Shadow and Wild Magic

Shadow was right. The guard did leave, and another one returned to the dungeon to lock the cells. And the crazy part was, they were consistent. Ezra had counted exactly four minutes between guards. Four minutes of open doors and no one to watch them.

When they dragged him to be interrogated the following day again, Ezra made sure to inspect all chambers he’d pass along the way. There was one room with a shut steel door that seemed irrelevant, but guards were posted outside. During his interrogation, Ezra sent them on yet another trail. It was yet another clueless and manipulable guard asking him stupid questions. There was no way they’d break him into revealing what he was doing in the capital’s archives. What he was searching for. That information was solely for him. And maybe for a Hauian Princess, but no one needed to know that.

On his way back to his cell, the irrelevant door was ajar. The guards were conversing outside and making strange faces with their crooked teeth. Ezra took a quick peek. Before his own escort shoved him in the shoulder, he saw a man inside the chamber. A man with black hair in a blue robe, chained to a chair. Master Khan? Definitely.

Ezra needed to talk to Shadow. There was no way he was staying here another night.

Back in the Pig’s Pen, Ezra went to sit with the sindurs while they ate. This time, they’d picked a corner in the shade, as far away as possible from the gang of dark elves. Those blue idiots still sneered at them.

“Pleasure to meet you all,” Ezra greeted the three other cats before taking a seat on the sand. “I’m Ezra, and we’re getting out tonight.”

The slow red one sighed. He definitely didn’t approve, but he didn’t walk away either. The other two simply looked at him. The expression on their faces was all types of confused.

Shadow, on the other hand, was all pointy ears. “You have a plan?” he asked, almost smiling.

“I have your plan.” The black cat was smiling, so Ezra continued. “We have about four minutes before the guards lock the cells. Four minutes when we’re not being watched. This is what we’ll do: Shadow, you and I go to the stairs. You get that amulet, and you get me a weapon. I’ll get your wizard. I know where he is. We meet back on the stairs. We’ll have to be very sneaky.”

“What if we run into guards?” Shadow asked. A very valid question.

Ezra had a plan. “You,” he said, looking at the three other sindurs. “You need to create a massive diversion, something that will lure all the guards out.”

Ezra was smiling fully. He knew exactly what they needed to do, but he wanted them to guess. If they guessed right, they were fit for the prison break.

“And how do we do that?” the slow one asked. He was still cautious, but he was still there!

The grey one looked like she had an idea. “We make...everyone...out,” she said with a lot of hesitation. Her Common was terrible, but Ezra understood.

And it was spot on.

“Exactly!” Ezra exclaimed softly so he wouldn’t attract too much attention. “You three let everyone out. The humans are opposite us. The dark elves are all in different cells down the tunnel. Open all the doors. Everyone likes a little mayhem, don’t they?” He paused, waiting for them to acknowledge. They still gaped at him. “You let everyone out, then you all hide back in your cell. All prisoners will probably be running for the exit. There’ll be a fight. When everyone is fighting outside, you meet us upstairs.”

“How can you be sure your plan will work?” the slow sindur asked. Ezra noticed the white hairs around in his fur. He was probably old, that was why he was so slow.

“Rule number one, people are impulsive. Everyone here desperately wants to get out. You open their doors, they’ll head for the exit without asking questions. Rule number two, it’s a prison. It’s literally a guard’s job to make sure no one escapes. If every prisoner is suddenly on the loose, every guard will do their job. They won’t think, oh, maybe we should check upstairs, no! They will do everything they can to ensure those prisoners are back in their cells. Or dead, doesn’t matter.”

The old sindur looked at the rest. He started speaking to them in their language. Ezra waited, squinting, wondering what was going on.

“He’s translating,” Shadow explained.

“Ah! So... he’s in?”

Shadow grinned. “It appears so.”

Once the old sindur was done speaking and the rest was done nodding, he turned back to Ezra. “What do we do once we’re upstairs?”

Ezra was going to reply, but the gates to the Pig’s Pen suddenly opened. They usually only opened to let all prisoners out and back in. A guard walked out. No, it was no guard. It was the sand-colored albino lizard Ezra despised. The one that enjoyed needles a little too much. He wore his shiny steel armor and paraded around like an Indus-Kali peacock. He was the Pale Warden.

First, he looked around the prison yard, scowling at the captives. Then, he marched to Ezra, growling.

“What do you think you’re doing?” the Pale Warden asked once he reached him. His voice was like an annoying hiss. His red eyes were round and small.

“Just eating, mate,” Ezra replied nonchalantly.

“I told you not to speak with the other guests, Collector. Go to your own corner and stay there.”

“Guests?” Ezra challenged. “That’s what you call them?”

The Pale Warden didn’t respond. He just grinned.

Ezra complied, but not because he was scared. He didn’t want anything to happen to these sindurs. He stood and walked away, but not before winking at Shadow.

Once they’d all be upstairs tonight, they’d jump out of a window at the back of the tower. The sand would soften Ezra’s fall, and his partners were sindurs. They could jump out of the fifth floor if they wanted. It wasn’t the first time Ezra was breaking out of prison. And it probably wouldn’t be the last. As long as he had a diversion, a weapon, a wizard, and four pairs of claws, they’d be fine.

Ezra discarded the rest of his food on the sand. He wasn’t hungry, and he didn’t want to risk food poisoning. He returned his bowl, but he saw those dark elves again when he turned around. Six were headed toward Shadow and his friends. Oh no, what were they planning now? Ezra looked around to check for guards. Strange... The Pale Warden was gone, and all guards in the prison yard were hidden in the shade with their backs turned. This wasn’t going to be a random stand-off. This was planned. And the guards were in on it! Ezra checked the dark elf leader and saw, in the crook’s hand, a shiny dagger.

“Hey!” Ezra shouted. “Hey, what are you doing?”

The dark elves ignored him. Shadow had his back turned, and they were headed straight for him.