Flames of Liberation

Chapter 12

Once again, the door to the base swung open. This time, the returning rebels brought with them an air of negativity and sadness. The members saw their returned leader and smiled, crowding around him and welcoming him back. It wasn't until Hallr, a Njordenheim huntress, spoke up that they realized something was wrong.

"Where is Silas?" she asked, resulting in everyone present to fall silent.

Anya could tel from the way his lips trembled that Kael was holding back tears. She rested her hand on his shoulder, to which Kael looked down at her and smiled, a hint of red tinting his cheeks.

"Silas... is gone." Those three words sent a ripple through the room. What was once a bustling room became one with a silence thick enough to slice through with a blade. Glances were exchanged and confusion was etched on the faces of many.

"What do you mean 'gone'?"

"How could you lose him?"

"Is he alive?"

"Who took him?"

"Where is he?"

These questions were Kael's breaking point. He fell to the ground, tears flowing from his eyes uncontrollably. Those closest to him consoled him, giving him time to calm himself. Anya stood up and addressed the rest of the crowd, her voice steady despite the dire situation.

"High Advisor Darkwood isn't what she seems. She's working with an ancient being known as a Primordial who calls itself Anaris. It was with its help and the use of Dark Magic that Silas was captured."

Gasps and whispers filled the room. Wilhemia, the only Noble in the room, steps forward. "If the High Advisor has him, she most likely took him to the Castle."

Anger bubbled within Anya. No one kidnaps her friend and gets away with it. "Then that's where we'll go."

Hiro's eyes widened. "What? Are you serious? Anya, no one has attempted to infiltrate the Castle and gotten away with it!"

"We don't need to break in," Anya replied, walking to the back of the room where her cloak hung on a metal hook. "We'll walk right through the front door."

"You can't be serious! They'll capture us immediately!" Kael shouted.

Anya looked at her friend. "Exactly."

She pulled on her cloak. Kael appeared next to her. "Look, Anya. I understand your anger. Silas was my first real friend, after all. But storming the Castle isn't the answer. Not--"

Anya whirled around, her necklace swinging on her neck. The torchlight reflecting off the emblem made the flames within look like they were flickering. "Then what is the answer, Kael?! The more time we spend here is time wasted. Who knows what might happen to him if I don't do this?! The punishment for inciting a rebellion is life in the Dungeon! And treason is grounds for a public execution!"

"But this is Elara we're dealing with," Hiro said, pushing their glasses up. "From what we've been told, she likes to be entertained. As for this Anaris creature... I doubt it'd make a point of capturing him just to kill him. That means we have time."

"Besides," Kael added, giving Anya a smile that appeared both genuine and forced, "I was going to say storming the Castle isn't the answer. Not without help."

Anya gasped slightly and looked around her at the many people in the room. She had spent so many years alone that she hadn't realized she doesn't have to be anymore. The reassuring words of Mei Lin echoed in her mind.

"Mom always said that the worst thing one can be is weak and alone," Anya recited, smiling softly.

Hiro took Anya's hand and completed the thought. "But their weakness turns to strength when they have friends."

Anya nodded, gently squeezing her cousin's hand as a tear trickled down their face. She then turned to the rest of the group.

"Okay, everyone," she announced, making her voice heard over the masses. The bartender, a former Rudj-Amuny priest named Serqet who was tongued for unknown reasons, tapped her shoulder and showed her a wooden crate. Understanding what the mute woman was implying and took the crate from her. She set it below her top-down and stood atop it. "We are going to save Silas from the Crown! Whoever wants to come may come and whoever wishes to stay behind is free to do so. Before you decide, I want to say this: Is this not the very reason the Ember's Heart was formed in the first place? To take down the crown and save our fellow Duskvalians from its injustice? What is the point of a rebellion if not to rebel against oppressors and fight for what we know to be right? A rebellion that is too scared to stand up and resist is no rebellion at all! At least, it's not worthy of the title in my eyes. How can we call ourselves freedom fighters if we won't even try to save one of our own? We can't. Once again, you are free to choose whether to stay or go, as that is the very foundation of freedom. But I say we should rise up and help our friend! It's risky, sure, but it's worth it if we win! Now, who's with me?!"

Silence befell the room once more. Hesitation and fear covered the populus like a shadow. More than half of the people in the room walked out and back to their own homes. Anya's raised fist slowly fell. Before she knew it, it was just her, Kael, and Hiro.

Kael took Anya's hand and helped her down from the makeshift pedestal. "I'm sorry, Anya. But your plan of waltsing up to the gates of the Castle... you might as well have asked them to throw away their lives here and now. There's no guarantee whatever you're planning will work!"

Anya nodded in understanding. "Then I guess we'll have to go ourselves." She then put her fist out in front of the other two. "For Silas?"

Kael and Hiro nodded, determination burning in their eyes. They pressed their own fists to Anya's knuckles and smiled.

"For Silas!"