Everyone had again changed rooms and the entire structure was being to become disorientating. They were in a large room with six double beds, and through an empty doorway there was a small kitchen type room, with a few cupboards and a work surface, a tank of water that could be released by tap, and what was presumably some form of kettle. If it hadn't have been underground, it would be a nice place, but claustrophobia was being to set in and the lack of fresh air was making everyone who wasn't used to it light-headed. Also the floor had a distinct lining of dried dirt, but no one dared to bring it up. Everyone just found a bed to sit on, except Serpantha and Calen.

When Esimi brought Volüsa into the room, there was no one who wasn't shocked. No one knew what to say, everyone just looked at each other, needing confirmation that they weren't the only ones feeling that way. She didn't look human, but she didn't look like a Witch either, more like some awkward hybrid from a failed experiment. There was almost something sinister about her, and even though Rachel knew she couldn't be evil, she had that air about her, and in unnerved everyone. Except Serpantha, he was more concerned at what brought her to that point. Everyone was deep down, but fear has a way of forcing out all other emotions, it spills like black dye into water, spoiling and masking all things in its path. No matter what, if you're afraid nothing else seems to matter.

The most striking thing was her dead looking body, strongly visible through a pair of yoga pants that only came down to her knees, and a vest top that showed her stomach with hip bones jutting through. Her thighs didn't touch and her wrist bones were bigger than her forearm, she looked like she shouldn't be alive. He body was covered in tattoos, a pink flower with black lines bursting from it poked out from the top of her vest top, and they were all up her legs and arms. Her hair, once long, wavy and a vibrant orange had dimmed and dried with her ill health, and her eyes seemed so dead. There was nothing behind them. No joy, no sadness, nothing. She had nothing left; she was too drained of her emotions to possibly feel any anymore. Naturally the first person she looked at was Serpantha. They looked at each other for a moment, not knowing what to say, and then Volüsa threw arms around him and put her head over his shoulder. Once he recovered from the shock he held her back, and she began to cry. Not that she would ever admit it, but even Calen felt taken back by the scene in front of her, because of the raw and unveiled emotion in it. Neither of them cared how it looked, two thousand years ago Volüsa was a little girl who wanted her father, and not much had changed in that time.

It took a while for Volüsa to compose herself, her and Serpantha spoke in their own language for a while until finally Volüsa sat down, leaning slightly forward, which made her collarbones jut out.

'How's the last two thousand years been?' Serpantha asked, masking emotion with humour.

'Great,' she smirked. 'You all want to know what's happened, I suppose.'

'No actually we're doing this for fun.' Calen remarked snidely.

Volüsa glared at her briefly and then looked down. Everyone watched her breathing until she finally spoke, not looking at anyone. 'Orin Fen is gone.' She paused, but since no one said anything, she then continued. 'When you had all been missing for a month, Owlola went to Earth – we had to explain. As it turned out Eric had detected a massive surge of magic, and we worked out it was a white hole. I was a child, but I remember Eric being incredibly angry. Only Morpeth was able to calm him down.'

Rachel interrupted. 'What?!'

'I should have explained that,' Volüsa cursed herself under her breath. 'He came back to look after Eric, and he had to hear the news too, after all.'

'So Eric and Morpeth are both dead now, aren't they?'

Volüsa solemnly, almost apologetically, nodded and then continued with her story. 'I think Eric was angry at himself, really, of course he was angry at my race – he had a right to be, but he hated himself for not being able to do anything. If he had been with you he could have, at least, he always said that me.'

'Always?' Rachel said, confused.

'Hey, Rach, idea – let her finish the story then ask any questions.' Heiki snapped.

Before Rachel could object to Heiki's attitude, Volüsa went on. 'When I got older, a few years older than Venibilles is now, I went to Earth. Eric was around twenty-one at the time, and he did not recognise me at all—' she turned to Serpantha, '—yet he knew I was your daughter. My original purpose of going to Earth was merely to explain more information on the situation and see how he was coping, but I ended up spending a lot of time with him. About 60 years, actually.' She laughed, 'I lived permanently on Earth that whole time, occasionally returning to Orin Fen to see my mother of course, and my brother.'

Serpantha interrupted this time, 'If after I left another son of mine was born that only leads me to one grim conclusion.'

