Feliks and Toris approached the castle, its booming presence seen even in the darkening twilight. The grand building reached up to the sky with pointed spires, a square of torchlight visible inside. The wrought iron gates leading to the castle were stationed almost right next to the currently empty plaza, allowing those inside the structure to look out on the everyday tasks of the people.
Two guards stood in front of the gate, tall spears held loosely in their grasps. They were more for intimidation than for actual combat; the swords on their belts were their true weapons of choice.
Feliks, who had been walking next to Toris, slowed down and shifted just enough so that he was walking behind him and a little to his right. The brunette didn't question his friend's action; Feliks didn't know any of the other knights particularly well and, though he was extremely talkative and carefree with those he did know, he tended to stay quiet around the ones he considered strangers. An unbidden nervousness had him naturally hiding back behind Toris, using him as a sort of buffer between them. The fact that they had a secret didn't help his anxiety.
Toris remained calmer, or at least forced himself to appear so on the outside. While he put on a friendly smile for the knights, inside he could feel his stomach twisting. He was glad he hadn't eaten since that morning.
"Hello." Toris greeted. "Do you mind if we go through?"
"Hey, Toris, Felix." The right guard returned. "Aren't you two supposed to be guarding that prisoner by the exterior jail?"
Toris barely managed to stop himself from stiffening at the question. It had been merely an inquiry, no suspicion or hostility. "Two other knights came over and took over our post."
"And told us that we needed to meet with someone in the castle." Feliks piped up, avoiding eye contact.
"Oh, okay." He accepted, moving aside and pushing open his side of the gate.
"You better be careful in there though." The second guard stated, opening his side as well.
"Why?" Toris asked.
"The king's advisor has been on an arresting spree lately. He keeps saying that it's because there are untrustworthy people plotting against him. I think he's just being paranoid." He responded.
"You'd better stay out of his sight, just in case." The other agreed.
"We'll keep that in mind." Toris reassured. With nods of farewell, the knights watched Toris and Feliks as they walked through and onto the stone path. The gates creaked closed behind them.
"Feliks," Toris began quietly. "I think that maybe you should—"
"Nuh-uh. I know what you're going to say, and no, I'm not going to let you go in alone." Feliks immediately refused.
"But you heard what they said. Only one of us has to go inside. There's no need for both of us to get in trouble if something does happen."
Feliks resolutely shook his head. "Not happening. I'm not letting you go in alone."
Toris sighed, but a small smile appeared on his face. "Alright."
Another pair of knights waited for them in front of the immense castle doors. They were much less talkative, however, and only silently moved in order to open the doors for them.
Once inside, they stopped for a moment to glance around. Well placed torches kept the vast welcome room lit, the crackling flames loud in the otherwise silent chamber. They turned to a nearby hallway and started down, remembering their way from the several times they had been called there. Every now and then they would see a guard either pacing down the hallways or standing in front of a door, and each time they would tense. However, the emblems on their chest plates seemed to satisfy the men enough to let them pass without question.
Finally, after several minutes, they ascended a staircase and approached the advisor's office door. To their surprise and relief, there was no one up there at the time, but they moved quickly as they knew it wouldn't take long for that to change. Toris opened the door and glanced down the halls one more time before slipping inside, Feliks following closely behind.
Inside candles burned on a solid wood desk, illuminating the papers scattered across it. Bookcases lined two sides of the room while the remaining wall had a curtained window. A spacious wardrobe was tucked into the corner.
Feliks closed the door and, without a word, they started looking at the documents on the desk. They ended up to be nothing important, just some financial notes and business charts. Toris turned to a bookshelf while Feliks headed over to the wardrobe.
The blonde attempted to pull open the doors but found them locked.
"Hey, Feliks. I found a key behind these books." Toris informed, holding up a small brass key.
"Like, good job! That's exactly what I needed." Feliks snatched the key out of his hand and stuffed it into the wardrobe's lock. When he turned it something inside gave a satisfying click. With a grin of triumph, he swung open the doors.
Inside, sitting on wide shelves were several more stacks of papers joined by small pouches and various odd objects. Feliks picked up one of the bags and shook it, hearing something jangle inside. Coins. He put it back and kept searching until he came across a small wooden box. To his disappointment, nothing other than a medallion laid inside, so he closed it and moved it out of his way. Behind where it had been he noticed a paper shaped sack. He pulled it out and opened it up.
