"What did we come here to do?" Adrian didn't understand what was going through her head but Sakna seemed determined to explore the entire Griffin castle from top to bottom.
His search began in the crypts, which he found empty, not even a miserable ghost. To prevent the remains of their ancestors from being massacred by those who had always been jealous of their position, they had brought with them the remains of their mortal remains. Now the castle was just a miserable building, where the passage of time, neglect and thieves had left more than evident signs. He found himself in the large throne room, four rows of high and powerful octagonal columns with capitals covered with copper slabs decorated with bas-reliefs supported the once richly frescoed vaults, now small fragments remained here and there where humidity and infiltrations had not got the better of it. The huge brass candlesticks still hung from the ceilings because they were held in place by thick chains. The tall pointed windows still retained their stained glass, each depicting a scene of the Ekaraoni family's rise to power. From their arrival from the eastern lands, to the foundation of the first settlement to the conquests over other peoples.At the bottom, pierced by the light that penetrated from the circular entrance which was more than five meters high, the white throne shone as if it were made of mother of pearl. The closer you got, the more you understood why it was so white. It didn't depend on the stone from which it was carved, but on the bones of the fools who had proclaimed themselves kings of that city. The reason why they did it did not matter, whether it was because they really hoped to become the ruler or simply because of the fumes of alcohol in some dive that had led to their ravings on the subject and therefore they had come to declare themselves kings of that place. The curse affected everyone without distinction and they found themselves sitting on that throne, transported by magic older than the creation of the world, tied to it, their limbs melted, their bones fused, blending into the cold stone, becoming an integral part of it forever.«I was hoping to understand something more about Ekaraoni, then going around in circles I enjoy making our friend tired»."You're used to being followed.""We need to understand where she is, if we find out how they keep in touch, we can track her down." He raised his gaze, focusing on the large opening that was used to allow the king's triumphal entry into the room on the back of his griffin, those creatures were the most precious thing for an Ekaraoni, an indissoluble bond was created between them that continued beyond death . Sakna started laughing, now everything was clear to her, she really did have everything she needed."What's wrong with you now?""We're going to visit Cornelius XIII, not now, we deserve a little rest" he said in a low voice, he didn't want to risk that if he were around he might find out what he knew.Eight days, eight days had passed and he still hadn't gone to report anything to her. For Sakna that wait wasn't a problem, she was annoyed by the fact that she couldn't continue with her search and that Edda always managed to escape her. Sakna just moved the rough linen curtain aside, he was on the other side of the street, he was staying at the brothel opposite, he was calmly sitting on the balcony enjoying the sun like a lizard in the company of a woman, who was far too cheerful, crouched on her knees. his legs. She emptied the contents of her shoulder bag on the table under the window, took the bag containing the money, she had very little left, that forced stay there was costing her too much."How on earth do they do it, he must necessarily communicate with her" he racked his brain, he had followed him personally and had also had a boy watch him, luckily it was a ghost, otherwise he wouldn't have known how to pay him, but nothing, that man had never met anyone.Adrian watched her silently, had he been material now, he would have smoothed his beard, then twisted the tip between his fingers, that simple gesture helped him think. Sakna was not a woman who liked to chat, which was very rare, and he was starting to understand her from the sensations he could perceive, especially when she slept. Then his thoughts flowed freely from one memory to another and all those emotions hit him, sometimes leaving him disconcerted as to what she could have done or endured, other times he felt truly alone, or was overcome by such ferocity that, if he hadn't been in those conditions, he would have smashed everything. One night however, he spent it peacefully, he felt light, calm, safe, whatever he had dreamed that night must have left a profound mark on him, because for the whole following day he remained in bed staring at the ceilingSome pigeons took flight from the roof in front and an image came clearly to mind. How could she not have thought of it before, the elf who had captured her had sent a bird, she found it quite strange since that wasn't elven magic, she didn't give it any thought, he could easily have gotten it from somewhere. Now, however, knowing that Edda was behind that story, it could only have been her who provided him with that means of communication and most likely, his new friend must have one too.In the morning she got up early, went to the market on foot, leaving Adrian in the room, after a long negotiation with a dvergar, she managed to obtain a discount on what for her still remained a full-blown theft. He went to the river, looking for a fairly secluded spot among the reeds that bent slightly, tapping together in the wind. In the distance there were some men, intent on unloading some goods from a small boat, certainly contraband, they seemed not to have noticed his presence. That was an excellent point, he took the soap stone he had bought, his clothes, although certainly used in better conditions than his, he undressed and slowly immersed himself in the cool water. He stood bent among the reeds watching her, convinced that he had not been discovered.Sakna after washing herself, sat on a rock, waiting to dry herself. "You saw that I was right, it's a girl," someone said satisfied behind him.Sakna turned, pressing her small breasts against her shirt, looking wide-eyed at the two men who had approached."Go away, leave me alone." The balding man laughed, showing the four rotten teeth he still had attached to his gums.«Don't worry, we don't want to do you any harm, right Brian?» he said without ever taking his eyes off her. «No, we're good, we just want to keep you company» confirmed his friend, licking his lips, as if he had a steaming steak in front of him. They approached and she took a step back, "try to look scared" she said to herself, she bit her lip trying to let out a tear. The two were so close to her that their stench disgusted her, even though she had certainly not been in any better condition until a few minutes ago. The one with the long brown hair lifted her chin with one finger, then looked her up and down.