"There is? What is it?" I was excited at the prospect I might be able to do something, anything.

"I lost a personal possession of mine during the crash. It had once belonged to my mother."

I thought this over. "I've already combed over the crash site. There is nothing out there now. All of the dragon pieces were collected. I haven't heard anything else mentioned."

"It's a small metallic box. It is very possible for it to have been mistaken for a part of the aircraft by an untrained eye. Do you happen to know where they took all the crash site debris?"

"Nazam's tower." My head whipped around to the neglected fireplace in the room. "Actually, we can go there now..."

I stood up as the idea took flight in my mind. I began examining the fireplace, mantle and scone fixtures on both sides.

"Now?" He asked incredulously.

"Yeah, that's what I said."

"I don't think the guards are going to just let me wander up there."

"You're right. We do not have the time to go through all the protocols. We should go now. And the guards don't have to know."

"How are they not going to---" He stopped short when I twisted both scone fixtures in certain ways and the back of the fireplace suddenly open into a dark passageway hidden in the walls.

"Let's go!" I urged him to his feet. "If we hurry, we will be back before they even know we are gone."

"No."

"No? What do you mean 'no'?"

"You should go by yourself at another time. I don't want to be charged with kidnapping a princess on top of my other nefarious deeds."

"Trust me. If we get caught--which we will not-- everyone will know you are the victim of my shenanigans," I said shrugging away his concerns.

He hesitated. And I continued, "Besides I will have no idea what to look for."

With a look of resignation, he looked down the dark hallway. "Are you sure this tunnel leads there?"

"Absolutely."

Once inside, I had him help me pull a rope that closed the door to the room because if anyone did come into the room, I didn't want them finding out about the passage. It was much easier to pull the rope with his help. He must be stronger than he looks.

We found ourselves engulfed in darkness after closing the secret entrance. I felt along the wall until I found a torch holder and pulled the wood stave out. Handing that over to Tallis, I bent over and blindly felt along the floor close to the walls until my hands collided with small bumpy rocks. Clapping them together created a spark and after a few tries, I was able to get the spark to light the stick, so we had a torch to light our way.

"Pyriostones. Smart," Tallis remarked looking quite pale.

"Yes. Whoever created these passages left these scattered on the ground. And lots of premade torches to light." I lifted the torch higher to where the light fell further ahead of us causing the black and red stones to glisten down the tunnel.

I started down the path knowing exactly what turns to make to head towards Nazam's tower. This part of the passageways had more cobwebs but less the closer we got to the tower and my more regularly traveled routes. There were some places the tunnel got so narrow I usually had to shuffle through it sideways. I was worried for a second Tallis would not be able to get through. He struggled a bit, having to hold his shackled hands high. But we managed.

"These escape routes are impressive," he said as he limped along beside me.

"The secret tunnels? Yeah, they are."

"And no one else knows about them?"

"Well, some know a few, I think. But I doubt if anyone knows as many as I do. Some are easy. But most entrances have a specific technique. No two entrances open the same way. That room, for instance. I didn't know it was connected until I was exploring the tunnels and accidentally opened the fireplace. Then I spent nearly a month figuring out exactly how to open it from the room." I looked back sheepishly. "Sorry, I talk fast when I get excited."

"I've noticed," he smiled. It was the first time I had seen him smile, a real smile. No surprise given his predicament. It gave my chest a weightless feeling. He was very handsome when he smiled. He should do it more often.

"We're almost there, but we'll have to crawl the rest of the way," I explained placing our lit torch in a holder knowing it would keep burning for a few hours. "We will be crawling in complete darkness, but not for long. And we have to be quiet until we know Nazam isn't lurking around his tower."

The maruvian looked unsure.

"Don't tell me you are scared of the dark?" I asked.

"I'm not fond of it," he admitted.

"If anyone was, we never would have invented fire."

"We did not invent fire."

"Not the point."

"Right. Let's get on with it. After you."

I crawled the familiar tunnel knowing exactly when to stop. I felt to my left and my fingers grazed the coolness of the grate. It was positioned under a table in Nazam's workspace. It was also hidden by a long table drape, meaning it didn't lend any light in the tunnel, but it did allow the entrance to remain a secret from Nazam, much to his chagrin. Carefully pushing the grate open and slowly lowering it to the side, I crawled out of the tunnel and under the table completely concealed by the drape. I listened for any telltale signs Nazam was in the room as Tallis joined me silently.

