No matter how tired I got. Sleep couldn’t maintain its hold on me. The blustering sea breeze pulling at the tarp overhead and the rocks poking into my side conspired to rob me of any warmth. Time and again, I woke only to shiver uncontrollably and listen to the complaints of my empty stomach until that hollow pit of exhaustion swallowed me up for a few more minutes of fitful sleep. The sets of clothes and warm food in my inventory taunted me. It would be so easy to relieve my discomfort, but it was too early to reveal my resources.

When the sun finally rose and the guards shouted us back to our feet, I couldn’t tell if the night was over or if this was just another in a long parade of fragmented dreams. I stumbled along, following the other prisoners on numb, quaking legs until we were forced to sit before the guardhouse again. The trencher of beans pushed into my hands was one of the best things I ever tasted. A more objective part of my mind noted that the legumes were bland and undercooked but my empty stomach shouted: “Shut up nerd!”.

Bodrin and I stuck together throughout the day, hauling stones and timber from the docks up the thirty-or-so foot incline to the tower and then up another three and a half stories. The ground stayed cold for hours after dawn but the work warmed me up quickly. There were a few times when we were out of earshot of the guards and I tried to start up our conversation again. Bodrin shushed me each time until he waved down a guard who looked like he was still waking up.

“Gotta piss boss” He explained.

“Three minutes” The guard yawned.

We picked our way to the edge of the island and made water. Bodrin was quick to use the time, relative privacy, and covering noise.

“Okay, we’ve only got a minute. Please tell me you have a plan.”

“I’ve only got supplies and contingencies right now. I need a little more information before I put anything into action. We’ll only get one shot at this.”

“Good, what do you need to know.”

“Is there anyone here we can trust?”

“Ha, fat chance. Half of our coworkers will rat you out for a scrap of the captain's salt pork. The other half are brain-dead husks.”

“Damnit, Do the guards have their own supplies for food and water?

“The water comes from a common barrel, so do the beans, but the bread and pork only go to the guards and their pets.”

“Okay, do you know when the next ship is expected?”

“I haven’t seen a schedule or anything but they generally come every three to seven days.”

“What about those goons that hog all the straw? What’s their deal?”

For the first time, Bodrin hesitated, glancing over his shoulder.

“They’re worse than the guards. Court martialed Imperial Soldiers. They think they’re better than the rest of us and the guards mostly leave them alone. They’re tough buggers but definitely more trouble than they’re worth.”

The guard who had given us leave ran out of patience and called us back. I got the important points though. I couldn’t trust any of these other prisoners, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t use them. The long day of hard labor gave me plenty of time to think and each time I made it to the top of the tower, I looked around for a second.

The island itself was roughly peanut-shaped, no more than a hundred-fifty yards from end to end. The northern side of the peanut was flattish and hosted the guardhouse. Our pen was close to the docks on the west side of the island’s narrowest point. About thirty yards away, on the East side of the narrows, something about the way the water moved caught my attention but I never had long to observe the anomaly. The tower stood on a hill at the southern end of the island. A cliff on the east helped to secure the utilitarian round keep from attack. The hill added just enough height so the mainland could be seen as a hazy line on the horizon.

While I was lost in thought, the chains binding my ankles together snagged on a jagged outcropping. My fingers slipped and the stone I was carrying nearly crushed some toes. I resolved to get through the day first, remembering that a broken ankle was apparently a death-sentence out here.

As the sun sank towards the horizon again, I learned that “bone tired” isn’t just an expression. How can ribs feel worn out? They don’t even have nerve endings, do they? Luckily, my silver tongue would be doing the heavy lifting tonight.

With a lump in my throat, I approached the little gang. Three of the bastards stared me down as I invaded their domain. The biggest lounged comfortably in the straw as if he didn’t have anywhere else he’d rather be.

“Back off shit bird” One of the goons warned. I ignored his comment and his cracking knuckles. Instead, I hit the group with a Charming Smile and addressed their leader.

“You really should teach your peons some manners. Good manners cost nothing, being rude on the other hand, could cost you everything.”

The mouthy goon bristled but a hand on his shoulder restrained him.

“And what do you suppose I have to lose?”

“Opportunity. You’re quite literally at rock bottom. Prove your worth to me, and your fortunes could change. Piss me off and, well” I gestured to the smelly hole in the ground “You’ll die here.”

The mouthy goon started to rise at the perceived threat but the boss pulled him back to the ground hard. His muscles were not just for show.

“You’re not the first uppity snot to try and talk us into a losing fight. Leave now and I’ll pretend this mistake was just a dream.”

My insides squirmed but I forced a lopsided grin onto my face.

“You have no fucking clue who I am, do you?”

The mouthy goon couldn’t take it anymore.

“You’re a dead man!”

He lunged at me. This time, the leader didn’t restrain him. I was actually relieved. It was difficult to maintain the sage's cloak during the tense conversation but it paid off when I focused three MP into my palm. The goon reached out, ready to take my strike and bring the fight to the ground where he would have the distinct, probably deadly advantage. His lunge compromised his balance though. The shackles around our feet made the maneuver more of a headlong dive. I slid my left leg back, turned my body partially and met his face with my palm.

The explosive bitch-slap snapped his head to the side. The rest of his body followed, bonelessly sailing past me before going down in a heap. A second crack sounded when his head met the rocky ground. He stayed unnaturally still.

