Episode 3: Willow's Keep and Nithion's Crystal (Part 3 of 5)

"Well, isn't this great?" Lilanei suddenly snarls, angrier than usual. "What are we supposed to do now?"

"Enjoy the view," Locke announces with a chuckle. "Despite all the war wounds, I scrub up quite well."

Sneering towards Locke, Lilanei snaps, "Why do you always have something witty to say about everything? You are no help!"

"Tripe!" Locke cries back. "Who was it that answered those riddles from the Caretaker? Who was it who shot the key down from the hook? And who was it that gave you the answer back there? I know it was an accident, but I'm only witty to keep myself and the atmosphere from falling dark! I might grate on your nerves some, but that doesn't mean I'm a hindrance!"

Crossing her arms angrily across her chest, she states, "You have always been a hindrance. Not even your own family could stand you, and that is why you are here with me now, stuck in this miserable room!"

"Fine!" Locke roars. "If you believe that, then once we get out of here, you can fend for yourself! My family may hate you, but I come to like despite you talking to me like that! Why must you always take what I say so sorely when all I'm trying to do is help you smile?"

Lilanei's facial expression suddenly changes as if she were never angry as she slowly approaches Locke, her hand grazing the front of his chest.

"Oh, but Locky," she begins, her voice now velvety in tone, "you've always made me smile, and despite your obvious faults, I've also come to like you." With that final word, she grasps his leather armour tightly in her hand, pulling him closer towards her, "Really like you."

Locke looks at her with wide eyes and a slight smile for a moment before he purses his lips and frowns in suspicion.

"Hang on, Lil," he announces, putting his hand over hers to take it away from his chest. "You've never acted this way towards anybody in your life. We've had this talk before; why are you so different now?"

Lil frowns as he removes her hand from his chest, yet continues to slowly approach him with a foxy swagger.

"Maybe I've just come to realize how much of a handsome. . . charming. . ." She now reaches for his hand and takes it in both of hers. "And strong man you are."

Despite instinctively liking the situation, Locke realizes that this is obviously not the same girl he has known and grown up with.

"Lil, seriously. Snap out of it. I know this isn't you. I'll admit I'm handsome, I'm charming, and my strength is that of Hercules, but you wouldn't tell me like this. We've got a village to save! I know you'd tell me when we had no other pressing matters to attend to. What's wrong with you?

As Locke completes his sentence, he notices a slight movement from the corner of his eye. Glancing to his right, he notices a figure moving behind the mirror. It appears to be Lil's reflection; however, it is banging on the opposite side of the glass and screaming for help. Locke realizes the situation immediately and looks to the Lilanei that he holds in his grip, and as he turns to face her, he realizes she has drastically changed. Her eyes glow with in an eerie green sheen and her face has grown much more vicious than before. This Lilanei is not Lil at all – but a Doppelganger!

Just as he realizes this, the creature suddenly unsheathes its short sword, which has now appeared at its side, as it lunges for him in an attack. The creature attacks first, surprising Locke as she attempts to butt him in the side with the brunt of her sword. The hit connects and Locke skids back against the stone floor before he quickly unsheathes his sickle – the blade of which sparkles and sends a stream of white light behind it under the bright light of the room. Locke charges at the Doppelganger and thrusts his left palm out, shoving her into a more advantageous position for him to strike, but as he thrusts the blade of his sickle forth, the Doppelganger leans to the side, pulls Locke forwards, and leans her foot out in front of him, tripping him over and sending him tumbling to the stone floor behind her.

As Locke turns once more to face his adversary, he finds that she has transformed once again into Lilanei's image as she thrusts herself forward into his chest, exclaiming with a sweet, loving grin, "Why Locke, don't you like me anymore? Forget that other girl. . . and you can do with me as you like."

Locke looks over to Lilanei in the mirror before then looking back to the Doppelganger, and with a grin states, "That is a very tempting offer, mistress, but I came with her so I'd rather leave with her. Plus, she's cuter anyway!"

With that, Locke raises his sickle from behind his back and, with no hesitation, plunges the blade of the sickle into the Doppelganger's lower, upper abdominal area – the blade easily piercing her cloth armour from the strike. The Doppelganger, her face showing initial pain, suddenly grins as she looks down at her injured torso.

"You tease," she smoothly says, "you only make me want you more."

"Then come and get it, m'dear!"

