The area reeked of waste and rot. Miwah kept her nose tilted upwards, breathing through her mouth as she followed Tamma and Yalch through the musty alleys of the Lower Section. Tamma kept close to the walls, poking her head past the corners of the intersections, carefully watching all people that moved through the area. Those that lurked the area were of a bulkier build than the rest of Farrowport. They were taller and more muscular and all looked to be in an even worse mood than those in the rest of the city. 

"Can you tell who is a Cutthroat and who isn't?" Yalch asked of Tamma. 

She shook her head. "Not at first glance unless it's Narrita and her main pals. But you can tell by the size of the crowd. They're always sticking together. So keep an ear out for some loud commotion. That might mean the Cutthroats are nearby."

Miwah kept her back pressed against the slimy stone wall of another building. She looked in the opposite direction that Tamma was looking out of. A swarm of people moved through the narrow alleys like a swarm of fish. "Tamma! I think I see them!" the seamstress said hurriedly as she tugged on the hunter's arm. The other woman ran to her side and looked past the corner. 

"That's them, all right," Tamma said in a low voice. "I can even see that snake's tail among the group. Looks like they took the long way to Colligan’s."

"Why would they do that?" Miwah asked. 

"If I had to take a guess, I'd say to gloat to as many people as possible. And maybe to rob some poor souls who got in their way."

"Can you see how many are down there?"

The hunter looked up at the ghost. "That's your job, Yalch."

"Right!" He clapped his hands and rubbed them together while putting on a look of pure determination. "I'm on it. You two stay up here. I'll be back as soon as possible!" Yalch then flew in a straight line towards the tavern at the bottom of the hill.

"I like him," Tamma said after turning to face Miwah. "He's got confidence."

"I like him, too. But he does not seem to act his age."

Yalch flew in through the side of the building, phasing through the wall and right past the barrels of alcohol behind the counter. He ended up next to a frustrated bartender with a row of full seats surrounding him. There were too many voices to focus in on one; each patron angrily waved their hands, stomped their feet and yelled at the top of their lungs to get the bartender's attention.  

The ghost floated towards the top of the room to get a better view of the crowd below. The rest of the tavern was just as active as the main bar counter with Cutthroats and other customers engaging in shouting matches to grab the attention of waiters and waitresses. Alcohol flowed from the overfilled glasses and onto the tables and floors. Those that were employed at the tavern wore black buttoned-up tops on top of long and loose white shirts, making them stand out from everyone else who wore torn and tattered rags. Each one carried a look of frustration, hesitantly addressing the customers that clamored aggressively for their attention. 

The antennas on Yalch's head began to twitch fervently back and forth. He looked up and gasped. The Beacons must be near! he whispered to himself. The ghost surveyed the scene from his vantage point one more time, keeping an eye open for any sign of the necklaces. The number of people combined with the roughhousing and moving employees made getting a solid visual impossible from his viewpoint. 

He flew down to the height of the tables, hovering over the surface as his eyes darted from side to side. Burly and grimy patrons slammed their hands and glasses across the wood, all of which slipped through the ghost. Yalch remained vigilant, looking at the various objects and containers strewn across the tavern. He took another glance up at his antennas and noticed that they were twitching even heavier than before. 

I must be getting close. 

As he took his eyes off the appendages attached to the top of his head, he turned towards the table adjacent to him. Beneath it he noticed a green tail jut out. As he looked up, a feminine voice contrasted with the masculine clamor of the rest of the tavern. 

"To a successful week!" Narrita shouted as she climbed up on top of the table. She raised a mug of ale and the let the froth drip down the side of the glass. The rest of the Cutthroats remained seated but stayed looking at her as they raised up their glasses in unison. "Who else loves being a Cutthroat?" Narrita grinned from ear to ear, looking down at her men as she kept her drink raised high. Yalch stared at her, floating just a foot above the adjacent table.

Both sets of eyes met. Narrita's smile vanished as she squinted towards Yalch. The ghost darted back upon being noticed and quickly flew into the ground. Horace turned his head behind him to see what exactly it was the Cutthroat leader was staring at.

