Blood:- The Eternal Struggle. Chapter 3:- Anna's Gambit
Posted: Tue Mar 21, 2023 10:41 pm
Following her induction into the Hidden Hands and successful Infiltration of the Earl of Musgrave's Villa, Anna returned to The Wracked Man to troubling news. A friend of her lover Katrina, has brought news of her arrest by her former Order. Anna springs into action, concocting a daring plan to rescue Katrina from the clutches of the Holy Ordos.
" Anna, Anna!. Will you please take a minute and think" Came the voice of Syrion, as Anna paced her room trying to come up with a plan. " What is there to think about, Syrion. You heard Annabel, someone, fed the Ordos an anonymous tip off and now Katrina is in chains. It has to be the Sanguinis, they must have tipped off the Ordos as payback for Musgrave. We must be getting close to the truth." Syrion put his hands on her shoulders. " We are taking about breaking into the Holy District, the place is a fortress. Crawling with every holier-than-thou bitch, from here to Nocturne. If you get caught trespassing, then even the law cannot protect you, they will burn you at the stake for that. Would Katrina want you to throw you unlife away, your love." Anna gently released herself from his fatherly grip. " I cannot leave her there, I know full well what they do to prisoners. I only narrowly escaped their clutches the first time, this time I will be breaking in on my own terms." Cyrion sighed, shaking his head. "That was 50 years ago, Anna. You think that old sewer culvert hasn't been bricked up, after your escape." Anna checked her crossbow, then put it back in her holster. " The Ordos is known for burning vampires, not fixing lapses in security." Syrion smiled " There is no way I'am going to talk you out of this I'am I?" Anna laughed, flashing her fangs. " No old friend, there isn't. You have never been able to talk me out of anything." Syrion let out a bark of laughter. " There's my Anna. Ready to risk everything for love." As she turned to leave, Anna looked back to Syrion. " You said something the other day about Katrina, but you got interrupted. What was it." Syrion looked hesitant and paused before he answered. " You should ask Katrina, when you free her. I would be better if she told you." In all the years she had known him, Anna had never seen Syrion so afraid to speak his mind before. Thinking no more of it, Anna bade him farewell and walked downstairs.
It had been 50 years since she had been captured by the Order, that time she had stolen a uniform from the Novice guarding her almost draining her dry to the point of death. Anna, then walked out of the cloister and escaped through a culvert in the perimeter wall, coming out at the Artisans Quarter and from there, Dockside. The Holy Quarter itself was a self contained small country, each city in Darala save the Holy Capital had one. It represented the power of the Holy Church, and was usually off limits to the public except for service hours and religious holidays. Tonight of which was neither. Stormward's Holy Quarter, was located next door to the Artisans Quarter, home to the city's craftspeople in particular it's jewellers. Snow fell around Anna, as she made her way through the Crafter's Market, empty at this hour, save for the odd Watch patrol doing its rounds looking for thieves. She kept to the shadows, using a combination of her vampiric agility and subtle manipulation to slip past the Watchmen as she got closer to the wall. The Holy Quarter, was separated from the rest of Stormward by a 100 foot high Barbican wall, with two huge gatehouses at the front and back. The walls, gatehouses and street were patrolled by Novices, who had not received the mental conditioning that their sister knights had received. This made them susceptible to mind control, and this was a key part in Anna's plan. Her plan was to breach the fortress through the culvert, find a Novice steal her uniform and rescue Katrina. Coming out the same way she get in. After slipping past the watch patrols, Anna crept up the bank and found the arched culvert. She was surprised to learn, that it hadn't really changed in 50 years.
As she couched low walking through the culvert, Anna came out to some bushes along the side of a paved road. She glanced up to see the gothic architecture of the Holy Quarter, a stark constant to the homely brick and wood structures that made up Stormward. She glanced to the right, picking up one heartbeat, a human. Anna peered over the bushes, observing a lone Novice on patrol, walking toward her. Using her vampire sight, Anna appraised the young woman. She was a fetching redhead, with bright long orange hair done up in a stylish braid that ran down the back of her head, with high cheekbones, almond shaped emerald green eyes and a slightly squared jaw, her cheeks and nose covered with freckles that only enhanced her beauty. Anna put her age at 20 summers. She was dressed in the same uniform that Katrina had first worn when they had first met, a suit of chainmail with black leather gloves, and boots. Over which was a white tabard, with the symbol of the sacred feminine embroidered in gold on the front. She was armed with a silver short sword belted to her waist. Anna smiled, baring her fangs, the girl was just the right size. She looked back to the culvert, it was time to play a little game with the pretty Novice.
