They were walking in the middle of the street, looked by the others with different feeling: pain, anger, envy, sadness. But no one dared to approach them and so the common life continued in the District.

As a play was made, laughs came. It was a satirical comedy which was making fun of death and, the most of all, of politic. A grumpy old cheetah threw a metallic object, saying that it wasn't a subject to laugh at, and missed the principal actor, and a little mole looked at them with stars in his eyes, but was taken back home by his mother, saying that he was too young for that and that theatre wasn't the right things to do, that it's not a real work and that she was hoping that he would do better than them when he would be an adult.

Joy and sadness, calm and anger. Everything was in that crowd in front of the scene.

That's what they saw while walking in the middle of the street. And they looked like an old but not odd couple.

Gloria was happy with that. She knew what the others would think by walking right next to Qualt like that, so she walked like she was his wife. It was a way to be "protected", to not be touched by the others. And everybody knew that, if you touch one scale of an imposing dragon's wife here, you have large chances to be discovered dead the next morning. She knew that by experience with Yalto.

And thankfully, she warned Qualt for that attitude and why she was doing that, even if she hid the fact that she was really enjoying this because it's been far too long she hasn't done that with someone and because, well, she missed her ancient husband.

Qualt, him, was kinda neutral with that, even if he asked himself multiple questions: How will the Galds react when they will see Gloria next to me? Because I have some questions to ask them. Several serious questions. How my boss will react when he will know about Gloria? What will she do after that? Because she will probably be fired! And how Doug can know about the darker? Plus, how can my boss know him?

As you understood, he didn't really chill during that walk. The opposite.

Thankfully, one question didn't tormented him during that time: Where does he live?

Indeed, they knew the answer for that. And they were just one or two miles away from him. They just had to walk straight forward. So, during that, they were talking and were looking around.

There were multiple stands, with good or less good things sold. Some looked happy, even with the flawless rain, because they did something really impressive: they bought something for themselves, something that they actually liked and even was useless. A child was happy with a book in his paws while his mother looked at him with a sad smile. And, next to that, there was another child that was sadly looking at all the merchandise with envy.

Finally, they arrived at the address.

Qualt knocked at the door and a voice answered:

"Who's there?"

Fortunately for you, reader, it won't be a knock-knock joke.

"I am Qualt Ironhorns and I would like to ask you some questions."

"Questions? About what?"

"About... About a specific darker."

A silence began before an old mole with only one eye left unlocked the door.

"Oh, you are two."

"Yes."

"Enter."

And they penetrated the little and dusty house, which light was almost absent if a torch wasn't here.

"Where do you come from? What's your job? And, most important..." he said before taking a whispering voice. "How do you know about me?"

"I'm a detective from the Warfang Police..."

"Always the Police that sends persons to me for infos about that. I guess you're here thanks to Foudre."

"Yes. How do you know him?"

"Long story. And, the dragoness here? What's your name and where do you come from?"

"My name is Gloria and I am from here."

"Oh! What's your job, my dear?"

"I'm a... a... Pleasure giver."

"Oh! I see. And, you came for a darker too?"

"No. I just follow Qualt for a case."

"A case, eh?" he asked while turning the head to the blue dragon.

"Yeah. But, it has nothing to do with that darker."

"It's about the murder of my son..." added Gloria.

"Oh... All my condolences... Anyway, who is the darker you want to know more about?"

"Well, I don't know his name so I called him Myst."

"Myst?"

"Yeah. It's a darker who controls mist, who lives in the forest and even in caves and who pronounces only one word: Kill."

"Hmmm... It reminds me something... Wait here."

He got up and left the room for some minutes before coming back with three books.

He opened the first one and turn the pages before closing him, saying that it wasn't the right one. He opened an other in the middle and, after that, near the end.

"Ah! There!" he said after finding the right page, where there was lines of text and a detailed scheme of the Darker.

He read the page entirely.

A silence came for a minute or two before the mole exclaimed:

"Oh dang..."

"What?"

"Yes, I remember now. So you called him Myst. Interesting. But it's quite far from his real name."

"Which is...?"

"Usvork"

"And what do you remember for acting like that?"

"Well, I remember encountering him. And it gonna marks me for the eternity."

"What? Encounter him?"

"Yes. And I almost died. But, before I continue, why do you want to know more about him?"

"Do you see these iron horns and bandages on me?"

"Yes. Oh! You met him too?"

He answered positively and sadly with the head.

"I'm the only survivor from the five of my group."

"You are not lucky to have fallen on this darker. But, eh! It could have been worst! You could have encounter an alpha one, ah ah!"

