The woman tensed. After several moments, Abad watched as the tension drained from her body. She began laughing. It started low, like a cat purring, but slowly increased until she was giggling like a madwoman. The wolf people surrounding her bristled at the sound. Their eyes darted around, waiting for some indication of what their next course of action should be. For a long time, no instructions came.


    "Indeed, it has." The woman finally said. She lifted her hand and pulled away her mask. As she did, it disappeared into motes of darkness, revealing the woman''s face. He knew that face. He could see her pale grey skin, her long brown hair, and the long scar that marred the left side of her face, where he''d ruined then healed it long before. "And here I thought some upstart learned an old name and decided to play god." She smiled at him, her red eyes twinkling. "Welcome back to the world, master."


    Of all his creations, she''d taken to his form most readily. She was the most like him.


    "Thank you, apprentice." He smiled back at her. Despite the fight that would almost inevitably ensue, he liked seeing her.


    "You always did love your schemes. Why are you traveling with mortals?"


    "I''ve taken a job and am helping my vassal find her mate. Would you mind giving him over to me? I''d hate for this to turn ugly." He gestured to Rennar. "Do that, I''ll let you continue doing whatever it is you''re doing."


    "Let me? Master, no one lets me do anything. Not anymore." She petted Rennar''s arm. "And I rather like this one. He''s been most useful. Trade yours to me, and I''ll let <i></i>continue on."


    Zethari bristled next to him. "No. I rather like this one."


    She laughed. "You always did love your pretty women. Such a base desire, you silly man."


    He laughed. She wasn''t wrong. "I take it you''re the one who rallied the trolls over the past months?"


    "Unfortunately, no. They never would heed my call. Not like these fine specimens." She petted another fey''ra. "I''m glad. The trolls never would have served half as well as these. And now that most have been eradicated, these creatures, fey''ra they call themselves, has proven much better tools."


    "I see." So the trolls had a different master then. "Why did you attack us? Why did you destroy that village?"


    Her expression hardened. "These lands will be mine. I''ll do with them as I please."


    "Indulge me. I have an interest in them."


    She laughed and shook her head. "It''s so unlike you to care about these creatures." Seeing him unmoved, she spoke further. "The villagers were easy prey." She shrugged. "Nothing more. I''ve been locked away for too long and needed to test my power and replenish myself. Their livestock were succulent and their spirits were delicious." She licked her lips. "As for your little caravan, that was simply chance. I detected it a day ago and figured I''d be able to steal some supplies for my pets and devour a few more souls, so I timed the deaths of the villagers with your arrival. I thought it''d be more entertaining and efficient to split the party, as they say."


    "And the people who were taken by the fey''ra? The supplies?"


    Her red eyes stared into his. "Servants require reward and punishment. You taught me that, master. Failure requires punishment, lest you coddle weakness and dissent. Success deserves reward. The mortals will be an excellent bit of entertainment for my growing forces, and their goods will feed and cloth my servants."


    "It seems you heeded my lessons well. Take what you can when you can. What of me? Did you know I was coming?" He asked.


    She frowned. "No. I was having my fun, then I sensed the presence of one of our kind approaching. That''s what tipped me off about your little caravan. Lucky for me, I''ve received the Dark One''s Luck today. I get to see my dear old master again. How good for me." She smiled wickedly.


    He stepped closer to her and extended his senses. She was powerful, but not as powerful as she was. And while she was stronger than him in that moment, the gap wasn''t large. Either could be the victor if they fought. "And why are you here? In Nolei?" He asked. The last he''d seen her, she was in Volkash. That was centuries before, but he didn''t understand why she''d come here. There was little to be gained.


    "I have no need to explain myself to you further.''" She sneered as she said the final word. "Why would I even lower myself to speak to the likes of you? You taught me long ago that the weak are destined to be used by the strong. And you, in your weakness, should be groveling at my feet." She lifted her staff and slammed its butt on the ground, sending a wave of power into the ground that shook him. "So do it.<b> [Grovel]</b>."


    <b>[Devour Essence]</b>


    He tore essence from her as her words took hold. He felt her compulsion wash over him, but with her stolen power and his own will, he resisted it. Standing upright once again, he smirked. "You never were much of a judge of strength." He flexed his fingers as he readied himself. His eyes met those of his favorite student. Hers were cold and hollow. He could feel the shadows rolling off his skin grow thick, the power in the air crackling as he extended his will again. He had torn more than enough essence from the woman to close their gap further. She had to know it. "That was a good try. However, you still have much to learn."


    Helia''s brow creased, and her red eyes narrowed. "You won''t leave alive, master." The fey''ra around her snarled.