Novice Eloise Heisburg, was fed up. She had pulled night sentry duty again, twice in the same week, because she had forgotten sixth stanza of the Holy Litanies largely because she had been distracted by the slight of Sandra's shapely backside, so focused was she in her leering that she had forgotten the Litany, and here she was. Eloise had half a mind to leave the order and join the City Watch, that way she could finally be herself and not risk censure. As she kicked a loose rock off the road, she could have sworn she heard the laughter of a child in front of her. " Hello? Is someone there? You cannot be here. Come back in the morning for service." Then see saw a child run across the road, down the ditch and into the culvert. " Wait, little girl. It's not safe down there. Hey wait" Eloise gave chase, running down the ditch and into the culvert. As her eyes tried to piece through the gloom, Eloise failed to register a shadowy figure drop-down behind her. " Little girl, come in kid wher--" Eloise felt a gloved hand clamp over her mouth, and felt intense pain in her neck as she was bitten in her Carotid. Eloise struggled weakly, as she felt her lifeblood being sucked by the vampire. Soon she lost consciousness, as she slumped into her attackers arms.
Detecting a small hearbeat from her victim, Anna gently lowered the unconscious Novice to the ground, exhilarated by the sweet palate of the repressed Novice. Kneeling by her unconscious victim, Anna stripped completely naked and began to undress the unconscious girl. Starting with the girls boots, gloves and belt that held her sword, Anna looped the tabard over the novices head. Then turning the unconscious girl on her front, unhooked the chainmail shirt, then rolling her back on her front pulled it off her shoulders, exposing a pair of C-cup breasts that were barely contained by the white cloth strap she wore to cover them. Anna gently rolled the sleeping girl onto her side, unclasping the cloth and slipping it free from her body. As she clasped on the undergarment, she paused to admire the well developed firm C-cup breasts, with slightly pointed circular dark red areolas, with a smattering of freckles on her shoulders, arms and between her breasts. Unhooking the chainmail breeches from the girl's rear, Anna peeled them off her pert tight buttocks, and down her long divine legs, then finally off the body. All that protected the Novice's modesty was a white loincloth, knotted to the side. Anna undid the knot, whipping off the undergarment, from between the Novice's and tying it around her vagina. This revealed the novices small pink vulva, clean shaven in keeping with Holy Ordos' doctrine. Anna quickly finished getting dressed in her stolen uniform, when she was finished. She dragged the girl's unconscious naked body into a shadowy part of the culvert, propping her up against the wall and stashing her gear next to the body. As an afterthought, Anna pulled up the chain coif covering her blonde hair. Using a combination of her own memories and those taken from her victim, Anna made her way to the Cloister. You really couldn't miss an Ordos Cloister, thought Anna, just follow the scent of repression and the giant building shaped like the symbol of the Sacred Feminine, facing north-to-south. Anna smirked as she walked into the vestibule, passing Novice's and Ordained Knights alike, this place hadn't changed in 50 years.
Katrina languished in her cell, completely naked, as she looked beyond the barred doors, a single Novice guarding them, hoping that Annabel had been able to rely her message to her beloved Anna. After a couple of days staring at these grey walls, Katrina couldn't get out soon enough. Her only blessing was that the beatings hadn't started yet, but they hadn't fed her in Two days. She felt like a fool, a bloody fool. Katrina knew she should have joined Anna and the Hidden Hands and damn the Inquisition, damn them all. If she had, then she would be in her lovers cold embrace right know, but instead she had to be the loyal one. Then came the arrest, it was the most curious thing, they were right in their assumptions of course but during her seizure, Katrina had seen a strange man in a black hooded cloak, his face hidden, talking to the Knight-Commander. She had the strangest feeling that she had seen him before, but couldn't quite place him. The sound of her jail cell opening, snapped her from her thoughts. She was greeted by the sight of two novices, the first her pretty dark brown shoulder length haired jailer with a glazed look over her hazel eyes and rounded features and the second behind her, who pulled off her chain coif to reveal a very familiar face, Katrina smiled as she saw the face of her vampire lover.
