Tobyas bowed his head. He was not prepared for Azi to press him for what he knew of this curse. He had rather freely spent his gold this past day or two and had learned much of D’Vena and how she worked. “More than most,” he said in a hushed tone, “save perhaps Crispian and D’Vena now. I have researched much.” Knowing the secret vices of some in Camelot had paid off during this period. There were many that would exchange information for keeping their appetites secret.


Azi took both of his hands in hers and leaned in close to him. Her voice was a mere whisper in the quiet chamber. “I have discovered something.” Her hushed tone and excited manner sent a shiver through him.


Tobyas took a moment to speed a silent prayer off. “Aye, Azi?” he said, allowing surprise to show, “what is it?” He kept any hint of dread from his expression.


Azi closed her eyes tight as she fought to retain her control. It was a great danger to tread so close to D’Vena’s attention if she were not fully prepared to handle what may come with it. She became more tense than excited as she sat in quiet.


Sensing her unease, Tobyas stood and placed his hands on her head. He gathered the power given him by his consecration to the Almighty. “I call on the Almighty,” he said in a prayerful tone, “to give you strength of soul and purpose, knowing His love fully and sharing it to full measure.” He made the holy sign over her. “May He grant this prayer.”


Azi felt a wash of calm suffuse her. The struggle was tipped in her advantage. She sighed deeply. “Thank you,” she said with a tight smile. “Have you spoken to Crispian this day?” she asked, her voice tight with excitement and a hint of dread. Her fingers rolled the sleeve of one arm tight, then loose, then tight again in her nervousness.


Tobyas shook his head as he sat down again. “No, I have not spoken to him in a day or two,” he said calmly. He did not wish to show to Azi the pain he felt when circumstances rather than events separated him and Crispian. He did not like burying himself away from the League and the hunt, but that is what this last day had demanded.


Azi sighed, resting her hands on her lap with an effort. “I fear what I have to tell you may be sinful, or evil, Tobyas.” She could not bring herself to meet his eyes, and stared at her now idle hands in her lap. Would he condemn her for what she had done while at prayer yesterday? Was it sacrilege?


Toby smiled gently. “Then who better to tell, Azi?” He took a purple stole from his pouch, kissed it, and draped it over his shoulders. “I am prepared to hear your confession, Azi.” He settled himself into a posture of prayer, raising one hand to shield her from his view.


Azi bowed her head. “In chapel last night,” she said in bare more than a whisper, “my mind was not on prayer in the least.” She swallowed nervously, hesitating to explain exactly what it was she had been doing when she should have been praying. What the monks must already think, and she was about to tell Tobyas!


He nodded. “Go on,” he urged her quietly.


I started off in prayer, surely,” she continued. But I had a vision of Tannir,” she went on, seeing the image of the young blond squire to Crispian clearly, “and I reached to my side…and I heard D’Vena’s vile laughter,” her voice quivered in a near physical shudder. “Instead of pulling away from it, Tobyas, I went toward it.” Although still low, her voice throbbed with the emotion of the moment. Her hands rested flat on her lap, but they seemed to almost be curling in a casting gesture. “I pushed toward it,” she breathed into the silence.


Tobyas tried to keep himself focused. “And then?” he prodded when she did not continue. What had she done? What gamble had she made? “Look to the Almighty for your strength, Azi, and He shall give it to you,” he said to encourage her to continue on.


She took a deep breath to brace herself and went on with her tale. “When I got closer,” she said in that quiet tone, “I pushed more.” A shudder swept through her. “I crossed myself, Tobyas, and so did D’Vena.


Toby’s hand fell as he turned to look at her, his eyes blinking in surprise. “You did WHAT?” he asked, his voice no longer fully controlled and much excitement filling his words.


Azi nodded, not looking at him, though she could feel his shock. “You heard me correctly,” she assured him.


Toby rose from the stool and paced the small chamber. “Are you farkin’ kidding me?” he asked incredulously. “YOU got a moment of control?” he shot at her. She nodded, not speaking. “Could you do it again?” he asked. His excitement at that was uncontainable, for it could mean avoiding a conflict with D’Vena on her terrain. He did not envy any that were on that fight if it came to it.


Azi shook her head. “I haven't tried. I tried to do it with Crispian, and I felt myself with him, but I was distracted before I could test it.” She did not mention that the distraction was the monk calling her back to chambers.


Toby chuckled as he too shook his head. “You channeled through D’Vena to Crispian?” he asked her with a bit of awe in his voice. “You have a great mind to match your great heart, Azi,” he said.


“I know not,” she said, “not for certain anyway.” She wished she could give him more for certain. But so much of it all was so tenuous. She did not know if she dared to try it again. If she did, she did not know how successful it would be. She drew a breath and steadied herself. “It’s exhausting, Tobyas. Even with that much, I slept this whole day.” She rubbed at her eyes. “I had to lean on the young monk who brought me back.”


Tobyas nodded slowly. “Such battles are exhausting, Azaeli Hammerfel. I was prepared to offer you such a battle this night,” he said, feeling a bit guilty that he would offer such a fight now that he knew what the day before had held for her.


Azi looked up and met his gaze. He held trust and warmth in it for her that was obvious. “You know that I shall do anything I can. Anything you ask,” she said with a tight smile.


Tobyas looked at her and weighed out what he should say next. Should he tell her of what he fully planned? Moreover, would she agree?

 

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Tobyas paused in thought for a moment and then decided to press on. “Beyond that door are some friends of mine who would aid me in clensing you of D'Vena's touch, if you are up to the fight.” He knew he was asking much, especially in light of her confession about touching and manipulating D’Vena. However, he did not feel that the option he had should not be explored. He felt that Azi deserved to hear about it.


“Cleanse me?” she asked in a shocked voice. “But this may be the only way to get to her!” Her urgency at the need to continue this course was immediately evident.


Toby looked into her eyes, holding none of his emotions in check. “I am more concerned with saving you while we can,” he said in little more than a breath. His eyes danced between hers.


