"Well? How much longer will it take? The guards will be here any moment now!"

Shiraz had to bite her lower lip to keep herself from uttering a very creative curse. Instead, she stopped what she was doing and slowly looked up at the other woman. "I am a level one nobody, and I am trying to pick that lock with a goddamned hairpin. It. Takes. Time. And it's not helping that you're breathing down my neck the whole time. Capish?"

The other woman gave her a disgusted look. "It is you who said she could do it. If you're not up to the task - "

"I said I could try," said Shiraz. She forced herself to take a deep breath. "Maybe you could, I don't know, stand guard while I'm at it?"

Her cellmate hissed. "Not that it would do us any good," she said as she turned away from Shiraz. "If I had my rod or magic components I could think of something, but Raxlon left us with nothing."

Other than my hairpin, thought Shiraz with a small smile. She removed a strand of scarlet hair from her eyes and tried to focus on the task at hand. The lock wasn't overly complicated, but knowing it was so didn't prevent the feeling of confusion as she concentrated on picking it. It was how the game worked - it didn't help that she was a legendary rogue in other VD games; here she was a noob and the system wouldn't let her obtain skills that she didn't work hard for. She really hoped that Raxlon's reputation would justify itself - otherwise she was just wasting her time.

Several long moments passed before Shiraz admitted that the lock was simply beyond her current capabilities. She cursed as she withdrew the pin and saw that it was crooked and nearly ruined, and cursed even louder when no notification came to announce a skill increase. She was hoping to at least get the first level in lock picking, but it appeared things weren't as easy here as in other games she'd been to. Or maybe she shouldn't aim for the rogue this time? There were a couple of other classes she wanted to try. Maybe sorceress like Milenna? Raxlon was known to think highly of magic-users.

Shiraz shook her head as she stood up and turned to address the other woman. "Sorry Milenna, I can't do it. Maybe we should - "

"Hsst!" Milenna raised her hand and gestured toward the hallway. "It doesn't matter anymore. See? They're coming."

Shiraz heard the guards' heavy footsteps a second before the pair came into the light of the cell's single oil lamp. She was amazed that she couldn't hear them up until that moment - another reminder that she wasn't an esteemed rogue anymore - but there was nothing to be done about it now. She had time only to step away from the cell's door and hide the ruined pin in her flowing hair, and then the guards came into view in all their glory.

"Ah. I like this mission already," said the lead guard in a drooling tone. He was the embodiment of everything a corrupt prison guard should look and sound like: a round, pockmarked face. Greasy hair, small eyes, short beard, a tongue that licked fat lips and a fat neck that must be quite itchy by the way he was scratching it all the time. His Sonadin uniforms and leather armor were stretched tightly over his big belly and while he had a short sword on his belt, Shiraz wondered how easy it would be for him to reach for it with all that excess fat. Good job with this one, Raxlon, she thought in true appreciation. It looked like her new DM took great care with his NPCs, and she liked it.

As the guard stepped closer and grabbed the bars, an unmistakable odor of ale drifted into the cell and Shiraz felt her hopes rising. If these two were drunk, then their chances to escape just got a little better.

"Ain't it something, Jarod?", continued the drunken guard. "Two - hic! - beautiful lasses waiting just for us two." He chuckled to himself, scratching his neck with dirty fingers and looking at the prisoners expectantly.

Shiraz took another step back and glanced at her cellmate, trying to catch her attention so they could coordinate an attack. But Milenna was standing motionless with her hands clenched into fists. Her eyes were locked on the guards, and her lips were slightly moving. Was she preparing a spell?

"Move aside, Bob. Before you drool on yourself," said another voice, this one steady and cold. Shiraz looked back at the guards and saw the other man - Jarod, presumably - pushing aside the fat guard and taking his place by the bars. Her hopes immediately sank. This one was not a drunken fool as his companion seemed to be. He was of average height, thin and muscular, with a clean-shaven face and smooth long hair that many women would envy. His dark eyes scanned the cell and as he saw Milenna his hands suddenly grabbed the bars and his upper lip curled in anger. "Try to utter one word of magic from that pretty mouth and I will give your tongue as a present to our lord."

Milenna froze with her mouth slightly open, and Shiraz realized that the other woman was indeed trying to cast a spell. Her appreciation for the sorceress grew - while before she thought of her as an annoying no-good brat who paid for a pre-made character, now it looked like she wasn't completely unresourceful. And she was also amazingly beautiful, Shiraz had to admit (somewhat bitterly) - her black and blue noblewoman outfit was tight against her lithe body, her full red lips could not be ignored and her raven hair curled down her snow-white flawless neck. Judging by the way both of the guards fixed their eyes upon her, one could think Shiraz wasn't even in the room!

