Eliza followed the group as they were led by the guard in fancy armor up the hill towards the administrative building. Eventually, they reached a small, wooden platform erected next to the building.

A small crowd of prisoners surrounded the platform, with a couple of groups of guards standing separate off to the side. The guards intermingled with each other and overall seemed to be in a jovial mood. The Prisoners, meanwhile, had separated themselves into their respective groups and were speaking quietly.

Eliza and the others started to make their way toward the front of the platform; the fancily dressed guard branched off, presumably to attend to other duties. As they approached the platform, Eliza examined the building behind it.

It was a rectangular wooden building that was two stories tall. Based on appearances, it was the best-constructed building she had seen in the camp and was by far the biggest in sight. Each floor had rectangular windows that extended down the length of the building. The evening sun reflected off the glass and into Eliza's eyes, forcing her to look away. The group stopped in a space near the front of the raised platform and then waited.

Eliza didn’t have to wait long before somebody approached her.

“Ay Lass! Good ta see that yer still alive. “ A familiar voice called out.

Eliza turned towards the voice and saw the dwarf separate himself from the other guards and approach her.

“As you can see,” Eliza said, giving Kolgit a small smile. Out of all the guards, he had been the friendliest up to this point, and she saw no reason why she couldn’t reciprocate.

Kolgit gave her a friendly clap on the shoulder, laughing as he said, “I knew no thing like a wraith would be able ta take you of all people down.”

Eliza’s smile turned slightly strained as she took a step back from the force of the hit. There was a lot of strength in his tiny body.

“That's right, wraiths are no big deal,” Eliza said, shaking a little.

Kolgit appeared not to have heard her shaking voice, and he pressed on, much to Eliza’s relief.

“Itsa shame that yer a prisoner; ya would've made a fine addition to da guard.” He said, shaking his head sadly, his beard swaying with the movement.

“That could be a possibility if I received citizenship,” Eliza said, steering the conversation in that direction. She might as well take this opportunity to start her task seeing that he was being so friendly.

A serious look crossed his face, “ Citizenship, eh?” He said as he stroked his beard thoughtfully.” I can’t say I've heard of someone receiving it outside of da camp. But it seems like I hear of another group every day since I’ve gotten here.”

He went silent for a moment as he continued thinking.

“Is there something wrong?” Eliza asked.

Her speaking seemed to shake Kolgit out of whatever it was, and he shook his head, and the smile returned to his face, “ah, nothing for ya to worry about, lass. I’m not the best one to speak to; Gary is in charge of that. As I’ve heard, you’ve met him before. He and his boys like ta walk around in fancy schmancy armor. Ya can't miss them.” He said before turning to walk away.

As he left, he said, “If it's ya, you would be able ta receive it, I know it. When ya do, drinks are on me, er some juice in yer case.”

“I'll take you up on that offer someday. Thank you.” She said, giving him a grateful smile.

Kolgit smiled and left to speak to more of the guards, and Eliza turned around to see everyone looking at her.

“Uh, what?” Eliza asked, confused.

Leah was the first to speak her mind, “ it's, uh, something I was wondering; why is that guard so friendly with you?”

Eliza reflected on her encounters with Kolgit, “It probably started when I knocked him out cold with my soup bowl in my second escape attempt on my way here. If I recall, he said something about wishing his son had as much fire as me.” Eliza said, feeling embarrassed. Just remembering how he had fed her was enough to make her want to crawl into a hole and die of shame.

“Strange guy, maybe I should try it?” Demitrus said.

“I say you don’t; enough guards are pissed off at you that they would jump at any opportunity to execute you if they had the chance,” Leo said, sighing.

Demitrus nodded thoughtfully, “That's probably true; I should be more careful.”

“Please,” Leah said.

“Come on, I’m not that bad,” Demitrus said, smiling as he looked at Leah, and she merely gave him a look.

“... I’ll be more careful.” He said.

Eliza chuckled a little at the interaction.

“Well, look who we have here, the heroes of the day,” Lycus said hauntingly as he walked up to the group, followed behind by Caldren.

