"Hrng." Erin reached through the cage bars, trying to get her fingers around a thin piece of metal just a little too far away.

"Perhaps if you took in a breath," Artur said behind her, still kneeling and watching her work. "Otherwise, we might face our death."

Erin sighed, pulling back from the bars and letting the pressure fade from her cheeks where they had pressed up hard against the cold metal. After an hour of trying to escape, the prince, knight, or whatever he was had proven more useless and annoying than anything else. She clenched her hands to keep the blood flowing to them. Trying to reach through the bars had caused her fingers to tingle and become numb.

"Why don't you be useful?" she said. "Try and reach for it."

"Anything for a lady, so long as it is not shady."

Artur looked out of the bars before crawling over to the edge. With one long, pale, but dirtied hand, he reached for the thin piece of metal. He grunted as he pushed his shoulders up against the cage. His arm was longer than Erin's, and his fingers flicked across the metal as he reached out to it. From what Erin could see, only his fingertips could reach it, but he was still just a little short of grabbing it. She crawled over, pushing against him with her shoulder.

"Reach it," she said, leaning her shoulder into his back.

"Grah." Artur pushed harder into the bar with her help. "Aha!"

Thump.

He jumped back, and Erin fell back onto the metal floor as he knelt over her with the thin piece of metal in his hand. His face spread wide with a smile as he held it up to the dim light. Erin rolled over, getting her hands beneath her so she could push herself up again. Artur handed the piece of metal over to her, and she took it in shaking hands. It was a thin piece of metal, maybe a rusty nail.

Erin only hoped it would work on the cage's lock.

Rattle.

"What do you think? Are we on the brink?"

"The rhyming isn't helping at all," Erin whispered as she fiddled around inside the lock's keyhole. "Is there any way that you can just not do it?"

"It would break my vows," Artur said solemnly. "To not conduct myself by ideals I espouse."

"Well, you need to rethink your vows," Erin said as she pushed the nail into the keyhole and jiggled it around.

She was unfamiliar with the type of lock on the cage, and a nail wouldn't normally be good for anything. She didn't think it would work without her normal tools, but doing something was better than doing nothing. She closed her eyes as she focused on the feel of the inside of the lock. The tip of the thin nail ran the length of the bottom of the hole as she poked around inside. There was a simple spring inside, and if she pulled it back with the nail, it would pop open on its own.

Erin took a deep breath and focused on getting the right angle to hook into the mechanism.

"Just a little more," Erin grunted as she tried to bend the nail against the lock's interior.

Click. Creak.

The door swung open, leaving a clear path out into the room, and Erin fell backward. A warm hand caught her by the shoulder, keeping her from hitting the steel again. Artur smiled down at her, helping her up and pushing her forward. Erin crawled out of the cage, her lungs filling with aether the moment she was no longer touching the metal. Artur followed immediately after, standing up faster than she could and looking around the room.

"Those two escaped," whispers came from the cages. "Let me out!"

Clang. Clang.

"You're both free. Let us out!" another yelled.

"Shh!" Erin breathed out, standing unsteadily as a wave of dizziness washed over her mind.

The power of aether was nothing to be understated. Already, her body was filling with new strength, and even though she had been without it for only a few hours, it was enough to mess with her senses. She blinked a few times, trying to focus, and that was when she noticed that Artur had moved away. He stood in front of the cages of the shadowy slaves, pulling on the bars with all his strength, but to no avail.

"These bars are resistant. I need help this instant!"

"Hold on," Erin said, walking over and pushing him away from the bars. "We need to figure out where those slavers are at first. If we give away that there are a bunch of free people in here, they could come in here and just catch us again."

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She knew it was the right thing, even if it made her stomach churn. It was just like completing a mission. If she let the people out of the cages now, they'd rush out and give away that they were escaping. They had already risked everything just by yelling to be freed. They would come back, so long as she was able to. She looked Artur over. Would he be more of a hindrance than an asset in this escape attempt? She could run now and get away from him.

"I understand; that is the way of the world," Artur said, stepping past her and holding his arms out beside him as he looked over the people. "Fine people, we will return when this plot is unfurled."

The people in the cages didn't look happy about it, but from Erin's perspective, there was nothing they could do. Unless they could break out of the cages on their own, they needed Artur and her to get out. That thought pushed at her mind. They wouldn't be there if they could have escaped on their own. That was the problem with being captured and enslaved. There was no hope to get out. There was only wallowing in despair.

That was why the Scions had to be taken down. That was why the system needed to be broken. In the Twelve Kingdoms, there was no hope. There was only oppressor and oppressed. That was the reality that the People's Revolution wanted to end.

"What do you say?" Artur asked, turning to her. "Are we to save them and be away?"

