Missteps V.2

Chapter 54 – The Lord's Errand

Kerri reached up and wiped away her tears with the sleeve of her coat. "Sorry about that, didn't mean to just break down."

Jun shook his head as he tried to inconspicuously dab at the wet patch on his clothes. "Nothing to apologize for. I'm just glad that I was here so you weren't alone."

The bard smiled. "Speaking of, why are you here? I thought you'd gone to the brothel with Iados?"

Jun stood up and offered Kerri his hand. "I did. The establishment we went to rents out the girls by the hour. I would have been out of there sooner, but there was a bit of a line. Those girls keep themselves busy."

Kerri took the hand and stood up as well. "I don't imagine there's much to do in the middle of winter. Is Iados already back at the tower?"

"No, when I left he was still waiting for his precious twins to become available." The berserker grinned. "Where's Carric and Lia? Are they back at the tower?"

"Carric disappeared with a date a while ago." Kerri hung her head. "I ran out and left Lia at the bar."

Jun rolled his eyes. "Let's go get her and then head back to the tower together. No sense making her walk alone."

Kerri led the way back to the building. As they approached, it became very hard to see as they entered a heavy fog.

"Does this seem natural to you?" Kerri's eyes squinted as she tried to see more than a few feet in front of her.

"No." The berserker's voice was terse as he followed along behind the young girl, one hand on her shoulder. His other hand rested on his warhammer.

Finally, Kerri was able to locate the staircase, and they made their way down. By this time, the fog had started to dissipate. She knocked on the door and waited.

And waited.

She knocked again, but still no one slid the slit open. She reached down to the door handle and tried to open it, only to find it was locked. She looked up at Jun and shrugged her shoulders.

Jun gently pushed her aside and pounded on the door. Still, no one came to answer it. "What about the other door?" He inclined his head towards the door out in front.

"I don't know. All I was told is this door and the password." Kerri looked around her, but the area was deserted except for the two of them. "When we were inside, there were some other doors that led out of the bar, but I'm not sure if they went up or not."

Jun sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Who did you hear about this place from?"

"A couple of people in the entertainer's guild back in Lorbridge." Kerri knocked on the door again. There was no answer. "What do we do now?"

"Let's check the other door first." He started up the stairs.

Behind them there was a sliding sound before a voice barked out at them. "What do you want? We're closed."

The two of them turned on their heels and approached the open slit.

Kerri stood on her tiptoes to look inside. "We're looking for a friend of ours. We got separated about half an hour ago. She's elven, with a braid down one side of her face."

"Ah, I remember her." The gruff voice said. "The bell for last call rang, and she didn't have any money to pay off the bar tab." The voice chuckled. "The little mink tried to make a run for it. Made it all the way into the alley before the guards caught up with her. She put up some fog to try to confuse them, but it didn't matter. They caught her and dragged her back."

Jun pushed his way forward. "Is she still there? We have the money to pay off the tab for her."

The voice chuckled again. "Nah, she got taken down to see the Rabble Lord, once she wakes up anyway."

"What do you mean by that?" Kerri demanded.

"That girl wouldn't stop trying to get away, so they put her to sleep for a while." The voice burped. "Don't worry about paying for her, The Rabble Lord will decide how she's to pay back the trouble she's caused."

Jun growled. "We need to see our friend and this Rabble Lord."

The voice hesitated for a few moments. "Why not, this should be fun." The slit closed with a heavy thud, before the door was swung open. A half-elven male with greasy black hair stood there and beckoned the two of them to follow. Jun and Kerri were led down the hallway and into the bar area. The room was deserted save for a couple of individuals with rags and mops in their hands.

The trio continued down one of the spiral staircases, and towards a door in the back corner. Their guide stopped at the door and rapped on it. Another slit opened near the top.

The greasy half-elf pointed back with his thumb towards Kerri and Jun. "These guys are friends of that elf chick. They're offering to pay her tab."

"Wait here." The slit slid back into place.

The half-elf grabbed a nearby chair and sat himself down in it. Kerri did the same, but Jun stayed standing.

After about ten minutes the door opened again. The half-elf stood up and led the way in. The hallway, or more accurately tunnel, on the other side was cramped. The walls were earthen, with planks of wood haphazardly braced against it and the ceiling. The light was very low, and Jun was nearly blind as they made their way through. He kept his hand firmly on Kerri's shoulder as she followed the second half-elf. The tunnel sloped downwards and to the right, before they finally came to a large double-door. Two guards in piece mail armor and spears stood waiting. As the trio approached, the guards opened the doors.