Demitrus stepped forward in front of the group and blocked Lycus’s path. What Eliza was beginning to recognize as his fake smile came to his face, “ I know you like me, Lycus, but you seriously don't need to see me this much, do you?”

Lycus gave Demitrus a withering look, “ Get over yourself, kid; I’m here for her.” he said, shoving past Demitrus and coming to stand in front of Eliza.

Eliza’s gaze shifted to Caldren, who had a knowing smirk. This couldn’t be good.

Raising her head, Eliza evenly met Lycus’s angry gaze.” What do you want?” She asked with a controlled tone.

“A little birdie told me about what happened by the Power Crystal. He said, leaving it at that; the tone in his voice caused Eliza to shift into a defensive stance instinctively. A threatening aura hovered in the air, making Eliza feel like a fight was about to start at any moment.

Eliza smirked, “ So?” She said, tilting her head.

“So, it seems that I am in your debt. And I can’t let it be known that Lycus Lindrake doesn’t pay back his debts. The next time we are in Grimhold, watch your back.” His voice denoting a threat behind his words.

Eliza’s smile widened, “ Thanks for the advice, but I already have people to watch my back. Though, I do have to say that I would offer you the same advice.” Eliza said, eyes flicking over to Caldren, who gave her a gaze full of contempt and back again.

“Noted,” He said blandly before turning on his heel and striding away with Caldren in tow.

“Take care!” Demitrus said as Lycus strode past him. Lycus spat at him, and Demitrus effortlessly danced out of the way.

When he was gone, Eliza let out a sigh of relief, the tension leaving her shoulders. “Arrogant jerk.” She muttered,

“You're one to talk,” Demitrus said, turning to look at her, a playful smile on his face.

“Oh please, I am not nearly as arrogant as that jerk,” Eliza said.

Demitrus raised an eyebrow. “What do you guys think?” he said, speaking to Leah and Leo.

Eliza looked over to see how they reacted.

Leo held up a hand to rub the part of his throat she had stabbed with her spear. He smiled at Eliza.

Feeling a twinge of guilt, Eliza turned a hopeful gaze on Leah.

Looking flustered, Leah scratched at her head, unable to meet Eliza’s gaze, “I guess you could say I mildly agree?”

Dejected, Eliza looked away, and Leah rushed to say, “but not in a bad way; it's part of your charm, I think?”

“What does that even mean? Jerks.” She said

Demitrus playfully shoved her, “Don’t worry about it; we like you much more than that scumbag.”

“Gee, You like me more than a crime lord. I’m flattered.” Eliza said dryly.

“As you should be,” Demitrus said, seemingly oblivious, but Eliza knew he wasn’t and that he was getting a kick out of messing with her.

Thankfully, the door to the building opened, and out strode Gary, followed behind by Xanthe, presumably a couple of other captains, Octavius, and Ulric, who shifted his spectacles up his nose as he walked. The crowd went silent and stood at attention, and Eliza fought back the almost instinctive urge to do so as well.

They made their way up onto the platform, and Gary came to the forefront, his long blonde hair waving in the cold evening wind, with all the others lining up behind him and standing at attention. In total, there were four captains, Octavius and Gary, and Ulric stood a little off to the side with his clipboard.

Finally, Gary spoke with a bright and cheerful smile, “To start, I must say, I am proud of all of you, those that survived, that is.”

He started to pace up the wooden platform and stopped near the head. “All of you here were able to accomplish your missions successfully. And with your success comes the opportunity for us to strike back!” He enthusiastically said and pumped his fist into the air. He got an enthusiastic cheer from the guards and a decidedly less enthusiastic one from the prisoners.

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He pivoted on his heel and walked down the length of the platform in the other direction. “Tomorrow, all of you will participate in the assault on the Waterworks. Do well, and you shall be rewarded. All of you are to equip and meet in front of Grimhold at mid-morning tomorrow to begin the descent. Is that clear?” He said, reaching the foot of the platform.

“Yes, sir!” The shout echoed into the air, more predominantly from the guards but also from the prisoners. He began to walk up the length again.

