Aurelia crouched in the alleyway, checking over her gear for the third time. Justin sat beside her, sitting behind a stack of crates. He held the ivory longbow in his lap, gazing at it admiringly.
“I still can’t believe you just gave it to me,” Justin whispered.
Aurelia looked at him and said, “Like I said, it would be better used in your hands.”
A noise jostled the two out of their conversation, and Aurelia peaked around the corner. They were supposed to be waiting for the go-ahead from the Moon Raven scouts, but somehow they got distracted again. Aurelia had never done anything like this before, but that was no excuse to be sloppy. She relaxed slightly when she saw it was only Freddy who came around the corner with a focused look on his face.
The once jovial boy looked grim after all that had happened with Lord Gray and his wife. Aurelia understood that the people of Rainy Hollow had loved the two nobles, and even the young Freddy seemed sobered by the news of their deaths. Freddy joined them behind the crates, and the three of them gathered close together.
“What is it?” Aurelia asked the boy.
“The scouts are in position and ready if you are,” Freddy whispered back.
Justin and Aurelia looked at each other before nodding together. “Yes, I think we are,” Aurelia said.
“Okay, then follow me,” Freddy gestured at them with one hand.
The three carefully walked around the wooden crates and down the alleyway. Aurelia could see a flag waving in the breeze attached to the tall house peeking out over the building in front of her. The flag was black with a silver tree in the center, a gray cloud hung above, with blue raindrops falling and one golden lightning bolt striking down. Justin had explained to Aurelia that the flag represented the Gray noble house. She thought the flag looked beautiful, but today, it only seemed like an omen of bad tidings.
As the mansion came into full view, the three could see the duke’s men standing watch. The guards patrolled around the mansion grounds, weapons out and ready. In the front courtyard of the mansion, Aurelia spotted something that caused her blood to go cold. Bodies lay in the grass, some off to the side of the main walkway, while others lay near the entrance to the mansion. No one seemed to care that they were walking by the corpses, the guards instead keeping their gazes away from the ground. If Aurelia weren’t set on helping the Gray family, the sight alone of the dead guards of Rainy Hollow would have caused her to find a way to help. No one deserved the disrespect the duke had shown to the nobles and the guards of the village.
Justin looked particularly aggrieved at the sight, and Aurelia wished she could say something to comfort him. But this wasn’t the time for comforting words. They had a mission to accomplish, and the two of them played a pivotal role. Aurelia felt her heart pounding in her chest and held her wand tightly in one hand
Freddy held his arm out, stopping Aurelia and Justin from moving forward any closer. “Not just yet, they haven’t given the signal yet.”
Justin looked at the young boy, “What is the signal?” he whispered back.
An annoyed glance was the only answer Justin received, and the two turned back to look at the roaming guards. They stood in the shadows for a couple more minutes, waiting patiently, when the time finally came. On the other side of the mansion, a small explosion could be heard. All the duke’s guards turned toward the sound, alerted by the noise.
Aurelia watched as a cloud of dark gray smoke began to envelop the west side of the property, and guards began to congregate in that direction. Eight guards began to surround the billowing smoke, with only two other guards standing at attention on their side of the mansion. Freddy kept his arm out, indicating to Justin and Aurelia that they needed to wait a couple more seconds.
The eight guards surrounding the smoke were yelling at each other, seemingly at a loss for what they should do. The smoke continued to extend outwards until one soldier got too close. The unfortunate guard was suddenly enveloped by the smoke and dropped to the ground, unconscious. This caused the rest of the group to jump away in fright, with no one willing to help the downed guard. As one guard began to tell the rest to stay alert, the front doors to the mansion swung open, revealing the captain of the guard.
Captain Northwood looked very annoyed and stormed in the direction of the clustered group of guards. Before the captain could take any action, a new explosion rocked the courtyard. The cloud of smoke expanded in a burst of speed, catching two more guards in the process. As the guards dropped to the ground, Captain Northwood unsheathed his sword, barking at his subordinates to spread out.
The two guards closest to Aurelia turned towards the sound of their captain, a mistake that would cost them. At a signal from Freddy, Justin pulled back the prepared arrow and let it fly in the direction of the guard to the left of them. Two seconds later, a second arrow flew toward the other guard, and both arrows struck their targets at critical points. Justin was still under level ten, while both guards were at level twenty-five. In most circumstances, Justin’s attacks would not have been enough to fell the two. This wasn’t most times. The bow he had used was the rare ivory longbow Aurelia had received in the dungeon, and in the ranger’s hands, he was able to improve his attack power by thirty percent. After using special arrows provided by Admium and the sneak attack bonus, Justin could kill both guards with one attack each.
