Suddenly the world came out of the darkness as Imrahil slowly opened his eyes. The air smelled musty as he looked directly up at a ceiling that seemed to be made of half-rotted wood. What kind of shack am I in?, Imrahil thought in a stupor. Bewildered, he scanned the right wall of the small shack unitl he noticed three desperate faces staring back at him.
"Ahh!" Imrahil shouted as he scurried back.
"I don't think the sleep dart's effects have worn off quite yet," Mathil said with a worried glance toward Dwafelt and Abigail.
"We could try to splash some water on his face?" Abigail wondered aloud with a shrug.
"Where am I?! Who are you? You'll be behind iron bars for this!" the prince shouted half out of it.
"I got an idea," Dwafelt said with a grin and a sparkle in his eye before giving the prince a loud slap across the face.
"Snap out of it, laddie; this is embarrassing, even for the likes of you, Imrahil," Dwafelt chided.
Coming to his senses, Imrahil tried to regain some dignity, "I needed that; thank you, Dwafelt, but you still haven't answered my question; what am I doing here?
"Do you not remember anything that happened?" Abigail said with a look of disbelief."
"Well, he was repeatedly stabbed with sleep darts," Mathil commented.
At the mention of sleep darts, the memory of the assassin and of seeing Idro being taken prisoner filled his mind.
"Wait...where's Idro… where is Idro my brother? Where is - hmmm" Imrahil shouted before Dwafelt covered his mouth. As they heard a people walking outside the house.
"Listen, one more incident like that, and we'll have to knock you out. Will you settle down for a minute and listen?", Dwafelt said sternly, shaming the hysteria right out of the prince. Imrahil slowly nodded with the dwarf's hand still clasped over his mouth.
"The assassin took your brother, and we have two days to bring you to the family cottage for an exchange: you for your brother.", Imrahil's eyes widened. "Now we are not going to let her take you, even though it's tempting, but we do need to get you there so that we can rescue Idro."
Imrahil's eyes softened but then hardened with an enraged fury that caused Dwafelt to unclasp the man's mouth and take a cautious step away from the prince.
"Then let's get him back," Imrahil said determinedly, but it came out as barking an order.
After an awkward silence, Dwafelt said defensively, "We will get to that, but you haven't heard the whole story yet. The city is in lockdown." Dwafelt paused to let this news sink in.
Taking a deep breath, Imrahil asked calmly, "Is the city under attack, are the people in danger?"
"Yes!" Abigail said, exasperated. "The Guild has taken over the palace, claiming that you have been forcing them to raise taxes on the people and then secretly paying the Umbarians off with the revenues. They announced that their guards were assailed and maimed when they caught you in the middle of a deal with an Umbar assassin. They also said that your brother, who was facilitating the sale, was killed in the scuffle. And...
Way to tell it to him easy, " Dwafelt scolded.
"Well, someone has to tell him," Abigail said while rolling her eyes. "Anyway, we have also been framed as co-conspirators, as well as the swan knights who were locked up before they could defend themselves. I think the bankers wanted to make you disappear to take control of the kingdom, but they have settled on vilifying you instead.", Abigail said as she winced.
"And the people believed them?", Imrahil asked dumbfoundedly.
"Well, the people haven't seen you since you became prince and haven't been standing up for them. Even those who still support you don't know if you will support them in return", Mathil said as he looked at his shoes. "They are afraid to fight back." Mathil finished matter-of-factly as he examined the prince in the eyes.
The prince couldn't think of anything to say in reply.
"Now, prince, what is your plan?", Dwafelt asked.
Before the prince could answer, there came a knock at the door.
...
Why did I have to involve those stupid guards ... Saphira, you should know better after what happened with trusting the fisherman in Dale, she scolded silently to herself. Dalamir will be wondering why I have a half-blood instead of the prince, and he will likely send me back to Umbar for grueling training...or something worse, Saphira shuddered. Although her master had been like a stern father, she did not know how he would react if she failed on a vital mission such as this one. Will I find a knife instead of a lesson?
The sun sparkled off the water as Saphirra pushed that image out of her mind and plotted her next move, interrupted by her new snoring prisoner. She had incurred a recent onslaught of snores after using her last sleep dart. Staying within an arrow shot of the shore, Saphira quickly made her way to a deserted place a few miles from the city, the agreed-upon spot where the bankers would be rewarded for their loyalty. Rounding a bend, she came to the site: a rocky shore surrounded by a forest filled with men and women who bore the tattoo of the guild's crest on their foreheads. Thirty hungry sets of eyes seemed to stare at her prisoner as she quickly docked before stepping onto the shore.
