We finally did it. Kalli looked off into the distance and asked, Is that the army back there?

Wiping sweat from my brow, I peered into the brick-lit tunnel.

It looks like we are ahead of them now.

Nolgrit was just as surprised as we were when he approached us at the head of the march. “Blimey! How did the two of you get ahead? Is it that fancy pants teleporting that you’ve been doing?”

I beckoned him to the tent we just erected. “Hey, Nolgrit. Yep, we can teleport down here now. Come take a look at what we’ve done. We have provisions and first aid. I don’t think there are enough supplies for the whole army but it should be good for weary travelers.”

The dwarf stepped inside, examining the row of crude cots. I pointed out the crates of provisions and the barrels of clean water. Nolgrit raised a brow and asked, “Wheres the sauce?”

“Sauce?” I asked, not entirely sure what he was looking for.

Kalli giggled and informed me. He means alcohol.

I slumped over when the realization dawned on me that I hadn’t stocked any sauce for any of the travelers. Frowning at Nolgrit, I confessed. “I don’t think I’ve made any sauce before. I’ll have to fix that later.”

Nolgrit guffawed at me, slapping my back so hard that I nearly fell over. “Worry not, my lord. A good dwarf always carries his own supply. For the rest of them, what can I say? They be on their own.”

Kalli’s laughter made me feel slightly more at ease. We emerged from the tent to find Kiki, Alariel, and Crypian waiting for us.

Kiki approached me slowly, wagging a finger in my face, “Dearest brother. You weren’t thinking of going off and getting in trouble without us again by chance, were you?”

Taking a few steps back, I tried to explain to her that we didn’t exactly have a plan. “It’s not like that, Ki. We just finished making the passage safe. And then we…”

I hesitated for a moment because I hadn’t thought about how we were going to get Wendy back. Alariel chose that moment to speak, saving me from having to explain. “It is imperative that you take me with you.”

Looking back and forth between Kiki and Alariel, I had a strange feeling something there was something they weren’t telling me. “Why is that?”

Kiki looked to Alariel, who pressed on. “I am from Dabia and I know it like the back of my hand. If you are going to have any chance sneaking in, you’re going to need my aid.”

“How are you going to sneak around wearing full plate armor?” I asked, looking the void knight up and down.

Alariel blushed, replying in a low voice. “I’ll take it off.”

Kiki grinned and said, “Now we’re talking. When do you depart?”

“Right now,” I explained, anxious to do something. “I believe I can place us directly under the city.”

“How is that possible?” Alariel asked, a look of concern on her face.

I pointed at the golden bricks beneath our feet. “This tunnel, the Thief’s Corridor, is now part of my empire. Therefore, I can teleport through it.”

Behind the girls, the old prophet cleared his throat. “I’d like to accompany you as well.”

Kiki turned on the man. “Nope. It’s far too dangerous for old doom-mongers who jinx everything.”

Rather than being deterred, Crypian cackled at Kiki and said, “It’s precisely because I am a doom-monger than you need me to come. I will do everything in my power to make sure my prophecy doesn’t end the world.”

Alariel nodded her approval and added, “That’s good because we need to keep an eye on this one.”

I could tell that something changed between the prophet and the void knight. When I first met them, Alariel was hunting the wandering prophet. The bond between them seemed to have become more friendly.

Kiki startled me out of my thoughts when she said, “So, what the plan? You do have one right?”

The first thing I did was to look to Kalli. Ever so slightly, she shook her head letting me know she was as unprepared as I was. I looked back at Kiki to find all three of them staring at me.

Since I was on the spot, I muttered the first plan that came to mind. “Well, we’re going to sneak in from the underground. The map says there are ways into the city. Then we find Wendy and sneak her out of there.”

Kiki laughed, “Okay, that plan doesn’t have any flaws at all. No, seriously. Please tell me that’s not your plan.”

Alariel gently rested a plated hand on Kiki’s shoulder. “Kiki jests but in truth, there is a better way of going about this. My suggestion is to enter Dabia wearing a disguise. Also, the reason I must go is that I can find out where she is being held. That will at least take searching for her out of the equation.”

I nodded quietly while Alariel spoke, then I asked Kiki, “Can we trust her to do this without alerting that Archmage?”

While I expected them to be mad at me for not trusting Alariel, Kiki just gave the void mage a look that I hadn’t seen from her before and told me, “I trust her with my life.”

Crypian nodded from behind her and said, “I too vouch for her. Alariel may be many things but a turncoat she is not. Her every action lives up to her code of honor.”

“What if the honorable thing is turning us in?” Kalli asked, reminding me that she had been quietly listening to the whole conversation.

Alariel laughed. “I assure you that turning you lot in would be counter to everything I find honorable. I also believe I can assist you with your contract once Wendy is safe.”

The contract was something that I didn’t want to talk about. We were probably going to have to deal with the Archmage directly to get our way out of that one and if she wanted to abduct us, that would be the perfect time to do it.

Kiki, on the other hand, did want to talk about it. “Kalli, your sixteenth birthday is close, isn’t it? How long do we have?”

