Itzal was watching the sunrise from the ground floor balcony. Breakfast was being served for the group, and he had risen first as host to make sure his guests were all fine. The return to this life of decorum and etiquette felt alien but welcome at the same time. It seemed he had come to appreciate levity and peacefulness after the business with Halden concluded.

Though he had to admit he was not free of that life. No doubt the seraphim enforcers would still be looking for the criminal known as Shade. He couldn't reestablish his network of informants and contacts if that was the case. Not unless he somehow convinced them he was dead. He had explained what happened in the cave the night before to all who were present, but so far no one else knew that Shade had a new face and name.

"Itzal", he had decided to call himself now. Today he would hopefully convince the Justicar to lend his voice to their cause. Given his hatred for Shade and the trouble he had caused, surely news of his death would earn some points. Even if the councilman figured out the truth, he was not a fool blinded by hate. Hopefully Itzal's guarantee that it was a new man standing before the council would be enough... plus the assassin was willing to give up a good deal of his blackmail material and intelligence on dealings in Adalrich that would be far more valuable than one dead Spectre.

He spotted Neon walking over and greeted her. It was a strange feeling to do so with a stranger's face. He hadn't explained why he had a daughter or a life here in Adalrich he was willing to leave behind.

"She loved the sun." He began abruptly. "My wife, that is. She thought each sunset was a promise for better the next day and each sunrise was a reminder it would come fulfilled. Perhaps a strange belief for an assassin to hold on to but we were always keenly aware each mission could be our last."

Itzal managed the first sincere smile he had shown in a long time and continued. "We saved up what we earned from our contracts. Built this place together. I designed this balcony and the garden above for her. We had always intended to settle down and leave our past lives behind. Halden saw an end to that dream when he betrayed us. We were a team, the three of us and he was always jealous of what Zilla and I had... or the fact that I was adopted by his father and seemingly favoured over him."

He sighed and took a moment to sip his tea, talking about Halden now, he could barely muster any hatred for the man he once called brother. "When all of you met me, I was driven by revenge and wanted nothing more but to see Halden dead. I joined you so I could continue tracking him. I did not expect to make... friends. Now I think I can leave the past in the past and I have all of you to thank for it."

He managed a laugh and started playing around with his throwing knives. "Don't think I've gone soft because you can still expect me to do what I need to in order to see your quest completed. But maybe I'll do so without adding more crimes to our already extensive list, eh? That said, I have business to attend to. I'll see you around later, I suppose."

Before he departed, he turned around and looked at Neon seriously. "Maybe I'll show you all her grave before we leave. It's in the garden."

He departed without another word and left the front door. There he fished out a letter and the memory shard he had of Torva and Hagumi during their night on the ship. It was addressed to the two of them.

[QUOTE][I]In case Hagumi's parents need convincing, tell them you have jealous friends who are ready to spread the contents of the memory shard to every home in Adalrich. A last resort if things go bad. Consider it the first of many wedding gifts.[/I][/Quote]

Itzal sent the letter off with one his shadow bats, before taking flight and heading to meet with his old nemesis. [I]Let's go turn ourselves in.[/I] He thought ruefully.

---

Kayla rued the thought of missing civilisation the moment she had stepped in the council chamber at the Tower of Elements. The only Academy in seraphim territory that trained Element Masters, it was also one of the recruiting grounds the seraphim military liked to approach. It also meant when the human dignitaries had come to petition the seraphim for an alliance, they were all alerted.

The Council of Elements was in session, deciding their stand on the issue. While they could not dictate the decisions of the High Council, they had a fair bit of influence and voice. Kayla, being the youngest and the only one still able to bear children in the room, was growing tired of the arguments.

"We should not hesitate to go to war if we are threatened, but what the humans are proposing is genocide!"

"I call it an end to all our woes. How many of our students have died hunting ferals or by ferals?"

"Ferals is the keyword! They did not die because the daeva are bloodthirsty killers set on razing our cities and pillaging our towns!"

She had heard different variations of the same argument for hours and her patience was wearing thin. She decided to speak up. "If we go to war and slaughter every daeva in Xerxes, we still wouldn't be rid of the ferals who roam the land. King Aaron was paranoid and his mind warped by fear - I saw it for myself. He had daeva chained and put in stocks for no other crime then accident of birth! I admit that my associates did destroy a significant portion of the palace, but when the humans brought the might of their army to bear we had no choice.

"But that is irrelevant to my point. There is no such thing as a war to end all wars. Going to war to stop the bloodshed is as rational as chopping off your arm to be rid of a splinter. The daeva are not our enemy. The real enemy has no face and hides in the shadow. They manipulate and tug on the strands of their web to get what they want by moving their puppets. I've seen them turn daeva feral with nothing more than a vial of liquid! If you're looking for an enemy to war against - it's them.

