Unexpected Reunion

by Professor Vess

With the threat of a multi-plane Phyrexian invasion looming, Jace and Liliana have teamed up to reunite the Gatewatch. Realizing this will be bigger than any threat they have yet faced, they are preparing to lead the Gatewatch and its newest members in the greatest battle of all ages. Phyrexia is coming...

31. PART IV - Chapter 31

Part IV

Chapter 31

JACE

The moon was bright coming in through the open curtains, washing out the color and casting shadows that obscured anything beyond its light. Liliana would love the view, he thought, as she lay beside him, her zombie cat curled up and purring by her feet. Jace still wasn't sure what to think of her new pet—the fact that it was an undead cat was already not appealing, but the way it came to be was at least equally disturbing, so he tried not to think about it as he tried in vain to go back to sleep.

A dream had awakened him. Although, it was not a dream so much as it was a memory that he had long kept to himself. He had often thought of erasing the memory, if only to spare himself the pain of reliving it every time it resurfaced—especially now that she was there with him again to share another lifetime and make amends for all the evils of their twisted past.

Only this was a past she knew nothing about. Not that she didn't know about it, but that she wasn't aware it was a past they shared. They had never talked about it, and he had long ago decided it was best if they never did. It was something she might not so easily understand. It had taken him years of painstaking research and reflection to understand it himself, and in many ways, it still seemed so unreal to him. Perhaps that was why he kept these memories, instead of erasing them as he could so easily do—it afforded him too much knowledge to dispose of it so easily.

Tezzeret had sparked so many vile memories in Jace, and probably in Liliana, too. His taunting was threatening to do more damage later than what it had done when the attack on their most hated memories was launched. She had never talked about this memory with him, and he was certain she never would—she had no reason to talk about it, as far as she knew. And he only knew of it now because it was a product of that flood of returning memories that had threatened to consume him back on Ixalan.

This had been the strangest of all the memories that had come back to him, because it seemed as if it belonged entirely to someone else. After all, it was the memory of someone else; it was also his, and it had been the final piece in his long unwinding disillusionment about the woman he had once assured his friends they could trust, after she had saved them all from certain death. It was the final piece of evidence he could neither overlook nor deny, so that he finally had to admit that Liliana Vess would betray anyone and everyone she had ever known and loved as the means to her own end. That is what the recovery of that memory, along with all the others, had convinced him all those years ago.

Only, now he knew that was not entirely true. He knew that she was not the selfish person she had once chosen to be, that it was her demons and the desperation that had led her to enslave herself to them in the first place, which had been the sole cause of everything she had done to those she had once loved. And if she had loved him then, before Jace, before Bolas, before the Infinite Consortium; and if she had come to love him again when fate brought them together once again; and now, even after everything that had conspired to pull them apart; then reason suggested she always had and always would love him, in any lifetime they happened to share.

Suddenly, she began to whimper beside him, still asleep, and he turned to soothe her like he always did when she appeared to be having a bad dream. He gently touched her temple with the tips of his fingers and projected soothing, peaceful thoughts to calm her instead. Then he watched her sleep and wondered what horrors plagued her when she dreamed. Was it her own memories that haunted her when she slept—the same memory Jace had only just been replaying in his head? Or was it those things Tezzeret had mentioned on the battlefield—things of which she had never spoken, even after they returned to Ravnica and Jace had tried to ask, "Was it true, what he said—about your demons? About the things they did to you?"

She had turned her face away in disgust, and responded, "Of course not."

He wanted to believe her, if only because the things Tezzeret had suggested were worse than anything Jace had ever imagined her demons had put her through. He had thought they only ever made her hurt someone else—never thinking of the ways they might have used and abused her to satisfy their own vile tastes. Her reaction to Tezzeret's suggestion that day only seemed to further indicate there was at least some truth to what he said, and something in Jace needed to know if any of it was true. He had been tempted the previous night, when they left Lorwyn behind, but it was only now that he succumbed to what he knew would be an invasion of the worst kind. But he had to know, and in some ways, he felt like she owed him that much. They had promised each other no more secrets, after all.

Delving into her mind, pushing slowly and carefully until he finally found those memories was the easy part. Gaining access to them—locked away inside the deepest recesses of her mind—was the tricky part. Hers was one of the most fascinating and beautiful minds he had ever touched, but that also made it especially dangerous to invade. He felt like a thief, stealing into some of her darkest memories, but once he was there, he couldn't resist the temptation to know.

It was horrible what she had lived through. Many years before, when they were working to destroy Tezzeret and his Infinite Consortium, Jace had been struck by the fear she once showed at the very mention of demons on one of the planes they visited. Later, she explained to him about her contract, but it still didn't fully make sense. Now, he understood.

After carefully extracting himself from her mind and those horrifying memories, he lay watching her sleep and wondering how anyone could live through what they had put her through. Overcome by the desire to protect her, Jace clung to her, wept for her, and then decided the only thing he could do for her was to wipe her mind clean from those most painful memories. And then he would wipe his own mind clean of the memories, because it was almost too much for him to bear. Just as he was about to reach into her mind to do it, though, he felt her clasp his wrist, and say, "No. Don't take them from me."

Wondering how long she had been aware of what he'd done and hoping to dispel his shame, he sighed. "Why would you want to live with the memory of those…things that were done to you?"