The Captain's group failed to notice the downed guards, giving Aurelia the opening she had been waiting for. Justin squeezed her shoulder in encouragement, and Aurelia activated the ring on her finger. Freddy gasped as the young woman disappeared from sight right before their eyes. Aurelia didn’t give herself another second, and she teleported toward the mansion.
She reached the open front door in three teleports, entering while those outside were still distracted. Aurelia paused as she entered the mansion, shocked by what she saw. Bile rose in her throat, and it took a couple of seconds for her to get herself back together. Throughout the entryway were the bodies of what Aurelia assumed to be the maids and staff of the Gray household. It seemed the duke had taken it upon himself to eliminate those who would protect their lord.
Moving forward, Aurelia looked around for signs of where Corbin and his siblings may be held. Her first thought was whether there was some sort of dungeon in the mansion and the second being whether they were just locked away in some room upstairs. Aurelia couldn’t hear any sounds of guards or people inside, only hearing the cries of the guards and the captain outside the home.
Making a decision, Aurelia walked around the first floor, checking for clues. She found herself in the kitchen but backed away quickly after finding the bodies of two cooks. Her heart broke at the sight of such depraved acts. Aurelia moved on until she found a door that opened into a set of stairs spiraling downwards. She did her best to make as little sound as possible, but she hoped her invisibility would be enough to see her through the rescue undiscovered.
At the bottom of the stone staircase, Aurelia found herself in what, indeed, looked like a mini-dungeon. Cells lined a dark hallway, and inside one of the cells, Aurelia saw the form of a young woman. She moved towards the girl carefully, continuing to check around for any of the duke’s men. Deciding it was safe, Aurelia turned off her invisibility, whispering to get the girl’s attention.
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A set of pale gray eyes turned to look at Aurelia, the girl’s eyes widening at the sight of someone down beside her. “Who are you,” the prisoner croaked out.
“My name is Aurelia, are you Corbin’s sister?” Aurelia asked.
Suspicion arose in the girl’s eyes, but she slowly nodded, “Yes, my name is Samantha, I am the daughter of Lord Gray,” Samantha paused, “Well, I was the daughter of Lord Gray…” she trailed off.
Aurelia looked at Samantha, sympathy in her gaze, “I am so sorry for what happened to your parents, I can’t imagine what you are going through.”
Samatha gave her a sad smile, “I appreciate the sentiment.”
“I am sorry, but we don’t have much time. Do you know where your brothers are?” Aurelia asked in an urgent tone.
Samantha walked over to the prison door, hands gripping the iron bars. “The duke took my brothers to the study. I think he is trying to get information on who claimed the dungeon,” Aurelia’s heart sank at the words, “but I don’t know what the duke will do when he finds out our family has had nothing to do with the dungeon’s claim.”
“Do you know how many guards he has with him?” Aurelia asked.
“I am not sure when I was escorted down here, but they had at least four guards stationed in and around the room—plus the captain, of course,” Samantha answered.
“Well, if we hurry, we should be able to make it before the captain returns,” Aurelia gestured to the gate, “do you know where a key is, or should I try using force?”
Samantha gave her an incredulous look, “What could you do?”
Aurelia looked back at Samantha, a forced smile on her face. “I have my ways, but I’ll keep that to myself for now.” Aurelia pointed her wand at the iron door. "You should stand back.”
Samantha took backward steps until she was against the far wall. Once Samantha was out of the way, Aurelia let loose a pair of spatial slashes. The spell was silent as the two blades of force impacted the door at its hinges. The two young women watched as the door came ajar, now that nothing kept it connected on one side. Samantha looked shocked at the sight but listened as Aurelia urged her out of the cell.
“Okay, I will go ahead before you. Try to stay out of sight as we go upstairs. I’ll take care of the guards until we reach your brothers.” Samantha nodded as Aurelia led the other girl back to the first floor.
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Corbin’s nose was bleeding, but he imagined that his heart was bleeding even worse. He shifted in place, the manacles on his wrists and ankles making it difficult to move around properly. He had a skill that could free him in seconds, but there was no way he could escape with eyes on him at all times. Besides, there was no way he would leave his brothers behind. Corbin looked over at the forms of his two brothers. Robin and Sabin were both unconscious, blood staining the ground around them. As the youngest Gray sibling, he had never seen his older brothers as weak or vulnerable. To Corbin, they had been larger than life and his personal heroes. Now, all three of them were shackled in their Father’s own study, being torn apart both figuratively and literally as Duke Gladys squeezed them for information.
