Light and Cassian stepped into the room where Njal was measuring powders precisely and mixing them into various vials. The lord magister had a look of extreme focus and didn’t stop what he was doing to greet the pair when they entered. Cassian didn’t take offense from the cold shoulder. Instead he walked at a leisurely pace around the room examining the various plants and reagents that cluttered the shelves and tables. Cassian was very careful not to touch anything, and when Light looked like he was about to eat a set of oddly colored berries from a desk, Cassian was quick to pull the big cat away.

Eventually Cassian grew tired of tiptoeing around the elephant in the room and he spoke up, “Any luck?”

Njal ground up a long fern like purple leaf with a mortar and pestle. After a moment he slammed the mortar down and his head sank. He shook his head slowly, taking a long, deep breath before responding, “I’m afraid not, young prince. All of my knowledge seems to be worthless in this matter.”

“I see…” Muttered Cassian, trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.

Njal stepped over to a window and gazed out at the mountainside bathed in moonlight to the north. “I have one last idea. But in order to brew the potion I need a very specific root. The root is called Bluestalk puffball.”

“Bluestalk puffball? I’ve never heard of it.”

“It’s a fungus with many beneficial properties. I need you to go into Sianvar Town on lake Gilead to the north. You should be able to purchase some from the wet market there.” Njal said, still looking out the window.

Cassian’s eyes lit up like a torch. “Do you really think it’ll work?”

“Curses aren’t my area of expertise, but I do believe It’s the best shot we have.”

“I believe in you Njal, you’ve always served my family admirably.” With an optimistic nod Cassian turned to leave, but when he got to the door he stopped and turned back towards Njal. “One thing before I set out. Eldan told me that you might have information about the suspicious circumstances around my mothers death. Is that true?”

Njal turned away from the window and walked towards Cassian, robe flowing gracefully behind him until he was face to face with the prince. “Suspicious circumstances indeed.”

“I know for a fact that Luna Stone did not murder my mother. It’s strange, I know this, but I was with her in the Undercity that night.”

“That confirms my suspicions then.” Njal’s brow raised as he stroked his long white beard. “Right before your mother was killed, she took a hard stance against High Chancellor Grimwald in the council. He played it off but I knew how deeply it truly aggravated him.”

Cassian’s face turned red and his hands balled into fists. “That worm. After being father’s closest friend all these years. You really think he killed her?”

Njal locked his hands behind his back and began pacing back and forth. “It is certainly possible. But men like Grimwald rarely get their own hands dirty.” His eyes widened and he hummed as if trying to remember every last detail. “After the council meeting I was leaving the capital to return to the tower and I saw something very strange.”

“What was it? What did you see?”

“Grimwald stepped out of a tavern with a rather unusual man. I just remember thinking it odd for the high chancellor to be consorting with a man like this.”

Light huddled up close to Cassian, sensing the tension in the air. Cassian leaned in closer to Njal. “What was it about this man that seemed so unusual?”

“The man had an hourglass tattooed across his throat. He had to have had ties to the gangs in the Undercity. I’m sure of it. Why would the High Chancellor of Cloudreach be meeting with a man like that right before the queen is murdered? It just feels like a rather odd coincidence.”

Cassian ran his fingers through his hair. “Thank you for this information. I find it hard to believe it was a mere coincidence.”

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When Cassian and Light arrived in Sianvar Town it was midday. It was a small town built right on the edge of the water. The lake had waterways branching off in every direction, snaking through the mountains. A few boats of fishermen floated on the calm water towards the deepest section in the middle. When the pair approached the edge of the town Cassian stopped and stared off into the distance.

Looking over at Light, Cassian sighed. “I’m not a betting man, but if I was, I’d bet that these folk have never met a leopard with horns or a black eyed man.” He pet Light’s head between his ears. “Not much we can do for you, but I might as well throw this mask on.”

