That was tight, his throbbing finger was evidence in that but he had stopped shy of robbing her of her hymen. There was no way his mind had been screaming but the surprise brought further excitement to his features that only blossomed in a further smile as he drew that finger back out of her sucking the exquisite taste from that finger.

His eyes scrolled over the bounty of her tear stricken form. Such an excellent sight to behold and that plea. Please though his excitement had been peeked. Like a shark smelling blood he was all to eager to rob her of that virginity and that smile showed it.

“You dare tell me what to do? Or is that a final desperate plea?” He let that sink in as he soon shifted over her. To add injury to insult he took her mouth with his own in a fierce kiss, holding it and letting her feel the throbbing erection that continually thumbed against those gates.

It was meant for the situation to sink in longer as to what was going to happen next. The terror and thrill excited him and as that kiss drew away he cast one finally grin upon her. She would fell the press of that tip against those tight folds though it was as difficult as squeezing into a bottle and while she was wet down there in required more pressure to brake that seal. Not that he minded since he had no intention of being gentle, even as her lower lips were washed by his cum, he was unable to contain himself but he'd be damned if he was going to stop now.

He got a better angle on it and reached down to hold himself straight against her to assist in piercing those gates finally when she heard a loud grunt and heard him curse tumbling away from her. Chloe unsure as to what happened until she saw that foreigner from earlier, the man with the sleeveless vest and bronze skin. Half way in the green flame as if he were stepping out of it his right hand bellowing smoke. She could smell something burning, a horrible stench that had to be flesh and cloth.

She had heard the clatter of metal as it hit the ground, a squawk of some sort and the flutter of feathers from inside a cage. So she assessed. It was all difficult as far as what she heard first, the curse, the cage or what though she say a crimson flame engulf the hand of the foreigner who had his focus on Giles who had shifted his focus on the interloper, he managed to utter a single word and was gone.

The foreigner seemed to scrutinize the area where he had been then around immediate vicinity before fully emerging from the flame, those entwined around his hand extinguished, he look toward her then immediately away as if offering a bit of modest as if he had walked in on her as she was changing.

“Are you alright?” His words had the hint of an accent that she could not place.

The spread of terror upon her merely extended when Giles took up a more suitable position above her nude form. He forced himself between her thighs, his impatiently throbbing shaft tracing over the gates to paradise. “I-I’d never-“ Chloe barely got a word of protest out though it was more of a distant hope he’d go easier on her if her words were all the more submissive. Surely he wouldn’t, but in the face of death she didn’t plan on doing anything foolish even though asking him not to claim her virginity might have been a few too many words to speak.

She felt sick with that vile, repugnant man stealing a kiss from her lips, holding it for an extended period of time while he prepared to take her, his loss of control bathing her blooming flower in a premature onrush of hot cum. Even a blind man would have been alarmed to her current condition, her every limb trembling and shaking with reluctance, even downright denial although he took more of a deranged pleasure in fucking his latest victim in that state. She feared the pain of having him tear into her hymen the most, but only because it felt more imminent than death itself. Why bother killing her if one sought to hear her scream in agony?

Anything but gentle, that pretty much summed up her thoughts on the matter as to how he’d take her most precious gift. She braced for it, unable to fight him off even if she could move her muscles without them feeling like butter, but then the impossible happened! So many things began to unfold all around her at an insane rate, far too many for her troubled mind to process though by the time Chloe came around, there was the out of place looking foreigner from earlier, standing in the brazier of green flames. He wielded the fire that saved her, a flame that engulfed his hand. Before Chloe could even gather her senses, it was all over.

At the moment Veronica suspected the memory would just end with the alleged nemesis taken care of, but apparently there was more to it that might turn out to be valuable information, not that she was pleased to have stayed in order to observe the whole obscene scenario of having someone rape her mother.

Chloe was more than thankful to have gotten rid of Giles, but at the same time not much had changed in terms of what the buxom woman thought of the situation at hand. She’d gotten stuck with another stranger, one who faced away from her at the very least which granted her a certain measure of modesty. In the beginning the tear stricken maiden hadn’t moved, too shocked to even stir one of her frozen limbs, but ultimately there was no other choice even if it just allowed her to run away again. She looked about for her clothes, or what was left of them, and wiped the molten seed off her body with the aid of her panties, the only article of clothing Chloe thought of as expendable. She didn’t plan on taking it along, soaked as it were, and left it there for the time being.

