"Open the door immediately."
A harsh voice yelled from outside the gaol, waking up the peacefully sleeping guard and the two friends and violating the peace of the dawn. The sky had grown a pale blend between faint blue and yellow, but the sun had not yet risen.
"Who's there?"
"His Most Reverend Excellency bishop Adrian wishes to see the prisoner!"
Martin's eyes filled with shock, and Nadia's too became frightened upon seeing the guard's expression.
"I'm... I'm coming!"
He hastily grabbed the keys, pulled Nadia out of the cell and closed it. Urged on by the incessant knocking on the door he hurried up the stairs and unlocked the entrance of the prison. In front of him stood a commander of the city guard accompanied by another soldier, and behind them in his full elaborate dress stood the bishop.
"Your Excellency, what is it th-"
"I wish to speak the boy, without any further ado."
"Of course, Your Excellency."
Shoving his bloated figure past the armoured men he descended down into the dungeon. Both Nadia and Ruben had stood up, the former with a worried and the latter with a determined and ready expression on their faces.
"Are you the one who got me locked up?"
"Indeed I am, young boy."
A cramped smile was forced onto the wrinkled face of the cleric as he clapped together his hands in a fake burst of enthusiasm.
"But oh, what mistake this was. Just now an informant informed me that indeed it had been proven that you freed Ketherbrühl of the murderer haunting it. I apologise for having wrongly imprisoned you in this filthy dungeon assuming you to be but a liar."
He reached for the keys on the table and opened the door behind Ruben stood.
"You are free again, young traveller."
"Uhm... thanks?"
"I assume you will part from this city now? Surely these inconveniences have tainted your image of us, and I cannot blame you for that."
"Well, we did plan to do that soon. I might still have to say goodb-"
Ere he could end his sentence, the bishop had forcefully pushed Ruben's sheathed sword into his hand and faced him closely; the fake smile had made way for an expression of genuine hatred, repeated many times in the laps of his visage.
"Listen to me, little brat. You should be grateful that I let you out like this and did not condemn your sorry self to the breaking wheel. If you value your saftey I dare you not to immediately leave Ketherbrühl and to ever return. Did you understand me?!"
Ruben, a bit startled but not intimidated, nodded in response.
"Fine, now that this is settled... There is a boat waiting down at the pier which will bring you and your companion downstream or wherever. Take it, and begone."
"Nadia, come on, we're leaving."
"Oh, thank god..."
The other guard who had escorted Adrian asked the two to follow him, and within a few seconds' notice they had left the chilling prison.
A harsh voice yelled from outside the gaol, waking up the peacefully sleeping guard and the two friends and violating the peace of the dawn. The sky had grown a pale blend between faint blue and yellow, but the sun had not yet risen.
"Who's there?"
"His Most Reverend Excellency bishop Adrian wishes to see the prisoner!"
Martin's eyes filled with shock, and Nadia's too became frightened upon seeing the guard's expression.
"I'm... I'm coming!"
He hastily grabbed the keys, pulled Nadia out of the cell and closed it. Urged on by the incessant knocking on the door he hurried up the stairs and unlocked the entrance of the prison. In front of him stood a commander of the city guard accompanied by another soldier, and behind them in his full elaborate dress stood the bishop.
"Your Excellency, what is it th-"
"I wish to speak the boy, without any further ado."
"Of course, Your Excellency."
Shoving his bloated figure past the armoured men he descended down into the dungeon. Both Nadia and Ruben had stood up, the former with a worried and the latter with a determined and ready expression on their faces.
"Are you the one who got me locked up?"
"Indeed I am, young boy."
A cramped smile was forced onto the wrinkled face of the cleric as he clapped together his hands in a fake burst of enthusiasm.
"But oh, what mistake this was. Just now an informant informed me that indeed it had been proven that you freed Ketherbrühl of the murderer haunting it. I apologise for having wrongly imprisoned you in this filthy dungeon assuming you to be but a liar."
He reached for the keys on the table and opened the door behind Ruben stood.
"You are free again, young traveller."
