Burpin' Dragon - Jygust 30th MT

[Gotham Devoue]

The amazing breakfast he had ordered that morning as well worth it. The meal consisted of an omlet that was stuffed with crisp vegtables. As his fork cut through the cooked egg he heard the slight crunch of broccoli and the squish of tomato. The mushrooms that were littered throughout the item had an earthy taste but he enjoyed it just the same. The slice of bread that sat next to his plate had been baked fresh that morning and he spread boysenberry jam like it was going out of style.

Oneist turned panling knew very little of the citadel even after spending three months there. He kept to himself as not to gain too much popularity, since dealing with demons gains one a bad reputation fast. Gotham didn't care much for his reputation within the people, however, if word got out that he was sorting with demons to aid Pan's Isle, the element of surprise might be lost - and that was something that he couldn't afford.

While his mind was on vacation for a few burns, morningtide dreaming about the Isle and what has happened since, Dynmori helped himself to the cooling bread with jam. By the time Gotham had pulled his mind back to where it was off and blissful the little squirrel was finishing the baked good with a smidge of purple on his cheek. "I hope that was good," he squeaked to his pal. Patting the red creature on the head, Gotham fished out a few coin and placed it on the table.

"Squeak squ," which translated to com'on. With that the once crusader held out his arm and the fluffy critter jumped off the table and ran in his sleeve. He ate, payed the bill, and gathered the things that meant the most to him. He retired back to his room and began to plan his day accordingly.

[Meridiuz]

While Gotham's intent was to keep to himself without gaining too much popularity, asking around for people who were rumored to be involved into the Dark Arts was definitely a way to get noticed. Not only that, having a squirrel as your friend and actually squeaking back to him right in front of all the other guests was bound to attract some attention.

Most of the visitors had seen him around with the squirrel in the last months and while they had seen quite some things, this was still very uncommon. Most of them had just given Gotham a glance once or twice, not daring to actually walk up and ask what the squeaking was all about. The only one who didn't look away was one of the waitresses. She hadn't had the guts yet to actually walk up to Gotham and ask about the squirrel, but she had been watching as Dynmori ate the mean and had been squeaking back to Gotham.

Once back in his room, Gotham suddenly heard a voice behind him as soon as he had stepped into the room after he had closed the door. The voice came from the dark corner next to the door. "You know, Gotham Devoue, it isn't very clever to go around town asking for someone who is cunning in the Dark Arts. You might actually find what you are looking for."

When Gotham were to turn around, he would see a woman with dark hair step out of the shadows. She had a playful smile on her face as her amber eyes seemed to look straight into Gotham's soul.

[Gotham Devoue]

Gotham froze where he stood. He had let his guard down assuming that the woman he was looking for couldn't just appear from the darkness. Although the thought had never entered his mind, now, it did. Once he did realize that such a woman could do such a thing, it intrigued him. His body relaxed, but he did not turn towards the female. If she was hear to kill him, she could have done it at a distance, and if not, he would already be dead. At first he should have been terrified about a strange voice coming from the darkness, but at this point in his life, he welcomed it. She was what he had been searching for for months.

"And someone who is truly that cunning in the dark arts should know that the asking of one would make them find you," he reciprocated to the raven haired mistress.

"Under the circumstance I'm not one for theatrics and games..." and the man paused so she could give her name if she cared to, continuing he added, "but it took much longer than I expected for this conversation to take place."

"Squeak." he said as if it was some bizarre way to get her attention. To the woman in front of him it must've seemed as though it was a mockery of some fashion. Truly, his main goal was to get the animal's attention. "Be ready for anything," was held in the tone of that single word.

However, Gotham was not looking for a fight. In a match of physical battle or mental detrition, the Oneist was sure he wasn't about to win and he clearly understood the outcome. He knew that this was the beginning of the difficult task he had laid ahead of himself.

[Meridiuz]

The woman walked around him until she could look him straight in the eye. Her amber eyes seemed to be piercing straight through to his soul as she swayed her hips and pushed her breasts forward, making perfect use of her voluptuous figure. A smirk appeared on her face as she placed her hands on her hips. "Oh, don't worry Gotham, your little friend is already very vast asleep." Her arrogance was clearly present in her sultry voice.

As Gotham's attention was drawn towards the squirrel, he noticed that Dynmori's body felt really heavy and that his heart rate was indeed indicating that he was sleeping. She didn't make use of the opportunity to give her name, she knew he knew it, so there was no real reason. Besides, she was in control here.

