Again keeping to the shadows, he begins moving carefully and silently around the courtyard as he makes his way over to where James is being held. A clump of bushes here, to a darkened doorway there, he keeps to the shadows as he moves from building to building, drawing ever closer.

Once, while he was standing in a darkened doorway as he waited for several soldiers to pa.s.s by, the door behind him suddenly opens. Diving out of the doorway to his right, along the side of the wall, he lands behind a midsized bush. A quick glance reveals the soldiers hadn't noticed him and luckily, the person opening the door had been talking to someone inside so his attention had been directed back within the building and hadn't seen him either.

Crouching behind the bush, Jiron watches as the man leaves the building and closes the door behind him. He breathes a sigh of relief when the man turns and begins walking to the courtyard, away from where he's hiding.

After the man has moved far enough away, he makes sure the coast is clear and then begins to continue around the courtyard. When he finally reaches the building that sits next to the one he's after, he pauses as he figures out the best way to enter. The front of the building borders the courtyard and any attempt to enter through there would be discovered in no time by one of the many soldiers out there.

The building he's crouched next to is the same height as the one holding James. He judges the distance between the two isn't so great he couldn't leap across it, roof to roof. It might be easier to gain entrance to this one and then jump across the gap.

He begins examining the exterior of the building and finds a ground floor window open not too far from where he's standing. Moving quickly and silently, he runs to the window and then pauses while he checks to make sure no one is around. When he determines the area is clear, he grabs the windowsill and swings himself up and through to the room on the other side.

The room looks to be the office of a scribe. From the faint light coming in through the window, he sees a desk with paper and inkwells. Not taking the time to investigate further, he moves to the door and places his ear against it as he listens to the other side. Failing to hear anything, he opens the door a crack and looks out upon a darkened hallway. Leaving the room and closing the door behind him, he moves down to the right hoping to find the stairs.

All the rooms along this hallway are dark and empty so he moves quickly to the end where he finds a dark stairwell leading up. He begins moving slowly up the stairwell, all the while listening intently for the sound of anyone approaching, either from above or below.

When the stairs reach the next level, a hallway branches off to the left or he can turn and continue up the stairs. Down the hallway he sees some lights coming from two different rooms as he pauses a moment to listen before continuing up the stairs to the third level.

Again he finds a hallway extending from the stairs to the left, this time all the offices are dark, or he can continue following the stairs up to the fourth level. Not hearing anything, he continues on up to the top level.

At the top of the stairs, his only choice now is to go down the dark hallway. He begins checking room after room, searching for a trapdoor leading up to the roof. After searching the last room, he comes to the conclusion that there isn't one. Or it's so well hidden that he couldn't find it.

In the last room at the corner of the building, he moves to the window and looks out. The window is facing away from the lights of the courtyard and is currently in shadow. Opening the window slowly, he carefully steps out upon the window ledge and reaches up to the roof. Able to gain a grip on the edge of the roof, he takes a deep breath and then swings out as he pulls himself up onto the roof.

The roof slants a little to allow rain or snow to flow off and makes for treacherous footing. Once up, he begins making his way around to the side across from the Councilman's offices.

Coming to stand across from the Councilman's building, he carefully looks down between them. Several soldiers are down there talking, giving no indication that they'll be leaving anytime soon. Great! Great! If he jumps, they may hear him. But what choice does he have? If he jumps, they may hear him. But what choice does he have?

He moves further up the roof to give him a little bit of distance to run. Then he takes four quick steps and launches himself across to the opposite roof where he lands with a thud. Quickly grabbing a secure hold as he starts sliding to the edge, he stops his downward slide and becomes very still while he tries to hear if any sort of cry has arisen from those down below. When none is forthcoming, he begins moving along the roof away from the well lit courtyard, and over to the darker side facing the opposite way.

Upon reaching the far side of the roof, he peers over the ledge to see if anyone is down on the ground below him. In the faint light, it's hard for him to tell but he doesn't think anyone is down there.

Hoping to find an open window just below him, he leans out a ways to get a better look. One of the windows to his left is partly open. Moving carefully, he scoots along the edge of the roof until he's just above the open window.