“Good; if we succeed, we will be one step closer to ridding this place of the demonic menace. I expect everyone's best performance tomorrow.” he said as he came to a stop in the middle of the platform and finished by saying, “Now, a few words from the Duke of Fyre’s son, Octavius.” and he stepped aside as Octavius hiked up to the forefront of the platform holding a box, Eliza now noticed.

“Good evening, guards,” he said as he looked over to the guards. He then looked down at the prisoners; Eliza noticed his gaze stopped and focused on Leah and Leo for a few moments “good evening, ...unfortunates.”

He continued, “I’m here to announce that due to the noble actions of a few individuals in saving my life. The Dukedom would like to express its gratitude by rewarding said individuals. As such, Xanthe Grislmaw and Kolgit Oathsworn are to be promoted to Second-lieutenant and captain, respectively. Please step forward.”

Xanthe stepped forward first and received the scroll that Octavius took out of the box and bowed as he stepped back, “Thank you, sir.”

Next was Kolgit, who stepped onto the platform and received the scroll with a smile on his face, “ Thank you spa-” He began to say but then suddenly stopped himself by coughing into his shoulder. Once done, he looked up with a smile. “I mean, Thank you, sir!”

Eliza heard Demitrus let out a snort and murmur just loud enough that Eliza could hear, “I like him.” Eliza had to agree.

“Join the other captains,” Octavius said, and Kolgit saluted and went and stood in line.

Octavius looked over the crowd one last time and said, “All others involved will receive a merit on their records, that is all.” He said and stepped back.

Gary stepped forward once again, wiping a tear from his eye.”How beautiful, I swear, they grow up so fast; I could’ve sworn they got her just yesterday, but what do I know? That is all, everyone; you are dismissed. We have quite the day tomorrow.”

Done speaking, He strode off the platform, the heels of his metallic boots clankings on the wooden floor beneath. The rest followed him, and they disappeared into the building. Once they were gone, the crowd began to disperse.

“Let's go, shall we?” Eliza said, turning to look at the rest of the group. What she wasn’t expecting was to see Leo’s angry face.

“We fight a wraith to save his hide, and that's all he has for us?” Leo spat, “ungrateful scumbag.”

Leah tugged at his shirt to get his attention, “I know how you feel, Leo; we’ll make him pay for what he has done soon, but getting angry here won't solve anything.”

Leo sighed, “You're right; let’s go.” He said as he turned and started the long walk back to the tent. The group walked in silence, exhausted by the long day's events. Even Demitrus uncharacteristically didn’t have much to say.

All Eliza could think about as they walked back was getting as much sleep as she could. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

***

Eliza jolted awake to something moving through the tent due to her lying on her side. Her back was turned to the rest of the tent, so she couldn’t see whatever it was. She kept her breathing steady as she listened intently to the grass crushed under soft footsteps. After a few moments, she realized they were getting closer to her. A spike of adrenaline rushed through her as she readied herself. The thing stopped next to her, and her heart pounded as she prepared to strike out at it.

Eventually, something touched her shoulder, and she immediately grabbed a fist full of her blanket and flung it at the intruder. In the same movement, she lashed out with a kick at whatever was gutsy enough to bother her while sleeping.

However, as if it was expecting it, the thing dodged, causing the blanket to fall unceremoniously onto the ground. Likewise, she felt it dance around her kick. The momentum of her kick carried her out of bed, and twisting in the air; she managed to land into a crouch onto the blanket.

Heart pounding, she readied herself to dodge the intruders' attack and looked up to see a dark figure that looked vaguely familiar. The figure had backed away a step and held both hands out in a peaceful gesture. Focusing her vision, she realized that it was Demitrus.

Still wary, Eliza slowly stood up. Before she could say anything, Demitrus slowly backed away, beckoning her, and started to make his way out of the tent. Reluctantly she followed him.

Eliza took a step through the tent flap into the chilly late-night air. She felt a cold gust of wind tear right through her. Shivering, she wrapped her arms around her to maintain some warmth. In the light of the full moon above, Eliza could make out Demitrus walking through the tents. Eliza followed, mood souring by the step. Another gust of wind tore through her.

