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Hector's hand went to the Shard in his coat pocket. It didn't quite fit perfectly in there, but he'd gotten accustomed to the feeling. He pulled it out. "I... might be able to help with that, too."

Abbas and Worwal both stared.

"If Rasalased is cooperative, he could probably lead us to the other Hahls," said Hector.

'You sound uncertain,' said Worwal.

"I am," said Hector. "Talking to Rasalased is difficult. I still haven't quite figured out how to do it at will. But I'll try my best and hopefully get some answers out of him soon."

"...I still cannot believe you are able to converse with him," said Abbas.

Honestly, neither could Hector. He didn't know if he should admit that, though.

They continued talking for the length of the journey. Worwal asked about their recent trip through the Undercrust, having apparently already heard quite a few different things that he wanted confirmation on. Hector mostly let Garovel handle it while he concentrated on contacting Rasalased.

Again, he found himself struggling. How had he managed it the last time? He remembered getting frustrated. Emotional.

...And that had actually worked? Hmm. He supposed it had.

How weird. Usually, allowing himself to get upset seemed like it was the exact opposite of what he was supposed to do. In fact, he wasn't even sure how he was supposed to do it now. What, was he just supposed to pretend that he was mad again?

Eh.

He gave it a shot.

Shockingly, it didn't work.

He tried a few more times and failed a few more times. It seemed like he would have to actually get mad again in order for it to work, but how the hell was he supposed to do that? Think anger-inducing thoughts? That seemed pretty weird.