After taking one more look down to make sure the area is clear, he swings himself over the edge, dangling four stories above the ground. He swings his foot toward the window and hooks it around the inside of the window sill, giving him some leverage. Then he brings over his other foot until he's standing awkwardly on the ledge.

When his feet are secure upon the ledge, he leans outward and then jerks his body toward the window while at the same time letting go of the roof's edge. One of his feet suddenly slips off the ledge and he suddenly loses his balance. He begins falling to the ground below and reaches out in a panic, grabbing the window ledge and succeeds in stopping his downward plunge.

Suddenly from below, he hears talking. Two men turn the corner and begin walking along the side of the building, directly below where he's hanging.

His hands are gripped precariously and he's afraid he might lose his grip but he remains still as they pa.s.s beneath him. Finally the men turn the corner on the far side and move out of sight. Breathing a sigh of relief, he readjusts his grip and begins to pull himself up.

Climbing in through the window, he pauses a moment as he catches his breath. Two floors down and I should be able to find James and Fifer. How I'll get them out of here remains to be seen. Two floors down and I should be able to find James and Fifer. How I'll get them out of here remains to be seen.

Very little light illuminates the room on the other side of the window and he has to feel his way over to the door. After stumbling across a stool and b.u.mping his knee into the side of a table, he at last finds the door.

Placing his ear against it, he listens for a moment before opening the door slowly. A hallway lies on the other side, dark and quiet down both directions. Leaving the room, he enters the hallway and shuts the door quietly behind him. Remembering the way the last building had been laid out, and hoping they're laid out similar, he moves down the hallway to the end where the stairs should be.

Sure enough, at the end of the hallway he finds a flight of stairs leading down. Taking the stairs quickly and silently, he comes to the next landing. The hallway leading away along the second floor is dark as well so he doesn't even pause before descending toward the next level. With any luck James and Fifer will still be down on the second level just as Shyn had said.

As he begins to descend the final few steps, he notices a light illuminating the stairwell from below. The closer to the second floor he gets, the brighter it becomes. The second floor landing is completely illuminated by a candle sitting in a wall sconce across from the hallway. Jiron slows down as he nears the landing, listening for anything that might indicate whether or not someone's near. Step by slow step, he moves down the last few steps to the beginning of the hallway and then peers around the corner.

The hallway extends from the landing just as the others had. Candles in recesses line the entire hallway banishing away the shadows. He sees the double doors that Shyn told them about, a guard stands watch before them.

Sighing with relief, he knows that the presence of the guard can only mean they're still in there. He ponders the situation briefly and realizes the only way is to rush the lone guard and hope there's no one else around. The thought of coming in through the outside window entered his mind briefly, but the window overlooks the courtyard and there'd be no way to get in without being seen by those in the courtyard below.

Getting ready to rush down the hallway and take out the guard, he hears two people talking as they begin to come up the stairs from the floor below them. Backing up quickly, he moves up the stairs away from the landing until the shadows once more conceal him. The voices grow louder as their owners come nearer to the second floor.

"...don't care, this must be done before the night's over!" exclaims one voice.

"I understand that milord," the second voice replies.

"You have the antidote?" the first one asks.

"Yes, right here," answers the second.

"Can you give the one called James enough for him to answer questions, yet not enough to allow him to use his powers?" asks the first one.

"Yes, milord," he replies.

The two men round the corner of the stairs as they begin to move down the hallway toward the double doors. One is dressed richly with the trappings of rank and has a commanding presence. The other is dressed finely as well, though is obviously the other's subordinate. Looking to the one with the trappings of rank, he thinks, Must be the Councilman Rillian. Must be the Councilman Rillian.

He waits until they pa.s.s into the hallway and begin moving down to the doors before coming back to the landing. He peers around the corner and watches as they move toward the double doors. The guard standing in front sees them coming, straightens up and opens one of the doors for them. He stands at attention while they pa.s.s into the room. Jiron suddenly realizes this is his chance. The guard is standing at attention and is facing away away from him. from him.

