MARICO

Marico Fabelnad stepped on the ledge to overlook the plane. There, in the far on the wide, flat, autumn, treeless tundra plane he could see the small hill on which the castle was built. It seemed to him merely a silhouette somewhere afar in the thick coat of rain and fog. The sun was setting somewhere behind the dark clouds and soon it would no longer be visible.

He put his monocular up to his right eye and looked for a sign of the airship. They had been sitting in the small rift behind the rock ledge here for one week now. Making a fire was too dangerous so they had been freezing in the icy rain. Lesenco had even contracted a fever which was very unnerving to all of them.

As Marico was holding his monocular towards the horizon he spotted something. There it was, the little spec closing in on the castle. He looked closer. The silhouette seemed to suggest their information was still correct.

He climbed down into the rift where Lesenco and Ulina sat close together, looking up to him.

“Anything?”, Ulina asked. Marico smiled nodded.

“You guys can stop cuddling!”

The joke was old - one week old. They had been “sticking together” for one week - literally - to preserve warmth. But the two did not mind the pun given the prospects of finally ending the freezing misery.

“Give me that!” Lesenco had stood up and demanded the monocular. Marico handed it over and collected his things, getting ready to move. He went over to the horse who stood a bit further away, freezing and grazing. Lesenco reached the ledge and after a while he came back climbing down.

“Yup, its a TOT31, that is for sure! Could spot that flying duck from any distance.”

Marico nodded, pleased.

“Good, we are ready then!”

“Not yet!” Ulina walked over to the two men and began adjusting their uniform. She and Lesenco were wearing white leather armor with golden symbols on them. Their equipment such as their sword scabbard were of black leather and so was the black shoulder pad on which golden rank symbols drew in the eyes. All three agreed it was a very beautiful bit of textile work.

Marico however wore a white long trench cote made from white cloth. It was thick and heavy and had absorbed so much water it lay immensely heavy on Maricos shoulders. On top of it sat most notably a kind of golden garb - a piece of traditional Order of Sol priesthood. It was embroidered with many symbols all of which’s meaning Marico had carefully studied.

“Are we ready, Honorable Expert?”, Lesenco said after Ulina had made sure they looked somewhat passable.

“Yes we are!”, Ulina answered in Maricos stead. He nodded, then went over to the horse and swung himself on its back. Together they began to march out of the rift beginning their wide circle around the castle so they would arrive from the northern gate.

The sun was just setting amongst the storm-clouds and slowly darkness took hold, as was intended, when Marico neared the northern gate with Ulina and Lesenco as guards on his right and left, marching in step next to him. The rain was heavy and the wind whipped it down the road. They were certainly spotted by now and he was getting a bit nervous. He could see all the way down to the castle gate that lay at the end of an absolutely perfectly straight road. To each side of the road there was a precisely equally sized square of land on which different small huts, tents and other facilities stood. As they walked by Marico spotted masons, ropemakers, woodcutters and more. Somewhere further down to the right there was a bigger square on which multiple wagons were parked, some of which still with horses and oxen in front of them. They were being offloaded into several adjacent squares in which stones, wood planks, barrels, crates and other raw materials stood stacked up. Each square sported a Frengenland and a Honordom flag with surprisingly spotless white. They could see people walking up and down the street with intend, going about their business on the neat and clean stones of the road. That same road had begun a little further away from the castle at the beginning of the little settlement that had grown around the construction site and carts coming in towards the logistic area had their wheels cleaned before entering to not leave a residue of dirt behind them.

As they came closer to the gate they could see two guards standing in upright posture and a straightforward look to the sides of the castle gate. The gatehouse was half finished like the wall to the right. A bit further down the wall they could see a wooden wheel being turned by a couple of runners inside of it lifting stones along pullies up to the wall. The closer they came to where the guards stood the more people talked only about the very essential construction processes and worked in silence apart from that. It did not escape Marico that most of the workers seemed to be part of the night shift. Many of them were yawning and still strapping on their jackets, exchanging tools with some who went into the tents and huts - presumably to go to bed. This was a detail that was not contained in the report. An essential detail.

They finally reached the soldiers in front of the gate. Marico stopped the horse before walking through. He sat down from it. Immediately one of the soldiers sprang into action:

“Stable Boy!”, he shouted. Not many raindrops had fallen as the young man came running towards them. The horse was removed into the center of the castle.

Marico moved over to the right soldier and saluted the priest’s salute: “Your name, compatriot?”

“Gad Halnor, your expertness!”, said the right soldier and reciprocated with the soldiers salute.

“I would like to speak to the garrison commander, compatriot Halnor.”

Halnor saluted again, then turned hundred and eighty degrees on the spot and marched towards the castle keep. They had not even all crossed the gate there was already a new soldier in place who had come from somewhere up the wall to replace Halnor.

As they marched silently towards the entrance of the keep which was still in construction, missing a couple of stories that so far were merely a wooden scaffolding, Ulina closed in and walked a bit closer to Marico.

