Chapter 11 — Infiltrating Castle Arden

Yillian returned some hours later wearing fancy servants’ clothing under his cloak and carrying a basket with a maid’s dress neatly folded on top of other bundles of cloth.

“Ugh,” Ayla groaned upon seeing the maid uniform. “As much as I hate to admit it, dressing as a maid is a sensible choice. What about my hair though? A maid with red hair would stand out.”

“No worries. I accounted for that.” Yillian placed the basket on the bed, pulling out and holding up a black wig and bandana.

“I see,” Ayla said and held up the dress. “The size looks about right. I’m probably going to need someone to do my hair and help me change, and that’s not happening while either of you two are in the room.”

Ayla leveled a meaningful glare at both male youths to reinforce her assertion.

A knock sounded at the door, and Yillian smiled at the timing. “I’ve made arrangements for that as well.”

Yillian opened the door to reveal a familiar dark-haired girl, but she was wearing more mundane clothing this time. Ruby hurried into the room and placed a fancy lacquered box beside the basket, glancing at Ayla, who was still holding the dress and evaluating the sudden newcomer with a raised eyebrow, before addressing Yillian, “The innkeeper said you owe him another silver for this and not to use too much.”

A groan came from the half-elf, but he nodded his appreciation. “Thanks for taking care of that and for providing your sister’s dress.”

“Sure, no problem. I’m just glad the young lady is about the same size.” Her eyes turned in Xyn’s direction. “Oh, hey, Xyn. Sorry again about earlier. You should come by the shop for tea sometime. Even if you can’t participate in all the fun, we’ll still make sure to show you a good time, okay?”

“Ah, sure.” Xyn was still frustrated about getting embarrassed and losing confidence in himself, but next time, he definitely wasn’t bringing Yillian along.

“Now, if you boys wouldn’t mind waiting outside, I’ll take care of your disguises after I’m done with Miss Red here,” Ruby prompted, motioning toward the door.

On the way out, Xyn noticed that Ayla was making hooded eyes at him, but he couldn’t think of why. He really didn’t understand human females and would have to take Ruby up on her offer soon.

Sneaking to the castle while avoiding the patrols and keeping four people from being noticed had used up a fair amount of Xyn's aura even with the evening gloom, but they had arrived without incident at a certain alley that backed up against the castle wall—an alley on a street with launderers, tailors, cobblers, grocers, and such that provided services to castle servants, apparently.

“This is a hidden entrance for the servants. I’ve had to wait here many times for Ellie to get off from work. This key is needed to get in and out of the servant passageways, so they normally aren’t guarded,” Ruby was telling them. She fixed Yillian with a serious gaze as she handed over the key. “My sister can get in a lot of trouble if her key and uniform get lost, or worse, found, so make sure you return them… and don’t do anything stupid.”

“Right,” Yillian promised. “Thanks, Ruby. We’ll leave everything with Lianne for you to pick up in the morning.”

Yillian confirmed with Ruby that she’d be safe heading home alone before leaving her behind outside the servant’s passage leading through the outer wall.

The passageway opened onto a garden area that was walled off from the main courtyard except for an archway flanked by well-manicured bushes. Xyn used aura to obscure their exit from the passage, but the effort was rendered unnecessary by House Arden’s desire to keep servants out of sight, or at least, that was Ayla’s opinion of the design.

To look less suspicious, their packs had been left at the inn and Ayla was carrying her sheathed sword like a precious task rather than wearing it. Yillian still had the clothes basket, but it now contained Ayla’s fancy dress and jewelry and two spare cloaks. Ruby had disguised Ayla to look like her sister Ellie, and taking advantage of Ellie being one of Marleyne Arden’s personal maids, they were pretending to have been sent on a task for Marleyne—Xyn’s companions were anyway.

