Nanarie... Homecoming III...
This second visit had helped her recall every step, every thought and every memory of her first.

In those long moments of recollection as she stood in her doorway she was forced to realize that something was different. Someone had indeed been here.

Now, as she stood there taking in every inch of her room with her dancing red eyes she could see a few changes. Recent changes.

Only a few paces from where she stood was a bare spot looking to be longer than she is tall. The dust that had covered this area was swept to the side in a few parts and seemed to have been lifted in others. Almost like someone had sat there.

The bed. It looked like she had left it. Well, almost. She remembered getting up that one morning and something occurred to her. She walked to the bed, purposely avoiding the dustless area and began lifting every pillow and even feeling beneath them with her other hand. Nothing. She lifted the blankets and still nothing. She spun in a circle and plopped on the bed. Armor and weapons clanking in her graceless movement. Where was the letter?

In the hall she could hear the restless footsteps of her slave as he paced the hall. Loud then soft, then loud before going soft again. It echoed into her thoughts as she sat trying to figure out whether she was right or just going crazy.

"In Here! NOW!" Obediently he stepped into the doorway and walked to her. "Sit." Her pet's only response was the clatter of his bones against the floor.

Silence once again. Where was the letter? She began looking on her bed again and under it. The letter wasn't all that was missing. As she placed her had on the foot of her bed to lift her from the floor she realized her gown wasn't there. Where is it? She looked in her armoire. Nothing. She remembered tossing it to the bed just like she remembered leaving the letter near her pillows. So where were they? She even checked the drawer of the bureau she had found her letter in and all that remained was a outline of where it had been for so long.

Now as she looked at the bureau she was faced with the empty bottle of wine she distinctly remembered dropping on the floor. Something was going on and it was beginning to irritate her.

Her favorite gown was gone. The letter she had that Vladdik wrote also gone. But who would want such priceless things? And Why? Common thieves wouldn't want such things. Whoever took them knew their sentimental value.

The smell that lingered in the air was telling her who it was. But why was he here? He didn't know the significance of those items. Apokolipz never shown any interest in her or their past. So it couldn't have been him. Only one man knew what those items would mean but he was dead. Lost in the depths of a mind of a man unwilling to remember. There was no way Vladdik had been here. He was lost to her. Now, he only lived in the memories she and this house held.

Everything she smelled and everything she discovered meant that her senses hadn't been toying with her. Even though she had come to realize Vladdik was dead to her everything here said something completely different.

Apokolipz had been here.Why? How? How did he know of her old home. Her old gown? Why would he take the letter of a man he cared not to know?

"Stand, my pet." Came the purr of her voice.

He stood.

"The Apokolipz has been here..." She circled her minion a few times as her hand reached to the base of her pony tail to scratch it.

"...Vladdik shows him the way."

Nanarie... Homecoming II...
Her first and previous visit was about a little over a week ago. She had come through the shattered window near the back of the house. It hadn't really occurred to her how odd it was that she was sneaking into her own home, rather than use the front door. She simply refused to break down the boards that so effectively kept the unwanted out.

She had entered the large dining hall where a nice sized table stood in the very middle. On the table sat a bowl of rotten and dust covered bread. It seemed, by the teeth marks that her only visitors had been the rodents that usually ran about the city.

She walked from the dining room grabbing some wine on her way to the main living room. The room looked considerably different with its blanket of dust over every surface.

*~*A fire burned in the large stone fireplace. It's flames danced rhythmically as it gave a blanket of warmth and dim light to the couple leaning against the couch. Nanarie lay comfortably against him, feeling the rise and fall of his chest against her back as he breathed. His arms wrapped around her and his cheek resting on the side of hers. His legs were bent on each side of her with her arms lovingly wrapped around each one.

His lips barely grazed her ear as he whispered to her, "Fridj talinth, ussta ssinssrigg, ol orn naut tlu verve hwuen nindol zhah udossta delmah. Dos orn naut inbal ulu v'dri maglust 'sohna." ((Just think, my love, it will not be long until this is our home. You will not have to sleep alone again.))

