Claire and Draz approached the front entrance of the warehouse with slow, cautious steps, their eyes sweeping the exterior for any sign that their presence had been detected. The heavy metal doors that had once served as the primary entry point had long since fallen from their hinges leaving a gaping black hole in their wake.

"We are going in there?" Claire asked quietly.

"Yeah," Draz replied, attempting to sound confident. "Don't worry, I'll be right beside you the whole time.

"Who's worried?" Claire announced, earning a doubtful look from Draz.

As they drew closer, a wave of uneasiness swept over her and Claire found herself hesitating. Who knew what was waiting for them in the darkness?

Alek is waiting.

That thought alone was all the encouragement Claire needed to press onward as she one again found herself following Alek into the unknown.

Claire held her breath as they crossed the threshold, and the darkness seemed to envelope them, drawing them in while pressing down all around them. The deeper they went into the blackness, the more stifling it became.

As their eyes grew more adjusted to the lack of light, Claire could see the floor was littered with garbage and debris. Each time they passed an open doorway which often opened up to an abandoned office or storage room, Claire wondered how long it had been since anyone had been inside.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Claire asked, her voice a barely audible whisper.

"It would take incredibly strong magic to counter the charm," Draz replied. "It's here alright."

Claire nodded and pressed her hand against her heart. She had tucked the trinket beneath her shirt to mask the glow and found comfort in the warmth of the metal against her skin.

"Let's keep searching, okay?" Draz said.

Claire nodded again and the two continued down the main hallway, listening and searching for anything out of the ordinary -- including shades.

Every time they kicked something and sent it skittering across the floor, Claire cringed and felt her heart skip a beat.

Soon the hall came to a dead end and their only option was to go to the left, or to the right. Claire pulled the pendant out from beneath her shirt, the soft glow illuminating the space around them. The light seemed brighter than ever now, which made Claire more anxious than excited.

What if someone, or perhaps something, saw?

Shoving the thoughts aside, Claire held the pendant out and watched with bated breath as it swung back and forth for what seemed like an eternity. Finally it stopped, the chain going taunt, though it wasn't pointing left or right. Instead it was pointing straight down. She looked towards Draz who looked as confused as she felt.

"What do we do now?" She asked. "Is it broken?"

"No, we're just close, and this sort of magic has no concept of spatial orientation," Draz explained. He raked his fingers through his blond hair and Claire could tell he was trying to figure out what to do next.

"If it's pointing down, then maybe it's trying to tell us he's beneath us?" he said. "Wait here."

He was gone before Claire could stop him, disappearing into the darkness. She started to call out to him but stopped herself. What if they were close? The last thing she wanted to do was alert Sevik, or anyone with him, to their presence. He returned a few seconds later, startling her when he erupted unexpectedly from the shadows.

"There are stairs over here," he said. He took hold of her hand and pulled her behind him. "Come on." Claire hurried along beside him, grateful that he hadn't been swallowed whole by some unseen beast she imagined stalking the desolate halls of the warehouse.

They took the wide, wooden steps as quickly as they could while still checking for potential hazards like holes or broken planks.

They'd had just reached the bottom when they heard the sound of voices -- angry voices -- echoing towards them. Claire recognized the condescending tone as belonging to Sevik.

Edging closer, they crouched down to peer through a grime covered window into the next room. It was a large, open space and if Claire assumed it had been used as storage at one point.

Alek was on his knees in the center of the room, his hands bound behind his back, his head hanging. Claire could faintly make out traces of blood on his face and staining the collar of his shirt. Sevik was stalking around him in slow, predatory circles.

"Do you think this is a game, Drosselmeyer?" He growled. "Do you think that my patience is infinite? Do you believe that I will wait forever for you to tell me what I want to know? Perhaps I should talk go back and talk to Claire again. I really feel like we could be great friends."

"I told you," Alek grunted, his voice strained. "The enchantment will last until dawn. Once the sun rises, what you seek will be revealed."

"How very convenient for you," Sevik scoffed before sending a kick into Alek's ribs. Alek slumped forward and teetered slightly to the right, but remained upright. The sound of footsteps drew all their attention towards the opposite side of the room.

A man approached Sevik, a man Claire recognized. He was the old man with the limp, the one who had tried to return the fallen coin purse to her. He said something inaudible to Sevik who responded by striking the man across the face with the back of his hand. Claire's own cheek twinged sympathetically in response and she absently lifted her fingers to touch the tender flesh of her cheek where Sevik had dealt a similar blow. The unexpected strike caused the man to stagger back a few steps as he lifted his arms to ward off any further attack.

"I thought I told you to watch her," Sevik shouted, his voice echoing throughout the empty space. "How hard is it to keep one, useless little girl from escaping a locked basement?"

