A Light in the Flame

Nyktos tells Sera that he would quietly watch her walk through the woods and sit by her lake in Lasania. He did not reveal his presence to her when she was a child who would have been frightened to see a strange man. Sera teases Nyktos about his creepy behavior, which he sheepishly acknowledges. Nyktos tells Sera that he wanted to show her the pool since they both have an affinity for water. The pool is also a good, safe place where she can manifest her eather, the way she did in the Dead Woods. To draw the eather out of Sera, Nyktos taunts her so that her emotions build up. An angry Sera fights Nyktos, growing more annoyed as he evades her punches and kicks by shadowstepping. However, the fight becomes sensual, with Nyktos trapping Sera between his body and a stone table. He asks her if she likes being dominated during sex. When Sera replies in the affirmative, she and Nyktos make love. Nyktos calls her “liessa” and promises her that she is always safe with him (313).