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the Project	By : theLureln Category: +M through R > Magic: The Gathering Views: 11903 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Magic the Gathering characters or settings, anything else is mine. This story is not being written for profit.

Chapter List
- 1-the Project
- 2-Two
- 3-Three
- 4-Four
- 5-Five
- 6-Six
- 7-Seven
- 8-Eight
- 9-Nine
- 10-10
- 11-Eleven
- 12-Twelve
- 13-Thirteen
- 14-Fourteen
- 15-15
- 16-16
- 17-17
- 18-18
- 19-19
- 20-20
- 21-21
- 22-22
- 23-23
- 24-24
- 25-25
- 26-26
- 27-27
- 28-28
- 29-29
- 30-30
- 31-31
- 32-32
- 33-33
- 34-34
- 35-35
- 36-36
- 37-37
- 38-38
- 39-39
- 40-40
- 41-41
- 42-42
- 43-43
- 44-44
- 45-45
- 46-46
- 22
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            Venser had been observing Lorissa’s work on her personal project for an improved spellbook for several weeks and he’d immediately understood it was going to be a complicated undertaking. As an inventor himself he loved just such a challenge. Being very gifted at teleportation and closely tied to it, he’d been pleased to find she’d realized it would be a necessary property in the creation of the book. Despite her inability to use magic, she seemed to have an innate understanding of the working principles behind it. He’d readily volunteered to help her with that aspect of the making of the book, delighted to be able to do something for her. He was somewhat of a master when it came to teleportation; many mages might have the ability to teleport but none with his degree of affinity.
            Lorissa was glad that he might be able to help her with a portion of the spellbook creation; it was turning out to be more daunting than she’d originally surmised it would be. She was even happier that he seemed to have completely accepted her need for space for the time being. After their discussion this morning, he had gone back to behaving like his usual friendly, inquisitive self. She’d been concerned it might be too awkward to work together now that they were both aware of one another on a physical level, but the day had progressed smoothly and she felt as comfortable around him as she had before their kiss.
            Venser wasn’t feeling as unaffected as he appeared, having lapsed into fantasizing about her more than once over the course of the day. He was good at concealing it, especially when he truly valued how well they interacted. It wasn’t very often he met a woman who stimulated his mind as much as his body; he wasn’t willing to lose their closeness just for sex. He could wait. He was running over an idea for a minor summoning spell to bind into the book, basking in the way she looked him in the eye to acknowledge she was listening, when he got a distinctly uneasy sensation that someone was staring at him. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end and he instinctively glanced around the shelves of books.

