Okay, finally the new chap, hope y’all enjoy.

Stargazer- My dearest Sage , thank you so much for all your support and patient editing. My stories would be nowhere without your help.

Artemis Darkclaw- I’m glad you like my prophecy. I came up with it in Economics class. . Yeah, I’ve been writing a fanfic with some friends, and doing a lot of editing, so hopefully the story does improve. If anything, I’ll just be happy if it doesn’t get worse. I looove cliff-hanger endings. But I tried to modify this one a bit, just for you.

Prince Tin Lizzy- Sorry about the confusion, this was actually supposed to go with the last chapter, but I ran out of time before summer vacation to type it up. Hopefully this clears up everything.

I know something else you guys get annoyed with is detail and grammar/spelling errors, so I’ve tried to clear that up in this chapter. Let me know how I did. Thanks so much everyone for your reviews!

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Emalie turned and looked curiously at the family as they followed her and Sean, then decided to introduce herself.

“Hello, I’m Emalie,” she said to the older of the two girls. The girl had been right at the door when Sean had opened it, and hadn’t seemed at all surprised to be leaving. Emalie wouldn’t have thought it strange if the parents were like that too, but they had been more surprised than their daughter. Emalie wanted to find out more about the intriguing little girl.

The girl tucked some wisps of her black hair behind her ears, then raised her strange hazel eyes to meet Emalie’s. The eyes were clear and penetrating, and they made Emalie feel tense, for she could sense a deep and powerful wisdom hidden in them.

“My name is Maya,” she said, then pointed to the younger, black-haired, green-eyed girl.

“That’s my sister Nada.” The younger girl smiled up shyly at her, than slipped her hand through Maya’s. Maya smiled down at her, than turned slightly as she walked, still moving gracefully.

“My mother, Karon, and my father, Jodaph,” She wrinkled her nose as she said the latter, suddenly dispelling the illusion of her being an adult.

Emalie wondered at the brief expression of distaste. For some reason, Emalie suspected that Maya and her father were not on the best of terms.

“How old are you?” She asked. With the way this girl acted, it was almost impossible to tell.

“I’m twelve and my sister is eight,” Maya answered, smiling slightly as she flicked her sister’s ponytail.

Emalie nodded and then turned to Sean. Lowering her voice she asked, “Do you know her?”

“Maya?” He looked at her.

Emalie nodded, startled that he knew her name, even though Maya had said it loud enough for anyone close by to hear.

“Aye. I do. My team captains often go to her for advice on where to post themselves, as she seems to have an uncanny knowledge of the future,” He looked at Maya, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“I noticed,” Emalie whispered back.

“I thought you would, since you’re a magi-," He stopped, seeing an expression of anger began to develop on her face, and quickly amended, “I mean, a…um…priestess. I had never seen anyone like her before you, unless you count Evylyn, but her magic’s different.” This time he didn’t notice the fleeting expression of annoyance cross her face at the mention of the Pipski. For some reason, the idea that Pipskis were perfect grated on her nerves more than usual.

Emalie turned her thoughts back to Maya, and reflected on the unusual qualities the girl had shown. “She’d make a good priestess,” She muttered under her breath.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a tug on her arm. She looked down to see Maya, her clear eyes fixed on Emalie.

“What’s the book for?”

“Well…,” Emalie began, but was interrupted by Sean.

“No time for chat ladies. We gotta get moving,” He turned and looked at the parents, “I’m gonna take you to Netwick gate, and I’ll get you through. But from there, you’re on your own.”

The parents nodded their assent. It was rather sad how blindly they would follow Sean, whom they barely knew. The threat of death could greatly change people though.

But Emalie didn’t agree. “Sean….”

“Not now,” He looked at her, eyes serious. “You wanna get out alive?”

She nodded, feeling a tinge of fear.

“Then come on,” He grabbed her hand and began to run. Emalie quickly snagged Maya’s hand, and the mother picked up Nada.

They ran down a maze of hallways, the echoes of the guard’s boots close behind. Finally they came to a grate in the wall, down in the depths of the temple, where the sewage poured into the sewer line. Sean grinned at Emalie. “My own territory. Still got that hairpin?”

