In the middle of the steppes of the well-known great green sea, Kyrus and Peck contemplated the little that remained of the sunset from the top of the Rigma Fortress.

The trickster girl saw how the orange colors of the afternoon were disappearing, thus bringing a cold and dry night, something to be expected in those latitudes. For his part, the doubly cursed wizard accompanied her with a certain indifference to his surroundings.

It wasn't surprising that Kyrus stared into the void for a few seconds. That was the moment when he would lose himself for a while in his own private mental refuge.

Kyrus returned from his trance and turned to the girl, "It's starting to get cold; we'd better go inside."

"Aren't we going to wait for him here?" asked the girl, curious and smiling, sitting on the edge of the worn and shattered stone wall.

"He'll know how to get to us," replied Kyrus, turning his back on the girl to descend one of the stairs that led inside the place. "It's not the first time he's come here."

"True, I'm always the last one you show these places to," exclaimed the girl, who made it to the edge of the staircase after an elaborate leap, quickly descending behind her friend.

"I don't know what you're talking about," expressed the infernal one tonelessly.

"When I accompanied you to Melek, you said you had gone much earlier with Rawani," Peck pointed out.

"It was because of the blind snakes incident," Kyrus added. "

"Ah, but when we went to Dunden to see the giants, it was because you had gone with Ronan before," the girl replied again.

"Yes, but it was to settle the matter they and the Count of Derc had," replied Kyrus, reaching the bottom of the rickety wooden stairs. The Infernal rushed the girl with the long braided hair from her place, for one of the stair's timbers looked as if it would not support them.

"Yes, but," the girl insisted again. "What about this place? I've never heard of it before, but it seems you have..."

Kyrus sighed. The girl wasn't going to stop until she reached her point.

Then, he explained, "Rigma was a stronghold of the Mizoves, from before the conquest of Adwar. I reencountered it in the Great Green Sea a few years ago."

"And Rawani or Ronan know where it is?" asked the talkative girl, folding her arms.

"Yes, they know it," the Infernal one said resignedly. "I'm sorry I didn't bring you here sooner and didn't care to have done so until now."

The girl smiled victoriously, "I knew it..."

"Happy?" asked the Infernal.

"For now," smilingly expressed the girl, taking the lead inside the fortification.

The parade ground was covered with overgrown grass and rusty weapons stuck and rusting into the earth. The pair of marked ones contemplated the decay of the place in their own way. Almost every stone wall had some hole in it, the product of some catapult shell, and many wooden beams were rotten or had been burned during the siege.

The place was of no value to Adwar or its former owners, so it was the perfect place for Kyrus to conduct the interrogation.

After crossing the fortress, they climbed back up another large wooden spiral staircase. Each step was a creaking sound that seemed to indicate that the stairs would fall at any moment.

"Watch where you're going," Kyrus indicated.

"True, I wouldn't want to step on a piece of wood, make the ladder fall, and so would you," Peck added.

The girl smirked, and then Kyrus' mumbling echoed around the place.

They reached the top, to what had once been the headquarters, where the place commander resided. Kyrus made a brief gesture with his fingers to the lock, and it opened.

Inside the room, the condition was a little better; The Eye of the Storm wanted to stay there for a while, so it had to look better. Moreover, for someone with his tastes and desires, the place should have a decent desk for his papers, a large bed where he could rest without problems, and an ample space in the center for his work.

One of his jobs was the kidnapping of an Inquisitor from the Fist of Rivris.

"Can you wake him up?" asked Kyrus to his companion.

The girl approached the center of the room, where that soldier still clad in his black plate armor was tied up on a worn wooden throne.

The girl gave him a few gentle slaps, and the man woke up.

Quickly, the young man was startled, and seeing himself tied and gagged, he tried to free himself. The young man with the long hair pulled back and a sharp face scowled at the girl's sight and hurled several insults at her from under the gag.

"I guess he's not happy to see me again," expressed the smiling girl.

