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large spiraling staircase. They walked up countless steps, far more than Thad would have ever guessed could have been inside the tower. “How far are we going?”
    “You wanted to see Sae-Thae the Paramount of the mages, which means we have to make the trip to the top of the tower.” Bahia said , her voice showing her annoyance at his question. Thad continued to follow Bahia though he remained quiet until they reached a rather normal looking door at the top of the staircase. With everything else Thad had seen he had expected something grand awaiting him at the end. A door that talked, or maybe one that was made of a mystical metal that gleamed in the darkness, but instead he was greeted by plain wood that almost seemed out of place in a wizard’s tower.

CHAPTER V
    Thad and Bahia were escorted into a small waiting room, by what Thad believed to be a young apprentice mage; though Thad was honestly having trouble telling the difference in the ages of the Vathari. He had not seen anyone who looked extremely young nor old; all the Vathari he had seen looked to be the same age. The question nagged at him but one look at Bahia and he knew that his asking any question right now would not be well received. Bahia looked far more uneasy than he had ever seen her before. Seeing her in such a state, Thad’s mind began to worry. She always seemed fearless and in control so whatever must be awaiting them left her out of sorts.
    When Sae-Thae entered the room wearing a long colorful robe, the tension in Thad’s body and mind melted away. Standing before him wasn’t an enemy but someone he was more than willing to call a friend. Sae-Thae walked straight over to Thad and bowed to him. “It is good to finally met you in the flesh Thaddeus Torren.” Before Thad could return the greeting Sae-Thae turned to Bahia. “Mistress of the night, you have done your job, you are dismissed.”
    Thad was amazed at the dismissive tone Sae-Thae used on Bahia and he readied himself for her sharp retort , hoping that it didn’t lead to a fight. He didn’t know if he considered Bahia a friend but he knew he didn’t want to see either of the two in the room come to injury. To his surprise Bahia bowed to the mage and dismissed herself without a word. As the door shut behind the Vathari priestess, Thad felt slightly saddened at the parting, he would miss her to some degree but other more important things now loomed ahead of him.
    Sae-Thae took a seat across from Thad a nd smiled brightly, a look that seemed out of place on the face of a Vathari. “I am glad you decided to visit Thaddeus. I wish I had been looking for you but I must admit that I honestly didn’t believe you would ever come in search of me. Did you happen to bring your pet with you?”
    “Please call me Thad . Thaddeus seems to be too formal between friends,” Thad said retuning the Vathari’s smile. “My pet, do you mean the dwarf or Avalanche? The dwarf is still back at his home and Avalanche wandered off before we reached Xi’han she didn’t seem to keen on entering your village. It saddens me but she doesn’t seem to look at the Vathari kindly.”
    Sae-Thae laughed and shook his head. “Thad it is then. Honestly I didn’t expect the Heartstone creature would come with you. She is animalistic in nature so she would sense the open confrontational air that my people give off. That aside might I inquire as to why you have decided to visit , though I am sure I know the answer.”
    “I wish to learn,” Thad replied shrugging his shoulders. ”The dwarves while excellent hosts couldn’t truly teach me magecraft , I was hoping you could.”
    “Yes the dwarves are subtle in everything they do. I believe we can help you, after the Fae Wars we hosted many human who lived among us for protection for a time. Thanks to that we have the ability to help you in all your areas of magecraft and not just in darkness though that is our strongest area.”
    “You have Vathari who can use