" That's it, Tabitha. There's a good girl, now WALK inside with me and lock the door." A mind controlled Tabitha did as she was instructed. " Yes, friend Anna. I will do as my mistress commands." Anna walked inside as she swapped grins with her lover. When Tabitha was finished, Anna turned her around to face Katrina. " Now would you be so kind to STRIP naked and give my friend all of your clothes." Tabitha was powerless to resist, as she removed her gloves, boots and tabard tossing them to Katrina's feet. Katrina just stood openmouthed in awe, getting increasingly more aroused as she watched the beautiful Tabitha strip off her chainmail top and breeches. Then just standing in her underwear, Tabitha unhooked her cloth strap, letting it fall to the ground, releasing her small but buoyant B-cup breasts with small pink rose petal areolas. The brunette beauty, unknotted her loincloth letting slip away from her full clean shaven vulva, then kicked the pile of clothes over to Katrina. As she quickly got dressed in Tabitha's uniform, Anna walked over to the beautiful naked Novice. " Now my sweet, Tabitha. Upon my command you will feel into a deep sleep, for 8 hours. You will forget my face and the face of my beloved. Now go to SLEEP." As Tabitha collapsed sleeping naked to the cold floor, Katrina jumped on her lover, passionately kissing her on the lips. " What was that? That was so fucking... attractive." She has she pulled out. Anna smiled, flashing her fangs. " Mind control, some vampires like me can control their minds of mortals, get them to do our bidding. It only works on the weak minded." Katrina glanced down at the toned naked body of the sleeping Tabitha. " That doesn't say much about the Order's Novice's." Anna also spared the naked girl a glance. " As much as I like the idea of a threesome with two novices, we have to leave. Katrina intrigued by the idea, scooped up Tabitha's keys. The two women exited the cell, locking it behind them. Katrina pulled up her chain coif and looked down, hiding her face.
It didn't take long for Katrina and Anna, to retrace the vampires steps, past the novices and Ordained Knights, imposing young women in silver close fitting plate armour, visored beak helmets and a mixture of swords, maces and gun-halberds. Without drawing attention to themselves, the lovers made their way to the culvert. As Anna took off her disguise, Katrina glanced at the sleeping naked redhead. " I know her, Eloise of the wandering eye. Pretty little thing. I caught her staring at me in the showers once." She turned back to the Cloister. " Thank you, my love. Thank for freeing me of this place. I can finally live out my remaining years, on my own terms." Anna quickly shot her a disturbed look, as she tucked her stolen outfit under her arm. Katrina turned to look at her, their were tears in her eyes. " I will tell you everything, once we are back at The Wracked Man." Now Anna knew what Syrion had meant before she left. After holstering her crossbow, both women left the Holy Quarter behind.
" Anna! Katrina! I knew she would bring you back." Syrion gave them both bear hugs as they entered The Wracked Man. " Thank you Syrion, it's good to see you, too. Do you have any Beef Stew, I haven't eaten in two days." Beamed Katrina, as Syrion snapped his fingers and retreated into the kitchens. " We will be upstairs in my room." Anna shouted after him. The two lovers walked hand-in-hand upstairs to Anna's room. As they sat down on Anna's small table next to her wardrobe, she turned to Katrina. " Back in the Culvert, you said something about "your remaining years." What did you mean by that?" Katrina looked away briefly, Anna caressed her face, turning to gently face her. " I'am sorry, I thought you knew about half-elves. We have very short lives, most don't see their 35th summer. The oldest on record is 45 summers. We are like shooting stars, we blaze a fierce trail across the sky, but fade very quickly." Anna felt sadness at Katrina's plight, she suddenly felt like shit for ever complaining about her long life. " So we live our lives to the fullest, become the best at everything, even love." They both leant in to kiss passionately across the table. As they pulled out, Anna smiled at her, struggling to keep her tears back. "Then, let's make most of our time together." They both kissed again, on their cheeks. " There is another thing, Anna. When I was being arrested back at the cloister. I saw a hooded figure, garbed in black. He seemed familiar, I think he was the priest back at the temple,I cannot be sure though." Anna leaned back pensive." That could be worth mentioning to Allenby. I have my next assignment from him tomorrow, but seeing how you are out of work now, I thought you would like to tag along." Katrina smiled widely, before she could say anything, Syrion came in with a large steaming bowl of stew. " Here we are. One of Syrion's world famous hotpots, enjoy my fair Katrina. She thanked him, as she grabbed up a large tablespoon and started to wolf it down. Syrion smiled as he turned to leave. " My work here is done." He said as he walked down the stairs. Anna just leaned back, full of relief and contentment but also sadness as she watched the love of her life consume Syrion's stew with vigour.
