47. Sassafrass

Annhilda snickered to herself. "Raven's with me today!"

"Is this really okay?" Damara said, fussing over her Norn friend's disguise as a big, brutish Son of Svanir. Annhilda had had to adapt her stolen armour a bit to hide her body type – female – including a big, bushy beard to cover her face.

"Of course!" Annhilda said. "I just love it – the Svanir think they're the greatest people in Tyria, that they don't need the Spirits, that women are weak and stupid, and watch this: one of those dreaded women is just going to waltz in and pick up their secrets under their nose. Not so great after all!"

"Well, obviously," Phiadi said. "But to know how much you know, you have to know how little you know, and they don't even know that they're dumb."

"Truer words were never said," Annhilda said. "Do I look stupid enough yet?"

Damara giggled. "You look pretty burly. Let's hear you grunt."

"Ugh," Annhilda said, trying to sound deep and masculine. "Dragon is good. Women bad. Ugh."

"I really, really hope this works..." Damara said. "I mean, your acting is fine! You sound fine! But if anything goes wrong, you're going to have a really tough fight on your hands."

"I know. But I'll be careful. You two sit tight and keep watch; I'll shoot a flaming arrow if I need a distraction."

"I'll be more than ready," Phiadi said. "Go steal those bookahs' ears." Damara gave a thumbs-up, and Annhilda shouldered her battered axe and stomped off into the snow.


They caught up to Braham and Garm and Rox in a cave to the south of the Kodan ice ship, fighting off angry Svanir – as Damara had been afraid of when she heard the news from the quaggan. "Are you two okay?" she cried as they crashed through the back of the Svanir, smashing them between a rock and a hard place.

"Hey, guys!" Rox said. "We're all right, thanks. What brings you here?" Garm gave a happy bark and let Annhilda rub his head.

Braham grunted and slung his bow on his back. He was using a bow these days? Interesting. ...And then she saw it was Eir's bow. Now she was worried, especially when he began speaking. "Fine. Wonder what that was all about." She couldn't see his face under the heavy mask-helm he was wearing, but his voice was grim enough.

"Did you steal something from them?" Rox asked Braham, and he shrugged in confusion. "They kept calling you a thief."

Annhilda interjected with an apologetic look. "I'm afraid I have to take responsibility for that. I had to pose as a Svanir to get their thaw elixir recipe. They must have thought it was you for some reason."

"Probably because they don't want to believe they could possibly have been tricked by a woman," Phiadi said mockingly.

"You had to wh-?" Braham stopped midsentence and shrugged again. "Well, it's over now. Rox and I need to keep moving."

"Okay, let's go," Annhilda said, smoothly leading the way.

Braham stared at her for a moment longer before following. "Sure... Yeah, sure."

"It's good to see you," Damara said, trying to bring some warmth and friendliness back to the atmosphere. "How's the hunt for the scroll going?" There was supposed to be a scroll that would grant a weapon enough power to hurt Elder Dragons, which was pretty neat.

Braham huffed in impatient aggravation, his tread heavy. "Almost at its end. Or maybe a frustrating beginning. If it's not in this cave system, all my info was wrong and I'm back at square one. Did Taimi get my letter?" he asked abruptly. "I assume that's why you're here."

Damara nodded. "She did. It was quite a surprise after she learned that... Well, how much do you know about what's happening?"

"With Jormag? Plenty," Braham said.

"Well, that's not the only one," Phiadi told him and Rox. "Primordus is active, too."

"I heard," said Braham. "These dragons won't rest until we're dust."

"That's why we're here," Annhilda said. "Collecting research. Taimi has a plan..."

Braham nodded. "I do too. I find a way to kill all the Dragons or die trying."

Rox looked at him with a sympathetically furrowed brow. "That's a little extreme."

Braham glared at them through his mask. "Talk to me after your mother gets taken out by one."

There was an awkward pause, and then Damara began to babble nervously. "Well, the Dragons aren't the only threats. A Mursaat, Lazarus, is back... and seems to have changed, but, you know, you never know... And the human minister, Caudecus, escaped custody and came out as the leader of the White Mantle. He's currently MIA."

Rox nodded. "Canach says it looks like he's making his way up to the Isles of Janthir."

Damara brightened. "Oh, you've heard from him? Good to know!" She was grateful to Rox for trying to respond to her.

