Chapter 71: EXCELSIOR

Following the attention from the grounds, the patrols roving slowly along the peak of the wall abandoned their tracks, refocusing their efforts on the grove. Risens cursed his luck. The lover’s giggled as their escapades continued, ecstasy overtaking alarm.

His position was tenuous. From both directions along the wall guards combed the grounds, pinching down on his position among the safety of the small glade. Well manicured as it was there was little under growth to hide in. With the size of the patrol approaching across the grounds he expected every meter under the shadows of the trees would be illuminated shortly.

Groaning at the option, but seeing little way around it, Risens hastened to the water’s edge slipping silently into the pond. Fed by a natural spring below, the chill of the liquid as it closed around his body was intense. The slope was nearly vertical, within a meter he found himself treading carefully with just his head above water. Moving as slowly as possible to prevent spreading larger ripples across the surface, he tucked himself behind a large protruding rock closer to the wall. At least here, the shadows from the guards approaching from the wall would only spread further thanks to the cover of stone and bushes on the bank.

Through the quiet of the night, the panicked curse and impassioned complaints from the lovers was clear as they realized their plight and misfortune. She slipped off him, straightening her dress as he fumbled to pull up his pants as the guards crashed into the grove. The pair was quickly surrounded, the cones of light flooding the grove as if it was daylight. The disappointment was clear across their faces though he could see the flush of red as embarrassment overtook the emotion.

“Young LORD and LADY, I’m disappointed to find you here so entwined.” The words of the soldier were terse though Risens could hear the lingering note of hilarity that colored the message. “The grounds are long closed. Curfew is well past. The honorable heads of your houses will be most disappointed to learn of this.”

The message sent a visible shiver through both of the young nobles. LADY’s hands went to her mouth, while LORD looked sheepishly at the ground. Risens understood the predicament. Beyond the embarrassment of young lovers caught in the act, there were far deeper political implications. The houses of their parents shared anything but friendly relations. Unless he was mistaken, the young Lady was already promised to the son of another Duke, growing their families hold on trading rights along the shores of the Sea Solace. His momentary plight was short-lived as the idea formed in his mind.

“There is no need for them to know anything, good sirs,” LORD puffed up his chest as he faced the head of the guards. “Silence always comes with a price. The need to reach into his pants pockets gave him the opportunity to fix the belt around his waist. He removed a coin pouch tossing the heavily laden purse to the guard. Tossing it in his hand a few times to feel the weight, the man grinned.

“I’ll expect a similar sum from the lady at first light,” he responded. “There are quite a few lips that need to be sealed by gold here on patrol.” At her nod, he tucked the purse into his coat, stepping to the side, holding an arm out toward the main building.

“We’ll see you to Excelsior,” he added. “Next time, keep your…negotiations inside. Clean up this mess.”

The young pair followed the guard as he turned back toward the estate, unfulfilled and slightly poorer for the advent. A few soldiers followed the others while the rest remained in the trees. From where he was concealed along the edge of the pond, Risens had a view to all that had occurred. As the head of the guards dispersed without raising alarm, so too did the patrols on the walls. He watched the retreating play of their lights through the foliage on one side, while the reflections of the other across the pond signaled their similar withdrawal.

Risens considered extracting himself from the chilly waters but the light of the guards lingering in the forest stayed his movements. The ribald comment, jeers and laughter followed in the wake of the noble youths and he understood that no matter what fees they extracted, the news of their philandering would soon echo in the ears of every noble in the kingdom. His position was discrete, safe from those on the walls and the grounds beyond, but would likely fail under direct inspection. He tipped his head back, leaving as little as possible out of the water as a pair of guards broke from the group, shifting their focus and more distressingly their cone of light in his direction.

There was little he could do at the moment before seek shelter below the gentle ripples of the water. Even disguised as he was among the lily pads, there would be no disguising his face or the mask from the natural vegetation. Filling his lungs with the deepest breath he could he dipped his head beneath the water as the light tracked over his section of the pond.

The glow from the mageLight distorted as it washed back and forth over the water. Clothed in all black he knew that there would be little chance that any could see his figure beneath the surface. The gleaning silver metal of the mask was the bigger concern, yet at the moment, it was still covered behind the cloth collar he wore around his neck. His concern drifted quickly from being discovered to running out of air as the guards by the water’s edge lazed around while the others cleaned up the glass from the grove. 

