"None. But you wouldn't believe the number of people who want to engage in some stupid heroics. At least their screams as they die slowly provide me some amusement," the cloaked figure rasps. His fingers curl tightly around his staff and he leans on it heavily, the tip sinking into the ground. "Now, you should feel honored, child, for you have been chosen. I don't normally associate with swamp trash."

Olivia's hands clench into fists at the insult, even as scared as she is of this man. Her eyes narrow as she asks, "Chosen… to do what?"

"Why, to be my assistant and spy," the hooded creature comments and chuckles darkly. "I simply have too much to concern myself with than dealing with all the simpletons of this village. So, I've selected you to do a few things for me. You are, after all, friends with that … mage." The last word is hissed out, tainted with utter hatred.

Olivia's face hardens into grim lines. "I don't have any reason to spy for you," she hisses back, just as angrily. "You almost killed one of my friends and you're still after the life of another. And heaven only knows how many other lives you've taken before now. For all I know, working for you could lead to the downfall of my entire town, too. So why should I do anything for you?"

"Ah, and thus the inane heroics begin," the creature drolls. "Do you value the lives of your father and mother, perhaps? Or how about that gypsy boy you've been seeing, hmm? You see, I won't harm you, no. That's not effective. Them, however, I will torture. I will make them squeal for death. And you, you will get to watch. You will get to know your stubbornness caused their pain. You see, that's much more persuasive than simply threatening you, don't you think?"

Olivia shakes her head vigorously and takes a step backward, almost falling over Gunther's prone form. "You would do that… just to get to Natasha?" she whispers. "Obtaining her power means so much to you that you would-" She breaks off and turns her head away from the hooded man. "You are a monster."

The creature just laughs a guttural, rasping laugh. "Monster, hero, they're all useless titles. The world is a matter of power. That is all that matters," he says. "Now, on to what I expect from you. First, you will find that boy who that drugged wolf failed to kill and report to me where he is. I need to complete that aspect and absorb his spirit. After that, all you have to do is come to me when I call, and oh, bring your little half-wit Blacktail friend. Her corpse will make a fine soldier for me. Then, it's simply a matter of bringing the mage to me. Three simple tasks. The rest of this pathetic town holds no interest for me," the creature says. He raises his hand and dark tendrils ripple over it. "Disobey me, and well, shall I show you a vision of what I am capable of?"

Olivia bows her head, looking utterly defeated. She gestures to where the Kadie boy is lying and says in a choked voice, "That's not necessary. I've seen what you can do by what you did to Gunther. And I know what you did to that other town, Schadel – Natasha told me."

The creature waves his gloved hand dismissively and the energy dissipates. "Ah, pity. I would have loved to hear your sobs," he remarks dryly. "Well, now that this is settled, then, I suppose I can leave you," he remarks, then his hooded face turns to regard Gunther. "And for this creature, ah, what to do, what to do."

Olivia's insides tighten in fear as she speaks next, but she forces the words out, regardless. "I know it's presumptuous of me to make any requests of you, but… please don't hurt the boy any more. Hurt me, instead. Knock me out, like you did with him, or… d-draw blood, if you prefer." Greatly daring, she raises her head again to look directly at the necromancer. "It will make for a more believable story if you do. If this is to work, everyone else must think that you got nothing from me and hurt me when you couldn't."

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic, I have another plan," the creature comments. He raises his hand and starts muttering something. Again, the black energy wraps around his hand and this time, he points at Olivia. The energy arcs out and strikes Olivia hard in the chest. It feels like she's being stabbed with an icicle. And then the energy splits and arcs to the Kadie boy as well. Olivia feels like her very life is being pulled away, but only for a moment. The energy fades, leaving Olivia feeling weak, tired, and cold. Gunther, however, is stirring now. "There, since you were so concerned about him, I simply gave him some of your energy. You both will recover fine and can help each other home. There, that should be convincing enough." He laughs darkly, then turns and walks off into the forest, staff chiming with each step.

Olivia slides to her knees, one hand clutching the place on her chest when the dark energy struck her, her breath coming in sudden gasps. Her eyes, however, are cold and bright as she stares after the hooded man disappearing into the forest. Curse you to hell, old man, she thinks. I'll see you rot there!

"Nnnngh," Gunther murmurs. "What a … jerk," he says tiredly. "I could hear everything he said to you … couldn't move, though."

"Wh-what did you say, Gunther?" the Skeek asks in amazement, crawling over to try and help the Kadie boy sit up. It's a very slow crawl, however, as each muscle in her body seems weighed down by rock and ice.

"Just how much of that did you hear?" she adds.

Gunther blinks a few times, then winces. "I said I heard him talking to you. Whatever he did to me sucked out all my energy to move. I felt like a block of ice," he says tiredly. "And I heard him give you three tasks. One of which is to hand him my brother. You … won't really do that will you?"

Olivia finally reaches Gunther, slides her hands underneath his back and pulls him as best she can to a sitting position. Then she clears some leaves and twigs from a patch of the forest floor between them. "If you heard what he said, Gunther, then you know what he will do to my parents and to Djivan if I don't," she says softly, tapping the cleared place to get his attention. As she speaks, she writes into the dirt with one fingertip, I won't do it but I need your help. Act mad. He might still be around.

Gunther feels like a limp sack as he's pushed upright. His eyes narrow and he glares at Olivia, for all of the moments before he sees what she writes in the dirt. "I … I won't let you," he growls, ears flattening. "We can't just hand over my brother to that monster!"

Olivia gives the Kadie boy a quick wink as she wipes away what she had written. "I don't want to do it, but it's the only way to save my parents! To save Djivan!" she answers him, her own voice rising. "And who knows what other people he might hurt to get his way! I just don't want to see the whole town destroyed by him!" As she speaks, again she writes, Leave me here if you can. Say you won't lead me home. Give me a trail to follow. Got to warn Amy somehow.

Gunther forces himself up to his feet. He stands there, wobbling and glaring at Olivia. "Then you can just rot is this blasted forest. There is no way I'm showing you how to get home. I will not be a part of this. And don't you dare ever come to the dam again," he yells. His foot the scratches a rough note on the ground with a clawtip. Follow the broken branches. As for the dam, you're still welcome there. He then stumbles and uses that to destroy the message, before shambling off into the forest.

"Gunther, don't! Don't leave me here!" Olivia yells after him, pushing herself to her own feet very, very slowly. Now collapsing against a nearby tree-trunk for balance (and to give the Kadie more time to get ahead of her), she calls in a frightened voice, "I don't know the way! STOP!"

Gunther doesn't even reply, he just storms off and disappears into the woods, branches cracking in his wake.

After a few minutes of what she hopes is a thoroughly convincing performance of sobbing and appearing scared and lost, Olivia collects herself enough to look for Gunther's first marker. When she spots it, she drags herself toward it and looks for the next one. In this fashion, she slowly finds her way back to the dam, noting with relief that Gunther is now nowhere in sight. Then she points her steps back to the Weaver's compound, reaching her own room at long last. Locking the door behind her and sinking into a chair, she thinks furiously for a few minutes before getting out one of the few white blouses she owns, a thin paintbrush, and a bottle of light blue dye. Spreading the blouse out on her desktop, she begins painting quickly on the fabric with the dye. When that is finished, she leans back in her seat, resting with one hand over her eyes while the dye dries. Gods, I hope this works, she thinks, suddenly tired to the marrow of her bones.