I seem to have lost some of you guys... not too many reviews. I'm sure I deserve it with the waits I give you guys. Still, if you're out there(?) I love you and thank you for bearing with me!

Have a LONG update to compensate. :)

Anyhow, I'm pretty sure this is a scene you've all been waiting for since day one of this fic. It's the one I've been waiting to write, let me tell you. Here's hoping I do it justice!

Enjoy!

That night was one of the worst in her life.

She couldn't close her eyes without reliving the execution of one of her dearest friends. Silly girlish emotions put aside, she knew Arram was a good man, and one who did not deserve that death no more than he had deserved being marked a traitor some nine years ago.

She never really slept, more rather slipped in and out of a conscious state for several hours. The drums didn't help things. The sounds of an army preparing to march kept any sense of peace from reaching her. She would not be needed the next day; Ozorne would be solely occupied with preparing his vast standing army for the impending war.

The next day was spent in a similar catatonic state. While she tried to do something productive in the Palace kitchens she debated finding Kaddar and speaking to him. Of everyone in the palace he was the only other one she thought truly cared about Arram. He and Master Reed, though she hadn't seen him at the execution and wondered if he had left with the Tortallans. It was not unlike him; the man had always appeared out of place in Carthak. That was a shame, though. The prince seemed to like him better than any other University teachers, much like Arram had. In fact, Prince Kaddar reminded Varice a great deal of the Arram she had known in their younger days; he was charming, but also wise and passionate about learning and knowledge.

If the prince was at the University perhaps she could speak to him more freely as well, and that was something she needed right then. She wondered if he still wanted to search for Daine, she wondered if he was doing so as she thought.

Her thoughts were disrupted by a loud commotion outside. What now? She thought, unsure what could be worse. Finding a window she watched as any animal in sight attacked the nearest human. Very glad she was indoors, she watched the whole affair with mild shock. This was Daine's doing, she thought. Who else had that power? She half expected to see the girl, herself, but she was nowhere in sight.

Perhaps she's died. Perhaps they are reacting to her death. The thought was a surprisingly painful one. Daine deserved to die even less than Arram had.

It was all the more reason to find the prince. If Daine had died he would need someone to talk to about it – someone who knew the girl was innocent. He would also need someone to keep him from going into a rage against his uncle. In Ozorne's current state of mind, the slightest misstep could mean Kaddar's head as well and Varice desired no more deaths than she had already been witness to.

It was early evening before Varice could find time or excuse to make it to the university. She was cleaning up the palace kitchens – having sent the slaves away, needing something to do with her hands – when the crashing noises reached her. Followed by screams. There had been noise all day, between the constant pounding of military drums and the fury of wild animals reacting to their, possibly deceased, mistress. But nothing like this.

Frightened, Varice found a window once more just in time to see the source of the crashing.

At first she didn't feel anything but a sort of numb shock. Was she dreaming? She simply had to be dreaming. Perhaps the last three days had been a dream – that would be pleasant. But no, Arram's death had felt too real.

Still, she could see nothing else to explain the skeletons of creatures she knew to exist in Carthak's Hall of Bones wandering free. No, not wandering. This was no aimless meandering. Not when they were purposely breaking walls all around her. This was an army, systematically destroying all in their path.

And then she screamed.

There were no people that she could see – no doubt all had run – but she could not keep herself from fearing what one of these long-dead soldiers could or would do to any mortal they passed. She had seen how large they were, how, though only bone, their tails, feet, and heads could crush stone – what could they do to her?

Now thoroughly panicked, Varice looked around where she was and blanched. She was surrounded by food. In her frightened state she didn't really care to think that dinosaur skeletons probably would not be hungry or whether or not they could smell. Either way, the way she had seen them, they were destroying everything. They would reach her eventually.

The storerooms were no safer than where she currently was. In fact, they were probably more dangerous. She didn't care. They were closed in, dark, and crowded. She had a better chance of at least hiding from these creatures if she were in there. She ran out of the kitchens and nearly into one of the skeletons. She screamed. It looked at her and did nothing for that moment. Seizing it, she sprinted past it in search of the store rooms. Behind her she heard it continue into the kitchens.

Thankfully, the storerooms were not far and she ran into no more dinosaurs, though she could hear the sound of crushing stone and other shrieks all around her – now muffled in the safety of the cool room. She moved behind several barrels and put her head on her knees, trembling all over.

An explanation finally came to her, as she bit down panic and fear. Gods. This was not an omen, oh no. This was the culmination of every omen the gods had ever sent Carthak and Ozorne. This, this was Divine Retribution – as if Arram's execution had been the final straw to set off this cataclysm. The gods were going to rip apart this palace, this empire. What happened to the people, she shuddered to think.

She didn't know how long she was there, trembling fitfully and praying to every god that she survived this night before the constant sound of crumbing stone grew nearer and she realized they would be in her storeroom in a matter of seconds. Frantic she decided to attempt to use her Gift. To do what, she didn't know, but she needed to do something.

