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The questions that the fake had asked him had mostly been about whether the Rainlord elders had gotten the message, if they'd agreed to the plan, if they needed more prep time--that sort of thing. And without being able to move his head, Raul had only been able to use his eyes to answer. Up and down for yes, side to side for no. And on top of all that, the imposter had to be careful not to be seen spending too much time next to Raul, too, which was why much of the questioning had been conducted while "Croll" wasn't even in the same room.

How, exactly, the imposter had been able to discern Raul's answers when he wasn't even looking at him... well, that was just another layer to the mystery.

But there'd been one string of questions that proved somewhat telling. The elders had proved understandably reticent to trust this random stranger who'd appeared seemingly from nowhere, saying all the right things--and sounding a bit too good to be true, honestly.

And after a while, the imposter began to pick up on their trepidation, which led to an interesting exchange.

'Tell Darktide that he should "grip the torch with both hands."'

And when Raul relayed the stranger's message, Melchor Blackburn had wanted to know how the man knew what his father used to say to him when he was young.

'Bernardino Blackburn was a good friend of mine, once upon a time. Please trust that I bear you and your kin no ill will. When all of this is over, if we are still alive, I promise that I will tell you my name.'

That had certainly gotten the gears turning in Raul's head. If the guy really did have old, friendly ties with House Blackburn, then it was quite strange for him to not just drop his name straight away and earn their trust immediately.

But then again, if the mission went pear-shaped, the guy could've been worried about his identity being leaked to Abolish by newly captured Rainlords. Such as Raul, for example.

And then there was that name.

Melchor's father, Bernardino Blackburn. Raul had heard it many times before. It was an important one in regard to the history of their House--and beyond.

Lord Bernardino--or Granpa Dino, as Raul had heard others call him--had been the head of House Blackburn before Lord Ismael took over. Moreover, he'd been an internationally famous warrior.

In the Vanguard, no less.