Azi shook her head. “No, Tobyas, I won’t allow it yet.” She knew that she was walking a dangerous line. Her practice at magic had exposed her to many such dangers. This time, in truth, she knew the risks. “The Lord works in mysterious ways, this is a gift that has been given to me.”


Tobyas sighed and closed his eyes. “I feared you would say that,” he answered her.


Azi grabbed his hands again. “Certainly you agree?” she asked in a voice that made him look at her. He could see her feelings of hope, and the weight of the danger, in her eyes. As ever, they were radiant with passion and life, though the joy that drew so many to Azi was gone. In its place was temper and steel.


He swallowed heavily, considering his next words with care. “I am not sure,” he admitted. His brows nettled as he looked at her. “I have lost one I love already to this, Azi.” He cared not that he shared how he felt with Azi, for she knew his truth. “Now, you ask me to risk a second?” The pain in his expression made Azi draw back slightly.


She smiled sadly at him. “He is not lost, Tobyas. He is doing rather well.” Her brief touch, although not enough for interaction, had allowed her glimpse of the peace Crispian felt.


Toby shrugged. “Lost to me, Azi. In the way I hoped to have him, at one time.” From his expression Azi knew he spoke of Crispian not as friend or liege lord. Tobyas had come to the conclusion that what he wanted most from Crispian would probably not happen at the end of it all, when the curse was done. That had been the most bitter thing about this curse for him to face. When it was played out, he would have a good friend, a boon companion. But the passion they had twice shared would be gone.


Azi placed her hand on his shoulder. “As difficult as it may seem, dear friend, that too was a gift.” She looked at him as one who has seen her love die once, even though it was just an illusion.


Tobyas lowered his gaze for a moment, not wanting to look into her eyes any longer. Then, with a sigh, he looked up. “But, let us get back to the matter of you, Azi,” he said as he stepped back into his role of Cleric and spiritual shepherd.


“Yes,” she said, her eyes holding his for a moment in compassion before she again averted them.


“I would see you free of this taint, dear Azi, but only if you consent to it.” He knew he could perform the ritual completely against her will. However, it would be much more difficult and it would cause Azi some great pain if he did. And there was the possiblity of her resenting him for it later.


Azi shook her head. “I cannot,” she whispered. “Not yet.” Her fingers twined over themselves in her lap. Would he not see the good she could do? Or did he choose not to?


“I understand, I suppose,” he said with a nod, although his face was drawn in a frown. “You cannot run from such a battle as this, can you?” He knew her to be a warrior in nature from the first, and in profession now. He also knew some of the ongoings in Hibernia that surrounded Azi. No, she could not and would not walk from this fight.


“Not when it can be of so much aid to those I care for,” she said in a rush. Her words tumbled out with the relief that Tobyas would not try to stop her. “Though, I wish I could. Truly.” He saw in her eyes that she would walk away, but not while Crispian, whom she loved in her way, hung in the balance. It was a moment of ephinany for Tobyas. He suddenly realized that Azi did not feel in the least romantically for Crispian. Her love for him was the pure love that Tobyas himself hoped to be able to master.


Again, Toby sighed bitterly. “I would not see you locked in here Azi, but can you understand the risk of being out there?” He hoped she did.


“Yes, Tobyas.” She nodded grimly. “Yes. I have asked my door locked and gaurded.” Tears again welled in her eyes. Her hands gestured to the bare desk. “I will not even allow myself parchment and quill, or visitors.” She had tasted D’Vena’s mind under its control and on her own. The sheer vileness of it made her shudder again.


In exasperation, Toby sighed and slapped his hand on his thigh. Battle he had become used to, even comfortable with. He could make a decisive difference there. But here, in this arena, he felt ill equipped. “I wish I could do something more for you, Azi.” He shook his head. “In faith and love, I do wish it.”


Azi closed her eyes and calmed herself. The decision seemed to have been made in her favor. “As do I,” she said as she looked up. “ It has been such a short time, and already I miss the League hall and my Pappa so much. And I fear Jashen will hate me forever, or at least will never see me the same again. I wonder if I will ever be the same again...” Her voice trailed off.


Toby nodded to her, taking her hand. “Of course you shall be restored, Azi,” he reassured her. He himself was not fully sure of the fact, but clerics were supposed to assure people that all would be right. Tobyas held a firm belief that even the bad things were part of the Almighty’s plan. He knew that those who pretended supreme knowledge of the Almighty knew not his heart and will. They were just blind to all that the love of the Almighty could encompass. To Toby, that meant that suffering was sometimes part of the divine plan of things.


“Tobyas,” she said quietly, “am I making the right choice?” She blessed herself. “Would you do the same thing? She fixed him with a gaze he could not turn from, nor did he want to.


He grinned wryly at her. He had already made that choice himself. “I, too, would die for him and his peace of mind, Azi, of called to,” he said. Facing the ultimate price had ever been a worry. With the knowledge of D’Vena he now held, he knew the possibility was very real. And that if called, he would do it.


Azi shook her head. Her eyes burned with a fire of conviction and certainty. “Nay, Tobyas,” she said. “not for him. It’s not for him that I act. It is for Right. For Good, that must triumph over her evils.” The glow of faith radiated from her. “And I wish not to be martyred by death, but to succeed by living, with all of the power I have to do so.” Her hand moved to bless herself subconsciously as she dedicated herself to this fight.


“Then, dear Sister, how do you think we should proceed? Locking you away in here?” He gestured at the small chamber in which they sat. The bare oaken walls devoid of all art, all festive signs. “In this small monk’s room?”


Azi was taken aback, her enthusiasm checked. “I cannot trust my own strength enough to let myself wander free,” she said, sounding a bit defeated. What paladin had not the strength of the Lord to bolster them? “Perhaps if I had a ward to accompany me everywhere, but I'd hate to place that burden on anyone.”


Tobyas smiled. Azi was a cunning crafter of spells indeed! He had just seen her weave one worthy of a great sorcerer! And she had charmed her target well and true! How could he not answer the request she had just spoken, even though she did not phrase it so! She would have done quite well for herself in the Shadow Guild if that had been her calling.

