This chapter was a struggle to get done. The day after I started writing it, my work hours have changed and I have been getting up earlier than usual. As a result, I have been terribly, morbidly exhausted this whole week and writing; like everything else this past week; seemed like to great a task for me. I couldn't get more than a few words in before I said fuck it. And, when I did make some progress I ended up deleting a lot of it and redoing it over and over for one reason and another. But, here we are with chapter 23 and I am glad to have it finished. I wanted it done before Wednesday, but that shit wasn't happening. Lol. Please enjoy.

Cultists surrounded her and she was backed up against the sharp and jagged edged rocks of the canyon. She looked back and up. The cultists were too close for her to climb up the canyon wall to safety; she had no choice but to stand her ground and face them all head on. She held out her staff in front of her defensively and counted eight of the evil men. Some held out swords and daggers while one – their leader – held a dark and evil staff that carried magic fire on the top to light his way. She had hoped that she would be able to avoid these guys until she had found the one she was looking for. The one she was brought to this time to find; who she still had not found until earlier that day when she felt a very powerful magical presence. More powerful than herself but it had dissipated and she had since lost the trail.

"Sir! Do you honestly think she's the one? She doesn't match the description Maghda provided." This girl was almost completely the opposite as what Maghda described. What matched was her assumed age, but she had white, pale skin and blonde hair. Her height was also shorter than what they were told and she was wearing a completely different attire. Nothing about this girl matched the wizard's description.

"Of course she is, you fool! Who else would she be with her kind of power?" The leader turned back to their target and said, "You gave quite the chase, wizard; but, you will not escape us again." The cultist leader said. "Maghda is going to reward us well for finally taking you down."

"Wizard? What – I do not understand. I am not a wizard." The cultists laughed in unison and the leader stepped forward, but she did not step down and she held firm.

"Playing dumb will not save you. We will make you pay for what you did to our brothers in Tristram." Oh yes, they were going to make her pay alright. They were not going to kill her outright to start. Oh no. They intended to torture her first and make her regret the day she was born. They were going to send a message that they will not be so easily destroyed and that they will kill those who stood in their way. And, to start; he was going to have his men take advantage of this girl's body. Right here, right now. She was going to have to endure being treated like an object for their pleasure before they began the real torture. "What say you, wizard? What will you do now?"

In the blink of an eye, she pointed her index finger towards one of the cultists, and he; without hesitation; shoved his sword into his leaders back and the sword protruded out of his torso. He screamed and gazed in anguish at the sword sticking out of his torso; smeared in his own blood. He fell to his knees and held his arms out with his elbows in. His men were stunned and he stared at them back until his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell on his side with the sword still in his torso.

"Why did you do that!" One of the other cultists yelled and the one who killed their leader did not answer and held his arms out stretched like the undead and ran for him. When the one who killed their leader had his hands tightly gripping at the yelling one's neck two of the others did not hesitate to start stabbing him in the back repeatedly. His mouth hung open and blood dripped from his lips but his grip on his friend's neck did not loosen.

"What the hell's going on here!"

"It's her! She's making him do it!"

"Quickly we need to stop her!"

"Kill her!"

The girl waved her hand and a purple fog like magic shot forth and covered some of the cultists. Those who were caught in it screamed and held to their faces. There was a sizzling; like bacon grease on a hot pan followed by the smell of something burning joining the dance of the senses. Their cloths began to wither and their skin started bubbling and melting away like a skin eating disease. They clawed and violently rubbed their skin like trying to shake ants off but only succeeded in ripping their own flesh off even further. "OH, GOD!" One screamed as he slapped and clawed at his face making one of his eyeballs hang and dangle from his eye socket until the nerve corroded too much and the eye fell on the ground.

The men who were caught in her terrible spell died painfully as their skin continued to melt away even after their deaths. Two of the cultists remained and they were hesitant to continue.

"I do not wish to continue! I am not the one you seek! I am not a wizard, nor do I wish to be." There were too many uncertain and chaotic variables to being a wizard. She did not wish to have that kind of raw, awesome and dangerous power. She also did not wish to pose a risk to others and herself while using her magic. To have the power of a wizard came with a great cost. They could nearly destroy their own bodies if they were not careful. "Now please; leave now and I will not pursue."

