Captain Mulgrew didn’t prove too difficult to find. He’d set himself up in one of the less decrepit houses closer to the spire. Krey suspected that, if it had still been intact, he would be sat at what was only a short time ago Tecal Iltzin’s desk. The sun had set a good while ago, Krey finding his way by following the lamps and torches. The room serving as the captain’s impromptu office was granted a soft, warm light by a solitary candle on the table.

“Sir Zoubor!” he greeted. “I hadn’t expected to see you again before your departure. Was there a problem at the aerodrome?”

“No, sir,” Krey said. “Although all the best ships had, of course, already been claimed, we were able to secure one for ourselves.”

“Then what can I do for you? I’m sure Her Holiness is eager to continue on whatever quest she has you following her on.”

“I wanted to speak to you again regarding the elven prisoners.”

Mulgrew shook his head. “There is nothing to discuss. I have satisfied the hierophant’s sensibilities, and you have satisfied your honour in her service; what happens to them now… let it not be your concern.”

“I’m afraid I cannot turn a blind eye now,” Krey put plainly. “You made the mistake of revealing to me your true intentions; even if My Lady had not spoken up, I would still object to the Knights Berodyl acting so uncouthly. We do not send decapitated heads to our enemies, nor do we murder surrendered prisoners.”

The captain stood slowly. “These are elves, Zoubor. This is the only language they understand— violence, retribution. It has been this way for over two thousand years!”

“Quite frankly, captain,” Krey inflected tersely, “I am not interested in how you justify your actions. I’m just here to put a stop to them.”

“And how do you plan on stopping me, hmm?”

Krey’s voice turned almost quiet. “Sit down, captain.”

“Excuse me?”

“Sit down.”

After a moment of hesitation, Mulgrew plopped back into his chair.

Krey planted his hands on the table, leaning over the captain. “I don’t like you, Mulgrew. I haven’t liked you since the day we met. I find you small, tasteless, and callous. How you made it so far in our order mystifies me. If you do not swear to me now that you will do as Her Holiness has commanded, then—”

“Then what?” Captain Mulgrew dared to finish. “What will you do, Zoubor? Why did you even come here? Surely you knew that she has sent you on a fool’s errand.”

“She has nothing to do with this,” Krey smiled. “I am here purely of my own accord. I am here to ensure a captain of our order does not do something so stupid that it further reduces what small sliver of hope for reconciliation might remain. Kill those prisoners, and it will only make them martyrs for a cause even the other elves hate. Dunlark Spire may be taking its dying gasps, but it hasn’t quite rattled its last— not yet. Let it die peacefully, captain; let go of the hatred and the anger, let go of your petty desire for blood.”

Captain Mulgrew contemplated in silence. Finally, he looked up into Krey’s eyes and said: “no.”

Krey sighed. “Very well. Regrettably, it would seem, one way or another, yet more blood must run in these streets.” He reached down, pulled Mulgrew’s knife from his own belt, and slipped it between the plates of his armour. “So let it be yours.”

The captain managed to cough up some final words as he choked on his own blood. “What madness has possessed you?!”

“No madness,” Krey murmured. “Just duty. Rejoice, captain; you die for the realm, to spare it your selfishness and vengeance.”

Once his convulsions ceased and the life had drained from his eyes, Krey produced an object from within his soul space and touched it to some of the dead captain’s blood. The garnet feather responded to it, beginning to emit a faint hum and glow. He placed it on the table in front of the fresh corpse and took a deep breath. My last one, he thought to himself. Finally, my last bond to the inquisition is cut. In that sense, Krey was almost glad Mulgrew had given him sufficient reason to kill him. The bloody pinion would be felt by the Garnet Confessor, the leader of the inquisition, and she would know that a life had been taken in their name. He just hoped she didn’t realise it had been him who had done it. If I never see that old hag again, it’ll be too soon. Her face flashed in his mind, and a shiver rocked him to his core. He also saw Hector’s face, and Emilie’s as well. I will be glad to be gone from this wretched place.

He stepped outside and spoke to the guard before returning to his friends. “Captain Mulgrew wishes not to be disturbed for the rest of the night.”

The guard just nodded, and Krey went on his way.