Her crimson lips spread in an upward arch as she turned her face toward his and looked deply into his eyes. "Ol zhah jal'yur udossta delmah." ((It is already our home.)) Her eyes dropped his lips as she kissed him, her hand finding his face
as the kiss deepened yet remained soft. Her fingertips glided across his face as before resting just behind his ear in his jet black locks. She pulled away slightly and looked back into his eyes smiling again. "Ol orn tlu bronretla ulu guuan phor ulu dos ril kre." ((It will be wonderful to wake up to you every morning.)) He smiled his handsome smile and kissed her forehead. She returned her head back to his shoulder, her smile still decorating her face. He hugged her tight as he left a trail of kisses from her cheek to the crook of her neck. She closed her eyes as each hand reached across her body to interlock with his. " Ulnin, ussta ssinssrigg." ((Soon, my love.)) She nodded, her eyes still closed. *~*

Her gloved hand reached up and touched her cheek. She could still feel the trail of kisses and she realized her eyes had turned glossy and her vision partly obscured.

At the top of the stairs she bypassed her mother's old room with a glare and an unloving thought for the woman who abandoned her. She entered her room her minion close behind her. Too long had it been, by the looks of it. Again, like the many other rooms, a blanket of dust covered every inch. She headed first for her armoire and and pulled out her once favorite gown. Turning she looked to her minion "Doesn't seem to be my taste does it my pet?" Her minion only stared at her blankly with its green glowing sockets. She handed the gown to her slave and removed her armor. She tried with a huge effort to put on the gown, The only resistance seemed to come from the tight sleeves as they ripped at the seams. The rest hugged her snugly until at her hips it flowed freely to the hem. She popped the cork of the wine and began to take comfort as she paced the room pulling open drawers and other compartments.

In one drawer she came across a single item, a parchment. She knew what it was and what it said but she picked it up anyway and headed toward the bed. Without a verbal command her minion had already took the covers and gave it a violent shake, ridding it of the thin layer of dust before she sat. She read it and a tear streamed her face. Over and over she read it, remembering the happiness she felt...then...the heartbreak and sorrow. She pulled the blanket down and sunk into the bed, pulling the blanket close around her. She tucked the note under her pillow but still held it under her palm.

*~*Dim candlelight filled the room, flickering slightly due to the cool breeze from the open window. A warm embrace held her and soft controlled breathing soothed her. The only pleasure this night, as with their many nights together, was only to lay in each other's company. Her back hugged closely to his chest, his face buried behind her neck. He stirred slightly and hugged her tighter. She felt him smile as he kissed the back of her neck. A pleased moan escaped her lips at the touch of his lips. She turned her body to face him, her satin night gown pulling tight against her body as she turned. Their faces touched nose against nose as their eyes reflected the others, until they fell asleep. *~*

She woke to find her body hugging a large pillow with the note still clutched in her hand. A long, frustrated and disappointed sigh erupted as she let go of the parchment and climbed out of the bed.

She turned to find her minion holding out her armor, as if knowing her eagerness to leave. She slipped of the gown and threw it to the bed and within minutes she was fully armored with her hair bound in a half fast pony tail. As she walked out of her room and down her stairs she secured her sword to the middle of her back and swung the quiver and bow over her shoulder then slipped out the way she came.

As she made it around the front of her house she took a long step back and stared. This house was filled with endless memories and hopes for a impossible future. She had every desire to make it work but her heart was weighing heavy now. It was starting to come to the sad realization that what Nanarie wanted, what she had always wanted, was never going to be.

She reached into her sack of food and sighed, another disappointment. "Usstan fear that we must visit the Halfling at some point this day. Usstan have but enough to last me till this eve." Her pet's eyes flickered in response and she spun on her heal and set off to finish the task she left her House mates to accomplish with her pet staggering fast behind her.