Erin sighed, reminding herself that he might be useful. If he could contain himself long enough from rhyming, he might even make a good distraction if they got caught. She nodded at him, heading toward the door at the edge of the room. They would need to be quiet. Even the slightest misstep could lead to a fight.

She tiptoed to the door and stuck her ear against it to listen. Artur's breathing behind her muted some of the sounds, but she mostly heard the faint tapping coming from outside. She wasn't sure, but it sounded like a heavy rain. The skies had been clear when she had been knocked out. Had there been a storm?

"Come on," she whispered, pushing the door open and turning the handle.

Creak.

The sound of the door opening echoed down the hall, and Erin winced. She leaned out into the hall, looking both ways. The hallway was dark, except for a light at one end on the right side. Erin took in a deep breath, again appreciating the feel of aether in the air. She had her curse if she needed it. That was something she could rely on. She just needed to make sure she wasn't taken by surprise again.

"Come on, ride on." Artur burst past her but still managed to whisper. "Before we are set upon."

"Can you please stop," Erin hissed, stepping out into the hall.

Artur grimaced, holding up his hands and letting Erin take the lead. She started down the hall, taking careful steps as she approached the light. The only sound she could hear as she approached was the soft patter of rain on the roof. She paused at the door, and Artur stumbled into her back. She nearly fell forward but caught herself against the wall. She glared back at Artur, but he held up his hands again in defeat.

Snort!

She peered around the corner at the noise and saw one of the slavers from the shuttle. He was the one dressed in all black that had made a chair with his curse. Erin bit her lip. he appeared to be sleeping. He leaned back on a chair, his feet propped on a table with his hands on his chest. His head lolled back as he snored. A thought crossed her mind as she watched him. She could take him down now. She could throw out a handful of seeds and wrap him in vines.

However, she had met plenty of people on Erth who weren't susceptible to that tactic. Doctor Livesay on Cragg Hollow had shrugged off her vines time and time again. It would be better if she could get away from the building without waking him at all. She scanned the room, and she saw what she was looking for on a counter near a window. A pile of objects was lying on the counter, and a few she could recognize, even from a distance. Some of the bags she wore beneath her cloak were propped against the wall, and her black dagger lay in front of them. There were other objects there as well, including a grey shirt made out of several linked chain rings, a sword, and a shield.

Thump.

Artur pushed past her with a sudden gasp, tiptoeing across the room in a very exaggerated style, holding both hands up and taking large steps. Erin held onto the door frame, her breath catching in her throat as she watched him go. He hadn't even said anything. He had just rushed ahead right toward the weapons. She had been debating doing what he was doing, but in a more dignified way. However, she had stopped herself. Waking up the slaver was just too risky.

He went right for his weapons, and Erin grimaced. He made it across the room without making a noise. She was a master infiltrator. She could do better than he did. She stepped out of the door and into the light. She felt more than heard the noise behind her as she did so. A door closed with a soft thud, and boots started down the hall. She turned and spotted a lumbering figure approaching. She didn't have time to doubt.

She rushed into the room, crossing it in seconds and grabbing Artur by the shoulder. He started to speak, but she threw her hand over his mouth. There was no time to argue. There was no time to think. There was only time to find a hiding place. She scanned the room and saw a door on the far side. She moved bodily with Artur, and he didn't resist, following her as the sounds of the approaching figure grew closer. Even he had to realize there wasn't time to get his belongings.

Click. Thump.

In seconds, they were inside a small pantry, barely large enough to fit both of them and full of cans and other food items. The smell inside was musty, and Erin struggled to control her breathing. Artur looked down at her, and it seemed like he would say something, but she kept her hand over his mouth. Now wasn't the time for rhyming verse. Now was the time to be completely silent and hope no one noticed them.

Thump. Thump.

"You awake, William?" the man's voice echoed in the room, far too loud for Erin's ears.

How close was he?

"Hmph," the other man grunted before yawning. "I was having the most delightful dream, Roy. Why did you have to interrupt?"

"We still haven't heard from the buyer for the prince," Roy said, and Erin thought his voice was getting louder.

Thump. Thump.

"That's to be expected," William said. "With the storm and all, even members of the Underground don't want to get wet if they don't have to."

"Yeah, I guess," Roy said. "But I'm getting hungry. Do we have any good food left?"

A shadow crossed over the bottom of the door, where a little of the light from the room came through. The doorknob for the pantry jiggled. Artur tensed underneath her hand. The fight was upon them, and they would have to take on both slavers at once. Erin didn't like it, but that was the reality. She took in a deep breath and prepared herself as the door's handle turned. There would be no going back once the door opened.

Erin opened her gate.