Kalli paused for a moment to think about it before replying. “I think I have just over a week left.”

“You don’t know the exact day?” Alariel asked.

Kalli shook her head, looking down at the ground. “Nobody knows exactly when I was born. I just showed up in town one day and they brought me to the monastery.”

We were all quiet as nobody know what to say. Alariel plodded on. “The date of your birthday is rather important. For all we know, you’ve already turned sixteen and the exit clause is no longer valid.”

I waved a hand to kill the conversation. “If that’s the case then there’s no use discussing it. Let’s just get to Dabia and deal with any problems like that when they come up.”

There was only one way forward, so I said, “Everyone get close. We’re doing this.”

As the group gathered together, Nolgrit cleared his throat, “Lord Emperor, Sir? What would you like us to do? Continue the march? What shall we do once we get there? Would you like us to invade?”

I looked back at the long line of troops. “March to Dabia, but don’t attack. Wait for my orders.”

“Yes, sir.” The dwarf replied.

Then I folded mana around the group and we vanished.

How? Joe bellowed into group chat. There is no way you beat us there. Not on foot. And underground?

After having intentionally avoided group chat when we spoke about our plans not to frustrate Joe any further, Kiki had to go announce that we had arrived in Dabia. I tried to soothe my friend.

We teleported here. We’re about to go get Wendy out. I’ll let you know as soon as she’s safe.

When Joe didn’t reply, Rundell answered for him. We’re just a little under a week out. We will assist you as soon as we can.

Damnit! Joe grumbled angrily.

I turned back to Alariel and asked. “Is there anything that we should know when we go topside?”

She nodded. “There is a place we need to go first. You can wait there and I will go search for Wendy. I am pretty sure I know where she is.”

“And just where is that?” I asked in a voice that was harsher than I would have liked.

Alariel sighed. “The royal castle. As an offworlder and a person of interest, she is either in the dungeon or worse, in the guest wing.”

Kalli perked up, a curious look on her face. “Why is the guest wing worse than the dungeon?”

“That means that they are buttering her up for something.” Alariel pointed out. “When the royal house is nice to you, they are always up to something.”

“What did it mean when they bought Kalli’s contract?” I asked pointedly.

Alariel frowned, heaving a sigh. “Alas, I do not know. It is a mystery to me that they would buy the contract of a…ahem. Well, that they bought your contract specifically.”

“A peasant.” Kalli supplied the word in a tone of disgust. “You can say the word. Most nobles don’t care for us.”

“That’s not true.” Alariel protested. “I happen to like peasants very much. I mean that word with all due respect. It’s just that some of the others don’t see the world the same as I do.”

“Then you change the world.” I barked, irritated that Alariel was looking down on my girlfriend.

“Oh come on now, Melvin.” Kiki admonished me in a shrill tone. “We are here to rescue Wendy, not stage a protest. You can get on your soapbox later once everyone is safe. That includes your girlfriend, I might add.”

Realizing she was right, I huffed, “Fine. Lead us to this safe house.”

The entrance into Dabia was through the sewers. The map guided us down a path from the Thief’s Corridor that led us to a very smelly series of sewers. Alariel popped up first to make sure the coast was clear before giving us a thumbs up.

One by one, we climbed a ladder leading into Dabia. For the first time, I was in an actual modern-day city. At least by Earth standards. Though the streets were lined with bricks and not tar, the houses looked a lot like tract homes on organized streets that seemed to make up a residential neighborhood.

In the distance, a castle towered over the rooftops, surrounded by a massive wall. I turned to Alariel and asked, “Where do we go now?”

She waved for us to follow her. “Come quickly. We don’t want to be seen out here like this.”

The void knight led us at a light jog, her boots making a clanking sound as she moved. The sewer grate she picked was just a few blocks away from the safe house.

When we arrived, Alariel placed her hand on a stone gargoyle by the door and whispered a quick chant.

“Ztalestus”

The eyes on the statue glowed red for a moment before turning green. Then with a click, the door opened a crack. Alariel quickly pushed it open and we all rushed in.

Looking around, I asked, “Is anyone home?”

Alariel shook her head. “Probably not. This is where I go when I want to get away. While some of my friends have access, they do not need this place like I do.”

“Get away from what?” I asked.

She shrugged and looked at me with a sadness that I hadn’t noticed. “Life.”

Before I could say anything else, she ran up a flight of stairs, disappearing around the corner. Kiki followed her, calling over her shoulder, “We will be right back.”

Kalli also watched them go, turning to me with a thoughtful expression. Maybe nobles don’t have such a great life after all.

I smiled at my girlfriend reassuringly.

I think Alariel is the exception.

The two girls didn’t emerge for nearly an hour. During that time, Kalli and I found a comfy couch to rest on while Crypian scoured the house for food. I was just starting to feel sleepy when Alariel returned. She was wearing a peculiar yellow and black dress that only seemed to complement her unnatural purple hair.

She huffed when she caught me gaping at her and announced, “I’m going out. I should be back before nightfall.”