Effortlessly, Tannix was back in control.

The fact that he was a soldier had never been more apparent. The knights and Joen gathered around us as Tannix started to talk. He didn't even falter when Jalor started touching his injured shoulder.

"I know I don't look great, but don't treat me as an invalid. You are all very aware that I can fight with my left hand, and I will not have any of you taking unnecessary risks to protect me. At least not any more than you would otherwise. Acen and I will take the front with Finn. Joen," he hesitated to eye the large blacksmith, seemingly not confused in the slightest to see him. "Take Ender. Kor and Evrik, stick with them. Mandell and Jalor will bring up the back." He paused while they all nodded. "We're all getting out of this, gentlemen. We've come this far."

"Finn brought us this far," Acen said.

Tannix nodded. "Then hopefully he can lead us farther. Finn, any idea how to get out of this prison?"

I pictured the layout of the building. Every hallway I had walked down, the walls, and I made a guess. "I think I can figure it out."

Tannix gestured with his sword. "Lead the way."

I started down the hallway. It was an immense relief to have Tannix with us again. Not only because I could keep an eye on him, but also because if anything went wrong he could tell me what to do. For the first time I really started to believe that we would escape.

We had an easy time wandering through the jail at first. Good timing, Zianesa lending a hand—I couldn't say why we seemed so lucky, but I was grateful. Our biggest problem was other prisoners. Tannix and the knights seemed very good at ignoring the cries for help, but I winced every time I heard a voice. They rarely spoke in Teltish, but I didn't need to know Deoran to understand what they were asking for. It was very hard to ignore them. Some people might have deserved to be there, but I knew most of them were probably poor people who had broken a few laws while trying to survive.

I took corners carefully, peeking around each one before stepping out. The eight men behind me weren't exactly stealthy, but I felt safe with them. It was hard to imagine anyone stopping us.

Then I looked around a corner and drew back suddenly. The knights immediately froze, alarmed by my reaction. Tannix frowned.

"What—"

"Did you really think you could sneak out that easily, Lord West Draulin?" Kalvahi sounded confident and not the least bit surprised.

Tannix's gaze raked over the men. "Evrik," he whispered. "Take Mandell, Joen and the twins back, try to find a way around Kalvahi. Acen, Jalor and I will hold them here for as long as we can."

"I'll hold them with Acen and Jalor. You go," Evrik said.

"It isn't up for debate, I—"

"Lord West Draulin," Kalvahi called again. "Don't hide."

"Go," Tannix hissed.

Evrik nodded reluctantly, and started back down the hall. The others followed quietly. Tannix, Acen and Jalor exchanged a look. I sensed there was something they were all thinking that I had missed.

Tannix looked at me. "You should go with the others."

"No," I shook my head firmly. "I'm not leaving you."

"Finn..."

"Lord West—"

"I'm here, Kalvahi," Tannix shouted back, cutting him off. He gripped his sword hilt harder and stepped around the corner. Acen and Jalor glanced at each other before falling in beside him. I pulled out one of my tiny knives and joined them.

Kalvahi was standing at the end of the hallway, flanked by men. He had his arms crossed, and didn't even seem slightly concerned about us. Kalvahi and his men were wearing armour, with clean, bright red cloaks. They looked relaxed, confident because of their advantage in numbers. Then there was Tannix, Jalor and Acen, in dirty clothing and gripping stolen weapons. Tannix with his right arm in a sling, the two knights both sporting their own bruises and cuts. They looked furious, and deadly.

When Kalvahi addressed me, it caught me off guard. "Finn, you've picked the wrong side. Shame, really. You had promise. I suppose this escape is all your doing."

I stepped up in front of Tannix before he could stop me. "I haven't picked the wrong side. You said you wanted peace, the three great kingdoms back to how they once were. You know that war won't restore Zianna. When the war is over and you've killed the Telts and most of the Zians, what do you expect to happen? The survivors to kneel at your feet, praise you and thank you for saving them? It won't happen."

Kalvahi smiled wryly. "At the very least, the survivors will be grateful to be under the control of their cousins instead of these strangers from across the ocean."