Inside was a large, circular stone room. Jun counted at least three doorways and five doors around the perimeter, including the one they had just entered through. The room was lit by large braziers set all around. Various humanoids walked through the space. Some carried chests or large bags, while others carried packets of parchment. All of them were armed.

In the middle of the room, stood a tall, half-orc male. His arms were crossed and his eyes were trained on the door. By his side was an elven female with dark hair. Both of them were armored. The half-orc had a great sword strapped to their back, while the female carried a longsword on her hip. In addition, the woman held a wooden clipboard down by her side.

"These the ones asking about the woman?" The half-orc asked as Kerri and Jun were led over by their guide.

The guide nodded. "Yes sir, they say that they want to pay her drink debt."

The half-orc reached up and scratched his chin. "It's not the drink debt that's really the problem. She made quite the spectacle when she tried to escape. One of my guys took a boot heel to the face and is now having issues seeing out of his eye."

Jun narrowed his eyes. "People tend to defend themselves when they're being chased."

The half-orc nodded. "True, I'll give you that." He held out his hand, and the woman next to him handed over the clipboard. He took a moment to look over what was written. "According to this, she owes us about ten gold for the drinks she and her companions consumed."

Jun took a moment to send a side glance over to Kerri, who didn't meet his gaze, but did go slightly red in the face.

The half-orc continued. "In addition, there is a penalty of twenty gold for trying to escape, another ten gold for the medical treatment to the guard she injured, and then a final thirty gold for lodging. She's currently resting unconscious in one of our cells. All of that comes to a total of seventy gold."

Jun's mouth fell open. "Seriously, seventy gold, that's highway robbery."

The half-orc grinned and handed the clipboard back. "Who do you think you're dealing with here? Headquarters House? I am the Rabble Lord, Lord of the 5th district of Silverbank in all underworld affairs. Your friend should have known better than to mess around in a thieves' bar."

Kerri pulled Jun to the side. "How much gold do you have on you?" She whispered. "I left most of mine back at the tower, so I've only got about ten or so on me."

Jun grimaced. "Not enough to bring us to seventy."

The bard sighed and took a step forward towards the Rabble Lord. "Is there any way you can lower her debt? Lia doesn't deserve to be straddled with this debt."

The Rabble Lord looked Kerri up and down with a discerning look. Next to him, a light bulb seemed to have gone off in the woman's head. She dug into a bag that hung around her shoulders and brought out a sheaf of papers. She quickly went through them, before she stopped on one.

"I thought that girl looked familiar." The dark-haired elf handed the paper to the Rabble Lord. "The girl we locked up has a Marriage Bounty on her."

Kerri squeezed her eyes shut as the Rabble Lord took the paper and looked over the bounty.

Jun leaned forward and whispered in Kerri's ear. "What's a Marriage Bounty?"

"Right now, not a good thing." Kerri whispered back.

A grin graced the tusked features of the Rabble Lord as he handed the paper back to the woman. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Deidre." He looked towards Kerri and Jun. "Well, your friend just became worth a lot more than a measly seventy gold."

Jun took a step forward. "Perhaps we can come to some sort of deal then. Kerri and I are members of an adventuring party along with Lia. In exchange for her freedom, what do you say to us doing a job for you? Deal?"

The Rabble Lord took a minute to consider the offer, before he shook his head. "It'll be so much easier to just simply ransom the girl back to her family."

"No it won't." Kerri pushed Jun behind her. "Lia's on the outs with her family, she's an embarrassment to them. You heard your minion there, they put out a marriage bounty, not an actual bounty. They don't want Lia, not really. They just want someone to be her husband and take over her duties."

The Rabble Lord scoffed. "Then I'll find someone here to marry her, not that hard. It'll be easier to take their money from the inside anyway."

Kerri shook her head, as she forced herself to calm down. "Won't work. Lia told me all about them. They'll only accept a full-blooded male elf, and even then it'll be months until the actual marriage. Lia's family is old, and they're all about tradition. They're also powerful, so once they know you have her, they might try to take her back by force just to save themselves some money." She felt her heart try to beat out of her chest, but nerves had no place in a performance. "If you want to go through all that headache, be my guest. If you don't, then take Jun up on his offer. Give us a job that none of your guys will take. A job that just sits on your desk and laughs at you." It took all of her willpower to make eye-contact with the Rabble Lord, and to hold it for several seconds.