He smiled, as he could see nothing else to do at the moment. “Sister, would you accept me as your spiritual advisor and guardian?” he asked. “Trusting that I will use what powers I can to do things rightly by you?”


Azi nodded as a guileless smile came to her. “I would! I would trust you, Tobyas, if you would take on that burden!” Her face bore no deception in it, and Toby was sure that she had not being trying to get the result she did. But, he had to admire her smoothness just the same. Well it was that she were not a crafter like her father, for many coins would be parted with by people who were none the wiser.


He continued to smile at her but put a bit more piety into his manner. “The Burden would be light, Sister, and I would trust in the Almighty to aid me with it.” He crossed himself in blessing. “And a few hired muscles.” He tipped his head at Azi’s change in expression. “Just being practical.”


Azi swallowed in fear a moment and smoothed her robes again. “Indeed, it is wise,” she said quietly. “Though, it is sad for me to think myself such a threat.” Her chin trembled slightly.


“Think it more that my concern is great enough to know my own limitations,” Toby said, placing his hand over hers.


She nodded. “I understand, of course.” She looked to the narrow window in her room. “Ah, it will be good to be outside again!” The day of being so forceful pent up, even if it were for her own good, had been too close to the time spent in Corroth’s tower for Azi to be happy with it.


Tobyas leaned back against the table. “But, you must lodge as I lodge,” he cautioned. “And go no where unattended.”


She nodded, a mixed look of acceptance and misery on her face. “You must not allow me to do ANYTHING unattended,” she said firmly. “Even if I insist.” She turned her eyes to his.


He smiled a friendly smile. “You can count on it, Azi,” he said. He thought of the two he would employ to escort her. Of course, he would have to spend some money to make them more presentable, but they would make Azi look like the Lady she was proving herself to be day after day.


She sighed. “It is far too much to ask of you,” she said with a shake of her head, long blond hair hiding part of her face. “I should stay.” Her tone was one of resignation, and it hurt Toby to hear the sudden turn in feeling from her.


“Nay,” he said with a shake of his head and hand placed on hers again. “Tis not too much, or I would not have offered.” His eyes smiled at her though his expression was serious. He would not see her in here withering and locked away if he could help her. Now, he felt he could even if they did not do the ceremony to break the bond with D’Vena.


Azi nodded. “It shall work, I think.” A smile slowly came to her face, one of peace. “Though, the short time in the abbey has helped me. I wish had spent time here before.” Her smile continued in place.


Tobyas looked about at the bare walls. “I have never been here before,” he said with a small smile. This was quite a way to make the first time acquaintence of the famed Abbey at Vestusta! Lies and deceit to see a dear friend! Maybe one day, he would come here in retreat.


“I used to come here,” Azi said, a tone of recollection in her voice, “to get medinces for Pappa, when he was not well.” Those long years of torment had been her first trial with magic misused. And this abbey had been a small island of hope during that time. “The brothers would give me little flower wreaths for my hair.” Her hands smoothed her hair on the sides of her head.


Toby rose, offering his hand to her. “Come, now,” he said gently. “A room is prepared at the Church where I am working.” He helped her from the narrow cot. “The brothers here are known for their kindness,” he finished quietly.


Azi rose with grace from the narrow cot, merely resting her hand on Toby’s. Her smile turned bittersweet. “Yet, now, they see me as the mad woman whose room should be avoided.” A slight look of pain flicked over her face.


Toby offered her a smile again. “There are worst things to be seen as, trust me,” he said. His past had been a time of being seen in the worst light by many, and merely as an object by others. That look that some who recognized him from his past could still hurt. Although, he himself tried to let it, and did not let anyone hold his past over him. He had been ever honest about it then, and he would remain so now.


Azi sneered, control shifting for a moment. “You would know!” She laughed. It was the first time Toby had heard her laugh, and he registered it with relief.


“Aye, I would,” he said, looking away from her for a moment.


With a shake of her head, and a wince of pain, Azi reasserted herself. “Sorry,” she said quietly. She knew her vigilance would not be able to slip so easily once she was outside of here, or she would act on the behalf of one she would not want to be an agent for.


Toby shrugged. “I worry not about it, Azi.” He moved toward the door. “I was what I was, and I am what I am.” He stopped at the door and turned to her again. Although he did not let on, he weighed what he saw there. The risk was worth it, he decided again.


Azi nodded in agreement. “Indeed, that is true for all of us.” She swept the room with a wistful gaze. While for only a brief time, she had been safe here. But she would not reside in safety while a dear friend was in danger. “So, shall we leave this place?” She favored Toby with a dazzling smile.


He offered her his arm, as he had seen Crispian do another morning what seemed like ages ago. “If it please you, milady,” he said with a slight bow of his head.


Azi paused, looking about the small room again. She bent and pulled the sheets on the bed straight, and put the stool back where it had been. When the room was restored, she turned to him. “We must find my things. I should leave a donation,” she said as she placed her hand upon the elbow of Tobyas’s arm.


“Aye,” he said as he wrapped on the door. “We shall. Come now,” he continued to her as the door opened. “Leave this place and come with me to fight the battle that the Almighty has before us.” They passed through the narrow portal and were bracketed by his companions.


“I pray we have the strength,” Azi said as they stepped out onto the balcony walked way.


Toby gave her a lot of feigned shock. “Together?” he quipped. “Who could stand against us?” He could not repress a smile of mirth.


Azi gigged. “Ah, Toby, you have always been so sweet.” She gave him another one of those smiles. “Such a treasured friend to make me smile so.”


As they made their was to where her gear was stored, he smiled at her. “’Twas you who first showed me no bias, Azi. How can I forget that?” She had amazed him then and he prayed that her inner strength would still be so amazing, for he feared that the confrontation ahead of them would be great indeed. Not a battle to be fought by the faint of heart.


“How could I forget the young acolyte who cried at the river while I bestowed the power of earth on him?” Azi recalled that day so clearly. “It seems so long ago.”