“Whoever runs this site is an absolute fanatic and an effective one!”, she whispered through the thunder. She fell back to her post without waiting for Marico’s response. He understood what she meant. A shudder ran down his spine: What had he gotten himself into? He was not at all certain if his time in Basilini and his later diplomatic education with Arino Cadelli were enough to talk himself out of this if it became necessary. What he was trying today - was it worth the risk?

He heard a shriek. It came from above him where he saw the TOT31. It was a bulky carrier airship of a small Grunter scale that could nonetheless defend itself with multiple turrets mounted above and below the hull. He had read the ship-files on it very carefully although it was Lesenco who was supposed to be able to fly it.

The shriek however had come from the dragon which was supposed to pull the ship into place. Somehow one of the pointy tower tips had been pushed over by a gust and hit the poor beast against the neck. Now it was fluttered around in pain - forwards, backwards - and eventually fell from the sky and landed not far away on the ground.

It was bleeding from its neck and all over the central plaza. Marico and the others had stopped. Halnor ran off towards the inside of the keep. Unsure if they were supposed to follow the three of them watched as the beast struggled to get back up and the airship above slowly drifted off. The men and women on boards had however already slung ropes around the bollards at the landing platform which had been build aside from the keep into the main tower of the inner ring. They were now trying to pull the ship back into position and eventually with the help of a few soldiers, it got dragged into position without the help of the dragon who still lay on the ground.

Now a women with a silver iron armor and golden symbols on black bits of textile had come walking out of the keep with Halnor not too close behind. She saw the dragon on the ground.

“Is that the garrison leader, you think?”, Lesenco whispered. Marico shrugged. “I assume she is going to call a healer!”

“I don’t think they have healers here? Radiant Magic and all that?”, Lesenco argued. Marico nodded.

“Yeah, this poor fella is doomed!” Ulina shook her head.

The women in iron armor stood now above the dragon. Without having a closer look at the wound, she pulled her sword and within a moment had it pushed through the neck of the animal which twitched in pain and then sank to the ground.

With a gesture she made a few of those watching aware they were now responsible for carrying away the dead body.

“And clean the ground!”, she shouted as she came walking straight towards Marico. Within a perfect two meters she stop abruptly and saluted.

“Your Expertness!”, she said.

He smiled condescendingly, how he had practiced it.

“What is your name and rank, compatriot?”

“Coordenate Inquisitor Ariane Guardan.”

‘Ah Inquisitor? How so?’, thought Marico to himself. Then he forced himself to smile.

ARIANE

The Priest in front of her seemed to take a moment to think about what she had just said. It was enough for her thoughts to wander towards her dirty blade that was still dripping blood. She looked around and let compatriot Halnor take it away for cleaning in exchange for his clean blade. She looked back at the three of them. They looked liked one priest and two guards who had been on the road for a long time … and so dirty - the white of their clothes was a beige by now. It disgusted her.

“What brings your expertness to this remote venture I would like to inquire so I might make myself useful!”, she said formally how it was taught to her during the time in the Honor’s Youth.

“I must see to the construction of the chapel. I heard there were material transports who had come in and although it is said that a revered fellow architect has been preparing it for construction I must be convinced myself!”

For a moment she waited - expected more. Surely nobody would travel out like this - especially not with his rank - with merely two guards and on such a simple mission unless they had something secretive in mind. She waited for a moment which slowly became uncomfortable. Then she eventually nodded her head.

“Certainly. The castle is at your disposal!”

The man in front of him who had still failed to introduce himself nodded. He turned around.

“Compatriot Cadosk if you might take compatriot Galrin with you to have a look at the chapel and after inspect the goods on the transport you may after put yourself to rest!”

The two soldiers, apparently Cadosk and Galrin saluted and marched off. Their gesture was cleanly executed. She appreciated that and so she saw fit to say:

“I assume you might desire to wash yourselves. We have of course chambers for your honor that we can prepare!”

MARICO

“That would be lovely!”, he finished and then glanced after Lesenco and Ulina as they made their way behind the cathedral. From there they would soon be able to reach the detention block as was intended. Now it was on him to not blow the mission wide open. “But first I would like to discuss a few things. If there is a place where we might have a quite word?”

She nodded and signaled him to follow. On the way into the keep he thought fast. As they walked between carpenters and masons through the narrow corridor they passed a room in which a table stood. Some architects and construction logistic coordinators stood around it heavily arguing over the correct process. As they walked by he could fetch a few words about speed of construction. Apparently everyone here was in some sort of a rush. He assumed it was the downward pressure applied from the top which had through recent years lead to Castles being built all the way down the line between Frengenland and Catomea. He forced himself to put his attention to his plan. In his mind he went over the next thing he wanted to talk about with her: First he needed to reveal his identity, then have a discussion with material request of the temple and lastly he wanted her report to know if he was save … but what if it was not enough? He had hoped that they could operate with nobody around, at night. But the nightshift would require Lesenco and Ulina to be extra careful. He had to think of something else!