A hard backhand slap shook Corbin from his thoughts, and he groaned at the pain. He looked up to see the dark eyes of the duke. “What?” Corbin got out.
Two guards stood beside the office door, watching Duke Gladys interrogate Corbin. Captain Northwood stood just outside the room, arguing with another set of guards.
“I asked you a question, boy!” the duke raised his voice angrily. “And I expect that you will answer my questions.”
“We told you everything we know, sir,” Corbin replied. “What more do you want?”
The duke gave Corbin another hard slap to the face before he stormed back behind Lord Gray’s old desk. “I don’t believe that none of you didn’t claim the dungeon. There is no one else here that could have done so!” The duke practically yelled that last sentence and Corbin winced at the noise.
“Even if that was true, what gives you the right to just storm into our village, murder the Lord, and capture his children? We haven’t done anything wrong!”
The duke scoffed, “You know nothing. You and your siblings may be innocent, as you say, but your father was no saint. He and his family have been working against the kind’s interests for years, it’s only now that I have had cause to do anything about it.”
Corbin grounded his teeth together, “I don’t believe you.”
“I don’t need or desire your belief in me. I have my orders, and I will follow them. It’s just to my benefit that I get the village and a new dungeon out of the deal.” The duke looked intently at Corbin, “It seems as though you and your brothers are no longer of any use to me,” he looked thoughtful, “your sister, on the other hand, I am sure she is still of use to me. My wife can no longer bear children, you see. So I am in need of a new bride.” The duke gave Corbin an evil grin, and it took all Corbin had to keep his rage in check.
“What will you do with us, then?”
“Your father’s allies will already start a war over your father and mother’s deaths. A couple more won’t hurt-” The duke stopped talking as an explosion outside caused the whole house to shake. As yelling guards could be heard outside, the duke ordered the captain to investigate.
Hope began to blossom in Corbin’s chest that perhaps he wouldn’t die along with his parents today. He glanced over at his brothers once more and noticed Sabin’s eyes begin to flutter open. Corbin looked back to the duke and the other guards and saw they were still distracted. He turned to his brother and gave him a look that meant, ‘You better play unconscious, or else!’ The only movement Sabin made was to close his eyes once again.
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When Aurelia reached the top of the stairs, she could hear shouting from up above. Samantha looked apprehensive, but with Aurelia’s encouragement, they continued up towards the study. The staircase to the second floor looked damaged, one section of the railing completely splintered by whatever had happened. Aurelia decided she would scout up ahead of Samantha, so she urged the other girl to stay out of sight while Aurelia activated her invisibility ring again.
The voices grew louder as she continued upwards, and she could finally make out what was being said.
“I don’t care what you think! I want to know what is happening, so you need to go out there and find that out and immediately report back,” a commanding voice spoke.
“Yes, sir!” a different voice replied, and Aurelia heard footsteps drawing closer in her direction.
Worried that whoever was coming down would spot Samantha, Aurelia scrambled back downstairs to the other girl. Keeping her invisibility up, Aurelia grabbed Samantha’s arm with one hand, the other over her mouth. Samantha flinched at the contact, but after some comforting words from Aurelia, she calmed down. The two of them walked out of sight of the stairs and listened as whoever it was came down the stairs.
Aurelia decided to risk it and peered out of the sitting room to see the guard making his way toward the front door. Still invisible, Aurelia pulled an item from her inventory and threw it behind the oblivious guard. The potion smashed into pieces, and a cloud of smoke enveloped the guard. Before he could even make a sound of surprise, the man had fallen to the ground unconscious. Thankfully the noise of the smashing glass had been quiet compared to what was still happening outside. Still, Aurelia and Samantha waited silently to see if anyone would come down to investigate. After a minute of nothing, Aurelia decided to go back upstairs after letting Samantha know to stay where she was.
As Aurelia walked down the hallway toward the study, she heard the sounds of arguing voices once more. This time, she reached the study and spotted two guards facing the open doorway. Whatever was happening, she hoped Corbin and his brothers were okay. Now that she was here, Aurelia worried her plan wouldn’t work. The others had made it possible for her to make it this far, but she was alone now. Her invisibility ring only worked on one person, and no one else had any item or skill to make them undetectable. Well, apparently, some had skills like that for the nighttime or other environments, but Aurelia needed to help Corbin now, not at another convenient time.
With that, Aurelia took another potion from her inventory, primed to throw. ‘Let’s hope this works,’ she thought, and tossed the potion towards the guards.