She was silent and, for a moment, he wondered if she was even awake. Maybe she was only talking in her sleep. This hope was dashed, however, when she said, "It gives me strength…knowing I can endure such things and survive them. It reminds me of who I am and what it took for me to get to where I am."

"You are not the things that were done to you."

"No. You're right; I'm not," she said, speaking without emotion. "But I am who I am because of those things—whether I like it or not. They shaped me into the person I've become, no less than Gideon's sacrifice. That, too, is an awful memory; will you take that from me, as well?"

"No, I…believe it has affected you profoundly in a good way."

"Yes, it has," she agreed, turning on her side to face him, "but so have those other memories."

"But how…when all they've done is hurt you and caused you to do terrible things?"

She sighed. There was sadness in that sigh, and he couldn't understand why she would want to hold onto all that sadness—all that pain.

"The memories did not make me do those things, Jace; the demons did. But either way, I did terrible things long before my contract, and I only have myself to blame for all of it."

He was about to object, but then she placed her fingers to his lips to silence him, and went on, "Those things happened to me. I cannot hide from them, no matter how hard I try. They happened, and now they are a part of me. But they have fueled my strength for all these years. They've given me power—not just the power I gained from my contract, but the power I earned when I took back my freedom. When I made those demons pay for everything they did to me. And now, those memories have no power over me anymore. So you don't need to take them."

After a brief silence, he felt her take his hand and lace her fingers between his, bringing them to her lips. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, Jace. I really do. But if we go around erasing memories of all the bad things that have ever happened to us, there will be nothing left for us to learn from; nothing to remind us of how far we've come. And then there may as well be nothing left of us at all."

He thought about those other memories—the ones from Ixalan that seemed not his own. "We promised each other we wouldn't keep secrets…"

She sighed. "Memories are not secrets."

"They can be. And I have a confession to make…about a secret I've kept from you." Before she could respond, he said, "I have memories I keep…memories that don't belong to me. Not exactly."

Liliana moved closer and looked deep into his eyes. "It must be a heavy burden, taking all the painful memories from everyone you love. But Jace, I don't want you to take any of my memories and if you have, I command you now to give them back—that burden is mine to carry."

"That's…not what I mean," he sighed.

She wrinkled her brow and gave him a funny look. "Then what do you mean, my love, because right now you're not making any sense."

He pulled her hand to him, pressed her fingers to his solar plexus, and closed his eyes. Then he said, "Right here. This is where a dead man's sword pierced me from behind."

Her lips parted and suddenly her eyes took on a distant, troubled look. He heard her breath grow shallow, and she asked, "Jace…what are you talking about?"

"Darling, I died that night. Standing in a deserted street outside an old, forgotten church near Tovrna, I died by your hand, though it was not you that held the blade."

"That never happened!" She said, pulling away.

"My love, it did," he said, his voice heavy.

Then she sat up on the side of the bed, her back to him. "No, Jace. You're making this up!"

Getting up, he went around to the other side of the bed where he could kneel before her and take her hands. She tried to pull away, but he snatched her hands again, and said, "My love, you know as well as I that I didn't make it up. And I remember it as clearly as I remember the day we first met."

She shook her head and lowered her face. "That's impossible…"

"The day we met in the marketplace in the town of Vess."

"No!" she shouted, finally pulling her hands away. She got up and moved away from him, looking at him with a mixture of horror and fury. "Why are you doing this?"

"I'm not doing anything."

"How could you know about that?"

"Because I lived it!"

By now she was trembling and nearly in tears, and yet she continued shaking her head. "You must have…pulled the memory from me when you went searching for the others. Damn it, Jace! You should've stayed out! You had no business invading my thoughts!"

"I didn't find it in your mind, Liliana; I swear it," he said, stepping toward her and reaching for her hand. "On Gideon's sacrifice, I swear I didn't find these memories anywhere but in my own mind. They came to me when I was on Ixalan—flooded back to me along with everything else, everything from this lifetime."

"No, Jace," she insisted, although her voice had grown weak, and tears were flowing in a steady stream down her cheeks. He took her face and tried to comfort her, as she continued, "This can't be. I would never…hurt you. I…"

Finally, her voice broke off completely and she began to sink to the floor. Holding her arms, he dropped to his knees and pulled her into an embrace to keep her from falling. Even when she tried to pull away, he held her to him as she wept.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—I'm sorry. I…didn't have a choice."

"I know," he whispered. "I know and I think…so did he—that's why he looked at you that way before he died. He knew it wasn't you, not really. But when I remembered it, when I was on Ixalan—I didn't understand, and I blamed you—was convinced you would do anything to anyone to further your own ends. And that's why as soon as I remembered everything from both lives, I found you on Dominaria and tried to warn everyone. Only I couldn't even put words to it—it was too…surreal. Too bizarre. Even now, I have a hard time explaining it. But I know now that what I thought of you then wasn't true—that once you were freed from your contract, truly freed from it, you would stop hurting people. You would stop betraying them. Betraying me.

"It took me years to finally realize the truth of what happened then, Lili," he continued. "But I know now, and I understand. You had to do it—you didn't have a choice, anymore than you had a choice when you betrayed me to Tezzeret."