Toby smiled. “It was indeed,” he said. Though only a short time had indeed passed. It seemed that so much had occurred. Surely, it could not have been bare weeks passed now.


Azi took a deep breath of her first outside air. “Where should we go now?” she asked him calmly, though anxiety began to nibble at her mind.


“I have a church in town that I am aiding at,” he said. He did not think that Azi needed to know the pastor was once a sorcerer, nor did she need to know the warding that was done on the chamber she would occupy.


Azi eyed the two hulking brutes who fell in with them warily. “I will follow you then,” she said demurely. The two lads were strapping and menacing, though neither made a sound nor did aught else as they walked to Camelot.

 

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Through agitated crowds of Camelot's streets, Azi fought to keep up with Tobyas. Something had happened on the frontier, she heard an armsman spit and swear as his sorcerer friend mentioned Midgard. With the two men hulking beside her, Azi ducked and weaved around crowds of battered countrymen. A wry grin tugged at her mouth. She was out. Free. A low cackle escaped her lips as she looked ahead to Tobyas, grateful of the angry city noise that masked it.


OOC

/bump past the silliness

Tobyas continued to lead her through the city, his two friends close behind. The other two companions, cleric and sorcerer, had left their company when they entered the city. The city was a riot of activity in the shock of losing one of the relics back to Midgard. There was a push and shove not normally found on the main streets, and in counter-point, the Shadow Quarter was empty and quiet, from the great Guild complex inward. Tobyas watched everywhere for danger, just as he would on the hunt.


The church was run down and well past its prime. The stones needed tuck-pointing and the woodwork needed to be cleaned, sanded and oiled. The statuary was badly flecked, with what little paint remained peeling where it had not faded already. Even the garth was over grown with weeds and in need of care. All in all, it fit perfectly were it was at. A lay brother opened the gate to the yard for the procession as they passed in. A slight movement of his hand confirmed that all preparations were complete.


Toby resisted the urge to rub his eyes. Today had been a tiring day. He had started early with reports from his sources, whom he then told to scatter according to the level of exposure they had had. Then, he had set to work. There were many people to contact for what needed to be done, but he worked with efficiency. He never talked to two people where one could get the job done and relied on people he trusted to take care of things he knew they could handle.


The most chilling episode of the day played itself back in his mind as they entered the church compound. He had met the old man at his insistence. The area had been in the upscale quarter of the city, near to the Round Table and the palace gate. The man was bent and wizened, old even for an Alvalonian. His head stooped almost to below his shoulders and his eyes were white with film. When he spoke, the remains of two or three teeth could be seen and his breath was close to death itself.


He had waved Tobyas to a chair as he entered, showing that sight was a sense one could live without. “Sit there, boy,” he had said in a thin and reedy voice. “You have asked many questions of one I once tutored, to my shame.” As he spoke, fleck of spittle came to rest on the varnished table in front of him. “You seek knowledge of her work, do you? Pious but foolish you are!” he barked at the end. His milky eyes fixed on Tobyas as he sat there. “Why do you want to know of her?” His gnarled hands gripped a cup as he took a slurping drink from it. “Broth, all I can stomach anymore.”


Tobyas considered his options. He could lie, or tell the truth, or a mixture of the two. Why did it seem that the old man would know his answers for what they were? “She has meddled in the affairs of friends of mine, sir,” he said respectfully. “I seek to free them from her influence.” The milky eyes never left his face and Tobyas grew uncomfortable.


“She is wicked with evil,” the old man said in his piping voice. “You will find only death where she touches, and never joy.” He wiped at his mouth with a stained rag. “But these friends, tell me of them.” He again paused expectantly, motioning with his hand that Toby should go on when he paused.


“They are two great and noble people, these friends. I seek to free them. Can you aid me, sir?” he finished politely, not sure the old man was not wasting his time. Could this help Crispian and Azi? He had precious little time to lose here.


“Who are your friends, young man? Name them for me.”


“One is called Crispian Pontiff, and the other is Azaeli Hammerfel.” Toby felt much humbled in saying the names, but he knew not why.


“The smith’s girl? I remember her. The other, I do not know.” He finished a bit dismissively. “But I have heard his name in a troubling manner. You are his, ah, friend, yes?”


Tobyas blanched. That was not really a question. It was just short of statement. “Yes, I am,” he said, keeping his voice from cracking just slightly.


“You seek to battle a great sorceress, you know that, boy?” the old man shot at him. “For an unseemly love and a woman touched by enchantment magic already!” His words were acid thrown upon him, Tobyas felt. “And you, but a pupling cleric yourself!”


Tobyas started to respond, to tell of the ceremony he had learned from Wynchell, and of his thoughts, but his tongue seemed unable to move.


“You must bind them in magic, boy. Great magic. Then, and only then, can you seek to battle D’Vena!” A chain of spittle clung to his lips as he spoke, and Tobyas could only think of a string controlling a marionette’s mouth. “Where would you bind them so?” His milk-filmed eyes bored into Tobyas, causing him to shift in his seat.


“At the church where I am assigned. We have many rooms from when it was a more prosperous area,” he said quietly. Plans seemed to leap into his mind half-formed and he felt the full formation happen as he thought them.


“I will need to go there. Take me.” He rose unsteadily, leaning on a black wood staff. “I shall prepare a room or two for you that even D’Vena cannot penetrate.” His hand came down on Tobyas’s forearm and he was surprised at the steel in the grip. “I squeeze a leather ball,” the old man said, again nearly reading his thoughts.


The old man worked hard throughout the afternoon, casting spells of forgetting and deception on the rooms. Finally, he had Tobyas bless both chambers and then they sealed them. “Your friends must enter each first!” he had cautioned with a bony finger. “No one else may go in before them. The spell must be set to them!”


As the small group approached the door, Tobyas swallowed his nervousness away. The door was opened by Brother Mynock and held wide. Toby turned to Azi with a smile. “Here it is, Azi. I have prayers to attend for the parish, but will return with food later.”


