Chapter 8: The Prison Break

When the morning of the attempted prison break arrived, Tilda appeared (smugly) with everything they needed to act as prison guards for Holgith. Boots left shortly after to locate the necessary juncture he would need to disable the anti-magic zone. The plan was to disable the zone around noon, about fifteen minutes after they arrived.

They let Holgith wear whatever he wanted, and he opted not to change his outfit at all. As for the rest of them, Tilda had either stolen their measurement or she just had a good idea, because the grey and black uniforms fit perfectly. The plan was simple, at least: get in, disable the magic, grab Krakkus, get out.

The prison itself was a monolith of worked stone and barred windows, built into the largest wall Ballan had ever seen. Rumor had it security on the Wastes side of the wall was fairly lax, because escape into the wastes was basically just suicide with extra steps. They had no plans to go to the Wastes, however, and Tilda had not even considered it a viable mode of entry.

As they approached the gates, Holgith seemed to be having fun. He pulled on the chains, growled at Ballan and Kahya, and even aimed a kick at Tilda, which she easily dodged.

"BLOOD!" He howled as they approached the gate guards, who exchanged nervous looks. Tilda stepped forward.

"Prisoner transfer." She handed them the forged documents smartly. "This one's dangerous - all the way down to solitary for him. At least until we can figure out how to get him to talk."

The guard looked over the papers, and then at Tilda, and then at Ballan and Kahya, who had both been instructed to look bored.

"BLOOD!" Holgith howled again. The other guard at the gate winced.

The guards handed Tilda back her papers quickly, and waved her inside, pulling the gate bell as they did so. Shouting could be heard from atop the wall as the gate was raised, and Tilda wasted no time waltzing inside with the rest of them in tow.

The central courtyard of the prison seemed nearly abandoned, just the occasional guard crossing from one section of the prison to another. As Tilda had told the guards at the gate, they made a beeline for solitary confinement. A single guard on duty to the entrance just waved them in when he got a good look at Holgith, and they were let into a squat building. Ballan wondered why it was so small, when he realized it was just a glorified stairwell. The solitary cells were at the very bottom. Once they were down there, and the anti-magic field was disabled, the rescue operation could begin.

They walked silently down the stone staircase. Ten... twenty... fifty feet. At somewhere around one-hundred feet, Ballan shuddered as he continued to feel the poignant ache of the anti-magic zone.

"Alright, Krakkus should be just one level above solitary." Tilda whispered when they were alone.

"How do you know that?" Kahya asked, and Tilda produced a heretofore unseen piece of paper.

"Prison manifest." She explained. "Swiped it off the guard at the door up there, too busy staring at Holgith." She pointed at the map. "Says he's being held in the 'interrogation cells'. He should be the only one down there, if the manifest is correct."

Suddenly, Ballan felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. His magic was back.

"It's time." Was all he said, and began casting an invisibility spell. Tilda undid Holgith's chains and threw them into an empty cell, while Kahya tore off the sleeves of her uniform to make herself more mobile.

"This way." Tilda hissed, and they followed the sound of her feet as she dashed down the hall. As they did, they began to hear shouting from all around. The prisoners had realized their magic had returned. Almost immediately, an alarm sounded. Now, it was do or die.

Tilda was in the lead, ostensibly dodging guards and escaping inmates. Cells flew open, scorched by flame and frozen by ice. Some just opened on their own. The guards, wisely, were retreating. They needed to get to the interrogation cells before a full-blown war broke out.

Fortunately, Holgith's idea of stealth was to simply run over anyone who got in his way. Ballan and Kahya just hurdled the many groaning prone.

Eventually they found another set of stairs labelled "Interrogation", and they rushed down, leaving the sounds of spellcraft and battle behind. In the interrogation cells, all was quiet.

"Krakkus!" Tilda shouted, speeding down to the end of the hall. This was answered by the sound of a heavy iron door rattling.

"Tilda!" Krakkus called out, and they soon found themselves standing in front of Krakkus himself. He had orange-ish red skin, and a prominent, green frill that crested his head. His time in prison had caused him to thin out a bit, but he still had the build of a powerful fighter. "You beautiful thing, I knew you'd come for me."

"Always." Tilda told him. "Let me get this lock." She pulled out her tools, and got to work. Ballan watched from a distance, stepping back.

Suddenly, he felt a bony hand around his throat.