As they walked down the main road into Sianvar Town, no one paid them any attention. The streets were mostly empty with the exception of mobs of frail men and women huddled around fires in the alleyways. They had a blank, cloudy look in their eyes that seemed so familiar. That’s when he gasped aloud. Sting… Just like on the South Side of the Undercity. I can’t believe the drug problem is so far reaching. After turning around a bend in the road he understood why the streets were so empty. There was some type of announcement going on in the town square. The townsfolk were gathered around a wooden stage intensely focused on the man speaking. He was a huge man in a tailored suit with plump cheeks that implied he rarely missed a meal.

Cassian and Light stepped up to the edge of the crowd to see what was going on. That’s the kind of suit the wealthy socialites in Cloudreach wear. The man on stage had a band of Enthamerean soldiers standing behind him, and he was shouting passionately at the crowd, “-.And here we are yet again. This is the third year in a row that Sianvar Town has utterly failed to meet their quota. It saddens me that this once great town spits in the face of the country that provides them so much. That kind of disrespect can only be tolerated without repercussions for so long. As punishment, we will be taking all of the fish caught with us, and your rations will be cut in half.”

The crowd gasped collectively. With a raised eyebrow Cassian looked around the crowd at the citizens who appeared to be clothed in ill fitting and ragged garments. A dirty man near the front of the crowd shouted at the man on the platform. "That is not fair! We don’t have the manpower to meet these quotas!”

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The man with the plump cheeks brow scrunched harshly and he pointed a sharp finger in his direction. “You there! Why do you believe you haven’t the manpower to meet your quotas?” His cheeks and chins jiggled with each syllable.

The crowd became silent as the citizens looked around nervously. The dirty man paused for a moment before responding, “The quota was set when our home was prosperous. Ever since the sting took root here, we’ve lost many friends and loved ones to the drug's vile grip.” Men and women cried out in agreement around the crowd. “At first they took the drug to find the energy to work the long hours necessary to meet the unfair quotas. But eventually the addiction consumed their minds and now their souls are lost.”

Stomping his fine leather loafer on the stage loudly, the plump man shouted in a shrill voice, “How dare you publicly decry the quota set by your king! By doing so you have committed treason against your nation!” He spun around dramatically looking out at the crowd in its entirety. “You all must know the penalty for committing treason?”

The frail and dirty man in the crowd looked side to side, gripped by fear. “No…” Then as his lip quivered, he puffed out his chest. “If you take the fish caught by our fishermen and cut our rations in half then many of us will starve this winter. I won’t hold my tongue any longer, your treatment of our town is criminal!”

“Very well, you have dug your own grave by speaking ill of your nation and besmirching a government official, peasant.” The plump man paused then spit at the man. “Guards bring him here, an example must be set and he must pay for his crimes!”

The crowd began to panic and whisper. The soldiers stepped off the stage and grabbed the dirty man pulling him up onto the stage. He didn’t resist. The warriors pushed him down on his knees before the plump man. The well dressed government official held out his hand palm upwards. “Your sword please?” The soldier obliged, handing him the short sword.

Cassian felt his temper swelling inside himself like a storm. I can’t allow this man to be butchered like this. But I don’t know if I should intervene… He was running out of time to make a decision and his palms began to sweat. Not like this… Cassian jumped forward, pushing through the panicked crowd and Light stuck closely by his side. As the pair moved through the crowd the townsfolk began to notice him and more importantly, Light. The people screamed in terror and jumped away from the giant leopard. Before long, Cassian and Light stood side by side at the edge of the platform.

The man in the suit looked down his nose at them and laughed. “Look at this, a masked boy and a cat. Leave now, or my soldiers will cut you down!”

“Let that man go. His only crime is taking a stand for his home when no one else would.” Cassian drew his longsword and pointed it towards the government official. “I’ll only tell you once.”

The soldiers stepped up in front of the plump man weapons drawn. The plump man laughed and his belly bounced. “Then you will die, boy!”