Behind her, Jun's gaze kept shooting between her and the Lord. He held his breath as he waited for the Rabble Lord to say something. He could see the gears turning in the Lord's eyes as he considered what Kerri had said. He watched as the half-orc brought a hand up to his chin and began to stroke it.

Finally, the Rabble Lord smiled. "You do make a good case. Let me think on it, and I'll get back to you in the morning."

Both Jun and Kerri let out a breath, Kerri a lot more subtly than Jun.

"What about Lia in the meantime?" Jun asked.

"She'll stay in our dungeon." When Jun opened his mouth to protest, the Lord held up a hand and stopped him. "Don't worry, she'll be perfectly fine, and I promise that no harm will come to her." The Rabble Lord looked over at Deidre. "Have these two escorted out, and make sure to get where they're staying for the runner in the morning."

Jun shook his head. "If it's all the same, I'd rather stay here and wait with Lia."

The Rabble Lord smiled. "I understand that, but due to the nature of our business here, I can't allow that. You have my word that no harm will come to her until our business has been concluded." The half-orc grinned and nodded at the two of them, before disappearing through one of the doorways.

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Deidre pointed into one of the shadowy corners and gestured someone forward. "Escort these two out and back to their lodgings. Send word back, and stay with them till you get word in the morning. Sound like something you can do?"

Kerri kept her mouth shut as the black-haired figure of Maron walked over to them. The sight of him both pained her and soothed her.

Maron merely glanced at the two of them. "You heard her, let's get you two home for the night." The ex-prince led the way back through the tunnel, through the bar, and into the alleyway. As soon as the door had closed behind the three of them, Kerri turned and faced him.

"How could you let Lia get in that kind of trouble?" She reached out and shoved him in the chest.

Maron gave a grunt of surprise and motioned for Kerri to keep her voice down. "By the time I got back to the bar after our little talk, she had already been brought back. There was nothing I could do. I will admit that it took me a minute to recognize her as being at the bar with you." He moved the three of them away from the door and up the stairs. "I did think about trying to let you know, but then I realized that you hadn't told me where you were staying before you went running off."

Kerri opened her mouth to respond, but shut it again as no words came out.

Jun raised an eyebrow. "I take it the two of you know each other?"

The bard sighed. "Jun, this is Maron. Maron, this is Jun."

Jun's eyes narrowed. "Oh, this is that Maron."

"If I have to be." Maron sent a questioning look over at Kerri. "I'm not sure what she might have told you."

"Enough." Jun crossed his arms. He looked over at Kerri as well. "You alright having him here?"

"Not like we have a choice." Kerri sighed. She turned on her heel and headed down the street.

Maron looked over at Jun. "Come on, let's get going."

Jun shook his head. "I'm not going. I don't want to leave her alone in there." He moved his gaze to the door.

Maron put his hand on Jun's shoulder. "There's nothing you can do for her out here. If the Rabble Lord does take you up on your offer of services, then you'll need your strength. Besides, as long as he can get something from her, he won't harm her."

Jun turned to look Maron in the eye. "If she's harmed, you'll be the first one I punch."

"Fair enough." The ex-prince gestured for Jun to go ahead of him, and after a moment's reluctance Jun did. The two of them quickly caught up with Kerri and headed towards the church. Maron tried to speak to Kerri, but Kerri didn't answer.

When they got to the tower, Elaine and Ander were sitting at the table playing chess. Shomma was curled up in the middle of a stack of fabric and stuffing, fast asleep.

"Maron, what are you doing here?" Elaine stood up and quickly went over to give him a quick hug.

Maron returned the hug. "Actually here on orders of the local thieves' guild. There was a bit of trouble at a thieves' bar tonight."

Ander gave a heavy sigh. "Who did what?"

Jun sat down heavily next to Ander, and explained the whole situation to the two of them. "Don't we have that amount in party funds?" Elaine asked.

Jun nodded. "We do, but I didn't have it. I left the funds in my pack that got brought here after you guys left Headquarters House this afternoon. All I had was some of my personal funds that I took to the brothel with me, and it's not even close to the seventy gold."

Elaine sighed. "Do you think this Rabble Lord will let us pay him in the morning in lieu of whatever job he has?"