They couldn't simply run because there was nowhere to go. Maghda would have them killed if she knew that they had run from a fight or the desert and the monsters that lived within it will make meals of their flesh and blood. They couldn't run. They had to stay and fight even if they knew that they had no chance of winning.

One of the remaining cultists grabbed the other by the robes and pushed him towards her and he; while surprised; tried to stab the girl with his sword but she rolled out of the way and she summoned a forceful push from her hand that shot the cultist into the air and he fled into the sharp rocks of the canyon wall. He was impaled in several places in his torso. His arm was broken and a bone stuck out from the elbow and his right leg had also been impaled. "Please! I do not want to kill you! If you leave peacefully, I will find no cause to harm you!"

"SHUT UP!" the cultist yelled and swung his sword downward but the girl held her staff up with both hands and blocked the attack. The girl pushed and the cultist staggered backward. The girl rushed forward and the cultist swung his sword horizontally but the girl ducked and swiped her leg underneath the cultists feet and he fell on his back. The girl wished he would just run. He should, for his sake. She did not like having to use her magic like this but these men were not leaving her much of a choice in the matter.

She allowed the cultist to get back up and hoped that he would flee, but she did not have such luck. He swung his sword again but the girl stepped forward enough to grab his right arm with her left to stop his attack. She then used her right hand to grab the cultists left leg and lifted it up so he fell again. He sat up, leaned against his arms and said, "I'll kill you, you witch!" She wasn't a witch either.

She was seeing no other possible alternatives. His fear was the only thing keeping him here fighting her and so if he wasn't going to leave on his own; she was going to have to make him. She didn't want to kill him or any of them for that matter. She believed when she took over the mind of that other one and used him to kill their leader then they would disperse and run and when they tried to gang up on her, she had to think fast and her erosion spell was the first thing that came to mind, as torturous as it was.

Closing her eyes, she focused her power on the same spell she used from the start and reached into the depths of the cultist's mind and grabbed hold of it, making it her own. The cultist could not move, or speak. "Stand." She said and the cultist did as he was bid but of no will of his own. "Now, I want you to drop your weapon." He did. "You will turn away and walk into the desert and return to wherever it was that you came from." He turned his body and walked away from the girl knowing not that he would be captured by lacuni that inhabit the trench where he would be torn apart and devoured.

Not far from where the fight took place there was an alcove in the canyon wall and she decided to take shelter there. It was small but it was empty so there were no strange creatures inside and she would be able to sit comfortably and wait for day to break past the horizon. She sat down and leaned back against the rock with her knees up and her arms resting on them. She tilted her head down and thought on the men who had attacked her. They were unmistakably the ones that worked for the one named Maghda. The one The Prohet warned her of. As to where this Maghda was hiding was unknown to her, but she was only the second priority on her mind. She still needed to find the one she was brought to this time to assist.

Maybe the one she was looking for and the ones those men were looking for were one and the same. She was certain that whatever the very powerful magic she felt was belonged to the one she was looking for and it would make since for it to have belonged to that of a wizard. Who else but they could give such a powerful magical signal? Yes, all that power but too dangerous to use it most of the time. She could not fathom how one could choose to use their own body as a vessel for arcane energy. The dangers that came at such a cost was too great. Wouldn't wizards worry of destroying their own bodies when they use their magic? What if they lost control and their spell caused their body bleed, or get burned, or simply become worn and sensitive to the point where a single, gentle touch could cause them great pain.

And, there was the concern of harming others when they use their magic. She personally had never met a wizard and has only heard stories and legends; and from what she has heard, it sounded like a wizard's power was often too powerful, even at its most base form, and could cause great damage if used carelessly in a populated area. All that power and no way to use it if there were lives at stake. It made her fear the prospects of a wizard getting into a conflict with another. The destruction that such a battle would cause was unimaginable and it made her glad that wizards were a rare breed of magic users.