"I am sorry, Sir," said Milenna. The snappy tone with which she spoke earlier to Shiraz was gone, and instead, she spoke like a perfect noblewoman. A young, very attractive, and somewhat scared noblewoman. "I wasn't trying to do anything, really. I was just praying..."

Shiraz hid a smile. One for you, Milenna. Praying!

Jarod didn't seem to be convinced, however. "Praying, are you?" He pushed himself closer to the bars, and Shiraz could see he had a scar shaped like a half-moon next to his left eye. "And what deity would receive the prayer of a blasphemous treacherous bitch such as yourself?" He spat on the floor. "You were better off trying to cast a spell!"

Milenna had no answer for that. She licked lips that suddenly went dry, and Shiraz knew they were in trouble. Raxlon did mention in the introduction for this quest that part of the reason they were in jail was because of some "serious blasphemous acts"... shit.

Maybe it was time to try a different approach. Shiraz took a step forward, hoping to capture the attention of the angry guard. "Hey look, Mister," she said. "I am sure this is all a big misunderstanding. We will explain everything to the lord..." She then took a step closer into the lamp's pool of light and stood a bit straighter, taking deep, slow breaths. "Or maybe... we could explain it to you." Her tone was just a notch deeper, her head just a bit tilted to the side.

Her shameless tactics seemed to have the desired effect. Both of the guards turned their attention from Milenna and locked their gazes on Shiraz. Thank God for stupid men, she thought and brushed aside the notification about her improved seduction skill. Now she only had to wait for the NPCs to do something foolish...

It was Bob who pushed Jarod aside this time. The fat guard was fumbling for the keys, and spittle glistened on his chin as Jarod's prophecy about self drooling was fulfilled. Shiraz smiled when Bob turned the lock and pushed the cell's door open, but once again Jarod proved to be the party pooper. The muscular guard managed to tear his eyes away from the captivating woman and he growled when he saw what his companion was doing. He grabbed the other man's armor and hauled him back, ignoring the protests. "Get a grip, Bob, or the lord will hear of it. And you," he snapped, looking back at Shiraz who took the opportunity to edge forward. Shiraz froze, trying to look nonchalant but not sure she was successful.

"You," said Jarod again, "feel like nothing more than trouble. Will you come quietly? Or do we have to take some... extreme... measures?" There was a dangerous gleam in his eyes when he asked the question, and Shiraz decided it was time to play docile. "We'll come quietly, Sir."

"Good." He pushed with his foot and the door opened the rest of the way. "Come then. Our lord awaits. Bob, behave."

Shiraz glanced at Milenna, but the other woman shrugged. The sorceress didn't seem overly worried, and Shiraz realized that maybe a meeting with the local lord would be just the thing they needed. Two noblewomen, young and alluring, who would swear that whatever the guards charged them with, they are not to blame. It was a slim chance, but she would take it against facing the cold-blooded Jarod with nothing but her wits and her crooked hairpin.

She exited the cell first, Milenna right behind her. The sorceress seemed to float rather than walk, and once again both of the guards' gazes were drawn to her. She must have chosen Charisma as her highest ability score, thought Shiraz, whose own charisma was her second-highest ability. She also suspected that the other woman has paid handsomely to achieve that look. No one looks that attractive in real life.

As they left the stinking cell behind, Jarod gestured for them to follow and started down the corridor. Behind, Bob hurriedly closed the cell's door and jogged to catch up. When he did he slowed to a walk very close to the two women. Shiraz could hear his heavy breathing and once again the air was filled with the strong aroma of ale.

"Listen, ladies..." whispered the drunken guard, who apparently decided to ignore his companion's command to behave. He burped, releasing to the world more of the stench that came from his mouth. Milenna tightened her lips and kept walking, her eyes fixed on Jarod's back. Shiraz, on the other hand, reacted differently: she looked up at the leering Bob, waiting to see what else he had to say. Maybe her seduction act would bear fruit after all.

Unfortunately, Bob's piggy eyes were fixed on Milenna - whose body language spoke volumes of how much she didn't want any connection to the smelly man. Bob, however, seemed to pay no attention to the woman's discomfort. "Listen," he whispered again. "I say we forget Jarod. He's no fun, that tight assed bastard." He moved even closer to the sorceress, ogling her. "Come with me," he purred. "I will hear everything you gals want to explain."

Milenna twisted her lips and uttered a word that Shiraz didn't understand. The fat guard apparently did understand, because he snarled angrily and suddenly gripped Milenna's arm, pulling her forcefully toward him.

The sorceress shrieked.

Jarod turned on his heels to see what was going on.

Shiraz acted.