Inquisitor Guardan entered an isolated room with two guards in front of it and he followed. It was a modest but very neat room with a small window that had a view down to one of the courtyards. Of course he had known about this room before he ever had put foot into it but now seeing it exactly like it was laid out in the construction plan gave him a sense of confidence. He knew where everything around him was. He knew the stairs they had just taken and the way they needed to go to get to the airport or the small announcement platform that was hanging above the main plaza just a few steps outside the door.

The door was shut behind them and now they were alone. Guardan turned around and smiled.

“How can I serve!”, she said.

He smiled as well. Maybe they were more alike then he thought. Through her thinly vailed smile he could see an understanding diplomat used to lies just as he was himself.

“I wanted to request some of the plans. In specific I need floorplans for the temple and I do want to know about the adjacent passages.”

“Don’t worry!”, Ariane smiled. “Everything is already prepared in your personal quarter!” He nodded. His mouth got dry. He felt that she wanted to end the conversation quickly but he needed her to be absent of duty for a little longer. But maybe it was not worth the risk. He thought about it, then he nodded pleased.

“Well, compatriot Guardan. I am very pleased to hear and grateful for your service. I am also in appreciation of the order in which I find the keep today.”

He was ready to let her end the conversation but now she smiled again and continued:

“If I may ask, your expertness - who are you?”

For a moment he was startled by the frankness. Then he quickly made sure to turn his delayed reaction into a test of if she’d panic by an authorities delayed reaction to her question. But she didn’t. So he - as if it was his plan all along - nodded approvingly.

“I am Citadel Priest Caden of the Malar Order.”

For a moment she was silent, searching his face for a sign.

ARIANE

Malar? How was it possible that such an extraordinary member would have come and made his way all the way to Frengenland? Was it just by chance? Of course Malar and Castodia were everyone’s ambition. Living, working and serving there was an honor in and of itself. And this man came from there and made his way all the way down here? It was her chance to ask him how to make her way out of this stinking country.

“Oh, you must tell me everything about it! How are the roads there? How are the places? Have you ever attended a parade? Have you ever laid eyes on the emperor?”

MARICO

He tried not to freeze, walking towards the window as if in thought of a wise answer. He had never been in Castodia proper - never been to Malar. He had hoped it would give him authority, not questions. On the upside, now he had questions to answer which could take a while. If everything went smoothly it would be enough for Lesenco and Ulina to get their job done given the increased difficulty of a present night shift. But worried him more than that was that Ariane might not have been interested at all - just curious to find out what he knew about the place to check if he was for real. And that thought worried him as he turned around and said: “You have never laid eyes on a person more magnificent then the emperor!”

DETENTION BLOCK - ULINA

Unseen Ulina and Lesenco slipped into the corridor that led down the stairs from the temple to the storage room. They stopped behind the corner, then looked back, saw that nobody followed. Then they hurried through the storage rooms and walked further. Eventually they reached the detention block where two guards stood in perfect upright form, their eyes straight forward. The entrance to the prison was an iron gate of clean metal bars reflecting in the lantern lights and embedded into the freshly build stone walls. Typical, Ulina thought: First two buildings to stand - the temple and the prison. The soldiers directed their attention towards Ulina and Lesenco who stopped and saluted.

Ulina took a small bag she had carried and opened it. From it she took a scroll and showed it to the guardsmen.

“We have been entrusted by the Priest Caden to take stock of the prisoners and control their mental state.”

The two soldiers looked at each other, then the left one said:

“Well if you have the order, you don’t need to show me the paper. Just go in!”

“I would require the keys!”

The second soldier banged against the steel of the gate and from the dark alleyway came a man with a torch and a neat angled key holder with what must have been at least 30 keys on it.

“Help them!”, one of the guard commanded. The jailer, a young man with already receding hairline and some strangely expressionless eyes, nodded. He turned around and started to walk into the block.

Ulina and Lesenco exchanged nervous glances. They had hoped to be handed the keys. It was - in fact - absolutely required.

But there was no point in debating it in front of the guards. They needed to try and convince the jailer on his own - and soon. They were already taking longer then expected and Marico would need to be the one to buy them time.

KEEP - MARICO

“Have you ever travelled to Holy City?”, Marico inquired in an attempt to find out more about her then she did about him.

“I have, actually!”, she admitted. Marico felt a sting - he’d never been. Yet again he felt the need to switch topics, fast.

“An absolute marvel, isn’t it. I am still hoping to see the day on which the construction of it might be finished but I also know I might never see it. I am getting old, very slowly, but surely!”

“You must not be much older than me!”, she remarked inquisitive.

KEEP - ARIANE

He shrugged the shoulders.

“I don’t know your age!”, he said. She had noticed him switching the topics. And slowly doubts kept creeping up on her. But she pushed them aside: Here was someone from the very place she wanted to end up one day. It was now time to ask the questions she would never get an answer from elsewhere.

“As you can see I have intentions to rise through the ranks myself. I have been working towards establishing the order ever since I was in the Honor’s Youth. But I am struggling to make my way into the Malar Echelon. I would like to. Is there anything you could suggest that might help me succeed!”