"I-I'm sorry," the man stammered pitifully. "It was like the devil himself showed up at the door! He came in throwing fire and shouting, we was scared so we ran!"

Sevik lifted his hand to strike at the man again, but paused when the sound of laughter began to fill the room. They both turned towards Alek whose shoulders were shaking in an effort to contain the sound.

"You find something about this funny, Drosselmeyer?" Sevik inquired, his anger palpable.

Alek's laughter began to fade and he slowly shook his head. "No, I find it quite pitiful actually," he replied. "I'm laughing because I can't believe I managed to get caught by an idiot like you. You should have picked your men more carefully, Sevik. It looks like that one just pissed himself again."

Sevik shoved the man out of the way and stalked back towards Alek. He grabbed a fist full of Alek's shirt and jerked him close. "What's this? Jokes? Do you think your friends are going to come and rescue you?" Sevik asked. His expression grew dark and a smirk crawled across his face. "Would you like to know what I am going to do to Claire when I find her?"

Draz started to rise, flames flickering to life between his fingers, but Claire placed a hand on his shoulder and held him down. When he looked her way, ready to protest, she shot him a glare and shook her head.

"I'm going to kill that bastard," Draz hissed, but he didn't try to move again and they both turned their attention back towards the room.

"No," Alek replied. "If Draz brings Claire anywhere near this place I'll have him begging for mercy before I'm done beating him into oblivion. Besides, how would they even know where to find me. As you said yourself, Claire is useless. Draz isn't particularly bright. In fifteen minutes, the sun will rise and you'll have what you wanted."

Sevik sneered and released his grip on Alek's shirt. He stepped back and smirked. "That's a wonderful question, why don't we ask them?" His hand shot out, his palm pointing in the direction of the wall behind which Claire and Draz were hiding.

Before either of them could fully process what Sevik meant, the wall they were crouched behind exploded outward and the two of them were pulled through the gaping hole left behind. They slid a few feet across the floor before coming to a stop amidst the dust and rubble now strewn across the cold cement.

"We're here to rescue you," Draz announced, coughing as plumes of dust settled around them.

"You're off to a great start," Alek replied dryly. "Why is Claire here? Do you have a death wish you idiot?"

"Are you serious?" Draz asked. "You really think I could stop her?"

"Here we are, all of us together," Sevik interrupted happily. "So nice to see you again, Claire. You've saved me the task of hunting you down. Thank you."

"You stay away from her you filthy bastard!" Draz shouted, flinging himself towards Sevik who simply responded with a flick of his wrist. Draz's body suddenly pitched to the left and he went crashing into a pile of crates, the rotting wood splintering and cracking beneath the force of the impact.

"You must be the devil," Sevik mused."What can I say? I'm not impressed."

Draz started to rise, but Sevik smirked and extended his hand out towards him. "Liguru," Sevik hissed. Vivid green sparks shot out from the palm of his hand, falling among the splinters of wood scattered across the cement.

"You're in my playground now. Why don't you be a good boy and stay." The shattered bits of wood surrounding Draz began to quiver and tremble before merging back together and swirling up and around his legs.

Thick green vines covered in sharp thorns whipped out and tried to grab hold of his arms and wrists. He deflected one with a hastily manifested ball of fire, but a second appeared, and then a third, and he didn't have the mobility to avoid them all. Within minutes he was rendered immobile.

"Much better," Sevik replied with a satisfied smile. He turned back towards Alek and then looked towards Claire who sat just a few feet away. "We still have a few minutes until dawn, what shall we do to pass the time?"

"You aren't going to get away with this," Claire shouted, rising unsteadily to her feet. Sevik made no effort to stop or detain her, he simply watched her with an amused grin on his face.

"Must you be so cliche, Claire?" he inquired with a roll of his eyes. "Did you grow more obtuse in our time apart, or are you simply trying to irritate me on purpose? I assure you that the latter is not a good idea and will not work in your favor. Answer me this then my dear, who is left to stop me? You?"

"Yes," Claire shot back.

He reached for her faster than Claire could retreat and she felt his fingers twist into her hair. His gaze bore into hers, his eyes inky black pools ready to swallow her whole. Somewhere to her left she heard both Alek and Draz shouting profanities, but it all seemed so distant, as though they were miles away.

"You've got a fire in you, Claire, I'll give you that much," Sevik whispered. He pulled her closer, so close she could feel each warm breath as it rolled past his lips.

"Perhaps I underestimated your value, it's been a while since I've had a new toy to break," Sevik declared as his free hand came to rest against the curve of her throat. He grinned wickedly, stroking the exposed skin gently, tracing the marks he had already left behind during their previous encounter. "I do so enjoy breaking things."

Claire reacted instinctively. When her hand came into contact with the side of Sevik's face, she was just as surprised as he was. His grip loosened for a brief moment, as though he were going to release her, but instantly tightened again as he jerked her around and pulled back against his chest.