"Do you really believe that?" I asked. "The survivors will hate you for causing so much destruction. I'd rather be on the side that values my people."

"You think your lord values your people? He's a Teltan, Finn. He may like you, but that means nothing. Zians mean nothing to him."

Tannix spoke up. "We're not that different, Prince Kalvahi. You're a Deoran and I'm a Teltish Ziannan. We both want what's best for our people. The difference is that I consider the Native Zians my people, not just nameless citizens to pad my armies."

"Do you really?" Kalvahi asked. "Then why don't you treat them the same way you treat Teltans?"

"I can't speak for the way other Teltans treat Zians. I consider Native Zians my people. Be reasonable, Kalvahi. If you truly want to restore the kingdoms, then let my brother and I do what we can for Zianna. This war will not solve anything. But peacefully, we will be able to prompt change. If Finn could convince a group of thieves to trust me, and I could convince a group of highly trained knights to respect him, I don't think we'll have trouble with the rest of the kingdom."

I had no idea how Tannix managed to sound so calm and reasonable. Kalvahi also seemed impressed by the speech, but not convinced. His gaze was flickering between me and Tannix.

After a moment, he spoke again. "So it is true about you two, then? Kassiandra was right. Well, who would have thought? I could tell you were friends, but this? Lord West Draulin, King of New Teltar—do you plan on making him your queen?"

Tannix's eyes narrowed. "Trying to provoke me isn't going to work."

"And do you think your fellow Teltans will accept your feelings for him? He's nothing to them. An animal. No more important than a trained dog. What do you think will happen when you—" Kalvahi flinched suddenly and it took everyone a moment to realize why.

My aim wasn't great, but the knife I'd thrown would have hit his shoulder if he hadn't moved. The guard behind him looked down at the knife lodged in his breastplate. He grabbed the handle and pulled it out, to look at it in complete bafflement.

Slowly, everyone looked at me.

"You don't know anything about Zianna or its people, Kalvahi," I said, ignoring the awed stares and glaring directly at him. "Stop pretending that you do. If you're planning on arresting us again, get over here and try."

A low chuckle came from one of the knights, and Acen nudged me as if agreeing with my words. Tannix spun his sword at his side and smiled.

"Come on, Prince Kalvahi. There are only four of us, after all."

Prince Kalvahi turned to the man on his right and spoke in rapid Deoran. I saw the guard glance at me, but didn't have much time to wonder why before Kalvahi smiled at me. "I told them to kill you, Finn." Around him, his soldiers were drawing their swords.

I shrugged, surprised at how little the threat bothered me. "I think they'll have to take that up with Lord West Draulin."

Kalvahi's men started forward. I ducked behind Tannix and the knights just as the two groups met, knowing that I would get in the way otherwise. From my relatively safe vantage point, I watched Tannix and the knights hold back the Deoran guards. Every time a Deoran got hurt, he backed away and a new soldier took his place.

Tannix and the knights couldn't step back and be replaced. But they didn't need to. They were better fighters. Tannix stood front and centre, fighting with his left hand just as well as he did with his right. Acen had drawn one of his daggers, and was using it in his left hand while he fought with the sword in his right. Jalor's sword was bigger, he swung it with both hands.

Before long, I realized that the sounds of fighting were also coming from the other side of the Deoran men. Then a familiar voice called about the din, "You started without us!"

It was Evrik, forcing his way through the group, a bloody axe in each hand. Blood was splattered across his tunic, but his wide grin convinced me that it wasn't his. Mandell appeared next, swinging his maces back and forth, carving a pathway through the men. The Deorans sensed the turning tide and started trying to get away. Kalvahi was already gone.

Mandell swung his mace at a man beside him and I closed my eyes just in time to miss seeing the mace meet the man's face. When I opened my eyes again, all the guards had left except for the ones lying on the floor. Some were dead, some were very injured. Further down the hall, Joen was standing with the twins, both of whom had their bows out.

"When you said you'd distract them, we assumed that meant you would talk, not fight," Evrik said. He rolled his shoulders, looked at his axes, and tried to wipe the blood off onto his already bloody pants.