He looked at her for a moment, clearly thinking about it.

KEEP - MARICO

A sense of relieve. An idea formed in his head.

“I see you are running a well prepared operation. As the head of the military in any local operation - as we both know - it is your task in absence of a priest to establish the order. And I see you do so exceptionally well and you truly believe - very deeply from a very young age - which is admirable. I think all of these are qualities which will bring you forward. In fact, I must say I have been very impressed with the construction so far …” He walked away from the window and sat down, allowing him to slip in a small pause for dramatic effect. “I would be willing to put in a good word - you understand - mention your name - with the others in the order back in Malar. I know a few people into the inquisition - they always look for minds which are awake!”

The diplomat in him - the Marico Fabelnad that had swayed the royals of Catelon - was back. He saw it all before him as he had seen it a hundred times. He entered the arena from which she had no escape: Promises, dreams, possibilities!

“Of course - I would need to get to know you a bit better before I put my word in with them. They are very serious people and they do not have a lot of time!” He put his hand on a chair next to him. She went over and sat down, holding her breath so spellbound she seemed by the looming promise. He moved his chair back a bit and in with all patience crossed his legs, resting one arm on with the hand around his chin in a contemplative pose.

“Tell me about your childhood!”

DETENTION BLOCK - ULINA

The detention block seemed to go further into the dark than they had anticipated. Another avenue opened up. They eventually reached a point from where they could no longer see the guards. It was then that Ulina and Lesenco stopped.

“Hey mate!”, Lesenco said to the jailer turned around, surprised. “Would it be by any chance possible that’d you’d give us the keys so we could talk to the people ourselves?”

The jailer looked at them, then tilted his head.

“Only I open for prisoners - usually!”

“Understood!” Ulina walked by the jailer but Lesenco remained in his position.

“I think it would be best, we have some very sensitive … discussions to deal with - if you understand!”

The jailer turned around to Lesenco and looked at him, thought for a bit.

“I still don’t understand!”

“Mate, it’s for your own safety!”

The jailer looked at Lesenco with squinted eyes.

“Is this a threat?”

A hand wrapped round his neck, another around his mouth. Ulina had a fix grip on him. Quickly but not frantically Lesenco moved in. From his own bag he pulled a gag and wrapped it around the man’s mouth. The torch dropped to the ground and extinguished.

Ulina cursed. The jailer made an attempt to free himself but now with the gag in place Ulina had two arms ready and choked the man until he stopped moving.

“Better like this anyways. He is out!”, Ulina proclaimed. “But not for long.”

They looked around but couldn’t see anything.

“Which direction did we come from?”, Lesenco whispered. “Damn it, this is taking too long! Where do we go?”

“Don’t do anything rash now!”, Ulina had put down the young jailer and was now searching with her arms in the darkness. She found Lesencos shoulder.

“Good. Now - we go my direction, along the walls. Pick up his keys.”

He searched the jailer, found the keys. There were so many.

“Who does not light their prison block?!”, Lesenco lamented.

“Have you ever heard of shadow torture?”, Ulina asked. Lesenco shook his head, then added “No” when he realized she couldn’t see him as she dragged him feeling along the wall through the dark corridor.

“Is this one of the funny things you learned during your time in Tyryn?”

“No!”, Ulina said. “The syndicates are usually not that cruel. They cut of your fingers or bash your head in with an axe when the stars for it align but they don’t stick you in a shadow cell! Hey, here is a door!”

Lesenco started to fiddle with they keys whilst she felt the contours of the door and shuddered. The door was so small. And there were two above each other.

“Stay where you are!”, she said. Then she moved slowly down the wall. There were more. And more. And more. They were directly next to each other. She moved back hastily.

“Check if one of the keys work!”

He tried a couple of keys but eventually one of them went into the lock.

“Don’t open yet!”, Ulina said. She was afraid - significantly more afraid than she had been when they were surrounded by enemies. “Just check if the same key matches will all the locks here!”

He tried, then he confirmed. “Yes!”

“This is not a castle! This is a prison!”, she proclaimed.

KEEP - MARICO

“… and this is how I ended up in the Totem guards …”, Ariane continued. Marico had made sure to listen intently. The most important part to keep a conversation going he had found was to listen as if there was literally nothing more important or interesting on the whole Atlas.

By now it had gotten truly dark and now a servant came in to light the lanterns inside the room. As the door stood open he noticed Ariane looking over his shoulder he turned and saw a soldier giving her a sign. He saw that Marico had noticed him, then nodded and returned to his post.

For a moment there was nothing said as the servant lit the last lights. Marico’s thoughts raced. Had she just communicated with his soldiers about his compatriots? After the man who kindled the lanterns had left, Ariane began to speak:

“I am very deeply honored by your attention, your expertness, but I fear,” Ariane continued, taking his wrist tightly to make clear her deep appreciation, “that I must soon attend to my duties.”

“Yes, of course!” He said. “However, could I interest you in telling me a final story of yours?”

