A/N: So, last chapter was really just a big emotion dump. The action will be coming up soon, though. Chapter 14 will be planning stuff, and in Chapter 15, Alex and co. will enter ... dun dun DUNNNNN- the Stellarium! xD

Review Responses:

NightSkyWolves: *Takes a bow* Why thank you. xD Never fear! The mystery girl will return in this chapter! (Kinda sorta.)

BuBuWinter: Indeed- and so fun to mess around with! xD Just for the record, though, you clearly haven't seen That Piece of Filth that I will not Name for Fear of Burning Holes Through my Tongue and your Brain. (AKA an old LotR fan fic of mine O_O) That thing was so bad I give myself a headache just by thinking its name O_O_O_O

DeathySophia: Ha, don't worry, it's not a problem XD I know what you mean; those darned Useful Uses of Time always get in the way of things that are more fun, like writing fan fiction ;)

Oyes. Luke will be very important in upcoming chapters- ESPECIALLY IN AVALON! XD

Who do you think she is? (At least, who did you think before reading le chapter, since she's explained here? ;D)

DawnShadowQueen: You'll find out. *Evil grin* His mysterious and apparently not-so-nice past will be revealed sometime either in Zafaria... or in AVALON! XD (In case you couldn't tell, I'm excited about writing that part. xD)

Lewascan2: Heeheehee … xD

The Diviner's a shifty one, isn't she? x) I've got plans for her… a great many plans. xD As for Luke… what is his deal, anyways? All shall be revealed eventually… (I'm not gonna say it, but it starts with an "A" XD)

Oceanclaw007: It doesn't sound bad at all. XD (I almost stared crying when I wrote it… T_T_T) I might be able to do a flashback with Malistaire, although I might be saving that one for Azteca, which is in the sequel. (Morganthe does something there that I am going to have a lot of fun with… xD)

Once all of the other wizards had returned to camp for the night, Luke and I called them together to discuss our plans- and also the strange girl we'd seen outside the District of the Stars. All four groups were gathered together, chatting amongst themselves and getting better acquainted while waiting for my boyfriend to show up. Luke had gone to grab a few things from the planning tent, and he was running a few minutes behind.

"Sorry," his voice called from a short distance away. "I couldn't find the map." He triumphantly held up the rolled piece of paper, and I rolled my eyes.

"So, what's up, Alex? Did you guys find out what you needed to?" Mark asked.

"Yeah… but we also found something else."

"Someone, rather," Luke amended.

"What he said." I nodded towards Luke. "There was this girl… She showed up out of nowhere, said almost nothing and then disappeared."

"What did she say?"

"Well, first she asked if we were enjoying the view- I guess in reference to the District of the Stars- and when Alex asked who she was, the girl just told us that we'd find out." My boyfriend frowned.

"There was something about her," I continued. "She was… I dunno, creepy, I guess- Sabrina, you jerk, quit laughing! Yes, she was creepier than we are!" I glared at the Theurgist. "I guess you could say that her presence was unnerving. There's something not quite right about the whole thing, and Luke and I are pretty sure she isn't on our side."

"Could you describe her?" Moira asked, sounding surprised. I shrugged.

"Sure. Short black hair, gray eyes, about my height. She was wearing black and purple robes, and she was looking at us like we were the most boring things on the planet." Moira swore.

"I know exactly who that is," she growled, "...and I can tell you that Briony Darkweather is absolutely not on your side- not unless you can pay her more than Morganthe."

"How do you know her?" Luke asked, sounding surprised.

"They probably met at Villains-R-Us," Kestrel muttered. Tyler chuckled, and Moira glared at the other Necromancer.

"Very funny, Forgetful. For your information, Briony worked for Malistaire. I never found out what happened to her; I left before she did. It's likely that she ran for the Spiral Door the second Malistaire started losing. She's a vain little bitch who doesn't know the meaning of the word 'loyalty.' If you pay her well enough, she'll fight on your side, but Briony's the biggest coward this world will ever see, not to mention a pretty damn horrible excuse for a wizard." I could tell that Moira didn't really like this "Briony Darkweather."

"So you think that Morganthe's paying her?" Rebecca tried to clarify, and the albino girl rolled her eyes.

"No, Rambler, Briony's stalking Alex and Luke because she wants to come to tea! Make sure you have extra lemon slices." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"Quit wasting time, Moira," I snapped. I was already on the verge of throwing something because of my argument with Evan earlier, and Moira's sarcasm was doing the Cucaracha on my last nerve.

"Whatever, Firesong. I'm guessing you'll want to know her battle strategies, her strengths, and all that. I even know her tea preference." She smirked. "Extra sour."

