of jealousy would only arise in one fashion and was thus unknown to him, Fae did not often express jealousy of any kind. “I could not stay away for long and had to think things over throughout the night.”

A dip of his head and a dismissive wave. “You need not apologize, the mater has been forgotten and life for us Faerie Dragons is short indeed.”

He alighted himself on a rock and stroked his chin. A secret. Fae liked secrets though this one was not a huge scandalous one by Fae standards. He considered it, the longer lived Immortal Fae amassed secrets over the lives, the younger Faerie Dragons often lived a short many years and thus never learned many, if any great secrets though they still collected minor ones.

“Alright,” he said after a small moment. “I will not tell him. But seeing that this is settled onto the second matter which deals with the Reflecting Glass itself.

“Bones, fingernails, hair, whatever are burned and sprinkled over the device, the ashes of the one supplying the memory. In effect the stronger the will of that person the more of an impression that they have on the wielder of the device, in this case you.

“Once used it is tough to interrupt and draws upon the emotion of the subject that he or she was feeling at the time. Love, hate, rage … in this case distress but Typhoon's secret, the one to case distress or despair is dangerous since it will be nearly impossible to draw you out of your mind until whatever scene runs its course. Expressing this distress through his secret can take any form, though.

“If you die there, there is no telling what will happen.”

"Thank you, I truly appreciate it." Nicodemus wouldn't know, leaving her relieved in the knowledge that none of her sexual escapades with the Dwarf would ever see the light of day, even less the ones in the morning which Spencer hadn't seen nor heard about though she was bound to wonder what their waitress must've thought at the sight of the cum smeared glass, the fragrance of his virile seed thick and heavy while his pure masculinity had allowed him to fill an entire quarter with that delicious drink.

Naturally Flame had to rid herself of these lewd thoughts lest they occured again in the future, hoping to keep herself in check though another portion of her mind merely suggested that seeking further intimacy with another being wouldn't harm anyone as long as they weren't found out or caught in the act.

In theory their plan sounded rather simplistic, strewing the burned remains of someone over the device and waiting for the encased emotion to take shape within her mind which should hopefully result in an experience ladened with distress, understandably isolating the sorceress from her companions in the process. Ultimately they needed to draw upon the negative impact of the incident in order to communicate with Abdul and taking the risk seemed to be the only reasonable course of action.

Flame despised lacking any sort of contribution and while the tale would remain unknown until it was too late, she was willing to step through the haze of uncertainty and attempt to master whichever terrors awaited on the other side. "While I'll try my best to stay alive, I hope that we won't have to find out what happens when I die."

Anything could happen, from frustratingly hopeless battle over the loss of a loved one and extremely abysmal suffering down to the worst possible nightmares the young woman could imagine. Death in some cases may even offer relief, her consciousness hanging by a thread while the remainder of her life crumbled before her without any reason left in the world to live, at that point it might even be desired.

She pondered on the issue at hand, that the scene potentially unfolded to virtually any feasible disaster and that her demise should be avoided at all costs. Perhaps nothing would come of it in the long run, but even though she was determined to last all the way through it hadn't seemed unlikely that the powerful artifact would leave marks upon the deceased red head here in reality.

Crimson eyes glanced at the Fae. "All I need to do is to survive the scenario until it's over and I'll be returned here? Will I retain my elemental powers in whatever memory I find myself in or will I be bound to use whatever the one supplying it had access to at the time?"

Certainly any aid against an outside threat would be of help, but rendering the rather timid beauty mostly defenseless would seriously endager her life, not that she planned on backing out of their project even then. "I will go through with it either way."

He could have blackmailed her though that thought did not occur to many Fae. Sex was so common amongst them that they had trouble thinking of why anyone needed to cover up the matter.

Perhaps he did know seeing that he was thinking over matters as a non Fae for a day and preferred to stay on good terms with her. Either way he did not take advantage of the situation.

