With a face on our enemy and Fiona missing, our entire mission on Neraka had just taken a much more dangerous and urgent turn. Not that it had been breezy or stress free before, but the stakes were suddenly higher, as it wasn’t just about the lives of innocent Maras and Imen anymore. Fiona’s predicament, abducted by a daemon and most likely taken to the Valley of Screams, took center stage.

We all stood in our part of the infirmary, with the side door leading to other rooms boarded up and sealed, and the front door heavily guarded by Correction Officers. Minah and the daemon’s body were under the same preservation and protection spell as we went over all the known facts, the many questions we still had, and our options moving forward.

“There are just so many things wrong with this picture.” Heron sighed. “I never expected it to get this complicated.”

“Our priorities are clear, though,” Hansa replied, her gaze fixed on the dead daemon’s face. His horns poked out from his thick black hair, sharp, their tips slightly reddened from the flesh they must’ve torn through over the years. “We need to get Fiona back, first. We’ll then return here, send one of us back to Calliope, and find out what the hell they’re doing with that prison. There are hundreds of Maras and Imen still missing, and daemons lurking around, eager to nab more.”

“She must be somewhere in the Valley of Screams,” I said, remembering Minah’s account of her capture. “What do the maps we have say about cave formations in those gorges?”

“A few have been noted, but only with estimates of depth and length,” Avril replied, moving closer to the maps spread out on the table close to Patrik’s bed, along with our journals and the handful of scrolls I’d nabbed from the Exiled Maras’ library. “There is a higher number of them through one specific gorge, though I’m not sure how much of a difference that will make. We will be following the tracking spell for Fiona, but we need to know what to expect from whatever route it takes us through, and the safest and fastest way out, once we retrieve her.”

“Okay, Avril, can you and Jax help set possible exit routes?” Hansa asked, then looked my way. “Harper, go summon the Five Lords, please. They need to see the face of their enemy.”

One of them already has, I thought to myself, remembering my earlier encounter with Caspian.

I nodded and left the infirmary. It was close to one in the morning, and all three moons were still out, glowing softly against the black sky. The six Correction Officers posted outside were staring out toward the Valley of Screams, their hands behind their backs. They were dressed in dark brown and gray, a blue badge sewn onto each right arm—they weren’t meant to draw attention when scattered through the crowds, but they sure had mine right now.

I stopped in front of them, then moved closer to one, until he couldn’t help but look me in the eyes for a brief moment before resuming his empty stare. I was angry and had way too many question marks hovering over my head—did they know about Caspian and his masked endeavors? What were they doing in that prison? Why did they let the daemons in to attack the inmates?

“We found your prison,” I said, but the Mara kept a straight face. “One of the gates opened at midnight, and let daemons in to feed on the prisoners. Is it something you people do on purpose? Is that what happens to those who oppose Azure Heights? They get their souls eaten? We brought a daemon back, too. He’s dead, but we can see him. We know what they look like—these creatures that have been taking your people. Do you know what they look like?”

I had to give the guy credit. He kept his emotions under control. Because I couldn’t read Maras like I could other creatures, I could only rely on body language to interpret their reactions. The faintest smile, flared nostrils, a fleeting sideways glance, or tightening shoulders—anything that could betray them. But the Correction Officers were cool, calm, and composed, like marble statues. They let nothing show.

I scoffed and ran up to the top level in what must have been record time. The Five Lords’ mansions were guarded by Correction Officers, but the terrace was dark and quiet. The night had settled peacefully over the sumptuous estates, and droplets of fresh dew were forming on the petals of the crimson flowers adorning the front yards. Only the murmur of water from the central fountain could be heard, along with the occasional whisper of eastern winds.

“They’re all comfy and snug in there,” I muttered, feeding off my irritation as I anticipated seeing Caspian again, so soon after I’d learned he was our masked savior.

I stalked up to the Roho mansion first, and the Correction Officers moved to greet me.

“The Lords are resting,” one of them said. “Come back in the morning.”

“This can’t wait,” I replied bluntly. “Wake them up and get them out here, now. It’s an emergency.”

“Define ‘emergency’,” the other Mara said.

“An emergency is something that requires their immediate attention, unless you want to end up in the prison below as daemon chow for interfering with our investigation. Last time I checked your laws, obstruction of justice was a punishable offense.”