"It was vile," she said through her tears. "What I did to him… What I did to you…"

"Yes, it was vile," he agreed. "Only this time, you tried to redeem yourself. You tried to protect me, and you did protect me because I'm here and I survived. You betrayed me, yes, when you had no choice. But then you saved me; over and over again, you've saved me; and you've long since made up for your mistakes. Just as I've made up for mine. It's what we do, Lili—we keep trying. We keep loving each other, through it all, and working to undo any damage that we've done."

She shook her head again. "This is impossible. Jace, I don't understand… Are you saying you were him…?"

"Yes," he replied with conviction. "Think about it. You would never say it, never speak of him, but you've always noticed the similarities and compared me to him. You've always made the connection, even though it was impossible to understand without understanding the nature of our spark. We share the same spark, he and I. You see, when he died, the spark that was him came straight to me, to be born once again on another plane."

"Your spark…?"

"Yes, my love. I've done the research and what I've found is this is not as uncommon as it seems, not for us. When a planeswalker dies, their spark can and often does return to live again. It's probably happened to most, if not all of us."

He paused and met her gaze. He could see that she was thinking about it, trying to put it all together in her mind, so he continued, "That's why I love it here—why I've always had a particular affinity for Ravnica. It was his original plane, as you know. That's why no matter where I go, I always return to it—to the place where he was born and…where he died. I—he—we were returning here to search for you, I think. And I found you again, and we've made things right between us, finally, after all these years."

He kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear, continuing to comfort her, "It's all right, my love. We've done it—we've broken the curse that was brought upon us all those years ago."

Now, she met his gaze, and said, "Jace, I don't know if I believe any of this is true. And yet…I don't know how you came to know all these things, unless you pulled them from my thoughts."

"I don't know how to convince you, but I know it's true. I can show you my research if you'd like?"

She attempted to stifle a laugh, and she looked at him with a fondness in her gaze. "Oh, Jace…please…"

"I know," he replied, taking her hand that was pressed to his heart. "You don't want to see my research."

"I don't, but that's not what I was going to say." She paused. "What I was going to say is, please never change, you crazy fool."

She pressed her lips to his in a lingering kiss, and when she pulled away, they rose together and stood holding each other's hands. Then she said, "I…don't know what to believe right now, but you know all these things and you seem so convinced. Anton is a painful memory I've tried so hard to forget." A single tear ran down her cheek, and she looked at him as if seeking forgiveness. "I didn't want to do it, Jace. I convinced myself that I did, that I hated him because he left me, if only so I could do what my debtor commanded, but I didn't want to do it. I did love him."

"I know, darling," he replied, stroking her cheek. "I know and he knew. And I want you to forgive yourself because I've long since forgiven you for it. You've come too far to be forsaken—you've taken them all down and managed not to go down with them. And now you rise above it all and seek something greater—something noble and good to make amends."

She looked at him then, searching his gaze. "You look something like him, I suppose—only he had a beard." Then she smiled, and added, "He was more of a rogue than you'll ever be."

"He had a different upbringing," said Jace.

"Vastly different," she replied, returning his smile.

Then her expression darkened again, and she looked away, until Jace lifted her chin, and said, "I love you, Liliana Vess. In this lifetime. In every lifetime. And we're okay now." He pressed his lips to hers, and then added, "No one and nothing will ever come between us again."

LILIANA

She was still reeling the next day, from their conversation the night before, but there was so much to be done they didn't have time to linger. They had only taken a day to rest and heal from the battle before Jace decided it was time for them all to get back to work. Now that Kaya had returned from checking in with her guild, and Ajani was awake after sleeping through the entire previous day AND both nights, Jace called them all to their first meeting to begin discussing everything important that had come up and how they should proceed. Chandra slunk in late, as usual, her tunic covered in crumbs and powdered sugar from some sort of pastry. Liliana scoffed and came around the table to brush them off.

"Hey!" Chandra had protested, sitting up in her chair and uncrossing her arms. "What's the big deal?"

Walking back toward her chair, Liliana chimed, "We are in a meeting, Chandra. A certain amount of professionalism is preferable."

Kaya snickered and Ajani heaved a sigh, while Chandra stuck out her tongue, and said, "Says the woman who's always cracking jokes and putting her boots on the table."

Then she sat back in her chair, recrossing her arms, and looking rather like a teenager that was put-out by their mother's nagging. Liliana smiled in amusement but offered no response.

Meanwhile, the whole time this went on, Jace had been standing at the head of the table, holding a piece of paper on which he'd drawn up his checklist of important topics, and waiting patiently so he could resume.

"All right," he said finally, clearing his throat. "Thank you, Chandra, for joining us."

Liliana cleared her throat expectantly.

Jace sighed and raised his eyes toward the ceiling. "And Liliana, for keeping things in order."

She smiled and offered a gracious nod, and Jace went on. "Now, as I was saying, with Kaya's guild affairs out of the way and all of us sufficiently rested…"

This was interrupted by a loud yawn from Chandra at the opposite end of the table. Sleepy-eyed and scratching her abdomen, she suddenly noticed everyone had stopped to look at her, and asked, "What? I know I'm not the only one here who doesn't feel 'sufficiently rested'."

"She isn't wrong," said Kaya, leaning her arm over the back of the chair and rolling her eyes. "A day of rest after a battle that dragged on for hours was hardly enough—especially when I spent most of my day off doing guild duties."

"I don't know what you mean," said Ajani, stretching his arms. "I feel perfectly well-rested."

