Emancipation

episode 19

Raen approached the castle cautiously. They had been too careless. Raen knew this was a trap. She knew that going into the castle after Beaoul was a bad idea. She could simply stick the portal key into any lock on that world and get away clean. The problem was, Beaoul had given her the key, trusted her with it. It was their escape key. Raen felt compelled to go in and rescue her hellhound friend.

Anyone else in the omniverse might have trouble spitting out the thought, hellhound friend, but it was natural for Raen. Beaoul was her closest friend. Raen was pretty sure all of her childhood friends on Tradehub were dead. Beaoul had done her best to prevent Mira Black from spreading a deadly plague across that planet. That was how Raen had met Beaoul. Raen had accidentally gotten in the way of Beaoul's efforts. That was also how Raen ended up in Mira Black's sights.

Raen hadn't learned much about the mysteries of her origins since she started running with Beaoul, but what she did know about herself came directly from her relationship with the hellhound. So, there was a debt. And Raen doubted she would have half the success finding out about herself without her friend.
The castle was formidable. It was the only standing structure on a landscape of scorched earth. The metal skeletons of what once had to be beautiful airships were the only other outstanding objects on the surface. There was no cover and no doubt that the two guards at the castle gate had seen Raen some time ago.

Raen decided to throw all her cards down. She strode up the packed rubble of the road waving with both arms, "Gentlemen, I believe you are expecting me?"

The two guards stood at attention bringing their spears to the vertical position. "No, who do you think you are?"

Raen forced a chuckle, "I am here to pick up a friend! She has been enjoying your hospitality?" And quite possibly hospitalized or killed several of your fellow guards.

"This is not a hotel! This is a prison."

Okay, so these men, weren't well versed in irony, "She mentioned your facilities in her secret message. I am sure this is where she said she was residing."

"What message?"

"Uh, I said secret. If I told you two then it wouldn't be a secret!" Raen felt suddenly optimistic about her chances of getting to Beaoul and getting them both back out. By this time Raen was just a few feet from the guards. They still stood at attention, but no more than when she announced herself. "Here, let me show you." Raen produced a piece of paper folded into a makeshift envelope. Carefully, she unwrapped it. The two guards leaned in close to examine it. With their noses inches from the piece Raen exhaled deeply and held her breath. The powder stirred up by her breath found its way into the guards' airways and shortly they passed out, slamming into one another's helmeted heads.

Raen stepped over them and pressed her palm against the castle door. It opened. So much for security? This seemed too easy. Raen entered the castle on full alert, even the extra senses that Beaoul had just begun teaching to use. A few corridors in the chaos that assailed those senses nearly floored her. People were howling in pain and screaming. She could hear them running in fear. Then under it all, she heard, "Wait, come back! I haven't even scratched you yet!" Raen recognized the voice and chuckled. It shouted this way to Beaoul.

Raen raced through the corridors passing fleeing guards until she came upon a five-way intersection with Beaoul at its midpoint. The hellhound was bucking and clawing at the air trying to toss off a chainmail muzzle and two remaining chain mail mittens. The claws on her hind paws were free and fully extended. A few brave guards held positions a short distance down one of the corridors.

With a smile plastered across her face, Raen leaned up against one of the corners of the corridor. She waited for Beaoul to stop bucking and notice her. Beaoul kept at her energetic attempts to free her major weapons. "Hey, Beaoul, would you like some help?"

Beaoul stopped bucking with her back to Raen. She turned to face Raen, "I had this handled!"

"Clearly!"

"Get out of here she has reinforcements!" The lead guard of the remaining detail shouted and ran.
Beaoul looked over her shoulder at their fleeing backsides. "I know Mira likes sanruphrup as minions because they are so obedient, but they seem to lack intelligence too."

"Yeah, they should have run sooner. You had them outnumbered and outmaneuvered quite a while ago." Raen chuckled as she began unfastening and removing the restraint devices. "You know if I had known all you needed me to do was unbuckle a few straps I wouldn't have been in such a hurry."

"This was too easy, Raen use the key on that wall. I don't know if we have time to find a door," Beaoul whispered.

Raen nodded and focused her mind like Beaoul had taught her to. She pressed the tip of the pearlescent key into the wall. After a moment it gave way and Raen turned the key. A line of light outlining a virtual door cut its way through the stone and opened outward. Raen could hear an army's worth of feet marching towards them. "After you?" Raen pulled the key from the "lock" and they darted through the portal together, hopefully to safety.



-------------------

Beaoul