Kanick emerged from the Keep in good spirits and more reassured than upon leaving the Enclave. The Governor's sincerity at wanting to help in the investigation had surprised him, but he had no reason to believe it false.

Bera was much less convinced. "Again, we leave with nothing," he declared.

"Not at all," Kanick replied softly as they made their way down the main street. "He has promised to deliver us the boy who discovered the cave. And this miller and his wife."

"What can they tell us that we don't already know?"

"Well, I don't know," Kanick admitted. "Which is why we must speak with them first." He looked in the direction of the sun, high overhead. "I make it a little past noon, we will look for the miller in the evening, after the day's labour." They turned towards the Black Crown. "For now, I wish to bathe and change out of these robes."

Kanick ordered a bath to be filled in his room. Unfortunately, he had no change of clothes, and so arranged for those to be washed also. Lem came to fill his bath, and take his robes, promising they would be returned before evening meal.

As he sank into the tub, Kanick felt the concerns of the day begin to untie themselves from his joints. He leaned back against the tub's hot iron surface as he reflected on the case before them. The town and Enclave were mutually distrustful, though Regius was mostly, personally respected, if not actually liked. Their only leads were a boy who happened upon the cave and Regius's last patient. Apart from the Innkeep's claims of demonic destruction there were no suspects and not much evidence of foul play.

The Sons of the Prince seemed unlikely, since there had been no sightings of them this far north. A townsman, or posse of townsmen, was also unlikely though Kanick reasoned that anyone could start a fire and so couldn't dismiss the notion as readily as had deLan. A member of the Order, perhaps? Kanick couldn't believe that, for the simple reason that Regius lived in hermitage, away from the other mages. Perhaps Edian's accusation of a fallen candle was correct?

He gave up thinking directly at his investigation. Instead he soaked and let his mind wander where it willed. He found himself wondering how Bera's studies were progressing. The boy was sharp, and skilled with both blade and magic, but his personality retained an edge that Kanick feared might get him into trouble. At the very least it would inhibit his chances at promotion through the Order.

By rights it should be one of you sitting here, the Arch-Mages words echoed in his head. It seemed that Regius had become an extremely proficient healer, these past years and surely had the ability to rise to the top of whichever discipline he had chosen. But then, so many lives had been knocked off course by Palregon's rise, Kanick reflected, thinking of High-Mage Kofan, who had been vocally against rules limiting the political power of mages and had been in a strong position to become Arch-Mage until Palregon came along and made those opinions untenable. Or the mages of the Northern Temple, with torn loyalties and now languishing censured from high office – the lucky ones, anyway.

His own ambitions to command the Battlemages as Champion of one of the temples had also been thwarted. After the death and fire, he found his taste for Battlemagic had died with everything else. For the flash of a moment he glimpsed a flap of fiery wings and, shuddering, forced himself from the bath as he forced those thoughts from his mind.

Kanick dried himself and began looking through his selection of books, though Bera had most of them, including Agents of Chaos now that he was feeling well enough to read it. He settled on Creatures of Power, in the very faint hope that there was something in the book that might explain Regius's death.

Alas, it proved to be a fool's faint hope, he realised as he closed the chapter on elemental spirits, thinking of the Innkeeper's assertion that Regius had summoned a creature beyond him in some kind of dark ritual. The book confirmed that this could not be the case. Elemental spirits, left over from the Primordium, were often tied to a specific place and required a great deal of magic to bind them to a new master.

Unless you create them, he mused, reflecting once again that Creatures of Power was hopelessly outdated since Palregon had managed to create more than a few elementals of his own. Could Regius have tried something like this? But why? He found himself constantly drawn to this question of why and decided that he and Bera must redouble their efforts on finding a motive for this crime.

After a quick meal of bread and stew, Kanick and Bera made their way back through the streets of Woodbend towards the Western Gate, while Kanick quizzed his apprentice on the finer points of Creatures of Power.

"Do you think it could have been a Spirit?" Bera asked.

"No, we would know about it, if a fire elemental was haunting the town," Kanick replied dismissively. "But I think we should try to discern motive to this act."

"The Magister speculated that there need be no motive," Bera pointed out.

"He did," agreed Kanick. "I would like to see the cave for myself. Burned out is not a good enough description for me."

"It's most of a day, there and back I believe."

"Yes, but worth the trip."

They crossed under the gate in the evening air, smells of cooking mingling with the haze of dusk. As they passed through the village Kanick could hear snippets of conversation of laughter from within the wooden dwellings. The path here, while stone, was overlaid with a layer of mud and grass, the houses were ramshackle. They were pointed to the house where the miller and his wife lived, by an old man sat on a porch. Kanick hadn't needed to elaborate on which miller they sought.

The family lived on the edge of the small village, by the banks of the river. The keep and tower were just visible behind the walls of the city. Looking out to the fields across the other bank, and the collection of buildings nestled in the trees beyond, Kanick felt a sense of peace. His friend had chosen a beautiful spot for his exile.

They knocked on the door and a pale, thin woman answered, a look of puzzlement on her face.