Volüsa nodded, and then looked to Rachel. 'As I said, I lived on Earth with Eric. We never had children, we never wanted any, and agreed it was wrong to have children just to try and have a child with his gift in case, in the future, such a skill was ever needed…' her entire face fell. 'I know Eric was never capable of killing, and it was obvious he never wanted his own family to ever become killers. Which, as much as our species likes to deny it, we are.' Volüsa sighed. 'Before Eric was even old, Owlola died, in the same way as her mother. I was obviously distraught when I returned to my own planet and was told, so I went to Earth – I needed the shoulder of the man I loved to cry on. My brother followed me, coming to Earth about a day later to see if I was OK. Sadly, despite the fact we were gone for only a few weeks, when we arrived back on Orin Fen…'

Volüsa just looked at Calen murderously for a while, and it was not long before everyone figured it out. After a while, Volüsa addressed her with sudden anger, not raising her voice or changing her posture to be threatening, but the anger in her voice pierced through the room, making everyone cautious. 'Your kind attacked our planet and wiped everyone out. Nothing was left, just ruins, dead bodies,' Volüsa looked as if she was going to be sick and attack Calen simultaneously. 'The irony was your kind had no idea what they had found was, in fact, Orin Fen. You killed the race you came from, although the amount of alterations your species gave itself made us the equivalent of the slime that first crawled out of the ocean.'

Calen looked blankly at Volüsa, only trying to measure up her power. It was clear she had once been as powerful as Larpskendya himself, what concerned her, and everyone, was why that power was so diminished she could barely stand.

'By now we know humans know about us. Because of me. I didn't initiate contact. I did that right, it's about the one damn thing I did do right. But the human race found a dead High Witch on Earth. Curtsy of yours truly… Perhaps I should have been more careful but I was lonely, and I had been so beaten down I didn't care. I still wouldn't if it hadn't have lead to this. But I decided to drop in on them I couldn't leave this up to humans. I'd rather show you this than tell it, really…'

And she did. No one even thought about the risks of using magic.

The laboratory they found themselves in looked pretty typical. Two male scientists in white coats with gloves looked upon the dead Witch lying before them on an autopsy table. A dissection.

As they speechlessly prepared themselves, Volüsa shifted into the room, in her intricate golden dress, looking too the floor, letting her hair fall behind her. She was clearly readying herself. Preparing herself for the show.

The two scientists turned to see her at the same time, nearly dropping their equipment in shock.

'How did you get in here and who are you?' one demanded.

'I am Volüsa Blaksey,' she replied without moving. 'Now you.'

Both seemed equally confused, but the braver one said, 'Dr Braft. So's he, we're brothers.'

Volüsa nodded, amused. 'Hm. I have a brother. However he didn't feel like doing this trip, perhaps it would be better if he did – I wish not to invoke fear.'

On her last word, she looked to them both, standing her full height, flashing her eyes.

The one who had not spoke looked between the High Witch's eyes and Volüsa's.

'Oh don't worry,' Volüsa said. 'I'm not like that. I am a Witch. She's what you would call a High Witch.'

'She?'

'Yes,' Volüsa almost threatened them. 'She. I thought you would be more curious to me calling myself a Witch, but live your lives how you want to. They're a race of people, self-reproducing, unlike myself. They are descended from my kind.'

'How do you know our language?' The braver one insisted boldly.

'I have lived on Earth a very long time. Before I explain who I am, I feel the need to focus more on what you're about to do to her.' Volüsa wondered to her side, and delicately took her ruby snake from around her neck, holding it up elegantly, her eyes full of wonder. 'I think I should take this. A High Witch's snake – there last final defence. Not something you want to slice up.'

'Whatever it is, it looks like a snake, and it's dead.'

'Do I look human?'

His bravery recoiled. 'What?'

'Do I look human?'

'…no.'

'Then we can all assume I know what I'm talking about more than you, yes? If you want me to be blunt if you lay a finger on this you will be killed. But that's something I need to explain further, so if you would allow me to start from the beginning…'

The two scientists looked at each other, nodded, and allowed her to continue.

'First you need to accept the premise magic is a real thing. I can explain all this deeper at a later date but this is too urgent to dwell. You have a High Witch there, and I've told this story countless times but since before your world was even formed Wizards and High Witches have been waging war. My uncle was a Wizard called Larpskendya, and before me protection of Earth fell to him. Following?'

'Who was your father then?' the less brave one said, fishing for any extra information.

'I am the daughter of Serpantha, Larpskendya's older brother. My father never had any involvement with Earth, so I wasn't going to mention him. May I lead the story now?'

The scientist sheepishly gestured for her to go on.

'Good.' Volüsa thought what to say for a while, and then continued. 'Anyway, all worlds and all beings with consciousness have…magic, it's an odd concept so you will have to hear me out before judging. However, magic has been prevented from developing on this world by my kind, for its own protection against High Witches. Now it seems one finally found you despite this planet having no magic for them to detect you by. Do I really need to explain why they're dangerous?'

The scientists looked the High Witch up and down, and back to Volüsa.

'Exactly,' said Volüsa.

