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~Compiled by Alex~ While Nikolai and Vanya busy themselves with pushing the content rating of the game beyond 'R' and well on the way to 'X', another friend of Audra's has been contemplating paying the Countess a visit. Madeline of Westendene is bored, and she can't help thinking of the fun times she had with Audra the last time the two of them were together. On impulse, she has her entourage prepared and leaves in a carriage for Ashby without a second thought. Upon her arrival, she is greeted by Audra and the two of them spend a few minutes exchanging the requisite catty remarks, before finally settling down to discuss how they're going to amuse themselves for the duration of Maddie's visit. Simon, meanwhile, has been shown to his room by Stewart the Snooty Steward and is occupied with a visit to the castle's seamstress, Jenny. She takes his measurements while her assistant, Elspeth, brings bolts of fabric out for Simon's approval, and once she is finished, she furnishes him with an outfit to wear while his new garments are being made. It belonged to one of his predecessors, she tells him, but she thinks the fit will be adequate. Back at the Seventh Stranger, Brother John watches Rowena escape through the back room window before stepping out into the tavern to see what "trouble" Mallory was referring to. It was a brawl, of course, between two known trouble makers with swords. Mallory had intervened and after a brief but failed attempt to calm the pair down, had simply cracked their heads together and left them lying unconscious on the floor. John emerges just in time to hear him call for a healer, and is surprised when a woman he has never seen before steps forward to offer her services, as there has been a notable shortage of healers in town recently. He watches Maeve as she tends to the injured men's needs, enchanted by her speed and gentleness. Mallory then offers Maeve more food and drink in thanks, and announces that he must leave the building in search of Evelyn. As a parting shot, he calls Brother John over to keep Maeve company in his absence. In the forest, Warren is still waiting for the elusive Nicholas to show himself, and that combined with the frustration of young Bantam's refusal to trust him or accept his help, drives him to distraction. Literally. He begins to feel a familiar pounding in his skull and before he can get himself under control, the dark side of his personality surfaces. In a blind fury, he pulls out his dagger and takes a wild stab at Bantam, taking a nasty slice out of the boy's arm. Just as he feels his consciousness beginning to slip away, Nicholas darts out from the trees bearing a large, heavy rock aimed at Warren's head - and finishes the job for him. He then turns to Bantam and inspects his wound. His powers should be sufficient to heal it, he decides, and so he gently wraps his hands around Bantam's arm and concentrates all the healing magic he can muster onto the open cut. The effort leaves him exhausted, but he is successful. Neither of the boys notices that Warren has come to, until he speaks. "I have been a fool," he says as he struggles to sit up. He explains to them that sometimes he loses control of himself and does evil things without intending to, and that he did not mean to hurt Bantam. Having observed Nicholas' powers for healing, he asks the forest-dweller for some help for himself, in healing his troubled soul. Nicholas knows that the kind of help Warren needs is out of his league, but compassion takes hold of him and he agrees, at least, to heal the wound he caused on the man's head. But the effort of doing so is too great, and while Warren and Bantam marvel at their improved health, their benefactor finally follows their lead and surrenders his own consciousness. In another part of the forest, a wormhole has opened. None but the woodland spirits are witness to its opening, and no one is there to see a young man in strange clothing appear, seemingly out of thin air. But the young man himself is all too aware of the fact that he is suddenly somewhere he shouldn't be, and that only moments before, he'd been on his way to the recording studio to begin work on the most high-profile act of charity he'd ever been involved in... a little gathering of musicians calling themselves "Band Aid". His reaction is, naturally, one of abject terror. Audra and Maddie are reclining in Audra's "blue room", toying with food and drink which are there more for show than for consumption, and chatting about the potential for entertainment in the near future. Maddie enquires, as casually as she can, as to whether Audra has heard from their mutual friend Nikolai lately; and she can't quite conceal her delight when she learns that the man himself is on his way to Ashby as they speak. The three of them played some very amusing games when they were last together. She is even more intrigued, however, when Audra mentions the latest acquisition to her collection of toys: a new spy by the name of Simon. A summons is sent for Simon to attend the ladies in the blue room, and it finds him on his way back to his room from the seamstress. He makes a snap decision to change into his new clothes before obeying the summons, and does so with comic haste. His eventual appearance in the blue room causes quite a stir with Audra's latest guest. Madeline has always been one to appreciate a pretty face and a cute set of buns. Wisely, Audra puts her powers to use in shielding her friend's mind from the telepath, along with her own. Samuel the elf, son of the chieftain of his tribe, is trudging through the forest, trying not to dwell on his memories of the last time he spoke with