Continue looking together

"There is just one more thing before we go." Cassia looks up at you expectantly and you explain as best you can. "I came to this city to rescue a friend. I cannot leave until I have found her."

"A friend?" She asks softly. "Is she just a friend to you, Adonis?"

You give Cassia an odd look. "Yes. Why do ask?"

"I wanted to see how truly crazy you are, to enter this chaotic hell." She responds. This makes you smile a little bit. It did seem crazy, looking at it from the outside.

"She was close to me." The simple words come easily. "She still is."

"I didn't mean to question your motives." The girl puts her hands up. "Crazy as this is, it is still very noble. And romantic."

"Glad you think so." You stand and Cassia moves off your lap to stand up herself. You notice that it was with some **** that she ended her embrace. "I hope you don't mind following me deeper into this city, Cassia. I'd leave you here, so you could stay safe, but I don't know if I would be able to return for you. "

"I feel safer with you than without." She replies. "Besides, I can help you. I know this city quite well. Perhaps if you told me where she might be, I could direct you to where you need to go."

"That would be very helpful." You say simply. Inside, you are cheering at your good luck. "What do you know of a man named Pyrrhus?"

"Ah, that heartless eel of a merchant." Cassia's expression narrowed. "He is a vile man with a soul as black as the night sky. My mother tried to marry me off to him, so our family would be even richer than before, but thankfully by that time, Pyrrhus had moved on from wives to his expanding harem of foreign women that he would purchase from struggling towns and hamlets." Her expression fell a bit when she saw the disgusted look on your face. "This girl...this friend you speak of. Is she...?"

"Pyrrhus bought her off of our master for a small pouch of shiny coins." You say miserably. "I had not seen her so scared as the day she was taken by that man."

"I am so sorry." Cassia closes her eyes and shakes her head sadly. "Pyrrhus...is not a kind man, nor is he gentle lover. The tales of what his harem has endured is the subject of nightmares."

"Do you know where he lives or where I can find his harem?" You prod, hoping to move away from the disturbing imagery of the horrors visited upon poor Eudora.

"I can take you there." She nods. "There isn't a young woman in this city who doesn't know Pyrrhus' personal tower; they all steer clear of it when walking the streets." She bites her lower lip. "It is all the way across the city, however. We will have to make it through a lot to get there."

"We will have to find a way to sneak through the city undetected so we can avoid any unnecessary conflict." You muse.

"We will want to avoid the streets then. We may be able to travel by rooftop, at least part of the way. Or..." Cassia shudders as the words die on her tongue. She sees the interest on your face and continues. "The catacombs. Beneath the city. They interconnect many points in the city and there would most likely be few invaders there. But it is dangerous as it is poorly maintained and very creepy. I'd rather not set foot in that damned place."