Ticket to Freedom

"This is preposterous!" A crumpled scroll slapped against the head of the kneeling messenger. Standing behind a wide writing desk, the Grand Bishop of the Clergy glared at the bearer of ill tidings. "This message comes from within our lawful and orderly lands?"

"Y- Yes, y- your Greatness!" The messenger replied in fear, his head flattened against the glossy red marble tiles. "I- It was sent by a Judge!"

"And where is the reminder of this message?" The Grand Bishop settled back down on his chair, his face full of anger. He had been looking forward to the day's menu, for his chef had come upon some rare cuts of Tarragons, but now, his luncheon was disrupted.

"The magical communication was had been severed..." The messenger quickly replied. "We have tried to reconnect to the Judges on board but our Judges could only sense a void..."

"What in Ramuh's Halls are those two ships doing there?" The Grand Bishop interrupted unhappily. "Who is their commander?"

"I- It's Lord Bishop Major Zakhi..." The messenger continued. "H- He had received word that a Lord Bishop and several priests from Work Camp Redemption have been murdered!"

"Murder?" Instantly, his bad mood vanished as he shot to his feet. "Who dared to commit such foul sins against members of the Clergy and why is Zakhi doing there? Was he not assigned to the front?"

"L- Lord Bishop Major Zakhi's force was nearby when the incident happened..." The messenger quickly clarified. "His last message to the regional Clergy was that he was chasing after an escaped repenter from the work camp who was very likely to be a witch..."

"And.. did the lot of you deemed that such a foul sin be not reported to me?" The Grand Bishop growled at the two lines of Vice Bishops and aides standing with their heads bowed down like chastised children on the sides of the room. "I am the regional Clergy's Grand Bishop!"

"How dare you all hold back such details from me!" The Grand Bishop cursed at his people. "An Inquisition shall be Ordered!"

"Find out what happened to Bishop Zakhi and his troops! And find the murderer!"

-----

The cries and sounds of fighting had ceased for some time before the figure finally gathered enough courage inside the dark cell dared to push the cell door which he had picked open earlier. He looked around the darkness, hearing the moans and nervous panting of his fellow prisoners all around him and he carefully made his way in the darkness towards the thin ray of light coming from underneath a door.

He pulled gently at the door, both relieved and frightened at the same time as the door gave way with a soft squeak of its rusty hinges. He paused and waited, peeking through the crack and praying that there were no guards out there. He couldn't see anyone from the crack nor the dreaded crashing of iron shod boots on stone.

The door creaked loudly as he pulled it open wider and found himself in a stone chamber with a set of chairs and table at the far corner. He quickly closed the door behind him as the light roused up the prisoners behind him and started making noises.

There was a lamp that burned on the middle of the table surrounded by abandoned cutlery and plates, the food half eaten. There was another closed door on his left and a flight of stone steps leading up on his right. Across him, a rack hung certain tools of interrogation that took up the majority of the wall next to the table and chairs, faced him coldly.

He took a quick peek up the stairs to make sure there was no one coming down before he fell upon the plates of half eaten food. He stuffed the cold mess into his mouth and washed it all down with a goblet filled with watered wine before he checked on the other door. Similar to where he escaped from, it appeared to be filled with prisoners locked in cells. The lamplight coming from the room agitated the prisoners and so he quickly closed it.

Grabbing a long tool that looked like a short pike and plier from the torture rack, he climbed the flight of steps and found himself in another room similar to the one he came from except there was more lamps lit and no torture tools in view and only one door and another flights of stairs leading up.

He pushed the door open and peeked in and to his surprise, the cells he was expecting turned out to be different but were still cells. Instead of the dark and cold cells he expected, what he saw was a proper bedroom, filled with furniture and there were even carpets inside the cell!

The person inside the cell stared back at his confused expression and said in a cold tone, "Are you here to torture me?"

"Ahhh..." He was surprised by the person inside the cell and quickly wanted to slam the door shut. Then he realised what she was saying when he looked down at what he was handing in his hands. "N- No!"

"WAIT!" The person with a noble bearing stood up and held onto the bars of the cell. Her cold voice with a hint of panic called out, "Let me out! Help me escape and you shall be richly rewarded!"

"Ehh..." He paused in his actions in closing the door and took another look at the beauty glaring at him. "I..."

"Hurry up and open the cell doors!" The female with her untied long brown hair and dressed in a set of loose white robes snapped. "Find the keys!"

"Where are the keys?" He asked as he looked around the cell. He did not notice any keys anywhere.

"With the guards of course!" She rolled her eyes at him as if he was an idiot. "Find them!"

He took a glance at the room outside and sighed before he bent over the locked cell doors and started fiddling it with a broken piece of metal wire that he managed to acquire. He had learned how to lockpick a lock in his younger wilder days and very quickly the primitive set of locks clicked open.

