I watched, emotionless, as they pushed the little girls into the dungeon where Roberta Isles and James Nichols were.

Elijah had successfully captured Long's twin daughters. They were now in our captivity.

"See? They're completely unharmed," Gerrard whispered into my ear.

"I know. I just hope they stay that way," I replied.

"Get the children some food and then lock them up," Elijah ordered two of his men. Then he turned towards us.

"So what have you got for me?" Elijah asked as we walked forward. "Anything from the Order meetings?" he asked.

"Actually, yes. Something big," I replied, walking in step with him.

"Really now? What is it?" he asked as we ascended the stairs to the basement to get to the main level.

"Long said that they've nearly worked out the truth spell. They're going to test it this week," I said. Elijah looked at me, his blue eyes flashing.

"That was fast," he said, frustration etching its way onto his forehead. "And if it's an ancient spell, it has to be fool proof," he said.

We walked into the meeting room and he took his seat. I sat in the chair across from him and Gerrard sat next to me.

"What are we going to do? If the spell really does work and Isaac is still at the Government, then they will for sure find out that he's not the real Nichols," I said.

"I realize that. Just shut up for a moment," Elijah said. He took his glasses off and shut his eyes, massaging his temples. I glanced at Gerrard, who shook his head, telling me to remain quiet. Elijah needed to think.

"We'll put the original Nichols back," Elijah said after a few long moments. He opened his eyes. "We'll put him back and take Isaac out. After they run their little truth spell, we'll take him out again," he said.

"How do we know Nichols won't say anything? And won't they notice the change in his health?" I asked.

"We can adjust his appearance to make him look healthy. And we have ways of making sure he stays quiet," he answered.

"If it is an anicent spell, won't it be able to detect if he's lying about his condition? What if they ask him something like, 'Where have you been for the past couple months?' He won't be able to get around something like that," I said. Elijah frowned, scratching his chin.

"That's true. It would only really work if they asked if he was indeed the real Nichols," he said.

"So what do we do?" Gerrard asked, finally speaking up. Elijah was silent for a few moments.

"We're going to have to steal the spell," Elijah said.

"What?!" Gerrard and I exclaimed at the same time.

"We have to steal it. We're going to have to move our plan on taking over the government into action. We can't put it off now," he said.

"You realize that that spell is probably locked up with high security?" I said, rubbing my forehead with my knuckles.

"Yes. I do. Now leave me so I can figure out how exactly we are going to do this," he said. Gerrard and I exchanged uncertain glances, but we obeyed his orders nonetheless. We got up and left the room, leaving Elijah to his thinking and scheming.

"You think we can pull it off?" I asked. Gerrard shrugged.

"Elijah successfully kidnapped Isles and Nichols and was able to round up over a thousand people to support us in the war. I think if he puts his mind to it, he'll be able to come up with something," Gerrard replied.

"I guess you're right," I said, as we walked up the stairs to get to my room.

"Anything new with you?" he asked.

"Trey and I made up," I replied. He raised his eyebrows.

"What happened to it was easier when you two weren't speaking?" he asked.

"I love him. I can't stay away forever," I said, sighing as we entered my room.

"I think it was better when you weren't speaking," Gerrard said. I sighed heavily.

"It wasn't better; it was just easier," I said.

"And how is it better now? You have someone to snuggle with? Kiss? What happens when you two face each other on the battlefield?" Gerrard asked.

"I don't want to think about that right now," I said.

"You're going to have to think about it eventually. Because it's inevitable," he said. I gazed out my window at the grey skies outside. My heart felt heavy and my mind was cluttered. There was too much going on in my life and I felt out of control.

"I just want to be happy right now," I said in a quiet voice.

"You won't be truly happy until this is all over," he replied.

And that was exactly what I was afraid of. Except I knew that even when all of it was over, I still wouldn't be happy. Because if we won the war, then Trey would know my secret and hate me forever. And if we lost the war, then Trey would still know my secret and Elijah would want nothing to do with me. I was going to lose either way, which is why at that moment, I just wanted to enjoy what I had while I had it. Because sooner or later, I was going to lose it all.

                                                                       ~~~~~~~~~~~

Trey and I sat under our favorite tree, lounging around outside. Spring had finally come through and the sky was bright. The grass was turning green again and the trees were growing their leaves. Flowers blossomed among the forestry and fresh smells filled the air. The Earth was alive once more after having been asleep during the long winter months.

Abbey and Lance walked by us as we were chatting. As they walked by, Abbey did a double take and crashed into Lance's back. After regaining her balance, she came up to us.

"When did this happen?!" she exclaimed.

"Leave it to you to make a big deal out of nothing," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Nothing? It wasn't nothing! You two weren't speaking for a whole two months!" she exclaimed.

"And now we are. No drama necessary," I said.

"Thanks a lot for telling me, roomie," she said.

"Why does it matter?" I asked.  She frowned and then sat her self down next to us.

"So no more trouble in la-la land?" she asked.

"I really wish you would stop calling it that," I said.