They didn’t react, except for a single muscle twitch in the first Mara’s jaw. He nodded, then went to the Rohos’ front door and knocked. I did the same with the other four mansions, then positioned myself by the fountain. I watched the lights flicker on inside, and waited for the Five Lords to come out.

As the minutes went by, I felt my nerves stretching, my mind bouncing between Fiona, the prison, and the massive daemon in the infirmary. Rowan was the first to come out, then Darius, Farrah, Emilian, and Caspian. None looked happy to see me, but I didn’t exactly care. Scratch that. I didn’t give a damn.

They walked over to the fountain, and I listened to the sound of water trickling behind me. It helped me stay focused and calm, since my heartrate decided to spike as soon as Caspian came into view. I straightened my back and proceeded to analyze the Exiled Maras’ faces, trying to read them as best I could.

“This couldn’t wait until the morning?” Farrah raised an eyebrow, while Caspian gave me his usual bone-chilling glare.

“One of our own was taken by a daemon,” I said, and immediately took note of their expressions. Darius and Emilian frowned, Farrah seemed genuinely disconcerted, and Rowan brought a hand up to her mouth. “Fiona.”

“Oh, no,” Rowan gasped, then instinctively glanced over her shoulder, as if looking for Vincent. We all knew he had a thing for Fiona. We’d seen them dancing together, laughing and talking, at the Spring Ball. I figured Rowan was demonstrating motherly empathy, most likely trying to figure out a way to tell him.

“When did it happen?” Emilian’s voice was low and gruff, and I sensed a slight tremor in it, too. Caspian remained quiet, his jade eyes fixed on me.

“Tonight,” I replied. “She found your prison, down below. Daemons got in. They took her, but we have one of them.”

“What do you mean, you have one of them?” Darius’s brow furrowed.

“We killed and captured a daemon. It’s why I’m here,” I said. “I need you to come down to the infirmary with me. We will brief you on the specifics there.”

Without another word, I turned around and headed downstairs. The Lords were completely silent as they followed. I heard additional footsteps behind us—Correction Officers staying close, their swords jingling in their metallic sheaths.

We reached the infirmary and went inside, where my team waited, standing next to the dead daemon.

“Oh, dear,” Farrah gasped, her already-pale face turning stark white at the sight of the creature on the table.

The daemon was quite a sight, indeed—a powerful male specimen, with muscles galore and smooth, tanned skin. His sharp claws were extended, his horns were curved and pointy, and his fangs pressed against his lower lip. Patrik had fiddled with his joints and gums to better understand how they worked, and had left the claws and fangs out in full view for the Lords. The daemon’s torso had been mangled by Blaze’s dragon jaw, and blood had trickled down and pooled on the floor.

“Is… Is that it?” Emilian said, his voice barely audible as he came closer.

“This is one of them, yes,” Jax replied, his hands resting on the handles of his swords, which hung loosely from his leather belt.

“This is a… daemon,” Darius mumbled. “This is what has been taking our people?”

I analyzed their reactions carefully. They all seemed genuinely shocked. Rowan even seemed frightened by the creature lying on the table. Caspian, on the other hand, didn’t even flinch, quietly confirming what I’d already suspected. He’d seen them before. He knew what they were, which made me wonder if the other Lords also knew, and were just really good at faking alarm.

“You look surprised.” Jax scoffed. “I would’ve thought you knew what they looked like.”

All five Maras’ heads shot up, staring at him.

“Why would you say that?” Emilian asked.

“I’ve never seen one of these… things in my life!” Darius said, outrage blaring from his voice. “Why would you think we knew what they looked like?”

“I don’t know.” Jax shrugged. “Maybe because they were let loose inside your prison?”

“What are you talking about, Jaxxon?” Emilian was getting furious, his moustache twitching.

Hansa moved closer to Jax’s side and crossed her arms over her chest.

“I was with Fiona down on the east side of the mountain wall, to bury a charm bag for the Druid’s protection spell,” Hansa explained. “We found a small, secluded beach down there, with an abandoned jetty and three massive tunnels. Someone wanted Fiona and me separated. I got conked on the head, and when I came to, the tunnel in the middle had collapsed and Fiona was nowhere to be found. I never saw who attacked me.”

“We went down through the tunnel, after we cleared it,” Caia continued. “The middle one leads straight into the prison, and, by the looks of what we saw inside, so do the other two on that eastern side of the mountain. We saw the cages. We saw Correction Officers guarding the place. We saw the gates come down. Fiona had made it in there, and she’d been looking around, trying to speak to your inmates.”