The drone of their voices, muffled by the water that separated them gave no indication to subject of their musings though the lack of haste was clear. Risen was confident in his ability to hold his breath longer than the average man, though it obvious that the pair had no intention of moving any time soon. In the depth of the night, there was no true way of measuring the width of the lake, though encumbered as he was with his clothing an gear, he was certain he wouldn’t make the distance to the opposite shore without having to surface for air. Pushing down off the silty bank he sunk deeper in the water before kicking his legs to propel himself away from the pair. If he could put distance between himself and the pair, he hoped that his head breaking the surface would either be missed or confused as one of the natural creatures that inhabited the lake. Thankfully, he knew of nothing that could exist in fresh water pools of this size that would cause him any harm.

The drag of his clothing in the water made it readily apparent that he would only make it tragically short distance before the air in his lungs expired. He cursed himself again as fate and circumstance had delivered him into a situation beyond his control. His lungs burned with every moment that his mouth clamped shut, yet he denied his lungs the oxygen air they desired. The Shadows Shroud could be used for at least another breath though he’d been hesitant to test the longevity of the benefit. It had saved him from certain death in the filthy sink in Pale Pink’s Pub, how long would it extend him now.

His mind rebelled against the conscious effort to breath under the water. Like convincing your eyes that the sun was in fact the moon, the internal battle tested his knowledge against the his innate will of self-preservation. Darkness flickered in the corners of his visions as he finally gave in to the desire.

Sucking in a deep breath, the momentary surprise nearly spoiled the benefit of the welcomed air. Where water should have poured into his lungs, drowning him in the depths of the pool, only crisp, clean oxygen filled his lungs. Rejuvenated by the second chance, he dug his hands into he silty bottom of the pond clawing for purchase of anything solid hidden within the muck. His fingers clamped onto what he assumed to be the smooth surface of a log, squeezing their grip as if it were his lifeline.

The moments stretched into what felt like a was lifetime as he waited beneath the placid waters. The mask had granted him extra time yet he had no indication of if it would allow for another breath. The thought of drowning while watching the silhouetted figures of the guards standing around ignited a fire inside his core. Instead of struggling to maintain his breath, he fought the insatiable urge to surge from the water, to wreak whatever havoc he could upon the unsuspecting guards, unlucky enough to stand in his path before disappearing into the night.

Risens was loathe to test the longevity, the passive ability to breath beneath the water for more than a breath. It would either be lifesaving or catastrophic. Thankfully, this was not the moment to test its ability. The moment the illumination from the mageLights shifted from the water, he poked his head above the surface, greedily sucking in the cool night air. The lingering hint of the floral aroma used to cover the stench of the sewage threatened to turn his stomach. He feared the scent would now forever be inextricably linked with the nauseating, foul odor.

Rising slowly among a small bed of lily pads, Risens watched as the guards arranged themselves into a crude order before marching back through the glade toward the main structure of Excelsior in the distance. From where he floated in the pond, he could see the small, retreating silhouettes of the chastened Lord and Lady following their escort back to the confines of their academy. Perhaps, the duty of guarding the nobility was far more lucrative than he had imagined, though it only added emphasis to the inherent danger. He had no doubt that the guards who accepted the bribe of their silence would disappear, conspicuously relocated soon after tonight’s events reached the ears of those who could stand to lose, or perhaps gain the most from the news. Whether death or promotion, they would find themselves if vastly different standing soon.

Easing out of the water, Risens took careful stock of his situation. The night was cool, though neither the chill nor the wet clothing would deter him from completing his mission. Careful to place his sodden feet on the grass, not the stones, he crept into the cover of the now vacant grove. This time it was only the insect that joined him as he quickly rung as much of the water out from his clothing as time would allow. A quick investigation of his cloak as he slipped his arms back through the damp fabric confirmed that the pocket was indeed waterproof as the ill-fated merchant had described. The Raven’s Guide, his cipher, the pages taken from the Dreamcatchers tome and his healing salve all remained safe and dry.

Of all, his boots were the most bothersome item now that they had been submerged in the water. They were thin and flexible, designed for stealth with an added layer of protection for his feet. While they protected him from the element, muffled the sound of his movements, the unfortunate downside was that they retained the liquid that had overflown their top. The delay to pour out the excess and ring out his socks was annoying, though he settled his frustration with the fact that time was still on his side. 

The guard escorting the vagrant youths inside Excelsior had just disappeared into the opulent building. The remainder of the patrol angled to the eastern side of the building to his left, soo to be out of side around the corner. On the wall both groups of elevated watch tracked away from his position.

It looked like the time to move was now. Slipping back into his damp boots he stalked through the grove toward the academy beyond.