And then Braham brought the mood down again with a pouty thud, stomping further down the tunnel. "Sounds like a bunch of trivial Human matters I don't care about."

Phiadi audibly rolled her eyes. "Well excuse us for having a lot of work."

"It's not trivial to me..." Damara protested quietly. Why was he being such a jerk? Weren't they friends? Was he really that upset about Eir not being able to fight anymore that he would take it out on them? Or was there another reason?

Braham grunted angrily and stomped into a nest of spiders, and for a few minutes everyone was distracted with squashing. Damara's owl, Wiggins, soared silently through the melee and the arrows to slash spiders apart with his needle talons and razor beak, and for a minute Damara was afraid inside. Braham was definitely not being friendly today, and if he missed a spider and hit her owl – she'd shoot him back if he did! She almost called Wiggins back just for this fight, but tried to quiet her fears and let him fly. And Braham did not shoot him... though it seemed close, to her, a few times.

When the skittering had stopped, Annhilda turned to Braham, trying once more. "Braham... the reason we came to find you... I don't know if you heard, but we started a new guild. It'd be great to have you."

Braham lowered his head like a bull, shoulders hunched, voice harsh. "Didn't feel like joining Destiny's Edge and continuing their legacy, huh?"

Annhilda blinked in confusion. "Rytlock said... We decided that might be... might come across as disrespectful." Annhilda wasn't Eir. Phiadi wasn't Zojja. Damara wasn't Logan. Ohhh, no, she was not Logan at all, despite her experience with the Vigil and as a commander of the Pact. Logan was that rare breed of 'muscley dork who somehow managed to be cool too'.

Braham snorted. "Disrespectful? To keep the legend of my mother and the memory of Snaff going? You and I must have different notions of respect."

That stung deeply, all of them, and Annhilda spread her arms in confusion. "Braham, I'm sorry. This isn't the reaction I expected." Guilds reformed all the time. Why was he taking this so personally?

Braham's voice was more bitter and sarcastic than ever. "It's okay, Commander. Maybe it's for me to keep alive; another thing thrown on my pile of obligations now that I'm back home."

Rox's brow furrowed deeper. "Braham..."

Braham turned away and kept walking. "This scroll isn't going to find itself. Let's go."

Deep in the cave was a wide cavern with... strange magical things in it. Damara couldn't make heads or tails out of it, but she was with two smart people, so she trusted Annhilda and Phiadi to figure it out. She was more concerned with the strange minotaur-ish monster that was beginning to stir within an icy prison.

"The scroll!" Braham cried. "I'll take that, thanks!" He ran forward, and the monster broke free with a roar.

Everything happened so fast. "Braham, move!" Rox cried, and shoved him to the side – and was frozen solid by the monster's breath.

"By Grenth!" Damara exclaimed, loosing an arrow at the monster. "Stay out of that thing's way!"

"Watch out above!" Annhilda said, holding her shield up as the monster roared louder and charged with an earth-shaking tread, bringing bits of ice and rock down from the ceiling. Annhilda and she rolled out of the way, and the battle was on.

There was so much to keep track of, in that dark cavern – the monster, the ceiling, the other little monsters running around, her friends... Damara spent more of her time running than loosing arrows. The monster charged again, this time running down Annhilda and stampeding over her shield. Phiadi, who had been sheltering behind the Norn, barely had time to jump out of the way, and her minions were stumbling towards the beast in confusion.

A gleam caught Damara's eye – the scroll had been knocked to one side of the cave, and Braham, for all his impatience, had not managed to get to it and pick it up yet. "Wiggins, go, buddy! Braham! Incoming!" Wiggins swooped between falling icicles, snatching up the scroll in his claws, and carrying it over to Braham. An icicle struck his wing and he tumbled. "Wigg!"

Braham caught the scroll and retreated to open it. "For the night of the fire lives in my heart and in this bow. No chill with extinguish its light." His voice was raw with fury and determination. He nocked an arrow, drew, and loosed, and the beast stumbled, bright fire sparkling from the strike.

"That did it!" Damara cheered. "Keep it up!" And now her own arrows began to bite, as Braham's melted its icy armour.

Annhilda picked herself up, groaning. "I'll draw its attention. Take it down!"

"Its time has come," Phiadi said, brandishing her axe.

