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Authors: Jeff Wilcox
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I…”
*
Wild frowned at the prison, listening to the various clanking sounds emanating from within. One of the handier aspects about being the size of a human child, he mused, was that taller folk often mistook him for one. It was one of the traits about his people that let him scrutinize the premises without attracting much attention.
“Right,” he told himself, “If anyone asks, I lost my ball over there somewhere.”
It wasn’t often that Billcock Wild had had reason to help another person out of a sticky situation, especially when giving such aid might get him thrown in the slammer, too. But Blademaster Kaiyr had proven himself to be a reasonable elf, and quite interesting. Wild found himself appreciating the blademaster’s company and decided to help him out, along with the druid, who had also made himself indispensable in that nasty battle the other night.
First things first, then , Wild decided as he headed off, ducking into the shadows of an alley running perpendicular to the prison. Reconnaissance .
Wild made a cautious circuit of the prison from afar, generally keeping to the opposite side of the streets running around the place and avoiding getting too near in the alleys. Outside, security was rather lax—a solid stone block did not need much in the way of protection, and anything that could pummel its way through the stone would have turned any unsuspecting guards to pulp, anyway.
Aside from the main gate and a tiny window at the top of each cell, the only other way in was a small door in the back that was locked and barred from the inside—it didn’t even have a keyhole or handle on this side.
Finally, after observing several rounds made by the watch and calculating their patterns, Wild decided to take a chance and find out exactly where his comrades were. During a lull in the watch on one side of the building, the halfling sneaked along the stone wall, peering into the ground-level windows. The earlier clanging of prison bars had had the muffled echo of being underground, so he suspected that the partially-buried level was where he would find the elf and the human.
As luck would have it, he peered in one window near the back of the prison and spied a head of dark blue hair. “Master Kaiyr,” he whispered.
“Master Wild,” came Kaiyr’s hushed reply. “You have been busy. I heard some of your comings and goings.”
“Yup, that’s me,” Wild said cheerfully. “I’m gonna try to get you three out of there. All I need now is a plan.”
“Wild, is that you?” came Caineye’s whisper from the next cell. Kaiyr motioned that Wild should speak with the druid.
“I guess that answers that question,” the halfling muttered, turning to the druid, who held onto the bars and pressed his face against them. “Hey, there, Caineye. Your rescue party is here. Like I told the blademaster, I’m going to try to get you out. I don’t know how yet, but I’m pretty sure I can do it.”
“Oh, by Alduros Hol’s grace,” Caineye breathed. “They say they’re going to execute us, maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day. We don’t have much time.”
“That’s the best part. I work better under pressure, anyway.”
“Hey, you! Get away from there!” came a shout from the entrance to the wide alley between the prison and the next building. Wild winced but winked at Caineye as he rose.
“What do you want?” the halfling demanded in a petulant voice.
A soldier hustled up to the apparent kid, one hand on his sword’s handle, though the weapon remained sheathed. “Get outta here, kid. Don’t think we won’t arrest a kid for snooping around the prison.”
“But I lost my ball, and it fell through the bars here,” Wild complained, stomping his feet. “The nice man inside was just going to get it for me.”
The soldier scowled. “Get lost, kid, before something else goes rolling through those bars.”
Wild gave him a frightened look but stood his ground, as a pressured child
*
Wild frowned at the prison, listening to the various clanking sounds emanating from within. One of the handier aspects about being the size of a human child, he mused, was that taller folk often mistook him for one. It was one of the traits about his people that let him scrutinize the premises without attracting much attention.
“Right,” he told himself, “If anyone asks, I lost my ball over there somewhere.”
It wasn’t often that Billcock Wild had had reason to help another person out of a sticky situation, especially when giving such aid might get him thrown in the slammer, too. But Blademaster Kaiyr had proven himself to be a reasonable elf, and quite interesting. Wild found himself appreciating the blademaster’s company and decided to help him out, along with the druid, who had also made himself indispensable in that nasty battle the other night.
First things first, then , Wild decided as he headed off, ducking into the shadows of an alley running perpendicular to the prison. Reconnaissance .
Wild made a cautious circuit of the prison from afar, generally keeping to the opposite side of the streets running around the place and avoiding getting too near in the alleys. Outside, security was rather lax—a solid stone block did not need much in the way of protection, and anything that could pummel its way through the stone would have turned any unsuspecting guards to pulp, anyway.
Aside from the main gate and a tiny window at the top of each cell, the only other way in was a small door in the back that was locked and barred from the inside—it didn’t even have a keyhole or handle on this side.
Finally, after observing several rounds made by the watch and calculating their patterns, Wild decided to take a chance and find out exactly where his comrades were. During a lull in the watch on one side of the building, the halfling sneaked along the stone wall, peering into the ground-level windows. The earlier clanging of prison bars had had the muffled echo of being underground, so he suspected that the partially-buried level was where he would find the elf and the human.
As luck would have it, he peered in one window near the back of the prison and spied a head of dark blue hair. “Master Kaiyr,” he whispered.
“Master Wild,” came Kaiyr’s hushed reply. “You have been busy. I heard some of your comings and goings.”
“Yup, that’s me,” Wild said cheerfully. “I’m gonna try to get you three out of there. All I need now is a plan.”
“Wild, is that you?” came Caineye’s whisper from the next cell. Kaiyr motioned that Wild should speak with the druid.
“I guess that answers that question,” the halfling muttered, turning to the druid, who held onto the bars and pressed his face against them. “Hey, there, Caineye. Your rescue party is here. Like I told the blademaster, I’m going to try to get you out. I don’t know how yet, but I’m pretty sure I can do it.”
“Oh, by Alduros Hol’s grace,” Caineye breathed. “They say they’re going to execute us, maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day. We don’t have much time.”
“That’s the best part. I work better under pressure, anyway.”
“Hey, you! Get away from there!” came a shout from the entrance to the wide alley between the prison and the next building. Wild winced but winked at Caineye as he rose.
“What do you want?” the halfling demanded in a petulant voice.
A soldier hustled up to the apparent kid, one hand on his sword’s handle, though the weapon remained sheathed. “Get outta here, kid. Don’t think we won’t arrest a kid for snooping around the prison.”
“But I lost my ball, and it fell through the bars here,” Wild complained, stomping his feet. “The nice man inside was just going to get it for me.”
The soldier scowled. “Get lost, kid, before something else goes rolling through those bars.”
Wild gave him a frightened look but stood his ground, as a pressured child
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