Just then Raviel ran to the square, followed by very out-of-breath dwarf. The crowd parted to let them pass.

"Saska!" The elf sounded worried. That idiot. He should worry about his own hide.

"Run away, you idiot!" Saska snapped at him. "They're sheltering a necromancer!"

Raviel's hand fell to his sword hilt. Before he could draw the blade, a small yet strong hand pressed on his arm.

"Davon? What is the meaning of this?" He looked at the dwarf who had promised to help him find the reason behind the disappearances.

"If you draw your sword now, they will tear you to pieces." He moved in front of Raviel to face the golden-haired elf. "Let the lad go, Thalassal. He's working for the Lady."

Thalassal snorted. "Impossible. He bears the mark of the Viscount of Shadows."

Now Davon cast a questioning look at Raviel.

The elf sighed. "I can explain that."

"That better be a damn good explanation," Davon muttered. "Or you're both as good as dead. Don't expect me to help anyone who works for the Viscount."

"As I see it, there is a simple solution to find out the truth," Thalassal spoke. "The dead can't hide anything from me." He laid his hand on the neck of the monstrous hound. "Unless someone objects?"

Raviel pushed the dwarf by his side away and drew his sword. "Over my dead body."

Thalassal turned his gaze to Raviel. "That can be arranged." Then he paused, studying the other elf carefully. "Haven't we met...Wait. Your eyes. Wasn't one of them yellow?"

Raviel froze. Was this some kind of trickery? Or could this kinsman really know something?

"No? My mistake then."

"My twin brother, Rachian, had one amber eye."

"Really? I can see the similarity. But that was not the name he went by. Do you know what it was?"

He could tell by the look in the eyes watching him that he was being tested. Thalassal wanted to catch him telling a lie. But what name could his brother have possibly chosen? "I don't know," he admitted.

"Nightwind."

Of course! "Then that would make me Stardancer."

Thalassal studied him a moment longer and chuckled. "Correct."

It was an old story told to children of Nightblade clan. Twin brothers, Nightwind and Stardancer, chase a mysterious maiden, Moonbeam, who only appears as moonlight hits the crystal spring. When they had been little, they had played out the story under starlight with their mother so many times.

"Now tell me," Thalassal continued, "What is your relation to this Outcast?"

"He's helping me look for my brother. Although it was not my plan, apparently I ended up buying him from the Viscount."

Thalassal nodded to the hound, and the beast moved away from Saska.

The boy instantly scampered to his feet and rushed to Raviel's side. "Don't trust a word he says," he hissed. "He reeks of the grave and is probably behind this all."

Thalassal scratched the hound's neck like it was nothing more than ordinary pet. "I am a necromancer, true, but that is a completely acceptable trade here. I wouldn't dream of leaving this island, as I'd probably be burned to death as soon as someone figured my talents out, though. As for being behind this all, I could suspect the same of you."

Raviel sighed. "Saska...What happened after I left the tavern?"

"How about we discuss that over a glass of wine in my house?" Thalassal offered. "It seems to me we have common goals, so as I see it, working together is the wisest course of action."

As there apparently was nothing to see anymore, the crowd slowly dispersed.

~*~*~

Thalassal showed his reluctant guests to his – fairly ordinary and comfortable – living room and poured three glasses of red wine. He had ushered Davon to go back home with more than a little condescending attitude. Dwarves were no good when magic was concerned.

Saska just stared at his glass, not making any move to touch it.

Thalassal watched him with a slightly amused expression, then took a sip of his own glass and switched their drinks. "That should prove it's not poisoned."

"Like I'd trust you," Saska muttered. "Necromancers are always bad news."

"It matters little to me whether or not you think me trustworthy. All I want is to lay to rest the souls of my beloved and our unborn baby. As long as that monster exists, they will continue to suffer." Before Raviel could ask about it, he continued, "She was the first to disappear. I found the site where the monster resides a few days ago, but hadn't been able to lure it out." He turned his gaze to Saska. "Until you appeared."

"Wait a moment," Raviel cut in. "As far as I've heard, only women have vanished. Why Saska?"

"Why indeed...My theory was that it's after mothers and their unborn children, so how do you fit in, boy? Or are you a boy at all?"

Saska's cheeks flushed in anger. "Of course I'm a boy!"

Raviel laid a hand on his shoulder to calm him down, but Saska shrugged it off. If it had been his decision, he would have left this island right now.

"It's Sasha, isn't it?" the elf asked. "The soul of an unborn child."

Thalassal took a sip of his wine calmly like they were only discussing weather. "Please, do share this story with me."