But he stopped laughing when he saw that it wasn't funny at all for Qualt. No. There was a very dark look on his face that was saying: Stop fucking laugh or I swear I'm gonna make you suffer so much than you gonna plead me to kill you!

Yeah, even if he liked making some humour to no fall into madness, that subject was too soon for him. It could have made him smile month later but not now. Now, he was just overreacting.

"Sooooo..." continued Doug, "this darker is dangerous, even if he isn't the most intelligent. He is intelligent, that's for sure, but it's the same level as a wild hunter animal. So he uses mist to lose his prey in confusion, for making it easier to kill. But the mist works only the night and his eyes are too sensible to light that the day scares him. So, if you are alive, it can be for two reasons: or the day came, or he took enough prey. So, you said you were five and that you are the only survivor?"

"Yes. But I followed him to kill him in his cave. I almost got killed but I made him run away from the cave."

"Oh, I see. Courageous or mad, I don't know how to describe this action."

Qualt sighed in front of that comment. Yeah, he almost got killed because he wanted to fight a Darker. He almost did the same thing as his dead son, without killing his enemy this time.

"Anyway! This darker learned only few words with what he hunted and, I fear it, what someone taught him."

"Another darker?"

"No... Another dragon."

"Wait what?"

"Yes, you understood me. Another dragon. But I'm not sure, so..."

"Wait! How can a dragon can teach something to a darker? A darker is the worst enemy of a dragon. They are even worst than apes when they were alive!"

"That, my dear, is a question to which I neither have the answer."

"And, after that, how do you know all of this! And, if you encountered him, you have been to the outside. So how can you possibly live here if you encountered him!"

He sighed.

"You want to know? Fine. I'll tell you but it's gonna be a quite long story."

And, as you understood, reader, a first person story will again be told...

First of all, yes, I went outside the city. And I even went illegally. But, well, I was discovered later by the Police and especially by Foudre. But they didn't arrest me. It was my life and I was bringing them some precious informations... even if I had to bribe the first time. So they let me doing my thing. In exchange, I give them everything I know on the darkers. And I stay here because I have some tranquillity: I won't have the 1st nor the 2nd Class to annoy me in my work.

Darkers are, for me, fascinating. They are so different, so strange, yet so similar to dragons: they are as savage as them, as killer as them, as idiot as them. So that's why I go outside the city: to explore and study. For myself at first, for the Police after. But, unfortunately, I don't know everything and lots of things are still to discover. And not every journey gives us informations. Sometime, it can take years to discover something. And, for that, trust me, you have to have some luck!

Or maybe it's when you discover something that you are not lucky, for some. Look at your experience into those woods and your encounter with Usvork. You won't tell me it was luck.

Anyway, I always go outside alone. Yeah, even if it's really dangerous, I go outside alone with my stuff. But I will continue to do that, even if I lost an eye during an exploration and went close to death many time.

For Usvork, I remember that it was snowy when I went outside. And I went quite far into woods. It was really cold and I wished for a bit of warm. And that's when I found a little castle.

It was an old castle, that's for sure, and echoes were very present when I entered and asked for someone in there. But nobody ever answered my demands.

I lit up a torch and explored the castle. You had so much corridors that I even lost myself for a while. Just like if I was in the forest. And I soon discovered a room with a fireplace. I was lucky, there still were some woods. So I made a fire and got close to it. It was so relaxing, having some warm instead of the white and cold snow.

But it lasted only one hour because fog began to enter in the room. And suddenly, the fire wasn't warm anymore. It was like the snow. And then I heard the whisper in the mist:

"Kill... Kill..."

As you understood, it was Usvork.

The fire began to die as I searched in my bag something. Fear took me instantly.

I saw a dark form in the mist, which was now surrounding me. And that form was coming closer to me.

I grabbed something random in my bag, a metallic object that I immediately threw.

It made noises and was a perfect diversion. So I ran away from the room.

Began a game of Hide and Seek through the entire castle.

He was always silent and each apparition of him was terrific. But fortunately I could hide in time. Not always. I had to run when he discovered me one or two times.

And, when I had to go through a corridor... By every gods possible, my heart was beating loudly. I was scared. I feared his apparition in every corner, just like he was a deadly ghost.

As I walked forward, I turned at a corner and suddenly saw a blue dragon... walking like their was no danger.

I wanted to call him but I didn't because of the darker that was searching for me. So I turned back my head to see if something was here...

And he was here! He tried to slash my head and missed because I made a survival jump back. But he hit me... He, indeed, slashed my eye.

