The Night Watchmen

Chapter 1: Secrets

Chapter 1:  Secrets

'Alec!' Devon whispered. 'Alec, where are you?'

'I'm here.' Alec replied, appearing soundlessly at Devon's side. This was one of the many curious things about Alec, he seemed to move so gracefully and quickly yet he seemed to make no sound.  

'Where have you been? We're supposed to be clearing an escape route!' Devon hissed. Alec smiled wickedly, and shook his head at his brother.

'Ah, that would ruin the surprise now, wouldn't it?' he said, but Devon had already sped off down the corridor; delving deeper into the castle of their target this evening. Alec watched him disappear into the shadows, and paused to take in his surroundings. The corridors of this castle were dark, lit up in places only by the moonlight spilling in from the small windows. The wallpaper looked old and discoloured, and the floor was in need of a good cleaning. Taking a match out of his pocket, he lit a candle on one of the sconces along the wall.

'Four.' he muttered to himself, and then followed Devon into the darkness.

As she walked, Grace listened as hard as she could for any signs of her being followed, or of anyone up ahead; her hand clasped on one of the throwing knives strapped across her torso. Alec had suggested a while before entering the castle that they separate; that she should focus on getting to Neiron while he and Devon clear an escape route. Turning a corner she saw a guard leaning against the wall. She put on her mask and walked towards the guard, not even trying to cover the noise of her footsteps. The guard heard her approach and reached for his sword. Grace started to run, and before he had even lifted his weapon, Grace was already next to him and had elbowed him in the temple. He fell to the ground. Grace knew she was now getting close to her target; an important man like Neiron wouldn't be left loosely guarded; she picked up the unconscious guard's sword and darted onward.

Grace's power was that she was quick, swift in her movements as she was in her mind. She wasn't necessarily the strongest or the best fighter, but in a case such as this her power came most useful. The extrication of Neiron needed to be fast, they had no time to waste and staying hidden was vital. A few more unconscious guards later, Grace came to a stop in front of a rather ostentatious looking oak door.

Devon had just hit a tall muscular guard on the back of the head as Alec caught up. The guard fell to his knees and then onto his side, clearly unconscious. Alec walked casually up to his brother, and fell into stride beside him.

'How is Grace going to find our escape route?' He asked, frowning as he did so. The scar trailing from his temple to his cheek bone glared silver in the moonlight as they passed a window.

'She's not. We're going to find her.'

'But we don't know where she is.'

'You don't know where she is. I do. There are two different routes to the bed chambers, we have taken the short way, and Grace has taken the long way. When she has gotten hold of Neiron, we meet her outside Neiron's chambers, and away we go down our escape route.'

'Yes, but how will we get the timing right? I'm not sure you've thought this through, Alec.' Alec said nothing to this, and smiled to himself. Devon sighed exasperatedly. He glanced out a window at the sky. There were no stars out tonight. In the distance, he could just see Alistair leaning against a tree. He remembered his protests against staying outside, away from the action; but the simple fact was that he could not fight, and someone needed to look after the horses. He didn't know much about Alistair, only that his power was that he could talk to people in their minds at close proximity. He wondered if he had ever tried to expand his power- tried to communicate with people further away than what was considered close enough to reach. He turned away from the window and continued walking with Alec, who seemed to have lit another candle along the wall. Turning his attention back to the task at hand, Devon distinctly heard at least three voices, whispering in worried, hushed voices further down the corridor.