Growling Ape's magic stops the bleeding from Three Flower's head, and the young warrior revices enough to be able to drink the healing potion offered by Mystal Marr. Looking dishevelled in a dramatically handsome way, Three Flowers is able to stand again.
Whilst curious onlookers emerge from the doors of Shading Willow Court once more, cautiously approaching the giant corpse of the headhanger, Mystal and Annika set off on scouting missions.
Circling above the streets of Cormondal, Annika is able to keep tabs on two of the three groups. One pair head into the abandoned eastern end of town, and step inside another crumbling old building. The other two pairs move into the populated part of town, moving through the fish market, and it is here that Annika loses sight of one pair whilst dividing her time between all three groups. The remaining pair, however, she spots heading into a shop with yellow awnings on one of the main market streets. She thinks that she can find both the shop and the ruined house in the eastern quarter from the ground.
Mystal, meanwhile, explores the Old Tamsa Building. He has no trouble climbing up the elaborately carved exterior. Inside, the building is a series of apartments overlooking a central courtyard, each level has a stone balcony that overlooks the courtyard, each apartment is a simple two or three-room flat. Most of these are long abandoned except by pigeons, but a few show signs of habitation - filthy bedding, the cast-off remains of black yaama resin, needles, small vials, empty earthenware bottles. The place stinks of stale sweat, urine and decaying meat.
The place is empty of people, but amongst the squalor Mytsal finds a chest bearing the custom stamps of Ashoyin, from north up the Anhoi river. The box is empty, but obviously once had a false bottom, with padding that fits the vials left lying around.
On the ground floor, Mystal finds a large cage, perhaps suitable for the headhanger, and hanging from a wooden X-frame, a Nekuuese human; alive, but in a badly beaten state and unconscious.