At the command the soldiers jumped off the stage attempting to surround Cassian and Light. The prince was too well trained to allow that to occur. He rolled gracefully to the side and struck a soldier hard in the jaw with the pommel of his sword. The soldier barely saw it coming. He fell unconscious to the ground with a loud thud. At the same time Light pounced onto another soldier knocking him to the ground. The big cat opened his jaw wide and growled ferociously about to tear the man in half.

Cassian noticed and his breath caught in his throat. “Try not to kill them Light! They’re only doing their job!”

Light glanced over at his friend and seemingly understanding, he snarled, baring his razor sharp teeth. The man pinned beneath the massive cat’s eyes went wide with fear as Light ripped the soldier's hand from his arm. Terrified citizens scattered in every direction, desperate to put distance between themselves and the fight.

Two soldiers came at Cassian from opposite sides. He nearly failed to notice the soldier behind him, but the sound of his chain shirt clattering gave him away. The two soldiers swung their bastard swords in sweeping horizontal arcs intending to cut Cassian in half—he ducked at the last possible moment. The two soldiers' blades narrowly missed Cassian and buried themselves into each others torsos. Rings from the sundered chainmail bounced off the cobblestones, soon eclipsed by the gurgling screams of the soldiers.

The couple remaining soldiers seeing the way the fight was unfolding threw their weapons down and fled the town. Chasing after them at an unremarkable and sloth-like pace, the plump man waddled down the road out of town. “You cowards! Get back here and p…p…protect me!” He stuttered. Emboldened townsfolk took the opportunity to throw fish guts at him as he fled.

Cassian sheathed his sword and ran over to Light, running his hands through his feline friend’s fur. “Are you alright? They didn’t hurt you did they?” When he realized that Light was unscathed he let out a huge sigh of relief. “I’m proud of you for showing restraint.” Cassian glanced down at the whimpering man holding his bloody stub on the ground and looked back at Light. “Well…you tried. I suppose that’s what matters.”

Light purred, then licked Cassian's face and the prince hugged him tightly. When Cassian pulled his face out of the nape of his friend's muscular neck, the crowd was all around them cheering. The dirty man who was set to be executed stepped up to Cassian and bowed low, clasping his hands together. “Thank you for standing up for us, masked stranger. If you two hadn’t been here today, there’s no doubt in my mind I’d be a dead man.”

Cassian removed his mask then lowered his hood looking out at the gathered townsfolk. “I am Prince Cassian of Enthamere and that man abused his power here today. For me to stand idly by would be neglecting my duty as your prince.” The crowd looked on in utter disbelief. “You brought up reasonable concerns. When I return to the capital I will speak to my father on your village's behalf.”

Hearing the prince’s words the crowd erupted into cheers until the dirty man standing in front of Cassian quieted them down with a wave of his arms. “My name is Noatak, I am mayor of Sianvar Town. My people and I owe you a debt I fear we might never be able to repay.” Tears began to well up in Noatak’s eyes. “But know this, if you ever find yourself in need, we will do the best we possibly can to help.” The townsfolk applauded to show they agreed with their mayor’s words. A moment later they began chanting Cassian’s name.

Cassian felt chills tingle up and down his body while he tried to find words to address the people. These people…they shouldn’t be amazed that I let decency and morality dictate my actions. That should be what they expect from their government. How bad are things truly when everywhere I go, I encounter corrupt representatives of my nation? “I don’t deserve your praise…I only did what I felt was right in the moment.”

Noatak got down on his knees and looked up at Cassian. “Thank you, truly, your highness. You will always be welcome in our town and anything we have is yours.”

Blushing red, Cassian pulled the mayor to his feet and patted him on the back. “Please, stand, you’re too kind.” Reaching out and scratching Light under the chin, he grinned. “Well I did come here in search of a mushroom called Bluestalk puffball. And Light wouldn’t mind some fresh fish if you have some to spare.”

Noatak laughed. “I’m sure we can accommodate both requests, your highness.”

"Please, call me Cassian,” he said with a grin.