When she finally found the one she has been looking for, and if they were in fact a wizard; she hoped that at least they were pleasant and not secretly seeking to wreak havoc. Despite their horrible reputation and their pride that they all shared; she had always wanted to meet one. She wanted to see what they were really like outside of what she was told. She could only hope so.

Xxxxx

Most of the camp was asleep and a small visitor crawled through unnoticed and went into Li-Ming's tent. Li-Ming was laying comfortably with her hair down and dressed only in her small-clothes with a fur blanket covering her legs to keep herself warm. The juxtaposition of the temperatures of the desert were anything but subtle and the chilly night air was a saving grace because it allowed them to sleep comfortably; or at least the ones of them who did sleep. Li-Ming used her time awake to read more by candle light and Constantine mimicked her actions. He read, or looked like he was reading silently. Li-Ming didn't know if he even really knew how to read, but he occasionally turned a page in the book he was holding at a slow pace.

He turned the book vertically and looked at the pages with confusion and he scratched his head. Li-Ming didn't care about what was throwing him off and continued with her own book and Constantine gave up on his and chucked it to the side. He crossed his arms and saw a black scorpion that had a shiny body as the light that gleamed into the tent reflected off of its body and a bright red tipped tale crawling on Li-Ming's legs. Constantine slowly approached on all fours and unintentionally distracted Li-Ming from her book. "What are you doing?" Li-Ming asked and Constantine pointed to her legs. She lowered her book and saw the little intruder standing defensively towards Li-Ming with its pinchers ready and its tail held high.

Li-Ming was not concerned to see the scorpion since she has seen many and had been stung a few times back when she last lived here. Her first sting was the worst and she was sick and bed ridden until she finally got over it and that was when Isendra had taught her how to handle them appropriately. After that, the other few times she was stung was not as bad and happened mostly on accident.

Carefully, Li-Ming set her book down next to her and with her left hand she got the scorpions attention and the arachnid turned its body to face her hand and Li-Ming pinched the scorpion's tale just below the stinger and lifted it up. The scorpion kicked its legs rapidly and wiggled. It curled up and pinched Li-Ming's hand with its pinchers. Li-Ming didn't flinch because she had done this enough and she knew what being pinched by a scorpion felt like. She observed it and from the size she found it to be a male.

"You're a rude boy, aren't you? Sneaking into a lady's tent while she's hardly dressed and trying to read herself to sleep." Constantine was amused. "I had to scold that demon there about something similar earlier today, but I suppose I can let it go seeing as how you hardly know better." Li-Ming grabbed her blanket and covered herself. She opened the flap to her tent, looked around and when she saw that the coast was clear she walked out and began her search to find a place for the scorpion to hide.

She walked past the wooden deck that hung over the canyon wall and saw Tyrael standing there leaning on the railing looking over at the city. She put the scorpion on the ground, hoping that it would find its own safe place and Constantine followed it. He hummed to himself rhythmically with no discernible tune and Li-Ming payed no notice.

Tyrael felt Li-Ming's presence and turned around to see her approaching with a blanket draped over her shoulders.

"Why are you not sleeping?" He asked.

"I could ask you the same thing, Tyrael."

He turned his gaze back to the city and said, "I'm still not used to it. I can't seem to sleep for more than a few hours when I can." Li-Ming leaned over the railing with him and a pause hung around them. There was something on Tyrael's mind that he was having problems comprehending and Li-Ming could see it was bothering him. She didn't know how much he was still learning. As an angel, she imagined his life used to be much different and the things that now flipped through his mind must have been new and confusing to him now that he is mortal.

"What's wrong, Tyrael?"

His lips twitched and he couldn't find the right words. This was still so very new to him. He didn't imagine that being a mortal would be so confusing. He had seen countless generations of men live and die and long ago he came to the assumption that he knew everything there was to know about humanity but he was rapidly learning how wrong he was. "Do you see all of those lights down there?" little lights flashed and lit up the bazaar like fireflies in the summer. The refugees lit fires where they could to keep themselves warm during the cold desert nights. "I do not know how these refugees persevere. Their situation is dire, and it seems there's little hope for them. Where do they find the strength to carry on?"

"That is what it means to be human. We suffer but we persevere."