Alert and uncertain about things to come, Chloe looked to the stranger, the lump in her throat making matters more difficult, but at least the red head managed to get up on unsteady feet while attempting to ease in her half torn gown. “Thank you.” She uttered her thanks in a soft albeit shaken voice while her hands moved to somehow affix the loose flap of cloth that was torn off her breast to the remainder of the dress. Having neglected ear rings in her choice of jewelry, there was nothing on her to fix it, thus the lone woman had to hold it there which left her one hand down.

Initially storming off into the maze appeared to be the best option for the least thing Chloe wanted had been the presence of another stranger, let alone skin contact after enduring such torture. She had trouble walking with the pain rushing through her rear from being taken too rough earlier, but managed to make a few steps away from the newcomer and towards the exit. It only occurred to her halfway past the brazier that finding the way out hadn’t turned out to be all too successful earlier, thus making his company rather essential. She couldn’t be seen like that either, not by the guests, nor her employee even though she could have given less of a fuck about the money at this point. Screw their affairs for all she cared.

“Excuse me, Sir?” She turned to him nonetheless, although Chloe left quite a bit of distance between them for good reason. It proved challenging to even ask for help when just now she was going to bail on him, but getting back there was the first step toward heading back home. “Do you know the way back to the estate?”

In that cage at some point she would see that there was some sort or lizard, or was it a bird? It was some sort of exotic creature that she had never seen before. It had seemed alright but distressed as the cage it had been in was dropped.

Straightening herself out was more of a priority so she had missed it at first. The foreigner simply nodded at her words of thanks as if he was unsure with how to follow that up. When she had straightened herself back up only then had he looked back at her. He had not advanced though or had attempted to impede her any in light of the situation that was probably not going to go too well.

So as she moved past him about the enter back into the maze he had not stopped her. Though she had never left it though she had found her way into the center. But as she hesitated and turned back she found that he had collected the cage once more.

It was a bird cage from what she could tell. That creature calling down though it's heart was still racing and it was looking all about as if searching for the source as to why it fell in the first place and yet was still contained in that cage.

The man looked at her, he made a simple gesture as if waving. Her clothing sprang to life repairing itself. It had seemed that this sort of restoration or mending was pretty simple for him though she had witnessed him commanding fire earlier.

With that same hand he then hooked his thumb back over his shoulder at the brazier as he turned to face her. “That is the easiest way,” there may have been some trick to it or maybe it linked up to another portal but then he explained a little more.

“It is a short cut from the estate to here. I was just transporting this gift to the zoo for our host,” if that were true then not all the animals inside were illusions or this one two was an illusion that someone saw and conjured as something that their host would like.

He was quite for a moment as if thinking about something though she was not sure as to what that may have been he moved on from there. “I could bring you back once I place this inside.”

He glanced to the building behind him then back. “It was locked?” A question perhaps, though he did not address the recent matter directly anyway. Though he had figured that she may have tried the door or had another purpose as to why he had asked.

He was a large muscular man though he made no threatening moves. In fact other than the movement of his arm he had only turned around to face her though she knew very well that there was probably no safe distance for her if he really wished to do anything.

Indeed, there appeared some kind of zoo around where the man was headed with the cage, but all of that was secondary at this point in time. Chloe was still in shock and while her first instinct was to flee, the most imminent threat was gone and with it the worst fear imaginable. Of course, being left in the presence of another had the anticipation for the same horrors build from the ground up, coupled with the shame from being seen completely in the nude while such a vile man forced himself unto her. She was beyond thankful for getting out of there, but in that moment there was nothing the red head wanted more than to hide in the farthest corner of the world and never return.

Scarlet eyes turned to him, but were unable to look him in the eyes for long even though the offer to return her to the estate was quite generous. She didn’t dare question how he restored her dress, not that there was much reason for her to wonder considering he’d already fought Giles off with fire coming from his hand. If anything, speaking right now merely reminded Chloe how her every word was meaningless just minutes ago, how her every plea was ignored or shut down with the threat of additional physical harm. In many ways she didn’t even feel any more comfortable with the foreigner than with Giles although in case of the latter Chloe might have had a chance to outrun him. Seeing how large and muscular the man was, Chloe doubted that’d be the case if he tried anything similar. She swallowed hard before even responding to him, her throat feeling completely dry.