Nanarie... Homecoming...
"Blasted Human!!" Her hand quickly grasped the woman's blouse as she thrusted her against the wall. "Dos are begging to have dos throat cut" The girl shivered at the sound of her voice. She reached into the pocket of her apron and awkwardly counted out a handful of coin, with a shaky hand she offered it to the scowling Tier'Dal. Nanarie looked into the pale opened palm and then averted her eyes to the girl, tilting her head in pure annoyance. Her hand reached for the hilt of her blade strapped to the middle of her back. Quickly, the frightened girl reached back in her pocket and pulled it out, revealing quite a few more platinum coin. Nanarie grinned evilly, obviously satisfied. "Much better" came a sadistic response as she opened the hand the bound the girls blouse letting her fall to the ground. Her other hand went from the hilt to snatch the coin from her hand as the girl fell.

With a flick of her head her minion tossed the merchant woman a bag containing her worthless findings from that days massacre.

She had been gone quite a few weeks now, only rarely visiting The Butchered Halfling to restock her food supply, providing Brakk with fresh meat from slaughtered pale skins and hairy Halflings. She didn't think many noticed her abscence. Not even 'him'. If anything, if he had noticed he was glad for it. He hadn't seemed to have any recollection of her and seemed to have no desire to learn what she had wished to share. 'My heart is a tool, nothing more.' That was his first and only reply to her continued effort to help him recall his past. The rest of his replies where complete and utter silence. It still was as upsetting in her mind as it was the very first time he said it. X'as... we will see how long it remains so once my task is complete. She thought angrily as she slipped through Neriak.

She had left no note, no explanation to why she had to leave. It was temporary but she wasn't sure how long it would take. She had alot she wished to do. One, she felt more important than the other... to find all she could of Vladdik's past and his parent's death. She hired the help of Ebon mask to use their talents in her quest. She told him all she knew of his parents, which wasn't much, to aid in their own investigation. In the mean time, since it had been days since her last contact with them, she went about her own journey... to find her own parents. She knew her mother still lived. She had inquired about her whereabouts from her mother's old gossiping friends. They had been no help. All they told her was that she was still alive, and happy with a family. As much as their lack of willingness to help angered her, she refused to show just how persuasive she could be. What would be the point in harming a few women over a mother who abandoned her first born. She had no recollection of who her father was so she had no idea if he was even alive. The women had been no help there either. They just turned up their noses and walked away, muttering about how her mother was promiscuous in her young years. That angered her but thought better of letting that rage overwhelm her better judgment. It had been so many years since she had been with her mother that the memories were slowly fading. She wanted to know who her father had been before her whole past was gone.

Her footsteps halted in front of an abandoned house... her old home. Years before she had boarded up the front door in hopes of keeping the mischievous youth, much like her and Vladdik in their young years, out of her home. Now the boards and the shattered remnants of her front door lay in sharp pieces on the ground. Annoyed at the invasion of her past she kicked the fragments from her path , letting her minion rush in before her, a rusty scimitar in his bony hand.

Fresh footsteps littered the dust covered floor as she entered the main living room. Broken cob webs gave more evidence that someone had been here since her last visit many many days ago. She knelt down and examined where the intruder's feet lifted the dust and dirt, leaving behind their mark. Now she could see a separate trail, one to match the bony feet of a minion. At first she thought it was from her last visit but the condition of her front door said otherwise. Even the fact that the first trail was that of a slightly bigger Tier'Dal... possibly male. A faint smell lingered here ... almost recognizable to her. She followed the path to the stairwell and up the winding stairs to the second floor, as if they knew where they wished to go. With every step, the familiar scent teased her nose, urging her closer and closer to her room, and with every scent she began to believe she knew who had come here.

The door to her room had been left ajar, leaving fresh marks where it had scraped against the floor, wiping away the thin film of dust. The smell lingered a bit stronger as she stopped in the hall, just before her room. Her mind raced with questions she had no way to answer. Why had he come here? She was certain he cared nothing of what they were when he was Vladdik. Or was it her mind playing another cruel trick, making her think and believe it had been him? Shaking her head in disbelief and in a unsuccessful attempt to rid herself of the questions she stepped through the doorway. Shock took over her as a scent so strong, so recognizable it made her falter in her steps ...... it had been 'him'

Nanarie...love lost...
Loud sobs and high pitched cries echoed through her empty house, people could hear her faint and muffled cries as they passed by. "Vladdik!" was the only comprehensible word that belted through her cries. Her face was drowned in tears, deep purple patches discolored her severly saddened and once youthful face, and her eyes had become swollen orbs of blood shot red. Her long white hair had become matted and disheveled in the weeks after Vladdik's death. As she sat on her cold stone floor images of the dreadful night played before her eyes.

