- Lacerta -

Lacerta stepped back into the castle. After leaving Siena, she felt almost empty. She was happy, too. It was odd to feel both. Ansgar was waiting for her when she returned.

"Well?" he asked.

"We left her, just as others came to get her."

Ansgar lowered his head into his hand. Siena smelled his fear melt into relief. After several moments, he looked at her. "You know what will happen, now," he stated.

"Yes, we are prepared."

"It may not come to any of that," he told her.

Lacerta tilted her head to the side. "Our bond with Günay is dissolving even as we speak, but it will not disappear completely. He will not want Lacerta around anymore. We will make our escape to the Wilds."

She felt Grand Master Günay summon the Equites. It was like the tug of a string in the back of her mind. Apprehension filled Lacerta, something she was not used to, as she moved instinctively to obey the command.

"Lacerta," Ansgar called, and she stopped. "Thank you for helping Siena."

"We did not do it for you, Master Ansgar. We did it for Siena."

Her black boots clicked on the floor as she wound her way through the Castle. When she reached the great hall, she pushed open the doors to reveal the other members of the Equites, Inanis, Pardus, and Orexis. Each turned to look at her. Pardus stared openly, while Inanis appeared indifferent. As Lacerta approached them, Orexis sprang forward.

"Lacerta," she giggled, "how did she taste? Was she sweet?"

Orexis reached out her arm, covered in markings that looked like feathers, and stroked Lacerta's shoulder. "We wanted so dearly to taste her, too," Orexis continued. "The Soul-Carriers are so delicious, are they not? Lacerta, tell us, tell us, how did her Gift taste?"

Lacerta shrugged off Orexis' clawed hand and snarled at the smaller daemon. Orexis' pupils dilated and she shrank back, glaring.

"Enough," Günay said, entering the room. He was never the last to arrive, he was always waiting for them in the throne room. The Equites knelt, in one synchronized movement, and bowed their heads as Günay ascended the dais.

"Welcome back, Lacerta," Günay said, his deep brown eyes fixing her with a stare. Lacerta returned his gaze, forcing herself not to fidget. As she looked at him, she felt the small threads which bound her will to Günay's were disappearing one by one. She wondered if he felt it, too.

Behind Lacerta, she heard Orexis' whimper, not one of fear, but rather of desire. Lacerta sensed her fellow Eques' hunger, and it angered her. Günay directed their attention back to him, like a magnetic pull, and they forgot each other for the moment. Lacerta's mind was hazy with Günay's own thoughts. She struggled to keep her conversation with Master Ansgar concealed; and to her surprise, a barrier of some sort encased that which she wished to hide. A barrier of magic that was like Siena's, light brown and strong, standing out against the blue-green hue of Günay's will.

"I have summoned you in order to speak of the next stages of our plan. Inanis, this one is for you to lead."

Lacerta's ears twitched as Inanis stood. "Yes, Grand Master."

"There are two young Élu whom I wish to have join us here in Crystallos. I do not expect it to be easy."

"We understand, Grand Master. Shall we go to the city of souls to retrieve them directly?"

Günay shook his head. "They need to come willingly, or what I need from them will not work. It is an unfortunate consequence of their bloodline, and though I have tried to find ways around it, Elam's Will is, in this instance, too powerful to circumvent."

Lacerta did not understand, but clearly none of her brethren did, either. She waited for an explanation, and Günay obliged.

"The Élysées family contains the strongest and purest bloodline from Elam's Gift. There is a shield around them and their Gifts in such a way that cannot be undone except by themselves." Günay's tone seemed to indicate irritation, which permeated through Lacerta's being.

"What would you have us do?"

"For now, I lay the bait, and pull some strings. I will make certain young Adept Élysées is in the human realm. Inanis, you will be there, waiting. Make sure to take Orexis with you."

Inanis' distaste was so deep even Lacerta smelled it, but wise Inanis held his tongue.

"Neither she nor her brother are to be harmed," Günay warned. "But do whatever it takes to make sure Casimir comes to our side of things."

Günay's meaning was clear, and Lacerta now understood why Inanis was chosen for this. Lacerta's being tingled with anticipation she could not help, so powerful was Günay's own excitement.

"What is so special about these two?" Orexis asked. Lacerta was glad for once of Orexis' grating voice, as she asked the very question Lacerta wished to ask.

Günay looked at Orexis, as if trying to decide if he should answer. "They possess a very special bond with Elam's Will that will prove invaluable. The eldest is, on top of this, a rarissime. No doubt his power will be amplified tenfold once he joins us here. All rarissime have a deeper connection to Crystallos but his being an Élysées makes it that much stronger. As for his sister, she is a Healer, which is just as, if not more, useful."

"Why do we need such magic here?" Pardus asked. "We heal ourselves. We do not need Soul Carriers to tend to us!"

"The Élysées Healers are more than just your typical Élu. It is difficult to explain. You will all see for yourselves when the day arrives."

Then they were dismissed, as abruptly as they had been summoned. Lacerta pondered all of this, trying to work out what it meant. Why were these two so important to the Grand Master?

"Wait, Pardus," Günay said behind them. Lacerta and the others paused, and Pardus walked back towards the dais. "Stay a moment. I've a task for you, as well."

Lacerta felt her beingshiver as she walked out the great doors.

- Lacerta -

Lacerta had made her way back to her quarters, every part of her being on edge. She was looking for Nanus and Gigas, but her vitii were nowhere to be found. Were they playing a game? Surely not, they knew what she had been doing. As she approached her quarters, another smell permeated them. Her pupils contracted to thin slivers and her markings glowed.