“O-Okay.” It’d be easier than getting back on her own although Chloe wondered if their meeting was already concluded unless he and Lord Adder didn’t actually spend all day discussing whatever these wizards had to speak about. She preferred that not to be the case as being forced to stick around any longer would only make matters worse on her psyche.

She looked to the building behind him and shook her head, not having had the chance to even run that far in fear of getting caught either way. “I haven’t checked.” In fact Chloe had hoped Giles would think his target ran further ahead, but he didn’t fall for that. Instead, he caught right onto her plans and brought their chase to an abrupt halt that way. It was a decent idea, but poorly executed. Perhaps lying down would have been better, but it was too late to think back on it now. ”I hid in the brazier when I got here and hoped that man would walk right by so I could escape into the maze.”

Thus far, Chloe hadn’t moved any further. She tried to get away and stopped to ask for help with regards to finding the way back to the estate. She looked to be quite alarmed, crimson eyes flickered to virtually every body part of his that showed movement as if scanning him for any potentially threatening moves. If he tried to approach, even remotely, Chloe was sure to bail from the scene at a moment’s notice. So far, however, the beautiful red head didn’t run. She depended on him for the moment though any more words just hurt her on the inside.

“Actually I’d rather not speak right now, if that’s alright with you.” She confessed whilst fidgeting a bit, her hands resting amid her lap with a certain unease. “Speaking to me is fine, but .. I-I just can’t right now.” It was quite obvious the girl was holding back tears for after having wiped off the previously spilled ones, Chloe did her best not to look weak again in the presence of another man who had the strength to overpower her. Her rear ached from the rough penetration, the shallow cut on her breasts burned with a mild stinging sensation and recently obtained mental scars kept her from trusting him completely.

When she mentioned that she did not check he gazed to the building. His focus had remained their for a few seconds as if he were examining it closely for any signs that indicated that it was locked. Once that had been done he glanced back to her noting that her eyes had not meet his and they still remained a distance apart. That seemed to be alright with him. His movements were slow so she could follow them.

He nodded as she revealed that she didn't wish to speak right now, understandable but she did admit that she would listen. “This way,” he walked to the building pausing at the door. “It is arcane locked. There are spells to unlock it or it can be opened by the caster normally.”

He opened the door to a lit building. The magical lighting seemed to spring on as the door opened. He chanced a warm grin in her direction not expecting it to be returned but attempting a little bit of light humor, if indeed it passed as such for he did not know human minds so well. “Or by another with greater power in the arcane arts.”

He led the way inside never getting closer to her and allowing her to maintain or close the distance at her leisure. Inside though she found quite the exotic collection of animals and magical beasts to the likes she had never seen before. Chimera, Pegasus, unicorns, griffons, most were not in anything more then roped of enclosures though it was easy to suspect that the ones in actual cages were real and not illusions. She had only seen a small portion of the place too and from signs they she could tell that the creatures were grouped. Among magical steeds had been the Pegasus and unicorn. The griffon was in a section marked magical avians where they were they were heading. The man found a place on an empty pedestal for the cage that had to be set up earlier. It was towards the end of the avians and she could see the multiheaded chimera down the hall though did not see what section it was in.

When that had been done the man turned towards her. Out of the blue it seemed as if he had concluded something. “How would you like the taste of power, enough to defend yourself and those you care about?” It was clear that he had been thinking about something for a little while now, perhaps since discovering her. His tone had not given anything away though there were obvious conclusions she could have drawn from his words. He fell silent though giving her ample time to respond though if she didn't he would lead her back to the brazier to return her to the estate as he had initially offered though she gave her a moment before doing so if he had been ignored.

If he had hoped for as much as a smile, he would not be getting any. She was torn between staying and following him into the other building for one meant remaining close while the other left her all alone without his protective powers, neither of which felt all too appealing to her, but in the end Chloe followed in his wake. It would have been a shame to miss out on the sights that awaited her for the great many creatures in the zoo were a truly remarkable scene to behold. A great many appeared to be illusions, but there were quite a few real ones, too. If things had turned out better with Giles, coming here would’ve been a delight. She was left to wonder what the bird her savior carried around truly was, whether magical or not in nature, but ultimately Chloe chose not to speak at all up to this point.