Xyn himself was cloaked in a poorly-dyed charcoal fabric and was lurking in the pairs’ shadow, using his aura and training to make himself less noticeable. He was a lingering shadow, a fading light. The key was to lessen the change since most sentients and animals were quick to notice movement and change. His grandmother had continually made him practice staying in someone’s sight but out of their focus. She had said that the method was just as important for going unnoticed as it was for mastering the Dancing Petals’ methods of combat.

The trio followed a path surfaced with well-worn pavers leading from the outer wall through the garden to a humble arched doorway, a doorway that was propped open to air out the heat of the kitchens. A light sound of clanking dishes and whish-whish of scrubbing could be heard.

Yillian checked the hand-drawn map from Ruby’s sister briefly before projecting confidence that he belonged and heading inside. They received only a few glances before passing out of the kitchens and into a servant’s accessway hidden inside the walls lining the hallways and rooms the nobles and guards would use. On their way to the spiral stair that wound upward to the family residence, they had to make way for other servants to squeeze by.

Xyn was stunned at the ease with which they were infiltrating the castle. What if they were assassins? (And they might well be, depending on how things went!) Did House Arden not have enemies?

Then again, if most nobles were as strong as Ayla, maybe they didn’t feel that assassins were much of a threat?

In Kyrren society, the king did have guards, but the king’s guards were more like aides that helped with scheduling and relayed tasks. Naturally, the Kyrren king was the strongest Kyrren and hardly needed guards weaker than himself to protect him. Though, did such considerations apply to foreign threats?

Of course, the success of Yillian and Ayla’s infiltration was mostly due to help from Ruby and Ellie. Xyn had no idea how Yillian convinced them to assist the investigation, but they seemed like nice girls.

When they arrived at the third floor, the time to finalize their plan had arrived.

“I want to visit Marleyne first. We’ll look suspicious taking the dress to Nicolas’ room anyway, and we might be able to get useful information from her.” Ayla looked Xyn’s way, hesitantly adding, “And Xyn can prevent her from calling for help if needed.”

Xyn nodded. They had each briefly related their capabilities useful to the infiltration when discussing the plan, and he had assured them that he could muffle sound and put people to sleep as necessary.

Yillian seemed less sure but he also nodded. “Xyn, continue trying to stay out of sight unless you are needed. Ayla remember to look like you belong but not like you are in charge. Keep your shoulders a bit hunched, your head down a little, and avoid eye contact.”

“Right,” Ayla volunteered. “I’ll go in first; if she sees a strange man, convincing her might be more difficult. Besides, this time of evening, she might be getting ready for bed.”

When they used the servant’s key to exit into the hallway after following the passageway toward where the female house members resided, Xyn found a decorative cabinet to hide beside as Yillian and Ayla approached the door.

Ayla knocked as she entered the room, making her voice surprisingly meek. “Milady, I have a delivery.”

Xyn didn’t waste any time and was already extending aura into the room to muffle any cries of alarm.

“A delivery? Who’s it from?” a young female voice came from one of the two people Xyn could sense inside the room.

“Ah, yes. It’s from Lady Ayla of Ravenhill.” Ayla waved Yillian that it was okay to follow her into the room.

“Ayla? Aren’t our knights searching the city because she was kidnapped on her way to the castle?” the young noble asked, sounding surprised.

“Wait, milady,” the maid in the room cautioned. “That person looks like Ellie, but I don’t recognize her or the man with her.”

“What?!” the noble’s voice became a bit panicked. “Stay where you are! Tell me who you are?”

Xyn Petal-stepped behind a dressing screen and prepared his Breath of Sleep technique, almost becoming mesmerized by his own aura-weave as he realized that he better understood the parts that he had previously created by intuition.

Yillian calmly closed the door as Ayla suddenly pulled off her wig. A gasp came out from the noble and she held her hand up to her mouth.

“Ayla, that wig is going to be a pain to get right again…” Yillian groaned.

Ayla ignored him and stood tall, radiating a bit of her aura. “It’s me, Marleyne. I didn’t get kidnapped, but ditched my father’s men, so I could search for Cousin Fenton. And I need your help.”

