Chapter 11

Kelgar returned to the cluster of towers that had been dubbed the 'Hell Hole' by the villagers. He made his way down the halls of the leftmost tower, murmuring greetings to other guards that he had made acquaintances with. Unlocking and opening a large door, he slipped inside. After checking to see that the room was devoid of other guards, he quickly relocked the door behind him, restricting access from anyone on the outside.

No one had bothered to return Cain to his cell; he hadn't even been unchained from the wall. Kelgar felt a bit of guilt; the red-haired man's body wrists were straining against the cuffs, his head hanging pitifully towards the ground. Some blood still dripped from his untreated wounds, and the wall and floor around him were stained a dark maroon. Approaching the prisoner, Kelgar held him against the wall to keep him from slipping as he undid the bindings. Lowering him gently to the ground, the guard knelt down to be eye-level with Cain.

Cain's chest rose and fell slowly, and his eyes began to flutter open. Rubbing his tender wrists, he winced at first as he leaned against the wall, but soon the cold cement began to soothe his heated skin, and he relaxed. His body was numb, and he had no complaint about that fact. He would rather feel nothing than the endless stream of pain that him writhing for the past few days. Suddenly noticing the guard's presence, Cain's stomach dropped. Come to finish the job? Just make it quick.

"Are you okay?" Kelgar asked, genuine concern showing on his face. He pulled an old cloth from his belt and wiped Cain's face, clearing away the blood and grime.

Cain flinched as the cloth came near, but allowed the guard to run it over his face. Not immediately processing the words properly, he stared at Kelgar in confusion for a moment. He then slowly nodded, but his expression stayed the same. "Who…" He had to take a moment to gather enough breath to speak. "Who are you?"

"Call me Kel," he answered simply. "It's okay, I'm here to help you." From underneath his guard's jacket he pulled a bundle of bandages wrapped in cloth. He began to clumsily treat Cain's wounds, wrapping the bandages around his torso to absorb the blood. As he placed pressure on the worst spots, Cain winced, clenching his teeth. "Ah, sorry," Kelgar murmured. "My sister was the healer of the family, not me."

Cain continued to stare at Kelgar as he worked, suspicion lingering in his eyes. "Why are you doing this?" Studying the guard, Cain thought he recognized him from somewhere, but he couldn't place it; his tall build and dark purple hair were strikingly familiar.

"I've got my reasons," Kelgar responded with a faint smile. "Oh, I ran into a buddy of yours. Seemed real worried about ya."

Cain's breath caught in his throat. "Who?" He demanded, shifting slightly and wincing again as he disturbed the tender wounds. His mind raced; the league was growing, it could have been anyone, but maybe…

Surprised at Cain's sudden outburst, Kelgar answered. "A green-haired fellow, he called himself Abel. Said something about seeing you real soon—"

He cut off as Cain grabbed the collar of his shirt. "You're sure?" The red-haired man had a demanding tone once again, his face hard and his eyes shining with mixed emotions. "Is this some kind of sick joke?"

Kelgar grabbed Cain's hand and pried it off his shirt collar. "What's there to joke about?"

Cain's dark eyes stared hard at Kelgar and tried to find signs of lies, but the guard seemed to be telling the truth His heart pounded loudly in his head, and he closed his eyes as he leaned his head back against the wall. "Abel's alive," he breathed; his best friend, his partner, was alive and well, and looking for him. Relief flooded through his body as tears pricked at the corner of his eyes.

A harsh pounding on the door ripped Cain out of his thoughts, and Kelgar cursed under his breath. "Shit! I didn't think they'd be back for you so soon." Jumping to his feet, he dashed over to the door to unlock it. He calmed his features, and his expression was borderline apathetic as he yanked open the door. "What?"

A couple of guards shoved themselves through the doorway. "Orders to take the prisoner back to the cell," one of them mumbled. "What were you doing?"

"Just, uh… interrogating," Kelgar lied, casting a glance over towards Cain as the guards yanked him to his feet. "Uselessly, though." The guard shrugged, not really caring; he'd only asked out of formality.

Kelgar felt a stab of pity as he watched the men drag Cain away, giving him harsh shoves on the back to keep him moving. With a sigh, he slipped out of the room, closing the door tight after the last of the guards had left.


Prince Marth placed the map of the 'Hell Hole' down on a table and stared at Abel with suspicion in his ocean blue eyes. "What was this man's name, again?"

"Kel," Abel spoke earnestly, his arms outstretched and his palms flat on the table as he leaned on it. "He's trustworthy, I can feel it. However…" He hesitated. "He'll only agree to help us if we can get his sister out of there, too."

"Going there would be risky," Marth pointed out. "We can't afford to draw too much attention to ourselves."

"We can't just leave Cain to die!" Abel argued in a raised voice. Calming, he lowered his voice once to a proper level. "Besides, whoever's in control of that fort already knows we've been here. They'll do what they want with that information, regardless."

Marth frowned, crossing his arms and placing one hand on his chin thoughtfully. The green-haired cavalier had a point. "What do you suggest, then? An ambush?"

Nodding, Abel pointed to a spot on the map. "Kel's said that Cain is being held in this tower, and his sister in this one." He moved his finger to an adjacent spot. "If he leads us directly to them, it won't take long at all. We've got the element of surprise; in the chaos it'll be easy to break them out."

With a short sigh, Marth looked at the map again. The entire plan would relied on being able to trust a man that he'd never even seen. Still, he trusted Abel's intuition, and they didn't have another choice. Raising his eyes to meet Abel's, he nodded. "We'll act as soon as we can."


Abel leaned against the side of the tavern that he had met Kelgar in the first time, crossing his arms and subtly blending in. His green eyes watched the bustling streets as he waited for the guard to show. They had met again the day before, and Kelgar was willing to go along with the plan. All Abel needed now was for him to show up, and they could proceed, but he was running late. Frowning, Abel shifted slightly, growing a bit nervous.

Finally, Kelgar appeared, darting through the street as he narrowly avoided the villagers. He hurriedly approached Abel, mumbled an apology for being late, and then yanked a note out from underneath his coat and practically shoved it at the other man.

Abel grabbed the note, and his face paled as he read the words that were written in large, bold font.

EXECUTION: TODAY AT HIGH NOON

OPEN TO PUBLIC

"T-this means—" Abel stammered out a couple words, but Kelgar interrupted.

"Look buddy, if we're getting your friend and my sister out of there we need to do it now."

Nodding quickly, Abel forced his panic to subside. They could still rescue Cain; it wasn't too late, not yet, but they'd need to hurry. He began to run back to where the horses were stationed, with Kelgar following close behind him.


Cain sat cross-legged on the floor of his cell, holding his head in his hands and staring at the ground. His worth to the guards had been used up, and his hanging was scheduled for noon. Without even a window to see the sun, he had no idea what time it was; they could come to collect him at any moment.

He heaved a heavy sigh, and felt his body shudder with protest at even the smallest movement. His beaten body felt weak, and the dried blood stained some of his skin a disgusting dark maroon.

A short and morose laugh spilled from his lips suddenly. I was so close to being with you again, Abel, he thought bitterly. To know that you are alive, but not able to even see you… How cruel.

The door to his cell slammed open, but Cain didn't jump; he didn't even look up. Guards flanked him on either side and yanked him up on his feet; his aching body had gone numb, and he didn't flinch even as the wounds were disturbed. The guard directly in front of him slapped him hard across the face, as if to check and make sure he was even awake. "It's time."

Cain's head moved with the slap, but he didn't cry out. He took a breath and raised his tired eyes to meet those of the guard's. "Let's get this over with." I'm ready.