The head of the guild, Elam, cautiously approached the Hȃsharin and stated in a rattling voice, "We have kept our part of Dalamir's arrangement; he has funded us well in the past and promised a magnificent reward once our task was complete."
Saphria stared at him before speaking. "Because of your inexperienced guards, the prince was rescued by a dwarf, a boy, a street girl, and a man. The man I have with me, but if you want to keep your heads, obey my instructions to the letter."
Elam gave a nervous chuckle before stating, "As Dalamir's representative, are you not responsible for the combat part of this arrangement?" Saphira's eyes flashed with fury, and she stepped forward as a predator stalking her prey. Elam took a few steps back with wide eyes before composing himself. He quickly glanced at her captive before raising his eyebrows, "Apologies, assassin, I meant no disrespect. That man is Idro, Imrahil's dirty-half-blood-adopted brother". Another banker spat in the boat's direction.
Taking a deep breath, Saphira's eyes softened before sparking with interest. "We will stick with the plan to ruin the prince's reputation, but we will go further and issue a warrant for his arrest, along with his companions. Keep your story the same but add that the prince's brother connected the prince with the Umbrian traders. Also, add that the Dwarf, street girl, and the owner of the Sailing Smithery assisted the prince along with this half-blood, who was killed in the scuffle. Once this is done, my master will meet you personally with your reward."
"Yes, Hȃsharin," Elam said with a smile.
With a dismissive wave, she turned her back on them. Leaping back into the boat, she started rowing toward her rendezvous with the other Hȃsharin and her master. As the bankers departed, a cloaked figure behind a tree quickly slipped into the forest heading towards the city.
…..
Slowly Idro opened his eyes as the sleep dart's effects wore off. What he saw took him aback: the eyes of an assassin curiously examining him. Suddenly the fight at the private dock came flooding back to him, as well as his comrades' shocked faces as his captor told them to give the prince to her at the cottage in exchange for his freedom.
I can't let my brother get captured again!, Idro thought as he hardened his face towards the assassin.
Suddenly, she gave him the oars and the calm but stern command, "Row."
Idro, seeing no way to escape a boat in the middle of the sea, reluctantly complied. They sat in silence except for the sound of the oars pushing them along. They rowed this way for hours, with the assassin giving occasional directions to ease the boat back on course when it wandered off course, although Idro hadn't a clue how the assassin could keep track of where they were.
Saphira thought to herself, I guess this is an excellent opportunity as any to try to manipulate the emotions of my opponent. But I don't know anything about this man, except that he is the adopted brother of the prince. Better let him break the silence first, as he might give me something useful to exploit. Simultaneously, Idro started working out a plan:
If I can find some common ground with her, maybe, just maybe, I can catch her off guard.
"Are you Umbarian?" Idro asked in the most curious tone he could muster.
Interesting, Saphira thought, but she would need more to work with, so she did not reply.
"Because I am from Umbar, or at least that is what everyone tells me at Dol-Amroth. I was adopted by the royal family after the Lord of Lossnarch found me in a forest during one of his hunting games."
Tragic, but still not enough. … need to wait a little more, Saphira told herself.
Idro anxiously thought, I must connect with her for Imrahil's sake. He made one final attempt, "I wish I knew my real family. I remember, only faintly, my mother as we were around a campfire."
Saphira was hit with a memory she hadn't thought of in years … the last happy memory of her family. She wanted to move past it, stuff it down in the fear it would cause her emotions to break through her calm demeanor as a rushing river breaks through a broken damn. But…she needed something to exploit, and this was the meatiest thing the man had said thus far.
Surprise him, Saphira told herself as she said, "I lost my family too; the worst part is being unable to do anything to stop it … or the painful memories that haunt you".
Idro thought, Am I making headway? This might be my only chance to catch her with her guard down - I need to make the most of it. Pushing further, he asked, "Did you know your parents? What were they like?"
At first, silence. Then just as Idro was about to drop the question, she replied, forcing herself not to change the subject, "They were probably like yours, victims in forces beyond their control. You know, being a half-blood is a heavy burden to bear, I hear. Everyone suspects ill of you, and just when you think you had people you could rely on, your brother - Idro tensed at the mention of Imrahil - stabs you in the back by agreeing with everyone else… that you are not worthy of living among the nobles, you are only a half-blood."
In his mind, Idro recoiled; how dare she insult my brother. It was a moment of frustration and wounded pride, that is all. When the rubber meets the road, he has my back. But after a few minutes of silence, he shivered as he thought, or does he?
Saphira grinned as she saw the man's shoulders slump forward.