That's why I only have one left today.

And, after that, I ran away towards that blue dragon. It's maybe immoral to say that but I wanted to focus his attention on him so I could run away from this castle.

I rushed and took something randomly to throw it once I saw the dragon once again.

"Sorry", I whispered when I threw it into his direction and hid right after in a wardrobe.

I quickly saw the darker in front of me, running into the direction of the noise.

But no sound was made. Not even a yell nor a cry coming from the blue dragon.

And I was still bleeding from the wound he made to my eye. So I got out of my hiding spot and ran away.

I was lucky enough to find the exit, but unlucky to see that he was still behind me.

So began another game of Hide and Seek, into the woods this time. I went from cave to cave. And, because it was the night, I had to light another torch to see my way.

But I turned it off when I saw a group of cheetahs. The poor ones... They were hunted one by one by Usvork. And I saw and heard everything... That's when I knew what was his name when one of the cheetahs screamed while seeing the blood on the ground:

"Usvork! It's Usvork!"

After that, the darker was gone into his cave, taking his bloody dead preys with him. I was mad to follow him to study him...

Once I was in his cave, oh the smell! Death was everywhere! And he quickly discovered me...

I ran away again and went outside. But the mist was surrounding me in no time.

Just as him.

He jumped on me and didn't miss this time. He was on me when...

When I was saved by the sun...

When I was saved by a solar beam right into his eyes.

He groaned and ran away from me, going back in darkness, where he could see something.

I was thankful to everything at this moment. Thankful to be alive, even if I lost an eye.

And, when I got up, I saw the blue dragon in the distance, watching me like if I was something entertaining.

I didn't watch him in detail as I ran away from the forest as fast as I could...

"So, here I am. And, the next days, I came back in this forest again to study this darker. And that's when I learned everything I know of him. I learned to be silent. I didn't want to get caught by this monster."

A silence followed everything. A silence which mixed admiration and disgust at the same time from Qualt to Doug.

"You know, you can hate me for what I did. I hate myself for that too..."

"Do you still go outside to study him?"

"What?"

"I said: do you still go outside to study him?"

"Yes, I understood, and yes, I still go outside to study him but, why that question?"

"When will you go out the next time to study him?"

"Well, it depends but why do you ask that?"

"I want to go outside too. After the case will be closed, I want to get out because I have something to finish with that fuck."

The mole sighed while Gloria said:

"What? And die this time for good? You're crazy?"

"I have no family left. Only me. And I want my revenge on him, even if I have to die!"

"Well", said Doug, "it's your life, after all. But you know that you'll have to have some money for that. And when I say some, I mean a lot!"

"Okay, do that if you want, detective, but finish that case first."

"That what I'll do, don't worry. And, for the money... Where can I possibly find some..."

"Why not the tournament?"

"The..."

"Yeah, underground tournaments. There's a lot to earn if you win. But it's dangerous, really dangerous."

"What kind of dangerous?"

"The kind of 'you die, you lose', sometime. It really depends who's your adversary."

"Oh..."

"And, depending on the day, you maybe can fight a darker in the finale..."

"Wait WHAT!"

"Yes, you understood me. So, if you want money, or you bet in those fights, like lots of 1st Class, or you fight in it, to win the jackpot."

There was a silence where Qual thought about all of that. He really wanted to kill that darker even if he had to die, so...

"Do what you want!" exclaimed Gloria. "It's not me who's gonna regret your death!"

"Hmmm... Yeah, I think that I can go in there. That would train me."

"Yeah... train you, if you think that you'll train yourself at dying."

"So, mister Harmot..."

"You can call me only Doug"

"Do we have a deal? I join you after the case is closed and you show me where are those tournaments and, if I win, I'll be in your company the next time you'll go outside the city to study that fucking darker?"

He thought some seconds and finally answered

"Deal."

"Fine. I'll see you again soon after the case will be finished, so."

"Goodbye, if you go, mister Ironhorns."

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye", added Gloria.

"And good night!" said the mole.

Indeed, when they got out of the house, the two moons already were shining bright in the dark sky.

And Qualt seriously had to have some rest if he would to continue correctly the case. So he said to Gloria:

"I'm going home, personally. Where will you sleep tonight?"

"On the couch?"

That answer took him by surprise. He didn't mean that she would sleep in his home but... Meh! He would go through and it would be more fast the next morning if she was directly here. Two heads are better than one, after all.

"Okay, you're sleeping in my home."

So they passed the exit of the District and went into the direction of the Qualt's home to have a good rest...