"How far away are we, Baycorf?" Azari Yuler asked working on strapping a heavy piece of equipment with three propellers onto his back.

"Just over 10 miles" Baycorf remarked as he was getting his equipment on him.

"A lot of caution for just a palace" Yuler grumbled. "Is there any real place for us to hide on that rock where the palace sits?"

"Yes" Baycorf answered. "There is a landing dock with large cargo containers around it. We should be able to keep ourselves concealed."

"Cargo containers?" Azari asked surprised. "What are they doing with those?"

"That would be a good question to answer on this little excursion, now wouldn't it?" Baycorf said saucily. "Put this over your head" the gray said handing him a piece of equipment that looked like a helmet.

"What is this" Yuler asked the gray suspiciously.

"I thought with your hominid physiology some oxygen might make the trip more pleasant. What do you think?" Baycorf snarked.

"It's the funniest looking breathing apparatus I've seen" Azari taking a look at it and then putting it over his head.

"We need to be able to get there with as little equipment as possible. It works fine, I can promise you." Baycorf said taking the air tube attached to the funny-looking helmet into the air tank outlet on Azari's pack. "Just follow me and you'll be okay" he said. Baycorf pushed a button on his pack and two of the three propellers on the pack extended outward on protrusions that resembled wings. Azari did the same and they both jumped off the eight-foot or so drop into the water and their propellers came to life, pushing them forward through the cold water. They both moved them both swiftly through the water for almost twenty minutes until at last they reached the rock where the palace was. Baycorf led him around to the side where the loading dock was. They took off their packs and kept them hidden in some bushes.

"You weren't kidding" Yuler said taking in the stacks of large cargo containers near them.

"It looks like we came at a good time" Baycorf said. "I can't see anyone even with my IR vision." They both walked quietly over to the unloading dock and in between the containers. On the other side of the cargo containers they could see something fairly big. As they got close enough to see most of it, Baycorf recognized it. It was quite big and complicated-looking contraption with many different parts, and it had clearly recently been assembled on the palace grounds.

"That" Baycorf said to Yuler ina soft voice, "is a gate to the universe's hyperplane. One of Grithmeer's great creations."

"Hyperplane?" Yuler asked confused.

"Yes" Baycorf said. "A higher-dimension area of the universe. But not just anyone can go into it."

"I'm betting that's what Zardin is for. He's probably capable of sight in higher dimensions!"

"That is a plausible theory. There probably aren't any hominids with the visual cortex, although…"

"They must be after one of Grithmeer's secrets!" Azari interrupted having no curiosity at all to hear the rest of Baycorf's thought.

"Perhaps" Baycorf said. "I was hoping there was more definitive proof that Zardin was actually here."

"I'm betting he is here" Yuler said confidently. "In fact, I'm sure enough that it's probably not even worth it to try and sneak into the palace." Just then they heard a loud noise coming from somewhere in the direction of the palace. Both the gray and the elf scurried back away from the cargo area as quickly as they could. They put their water packs back on and got away as quickly as they possibly could.