"It is about time!" Devrim exclaimed.

"Glad you have so much faith in me," Brinn giggled.

"What took you so long?" Devrim gave her an incredulous look.

"I was drugged by my parents, and I had to spring Ithel from his room where he was being held," Brinn defended herself.

"I suppose that's a valid excuse," the grey-eyed man conceded.

Brinn grinned wide. "Oh, and I had to get these…" From behind her back, Brinn produced Devrim's pack, Aurora's satchel and the Guardian's cloak.

Aurora nearly squealed with delight. "You wonderful elf! I may just dedicate a city in your honor!"

Brinn smirked. "A thank you will suffice."

"Thank you!" Devrim and Aurora said together.

"Who might this be?" Junayd asked.

"This is Brinn. Brinn, this is Junayd and Nurlan."

"Sorry I did not bring anything for you boys. I was not sure who else was down here." The elf unlocked the cell quickly. The four humans tumbled out of the confined space, happy to be free. Suddenly many hands reached out of the darkness begging for help. Brinn shrugged and went down the line, unlocking the other cells also.

"Should you do that?" Aurora asked.

"My parents do not keep any hardened criminals down here. Most of the creatures are probably like you and defied the monarchy. Releasing them will cause mom and dad a headache and give us a fighting chance to escape," Brinn concluded as she unlatched the last door.

"Us? Are you coming too," Nurlan wanted to know. This was moving too fast for his sensibilities. First they were captured by elves, and now one was setting them free.

"Yes, us! Or haven't you realized that I will be branded a traitor for this?" Brinn pointed out.

"Oh, I like her," Junayd said with a grin.

"She grows on you," Devrim admitted with a chuckle.

"I do not want to break up the party, but aren't the guards outside just going to try to recapture us?" Nurlan hated to point out the obvious.

"Let us go out and see!" Brinn said brightly.

The humans along with the other released prisoners flooded out of the prison and into the base of the palace. The prison guards lay asleep on the ground as Ithel leaned against the wall checking his finger nails. "It took you long enough!" He prodded Brinn.

"I can never move fast enough, it seems!" Brinn huffed.

"What happened to the guards?" Aurora stared wide-eyed at the fallen elf soldiers, one of whom was snoring loudly.

"We took a trick from mom and dad. They received a sleeping potion in their drinks." Ithel bragged. His brow furrowed as he counted the creatures in front of him. "Did you have to bring the whole dungeon with you?" He asked Brinn.

"Yep!" Brinn would not give into his scolding. Together everyone followed him through a side door into an outer courtyard. Ithel led the way with Brinn, Aurora, and Devrim hiding their faces below the hoods of their cloaks. Because the king and queen did not want the servants to talk, they had only said that Ithel was sick. They had not officially confined him to his room. While Brinn was in trouble often, Ithel never was. Both of the royal children being confined would have raised some questions. And questions could lead to some embarrassing discoveries.

The guards at the outer wall saw them coming and bowed. "Greetings Prince Ithel," they called in ancient tongue.

The elf prince raised his hand. "Greetings. I have come to take a work party to repair the eastern watchtower." The listening soldier looked concerned. "Is something wrong?" Ithel asked.

"We heard you were unwell. You will excuse us if we make sure that you are indeed the prince. The whole palace is looking for Princess Brinn."

Ithel's expression softened. "Of course, I would expect nothing less of the palace guards. Good work."

The prince took a step back and held his arms wide. Although elves could shape-shift, they could also use magic to detect when others have changed their appearance. This was why elves seldom used this trick among their own kind. The guard held out his hand and moved it up and down as a strange humming filled the air. The guard lowered his hand, satisfied with what he found.

"Do you need help escorting the prisoners?" The soldier inquired.

"Thank you, but no. A detail of soldiers is waiting for me." Ithel assured him.

"May you have safety on your journey, Your Highness."