"With pleasure!" She exclaims, bringing her own weapon swinging from behind her; however, as the short sword swings forward, Locke thrusts his sickle upwards in an uppercut motion and their blades clash with a violent ring of metal striking metal. Sparks and a glow of light hit the blades, illuminating Locke and the Doppelganger in a blue hue for a moment. Easily, Locke then thrusts upward some more, shoving the Doppelganger back five feet from his position.

"Come on!" Locke taunts. "I thought you wanted me! Tickle me the right way, and I'll make you my mistress."

"Oh darling," The Doppelganger sighs lustfully. "You make me all a-quiver with excitement!"

"Then take one of Cupid's arrows!" Locke roars as he quickly pulls out his already loaded crossbow.

With the crossbow in plain view, Locke aims the crossbow quickly and pulls the trigger, causing the arrow to violently shoot away from the crossbow and plunging into the Doppelganger's chest, blood spurting out from the wound as it hits.

"There you go, darling!" Locke spits. "Right from my heart, deep into yours!"

Blood now streaming from her mouth, the Doppelganger's resolve is not all affected as she begins a slow and deliberate wall towards Locke.

As she approaches him, her eyes are alight with mischief as she speaks, "Face it, honey. She's an outcast, a twerp, and a lowly bookworm. Worst of all, she's a half-elf that not even her own father could love. Why settle for trash, when you can have a true work of art?"

Locke looks to Lilanei as the Doppelganger speaks with venom in her voice, his eyes softening slightly as he sees his friend trapped in the mirror.

Reflecting on the words the Doppelganger speaks, Locke cries as his head snaps back to her, "Wench! You know nothing! She might be a book worm, but that's my book worm – and she's coming with me after I dance on your corpse! And then I will enjoy taking my―"

Locke's speech is suddenly interrupted as he feels a puncture in his right thigh, the fiery sensation of pain ripping through his right leg and surging up to his brain which recognizes the pain. Locke screams in agony and frustration at himself for being caught off guard by such a trick. He then stumbles back and looks down at his leg, which currently shows no sign of blood. Immediately, Locke begins to ignore the pain, and once again charges forwards towards the Doppelganger, his crossbow hooked on his back as the sickle returns to his hand and he rushes at the Doppelganger. At the last moment, Locke springs up into the air, giving a slight yelp of pain as his wounded leg complains of the movements he takes. Nonetheless, Locke lands behind the Doppelganger. With a spin, he holds his sickle out and attempts a slash at the Doppelganger's lower back. The teeth on the curved blade dig in to her armour, slashing it while also feeding into the her back in one swift motion, causing more blood to spurt from her back and covering his already blood stained sickle.

Now losing a great amount of blood, the Doppelganger shrieks in hellish agony – the last of its disguise slowly falling away, revealing the ugly and ferocious monster underneath.

With a sinister smile, she dives at Locke, still wielding her short sword as she screams, "If I cannot have you, I will instead settle for devouring your flesh!"

The Doppelganger's dive succeeds as she slashes Locke in the upper shoulder, taking some of his leather armour away from him as well as grazing his skin. She reaches forward with her head, her jaws wide open in an attempt to take a bite out of Locke's already injured shoulder, but as she does, Locke leans back, causing her to miss her target and stumble slightly on her feet. Taking the opportunity, Locke takes his sickle and thrusts the tip of the blade through her throat, the blade sinking deep into it and slicing its way through the inside until the tip of the blade pokes out through the back of her neck – killing the Doppelganger instantly as it gargles and drops forward, only for Locke to press his palm on its forehead and shove it back to the ground as his sickle slides out of the wound.

"Locke's not on the menu tonight, honey," He spouts in victory before hurling a trademark wad of spit on the corpse. "It's ashame really; if you weren't one ugly Gargoyle's backside and I wasn't the handsome hero of Illias, we could've had something there."

As Locke spouts his usual triumphant monologue, he hears a pounding coming across from the room in the mirror as Lil remains on the other side, unable to escape. Looking at Lil with a smile, Locke sheathes his sickle at his side and runs over to the mirror which Lil is trapped in.

"Can you hear me?" Locke cries to the mirror.