He better have a really good reason to have dragged her out here.

Eventually, they came to a stop away from the tents, and Demitrus turned around with a bright smile on his face.

He spoke in a quiet but enthusiastic whisper, ”I take it you're having a good night? I hope I didn’t disturb any good dreams.”

“Shut up and cut to the chase,” Eliza said through her teeth, on the verge of chattering.

Demitrus frowned and shook his head, “how am I to both ‘shut up and ‘cut to the chase as you say? I’m afraid I don’t know what you want, Eliza?” He smirked.

Angry, Eliza shot him a blistering gaze that promised him suffering more significant than what she was feeling right now. What was more frustrating was that he seemed completely unfazed by the cold temperature.

Demitrus chuckled at her look and started to speak, “ I’m sure you're wondering why I brought you out here. Naturally, it is because I need your help.”

“And this is how you ask for my help?” Eliza asked dryly, “Why couldn’t you have done it at dinner when the others were there?”

“Quite simply, because this is a matter that only involves both of us,” Demitrus said while shaking his head. “ I need you to come with me to break into the Administrative building.”

Eliza was dumbfounded, “...Why?”

“Because it would be pointless if you weren’t there, you see, I’ve found where Gary places your pendant when he’s not wearing it. I assumed you would like to take it back yourself. Plus, you might get a chance to get back at Daryl.”

Eliza froze; of course, she would love the opportunity to get her pendant back. But why Daryl?”

“You mean the guard at Dinner?”

“I wish I could say the one and only, but there are maybe three or four guards with that name in the camp; it appears to be a common name.”

Eliza couldn’t lie, it would be gratifying to get some payback, and she wanted her amulet back, but…. “Didn’t you say that only an amateur wouldn’t be able to find me? What makes you think I can break into the Administrative building with you?”

Demitrus tilted his head as if confused, “ Because you’ll be going in with me?” He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Eliza let out a shuddering sigh, her breath condensing into a white cloud in front of her. “If I'm going to be breaking into the Administrative building with you, I will need more than just your arrogance to convince me.”

It was Demitrus’s turn to sigh, “ It’s not arrogance, I assure you; it’s confidence based on pure skill and a pinch of magic to spice things up a bit.”

“How much magic are you able to cast?” Eliza asked, realizing that she didn’t know how powerful Demitrus was.

“Right now? Only minor spells of illusion and I can manipulate a small amount of magic energy. I could cast a mana bolt if I wanted to, but I’d knock myself out. Right now, anything beyond a minor illusion would take a lot out of me.”

If casting a mana bolt did that to him, then he definitely didn’t have a contract with any deity. That left few explanations for where his magic came from.“Did you steal an artifact?” She asked in a whisper.

Demitrus smiled and held a solitary finger up to his lips.

“Are you insane? The Gods only give artifacts to those who have earned their favor, and you just… took one?” Eliza was shocked; she had her suspicions that Demitrus had stolen one, but to hear it confirmed from the guy himself was mind-boggling. Stealing an artifact was no small feat, and anyone who tried had to be crazy.

“Oh, stop, Eliza; I might even blush if you praise me that much.” He said, hiding his face behind his hands.

Eliza only looks at him deadpan.

He peeked out between his fingers, “So how about it; you wanna go break into the building?”

Eliza sighed and started massaging her forehead in a vain attempt to stop a growing headache. Another cold gust of wind hit her, and she made up her mind, “Fine, fine, let's get going, whatever it takes to get me out of this blasted cold.” She said and set course towards the Administrative building.

Demitrus stepped in line with her, “Wonderful; I knew I could count on you; let's just establish some ground rules. First, stay near me; you're much less likely to be noticed. Second, follow my lead when I do something for the same reason as the first. And finally, don't be an idiot. You think you can do that?”

“Oh, I don’t know; I’ll try not to get in your way but no promises. As for the last rule, at least I’ll refrain from descending to your level.” Eliza.

“I’ll be eternally grateful if you don’t, But you have a tendency of dashing my hopes.”