" Anna, Anna!. Will you please take a minute and think" Came the voice of Syrion, as Anna paced her room trying to come up with a plan. " What is there to think about, Syrion. You heard Annabel, someone, fed the Ordos an anonymous tip off and now Katrina is in chains. It has to be the Sanguinis, they must have tipped off the Ordos as payback for Musgrave. We must be getting close to the truth." Syrion put his hands on her shoulders. " We are taking about breaking into the Holy District, the place is a fortress. Crawling with every holier-than-thou bitch, from here to Nocturne. If you get caught trespassing, then even the law cannot protect you, they will burn you at the stake for that. Would Katrina want you to throw you unlife away, your love." Anna gently released herself from his fatherly grip. " I cannot leave her there, I know full well what they do to prisoners. I only narrowly escaped their clutches the first time, this time I will be breaking in on my own terms." Cyrion sighed, shaking his head. "That was 50 years ago, Anna. You think that old sewer culvert hasn't been bricked up, after your escape." Anna checked her crossbow, then put it back in her holster. " The Ordos is known for burning vampires, not fixing lapses in security." Syrion smiled " There is no way I'am going to talk you out of this I'am I?" Anna laughed, flashing her fangs. " No old friend, there isn't. You have never been able to talk me out of anything." Syrion let out a bark of laughter. " There's my Anna. Ready to risk everything for love." As she turned to leave, Anna looked back to Syrion. " You said something the other day about Katrina, but you got interrupted. What was it." Syrion looked hesitant and paused before he answered. " You should ask Katrina, when you free her. I would be better if she told you." In all the years she had known him, Anna had never seen Syrion so afraid to speak his mind before. Thinking no more of it, Anna bade him farewell and walked downstairs.
It had been 50 years since she had been captured by the Order, that time she had stolen a uniform from the Novice guarding her almost draining her dry to the point of death. Anna, then walked out of the cloister and escaped through a culvert in the perimeter wall, coming out at the Artisans Quarter and from there, Dockside. The Holy Quarter itself was a self contained small country, each city in Darala save the Holy Capital had one. It represented the power of the Holy Church, and was usually off limits to the public except for service hours and religious holidays. Tonight of which was neither. Stormward's Holy Quarter, was located next door to the Artisans Quarter, home to the city's craftspeople in particular it's jewellers. Snow fell around Anna, as she made her way through the Crafter's Market, empty at this hour, save for the odd Watch patrol doing its rounds looking for thieves. She kept to the shadows, using a combination of her vampiric agility and subtle manipulation to slip past the Watchmen as she got closer to the wall. The Holy Quarter, was separated from the rest of Stormward by a 100 foot high Barbican wall, with two huge gatehouses at the front and back. The walls, gatehouses and street were patrolled by Novices, who had not received the mental conditioning that their sister knights had received. This made them susceptible to mind control, and this was a key part in Anna's plan. Her plan was to breach the fortress through the culvert, find a Novice steal her uniform and rescue Katrina. Coming out the same way she get in. After slipping past the watch patrols, Anna crept up the bank and found the arched culvert. She was surprised to learn, that it hadn't really changed in 50 years.
As she couched low walking through the culvert, Anna came out to some bushes along the side of a paved road. She glanced up to see the gothic architecture of the Holy Quarter, a stark constant to the homely brick and wood structures that made up Stormward. She glanced to the right, picking up one heartbeat, a human. Anna peered over the bushes, observing a lone Novice on patrol, walking toward her. Using her vampire sight, Anna appraised the young woman. She was a fetching redhead, with bright long orange hair done up in a stylish braid that ran down the back of her head, with high cheekbones, almond shaped emerald green eyes and a slightly squared jaw, her cheeks and nose covered with freckles that only enhanced her beauty. Anna put her age at 20 summers. She was dressed in the same uniform that Katrina had first worn when they had first met, a suit of chainmail with black leather gloves, and boots. Over which was a white tabard, with the symbol of the sacred feminine embroidered in gold on the front. She was armed with a silver short sword belted to her waist. Anna smiled, baring her fangs, the girl was just the right size. She looked back to the culvert, it was time to play a little game with the pretty Novice.