Ninnocha. They had argued and she had left, and he had never seen her again. But now he is determined to find her and he has abandoned his responsibilities and position within the tribe, for the sake of his quest. When he hears voices nearby, he stops to investigate, and finds himself looking at two men - one of whom is little more than a child - crouching over an unconscious boy. They seem to have made a decision to carry him to an inn in town, when suddenly they notice Sam. Warren draws his sword in challenge, but Sam politely introduces himself and asks for help in finding a place to stay for the night. However, before the other two have a chance to respond, a magical mist suddenly appears, swirling around them and then lifting them from the ground. Bantam and Warren both cry out in fear - Bantam because he does not understand what's happening, and Warren because he *does*. This is the work of the mysterious woman who haunts him in his nightmares, of that he is sure. He cannot remember who she is, but he knows she's someone who belongs to the past that he's trying to escape - and he knows that her intentions are far from pure. Sure enough, high above the swirling mist, The Flame sits astride her dragon Arcadia, smiling as she manouvers the magical entity so that it sets the foursome down on the doorstep of the Seventh Stranger Inn. The Flame - so called because of her fiery hair and equally fiery temperament - is a member of the evil Cuccurullo Clan... and she wants Warren back. While John indulges himself in conversation with the beautiful Maeve, Rowena makes her way via a circuitous route to their agreed meeting place near the abbey. But before she reaches her destination, she is startled to come across a man milling around in the depths of the forest. He is dressed very strangely, and his hair is an unnatural pale colour, but he bears an uncanny resemblance to her foe Nikolai Rhodan. His reaction to the sight of her blade, however, causes her to soften a little. He tells her that his name is "Nick Rhodes" and that he is lost. His home is in London, and he has no idea how he came to be there in the forest. Rowena remains wary, but finds herself unable to mistrust the man completely. In a moment of compassion, she agrees to allow Nick to accompany her on her journey to meet her friend. Afterall, if he is telling the truth, she can't just abandon him to the mercies of the Haunted Forest. Together the pair make their way to the Secret Grove, where they make themselves comfortable and await the arrival of Brother John. John, however, is completely enraptured with his new companion. They don't notice the new arrivals at the inn until Warren calls, in a loud voice from the centre of the room, for a meal and a bed for each of his friends. Barbarella's slutty assistant Xanax is happy to oblige - it's been a long time since she introduced Warren to the pleasures of manhood, and she hasn't seen him since. While she's upstairs preparing a couple of rooms, the group takes a seat at an empty table and Warren introduces himself to the patrons of the inn at large. The response, however, is less than welcoming, and Barbarella herself comes out of the kitchen to offer her services. Minuet, meanwhile, has been busy showing off her talent for magic to her new feline friend, by changing herself into a mouse and then prompting him to give chase. Sebastian, feeling the pangs of hunger at the sight of her, is about to ask her to choose a form which bears less resemblance to food - when they both notice the arrival of the four strangers, and sense the dark magic which accompanies them. Sebastian scampers for the nearest tree, while Minuet resumes her true form and dashes into the inn to warn John of the impending danger. Vanya and Nikolai have been travelling all day in order to reach Ashby by sunset - and yes, they've been at it again, in the carriage. The man is insatiable. Upon their arrival at the castle, a servant is dispatched to announce them to the Countess. The man is forced to interrupt the conversation the two ladies have been having with Audra's New Toy, and as he leaves again to show the visitors in, Maddie insists that Simon stay to meet Nikolai. She and Audra are both very intrigued, also, by the news that Nikolai has a young woman with him, and they wait impatiently for the chance to size this woman up.
Andy and Ninnocha, meanwhile, have been continuing their conversation
as they make their way towards Ashby. Ninnocha has revealed some of the
personal details of her life and of what she left behind, and has been
munching on one of Andy's apples as she talked. But when she finishes
the apple and tosses the core aside, the tension she feels at sharing
her painful memories causes her to throw it harder than she'd intended,
and she's startled to find that she has disturbed some creature in the
woods. That creature is Faran, and he comes to see where the missile originated
from. Andy recognises the legendary warhorse and, ever the opportunist,
attempts to entice him with another apple. But Faran, of course, is not
so easily led, and decides to accompany the two-footeds to wherever it
is that they're heading, but on his own terms. The three of them reach
Ashby after sunset and Andy takes the opportunity to disappear for a minute
or two, claiming the need to relieve himself, while in fact his intention
is to make contact with a fellow Guild member in the shadows of an alley.
Once he has delivered his coded message, he returns to Ninnocha only to
find Faran gone. The horse has decided against spending the night in such
a populated area and has set off alone again, in search of his mistress.
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