Half the wine was left when Gwen took our dishes. She asked if we wanted dessert, and I said we wanted to talk. A floral scent in the breeze, gardenia...s maybe. The grape leaves rustled. All around us, steely blue skyscrapers lurched into the darkness. We were in the heart of the city, and yet it was quiet and green and the lights were soft. So we talked. “You know what always amazed me about you?” I started, feeling emboldened by the alcohol. “Hmm… my relentless and naïve devotion to virginity?”. "While I was not panting, I was breathing heavier from the exertion. I also would not mind the chance to make sure I had not overlooked cuts that were more dangerous than I assumed. I nodded and backed away several feet, keeping the vampire and his boss in sight.Alexandrios grinned, taking account of his own wounds. "I must commend your teachers, Al-lice. Nobody in seven centuries has pushed me this far, never mind bleeding me so," he said as he ripped his tattered shirt off his muscled body. The light began to spread from the column, creeping down the steps and over the floor of the pit. Gabrain scrambled to his feet and watched as the smooth black stone under his feet was transformed to a glowing white. It was almost like watching the shadow of a cloud moving away to allow the sunlight to brighten the ground he thought, but perhaps a hundred times better than that. The strongest surge of energy yet went through his body.The pit eventually became entirely white with blue marbling. All five of this family went skinny- dipping thensat down to eat lunch, unaware that they were being watched fromabove. Becky got up, still nude and walked confidently over to her belong-ings. The sound of the ice cubes moving around in her cooler causedthe people below to look up. When they saw Becky they waved at her.She waved back. Clete wondered if she knew them. Clete was quiteconscious of the people below and wasn’t going to get up with noclothes on. Becky brought back a couple of.