He pursed his lips and said, "While I find the human spirit to be amazing, all of this suffering seems to be too great to be worth it. You human's need to fight a losing battle for just an ounce of peace. While I do everything I can to see that the human race goes on, I still feel that your kind; this world; is too small."

"Small? Compared to what?"

"The rest of creation."

Li-Ming tilted her head back and raised her eyebrow. "Explain?"

"Before the creation of Sanctuary, the High Heavens and the Burning Hells had used the worldstone to create many other worlds in their own image and each world served a purpose. Sanctuary is not such a world. It is by all rights, a mistake." Pressure was building up in Li-Ming's head and it started to thump. She kept her tongue to herself though because she was still holding onto the hope that Tyrael would change this around. "Humanity itself should never have been created. It is an inferior race that will never be able to stand up to the High Heavens or the Burning Hells should either side attack at full force."

"So, Tyrael; the arch angel of justice, who destroyed his own body when he destroyed the worldstone," Tyrael never once mentioned that detail to her. It must have been Isendra who told her that much about the angel who destroyed Arreat mountain. "And, threw away his own immortality for humanities sake believes us to be inferior by comparison to his own and his enemies." Li-Ming was being impertinent, but she didn't care. She felt she had every right to be since Tyrael seemed to forget that mortals have bested the Lords of Hell time and again. How can he say that humanity was weak when that detail proved him wrong?

The world was a cruel, dark and dangerous place and was full of creatures and monsters that would love to do them harm; that much was true. And, individually, humans themselves were just as dangerous. People fought and killed in wars in the name of tyrants who called themselves leaders. Deaths occurred at the hand of a singular other for something that was otherwise petty and a life was wasted. Humans were indeed themselves born capable of doing terrible things and so it was left to an individual to trust others wisely and create their own safety as Li-Ming once told Leah.

Li-Ming herself had her reservations towards others and she tried to detach herself from others because of it. Humanity as a whole wasn't much better either, but that did not mean that they were weak and inferior. There was a reason why Li-Ming dedicated herself to trying to protect the innocent; her own selfish reasons aside; and, that was so maybe one day she could change the minds of many and open a new perspective to those who would seek harm on others. She hoped that she could inspire others to do good because there were not a lot of people who would risk their life for strangers and, it was these people, who had the courage to do good things that were the ones who proved humanities strength when there were no others who would step up because they were to afraid.

Tyrael twirled his thumbs around and looked at the night sky so that he could admire the moon as he spoke. "Li-Ming, I did not mean what I said as a prejudiced statement. I meant it as a matter of fact."

"Oh, then I guess I will have to show you how wrong you are when it is me; the wizard guided by destiny, who destroys Belial and Azmodan."

It was here that Tyrael realized one inevitable, universal truth, and that was that wizards, no matter how good or bad will always have that one thing in common. "I see that like all wizards before you. You share their pride." Every wizard that Tyrael has ever known or heard about always had a high opinion of themselves and often engaged in self-indulgence. He hoped however, that unlike most wizards that Li-Ming's pride would not be the cause of her death. He liked Li-Ming. She was strong, brave and courageous and deep down inside of her, he can since there was a lot more to her than what she openly offered about herself. He didn't know exactly what it was she refused to let people see, but he could since there was something there that resembled a more, vulnerable side to her.

"So. What of it?"

"Just be cautious. I would not want to see you hurt because of it, and do not think that I do not know what it is I am talking about. I have seen it happen to another before in the past."

She was a welcomed far cry from the last wizard he knew; one of his own Horadrim. A genius and brilliant man whose dedication to ridding the world of evil was unmatched by any other, but somewhere along the way; he went mad with power. His insanity was matched only by his brilliance and he went on to create some of the most powerful, mystifying and dangerous artifacts ever created by man. He would not listen to reason and his pride and ever growing ego pushed him ever more into madness and eventually he met his end. His fellow Horadrim killed him and buried his head separate from his body so that he may never return. So great was his power that he had discovered a way to make to rid himself of his mortality. The things this wizard could have achieved with a never ending life was unimaginable and that was a risk they simply could not take.