Novice Eloise Heisburg, was fed up. She had pulled night sentry duty again, twice in the same week, because she had forgotten sixth stanza of the Holy Litanies largely because she had been distracted by the slight of Sandra's shapely backside, so focused was she in her leering that she had forgotten the Litany, and here she was. Eloise had half a mind to leave the order and join the City Watch, that way she could finally be herself and not risk censure. As she kicked a loose rock off the road, she could have sworn she heard the laughter of a child in front of her. " Hello? Is someone there? You cannot be here. Come back in the morning for service." Then see saw a child run across the road, down the ditch and into the culvert. " Wait, little girl. It's not safe down there. Hey wait" Eloise gave chase, running down the ditch and into the culvert. As her eyes tried to piece through the gloom, Eloise failed to register a shadowy figure drop-down behind her. " Little girl, come in kid wher--" Eloise felt a gloved hand clamp over her mouth, and felt intense pain in her neck as she was bitten in her Carotid. Eloise struggled weakly, as she felt her lifeblood being sucked by the vampire. Soon she lost consciousness, as she slumped into her attackers arms.
Detecting a small hearbeat from her victim, Anna gently lowered the unconscious Novice to the ground, exhilarated by the sweet palate of the repressed Novice. Kneeling by her unconscious victim, Anna stripped completely naked and began to undress the unconscious girl. Starting with the girls boots, gloves and belt that held her sword, Anna looped the tabard over the novices head. Then turning the unconscious girl on her front, unhooked the chainmail shirt, then rolling her back on her front pulled it off her shoulders, exposing a pair of C-cup breasts that were barely contained by the white cloth strap she wore to cover them. Anna gently rolled the sleeping girl onto her side, unclasping the cloth and slipping it free from her body. As she clasped on the undergarment, she paused to admire the well developed firm C-cup breasts, with slightly pointed circular dark red areolas, with a smattering of freckles on her shoulders, arms and between her breasts. Unhooking the chainmail breeches from the girl's rear, Anna peeled them off her pert tight buttocks, and down her long divine legs, then finally off the body. All that protected the Novice's modesty was a white loincloth, knotted to the side. Anna undid the knot, whipping off the undergarment, from between the Novice's and tying it around her vagina. This revealed the novices small pink vulva, clean shaven in keeping with Holy Ordos' doctrine. Anna quickly finished getting dressed in her stolen uniform, when she was finished. She dragged the girl's unconscious naked body into a shadowy part of the culvert, propping her up against the wall and stashing her gear next to the body. As an afterthought, Anna pulled up the chain coif covering her blonde hair. Using a combination of her own memories and those taken from her victim, Anna made her way to the Cloister. You really couldn't miss an Ordos Cloister, thought Anna, just follow the scent of repression and the giant building shaped like the symbol of the Sacred Feminine, facing north-to-south. Anna smirked as she walked into the vestibule, passing Novice's and Ordained Knights alike, this place hadn't changed in 50 years.
Katrina languished in her cell, completely naked, as she looked beyond the barred doors, a single Novice guarding them, hoping that Annabel had been able to rely her message to her beloved Anna. After a couple of days staring at these grey walls, Katrina couldn't get out soon enough. Her only blessing was that the beatings hadn't started yet, but they hadn't fed her in Two days. She felt like a fool, a bloody fool. Katrina knew she should have joined Anna and the Hidden Hands and damn the Inquisition, damn them all. If she had, then she would be in her lovers cold embrace right know, but instead she had to be the loyal one. Then came the arrest, it was the most curious thing, they were right in their assumptions of course but during her seizure, Katrina had seen a strange man in a black hooded cloak, his face hidden, talking to the Knight-Commander. She had the strangest feeling that she had seen him before, but couldn't quite place him. The sound of her jail cell opening, snapped her from her thoughts. She was greeted by the sight of two novices, the first her pretty dark brown shoulder length haired jailer with a glazed look over her hazel eyes and rounded features and the second behind her, who pulled off her chain coif to reveal a very familiar face, Katrina smiled as she saw the face of her vampire lover.