On the other side of the mirror, Lil stops pounding on the glass and instead stares forward, seemingly at Locke. He presses his hand against the mirror in a bid to see if Lil can even see him. If she does, Locke figures, she would press her hand against his through the glass in return. Exactly as he predicted as he presses his hand against the glass, she looks to it with an inquisitive glance before seeming to understand as she responds and places her own hand against the glass. Satisfied that she can see him, Locke grins slightly before puckering his lips and mockingly blowing a kiss to Lil. Immediately, she withdraws her hand from the glass, crossing her arms across her chest and pursing her lips in her usual annoyed glare.

Locke smiles at her before his face contorts to a serious one, "Don't worry, Lil, I'll get you out."

As he speaks to her, he accentuates his words by slowly talking so that his lips may be read by her. Locke looks around the room to see if there is anything obvious that may have sprung the trap. As he looks about the room, however, he finds that it is just that – an empty room with no obvious levers or traps. There is simply himself, the corpse, and the mirror before him. Thinking for a moment, Locke walks back over to the corpse of the Doppelganger and looks it over to see if there is a key or some kind of other trinket that might free Lil from her prison. He observes the corpse but finds nothing on her person – but as he searches the corpse, he hears another pounding sound behind him as Lil once again bangs on the glass. As he walks over to the mirror to see what's wrong, Lil motions down to her right foot which she now pretends to kick into the mirror.

"But it's seven years bad luck!" Locke mouths to Lil, showing his superstitious side.

Lil immediately frowns, thrusting her finger down and pointing at her foot with more deliberation. Locke simply sighs and nods before motioning for Lil to stand back if she can which she appears to do. Bending his leg, Locke tightens the muscles in his leg before then snapping his leg out straight, the flat of his foot violently pounding against the glass of the mirror. A crack appears where he kicked which slowly crawls up the mirror and then bursts, causing the mirror to shatter into glass on the floor – shortly followed by the mirror's frame also collapsing down to the floor, leaving nothing but shattered shards. At this point, Locke is hopping on one leg once again as said leg is not only sore from the kicking he gave the stone door earlier, but it is also the same leg that the Doppelganger stabbed. Locke then looks and sees nothing in the mirror's place.

"Slug slime!" Locke roars in anger. "Lilanei, where art thou!"

Suddenly, there comes a voice from behind him as it simply states, "What are you talking about? I'm right here."

Surprised, Locke peers over his shoulder to find Lil standing behind him, her hands on her hips as she looks at him with intrigue.

"Lil!" Locke cries in happiness. "My little Half-Elf bookworm! How did you appear behind me like that?"

Lil simply steps to her right, revealing a portal which sits behind her.

"After you smashed the glass," she begins, “a portal suddenly appeared and here I am!"

"Should we go through it?" Locke asks, staring at the portal.

"Considering I don't see any way out, I suppose we must. But first. . ." Lil says, her eyes narrowing as she slowly leans forward with her hands still on her hips. "I saw you making googly eyes at the monster girl. . ."

"Yeah, so?" Locke asks. "It's not everyday you come on to me. Well, that is. . . I mean, I. . . You. . . Well, she looked like you!" He finally blurts out. "I'm not used to you, or your visage, showing me such affection."

Lil's expression suddenly changes as her cheeks flush into a deep red; without speaking, she stands up straight and suddenly turns to the portal before exclaiming, "I bet this leads to the Crystal! Let's go!"

"Right behind you!" Locke says with a smile as the two of them leap into the portal, not knowing where it will next take them next.

After stepping successfully through the mysterious portal, our two blushing Heroes find themselves in a large chamber. At its center is a thick pedestal, a glowing crystal floating just an inch above its flat top. They have finally reached the Temple's Crystal Chamber!

"Well now," Locke says as he reaches out to the crystal, "isn't this a beauty?"

Despite reaching for the crystal, Locke is surprised as his hand stops in mid reach, unable to move forward any further to the crystal – as if his hand is pressing against a strong wall.

Lil steps forward, pressing her own hand against this wall as she observes out loud, "This must be an invisible force field. I've always read about them, but never actually seen one in use."

"Do you know how to stop one?" Locke asks.

Lil frowns, running her palm down the wall as she says, "No, I'm still just a beginner. This is beyond anything I can do yet."

As she finishes her last sentence, a ghostly chuckle soon echoes from behind them.

"Now what?" Locke groans as the two turn around; when they turn, they find the ghostly apparition of an old elven male floating behind them, his gray hair flowing in the air.

"Human," he begins with an old wizened voice. "And Half-Human spawn. I have watched you traverse my Temple with great intrigue. Do you truly think you have what it takes to possess the Crystal and defeat the Basilisk?"