As a trickster, her youthful and delicate appearance made that man fall into Kyrus' trap a couple of days ago.

Kyrus returned to where Peck and the prisoner were standing, peeling a citrus fruit with a knife. The infernal one watched the boy with his cold white eyes. His eyes bored into the boy to make him really uncomfortable.

"The gag, take it off," Kyrus ordered as he ate a piece of fruit.

Peck obeyed, and as soon as he did, the boy proceeded to insult them.

"Damn you, you aberrations! You should burn in fucking hell like you all deserve!"

"Strong statements," exclaimed Kyrus in an indifferent tone. "I should say the feeling is mutual."

The man shouted, "My brothers and sisters will have your heads cut off!"

"There will be time for that," Kyrus replied. "Right now, I'm looking for information about my friend. You know of whom I speak..."

The boy oversaw him and slowly leaned back against the back of his chair, wanting to get away from the marked one.

"You are the Eye of the Storm..."

The girl swallowed the piece of fruit in her mouth and soon approached the prisoner.

"Where's Rawani?" asked Peck pointedly and with a less jovial tone than before.

The boy pursed his lips as he tried to wriggle free, but his bare hands and without his gauntlets were clinging to the shackled chair.

"By this time, I hope she's dead," the boy spat through his teeth, full of fury and hatred.

"As if that will ever happen," exclaimed Kyrus. "Come on, I'm getting impatient..."

"You people should die!" shouted the boy.

"Where is she?" exclaimed Kyrus louder.

The boy just kept insulting them.

"You should die! Tisvar will incinerate your souls and deliver them to the hounds of the abyss! Your rotten souls will suffer!"

Kyrus asked again and again, and his patience was wearing thin. The infernal had too much on his mind, and he wouldn't tolerate that fellow's voice much longer.

The infernal clung with both hands to the arms of the chair, glaring at the prisoner in annoyance.

Kyrus exclaimed, and the room and foundation of Rigma's fortress shook with every word.

"Where is SHE?"

Each Kyrus' word pierced the prisoner's head, who insulted them in the name of his gods. After hearing how that phrase echoed in every part of his being, he trembled in horror. Visions of horror flooded his head. Kyrus' fury-filled words reflected his will and how he could torment the soul of a mere mortal with it.

Peck looked around him, watching as the dust was blowing off the rafters as if they were about to fall.

"Pull yourself together, my friend," a much calmer voice was heard to say.

Peck was the one who turned to the door and smiled at the sight of his friend.

"Xindal!" he exclaimed with a great smile, running to hug him.

A tall Akajsi man with long flowing black hair was making his appearance in the doorframe. The girl hugged her friend, whom she hadn't seen for months.

"It's good to see you again, too," exclaimed the smiling Akajsi man. "All in order, my good friend?"

Kyrus stood up straight and looked at his friend. His akajsi friend was a marked wizard like him, a man of delicate taste in food, clothing, and magic.

Quickly as he approached, Kyrus reached out to shake his hand.

"I was making progress," the Infernal exclaimed.

"Really?" asked Xindal curiously with a smile and a raise of eyebrows that remarked his doubt.

Kyrus turned to his prisoner. "He's an inquisitor. His will is weak; I could already get through this with a couple of words."

The Akajsi man observed the boy with sharp features and long gathered hair. He stood in front of him and then smiled.

"Can you understand me?" asked Xindal.

After a few moments of catatonia, the boy watched him and nodded.

"Very good," complimented Xindal smilingly. What is your name?"

"A-Antton," exclaimed the boy, seized by an unspeakable panic that coursed through his entire insides.

"A name of the Radova marks, is it not?" asked Xindal, smiling. "You're an itztian, aren't you?"

"D-Don't hurt me, for-"

"Answer," interrupted Kyrus, annoyed.

"Y-Yes! I am an Itztio!" he exclaimed fearfully, trying to wriggle free.

"Shhh," Xindal held the boy's wrist. "That way, you'll only hurt yourself."

"P-Please..." the boy pleaded fearfully. He who had insulted and condemned the marked with his words now feared for his life.