Azi took a tentative step toward it and then felt two hands push her in, and the door slammed shut. The waves of magic began to strike at her, hitting the D’Vena presence with a force that caused her to gasp in pain. “NO! Not you! You are dead! Nekolia! You are dead!” Azi screamed in pain for a moment, and then collapsed to the floor.


Outside the door, Toby looked at the two guards. “No one in or out until vespers, friends.” And he took up a seat to do vigil at the chamber door, awaiting the toll of the cathedral bell that would signal the end of evening prayers.

 

-----signature-----

((AAACK! MORE MORE MORE))

((just a second! ))

The next day saw Azi arise early. Her head throbbed with a thousand pounding hammers, and her feet ached for no apparent reason. She was able to pull herself up from where she lay, to see that a little supper had been left for her from the night before. As she arose a blanket, no doubt draped by Tobyas, slipped from her shoulders.

Tobyas himself was not in the sparsely furnished room. Indeed little save a cot, chair and washstand were here. It was clearly not going to be an easy accomidation, and Azi prayed that she hadn't simply been moved from one cell to another.

By and by she ate the food left for her, washed herself and redressed.

Wane light filtered in from the rainy day outside, and drak grey clouds moved ponderously across the sky. They matched Azi's mood.

As she regained her strength sitting in the chair with the blanket across her lap, she came to realise that the malevolant influence was gone. Her mind moved clearly for the first time in a few days, and no trace of D'Vena was to be found. She wept with joy. Her mind and soul were untroubled, and even the physical pain of her body was passing slowly.

Slowly she got to her feet and went to the door. She knocked and a gruff voice answered her back "Wait a moment"

The door creaked open a fraction. One of the burly guards stood watch in front of her. "Feeling better?" he rumbled.

"Much" she smiled weakly.


________________________________


To her surprise and slight fear she found visitors were waiting for her downstairs.

Tobyas had been forced to absent himself from the church in rather a hurry, but had promised to return as quickly as possible. Azi knew she could not tie a Cleric to one spot without the Church calling on his aid, but she still prayed he'd return soon. She felt better under his care.

Not wishing to test her newfound safety too soon, and certainly not without Toby nearby, Azi asked for them to be sent up to her. The old man downstairs eyed the visitors suspiciously, and allowed them entry.


_________________________________


Azi's heart welled with joy to see Tashtego and Nalewin drop by, their familiar faces brought a leap of joy into her heart such as she had missed in the last few days. Behind them a third visitor made her way into the small room. The lithe body of Arcalan was dressed in bright red and purple hues, and Azi instantly associated the red with that of the Fallen Angels. The slow winding movements of Arcalan conjured images of the Serpent in Eden, and Azi repressed a shudder.

"Are you free of your malady, milady?" Arcalan asked.

Azi glared at her, feeling vulnerable and repulsed. Her steel shrap mind was brought into focus, and she regained control of herself for what she knew may be a difficult test.

"Quite well thank you, and thanks to Toby"

"Excellent" Arcalan hissed "For rumours you were .. ah... afflicted with the same madness Crispian has suffered of late, abounded"

"Crispian is not mad" Azi interjected.

"I've not heard these rumours" said Tashtego "What do people say of Lord Crispian?"

"Only that he's alfflicted by some illness of the mind" Arcalan persued "And with Azi here taking unwell.."

"I'm fine Arcalan. Your concern is much appreciated" Azi cut her off before she ran on.

"es" Arcalan began "our cousine Kanna was very very worried. She had heard you were dragged away to the abbey aha, 'kicking and screaming like a madwoman' as one soul put it" she waited to see if the news of her forced imprisonment being known more publically would startle Azi. Her malicious

jibe was unrewarded, for Azi sat perfectly calm. She even smiled.

"AH Kanna can run off with her imagination" she laughed "especially when the ale is flowing!" Tashtego and Nalewin joined in the laughter, but Arcalan's laugh was hollow.

"Well then, I'm glad you're better Azi," Arcalan continued "and hopefully Jashen is not afflicted either"

"Jashen?" Azi's face became a mass of concern "What news of him?"

"Only that he's hung up his blades" Arcalan enjoyed dropping catapult shots onto the weakened Azi "But of course I thought YOU of all people.. being so close to him, would know"

"We are no more than good friends Arcalan, so I advise you not to smirk like that"

"Oh Azi!" Arcalan managed to produce a blush "I didn't intend it to be taken >that< way" A glower from Azi and looks from Nalewin told her this wouldn't float. Time to let the remark pass. She needed them to suspect her just enough, but not too much.

"Well the young Mercenary has become a spy. He's training as an infiltraitor. Of course I'm surprised he didn't discuss it with you first"

"Arcalan, I have been away a few days now" Azi replied calmly "so he has not had a chance to speak with me"

"I'm sure he shall, with haste now you are back with us"

"I don't know" Azi whispered almost to herself "I hope he shall"

Arcalan glared at Azi, and her obvious attachment to Jashen. Ha! The little wench and her shining armor, she'd crush her like an insect when the time was right.

"I understood of course you have a romantic other though Azi" Arcalan stated more than asked " So I'm sure Jashen would never allow himself to feel for you in the wrong way" As it slipped out Arcalan knew she had made a mistake. Nalewin cottoned onto her persuit of the subject and gave her a stern look. Arcalan droped her eyes.

"es Arcalan I have found true love. Ascot and I are, however, none of your business" Azi snapped out. Something in her could not resist saying "I hope you find love like that one day"

Arcalan grimaced at the impertinant wench. "Why thank y-ou" she stammered out "I'll keep my nose out of your affairs"

Azi smiled sweetly, knowing that had stung Arcalan "Oh please don't take it the wrong way, but Ascot and I have things to talk over before we discuss our life with others"


"Well anyway" Arcalan grasped the thread of the conversation again "Jashen has become an infiltraitor. And to celebrate his new outlook he and I have buried our past disagreements"

"He always was talaented at information gathering" said Azi, pleased to hear of him "And I'm glad you two have ended your quarrels"

"Oh yes" said Arcalan haughtily "He apologised to me" The sound of Nalewin leaning back on a chair squeaked in the room, and in the distance thunder rumbled.