"Just leave them alone," Lance said.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, fine! But I'll have you know that it's extremely frustrating when a relationship is one-sided," Abbey said.

"You are so needy," I groaned. "How do you put up with her?" I asked Lance.

"It's a struggle," he sighed. Abbey slapped his arm and he chuckled, winking at me.

"Freshman!" we heard a voice say. We looked up to see Oralie and Matt walking towards us.

"That's getting old," I said.

"We're almost sophomores now," Trey pointed out as they came up to us.

"Almost, but not quite yet," Oralie sang. Her amber eyes flashed in amusement.

"What are you kids up to today?" Matt asked.

"Just hanging out. Avoiding doing our homework," Lance replied.

"Ah, the fascinating lives of the freshman," Oralie said with a chuckle.

"Where are you from?" I blurted out. Oralie blinked, taken aback.

"Excuse me?" she asked.

"I've just been wondering for a while now. Where are you from?" I asked.

"I grew up in Algeria, but was born in Egypt," she answered. Her and Matt sat down by us under the tree so that they weren't awkwardly hovering above us.

"Egypt. Wow. Do you ever visit?" Abbey asked.

"I have been there on occasion. I studied there my first semester of my sophomore year," she answered.

"Really? What's it like?" Lance asked. I listened carefully. The only magic that I'd ever known or learned was the magic that was taught to me by Gianna and the professors at Trinity. Magic from other countries must be different and I was curious as to how.

"It's amazing. The land is rich with the magic of our ancestors," she replied.

"How can you tell?" Trey asked.

"You have to be connected to the earth. The one thing I dislike about magic these days is that it doesn't give respect to the magic of our earlierst ancestors. Our ancestors relied heavily on the earth and its resources to do magic. After all, the earth is where our magic originally came from. By respecting the earth that provided for our powers, we were able to put a sort of checks and balances on the limits of our powers. These days, however, people don't care about that. Power is power, whether it's the good that are using it or the bad. We have fought too many wars and shed too much magical blood on this soil. Mother earth isn't happy with us modern Magii. It's no wonder why we have such a large divide in the magical community," Oralie explained. 

We sat in silence, her words resonating in our minds.

Matt chuckled. We looked up at him.

"I always told Oralie that she was born the master of the wrong element," he said. Oralie laughed a musical laugh.

"He says that I should be an earth master. Not a fire master," she added.

"I'm an earth master," Abbey said.

"You don't act like it," Lance said.

"Trey, I find you most fascinating of all," Oralie said.

"Me? Why?" Trey asked.

"Yeah, why not Caley? She has the blue eyes," Matt said.

"Because Trey, you have all the colors, save for blue. You can be a true master of all the elements," Oralie said.

"I know," Trey mumbled, glancing at me uncomfortably.

"Hmmm...." Oralie said, a small smile on her lips. "I have things to do. Come, Matt," she said, standing. Matt stood as well and followed her as she walked away from us.

"She's weird," Abbey said.

"Mysterious, more like," Lance said.

"I wonder how people can study abroad..." I said. The others looked at me curiously.

"You're thinking about it?" Trey asked.

"I am now. It would be so awesome to go study magic in a different country!" I said.

"Yeah, I guess it would," Lance agreed.

I tucked the idea into the back of my mind, deciding I would ponder about it later.

                                                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~

 I walked up the circular driveway to Elijah's mansion for the second time in one week. It seemed like even when the weather was nice out, it became dreary once I approached Elijah's manor. I didn't know whether it was magical or just the aura of the place, but whatever it was, my mood quickly became somber as soon as I entered the black wrought iron gates.

The door opened for me and I stepped inside the chilly mansion. I made my way to the meeting room. Elijah had said he figured out how we would break into the official Trinity Government building in Rome. He had formulated a plan to steal the spell.

I found myself feeling excited, which should have bothered me, but didn't. I wanted to break in. I wanted to help steal the spell. I wanted to be able to do something of use, besides just reporting back whatever happened during the Order meetings. I wanted to be an active part of the movement, not just a passive messenger. If I was really the secret weapon, then I wanted to be of use. If I really did have the incredible amount of power that everyone told me I had, then I wanted to use it. What good were all the spells and tactics Gianna taught me if I couldn't use them?

I walked into the meeting room. There were already several people there and seated, talking idly until Elijah arrived. I seated myself between Gerrard and Dom.

"Hey," I said, leaning back in my seat.

"Got to see you twice in one week," Gerrard said, smirking at me. I laughed.

"How lucky of you," Isobel said bitterly from beside Gerrard.

"You know, Isobel, I'm sure it must be difficult sitting with that stick up your ass. Ever thought about lightening up a bit?" I responded. Gerrard gave me a look and she glowered at me. Dom silently chuckled beside me and I simply shrugged.

Elijah walked in with Gianna trailing behind him.

"All right. Shut up everyone," Gianna snapped as Elijah took his spot at the head of the table. Immediately, silence fell.

"Thank you, Gianna," Elijah said. Gianna smiled at him before taking her seat beside him.