"You slept for what amounts to a day and a half, Mr. Kitty," Liliana replied, "so of course you feel well-rested."

Ajani's ears went back, and he narrowed his one eye at her, but said nothing. Liliana giggled, more than pleased with herself, as Jace heaved another sigh and went on. "Okay, well, most of us do not feel sufficiently rested—myself included—but as we all know there is not enough time to sit around and waste time, when there is much to do while the rest of our friends are back on Lorwyn, possibly continuing the war without us."

Holding her elbow, Liliana held out a hand, and observed, "They said they'd let us know if they need us. Unless that happens, I don't think we need to be too worried."

"Even so, the longer it takes for us to finish our business here, the more risk there is on all of us, and so, we need to keep moving forward." He paused and straightened his paper, then at last got down to business. "First on our agenda…"

The door opened suddenly, and one of the kitchen staff came in carrying coffee and a tea service. Everyone shifted and fell even more silent, as Jace cleared his throat and looked down at the paper to quickly change tactics, then continued, "…is understanding how Liliana has suddenly begun using white mana for healing purposes."

That was not the first thing on the agenda, as everyone well knew. He couldn't exactly discuss the probability that there was a Phyrexian sleeper in their midst when there was, currently moving at a snail-pace around the table and serving drinks, a possible Phyrexian sleeper in their midst. So, he had quickly grabbed something from the bottom of the list and gone with it. Ajani was the first to jump on board, voicing his opinions very honestly.

"I don't think she is really using white mana," he said. "I mean, she's never used white mana before, and black and white mana don't usually go together so easily."

"I do it all the time," said Kaya, a hint of irritation in her tone. "And so do many others. It's not that hard to believe."

"Kaya has a point, Ajani," Chandra piped in.

"I'm just saying, you don't go years—and in her case, centuries—only using one mana type and then, without any training or practice, suddenly use a new mana type with the skill of someone who has used it for most of their life."

Liliana folded her arms and frowned.

"She was clearly using white mana," Kaya insisted. "I watched her do it the first time. And while none of us saw her heal the girl on the battlefield, I would assume she used white mana then, too. I mean, it wasn't black mana that healed the girl any more than it was black mana that healed Nissa. It was white mana—that's all there is to it."

"Well, it certainly had that sacred golden glow about it," Liliana replied.

Ajani raised his hands in frustration. "See, she can't even talk about using white mana without mocking it."

She smirked. It was so easy getting under his skin. "Pure white mana users are always so touchy."

"I don't use only white mana," he protested. "I am centered in it, but I've used red and green, as well."

"Then what's your problem?"

Jace covered his face with his hand, and said, "Guys, can we…not? We've got important matters to discuss, and we're getting off track."

"Fine by me," said Liliana, with a wave of her hand. "He started it."

"Okay, well, I'm ending it." He turned to the servant then, who stood off to the side and seemed a little too interested in their topic of conversation. "Do you mind? We're having a private meeting. You've served our drinks, and thank you for it, but now you're dismissed."

The servant apologized but as they passed by Liliana, she leaned over, and said, "Forgive his impatience—he's still getting used to having people around, in place of his illusions."

They responded with a respectful bow and made a hasty exit, and everyone at the table exchanged glances, all of them wondering the same thing. Then, Ajani began to say, "Is it just me, or…" until Jace silenced him with a wave of his hand and probably a spell.

Looking around at all of them, he said, "We should continue where we left off." Then he took his seat and, turning to Liliana, said, "Now, according to Kaya and everyone else present when you healed Nissa, you had to kill some kind of plant before you used the white mana to heal her?"

"Yes, it was a small tree in a planter," she confirmed. "I've used this method to heal myself for years, but I'd never thought to try it on anyone else until then. I wasn't expecting it to flow from me as white mana, though. I had expected green, as that I'm more familiar with, although I've never used it; and green is more typical of flora and healing, in general."

"That's interesting," said Jace, taking notes. "So, it seems as if you are somehow converting death magic into healing magic, rather than drawing white mana straight from the land. But if you're able to use white mana in that way, there must be a way for you to access that ability without necessitating a living sacrifice."

Ajani scoffed. "If she's truly using white mana, she doesn't need a sacrifice. That's not how white mana works—it is the polar opposite of death magic in every way."

"Maybe that's just how it works for her, Ajani," Jace suggested. "By my understanding, she's been unwittingly transmuting black mana into white. There are artifacts able to convert mana types. We know this and we've all seen how they work. But somehow it seems Liliana is doing this organically, which is something new—but that doesn't mean it isn't real. What we need now is to understand this process, to figure out how it works and if this is something that is unique to Liliana, or if it's something all or most of us are capable of doing."

"The only thing that will convince me she is using white mana," said Ajani, "is if I see her draw and use it from the land, like everybody else. And I don't believe she is even capable of doing so."

"There's one way to find out," said Kaya, folding her arms. "Can you do it? Can you use white mana without taking a life? I mean, have you even tried?"

"I…don't know," she admitted. "I haven't tried. I don't even know how."

The leonin held out his arms, and said, "There, you see—she admits she doesn't know how to use white mana, so there must be something else she is doing."

"I don't think it's that simple, Ajani," Chandra weighed in. "I mean, if what everyone else is saying is true—and the others have no reason to lie about what they've seen—then it seems to me she is using white mana, and probably has been for a lot longer than she thinks. Like, she's been doing it to heal herself, but it's only when she transferred those healing energies to others that it became apparent she was using white mana all along."