"Thank you, and I hope you find my sister soon. She can be such a trouble-maker." Ithel gave a conspiratorial wink. From behind, the prince felt a kick in his calf from one of the hooded figures. He did not have to guess which one. The group of twenty exited the palace without incident. It was too easy.

Outside the gate, the princess took command. To the prisoners other than the humans she said, "Scatter and disappear. If you are not an elf, pair up with one so that they can let you out of the wall. May you have safety on your journey." She gave the usual farewell. In twos and threes, the prisoners melted into the city streets.

Without warning, a large clanging sound rang through the air. "That is a problem." Brinn said calmly in human-speak.

"We need to get going," Ithel agreed.

"Do those bells mean we have been discovered missing?" Aurora asked.

"Look! Over there with Prince Ithel!" One of the soldiers guarding the gate yelled.

"Run!" Brinn pulled on the Empress's arm. The six of them scurried through the streets ducking into alleyways and slipping though narrow gaps between towers and other buildings. This time the streets were filled with the boisterous yelling of vendors, babies crying, and elves bickering over this issue or that. It was heartening to see a more realistic picture of the elf kingdom, but the humans had no time to appreciate it. Because the streets were teeming with activity, the elven soldiers had difficulty tracking them. The six crouched to regroup behind an unoccupied vendor's stall.

"Here," Brinn untied one of the two belted swords at her waist and gave it to Devrim. "Do not use it unless you need to…" The man nodded in understanding.

Ithel followed suit and gave his only sword to Nurlan. "Please try not to use it on my people, but you may need it as you continue your journey." The prince turned to Junayd. "I regret I have no sword for you."

"I can help with that!" Aurora pulled a sword and belt from inside the Guardian's cloak and proffered it to Junayd. The entire company minus Devrim stared agape at what they just saw.

"What. Just. Happened?" Junayd gasped, examining the sword to see if it was real.

"But humans should not use magic," the prince said with a look of astonishment.

"Oh no, the cloak is magic, not me," Aurora corrected.

"The Empress always amazes," Nurlan announced. "We shouldn't be surprised."

"She is most impressive," Ithel smiled warmly. "Take good care of her," he told Devrim.

"I promise," Devrim agreed. The two clasped forearms to seal the man's oath.

Then Ithel set his jaw in determination. "Get ready. I will come out and lead them the other way. May you have safety on your journey."

Brinn gave the prince a half grin. "You know, for a brother, you are not so bad after all."

"You are not so bad yourself," Ithel joked. His face become serious. "You do not have to go with the humans. Together we can convince our parents to forgive you."

"You know me. I cannot let this go." Brinn was genuinely sad to leave for the first time in a long time. But she knew deep down that her path lay with the Empress.

Ithel leaned over and gave his sister an uncharacteristic hug. "Safe journey, sister. When I am king, you will always receive a heroine's welcome when you return."

"As long as that doesn't include a huge feast with crowds and dancing, I would like that. Farewell." Brinn clasped forearms with her brother.

Then Ithel stood from the stall and ran back toward the castle. Catching sight of some soldiers he yelled, "They went this way, follow me!" The sound of rushing feet could be heard receding.

When the coast was clear, the five remaining in the group made a break for the west side of the city. It took them much of the day to sneak from one point to the next and as the sun traveled across the sky, more and more soldiers patrolled the streets questioning anyone and everyone. As they reached the edge of the city, there was practically a solid line of soldiers deciding who could and could not exit the capital.

This would not have been a problem if Brinn had been alone, but the four humans could not turn invisible, and she guessed that they were not expert tree-climbers. She sighed in frustration.

Just then a bright red ball rolled to the base of their hiding place. A small she-elf chased after it and looked up in surprise at the the interlopers. Brinn held her finger to her lips and handed the ball back to the girl. "Here you go," she whispered in the ancient tongue.

"Nena, where are you?" A she-elf called.

The girl turned and answered loudly, "I am just getting my ball back from Princess Brinn!"

"…Drat!"