Santiago took Dean and Aggie only a short distance to an apartment complex. On entering Dean was amazed by the grandeur architecture. Aggie just walked through as if he had seen it all before. Choosing instead too closely follow Santiago.

Dean stared at the ivory pillars carved in bas relief showing depictions of war. As he peered closer, he almost felt as if the depiction was moving. These pillars would be practically priceless if they were antiques.

“Don’t be so enamored with such petty opulence,” Dean heard Aggie call out to him. The mesmerizing effect of the pillars broken at the sound of Aggie's voice. As Dean looked around now, he realized what he thought was classy was nothing but tacky.

Letting his senses feel around him he could feel the charms woven into the bas carvings of the pillars. Everything in the foyer was designed and ensorcelled to keep anyone without a strong will from continuing further in.

“You get used to it,” Santiago said to Dean before continuing to the elevators.

Santiago’s finger traced a rune onto the mirrored door of the elevator causing it to open without the use of the call button.

“Don’t attempt that. The spell is keyed to me,” Santiago said aloud.

“Would never dream of it,” Aggie said as Dean caught up to them.

“Dream of what?” Dean asked.

“Nothing,” Aggie said as they entered the elevator.

As soon as Dean was in the doors closed and they began their ascent to the upper floors. Dean didn’t see any button to select a floor. The elevator must have been used by only important people.

As the elevator came to an imperceptible stop. Dean only realized the ride was over by the soft ding of a bell that sounded. The doors slip open silently but what was revealed was far from what Dean expected.

The dense foliage hid the fact that it was a floor of the building. It even came with the loamy smell of rich earth and the sounds of wildlife inside. As they stepped out of the elevator their feet sunk slightly into the ground as the wildlife suddenly went quiet. As he looked up at the ceiling, he saw the canopy of a forest towering over him. There even appeared to be a sun peaking between branches as he saw silhouettes of small animals running across the branches.

Turning to Aggie Dean asked, “Is this the Grimmlands?”

“No, we are still in Seattle,” Santiago answered for Aggie.

“This just shows us how much the Fay love the Brotherhood of Druid,” Aggie stated. “If you look more with your magically attuned senses Dean you will see Fay’s spell work.”

As Dean walked a little further into the magically made forest, he opened his mind’s eye to look at the enchantments. Expecting to see beautifully woven spells or even some living hybrid of magic and plants he was disappointed.

His magical senses had shut off his most of external senses leaving him in a dome of darkness. Smell, taste, and touch relinquished their inputs while his unique magic sense took over. Sensing nothing magical around him but the 5 nails in his pocket. Focusing on those he began feeling out beyond those and felt nails running underneath his feet in equal distance. As he wandered around, he found a wall leading to a doorway.

Suddenly Dean heard Aggie's voice but as if it were from underwater, “DEAN. DEAN. WHERE ARE YOU.”

Dean couldn’t tell which direction Aggie was calling from. His sense of direction lost after the quick successions of changing sensory inputs. Letting his magical sense go, Dean opened his eyes to see Aggie and Santiago searching for him.

“I’m right here,” Dean said. Both Aggie and Santiago quickly spun around startled by Dean’s voice.

“Tell me what just happened,” Aggie demanded. His eyes gleaming with interest at something new to learn.

“I dunno,” Dean started, “I tried looking at the magic of this room. But everything went dark instead. It felt like I was in a normal room. Not this forest.”

“Did you sense anything at all?” Aggie asked intrigued as he pulled a notepad out of his pocket to jot down notes.

“Kind of but where did that notepad come from?” Dean asked wondering what else Aggie could do.

“It’s just a representation of my original form,” Aggie told him as he started scribbling notes. “You know I’m a living grimoire. I’m just adding more information to my pages.”

Santiago just looked on indifferently as he said, “Nameless was found this way,” motioning to them. He started to walk away. Briefly breaking Aggie’s concentration, Aggie realized he had a job before he could postulate ideas. As Santiago began started to walk away Dean and Aggie followed him.

“Tell me what happened and leave nothing out,” Aggie hissed at Dean.

“Can’t it wait?” Dean asked a little disturbed at Aggie's insistent questioning.

“No, after we leave this forest we might never be allowed back,” Aggie said. “What just happened between your magic and Fay’s is too interesting. We can take our time looking for clues but we may never get a chance to experience your magic in a setting like this.”

Dean remembered his first experience with Aggie in that alley. He had been homeless and sleeping in alleys back then. Some other homeless found out that he was panhandling around their turf and were extremely territorial.

