“Over here. This house, Nahlia,” motions Lani to me.

All three of us enter a wealthy home. The door was wide open, yet uninviting. I could tell there had been a struggle from the dents and scratches on the cherry wood. No one was around either and I found it kind of weird. The home we were in was built into the cliff like many others. In Capara, each home was next to the other like an apartment, only huge. On the far end was a wall I could make out more painted windows. There was also two doors there, which led out onto a shared balcony with the homes next door.

The room filled me with odd nostalgia, even though it was all foreign to me. There was stuffed and ornate leather sofa. Several stone chairs surrounded a table with a light attached to the table's center for all to share. The small kitchen area had rotating cupboards, with a collection of spices and was made of stone. It was all surrounded by clear and thick diamond crystal, that formed a rounded wall. Stuck inside the glass were flowers that had been frozen in time.

Opposite of the kitchen, were four bedrooms to my right. A single bathroom was between each bedroom with unlit candles at the entrance to take with you. They kept them scented when you used them. I could hear the wind whistle through the cracks, as if the air inside the bathrooms was allowed to drift outside. Every part of the room had some thought put into it.

I head to the middle of the room, staying close to Lani and looking around. Mona seemed comfortable and was looking at the family pictures near a bookshelf. She was shaking them and moving around their cloth coverings, looking for hidden keys in the velvet.

“What's this doing here?”

Out in the open was a rounded room that looked like a crystal pillar. It drew your eyes to the center of the home. Inside the pillar-shaped room was a large stone tub. Heating stones were lying around it with buckets for pouring water. It was meant to be shared with invited guests and was elevated for all to see. Around it were set tables, with matching black table cloths lined with fine gold. I hear a crunch as I step on a broken plate.

“Oops.”

It was gray and blended in with the stone floor beneath me. There must have been a struggle in here earlier worse than I thought. I could see some blood. I walk around the pillared room, tracing my finger all the way around. Suddenly, I trip and knock over several vases with exotic plants. Lani's eyes dart to me, startled. I had stumbled on a downward slope. It divided the main room in two and led to the balcony doors outside. We push the heavy doors open.

I follow Lani outside. This home was connected to three others. The balcony had stone dividers that extended halfway out, before balcony floor connected the homes with a shared railing and walkway. The wind becomes stronger as I step out from the dividers. The outer homes had a view and were for the clergy and those with money. The inside areas of the cliffs were for the lesser clergy and for those who weren't swinging at the top of the money jungle. Deeper in, were the cavern shops that I saw on many maps on the way. I touch the railing as Lani darts around a divider. As I turn the corner, I catch sight of a familiar face. It was Luer.

Luer struggles, fully possessed by a Lam Lathi tempest. I watch as he's forced to speak.

“Move and die. Obey and live. Do what Lani tells you. Your throat is mine,” hisses Luer to himself. I watch as the tempest arches his back and makes him sit against the divider wall. The tempest slides him all the way down and makes him sit. Luer's ejects his knee-blade and tosses it over the balcony. His other weapons were already gone, thrown away by his own hands. The tempest leaves Luer and he wipes his eyes of silver liquid. His eyes blink repeatedly as if his ego had been crazed. The humiliation was too much for him.

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Luer stares at Mona, eyeing Classidine's daughter. He looks at me and recognizes me. Silence overtakes me as I swallow. He was bitterly enraged. I felt like he could push me off the balcony at any moment. I take it all in, as Lani walks up to Luer.

“You'll pay for this. I'll tell the high priest. How dare you threaten the Caparan king!,” sneers Luer. He contemplates striking Lani, but he knew his life was at stake. No one challenged the Broken Sun when they were hellbent on obtaining something they wanted. Lam Lathi was gone, but her shadow still lingered with vengeance. It emanated from Lani's banded brown irises.

Lani runs her fingers over her knife gently and stabs it right between Luer's legs. She draws it closer between his legs and he presses himself against the wall in fear. Lani straddles Luer and grabs his cheeks.

“My tempest showed me your memories. You gave her friend to the slave seller,” starts Lani. She points at me and looks back at Luer. “Tell the high priest you need him back.”

“I'll kill you! All of you! You threaten me!?,” screams Luer.

Lani gives a little smirk.

“If you come after me or us, I will have you possessed at the arena. You will die and lose the crown in front of everyone. Find me and kill me, but only I know where my tempest is.”

Luer hesitates. He looks at me with gritted teeth, but Lani guides his face back to her. The two lock eyes. Ryoken eyes were staring deeply into Caparan nobility. Luer sneers. He knew about Tayt.

“I wish I killed you earlier,” sneers Luer at me. He tries push Lani off of him, but she brings her knife to his throat. She taps him a few times suggestively and he calms down. Luer becomes enraged.

“Fine! I'll bring him to the arena fight. You don't kill me, I don't kill him. You'll get him at the end.”

Lani's eyes glisten as she looks back at me. I nod and she adjusts her body. There is quiet, while she stops to think. Luer interrupts her.

“Deal?”

Silence follows. Mona and I look at each other and wait. Suddenly, a small cut is made on Lani's naked thigh. She draws her own blood, before taking Luer's hand and slapping it on her leg. She places her hand intimately over his and holds it there firmly. She leans close, as Luer nods in agreement.

Lani gets off of him and darts back to us.

Luer picks himself up and starts blinking repeatedly. He wipes his eyes again and glares at us. He begins nodding and fixes his armor. He didn't know what to say, but he could see his own breath as vapor. It was a chill he didn't want to mess with. Moments later, Luer picks up his jet-pack on the floor. He straps it on efficiently, and viciously. Luer grips his controls eyeing me with disdain. His jet-pack sputters on and he jumps flawless onto the balcony railing. He lets himself fall and flies off toward the religious complex.

“Thank a bunch, Lani!,” I gasp.

I smile at Lani. I try to grab her hand to get her attention, but she darts passed me to Mona. Mona was writing with her new marker on the stone divider. She was writing a message for Luer that Maur probably told her to write. It must have been an insult with carefully chosen words. The black ink dries and Mona is finally tugged away by Lani.

“What did she write?,” I ask.

“Nothing,” motions Lani silently.

The wind rises against the dividers and Lani leads Mona away. She looked relieved and wanted to head back to Maur's Mesa. The fight was coming and she looked sad and a concerned. I shrug and play with my clothing. In a way, I could relate. I was afraid Luer would do something to Tayt before the death match. I move my mouth slightly. I stare carelessly at the wall Mona was writing on. On it were a few scribbles and Luer's name. Next to it were two black eyes staring right at me. They had rings around the irises and were perfect for seeing at night.

I run along balcony and I take one last view across Capara. The crops were growing peacefully on the cliff tops and I felt a wave of nervousness. I was excited to see Tayt and I was glad Ned mentioned him earlier. He was alive for sure and I wanted to hold his hand. The arena fight couldn't come fast enough. It was a long week away.