Then there was Vyr the Vainglorious and creator of the Black Obelisk, with its unknown size and proportions had the ability to summon the power of the Archons; beings of pure arcane energy from other planes of existence. Tyrael never knew Vyr but he heard that the Black Obelisk was also said to have the power to trap human beings within it, but for whatever reason it was unknown. Much like the Dark Horadrim; Vyr was a mad genius and his ego eventually won him the title of tyrant. Paranoid and mad, he felt more than assured of his superiority over all others and never expected his death to by his own Acolytes, who then later also destroyed the Black Obelisk so that no one may ever again harness the dangerously world-threatening power of the archon.

For now, Li-Ming was on the right path, but she was still young and Tyrael did not wish to know what would have to happen if she ended up like Vyr or the Dark Horadrim. Her knowledge of the inner workings of the powers of nature like fire, water and ice was intimate and now that Tyrael knew that she had the ability to manipulate time without effort at her age was worrying. If she was so quick at learning how to use such magic, magic that still would have taken other wizards a whole life time to master, then he could only imagine how great her power will be as she progresses through her life. Assuming she lives that long.

"You needn't worry about me Tyrael, but for someone who is as able to use magic as I am, you seem all to warry of it."

"If you're referring to my being able to use portals such as the one I conjured to get us out of Leorics castle, know that it took more out of me than it ever could have when I was immortal." After he summoned the portal he felt so weak and tired and he at first couldn't understand why. Soon he realized it was because of his new mortal body and its inability to use magic as smoothly as he was able before. It became apparent to him that he will not be able to use the portal whenever he wished, as inconvenient as it was, so instead he will only need to use it in only the direst of circumstances. "There is something I would like to ask you, Li-Ming."

"What is that?"

"How old were you when you started practicing magic?"

"I was seven." Li-Ming didn't understand why that was relevant. "That was also the time I learned that I wasn't just a mage, but a wizard." She said wizard with a great since of pride.

"And, at seven years old; you didn't find knowing that you would have to use your own body as a way to carry your arcane power a little bit…worrying?" Tyrael knew that wizards had to pay the price of using their bodies to store their power unlike mages or witches. It was the trade-off for being powerful. The more and more magic they used up at once, the more and more damage they did to their own bodies.

Li-Ming tilted her head and said, "No, I didn't. I actually found it exciting." Tyrael didn't know if he should be amazed by her or feel like there was something wrong with her. "I figured if my body is to be a vessel for magic, then why not make the at most use for it."

Tyrael smiled, if only to hide his doubt from her. "You know; you remind me a lot of Isendra." Li-Ming looked at him at the mention of her friend's name. A breeze swept through the air and Li-Ming's hair wisped in the wind and Li-Ming couldn't help feel like the wind responded to Isendra being mentioned. It was foolish to believe but Li-Ming wanted to believe that it was Isendra that made this wind blow by. Again, it was a foolish thought because she knew that wasn't what was happening and it made her feel lonely again.

"She was proud too. Though not a wizard herself, she was still a powerful practitioner in the arcane."

"Yes." Li-Ming responded quietly. "Yes, she was."

There was no mistaking that Li-Ming's demeanor changed the moment Isendra was brought up. It seemed to Tyrael that whenever anyone brought her up besides Li-Ming herself that it caused some kind of sadness within her.

"You had a lot of love for her, didn't you?" Tyrael asked as unobtrusively as he could.

Yes, she did. She loved Isendra more than anyone else she ever knew, more so then she ever loved her own parents. Isendra was somebody she looked up too. She was beautiful, courageous, kind, powerful and supported her every step of the way. She was the only person that Li-Ming felt ever truly understood her. There was not a day that went by that Li-Ming didn't miss her. Every day she wished that she could go back and save her from whatever…or whoever killed her. Li-Ming had suspicions from the start that the Yshari Sanctum had something to do with Isendras death. The house where she and her master found her showed signs of a struggle and she remembered feeling a magic signature that was not like Isendra's.