Braham growled – apparently they were being too upbeat for him – and loosed another arrow, striking it square between the eyes. The monster moaned, and fell heaving, triggering one last shower of icy shrapnel.

Damara rushed to pick up her owl, cradling her fluffy baby, pouring healing power into his broken wing. In a moment or two, he was alert again, healed enough to perch on her shoulder.

Rox, too, was free of her ice, coughing as she sat up and looking around. "What happened?"

"You were frozen," Phiadi told her.

Rox looked at her with an incredulous smile. "I was frozen? So weird. It was like a dream, and I was on the beach. You think it's be the opposite..."

"Well, we're glad you're back," Annhilda said, walking painfully up to her and putting down a healing ring on the ground, then extending her hand to Rox.

Rox took her hand and let her haul her to her feet, groaning and dusting herself off. "Did we get the scroll?"

Braham nodded, and for the first time he didn't sound completely pissed off. Just a little pissed off. "Sure did, Rox. Thanks."

Rox smiled. "And now?"

Braham tapped his bow before slinging it on his back. "This is similar to the scroll Asgeir used in his great victory, so now I test the bow on the tooth in the Great Hall. If I damage it, it's time to rally the Norn and lay Jormag to rest."

Annhilda stepped towards him, holding out her hands as if to stop him. "Braham, wait a minute. A direct assault on Jormag puts a lot of lives on the line. I think the Pact can tell you that may not be the best idea."

Braham growled. "The Pact you commanded. Look, Jormag is my problem, and I'll deal with it my way – with or without you." He jabbed a finger at himself, then at Annhilda.

Annhilda crossed her arms. "Jormag isn't just your- You think leading the Pact didn't maybe teach me a thing or two? Look what happened to Rox when you rushed in and bashed something!" Rox shuffled in embarrassment.

Braham snarled, leaning forward like an angry dog, shouting back. "Oh, I forgot your calculated plans always work out perfectly, like when you posed as a Svanir to get some potion!"

Annhilda sighed, clearly taking her temper in both hands and lowering her voice. "Okay, okay. Can we back up? Taimi thinks there may be a way to pit Primordus and Jormag against each other without raising a single sword."

"Taimi thinks, huh?" Braham huffed and shrugged dismissively. "If the tooth chips we have hard proof."

"Hard proof of what?" Annhilda rejoined, her voice calm but her words cutting. "That you can battle a tooth?"

Braham's voice rose again, his body taut as a bowstring. "So only you get to decide when we take down a Dragon? Only you're allowed to kill them?"

"I most certainly did not say that."

"Well, figure out what you're saying, because that's what it sounds like."

Annhilda sighed again. "I'm only asking you to wait – maybe just a few days. See if Taimi can do this. There could be no need to put lives at risk."

"With every moment we wait, someone else's mother dies! I won't give Jormag a few days! I won't give Jormag a few minutes!" He clenched his fists and his voice cracked. "You don't care, clearly!"

Annhilda's eyes snapped blue sparks. "You do not get to speak to me that way. I've been working just as hard as you, only I'm expected to care about the entire world, not just my own people-"

"You've abandoned your people, you've abandoned Eir-" Braham interrupted her, talking over her, but Annhilda would not be talked over.

"-I need to factor in Human issues and Asura issues, I can't just do what I want-"

"-Well it sure seems like you do!"

"After listening to everyone!"

"Listening doesn't kill dragons! We're past listening!"

"Situations change and I have to know about it-"

"Guys, please!" Rox begged. "We're all on the same side!"

"Are we?" Braham spat. "It's our fault Eir can't fight anymore!"

Was that what this was about? "It's not," Annhilda said quietly. "It's not your fault."

"Maybe if you'd been spending less time fussing over the Pact and more time looking for her, she wouldn't be stuck now! I'm not going to make that mistake again!"

Annhilda took a breath. "I grew up with the legend of the tooth, but I've also been out in the world and faced two of these things – one with you! You can't just run in without making a plan!"

Braham sputtered. "You think I... You know what, Commander? I'm glad you didn't join Destiny's Edge. My mother wouldn't want you there. I'm going back to Hoelbrak. Garm! To me!" Garm whimpered, but followed Braham as he stormed out the way they had come.

Rox looked back and forth between them uncomfortably in the sudden absolute un-echoing silence, broken only by Braham's retreating, crunching footsteps and Garm's soft pad. When Braham and Garm had disappeared around a bend in the cave, she looked back at Annhilda. "...So..."