Ariane looked at him for a moment with inscrutable expression. Then she slowly nodded.

“Yes … yes of course you may!”

Marico smiled. “Well,” he said leaning back in his seat. “I was thinking about this country. I have been traveling it a bit and must say it is quite … I am sure you must not be offended once I finished my thought there … it is quite dirty. You told me the story of how you went about cleaning the houses with the Honor’s youth when you were young. I do see this same persistent and admirable attitude here. Something that seems to me to be more then tradition - would you enlighten me?”

It is always a safe bet if one wants to prolong a conversation to strike up a topic in which the person one is talking to has a deep passion and conviction in. Marico knew that she might be playing the interested in the Honordom affairs and maybe - if he had practiced it - he could have trapped her in her obligation to sing praise to the cause. But instead he tried something he knew how to do: She asked her about something she was clearly passionate about.

Ariane smiled. “This is a very good spot. Indeed the cunning intellect of a priest!”

Marico smiled modestly. As Ariane looked out to the window into the thunder sky outside Marico allowed himself to gather his confidence. He was sure the communication with the soldier was a simple routine.

“When I was a young girl, just about conscious, my mother died - as you know - at the mercy of the great Fangur plague. It is not an easy thing for a child to see the mother die. The plague of course was transmitted by small crawling parasites but also larger animals. So one day, when my mother had contracted it, my father killed her and then every cow we owned.” There was a long pause.

“I am sorry to hear that such was your fate!”, Marico finally proclaimed. She acknowledged his condolences with a soft smile. “He did what needed to be done to protect me. After he had killed my mother to spare her the pain, the cows to protect me and had sent me out of my home with nothing but a bit of food I have been told he killed himself.” She nodded. “Such is the fate of those who let Parasites and filth into the public order.”

She walked over to him and sat down. “Ever since I have been young, ever since the orphanage and the Honor Youth, I have been good with tracking down parasites. I have been good with cleaning up. I have established order where ever I went. This is why I became an inquisitor. When there is scum somewhere, I will clean it. When there are parasites …” She leaned forward and looked Marico straight into the eyes “… I will find them and I will crush them!”

DETENTION BLOCK - UNLINA

“Feel here!”, she said. Whilst she was walking down the direction of the cells, feeling alongside the wall for irregularities, Lesenco close behind her, she continued: “All these doors. They are small. These are shadow cells. They are fully dark and barely fit a human. You have to crawl in and then they close the door behind you and if you are unlucky, they forget about you. I have seen something like this when I was still working for the Order. Outside Eon they had a small ranch and underground there was a cellar with 20 small boxes and if you would not have known what they were, they might have just been forgotten there forever. But the orders at the time were to open them and bring the prisoners in them to trial where they were supposed to testify. We got them out of their boxes. One had died and his soul evaporated - just gone from existence. The others with one exception were completely insane. Not a straight thought between their ears - how the order wants their witnesses.”

She had reached the end of the dark prison room. They must had by now passed many dozens of cells. The next wall the cells continued. “I just hope that the Senator was put in recently enough so he is still with himself!”

“We are loosing time!” Lesenco remarked. “I really don’t wanna cut your backstory short and congratulations, it is terrifying to hear about this whilst standing in a pitch black cellar but we got a job to do. There are hundreds of cells!”

“Alright - you try opening them and feel in if somebody is there. I will walk down the walls and try and make contact. If someone is still in these cells, they probably want out and maybe they are sane and can help us with the rest!”

Lesenco grumbled. “Of course I have to feel for the skeletons in the closet!” But he went at it, quickly and dutybound. Indeed, the first few cells were empty but eventually, Ulina whispered: “I have someone!”

He hurried towards her voice.

“Hey? Hey?” A silent voice came from inside the box. Lesenco hurried, trying key after key whilst Ulina searched around the place where Lesenco was opening. “The guards of the Senator, I think I found them!”

The first cell was now open and Lesenco reached in, feeling a naked body, he pulled back. “Do you need a hand?” he asked. The women inside the box tried to slowly move backwards. “Maybe!”, she admitted.

“Ulina, can you pull her out? I am getting the next lock!” Lesenco worked on the next gate. Ulina came over and assisted the women. “Damn, finally!”, Lesenco proclaimed. “Here we go.”

Ulina had successfully extracted the guard women from what had been supposed to be her tomb. “They took all your cloths?”, she asked.

“Yes.” The woman proclaimed. She could barely stand and her weight lifted heavily on Ulina. “Just - give me a minute to get used to standing again!”, she said faintly.

Ulina allowed it. “Get strong, so you can help the others. We don’t have much time. We have infiltrated the castle so you are not out of danger!”

“Rather death than the box!”, the guardswomen determined.

“Give me the quickest version of what happened!”

“Convoy got attacked, took the whole thing out. Surprised word got out even. They took us in for interrogation but soon saw we didn’t know anything. Got transported here for storage. We have been in this box now for … oh, I really can not tell.”