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

She sat at the ultricle for days and even through the dark cold nights, holding the remnants of his robe close to her. Disbelieving what lay before her, pieces of his tattered robe and the broken bones of his skeletal minion, she sat waiting for him to return... waiting to become his wife. The undead seemed to pay her no mind as they staggered by and others just seemed to stare. If any had spoke to her, it went unnoticed, and no one dared to touch her. A few stray tears were all that trailed her face as she sat in shock, a state that grew more intense and severe as the days passed.

The sounds of twigs breaking, footsteps and robes flapping in the night's wind were all ignored by the young Tier'Dal. After the first two days she quit turning at ever set of footsteps that seemed to get close to her. These footsteps only dared to disappoint her the very same as all the rest had, so she refused to turn around. A cold hand rested upon Nanarie's bare shoulder. startled she smacked his hand from her as she backed away on her hands and knees, Her heart pounded and her breathing became heavy. Her eyes hadn't rested in days so her vision failed accuracy. All she saw was a blurred vision of a Tier'Dal jaluk standing before her. Her heart took the chance to see what it desired, "My Love!" she bellowed as she staggered to her feet. In an instant she had wrapped her slender arms about his back, gripping his shoulders tightly. Her lips parted in a delighted smile as she lifted her eyes to meet his. The upward arch of her smile, as deep as it was, turned to an even deeper frown as her crystal white eyes finally took in the true face of the man she held so tightly against her.

"Why, M'lady, Nanarie, tis a pleasure to see dos as well. Very pleased, in fact, to receive such a greeting from dos." he confessed as he brushed the hair from her eyes. Letting go she backed away slowly, shaking her head as her eyes forced her to see some one else.

"Nau... nau... dos can naut be.... dos were just.... he was just... " she slowly backed herself into a tree and her body slid to the cold damp ground.

"M'lady.." confused, he quickly knealt down before her and gripped her shoulders in concern. "Nanarie, are dos well? Why are dos even out here this night?" taking in her appearance he realized she had been out here longer than just that night, her hands were dirty, with mud under her fingernails and even dirt smudged her face. Her gown had dirt where her knees sat for days in the dirt and grass. He took his hand and lifted her chin to meet his worried eyes "How long have dos been here?"

The sound of his voice only saddened her more. She took her right hand and touched his face, grazing his cheek, his nose and even ran a finger across his lips, still not understanding that he wasn't who she thought him to be. Her mind, or was it her heart, had decieved her. He grabbed her hand and look deep within her confused eyes. "Nanarie, tell ussa what happened... what troubles dos so?"

"Ussa apologizes, M'Lord, Vitorio, but ussta thought dos were... were .."

"Who m'lady?"

Slowly she brought out the tattered piece of cloth she still clenched tightly in her fist, handing it reluctantly to Vitorio. He took the cloth and spread it with both hands, gazing upon the elegant designs of what looked to have been part of a robe. He looked to Nanarie questioningly and all she could do was look from his eyes to the ground... a tear making its escape. "Look,.." she said as she pulled a long chain that hung from her neck out of the front of her bodice. As the chain rose, it revealed a ring, she grasped the ring in her hand holding it to her heart for a moment then opening her palm to show the proof of their intentions for Vitorio to see. She "We were to meet here... to be wed." glanced at him without moving her head, knowing it would pain him to hear this. "But when ussta arrived here three eves ago this .." she tapped the cloth "and the bones, there" she gestured with her arm in the direction of the bones beside him "were all usstan found of him and his minion. It is proof that he was here. Mayhap, he was injured and returned to the house of necromancy." she said hopefully but not believing her own words. His eyes dropped to the ring, it was crafted of midnight gold, intricate designs were elegantly portrayed around the rings outer side. His heart ached in the confession that she chose to wed another, and he let out a agonizing breath.

Vitorio cupped her hand with his as a lump formed in his breath for what he was about to make her see.