"You'll pay for that," he hissed into her ear. "You drew blood you little bitch."

With his threat made, Sevik shoved her forward. She landed on her hands and knees, small bits of sharp stone digging into the palms of her hands.

No longer entranced by his gaze, Claire became acutely aware of both Alek and Draz shouting at her.

"I'm fine," she gasped, doing her best to ignore the stinging in her palms and the throbbing in her knees. "I'm fine."

Was she?

She felt dirty and wanted nothing more than to go home and wash Sevik from her skin.

Of all the things she had encountered in this world, Sevik scared her the most. Looking back, she saw a thin crimson line trailing from the corner of Sevik's mouth. His attention was not on them, however, it was on the sun which was slowly coming into view through the dirty warehouse windows.

As long rays of light filtered in, motes of dust dancing through the air began to coalesce into a slowly spinning ball of faint, pulsating light. It reminded Claire of the trick Alek had used create the snowball while they'd been skating.

The growing ball hovered a good fifteen feet off the floor and had captured the attention of all in the room. They all watched as the ball began to spin faster, streams of dust being drawn into it from all directions. A faint blue glow began to shine from within the ball and the dust began to shift into sparkling particles of light. The ball burst unexpectedly and rained down on them like tiny sparks of blue fire.

"My my, Drosselmeyer," Sevik declared with a wicked grin, "you've been a very bad boy."

As the sparks dispersed and faded, all that was left behind was a simple wooden figure, a nutcracker if Claire's eyes were not playing tricks on her. It was in desperate need of repair, the paint was badly faded and its jaw was being held in place by a makeshift bandage.

She expected Sevik to be outraged, but he seemed quite pleased.

Claire didn't understand. What was so important about a broken doll?

As it sank towards the ground, Sevik approached. Once it was low enough, he plucked it from the air and held it very carefully.

"The world has not been kind to you, dear prince," Sevik stated, his grin growing wider. "Fear not, your suffering will soon end."

"You have what you want," Alek called out. "Now, let us go."

Sevik reached into his pocket and withdrew a simple red bag. He placed the nutcracker into it and slipped it into his pocket.

"Let you go?" Sevik laughed, "I'm afraid that won't be possible. I'm under strict orders to make sure you never leave this place alive. I intend to see this mission through to completion. Goodbye, Aleksandr."

Sevik lifted his hand, shadows spiraling like snakes around his arm to form a spear of dark, crackling energy in his palm.

"No!" Claire screamed, leaping towards Sevik. She struck him with enough force to bring them both crashing down to the cold floor. He easily threw her off of him, rolling on top of her and pinning her to the ground.

He leaned in close and took a deep breath before speaking, his voice a whisper.

"Remember, my love," he began, "this is your fault. Alek would be alive if it wasn't for you."

He chuckled, the sound echoing around her. "I'll see you soon."

Before Claire could speak, Sevik vanished into a swirling cloud of black, dense smoke which quickly slithered away into the surrounding darkness.

Claire scrambled to her feet, her heart pounding violently in her chest as she turned towards Alek. He lay unmoving on the ground, the last remnants of crackling black energy fading away. Claire threw herself towards him, not wanting to believe what she was seeing.

"Alek! Please no," Claire sobbed hugging him, and pulling him into her lap. Breathing became difficult and the world felt as though it were moving in slow motion.

A numbness had begun creeping over her and she felt cold. How could this be happening? Sevik was right, this was her fault. If she'd just gone home, if she had never gotten on that train, if she'd just...

"Claire," Draz's voice floated over her and she felt his hand on her shoulder. She jerked away, not wanting any comfort he might try to offer.

"There has to be something we can do," Claire choked out at last, fingers gripping Alek tightly.. "There has to be some way to undo this! A spell! A charm! Anything!"

"Magic can do a great many things," Draz said sadly. "But it cannot supercede death."

"No!" Claire shouted angrily, tears streaming down her face. "I can't accept that! There has to be something you aren't thinking of!"

"Alek?"

Claire's head snapped around and her tear filled eyes settled on Arabella. The young woman wasn't looking at them, but at the figure laying prone across Claire's lap.

"Is... is he alright?"

Claire couldn't find the words and so she simply shook her head, the tightness in her chest making it impossible to breathe.

Arabella let out a choked whimper, her hands rising to cover her mouth as she sat down hard on the floor. Claire watched with growing anguish as Arabella's eyes widened with the realization that Alek was dead.

"Damn it," Draz growled, "damn it all, alright, there is one thing we can try."

"What?" Claire gasped.

"It is very dangerous, and you are more likely to die than succeed," Draz said quietly. "We'll need all of us to make it work."

"I don't care," Claire stated fiercely. "I'll do anything."