Lucian Basken glanced across the room, his dark gray eyes judging the orc before him. She had broad shoulders and wide hips, skin the color of desert's in the morning and hair the color of oil. Her dress, once surely a thing of marvel, was worn and dirty, its color faded.

“Are you sure you want to do this? You may not get the answers you want, if any at all." Lucian said with a gruff voice, his pipe resting on a gloved hand. His ears folded against his head in concern.

“I need to know Mr. Basken. I can't go back to that house and spend another night wondering what may have happened that night. Or, or if it even happened that night."

“I see, if that's what you wish--"

“It is." the woman said with a tone that left no room for discussion.

Lucian took a puff from his pipe, letting the smoke fill his muzzle before the relaxing burn passed to his lungs. For a moment, there was nothing before the hyena-like-man, just a vast darkness that spread in every direction. Then he saw the flickers of purple flame gather in front of him and a deep sense of longing invaded his heart. The flames took the form of a young woman, almost as tall as him and with a thin figure; her eyes filled with a deep sorrow. Lucian blew out the smoke in his lungs, sending a silent question in the gray cloud. The woman nodded at him, resolution shining in her eyes before she vanished with the cloud of gray smoke. Lucian's vision cleared, the material world once again in his sight and his goal clear in his mind.

“Then it's best we start. Please, stand up in the center of the circle, yeah, over there, by the red dot." The hyena man said with his business tone, locking the room's door with a flick of his wrist and a hint of purple sparks.

“Mr. Basken, will it hurt?" The orc asked, her body seeming impossibly tall inside the red lines of the circle.

Lucian came to a stop, his ears twitched at the top of his head. Compassionate eyes met the woman's, her own pain reflected in the gray orbs. “No, it won't hurt you a bit, at least not physically. Emotionally though, that's another matter entirely."

“I didn't mean me. I meant, will it hurt her? Am I being selfish by asking her to show right here, right now?" Silver shone in the woman's hands, a delicate silver chain looped around her wrist and led to a crystal rose. Longing tugged harder at his heart strings, a sign from the Other Woman's own feelings. So that's the memento.

“Mrs. Albores I know it is scary and nerve wracking. Meeting with those who are gone, is never an easy thing and it always brings back fears we thought overcome." Lucian said with a soft and even tone, a thin trail of smoke spiraling from his wooden pipe to the low ceiling. “I can assure you, however, that she will feel no pain. She wants to speak with you, one last time, she needs it and so do you. Do this for her and for yourself, help each other move on."

“I will. For the both of us. You may begin Mr. Basken." The woman nodded with conviction, clutching the rose to her chest.

“Good, now remember. You will see her as you best remember her, you will hear her voice, just like when she was alive, but you won't be able to touch her."

Mrs. Albores brow creased and a slight trembling appeared on her hands.“Will you, will you be able to listen to what we say?"

“Yes, I will but don't fret, the moment the ritual is over, I'll forget about it all. It's all part of the contract we signed."

The orc's eyes fell to the ground, her shoulders slumped down as soft murmurs escaped her mouth. He turned his back to give her some privacy and focused on his preparations. He picked up a handful of herbs from a set of drawers at the back of the room, the strong scent of dried plants piercing through the thick smoke, Next came a bowl of gray iron where a viscous green liquid laid. And last, but not least were a few pieces of quartz that laid upon his desk, their soft pink surface reflecting the pale light of the room. With calm steps, he placed all the materials on a small wooden table near the circle. Lucian took another puff from his pipe before the hyena man turned his gaze back towards the orc.

“Final chance to back out Mrs. Albores. Then, here we go."

“I am ready. Please, let's begin."

Lucian got to work at once. His hands cutting the herbs into a dozen tiny pieces over the iron bowl. Tendrils of greed smoke rose from the liquid and the thick stench of burned wood spread across the room. The herbs done, the hyena man moved with long steps across the room, placing a bits of quartz over the red line of the circle. One, two, three, and so on until there were eight. All of them equally spaced apart and glowing with a muted purple light.

Lucian came to a stop in front of the wooden table and submerged his pipe into the dark green liquid. Green fire rose from the bowl, consuming it all for a couple of seconds that brought a scream out of Mrs. Albores. The fire was replaced with thick clouds of green smoke, the scent of burned fur joining the others. The human swallowed hard when hyena man turned back to look at her, a purple glint dancing in his eyes and his pipe hanging from a gloved hand.

“On my right hand I hold the golden thread, on my left hand I hold the bone cane. Divide. Reverse. Search. Cry. Sever the veil with ashes and truth." Lucian's voice reverberated in the closed room, the air growing more tense with every words that left his lips. There was something unnatural to the hyena's voice, a faint echo that drilled into the human's ears.

“Mr. Basken?"

“Oh dark star, three headed dog, azure snake, rotten egg. Oh sweet call of the grave, melody of the cold death. Twisted memory of Yesterday, forgotten augur of Gray Plays. Grant us but a glimpse of the dream that never ends; of the blood, bone and soul that left us to walk another way."

The smoke swirling around Mrs. Albores, a soft cry leaving her mouth before the world was swallowed by the twister of smoke. When she opened her eyes moments later, she stood alone in the circle. Safe and worried. Walls of gray smoke surrounded her on all sides and the coldness of the air pierced through her dress. She was about to call for the mage's help when a purple glow claimed her attention. She couldn't hold back her gasp, nor the tears that fell from her eyes.

“Elizabeth" She muttered as she stared at the ghost of her friend and lover.