Lesenco had by now opened many doors and some on the lower levels had made it out of the boxes, helping others to get out as well and reminding themselves how to stand upright.

“Where is the senator?”, Lesenco inquired.

“I think we found him!”, some guardsman said.

“Where? Can he not speak?”

“Gadrinaldu fja dir … words matter, yes, yes, yes, yes!”

It got silent.

“Was that … Senator?”

Silence.

“Can somebody confirm if this is the senator speaking?”

“Yes, it is the Senator!”, someone else said faintly.

“Goddess damn it! He has gone nuts! This bloody affair is cursed like Manundin!” Lesenco could no longer keep his disappointment at bay. It mixed with his unease with the darkness.

“Hey - Lesenco!”, Ulina whispered aloud. “Keep it together. We will look at the situation by daylight. Hey everyone else. I am Ulina - over there is our pilot speaking Lesenco. We are here to get you out. On the end of this detention block there are two guards. We need to lure them in, take their uniforms. Then we have to take a couple of stairs into the platform tower. There is a storm which means only a few people should be out. We will need to hurry because we have already spent significantly more time then we should have. Now, who here can use shurikens?”

KEEP - MARICO

“Are you in love?”

Ariane looked at him with a smile - a very thinly vailed one.

“Ehm - beg your pardon?”, Marico had not seen her switch the topic like this.

“I just wandered if you find yourself attracted to me because … you understand - I would be down for something …” She stopped.

He looked at her. Then slowly nodded his head.

“Ariane - what are you trying to do?”

She smiled. “I see there is no fooling you. I just wanted to find out if you are in love with me!”

He slowly then emphatically shook his head. She nodded, but did not seem disappointed. She stood up. Marico was still trying to wrap his head around her change of topic. He stood up as well - mostly out of politeness and because he did not know what else to do.

She nodded. “In that case you owe me an explanation!”

“Really?”

“Yes!”, she said - again she smiled. “Why your pulse was racing then when I communicated with my guardsmen. You remember? When they the man came in to ignite the lanterns …?”

Marico stood there for a moment. What options did he have - it needed to be convincing, true to the idea of what makes one’s pulse raise faster - should he admit his “love”? Or was it too late anyways. The lie had been uncovered, the Inquisitor had done her job~~?~~

“I will admit I get nervous with guardsmen around that are not my own. I still can not help it, it is in my nature!”, he finally said.

“I understand - so when you were out on the plaza where we first met you were not nervous because …”

He fished for a good response.

“Well - I was with my compatriots which I knew very well so I felt save!”

“You see, the lie wants to be detected. That is one of its hallmarks!”

“Don’t you tell me anything about lies!”, Marico stepped close to her, pulling all the anger that had built in him for the last years towards her. “I have been in the inner circle of the citadel. I know everything about what people will lie for! Don’t you dare accuse me!”

She stood closer with a - so it seemed to him - played puzzled look on her face.

“I am not sure if I am following!”, she said, eventually, calmly. “Of course you are not here on any alternative purpose than what you said you were!”

Marico nodded. “That is correct!”

“Great! So everything is as you said - which is beautiful. Orderly as I like it, you know that. I will also do you the favor and get rid of my guards out there.”

She walked over to the door, opened it. The guardsmen leaned into the room.

“Could I …”, she began, “request that you lock down the castle and find the two compatriots of his expertness. If they are not where they said they would be - which is in the chapel - nor if they are inquiring about materials - please arrest them until we have made sure that no misunderstanding is has been overtaking us!” The man outside nodded briefly, then shouted some orders down the corridor as she closed the door.

Marico felt cold icy shivers all across his skin. It itched.

“I will no longer expand any energy with my anger because I see that you are not within the realm of reason. And I thought we had such a great start!” Marico shook his head and leaned against the wall. “I really wanted to give you a promotion in any way I could but after such rude and impolite ways of handling this, I can of course no longer go through with it.”

Ariane nodded.

“I wonder who of us would win in a duel. Imagine - just the two of us in this room?”

Marico first said nothing, then shrugged. “You of course, I don’t carry a weapon!” Ariane stopped, looked at him with implied meaning. Then she continued her slow pacing up and down the room.

“It saddens me that you would not wish for the greatest amount of security. Because it tells me you are not one of us. One of us, one of the order - we would have never ever missed the chance to find the parasites which suck the blood from our civilization. Now I have you here. Is there anything you want to ask me, before you get arrested?”

DETENTION BLOCK - LESENCO

The prison guards stood in front of the gate. Every now and then one risked a nervous look back into the void - the black long corridor from where they were unbeknown to them watched. Lesenco and Ulina, merely shadows against the entrance light, looked behind them where the a few guardsmen and women had gathered. They could hear them whispering. Two of the men had received two shuriken each. Now they slowly walked towards the entrance, ready to go.

Ulina walked in first and eventually the torch light touched her.

