The sky above Tivisis was black. Across the city, thousands of oil lamps adorned the streets and bridges like strands of luminous pearls, each orb shimmering white-gold in the night. Over the rooftops and domes rose dim silhouettes of soaring spires, high turrets and slender minarets all but lost in shadow. Cool air lay thick and heavy in abandoned squares and parks. There was a pervasive hush—a whispering stillness.
Two shadowy figures moved silently through twilight passages until they came to an alcove near the Chantry of Domòs, which concealed a narrow stairway to the catacombs.
Slowly they made their way down carved stone steps worn smooth with decades of use. The passage was filled with the sound of water trickling down the rough-hewn walls and dripping from countless cracks in the ceiling. The descent was slick and treacherous as the two made their way down to a small antechamber and then deeper into the tombs. With no fear or mistake, the summoners traced an unseen footpath through the labyrinth of caves and tunnels to a sunken cistern.
There they found it.
Cut into the eastern wall was a niche. As the hooded figures neared, the echo of their footsteps broke the silence of the cistern. Pale light pierced the darkness.
A door opened. They entered without a word.
Outstretched hands welcomed them.
YOU ARE READING
Arabesque
FantasiaA brutal assassin, a drug-addicted spy, and a vengeful widow are embroiled in a potentially world-shaking conspiracy. A fantasy thriller that has echoes of both A Game of Thrones and The Da Vinci Code, Arabesque races across the brilliant white sand...