The female inside give an impressed nod at his skills and she grabbed a coat before stepping out of the cell. "You, what is your name?"

"Erm... I... am... Ahh... Just call me Leung..." Leung replied, unable to think of an alternate name for himself at that moment.

"Long?" The female nodded and she walked into the room with the stairs. "I am Duchess Manarva of the Tri State! Follow me!"

"Erm... Okay..." Leung gave a shrug as he followed the noblewoman out. Under the brighter lighting, he noticed that she was actually older than he assumed. The two of them made their way up the stairs and soon found themselves in a long deserted corridor filled with rooms.

"Do you hear any fighting?" Manarva asked as they made their way cautiously down the stone corridor, checking each room as they went. The rooms were mostly sleeping quarters for guards and both of them quickly found a pair of suitable boots for their bare feet while Leung switched out his tattered prison garb for a simple tunic and pants.

"No..." Leung replied dully as he had miscalculated. He was wary of this beauty as he recalled she was the leader who had forcibly captured him and many others from the New World and had to endure months of suffering as they crossed the Sea of Clouds. In his mind, he was cursing himself for getting blinded by beauty and releasing her. He should have ditched her and escaped himself and now, he was stuck with her!

Finally, the last door at the end of the corridor led them outside into the sun. They exited into a small courtyard and saw the place in partial ruins. The roofs of the buildings nearby were shattered and pieces of large masonry and stone littered the area. Looking cautiously around, Leung asked in a low voice, as if afraid of speaking too loudly, "What happened here?"

"I do not know!" The cold beauty snapped as she walked without fear towards the exit of the courtyard where sounds of fighting could be heard.

"Why are you going that way?" Leung panicked. "Shouldn't we go the other way? Away from the fighting?"

"Because I want answers!" Manarva shook her head at his obvious signs of cowardice. "Just follow me!"

Leung unwillingly followed after the Duchess but just as they left the courtyard, a figure slammed into Leung from the side, sending both of them crashing down onto the floor. Leung let out a yelp of fright and raised the torture tool he still carried as a defensive weapon up to hit the person. He only stopped when he noticed the person in his arms was another female with striking looks. Only that she was covered in blood and blended in with the crimson red uniform she was wearing and in her hands, she clutched onto a shard of mana stone.

"A Protectorate Inquisitor!" Duchess Manarva hissed in shock she recognized the uniform. "We must kill her!"

"But..." Leung hesitated as he looked at the pretty face. "She's wounded and... helpless..."

"You!" Duchess Manarva rolled her eyes once more and grabbed the tool from Leung's hands. "I will do it! An Inquisitor is bad news!"

"Over here!" A cry of alarm came from behind and a small troop of Iron Kingdom soldiers appeared with weapons drawn. "More Protectorate! Kill them all!"

"Oh, the curse of the Gods!" Duchess Manarva groaned as the Iron Kingdom soldiers rushed over with blood in their eyes. She blocked a sword swing with the borrowed torture tool and rammed the blunt end into the face of the soldier she was facing and in a swift motion, disarmed the soldier.

She gave the appropriated sword in her hands a few experimental swings before engaging in melee with the rest of the soldiers. Unlike Leung who was jailed in poor conditions, Duchess Manarva had better living conditions and food as she was after all, a noble despite a prisoner. Her body had long regained most of her muscles and strength after living on half rations when they were lost in the Sea of Clouds and her expertise in swordsmanship, easily allowed her to fend off the attacks of common soldiers.

"We need to run!" She snapped at Leung who was still carrying the unconscious Protectorate Inquisitor. "Throw her away and run! I can't hold off so many enemies at once!"

"Okay!" Leung quickly agreed but he continued to carry the unconscious Protectorate Inquisitor and ran back the way they came. His actions made Manarva fumed with anger and channeled it to her fight instead and slowly retreated back to the courtyard.

The sounds of fighting started to attract more attention and suddenly a group of red coated Protectorate troops appeared and they charged into the melee singing and praying. The sudden turn of events gave Manarva a much needed respite and she took the opportunity to escape. She chased after the running peon who released her and a hundred curses ran in her head as she imagined herself strangling the cowardly person with clipped ears.

They ran back into the building and blocked the door before Manarva turned her glare at Leung. "You! Are you trying to get us all killed?"

"But... it was you who wanted to go out there..." Leung felt wrongful by her accusation. He flinched back at her murderous look and lowered his voice, "It's not my fault..."

"Than why did you bring her along?" Manarva gestured to the unconscious female. She raised the sword in her hand but Leung stopped her.

"Don't! She... ah..." Leung scratched his head as his thoughts were that it was such a waste that beauty would be killed just like that and quickly came out with a lie.

"She is the ticket to our freedom!"