She was not prepared for a giant, furred, trunk to wrap around her waist and lift her off her feet. Shrieking in terror, any thought of spells left her mind and the fires of her gift died away. To her surprise, the mammoth set her down gently in front of it, and she looked up, shaking.

To see Daine sitting atop the creature.

For a brief hysterical instant, Varice was amused. Of course. Of course Daine would be leading an army of undead dinosaurs, delivering the gods' message to Carthak. Then she really looked at the girl, and the fear won over once more. Daine looked utterly wild; her curls were wild and her clothing torn. Her face was set in a mask of frozen calm but, even from the distance, Varice could see the look in her eyes, the madness and fury in them. They glared down at her.

"Tell me why I shouldn't have you ripped to pieces." The girl hissed. Varice blinked, not sure how to respond or even if Daine wanted her to. "Were you at his killing? Were you serving pretty food and fancy wine?"

In spite of everything that was happening, she felt a touch indignant. She knew Daine did not like her, nor had she particularly liked Daine – but that was hardly fair. She managed to shake her head, fear still gripping her tongue. In any other circumstance, she would not believe Daine would actually harm her. But this Daine seemed entirely separate from the Daine she'd known from the delegation, as though something in her had broken.

"Did you betray him to the emperor?"

That hurt, too. Enough that she was able to form the words, "I don't expect you to believe me, but no. Maybe I would have, if he'd come to me," she added. Might as well be honest. "You don't know what it's like, being in service to a man like Ozorne. But I didn't betray Arram."

She waited for her next accusation, but it didn't come. Instead Daine cocked her head slightly, seeming to study her, looking not unlike an animal studying a human oddly.

Meeting her eyes, she spoke in as steady a voice as she could manage, feeling the absurd urge to explain herself to this girl Arram had died for. "You must think I'm useless and silly. Maybe I am. I just like things pretty. Is that so bad, to want people to enjoy themselves?" This sounded so much like the litany she had given Arram so many times that it hurt. Her voice cracked. "Only when you have the gift you can't just go to parties and keep house. They expect you to study and do something in life. Arram – he always wanted me to learn more spells and be famous. I don't want to be famous! What I do is useful. And I like using my gift for cooking and baking. Great power hasn't brought the mages I know happiness of peace of mind."

She felt even sillier now, for spilling this all out on a half-mad demi-goddess. But some of the madness seemed to leave her eyes, as though, somehow, this wild girl understood her. "You don't have to explain yourself to me."

The sudden quiet and unsure quality of her voice made her sound entirely different from the Daine who had wanted to 'tear her apart'. She sounded her age now, young, and in pain. Recalling her first two questions, it finally reached Varice's fear gripped mind what this, all of this, was about.

This wasn't the gods – not truly. Perhaps they played a part as well, but, no. This was Daine. This was revenge. The fifteen-year-old wildmage had rose countless dinosaur skeletons to avenge the death of her beloved teacher. That madness, that brokenness about her – this was her grief.

Varice grieved for Arram, of course she did. He had been a good man. Dear to her heart, and undeserving of his fate. Her friend. Her lover.

He had been Daine's everything.

She remembered him telling her that the girl had no family left. He had fell into the place in her life, given her some sense of stability and love. She could take care of herself physically, hold her own in a fight and survival and whatnot. She did not need his protecting. But she had needed him, for much deeper reasons. And she had lost him. And it killed something in her.

Needing to say something to her now, Varice added in a quivering voice, "I begged. Sometimes it works. I said, what's the point of killing Arram? Other monarchs would fear Carthak more, if he showed mercy to his betrayer. But it didn't help. He made me watch when they – " Her voice broke, She couldn't say it. "I'll never forget that as long as I live."

Daine watched her, her expression still frozen and disturbingly peaceful apart from her eyes, yet she felt that the girl had understood her. Understood that, at this point, the two of them were on the same side. Varice loved Arram, Daine loved Numair, he had died and both were in pain.

"Varice," Daine said, still sounding calm and self-composed and entirely hollow. "We have no quarrel with you. The gods are unhappy with Ozorne, and I'm helping them, but you don't have to be involved. Get out of here. Shelter at the University, if you can get across the river, or the estates outside the palace grounds. You won't be safe here."

Varice nodded, acknowledging that this was the grief-torn, and revenge-mad teenager's way of showing kindness and understanding. She gathered her skirts, and ran from the room, wondering all the while how likely it was that she should ever see Daine again, just how far this girl would take her revenge, and how a furious demi-goddess would fare if she wished to kill the Emperor Mage of Carthak.

Well, now. That was... something now wasn't it.

Poor, poor Varice. Her love was murdered before her eyes, her country is going to war and it's all topped off with Zombie Dinosaurs.

And then she and Daine have their little chat where Varice kinda gets to kinda understand that Daine just might have it worse than she does. And they are on the same side here, the man they both loved (be Daine's love platonic or not at this point) is dead. Both are hurting. Daine's reaction is just a little more... well, mad. But so is she, sooo...

Anyways, I hope you all liked it. There is still more, I promise. Reviews really do help though.