Volüsa stopped the memory to speak, and Rachel said. 'You lied through your teeth.'

'What else do you lie through?' Volüsa said bluntly.

'You know what I mean. Why not tell them the truth?'

Volüsa laughed. 'Could you imagine that conversation? That's a discussion I never wish to have! It was easier to give them a version that didn't involve you, or Heiki, or Eric or anyone, because frankly it's over-complicated and unnecessary. Also it coulda been dangerous. And knowing what happened because of what I told them it would have been much, much worse.'

'I'll be the one to ask then,' Heiki said, 'What happened next?'

Volüsa became bitter. 'Time passed and I told them everything, magic was exposed and things were going surprisingly well. Until the day I realised they were lying to me. Of course they were, they're only human.'

The next memory was formed for them.

Volüsa shifted to the lab, and looked around – there was an eerie silence and she could see her breath. No one seemed to be there but her, even the equipment had been cleared away, something they rarely did even when the lab was empty or even locked.

She looked to her side to see a surgical table and wondered how that hadn't been the first thing she noticed; especially when the size and shape of the body under the white cloth meant it could only be one person. In disbelief and fear she slowly walked to the table. Her hand, her entire body in fact, shook violently with emotion as she pealed back the sheet to see the cold, dead face of her brother.

She screamed.

She fell to the floor a weeping mess at the site and thought of what happened to her brother. She no longer had control of herself – or anything for that matter. All she had been told, all she had done, all she had lost – she was alone, perhaps the most alone any being has ever been. The last of her kind, of her family and of her planet. Her anguish was so powerful Rachel had to refrain from begging her to stop the memory. Rachel could look away but she couldn't block out the sound – the screaming, the crying, the sounds of pure pain. She forced herself to look again when Volüsa stopped. She was still crying but she couldn't help that, but she had become eerily calm, just stood there. It didn't make sense until Rachel scanned down her body and saw Volüsa had picked up scalpel and was holding it to her wrist. For a full minute Volüsa just stared at her wrist, pressing the scalpel to it and then taking it away, which is perhaps more normal behaviour for you or I, but there are painless ways to die with magic. She didn't just want to die, or maybe she didn't want to die at all: she wanted to cause herself pain. To punish herself.

After a few minutes, she looked up and saw a young girl, in her twenties or so, with long black and red hair wearing a lab coat. She was in a side room and had watched the entire spectacle. In any other situation the way she had paused mid action to behold the scene would have been comical. They merely stared at each other for a while, eerie silence creeping back into the room. Volüsa shakily stood, pulling herself up using the worktop, leaving the scalpel on it. Not once did her gaze drift from the scientist they recognised as Esimi. As Volüsa slowly made her way over to Esimi burst out of the side room, her hands up.

'I'm not one of them,' she said, trying to remain calm. 'Look—' she put her hand behind her ear, revealing it '—my grandfather was a Sprite.'

Volüsa stopped, still crying too much to speak, but she let this woman continue.

'I couldn't help him. I'm sorry Volüsa I am so, so sorry. But they have a weapon it kills magic and that's how he died. I've been working here to monitor how much humans find out.'

'You talk like you aren't one.'

'I'm not – not entirely. Humans can destroy magic thus destroying any magical person. They want magic for their own Volüsa so they're out to get you. They're working on a device so they can capture magic and use it. If you don't hide you'll die you have to come with me.'

Volüsa's expression didn't change. 'What's your name?'

'Esimi.'

'OK Esimi. Save my life.'

Esimi grabbed her hand. 'Where do you want to go?'

Volüsa's eyes screamed home, turning the orange-brown shade of Orin Fen. She said, 'I know the place.'

Esimi quickly grabbed a large backpack from behind the door, and shifted them both according to Volüsa's navigation. If Volüsa used her own spells they would be detected and Volüsa would be killed. But that was OK, Volüsa didn't want to use her magic anyway. She barely wanted it anymore.

They both landed on Flores, where sleet fell from the sky and the ground was a wet, muddy and icy mess.

Esimi shot a spell into the sky, her eyes filling with purple mist.

'That should keep us protected – for now,' she said, moving to take a spade from her bag. She began digging through the Earth and Volüsa said, 'How did you know?'

'Well why else would you bring us here?'

Volüsa shook her head. 'You knew this was going to happen, you prepared for it… if you just told me my brother might not be laying there dead.'

'You would have been killed along with me. So I prepared the best I could. I'm sorry.'

Volüsa composed herself as much as she could, and helped to dig with another shovel. Through digging twenty feet into the ground she never said a word. Bouts of tears came at times but stopped as suddenly as they started.