"Everything right, Narrita?" Horace inquired, staring at the back of a fellow tavern-goer at the other table. 

Narrita blinked a few times and shook her head. "Yeah, yeah. Everything's fine. Just thought I saw something." Her smile returned, only smaller. With her drink still raised, she poised the same question once more. "Now, who else loves being a Cutthroat?"

A unanimous "Aye!" came from everyone seated at the table. Yalch soared underneath their view, travelling just inches above the floor. Underneath the table, Pierce lay coiled up, biting away at a deceased rat. The ghost’s face puckered as the tongue of the snake slipped through his poison-coated fangs, hissing as he swallowed the remains in one bite. 

Yalch retreated but with his gaze still fixated on Pierce. Gross... he whispered. As he finished muttering his statement, Pierce's head turned towards him in a flash. Bright yellow eyes stared directly at the ghost, startling him. Pierce uncoiled himself and slithered closer. Yalch remained still, staring back in both awe and a bit of fear.

Pierce's jaws opened wide before lunging straight. The ghost floated in place as the snake travelled right through him, giving the Yalch a view of the snake’s innards before coming out through the cobra’s back. 

H-how? Yalch mumbled. Both pairs of eyes stared each other, waiting for the other to break away first. Pierce got into position to strike again while Yalch remained still, almost frozen save for the vibrating of his antennas. 

The predator struck again, this time propelling himself further and crashing on the ground with a loud thumb. The people sitting around the table stopped their celebration to scoot their seats back and look down.

"What's going on down there?" Horace said as he poked his head underneath his table. Pierce looked at the large man then looked back at Yalch. "You seeing something? Or are you just looking for attention?" Horace understood the snake's notion and squinted in Yalch’s direction, only to end up scanning the entire floor for anything out of the ordinary. 

"Everything all right?" Narrita called out from above. Horace sat upright in his chair. 

"I think that rat you fed Pierce was tainted!" he said with a deep and heavy chuckle. The festivities continued while the snake continued to stare at Yalch with disdain. Frustrated, the snake coiled up once more, resting his head on the end of his tail. 

Yalch quickly flew away, staying low towards the ground all while keeping a close tab on the twitching of his antennas. Using them as a guide, he moved in an erratic pattern throughout the tavern, coming to a stop once he reached one of the corners. He ended up in front of a wagon with a pair of curtains in front of it.

 He moved right through them, placing himself in the center. Among the furs and other various parts of animals, he noticed a familiar pouch. With a gasp, he quickly turned around and flew in a straight line towards where he had entered the tavern. 

"Hey! You two!" Yalch exclaimed with his hands waving from side to side while having at a rapid rate towards Miwah and Tamma. "I've got some big news for the two of you!"

"You found the Beacons?" Miwah asked in exasperation. 

"Yep!" the ghost replied by bobbing up and down. "But I found some people in there... with Potential!"

"People?" Tamma said.

"Well, at least one person. But I think I saw something that I've never seen before in there!"

"What is it?' Miwah asked.

"I saw... an animal with Potential!" Yalch raised his hands to his face and bent them downwards at a sharp angle, mimicking the fangs of a snake. "It was this mean looking cobra. And it was enormous!"

Tamma staggered back, pressing her hand against her chest. "Pierce? You're saying Pierce could do what Miwah does if it gets a hold of one of those necklaces?"

"I-I don't know. This is a new sight to me. Your guess is as good as mine."

"And I assume Narrita is the person you saw with Potential," Miwah stated. 

"What does she look like?"

Tamma's lips pursed together. "Short hair. Pasty skin. Tacky sense of fashion."

"I think I know who you're talking about. But I liked her jacket though."

"If she was near that snake, then it must have been Narrita," Tamma replied. 

"It was definitely her!" Yalch said. 

The hunter smacked her forehead with the palm of her hand. "Great. Just what we needed. A couple members of the Cutthroats becoming Purifiers."