As the guard begins to close the door, Jiron sprints forward on the b.a.l.l.s of his feet to avoid making any noise the guard might hear. He reaches him just as the door swings shut. Before the guard even realizes what's happening, Jiron grabs his head and slides a knife across his throat, silencing him.

Jiron holds the guard as he gasps out his last breaths, preventing him from falling to the floor with a clatter and announcing his presence to those within the room. When the guard at last becomes still, he drags his lifeless body further down the hallway away from the door, and then quietly lays him down.

Moving back to the double doors, he puts his ear to them but the thickness of the doors m.u.f.fles the voices from within.

Suddenly, one of the doors opens up and the Councilman's underling begins to say, "Go down to the..." Then he realizes Jiron is there and tries to slam shut the door.

Throwing his shoulder against it, Jiron pushes the door into the room and follows right after. He grabs the underling and places a knife against his throat as he looks over to where Councilman Rillian is seated in a chair next to James.

The Councilman looks to Jiron in shock as he sits there. When he looks to draw a knife from his belt, Jiron says, "Don't! I have no problems with killing you both if you try anything."

Looking haughtily at Jiron, Councilman Rillian says, "Do you even know who I am?"

Nodding, he replies, "You're the Councilman Rillian. A traitor to your people and a spy for the Empire."

"Harsh words from someone intruding upon what he aught not to," replies Councilman Rillian. He gestures to the window he's sitting next to and says, "I can but call for help and a hundred men will be here in moments."

"You could," agrees Jiron. "But then you'd have to explain why you have friends of Lord Pytherian tied up and drugged here. I don't think you could talk your way out of that."

He narrows his eyes at Jiron and says, "It seems we are at an impa.s.se. Surely we can work this out somehow?"

"All I want are my friends there," he tells him, nodding over at the two comatose forms on the couch. "Then I'll leave."

"Just like that?" he asks. "I don't think I can let any of you out of here alive."

Then Jiron notices his eyes flick for only a brief moment to the hallway behind him. He suddenly kicks out with his foot and connects with a guard that had been sneaking up behind him. Glancing back quickly, he watches as the guard stumbles back a few paces and then draws his sword.

Jiron pushes the man he's holding further into the room as he turns to shut the door before the guard has a chance to prevent him. With a bang, the door slams shut and Jiron turns the lock. The guard on the outside begins to beat upon the door, his cries coming through the door asking if Councilman Rillian is safe.

"It seems you're trapped young man," the councilman says from where he's still sitting in the chair.

The beating on the door finally stops as the guard begins running down the hallway to get help. Jiron turns to the underling and says, "You! You have an antidote for the drug, right?"

The man looks to the councilman and then shakes his head as he says, "No, I don't."

"Don't lie to me!" Jiron hollers at him. "I heard you say you did when you two were coming up the stairs." Pointing at James he says, "I want you to give it to him. If he dies, you both shall die." Drawing his knife he puts the point to the man's throat as he stares into his eyes.

From the corner of his eye, he sees Councilman Rillian begin to reach for the knife at his belt. Pushing the underling away, he rounds on the councilman and before he's able to grip the knife, he takes hold of his arm. "Don't even think about it, milord," he says.

"Stop!" he yells to the underling when he sees him moving toward the door. "One more step and your boss here is dead. Understand?"

Turning his attention back to the councilman, he says, "I'm sorry to have to do this to you milord." He removes the outer coat of Councilman Rillian and with his knife cuts it into strips which he then uses to secure him to the chair. All the while casting glances over to his underling to make sure he gets no closer to the door.

When at last the councilman's secured and his knife rests with the others in Jiron's belt, Jiron turns to the underling and asks, "What's your name?"

"Stephen," the man replies.

"Well, Stephen, get over there and administer the antidote," Jiron demands. When he hesitates, Jiron places a knife at Councilman Rillian's throat and says menacingly, "Now!"

Pulling a small crystal vial from within his jerkin, Stephen moves over to where James lies on the couch. "Don't do anything stupid," Jiron warns him.