The plan was a simple one. Spencer nodded. “Nor do I want to. With Typhoon present with any luck we can pull you out before it comes to that, chances are though it won't be a fatal impulse. Anger or rage is more likely to draw that out.”

He gave her question a bit of thought before answering figuring out the best way to answer.

“It is your mind so such powers will be available. However, this one feeling or memory of Typhoon's is added into your own so your mind will adjust to what it is exposed to altering that memory that is imparted as you experience it. Or the wave of emotion in the case of something that might just be a raw emotion. Your mind will make sense of it as if a scenario was playing out with that theme in mind.

“The experience ends when the scene ends or, if everything works as I hope it may end with Abdul's arrival with him being drawn to you.”

He explained it as best as he was capable. “If there is nothing further shall we call Typhoon back?”

Unlike last night Flame sought to preserve their friendship or what passed for one given their few days together throughout their travels. Whether he saw the error in his ways or condemned the buxom maiden before him hadn't truly mattered, in the end her mistake had been an obvious one in the grand scheme of things although she didn't feel guilty about it in the slightest, merely being fearful that someone of the two with knowledge of these events might mention it deliberately or by accident.

Nicodemus remained the single lover who tapped her previously untried depths, meaning that in case she'd gotten with child there'd be no doubt as to whom the father would be hence denying herself any vaginal intercourse was the safest route to take even though she wasn't being remotely faithful to the first love of her life in that regard.

Her bedroom voice had filled the inn that particular night followed by their unusual encounter with summoned beasts who aided her travelling companion in his efforts to satisfy the lustful sorceress, eventually succeeding although they had to seek out the assistance of a Priest in order to heal the literal love bites and scratches upon her skin.

Flame retained her powers in the scenario generated by these remains, at last some of the better news he revealed considering how harsh the conditions of summoning Abdul to their presence had been thus far. Naturally most of the scene dwelled beyond an obscure curtain whose true form they hadn't discerned.

A memory meant that she may survive as he had done in case Typhoon proved to be the original wielder, but with feelings anything seemed possible, even the unknown consequences of utilising the device on a Living Construct, but surely she was close enough to a human that it wouldn't differ much if at all. "I understand. When things seem too dire to simply play along I merely wanted to know whether I could defend myself and possibly avoid death or would be bound to perish, nothing more."

They reached the conclusion of their preparations, the young red head inhaling deeply before pushing the accumulated concern from her being though it never fully worked, shaking her head before nodding at the Fae with determination. "No, nothing else. I'm glad we cleared things up regarding last night, but now I'm ready to begin."

Typhoon had been called back once they had been settled upon matters here. He too had been glade that the other night had been resolved.

Now onto matters with the Reflecting Glass. With a dagger Typhoon cut away a lock of his hair. It was burned and sprinkled over the Reflecting Glass which was then given to Flame who was told to lie down with the point of the device up.

Soon sleep would over take her and the scene changed.

She was on a forest, it was dark other than a light up ahead in the foggy forest though there were stars in the heavens above a cloud emitted a white glow as it concealed the moon behind it.

All seemed normal enough. The familiar harmonica music filling the night hair emitting from up ahead from this source of light. So far the scene seemed peaceful enough though she knew that matters were to be stressful at the very least and so there was a feeling of tenseness beneath it all ...

Without any further delay Flame laid back onto the forest floor as instructed by the others, unconcerned with the lack of comfort which enveloped her considering that the scenario would be riddled with distress even in the privacy of an inn room, the softer sheets of an actual bed accomplished nothing favorable in regards to the generated realm in her mind.

Surprisingly enough the device made her weary as the effect began to spread throughout her body, her hands timid in their embrace of the Reflecting Glass in these final moments of consciousness. Her breathing had grown calm while she was being soothed into the impending nightmare, the darkness before her eyes gradually manifesting itself in heightened levels of fatique until the last semblance of situational awareness had left and the young sorceress had fallen asleep.