Lucienda giggled. "You know, the squeaking sounds very adorable. I'm sure it attracts a lot of girls in the tavern when they hear you squeak." She tilted her head looking at Gotham from top to bottom before she stepped in closer and started to play with his blond hair. It was another arrogant move, stepping in so close, to show she had no fear. She whispered in his ear, her warm breath brushing his skin. "So..Mister no theatrics and games..tell me, .if you had expected this conversation, what is is that you thought we would talk about? Why would you be of any interest to me?"

[Gotham Devoue]

Gotham tested her theory and found that his fluffy friend was indeed dead to the world. He considered moving and placing him somewhere more appropriate, for his sleeve was not a nest, however, he let Dynmori stay in his slumber.

His attention was pulled back to her when she began to fling insults like heavy bricks. The panling looked at her then and wondered. "I know it may not be adorable for me to get a good lay, as you once said, but it is a gap in a world that you will never know. A world of life. But," he stopped for a moment. "Within this world there are so many wonderful things to be afarid of if you just learn how scary they are."

Lucienda closed the already small range between herself and the squirrel whisperer and began to play with his hair. "Oh, that feels good," he mocked her. If the hair playing had been another time or another place, but certainly under different circumstances, he would have thoroughly enjoyed it.

Gotham didn't move back when she moved closer. He was here for the wealth of information. He was here to learn how to take back control of an isle and place that control in the hands of people who deserved it.

Her breath seemed like a shiver over his skin and suddenly it was his turn to whisper sweet nothings back.

"I thought that we would talk about the occult and a demon named Righteous," he put bluntly. "On thoughts of interest, you found me remember? What interest do I hold for you?"

[Meridiuz]

"Auch...you almost hurt my feelings there" Lucienda said, pouting like a shy girl who had been just rejected by the cool guy to go to the ball together. She continued to play with his hair. "You know what really feels good?" She pulled her head back a bit so that he could see her eyes. Slowly they started to turn black, the tone of her voice becoming more dark as well. "The power..seeing the enormous amounts of dark energy around you, sensing it's power." Her voice quivered, her eyes completely black now. "Watching that power, the dark, black energy. Ohh you should see what I can see, human. The tingling before you tap into it. The crackling noise afterwards. It's...like a storm rushing through your veins." She paused, it seemed as if she wasn't even able to speak for a flicker, completely engulfed by the sensations she was feeling.

Finally she spoke again. "Before we talk of any demons, we should talk about your usefulness indeed. What makes you think you have any use to me? Why shouldn't I just have a little playtime with you and then discard you like a a chewed off bone? Tell me Gotham, why should I tell you about the occult?"

[Gotham Devoue]

The gorgeous amber eyes had turned into black nothingness but within that nothingness held power. This was one circumstance that Gotham attempted to prepare his friend for. Although an unthreatening action, it would have been shocking to most people and yet the knight made himself peer into them like it was an airship wreck.

"I bet you pick up a lot of men with eyes like that," remembering her comment about squeaking. "We both have issues," he said with humor littering his voice.

"I don't have a concrete reason of why you should help me. I don't have a reason why you shouldn't just toss me away like trash," the man said honestly. "I need the occult knowledge so I will have the power to instill fear into the hearts of others. I want to be known throughout Tazlure as someone you dare not double cross. Just like you, I aim to misbehave."

[Meridiuz]

A giggle came from Lucienda's mouth as she examined Gotham's face up close. She seemed to be looking at every inch of it with her black eyes. His eyes, his skin, nose, ears. But was she actually looking at his skin? Any hint of her focus was lost in the blackness. "Yes. Eisolf and me could use a new assistant. The old one..got..ah..a little lost in the Nether." A wicked grin played on her face. "Perhaps we will run into him sometime during one of our experiments" She mused as she slowly opened her mouth and extended her tongue. Gotham suddenly felt the warm, wet, red tongue sliding over his cheeck from the lowest point all the way up to his forehead.

She giggled again. "Besides, I can always have some fun with you before I throw you away." Her ruby red lips now came dangerously close to his and her voice became low and even soft and was it almost gentle? "I will need to test your usefulness however. And my standards are very high, so you better not disappoint me." She pressed her lips onto his, slowly pushing her tongue into his mouth. Her kiss was full of passion. Even though she was merely playing, she did everything with passion. Her lips tasted amazingly sweet for someone who seemed to be so consumed by the dark.