"Nanarie, listen to ussa. Vladdik would naut leave dos here for days awaiting his return. Dos know that. Do dos really believe he would go back to the city for injuries when his heart intended to marry dos?"

"But he..."

"He is gone, Nanarie. Look around dos...what dos have found is proof that he is gone. The smell of death still lingers here. Dos smell it, do dos naut?"

"Ussta doubts he will be returning, ussta believes that if he could return he would naut have waited three eve's, m'lady"

"Let me take dos back into the city ...."

She snatched her hand from his and shook her head, disbelieving his every word.
"Leave ussa be!"

"Ussta will do nau such thing." he said as anger filled his voice.

At first she stepped back but he stepped forward and embraced her. Together they stood in silence, her hand still clenched the ring that hung from her neck as it was pressed between their bodies the other hand dangled at her side as it held the few pieces of cloth she found. Her cheek rested on his chest as she looked blankly out into the forest, her eyes catching a faint sparkle in the moonlight. She walked to it and knealt done and picked up the small metal object. Her eyes opened wide in shock as she took in the object in her hand. Tears began to stream down her cheek as she realized what she had found. She couldn't deny it now. It was the matching ring to the one she had secured to her neck. On the inside was an inscription that wouldn't let her deny who this ring was for. She placed the ring on the proper finger of her left hand and began to sob uncontrollably.

"Come Nanarie. Usstan will take dos home." He scooped her up, and cradled her in his arms as he carried her to her empty house.

He placed her in her bed, under her silky covers and waited for her to drift off to a peaceful slumber. When, after a day, of her not resting she requested him to leave her. He had refused her many previous requests, concerned of her well being. But after he saw she would do well on her own he felt he could no longer deny her of what she wished. With a bow he looked to her and said his farewell and walked out of her home.

Nanarie...love gained...
Nanarie wasn't always the icy glared, hate consume Knight she is today. Many seasons and one unfortunate event brought her to where she is, to who she is.

As a girl Nanarie was taught the manners and social graces of a proper lady. Her mother was of great stature, determined to have her only daughter marry a great man. A Tier'Dal of money and great power. A man who could give Nanarie a life any young woman would envy. She refused to let Nanarie follow any profession, other than that of a wife and mother. Her constant bantering of what a woman should and shouldn't do, grew tiresome and irritating to say the very least.

"Now, ussta child, dos should naut do such things." " A woman never does anything, but what her husband wishes of her." "A woman who lifts a sword, is not a lady." During these days, Nanarie took what her mother said as truth.

She hadn't known her father. He was never spoke of in their house and she only asked of him once.

"Dos need naut worry about such things. He is naut here and that is just how it is." It was all Nanarie knew and she was unaware that it should be any other way.


Throughout her years as a child she had a constant friend, by the name of Vladdik. One friend held constant from the time she was but a small, fragile little girl. She remembered the first time she ever saw Vladdik. Her mother was among friends, they were the gossipping sort. The type to point fingers at others misfortunes or even to those they disliked and whisper among themselves. They were about the city exchanging heard stories of others when they fell deathly silent as two women dressed in very expensive and well detailed robes each holding the small hands of a boy, maybe a few years older than herself, as the passed through the Commons. The young boy cast a long glance upon the little girl as he passed her by. She had seen him again the next day, alone, so she approached him. They talked for hours, learning of the others life and parents. Vladdiks mother was a Necromancer and his father, an officer of the Indigo Brotherhood. Just a few days after they met, Nanarie learned that he had been taken into the House of Dead, that day they met, and cared for after his mother's demise. There he began to work on his craft, following his mother. Since the day they met they formed a friendship, a strong bond that made them inseparable. Much to her mother's dislike.

They caused mischief about the city, Nanarie's mother receiving endless complaints from others. Everyday Nanarie heard the bantering of a disapproving mother. But that held no restraint on the havoc they reeked.