"That's true," said Kaya. "It could be that her ability to use white mana was always there, but has lain dormant for most of her life, until she began using it out of necessity without realizing what she was really doing."

Jace hummed his interest in what they were saying, as he continued taking notes. "I see what you're saying. That, while her core has always been dominant in black mana, she's had this secondary ability in white mana that she herself awakened without thinking about it—the same way she would have learned how to channel black mana."

"So, like, does that means she's some kind of prodigy?" asked Chandra.

Liliana laughed, and said, "In order to be a prodigy, I'd have had to been doing this from a very young age, and I'm fairly certain that has not been the case."

Jace confirmed this, saying, "She's not a prodigy, Chandra, but you're on the right track. Somehow, she's awakened a second mana type without even being aware of what she was doing, so that does suggest a special affinity for it that, perhaps, she's suppressed."

"Nine Hells, Jace," said Liliana, "that sounds ridiculous. Why, it's almost laughable."

"Just because you don't like the idea of being associated with white mana, darling, doesn't mean it isn't true. And the things we hate more often than not turn out to be something to which we too closely relate."

"Well, don't think this means I'm going to become some goody two-shoes, because it's not going to happen," Liliana insisted.

"Looks like now you're Orzhov material," Kaya teased.

Liliana rolled her eyes. "If you think I'm about to chain myself to another master, you can forget it."

"All right," Jace announced, "I think it's time for us to move on. We will return to this topic later, but for now I think we've covered a lot of important ground. Just to be safe, though…" He paused and cast a muffling spell around the entire room, so that anyone outside would not be able to hear what was being said. "Now, we can begin to discuss the issue of Tezzeret having planted a spy in our midst."

Ajani harumphed, "My guess is that boy who served us our tea this morning."

"They did seem unusually interested in our meeting," Chandra agreed.

"Yeah, but there is usually always a servant around, listening in on our meetings," said Kaya. "Just because they happened to be the first one to appear after our return doesn't mean it's definitely gotta be them."

"Kaya, I agree," said Jace. "We can't just detain the first person we suspect of being a Phyrexian sleeper, because if it turns out we were wrong, we will have alerted the real sleeper and they may already have slipped away. We need to do this carefully and judiciously, to ensure we have the right one and no one else is hurt along the way."

"But you're a mind-reader," said Chandra. "Can't you just do your telepathy thing and find out that way?"

Jace shook his head. "It doesn't work on Phyrexians, not even sleepers. I've tried, but I can't link up with them. They seem to have some kind of enchantment protecting them from any mental intrusion."

"Well, what do you propose?" asked Liliana. "How do we flush them out? If you can't mind-read your way to the answers, and you won't permit certain persuasive tactics…"

A low growl escaped the leonin.

"Liliana," said Jace, pinching the bridge of his nose, "for the hundredth time, we're not torturing our servants. But if it will make you happy, I will let you take the lead on getting information out of them once we are sure which of them is working for Tezzeret."

She sat back and crossed her arms with a smile, satisfied. Ajani raised his head and looked away, unable to face her in her victory. His reaction only pleased her all the more.

"So," Jace continued, "that still leaves us without any ideas on how to uncover them. Does anyone have anything else they'd like to add?"

Crickets.

"Right, then we'll break for lunch and meet back here this evening for a follow-up."

Chandra was the first to jump up and head for the door, while Kaya rose slowly from her chair and yawned, stretching with her arms in the air. Ajani and Lavinia both moved at a snail-pace, while Liliana tapped her foot impatiently and waited for them to disappear so she could be alone with Jace. Once they were gone—finally—she rose and perched on the edge of the table near Jace, who was standing there still organizing his notes.

Pausing from his sorting, without lifting his head he shifted his gaze to meet hers, and asked, "Yes…?"

She smiled and hopped off the table, pausing to brush off her skirt. Then she stepped up to him with a seductive gaze, and said, "You're really attractive when you're deep in thought and focused like that."

The corner of his lips turned up in a half-smile, and he said, "Why do I suspect it's only because you love the challenge of distracting me from my work?"

Straightening the collar on his tunic, she replied, "To be fair, you are difficult to distract when you're deeply involved in your work, so that may be part of it."

"This is really important, you know."

"Yes, but if we're supposed to be taking a break for lunch…"

"I was planning on working through lunch, actually."

Liliana sighed and raised her eyes to the ceiling. "Jace, I want you to take a break with me. After…what we talked about last night, I just really want to value our time together."

"Value our time? Is that what you're calling it these days?"

She tilted her head, and said, "Well, that was one of the things that has always drawn us together in many ways."

"I'm not always sure that's a good thing, though," he replied, trying to be the voice of reason, although he was smiling.

"Are you suggesting you think we should do it less often?"

"Not at all! I think we have a very healthy relationship, in that department."

She smiled and placed a hand on the back of his head, to draw him into a kiss, saying, "Mm, me too." Afterward, she whispered, "Do you remember our first time together?"

"Uh, yeah. I don't think that's something I could easily forget. Nor would I want to. You were incredibly patient with my lack of experience…"

"I mean from the other life…"

"Oh." Then he gasped in understanding, "Oh, that first time." He grinned suddenly, and when she stepped back a pace, he came forward, pushed his papers aside, and lifted her to sit on the table. "Is this how you remember it, milady?"