"I'm going to get straight to what I want to talk about," Elijah began. "As you all know, our friend Peter Long has been working on decoding an ancient truth spell. As all ancient spells, this one is sure to be fool proof, which means no amount of our tampering will help us get around it. Long intends to use this spell because he suspects that Nichols--Isaac--is not the real Nichols. Obviously this is true, but we cannot let Long figure that out," Elijah said.

"What exactly is Isaac doing?" a man named Klaus asked.

"Quite a bit, actually. As you know, the job of the vice president includes many things. One of which is serving as the judge in the Supreme Trinity Court. Many of our men and women that had been caught in the previous war and in the time since have been put to trial. And guess what the ruling has been?" Elijah responded.

"Not guilty?" Klaus answered.

"Precisely," Elijah replied, a manical grin on his face. "I'd like you all to welcome back Kareena, Camden, Gregory, Vince, and Victoria," he said, nodding at the new faces that were in the room. 

We all looked around at them. I noticed that each one had a gaunt look about them. Their faces were pale and thin, hollow and sickly. Their eyes were faded and almost animal-like. I wondered what horrors they must have been put through in the Trinity Prison.

"Isaac has also successfully...persuaded," he paused, an evil glint in his eye, "many of the department heads into agreeing with us," Elijah continued. I furrowed my brow. Persuaded?

"Wha-" I began.

"He put a control curse on them," Gerrard whispered before I could ask my question. I snapped my mouth shut and nodded.

"When the elections come around, we know that we have their votes," Elijah said.

"When are elections?" I whispered to Gerrard.

"This coming fall. Blackwood is running again and Nichols is also going to be a candidate. It's why we picked Nichols to kidnap," Gerrard answered. I nodded and looked at Elijah.

"Those are among the more important things that Isaac has been doing. But, back to why I initially called this meeting. As I said, Long has uncovered this ancient truth spell and intends to use it to question all members of the Trinity Government. Thanks to Caley, we know that this spell will be used sometime soon. At first, I thought it would be easy to thwart the spell by simply putting the real Nichols back in the Government until such time the checking is over. However, I was speaking with Caley and she pointed out that we have no control over the questions that will be asked during these interviews. Long does. Which means that my plan will not work if Long asks the wrong questions," Elijah continued.

There was a murmur among the crowd of people. What was Elijah's back-up plan?

"After thinking about this, I have come to the conclusion that we need to steal the spell," he said.

Immediately there was an uproar.

"Steal the spell?!"

"You mean, break into the Government again?"

"We were barely successful the first time when we captured Isles and Nichols!"

"Quiet!" Gianna hissed. Silence fell among us once more.

"I realize that it is a risky plan, but it is necessary. Because as I got to thinking, it is not only Isaac's position that could possibly be compromised. It is the positions of all those members whom have agreed to vote for Isaac in the next election. We cannot afford to remove our spells from those people, so the only alternative is to steal the truth spell," Elijah explained.

"And how exactly will we do that?" Chavez, a burly man with a thick Spanish accent, asked.

"I will be sending a select few of you to go in. Gerrard will be disguised as the son of one of the Government workers, Christopher. He will go in under the guise of calling him to an Order meeting. The rest--Isobel, Gianna, Caley, Klaus and Dom--will be disguised as other members of the government. I have already met with Isaac. He said he will be calling a meeting in which we will steal the hairs of certain members that work in the Department of Ancient Spells. Isaac will also have a bile potion served in the drinks at the meeting so that those same members will fall ill and not come in to work the next day. We will use the hairs to transform Isobel, Gianna, Caley, Dom, and Klaus's image. That is when we will go in, take the truth spell, and then leave," Elijah said.

Whispers arose, discussing the plan. It seemed fool-proof, to say the least. But we would have to move quickly. Long could have the spell ready in no time.

"If there are no further questions, that is all I have to say. You are free to go," Elijah said, dismissing everyone. I stood up as well. I needed to get back to Trinity. I had a date with Trey.

"Caley," Elijah said, calling me back. I went up to him.

"Yes?" I asked.

"I need a hair from your boyfriend so we can transform Gerrard. Can you get that?" he asked.

"I'm pretty sure I probably have one on my sweater--" I said, looking down at my jacket.

"Get a fresh one, just in case. Make sure it isn't contaminated with your prints," he said.

"How am I supposed to get it, then? I can't just put on a pair of gloves and be like, 'Hold still, honey. I need your hair.'," I said.

"Watch your tone," Elijah warned. I rolled my eyes. "You're a smart girl; you'll find a way," he said. I sighed and nodded and then turned to leave.

"I need it by tomorrow!" he called after me.

"Yeah, yeah!" I called back, letting the door shut behind me.

________________________________________________________________________

A/N: Wahooo!

So I'm thinking two more chapters and then it will be the end of Book 2! Yay!

Do you guys think the plan will work? Do you think they'll be able to steal the spell?

Leave me a comment with your thoughts!

And as always, VOTE!

P.S Our favorite character Elijah is in the sidebar.   ^.^

XOXO