“Stop right there!” screamed one of the guards who was stationed outside the medium sized palace that was right in front of their eyes. “Identify yourself, or turn back where you came from. This is a restricted access area. Unauthorized trespassers shall be dealt with utmost force.”

The mask of calmness that Nyle used to wear when he wanted to obtain something out of someone was starting to come loose. In all honesty, his face was the perfect representation of wanting to punch them right in the face. He was sure those men would quickly change tonality after that.

Then again, if acted that way, he could kiss goodbye to the only, minuscule chance he had of setting foot inside that building, where High Physician Vodril was being held at. Or at least that was he believed.

During the short journey they went through to get there, crossing over one of the most populated squares in the whole capital that was obvious packed full of noisy crowds and screaming merchants, Elros did make some sporadic remarks, but none of them gave away too much information. But that wasn’t why Nyle was so much on edge. No. To him, all that chattering, and screaming, and damn noise that-ugh- all of that felt worse than an actual beating.

Fortunately he was not the one that had to make chatter with those guards.

“Ehi guys.” said Elros as he stepped forward. “It’s me, Elros. How’s it going? Don’t be alarmed.”

“…Elros?” asked that same guard, disbelief evident on his face. “What the hell are you doing here at this time of the day? And who the fuck are them? I’ve never seen them before…”

“Well, it’s a long story. A long story that I’m sure you don’t either have the patience nor the will to listen.”

The guards smirked at unison, like they had some kind of hive mind. Just the thought of that was giving Nyle the creeps. “You can say that out loud. Today me and those bastards behind me had to take a double shift only because that asshole of Deryk decided to take a day off without telling anybody. He’s going to get a warm welcome tomorrow.”

“Sure. That’s what he deserves.” Elros said smiling.

“Anyway, that’s not important, is it? We have a situation on our hands right now. So, care to tell me who the fuck are they, or are not?”

Nyle exhaled loudly. He just had to. Otherwise he would have let that sudden twitching on his hand that he had managed to mask, win over. And that would have ended badly for everyone present.

“Now, now, there’s no need to act like that my friend.” said Elros in the best smile he could have mustered. “We’re all friends here, right? Right. Anyway, they are friends of mine from the Ministry of Surveillance. They need to speak with one of the guests urgently.”

“…Are they allowed to?”

“Weeeell. Looking at it from a strictly bureaucratic point of view I suppose that they don’t-”

“Then they must leave.”

The tone of finality that guard just used left no doubt of how serious he was.

“You know the rules. Aside from members of the Medical Order, everybody else must be directly authorized. I cannot let them pass just because you know them.”

“…Won’t you change your mind even with a few coins? Let’s see, something like that?” As Elros posed that question, he retrieved a leather purse he kept well concealed under his clothes.

Nyle raised a brow at the blatant attempt of corruption that was taking place right in front of his eyes. Now, that was something he had not expect anyone have the guts to do in front of him. Even in the ample decade of experience he had under his belt serving the Ministry, no one, not even the boldest of criminals, ever had the guts of trying something like that. It was almost shocking how natural that man had just acted in front of him.

“No. You know that I-”

“What I know-” said Elros before that man had the chance to refuse his proposal. “Is that you guys deserve a rest. A well-earned rest. Now, my friends here will not cause any trouble. Hell, I’m more prone to that than any of them. It’s a win-win situation. So why don’t you close your eyes, let them pass, question whoever they need to question, all the while you guys earn yourself some cold pints of ale that would taste heavenly tonight? What do you say?”

“Uhmm.” the guard murmured. If he still was hesitant, perhaps fearing what doing something like that in front of them, the same couldn’t be said about his companions. All of them, none excluded, were clearly lost in thought imagining the cold, delicious, and bitter golden beverage that tested so good. If it was paired with some fried fish, than that would be perfect. “I’m not sure. I trust you, Elros. I truly do. But what you’re suggesting is…What if-”

Elros clicked his tongue. “C’mon now. Nothing is going to happen. We’ll just stay inside for some minutes and be on our way as soon as possible. You won’t notice a thing.”

“Alright, dammit!” said the guard as he quickly took the sum of money the Elros held in his hand. “But be quick! And if anyone ever asks, I don’t know a thing.”

“Perfect!” he clapped his hands together. “You won’t regret it.”

Having achieved an agreement that didn’t seem too solid to even begin with, Elros turned around and literally pushed them inside, ignoring the obvious complaints that started to rain down on such harsh treatment. There, finally inside the giant room that sort of resembled an entrance hall, spirits calmed down as they all exhaled a breath of relief.

They did it. They were inside. They still needed to speak with the High Physician, but it was at least a step forward.

Looking around, Nyle lingered over the wooden bulletin board on which a myriad of handwritten parchments were hanged. There were too many to keep count, with many parchments that had been stockpiled over the older ones. From what he could see, for the most part it was only minor news in which he hadn’t the slightest interest in. Some however, held more importance than that: they were a series of names and numbers. Now that attracted his undivided attention.

“…What’s this?” asked Nyle as he grabbed those particular parchments. After a quick inspection, he found out that High Physician Isenold was on it, right beside some numbers.