"Nope." Maron sat on the bench in front of the desk. "I was actually surprised that he even agreed to consider sending you guys on a job."

Ander reached out and began to put away the chess pieces. "We should probably get some sleep, sounds like we're in for a hectic day tomorrow." He turned to look at Maron. "Since Carric's out we've got an extra bunk upstairs in the guy's room. Unless," The halfling turned to look at Kerri, "you've got a different sleeping arrangement in mind?"

Kerri crossed her arms. "I don't care where he sleeps. We're broken up."

Elaine's head snapped up, and she looked quickly between the two of them. "When did that happen?"

"Earlier tonight," Maron explained. "I'm partly the reason why Lia got left alone in the first place. I asked Kerri to marry me, and she turned me down then ran away."

There was a stunned silence for a few moments, before Elaine went over to Maron and slapped him in the back of the head.

Maron looked at the cleric in shock. "What the hell?"

Elaine reached down and grabbed Maron's arm. "Get up, now. We're going outside." Maron obeyed and allowed her to push him outside the door. Kerri moved to join them, but Elaine stopped her. "Just Maron." She closed the door behind them.

Jun and Ander turned to look at Kerri, who seemed just as shocked as the rest of them.

Outside, Elaine reached up and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Are you an actual idiot?" When Maron hesitated, she continued. "I ask, because that's the only reason I can think of for why you'd think Kerri would respond positively to a marriage proposal." The cleric sighed and dropped her hands. "If you want a relationship with her, you have to give her time. She's going through a lot."

"Like I'm not!" Maron took a few steps out. "I faked my death. Do you know what that means? I gave up my entire life in Liratha, both my royal one and my secret one. I'm having to start from ground zero." He chuckled. "Back in Liratha, I was in a position to call the shots. Here, I'm a gopher. Hell, they don't even call me Maron here. Here, I'm Bryan." He sighed heavily. "I just wanted to hold on to one thing from my past."

Elaine walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "I understand, but it hasn't been all rainbows for Kerri either. Right now she has more questions than answers about her future, and that scares the crap out of her. She doesn't know what will happen a week from now, or a month. Do you know where you'll be a week from now?" Maron shook his head. Elaine smiled softly and continued. "I understand why you want her in your life, but you went too fast. Neither of you are in a place to be in any serious relationships, both geographically and emotionally."

Maron hung his head. He went over to the wall of the tower and leaned against it heavily. "You're right, and I'm an idiot."

She laughed. "Not an idiot, just impatient." She joined Maron on the wall. "You and Kerri are a lot alike, that's part of the reason why you two worked so well together. Before all of this, she was just as impatient waiting for you to decide which of your two lives she fit in. I think she gave up on the two of you a long time ago, just hadn't actually said the words yet."

Maron looked at Elaine. "I guess I thought that if I could nail her down now, then no matter what happens in the future, there wouldn't be any doubt."

"There's your issue. Just because you 'nail something down', doesn't mean that it doesn't need to be maintained. Even married couples have to work on their relationship lest it dissolve." Elaine shivered. "Right now, there's no rush for you two. If you still want a relationship with her, might I suggest you take the same approach as you are with the thieves' guild? Start at ground zero and work your way up."

"If she'll let me." Maron yawned. "Why are you helping me anyway? I thought you were team Kerri?"

Elaine grinned and moved away from the wall. "I am, but that doesn't mean I can't be team Maron too. I liked you two as a couple, and I'm not ready to give up on you."

Maron smiled. "It's comforting to know there's at least one person on my side."

"Don't make me regret it." Elaine shivered again. "Alright, I think it's time we head inside and get some sleep. Unless there's anything else you want to talk about?"

"I'm good, and sleep sounds good. I haven't had a good night's sleep in about a week. My room with the guild has a horrible draft in it."

"We don't have a draft, but our bunks don't have cushions on them yet." Elaine opened the door and the two of them went inside. Kerri immediately asked what they'd talked about, but Elaine just walked by her and went up the ladder.

Everyone else followed and went to bed. A little after midnight, both Iados and Carric arrived back at the tower together and headed upstairs. Carric claimed the last remaining bunk in the guy's room, leaving Iados to find his own accommodations. He tried to set up his hammock, but found that the space between the bunks was too short for his body. In the end, he snuggled up with Shomma on the fluff pile downstairs.

