By the time fifteen minutes had passed and a small, polite cough came from behind me I had a stack of five books in my arms. There he stood, eyebrows raised, resplendent in his scarlet and black robes, and I just smiled, raising a hand in a wave.

“Nice collection you have here, Morn.”

He breathed in slowly, and began over to me. “You claim I am predictable, but you are more so yourself.”

“Depends what you were expecting, really,” I shrugged, as I plucked a last book from a shelf without looking at it much. Placing it on the pile I waited until he was fully over.

His eyes darted to the books, scanning the titles. I had gone for philosophy and history, focusing on my current personal project of the worship of the Thayne Jomil, and the wider concepts of moral heroism that would gain insight into how best to save the world in a dramatic manner. Naturally I let him see the titles. They were his property and any man's library was his personal home.

After a moment he looked back into my eyes. “Tor Elythis?”

“Problem with it?” I asked, blinking. “It was one of the ones you cited.”

“No problem,” he shook his head, “just unusual. I would have chosen Radasanth.”

“Call me boring but I have done the island of Corone. Might as well experience the high elven kin now.”

He inclined his head and pulled himself to his fullest height. “Nothing else has changed however. You still refuse to serve me, therefore when you stay here, you are controlled.”

I watched as his arm extended and he gestured towards the back door. For a moment I paused, knowing I was unbound, and that meant capable of magic. When one compared my power to his, however, who still held part of it in hostage. With a grunt I pushed away from the shelves and started in the direction he proposed, now though with more books in my possession, and that meant more knowledge. And knowledge is power.

At least my form of power.

Morningstar kept close behind me as I descended the stairs. As we came to the floor busy with offices and staff, I gained a few odd looks, as well as a smile. Only for a single second did I pause to look down it before Morningstar poked at my ribs and I was walking down again. Carefully I went, so as not to drop the books, and came to the dungeons of his mighty castle. I sighed slightly as we passed the empty rooms, each one of them bare and without portion. The door to my small current home stood wide and I strode into it with a moment's hesitation.

Behind me the door closed, and the glittering of the barrier spell once more settled over my being. I tried my best to ignore the pricking sensation as I went to lay the books on the table and all settled as it was before.

“So much for my freedom in exchange for her information,” I said.

He replied from the other side of the door. “You had freedom. Briefly - you could have attempted escape.”

“'Attempted,’” I quoted.

He smiled, showing off sharpened canines. “But you had technical freedom. Then, quite willingly walked in it, so in a way you gave it up yourself, Char.” I threw him a look, and he continued. “Now we settle your choice of city, you have nowhere to stay but here. It will be but a few days as I organise you an occupation.”

A few days. I huffed, and swung myself down into the chair. It creaked beneath me as I grumpily lounged. After a moment I raised my palm upwards and attempted to pool magical energy into it. It came directly from Khaos itself, that which I had been born from. Nothing occurred, however, and I sighed as my short stint of having my old powers back.

“Morningstar,” I murmured.

He answered. “What?”

“I am moving city because you asked. I want more of my power back.” I said it with my back to him as I stared down at my palm.

He breathed in slowly. “I will consider it.”

“No,” I disagreed, lifting up my gaze. I twisted around to stare at him. “I know you. That is akin to a refusal. You could leave me be, Morningstar, allow me to live my life as normal, but you yourself are choosing to continue this fight. I would be more than happy to be left alone. I have spent far too many millennia under the influence of one being. This will not be the same.”

He pursed his lips, narrowing his eyes. “I could keep you here for the rest of eternity.”

“Indeed you could, yet it still won't change my loyalty to ultimately, my own wellbeing and myself. It will only make me refuse to give you what I can. I've done the years of being at another's beck and call. The only way of have me so would be to physically control my mind. Do you actually want to do that?”

He folded his arms and glared at me. His response was apparent.

“Exactly,” I replied. Making me lose my mind would be not having my willingness. The very issue that he only had willing servants, and not slaves or indentured, except my their own volition, said a lot about him. He wanted as many beings under him as possible, but all of whom had entreated themselves from their own hearts.

“Give me back more of my power,” I said, facing him fully now as I rose from my chair. “And I will be far more capable of facing the impending apocalypse. My research is clearly useful to you, you have so much yourself. You want to keep our deal going - then allow me this.”

“I do not trust you,” he curled his lip.

“Yes, hence this wonderful construct of hospitality,” I gestured around me. “And neither do I trust you. Currently, you happen to be more powerful of either of us, and thus the situation is as it is.”

He straightened. “Then I simply need to make certain that you have limited power.”

I smiled, slightly. He sounded so much like himself. Wanting to be the powerful one, he who was in charge.

“If I grant you the gift of more of your power then I want to make sure you fully understand,” he came as close to the bars as he could without looking as an idiot. Those bright eyes glowed as he spoke. “Whenever you are here then I will do everything I deem necessary in order to limit those powers. I tell you to come down here and live, and you do it. This is my home, my kingdom.”

“If it was my way, I would not be here at all, anytime,” I raised my eyebrow back.

“You are far more useful under my control than not,” he remarked with a shrug. “Despite your lack of enthusiasm for my service, you are not the most … resistant of our siblings I have kept here.”