A moment of silence filled the room as both Marleyne who was sitting at her face-paint table and the maid who had been brushing her hair stared in surprise.

“Um… okay, I can see that it is indeed you, but…” Marleyne’s eyes drifted to the sheathed sword in Ayla’s hand. “I didn’t do anything to offend you, did I?”

“What? No.” Ayla turned around and forced her sword and wig into Yillian’s possession. “Hold these, Yillian.”

The half-elf fumbled a bit but managed to wrangle both items from his chest to the basket without dropping them.

Ayla was already turning back to Marleyne while digging a sealed letter out from a hidden skirt pocket. “I need this delivered to my father, and I’d appreciate it if you could tell your father that I’m fine. I’m sorry that my selfishness has inconvenienced him and his men.”

“Okay…,” Marleyne gingerly received the letter, placing it on the table’s surface. “But… um… why are you in our castle and dressed like a maid? And who is this man with you?”

“Yillian? He’s helping me look for my cousin, which is why I’m here, and obviously I had to sneak in if I didn’t want to get caught by your dad,” Ayla replied as if it was obvious.

The maid’s eyes warily moved between Ayla and Yillian, still not sure of the situation.

“It’s alright, Mina.” Marleyne briefly placed a hand on her maid’s arm to calm her. “If Lady Ayla wanted to harm us, we’d already be dead. She’s one of the strongest honorary knights in the province.”

Xyn was pleased to hear such high praise of the female he had picked as worthy.

“Um… so, Ayla, why are you looking for your cousin here, in Castle Arden?” Marleyne made a worried expression. “My family isn’t involved, are they?”

Ayla grimaced. “They might be. From what I know, Nicolas might have been the last person to see Fenton before he disappeared.”

Marleyne gulped and asked nervously. “You don’t think he…?”

Ayla shook her head. “I don’t know yet. Has there been anything… off… about your brother lately?”

“Um… he’s been acting out a bit more than usual, and leaving the castle for weeks at a time, even missing a dinner that mother set up for him to meet with Lady Senna, Baron Marlet’s daughter, and her parents. And for a while now, he’s been a bit too insistent with some of the maids.” Marleyne shared a look with her maid. “But I think that’s not unusual at his age, and none of the maids have complained or left our service. Have you heard of anything unusual, Mina?”

The maid didn’t seem particularly thrilled that the question was directed her way. “Most of the maids that the young master has been ‘insistent’ with don’t seem to remember what happened after they entered his room. They don’t seem to have been harmed but are worried about what happened and why they wouldn’t remember.”

“Well… that’s not suspicious at all,” Ayla snorted.

“You aren’t going to kill him… or cause trouble for our house, are you, Ayla?” Marleyne worried.

“Not if I can help it. My dad is one of your dad’s vassals, after all, and I wouldn’t want to cause trouble for my family,” Ayla reassured. “Mostly, I’m just planning to confront him and see how it goes from there.”

“But, Ayla…,” Marleyne protested, eyes wide. “Nicolas is a Mage certified by the Tower. If you show up to his room uninvited…” Her eyes drifted to Yillian. “…and he takes offense…”

“Don’t worry, Marleyne. I brought some insurance in case your brother isn’t forthcoming with my cousin’s whereabouts.”

Xyn let his Breath of Sleep technique dissipate. The noble girl was a mage but hardly a threat, and this seemed an ideal time to make an entrance so he could get to replenishing his aura while they were talking. Grinning at the theatrics, he nonchalantly walked out from behind the dressing screen.

“Wha-?! Who?!”

“Eeep!”

He couldn’t help grinning more under his hooded cloak at the reactions. “Ayla, my aura’s low. Ask your friend if she minds me using the window.”

Ayla rolled her eyes and looked like she was going to say something rude, but the friend spoke up first. “I-I don’t mind.”