Awoken amidst another gloomy forest curious crimson eyes scanned the environment in an attempt to make out any distinct shapes somewhere in her unknown surroundings, attempting to adjust to the mild degrees of light with little success as both duskiness and fog impaired her sight while playing with her senses, frightening her without any additional dangers lurking in the area given her irrational fear of the dark. She glanced towards the heavens in search for further information, gathering that the time of day was responsible for the circumstances she found herself in rather than dense canopies of the trees as was the case in the Dark Wood.

Thankfully the climate wasn't bothersome, neither too hot nor too cold as she conjured a minor flame in one of her open palms and looked for anything else out of the ordinary, all the while drawn to the oddly familiar tune that resounded off the nearby trees. The small torch illuminated the premises in a pleasant sphere of light, dancing faintly in the breeze while at the same time warping and twisting the shadows invoked by her usage of elemental powers, causing her heart beat to increase the slightest bit.

Somewhere in the distance up ahead seemed to be something else, perhaps the camp site of someone who decided to stay here for the night, at least the melody appeared to be coming from the same direction and given the undefined nature of the scenario she thought of it as wise to follow the first clue she'd gotten along the way, treading upon the ground in cautious steps.

Her approach with a light source should give away her position, for better or for worse considering that without it Flame might look as though she was hiding something whereas any ill willed individuals would get the jump on her easily enough in her current state.

Nothing had happened thus far aside from the change in scenery and regardless of the serene tune ringing through the air the sinister looking night sky hung heavy above the buxom beauty, laden with foreboding. The harmonica reminded her of Typhoon and yet she didn't expect to see him here because he supplied the memory or emotion, wondering what her mind made of the foreign infusion as she headed straight for the light and sound.

The light source had been generated by a lantern, the kerosene burning within it with the occasional firefly at the campsite that flashed briefly though with her light source she was sneaking up on no one.

The harmonica stopped though she was fairly close when it had seeing a seated silhouette up ahead.

“Interesting trick,” the voice familiar as blue eyes gazed out at her as she approached. To her surprise it was Typhoon seated their on a log. A bedroll was on the ground as well as a nearby fire pit that provided warmth and additional light.

There was no recognition in his eyes though and he had been in simple traveler's clothes, his left hand wrapped with a bloodied bandage that was holding the harmonica he was playing though he was watching the gout of flame that danced in her hand.

“Why, hello there. I'm Marcus and you?” She had noted that unlike most men his gaze had not wavered to her cleavage … he had not seemed interested in that sort of thing and as she remembered from encountering him before he had not paid attention to her feminine wares.

Flame drew closer, finding herself near the campsite of the single shadowy figure she could make out from a distance while not concealing her approach in the slightest. Even though the music stopped the nubile red head pressed on, compelled to follow through with the scene whether her newfound company proved pleasant or not.

Crimson eyes flared up mildly in recognition at the sight of the familiar human male, the Water Elementalist whom had been imprisoned by her side and now was seated several feet in front of her, graced by simpler attire rather than the blue robes which gave him the appearance of a sorcerer. She hadn't missed the bandage around his hand, the cloth sullied with blood although judging by what she knew that wouldn't be the end of any potential suffering they would encounter tonight, depending on how long she was destined to be here.

Naturally he hadn't known of her capabilities, the conjured torch nothing more than a mere parlor trick by comparison, but for the moment she was content in letting him ponder whether that was her limit or she could do more.

His camp appeared to be of modest luxury, not carrying a whole lot more than he absolutely needed and while there wasn't much she could discern thus far, the buxom red head assumed that it wasn't an emotion, but a memory she experienced prior to his promising future in the magical realm, no doubt, and that horrifying things were most certainly going to occur sooner or later.