"For what?" blurted out Azi, hardly able to stop herself from laughing at Arcalan's self-rightiousness.

Arcalan ignored her. "Perhaps once Lord Crispian is returned to his right mind" Azi shot her another look "we too can settle our differences" It was time for the ace. "Of course" Arcalan continued "I never wanted to fight with them so..." she paused and a look of confusion crossed her face.

"It's just that sometimes I feel as though..."

"ou were hit with the Enchanting Staff of Discontent?" quipped tashtego

"I feel.. I feel lightheaded" Arcalan spoke unsteadily and rose shakily from her perch on the side of the cot. Nalewin looked at her with concern. "What's happening?" Arcalan glanced around in panic, as though this whole room were a new place, and she had no idea how she came to be there. Arcalan swooned as nalewin stood up to grab her, and then lay her prone upon the floor.

Azi jumped up. "Arcalan?" she asked "ARCALAN?" her voice yelled out, shaken by this unknown twist. Arcalan lay on the floor, and deep deep inside her mind she smiled a satisfied smile.

Yes, she thought, this ought to connvince them. Everything was going in her favour once more.

Suppressing a jolt of panic over the crumpled form of Arcalan lying on the stone floor of her little chamber, Azi looked to Tashtego and then to Nalewin.


"Oh dear..." Azi said softly, suddenly feeling meek next to the other two, “Let’s get her to her quarters.” Without a second thought, Azi led Tashtego and Nalewin through the streets to the guild hall.


"Hail Mithralin!" Azi called to the first face she saw as they entered. Tashtego slumped Arcalan onto a bench and bowed to Azi, excusing himself. Mithralin stared wide-eyed at the crumpled form of Arcalan as the highlander left the hall.


"What happened to Arcalan?” Mithralin gasped, standing to tower over Azaeli with her slender form. Azi shook her head, still feeling fairly empty and confused.


“I know not.” She said gravely, not wanting to explain, “she passed out.” Nalewin looked down at Arcalan, then turned her gaze to Azi.


“I hate to leave, but I must.” She said softly. “Farewell all, for now!" Azaeli nodded, still watching Arcalan’s crumpled form.


"Farewell, Nalewin." She managed softly through her own distraction.


"I will get some water." Mithralin said after a moment, her grey eyes flicking from Arcalan to Azi, hoping to help somehow.


"Nay, Mith, help me take her to her room." Azi said


"Okay,” the avalonian answered, eager to help.


The two of them had little trouble getting Arcalan upstairs and into her small bed, and after they had tucked her in, Mithralin excused herself to find some aid. Azi remained. She wanted to be there when Arcalan woke, something was terribly odd about all of this.


She settled herself into a lavish chair and peered around Arcalan’s quarters, feeling chilled and out of place. Parchment was stacked on a little writing desk, and various tomes and candles were arranged neatly on her bedside table. Azi fought the dishonorable urge to snoop, and instead turned her thoughts inward.


D’vena’s hold had slipped, or at least Azi hadn’t felt her presence since Tobyas had taken her from the abbey. It was odd, her head was cleared of almost everything, even recent memories. She could barely remember what the room had looked like that she had slept in the night before. She closed her eyes and said a prayer for guidance, trying to push again toward the wicked energy. Before she could find it though, Azi’s eyelids fluttered softly at the distant sound of heavy boots ringing on the stair.


“. . .passed out.” She heard Mithralin’s voice as if it came from the opposite side of a long tunnel. A hand rested on her shoulder, and a deep voice spoke.


“Azi? Is this true?” She opened her eyes to see Crispian standing over her, looking first at Arcalan and then peering into Azi’s own eyes with question, then a sort of distant intensity and concern. Azi blinked and peered behind him to see a small crowd of League brothers and sisters at his heels, peering into the tiny room for a look. Disoriented for a moment, Azi sat straight in her chair and looked from one face to another, finally resting on Crispian’s with a look of confusion.


“Mithralin has said that Arcalan was brought here unconcious, what happened?” His concerned tone was as genuine as it would have been for any member of the League. He crossed the room and dropped onto Arcalan’s writing stool, rubbing his forehead. Azi sighed, understanding that he felt a responsibility for Arcalan as the leader of her guild. She clasped her hands in her lap to keep them from shaking, fully aware of the group of sisters and brothers peering in from the doorway. As his gaze drifted from Arcalan to Azi, she explained what had happened during Arcalan’s visit.


". . . then she said something about being sorry that she argued so often, and I touched her, and that is when she began to feel faint." She said, finally coming to the end. Crispian scowled and strode to Arcalan’s bedside. His mood was distracted to say the least, Azi noted, though it wouldn’t have been obvious to those who weren’t as close to him as she had become.


"Were you wearing a glove at the time?" Heathyr, a young friar, piped in. Azi looked down at the blue robes she had dressed in that morning.


"Nay Heathyr," she answered quietly, her gaze stuck on Crispian. He turned to look at her, and she saw hundreds of thoughts behind his eyes. His jaw clenched so quickly that anyone else would have missed it, and Azi failed to force a slight smile. For a moment her thoughts turned to two nights ago when she had tried to send her thoughts to him. She was anxious to ask him about it, and she knew he had questions for her, but of course this was not the time. Instead, feeling helpless once more, she looked to him for support.


“Dear Azi,” he said softly, clasping his hands before him, “could you offer us a blessing please?" Azi fought back a sigh. No support from him, she must be the pillar yet again. The group of Leaguers milled in the doorway, bowing their heads at the Seneschal’s lead. She nodded, taking a few moments to muster the words.


"May we all have strength to overcome the evils which we face today, and love and trust in our brothers and sisters of the League, especially Arcalan, who has great need of our love." She blushed, suddenly very self-conscious and almost ashamed of the way she had battered the blessing. This room made her uneasy, as did that woman’s presence, and now she was saying a blessing for her? Azi shuddered at the selfish thought and pushed it away as Crispian raised his gaze to meet hers.