"Finn threw a knife at Kalvahi," Tannix said dismissively.

"Oh?" Evrik shot me a sideways glance. "Did you hit him?"

"I would've, but he ducked," I said.

Evrik laughed. "Excellent! I knew you'd be a good thrower. I could tell the moment I met you."

We walked down the hall to join the twins and Joen. I forced myself to look straight ahead and not down. Sword wounds were one thing, but the injuries caused by Evrik's axes and Mandell's maces were more gruesome. I couldn't look. I didn't want to look.

"Sorry about being late, mates," Kor said when we reached them. "The hallways are set up in squares, of a sort, so we found our way through quickly enough. But then we met up with a smaller group of soldiers."

"Aye," Ender agreed. "And Joen got the first one."

Joen looked shaken. One of his hammers was bloody, and his tunic was dark with more blood. Acen clapped him on the shoulder quickly, and Joen smiled weakly in response.

"But that's not all," Evrik continued the story. "See, we took some keys from the soldiers, and a good thing, too, because just a few cells down we came across someone." He leaned around the corner, and waved.

A girl emerged from the dark hallway. She had pale Telt skin and very light hair that hung limply around her shoulders. Her fancy, expensive green dress was tattered and dirty, her shoes were stained. There were bruises on her neck and her wrists, maybe from restraints, or maybe from someone tearing off jewellery. She was tinier than the knights, closer to my height, and yet she instantly captivated their attention.

Tannix dropped his sword. The clatter of it hitting the stones made me jump. I picked it up for him, doing my best to ignore how sticky the handle was, and tried to hand it back to him. He didn't notice. He was staring at the girl.

"Lady Mayah."

"Lord Tandrix," she replied.

My stomach dropped. Somehow, her identity scared me more than Kalvahi's threats had.

"Are you hurt, my lady?" Tannix asked.

She shook her head. "No. At least not badly. You seem worse off, my lord."

"It's nothing."

"I was expecting to be rescued, but not by you," she said. "Your knights told me that you're Lord West Draulin now? You should know... I'm Lady East Draulin." Her voice sounded detached, like she wasn't really letting herself think about the words she was saying. "Inherited upon the deaths of my parents, I suppose we would officially say. The murders of my parents, more accurately."

"Sir," Acen interrupted. "We need to go. Kalvahi will be getting reinforcements."

"Of course," Tannix said. "Take up our previous order. Jalor, watch Lady East Draulin. Finn, we're up front again." He reached for his sword, but seemed to change his mind at the last moment and quickly ran his hand through my hair. The gesture calmed my nerves regarding Lady East Draulin, at least a little bit. I forced the rest of the feelings to the back of my mind and handed Tannix his sword.

I took my spot in the lead again, but not for long, as a courtyard opened up in front of us. Across the courtyard there was a large, arched doorway with a portcullis. Beyond the portcullis, the city. We were close.

"It looks deserted, but we'll move quickly," Tannix said, as we hovered in the doorway. "Kor, Ender, watch the walls. Hopefully once we get out into the city we can lose them and find a place to hide while we work out our next move. Finn, if we get attacked, take Lady Mayah and run. We'll find you."

"Or you'll get thrown back in prison."

"If that happens, then we'll need you safely out of harm's reach so that you can rescue us," Tannix said. "But that won't happen." He took a deep breath. "Let's go."

We stepped into the courtyard. Without discussing it, the knights moved into a loose circle, with me, Lady East Draulin, and Joen holding up Ender in the middle. We were about halfway across the yard when the doorway behind us crashed shut, trapping us.

Archers appeared on the walls. Kalvahi stepped out of a doorway with a small group of knights. He started to talk, but I heard something that distracted me. Something I never expected to hear in Deorun.

Baisan's whistle.

But not quite. Someone imitating Baisan's whistle.

I looked up, my gaze landing on Kassia, standing on the wall, staring down at us. Beside her, an archer was taking aim. Instantly I realized what was happening, and who he was aiming at. I threw myself at Lady Mayah, causing us both to crash into the ground. But I wasn't fast enough.

I felt the arrow bury itself into my shoulder.