    "I don''t want to fight you. <b>[Talk to me]</b>." He commanded.


    "I..." Her mouth opened, then snapped shut as she fought his command. However, he felt his will overpowering her. "Damn you... Old fool..." She fought the compulsion for a time, but his will won. "I tried to find you... after you died..." She shivered, and her lips curled. "But <i>she</i> found me. Your whore brought me to this land. She used my talents, the very ones you taught me, to subjugate those who opposed her." She sneered at him, hatred in her eyes. "To keep me compliant, she bound me like all her other pets, using your stick and my magic to do it." She pulled away her robe to reveal a brand on her neck.


    "When she died, I rejoiced. I believed the world had become mine. Yet, some imbecile took her place and kept me bound like a dog on a leash. Ready to serve, like all the rest." Her eyes shined like rubies as she petted Rennar again, eliciting another response from Zethari. Helia smirked at his vassal. "But I was unruly. I really was quite a bad girl." She pretended to pout. "So he locked me away. For years, I sat in solitude in a hole in the ground. In time, I learned how to contact these creatures in my dreams. That''s how my bestest boy right here found me and set me free, after killing the mortals that had purchased him." She rubbed his arm as she spoke. "And now I''m here, speaking to you again."The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "Very resourceful."


    "As I was taught."


    He frowned at her. "There''s a problem with your plan. Faye is here, and you''re not nearly strong enough to defeat her.."


    She smirked at him. "She won''t stop me. She can''t stop me."


    "And why''s that?"


    "I''m sure you know that Darkfall is coming. As it does, her power will fade. It will be gone before long, and then this world will belong to us again, for a time. When it''s ours, I''ll..." she paused, then narrowed her eyes on his. "I have some plans." Her eyes wandered to Zethari. "But you do not need to concern yourself with them." A wicked grin split her face. She held out her hands. "Instead, I have a proposition for you. I''ll ask once. As you did so long ago. What if I could promise you a real life after this one? I am nothing if not merciful, my dear master. <b>[Join me]</b>."


    Her words, a reflection of his centuries before, echoed in his mind. He felt her power wash over him. It shook his bones and rattled his mind. It took everything to resist, but resist he did. "No thanks. I''d like to explore this world as it is. I''ve rather enjoyed it, in my limited time back. I plan to continue to do so."


    She studied him with an arrogant grin. "What happened to you? Not only do you travel with mortals now, but you haven''t broken your pets?" She pointed to the caravan. "You always did have a soft spot for them. I never did understand why you indulged them so. I can''t understand it. Why stoop to the level of these animals when you can stand upon their shoulders?"


    "Helia..." He stepped toward his apprentice. Power rippled between them. The fey''ra shifted away from them. He could sense their unease. "I''m sorry."


    The woman recoiled, her face contorting into rage as she stared at him. "What?"


    "For what I did to you."  He stepped toward her. "For taking your life away and forcing you on this path, then leaving you alone in this broken world."


    "Stop," she hissed, spittle flecking her lips as her brow furrowed. "Why would you say such things?"


    He stepped closer. He could feel the mana swirling around her. "Because I was wrong." He could feel the voice within him writhing against his words. "If I asked you to stop all of this," he motioned at the carnage surrounding them, "and walk away, would you do so?"


    She stared at him for a moment. Then, her lips pulled back into a feral smile. "What kind of fool do you take me for?" She spat. "What, so you can tell the hero to come find me? Or so your little pet can hunt me down?" She looked around them. "Where is that little bitch anyways? Angra! Come out. I know you''re here. Once your master''s dead, you can serve me. I''ll treat you better than he ever did!" When there was no response, she looked back at him. "I know how you think. I''m sure she''s waiting for her chance to strike. Too bad that will never happen." The shadows swirled around her.


    He shook his head. "She''s gone, now. She died protecting me." He said the words so simply that they seemed to take her aback. He took another step closer to her. Less than twenty feet separated them. He could feel her aura clearly now. They weren''t so far apart.


    "Oh?" Her eyes lit up as she looked down at herself. "So you lost your little sycophant, and now you''ve found a heart? Come on, master. Don''t make me laugh." She cackled. "How pathetic!"


    Her laughter grated his ears and mind. But still, he pushed through it. "How long were you sealed away?"


    Helia''s laughter died. "What does it matter?"


    "If I''m to die, I want to know how your story went. You were one of my closest companions, Helia."


    She watched him for a long time, then looked back up to the moon, its silver light illuminating her face. "Two hundred years I sat in that fucking hole, watching that moon float overhead. Every once in a while, they threw me food or supplies, but they never listened when I screamed for release."


