Reminiscences of Madeleine during her Life

"It's okay, you'll have a lot of time to remember those dusty memories in the future!" Leon smiled and said to me, a cold, polished smile that never reached his eyes, which held the void of a starless night. "It's over, let's go!" His voice was a silken command, slithering into the silence of the chamber. I looked at the man before me, a tremor of primal fear coursing through my veins. The familiar lines of his face were a cruel mask, animated by a consciousness that was utterly alien. He was certainly not the Leon I had known! The warmth that once radiated from him was gone, replaced by a chilling, predatory stillness. It was the Messenger of the Dark Spirit. The realization struck me with the force of a physical blow, cold and absolute. It must have been he who controlled Rouen, twisting my old friend into a hollow puppet. But what was his memory? A flicker of something—a shard of a forgotten pain, a whisper of a betrayed oath—seemed to pass behind those dark eyes. Is it about me? Th