She raised a brow and leaned back with a smile, "This is definitely ringing a bell. Although, the setting was certainly much different."

"I'd say it's an improvement."

"Definitely," she agreed, placing her knees on his hips, and moving her hair out of the way.

It might have gone further—it would definitely have gone further—had the door not suddenly opened, and an all too familiar voice called out, "Oh, hey, guys? I think I left my goggles in here…"

CHANDRA

Oh gods…

Chandra stopped abruptly when she realized what she had just walked in on…or almost walked in on. She was thankful she didn't come any later than she had. Now she stood there, feeling like an idiot, her eyes wide with horror yet unable to avert her gaze.

Liliana was perched on the edge of the table, supported by her arms with her hands on the surface and her back arched seductively. Her long hair was draped behind her, while Jace stood in front of her with his hands on her thighs. Their gazes were fixed on each other, and they had been talking in low voices, obviously caught up in a moment of playful banter that was intended to turn into something more.

For only a moment, the sight of Liliana in that pose stirred something within Chandra she had not expected—she didn't have feelings like that for Liliana! She loved Nissa and found the elf incredibly attractive. Liliana wasn't even her type! She couldn't deny Liliana's obvious seductive charms, though…

Coming to her senses, she averted her gaze and grimaced. "Eww. Get a room!"

"Technically," said Jace, pulling away and helping Liliana off the table, "this is my room."

"Right," said Chandra, her eyes darting all over and trying not to look at them. Look. At. Anything. But. Them. "Well, you have a bedroom. Or you could at least, you know, lock the door…"

Liliana looked at Jace with a smile, clearly amused.

Clearly not amused, Jace crossed his arms over his chest, and inquired, "What can we do for you?"

Chandra shuffled her way around them to get to the other end of the table, reaching for what she had left behind. "I just…need…my goggles. And um, then I'll be out of your…way." Again, she grimaced, and then as she snatched the goggles she made for the door like lighting. Opening the door to leave, she said, "Oh, and, um…don't forget to lock this."

JACE

After she was gone, he released his breath—how long had he been holding it? And then he ran his fingers through his hair and looked at Liliana with pursed lips. "Remind me never to let you seduce me in here again."

"Hey, for only getting interrupted twice, I'd say that's a pretty good track record for getting away with it." She leaned in to kiss him on the cheek then started heading for the door. "But…if you don't want me in here…"

"Wait, now, I never said that," he replied, moving to catch her by the hand. He pulled her into an embrace, and she broke into a delighted laugh, while he said, "I definitely want you here. But maybe we should…take this upstairs?"

"Sure," she replied, giving him a seductive gaze. "Whatever you say." Then she took him by the hand and led him away from his sanctum, both eager to continue where they left off, but in a more private place. They passed by Chandra on the way up the stairs, laughingly greeting her as Liliana grabbed his hand and pulled him along. She groaned and turned away in embarrassment to let them pass. That might have been even more awkward, but at the moment, Jace was too distracted to care.

LILIANA

Something good came of Chandra walking in on them, at least. When they returned to the sanctum for their follow-up meeting that evening, Chandra had come up with an idea that was inspired by her embarrassment earlier in the day. After some initial giggles, which led to Jace hunching over in his seat and clearly wanting to pull one of his disappearing acts, while Liliana sat back with a smirk and rolled her eyes, everyone agreed it was the best plan they had come up with and was likely to work and they decided to enact it that very night.

After the meeting concluded, everyone left Jace's sanctum the way they always did, while Liliana stayed behind and waited for Jace to finish up his notes from the meeting. While he sat there, writing, she perched on the edge of the table with her legs crossed at the knee and caught Lavinia on her way out the door, "Oh, Lavinia, would you be a dear and send one of the servants up with a bottle of wine and two glasses?"

"Sure," the watchdog replied curtly, with a stiff bow.

Liliana smirked, while Jace looked up from his notes, and said, "You know, you could be less sarcastic with her?"

"If I was, would it be believable?"

Jace heaved a sigh. "No, probably not." Then he returned to reading over his notes and making changes, while Liliana stretched out her left arm to examine her hand.

"You know, if we're married now, shouldn't I wear a ring?"

She watched him from the corner of her eye, as he raised his eyes to the ceiling, and said, "I…guess if you want a ring. What kind of ring do you want—if I were to acquire a ring, that is?"

Tilting her head, she gave it some thought, and said, "Sapphire—to represent my devotion to you, of course."

He straightened his back and allowed himself a faint smile. "Hmm, I suppose that would be a nice token."

"I don't want just any ring, of course."

"Of course."

"Don't just walk down to the nearest jewelry store and buy the first thing you see."

"I wouldn't, but thanks for the tip. Do you have something specific I should look out for?"

She smiled. "Oh, you know, just an ancient heirloom of sorts."

"I was talking about design, but okay, that's a lot more specific. Just tell me what it is and where I can find it."

"It's called the Ring of Estelban. It's…an enchanted artifact said to provide its wearer with enhanced magical abilities and protects their soul from being…taken."

"It's starting to sound a bit like the Chain Veil…"

"Well, yes, I suppose it does."

"You suppose?" he said, with a skeptical gaze.

