Finn spends the night in the cell. He spends most of his time sleeping, letting his body recover from the injuries sustained in the cave. Occasionally, he hears the other inmates moaning, mumbling, a few even calling out to him, labelling him the “new guy.” He ignores most of them… except one.

  “Let ascendance bestow a bright path ahead of humanity!” one inmate shouts, undeterred by the scolding hushes of others. He continues his chanting, sometimes a recitation, sometimes a shout, as if following a daily ritual. It’s not hard to guess he’s a heretic, though Finn can’t quite make out the full details of the prayer. Most likely some glorification of their god, which is nothing particularly surprising.

  Creak.

  The steel door opens again, followed by footsteps.

  It’s the same lead knight, clad in full armour, and the quiet lady knight who had shared Risa’s condition the day before. Without a word, she unlocks the door, and they motion for Finn to follow.

  They return to the same room. It’s cleaner than the rest of the prison, yet it still smells faintly of iron and parchment.

  “So... what’s your decision?” Finn asks as soon as he takes a seat.

  “You have two weeks to prove your innocence. We’ll be accompanying you during all your activities,” the lead knight replies.

  Finn raises an eyebrow. “And if I fail?”

  “Then you’ll be locked away for the rest of your life. And the girl in the Sanctuary—she’ll also be questioned.”

  Finn clicks his tongue, then shrugs. “Guess I’ll need to move fast, then.” Coming to the worst case, Nyx can break us out, he keeps this thought to himself.

  He leans forward, resting his chin on clasped hands. “Don’t I get to know your names first? Can’t exactly shout ‘Oi, mister!’ in the middle of a chase, can I?” He grins.

  The knight responds in his usual stiff tone. “Gerard Dorne, Knight Sergeant, a Swordmaster.”

  The woman follows, voice soft but firm. “Sariah Alden, Underknight, a Gladiator.”

  “I’m Finn Tess—just call me Finn, a Disciple magician. We’ll skip the formalities then, aye?” He flashes another cheeky grin. “Gerard, Sariah—works better, don’t you think?”

  Silence.

  “Silence means yes. Great. Now, let’s talk about the kidnappings.”

  He expects little from them, at least for now, but he knows this much: Nothing builds trust better than a shared goal. Even better? A common enemy.

  “Mr Finn.” Sariah draws a thick stack of parchment from her storage stone and places it on the table. “These are the reports. Personal details of the victims, families involved, witness statements, locations—everything we have.”

  “Lovely,” Finn mutters, “not like I’ve got an assistant to help me comb through this. Got a pen and some papers?”

  Sariah hands over her pen and papers without a word.

  As he digs in, Gerard and Sariah leave the room, closing the door behind them. Two guards stand posted outside.

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  It takes Finn until evening to piece the reports together.

  “Alright,” he mutters. “Now we’re getting somewhere. The targets are always children between five and ten, any gender, but always from poor families living on the village outskirts.”

  He rubs his temple.

  “They pick families with more than one child, threaten them into silence by using their siblings as leverage. Smart. Evil, but smart. Explains why the reports only started recently. Some of these kids have been gone for months.”

  He glances down at his notes. “Sacrifices to their god, apparently. Children are pure blank slates. Prime offerings for divine attention.”

  He grimaces. “The group was supposed to have been purged years ago. So why now? Why resurface?”

  More questions than answers. And his stomach is grumbling.

  He calls the guards for a meal. One returns not long after. As the guard sets the food down, Finn leans in, voice hushed. “Hey. I know I probably shouldn’t ask this. But the boy who came with me... how is he?”

  The knight hesitates. Finn presses gently. “You don’t need to speak. Just nod or shake your head. My uncle asked me to look after him. He’s shy, you see.”

  After a pause, the knight nods.

  Finn exhales in relief. “Thanks. Is he still not speaking?”

  Another nod.

  “Eating fine?”

  Nod.

  “Nothing... odd? No flying toy? Shadows? Eyes?”

  That one earns him a confused frown, but still, the guard shakes his head.

  “Alright. One last thing—the girl who was taken to the Sanctuary. Is she awake yet?”

  This time, the nod is firmer. Finn smiles in relief.

  “Thanks, really.”

  The door shuts behind the knight. Finn digs in, grateful for a moment of normalcy before diving back into the case.

  Night has crept in by the time they lead him back to his cell. Sleep beckons, but his nerves are electric. Thoughts swarm, tangled and urgent. He twists restlessly in the hay, chasing sleep for hours before it finally claims him.

  Just before sleep takes him, a nervous voice echoes down the silent cells once more.

  “Soon... crimson moon... soon...”

  The next morning, Gerard and Sariah collect him again. Back in the room, Finn spreads his notes across the table and walks them through his reasoning.

  “So, do my findings match yours?”

  Gerard doesn’t even blink. “Mr Finn, your deductions align with ours. The question remains unchanged: Can you lead us to the missing children?”

  Finn grins. “First step—we visit the families. Dig deeper. But before that... I want Nyx to come along.”

  Sariah tenses, but Finn goes on.

  “You’ll both need disguises if you come with us. The villagers have already seen you as knights. That spooked the culprits; that’s also why you hit a wall in your investigation.”

  Sariah folds her arms. “And the boy?”

  “Nyx and I will act as bait. He may be quiet, but his magic is stronger than mine.”

  Rare, yes—but not unheard of. Child prodigies do exist.

  Gerard nods. “Sariah. Bring the boy.”

  She departs, and Gerard leans in. “He’d better live up to your claim. Otherwise, we’ll need to reconsider your involvement.”

  Finn laughs softly. “Then you’d better give me your full support. We don’t know when the ritual will take place, but it’s already been three months since the first child vanished. I’m your best shot, and probably your last.”

  Silence again. Which means ‘yes’, Finn smirks.

  Sariah returns, Nyx at her side. The boy stands quietly next to Finn, like always.

  “Pass me a magic vault?” Finn asks.

  Sariah retrieves one from her storage stone and hands it over.

  Finn cups it in Nyx's palm, then whispers in Nyx’s ear. “Can you throw a small fireball, wind, water at... there?” He points past Gerard, to a corner of the room.

  Whoosh! A big fireball shoots across the room, slamming into the corner, leaving scorch marks.

  Finn raises a brow. “Alright, maybe that’s not small—but you get the point.”

  He turns to face Gerard and Sariah, flashing a grin full of teeth.

  “So, is that enough to let him in?”