Turning around he’d find her almost jumping at the attention being cast unto her right then and there, but his sudden proposal caught the voluptuous woman completely off guard. It took her a moment to fully grasp what he might have been saying with those words of his, that power came in many forms and Chloe may gain some of her own for the sake of personal protection and judging from what he put on display earlier, there was no reason to doubt its efficiency. Still, why would he hold such a thought in the first place, what was the reason for it? What were the terms? Was he toying with her, much like Giles a mere few moments before? She doubted it, but even then the basis for his offer was something that eluded the young woman not too far from him.

She was no stranger to her own beauty and figured it might have something to do with that, but put that thought on hold for the time being. Making assumptions of the one who saved her from a fate worse than death made her feel all the more terrible, but the prospect of gaining something out of the whole ordeal pushed her onward nonetheless.

Screw it, there were a great many once in a lifetime offers and while Chloe exercised caution no matter who she was dealing with from this moment onward, there was a certain measure of curiosity in her. She hoped, at least deep inside, that he was genuine about the whole matter, that there really was power to be found at the end of this particular road. In any case, he was not going to be ignored. After a long, lingering silence, the crimson crowned woman actually took one full albeit hesitant step towards him, offering at least a minor measure of trust to the foreigner.

“I’d like that a lot.” It took a great deal of effort to even say that much, not to mention how much it hurt to have that throbbing pain of the recent memory with Giles pestering her, but there was no point keeping him waiting for a response when the only other option was to be led back to the estate and continue life as it were. “What are you suggesting?”

He had not meant to alarm her but she had jumped at the sudden attention he gave to her. Still he had not approached her, nor dd he rush her as she considered her options. He could see the thoughts dancing behind her eyes looking her over after her answer came and nodded.

Of course he noted her step towards him and knew that had to take a degree of effort at that. “It may be some time to achieve it though in a few short months you shouldn't have to worry about most beings. While you may never live long enough to surpass my power that may not be the case,” one never did know what the future held.

He went on. “There are three power sources for magic. Psi magic that some are born with is the rarest but one can use their thoughts to reshape reality, Telepathy, Clairvoyance and other traits. Divine are those chosen by the Gods. Essentially you have to be one of their servants and selected to receive their gift that they channel through you. You can grow in experience but ultimately the deity can cut you off at any time … and if your deity dies then you loose that power.”

He had let that sink in, oh yes, the Gods could die though it was near impossible he knew that the Gods were just powerful beings that assume that mantle. They had so much power and eclipsed even his that they were often seen in such a light though the actual origins of creation, whether deity or something else had been something that even he did not know.

“Last, and most common is Arcane. Book magic, what you can learn. It is the only form of magic that can really be taught. A Divine practitioner might offer some advice to channel magic better or a Psi could offer some crude guidelines but with them you know it or don't unlocking talent as you go, learning your abilities as you grow and gather experience.

“I use the Arcane. I will teach you if you are willing to learn. It will not be easy, not at first though with practice it becomes easier. I use Elemental magic, fire as you've seen. Water and ice based magic are barred to me but I know a great deal of other types of magic. You are not limited to just Elemental magic.

“I can teach you general magic or Elemental magic to get you started. Through magic you have the option of specializing. It limits you in what you can learn but increases your affinity to what you specialize with if you choose to specialize at all. It is not required. I hope I haven't overloaded you with information but that is the basics of it.

“By the way, my name is Abdul, and yours?”

Ample measures of information was being relayed to her and it was no easy task for the beautiful red haired albeit frightened woman to drink it all in amid the aftermaths of extreme duress. She paid attention nonetheless, as much as her troubled mind could hope to at this point in time anyway. Such was not quite the result of enthusiasm, but rather the prospect of returning the favor next time anyone tried to mess with her even though the offered knowledge sounded downright unbelievable to someone who hadn’t been in touch with magic before.