Emalie pulled out the little pin he had given to her earlier at the market and handed it to him. “So that’s what this was for.” It was a plain pin, and she had wondered why he had nicked it, and then demanded she wear it. Now she knew.

“Yup.” His brow furrowed in concentration as he turned the pin this way and that. Sweat formed as the sounds of the guards came nearer.

“Sean?” Emalie asked anxiously, “Can’t I do the lock?” She was beginning to feel more and more nervous; the guards were too close for comfort.

“No,” He grunted as it finally clicked. He looked up at her as he pushed the grate open. “You need to save your strength for later.”

She gave a weak smile as she followed him through the grate and dropped down into his waiting arms. “Great. That makes me feel better.”

He chuckled, but said nothing as he put his arms up for Maya to jump down.

When everyone was through, Sean closed the gate and then ushered them along the passage as fast as they could, without making too much noise. It was dank and dark, and stank much more than the rest of the sewers had, probably because it was a private line. It was hard going too, being very dark, and they were so close to the grate that they didn’t dare risk a light. Several times Emalie stumbled, and when she put her hands out to catch herself, she often touched sticky and unpleasant substances. She preferred not to think about what they were exactly.

After a while Maya’s father spoke up.

“Have you done this before, young man?” His voice was gruff and scornful; he obviously had a low opinion of his rescuers.

Emalie was also a bit miffed that Jodaph assumed Sean was in charge, even though he was.

“Nope,” Sean answered cheerfully. He turned and gave an impish grin, “That is, I’ve tried, but no one’s gotten this far before.”

“Wonderful,” The man grumbled. “We’ll probably be caught just as soon as we get out this hellhole, and if we don’t, then we gotta live in the desert. Just wonderful.” Emalie privately thought that he should just shut up, or go back from whence they came for all she cared.

Sean glared at him and began, “Look, if you’d rather….”

But was cut off by a quiet voice. “Father.” Maya looked up at Sean, her expression hidden in the shadows.

“He is just like that, don’t listen,” She said quietly. Sean nodded then led the way forward, the group having fallen into an awkward silence. Emalie felt a bit sorry for the girl, it must have been hard having him as a father.

They finally came to a manhole, and Sean explained quietly to Emalie as they began to climb. “This is the part of the Outer Circle that is closest to Netwick gate. When we get out, we’ll be okay for a bit. I’m gonna stop by Evylyn’s to get some food, and you can work an illusion or something when we need to get past the guards.”

He paused, “You can do that right? Work an illusion?”

“Of course,” Emalie scoffed. She almost fell when she tried to put her hand on her hip.

“Careful,” Sean steadied her. “Just askin’.”

“Hmph” Well at least Evylyn wouldn’t be going on the trip with them. Emalie hadn’t told Sean yet, but during one of the longer waits in the temple (waiting for the guards to go by) she had glanced at the book. She had realized that she need to visit the other Temple, in the Savage Desert, and that was were they were taking the family. She planned to go with them, and perhaps guide them to the temple. Whether or not Sean came was up to him, but she rather wished he would, even though she knew it was an unreasonable request.

She found herself hoping they were almost out, it was turning out to be a longer day than originally planned, and with all the magic she had been doing lately she was tiring quickly. Well, at least she would be building up her magical strength. She was tempted to laugh. Funny how things turned out. She had just gotten her powers and was already straining to build up quickly enough.

When they finally got out they found themselves in a deserted market stall. It was a simple brown tent supported by wooden polls, and the flap was tied closed. There was a threadbare brown and read rug on the floor, and a couple of worn cushions scattered around. A couple pieces of pottery and some jugs were also placed haphazardly around the tent. Despite its apparent neglect, Emalie felt that the stall was pretty new, or at least recently occupied. Memories of people were still fresh to this place, and it welcomed them gladly. She glanced around curiously, “How’d you know we’d have this as a cover?”

As he pulled Nada out Sean spoke, “I actually set it up. In case I ever got anyone out here.”

“Oh.” Emalie went over to help Maya dust off Nada’s clothing, which didn’t work very well, as it was mostly muddy, and then looked at Sean.

“Do you want us to go now or wait?”

He thought for a moment then said, “Wait. I’ll be back from Evylyn’s in a moment.” Then before she could say anything he was gone.