Sometimes the memory of finding Isendra's lifeless body was too much for Li-Ming to bare and she wished sometimes that she could repress it and forget it ever happened. She didn't want to feel the pain of regret anymore because she felt that it was her fault that Isendra died. Even though Li-Ming was not there when it happened, it still did nothing to help her feel better, it actually made her feel worse. Because, she wasn't there. The one time that Isendra needed her, she wasn't there to help her. It was after that when Li-Ming decided that getting close was a bad idea and for three years, Li-Ming shut herself away from others. Until she turned nineteen and left the Yshari Sanctum.

It was far from her intentions and she would have never seen it coming; the way Leah had inched her way into Li-Ming's heart. Despite how annoying Li-Ming thought Leah could be with her prying and demands, she had to mean something to her. Leah was the only who could get away with telling her what to do and sometimes that alone got on Li-Ming's nerves along with her reservations about her magical capabilities, but there was more to her than that. Leah was kind and so very warm hearted. Even after Deckard Cain's death, Leah had remained the same towards the group.

Li-Ming didn't want to get close to anyone. She hated the very thought. If any enemy found out that there was someone that she couldn't bear to lose; then there's no telling what lengths, they will go to get to her through them. That would explain why Li-Ming always felt so protective over Leah most of all. Leah was not a fighter like she or Kormac, or Lyndon was. She didn't think that Leah would even have it in her to take another life, no matter who they were. She could be standing over Maghda with the chance to land the killing blow and still not be able to do it. It's what made Leah who she was and it was something that Li-Ming wanted Leah to keep.

"Yes." Li-Ming replied. Her bottom lip shook subtly.

Tyrael looked at the deck and then back to her and said, "I am sorry that she died, Li-Ming. She was a terrific woman."

"You have no need to be sorry." Li-Ming's body language suddenly changed again and she was back to acting like her old self. Tyrael didn't know if this was healthy or not, but she was obviously forcing the subject to shift. "Well, Tryael; it is late and I am tired."

"Sweet dreams." He replied.

"To you as well." She went back to her tent and left Tyrael alone. She did not know, but the sweet dreams did not come to Tyrael. At first he found them awe inspiring but each time he closed his eyes to sleep he kept getting horrible nightmares. There was one dream he kept having over and over more than the others, and it was of Li-Ming. She was in some kind of other world and was laying on the ground. She was crying and she was in pain. There was something else there too, a monster; Tyrael suspected it may have even been a demon. But, whatever it was stood over her, laughing and whaling and taking pleasure out of Li-Ming's suffering. Tyrael wasn't sure if the dreams of a mortal had any substance to them. He never really believed so, but this dream came to him more than twice a week and it bothered him.

At some time during the time when Li-Ming was talking with Tyrael, Lyndon had woken up with a dry throat and desperately wanted something to drink. He lifted himself up and found he wasn't wearing a shirt, or his boots. He still had his pants on however which was good enough for him and he stood albeit, sorely because his body ached. He could see only out of one eye since the other one had a bandage around it to help with the swelling. He walked out of his tent and saw Li-Ming walking his way from the deck.

Lyndon noticed that she was wearing a blanket over her shoulders and her hair was down. It was a shame that the blanket was long because, he would have loved to see how great her legs looked. Then again, he would love to see any woman without their cloths.

Li-Ming saw him and said, "Doesn't anyone sleep anymore?" She kept her eyes on his face because he wasn't wearing his shirt and she didn't want him to notice her faint blush.

"I'm just looking for some water." His throat was dry and it barely came out as more than a whisper.

Li-Ming got close to him to inspect his wounds. She raised one hand to him and held onto her blanket with the other so it wouldn't fall. He tried to not let her touch him, but she swatted his hand away and held onto his chin and moved his face around so she could get a good look. His face was still slightly bruised up and she couldn't tell how bad the swelling above his eye was but Malachi assured them that nothing was broken and the swelling should be gone within the week. He also had a cut above his lip that was hardly noticeable thanks to his mustache.

She was glad that he seemed to be alright. She was very terrified after they found him lying in between the two market stalls unconscious that he was dead.

There were times – rare occasions – when he would try and be discreet when he stared at a woman and Li-Ming and Leah were some of those women. When Li-Ming lifted her hand to his face, Lyndon was able to see her chest and although she was still wearing her smalls, this was the most detail he has seen of her yet. The curve of her neck and the softness of the flesh of her breasts looked way to damned good for him to pass up. Then there was her collar bone. He has driven women mad by placing small, tender kisses on that area and for some reason, Lyndon started to wonder if Li-Ming had ever felt the prowess of a man before.