In all likelihood any sane person who never experienced magic first hand before would have called him a liar, someone making a mockery of her despite the things that just happened if Chloe hadn’t seen the fires encompassing his own hands earlier. Still, there were a great many things to the matter of magic her mind never perceived of before and now they were all being unveiled in a matter of minutes. She didn’t know what to make of it. It’d allow her to acquire real power for once, to prevent circumstances the likes of which Giles foisted upon her from ever happening again, but ultimately the foreigner calling himself Abdul had not yet explained to her as to why that offer had been relayed to her in the first place.

Speaking of book magic visibly got her hopes up, of that there was no doubt though her motivations might have been somewhat less noble in retrospect of the situation a man put her through today. She merely realized that her name was asked when he looked to her in silence, her frozen stature once more stirring to life with an onrush of shock although the charming young woman seemed to be holding it together the slightest bit better now.

“C-Chloe, I’m Chloe.” Every word cut deep, but at the very least Giles wasn’t around to threaten her anymore. Sadly Chloe was not meant to fill anyone in on her true identity either, but circumstances had changed. She was no longer feeling up to the task that paid four times as much as any other night. In truth Chloe would have bailed from the scene if it wasn’t for the portal leading back to what could be called an abode of her own. There was no other reason for her to stay until Abdul offered help.

She swallowed hard before pressing on, however, gleaming scarlet eyes drifting to the floor in greater discomfort with what was coming to mind. “I .. I have to confess something since we’ve started with introductions already.” It took her a moment to press on, her lavish chest heaving with every breath. She looked about ready to burst back into tears, but choked them down for now as there was not meant to be a lie between the two of them this early on. “I’m not the Lady Winthrop Lord Adder would have you believe. It’s probably why you’ve even found me alive and not dead and abused in a corner somewhere.”

His generosity would fall to a commoner and Chloe figured he should know that. Whatever getting to the point of actually being capable of using magic entailed, the distressed female hoped to make her own social position abundantly clear before fooling him into thinking otherwise. After all, Lord Adder seemed to have spread word about the woman that was meant to accompany him to the festivities that day. Still, just mentioning it caused her eyes to water at the thought he might reject her for the sake of her being nothing but a woman from the streets. “Just some woman they picked off the streets because I looked just like her. I thought you should know that.”

“Chloe,” he repeated the name in a soft tone as if testing it out or confirming that it was the correct one. He saw how nervous she was, how she looked away and made her confession to him. Certainly he could fill in the gaps but made no sudden assumptions either.

She could have been a woman of the streets or someone Lord Adder found in a crowd. What he knew was that from her earlier encounter she would either be afraid or hateful. Neither had been a good outcome. Through magic he had reasoned that he could display that fear and replace it with confidence while at the same time he wished to cut off her forming that bitterness. Sometimes the best means of fighting evil was to tackle a situation before it took root.

Kill that hate and resentment, though it wouldn't be an easy road to steam her from and one might consider that it was dangerous giving her the power to effectively strike back. Though if he could steam her from revenge that would be great. If he could limit it against a lone target then that was an acceptable outcome to, not the one he was hoping for but he would understand it. He was not human after all and had endured many long years before his own conscience gnawed at him enough to change when most of his kind were not so burdened. Whether it began as boredom and a desire for something different or because the guilt got to him he had long since forgotten.

“No. Not just,” he was shaking his head in disagreement. “Don't sell yourself short. And it makes no difference who you are, noble and commoner alike can learn with the right supplies and significant motivation. Why even those that are not too sharp can still learn a thing or two if motivated, granted they may not learn the greatest of magics but as long as you put forth an effort the results show for themselves.”

He let this sink in apparently unphased by who or what she was. He had been part of a violent treacherous species and yet now after so long those that had learned what he was never associated him with what they were.

“The offer was made to you, Chloe. Not Lady Winthrop. Not a noble. You. Are you willing to learn, I have everything else put you must supply the motivation.”

“Y-Yes, but I mean ..” Speaking of Lady Winthrop alone pestered her mind with not only the disturbing scene the two had gone through playing itself in the back of her mind over and over again, but also the real noblewoman residing somewhere out of sight with an assassin chasing her down every waking moment. “I-I just thought- If he wasn’t convinced I wasn’t the real Lady Winthrop, I’d be dead now. I’d be dead, nothing more.” She’d experienced the horrors of receiving special attention just then. If Abdul hadn’t arrived to save her, there’d be nothing left to save. “I dread the thought of whatever happens to the real one now. I don’t know her or anyone that could contact her.”