[Gotham Devoue]

The crusader was surely a novice when it came to sexual endeavors. He had not done his fair share of kissing or fornication since his priorities had laid elsewhere. However, the man was in the here and now, and this is what the now called for.

His mouth took Lucienda's tongue willingly. As her muscle slid around his the gears in his mind didn't wander. Gotham was completely focused and enthralled with the turn of events. He lifted his tongue to touch and massage hers. Shifting his arm slightly Dynmori slid into the pouch that was on the inside of his sleeve. Once Gotham knew that the squirrel wasn't going to be running a muck in his clothes the knight brought his hands up to the side of her face to cup it. Holding it in place he was able to almost swallow her tongue and luckily enough for him he had a decent gag reflex. His hands moved again for a little less of an intense position. The right hand had found its way to the nape of her neck, touching the flawless area. His left hand had crept behind her back just above her buttocks and with the fluid movement pushed them even closer together. The squirrel wrangler held the stance until he felt her start to pull away.

Once the dark mage had begun to withdraw her body from his he pulled her lower lip into his mouth and bit down hard enough to have a jolt of pain course through her body. Once they were able to look at each others faces once again the cresent mark that had been left was already fading.

[Meridiuz]

As their tongues were intertwined Lucienda allowed him to touch her face, her neck and for him to draw her in closer. Aside from a few rookie slip-ups the kiss was rather good and the dark sorceress found herself actually enjoying it. Right in the middle of the kiss, Gotham could feel a tingling sensation building up in his lips and it shot through his body. It was a rather pleasant feeling and since he hadn't had that much experience, it actually felt really good.

After a few more flickers Lucienda pulled away and she bit her own lip at the spot where Gotham had done the same just a flicker ago. As Gotham saw her standing there now, he felt a feeling of trust towards her. Her eyes had returned to normal and it was as if they had just grown closer to each other during the kiss. She felt like a mentor and a close friend he had known for ages. The sorceress looked at him and yet, wasn't looking at him. Another smile played on her lips followed by a giggle before she sat down on one of the chairs next to the bed. "Tell me, Gotham. What do you know of magic. What do you know of energy?"

[Gotham Devoue]

Once she broke from him the man was able to do what he pleased. He walked over to the bed and stood at head of it. With one slick move Gotham slide the squirrel out of his sleeve and onto the pillows. Dynmori was still dead to the world, as far as the panling could tell, and he laid on the comfortable spot spralled out. The red being curled into a ball due to reflexes and the man fix his tail wrapping it around his body. He was then posed with a question that made him look at the seductress.

"Magic? Not much. I had caughterized a wound of a panling that was going to die, but I wouldn't ask me for a demonstation," he paused then. He looked at her the way you would an old friend. Someone there would be no reason to lie to. "I don't even know how I did it," he said frankly. "While I was stationed at Pan's Isle, I heard of shapers and green magics, but I never witnessed it. I am yours to completely mold," he added with a sly smile dancing across his lips.

[Meridiuz]

"Caughterized a wound..." The dark sorceress mused. "That is quite interesting. I will have to find out how you did that lateron." She stood up and walked over towards the door. As she passed by Gotham she let her finger slide over his cheek. "But now, my cute pet, I will show you how to find the darkness within people. Follow me to the common room."

Lucienda opened the door and walked into the hallway, not waiting for Gotham to follow her. She was sure he would. In the bar there were quite some people seated for breakfast or to continue the drinking from last night. The handsome mage walked over towards a table in the back, pulling one of the chairs closer to the other, so that they wouldn't be sitting opposite, but next to each other. She sat down on the right one, waiting for Gotham to sit down next to her. She had a look on her face that radiated her arrogance, her feeling that she was in full control and she was liking it. "Look around, Gotham. Do you see all the people? I am sure you can tell from their behavior how they are feeling, what kind of person they are." She nudged towards an adhiel who was sitting alone at a table, eating his pancake for breakfast. The man seemed to be quite relaxed, enjoying the food, looking around now and then and the look on his face made it look like he was honestly having a good morning.

"We all have secrets. We all have things that we don't talk about with anyone else." Lucienda looked at the panling. "Are you ready to see what people are really like? What they try to hide?"

[Gotham Devoue]

"Yeah," he said with a little bit too enthusiasm. "With just my..." and he paused for a moment realizing the energy that he was expelling. The last word, "mits," was rather flat and he tossed his hands up to show her but they ended up back in his lap. "Yes, later," Gotham said, "later."

