Luna could<i>feel</i>the demon’s pitch black eyes tracing her curves, her gaze like a feather-light caress dancing over her soft skin. It felt<i>good</i>– to have that feeling of being appreciated,<i>loved</i>even – but the realisation rode a wave of dread. The web was well around her now; the more she struggled, the more she wanted to just surrender to those beautiful images in her mind, to give in to the incredible heat the siren sparked in her. There was no way the woman couldn’t tell – even if it couldn’t read her mind, it knew the signs. The demon’s presence was draining away her innocence – corrupting her thoughts, her feelings; even the pink flush that had coloured her cheeks had little to do with shame anymore.<br/><br/><span style="color: magenta">“I ask for questions and you throw your accusations so brashly in turn... Does none of this satisfy you?”</span>The desire demon’s hand trailed suggestively down her body once more, emphasising what could be hers if she just asked for it. She wanted to – didn’t she?<br/><br/>And when had she started thinking of the demon as ‘she’?<br/><br/>After contemplating for a moment, the demon held out one delicate hand, calling one of the many books toward her. The crash of tumbling books jolted enough of her back to reality that she was able to focus on what the demon had to say.<span style="color: magenta">“You must seek something that you crave, Luna. I seek only to provide what you only mortals wish for.”</span>Her beautiful smile muffled the alarms her words set off in Luna’s mind.<span style="color: magenta">“You must tire of running, Luna. To be held as an offering to my whims. What have you to lose if not to accept my gifts?”</span>Her voice was so soothing, so resonant...<span style="color: magenta">“Now tell me mortal. What is it you desire?”</span><br/><br/>A thoughtful frown played over Luna’s lips. She desired many things. She desired companionship; she had been alone – for the most part – ever since she had run from the Circle. She had taught herself how to hunt, how to live in the wilds, bargaining for and ‘borrowing’ what she needed from the nearby villages. Even if she did meet people who accepted her, revealing herself as a mage, and an apostate at that, only ever drove them away and put her at risk. Worst of all, her friends at the Tower probably thought she was a maleficar who had betrayed the Circle.<br/><br/>But it was not a desire the demon could fulfill. The seductress would tell her that it was, but that sort of relationship would always be empty. There was no point in a friendship that formed only because she<i>desired</i>it. That wasn’t the sort of bond she wanted at all. The demon could provide pleasure – she was sure of that – but that wasn’t what she wanted, not really, no matter how tempted she was.<br/><br/>She<i>did</i>want to stop running – the demon was right about that. She wanted to stop worrying about Altun finding her and finishing what he had started. She wanted to stop worrying about the templars capturing her and killing her, or worse, making her tranquil. Most of all, she wanted to stop worrying about maleficar and abominations. If she asked for power – the power to be able stop blood mages in their tracks – she’d be no better than they were. Being possessed by the desire demon would certainly make her powerful, but she didn’t want that at all. Besides, what point was there in strength she hadn’t earned with her own hands?<br/><br/>Luna’s eyes fell upon the tome the demon had open in its palm.<span style="color: green"><i>Knowledge.</i></span>That was the safest way. The demon wouldn’t be able to influence her openly with knowledge – she would be able to decide how to use it if she decided to use it at all.<br/><br/><span style="color: green"><i>This is the only way. Just endure it a little longer.</i></span><br/><br/>Finally, her gaze rose to meet the demon’s dark eyes. Part of her screamed that she was giving up something wonderful, but she stubbornly pressed on.<span style="color: green">“I desire knowledge,”</span>she said solemnly.<span style="color: green">“The knowledge I need to fight back against the blood mages that would sacrifice me to the Fade. The knowledge I need to face them on my own terms.”</span>For an instant, there was a glimmer of sorrow in her eyes, a regret that she had chosen the difficult path, but it was gone almost as soon as it had appeared.<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>