The redhead woman, who half expected the current situation, realized that the choice was taken from her. When the guard grabbed Milenna, Shiraz took a step back, trying to meld with the shadows - which were in abundance, as the corridor was dimly lit. Meanwhile, Milenna was struggling to free herself from Bob's powerful grip. The fat guard was pulling her into a dark alcove that branched from the main corridor. Jarod for his part cursed loudly. "Leave her, you fool!" he cried, taking a step forward.

Shiraz drew the hairpin that was hidden in her hair and leaped. She was aiming for Bob's fat throat, hoping to forever end his itch, but luck wasn't on her side: just as she jumped from the shadows, Milenna sank her teeth into the hand that circled her neck - which resulted in Bob roaring in anger and trying to tackle the sorceress to the ground. Shiraz couldn't stop her momentum in time, and the hairpin missed its mark entirely, puncturing the guard's thick arm. The improvised weapon - two inches of twisted thin metal - almost vanished inside the man's flesh, doing a miserable 1 damage for all that it was worth.

It did accomplish one thing, however - the combination of Shiraz's attack together with Milenna's bite caused the drunken Bob to release his hold on the sorceress. Which was a good thing, because Shiraz could not help her anymore; the next thing the redhead saw was Jarod's rapier an inch from her eye. She flattened herself against the wall, trying to escape, but the agile guard moved with her, and once again the tip of his blade hovered before her eyes. The man inclined his head a bit as if daring her to try something. Shiraz could only glower at him, helpless.

Next to them, Milenna took the opportunity to kick Bob, who was still recovering from his minor injury. Her booted feet lacked any real strength, but she was accurate, catching the guard behind his knee. He cursed as he lost his balance and fell to a kneeling position.

The situation was volatile. Shiraz opened her mouth, ready to tell her companion to surrender, when -

"Hey! What's going on here?"

All four combatants turned their heads in the direction the new voice came from. Two figures came running from the far end of the hallway. When they came closer the light fell on their uniforms and her heart sank when she realized these were two more guards. Their chances of survival grew less likely by the moment.

Jarod gave Shiraz a warning look and then lowered his rapier and turned to face the newcomers. "Nothing's going on," he said calmly. "We're just escorting these prisoners to the lord to receive judgment, as ordered. Isn't that right, Bob?"

Bob growled as he stood up heavily. Blood trickled from where the pin was buried in his arm, as well as from the bite mark on the back of his hand. "Aye," he said through clenched teeth, throwing a vicious and hateful look at Milenna. "Just so."

One of the new guards took a step forward into the pool of light of the nearest oil lamp. When Shiraz saw his face, her breath caught in her throat and her eyes widened. She knew him! Tanned skin, olive eyes, black hair that was cut short with a few strands falling to his forehead. And a face that was totally RL - no self-respecting player would enter the game with a face that wasn't at least a bit modified to look more herolike. This was no guard of Sonadin, this was the naked dude who managed to get on the wrong side of Raxlon! How the hell did he manage to get himself into a guard's uniform?

The answer was right there, of course: now that she looked for it, she saw the splotches of blood on the uniform. Looking at the other new guard, she recognized him as well - the one who branded himself the Red Mercenary. These two somehow managed to kill their guards and took their uniforms. So this was... a rescue mission? She glanced at Milenna, and by the way the other woman's gaze was fixed on the Red Mercenary, she had to assume the sorceress recognized the ruse as well.

"You are relieved," said the false guard. Ben, she thought Raxlon had called him. He was trying to sound confident and Shiraz inwardly applauded him for his attempt at a bluff. "We were told to replace you in this mission, and it appears that with good reason. Off you go." He looked at Shiraz and gestured. "You two, come with us."

Shiraz started to move, but stopped when Jarod's rapier came up again, blocking her path. "Hold," commanded the guard. He kept the weapon pointed at her and turned his gaze back to Ben. "Were told? By whom?" His voice was low and deadly.

Ben swallowed, and Shiraz wondered how high was his bluff skill. Then he straightened. "By the lord, of course."

Jarod's lips curled. "You must be very well connected to take your orders straight from the Lord."

Ben nodded. "We are. So you'd better do as you're told."

Jarod gave Ben a long look - was he seeing the blood on the uniforms? - and narrowed his eyes. Then his lips curled even more, until he wore what could only be described as a sadistic smile. "I don't think so," he said quietly. He suddenly moved, and later Shiraz would swear he was using some kind of power, because before she could even react, Jarod was standing behind her with his blade against her exposed throat.

Ben and the Red Mercenary were both halfway in the process of drawing their weapons, but the two men stopped when Jarod pressed the blade to Shiraz's throat and she gave an involuntary gasp, feeling the sharp metal slice her skin. "Drop your weapons," said the guard in an even tone, "or witness your pretty little friend choke on her blood. You have three seconds to decide. Three, two..."