Chapter 17
**Guest Chapter! Kindly written by Ayshe**The stone and hide city of Ojaveda was a bustling centre, well deserved of it\'s place as the fourth largest settlement on the first level of Yliakum. It was a city that never truly knew night, as the trade Dsars of Sarraghi and Akkaio especially were open at all times.
Ojaveda was largely inhabited by Enkidukai, and just as day and night meant little to hunters who could spot prey well in either, a new kind of hunter and prey had evolved over time amongst the bleached white stones. Pick any typical street of Akkaio, and it was guaranteed to be filled end to end with the tight press of bodies, hawkers, pickpockets and merchants. Here between rare herbs, trinkets and bolts of fine cloth, the new hunters of the Enkidukai city - the merchants - sought their less dangerous but no less cunning prey - the customer and their tria.
One could buy rare gems, momentoes of the \"surface\", food, clothes, potions to give life, take it, bring you love, wealth, magical crystals and even affections... all for the right fee. A newcomer to Ojaveda, green from the fields and heavy of tria was a helpless malksa amongst the hunters.
Of the other dsars, all had a purpose. But here in the Blikau dsar, the housing district, there was something unusual. On this street of white stone, there was a blackened twisted shape nestled amongst the buildings.
The heat from the fire had been incredible. The stones themselves had spit and crackled, shattering into bright glassy shards in places. Of the wood structure, there was just a fine ash. Of the possessions in the house, much the same fate had arisen. Yet something was wrong, and the short Nolthir - an Akkaio vigesimi - standing by the wreckage with his official quill and scrolls, had no clue what to write.
From the sheer tortured destruction of the building, the very paving stones should have shattered. The vigesimi looked at his feet and saw the cobbles unblemished and covered only by a light sand, that blew in from the dunes to the east. Looking around, black tongues of soot reached across the surrounding buildings and dirtied them. Yet there was no other damage, and the vigesimi knew that the black soot should not have come from this fire, for the heat was too intense. It was as if someone had created a massive amount of heat and flames, but confined it to this building alone. An act of malice, but what powers could have done such an act, and for what purpose?
The scene made him very uneasy.
Footsteps behind him made him turn. There, on the street him were two enkidukai. One male, one female by the looks. Both wore blue and silver clothing, with some sort of stylised motif woven in to the fabrics. A guild of some kind. He did not have time for gawkers. Besides, he was not fond of Enkidukai.
\"Clear off\" he rasped, his throat drier than usual. \"Official business. Move along\"
The male stepped forward, mouth open to protest. Full of indignant pride. Oh these arrogant furred creatures were always trouble. But the female placed a hand on his shoulder. The male looked at her and nodded, stepping back. Strange, that. She stepped forward and spoke to the Nolthir.
\"We are here to ask questions about this building\" she asked. Before the Nolthir could reply, she had pulled out a signet ring embedded with a special glyph that he instantly recognised.
\"Official business\" she said with a smile that held no warmth or humour.
The Nolthir resigned himself to obliging. This enkidukai was either a Vigesimi, or on vigesimi\'s business. Given her appearance, he guessed the latter.
\"What would you ask? Intense fire, no surrounding damage. No deaths. It\'s an insignificant house owned by a nobody. Probably a prank\"
He saw the enkidukai\'s eyes narrow at the mention of a \"nobody\". He found himself uncharacteristicly startled. Her eyes, blue and clear held something in them... he felt as if she was staring through him and focussing a few feet behind his heard. The effect was rather intimidating, and he faltered in his speech.
\"No deaths. Are you sure?\" the enki demanded.
\"Y-yes... a sounding was performed. No souls departed this place recently enough to have been the fire\"
He turned back to the building. \"Small building, no death. So pointless, and so much paperwork for me\" He growled and turned back, but the enkidukais had gone. He caught a glimpse of them walking briskly to the city gates. Fine by him. He returned to his report, irritated.
The offices of Ayshe Alchamet, current leader of the Felines Lair were brightly lit. Three enkidukai sat in this room, all deep in thought. Ayshe, standing by the window, reading a report so new the ink was barely dry. Mordon Thoth, the scholar, and Zaxim, Moogie\'s second in command of Shadowkin - the order of spies for Felines Lair.
Ayshe finished reading the hastily coded report and addressed her companions.
\"The accident was deplorable. So many deaths... and still no one knows why. A carriage was found, impacted into the second level transit station. Scorched, twisted wreckage and a lot of very dead passengers. The cable was sheared through. This is a piece of the puzzle\"
Mordon cocked his head. \"How are you sure?\"
\"Because Moogie was seen boarding the carriage by a few eyewitnesses, with a young Ylian. Yet there were no enkidukai in the wreckage.\"
Ayshe nodded at Zaxim, thanking him for his contribution to the report.
\"What we know is that Moogie did not return home that night, and that her house was utterly destroyed some time in the early hours of the following morning. She was not seen until a few days later, boarding a carriage for the second level. She did not reach the second level, but she did not return to the first. The only eyewitnesses are dead.\"
Mordon shrugged. \"So what now\"
Walking over to a sturdy cabinet, Ayshe undid a complicated lock and withdrew three intricate and unique chainmesh gloves, each with a small blue lionhead glyph mounted in the center of the palm. Zaxim could see a large device carefully packed in to the cabinet. A present from a retired kran, he knew... a very dark contraption indeed. Ayshe was the head of a special order in the Felines Lair. One that dared to go a place that was as far from the light as it was possible to go.
Ayshe locked the cabinet and put the glove on that held glyph she had been personally bonded to. The blue crystal glowed faintly as it touched her paw.
\"Get me Keder and Hart.\" - Two of the other members of the Order, and the most experienced in the Death Realm.
Zaxim looked at his guildleader, in a mixture of mild awe, fear and admiration. \"What\'s the plan?\"
Ayshe clenched her palm, wincing at the memory of the last trip she had made using the glyph. \"We need to speak to those eyewitnesses in the Death Realm. We have to act quickly, before they are claimed...\"
Thanks Ayshe, that was great! 