"Considering your traps and tricks haven't stopped us," Locke replies, "I think we have."

Lilanei then suddenly narrows her eyes as she observes the ghost, "You are Nithion, aren't you?"

The Ghost looks down his nose at the half-elf before stating, "Yes child. I am Nithion and you have intruded on my village. I will ask you again, do you truly believe you two possess what it takes to handle my Crystal?"

"Yes!" Locke cries in exasperation. "Look, if you know about the Basilisk, and about us, you know the score and what's happening to your village and your people! Like I told the Caretaker, we don't have time for your gibberish! Give us the Crystal and we'll sort out the mess your village obviously wasn't up to fixing!"

Nithion looks down at Locke with a glare, "It is almost laughable, but if you believe you are capable of handling such power then so be it. Fight me now! Prove yourself and the Crystal will be yours!"

"Stuck up Elven Ghost," Locke spits. "I defeated your ugly wench and together we'll best you! We'll show you, and at the end this, you'll eat those words on a piece of Elven Shortcake!"

Nithion remains silent, his ghostly tail now morphing into a pair of legs which meet the ground gently as he appears to solidify – ready to fight our Heroes. Immediately, Locke reaches for and withdraws his crossbow and without a word loads it with an arrow. The arrow clicks into place and the metal string on the bow tightens. He takes aim at Nithion's chest and pulls the trigger, which throws the arrow away from Locke's weapon and into Nithion's chest. Nithion is without hesitation as he holds his right hand forward, a phantom sword materializing in his hand's grasp. He runs forward, appearing to float above the ground as he does so, and thrusts his sword in an upwards motion, attempting to strike Locke in the torso; however, Locke immediately leaps backward five feet, allowing the ghostly sword to swipe the air in front of him.

"Ha ha, I think you need to work on your reflexes a bit before you fight us, old timer! I'll give you five minutes to stretch and warm up!" Locke taunts.

As the ghostly figure is engaged with Locke, Lilanei holds her orb forth, which she has now withdrawn from her bag, and begins to chant a magical spell; nevertheless, her face is overcome in confusion when she realizes her magic does not respond.

She exclaims, "My magic! There must be a spell cast on this room, dispelling my magic!"

"What?" Locke cries in disbelief, which is met by a deep chuckle from the ghost before Locke shouts back to the him, "That's tripe! Fight fair!"

With that, Locke, keeping the crossbow in his left hand, retrieves his sickle with his right after loading his crossbow once more. Immediately, Locke shoots the arrow up above Nithion into the ceiling. However, instead of the arrow digging into the ceiling, the arrow hits the ceiling at such an angle that the arrow shatters causing many shards of the arrow's metal tip to rain down on Nithion. As he looks up, his eyes are met with the sharp, shiny arrow tips, blinding him temporarily. In a blinded rage, Nithion thrusts his phantom sword about wildly, hoping to strike at one of the young adventurers, but despite his attempts, his swings are futile as they miss every time.

"Ha ha, do you need a pair of spectacles there, old timer?" Locke cries in triumph.

As the old elf stumbles in his blinded state, Lil takes the opportunity to attempt an attack. Putting away her orb and unsheathing her dagger, she runs beside the ghost, diving the dagger deep into its side. As Nithion cries from Lil's attack, Locke grins and, taking his sickle, holds it so that the jagged teeth of the blade faces his enemy. Quickly, Locke swipes the blade from his right side to his left, the teeth of the blade immediately meeting and piercing the flesh on the face of Nithion. Locke runs the blade across the entirety of Nithion's face before withdrawing it and stepping back. Grasping his face, Nithion stumbles back, and while doing so, his feet lose their solidity as his body slowly begins to grow transparent once more.

"Enough! I've seen enough! You two are quite worthy to face the Basilisk!" He cries, before suddenly laughing. "What irony, that the race that ruined our village so long ago is the very race that now must save it. Carry on now, travelers, and restore my village. Continue your good work in this world – and perhaps I won't be the last to rethink my foolish ways."

On that final note, which echoes throughout the chamber, the ghost slowly disappears, his weary smile the final thing to vanish.

"Well, that wasn't so bad," Locke says with a grin as he sheathes his sickle once more. "I wonder if he was just toying with us, or if he really is that old that he couldn't best us."

Lil, looking to where the ghost once stood, says with a sullen voice, "I think he was just a tired old man who really wanted to move on."