He wasn't being secretive about his staring and Li-Ming obviously noticed. She snapped her fingers in front of his eyes and firmly held her index finger in his face.

"Stop it!"

"Stop what? I have no idea what you're talking about." He was teasing her."

"You know damn well what! You're staring."

He shrugged his shoulders and it hurt him a little to do so because of how sore he was but he shrugged it off and said, "Maybe so. There's just this very lovely woman standing in front of me." He went to run his fingertips just below her collar bone but Li-Ming grabbed his hand, tightly and pushed it away from her.

"Lyndon, I am serious. If you touch me, I will hurt you further." She was only being half serious. She wouldn't do anything drastic but she would do something to make sure she got her point across. She was holding his hand just right enough that she would be able to quickly press on the pressure point on that fatty part of his hand in between his thumb and index finger. She wouldn't be light about it either.

"Aren't you even the slightest bit curious?" He asked with a suggestive smirk.

Li-Ming squinted at him with unamused eyes. "No, I am not. I never have been. Such things are of no importance to me."

Lyndon tilted his head back and frowned. "Really? Never?" He stared at her for a moment and said, "I think you're lying."

"Think all you want." She said letting go of his hand. "I'm done now; you look fine. Now, go get yourself some water, it's over by Haedrig's forge. Just, be quiet about it and go back to sleep when you're done. I would rather you have as much rest as you can get."

"Fine," Lyndon held his hands up in surrender. "As you wish."

He went to get himself some water and Li-Ming went back to her tent. Constantine had not come back from whatever it was he was doing and must have been lurking about the camp somewhere. Which was fine as long as he didn't stray to where he wasn't aloud. She blew out the candles she was using and laid down so that she may sleep.

Or at least try to.

Lyndon was so irritating and she could not believe that he had the nerve to try and touch her like that. The man certainly had no respect for personal boundaries. Even if she had allowed him to touch her, she didn't think much was going to happen anyway, just him copping a feel and that was it. But, did she really know that? She had never been with anyone before and so did she have the right to say she knew what was going to happen? She delicately rubbed the spot on her chest that Lyndon tried to with her own finger tips and the only thing she felt was slightly ticklish.

She looked at her hand and immediately thought it was all rubbish. Lyndon was just being a pig and that was it. There would have been nothing in it for her. Why people always bragged on about such petty things was beyond her. The way people described it always made Li-Ming feel like she had to wash herself because she would feel violated having had heard it.

Li-Ming laid on her side, her hand underneath her pillow. It was her least favourite kind of day. Where they made very little progress and one of their own almost dying. Things were bound to change soon. The sun would rise in all of its scorching glory in a few hours and they will have all day to get more information and with luck, find Maghda.

You could say things got a bit "Touchy." Lol. See what I did there? And, like that I lost all of my readers and I will go down in history as a poor wretched soul for my terrible pun.

I hope I didn't disappoint any of you. After the last chapter and how much happened I hope I didn't like throw a curve ball here.

I would like to thank Kden for reviewing. Every one I get gets me that much more inspired and they never go unappreciated.

A few things here. One; I've been doing a lot of research on the deeper lore of this game as of late and I am glad that I found what I have, especially about how wizards work with arcane energy. Second; We're getting close to the fight with Maghda which I cannot wait for because I have been planning this fight for a long while now and I'm just going to tell you now, it is going to be BRUTAL! And, some of the research I have been doing is going to come into play with that fight as well. I can't wait.

So how many Batman fans do we have here? I ask because one of my favourite comics; The Killing Joke; is finally being made into a full length animated film and I am very excited. The even have Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy coming back to do the voices of Batman and The Joker and I am just nerding all over the place thinking about it. Lol! There is a ten minute sneak peak about it out right now and so if you're a fan you should check it out.

That's it for me for now. I'm going to go grab a fat juicy burger and watch a movie or something. Signing off for now. PEACE!