The moon hung high over Thundarr City as Faro walked briskly down the dimly lit streets. He had left the penthouse without a sound, slipping through the quiet corridors and out into the night. Mindy was gone. Rita was asleep. Albort wouldn’t check on him until morning. It was the perfect moment to leave.
But it wasn’t the dwarf who called him.
Faro had lied in the note.
He had to get away—from the madness, from the suffocating tension, from the murder, the games, and most of all, from her. The city was swallowing him whole, and he needed space to breathe.
Instead of summoning the dwarf, he took the long way out, heading for the nearest train station. No Falcon mask. No reputation. Just a man in a hooded jacket, blending in with the night crowd.
By the time he reached the outskirts of Thundarr Forest, the first hints of dawn were creeping over the horizon. He had walked the rest of the way, through thick trees and misty trails, until finally—there it was.
The Cave of Falcon.
Home.
Faro stepped inside, the cool air wrapping around him like an old friend. The silence was deafening. No Rita. No Cal. No Ronda. No Mindy. No city lights. Just him, the stone walls, and the distant echoes of water dripping from the cave ceiling.
He let out a slow breath.
This was what he needed.
Thundarr City.
The next morning, Rita woke up to an unusually quiet penthouse. She stretched, sat up, and listened—no voices, no movement. Something was off.
Slipping into her silk robe, she walked barefoot through the guest bedrooms. No sign of Faro. No sign of Mindy. The night before felt like a blur, but now none of it mattered. Where was Faro?
Albort appeared with a neatly folded note. “This was left for you, ma’am.”
Rita took it, unfolded it, and read:
“Aunty,
The dwarf summoned me in the middle of the night, so I had to leave for Thundarr Forest. Mindy left after I went to your bedroom.
—Faro”
Rita read it twice and narrowed her eyes.
Rita crushed the note in her fist. “He’s running, Albort. Running from the tension, the madness, the murder—trying to lose himself in that cave of his.“
Albort chuckled. “Can’t say I blame him.”
Rita exhaled, looking out the window toward the distant horizon. “He’ll be back. Thundarr City doesn’t let go that easily.”
Albort nodded. “They always come back, ma’am. Always.”
Restless in the Cave of Falcon
Faro sat on a rugged stone ledge inside the Cave of Falcon, the dim light from his lantern flickering against the cavern walls. An old book lay open in his lap, but his mind refused to focus on the words. His eyes would scan the page, yet every few moments, his thoughts would drift elsewhere.
It had been days now.
No Murder Dog attacks.
No Pigmen in trouble.
No cryptic warnings from Tiwa.
Not even a visit from the Dwarf.
Just silence.
At first, he had welcomed it. The escape from Thundarr City’s chaos, the tension of Rita’s games, the weight of the things he had seen and done. But now, as the quiet stretched on, it was starting to feel… empty.
He sighed, leaning his head back against the cave wall.
His fingers absentmindedly reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out the red lingerie—Rita’s.
The silk felt soft against his skin as he ran his thumb over the delicate lace. He brought it close to his face and inhaled deeply.
A shiver ran through him.
The scent—her scent—was still there. That intoxicating mix of perfume and something else that was purely Rita. He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the memory wash over him.
The way she moved.
The way she looked at him.
The way she controlled everything and everyone around her.
Damn.
He missed it.
He missed her.
Faro exhaled sharply, shaking his head.
“What the hell am I doing?” he muttered to himself, tossing the lingerie onto the small wooden table beside him.
He had left Thundarr City to get away, to clear his head. And now here he was, sitting alone in a cave, sniffing lingerie like some lovesick fool.
His gaze flickered back to the entrance of the cave. Beyond those trees, past the dense forest, and across the Thundarr Sea… the city was waiting.
Rita was waiting.
Wasn’t she?
He ran a hand through his hair, frustration building in his chest. Maybe it was time to return. Maybe he had been lying to himself this whole time.
Thundarr City wasn’t the problem.
He needed the madness.
He needed the danger.
He needed her.
Faro clenched his jaw.
Decision made.
He was going back.