-V-

After Moira had quit bugging me, she actually told us something useful. "Like I said, Briony is crap at Divination. I'm honestly surprised that girl made it to Legendary, although she's probably more powerful now. Her real strength is in dagger fighting, knife throwing and poison."

"Poison?" Erica seemed surprised.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure she was actually the Plague Oni's apprentice for a while after she ran away from home. She's a fast runner and climber. She fights with stealth and trickery; in a fistfight, she'd run. Like I said before, Briony studied with the Plague Oni. She's freakishly good with plants- any kind, really, which is why she did so well in Theurgy. I want to say she's a chemist, too, but I could be mistaken. I never found out what she did in her lab."

"If she's good with poison, and she's working with someone as powerful as Morganthe… Moira, I think that Briony might have had something to do with poisoning Arthas," Erica said slowly. The albino glared at her darkly.

"I figured that much out, Glasses Girl. If it wasn't Briony, it was Morganthe- so by extension, it's the same person. Alex, you'd better hunt her down; even if Briony's a coward, she's really, really dangerous because of her poison skills." I hesitated for a moment, weighing the pros and cons of chasing down this new enemy.

"No. We can't waste time looking for one of Morganthe's just about limitless allies. We have to wait until we find out more about Briony's intentions, and we've gotta focus on what we're doing: getting the Sun, Moon and Star back to the Trial of the Spheres. That's the most important thing we can do. If we can shut her down in Celestia, that's one less area she has control over." Moira seemed like she was about to launch into a full argument with me, but thought better of it and reluctantly nodded.

"I guess you're right … but Briony only works for the winning side, you know. She proved herself invaluable to Malistaire, and she knew a lot about his plans and all that. If we catch her, Briony could be a valuable source of information."

"No," I repeated firmly. "We keep doing what we've been doing. Keep an eye out for her if you want, but don't do anything unless Briony openly threatens you." After I'd finished my argument with Moira, Luke began explaining his ideas to the group. He told them about his findings regarding the Stellarium and the District of the Stars: guard rotations, numbers, anything that could be useful.

"I think that our best plan is to sneak in using polymorphs," my boyfriend finally said. "Are any of you guys good with Moon magic?"

"Oh, I loved studying the Astral magic!" Rebecca exclaimed. "Moon wasn't my favorite, but I know some stuff about it."

"I know a little," Evan added.

"Hey, Alex?" Ashley called. I headed over to where she and Tiffany were using a small piece of rubble as a bench.

"What's up?" I asked as Luke, Evan and Rebecca worked on their polymorphing strategy.

"I want Tiffany to stay out of this battle; she's too inexperienced. I don't think she's ready for something this big," the Thaumaturge admitted, speaking in a low tone and possibly trying to keep her younger sister from hearing. It didn't work, and Tiffany glared at her.

"I'm not staying here. Michelle's hurt, and I'm going to help destroy the one who hurt her," the tiny, vulnerable looking girl protested. I hesitated before replying.

"Tiffany… you haven't seen war, and you're too young to see war. Maybe your sister is right-"

"No." Her response was firm. "I won't let you attack Morganthe without me." I glanced helplessly towards Ashley, who sighed.

"If you're really sure…"

"I am."

"Then you can go, if Alex agrees." I shrugged.

"Whatever, kid. If you think you're ready to take on the Piscean Guard, feel free to tag along." The little 14 year old's smile was small as she thanked me. I had a feeling that she, too, had doubts about going into the Stellarium, but Tiffany wasn't admitting anything.

-V-

Groups Three and Four headed off to continue their search early the next morning. My group and Group Two gathered in a circle again to continue planning our attack on the Stellarium. Rebecca and Evan continued their discussion of mass polymorphing versus doing the spells one at a time. Sabrina was arguing with Moira about whatever sarcastic comment the Necromancer had made that time. As a matter of fact, it seemed like most of the group members were talking, arguing or laughing. I glanced helplessly at Luke, wondering how we were going to get them back on task, when suddenly Kestrel solved the problem for me.

"I remember!" She exclaimed loudly, straightening up. Everyone stared at her.

"Remember… what?" I asked cautiously. Kestrel smiled widely.

"I remember where I went to school!"

"Oh."

"Yeah! I went to Dragonspyre Academy- that's why it felt so familiar when we were walking through the ruins, and that's why I haven't even felt like I might know Ravenwood."

"Do you remember all the stuff you learned there, too?"

"Well, I never actually forgot any of that, silly." She grinned at Tyler, who had made the comment. "Luke, I might have an idea for you. What if we cause a diversion…" I smiled to myself, watching as Kestrel dove into the discussion in a way she never had before. I was glad that she was regaining her memory. It boosted everyone's spirits to know that something good could happen during a war. I just hoped that her apparent luck would rub off on the rest of us. After all, we were heading to the Stellarium the next morning.