"Go ahead," Annhilda said, tired but without resentment. "He certainly doesn't want to be around me right now. Any of us, maybe."

Rox lowered her voice and leaned closer. "Do you think... he'll do it?"

Annhilda shrugged. "I hope cooler heads prevail. He has to see this isn't the way to go, not when we have options, and we still have time."

Rox nodded. "I'm sorry. He's... not been taking any of this well."

"He's a young pup still, has a lot of growing up to do. But you don't have to apologize, Rox." Annhilda offered a small smile.

"Well... okay. I hope you guys find the answers you're looking for. And thanks for helping us fight the thing." Rox waved, then dropped to all fours and ran after Braham as Damara and Annhilda waved back.

Phiadi watched her go, and then a few minutes later said: "...Braham never was good at arithmetic, was he." She sounded angry, too.

Annhilda sighed. "I can sympathize. Eir is crushed by her disability, and it's painful to see her struggle with her body and her feelings. He thinks that the only way to make her happy again is to give her his legend, as if she was still fighting through him."

"But he was so mean, and we just want to help. It's like we're not even friends anymore," Damara said, almost wailing. She felt tears in the back of her eyes. Braham's feelings... hurt, a lot.

"Injured people can be like that," Annhilda said. "We will have to be patient. Which is easier when he's not present and slinging venom, I'll grant you..."

"I can't understand why he would ignore Taimi's results in favour of fables and some kind of... revenge," Phiadi said. "I thought he was fond of Taimi. And she hasn't been wrong... much... yet."

"Yeah, but he thinks she's a kid," Damara said. "And he's never been in the Vigil. I used to think like him, a bit, I think. But I learned. Sometimes you have to wait a little and lose a few more soldiers earlier, in order to achieve victory in the engagement. You know? Like, you can't spring an ambush early."

"Well, you don't have to try to convince me about it," Phiadi said. "It's stupid he won't just go talk to her and let her tell him what a bookah he's being."

"Pride," Annhilda said. "And guilt. I know. He should. I can't imagine she would agree with anything he just said. But until he goes with open ears and closed mouth of his own accord, we can't force him into it. And it's going to take a while now that he's got that scroll."

Phiadi grinned a sharp-toothed grin. "Then we'll just have to be faster."

"I hope he'll be okay," Damara said, still hurting from his words and for his unhappiness. "I'm glad Rox is there to help."


Breaking into Caudecus's mansion from the back was pretty exciting, but wow it was horrifying to Damara to see the White Mantle just... hanging around, in the heart of Kryta, with all their magical construct doohickies and their uniforms. Like, what was subtlety? Sure, they were in the caves and tunnels under the mansion, out of sight of all normal people, but how did they get there without people seeing them? Wasn't it inconvenient? She wondered whether the others with her, Annhilda, Phiadi, Rhyoll, Demmi Beetlestone, and Countess Anise were having similar thoughts... probably not. They seemed focused on more important things.

And it was sickening to come across an impromptu torture chamber, covered in blood and full of Shining Blade bodies, and White Mantle, one of them ranting feverishly. "All must confess! Be freed of the burden of your secrets before we free you of your life!"

There was a defiant shout that made her heart race with hope. "Thank you, but I'll show myself out!" Canach had torn free of the Mantle who held him, seizing a sword and stabbing his guards.

"Canach!" Damara cried, alarmed at how close he'd been to death, or at least harm. "Are you all right?" She shot the man sneaking up on him.

Canach inclined his head to her briefly as he took a ready stance, watching the Mantle around him. "Hello, Damara. If you and your friends would be so kind as to help me kill the rest of these cretins."

"You got it!" she said, but was immediately forced to duck as a spell came crackling over her head and struck the wall behind her with a shower of sparks.

The Mantle Inquisitor guy cackled theatrically. "Excellent! More have come to confess! Get them, but save their dying whispers for my ear!"

"What a B-list holo-villain," Phiadi said. "I've got some dying whispers right here for you!" She sent her minions scampering forward, following them with a curse.

The White Mantle had been prepared for the Shining Blade, but they had not been prepared for a guild of heroes, even with their smuggled jade constructs and things. After all, Dragon's Watch knew how to deal with those constructs now. Annhilda called a couple orders, focusing their fire, and methodically they took down their frothing opponents.