Eventually, at twenty feet below the Earth's surface, Volüsa gave up, sitting slumped in the mud as the slush from the sky fell on her. Esimi kept digging for a while before pausing to look at Volüsa, who was still unable to control her tears. She stuck her spade in the Earth, took off her muddy lab coat and put it around Volüsa, who was too distraught to show gratitude she certainly felt it.

'So that was it, really,' Volüsa finished. 'I grew so tired as my brother and I were the only people to fight High Witches, but we rarely did. We had to allow their destruction for our own survival. I had a few good years, I did a lot on Earth and worked at many jobs and I met so many people but… I was always alone. And without a home. And most recently, without my brother.'

Serpantha could only say one thing, 'I'm sorry.'

Volüsa nodded sadly, 'Huh, yeah.'

'I'm sorry how is that possible? How large must that army have been to wipe out Orin Fen? It's absurd.' Calen argued, reeling in disbelief.

Serpantha rubbed his forehead in annoyance. Not noticing his exasperation, Calen continued, 'I mean even if you take away having millions of Griddas isn't Orin Fen a world of Wizards? Well, Witches too but the point still—'

'Calen, shut up.' Serpantha cut her off, his voice deep with a notable forced steadiness to it.

'That was abrupt and unnecessary,' said Calen, sulkily and confused, 'I mean how large must it have been? A few weeks? And not to be rude but Wizards are known for running and hiding – no one did that? I understand loyalty to your planet but…'

'Calen!' Serpantha snapped, releasing his built up anger. 'Shut up!'

'My species is dead, too, you know, yet I can stay calm and you can't?'

Serpantha regained himself enough to speak. He shot out the words, forcing them out. He gave a crooked smile and said sadly, 'In the gap of our war our numbers increased by fifty percent.' Calen stared blankly, not understanding.

Deciding to ignore Calen, he then addressed his daughter. 'So you've been down here all this time oblivious what's gone on?'

Volüsa nodded. 'I mean I know humans wiped out the Highs, as strange as it seems, but other than that I've just been going stir crazy here.'

Serpantha smirked. 'You come from our family no one expected you to be sane. But we have complications of our own.'

Serpantha explained all about his father and as everyone heard it summarised, the gravity of the situation sunk in more. One he was done Volüsa said, still in shock, 'So it would be almost better if we just stayed here and waited to die?'

'No,' Serpantha sneered. 'That isn't living I'd rather die here and now.'

'I still think joining him is a very valid option.' Calen said, still feeling empty.

Heiki rolled her eyes. 'Better dead than like that scum.'

'Exactly,' Serpantha said, turning to her.

Heiki noticed the disheartened expression on Rachel's face and jokingly said, 'I bet you wish we stayed at home.'

Rachel responded with a glare and Heiki's smile slowly faded out.

Rachel looked directly to Volüsa. 'What happened to them?'

'Eric just died, normally, I can't tell you when in case you do get back to your own time, no one wants to know that… After he died Morpeth went back to Ithrea and the Highs found it. I was there when they did, and he yelled at me to leave and I did you have to understand I was on my own and I was scared. We always thought when you all came back you'd be able to fix this and go back to your normal time so none of that would happen.'

Rachel looked away bitterly. 'You may have lost so much more than me but that doesn't mean you can all overlook my losses. I just don't believe you. Any of you.'

'This isn't the time.' Venibilles said annoyed.

'She has a point,' Heiki chimed in. 'I mean I always dreamed of a life where I knew more than five people, and then three of those I didn't see again for an unexplained reason. Not that I'm complaining I'm just pointing it out as a valid issue.'

'Duly noted,' Serpantha said apathetically. 'Now may I point out the valid issue that the risk of us dying is much more important than hurt feelings?'

Heiki swallowed her pride and anger, and said sadly. 'Duly noted.'

'This is all well an' good,' Zina said, speaking for the first time in what seemed like forever. 'but what are we gonna do? We can bitch about our lives all we want it doesn't change anything.'

'Not much we can do, the next person I want to see in Lyrai,' Serpantha said, 'But since we're all here and we've been awake for over two thousand years you may as well sleep.'

'I have no objections.' Venibilles muttered, exhausted.

They quickly organised themselves, Esimi and Volüsa left, and people quickly worked out who would share a bed. Rachel and Heiki immediately decided to share, Serpantha told Calen to share with him which if not for her tiredness she would have objected too, leaving Venibilles to have to share with Zina.

Calen laid in bed with her arms folded and said, 'I don't see how this is productive.'

Serpantha didn't even look at her. 'You're human now, get used to it and stop complaining.'

'An' shut up,' Zina said, her voice quivering. 'Some of us are trying to sleep we've had a crap day too.'

While everyone else managed to drift of, Zina just cried, finally letting all the emotion out while no one could see.