“Is it not customary to invoke the Almighty?" He asked, a little too judgementally for Azi’s taste. She didn’t know, couldn’t understand his tone. Was he accusing her? The group in the doorway shifted uneasily at the tension.


“My apologies.” Azi bowed her head, fighting tears, “I am not quite myself, milord." Footsteps rang out in the hall downstairs, a muffled greeting drifted up to the small group. Heathyr called out excitedly:


"Nydori! Good, someone with more healing experience than I." She ran down the stairs to greet her sister friar, leaving the tense room behind. As if reading into everyone’s unspoken thoughts, the scout Maijyor stepped forward and looked down at Arcalan.


"I do not wish her death, even on one with a heart as black as she has." Crispian stood still, so quiet. Azi wondered what was going through his mind that distracted him so.


"Nor do I.” She said softly,“That is the last thing I wish."


"Wait just a moment..” Maijyor continued, “I may have thought of something.. Arcalan was faint after you touched her without a glove, Azaeli?"


"That's as I remember it, Maijyor.” She answered, suddenly doubtful even of her own memory. Two pairs of feet tramped up the stairs and Nydori and Heathyr peered in through the doorway.


"Nydori,” Heathyr started, already forming her own version of what had happened, “is it not that some poisons require a catalyst to act?" She looked at the elder friar, "and either by themselves are harmless?"


"Perhaps it is not the body, but the spirit that was ... affected." Altheah, a young wizard piped in. Maijyor looked carefully at Azi.


"Would you have felt anything unusual while touching her? You are one of the holy orders, and perhaps she may be ailing from more than just a fainting spell.." Azi smiled to herself. Maijyor was a smart one. Altheah nodded at Maijyor and looked wide-eyed to Azi.


"I cannot speak ill of a fellow sister of the League, Maijyor," she said softly, not wanting to sway anyone’s opinion of Arcalan just yet. She had no proof of the woman’s evil save for her own feelings, and was not about to talk ill of her while she lay defenseless. "So I will not speak until we can talk with her."


"I am not asking you to speak ill of her,” Maijyor said with respect, “I am merely thinking we should perhaps look into both the seen and the unseen while finding the cause of her problem. There is much evil in the land, she may have not been able to resist a spirit after..."


"Azi, you simply touched her?" Crispian’s sudden question almost made her jump.


"I touched her arm, yes," she answered softly. "es Crispian, but I don't think that was what caused it.."


"Azaeli is a paladin and she is a cabalist...” Althea said thoughtfully, “Can anyone detect damage to her spirit from contact with the holy warrior??"


"Azi has touched Achou dozens of times," Crispian said, turning to look at Azi.


"And Ascot," Azi murmured to herself. The two exchanged looks as the younger members discussed the possiblities back and forth. Azi and Crispian both knew that on some level, the obvious level, the group was right. But the two of them both knew Arcalan was up to something, and what better time to make her move than when all seemed to be getting back to normal for the League, for Crispian..


"Perhaps someone conversant in the spirit would be of aid. Another cabalist perhaps?" Heathyr said excitedly.


"Jashin just became an infiltrator, correct?" Altheah took another stance, having heard of his quarrels with Arcalan.


"Aye," Crispian said with distraction, his gaze still locked with Azi’s, who shifted uncomfortably.


" . . . and infiltrators deal in poisons, correct?" A suspicious look crossed the young friar’s face.


"He is at Witrin," Crispian answered firmly, dismissing the accusation before it even came to be one.


"I wish Tobyas were here.” Azi wrung her hands in her lap, suddenly realizing the risk she had taken by even coming here. “He would help greatly, and I've a few questions for him.." She pushed to remember the course of the previous night yet again, but could not.


"He should be about shortly," Crispian smiled softly at her and crossed to the writing stool again. She met his smile with her own worried one as he reassured her, "Aye, I am sure he will be about later."


“I shall wait here with Arcalan then." Azaeli drew her knees to her chin and smoothed her robes over them in an old habit, and Crispian favored her with a fond smile.


"As shall I. Her condition is most unusual indeed."


"Aye,” Mithralin said shyly from behind Altheah, “I have never seen anyone like this before - tis no simple fainting spell."


"Aye,” Crispian’s brow furrowed as he looked at Arcalan’s rumpled form again, “tis most odd. Perhaps my aunt can look in on her as well."


Heathyr, the young friar, scratched her head, a look of frustration crossing her face. “I'm a stick fighter, not a healer. Sorry I am of such poor assistance."


“You have tried your best, Heathyr." Crispian smiled, still looking at Arcalan, his thoughts still churning behind his eyes. The crowd of young brothers and sisters began to dissolve, Heathyr and Mithralin being the last to leave. They bowed to Crispian and made their way downstairs, their voices trailing after them.


"Give me an opponent I can fight.. but this is beyond me." Heathyr said, then Mithralin’s voice.


"Aye Heathyr - tis no simple ailment that the lady has..."


"I may even call on a friend who is powerful in healing.” Crispian muttered almost inaudibly, rubbing his brow in deep thought. He met Azi’s questioning gaze and answered her unasked question distractedly “Hmm? Oh, I know several powerful clerics." She nodded, leaving it at that.


Azaeli knew he had many connections in the city, some even in the palace itself. He leaned back in his chair and looked at her. Now that the others had gone, he could ask the burning question that had been on his mind since he had entered and seen her there.


"Azi, I thought you were at Vetusta?" Azi blushed deeply, a stone of dread formed in her stomach. She was suddenly very aware of her disobedience and the danger she was to everyone there.


“I was.. but I left Vetusta in Tobyas' care." Crispian raised an eyebrow, and looked at her for the first time she could remember with mistrust.


"And you are no longer? For I do not see him." The words stabbed her, but she knew he was right in asking. She lowered her feet to the floor and clenched the arms of the chair, the panic of her own freedom suddenly rising in her.


"I left only to bring Arcalan here after she fainted. I could not find Tobyas to tell him." She lowered her head, refusing to meet his eyes.