    "Two hundred years..." He mused. "I was sealed away for five. It was torment, wasn''t it?"


    Helia glared at him, her jaw flexing. She didn''t respond. Her aura wavered.


    "I killed Kasimir a month ago."


    She blinked, then narrowed her eyes at him. "Lies. You think you can trick me? You? As you are? No chance."


    He shook his head. "He found me in Farnfoss. Said it was fate that we met again. I told him I was the master of my own fate, but now I''m not so sure." Abad stepped within a dozen paces of the woman, with only the river separating them. "He wanted to use me, to create a new dark lord, so the mortals would rally against me. I killed Bolton, the man who killed Selene, and I struck him down on Draekenspire." He shrugged. "Then I destroyed <b>[Final Law]</b>."


    "That''s how I was freed..." Her voice was calm when she replied. "Why are you telling me all this? It changes nothing."


    "Because I can''t shake this feeling I''ve had since I''ve been back. Like I''m not the one in control. Like someone is pulling my strings." He met her eyes again. "Our strings. Why else would we meet like this? What are the chances that we''d find one another so easily in a world so large?"


    "I''ve already done too much, master." She sighed. He felt her aura waver more. "There is only one path for me."


    "You think I haven''t?" He laughed. "Even I''ve been granted pardon. By the Hero no less. We could do the same for you."


    "It''s not possible, master. This world won''t let me."


    "Then you feel it too? Like you''re losing yourself bit by bit? I don''t think we''re in control, Helia. Not fully. I made a choice, perhaps my first, a month ago, and that took everything I had. I think we''re puppets, Helia. But, for the first time, I''m starting to see a way out of these roles that we''re meant to play. I see a path where I won''t be pushed or pulled anymore, by the powers of this world, by our creator, and by the voice in my head." He took a breath. "Not trying to follow it isn''t an option. I don''t think that''s what being a person means, what being free means." The voice within him tried to claw its way out, but he visualized a box and closed it in. For the first time in weeks, it was silent within him.


    Helia crossed her arms and let out a slow exhale. "And what would you have me do, oh wise sage?"


    "Walk away from this." He pointed to the burning town, the forest, the fey''ra. "Walk away. Find a new path. Reclaim yourself. Be free. I don''t want this life anymore, and I don''t think you do either. Don''t you remember all the times you asked if we could set it all aside?" He gestured to the night air. "Now we can."


    "That''s..." She shook her head. "That''s ancient history. You''re offering nothing and expecting, yet again, that I''ll tag along with whatever stupid plan you come up with. Not this time, Abad-Shai. I won''t be your fucking puppet again!" She screamed, throwing out her arms. The shadows gathered around her in response. The fey''ra surrounding her shrank back as she stepped toward Abad. They each were at the very edge of the river. Her voice echoed through the night. "I am done walking behind you!" The river below began to boil. Flames cascaded down her arms.


    Abad didn''t react. His red eyes met hers, unwavering. Her aura was unstable. She was at war with herself. That gave him the opening he needed.


    "I''m going to kill you for what you did to me, and I''m going to break out of your shadow for good." She gritted her teeth.


    He felt his heart, which had felt so distant of late, break once again. The sadness seeped through him. He could feel its weight pulling him down. So long had he been the architect of others'' misery. What a fool he was to think that the dark seeds he''d sewn would simply bend for him. A single tear fell down his cheeks.


    Wiping it away, he felt another feeling roiling inside of him.


    Joy.


    The voice that he''d locked away broke free and filled his mind. A dark grin split his face, and the shadows rose around him as they answered to his command. "Do you remember when you first arrived at my tower?"


    She blinked. Her brow furrowed in confusion. "What does that have to—"


    The voice in his head was deafening. He was compelled to listen to it. "Do you remember, Helia?"


    "Remember what?" She eyed him warily, the shadows around her writhing.


    "Do you remember how you begged for release?" His words were laced with magic. She froze at the memories his words invoked. "Do you remember the torment you endured to earn my favor?" Zethari backed away as the shadows roiled around him. The other fey''ra shuffled. He could feel his body swell with power. They began to back away, and several ran for the trees as his power overwhelmed hers.


    Helia''s eyes grew wide. "I..." she shook her head as her eyes met his. The truth of his words rang in the air.


    "I had a dream of you recently. In it, I remembered something." He smiled. He could see the glow of his red eyes in the fog. "I enjoyed breaking you, Helia. And I''ve been looking forward to this reunion. It''s time you remembered who rules here."


    <b>"[Kneel]."</b>