He Petal-stepped, stopping just long enough to catch her attention with a wink and “thanks” before petal-stepping the remaining distance to the open window. Satisfied with the effect of his entrance, Xyn sat and began to meditate, drawing in the Wind energy from outside.

Ayla caught the maid as she seemed to faint in place, moving her to a nearby couch and sending him an exasperated glare.

Oops.

“A-a foreigner!” Marleyne whispered. “Ayla, are you involved in something dangerous?!”

“…I guess you could say that…,” Ayla sheepishly admitted, turning her attention back to the young noble.

“W-who are these people?!” Marleyne demanded of her friend, looking back and forth between both strangers.

“It’s better if you don’t know, Young Lady Marleyne of House Arden. Let’s just say that your family’s activities have attracted the attention of powerful people,” Yillian spoke up before Ayla could give out their information.

Ayla took the hint and moved on to the key matter. “Marleyne, what do you know about cults?”

The noble girl gulped and looked around again with wide eyes. “Cults?” She almost squeaked the word. “Oh, gods… is my family involved with a cult?!”

“You tell me,” Ayla pressed. “Other than your brother, Nicolas, has anyone else been acting strange?”

“I don’t know… Father and Brother Ethan are always busy managing the prefecture and dealing with important merchants. Brother Keith is working on the bridge maintenance project. Cousin Adelyn…”

Marleyne continued to detail her family’s activities, and Ayla and Yillian asked further questions on occasion, but it all seemed rather mundane. Bored, Xyn focused on his meditation.

When they were finished, Ayla got Marleyne’s maid to fix her wig.

“Ayla, my family… what’s going to happen?” Marleyne pleaded.

“These two are only interested in the cultists and won’t cause trouble for members of your family not involved. I’ll come back and tell you what I find out, okay?”

“Okay,” Marleyne reluctantly accepted but her hands were nervously gripping at her gown.

“If you don’t hear back from me tonight, guess that means the encounter with your brother went bad. In that case, I’ll be counting on you,” Ayla added with a wry smile.

Marleyne gulped again.

Xyn and his companions soon found themselves back in the servants’ passage on the other side of the residential area, preparing to exit to the hallway where Nicolas’ room was.

Yillian pulled out a hooded cloak from the basket for himself and the last to cover Ayla’s fancy dress so it didn’t show in the basket this time. “I’m going to report to Master Valence before we continue.” After an uncomfortable period of silence, the half-elf updated them, “He wished us luck.”

Ayla snorted. “Lot of help that guy is.”

Yillian just shrugged, pulling his cloak close to hide his features and servant’s uniform then motioning for Ayla to lead on.

Using the servants’ key again, they exited into the empty hall crossing quickly to Nicolas’ room. Xyn carefully sent his aura through the wall and into the room. What he sensed was a single man sitting on a couch. The man was definitely a mage and at least as powerful as Yillian. There was something odd and familiar about the man’s energies, but he didn’t want to probe too deeply and alert the probable cultist.

Xyn raised one finger then signaled for Ayla to proceed.

Ayla knocked on the door. “Milord, there’s a delivery.”

“Come!” was the command that came from inside.

Xyn drew a deep breath and readied to use his Breath of Sleep technique as they entered.

The sight that greeted him inside the room brought him up short. A man dressed in fineries was sitting on the couch as expected, but on the table in front of him was a platter of cheese and three wine glasses, one in front of the cultist mage and two facing the opposite couch.

“Curious that you spent so much time with my dear sister who I’d thought was uninvolved, though maybe the girl with you is the reason, hmm? That aside, I see I wasn’t the only one able to make use of Xogg`Shriloth’s gift.” The noble smirked as he looked at Yillian. “Even if one of you wasn’t particularly successful.”

The noble, who could only be Nicolas, chuckled and grandly waved toward the sofa opposite him. “Sit, my fellow cultists. What can I do for you this time?”

Ayla’s head spun round to stare at them with horror filled eyes and an expression of betrayal.