Chapter 10:
The Shrouded Island
The island seemed to appear out of the mist, green and gray and rugged against the calm blue-gray ocean. Only the water lapping against the side of the ship and the lonely cry of a gull could be heard, as if the island wasn't really there at all, only an illusion of the fog.
The Blades gathered on deck, shivering in the cool morning. All were armed and armored, ready to make landfall and finish what they had come to do. Brynn sat on the ship's rail facing her companions, a serious look in her eyes.
"So, here's the deal," she said, "we're not here to kill anyone, just to get Master Touga's betrothed out, so try to knock people out, not cut them into little pieces or fry them with fireballs. They're all just trying to do their jobs." She jumped down from the rail and continued, "I want Nalia, Aerie, and Dynaheir to wait with Jan in the subma… submer…
"Submarine," Jan supplied.
"Yeah, that thing," Brynn said. "The less people we have running around the better, but we may need you for back up, and we're going to want to get going as quick as we can on the way out. The rest of you will be coming onto land with me. I want Minsc to be up front with Yoshimo and Touga. Yoshimo, traps are your thing, make sure neither of them trip any. Master, you of course will be looking for your betrothed, you're the only one of us who's ever seen her before. Behind them will be Khalid, Jaheira, Anomen and myself. Please try not to let your armor clank too loudly. Last, but not least, will be Imoen and Haer'Dalis. You guys are the rearguard; keep an eye out for anything suspicious." She stopped and thought for a moment. "That covers it I guess. Except to say that, Saemon," she turned to the captain with a crooked grin, "I have the map to that pirate cove on me, and you won't get paid if I don't get out of here, so sit tight."
"You wound me, Brynn," Saemon said dramatically.
"I also know you," Brynn replied flatly. "No funny business mister." She turned back to the Blades. "So, that's it. Jan, pull out that… submarine of yours, and let's get to it."
Jan did as Brynn asked and produced the model sub. Then he said the phrase to invoke its magic (turnips are not orange, carrots are) and threw the sub in the water before it crushed him. Minsc jumped down and opened up the hatch, and all the Blades piled in and the submarine sank below the waves.
***
The trip into the island was short and unpleasant. Unpleasant because the sub was very small, and there were many people crammed into it, and also because Jan was driving and he had no qualms about showing off the sub's maneuvering capabilities.
"Enough!" Touga said after a steep dive sent him hurtling toward the bow of the sub for the second time. "I have had enough! This is no game, gnome, either guide this hideous creation of yours smoothly or face my blade!" He put his hand on the hilt of his katana just to show how serious he was.
Jan gave a sigh of vexation, but promptly leveled the sub out. "You're no fun," he accused under his breath. "Stuffy old man!"
The harrowing ride ended in a small cove. It was just large enough to hide the sub, and tall cliffs boxed it in on three sides. At the back was a small sandy beach that led out into the cool water. The bottom dropped sharply not more than five feet from the shore. Jan stopped snug against the edge of the drop off and just deep enough that the hatch at the top only showed an inch above the water.
The Blades opened the hatch and all that were going ashore leapt off the sub. For the most part they landing not more than a foot from the shore, except Minsc, whose tremendous jump put him well onto the dry sand. He waited their while the rest slogged ashore and shook water out of their boots.
As soon as that was done Imoen went up to the back of the beach and cast a spell. Then she took a coil of rope that Brynn had brought along, slung it over her shoulder and climbed like a spider up the rock face. She disappeared for a moment over the top of the cliff, and then the end of the rope came down, uncoiling as it went. Imoen appeared again at the top of the cliff and signaled the okay, and then the others climbed up the rope and joined her. Once everyone was up, Imoen loosed the rope from the tree she had tied it too and hid it carefully in the brush nearby.
Brynn waved the group close and said to them, "So far it's as planned. Minsc, Yoshimo, Master Touga, you guys go ahead like I said earlier and the rest of us will follow a bit behind. Give the signal if there's something fishy up ahead."
"We will have it well in hand," Touga said, "so long as neither of my two companions makes any mistakes."
Yoshimo bristled at that comment, but Brynn laid a hand gently on his arm to calm him. "I don't think that will be a problem, Master, she said."
So the three of them moved quietly into the dense, misty, pine forest and after a moment the others followed, making sure to keep the lead three in sight, but staying far enough back so as not to catch any attention. The conversation, held in quiet whispers, of Minsc, Touga and Yoshimo, failed to reach the others, and was lost in the fog.
"I hope your egotism does not mean failure for us, old man," Yoshimo hissed quietly as he moved across the pine needle-covered ground as silently as an owl flies.
"Silence that filthy, tongue of yours, thief," Touga shot back. His steps made more noise than the two men that preceded him, but the quiet crackling and crunching of pine needles was almost imperceptible even so. "I do not need you hated voice clouding up my thoughts."
Yoshimo gave a contemptuous snort.
"One day I will return your insults with cold steel," Touga promised.
"And I will meet them with the same," Yoshimo returned.
Ahead of them Minsc halted.
"Is something wrong?" Touga asked.
Minsc turned about. "No," he said in a whisper. "But you should know that if you keep fighting I will gag you both and hang you in a tree where you won't make trouble."