"Uhm... thanks?"
"I assume you will part from this city now? Surely these inconveniences have tainted your image of us, and I cannot blame you for that."
"Well, we did plan to do that soon. I might still have to say goodb-"
Ere he could end his sentence, the bishop had forcefully pushed Ruben's sheathed sword into his hand and faced him closely; the fake smile had made way for an expression of genuine hatred, repeated many times in the laps of his visage.
"Listen to me, little brat. You should be grateful that I let you out like this and did not condemn your sorry self to the breaking wheel. If you value your saftey I dare you not to immediately leave Ketherbrühl and to ever return. Did you understand me?!"
Ruben, a bit startled but not intimidated, nodded in response.
"Fine, now that this is settled... There is a boat waiting down at the pier which will bring you and your companion downstream or wherever. Take it, and begone."
"Nadia, come on, we're leaving."
"Oh, thank god..."
The other guard who had escorted Adrian asked the two to follow him, and within a few seconds' notice they had left the chilling prison.
The bishop and the guards' commander slowly walked out into the empty streets and back towards the omnipresent towers of the cathedral. The shadows of its towers engulfed the streets and the outlines of the stone gargoyles, gryphons, and other beasts resting atop its edges and corners emerged from the fading darkness revealing a sickly blue sky whose colour washed out into a ghostly yellow to the east.
"Finally, I am rid of these pests. They ruined enough of my ambitions already, and their foolish actions shifted the influence back towards those cursed guilds again. Thankfully I could limit the damage. Let's see how confident these bastards are now that their "hero" has ran away from his responsibility, fled like a coward."
"Indeed, Your Excellency. This will surely be a blow to their credibility."
"They also now lack any solid arguments against me and cannot sway the city council against me any more. Pah, I will show them who still holds the sceptre within these walls."
"Of course, Your Excellency."
In a small shady corner of the city's small harbour lay a small nutshell tied to the pier.
"There. Now go."
The guard pointed towards the boat with his halberd. Ruben and Nadia silently mounted it, and just as wordlessly the know binding the tow to the shore was opened. Not intent to waste any time looking back at the soldier or the city's shape, a sigh could be heard from the two friends. Ruben crossed his hands behind his head and laid back.
"Gee, I'm glad this is finally over. I sure wouldn't have wanted to serve as the pawn for any of them in their silly conflict."
"Indeed... Why do people always lust for power that badly?"
"Who cares. We're much better off anyway, now sailing down a river with nothing binding us except for the stream and our mood."
He closed his eyes. Nadia, sitting on the railing of the small vessel turned her head towards the direction they were going. Behind the mountains, the sun had reared its head and filled the water's waves with sparkles of light.
"Finally, I am rid of these pests. They ruined enough of my ambitions already, and their foolish actions shifted the influence back towards those cursed guilds again. Thankfully I could limit the damage. Let's see how confident these bastards are now that their "hero" has ran away from his responsibility, fled like a coward."
"Indeed, Your Excellency. This will surely be a blow to their credibility."
"They also now lack any solid arguments against me and cannot sway the city council against me any more. Pah, I will show them who still holds the sceptre within these walls."
"Of course, Your Excellency."
In a small shady corner of the city's small harbour lay a small nutshell tied to the pier.
"There. Now go."
The guard pointed towards the boat with his halberd. Ruben and Nadia silently mounted it, and just as wordlessly the know binding the tow to the shore was opened. Not intent to waste any time looking back at the soldier or the city's shape, a sigh could be heard from the two friends. Ruben crossed his hands behind his head and laid back.
"Gee, I'm glad this is finally over. I sure wouldn't have wanted to serve as the pawn for any of them in their silly conflict."
"Indeed... Why do people always lust for power that badly?"
"Who cares. We're much better off anyway, now sailing down a river with nothing binding us except for the stream and our mood."
He closed his eyes. Nadia, sitting on the railing of the small vessel turned her head towards the direction they were going. Behind the mountains, the sun had reared its head and filled the water's waves with sparkles of light.