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Jace was rooted to the ground, glaring at the scene in front of him. The stranger was leaning into Lorissa as he spoke to her, his body turned towards her, the attraction obvious to anyone who happened to be watching. While she wasn’t doing anything flirtatious, she wasn’t moving away from him either. Jace’s blood that had been racing with anticipation quickly boiled over into fury, his hands clenching into fists at his side, his magical aura spiking with his agitation. He could feel the violence rising within him, his power writhing with the need to lash out. And then Lorissa laughed at something the other man said and Jace let out an involuntary growl. He felt something very unpleasant, almost painful, blossom in his chest when he saw how Lorissa was smiling at the man who was talking to her. He wanted to put his fist through the other guy's face. Didn't she know what the asshole was thinking about from the way he was looking at her? She was so naive.
His towering rage actually brought him to his senses; he despised being out of control and the second he realized how easily his emotions were engaged by the situation, he reined them in sharply. He had a reputation to maintain; he was the Living Guildpact and he refused to quarrel with some mage in the ranks of one of the guilds he governed. Niv-Mizzet would never let him live it down if he made a scene. He closed his eyes and took several calming breaths before he trusted himself to approach the pair.
He was watching Lorissa’s face intently as he drew near, deliberately ignoring the presence of the other man, his earlier eagerness to see her rising up again now that his anger was under wraps. It was the guy who noticed him first though, turning to face Jace as he approached, subtly shifting so that his body was slightly in front of Lorissa’s in a gesture so overtly protective it set Jace’s teeth on edge.
When the man said, “Can I help you,” as if he had every right to speak on her behalf, Jace nearly lost it all over again but he forced himself to calmly reply, “I’m here to see the lady.”
Lorissa’s head snapped up in surprise at the sound of his voice. It was gratifying to see the way her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed when their gazes met; so she remembered their previous meetings as well as he did it seemed. This other guy, whoever he was, hadn’t managed to wipe away the memory of their time together. Jace was fiercely glad; although the more rational part of his brain pointed out that he’d planned on coming here to be “just acquaintances” with her. He shrugged it off, unwilling to share her with anyone else even though he’d ignored her for months. Some part of him must have thought she was sitting around waiting for him, that no one else would go after her since she lacked any kind of magical talent. It was an arrogant, rude mistake he now realized. There was much more to her that made up for her deficiency of power and apparently someone else had noticed this as well.
Lorissa couldn’t believe her eyes. After months of no interactions or communications of any kind, Jace was once again making an appearance in her life. It was just like him to show up without warning, only this time it was even more awkward because Venser was there. A man she had just kissed yesterday. A multitude of conflicting emotions roiled inside of her as always when she saw the blue mage, but conscious of her companion and also that she was at work, she did her best to keep her feelings in check. After this long, she could only assume he was there at the behest of Niv-Mizzet.
“What did my Guildmaster send you here for this time,” she asked, not even bothering to greet him, proud of the even tone to her voice when what she really wanted to do was scream at him for daring to show his face to her again after so casually vanishing from her life.
Although the tone was mild, the words were like a lash, and Jace winced even as he knew he couldn’t blame her for her disdain. He’d put her out of his life, if not his thoughts. Although to be fair, he’d never really allowed her into anything but his bed. He wasn’t sure if he was even capable of that sort of trust and sharing anymore; he’d been betrayed too many times to count and he was afraid of opening himself up to anyone. Even more so with her, he got the feeling she could destroy him if he wasn’t careful.
“Actually I have a meeting with him later, I just thought I would…see how you’ve been,” he finished lamely, floundering as always and unable to retain his wits in her presence.
She saw red at the response; outraged at his casual assumption that he could pop in and out of her life on a whim. And now that she knew this particular visit wasn’t on behalf of her parun, she was free to reveal her ire. “As you can see, I am doing quite well. Life goes on, and so do I.”
At her sharp tone of voice, there was a stirring in the mages beyond the bookcases around her desk. The few remaining archivists were not used to hearing her speak in agitation; or at all since she was normally quiet and kept to herself. There was the sound of hushed footfalls as at least one person approached her desk and glanced around the corner to make sure everything was alright. As much as they might resent her status, she was still a part of the guild and therefore to be protected if necessary.
Jace realized she was going to flay him alive in front of a growing audience at this rate; he should have considered how she viewed his tendency to run from their encounters. For him it was a survival mechanism thanks to all the abuse in his past; for her it had to be an insult of incredible magnitude now that he thought about it. He wasn’t sure how he was going to make peace with her, or even if he deserved to once he reflected on how utterly callous he’d been. But it wasn’t in him to simply give up a fight, and now that there was clearly someone else waiting in the wings he didn’t have the luxury of standing down if he wanted to see her again. “That makes one of us.”
Lorissa’s heart sped up at the soft statement, but she refused to weaken her defenses. He had been far too casual in his disregard of her in the past. She didn’t want to fight with him in the library of Nivix; suddenly acutely aware of the stares they were drawing from other mages in the area. “I don’t want to discuss it,” she sighed, gesturing vaguely around them.
“Tomorrow night then, your place,” Jace pressed, sensing the slight opening in her guard, surprised by his boldness but not willing to let the chance escape. “There are things I want to say.”
She owed him nothing and yet, as always, found it impossible to resist him. For some unknown reason, his ability to erode her will continued to be strong as ever. She hesitantly nodded and Jace was careful to maintain a blank expression even though inside his heart was pounding in relief and anticipation. He decided to retreat while he was ahead and with a nod of farewell to the two of them, he took his leave before she could change her mind.
Venser was initially confused by the appearance of the other guy who had approached them with obvious purpose and careless confidence. This was a man who seemed at once sure of himself and yet strangely apprehensive. He moved with the arrogance of one who had power; in fact Venser could feel it radiating off of him in potent waves and he wondered if this man was a walker like him. He wondered who he was and what he was doing on this plane, and more importantly if perhaps he could be of help to Venser. As soon as Lorissa started talking to the guy though, Venser understood exactly who he was. This was the “complicated” relationship that had left her feeling hurt and confused, and any thought of cooperating with the other man faded to the background. Useful or not, this person was standing in the way of any future with Lorissa, and thus Venser’s enemy.

<*><*><*><*><*><*><*><*>

“Your pawn has met the king piece,” the energetic young man reported to his gargantuan guest by way of greeting, glancing about him at the nearly colorless landscape that had been chosen for their meeting.
“Sooner than I had anticipated, with the way that boy is flitting around the corners of the multiverse.”
“It’s because of a woman if you ask me,” the dark haired male muttered, pacing around in agitation. “Utterly ridiculous really; the way he runs to and from her.”
The huge head turned piercing eyes on him. “Is this the same female you spoke of previously?”
The man nodded, the frizzed waves of his hair seeming to dance in excitement as latent electricity stirred the air around him. “At first I thought it was a coincidence the way he seemed to bump into her all the time; now I think he’s seeking her out whether he realizes it or not.”
“Another piece to play with, perhaps you should look into using her to continue to distract him,” the planeswalker mused. “And you say she has met my little pawn as well?”
“I think the Izzet League Parun is behind it,” the man replied, a frown on his face as he stared off into the distance. “He seems to spend a lot of time poking into her private life. I’m not sure what his angle is though.”
“He’s a dragon, isn’t he,” the great being blandly responded. “The angle is power boy, it always is. Through information, manipulation and any other resources at hand.”
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