As the crusader stood he could still feel the line across his face and it faded from his visage and his mind. He took several steps in her direction and the sound of his boots walking through the room was muffled by the carpet underneath his soles. His eyes rested on Dynmori who still slept on the pillow. Gotham wondered what the little squirrel dreamed about and hoped that it was filled with wonder and delight. Without another hesitation he found his way out of the room and closed the door behind him.

When he eventually made it to the common room Gotham's attention was first pulled to the sorceress. He might have scanned the room for possible threats, but he knew that Lucienda could handle herself in the need ever arose. The man sat where he was instructed and listened to the words that came out of her mouth.

The panling didn't look at her once that question was posed. He didn't fathom the fact of being about to read people in the raw sense and he did want to know. He had always felt that people kept secrets to protect the ones they love or because they were ashamed of it. Having a skill to peer into the hearts of people and see they're true intentions would be a great asset in his recruiting for the war.

"Yes, I am ready."

[Meridiuz]

Without any further hesitation, Lucienda grabbed his wrist. He could feel a sense of warmth starting to develop where their skin touched. "Focus on the man. Look at him." As the Panling looked, the adhiel still seemed to be just enjoying his pancakes. The warmth was working it's way up through Gotham's arm however, into the rest of his body. Once he felt the warmth hit his eyes, his view changed. He could now see a white mist around the adhiel."

The sorceress smiled. "You see it now, yes? The white color around him?" The mist twirled around the body, being the brightest where it was close to it, getting more translucent and faint as it reached outward. "We call it the Nimbus. Every person has one. Now. Look closer. Dig into the nimbus." Gotham's vision changed, almost as if it was zooming into the mist. As he looked closer he could see there was something behind the white. The bright white wasn't actually that bright once he really looked at it. It was fairly translucent and he could see a darker mist laying beneath it. His vision passed through the white layer. "Notice how thin the white layer is. That is his outer layer. That is what he wants the people to see."

As they went deeper into the Nimbus, Gotham saw a large dark red area. "Now you can see what he is truly feeling. People's emotions are visible in the Nimbus with different colors. Red shows passion. Passion can be good or bad however. This darker red shows that this man has a lot of anger."

Lucienda let go of Gotham's wrist and the warm tingling sensation went away, returning his vision back to normal. "In time you will be able to pull information out of the Nimbus, getting a better sense of the reason why the people have these emotions. For now though, we shall focus on you being able to see the Nimbus. She nudged at one of the waitresses. "That girl. Try to see her Nimbus and tell me what she feels."

[Gotham Devoue]

Gotham was an obedient student. He nodded and looked when he was directed. The man thought for a moment of how useful this skill is going to be... assuming he lived through it.

As Lucienda mentioned the waitress in Nimbusing, he turned his head and knew of whom she spoke. He had noticed her before while he stayed at the tavern for several candlemarks. The once noble converter was now searching for a way into people's hearts.

The squirrel wrangler watched the woman and watched the woman. He watched her wipe down the tables for the afternoon croud and stock the silverware and stock the salt and pepper shakers. She moved onto the raw sugar containers and he watched her arms move and her muscles move under the skin. The cyran eyes that sat in his skull slowly drifted to her chest and watched it rise and lower and rise and lower. He could almost feel her pulse, half knowing that it wasn't going to fast and knowing how the human heart beat. With the speed that she was working at and the speed of her seemingly tranquil mind his finger began to tap on the table without him realizing it.

Gotham watched and watched the woman attempting to peer into her heart.

[Meridiuz]

It was hard to know what kind of seeing she meant. How could one suddenly shift their vision? Gotham had never done it before. So he watched. He tried to almost crawl under her skin, tapping into her heartbeat to get into her heart. But nothing came. There was no nimbus.

He heard Lucienda's voice, a soft, calm whisper, yet amazingly clear. "Try to see[i] with your feelings. She's radiating her emotions, almost like strands of energy radiating from her. Wait for a good moment...for a spike. It will be easier to tune into her Nimbus when it spikes."

Again, Gotham watched the waitress. She grabbed a couple of mugs from a table and then turned around to walk to another table. She was now standing with her back towards the adhiel man who's Nimbus they had seen before. The man looked up and stared at the girl, but didn't say anything. He stared at her for another few flickers and then suddenly Gotham could see a shiver running up the girl's spine. Or could he [i]feel it?

"There it is, it's a peak. Now Gotham, tap into it. What is she feeling? See her Nimbus."

[Gotham Devoue]

Empathy with animals was more than easy for the panling, but seeing emotions was a different story. Lucienda was being more than patient and he was determined to not let her down.