Demmi Beetlestone looked around at all the bodies, now equally of Shining Blade and White Mantle, panting. "That all of them? Looks clear..."

Canach straightened from his combat stance, dropping his borrowed blade carelessly on the ground. "Good to see you, Dragon's Watch. Hopefully we can finally finish this and I can be out from under that horrible woman's thumb." He turned his gaze an inch to the right. "Oh, hi, Anise. I didn't see you standing completely within my line of sight."

Damara almost actually choked on suppressing a giggle, but Anise rolled her eyes. "To think I almost missed you."

Canach shrugged and headed for a pile of gear on the side of the cave, digging through it to find his own wooden armour and his whipsword and moon shield. Demmi followed him. "Have you seen my father – Caudecus?"

Canach looked up from pulling on his big spiky pauldrons. "Brutish man with aggressively unsettling facial hair? Yes. He seemed upset that he wasn't on the Krytan throne... to the extent that he was – Is he really your father? I'm so sorry."

Demmi wrung her hands. "What was he doing?"

Canach finished dressing in his armour and gave her a sympathetic grimace. "Well... he was consuming bloodstone his lackeys gathered from the explosion. He might be unrecognizable to you, my dear."

"I stopped recognizing him as my father long ago," Demmi said, with an angry breath. "We should move before he turns his scorn towards civilians. He'd rather see Kryta burn than not rule it."

"We'll stop him," Damara said to her. "He won't get either of those things."

"I know," Demmi said. "I'm glad you're here."


Caudecus had almost escaped, but for a fatal mistake – shooting Demmi, in his madness, had turned Valette against him, and she had helped them access the portal in the fireplace through which he'd escaped. And now their group simply stood and stared at the horror that awaited them.

Anise broke the silence first. "Are you kidding me? The ego on this man."

Valette winced. "This is his 'inner sanctum'. Every time he came back from here, he was slightly more unbalanced." They were standing in an apparently-doorless circular chamber, surrounded by gigantic sculptures of Caudecus's old wrinkly face. They were really disturbing, and it took Damara a minute to figure out why – they weren't sculptures that pushed inwards into the room, but reliefs that delved outwards – like the backside of a mask, but horribly detailed. Damara leaned back and forth, confused by the lighting, trying to help her eyes make sense of what they were seeing.

Canach looked at her. "How do you think the conversation with the sculptor went when he ordered these? 'I need at least six reliefs of my face. No, no, bigger. Like, eight feet tall. Something that really captures my essence: a catastrophically misguided, swagger-sodden plague sore.'"

Damara had been trying really hard not to react – Demmi was mortally wounded upstairs! - but she broke down halfway, ducking her head and pressing her mouth against her shoulder to smother her giggles. Ugh! He just knew she'd be the one to laugh at whatever he said, she was certain of it.

"Hang on, he's got riddles," Annhilda said, peering at the pedestals around the room, trying to figure out how to move forward. "Raven help me, they're nonsensical riddles – whoops!"

"And the room spins," Canach said acidly. "He somehow managed to make this place sickening in more ways than one."

"How much craftsmanship did he waste on this?" Rhyoll asked as the walls began to slow from their manic merry-go-round whirl.

"Welcome to 'rich Humans'," Canach said. "Wasting their money on their vanity is everything, because what else are they going to do with it?"

"It just doesn't seem like it would help him rule the world," Rhyoll said. "Think I could blow up a wall instead of waiting for riddles?"

"I've got it, cool your steam engines," Annhilda said, and a door slid open at one side of the room.

A horrible behemoth was within the next chamber, thrashing and chomping on bloodstone. "You did this to me! You ruined everything!" it howled.

Canach raised his eyebrows. "Uh... So, he's slightly larger and more unhinged than our last encounter..."

Even Anise looked disturbed, and she'd been more or less unflappable to this point. "Gods! Canach, let's end this lunacy."

"My pleasure," Canach said with a tight grin. "Given due process by the Krytan throne, you are hereby sentenced to... oh, forget it. Let's just kill him." Damara laughed. There was always time to mock Human formality.

"You're coming with me!" raged the creature as they charged at it, swords drawn.