"Only it doesn't control its wearer or come with any nasty side effects," she insisted. Then she finished with a smile, even batting her eyes a bit for good measure.

"Okay," he sighed, "and where will I find this enchanted ring you suddenly know so much about?"

"It's currently on the hand of Silvia Estelban, who was the last member of an ancient, powerful family of sea-merchants, and buried in a forgotten crypt in Nephalia."

"Innistrad," he said without enthusiasm. "Why am I not surprised? Who were these…Estelbans? I've never heard of them."

"Silvia Estelban died, alone and childless, over a century ago—a sad ending to a family that once rivalled even the Voldarens in prestige and wealth. They even intermarried with the Markovs at one point in their history, so I've read…"

Jace hummed. "I almost hate to ask, but what's the catch?"

"The crypt's location is currently unknown. But it is believed to be on an island somewhere off the coast near Selhoff. It's also said to be guarded by the Nebalgast, many of whom were likely members of their family."

He sat back in his chair and heaved a sigh. "Vengeful spirits of drowned sailors. Great. And of course, you want me to go and get it for you when you could just go there and get it yourself."

"Who better to deal with the ocean and water spirits than you, my love?" She leaned forward and planted a kiss on his cheek, then added, "Consider it a valiant quest for the woman you love?"

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, although he did smile faintly. "Where did you even hear about this?"

"I first heard of it when I was living in Nephalia, but because I had the Chain Veil, I wasn't really all that interested in it."

"But now that you no longer have the Chain Veil to bolster your power, suddenly it's of interest to you…"

She gave a shrug, and said, "I had forgotten about it, until I found it listed in a catalogue of artifacts from your library and started doing research."

"Okay, well, maybe when we're not so busy with more important things like ridding the Multiverse of Phyrexians, we can return to this matter?"

Just then the door opened and one of the servants entered with Liliana's requested wine and two glasses. They shuffled in and carried the items to the table, setting them down and offering an awkward bow. They seemed to be unusually interested in looking at Jace's papers while opening the bottle and beginning to fill their glasses, but Jace pretended not to notice.

"It would help in the fight against the Phyrexians," said Liliana, discreetly watching to see if this piqued the servant's interest in any way. They continued pouring the wine, possibly going a bit slower than they had been previously. Liliana met Jace's gaze and slightly tilted her head in their direction and Jace gave a discreet nod.

"Well, I suppose you're right, darling," he went on, shuffling his papers. "But I just don't think it would be a good idea for us to go off on a side quest right now—not with Lorwyn still under possible threat."

"We haven't heard from Nissa in two days," said Liliana, coyly reaching out to touch his hand in a playful sort of way. "I think it's entirely possible the Lorwyn problem is over now, and we can all move on."

That wasn't true, of course, but she thought it might be a good idea to suggest, in case this was the Phyrexian sleeper currently taking an inordinate amount of time pouring two glasses of wine. As soon as they were both filled, Liliana snatched them up and handed one to Jace, "A toast, my love, to saving the Multiverse."

Jace had to stifle his amusement as he raised his glass, and said, "To us, and to saving the Multiverse."

While they took their first drinks, the servant remained there to dab up a bit of wine that had spilled on the table when Liliana took the glasses. They certainly did seem to be taking their time, but Jace warned Liliana, It's still too soon—we can't jump to conclusions. We're sticking with the plan.

With a smile, Liliana turned to the servant and, with an impatient wave, said, "Thank you. That will be all."

The servant draped the wine-stained cloth over their forearm and offered a bow, then removed themselves from the sanctum. Liliana met Jace's gaze and, without the need for telepathy, they knew they were thinking the very same thing. It was time.

First, Liliana summoned an invisible specter to go out and make sure they weren't being watched. The specter returned and informed her there was nobody trying to peer in through a keyhole or anything of the sort, and so she thanked and dismissed it, and then they got to work. Moving quickly, Jace got up and set his wine glass on the table, summoning a double to stand in for him.

Crossing her arms and shaking her head, Liliana said, "Really? Jace, it has to be believable."

Pursing his lips, Jace changed the double so that it had messy hair and a five o'clock shadow.

Now, Liliana clapped her hands together in a laugh. "There, it looks just like you!" Then, getting up and standing next to it, she said, "Oh, isn't he handsome?"

"Thanks," said Jace, blushing slightly. "Okay, well, don't have too much fun without me."

"Don't worry," she said with a wink, as she hooked her arm through that of the double, "we won't."

Jace raised his eyes before he disappeared with an invisibility spell, but Liliana knew exactly where he was by the sound of his boots on the tile as he walked away to take up his position.

Once he had stopped moving, as far as she could tell, she turned to smile at his double. "Hey there, handsome. You remind me of a man I used to sleep with."

"Just…let's get this over with," Jace said through his double.

Liliana giggled and pulled the strings on the front of her dress to loosen it a little, for added effect. Jace's double sighed, but Liliana said, "You know, this would be more believable if he acted a little more into it. You're not jealous, are you?"

"You're right. I'm…sorry." With that, the double suddenly slipped his arm around her waist and drew her into a kiss. "Is this believable enough for you?"

"Mmm, now that's more like it," she said, wrapping one of her legs around the double. Then she ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him into another kiss, before taking his hand and pulling him toward the door. Before opening it, she turned back to where she believed the real Jace to be, and said, "I love you."