He hadn't told Raviel that Sasha had died while still in their mother's womb, but it wasn't that hard conclusion to make. Not in the light of the recent events anyway. "Yeah. Sasha is my twin who was already dead when our mother gave birth. His soul stayed with me."

"In that case you can be my bait."

Saska stood up in a rush and slammed his hands on the table. "Not in a hundred years! I'm never facing that thing again!"

"If you don't, more people will die."

"That's –your- problem, not mine."

Raviel sighed. "Saska, calm down."

The boy's hands clenched into fists. "As you order."

Not this again. "I'm not ordering you, Saska. I'm asking. Please."

"No." Saska shook his head and sat down heavily. "I can't. I just can't go back there."

Thalassal crossed his hands under his chin. "I think you know just as well as I do that no pregnant woman will agree to this plan. You are our only option. Besides..."

"What?"

"Now that the creature knows about you, wants you, the one raising it will come after you."

"What are you talking about?!" Saska had about had it with this elf's riddles.

"There was a barrier to keep it trapped, remember? It can't come to the town. So someone is bringing its victims from here to there. Someone who wants it to grow and become stronger. And if I can lure in and kill that person...I can shatter the barrier and slay that creature while it's still an infant."

Saska didn't say anything. If that failed, both he and Sasha would be trapped inside that monster for eternity. He was afraid to die, yes, but he was afraid to "live" like that even more.

Raviel laid his hand on the boy's shoulder again, and this time it was not shrugged away. "I'll protect you, Saska. I promise."

Saska snorted. "How? You can barely protect yourself."

"I'll figure something out. Trust me, I can fight. And I can feel anything that's happening to you, right? That should give us an advantage."

Saska wanted to ask if they could just walk away from this all. But he knew Raviel would not agree. Not only because the elf was so noble and intent on helping strangers that it bordered on stupidity, but because...he had a twin brother. That part he understood very well. If he were to lose Sasha, he'd do anything to find him again too.

He sighed and turned to look at Thalassal. "Alright. I really hope your plan is a good one, necromancer."

~*~*~

As agreed, Saska went back to the Jolly Silverfish alone. He didn't stay in the room given to him and Raviel, though, only asked Davon for the key to the storage shed. The dwarf didn't ask why. He was probably glad not to have an Outcast under his roof.

The boy settled comfortably on the haystack to wait. If that necromancer was right, whoever was behind that monster would come for him.

Meanwhile, Raviel and Thalassal were discussing the last details of their battle strategy. Although just an infant for now, that creature was definitely dangerous. Additionally they didn't know a thing of who else they most likely would have to fight.

After a brief mental debate whether or not to, the necromancer picked out a small jar full of white powder as his last item. "If something goes wrong, I will summon wraiths," he warned Raviel. "Please don't attack them. They obey me completely."

He laughed at the face the elven mage gave him. "Don't think you should, just to free their souls, either. They're mostly made of lingering memories I've collected from battlefields. Artificial spirits, so to say."

Raviel remained sceptic. "Are you saying you're some kind of good necromancer?"

"No such thing as good or bad necromancers. But I do avoid causing the dead unnecessary suffering, if that's what you're asking."

"No offence, but I'm not completely convinced. Necromancy by default involves dragging the dead back from their rest and preventing them from being reincarnated."

Thalassal just shook his head. "As much as I'd like to explain what I do to you in detail, we are in too much of a hurry right now. If you don't want your companion to die, we have to be where that monster is sealed before the culprit."

Raviel hadn't sensed anything worrisome from Saska yet. He tried to reach out to find out what was happening. The boy's eyes were closed, but Raviel could sense he was relaxed and at peace. Surprisingly much so, considering the danger he was in.

Suddenly he could hear a faint slithering sound. Saska must have heard it too, as his eyes snapped open. It was a little weird, not seeing with both eyes due to one being covered by the bandages to mask the mark on the boy's face. That didn't look like a problem to Saska, though, as just as soon as he saw the approaching water snake, he threw one of his knives at it with deadly precision.

"Is something happening?" Thalassal asked.

"Nothing important. Just a water snake. Let's move out."

"Wait. One more thing."

"What is it?"

"Just a word of warning from a fellow elf: Outcasts serve the Viscount from the day they are born to the day they die. Perhaps his interests coincide with yours for now. But when they no longer do, do not count on that boy to side with you."

"Don't worry about it. He's mine now. It is a little weird, but at the very least he's not the Viscount's anymore."

Could he trust Saska completely? Probably not any more than anyone in this realm. But he –knew- the boy was bound to him now, in a way he couldn't completely understand himself either.

Thalassal studied him for a moment in silence. "That will remain to be seen. I wouldn't turn my back to him if I were you."