“He guys, we had an issue with the torch over there - it’s gone out. Could I quickly borrow one of yours?” The two looked at each other. When they looked back to her a rushing, naked mob had appeared out of the blackness and sprang at them. Without being able to draw their swords and merely capable to squeak. Two each held the men down whilst they were undressed standing to not make the spotless uniforms dirty. After the good textile had been given to new owners, Lesenco walked over to Ulina.

“I suggest we just leave them here, lock the door from the outside, somebody will come get them eventually!”

“They might scream! No - let me correct that - they will scream!”

“What are you gonna do? Kill them?”

Ulina thought for a moment. Then she shook her head.

“Idealists! Fine!”

Lesenco smiled and watched her walk over to the soldiers explaining their lot to them. In the meantime most of the twenty or so guards, service personal and the mad senator had gathered in a cohesive bunch and started to acclimate to seeing light again.

“Listen!”, Lesenco gather the others whilst Ulina closed the prison behind the guards.

“We will board and flee on a TOT31. It is floating right above us in the big tower behind the keep that is currently being built. It was planned that getting there would be super easy, barely an inconvience. All we’d need to do is walk up the tower. But - there is a nightshift and they are working on the very same tower that we will be working up on and they will be unloading the airships materials all night. Because we can not really consider ourselves tarned if we are naked, here is the following suggestion:”

KEEP - MARICO

Ariane had drawn her sword and looked at its reflection in the light of the lanterns.

“Remarkably pure!” She smiled and put it back.

“You are a strange Honordom fanatic!” Marico had given up the play. But he was not done with her yet - if he was going down here, he could at least enjoy his last minutes in existence before he was killed and his soul dumped down a hatch at the back of the temple where it would fade away and be lost - forever. “You have created your own little society here and although I would say that it is not uncommon to see everything so clean, you really have been bitten by the bug back then when it murdered your family. As much as I appreciate your dad it might have been better he would not have taken the precautions he took!”

Ariane smiled. “Wishing your enemy dead is low. Low insult. I have expected more from man of your expertness!”

Marico frowned. “My expertness tells me that you will find yourself in Malar between liars and you will not hate it. That is an honest thing I am telling you right now!”

Ariane smiled. “I assume you do not actually have personal experience with it given that you are what - an US Catomea spy?”

“Matter of fact I do actually have personal experience. Why do you think I have taken this mission?”

Ariane put away the sword.

“Honestly - yes. I was waiting for you to tell me aaallll about YOUR childhood now that you know mine! Isn’t it weird that everything that really mattered I could find out about you without knowing a single thing about your childhood?”

Marico raised an eyebrow.

“But you see, I did not need to. Because to know a cockroach all you need is to observe it go about its business until it gives away the place where you need to put the poison.”

“You are all about these parasites, aren’t you? Ever considered that they are human?”

“So?”

Marico paused in disbelief:

“Are you serious?”

“Oh please - you are an operative and you are telling me you have never seen a reason to take the life of a few for the good of many?”

“I am a diplomat, no I have not seen it and there is a big difference between making a sacrifice and sacrificing somebody else!”

Ariane laughed.

“You amuse me - you know your way with words. You were what previously - before you got yourself tangled up with the roaches?”

“Roaches? This is how you call …?”

“The terrorists!”

Marico nodded, then shook his head.

“Woman, you are so far gone, there is nothing I can do about that!”

She laughed.

“You are amazing. Please - tell me more - how do you come around to using words like this?”

“Was a diplomat!”

“A little bit more detail?”

“Diplomat, got around - everywhere pretty much. Was in the Boon loads - had good business in Amurea until the Honordom plague swept it. Got me reluctant to get my little sister out of prison in Castodia and half a month later she had already died - from torture. And her soul was dumped somewhere in a temple by a priest who was either oblivious or evil.”

“So this is why you came here!” She smiled again - this time wide and not thinly vailed. She walked over to the door.

“Please take special care to look at the detention block!”

MAIN TOWER - LESENCO

The main defense tower was a big, round tower that had many stories with many not yet completed. Somewhere on the 4th level a few men - five to be exact - worked on the wood which laid the ground for the stone which would be added in later. However a staircase going around the tower was already in place. It was from there that two guards in spotless white walked up to them and one said:

“I am sorry to interrupt but the Inquisitor has requested your presence downstairs.”

They had of course not seen a few people peak around the corner where they worked first to make sure no guards were around. Now they looked at each other terrified - what would the inquisitor need them for?

As they came around the corner there stood yet more people - two in white, one in a jailers outfit and - to their absolute confusion - a couple of naked people.

“If you guys could undress please. Keep the underpants!”

Slowly the men looked at each other and then began to undress. Lesenco began walking forward and looked up the next story. But Ulina stopped him.

“You are the one person who is not supposed to peak his head out in the wrong spot. We still need it to get the ship going!”

Begrudgingly Lesenco removed himself from the ledge and Ulina peaked, then coordinated some of the guards to spring into action. The next level was open to all sides and directly under the landing platform. There a couple of carpenters were working and they got them the same way although they had to be careful not to be seen.

Whilst the carpenters were undressing some of the workers unloading the airship had run into them and they had been force undressed like the others.