Two of them followed Dean into the alley he had been staying. With no warning one of them grabbed Dean while the other started to strike him. The sudden onslaught of violence shocked Dean horrendously. After repeatedly hitting him, Dean collapsed on to a broken wood pallet as they started to search him for anything worth stealing.

After taking what they wanted, one of them decided the beating wasn’t finished and started to stomp on him. After the first blows rang his bell Dean began to fight back. Nails erupted from the pallet and into his assailants scaring them away. As he got up and stumbled away from his attackers as they lay screaming, their bodies resembling pincushions. As he stumbled away from his attackers, he heard a voice asking if he was ok. Barely able to see he went towards the voice praying that they would help him. He took a few steps before collapsing to the ground and saw a cat trotting up to him.

In what he thought was a fevered dream is when he agreed to the magical contract with Aggie. In the months since then, he had been exposed to a lot but not this. Aggie excited about something besides food was a little disturbing but Dean would explain what he could.

“It felt like I was in a normal room. I could feel the nails in the ground and as I walked around, I found a wall,” Dean said. “But then I heard your voice but it sounded weird. Like bad reception on a cell phone.”

“Interesting,” Aggie muttered.

“Any idea about what happened?” Dean asked.

“Some,” Aggie said, “but I want to think about it a little more.”

As they continued following Santiago, they entered an open clearing in the forest. A tiny rustic cottage sat in the middle of the clearing. Its thatched roof in need of repair, the front door hung by only one hinge. It looked as if no one had lived in it for years.

“This is where we found nameless,” Santiago said. “She came here after Druid Brother passed away to mourn.”

“How long ago was that?” Aggie asked.

“6 days ago,” Santiago said, “and I found her dead early this morning.”

“Why were you here early this morning,” Aggie asked.

Santiago’s face turned red and his eyes misted up, “Her and I are, were in a relationship,” he said as a tear ran down his cheek. “Last night was supposed to be our last night together. Today she was to become the Druid Brother and live her life in service to the earth.”

“Sorry for your loss,” Dean said.

“Her becoming the Brother Druid was going to change our relationship, but her death,” Santiago said. “It’s unfair, it’s too much.” He took a deep breath and said, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to wait for you at the elevator.”

“No, go ahead,” Aggie said brusquely as he stared at the cottage.

Dean couldn’t believe how rude Aggie was being. He wanted to say something but Aggie turned into his cat form. Heading to the cottage stopping every few steps to sniff the ground.

Santiago started his trek back to the elevator using the trail they forged. Dean watched him leave but suddenly Aggie was back at his side.

“Her body is still in there but something smell wrong,” Aggie said. “I smell rats and something but I can’t find anything.”

“What should I look for?” Dean asked.

“Nothing but I want you to power up a magic circle,” Aggie told him.

“Right here?” Dean questioned, “Why do you want me to power one.”

“Not here, but in there,” Aggie said motioning at the cottage. “I have an idea of what is happening with your power. But I’m a little worried about what might show up when you power a circle.”

“Like what?” Dean asked as started to follow Aggie to the cottage.

“If this place is what I think it is you will see,” Aggie told him. “If it isn’t you have nothing to worry about.”

“I should be worried?” Dean asked as he stopped following Aggie.

“Yes and no but we can talk about that later,” Aggie said.

Dean peered through the doorway seeing the silhouette of a body on the floor. He swore he could already smell the body decomposing but he knew it was still too soon.

“Get in here,” Dean heard Aggie call out. “I need you to make the circle around her body quickly.”

Dean entered the dilapidated cottage looking around. Everything he saw looked as if it was rustically made. The floor was hardpacked earth and had soaked up Nameless’s blood. As he ran his hand against the wall, he felt nothing but roughhewn wood. He had a sudden epiphany.

“There is no metal in here,” Dean said aloud.

“The Fay abhor most metals,” Aggie told him as he slowly scratched a circle into the floor around the corpse. “Now get over here and put your foci into the circle as we practiced.”

Dean agreed and walked over to the corpse and the cat and stood in the circle. Pulling out his silver case holding the nails, and flipped it open. With a flexing of his will, the nails began to levitate out of their case. Suddenly a powerful wind began blowing through the trees as the earth began to shake.

“Quickly finish the circle!” Aggie yelled as they heard a bestial roar coming from outside.

Dean forced the nails all equidistant into the ground with his will with a powerful thud. If you were to connect the nails with just 5 lines you would see that Dean had just formed a pentagram. His power force into the pentagrams on the head of each nail, his magic flowed down into the circle.

Powering it up just as the roof of the cottage was ripped off and a creature reached into to grab him.