I almost let surprise show on my face. A quick glance to the entrance showed that the guards were watching us closely, cudgels in hand. The gang-leader waved his hands in a signal that said “everything is under control” and seeing that the fighting was over, the guards relaxed, turning their back on yet another petty squabble over sleeping arrangements.

It looked like the guards would rather let them do what they wanted than try and stop them. It made a kind of sense, if we tried anything, the guards could just outrun the bound prisoners and raise the alarm, joining up with the other guards. Any prisoners who died overnight would be just another statistic for the logbook, it was no skin off their backs.

“You have thirty seconds to explain why I shouldn’t let my friends tear your head off and shove it up your ass.” The leader growled.

Fear crept up my spine but I forced it back down, silently repeating the mantra “Fake it ‘till you make it”. I sauntered up to the now-vacated patch of straw, settled down, and adopted a conspiratorial, hushed tone. I had to rely on the flapping of the tarp and the no-man's-land between the gang and the others to cover my words.

“You can consider this an interview,” I said, producing a crest from my inventory. The silver Crane glinted even in the scant light. Once I was sure that the leader recognized it I put it back away.

“So far, I’m not impressed.” I finished smugly, crossing my arms and leaning back.

The leader’s bored expression shifted to one of calculation. We both noticed how his henchmen stared at me with newfound respect. Seeing that his window of opportunity for any head tearing and shoving had passed, he extended an olive branch.

“Now I know I must be dreaming. What’s a little bird like you doing out here all alone?”

He was fishing for information, trying to stall until he could turn things back to his favor. Well, two could play that game. I baited a hook of my own and cast it out.

“Now now, if you can’t figure that out on your own, you won’t be of any use to me. I can pick up musclebound oafs at any port. I thought you might have some brains considering this squalid little kingdom you’ve built for yourself.”

“The tower!”

One of his followers blurted out. I gave him a little smile.

“Got it in one. What’s your name?”

“Me friends call me Jordy.”

“Alright Jordy. As you so intelligently deduced. I’m here to knock over that little construction project. Who wants to guess why I came here without any backup?”

Not willing to lose out on the opportunity for recognition from the mysterious Black Crane, the other henchman chimed in.

“Cause it’s easier to kill a mark what doesn’t see you coming.”

Just like that, they provided a backstory that they wouldn’t have any trouble believing.

“I like the way you think. Name?”

“Cutter.”

I nodded. The leader had been watching and listening, learning what he could. It was time I brought him back into the conversation.

“I don’t give a shit about your rabid dog,” I said, indicating the man I had just KO’d, “but if you gathered these two, you have some potential. Can I count on you to act when the time is right?”

A full ten seconds of uncomfortable silence stretched between us before he said.

“Define act.”

“I’ll give you orders, you’ll follow them, and we’ll be sailing away from this forsaken rock in no time. Don’t worry, I’m sure I won’t be asking you to do anything you haven’t done before. Your most important job will be to use those intimidating mugs of yours to keep the other prisoners in line when the fun starts.”

He pulled a bit of straw from the pile and cleaned it off with deliberate slowness before putting one end in his mouth and asking his next question. I did my best to mask my tension and unease.

“How will we know when to move?”

“Tomorrow night, when the guards start dying, get to the entrance and keep the other prisoners quiet.”

“And if we tell the guards about your little plan?”

I held up a finger.

“That’s strike one muchacho. I shouldn’t have to tell you what will happen if you side with your benevolent overlords. They’ll pat you on the head like a good dog and then send you right back to work. I, on the other hand, can offer freedom and gold. Now stop testing me and tell me where this came from.”

I pulled a shell from the hay and held it up. While they were focused on the shell, I quickly and quietly unlocked my shackles with my free hand.

“...From the water.”

I extended two fingers.

“That’s your second warning, there won’t be a third. Don’t try and tell me the guards let you go swimming during the day. Show me your exit, now.”

“Go on Boss, show ‘im” Jordy cajoled.

A glare shut up the subordinate but it was too late.

“It’s more a larder than an exit. We’ve nearly stripped it clean too. There’s hardly anything down there anymore.”

“Let’s pretend I don’t trust you. While we’re at it, let's pretend that I’m your only ticket out of here so quit jerking me around and do what I say.”

“Just trying to save you from a cold night but if you won’t listen, feel free to freeze your balls off.” The leader shrugged before brushing aside some of the straw under him. The man was lounging on a small overhang. The straw had concealed a tiny passage that faced away from the entrance. Now that it was removed I could even hear the distinct lapping of water on stone.

A glance around confirmed that the other prisoners were more interested in their own comfort than our power-struggle. The guards had retreated a ways to find better shelter from the wind. I could still see their feet and they still had control of the entrance but they couldn’t see all the way to this far corner. I fixed the leader with a meaningful glare.

“My crew will be here in three days. If I’m dead, my first mate will be very happy to torture anyone left on the island in order to find out what happened to my crest. Think about where your interests lie and save your plotting until after we get off this island.”

Before crawling into the dark tunnel I turned to Jordy.

“Hold onto these for me.” I said, handing over my unlocked chains. I could have dropped them into my inventory but his expression was priceless and the extra reputation wouldn’t hurt when the truth eventually came out. I slid into the tunnel before my perfect exit could be ruined.