Veil of Shadow and Rain ✓ [TSC #1]

Chapter 16 - Wren, Jake and L̶a̶d̶i̶s̶l̶a̶y̶a̶ Lucian

'I will, once I'm done with it,' said Wren through gritted teeth.

'I'll report you for this!'

Wren hadn't thought about that.

'Alright, alright!' she said hastily. 'On a condition,' she added, 'you tell us everything you know about Nicaea Valdis.'

Lucian's face looked sour and he looked like he wouldn't speak a word. But then Wren swore a look of hesitation crossed his pale face and he began with relucant cooperation:

'Nicaea Valdis's dark and fearsome - she uses any kind of dark magic you can think of ... but you don't know, you just don't know to what extend.'

He spat the last word out, looking quite demented. Wren and Jake leaned in, their mutual animosity towards Lucian momentarily set aside.

Lucian's gaze darted around the room, like what would be coming out of his mouth next was a secret meant to be untold. 'I ... I don't know the details exactly, but ...' his voice trailed on.

'She ... she's wanting to earse this memory of hers,' he said hollowly. 'And she's going to go great lengths to erase this memory of hers.'

'But I thought in order to erase memories, you require an amount of dark magic?' said Jake questioningly. 'What - Professor Alastair said that in class!'

Lucian threw him a deep look of loathing. 'I told you already, maniacs. That's why Professor Alastair Xandon didn't say how you erase a memory - that's just dark magic and it isn't allowed. It's banned. He was just giving us some general knowledge, Jake Gagneus.'

Jake mimed a mocking expression behind his back.

'So ... what will happen if she erases this memory?' said Wren, trying to pull them back into topic.

Lucian shot her a deadly stare. 'No idea.'

Wren pocketed his ring.

'Hold it!' he ordered. 'It's complicated. Her soul ... will be split into two.'

'That's just gross!' said Jake unhelpfully. Both Lucian and Wren stared.

'Can I have my ring back, now?' asked Lucian hopefully.

'In your dreams. What's Nicaea Valdis doing now?'

'Trying to kill you.'

'Where is she?'

'How would I know?'

'Where does she live?'

'I'm not her son!'

'Where does she live?'

'Somewhere you can't find her!' yelled Lucian.

'Where?' hissed Wren.

'I swear, I don't know! I'm betting it's a castle, though ... a tall tower, perhaps, one with lots of slaves ... she probably hangs the people she's killed in her dungeons ...'

Lucian Ailwood seemed to be talking more to himself than to either Wren or Jake. Wren wasn't listening. So Nicaea was trying to erase a part of her memory ... Wren couldn't help feeling thrilled. There was something that made Nicaea vulnerable, so vulnerable she wanted to undo it, wanted to have that nothing to do with her life ...

'She's going after you, Carezby,' said Lucian gleefully. 'She's going after you ...'

'What else do you know about Nicaea Valdis?' the words came out of Wren's mouth before she had time to think what she was saying.