Her mother's attempts to mold Nanarie to a proper lady ended one eve, when her mother decided to leave.The night she left Nanarie was standing at her window, Vladdik sitting below the window sill just outside, recalling the mischief they caused just a few hours earlier. She and Vladdik listened and watched as her mom quietly slipped from their home, bearing a hooded cloak and a bag. They remained in silence, unaware at that moment what was happening. Nanarie was in her teen years, when her mom left. A few days past she had overheard women about the city engaged in gossip and that was when she learned her mother had conceived a child with a man Nanarie had only met once. She understood shortly after, that her mother left her and their home together for a man and possibly another life, having become the very woman she would gossip about. At times, she would miss the bickering they shared and the nagging her mother loved to do when Nanarie failed in doing what a lady should. There were many times Nanarie felt abandoned and all alone. She adjusted to the sudden change in their household and reveled in her new found freedom.

Years passed and she grew to be a well bred young woman of fine social graces, fitting only that of a Tier'Dal woman. Her bond with Vladdik grew deeper as the days came and left. He succeeded in completing his craft becoming a skilled Necromancer. The relationship became more than a simple friendship. Their bond grew strong and unbreakable. They decided to get each other a ring for the day they would marry. They went about having their rings fashioned of midnight gold, elegantly and intricately designed. A true masterpiece and the very symbols of their love. The night the rings were to be finished, they were to elope.

One early morn, Vladdik snuck into her room and gazed upon her sleeping figure. She rolled over to her other side, moaning slightly in the comforts of her dream just as Vladdik slipped a small scroll, secured with a black ribbon, into her hand. He was gone before the light touch could awaken her. Feeling a presence, Nanarie awoke, looking about her room. She smiled to herself for she knew who she felt and turned to lay her head upon her pillow when she saw the faint light from outside cast upon a rolled up piece of parchment. She quickly ran to the window, scroll in hand, and stuck her head out the window, hoping to catch her visitor. Minutes passed and she tore her searching eyes away and returned to the calm of her room, shutting the window with one hand, as she held the scroll to her breast with the other. Her body slid to the cold floor while she carefully untied the ribbon and unrolled the parchment and it read:

My Beloved,

They have been finished. If dos shall still have me, meet me at the Ultricle this eve. I will be there waiting for dos, and we shall be wed.

Aluve my Love,
Vladdik

She smiled as she folded the parchment and tucked it under her pillow, and lay back in bed. Her heart delighted that the night would soon be upon them.

That night finally, yet slowly arrived. She pulled her favorite gown, of the deepest blue trimmed in silver, from her trunk and slipped it on. She pulled her ebony hooded cloak from the wall it hung on and fastened it about shoulders. She left the house and pulled the hood over her head, it was a cold night so she wrapped the cloak tightly about her slender body. She made her way as fast as she could through the city and into the dark forest of Nektulus, to the Ultricle, determined and anxious. Her destination finally met, Vladdik was nowhere in sight. It was eerily quiet, more so than usual. The dead always seemed to roam around the ultricle but tonight, at least at this moment, it was bare. She glanced about and her eyes fell upon the ground a few paces in front of where she stood. Her eyes wide and her lips parted in horror. She collapsed to the ground, her face only revealed shock and dismay. She crawled to where scraps of a very intricately designed robe lay scattered about bones. His minion.... His robes... but where was he? She looked a bit further only to discover blood and the smell of death. She wept uncontrollably. She lost him, the very night they were to be wed, she lost him. Rage, scorn, anger and Hate enveloped Nanarie from that moment on.


Months passed and Nanarie's eyes had slowly turned from the crystal white they once had been to a deep dark shade of red.

There was a young man about her age, by the name of Vitorio. He had been the son of a family friend for as long as she could remember. At one period in their life he was more than just her friend. He later became her confidant when her and Vladdik fell in love and planned to elope, and her only friend when he passed. He had always been protective of her and cared deeply, far deeper than he should have. But he wasn't Vladdik. The bond wasn't the same. He had offered her his heart after the passing of Vladdik. But after many times of her refusing, he was more determined to protect her and befriend her. He never pushed her to love him, he only hoped. He tried to pick up her broken pieces many times but she only turned a cold shoulder on him. She had become cold hearted and uncaring to everyone around her. She hated to be touched, she hated to be cared for and more than anything... she refused to care for another. He watched her emotional downfall when she told him what had happened. He was a mage of Innoruuk himself, but it pained him to see her go from the lady she was to the fighter she soon would become. She began training in the arts of a Shadow Knight and Vitorio watched her as she became dark and sinister. She became a avid follower of Innoruuk, slowly slipping into the Dark Lord's favor. Hatred was all she knew, all she accepted, all she gave.