The next morning, everyone was tense as they waited for word from the Rabble Lord. Over breakfast, Jun and Kerri had filled Iados and Carric in on the previous night's events, and introduced Iados to Maron.

"What do you think he'll have for us?" Iados's leg kept bouncing under the table, and it caused the bench to shake.

Maron shrugged as he took off a piece from his bread roll. "No idea, but it probably won't be easy."

Iados paused the leg shaking. "Thanks, that helps a lot." He said sarcastically. Maron didn't reply.

A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door. Carric stood up first and answered it. The door was barely open before the Rabble Lord himself pushed into the room.

"Ah good, you're all here. My sources weren't sure if this one," The Rabble Lord pointed to Carric as the half-elf rubbed his nose. "Would be here or not. Last night must not have been that good." The half-orc strutted over to the table and grabbed a bread roll from a small basket. "I hope you all got a good night's sleep."

Jun stood up. "Have you come to a decision?"

"I have," The Rabble Lord took a bite of his roll. "I will forgive Lia's debt, upon the successful completion of a job."

"What's the job?" Iados asked.

The half-orc reached into a pocket of his cloak and pulled out a rolled scroll. He passed it over to Jun. "Get me those three items, by dawn tomorrow."

Jun unrolled the scroll. "Family tree of the Haskin family, a plumed helmet of the Royal Guard, and the Queen's tiara."

Ander's eyes widened. "Wait, is that tiara, THE tiara."

The half-orc smiled and nodded.

"What's so important about a tiara?" Elaine asked.

Maron leaned over Jun's shoulder and read the scroll. "If I recall, the tiara was designed by the first Queen of Marblebrooke."

Ander nodded. "She wasn't just the first Queen, she was the first ruler. She was the one who united the separate villages and nomads under her banner. She drafted the code of laws, and presided like a judge over her subjects." Kerri grinned as she saw the excitement on Ander's face as he continued. "Legends say that her tiara was beautiful, and that the gems on it represented all of those under her. Ever since her death, every queen right up to the last one wore it."

Jun crossed his arms. "A piece like that must be under some serious security."

"No one knows." The half-orc sat down at the desk and faced the group, his elbows resting on the desk behind him. "No one's seen it since the end of the Civil War. Last place it was seen, was the Queen's bedchambers in the palace. In fact, all of those items can be found in the palace."

"So you want us to sneak into the palace, snoop around, and deliver these items to you by dawn? Then we'll get Lia?" Kerri asked.

"Pretty much. There is one difference, you can have Lia now." The Rabble Lord turned to look at Maron. "Bryan, go outside and fetch the elf from Linius."

Maron did as he was told, and came back a moment later with Lia.

Iados stood up and rushed over to her. She had dark circles under eyes, but she didn't seem to be injured. She did however have a dark hand print on her throat.

Iados rounded on the Rabble Lord. "What is this?" He pointed to the print.

The half-orc waved him off. "It's not an injury, just an insurance policy. You see, if you don't finish by dawn tomorrow, then that print will begin to choke her till she's dead. Simple enough really, and a great way to make sure you guys don't just skip town."

Jun rolled up the paper. "Where do we meet you once we have the items?"

"Bryan will be able to lead you, after all he is going with you." The Rabble Lord stood up. "Bryan, if this job isn't completed to my satisfaction, then we might need to reconsider our little arrangement."

Maron nodded.

Carric held up a hand. "Before we do this, and because we are on a short time limit, any information you can give us about the palace? Any clues as to where this stuff is, or what the security is like?"

The half-orc scoffed. "If I knew 'where' the items were, I wouldn't be sending you. As for security, since there aren't any visiting dignitaries in town, and the council isn't in session I would imagine it's pretty light."

"One more question," Ander moved till he stood in front of the Rabble Lord. "Why give this particular job to us?"

"Because I can." With that, the Rabble Lord left, slamming the door behind him.

Elaine immediately went over to Lia, as Iados had her sit at the bench that was just vacated by the Rabble Lord. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

Lia shook her head in response to Elaine's questions. "I just have a bit of a bruise from where they hit me to knock me out." She reached up and moved her hair away from her temple to show the small bruise. She looked up at the group. "I'm really sorry guys. My judgement wasn't the best last night, and I seriously thought I could outrun them."

"No, I'm sorry for leaving you and putting you in that position." Kerri grimaced. "I should have made sure that the tab was taken care of before I left."

Jun jabbed Maron in the side.