"Ah, well, perhaps waiting would be a good thing." He said warily.


“I am terribly confused.." The words escaped her before she could hold them in check. Crispian had enough to worry about...


“What is it, Azi?" His voice changed to hold a tender concern, but Azi took it as pity.


"It is nothing,” She snapped, “I'm just overcome with everything that's happening.."


"Aye,” he leaned back against the desk and ran his fingers through his ruffled blonde hair, “tis a heavy burden to handle. Have you been plagued since you found that Tome?" Another question that stabbed at her. What was he accusing her of? She had read the book for HIM! And now look at the mess it had gotten her into!


“Jashen told you of that?" It was a stupid question.


"Of course." He answered softly, knowing that Azi was well aware that the two brothers shared everything.


"es, I've been plagued Crispian..." she whispered, realizing that he was genuinely concerned, and not accusing her after all. The willow band on his finger caught Azi’s eye in the dim light as Crispian pushed at it with his thumb.


"How so, Azi?”


“Simply put, I completely understand what you've been suffering these weeks."


“You do?" His eyes narrowed as she nodded in answer. "Then perhaps Tobyas is a good guardian for you."


"Indeed you're right.” Her voice was a low whisper, and she leaned nearer to him in the little room. Finally, she could find out whether it was her imagination, or whether she had in fact been able to get through to him the other night. “Tell me,” she started slowly, “yesterday when you were walking in the streets, did you feel anything unusual?"


"There was a restlessness, but we had just lost a relic to Midgard." His eyes followed the line where the wall and ceiling met. Azi shook her head, realizing how much time had actually passed.


"Nay I mean the day before, I'm sorry..when you were released." She cursed her own brain for being sluggish as Crispian smirked.


“Oh there were comments and all."


Azaeli huffed. Her patience was wearing thin, “No no not that, milord."


"What, Azi? What are you thinking? Or did you notice?"


"Notice?" She wasn’t following him.


"Aye, the day the King took my parole." She couldn’t read the expression on his face, or follow what he was getting at at all..


“I mean,” she fought for the words, wondering why she was having such difficulty, “Crispian, inside..did you have any strange feelings?"


"A certain feeling of peace in a way Azi," He smiled at her. Then she realized it, it wasn’t that her mind was failing. It was the evil of the room, the evil emanating from the unconscious form sprawled on the little bed. She was drained by the fight of it.


“That is all I will say here, even if she is passed out." She heaved a deep sigh and looked sadly at her friend.


"We can speak privately later then," he answered, equally distracted. Azi nodded.


”That would be best." And the two sat their vigil together, waiting for Arcalan to wake, or Tobyas to arrive, or a moment to break away.

D’Vena stood in her tower room surveying Lyn Barfog below her. What an odd turn she was given to consider this day. Her playthings were not acting as they should. The young Briton lord, that Crispian, was calm and collected, focused on crafting his little swords in the city of Camelot. And her new pet, Azaeli Hammerfel, seemed to come and go in her mind’s eye. That was unusual. Acermar had not presented Tannir onto her, either. And then, there was that strange little episode yesterday at the League’s Hall. D’Vena had never known a paladin who could smite down on with a touch. That troubled her. She was glad that she had been able to observe it.


Her decision was reached as she thought. It was time to go to Camelot. She wanted to lay hands once more on her little paladin pet. She also needed to find this Arcalan woman. She was not part of D’Vena’s plan and her actions disrupted it. She turned to the young Avalonian standing behind her and motioned him forward. He bowed deeply to her. She smiled. If only he did that out of true respect and not because of the powerful spell upon him. “Make ready for a trip. We shall go to Camelot. I will need, of course, to appear as a penitent, so that I am unknown.” Her fine hand again moved to dismiss him.


Camelot. She had not been there in so long now, near to half a year. Who would she find that still lived there? Was that little mercenary wench still making her rounds of the men in the city? And her own dear daughter and that, that man she had been forced into marriage with. Would they be about? Rumor had reached her even in deep Lyn Barfog that Carrington Whitethorne, that vile cur of a creation, had dared to come home to Albion. She hoped that one was about. Or the Pig Farmer. Oh, she could have fun with him if he were about. Her new powers meant a good lesson in humility for the Lord High General.


There was little to get in readiness before she departed. A penitent journeying to the city would not have her fine gowns, or coach. By mid-day, she and two retainers had left Barfog on mules. Others would follow later on horse with items of comfort and work for her. This peasant disguise would only be needed to gain entry into the city. Then, she could seek out an appropriate spot to establish her workbase. Yes. Camelot would good this time of year, she thought with a wicked smile.

Tobyas stormed about the little church. His friends stayed well clear of him and tried not to draw much attention to themselves. The young man they had known had no temper, but this new man had a steel at his core. They were either in awe or in shock at the moment.


“You just let them TAKE her?” he asked for the fifth or sixth time. “I cannot believe your stupid! What did I say? She STAYED here, until I could get Crispian here. Do you think I would lay a plan poorly, you stupid whoresons?” He wheeled on his two friends, who shrank. Between the anger so evident in his face and the well used mace swinging at his side, Tobyas presented a menace to them right now. “Tell me again what they looked like. What names did you hear?”


They recounted the tale slowly, with frequent stops for more questions. Tobyas grilled them for every word or phrase, any look or move that would illuminate what had happened here prior to the collapse of Arcalan. If he had not pressing matters to attend to, he would have gone straight to the Cabalist woman. She was making more trouble than D’Vena herself more time than not lately. Why would she not SEE that the issue was not whatever her little plans were? People were teetering with having their minds and souls ripped from them!


“Prepare the chambers again, as instructed the first time. I shall see if I can get Azi to come back here, with honesty this time. Now, however, I have to go see a smith.” He donned his cloak and left, making his way to the shop of Judan Hammerfel. If there was one man in the city who knew Azi well, it was her Poppa. Toby thought he might be able to call on something from her past that could be a strength and focus to her now. The peril was getting greater, it seemed. There was some sort of a time frame to D’Vena’s work, according to all her past behaviors.