Chapter 21

Carl and Donut investigate the aftermath of their battle with Vicente, a city elf from the 201st Security Group—a fringe militia obsessed with protecting skyfowl. They discover GumGum has been killed by krasue creatures and receive a mysterious letter written in necroscript, suggesting involvement with a lich. Carl receives a powerful xistera throwing weapon from a fan box, while another body is mysteriously deposited on the inn's roof with a threatening message.

After defeating Vicente and examining his corpse, Carl finds a military-style uniform bearing the patch of the "201st Security Group – Magical Ops," a disorganized militia of city elves who believe they must protect skyfowl from earthbound creatures based on religious interpretations of their goddess Apito. Carl and Donut return to the inn where they receive fan-box rewards; Donut gets a photograph of Carl's ex-girlfriend Bea from Instagram (which Carl realizes no longer bothers him), while Carl receives a xistera—a jai-alai scoop weapon that allows him to launch projectiles with tremendous force and accuracy. After testing it on fruit, Mordecai explains the 201st are conspiracy-theorist zealots treated as a joke by the skyfowl they worship. Carl shows Mordecai the uniform and learns about the broader implications of their investigation. They discover GumGum's body and retrieve two items: a Gate Pass signed by "Magistrate Featherfall" and a Mysterious Letter written in necroscript—an undead language—suggesting involvement with a lich. Fitz reveals GumGum had been tracking krasue creatures in the alleys and was searching for fallen prostitutes because her own mother died in similar circumstances. That night, another mutilated corpse is dropped on the inn's roof with a message carved into its flesh: "No, you won't."