Séverin paused, looking up.

“Enrique, what are you doing?”

Enrique was poking something into his uninjured ear. “Giving myself some added protection in case there are any sirens.”

Zofia frowned. “Sirens are not real.”

“But they could be a symbolic stand-in for something,” said Enrique. “Sonic blasts or earsplitting Forging devices, or what have you.”

“How does disturbing your earwax assist in that endeavor?” asked Hypnos.

“BEESWAX IS WHAT WORKED FOR ODYSSEUS WHEN HE FACED THE SIRENS,” said Enrique, far louder than he needed to.

Laila winced. “We heard you.”

“WHAT?”

“We heard—” started Laila, then she shook her head. “Forget it!”

“WHAT?”

Séverin motioned for him to take out the beeswax, which Enrique did before looking curiously at everyone.

“I brought enough for everyone?” he said.

“How are you going to hear us if you’ve got that in your ear?”

“Just wave your hands and I’ll see it. I can hear a little through my bandages, but not much,” said Enrique, shoving the wax back in.

“Say nothing if you agree that I am the most handsome man alive,” said Hypnos quietly.

Enrique, who was preoccupied with his research notes, said nothing.

“Hurrah!” said Hypnos.

Zofia was about to say that was not a real victory when Laila called, “Come see!” She gestured to one of the dark boulders separating the shore from the water. “I almost didn’t notice it. It’s definitely Forged.”

Zofia followed her. Near the water’s edge stood a large gray boulder with a hollow, conical protrusion. Zofia touched it lightly. It had been bronze once, but was now mottled green and gray. The metal whispered the will that had long ago been Forged into its structure:

Hear and repeat and resound.

“It’s … it’s like a sound amplifier,” Zofia said, confused.

Why would the device need to amplify sound if the cave was silent?

“Let’s measure the lake and go back to the others,” said Laila. “I think Séverin will want to see this.”

Zofia dropped her satchels onto the ground, drawing out her measuring devices and a length of steel rope, Forged to retain a calibrated tensile strength at all times. She would need to lower the device into the water without losing it. As she assembled her instruments, she counted the things around her, steadying herself—seven rocks, four square-shaped, three roughly rounded; four stalactites directly above her; three rock shelves jutting from the cave wall on the right; zero rock shelves jutting from the cave wall on the left; three used matches lying beside her boot.

Zofia returned to her reading instruments, frowning as she translated the measurements. The lake was deep, but there appeared to be an obstruction running down the middle. Zofia was about to call out to the others when her torchlight roved over something pale and moving in the shallows of the lake: a skull, toppled onto its side.

Zofia yelped, skittering backwards.

“Zofia!” called Laila, rushing to her side. “Are you all right?”

Zofia stared into the water, goose bumps erupting over her skin.