Late in the evening two days later, Sekafi watched the crystal ball in Salabil's hands for the fifth time, light refracting in its purple-shaded depths. Aspen stood on her right, staring intently at it as Salabil carefully placed it in the black wooden stand on the table between them. Aspen leaned in, as if glued to the thing.

'Don't fall on in, dear,' Sekafi whispered and nudged him.

He huffed, and leaned back a fraction. She smiled.

'I need you both to be quiet and still,' Salabil said, adjusting the crystal ball slightly in its stand. 'It's a very delicate matter, and I need full concentration for this task.'

'Of course,' Sekafi and Aspen answered in unison. She met his eyes. So unusually serious, but also, a glimmer a humour at their unanimity.

'Is it happening?' Hiaashaqwi asked from behind.

'Yeah, come here,' Sekafi said and indicated the space beside her. The samandar hunched down by the table, his red scales glinting in the soft firelight. It was almost strange to see him in his undisguised form again, she thought.

Salabil gestured in the air above the crystal ball, making it possible for them to hear what she heard. 'Hush now,' she said.

They all focused on the mage. A few hairs they'd found on the comb Sir Hapow had brought lay between two small parchments on the table, runes covering their surfaces. Salabil's head bowed towards the crystal ball and she placed her hands flat beside the parchments.

As they watched, the patterns inside the purple crystal slid, at first barely noticeable, then faster and faster. Sliding, turning, spinning, darkening.

Sekafi held her breath. Would they find anything out this time? Or would they just see him going about his day, like before?

The crystal ball remained dark for a while, and Sekafi strained her eyes to see anything but their reflections. Then, the ball brightened. A room, seen from above, with a blue-robed mage in the centre. Master Owadro. He paced back and forth, pulling at his long grey beard with a bony hand. He stopped, and looked at something they couldn't see. Sekafi narrowed her eyes.

'It's not that easy,' Master Owadro's voice floated in the air, like a thin whisper. His image stood still, as if listening for a moment.

'I know. That's not what I m... I will, on Rainday.' Pause. 'It's a holy day. The people celebrate Sarek and Ailet.' Pause. 'Sorry, Malady. I won't speak their names again.' Pause.

'My lady?' Aspen whispered.

Sekafi shook her head. She wasn't sure what he'd said. But she was almost certain he was speaking to the woman Sir Hapow had encountered. What was her involvement?

Master Owadro's voice picked up again. 'The humanoids. Yes. I'll make it official on the same day.' He nodded. 'Certainly, most people blame them by now regardless. I'll simply be confirming what they already believe.'

Sekafi bared her teeth. He had started all this. Hot anger rolled through her entire body and she had to close her eyes for a moment to cool down. It was one thing to suspect him, another to have it confirmed.

'Are your people ready for the demonstration then?' Master Owadro asked quietly. Then he waited, folding his arms in his wide sleeves. 'Good. You'll pretty much be replacing the... yes.'

'Replacing...' Aspen muttered beside her, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

'Don't use too concentrated mixtures then. They die too fast,' Master Owadro snapped. 'It's happened a few times too often.' He took a sudden step back, raising his hands in the air. 'No, of course not. Forgive me. I'm forever in your debt for saving me. I'd never doubt it.' He bowed from the waist. 'No, I don't want it back.' He wiped sweat from his brow.

Sekafi met Aspen's questioning look and shrugged. A suspicion had started to form, but she wasn't sure yet. Still, she wished she could have heard the other half of the conversation. But that was too much to ask for, she supposed.

Master Owadro kept talking, some of which had her ears perk while other things sounded very mundane and unimportant.

'Yes, I've got it. Hurawkr is ready. Always.' Master Owadro patted the green stone hanging around his neck.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

'Is that-' Aspen voiced, but hushed as Salabil glared at him. Too loud.

Sekafi recalled what Lady Ileena had said about it. Owadro had used the stone to summon the monster. Was that the monster's name? Did monsters have names? She tried to commit the name to memory in case it'd be important later.

'How many? All fifteen? Good. When?' Master Owadro glanced up, and they saw his full face for the first time. His grey bushy eyebrows came together, wrinkling his entire forehead over his dark, deeply set eyes in a thin, drawn face. Then his attention snapped back to whomever he was talking to. 'I just thought I heard something. Yes, we're ready. All the guards of the Council and the city guards. The ones who couldn't be trusted have been either silenced or removed from duty. Yes.' He brought out a map of the city.

The map Aspen had drawn, Sekafi was certain of it. She glanced at him. His stiff posture, clenched hands, and red cheeks confirming it. Well then. Good to know his skills had be utilized for a good cause. Her hackles rose, a prickly sensation running all the way down her back to her short tail. Bastards.