By this point, they were nearing the building, and both fell into an uneasy silence.

The place looked different in the night. Like the Armory, magic seals were inscribed outside the building, giving off an ethereal blue glow. There was a particularly large magic seal on the door to the building. Eliza looked to Demitrus to see what he was going to do.

Almost as if taking that as a signal, He crouched low and dashed straight towards the heavily warded door. Doing her best to keep up, Eliza followed behind him.

When they got to the door, Demitrus carefully approached it and reached out with his index finger. His finger slowly came into contact with the blue magic radiating out of the seal, and he began to trace. The blue light began to condense around his finger and formed into the symbols he was drawing.

Eliza looked around nervously, She knew it was the middle of the night, but they had seen no one up until now. Surely they must have guards patrolling around the premises, and maybe they were all guarding the gates and were in Grimhold. Either way, it was a heart-pounding thirty seconds until Demitrus finished what he was doing, and the seal darkened.

He whispered, “We have an hour until it turns back on; let's hurry.” He slowly pushed the door open. Thankfully, it didn’t creak on its hinges. They both hurried inside, and Demitrus closed the door behind him.

Eliza found herself in a room lit by soft blue crystals interspaced along the ceiling. The first thing she noticed was how warm the room was, and she took a look around.

The room was large and seemed to be a mix between a tavern and a lounge. In the middle sat several tables surrounded by cushioned chairs. On the far side of the room, there was a long wood counter with several shelves full of bottles behind it. In the shelves was a swinging door that presumably led into a kitchen. A staircase on the left side of the room rose over the top of the counter and led to a second floor that crossed the length of the wall with a wooden banister. Eliza could make out two doors up there, also with seals inscribed on them, and hallways that went further into the building. Finally, a door to the right of the room presumably led to the rest of the building.

Demitrus immediately made way for the wooden staircase, and Eliza followed behind him. Together they slowly ascended the stairs. Wherever Demitrus crept, his steps were completely silent.

Eliza flinched as she took a step, and the wooden step creaked. The sound grated on her ears as the creek echoed around the room until it was silent. Eliza could feel her heart pounding, and she felt sweat start to form on her lower back and soak into her shirt.

Her gaze met Demitrus’s, and he slowly shook his head and then looked down at his feet. Eliza followed his gaze and watched as Demitrus very deliberately stepped on certain parts of the wooden steps. Eliza got the message and began stepping exactly where he stepped. Eliza internally sighed in relief as her steps became much quieter. There was an occasional slight creak in the wood, but nothing like the first. Finally, they made it up to the landing, and Eliza wiped at the sweat that was beginning to bead on her forehead.

Looking over at Demitrus, she could see an excited gleam dancing in his eyes. The madman seemed to be enjoying this.

He began to creep across the landing, and Eliza followed behind him, shaking her head. They passed the first door and came to the second. Demitrus began to work on the seal, and Eliza took it upon herself to keep watch. Occasionally Eliza would look back to see how Demitrus was doing. He was working quickly and efficiently, and Eliza wondered how he could be so good at disabling magic seals. They weren’t exactly something a typical thief would encounter.

She quickly glanced back at him to see that he was tracing a familiar pattern with his finger. A memory surfaced in Eliza’s mind from when she first met Demitrus in the tent, and he had been lying on the bed tracing those self-same symbols in the air.

Her eyes opened in shock at the realization, and she turned to look at him again. He had been practicing for this, meaning that this wasn’t his first time here. He had to have come either during the day or broken in before. Whichever one it was, to practice, he would’ve had to memorize the patterns of the seals, a feat most mages Eliza knew struggled even with a few years of training.

Before she could think further, the seal on the door darkened. Demitrus tried to open the door, but it was locked. He sighed.

“Guess it's a bust; let's go,” He whispered, shaking his head sadly.

“...What? You must be joking; There’s no way you wouldn’t be prepared for a simple lock.” Eliza whispered in disbelief.

Demitrus smiled, “I’m happy that you think that well of me, and you would be right; you know me so well, just give me a second.” He said as he pulled out two metal pins from somewhere and got to work on the lock. It took him only a fraction of the time to get through the lock that it took him to get through the seal. Once done, he twisted the doorknob and slowly eased the door open.