" That's it, Tabitha. There's a good girl, now WALK inside with me and lock the door." A mind controlled Tabitha did as she was instructed. " Yes, friend Anna. I will do as my mistress commands." Anna walked inside as she swapped grins with her lover. When Tabitha was finished, Anna turned her around to face Katrina. " Now would you be so kind to STRIP naked and give my friend all of your clothes." Tabitha was powerless to resist, as she removed her gloves, boots and tabard tossing them to Katrina's feet. Katrina just stood openmouthed in awe, getting increasingly more aroused as she watched the beautiful Tabitha strip off her chainmail top and breeches. Then just standing in her underwear, Tabitha unhooked her cloth strap, letting it fall to the ground, releasing her small but buoyant B-cup breasts with small pink rose petal areolas. The brunette beauty, unknotted her loincloth letting slip away from her full clean shaven vulva, then kicked the pile of clothes over to Katrina. As she quickly got dressed in Tabitha's uniform, Anna walked over to the beautiful naked Novice. " Now my sweet, Tabitha. Upon my command you will feel into a deep sleep, for 8 hours. You will forget my face and the face of my beloved. Now go to SLEEP." As Tabitha collapsed sleeping naked to the cold floor, Katrina jumped on her lover, passionately kissing her on the lips. " What was that? That was so fucking... attractive." She has she pulled out. Anna smiled, flashing her fangs. " Mind control, some vampires like me can control their minds of mortals, get them to do our bidding. It only works on the weak minded." Katrina glanced down at the toned naked body of the sleeping Tabitha. " That doesn't say much about the Order's Novice's." Anna also spared the naked girl a glance. " As much as I like the idea of a threesome with two novices, we have to leave. Katrina intrigued by the idea, scooped up Tabitha's keys. The two women exited the cell, locking it behind them. Katrina pulled up her chain coif and looked down, hiding her face.
It didn't take long for Katrina and Anna, to retrace the vampires steps, past the novices and Ordained Knights, imposing young women in silver close fitting plate armour, visored beak helmets and a mixture of swords, maces and gun-halberds. Without drawing attention to themselves, the lovers made their way to the culvert. As Anna took off her disguise, Katrina glanced at the sleeping naked redhead. " I know her, Eloise of the wandering eye. Pretty little thing. I caught her staring at me in the showers once." She turned back to the Cloister. " Thank you, my love. Thank for freeing me of this place. I can finally live out my remaining years, on my own terms." Anna quickly shot her a disturbed look, as she tucked her stolen outfit under her arm. Katrina turned to look at her, their were tears in her eyes. " I will tell you everything, once we are back at The Wracked Man." Now Anna knew what Syrion had meant before she left. After holstering her crossbow, both women left the Holy Quarter behind.
" Anna! Katrina! I knew she would bring you back." Syrion gave them both bear hugs as they entered The Wracked Man. " Thank you Syrion, it's good to see you, too. Do you have any Beef Stew, I haven't eaten in two days." Beamed Katrina, as Syrion snapped his fingers and retreated into the kitchens. " We will be upstairs in my room." Anna shouted after him. The two lovers walked hand-in-hand upstairs to Anna's room. As they sat down on Anna's small table next to her wardrobe, she turned to Katrina. " Back in the Culvert, you said something about "your remaining years." What did you mean by that?" Katrina looked away briefly, Anna caressed her face, turning to gently face her. " I'am sorry, I thought you knew about half-elves. We have very short lives, most don't see their 35th summer. The oldest on record is 45 summers. We are like shooting stars, we blaze a fierce trail across the sky, but fade very quickly." Anna felt sadness at Katrina's plight, she suddenly felt like shit for ever complaining about her long life. " So we live our lives to the fullest, become the best at everything, even love." They both leant in to kiss passionately across the table. As they pulled out, Anna smiled at her, struggling to keep her tears back. "Then, let's make most of our time together." They both kissed again, on their cheeks. " There is another thing, Anna. When I was being arrested back at the cloister. I saw a hooded figure, garbed in black. He seemed familiar, I think he was the priest back at the temple,I cannot be sure though." Anna leaned back pensive." That could be worth mentioning to Allenby. I have my next assignment from him tomorrow, but seeing how you are out of work now, I thought you would like to tag along." Katrina smiled widely, before she could say anything, Syrion came in with a large steaming bowl of stew. " Here we are. One of Syrion's world famous hotpots, enjoy my fair Katrina. She thanked him, as she grabbed up a large tablespoon and started to wolf it down. Syrion smiled as he turned to leave. " My work here is done." He said as he walked down the stairs. Anna just leaned back, full of relief and contentment but also sadness as she watched the love of her life consume Syrion's stew with vigour.