Emalie waited patiently for a while, but as the afternoon wore on she began to get more and more irritated. Finally she fell to the temptation, and knelt before a near-by bowl of water. It wasn’t perfect, but it would do for scrying.

She placed her hands on either side of the bowl then closed her eyes, bringing Sean’s face into focus. His black hair, always falling into his left eye, which was a soft hazel. His mouth, firm, and seemingly stern at first, yet always on the verge of a grin. The strong lines of his cheek bones, already showing the man that lied beneath the still-boyish exterior. Muttering the words of incantation, she opened her eyes and looked.

He was talking to Evylyn, who was packing a large basket with food. He seemed comfortable, and was idly peeling a potato, which he then popped into his mouth. As she watched, Evylyn laughed and turned and said some thing to him. He grinned and leaned forward…

“You shouldn’t do that.” A small hand was on her arm, another brushed the surface of the water, dispersing the image.

Emalie turned angrily, furious at being upset over something as trivial as two friends sharing a joke, “How dare you…,” She stopped as she met Maya’s eyes, clear and stern. The girl definitely needed to be a priestess.

“Do you know what I was doing?” She asked curiously.

“No,” Maya shook her head, but then frowned, “But I know it was wrong. It isn’t time for you to see.” Emalie looked at her searchingly, and then had an idea.

“Why we wait, let me tell you something about my home, and the religion I serve….”

Maya leaned forward and Emalie began, weaving her tale for the girl, determined to find out if she was novice potential.

Sean came back soon after the story was finished, and handed the basket to Nada’s mother. They left the stall and walked purposefully through the market, trying to blend in. It was relatively easy, and there were only a few knots of soldiers they had to avoid. They were dumb brutes, the most common and course of men, dressed in simple cloth, and only a sword and tunic badge to show them for who they were. Keener and stronger men became officers, and got off simple guard duty as soon as possible. When they got to the gate, Emalie pulled off the illusion without a problem. It wasn’t that she made them disappear, she could have covered themselves with a blank spot, but that was harder than what she did. She used a simple charm that made people forget to look where they were. They simply passed by, unnoticed. Simple, but taxing, she was extremely tired afterward, and had to be helped along by Sean.

As soon as they were out the gate, Maya took the opportunity to talk to her.

“Emalie, I want to learn more about this religion of yours. I want to be a novice. Your apprentice. I can do it,” She raised her chin up in slight defiance as Sean gave her an amused look.

Emalie stroked her hair soothingly, “Of course you can. I knew you could, or I wouldn’t have told you that you had the option.” She gave Maya a tired smile, “We’ll talk about it later.”

She didn’t want to mention she might be staying with Maya, not before she had told Sean. She pretended to look at the desert scenery as they walked, too well aware of Sean’s eyes on her.

It was past nightfall when they finally found a cave where they would be safe for the night. It was small, but it would serve.

“Go ahead in. We’ll spend the night here, and then in the morning me and Em will return to the city,” Sean told them. Emalie watched as Nada’s father put her down gently on a shawl, and the mother sank down in a heap near her daughters. Once everyone was fairly settled, Emalie turned to Sean. “I need to talk to you.”

He looked at her and nodded, than led her outside.

“What?” His face was unreadable.

“Sean…I can’t go back,” She waited, but he said nothing.

“I need to go to this temple…it’s in the desert. I figured I could help the family too, and by the time I got back, everything would’ve calmed down, and they won’t be looking for me anymore.”

She took his hand beseechingly, “You could come too. You know the priests saw us, and you have a high profile in the city. I could use your help”

She shifted uneasily, waiting for his response.

He scuffed the dirt, than looked at her. “I don’t know, I have a lot of responsibilities here, but you’re right. I could be doing more harm then good to my crew if I go back.”

After a pause, he took a deep breath, “Tell you what, I’ll go back tonight and tell Maggy. She’s my second. If she’s willing, and agrees to look out for things here, I’ll come.”

He looked at her, “You’ve gotten me into a lot of trouble.”

She felt a pang of guilt, but then thought about how eager he had seemed to do all the things they had done today. She grinned at him, “I bet you’ve had more fun these last few days then you’ve had in a while.”

He laughed in return, “I bet that’s true.”