Shaking her head in reluctant dismissal of that thought, Chloe figured there’d be no point in worrying about any of that now. She didn’t have the means to do anything about it. Aside from that, there was no telling whether either of the nobles, one being Lord Adder and the other Lady Winthrop herself, set her up to die. Who’d really miss her anyway? In such a grand world, what was a streetwalker in but one tiny portion of it really worth? Selling her own body for money didn’t earn her a whole lot of friends and those that fancied her didn’t care much for talking in the first place. Abdul offered a way out of her miserable existence and with her current state of mind there was no better option than this.

“You’re a kind man .. Abdul ..” She, too, spoke the name rather softly, the fleeting appearance of a smile relaying the change in her feelings although they were short lived as it died almost immediately. “Probably the kindest I’ve met in years.” She looked back at him with suppressed tears welling up within her radiant crimson eyes. “Truth be told, I don’t want to go back to my life, my work. I don’t really have much to go back to anyway.” Sleeping with men tended to get her through the week, sometimes even a month if she managed to save up, but even then society shunned her for what she was. She had the essentials, but it wasn’t much of a life to be enjoyed.

Winding up alone subjected her to this existence. Stepping up to be taken under someone else’s wing could be the way out and Chloe was willing to take the chance. Studying might be a different matter entirely. She could read, or rather spent time doing it back in the day before settling for her current career and Chloe was left to ponder on how much of it actually stuck. Adding that to the fact that learning other languages never really occurred to her, there might be some gaps here and there that had to be filled depending on what kind of tomes they were going to be dealing with.

Still, deep inside Chloe wished to prove herself a good student, to get away from this life that lead nowhere as soon as her looks fade away which everyone knew would happen one day or another. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe it’d last her a lifetime, but the true motivation stemmed from the fact that Abdul used the very thing she could learn to save her life. That alone was worth more than all the money Chloe could ever hope to earn.

She took a deep breath, fidgeting a bit though her mind screamed at the prospect of letting him go without accepting the offer. Chloe had it in her to be great, that much the young woman felt was beyond certain. She just never had the chance to show it considering how life treated her thus far. Thus the scarlet crowned beauty took whatever slivers of resolve were left within her after dealing with Giles, probably the most confident statement Chloe managed to push out so far as her eyes truly locked with his for the first time. “If you take me away from here, from this place and these people, then I’ll learn everything you or whatever books on magic you have can teach me. If you do that for me, I swear it, I will accept your offer and whatever it entails.”

Abdul took that all in and nodded. “He may find out eventually, he may not. If he does though he may resent being thwarted and come for you.” He added, though he watched her take that in. He had not known how the man would react, likely he would have believed that she had made a fool out of him or had been responsible for Lady Winthrop catching on though Abdul did not allow her concern to linger.

“I will tell her. And if Giles comes after you he will have to go through me though by the time he discovers you, you'll be much stronger. I will use my magic to protect you from any divinations he may cast to locate you and we're we are. He may never discover you if he is lucky.”

He smiled entertaining no doubt that he could handle Giles if it came to that.

“That's kind of you. I have much to atone for but now I feel as if I am truly alive,” he was not going to get into his origins just yet. Nor was he going to reveal what he was as he did not wish to spook her though he did not plan to deny her this knowledge but hold off on it for a time.

She implored to be taken from this place. “As you can see from my attire I'm not exactly from around here, Chloe. I intended for your training to occur in Sirocco, any how. That man would be hard pressed in discovering you there with the simple wards I will place on you before we depart.”

And with those final words Flame returned to herself there in Cain's abode, the memory fading slowly as the zoo shifted replaced by the room she had been in. There were other vials, other memories though all had been in Cain's (presumably) handwriting. Only the one listed as Nemesis was written by someone else.

Shortly after she returned to herself and the present Cain had returned. “How goes it?” He asked her not yet close enough to see what she had been looking at. “Did that trigger any other memories?”

Just like that the scene involving Chloe and Abdul came to an end. It turned out to be mildly disorienting to be watching the memory play out, then being forced out of it with its conclusion though Flame figured in time there’d be little trouble getting used to the matter. Some of it left her wondering, however, especially since her father portrayed a different tale as to how the two of them first met a while back, but perhaps he had his reasons to tell her story the way he did.