'There, there and there.' Master Owadro pointed to some locations. Waited. Then pointed out some more places in answer to some unheard question. 'The gates will be shut, of course. No need to risk anyone escaping and alerting other cities. This is our day to shine. And when the others find out, it'll be too late to do anything about it as it'll be official by then. Exactly.'

Official? What would be? She frowned. What was the goal? They still didn't fully grasp the situation.

The conversation went on for quite a long time, then Master Owadro glanced upwards again. 'We should stop talking,' he snapped. The he said in a softer tone, 'Nothing to worry about. I'll send out a search party.' He nodded, bowed deeply and left the room.

Salabil gasped from exhaustion and flopped back in the chair, her eyes closed and her face glistening with sweat. Sekafi stared at the still crystal ball for a while in silence, then she beckoned for Aspen and Hiaashaqwi to come with her to the other end of the room, allowing for the mage to recover in peace while they talked.

'So, what have we learned?' she asked.

'We're in big trouble,' Aspen sighed listlessly and sat down on the carpet.

Sekafi nodded. 'Well, yes, but we knew that. What new?'

Hiaashaqwi whispered, 'The mage is indebted to the strangers somehow. That's probably why he's listening to them.'

'For healing him,' Aspen inserted.

Sekafi blinked. 'What?'

'He said “for saving me”. They're replacing something. The healers. It's the only explanation.'

'Are you certain?' Sekafi asked, wondering how he had come to that conclusion.

'Yes. It has to be. I've always thought Master Owadro looked sick. Sir Hapow said the woman in his room was sick too. They're the priests of the goddess of disease. Their greatest enemy would be the healers. They can control sickness, not heal. It's the only thing I can think of,' he said, looking up at them with wide eyes.

'It sounds logical. I'm buying it,' Hiaashaqwi mumbled.

'Well, shit. So, we have to talk to the healers as soon as possible, then, ' Sekafi decided. 'And what about the monster? They said a name. Hu... something. Do you think that was it?'

'Hurawkr,' Aspen said.

How could he remember stuff like that so easily, she wondered. But right now, that was a great thing. 'Yes, that. Maybe that can be useful, somehow?'

'You should probably ask Salabil about that,' Hiaashaqwi pointed out. 'She'll know.'

Sekafi nodded. 'The soldiers. Do we know how many they are?'

'No. But I'm sure Sir Hapow will be happy to help us out there.' Aspen grinned from ear to ear. The little devil.

Sekafi yapped a laugh. 'For sure.' Her smile faded. 'Rainday. It's just in a few days. Can we prepare our allies in that time?'

'Can we ask for more backup from the goblins?' Hiaashaqwi wondered.

Aspen fiddled with his hair for a bit, then tucked it behind his ears. 'We can get Lady Hennaja's family guards in no time. I believe they are about forty. The goblins who agreed to help are already here. But we really need more help.'

Hiaashaqwi cleared his throat. They both turned to look at him. 'I'm sure every non-human in the city would be happy to help.'

'Sure. But how would we get them organized in just a few days? Rainday is in four days!' Aspen exclaimed and threw out his hands.

'The goblins,' Hiaashaqwi said again.

Sekafi nodded. 'That's a good idea.' They were out in the streets already, probably causing all kinds of minor havoc. They were humanoids. They were good at being sneaky. 'Actually, it might be better than good.'

Aspen nodded. 'Alright. I'll talk to them.'

'Good.' Sekafi tried to assemble her thoughts. What more had been said that they needed to take into account. The priests! 'Owadro said there were fifteen of them. Of the disease priests. Right?'

Aspen nodded. 'I think so. And there's the monster and Master Owadro himself. The odds aren't great.'

'The healers will help though, for sure?' Sekafi said, hoping she was right. But she couldn't see any reason why they wouldn't help. 'Who's talking to them? We need to split up if we're going to get this done in time.'

'I'll do it,' Hiaashaqwi said.

Sekafi nodded. This really didn't look good. But maybe they could find more allies. 'We need to talk to Lady Ileena. Maybe she knows more people in the council who can help?'

'That's a great idea. We'll contact Sir Hapow today. Can it be done?'

'It's already late,' Sekafi grunted. 'But we can at least get a message to him. I'll go. You talk to Salabil as soon as she's back on her feet, okay?'

Aspen and Hiaashaqwi nodded.

She sighed, took a step towards the door and hesitated. 'Aspen.'

'Yes?'

She pulled him into a tight hug, his muffled protests making her smile.

He stilled, reached up and ruffled her ear, a pained smile of his pale face. 'We'll make it through, kitty. Don't worry.'

'You better.'

'You be careful, you're not invisible.'

'I know. And I will.' She let him down and left, hurrying towards the Red Manticore.