I watched quietly as the Lords’ expressions turned from shocked and confused to stern and dark. They were going into defensive mode as Blaze and Caia explained what they had seen down there, though Caspian was still made of stone, his gaze occasionally meeting mine. My frustration levels were spiking, mainly because he was the only one I had difficulty reading.

“The prisoners were all weak and delirious, barely able to speak,” Blaze added. “Then a gong rang, and all the gates came down on the tunnel, so we couldn’t get out. We heard one of your officers announce midnight, then one of the western gates went up. In their defense, the Correction Officers did sound surprised and seemed as though they wanted to bring it back down, but it was too late. Daemons came through. We couldn’t tell you how many, since they were invisible. But they rushed into the prison, while the Correction Officers went into hiding. We fought the daemons off as best as we could, but one of them snatched Fiona.”

“Most importantly, the daemons knew exactly what they were doing in there,” Caia said. “They opened the prisoners’ cages, and… How do I say this… Fed on their souls. I-I could see their souls, these little wisps of white energy, getting sucked out.”

“I managed to kill one and bring it up here,” Blaze concluded, nodding at the daemon on the table.

“So, please, Emilian, do tell us what is going on here, because clearly you’ve been holding back on us,” Hansa said, her lips pressed into a thin line.

Emilian ran a hand through his hair before letting out an exasperated sigh. He then opened the infirmary door, summoning one of the Correction Officers.

“Get me the prison warden, now!” he barked, then shifted his focus back to us as the Correction Officer left the infirmary. “Hansa, believe me, we don’t know anything about the daemons, nor the gates opening and closing in the prison. As for the prison itself, I assure you that it’s all operated as per our legal standards. People who commit crimes go to jail. It’s fairly simple.”

“Then explain the state of your prisoners, all weak and pale and barely able to speak!” Jax shot back.

“The psyche of an inmate is beyond our concern.” Caspian finally spoke up. “They’re well fed and left to their own devices in those cages, but they are still prisoners. They are paying for their crimes. Do not question the legality of our measures; it really doesn’t concern you. As for the gong you heard down there, it rings every six hours. It is the only notion of time passing that the inmates have.”

“What about the gates?” I asked, raising an eyebrow and biting the inside of my cheek to stop myself from asking the burning questions that would surely bring him forward as our masked savior. I’d yet to decide whether he was being truthful regarding the lives that depended on his (and now my) secrecy.

“The gates,” he said, glowering at me as if I’d insulted his mother’s cooking, “are meant to stay down at all times, unless there is an emergency evacuation. Otherwise, no one should be able to get in from the outside. I do not know what happened with the eastern tunnels. I do not know who attacked Hansa.”

He then turned to face Patrik, who stood next to Scarlett, Avril, and Heron by the map table.

“So, your protection spell clearly didn’t work,” Caspian added.

“It didn’t because it didn’t cover the prison,” Patrik replied, his brow furrowed. He straightened his back, adopting a defensive attitude. There was a hint of regret in his voice, but he clearly didn’t blame himself or his spell, given the Exiled Maras’ secrecy. “It’s underground, and we knew nothing about the tunnels. The daemons most likely snuck through them and made their way up to the second level tonight, bypassing the spell’s perimeter. Had you told us about the prison and, most importantly, about the secret passages, I would’ve planned for a different area over which to cast the spell.”

I felt the corner of my mouth twitch as I watched that exchange. It was mildly satisfying to watch the Lords get owned because of their own secrecy as they tried to blame our skills and magic for the daemons’ presence. It had backfired spectacularly.

“We’ll probably have to seal the tunnels now, anyway, given how useful the daemons found them,” Darius muttered, his gaze darting between Emilian, Caspian, Farrah, and Rowan, before it switched back to the daemon. “That thing is… ghastly…”

“How come we can see it now?” Farrah asked, inching closer to the creature.

“We don’t know how they make themselves invisible,” Patrik replied. “I’ll have to do some further analysis, but we do know how to make them visible. Water destroys whatever cloaking mechanism they employ.”

Once again, Caspian didn’t react, while the other Lords’ eyebrows rose. I could feel my eyes shrinking to slits. I couldn’t help but further suspect Caspian of knowing way more about the daemons than he was letting on. My fists weighed heavily at my sides, my nails digging into my palms as I bit my lower lip, trying to figure out the enigma that was Caspian Kifo.