"I'm Flame, pleased to meet you, Marcus." With that the miniscule vortex of fire dissipated into thin air, no longer in need of such given her proximity to other light sources, stepping the slightest bit closer to the man upon hesitating for a moment. "May I join you for a while? I'm not exactly versed in these parts and will probably have better luck finding my path after dawn rather than getting myself lost in the woods at night."

Needless to say there was nothing in her possession other than the clothes she was wearing, neither nourishment nor anything as favorable as the bedroll on the ground although she wasn't hungry nor tired anyway, driven by the desire to stay out of the darkness and enjoy the company of a familiar face even though the latter hadn't recognised the young fair maiden.

"I would set off at first light, of course. I won't be much of a bother until then, I assure you." She didn't mind not being ogled for once, even when they first met Flame figured that he must've been either homosexual or not attracted to either gender, settling on the former given the likelihood of the latter and what he'd tried with Nicodemus before although it hadn't made her think any less of her male companion. Perhaps even if he were fond of female company he exhibited a great measure of composure, something she was bound to regard as admirable.

It had seemed that Marcus or rather Typhoon was at a point in his life where either he had not acquired the mastery of the water element and given the title of Typhoon or a novice still in that realm. Either way this had been a memory and as best as she could tell and perhaps she was interposing one of them, replacing someone and in a sense interacting with the foreign memory that had invaded her.

But Marcus seemed pleasant enough. He gestured to a large rock near him for her to sit on. Unusual that she would be out and about at night his senses remained open, particularly his ears.

“Please, sit,” he gestured to the rock smelling her rich scent as she neared his ears following her movements as his eyes casually slide into the darkness for a moment before returning as if he didn't quite believe her sudden appearance or that she was alone but yet he remained cordial about the hole matter.

“What brings you out her by yourself at such an hour? And attractive woman like yourself can find herself in a lot of trouble traveling alone. You are alone, correct? There isn't anyone else with you.

“Fortunately it's just me here and this is not an encampment of bandits. You're most welcome to stay though. The nearest towns are about ten miles in that direction or twenty in that from which I came.”

"Thank you." Unless otherwise inspired by the inner mechanisms of her mind Flame thought herself alone amidst the gloomy forest and had arrived without company unless someone was bound to appear sooner or later given the purpose of living through his personal memory, private to the point where he referred to it as secret. But in the end his suspicions were justified, the sorceress simply wasn't equipped for travel and without any supplies continuing on through the night would've made more sense than resting by the fire.

Like water, however, Marcus seemed to be going with the flow despite his uncertainty in regards to her sudden appearance. "Admittedly at this hour only fate has brought me here." She smiled mildly at that cryptic response, tender warmth flowing to her cheeks at the notion of being attractive while the woman got seated on the nearby rock.

"I must've misjudged the time of day and wound up in the woods at night, thinking that I would reach another settlement in time, but as you can see I was proven wrong. Eventually I was hoping to reach Garuun City, Urik being renowned for their water elementalists I thought I might try to hone my abilities there considering that my skills in water based spells are vastly inferior to my understanding of the flames."

Her crimson eyes followed his into the darkness, wondering whether he'd seen something that she missed along the way. "Nobody has come along with me and no, I don't intend to rob you." He only had her word, but she didn't seem to take any offense in not being trusted straight away. "In any case you should probably fear for the bandits rather than the woman seated before you. I'm far more dangerous to them than they are to me."

She nodded in appreciation at the invitation to stay, meanwhile mulling the distances over in the back of her mind although she doubted that her stay would involve the timeframe necessary to reach either of the two he described. "I'd love to stay. I'm not, well .. too fond of the dark when I'm by myself."

Anticipating the inevitable which he hadn't known anything about had given rise to concern, something she couldn't share unless he felt inclined to believe a stranger, but ultimately their fate here was predetermined and she was merely filling a role of sorts along the way. "What about you? Where are you headed? You look like you're more of a traveller yourself, maybe even an adventurous one at that when I look at the bandage on your arm."