As the three were waiting together in the room, the discomfort in the air was palpable. Meesei refrained from saying anything further so as to avoid seeming as if she was trying to make excuses for her order. Ri’vashi, meanwhile, simply did not know what she could say. The end result of it all was a silence that went on for an uncomfortably long time, without so much as eye contact for the majority of the wait. Eventually, Dar-tzesa’s head had been sufficiently cleaned of blood so that Gallus could carry it in his bag without the blood showing through on the outside.

With only a simple nod for confirmation from Meesei, the three headed out the door, towards the prison. It was only at that point that Ri’vashi finally managed to do something in response to the situation. She still did not speak, but instead placed her hand gently on Gallus’ shoulder and looked down to him sympathetically. 

The silence was finally broken when Meesei decided to give a few final comments about the plan. “The guards will be ready to accept any story you give. They have been told to give believable skepticism, so as long as your story is reasonable, Hiritus should not pick up on the deception. Myself, Ahnasha, and a few of the clan’s mages will be following behind you, out of sight. Go wherever he leads you, but it is important that you not allow him to actually meet with any of Vile’s followers. He knows the location of this stronghold, and the risk of them obtaining that information is simply too great. Any information you gather from him will have to come before that point.”