Their mission was accomplished – Caudecus was dead – but there was more to do. Canach was free, and Valette would be Anise's new community service ward... but Demmi was dead, too badly wounded for magic to stabilize her. And they still had to figure out if Caudecus had anything on Lazarus.

Canach joined them as they headed upstairs. "I was going to leave... but I'm dying to see his room after the splendour that was his private dungeon."

Damara shivered. "Ugh. Normal nobles are said to have eccentric private lives. I'm not looking forward to this."

"Humans in general have such an odd culture," Phiadi said. "Though in some respects it's not too far off what we do in Rata Sum... I mean, we also seem to hand out power to those least suited to wielding it. They at least pretend to dedicate their lives to science, though."

"All of you are mad," Rhyoll said, jokingly. "Only the Charr have any sense."

"You know what? In many respects, I'll give that to you," Damara said. "Although I'm not sure I'd call those massive warmachines 'sensible'."

"Hahaha, I'd call them 'awesome', myself!"

"Think I get to kick in another door?" Annhilda said, as they came to the top of the stairs where Valette had directed them.

She did, and they ventured in carefully. Canach turned to their left and began to laugh. "Oh, Minister Beetlestone, you did not disappoint. Why on Tyria do you think he has a painting of Captain Thackeray in here?"

Damara stammered. "That's... Maybe because... If he thought..."

Rhyoll laughed louder. "You know what? We should probably never tell Logan about this."

Canach nodded. "Agreed. That man's been through enough. And this would probably scar him worse than being stuffed in a blighting pod."

They spread out and went through the rest of the room. While it was largely filled with just a nobleman's collection of eccentric art – including a mirror over the bed – there was a diary, and a definite object of magical import, a small chest that Damara dared not open. Phiadi took charge of it, to hand off to a Shining Blade.

Room ransacked after an hour, they went down to the garden for some fresh air and a look at the sky – slightly cloudy, chance of rain in a bit. Annhilda and Phiadi still had to talk with the Shining Blade, and Rhyoll sat on the doorstep under the arches, resting his leg, but Damara wandered down to the fountain, and Canach followed her.

"Hey, thanks for fighting with us again," she said. "Or... well... I guess you were there first."

"Yes, I should be thanking all of you for coming when you did. You distracted them enough I could get a sword into my hand."

"Glad we did! I'd hate to think those creeps could get the better of you."

He shrugged and breathed deeply of the warm Krytan air. "Well, I'm off, then," he said. "Your adventures have been fun, but it's time for broader horizons."

"So... no Dragon's Watch in your future?" Damara asked, hinting-wise. "You've worked so much with us, you're practically part of the group already."

Canach shook his head resolutely. "Regretfully... I've been under someone's yoke for too long. It's high time I walk as my own Sylvari for a while."

Damara smiled. "Okay. Thanks for everything, Canach. You've been a good friend and it's been really good to work with you some more."

Canach snorted, looking away from her. "Oh, don't start weeping about it. I'm sure our paths will cross again."

"I hope so!" She leaned in and gave him a quick hug. "I know you'll enjoy your freedom, so... take care!"

He looked startled, and settled for patting her on the shoulder as she stepped back. "I certainly will. And you too."


Lazarus was Balthazar.

No. Lazarus wasn't involved at all, if he even still existed. Balthazar was Balthazar, disguising himself until Kasmeer and Taimi had jury-rigged a solution to break his glamour.

What did that mean? The non-Humans in the guild had been alarmed and confused, but she knew Marjory and Kasmeer were reeling as much as she was, if not more. She was sitting in a corner of the Rata Novus lab, hugging Velvet, her patient jungle stalker, trying, trying her hardest to wrap her brain and her heart around it. It didn't make sense. Why would Balthazar return when the other gods were silent? Why would he disguise himself? Why was he trying to kill the dragons?

She could hear Phiadi in the background, finally giving Phlunt a clapback over the secret dragon lab. She could hear Annhilda talking with Marjory, trying to figure out where to go next. She could hear Wegaff bossing around researchers, trying to clean up the massive mess of broken glass they'd made in breaking the illusion.

She was never good at being devout, except to Melandru whom she related to; she offered prayers to the others when appropriate, but Melandru was her guide. Still, this was a god and he had... not wiped them all out instantly. The god of war had tried to hide himself and couldn't kill them. But it was really him. She felt it. She was so confused...

What was he doing now? And was she going to stop him?