Still, to think there was just that one vial with writing different to the ones filling the whole place felt a bit strange to her. She couldn’t make much sense of it. Maybe there were others stored someplace else, perhaps along with the exercises and such upstairs as Cain told her earlier, but somehow Flame doubted that. It just seemed out of place.

Thinking about the handwriting got her to ponder on how the writing came to be. She understood what happened and viewed Giles or whatever his name actually was in no good light either, yet early on the red head assumed it to be her own writing when it merely felt familiar to her at the time. After all, never having written anything since that damned prison and trusting her memory now might just lure her in the wrong direction. Someone else could have written this particular title on the vial, but that just happened to be another piece of knowledge Veronica lacked beneath the bane of total memory loss.

“Some of them are quite interesting, but I don’t think they triggered anything. Of course I now know what the memories show me, but I haven’t really recalled something of my own. It just feels like someone else is telling me how I’ve lived while I cannot remember anything myself.” She was back on her feet once Cain returned though by then Veronica thought of what to do with the vial in her hand and turned about to conceal what had been done to it next. “I’m glad I got to look into it regardless. There’s probably a few weeks’ worth of memories I could get lost in in here.”

The vial vanished amid her clothes, much like the one he’d recommended before. Awakened read the scripture on it, although that one Veronica had yet to retrieve. Some minor albeit perfectly executed prestidigitation and acting hopefully got her through the situation unscathed. She had her reasons to take it although it was more out of shame than anything else Veronica pretended to store a vial she hadn’t even looked at in order to make the other one disappear on her body. She didn’t want that memory to be around next time anyone perused the selection of vials to indulge in and thought if Cain ever found out, he wouldn’t be too mad about someone close to the family taking it away.

“I didn’t expect you to be back so soon, but then again I must’ve gotten lost in those memories for a good while now.” Veronica smiled lightly at that while turning back around, allowing him to see which kind of vial his female visitor looked at just then. She had no idea what the vials behind her contained and attempting to fool a Fae as old as him might’ve been incredibly naive, but the young woman tried playing it off nonetheless.

“What can I do for you? Did something happen?” She realized something was needed of her if Cain came back down here in order to speak with her personally. After all, they’d discussed leaving her to her own devices for a little while so exploring those memories didn’t turn into such a rush. It then occurred to her that the memory might have lasted for a good while and viewing most matters in real time from what Veronica gathered earlier, quite a bit of time must have passed with everything that’s been going on in her head for the last hour or so. “Is it time to leave already?”

She could have always tried writing something down herself and comparing that with the script if she had anything on hand. Yet Flame realized that that could have been a fruitless effort seeing that her mother had been infused in her being. Her handwriting could have been identical.

Her subterfuge had seemed to work or if it hadn't then Cain didn't say anything. He probably did not suspect anything underhanded any way though he had peeked to the shelf seeing the vial that she had placed in front as he got a reference as to what she had just been looking at.

He smiled in turn, though is she looked it would be listed with a single word like the rest. PLAY. What that entertained could be anything but it seemed to instill the same reactions that she had appeared to have at the moment.

“A shame I was hoping that they would stir up your memory a bit though the magic is on the weak side and I wasn't expecting much more than you being able to relive a bit of your past.”

Other Enchantments far stronger than this would be necessary though they both had been aware that this had been no counter either. Still they took and gave a portion of her past back. “I am glad too that you had the time to look at some of them.”

He did shake his head a little. “There is nothing wrong, it is time.” He knew how easy it was to loose time in memories having done so himself though he being Fae would loose days rather than hours.

They had to back track a little but they soon returned to the house at the surface after saying their goodbyes to his wife. Once there he had used a simple spell so that she was perfectly dry. Returning to the others she found that Roc and Brie had been joined by Tucker.

“He's got the scrolls, Mistress,” Roc added still acting in character as he presented her with the scrolls in question.

“It was just easier to come here afterward,” Tucker explained with a grin as he turned to face her. He was standing next to Brie, both Fae had been gazing out the window prior to her arrival here.