"Ah well, let's make him proud then," Locke says as he looks to the Crystal. "Let's help these people and try and bring some dignity back to our race in their eyes."

With a nod, Lilanei now looks towards the Crystal, its glow causing their shadows to move across the walls. She steps forward slowly, passing the point where the forcefield once stood, and places her hand on top of the Crystal – taking it in her grasp. As she does so, its light grows just a bit stronger in her hand.

"Wow!" She exclaims. "It feels so strange. . . It feels. . . Hey! I can't take my hand off it! It's stuck!"

"Damn!" Locke cries as he leans in to view her hand. "That's. . . Well, that could be a problem."

Lil shrieks, "Get it off me!"

Locke reaches forward with his right palm immediately, not thinking about what could happen. Instead he wraps his hand around the Crystal, and ultimately, Lil's hand as well. As his own makes contact with the Crystal it begins to glow even brighter than before, and before they can respond, it suddenly engulfs them in a massive white light. A few moments pass before they come to, finding themselves standing once again in the village and before the Temple doors – the crystal still safely in their hands. Lilanei blinks, amazed by the power of the Crystal and within the temple itself. She glances at her side at Locke, to see him looking equally in shock. Her gaze then travels down his arm and to the crystal, which they both continue to hold – Locke's hand also holding her own. Her cheeks flush like the skin of tomato before she withdraws her hand violently from under his, turning her gaze away just as swiftly.

“Well, we got it!” She stutters rapidly, a hint of anxiety in her voice. “Now we just have to find Esra and find a way to that Basilisk!”

"Didn't she say that would be out and about in the forest?" Locke asks as he places the Crystal safely in his pouch. "Since she needs to protect the village from possible intruders."

Just as he finishes his sentence, they hear a rustle in the tree nearby as Esra jumps swiftly from her perch in one of its upper branches.

"The Crystal!" She exclaims in surprise before looking to our Heroes with a great sense of hope and relief. "I knew if anyone could do it, you two could."

"We sure did!" Locke says with a wide smile on his face. "But some of the tricks and traps in there. . . hoo, boy! There's a stone face in there, a spitting image of Lil who wants me so bad she wants to kill me, and there's a ghost right at the end of it! Although he can't fight for Trolls' toffee."

Esra shoots Locke a bemused glance as she speaks, "How interesting. We of the village were never actually told what lay inside the Temple. Only Nithion himself knew of its secrets."

Locke opens his mouth as if to say something about his and Lil's encounter with the ghost of Nithion earlier. However, remembering who he is talking to, he closes his mouth and decides not to expand on his claim that the ghost couldn't fight for Trolls' toffee.

Lil, noticing her partner's uncharacteristic lack of comment, steps forward and asks, "Now that we have the Crystal – where must we go to fight this beast?"

Esraniel now looks to Lilanei with a more somber expression as she explains, "The Basilisk makes its home in the Tuli Desert. I could show you to the Tuli Desert now, but I am afraid it will not be long before night falls. You both appear to be shattered from your long trial. Let us wait until early morning."

"That sounds good to me," Locke pipes up, "but just one question: if we're staying here, is there any chance we could get a good cooked meal? I'm dying for some real food – not these trail rations we have to live on."

As Lil glares daggers at Locke, Esra smiles gently, turning slightly as she motions to a large rope ladder leading up into a tree just over fifteen feet away from the entrance of the Temple.

"Come this way," she begins. "I will treat you to your warm meal as well as dress your wounds."

"Thank you!" Locke says gratefully.

Our Heroes follow the elven archer, quite happy that they'll finally be getting their long overdue rest. After climbing the rope ladder, the ladder swinging to and fro under their unified weight, they reach a wooden deck. After helping the two adventurers climb up on to the deck, Esra turns and motions at the large tree house before them. Unlike the other huts and tree houses they had noticed in the village, this tree house seemed to have a royal air about it, as it was ornately decorated in flags and other carefully woven materials. Locke looks over the entrance to the tree house as well as the wooden deck and its decor before giving a slight whistle.

"Fancy," He comments, obviously impressed.

"This, my friends, is our leader, Adiel's, home. But for today, it will serve as your resting place for the night," The Elf explains softly, pausing for a brief before adding quietly. "I'm sure if my sister knew the matter at hand, she would be understanding to our needs."

"What does your sister have to do with this place?" Locke asks, scratching his head.

