Connor woke up in the evening, refreshed and ready to do what needed to be done.

He looked out the window at the setting sun. Soon it would be time to meet with Korvac again. Soon, Victor would be free.

Connor took the time to eat and wash up.

He was always surprised at how much alchemy took out of him, but he could also feel that he was getting better at it, and stronger too.

He had a long way to go before he could practice the high level of alchemy that he yearned for, but he was making progress.

He’d already experienced the power of novice level potions like the heightened senses and magic sight, and he couldn’t help but wonder what powers lay ahead of him.

He went down the stairs after a refreshing bath, and looked at one of the vials of minor strength potion, while he waited for his friends.

He was fairly sure he’d succeeded this time, but he still needed to test it. He needed to know just how much stronger it made him, and if he’d made a mistake, it’d be better to find out now than when their lives were on the line.

Hopefully, it wouldn’t kill him.

He pulled the cork out with a faint pop, releasing the potion’s scent into the air. It smelled like peaches.

He brought the vial to his lips and drank.

He tried not to think about what went into it. It wasn’t as bad as the ingredients used for the sense-enhancing potion, but he still didn’t like to think about ogre blood.

Thankfully, it tasted nothing like that. It was a bit spicy, but not unpleasant.

He paced up and down, waiting for the effects to kick in. He remembered what happened last time all too well, and Victor wasn’t around to save him this time.

A warm feeling spread through his muscles, and he felt lighter. Stronger. He’d felt much the same way before…

He waited longer. His heart pounded in his chest.

But, minutes passed, and nothing else happened. He let out a relieved sigh.

He went through a few sword motions. His already light rapier felt like a feather in his hand.

He whipped it through the air faster than ever before. He smiled.

Much like the other potions, there were more than just the obvious positives. Not only was he stronger, but that strength gave him more explosive speed and power as well.

There were probably even more benefits he hadn’t uncovered just yet. He couldn’t wait to get a chance to test it more thoroughly at some stage. It was nowhere near the level of strength that Victor’s potion had granted him, but he was still happy with the results.

He’d take any advantage he could get in the coming battles.

***

The Stars of Night guild hall was even more crowded than the last time. They elbowed and squeezed their way through the throng to Korvac’s office.

“Ah you’ve finally returned,” Korvac said, “I was starting to think I’d have to send someone after you three. Any news?”

“Yes,” Connor said, “we found Victor.”

“Excellent work!” Korvac said, “where is he? I’ll get a team together, and we’ll grab him right now!”

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“I’m afraid it isn’t so simple,” Connor said, “you may as well sit down, we have a lot to discuss.”

***

Korvac’s face grew grim as Connor told him what he had discovered beneath Zauberer.

He didn’t mention anything about Victor’s potions though.

He believed Korvac was on their side, but he still didn’t want more people knowing about him and his uncle being alchemists.

“So you see… it’s far worse than we could have ever imagined,” Connor said.

“Gods…” Korvac said, “how did they slip all of this past me? Past Victor?”

“I don’t know,” Connor said, “the scale of the operation they’re running is beyond anything I could’ve expected. What’s worse is we don’t even know if this is the only facility like this. This could be just one of many.

“Breaking Victor out is going to be incredibly difficult and dangerous. They have a sizable number of guards down there, and those were just the ones I saw. Not to mention, they could probably order the slaves to attack as well. If we go charging in, we’ll be swarmed under in moments.”

“We need Victor back as soon as possible,” Korvac said, “we need his help now more than ever. What about the city guard? Can you get them to help us?”

“No. Davison has made sure of that. If I go to the city guard for help, they’ll just arrest me instead. Once we get Victor back, we can get the palace back on our side… but until then, we’re on our own.

“I wouldn’t go to them anyway. Someone from inside the palace has been working with The Syndicate from the beginning. Someone had to lead them through the tunnels. Chamberlain Davison might be working with them, but there’s no telling who else is as well. Even if I could get them to listen to me, we can’t afford the risk of The Syndicate finding out we’re onto them.

“So, how are we going to get Victor out?” Korvac asked.

“A frontal assault would be suicide,” Connor said, “even if we get everyone under your command to attack them it would be a massacre. Their numbers down there are staggering.”

“So what do you propose we do?” Korvac asked.

“Our best choice is stealth and misdirection. Rather than bringing all of your men with us, I want to bring only the most loyal and skilled. There’s no telling who in this very guild supports them, so we can’t afford to bring anyone even remotely suspect. We can’t win with quantity, so we need to make up for that with quality. Speaking of which, did you make a list of your best and most loyal men for us?” Connor asked.

Korvac nodded.

“Good, contact Illyian, and get his list too. The five of us will have to go through them all. We’ll have to play this all close to the vest for our plan to have even the slightest chance of success. Surprise is key.

“We’ll also need someone skilled with magic and magical devices to deal with the collars on the slaves and on Victor. Do you think we can trust Maya to help us with that?” Connor asked.

“I’ve worked with her many times before, and she has always been worthy of my trust. She wasn’t happy about what happened with Bvorn’s interrogation… but I don’t think she blames us,” Korvac said.

“Then, we’ll need her, and any other trustworthy wizards you and Illyian know. The Syndicate has shown that they have necromancers and wizards. We need to make sure we have some magic on our side as well,” Connor said.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Korvac said.

“Once we’ve gathered everyone we can depend on, we’ll split into two groups. One larger group to draw their attention away, and then a smaller group to sneak in and get Victor out while they’re distracted.

“I’d like to rescue the slaves if we can, but that depends on what Maya can tell us about the collars. We may have to wait until Victor can get the city guard to help us,” Connor said.

They discussed a few more details, and Connor was surprised at how quickly Korvac agreed to what he wanted. He’d expected far more resistance from the beginning.

“It's probably because you remind him so much of Victor,” Adelia said as the two of them walked down to the quarters Korvac had assigned them.

The guild was packed because of the attacks, so some of the thieves had to be moved elsewhere to free up space for the three of them to use.

He didn’t want anyone who knew what they planned to leave the guild until it was done unless they absolutely had to. That included him and his friends as well as Korvac and Illyian as much as possible. Illyian had little choice other than to leave the guild as his side of the network was far more spread out, but Connor still wanted to minimize that.

He trusted them, but he didn’t want to take the risk that one of them might be captured and forced to talk. So, for now, they would stay put. Besides, going through who to bring was going to keep them busy in the guild anyway.

“I’m not anything like Victor,” Connor said, “Victor would have sorted out this whole situation ages ago.”

“Don’t be so sure,” Adelia said, “Victor isn’t infallible, and you’re more capable than you realize.”

With that she disappeared into her room, leaving Connor alone with his thoughts.

Though he was closer to getting his uncle back than ever before, doubt and worry still plagued him. Was he doing the right thing?

He felt so out of his depth dealing with all of this. He’d done missions without Victor’s help before, but never on a scale like this one, and never for such high stakes.

He couldn’t afford to fail, and The Syndicate had been one step ahead from the very beginning. What if he missed something, and led them into disaster?

No, he couldn’t let himself think that. He couldn’t allow those thoughts take root and paralyze him.

He had work to do. People were counting on him.