Seasons passed and she became a skilled Knight. She took a break from her usual chaotic hunting ritual and decided to visit her trainers. Most of them knew her story and it remained gossip since she refused to marry Vitorio. They seemed to know everything about her. She hadn't cared what people said about her and her choices she let them talk and make their own assumptions, they just reminded her of her mother. She made her way to Third Gate, stopping by various merchants, selling her newly looted good for as much coin as she could get out of those stingy bastards, then continued to the front gates of Shadow Knight guildhall. As she made her way down the ramp and approached the front steps, she almost bumped into a almost too familiar face in expensive robes. She still looked at him intently, knowing his face, but refusing to believe it. She removed her helmet hoping to get a better look at him without the burden of her armor to hinder her view. She thought that if he was who he resembled he would recognize her, no doubt. He stared at her for a second and went about his way. She kept her eyes on him as his figure disappeared beyond the front gate. She continued to walk backward almost tripping over the stairs. She turned and pushed the door open then walked to her trainer, Nezzka Tolax.

"Ahh, young Nanarie, how have dosst hunts been?"

"What does dos wish to excell in this day?" Nanarie kept looking behind her at every possible entrance to the room she was in.

"Young Knight, what troubles dos?" Her eyes returned to Nezzka and they had but a slight spark of depth to them.

"Who was that young man that just left here?"

"Ahh that young man is the Apokolipz, he was a successful rebirth, knightess."

"Rebirth? Who was he before?" Nezzka stopped at the realization of why she was asking. Nanarie seeing the look in his eyes inquired again.

"Who was he?"

Nezzka tried to avoid her inquiry once again, "So, what is it dos wish to learn today? More training in Archery? Alteration? Conjuration? Or perhaps a new language? What haven't dos learned yet?"

Nanarie's eyes gleamed a bright blood red, raging like an angry sea of blood. Her anger emanating through her eyes. "Usstan play nau games! Tell me, Nezzka, who was that young man before his rebirth? That is what usstan wish to learn!"

Nezzka sighed and grabbed Nanarie by the arm. She thrust her arm from his grasp and he simply beckoned her to follow. They slipped into a tiny vacant room up the stairs.

"Dos may wish to sit..."
"Usstan am fine. Out with it!"

His voice turned low and he took in a deep breath. She knew who he was gonna say that man used to be.

"That, M'Lady, is ... or rather..was Vladdik. He has no recollections of his past so do naut even waste dosst time. He knows naut who dos are, or that dos shared a past."

Ignoring his last comment she took a few deep breaths, her chest heaving in anger. Why was Usstan naut informed about his rebirth? Why did DOS naut tell usst? Dos knew of our past...of ussta pain. Yet, dos fail to tell usst?

In her rage she hadn't realized the loudness in her voice. She had no control at this point and took her fist to the table, breaking it into pieces, then in another swift move of her arm she slammed it into the stone wall. Tiny pieces of rubble fell to the floor , her fist stung for a min but she enjoyed it.

"If he lives....and that truly is him... Usstan shall find him." She turned back to her trainer and her eyes glared at him with pure hatred then she turned and walked out.

She made it out of third gate and through the commons, to the foreign quarter and then the forest of Nektulos she leaned against the wall looking out to the forest and removed the glove from her swollen hand. She could feel the flesh tear off her knuckles as the glove came off. She smiled in a pleased sort of way, pain usually affected her that way. She brought her fist to her lips and licked the blood from her knuckles. She called on a minion and commanded him to hold her glove and helm. He took it obediently and she took out a bandage and wrapped her fist. Her smile turned to a grin, a grin so evil that her minion stepped back a bit.

"They wish usst to stay away, ussta pet, but Usstan do naut think usstan will." She held her fist as she stared into the dark forest. "We have quite a search ahead of us. Let us naut delay."