There were two paths before her.  Retreat or push.  Fall back or press forward.  Hammarfell had other allies, but Aleksandra was near-certain that Lord LeVane may have already appealed to them, or lied to them.  She had heard rumors that he claimed she had gone mad and killed her own family and that he simply wanted to find her so he could see she was cared for.  Aleksandra looked back at Haxla and the old woman shrugged, offering no council.<br/><br/>Aleksandra looked to the guards that Dracos had sent and her voice grew low.<br/><br/>"Leave us."<br/><br/>"But my lady, we can't--"<br/><br/>"He has already refused my offer.  Return to the carriage, I'll be along shortly.  You needn't protect me."  Aleksandra re-affirmed, and this time the captain and his guards listened, filing out behind her with Haxla in tow.  Palah remained, but he was not hers to command and she did not intend to try, she simply advanced past him until she stood before Renju.<br/><br/>"You don't know me and you do not know what was done to me, so do not say that my family paid for whatever ill-will they bore your family.  My little sisters were slaughtered before my eyes.  They innocent, they were not a part of our war or any war, and Sebastian LeVane cut their throats because he thought it would gain him power..."  Her hands were clenched in fists at her sides.  The images of their deaths and sounds of their cries echoed in her head.  Lord LeVane had forced her to watch, he had made Aleksandra swear she would marry him, and she had sworn just that in an effort to save her sisters.  He killed them anyway.<br/><br/>"Whatever age-old feud our great-grandfather's had, that is not my fight, nor would I think it to be yours unless you are exactly the pawn Dracos expects you to be."  Perhaps he would kill her for saying so.  It would end this journey, which had been filled with loss and pain.  Perhaps that was a welcomed peace.  For just a moment, she felt tranquil, and then anger welled up in her heart once again.<br/><br/>"You know, for someone who speaks of justice, you sit in a dying castle, lost to the world around you...Perhaps fate has delivered you what you deserve as well..."  He would feel it then, the spark of her power glowing like a burning ember beneath the surface.  It was raw and untapped, but it was there and growing more powerful by the moment.  It seemed to flow through her and appear in her steely gaze, as her eyes took on a heavens-like blue color.<br/><br/>"I suppose fate wishes magic to die and we are just waiting for it to send the killing blow.  I will leave you to your castle and your misery, then..."