The bickering ceased with remarkable alacrity.
***
At last the bamboo parted and between the leaves a simple building could be seen. It was mostly made of wood-and-rice-paper panels, with a wide veranda at the front and right covered over by a thatch roof. Three men and a woman sat within the shade of the veranda, chatting quietly as they enjoyed their morning meal.
"Michigawa-san has been very short with me recently," said one of the men. "I think I offended him somehow."
The woman shook her head. "No, I don't think that's it. I heard he's been having problems with his… peerless parts."
The man raised an eyebrow. "How would you know that, eh?"
"My handmaid heard it from Michigawa-san's concubine," the woman replied. "He's liable to be short with anyone, but I'm not worried. Either this will pass and his pillowing will improve, or he will learn to live with it, as all old men do."
"The two of you are disgraceful," said one of the other men. He brought a sliver of baked fish to his lips with his chopsticks and paused to chew and swallow before adding, "You are like two old women."
"Bah," said the third man, "you're just angry because he's your brother and you have to defend him. You think he's as much of a pain as we do."
The second man frowned furiously and attended to his breakfast.
Yoshimo, Minsc and Touga backed quietly away from the scene and met up with the rest of the group to discuss the situation.
Brynn waved to them as they approached and motioned for them to come close. "What's the situation?" she whispered as soon as they were near.
"It looks as if we have come upon one of the outlying guard houses," Touga said. "There are three guards only; I am sure we could remove them without any noise."
Brynn shook her head. "We go around. Like I said before, the less blood the better."
"Then we leave enemies at our backs," Touga pointed out.
"If we do this right, we won't have to worry about that."
Touga frowned. "True."
"So then, here's how we're going to deal with this," Brynn said, addressing the entire group in a low whisper. "We'll skirt the edge of the clearing and see if we can't find a way to slip past the watch. I assume that the three that Minsc, Yoshimo and Touga saw weren't the only guards they have, there must be a patrol or something, so keep up the sneaking."
***
They continued on as before and moved slowly and quietly around the perimeter of the prison area. The prison, they soon found out, was wedged up against a tall cliff which prevented escape from three sides; the numerous guards prevented anyone from getting out on the fourth. The cliff and guards also prevented the Blades from getting in.
"Huh," Imoen said, leaning up against the cliff face as the others paused to consider their options. "Inconveniently effective isn't it?"
There were nods of agreement all around.
"Still," she mused, "there's no such thing as a prison that can't be broken out of, right?"
Yoshimo looked at her. "I would not say that. The last I knew no one had ever escaped from the vile island."
"But no one who tried before ever had us on their side," Brynn pointed out. "Between the lot of us we've got more oomph than this place's ever seen. Try to be optimistic, love."
"Pardon, but this place is something every man and woman in Wa fears," Yoshimo said. "Most criminals and those who have otherwise offended the powers that be are put to death, or at least allowed to commit seppuku, but here…" he shook his head, "here they are cursed with life and are kept isolated from even their fellow prisoners. It drives them mad."
"A s…s…pine ch…chilling thought," Khalid remarked.
"Well, well, Yoshimo," Haer'Dalis commented, "That is a touch too dreary even for me! We will have to see if we cannot liven things up a bit."
Suddenly, Minsc held up one of his hands and put a finger to his lips. "Shh," he whispered. "Boo hears footsie-steps."
Everyone fell silent at once and hid as best they could. A man clad in armor came near, searching the forest and brush. "Damn prisoners," he muttered to himself, "every once and while one of them tries to escape, and it's always a pain to catch them again! Eh… what's this?" He stooped down and examined the ground. "Footprints here… leading off this way… and this way… and this way… there's over a half dozen here." He straightened up. "I know that only one prisoner escaped… now who could these prints belong to?" He followed the set of prints belonging to Anomen to near where the knight was trying desperately to hide. "Come on out you!" the guard called.
Anomen did come out of hiding, but with his mace drawn. The guard stood in shocked surprise for a second, not expecting to see an Eastern Barbarian emerge from the bushes. Taking advantage of that second, Anomen clubbed him over the head with his mace, dropping him to the ground.
The other blades came out of hiding.
"Well, when he wakes up, he's going to have some stories to tell," Imoen commented dryly.
"Yeah," Brynn agreed. "I wish we'd brought some rope or something to tie him up with, but I guess as things are we'll just have to leave him in the bushes and hope no one notices that he's missing until after we're done."
"Fat chance," Jaheira remarked. "We will have to hurry now. Time is no longer on our side."
Brynn smiled wryly. "Was it ever? What do you suggest?"
"I suggest," Jaheira said, a little surprised that Brynn had asked, "that we split into two groups. That way we will cover ground more quickly."
"Good idea," Brynn said. "I was thinking pretty much the same thing. I'll go with Master Touga, Minsc and Yoshimo around to the left, and you lead the others in searching this area."
"How will we know which is Touga's betrothed?" Imoen asked.
"Ask, I guess. What's her name, Master?"
"Hanazawa Yukiko," Touga said.
"That sound good?" Brynn asked.
"It is a good plan," Jaheira agreed.
Brynn said, "Thanks. We'll meet you back at the submarine." She waved briefly and signaled her group to follow her back the way they had come.