Redemption In The Shadows

There was a tangible tension in the room, almost stifling. It was indeed a cage, the soaring, gilded ceilings and pompous adornments of the palace's grand hall losing luster in a throbbing weight. Damien stood rooted, frozen in time, with every eye in the house upon him. Elyas smirked a razor-sharp, predator's grin as he stepped forward.

"Don't be shy, Damien," Elyas said, his voice smooth and oozing mockery. "After all, you have worked so hard to get here. Why not tell the room about it?"

Damien's gray steel gaze was locked upon the face of Elyas, racing in his mind. How could Elyas have known that he would steal his entrance into the meeting? Was there a traitor in Damien's ranks or simply Elyas ahead of him?

Beside Damien, Amara shuffled her position slightly. Those cat-sharp, blue eyes were assessing the room for the locations of the guards and exits. "Damien," she whispered under her breath so quiet, one would miss it if not straining to listen, "he is cornering you. Do not let him."

Damien drew a slow breath, making sure his expression was tranquil. "It is bold of you, Elyas, to presume I came here to talk."

The whispers of the assembled nobles and merchants reached a crescendo. Elyas raised an eyebrow, the sense of intrigue unmistakable.

"Then tell me, Damien," Elyas said with an inviting menace in voice. "What did you come here to do?"

"To end this charade," was Damien's calm response.

---

It was before Elyas could utter a word that the action took place. He deftly brought his hand to the concealed blade at his side, and in a single motion, Damien huffed it toward Elyas with the throw.

That blade went true and straight to its point but Elyas was already ready. A flick of wrist deftly denied its entry into either boy's side by a dagger hidden in the other's hand, ringing the hall with the clash of steel.

"I'm impressed," said Elyas, his smirk widening. "But predictable."

Chaos erupted. The guards drew their weapons in precision and practice movements, closing in on the room. Noble screamed and scurried for their safety while merchants too cowered behind the tables and columns, making themselves less visible.

Amara didn't pause. She dashed forward, her daggers glinting as they quietened the nearest guard with no unnecessary niceness. "Let us go, Damien!"

Carys, blending into the throng, surged toward the nearest exit and gestured for their exit. "We need to get out now!"

---

He stepped back to allow his guards to take those hits, and as he'd trained his voice to sound too calm and commanding said, "Capture them. Alive if possible, I want them to see what happens next."

Damien fought with precision, his flashing sword parrying blows and cutting down attackers. Amara moved beside him like a shadow, her blades finding their marks with deadly accuracy.

The guards moved in, pushing forward with numbers so overwhelming Damien ground his teeth as his movements would soon devolve to more desperate writhings against what was now a tide turned against them at their very own battle.

"Damien!" Amara yelled while blocking an oncoming strike. "We're outnumbered!"

"I know," Damien replied tightly. "Carys, can you secure the exit?"

"I'm trying!" Carys called back while weaving through the fray toward the exits.

---

Elyas watched them from the other side of the room, and not once did his smirk falter. He moved as though the fight were merely an inconvenience and not the slightest effort necessary to bend limbs in a more casual excuse.

"You're putting up quite a show, Damien," said Elyas with the smile twinkling at the ends of his statement, "but this is a battle you can't win. Not here. Not tonight."

His eyes burned in steel grey at the determination he held as he got nearer to Elyas. "You have underestimated me before. That was your mistake," he announced.

Elyas laughed, dodging aside a downed guard. "And maybe also did you underestimate me."

---

Amara arrived at Damien. Her daggers dripped blood. "This is a lost battle," she hissed. "We need to regroup."

Damien agrees somewhat reluctantly. "Fine. Where are we, Carys?"

"Almost there!" came the yell of Carys, finally slamming the last door open. Just after that came a narrow hallway, dimly lit yet, for now, empty of guards.

"This way!" Carys called.

Damien and Amara fought moving to exit. Their movements were synchronized as they scrambled over one another's backs.

When they reached just outside the hallway, Carys ys voice echoed back to them. "Run while you can, Damien. I'll find you again soon enough."

---

The trio sped through the corridors of the palace, winding and varied, with the sound of their tread echoing in the silences as well against the smooth stone floors. Behind them, the noise of pursuit became progressively louder, the clank of armed men resounding ever closer.

"We have to separate," Damien said, typically cool under pressure. "Regroup at the safe house."

Amara frowned. "Are you sure about this?"

"There isn't another way," Damien replied. "Together, we will be caught."

Amara hesitated, then nodded. "Fine. But don't do anything stupid."

"I'll try," Damien said, smirking slightly.

---

He split up going different ways, each making their way across the different paths of the palace maze. Damien took off fast, moving quietly for an escape and regrouping.

And then he came around a corner to be greeted by a squad of guards. They hoisted weapons, narrowed their eyes, and put the pieces together.

"There he is!" one of them shouted.

Damien hoisted his sword with an unwavering grip. "Let's make this quick."

-----

The fighting was savage. His movements were clean and clear, but the guards were everywhere and filled with hard, unyielding cracks between their blows. He parried and countered, his blade slicing clean air toward a target with deadly precision.

At last, he saw an opening, and with a high cut, he disarmed the closest guard and swung that momentum into the next one to knock him off balance.

The other guards hesitated. That gave Damien a brief advantage to slip past them and into another corridor.

-----

And above all else, Amara remained as silent and agile as a shadow through the palace. She flashed her daggers while disposing of the rare guards in her path. Purposeful, with keen eyes searching for the next escape point.

"Damien better make it out of here." Murmured the words between gritted teeth.

-----

So done, Carys used the knowledge of the palace's interior to evade being caught by guards. Pressing on, her breath came to short bursts and missed an alcove here and there and slipped past patrols.

-----

At last, he was on the borders of palace ground. Chasing footsteps had long since died away, but he knew it was a matter of time before Elyas's minions would catch up.

He scaled the convex wall on the outside; his muscles screamed in acute pain; then dropped down into the streets below, which were enveloped in darkness.

His shadowy movement replayed all over the words of Elyas.

"Closer than you think."

Elyas was prepared for their infiltration. He had anticipated every one of their moves. But how?

Damien tightened his fists, determination blazing within his steel-gray eyes. Whatever Elyas was planning, Damien would stop it.

---

Amara and Carys were already at the safe house by the time Damien came in, and their faces reflected all the fatigue and relief in equal measure.

"Good to see you made it," Amara said, her smirk now bared faintly.

"Likewise," said Damien, in a serious tone.

"Breath-catcher. Elyas knew we were coming. Someone tipped him off," Carys leaned against the wall.

Damien nodded, his jaw tightening. "We need to discover who-and quickly."

Amara folded her arms. "What now?" She asked with her sharp blue eyes narrowing further.

Damien's look grew even harsher. "Now we do our own thing. Elyas wants to play games? Let's show him what happens when he underestimates us."

It still hasn't ended-the battle was not fought for a long period of time. But Damien really stood ready to face it.