Corto Maltese #8

In "The Hermes Lodge," Corto Maltese stumbles into a Venetian masonic lodge, sparking a journey through the city’s hidden alleys with freemason Bepi Faliero. As Corto searches for the legendary emerald known as "Solomon's Clavicle," he encounters fascist Blackshirts and the enigmatic figure of The Poet, before being drawn into a meeting with the Neoplatonic philosopher Hipazia.

In "The Enigma of Baron Corvo," Corto Maltese follows a trail of ancient runes and forgotten histories through the shadowed alleys of Venice, unraveling clues tied to a mysterious Scandinavian inscription on a Greek lion statue. As he consults the reclusive scholar Melchisedec and investigates a sudden gunshot in a quiet house, the city’s streets turn hostile—Blackshirts and Carabinieri close in, forcing Corto into a desperate flight across the rooftops.

In "The Stairway of Encounters," Corto Maltese tumbles from a rooftop only to be met by the spectral face of Rasputin in a dream that lingers long after he wakes. Nursed by Louise Brookszowyc and visited by Böeke and Silver Leg, Corto follows a thread of mystery into the Freemasons, where he encounters Dr. Teone, father of Hipazia—each meeting unfolding like a step on a stairway leading deeper into the unknown.