"My name is Kanick, and this is my apprentice, Bera. We're from the Order of Mages," he explained.

The woman's questioning expression broke out into a smile. "Please, come in, come in," she gestured admitting them into the small wooden house.

Kanick and Bera found themselves in a small room, grey wooden table against one wall. An old blue rectangle of fabric covered an open doorway, presumably leading to the bedroom. The air was warm and moist, with the whole room warmed in the glow of a firepit, on which a stew was bubbling lazily.

A thickset man sat at the table, his shoulders broad and with biceps like the rigging of a ship. His head was shaved close to the scalp, but this more than compensated for by a thick black beard.

"This is Master Kanick and Bera, from the order," she introduced them as the man stood. "My name is Marin, and this is my husband Jarron."

"A pleasure to meet you," Kanick said, Bera mumbled his agreement. "We're sorry to intrude like this-"

"This is no intrusion," Jarron interrupted, his voice deep and rich. He had been looking upon the two mages with suspicion, sizing them up. His expression had softened upon their introduction. "After what the order did for me, and my wife, mages are welcome in this home." He gestured at an empty stool. "Please sit." Kanick took the other empty seat. "Marin, fetch the spare stool from the bedroom."

When they had all sat, Jarron poured them thick, hoppy beer from a jug. "How many I help you?"

"Did you hear about the mage, Regius, who saved your wife?" Kanick asked.

Jarron and Marin nodded sadly. "We were heart broken when we heard," Marin answered softly. "I owe that man my life, and now to think that someone else has taken his..."

"My wife is right, we felt that loss keenly," Jarron confirmed.

"Can you tell us what happened, the day of your injury?" Kanick asked Marin.

"I don't really remember, I'm afraid," Marin glanced at her husband, "and Jarron wasn't there, fortunately."

"I was in the city, taking an order for the lumber," he looked ashamed. "I should have been there."

Marin took her husband's hand and stroked it softly. "There was nothing to be done," she soothed. "I was taken by my brother and a cousin, up to the Mage's cave. I had been told since I was little never to go there, but I'm glad they took me." Marin was staring past them now, her eyes fixed on the pot on the fire.

"They said my skin was cold and clammy, and that I had stopped moving, bleeding even... The mage – Regius – was in the middle of apologising to my brother but then he flung into action." There was a pause. "He pulled out a shiny wooden block, and then I was enveloped in purple flames." Marin smiled at a thought, as Kanick's eyes met his apprentice's. "My cousin said he almost ran from the cave, screaming," she finished.

"They brought her back, sleeping," Jarron was smiling at his wife, their hands still interlocked. "She slept for days and days, my fear was she would never wake, but she came back to me, with not a scratch or scar on her." He took a deep draught from his cup. "That mage is a hero!" He declared.

Not a scratch or scar on her... those words echoed in Kanick's head. His hands felt hot and he could feel Bera's eyes on him. "Do you-" the words caught in Kanick's throat as his head spun. He tried again. "Can you think of a reason why anyone would want to kill Regius?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't," Marin replied this time. "We've told everyone about what he did for us, but most people are too afraid to go to the cave." A familiar story, Kanick thought, recalling the same sentiment from the Governor.

"What about families of patients who died?" Asked Bera.

"There aren't any, that we know of," Jarron declared uneasily, his eyes darting between the two mages.

"Your leg, can we see the wound?" Bera asked of Marin.

Idiot, thought Kanick as Jarron replied for his wife.

"No you cannot!" His voice boomed, angrily as Bera shrank away not anticipating the outburst. "This is my wife, not some whore to be poked and prodded. You are guests here," he reminded them, looking at Kanick.

"Apologies, sir," Kanick started, Marin's gaze was now firmly fixed on the floor.

"There truly is nothing to see," she answered Bera. "There is no wound."

"None at all?" Kanick asked, he needed confirmation.

"None," her brown eyes met his.

"Thank you." Kanick took a swig from the cup and changed the subject. "Did you see Regius after your encounter?"

"I sent Marin up with a basket of pies," Jarron said, his voice slow, his eyes boring into Bera who sat sulking. "About a week after she woke."

"And how was he?" Kanick leaned forward in anticipation. Marin was likely the last person to have seen Regius alive.

"He seemed happy, relieved to see me, I think." Marin stood and went to stir the pot, which had started bubbling more violently. "I think he had been worried about me."

"Why do you think that?" Kanick asked her.

Marin paused and thought for a second. "He looked worried when I first appeared, but then after I gave him the pies, he asked me a few questions. He just seemed relieved."

Kanick drained his goblet, Bera's sat almost untouched, and stood to leave.

"Thank you both," he said. "We really must be going but thank you again." Bera stood and looked down at Jarron. Kanick was halfway to the door when he noticed Bera hadn't moved. "Bera," he began sharply.

"Have you heard that Regius was a necromancer?" The apprentice's tone was accusatory.

Jarron stood to look down at the boy, but Bera refused to look away. "I don't care what they say he was, I have my wife back."