“Oh, that.” said Elros. He was constantly looking around as if he was searching for something. “It’s nothing. It’s just a memorandum on which are anointed the appointments that all the patients have throughout the course of the day.”

“Appointments? What kinds? This doesn’t seem like the-” said Avron.

“Treatments, drug administration, rehabilitation. Things like that.” said Elros. “But never mind that. Put this on and follow me.”

Without too much ceremonies, Elros literally threw them a couple of white gowns he had just taken from a pile nearby.

“What are those?” asked Avron confused.

“Medical gowns. Now put them on! Oh, and leave behind your cape right there, behind the counter. You can take them back later. Now, hurry!”

With some reluctance, they did as they were told. Then, as they ventured towards the wooden staircase that led to the upper floors, where all the patients were residing, Elros stopped one last time, looking them straight in the eyes. “Just so you know, the guards weren’t the only problem. The team of highly trained professional that is assigned to the wellbeing of all the patients housed here will no doubt look at you with suspicious. After all, very few are the people that are allowed to walk inside this building as guests.”

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Then why even bother with this charade if it’s clear we’re not working here…?” asked Avron.

“The poi-”

“We have to lay low and be smart with our answers.” interrupted Nyle. “They’re going to question us the moment they see us. After all, they have never seen our faces before. We too would be suspicious in their place. But, even if they don’t, they’ll surely keep their eyes and ears on us. That’s the point.”

“Ah! I see…”

“Of course, things will be much simpler if someone will cause a distraction.”

As he said those words, his eyes trailed to Avron, who in turn simply deadpanned him when their eyes met. “No.”

Nyle scoffed. “C’mon. You won’t have to do anything dangerous. No to mention I don’t even know if it will even come to that.”

“Uhmm. That’s-” tried to offer some support Elros, albeit failing.

“No.”

“Why you little-”

“No”

“Guys…”

Both of them snapped their heads at the same time with such force that it was a miracle they had not injured themselves.

“What?!” they said.

“I’m sorry to bother such skilful members of the Ministry of Investigation, but might I point out that if your intention was to avoid unwanted attention, than maaaaybe, just maybe, screaming at each other isn’t the brightest idea.”

Shit. He was right. What the hell were they thinking? But perhaps that was the problem.

“Also, all of that bickering is useless. There’s no need to cause a distraction.”

“…What do you mean?” asked Nyle surprised. “It must be needed. There’s no way that- Wait. Are you saying that you’ve come up with a possible explanation that could explain our presence here without arising suspicions?”

“Why, of course! Who did you take me for?”

“…Wha-”

“Anyway, let’s go. We’re losing time here.”

//////

Nyle rubbed his hands over his face as they slowly climbed over those rough steps that constantly screeched. All that fatigue just to interview a man that, for all the information he had at his disposal, could concretely not even be in condition to answer. But what else could he do now? Turn back? No. That was just not possible at that point.

But what about the plan? What did Elros twisted mind came up to explain all that?

Curious about it, he just asked for information without beating around the bush and, after a quick back and forth, a plan that seemed pretty convincing was quickly formed. One that was rather simple and straightforward, but that seemed to work all in all. First, they were to present themselves as researchers that were trying to understand what could be beneficial in treating poor High Physician Vodril’s condition; that way most of the workers would have just ignore their presence. Second, to were to claim they had to conduct a brief examination in private. The excuse was that other people presence would alter the result, voiding it. Third…well, there was no third. Mybe hope for the better.

Finally, after three or maybe four flights of stairs, they reached the floor where Vodril’s room was located. The sense of familiarity with whom the elven woman, who was exiting the long corridor full of numbered rooms, and who was clearly dressed as a nurse, welcomed Elros was a further confirmation that they were in the right place.

“Elros!” said the woman with a full smile plastered over her delicate face. “Good to see you. It has been what…three months since your last visit?”

Elros smiled back in the same way. “Good to see you too. Yeah, although, to be completely honest with you, it’s been four months.”

“You sure took your time.” she said jokingly. Then her brows burrowed and she took on a more serious note that didn’t fit well with her delicate face. “Did something happen? Are you alright? Did-”

“Whoa.” He blurted out. “Calm down. I’m good. It’s just that I have been very busy at work. You know, with those revolts and all of that I feel like everything will go down the drain the moment I turn around. And here I was looking forward to a long vacation.”

This time the elven woman looked displeased, as if Elros’s words had somehow offended her. “What did you expect? That my people would obey without revolting? That was never going to happen. We have already endured enough.”

“Ehi! I’ve never said that I-”

“That is exactly the problem. Everyone has turned a blind eye to the mistreatment my people had to endure in the past. No longer. We won’t obey to senseless-”

“Listen, I don’t want to fight with you. But I’m not going to let myself be grouped with a bunch of people I don’t even know. Also, you should know me better than that. You know damn well that I have never given a fuck about a person race, gender, or whatever the hell you want to mix in there. Truthfully, after all the years we have known each other, I find it hurtful that you might think of me like that.”