Taking the first paper he grabbed, he started to read the words scrawled onto the parchment.
"Found it." Feliks announced.
"You did?" Toris questioned. He hastily shoved all of the books he had removed back in their place before joining him. The blonde handed him the paper, which he took and skimmed over.
"It's a deal between the advisor and a mercenary…" Toris mumbled.
Feliks nodded. "Yeah, and look at the bottom. The advisor, like, even wrote down some stuff that he's going to do to help him after the king's gone."
"There's no doubt about it. Vash was right. We'd better take this with us." Toris stated. He folded the paper up and put it in his pocket.
The sound of footsteps echoing down the hallway and drifting in underneath the door made them freeze. Frantically, Toris whipped around to look out the window. It was too small for either of them to squeeze through, and even if they could, he bet that they were too high up to make it down safely.
His eyes searched the room until they landed on the spacious open wardrobe. He swiftly grabbed Feliks' shoulders and started to push him back into it. Surprised, Feliks stumbled into it backwards until he felt the shelves digging into his back. The doors closed right in front of his face, just barely able to contain his body.
"Toris!" Feliks exclaimed. He tried to press against the wood, but his arms were at an awkward angle in the small space.
"Sh. I'm sorry, but stay in here." Toris' ordered, feeling guilty about the unasked for push. He knew Feliks would rant about this later, but that wasn't what was important right now.
Just as Toris stepped away from the bookshelves the doors swung open, revealing the advisor and several guards. Fear fueled adrenaline coursed through Toris, and he had to fight the urge to reach for his sword.
"Well, well, I would say that I wasn't expecting you, but that would be a lie." The advisor, Gavin, calmly stated. He took a few steps before stopping in front of his desk, which was currently the only thing separating him from Toris.
Playing ignorant was not going to work here, so Toris warily took the bait. "You were…expecting me?"
"Not you in particular," Gavin admitted, "but I suspected that someone would barge into my office sooner or later. No doubt trying to find the best place to wait for me in ambush."
"That's not what I…" the words died in Toris' throat, his eyes widening at what he had said.
"Either way, it doesn't matter. You're in here, uninvited, and that is what I care about." Gavin continued. He turned his head to the knights waiting by the door, keeping the entrance blocked with their armored bodies. "I told you I wasn't just being paranoid. Now go get him, won't you?"
Their response was to immediately swarm into the office and surround Toris. Toris allowed his hands to be roughly pulled behind his back and his sheathed sword to be ripped away, fighting the urge to look over at the wardrobe.
"I think an example is in order. Not just to the rest of the knights, but to the city as well. Those who attack me must be made sure to not do so again. An execution sounds like just the thing, don't you agree?" Gavin rhetorically suggested.
Toris gasped. "What? But I wasn't going to—"
"You were in here and intending to harm me in some way, and that is what will be judged. Judged by me, of course. The execution will be tomorrow afternoon. Have fun with the time you have left." Gavin didn't give him a chance to speak. "Take him to the dungeons. I'm going to go inform King Conrad of this development."
The knights marched Toris out of the room. Several minutes of silence passed before Feliks dared to move. He shifted slightly, but it helped little to increase his comfort in the cramped space. Distress clawed at his heart. He had told Toris he was going to stay be his side, but he still ended up separated from him anyway! He shouldn't have let him get pushed back so easily, should have tried harder to get out… he should have…
Feliks mentally shook himself. He would have loved to succumb to the tears burning in the corners of his eyes, but that wouldn't help anybody. He wasn't just going to stay there and sulk while Toris' death was ticking closer. Warm anger replaced the sadness, pulsing through his muscles as he struggled against the door. After a few heated shoves, the door swung open. His momentum caused him to fall forward, but he thankfully managed to catch himself before he hit the ground.
The office door now open, he peeked around the entrance. No one was around. He hesitated in debate. He wanted nothing more than to follow Toris, but the only thing that would do was get him captured as well. Feliks was skilled and swift, but there was simply no way he could take down the many soldiers guarding the dungeons. But if he came back with help…
He ran down the corridor and the steps. A few guards that had seen Toris being taken glanced over or reached out to him—they were rarely seen apart, so they more than likely recognized on the alert for him as well—but he didn't stop. He kept up his dash until he burst through the castle doors, only pausing long enough for the gates to be opened for him by two puzzled knights before continuing into the growing night.
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