The door opened into a hallway with four doors, two on each side of the hallway. At the end of the hallway was another staircase leading to another door.

Whispering, Demitrus said, “I don’t know what's in these rooms, but I’ve seen the Captains come in and out of this room all the time, and this is the only other place in the building protected by magical seals that I haven’t check, I’ve also seen Gary come in here with your pendant and leave without.” he said, carefully stepping into the hallway, ” I want you to check the doors on the left. While I check the doors on the right. Let’s go.” He crept towards the first door on the right.

Eliza started making her way toward her first door. Demitrus opened his door and took a peek inside, and Eliza didn’t have time to see what was in there before he slowly shut the door again.

He looked at her, shook his head, and put a finger on his lips. He mouthed, “Captains.”

Eliza nodded and reached for her door, heart pounding; carefully, she turned the doorknob and eased it open. She peeked inside to see a bathroom. She quietly closed the door and, looking at Demitrus, shook her head.

Quietly they made their way toward the two other doors.

Demitrus proceeded to open his door. Looking over his shoulder, Eliza could see that the room had a couple of shelves filled with records. Demitrus nodded and then indicated towards Eliza’s door with his chin.

Eliza opened her door, and it opened up into an office.

“It should be fine for us to temporarily separate. Start going through whatever you can find in there; I’m going to take a quick look around this room before I come to join you.” Demitrus whispered before he disappeared into the record room.

Eliza slipped into the office and gently closed the door.

The office had a long wooden coffee table in the middle of the room with three soft chairs on either side. At the head of the table sat a large oak desk covered with a disorganized mess of paper. Behind the desk was a large window that overlooked the camp below. Both walls of the room were covered with bookshelves filled to the brim with large tomes that seemed unfit for a military camp.

Eliza made her way over to the desk. Amidst the scattered papers was a small open wooden box. Inside, Eliza saw a variety of jewelry and other expensive-looking trinkets; among them, she saw her pendant.

Immediately she scooped it out of the box and slipped the chain over her head. She tucked it into her shirt and took comfort in knowing it was back where it was supposed to be.

She looked over the documents one after the other, but none of the documents were written in common. Most people spoke and interacted with each other in common, but official documents and the nobility tended to interact with that country's language. Up until now, she hadn’t taken the opportunity to study Kalderian, so she may as well be considered illiterate here.

Feeling useless, she scanned over the desk in a vain attempt to find something that looked important. She didn’t see anything the first time, but the second time some familiar-looking words caught her attention. Her eyes opened up in shock, and she immediately picked up the document.

It was written in Silverian! An uneasy feeling swelled up in her stomach. Why would a letter in her native tongue be here? Trepidatiously, she started reading.

To G the magnificent.

I’ve heard that the most recent prisoners to receive citizenship have been graciously accepted by the Lord.

He expresses his gratitude for your continued service to him in these times and has promised that our plans will bear fruit shortly. Your service will not go unrewarded.

Your faithful ally,

D

Eliza’s hand shook as she reread the letter again. It didn’t take a genius to see that something big was happening behind the scenes here in the camp and that The Silverian Empire was involved as well.

“Found it.” a voice whispered excitedly, suddenly appearing behind Eliza.

Eliza’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest, and she whirled around, swinging a backhanded fist at whoever it was.

Demitrus quickly ducked under the swing and took a step past her to look down at the desk. He started rummaging through documents on the desk.

She looked back towards the closed door that he had somehow came through without alerting her whatsoever. She gave him a glare, “Can you not?” she said.

“Afraid not; it's part of the package deal, you see,” he said, picking up a document and scanning it.

“I want a refund.”

“All purchases are final. Did you anything noteworthy other than your pendant in here?”

Eliza took a deep breath before holding up the letter in Silverian, “This,” she said and briefly relayed the contents.

Demitrus quietly listened, and once she was done, he said, “Well, that's concerning in more ways than one, but we can talk about that later; how about we go pay Daryl a visit?”