Magi: Jaeyria Lightwood

Task #5

Jaeyria stared at the barracks from behind the cover of the hedges. Kyren was breathing down her neck on one side, and Eiridan's arm was brushing her on the other. She shifted slightly to be closer to Eiridan and sent a warning look at Kyren in the dim light.

He cleared his throat softly and scooted over a bit.

As soon as he did, she went back to examining the situation. They'd made it past the outer curtain wall, outer bailey, and inner curtain wall with relative ease. The acid moat had been easily surpassed as well. With all of the distractions around, they hadn't faced any opposition yet. It still kind of surprised her, but she was too busy worrying about other things to think about that.

For instance, she was having second thoughts about this entire endeavor. By now, Vaxon had most likely killed the Magi families in retaliation for their rebellion and attack on his castle. Kyren and Eiridan still held out hope for their families, but she wished they wouldn't. If anyone was still alive, Vaxon would use them as leverage. They wouldn't be able to free them easily after this.

She wondered if perhaps they should just break into the dungeons and free whoever was still left. Kyren's family, if they still lived, would be free too, and they could come back to fight later. Inside, she knew it was a silly notion, but she voiced the concern anyway. "Kyren?"

"What?" he asked with a huff.

"Why are we still doing this?" she muttered, eyeing the barracks, which were unlit and still.

"I knew you didn't want to help!" he growled.

She glanced over at him in annoyance. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't. But with all of the commotion, couldn't we just go straight for the dungeons to free them? I mean, Vaxon's defenses on the dungeons have probably weakened some, right?"

Kyren went silent for a moment, considering her idea. His forehead scrunched up in thought as he mulled over the idea. Then he shook his head emphatically. "No. Vaxon wouldn't lessen his guard on the Magi families even now. More than likely, he had them moved to the throne room to keep them under closer guard. If anyone's still alive, anyway."

Jaeyria swallowed hard. She winced as the wind shifted, blowing the stench of the pig sties their way. Resisting the urge to cover her nose, she kept her eyes fixed on the barracks, thinking about how they could make it past.

Eiridan jumped into the conversation then. "Well, we can't go through the front gates. That'll get us caught for sure. So is there a secret way in, Kyren?"

Kyren nodded. "Through the guards' barracks."

"I suppose it's too much to hope it's unoccupied?" Eiridan whispered, his nose wrinkling.

"Yes, it is. It's definitely occupied. My father keeps a squad back to watch over the inner bailey so that he can have early warning of a breach. They'll be in the observation room."

Jaeyria nodded absently, fingering the pommel of her sword. There was no going back now, she supposed. They still had a shot at tricking Vaxon into letting them and their families live. Most likely, he would agree to her request simply because she'd been working closely with Vassti since escaping the arena.

In Vassti she sensed a kindred spirit, and she suspected that the woman was suffering inside due to some traumatic event, which had likely caused her closed off behavior. It wasn't an attitude that was all that different from her response to killing her parents by accident. Since the events that had marred their lives, both women had closed off, become calculating, and chose to wear masks to hide the pain.