The man closed his eyes. This might have been the opposite of what the seductress was instructing, but it was easier for the human to concentrate. While his blue eyes were covered he looked into his own heart for the emotional well that sat there. Once he found what he was searching for he opened it up. He opened up the place where most people keep closed to others. He was skeptical of people and he had every right, but in this instance and in the future he wouldn't have the luxury.

Gotham used his hate and love. His despair and hope. With such feelings coursing through his own body he could see the feelings behind his closed eye lids. The aray of colors spiking through the darkness and suddenly he opened his eyes. He noticed a shiver run up her spine and he tried to see what she felt.

[Meridiuz]

The dark sorceress was following Gotham's movements and was quite surprised as he closed his eyes. Yet she did not speak up immediately although she was beginning to doubt if the man had what it took to become her apprentice. She was close to losing her patience and speaking up when he opened his eyes again. A smile appeared on her face.

Gotham searched within himself to find his own emotions. He used all of his feelings, feelings that he had kept at a distance for quite a while and now he let them all in. For a flicker it was overwhelming, being in touch with all his emotions at the same time and his heart started beating faster. And then it shifted. He suddenly didn't only feel his emotions, but he saw the energy. He saw his own Nimbus from the inside out as he had his eyes closed.

And then he opened his eyes and locked in on the feelings of the girl. Now he could see her Nimbus instantly. "Yes, you've got it, Gotham." He heard Lucienda say in the back of his mind. But his focus lay on the girl. He saw that she didn't have such a white layer as the man had. Her outer layer was more gray and it had holes in it. Dark holes. And then he noticed the peak. It was a strand of energy shooting out of the Nimbus from the man, straight into the gray layer of the girl's, creating another black hole.

"You see it now, yes? See the connection between the man and the woman?" Lucienda's voice was more clear now, guiding him to go to the next level in his training. "What happened there Gotham. Dig into her Nimbus and tell me what you see. What is the connection between the man and the woman?"

[Gotham Devoue]

His heart beat resounded like thunder in his body. Gotham could feel his emotions and not just feel and react, but see them. It was something that he did not know he could do, and was quite pleased with himself.

With his emotions flaring around his body he concentrated on the waitress. "Her sentiment is like smoke," he whispered so only the seductress would hear him. "Yes, I see," the man added when his lady friend asked him. As for the people who sat within the tavern he did not know their connection at a single glance. Lucienda wanted him to dig deeper and so he tried.

Gotham could come to some understanding about the situation, but without asking one of them what was going on, he would have to rely on what he knew. Using his heart, and not his mind, he sifted through her nimbus. He was able to see the feelings that sat in his own body, and hoped that he would be able to recognize it in another vessel. The man made an effort to separate the cloudiness pulling the cornucopia of smothered nimbus apart. As for the dark holes, Gotham was a little lost. "Her nimbus... is distorted. It's as if he's hurting her heart with no contact," the wrangler said to his mentor. "The only conclusion I can fathom is a relationship that has soured," he mentioned blankly as he continued to channel his attention to the woman.

[Meridiuz]

Even when Gotham was looking at his own emotions in amazement, he could see the colors change. A silvery bright orange* started to form around his body and Lucienda could see his amazement.

Then he focused on the girl. "Yes, it's distorted indeed. What you see it not magic, he is not doing anything to her directly right now. It's emotions, an emotional bond of what has happened between them. What you see is that it is still affecting her now, especially in his presence. Go through one of the holes, dig deeper." Gotham's vision shifted again, following one of the dark strands of energy that created a dark hole in the outer layer of her nimbus. As he went through the hole, he saw the strand touching a spot in her inner layer that was continuously shifting colors between dark blue and dark red. Every now and then a shade of purple was also to bee seen, although it was far less present than the blue and red. "That spot you see there is the reason why she feels this way about the man. The dark blue is a sign of depression and sadness. The dark red shows that she's hurt. The purple...ah...that's a sign of rage." He could hear the cackle in her voice as she mentioned the rage. "You can see that she doesn't have the strength yet to give into the rage. She isn't strong enough to stand up to him. Now if you go into that spot and concentrate, you can see the different shades of the colors. The more detailed the shades, the better you will be able to understand her emotions and what has happened between them. Try it."


*
(I've started to work on the colors of the Nibus. Silver is for emotions dealing with magic, the bright orange is a mixture of yellow and red. Yellow standing for the slight fear for new things and the red standing for the passion and curiosity. The brightness shows the enthousiasm.) I'll write up more in the wiki soon.