"Now, where is our friend?" the akajsi asked.

The boy swallowed saliva and began to breathe more and more agitated. He first looked at the akajsi man, his features pale and his eyes violet, a common color among those of his lineage. Then, he turned his gaze to the girl who approached him; she also instilled terror in him despite her childish appearance. Finally, the boy looked at the Eye of the Storm. The cold stare in his eyes again made him experience that unspeakable horror.

"D-Dylort," the Inquisitor exclaimed softly. Then, squeezing his eyes shut, the boy began to come disconsolately. "Your friend is in Dylort, I-I swear it!"

"Dylort?" exclaimed Peck incredulously.

"The undercity," explained Kyrus, "Their prison is said to be made for people like us."

"That wasn't so hard," exclaimed Xindal, watching his friend. "What will you do with him?"

Kyrus looked at the boy, who was crying like a small child. "I guess throwing him down the highest tower isn't an option..."

Xindal observed, reproaching him with a look and a smile. Then, after resting his hand on the boy's head, he swooned. Like Kyrus, in his hand was the perfect triangle indicating that he too was a wizard.

"Peck," Kyrus caught the girl's attention. "Take care of him for a moment, I need to talk to Xindal about something."

"Uncork a bottle too," the Akajsi man pointed out as he left the room with his friend.

Once again, Peck was left with chores he did not wish to do.

After closing the door leading to the spiraling staircase, Kyrus let out a heavy sigh and brought both hands to his face.

"Dylort, damn it..." he exclaimed into his hands in annoyance.

"It was to be expected," Xindal replied. "They need a place where they know Rawani can't escape."

"So, you were right about them taking her there!" the Infernal exclaimed, annoyed.

"Are we going to go save her?" asked Xindal.

Kyrus watched his friend, who was watching him with a knowing smile. The Infernal smiled at that.

"I can't wait to tell her we went to save her."

The mutual laughter at that was a product of his experiences with the orc woman.

Kyrus looked at his friend again with concern past that laughter and relaxed moment.

"I need to talk to you about something else..."

Xindal soon concluded, "Is it about Ronan's letters?"

"Not only that," exclaimed the Infernal. "In his letters, he talks about a possible breakthrough in his research and how the children he found might have something to do with it."

Xindal eyed him suspiciously, "Are you sure? considering how Ronan is..."

"I saw it," the Infernal exclaimed with certainty. "When the letter came into my hands, I could see Ronan and the children through the last impressions."

"So?" asked Xindal.

"Both children have the fighter's mark. Both are warriors," Kyrus pointed out. "When I saw the boy, I knew he was the one who had broken into my demesne over a week ago. The boy, he got into my head."

Xindal watched Kyrus with raised eyebrows, sketching genuine amazement.

"That changes things..."

Kyrus leaned against the staircase railing, covering his face and sighing into his hands. The situation was tense.

"I have every reason to believe that what he got is true, but I have to see for myself," Kyrus pointed out. "But I cannot leave Adwar without Rawani."

"The Adhaz triumvirate wouldn't be too upset to see that Rawani is in Dylort."

"The triumvirate can rot where that boy wanted us to go," Kyrus spat. "I can't leave without her, but I can't get out of Adwar easily either. If I cross the border, I'm likely to have the entire Order of Magi waiting for me here at once."

"What did you do to make that happen?" asked the akajsi incredulously.

"Someone gave them my position," exclaimed Kyrus. "Someone said I would be here and mobilized much of the Order of Artaham.

Xindal sighed heavily and crossed his arms, "You never have things easy, my good friend. Then we have no choice, we will rescue Rawani and see if what Ronan says is true."

"Good, we'll leave early tomorrow morning," Kyrus exclaimed. "Now I'll get rid of..."

"I'll do it," Xindal soon replied about that boy. "Your idea of throwing him over the wall terrifies me."

"Do you think I'd be able to?" asked Kyrus.

Xindal watched his friend, who soon smiled mischievously.