After nodding her approval and picking up the bottle labeled AWAKENED they got on their way to the house on the surface. Saying her goodbyes to Meringue had been followed by apologies for not being able to spend more time in their company, but that was more due to the fact her memories of them remained locked away for now. They looked like nice people and Veronica loathed her memory loss in greater measures the more her past had been revealed to her, but what these bottled memories relayed today were more than enough to make her think they contained plenty of good ones. Back in Carrion she feared being a terrible person for deserving such a fate, to be locked away and killed after fulfilling her mission for Tori. She was pleased to find they finally proved her wrong.

“Ah, excellent. You’re moving fast.” Staying in character came easy to her even though it took her a moment to realize what was going on after feeding herself memories of a forgotten past for hours on end. Stratos, Mind Blank scrolls, it was all coming back to her. She smiled at the group before taking the scrolls. Taking a good look at them was probably pointless because Veronica had no idea whether they were the right ones, but the young woman did so now despite the fact Roc likely did the same beforehand. She looked content with the result and tucked both of them into the pockets of her overcoat. “Looks like we’re all set for tomorrow.”

Crimson eyes drifted to Tucker, uncertain as to whether Roc already paid him or not. ”Two thousand each, was it?” Then again, money for Fae probably wasn’t worth anything yet that’s what was expected of them. With the currency Abdul left for her in Cain’s home, Veronica would have little trouble paying herself. In spite of the fact her dwarven companion had a nigh infinite supply of gemstones stashed away somewhere, it only seemed fair to take over though that might end up with them breaking character. She still thought he was transforming ordinary stones into gems, too, therefore enforcing the belief they’d have to head outside for that first.

Whichever way they ended up paying, Veronica headed to the window they’d been standing in front of. She must have spent a great deal of time in their underwater home considering the sun was going down and it wouldn’t be more than an hour before they were doused in darkness. Indeed, it was time. She figured they could make it back to the inn by nightfall. Straightening up once more, the buxom sorceress looked back at Cain. “I’m afraid we’ll have to be leaving now. I’d rather we had plenty of time to rest before moving on in the morning, but I thank you for what you’ve shown me. It helped a great deal.”

In hindsight she could have spent days exploring the past and she’d never consider these many hours wasted time. Just riding a unicorn of all things reminded her how much she was missing out dealing with the prospect of never getting them all back had become very real to the red head. Still, they had far more important matters to take care of. There was more at stake than her own memory and Flame had long since accepted the idea of making new memories instead of unlocking every single on in the back of her mind.

“Yes, that was it.” Tucker stated with a simple nod of his head. Wealth had not been too important to most fae. Leprechauns being the big exception there. They dealt with favors all things considered if they managed to save even a few coins a month they would eventual have a great fortune. The fae were patient over all, and it was easy dealing with favors or acquiring scrolls for a future payment. A fae could not break their word without dire, often fatal, consequences.

She was able to use her money to pay. Abdul left a great deal of wealth and Cain even noted that their were some favors that Abdul had collected that she could cash in to on his behalf. There were a list of names of those she could deal with, the ones that he intended to cash in eventually for himself had been kept from the list. Next to the name in parenthesis had been the approximate value of the favor.

It was an estimate of the value of the favor owed since favors had no monetary value it gave her an idea as to what she could ask for, what she could expect for the fae in question to use up in resources to accomplish. The was a lot of wiggle room, but it gave her a better understanding. Having a document forged, smuggled into a restricted area and so forth could be matched up. A favor worth 10 coins wouldn't get her into a restricted area after all but might get her access to a borrowing a cheap but inexpensive exotic item.

Cain nodded with the setting sun. “You are free to stay here and return any time you like.” He knew that she had to be on her way though and did not press her to stay. The Sylph and half Sylph departed after payment had been received and she was alone with Roc once more.

The travel to the familiar inn had not taken so long and they had indeed made it there before nightfall. The inn itself was quiet. Their was the familiarity of the staff and to their surprise or perhaps not Stratos had been at his usual seat. By the looks of it he had just finished his evening meal though he was sitting there quietly drinking a glass of wine and it looked as if he had not been aware of them at present.

Chances were they had to be closer to get detected unless they attracted attention to themselves. Roc had noticed, then looking to her. “He's there,” turning his attention back towards the Sylph he watched but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Roc seemed to be considering courses of action here, rubbed his chin then turned back to Flame.

“How shall we approach him? If in fact we even do ...” Roc seemed to consider once more though he tried not to draw any undue attention to them.