CHAPTER 43: THE ONE CALLED SAEN

Having come to a dead end in a secluded corridor at the top floor of the Roen Tower, Abe touched the wall. It felt as solid as any other. There were no markings. No telltale signs that anything lay beyond it.

"Still looks like a dead end to me," Abe muttered. "I don’t get how this ever works."

Cain said nothing, as stoic as ever.

Elune beamed a gentle smile and brought her hands up, offering Cain and Abe to take them. Once the two men held Elune’s hands, she simply walked through the wall as if it did not exist.

Beyond the barrier stretched a dim, endless corridor, lined with what felt like an infinite number of doors.

"How do you find anything here?" Abe asked.

"By the grace of the Mistress," she whispered.

Elune walked first and the two men carefully followed.

Her footsteps were soft, but they were never uncertain. After having passed about twenty doors, Elune stopped. The door on the right had no markings at all. It was plain wood, worn smooth by time or something more persistent. Cain and Abe remained behind her, waiting without comment.

Elune turned the handle.

The door opened without a sound.

Inside, it was darker than they expected. Candles burned low in glass bowls, flickering without breeze. The air smelled like resin and ink, cold stone and something more feral - older than memory.

Nabir was already waiting.

He sat cross-legged on a rug of black wool. He wasn’t wearing a muzzle in this room.

"Nabir," Cain stepped forward.

Abe lingered by the wall. Elune sat, legs folded neatly, hands resting on her lap.

There was no need to explain anything. Cain and Nabir knew each other well. How they did was something neither Abe nor Elune understood.

Nabir simply looked at Cain, then nodded. "You wish for a trace."

Cain inclined his head.

"I brought you this," Elune took out a folded black silk cloth from her pocket, carefully unfolded it and presented it to Nabir. There was a single thread of hair.

Nabir brought his nose closer to it and closed his eyes. His nostrils flared once and then he tilted his head. He pulled his head away and shook his head, and then smelled the hair once again.

It wasn’t that he had difficulty recognizing the scent. The frown between his brows, and the sadness in his eyes when he opened them again, were because of memories.

"Two places. Four people of note... and the one," Nabir announced.

Abe sat next to Elune, leaning forward to listen carefully.

"The most recent one. The Whisper Room. Cassian Vale, Councilor Vale, Councilor Zhen."

Elune looked at Abe, who simply nodded.

"Who were with her makes sense. The Whisper Room though..." He was trying to think of the implications.

"The Mistress won’t like this," Elune added.

"Nabir, please continue," Cain was the calmer one of the three.

"Before the Whisper Room. It’s the Archive. She met the Archivist."

"Wait—she’s still alive?" Abe blurted, before Elune glared and hissed, "Not now."

"But that makes it four people. Who is ’the one’?" Elune asked.

Nabir hesitated.

"Nabir, please," Elune urged.

Yet, Nabir did not want to speak. He got up from the ground and started to pace around, uncharacteristically agitated. His back was hunched and he periodically shook his head, as if to shake away the bad memories.

"Aw, please, Nabir." Abe joined in.

The more these two impatient members tried to convince him to speak, the more unsettled Nabir became.

"Nabir, you don’t have to do this. We will find a way. Thank you," to the surprise of Elune and Abe, Cain relieved Nabir.

"Cain! We need to find out everything that had happened!" Abe protested.

"I think... Abe is right this time," Elune agreed.

"Let’s go," Cain grabbed Abe by his blazer and pulled him up from the ground. Abe tried to refuse but he was easily overpowered by the much bigger - and stronger - man.

Just as the three visitors were about to leave the room, Nabir stopped all of sudden and whispered - with a great regret in his voice.

"Saen."

Cain and Abe turned to look at the beastly man. They were confused. This was a name that they had not heard before.

But Elune stumbled as if her strength had left her. She clutched her chest with clasped hands, stricken - not by injury, but by heartache.

A realization - the truth behind her saddest memory was far worse than she remembered.

"That... that’s..."

Tears ran down Elune’s cheeks immediately. A wound that was merely sealed away, a wound that was never healed - it was open again.

"I can’t believe this... this isn’t right," her voice was breaking.

"Who is Saen-"

Before Abe could finish, Nabir jumped at him in a blink of an eye and pinned him against the wall, grabbing his throat.

"You shall not say that name again," Nabir growled.

Cain looked, but didn’t offer to help. Abe struggled to breathe at the sheer brute force of the beast-man.

"She’s been here the whole time?" Elune whispered, her voice raw. Her legs gave out. She fell to her knees, hands clutching her chest.

There was a pause.

Then Nabir released Abe. His body hit the ground with a thud.

"The Mistress," Nabir growled, "will never forgive this."

"I don’t know what’s going on, but if it’s that serious - maybe it’s time to wake the Boss," Abe spoke with a struggle, catching his breath.

"Miss Roen has been touched by the girl," Nabir said. "It will consume her in the end."

Cain and Abe fell quiet. They had served Luc for centuries.

Yet this name - Saen - was unknown to them.

"I will find her," Elune said suddenly, standing. Her fists clenched.

Her eyes had turned silver, glowing like moonlight in the darkest night.

"You must not," Nabir warned.

"I will trade my life for it if I must," she said.

The room stilled.

Her golden hair shimmered faintly. The angel had awakened.

And she would not be stopped.