Josip nervously brushed his unruly hair before switching on the projector. His modest hotel room in Athens felt empty, reflecting the blank slate of his mind. He almost missed the annoying hive of his anxious thoughts. His travels left him dizzy, hungry and with a peculiar sense of self-importance. Had he believed in fate, he would have assumed it enjoyed playing twisted jokes on him: it was his unremarkable nature that had allowed him to join the Red Bond and outperform any other Alkari operative, including his cousin Mladen. It turned out he enjoyed being ignored and underestimated, after years of attempting to become extraordinary.

"Josip Duančić." He leaned over the projector, identifying himself. The small device disassembled itself into an iridescent disc. Above it appeared a translucent man with a long face covered by a blindfold-visor. Duančić saluted, hitting his shoulder with his fist, then bowed.

"Red Leader." He paused. "The Grand Magister instructed me to transmit the news as soon as possible."

"I am listening." His fine lips formed a tense line, but his cold composure betrayed nothing.

"The Alkari have captured Slavoj Kosar and he is currently held in the Tower." Josip expected him to be at least mildly surprised, but the man remained indifferent.

"Make his safety your priority. Tomislav Drašković and his sympathizers will do everything in their power to reach him. Granting them an opportunity to kill Kosar will be a grave mistake." His measured tone had a sharp edge to it: Duančić wondered how anyone could have a voice so calm yet so powerful.

"Are you certain they will try to kill Kosar, despite the Alkari protection?" Josip frowned.

"They are neither careful nor capable. Thus, they are predictable." He clasped his hands behind his back, waiting for Josip to continue.

"I have intercepted the Spy Guild's reports requested by Lady Drašković and have sent her on a fool's errand to Belgrade. She will be searching for Leudora Galbur there. To no avail." He paused, then added. "I don't think she has the slightest chance of crossing paths with the Basilisk. Both are perfectly safe from each other for now."

"Leudora Galbur never needed our protection. She needed time."

Josip frowned, wondering if he understood the Red Leader correctly.

"That is not all, Red Leader." He took a deep breath. "My investigation of the Hungarian murders and blood-smuggling operations took an... unexpected turn. A petty criminal named Oláh employed gravity-switchers to kidnap Leudora Galbur a couple of weeks ago. Considering the generous bounty on her head, they didn't bother to make further inquiries. The person who had staged the plan was, as it turns out, Lorei Lascari. I suppose she was the one to lure Leudora Galbur to Athens, hoping to get her hands on the Basilisk. She failed and ran, and the unfortunate smuggler Oláh died in a... very gruesome manner."

"He was blown to pieces and you've discovered traces of explosive poison in his remains. This unusual death is, most certainly, the reason why he had not believed his own visions, despite being a time-master." He paused. "That is if he had any visions in the first place."

His confidence bordered on arrogance, but it never ceased to amaze Josip. There was something frightening about the man, whose face he had never seen, but whose voice had forever seared his mind and soul.

"Leudora Galbur had a veiled glider to watch over her," Josip said. "I think she would have solved everything even without such brutal demonstrations."

The Red Leader nodded. Josip thought he might have even lifted an eyebrow beneath his visor.

"She would not have had either time or capacity to organize such an operation. She lured Lorei Lascari and her companions into a trap. The Basilisk could have easily tracked her through Oláh, convincing him that she had her former colleagues, including Inquisitor Szemere, on her side. An elaborate ruse that requires fine planning and willpower." The transparent figure floated to the side. The sharp angles of his face, shoulders and hands produced an impression of deadly and insidious grace. But his expression remained unreadable. "Have you discovered their motives?"

"No," Josip replied. "I did not find a way to approach two Lascaris without being discovered."

"A reasonable precaution." He uttered cautiously. "This information will suffice."

"Suffice?" Josip uttered quietly.

"People's actions are more conspicuous than their words. Lorei Lascari wants a seat on the Council. The Glasscracker must have promised her exactly that," he replied drily. Josip lifted his chin and looked straight into his face.

"The Grand Magister requires your opinion on the current state of affairs."

The man slightly tilted his head, and Josip shivered under the concealed stare of a projected phantom.

"Does he now?" The Red Leader paused. "Then I will oblige."