«She's a little frail, but at least she's all fragrant».Sakna slapped him, he slapped her back, making her fall to the ground. The man threw himself on top, grabbing her by the wrists and starting to bite her neck."Leave the girl alone."Finally her man had decided to come out into the open. The two looked at him and the one who was on Sakna said to him :"Don't worry, there will be something for you too"«I told you to leave her alone» and he tapped his hand on the hilt of his sword, the balding man looked at her and recognizing her from the guard that seemed to be made with the hands of a skeleton, he became serious."Come on, it's not worth it," he said to his friend, who seemed to have a completely different opinion because he had already dropped his trousers."What's the matter with you now, I certainly won't let myself be bossed around by the first arrival."Sakna's eyes flitted from man to man, wondering how long it would take them to give each other. The man pulled out his sword, pointing it towards the two, with a slow but decisive step he approached, stopping a couple of meters away.An annoyed Brian straightened his trousers, stood up and with a quick gesture threw his long knife which he kept hidden in his boot at the troublemaker, who, expecting his reaction, quickly threw himself to the side avoiding being hit. So Brian, determined to make the stranger regret having meddled, made his friend throw him the dagger, who took a few steps back. The two opponents were aiming at each other, one of them certainly had a sword, but the other was at least twenty centimeters past him and had the muscles of someone used to very heavy work. Sakna began to believe that perhaps it hadn't been a good idea, so she slipped stealthily among the reeds, the other noticing her went after her."Between the two arguing" he said to himself after glancing at the two who would not have noticed anything, they were so focused on their clash."Come forward, swordsman."The man remained impassive, placing his feet firmly on the ground, positioning himself to block a possible attack which was not long in coming, in fact, despite his size, he rushed towards him quickly, trying to hit him in the face with a slash. As he had previously dodged it, this time he hit him with the knob in the middle of his back with all the strength he had, making him groan in pain. His opponent was tough-tempered and, straightening his back, he threw himself at him again, he didn't care that he was better armed than him, he was used to being able to emerge almost unscathed from worse situations. Meanwhile his companion among the reeds had reached Sakna who had dressed. He grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him, holding her tightly by the shoulders, he pushed her to the ground and climbed on top of her. As soon as she let go, she scratched his face, cursing, he didn't care and tore her shirt, revealing her breasts."Why don't you help me?" Sakna shoutedThe man turned to see if there was anyone behind him, he remained listening, the only sounds that could be heard were the flow of the river and the grunts, mixed with the curses of the two who were fighting. All of a sudden he felt himself being grabbed from under his arms and an invisible force lifted him in mid-air, then threw him forcefully into the center of the reed thicket, falling disastrously the leaves cut his skin like so many blades and a broken reed pierced his calf . He let out a scream that even those in town must have heard, then the blasphemies and curses against the slut began.Sakna approached him, broke a reed and pointed it at his throat. There was a scream, a big splash in the water, then the sound of footsteps approaching, whoever it was was walking back and forth along the edge of the reeds and then entering, you could hear his slow steps proceeding on the reeds and the crackling dry leaves under its weight. Sakna threw the joint and stood on the ground not far from the man who was clutching his leg to stop the bleeding."You're a witch," he growled at her. When it was not his friend who appeared in front of him, but the stranger, the anger disappeared from his face, giving way to fear."Look, I told him to let it go," he told him, starting to use a submissive tone. He tried to drag himself away, but as soon as he moved the stuck rod tore his flesh even more, making him cry out. The man without saying anything placed the tip of the sword against his chest, the other tried to say something, as he was about to open his mouth the mercenary skewered him with a decisive blow, piercing his heart.The man's spirit rose confused, seeing the stranger leaning over him, he was about to hit him, all in vain, he couldn't even touch him, he looked at his semi-transparent hands, looked at the woman and understood, everything was clear to him.«You killed me, you made it a demon on purpose» and vanished "Everything OK?" the mercenary asked her in an indifferent tone. Sakna looked at him with the most anguished expression she could manage, without answering he got up and started to leave, after a few uncertain steps he stopped holding on to the reeds.«I'll take you, where do you live?» He knew how to pretend as well as she did not know who he was dealing with."I have a room at the Old Lady."He helped her onto the horse and they set off, Sakna leaning against him, holding on to his shirt.He accompanied her to her room, Sakna had held onto his arm up the stairs, thinking that perhaps he was exaggerating, she left him, however continuing to walk alongside him. The man closed the door and looked at the room, there was only the bed, a trunk and a small table under the window with a straw chair, a sword was placed on it. He approached the window and looked out, it overlooked the brothel, where he was staying in those days, then he looked at the sword left out of the sheath, he noticed that it had no edge, what could be done with a weapon like that?«What is he doing here» They had talked about that idea of ​​his but Adrian had advised against it, finding that choice a little too risky, Sakna winked at him.«I still don't know your name» she stood behind him, almost touching him.«Laro».«How can I thank you Laro?» She asked mischievously, placing her hand on his back.He turned and looked at her seriously and then laughed to mock her: "You're not much at these games.""Just as you are not good at following people." He moved it to the side and went to lie down on the bed as if he owned the place.Did he perhaps believe that his tough ways would intimidate her? Sakna had met worse men and had always managed to keep them at bay, one way or another."So what do we do now, become friends or will you hand me over to her?" She lay down next to him. Laro was amused by that woman's resourcefulness, Edda had warned him about how shrewd she was and that he shouldn't be fooled by her appearance like a little bird that had fallen from the nest. He looked at her, scratched his head and said, "Go order some food."In response, Sakna got on top of him and began to move slowly: "What kind of ways do you win over the ladies like that?" he whispered on his lips, then bit him: «I don't take orders from anyone» he bit harder, until he drew blood.«You ugly slut» he pushed her away, she started laughing, getting on her knees and lifting her shirt, barely revealing her breasts.«You'll order food, then maybe I'll take care of the rest» he tucked his shirt into his trousers and lay down. Laro got up and, looking out from the stairs, shouted to someone downstairs to bring food and drink, good stuff he recommended. When he returned to the room, he found her clutching the pillow against her naked body.