"It's years of fear, suspicion and prejudice. It's years of isolationism between all three races. There was a time when all lived together and in peace and harmony and when we did not need to discuss if killing of an entire race would be better for us all! Unless we can be better than ourselves, there is no true hope for us."

She saw nods and murmurs of agreement. Even those who were vocally calling for the extinction of the daeva race seemed to hear her words. Kayla felt as if she had become better herself at times like this - when a wingless like her was taken seriously in a room full of "normal" seraphim.

"Yes, I agree with Kayla. Despite her youth she has learned much under her mentor... Old Rhazga would be proud." The headmaster and eldest of the council, Sidrin spoke. He eyed the vial she had brought closely. "This poison that replicates feralism warrants more study and it is my hope we will find a cure for it. Until then, Kayla, I charge you with bringing our reply to the High Council... and returning to your old friends and seeing this quest to the finish."

Kayla smiled and bowed. "It would be my honour."

---

"Blast it!" Fiora cursed under her breath as she picked up the book she had found. No doubt guards would be coming soon. If she was to help Neon locate her father's tome, she had to work fast. She moved down the aisles, looking quickly and passing over any book that didn't match Neon's description.

"The thief is down in row fifty-seven!" A gruff voice shouted. Fiora sighed as she worked out how best to evade her pursuers. That's when she saw it. A thick black leather bound tome. It was exactly as Neon described. Fiora grabbed it and smashed the crystal Shade's servant had given her. In moments a flash of light enveloped her and brought her back to the mansion.

The rest of the night was a blur. Shade was now Itzal, having done some ritual that gave him a new body. Fiora thought it a useful spell, save the fact it could only be done when on the verge of death. She would have liked to be able to assume different bodies and forms at will.

She had used the rest of the night to establish her alibi - Ruby had brought her down to the forge and smeared some of her magic dust and other materials, to make it seem as if the two had been working at a new project for the past few hours.

Fiora a went a step further and burnt her hand on the forge, screaming in pain but trusting an assassin's home would be well equipped to treat her. Ruby added some ointment and hid the freshness of the wound. She could always sap some poor soul later to fully heal it.

The guards certainly bought it, though it took some convincing.

"Sir, if I were a thief and activated this spell circle of yours, the last place I'd teleport myself to would be where I was staying." She argued. "Clearly the thief thought a group of new arrivals in town would make the perfect scapegoats. Besides, a woman with long black hair is an extremely vague description, and you've seen my burn for yourself. I could steal a snack from the larder, let alone this library of yours."

Fifteen minutes later, with some help from Ruby, Fiora managed to talk the guards away. The fact that they had covered their tracks well helped. Fiora laughed off the wound and simply took some energy from different servants until she was fully healed. "I've gotten in worse scrapes." She brushed it off.

What she had not counted on, however, was the fact that her biological father would come looking for her the next day. There was a ruckus when she awoke, having slept in after the excitement of last night.

"I demand to see my daughter. You said your father had guests here and she might be among them."

"Seeing as how my father is out on business and I don't even know who you're referring to, I will have to ask to leave, Lord Garen. It is hardly appropriate for you to be calling here, so rudely I might add, in my father's absence." Ruby was trying to turn the man away but he didn't seem to want to leave.

Fiora sighed as she observed from the second floor window. She had wanted to keep a low profile, and wanted nothing to do with man who contributed nothing to her life other than the seed that conceived her. The alternative, however, was to leave Ruby alone to deal with an unruly house guest and Fiora felt she owed the girl something in return for helping the thief evade the guards last night.

"It's quite alright, Ruby. I assume he's looking for me... I'm the only half-seraphim bastard in the party." Fiora spoke up as she left through the doors, relieving her host from having to deal with the man. "Though he has done nothing to earn the right to call me his daughter."

There was a heavy atmosphere and an awkward silence as Fiora's bluntness hit home for the nobleman. "I... I hardly think that's fair. I couldn't leave my family or my duties! It was my father who chased your mother away without my knowledge -"

"You did not go after her and a bag of coin was all she had to raise me with." Fiora interrupted. "I rather think you didn't want to leave a life of comfort for one where you were poor and a walking insult to everyone's sensibilities."

She was not letting this so called father of hers have an easy time, though she supposed whatever conversation they were going to have was best done in private. He had taken his personal carriage here, it seemed, and Fiora supposed it was as good a place as any.

"I will give you half an hour to ask and say what you need. Ask your driver to circle around in that time." Fiora offered, gesturing at the carriage.