[Gotham Devoue]

Gotham listened to his instructor with much anticipation. Maybe to him he didn't quite realize what Lucienda was attempting to teach to him, but sooner or later he would figure it out.

When the lecture was over and the sorceress told him to concentrate, he did just that. This is a craft not of the mind but of the heart, he reminded himself. Gotham continuously wanted to search within his mind for the answers of what ailed her, and he understood that that was not the way. It seemed that the concentration was a bit difficult with his own emotions flooding his path. The man cleared his mind as best he could, allowing his awareness of the immediate area to fade and he tried again.

With his thoughts sifting out of his mind, and with it eventually being cleared for lingering thoughts, he concentrated his heart and eyes on the woman. Lucienda had left him within the waitress's inner nimbus and so he went from there. It seemed far too long for him but he hesitated at the aura of dark colors. He tried to push past them deeper into the heart of another. It occurred to him just then that this was most like an orchestra filled with a cornucopia of emotion. He had to pull apart the whole to fathom the individual pieces.

Listening to what her heart was screaming out to him he pursued the call. With eyes as his sight beyond sight and he heart as a weapon he dove into the rage and why she felt it. He knew that the rage was mixed with sadness and pain, but currently, he was still lost. Gotham tried to figure the situation out for himself, but he was not skilled enough yet. Lucienda's voice was clear and he heard her. Without another hesitation he focused as much as he could on the abundant basket of negative feelings.

[Meridiuz]

It was a tough lesson, looking at emotions at a completely different way and then figuring out what someone else was feeling and why. How could someone look at another one's emotions and know why they were feeling that way? Or what they were feeling exactly in the first place? They were questions that Gotham was still struggling with and Lucienda knew this. But she also knew that he was almost there. She was guiding him, showing him how he could use the Nimbus.

Gotham was searching through the emotions, in the purple cloud of rage. He was now using his full spectrum of senses, he was looking, listening and using his heart as a weapon. Still as he kept on searching, he started feeling frustrated. His heart started beating faster and his breathing became heavy. At first he thought the frustration came from his own incapability of understanding the Nimbus, but then it grew into more than that. He was starting to feel actual rage and it wasn't rage directed against himself, but it was a rage directed at the man that was sitting at the table. He felt the hurt and the pain that the man had caused.

Lucienda smiled. "Good, Gotham, very good. You have connected with her Nimbus. You're experiencing what she's experiencing." Quickly she added another hint. "Don't try to understand it. Just experience it." The emotions of the girl were still overwhelming him as he felt them more clearly with each flicker. He started to understand now, without seeing or hearing it, he felt what the man had done to her. That he had humiliated her, that he had violated her most sacred place, hurt her and had then discarded her like she was nothing at all.

[Gotham Devoue]

The once noble man of the Oneist army was now a nature lover and a panling. He was once a converter for religious minds and now ventured into the dark arts. He sat with Lucienda in the Burpin' Dragon and studied people and feelings with her.

Gotham listened to his mentor and simply allowed the feelings to wash over him wave after wave. He didn't attempt to understand the situation for he had no starting position. For some strange reason even if Gotham did know the story of this woman he would be able to logically work it out in his mind and his own heart, but without feeling what she felt and knowing what she knew he was at a slight disadvantage. The frustration and rage seemed all to familiar and he welcomed it. Maybe if the man leeched enough of her negative feelings from her heart that it would lift the burden of such a life. The wrangler had a theory working in his mind if he happened to steal all her emotion, or even the very essence of her heart, but Gotham was not at that point yet nor would he do it to an Innocent.

For the time being, the empath sat within the tavern and rode the disasterous roller coaster of emotions.

[Meridiuz]

"Good, good. You're feeling what she's feeling. You're feeling the hurt, the sadness, the embarrassment that she is feeling. Soak it in, Gotham, remember these feelings. They will be useful for you soon." Lucienda said, the bitterness sounding through in her voice. Normally she wouldn't have let her emotions sound through so clearly, but she couldn't help herself right now. Having just found out what had happened to one of her best friends, she felt quite strongly about what the man in front of them had done to this girl. Gotham, of course, had no idea what the sorceress was thinking.

"Now zoom out again and leave her Nimbus. Follow one of the black strands that are coming out of the Nimbus of the man. Go into his blackness and see what is on his mind." A small grin appeared on her face. "You will see that he feels powerful. But we shall see who has the real power here."