"Long time no see boy." A terrifyingly familiar voice chirped in his ear. Ballan saw the green glow of witchlight out of the corner of his eyes, and glanced at the black talons around his neck. "Drop the invisibility spell or I'll rip out your throat."

Everyone else had whirled around, but froze as soon they realized Kills-the-joke had Ballan by the neck.

"Now, you - halfling. Slide me a pick, and a shim." Slowly, with no sudden movement, Tilda produced the two objects he requested. As she walked over to the cell. Kills-the-joke tightened his grip on Ballan's neck. "I said slide."

She did as she was told. The two metal tools slid under his cage. He immediately released Ballan, stowed the tools, and walked to the back of his cell to... curl up and sleep? Wheezing, Ballan backed away from the cell. Tilda seemed angry, but she turned to continue work on Krakkus' lock. Eventually, it opened, and he stumbled into freedom.

"Tilda!" He placed his large, scaly hands on the halfling's cheeks. "Ballan." When he put his strong hand on Ballan's shoulder, he felt a small surge of warm healing magic, soothing his bruised throat. Krakkus nodded at Kahya and Holgith both. "We will get acquainted later."

He strode up to Kills-the-Jokes cell.

"That was an unkindness." He admonished the murderous pirate.

"It was less kind when the kid got me thrown in here." Kills-the-Joke replied lazily, pointing at Ballan.

"Holgith remembers thrashing you to unconsciousness." Holgith pointed out. Kill's-the-Joke didn't say anything. Neither did Krakkus. He simply removed a stone from his raggedy pocket. It was a simple thing, with something carved on it that Ballan couldn't quite make out. He tossed it into the cell.

"Good luck, my feathered friend." Krakkus told him grimly.

"I won't need it." Kills-the-Joke said, and turned away from them.

"We need to leave." Kahya insisted, followed by a chorus of nods.

Ballan reinstated the invisibility spell, and they made their way back up through the cell-blocks. It was carnage. Inmates had turned on each other almost as soon as they had turned on the guards. Fortunately, it seemed most of the fighting had spilled outside, and they were able to make it back to the central courtyard with no mishaps.

"I need my blade and armor." Krakkus stated swiftly above the bedlam.

"Inventory." Tilda replied immediately. "Kahya, run a message to boots - We've got Krakkus but need an exit strategy."

"Understood." Kahya replied, and the sound of her rapid footsteps vanished into the din.

"Holgith, Ballan, Krakkus - we're going left. Krakkus, pick me up so you don't crush me." Though they were invisible, the mental image of Krakkus holding Tilda like a child almost made Ballan chuckle.

As they rushed towards the inventory, a voice boomed over the din.

"RAISE CANNONS!"

They paused outside the door of the inventory as the sound of moving platforms and rattling chains could be heard. All along the wall, enormous cannons - meant to kill horrors - began appearing.

They were not pointed at the wastes, however, when they locked into place.

"Inside!" Ballan commanded, and they all ducked into the inventory at the same time the authoritative voice yelled.

"FIRE!"

A din of grapeshot filled the courtyard. Then silence. Ballan's stomach turned.

"The Warden has much to answer for." Krakkus growled, stalking into the storeroom. Ballan dropped the invisibility spell for the time being, to conserve mana.

It did not take Krakkus long to find his belongings. "Ballan - assist me with this armor, please." Ballan walked over and did as he was told. Holgith paced nervously by the door, but soon located a loose maul and began hefting it experimentally. They had left his signature axe back at the inn.

As Ballan helped with the straps on Krakkus' armor, the Sauronid's eyes were closed. He was holding his Greatsword, his head bowed. Ballan knew he was a paladin. A holy warrior who worshiped the Sun God of his homeland. It must be some sort of ritual.

When they finally got the armor on him, he opened his eyes, which now glowed bright gold.

"My oath is renewed!" He exclaimed. "And now - there must be a reckoning."

Without another word, Krakkus strode out into the courtyard, in full view.

"Ugh, Krakkus!" Tilda hissed, though she did not try to stop him. Ballan had never seen Tilda look so worried, and to be honest, Ballan had his doubts about this as well.

But they'd never been able to talk Krakkus down from a "reckoning".

"Holgith likes the sound of this 'reckoning'. Holgith goes and helps."

And he walked out into the courtyard as well. Ballan and Tilda watched from inside the inventory, trying not to notice all the bodies torn apart by cannon fire.