“We are going in?”, Lesenco asked finally as they had gathered - all with clothes and with a group of half naked people standing on the thirds level, shivering.

“Yes! It’s time!”, Ulina confirmed. So the two climbed the stairs up into the tower to the airship platform. There the ship was floating with an open cargo door, fixed on the bollards which seemed to have been created just a few days ago. Nobody could be seen from the outside so they walked towards it with the confidence of someone who belonged in this place. The TOT31 had a gunnery loadout for air to ground which was mediocre but useable and most importantly quick to make ready with little experience. On its sides where the cargo doors some small platforms stuck out on which some rope was rolled up around back up bollards. The top sported two advanced anti-dragon rapid-fire ballistas which under other circumstance would have been very useful. Leaning over to Ulina just before they entered through the cargo door he said: “Please have someone immediately on the turrets!”

“You will tell them yourself!”, Ulina answered as they entered. They looked to all sides, saw nobody, made their way to the cockpit. It was empty.

“Get the others, now!”, Lesenco demanded. “I will do preparations. Leave me the scroll!”

The scroll was a prepared fake in case somebody asked what he was doing preparing the ship to leave. She gave him the whole bag. He grabbed it.

She hurried off and not a moment later people started streaming into the ship.

KEEP - MARICO

“I don’t understand for the life of me how you can possibly be so blind as to believe you are fighting a righteous cause!”, Marico shook his head in disbelief. Ariane raised an eyebrow.

“As long as people like you don’t get into our lands, there are no dead people. But you always do - and you know, most people are reasonable, intelligent, logical. They really get it and when they meet people like you, it is not tolerated. That is the power of the Honordom state. There is an order to it that the barbarian states outside will never be able to achieve - because they don’t have the courage it takes.”

Marico threw up his arms. “Says the woman who has never been outside her own country!”

“What difference does it make?”

“You would see that people have better lives elsewhere and most of your compatriots are actually aware of that.”

“They live exactly the lives they were supposed to.”

“They are not free to choose their own sacrifice!”

“They don’t need to be!”

“They want to be though!”

“No, they don’t!”

Marico shook his head.

“Fine - if it is that illusion that you find so attractive, it’s yours to keep, of course!”

Ariane shrugged.

“I will teach you a little lesson. You are good with words. You are good in the art of persuading people. I will give you a chance to - before your death - see what I mean.”

“You frame it so that it would be a service to me but you just want to enjoy yourself in your perverse way!”

“Maybe I do, little terrorist, but what does it matter. You are now in my hands!”

“I would like a trial!”

“You’ll get one - try convince the nightshift workers assembly. Just outside the room there is the speaker platform and the nightshift workers should by now be gathered. If you can convince them to leave with you - if there is one amongst them who would join you - you are free to go. This is your trial.”

He looked at her for a moment but she seemed earnest. So he stood up and walked over to the door. She nodded, came walking over, opened the door and then went out first. He followed her. To the sides he could see workers walking up and down and to them all they saw was a priest and an inquisitor strolling down the corridor.

The small balcony above the plaza constituted the announcement platform. There he came to stand and the Inquisitor stepped back a bit but remained behind him. There were no options other than: Speak or don’t speak. For a bit he considered just jumping down to his death - whatever happened to him after the arrest was likely worse. But he kept the though of the jump around as an option and tried the talking first:

“Dear Citizens. I would like you to join me on my journey out of Frengenland into the Capital of Alinur where I have some very powerful friends. I have one exclusive place in the coach with me. You will be traveling there and never need to return to this place - ever. Consider it. Is there anyone who would like to go … “

He stopped. People below had briefly looked up, listened to the first two sentences and then kept going about their business. Nobody was interested. He stepped back.

“The terrorist always believes he is right otherwise he would not be commiting the acts of violence!”, Ariane explained.

Marico looked into the night and a shadow slowly fell on his face. Was there something about what she said, that could be actually true? He was about to turn but then the shadow dropped a rope. He looked up then to his back where Ariane stood.

“You are absolutely right!” Marico smiled a sad smile. “I guess this country can only be helped with rubber and iron.”

Then he put is hands around the rope. Ariane sprang into action but he had already jumped and pushed away from the platform and now someone above pulled him up.

Above him the silent shadow of the airship drifted away, pushed by the strong storms. The rope got pulled up and now that he climbed on board he could hear the horses doing their utmost to power the propellers and very slowly the airship began to move away from the castle.

He had climbed aboard and for a moment everyone held their breath as they looked down upon the castle which drifted by, seeing the white guards frantically scramble along the walls to respond but they only had dragon guns on station on the airship was well on its way. They shot for the propellers once or twice but the ship was already out of range.

Lesenco and Ulina greeted him in the bridge. He gave them a hug but after a few minutes he sat down in the storage compartment and there he found a bottle of hero spirit which he decided to empty. As he looked out towards the silhouette of the castle he thought to himself: “We are leaving the prison of a country in which there is a castle that is a prison in which there was an actual prison. I hope I will never ever, ever see this place again!”