Amy was at the training ground with Selim. She made sure not to give too much away as she blocks Selim's attack.
With the staff twirling around her back, she thrusts it at Selim's side, barely missing him but threw him off balance. However, he quickly got back on his feet and did a backflip he threw stones at her which she easily deflected but then one pebble hit her straight onto the forehead. Her head whipped back from the shock.
"OWWW!" She yelped while rubbing her forehead.
Selim looks apologetic as he approaches her.
"Sorry," he says, "You are much faster than I thought."
"No harm done," she replied with a smile. "we're just training."
He sighed in relief. "Thank goodness,"
She continues to rub her head a bit more before getting back up. The look on Selim's face shows that she didn't go unscathed from that. She looked at her reflection on the spearhead then quickly healed her injured forehead.
"How did you do it?" She asked.
"Shadows", he answered before correcting himself with an awkward expression after seeing Amy's reaction, "not literally of course but the stone that hit you is smaller than the first ones I threw at you thus it was hiding behind them hence shadows."
"You must be good at throwing things if you're able to do with that much accuracy."
Selim nodded. "It took years of practice just to get that done right."
She continued talking with Selim as they compare notes on their training and physical fitness.
Selim is one of few people she continues to interact with, as herself, in her current present because, in the past, she didn't have time to socialize because of her search for Alabaster. She rarely sees Selim at all. He seemed to be quick busy on his own anyway. Now that she had finished with her plans, she decides to physically train after putting it off for some time. In addition, Alabaster's inactivity as well as Leon and Rufus's shenanigans gave her time to spare.
She went back to the showers and washed up before heading to the circular room. All this sneaking around has initially made her anxious. She has had a few inevitable notices from others especially Nate and Viola. Her past self has been on the lookout for Alabaster and her interaction with them now brought some answers.
She went to her books and studied in the torchlit room on a moonless night. Living like this isn't bad. But she has never slept since she went back in time, in fear if getting caught or missing something important from Alabaster. She used the rejuvenation potion that she overdosed on previously but drank it moderately just enough to keep her awake.
She grabbed a hood to keep herself hidden. Apparently, Alabaster is planning to use the rats to scare Team Sun away similar to the roach incident months before.
This is the perfect time to capture him. She placed a mask over her mouth and head off to the sewers where he is residing.
"I wonder who has been following me."
She froze for a moment before ducking in time. A large wave of magic flew out like a bullet, missing her by an inch.
"It is nice to meet you. I didn't expect to have an admirer."
He looks significantly better than he did previously. His complexion seems to have so much color, his attire is more presentable and overall, he looks clean.
Initially expecting to see him at his full height, she looked down to see Alabaster, still as tiny as he's always been. However, seeing him this small wasn't even the most surprising twist.
"You... Have no magic." She says in awe.
Amy admits that she is tailing him through his actions, not any other way, otherwise it will look suspicious. But he has no speck of magic in him. How did he...
"Yes, it was quite a predicament." He mumbled. "After I appeared in this time and place, I was quite defenseless. The power needed to come here drained me of my own. It was unpleasing but luckily, the items I have on me have been useful to my survival."
He was holding on to a small, even by his standards, flute.
"I have been noticing that someone was watching over me. I thought at first it was those two boys but seeing a young girl such as yourself come after me has made me flattered." He said with a smile.
"Even without magic, that doesn't mean I am weak or lost my resourcefulness. Oh no, I am just getting started. Thanks to this, I am able to control the rats. Once I regain my magic by taking you out, I will get revenge on Aron and Hector."
Wait, he still thinks they are Aron and Hector? His temporal disease is still in effect despite his seemingly clear mind, she thought.
She lets him continue his monologue while she prepares behind his back.
This man hasn't had a proper human interaction in such a long time. I bet he is happy to mouth his entire plan off. Even in the movie, he is too silly despite his intelligence.
After what seems like forever, he finally stopped talking. It seems like he is ready to attack now.
"Your magic is mine, girl!!!"
As soon as he finished that sentence, Hecate has shot out everywhere and sucked all the rats, dead or alive away to deep space, leaving Alabaster stunned. Amy has a deadpan expression on her face like she was expecting this to happen.
"Those circles are... Teleportation." He had a terrified look on his face. "No... You can't be... They look just like..."
The fear on his face is evident. He is thinking about Aron.
The little man tries to run away but in a brief moment, Amy whispered a spell to levitate him towards her.
"I think you and I need to have a long chat, don't you think? You are wrong on certain things and I'm dying to tell you."
*
She took a look at Alabaster's living condition first. Other than basic necessities, he seems to have a separate space to conduct magic in or so he tried. Right now, he is brewing up a growth potion large enough to not just get him back to regular size but multiple times over.
"You're planning on growing the rats too. To break in the stone building." She said.
Alabaster is silent but that alone speaks volumes.
"Well, that plan is useless without the device so you need to find it first before getting another power source for it."
"How do you-"
"I have my sources." She interrupted.
"No, there is no way you could possibly know." He stated. "I came from the future. You can't possibly know anything unless..."
He has a crazed look in his eyes. One filled curiosity and an emerging sign of his madness.
Oh, boy. This man is turning into a schizophrenic.
She grabbed something from her pocket and opened it to pour on her hand.
"I'm not from the future like you. But I have knowledge of it. Like for example, who you are and Aron."
"That boy, are you his friend?" He asked.
Good, he's collected.
"No, Aron is not born yet. You are at least probably decades too early."
"But that boy back there-"
"-is not Aron." She finished, "that boy is his father."
The look on Alabaster's face is filled with shock.
"He looks... Just like him."
"Obviously," she pointed out, "they're father and son."
"Then you are?" He shuddered. It seems he thought it out who she is by now.
Amy can't help but smirk proudly. "I am Aron's mother."
He screamed in agony of the shock of this information. Seeing her chance, she placed the item on top of him which quickly gets absorbed leaving the man in a screaming fit.
She figured out a long time ago of the mystery of the missing piece. After putting the puzzle together, she finally understood something. Her stolen pet project was her doing. There was no sign of a magical or physical break into that box. But she must do it soon. Back then, she fed them and watched over them three times a day because of their high maintenance care in the early days but then it shortened to once a day and now once to every three days.
So, it wasn't hard to take one.
"What did you do to me?!" The man screamed. "How could a child like you know such dark magic?!!"
She grabbed a small cloth to shove in his mouth.
"A pet project of mine. It has no name, but it is something I copied off of someone else. It is truly dark, but it can be used for good under the right circumstance."
She sat on a rock to look at him straight in the face while he is still screaming into the cloth.
"To be honest, I have been wanting to meet you for a long time now. It is not too hard to figure out what to do with you with this." She motioned to the vial. "You are far too dangerous to be left alive but extremely useful to die." She spoke. "All that knowledge you possess, I promise to put you to good use."
Then the screaming stopped immediately then dramatically went limp was if he were dead.