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Chapter 7 by SeriousBrainDamage SeriousBrainDamage

Did Ellis actually show up?

No

In the morning, Callum set out for the top of the Caldera.
It took him and Jackass four hours of steady trot to reach Lujanne’s abode.
As he ascended, he had noticed the old giant spider illusion was missing.
Suddenly, the though that Moonshadow Illusionist could have left the place crossed his mind.
“Hey, Lujanne? It’s me, Callum!” he called as he fastened Jack’s bridle to a tree.

The young Mage spent the next few hours in a fruitless search through all the considerable surface of the ruins that covered the summit of Cursed Caldera. The place was desert.
“I’m an idiot Jack,” he said sitting next to his horse who neighed in approval, “I should have sent a letter before embarking on this long trip. I’ve wasted three weeks to come here and now Lujanne is nowere to be found. She must have left. Where to, I wonder…” he sighed ruefully.
“Well, dusk is falling. I suppose we should prepare ourselves to spend the night here.”
Jack neighed again.

After having made himself sure that his horse had enough grass to graze, Callum unloaded his pack from the saddle and went inside one of the houses of the Elven burg where he had already slept once, years ago. All looked exactly as he remembered, not even a speckle of dust. He wondered if that too was some kind of magic. He fell asleep easily, although around midnight something woke him up.
“Well, since I came all the way here, I might as well go give a quick peek to the Moon Nexus right?” he said to himself.

When he reached the balcony overlooking the lake, Callum leaned on the stone handrail.
He didn’t remember how beautiful the place was.
He did remember almost kissing Claudia right on that very spot, thought. How beautiful she was that night. He sighed, as the image of his juvenile crush went thorough his mind.
Presently, the moon came out of a large cloud. It was almost full, it’s reflection filled the whole left side of lake.

Callum was lost in his nostalgia and apprehensive thoughts about the girl’s fate, when he noticed a gleam coming from the slope that went down to the lake’s shore, on his right.
He looked harder, peering into the darkness and then he saw her.
A woman, probably in her early twenties, emerging from the water. The young mage’s eyes widened, as he noticed the stranger was completely naked.
He kept watching, his mouth gaping, as she sprinkled her body with water from the lake, gently rinsing her breasts. She was blonde and, Callum judged from the distance, very pretty.
Presently, she raised her gaze.
There was a brief moment where their eyes met, then she screamed, an high pinched shrill, covering her chest with her hands while sitting back down into the water with a splash.

Callum yelped and turned away.
“S-Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry,” he cried. He was ready to dart into the bushes to hide when a familiar voice came form down the lake.
“Callum? Is that you?”
The boy stood, then slowly turned back and peered over the balcony.
“Lujanne?!?”
He couldn’t believe his eyes. Down on the bank, next to where up to a moment before the unknown blonde woman stood, now was Lujanne. Her dark-blueish skin was glistening under the moonlight, and her silvery, white hair were undone, falling on her shoulders. She was holding a cloth over chest.

“Callum, what are you doing here? I am pretty sure that I wasn’t expecting any visitor,” she said as she came up over a side stair on the balcony. The young Mage was still confused and quite embarrassed. Plus, he could easily see that behind the cover of that quickly wettening cloth, Lujanne was stark naked. “What’s up? Cat has bitten you tongue? Speak up!”
“I saw a girl down there, where is she? I think she saw me and run a way. I need to apologize,” Callum managed to say at length. Lunjanne smirked.

“That was Luna, my Human counterpart. Did you get a good look? Did I get everything right?”
Callum stumbled in his words as his face turned of a bright red hue, unable to complete a single whole sentence.
“Oh come on, don’t make that face. It’s so lonely up here. I like to go down at the village and meddle with your fellow Humans now then,” explained the Moonshadow Illusionist.
“So, what brings you here, Callum? Is Rayla also with you?”
She took a few steps towards woods, but then stopped and casually leaned against a tree, suddenly remembering that nothing was covering her back.

Callum had barely the time to avert his gaze and cover his eyes.
“A-Actually I was looking for you, Lujanne. I searched the ruins all the afternoon.
“Well, you found me, didn’t you?”
“I had just given up, honestly. I came here only to see the moon,”
“Well, you saw my moon that’s for sure. Twice.”
Callum froze in place, a rictus on his face.
“Ahem, I’m sorry about that, I had no idea… How did you do that by the way? How did you turn yourself into that girl, uh, Luna?”

“You must be very thick headed. Don't you know it already? I’m a Mind Melter after all,” she chuckled.
“Yeah but, how did you exactly do it? I mean practically. I’d like to know, well, because I’ve come here to learn the Moon Arcanum,”
“Oh, that again? I see... That’s it, you must be deaf. Or nut. Or both, that is too a possibility.”
“No no, you don’t get it, Lujanne. I have already managed to learn the Air Arcanum. I can do it!”
“You… did?”
“Yes! That’s awesome, right?”
“It surely is. Wait, are you making fun of poor old Lujanne? That’s not nice, young man.”
“No, it’s all true. Watch.” Callum then proceeded to cast an Aspiro spell, right in Lujanne’s face. He was so eager to show her what he could do, that he didn’t realize how much power he was putting in the spell.
As a result, the violent gush of air hit the Elf woman fully, almost lifting her off her feet, tearing the cloth of her hands and making it fly away in the darkness of the forest.
Lujanne stood there, bewildered, dishevelled and totally naked.

Seeing what he had done, Callum yelped, his face turning of a bright red.
“Wow, sorry Lujanne,” he said bashfully. “Here, take,” he added offering her his jacket.
The Elf woman didn't flich, she simply kept staring and blinking at him with a stupified expression on her face. Still wearing only her blue skin.
“H-How did you do that? Where’s your Primal Stone? Is that a trick?”
“I have none, I don't need one anymore. I've told you, I’ve learned to Arcanum of Air,”
The Elf woman frowned, then slowly her expression smoothed.
“Well, I suppose you did. I would have never thought it could be possible.”

“Ehm, Lujanne? Do you mind actually taking my jacket here and cover yourself up?”
“Oh sure, dear." The Moonshadow Illusioist finally grabbed the jacket and wore it. Luckyly, it was just long enough to reach below her hips.
"Come on, I bet I didn't show you nothing you hadn't seen already, uh?” she smirked seeing that the the boy still didn't dare to look in her direction.
"I'm decent now, you can watch," she added.

"So, uh, are you gonna help me?"

Did the Illusionist accept him?Did she put any conditions?

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