Krakkus stood defiantly in the middle of the courtyard, his silver armor gleaming in the noonday sun.

"DEEPBURROW!" Krakkus roared - and it was a roar, all power and rancor. "FACE ME OR BE KNOWN FOR THE COWARD YOU ARE!" Ballan blinked. Warden Deepburrow, the dwarven general who ran the prison? Ballan had heard nothing good about the man, but why was Krakkus specifically targeting him for this "reckoning"?

Ballan didn't really understand paladins.

Holgith stood beside Krakkus, brandishing the maul. Krakkus glanced at him, they both shared a nod, and then Krakkus breathed in to shout again. However, a different voice called down from the wall.

"AIM CANNONS!" Every cannon on the wall shifted to point directly at Krakkus and Holgith. Krakkus stood up straight, and held his blade aloft.

It began to glow with the same golden light.

"FIRE!"

Tilda and Ballan ducked, as grapeshot ricocheted around the courtyard. When they peered back outside... it was like nothing had happened. Holgith and Krakkus were entirely unharmed. A paladin's divine protection...

"KILL THEM!" Came the authoritative voice from the wall, and the guards began to swarm the courtyard. Ballan moved to help, but Tilda grabbed his arm.

"Ballan, you and me?" She gestured between them. "We're not warriors, and that out there is a war."

Ballan glanced out the window. Krakkus and Holgith were holding their own. Krakkus was all grim determination, but Holgith seemed to be enjoying himself. In fact, he roared in delight as he grabbed a dwarf by the ankle and swung him around so hard he went flying over the battlements. A barbarian's rage...

The sound of a flintlock cocking behind them caused them both to freeze. Slowly, they turned around.

They were staring at a surly dwarf, with long, greasy hair and an equally long beard. He wore a prison uniform, but there was no mistaking the heraldry. This was Warden Deepburrow.

"So, you're the sneak-thief and hedge-witch wots thrown my whole prison into disarray." The dwarf drawled. "Though if'n I had to guess, you're the little haflin' Malcolm's been looking for. So, tell you what -" He pointed the gun at Ballan's forehead. "Tell me where the crystal is, and I won't shoot yer friend."

Ballan did not enjoy having guns pointed at him, and cringed a bit, but didn't move. Tilda opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly, every window in the building slammed shut, with only a few hanging lanterns providing any light. Deepburrow swore, and Ballan ducked instinctively, which saved his life as the pistol fired mere moments later. He hit the ground, and heard the sound of Tilda scattering. Vying for an advantage.

Then, the lanterns started going out, one at a time.

Suddenly a single green light appeared near the ceiling of the room.

"Warden..." came a sibilant voice. "I've got a joke for you."

"Blasted pirate..." Deepburrow swore from somewhere else in the inventory. The din of battle from outside was distanced and deafened. Ballan's heart was nearly beating out of his chest. Another gunshot startled him, though it sounded like it missed.

"What was the dwarf's biggest fear?" The voice asked again.

"DIE, D-" His words were cut off by a wet choke. The greenlight never moved. Somewhere nearby, Deepburrow struggled to breathe - but that was ended abruptly by a cracking sound. The green light floated down from the ceiling, and rested once more in Kills-the-Jokes face.

And Ballan realized the Kurkrai was staring right at him.

"I... knew you." Kills-the-Joke muttered, before the light in his eye went out. The windows opened, and the lanterns re-lit themselves. Ballan stood up gingerly, looking around. No sign of Tilda or Kills-the-Joke.

"That bird is terrifying." Tilda said quietly from directly behind him. "Did you really beat him?"

"Like Holgith said - it was mostly him." Ballan deflected.

"What did he mean by that?" Tilda asked. "He said he knew you."

Ballan sighed, and shook his head. He... almost felt like he understood what Kills-the-Joke had meant by that in the moment. But now it eluded him.

He and Tilda went back to the windows to see how the battle in the courtyard had gone, and it seemed as though most of the guards retreated or were dispatched. Holgith roared at the sky, while Krakkus, solemnly, cleaned his blade. At the same moment, Boots descended from the sky on his flying carpet, alongside Kahya.

"Quickly now!" He called. "I don't want to get into much more trouble than I am!"

Ballan and Tilda rushed outside. Once everyone was on the carpet, Boots whipped it into the air, and they were finally home free.