It was late afternoon by the time Butz, Cyan, and Keyla were able to
meet and plan out a new course of action. The bright yellow rays of the
fading sun gave the town a pleasant cheerfulness, yet the mood of the
citizens of South Figaro was grim. Supernatural pitch black clouds filled the
sky beyond the mountains, covering the desert surrounding Figaro in perpetual
darkness.

	Keyla entered the inn, which now served as a temporary headquarters
for the Doman forces. She found Butz and Cyan waiting in one of the rooms,
anxiously studying the angry clouds. "So how did the meeting with the
Figaran troops go?" Cyan asked.

	"As well as could be expected," Keyla replied. She shivered a little
as she walked over to the others and looked out the window. "Something
terrible is happening in Figaro," she whispered. A low rumble began
somewhere deep in the earth, then the room began to shake violently as the
entire town was caught in the throes of the quake. The three companions
grabbed for anything within reach as their surroundings buckled crazily.

	"This is Edgar's doing!" Cyan shouted, above the roar.

	"Wait! Look!" Butz shouted, pointing out the window. They looked out
to see bolts of blue-white lightning flashing through the clouds. The
lightning annihilated any of the darkness it touched, and with an audible
wail that sent chills down Keyla's spine, the clouds began to recede. The
quake died down as well, leaving only a shattered vase and a few overturned
objects to mark its passing. Keyla jumped to her feet and ran to the window.
The clouds were gone, replaced by the beautiful deep blue desert sky that
she was so fond of.

	"What was that?" Cyan said. "Could it be that... someone defeated
Edgar?"

	"Let's not jump to any conclusions," Butz said. "That could have
been one of his spells. Or something totally unrelated to Edgar."

	"Then let us proceed with the original plan," Cyan said. "So," he
said, turning to Keyla, "who is the commanding officer now?"

	"Me," Keyla said.

	"You?"

	"That's right. The commander left with the expedition to Tzen,
leaving Captain Tesh in charge. I outrank her, though, since I'm assigned to
an elite unit."

	"That certainly simplifies things," Butz said. "Now you can order
the troops to attack, rather than having to convince some higher-up."

	"Yes," Keyla said, "but we will need some time to organize and make
preparations. I don't think we will be ready to mount an assault for about a
week."

	"A week, huh?" Butz said. "Hmm...that should be enough time to map
out those tunnels you mentioned."

	"Tunnels?" Cyan said. "Leading to Figaro?"

	Keyla nodded. "Back when Figaro had an accident and had to be
abandoned, a network of tunnels was discovered leading from the Cave of
Figaro to the west to Figaro. Those tunnels, if they still exist, could be
the perfect way to enter Figaro."

	"Okay," Cyan said. "You ready the soldiers, and Butz and I will go
map out the tunnels. Who knows...we might even be able to take a look at
Figaro itself."

	"Fine, but be careful," Keyla said. "Don't try to fight Edgar on
your own."

	"Yes, sir," Butz said jokingly. He and Cyan left to prepare for
their mission. Keyla remained in the room, staring pensively out the window.
Maybe the evil had been destroyed, maybe Figaro was already free of whatever
creature that had possessed King Edgar. Perhaps, but at the same time, she
had a sinking feeling that something else had gone terribly wrong.