I love you, too, he projected back. And then she opened the door and pulled the double to follow, making sure to be as obvious as possible making their way upstairs, so that the whole house would know that its master was currently preoccupied.

JACE

Still invisible within his sanctum and waiting for the next stage in their little play to begin, he wondered if it was a good idea to make his double so…tangible. But then he realized that was ridiculous. Liliana wouldn't actually…would she? Then he shook off the thought. Of course, she wouldn't—as soon as she was in their room with his double, Kaya would be there to meet her and then the two of them were going to prepare for their next part in the plan.

How long they would all have to wait now depended on whether or not the sleeper would take the bait.

It was a long wait. Jace passed the time watching the moonlight shift as the twin moons made their journey across the night sky, getting less in sync as time wore on. He was beginning to think their plan had failed and thought about calling it off for the night. They could always try again another night.

Then he heard the doorknob jangle. He recast his invisibility spell and waited as the door slowly creaked open. Then he listened as the intruder closed the door and shuffled inside, heading toward the table. There was no torch, no lantern, no candle to light their way. They moved within the darkness, seeming to know exactly where they were going and what they were doing. Jace waited until he heard the papers being moved around—he had left his notes on the table, complete with a set of false plans they had devised for the defense of Lorwyn, just in case the sleeper managed to get away once they were confronted with their treachery.

Okay, everyone, he projected out to Liliana and the others, who should each have moved into their stations, in case their little guest tried to escape through one of the exits. Someone is here—it seems they've taken the bait. Be ready.

He received an affirmative response from each of them, and then he stopped to listen and wait. Then he heard it—that strange, synthetic noise that constituted for Phyrexian speech. Jace attuned his mind to be able to understand and found they were talking to themselves, muttering, "Master Tezzeret will be pleased."

That was all the confirmation he needed. At once, Jace undimmed the lights and appeared to confront the intruder, but it was not the servant he had been expecting. This one was not the one who had delivered the wine to them earlier in the evening; neither was it the servant who had served them tea and coffee the other day. This one seemed barely more than an adolescent boy, whom Jace had hired on to work in the kitchen—one he had barely even seen since the day they were hired.

That moment of surprise in Jace was all the creature needed. Moving with the swiftness and grace of one who has many years of training, the sleeper swept an arm across the table to grab a candelabra made of solid brass, swinging it around to throw at Jace as if it was light as an apple. Except it wasn't light as an apple and, had Jace not managed to toss up a magical ward to shield himself on time, it might have struck him in the head and done a great deal of damage.

In the amount of time it took for Jace to react to the projectile, the sleeper had tucked the false notes away and made a run for it. Jace managed to look up in time to see them disappear into a hidden passageway behind a bookcase.

Liliana, he's heading toward you now!

THE SLEEPER AGENT

Confound that mind-mage! He had tricked them into exposing themselves! Now that their identity was exposed, Master Tezzeret would be very angry and no longer have a use for them. Their only hope now was to escape with the Gatewatch's plans and deliver them safely to New Phyrexia, with the hope that it would be enough to appease Master Tezzeret so that he would not have them deconstructed and returned to the flesh vats for reuse. They had seen the priests do that to other sleepers, on the orders of the Praetors and Master Tezzeret, and it was not a pleasant ending by any means.

As they raced through the secret corridor of Jace's house, they felt for the plans that were tucked neatly within the folds of their jacket. Those plans were now even more vital.

It was a good thing they could see in the dark, they realized, as they might otherwise have stumbled their way through the secret passageway. Instead, they had made it to the end fairly quickly. The sleeper had used this passageway many times to watch and listen to the Gatewatch in their top-secret meetings, peering through the crack between the shelves and the wall. They had spied on Jace, always mumbling to himself and hard at work, no matter what hour of the day or night. They had overheard the petty arguments and fights that had broken out between the various members of the Gatewatch, mostly the mind-made and his necromantic bride. They had even witnessed other, more forbidden things from their perfect hiding place, learning a great deal about the dynamics of human relationships, of which they otherwise knew little about.

Yes, they knew their way through the entire house from within this passageway. And, more importantly now that they needed it to make an escape, they knew exactly where the end of it came out in the pantry and, from there, they could easily slip out the back door and make their escape. All that was needed, once they reached the end of the passage, was to press and turn a little metal button that was set into the wall, and they'd be free.

The sleeper was almost smiling as the wall slid open. They could feel the rush of adrenaline in their veins—they, being the closest a Phyrexian could ever be to an organic humanoid creature.

Just when they were about to take that first step toward freedom, however, they were confronted by a sudden violet illumination cutting intricate patterns through the darkness. And then they saw the eyes—beautiful, terrifying, as they glowed that same shade of violet. And they were struck with the realization they were standing face-to-face with Liliana, the death mage, whose wicked smile suggested she was eager to destroy them.

The only way out, so they thought, was to turn around and head down a different passage, before the mind-mage had time to catch up. But then they were stopped suddenly by the ghost-assassin, Kaya, stepping through the wall and into the passageway. She returned to her natural form with a grin, standing with a blade in each hand, ready to put an end to the sleeper. Now they were trapped between the two women, and all they could do now was fight.

Just when they were about to make a move, however, Kaya made a sudden move forward and the last thing the sleeper remembered was the feeling of being struck in the head with a blunt object…