Nyle, who had stared at the whole ordeal without an ounce of curiosity in his body, was pondering what to do. Did he had to intervene and try to calm things down? Surely with the past experiences that dated back to his rookie days, when he had been forced to deal with minor and time-consuming scuffles, it was within his power to settle that in the best way possible. But in doing so, he would aroused suspicons.

He couldn’t do that. Or could he?

He was now at a crossroads. On one hand he could to smooth things out and hurry things. On the other, he could try his luck trusting the possible sound judgment of Elros. Truth be told, neither option seemed particularly appealing to him.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her voice, who strangely enough, sounded sincerely apologetic. “…I’m sorry, Elros. That was unworthy of me. It’s just…”

“What?”

“…My brother.” she said exhaling loudly. “He has been recruited in the militia. Right now he should be training at the Military Academy, if they have not sent him already to war.”

“Shiiiiit. I’m sorry. I didn’t know that.”

“How could you?” she asked honestly. Or at least that was the impression that Nyle had. If she was hiding any resentment towards Elros, she was hiding it very well. “Anyway, let’s talk about something else. The more I think about that, the more I get sad.”

“Is there something that I could do?”

“No. Not unless you can find a way to help my brother.”

In that moment her eyes then wondered for the first time to Nyle and Avron, who had stood completely silent in the background.

“…Who are they? What are they doing here?” she asked.

“Oh, them? They’re just some researchers. They need to conduct some sort of test on Vodril. Something about a cure, or whatever the hell they’re doing.”

“Vodril?” she asked, disbelief evident in her voice. “Hasn’t practically everything been tried already? If I remember correctly, didn’t they unfortunely deem his condition as almost impossible to reverse? Has something changed?”

“No, no. That poor bastard will stay like that for some long time I’m afraid. It’s just that someone, don’t know who and frankly, I don’t even care, has caught wind of this and has suddenly decided to try to research a miraculous cure. You know how it goes. Anyway, we got to go. See you later!”

Elros walked on the long corridor, followed closely by Nyle. Avron, of course, was right beside them, trying his very best to not look back where the elven woman had remained behind shocked. All of them, none excluded, could feel their hearts beat louder and louder; so much in fact, that it rumbled in their ears like a loud drum that didn’t want to stop.

One step. Two steps. Ten steps. Suddenly, at step the hundred thirty-eight, they stopped in front of room 56. Right beside the heavy wooden door, a list bearing Vodril’s name had been posted with an iron nail. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They had made it. Or did they?

“Wait a moment!” said the elven woman.

As they stopped in their tracks, their heartbeats skyrocketed with such force that even their temples pulsed in unison. Did they do something that gave them away? Was it their clothes? While they had left any piece, object, or equipment that clearly made their affiliation with the Ministry of Surveillance, and by extension the Civil Order, back at the first floor, Nyle couldn’t help but think that maybe something had slipped away from his scrutiny. That something had been left in plain sight. It was unlikely, but still possible.

After a quick mental scrutiny, he quickly discarded that foolish idea. That couldn’t have been it.

Maybe other Inquisitors that were less watchful than him might have committed such a simple oversight like that, but not Nyle. At least of that he was damned sure. Maybe Aron was the one that had forgot to take off something. After all, he was just a rookie. And as Nyle knew very well, rookies tend to commit mistakes, even the most avoidable ones.

Ready to lash out in a non-verbal way, Nyle turned towards Avron, glare full of anger and hands closed in fists. However, the blank stare that met his eyes, and the total lack of any kind of mistake after a quick and summary inspection made him reconsider. No. It was not Avron’s fault. So why the hell did that woman st-

His thoughts were interrupted by her voice. “You forgot to sign the visitor list.”

Shit. Nyle didn’t know what the hell she was talking about, but he sure didn’t like the sound of that.

“I’m sorry, what?” asked Elros nonchalantly.

The elven woman repeated herself as she drew nearer and nearer.

“Ohhhh! Right! I completely forgot about that. I don’t know where my head is today.”

Elros slowly began to walk towards her. Then, around a second later, he collided with Nyle’s shoulder, causing him to almost loose balance and fall down.

Nyle closed his hand into a fist. What the fuck was his problem? Wasn’t the situation complicated enough as it was? Did he really have to collide with him?

“Sorry, sorry. My bad.” said Elros with a smile, helping Nyle recover his balance and stopping just in time the punch that was on the verge of being thrown. Under the pretext of arranging his dishevelled clothes, he hid from the woman’s view for a fleeting moment and whispered something in Nyle’s ear in all seriousness.

He didn’t understand, which only made Elros glare at him furiously.

“GET INSIDE!!!” he whispered once again, this time with more force.

That was all Nyle needed to hear.

Then, as quickly as he had got angry, he went back to being all smiles as if nothing had ever disturbed him. “There, good as new.” said Elros. “Now, dear researchers, go ahead. I will join you shortly after taking care of a small bureaucratic form.”

“Yes, of course.” replied Nyle as he grabbed the wooden handle of the door pushing it down, causing the lock to open.

Never in his life did enter inside a room as he did in that moment. He wasn’t proud of that, but at least he managed to accomplish his objective. He was inside room 56.