"I apologize as well for being the reason why Kerri left you." The ex-prince reached up and rubbed his side. "If that's done, we should make our way to the palace."

"How are we going to get past the gate?" Carric asked. "Last time we went to the palace, we couldn't even get to the palace without an escort."

"That's easy, we'll just go through the sewers. There's a sewer opening just outside the palace walls near the rear entrance by the stables. I've used it several times to make deliveries."

"So you've been inside the palace?" Jun asked.

Maron nodded. "Only the first floor mainly. A lot of the castle is unused."

Jun went over to the desk and took a piece of parchment out of a drawer. He handed the parchment over to Maron. "Draw us a map."

"Sure, got something to write with?"

Jun handed over a charcoal pencil.

Maron settled down at the large table and everyone crowded around him. "So the palace itself is in a U-shape with three stories. I'm pretty sure there isn't a basement, but don't quote me on that. On each corner there's a tower that's connected to the palace wall.

"The first floor is servants and storage. That's where the kitchen and food storage is, in addition to the servants chambers. Some of the storage rooms have been converted into guest rooms for Council guests. That's where my brother and I stayed when we made our official visit from Liratha." Maron drew little beds in his boxes.

Carric reached out and pointed to the towers. "Do they have the same floor numbers as the main complex?"

Maron nodded. "The two towers in front are defense. They connect with the main gate, which is actually two gates. Each gate has a portcullis on it. The tower to the right of the main gate holds the armory. Like the Lord said, with no Council in session they're more than likely running on a skeleton crew."

"What about the other two towers?" Jun asked.

"One holds the well for the palace," Maron drew a large circle on the map. "The other is the rear entrance. The stables are all along this back wall. This tower will be our way in."

"So the second floor is where the main staircase leads to, right?" Kerri asked.

Maron nodded and drew a second diagram. "There are the four sitting rooms we all were in before just inside the main door. You've got the servant's stairs on the left-hand side, and then the staircase to the third floor on the right. The west wing is a dedicated chapel space, while the east wing is a dedicated meeting hall. The meeting hall is where the Council meets, and it has a huge vaulted ceiling."

"Which deity is the chapel to?" Elaine wondered.

"Right now, none that I know of." Maron shrugged. "To my knowledge it's mostly abandoned. Before it was strictly for use by the Royal Family."

Iados nodded. "And the towers?"

"Above the gate is the guardhouse, but that's all I know. I haven't really been in the towers." Maron set down the pencil. "When it comes to the third floor, I know absolutely nothing about it. As far as I know, it's off-limits to everyone, including the servants."

"Presumably the third floor would have been the Royal apartments." Iados tapped his chin. "That might be our best bet for the tiara and family tree. The helmet might be in the armory or guardhouse."

Jun nodded. "Now that we have a basic idea, we need to decide if we're going to approach this as a large group or split up."

"Given the time constraint, I think we should split into two groups." Lia suggested. "This place is huge, and it's going to take time to search all of it. Even with a skeletal guard force, the name of the game is going to be stealth on this."

Jun stood up straight. "Ok, how do we divvy up then? Two groups of four?"

Maron raised his hand. "I'm pretty stealthy, so I can be in one group, and then another stealthy person can be in the other."

"That'll be me." Iados raised his hand as well. "I suggest that each team only has two magic users on it. You know, for balance."

"So then Elaine and Kerri with Maron, and then Lia and Ander with you?" Carric suggested.

Kerri shook her head. "I don't want to work with Maron. Put me on Iados's team."

"I understand that, but given recent events, I'd like it if Lia was on my team as well." Iados countered.

Elaine clapped her hands. "Then it's settled, Kerri and Lia will be with Iados." She looked at Ander. "Any complaints?"

Ander took a sip of his drink. "None that I'm going to voice."

Jun grinned and turned his attention to Carric. "Alright, it's you and me. You have a preference?"

"Not really, but I'll flip you for it." Carric dug out a gold. "Heads you go with the new guy, tails I do."

"Sounds fair, flip it." Jun watched as the coin flipped in the air. He grinned as he saw what it landed on. "Have fun with the new guy."

Carric grinned as he picked up the coin. "He can't be any worse than Ander."

Ander rolled his eyes. "Now that we got that settled, I'm going to get my spells in order before we leave."

Iados leaned forward and gestured for Kerri to come closer.

"What?" She whispered.

The akudaem grinned. "What do you say we add royal pillows to the list?"