Suddenly from the door, more banging can be heard as the guard returns with help. It sounds like they're using a battering ram or perhaps a bench in an attempt to break the door down.

Jiron moves to the window and looks out over the courtyard. The soldiers in the courtyard below remain oblivious to the events taking place within the Councilman's offices. He moves back over to the councilman, indicates the door and says, "So those are just your own personal guards eh? What, don't you want everyone to know what's going on in here?"

The councilman just glares at him, keeping silent.

Stephen has finished administering the antidote to James. When Jiron looks over to them, Stephen says, "It'll take a few minutes to work."

"How many?" asks Jiron as the pounding on the door increases. A crack begins forming in the heavy door.

Shrugging, Stephen replies, "I'm not sure. The instructions I was given wasn't that clear."

"What did they tell you?" Jiron demands to know.

"That a few drops would bring him out of it," he explains.

"How much did they say would restore his powers?" Jiron asks.

He glances over to Councilman Rillian and says, "Half again as much."

"I a.s.sume you didn't give him that much?" he inquires.

Shaking his head, Stephen says, "No, I didn't."

Jiron puts a knife to the councilman's throat and says, "Do it!"

"Don't!" Councilman Rillian orders.

"But he'll kill you!" cries Stephen.

"If they get out of here, we're dead anyway!" he exclaims then cries out as Jiron gently punctures the side of his neck, allowing a small drop of blood to trickle down his neck.

"Smash it!" orders the councilman.

As Stephen raises the vial high, Jiron screams, "Don't!" He rushes toward Stephen to try and prevent the vial from being smashed, but is too late. With a crash, the vial is thrown to the floor and smashes into a thousand pieces, the precious antidote splattering across the floor.

"d.a.m.n you!" Jiron curses as he lashes out with his knife in anger.

Stephen cries out as the knife strikes his chest and pierces his heart. Jiron kicks out with his foot, knocking him off his knife. Eyes beginning to glaze over, he trips over a chair behind him and hits the ground with a grunt. His blood begins to spread across the floor as his life quickly leaves him.

Jiron bends down over the spilled antidote as Councilman Rillian begins to laugh. "Too late," he cries out in glee. "Without his magic, you'll never get out of here alive." He pays no attention to the councilman's words as the looks down at the shattered remains of the vial. In the center of the shards, he finds a small pool of antidote. Bending over, he dips his finger into it, gathering as much as he can upon its tip.

Getting up, he moves quickly over to James' side all the while trying not to allow the liquid to drip off his finger. James opens his eyes as he inserts the antidote covered finger inside his mouth. Once he's felt James suck the antidote off his finger, he says, "You okay now?"

James nods his head and says, "Better." He tries to sit up, but the spinning of the room causes him to fall back down on the couch. "Not perfect, it seems." The antidote hasn't reversed the effects of the poison completely. Hopefully it won't take longer than they have.

Just then, the door bursts open and they see four men holding a wooden bench as a battering ram come through the broken remnants of the door. The bench is dropped as one guard kicks out with his foot and clears the remaining portion of the broken door out of the way. Then the guards begin moving into the room.

Jiron moves to Councilman Rillian's side and places a knife at his throat as he says, "Stop! Or he's dead!"

The guards come to a quick stop, just feet within the room. They take in the scene as the lead one says, "Milord, are you okay?"

"I'm alive" the councilman a.s.sures him.

"Now," Jiron says to the guards, "Get out or I slit his throat."

"Milord?" asks the guard as he looks to the councilman.

"Stay right where you are," he orders. "If they kill me, then you kill them. Understood?"

"But..." the guard stammers.

"You heard me!" shouts Councilman Rillian.

The guards glance among themselves and remain where they are.

"I said leave the room!" Jiron hollers at them.

James finds his head is becoming clearer by the second. Whatever that stuff was that Jiron had given him seems to be doing the trick.

From the hallway, a crossbow bolt flies through the door past the guards in the room, and strikes Jiron in the right shoulder. The force of it knocks him backward and away from the councilman. He stumbles for a few feet before falling to the floor.

"Kill him!" Councilman Rillian shouts.