She entered her room and turned a corner, coming face to face with the slowly dissolving bodies of Nanus and Gigas. She shrieked with rage. A bluish, ghost-like figure appeared out of thin air, and Pardus stood there, grinning at her.

"Lacerta," Pardus purred. "We are happy you came so quickly."

"What are you doing here?" Lacerta demanded. "This is our lair!"

Pardus feigned hurt. "We are only following orders. Unlike one of our sisters who has lost her way."

"We have not lost our way," protested Lacerta.

Pardus came very close, leaning his head over her shoulder. "We think differently. We all felt the bond break. Do you think the Grand Master did not notice?"

"L-lady Lacerta," stammered Gigas from behind Pardus. "R-run!"

Lacerta's pupils had become so thin, her eyes appeared solid blue. One of Pardus' vitii stood there, licking its lips. Lacerta's magic burned inside of her as she screamed and launched herself at Pardus, who faded away so that Lacerta fell onto empty air. Lacerta's power waned as her two vitii faded.

"You will pay for harming our vitii!" she challenged.

"We will pay?" laughed Pardus. "No, no."

Pardus crouched and lunged forward, but Lacerta knocked him aside easily. "We burn more brightly than you, Pardus! Do not pick a fight you cannot win!"

Pardus laughed. "Oh, but we can win today!" As if to prove something, he raised his arms where his markings shimmered. Lacerta watched, eyes wide, as the marks disappeared entirely.

Pardus roared and began to transform. Lacerta felt, for the first time since becoming Lacerta, true fear. Pardus lunged again, and this time he pinned Lacerta, and the two daemonis ripped and scraped at each other. Lacerta's fangs and claws grew longer, dripping with venomous saliva. She managed to kick Pardus away, then tackled him from behind. She grabbed Pardus by his light blue hair and slammed his face into the floor. The limestone cracked, then Lacerta latched onto his neck with her fangs.

Pardus howled in pain and finished transforming. Beneath Lacerta was a panther-like daemon now, rising to its feet and flinging her backwards. She landed on her feet, hissing and snarling.

We need to get him outside the castle walls, she thought. We can fight on more even ground there!

Lacerta rushed forward again. Pardus' vitii dragged Nanus and Gigas out of the room, and Lacerta snarled, turning towards them. Pardus leapt onto her, knocking her out of the way.

"Over the castle walls they go," Pardus laughed. "Where you will soon join them!"

Pardus and Lacerta stood facing each other. Pardus scratched the ground with his claws and opened his mouth wide. A blue orb of magic formed, swirling and burning. Lacerta gasped as the magic blazed towards her. There was nowhere to dodge from the blast, but Lacerta's mind was focused on one thought only. She ran towards the orb and felt it prickling her skin as she sliced through it, claws gleaming. She reached for Pardus, and felt her claws rip into him. Pardus backed away.

"Pardus!" his vitii shouted, running towards them.

Lacerta started to knock her away, when Pardus reached out a hand and grabbed his vitii by the throat. She yelped, her orange body bursting with light when he touched her. Pardus kicked Lacerta off, and she rolled away. She looked up in time to see Pardus absorbing his vitii, devouring her magic as her being faded rapidly to dull gray. She screamed until her body was gone, and then the echoes resounded around them.

Lacerta's pupils dilated as Pardus turned to face heragain, his bluish white magic now pulsing with the orange glow of his absorbedvitii. She felt frozen as a final blast of magic released from Pardus. Lacertacould not move as it hit and enveloped her, burning her. She breathed deeply,absorbing some of it, lessening the impact, but even still, she knew the fightwas over.

- Ansgar -

Within the walls of the Castle, the fight between the two Equites resounded. Ansgar stood on a balcony, watching the fight from above. On either side of him were Kato and Günay. He felt their eyes on him more than on the fight below. Inanis and Orexis were there, too, and Orexis was shaking with glee. Pardus threw Lacerta's broken and fading body over the side of the castle wall, and her presence disappeared from the castle.

Günay spoke up. "Let this serve as a lesson. I will not tolerate anyone going around my authority, no matter how valuable they may be. I will bring Lutèce and the Seven Kingdoms crumbling to my feet, and no one will keep me from achieving my goal. Do you understand, Ansgar?"

"Of course," Ansgar said through his smile.

"I would not make light of your situation any longer," Günay said, his voice low. "From this point forward, I expect complete obedience. Any more missteps, and you will find out exactly what it feels like to have your anima devoured."

Kato smirked. "I can only imagine the pain," he said. "Based on our previous test subjects, it can't be a nice feeling."

Ansgar bowed low to Günay, dispensing with his usual flippancy. Günay and Kato left, and Orexis followed them. Ansgar had known it would be a risk, and not a small one, either. Siena was safe, and that was worth everything. He glanced over the side of the castle. He had hoped Lacerta would escape before Günay took action, but in the end, better the daemon than him. Ansgar left the balcony and entered the castle. He glanced up to see Inanis staring at him, the daemon's gaze unblinking.

"This 'heart' you once spoke of to us is weak," Inanis observed. "What good is such a thing when it puts you in such danger?"

Ansgar considered this for a moment. There was some truth to it, certainly, but he did not completely agree. "Love can also make you stronger," he said quietly.

"Yes," Inanis whispered, finally blinking once. Then he looked pointedly towards the direction of the crumbling outer wall. "That is why Lacerta lies at the bottom of the castle, and we are standing here, still alive, within its walls."

"Sarcasm? My, you are learning human habits," Ansgar said without a trace of humor.

Inanis turned his back. "We have a mission to complete," he said, and walked away, leaving Ansgar to the silence.