Lil reaches swiftly for Locke's braid, giving it a hard pull as she cries, "Are you stupid?" She then turns to Esra before inquiring gently, "Adiel is your sister, isn't she?"

Esra turns to our Heroes and with a smile she responds, "One could say that."

"Wait!" Locke exclaims with a hand out in the air to stop everyone from talking so that he may speak. "If she's your sister, Esra – what does that make you around here?"

Silent for a brief moments, Esra explains, "As I am now, I am nothing to this village. Long ago, when my sister gained control of Willow's Keep, she began to uphold her anti-race laws more and more harshly, sometimes capturing and imprisoning those other races who got too close to the village. I could not watch her do this and therefore I left the village to travel the world. Nevertheless, each year I return to visit my people and my sister, hoping that one day time might have changed their ways."

"I don't think even time can change some people's ways," Locke says with a sad gaze in his eyes as he thinks back to his father and his own twisted ideals of alienating other races. "It's a shame really, isn't it?"

Esra shakes her head, "While you may believe that, I'll never stop hoping that time will indeed change things. We all change a little over time, don't you think?"

"That's true!" Locke exclaims. "Like me. Back when I was a lad, I absolutely hated Lil because of who she was, mostly because of the surroundings I was brought up in. But as I grew up, I learned to look past how she looks and realize that inside she's just as good as any human. The same goes for our master. I begrudged his teachings and his authority over me for a good while until he taught me that like humans, he and all other races bleed, think, and feel in the same kind of way."

Lil adds, with a mischievous glint in her eyes, "Yeah! I used to think Locke was an obnoxious, stupid, and cocky little boy. But now I realize that he's just really stupid."

"Oh come now, you're too kind," Locke says sarcastically with a chuckle. "But, you did miss that I am one handsome devil."

As he says this, Locke gives a slight pucker of his upper lip as he notes his reflection in a metal plate that holds two beams of the wooden decking together.

Esra, now raising her eyebrows at both of our Heroes, finally cracks and emits a slight giggle as she says, "You two amuse me."

"Well, Lil does have the perfect face for being a court jester. I thought she should look into entertaining the Baron of our town in the council house. But y'know, that just didn't work out."

Before Lil can respond violently, Esra giggles again as she glances over at the tree house, "Well then, shall we continue this conversation inside?"

"Erm," Locke says, noticing Lil's glare. "Yes, it's probably best we drop this one. . ."

When our duo is ready, Esra show them in to the tree house, brushing the curtain of leaves aside from the doorway and allowing them entry. They walk into the house to see a large tree trunk protruding from the centre of the floor and out through the ceiling. The room itself is spherical and just as they enter the door, they see three statues – a female elf adorned in fancy robes and flowers, followed by two more female elves dressed more plainly in simple robes. Their faces wear a look of fear and worry – their gazes directed straight towards the doorway of the tree house. Esra speaks immediately with a somber tone.

"I'd like to introduce you to my sister, Adiel. If I had to venture a guess, she was about to flee when the Basilisk found its way onto the wooden deck outside. I suppose we can be grateful that he merely froze her and did not attempt to make his way inside."

Lilanei gasps in surprise at Esra's short explanation of the statues, as Locke shifts uncomfortably on his feet while he stares at the statue that is Adiel.

"She's beautiful. . ." Locke whispers.

Lil, with shifted eyes, mutters under her breath, "Too beautiful for the likes of you. . ."

Locke simply looks over at Lil, sticking his tongue out slightly at her before he looks back to Esra and asks, "So we're sleeping here?"

Esra, shaking her head, shows them around to the left of the tree trunk to a soft carpeted section of the room surrounded in pillows.

"No," she begins. "This is where you will sleep. I hope this will suffice as a bed for the night. I would let you sleep in my sister's chamber," she states before smiling, "however, I feel she might be sore at me for allowing strangers in her bed."

"Are you sure she'd even like us sleeping up here?" Locke asks, as he rubs his left arm slightly. "Um, I'm unsure if I feel right about sleeping here, when your sister is standing just over there – very much alive, even though she is right now made of stone."

"If you are afraid that my sister will be watching you at night, then fear not as she is unconscious in her petrified state."

Lil grins, "Yeah! That is, unless you're still too scared."

"Lil, after having to spend nights looking at your face, Adiel's gentle features will lull me to sleep this night. Very well, Esra. I shall make my bed here," Locke announces.