No scratching of a quill, no footsteps, no clinking of glass vials...

I motioned for Tallis to follow me to crawl to the next table, leaving the safety of the drape. After confirming with my eyes what my ears didn't hear, I cautiously peeked out at the top loft of the tower. I almost got caught one time cause Nazam was up there. He wasn't this time.

Letting out a breath, I crawled out from under the tables and stood.

"We need to hurry. Where is it?" Tallis raised up and immediately looked around. He was pale and looked utterly exhausted. Crawling with his hands bound must have been a strenuous exercise.

"Up on the loft," I pointed. We both ran up the steps and swept past the larger metal pieces to a table where the smaller pieces were laid out along with scraps of papers. The papers had the scrawled notes of the sorcerer's findings.

I kept an eye on the door below as Tallis looked through the pieces. Despite having snuck in here multiple times, I felt more anxious this time. But not for myself.

If I make things worse for Tallis, I will never forgive myself.

I turned to see Tallis's arms full of a few small pieces. My eyes widened.

"I thought you said it was one piece! A small box?" I whispered.

"It was in one piece! Now it's in pieces!" He hissed angrily.

The heavy door to the tower pushed open and Nazam came in speaking to someone. We both scrambled and ended up hiding behind a large piece in an undignified position with me halfway on his lap. I could not move without exposing us both, though.

This is starting to look like a terrible plan.

"Thank you for your time, Ambassador. I hope this is not too much of an inconvenience," Nazam drawled in that forever-bored tone of his, pouring a glass of wine and offering it to his guest.

"Aw, no. Not at all, Your Greatness. What good would traveling be if I can't share some wine with an old friend?" Though the ambassador's tone did not seem to match his words, he took the offered glass. I watched as he waited for Nazam to take a drink of his before he took a sip of his own glass.

"I know of your great love for the dalliances your travels offer you. Nothing like a visit to the local establishments to ease the longing for your wife." Nazam seemed to be hinting at something that made the Maruvian ambassador's answering breathe seem affronted. Thankfully, they seemed content to conduct their business on the lower floor and their voices carried up clearly.

"Is this why you called me here? For some baseless accusations of my conducts?" He sat his empty glass down with a clank.

"No, please, Edmund. I mean no offense. All Alderias thanks you for your contributions. I am sure your good coin is putting food in some lil babe's mouth. You and I both know that practice is harmless and dare I say, a necessity to men who find themselves so far from home for so long."

"I've had enough of your word games, sorcerer!"

"No games here. But words can be powerful as can certain schematics."

At this, Tallis shifted over to peer around and down at the two men just as Nazam casted a spell lifting an enchantment. A few stones on the wall faded and Nazam reached in and pulled out large rolled up parchments.

The ambassador's eyes bulged, and he whispered in a stupor, "But how? The boy was sure the documents went aflame in the crash."

Nazam unfurled the pages onto a table deliberately making sure the pages were all spread out.

"Oh, they did. You see, I kept every scrap I could find from the wreckage including a burnt scrap of parchment. I had no idea about its significance, but one can never be too careful. And when you began asking for any personal effects I had of the boy's, it made me curious and a recovery spell was easy enough for a Master to pull off. After all, the fire damage wasn't actual dragon fire making its destruction recoverable." He whistled over the outstretched drawing and notes tracing it with a finger. "Quite impressive... a weaponized aircraft outfitted to look like a dragon. Its damages equal to that of one of those majestic reptiles."

"The boy--"

"Wouldn't be capable of affording all this. This project was funded and approved by the Council of Maru... evidenced by their seal right here in the corner."

A moment of silence elapsed as the ambassador stared down at the document. It was so silent, I was afraid they would hear my breathing or Tallis's heartbeat, which I realized I could hear quite well because I had moved across his lap to also peer down at the subject of the conversation. He gave no mind though. His focus was pinned on the outstretched documents. The ambassador finally looked up at Nazam.

"I sense that there is something on the table in exchange for your silence and these... delicate documents. Otherwise, you would be presenting these findings to King Dominic, not me."

"Ah... as a politician, I'm sure you have your fair share of under dealings. What is one more?"

"Indeed. What are your terms?"

"First, I wish to know how many airships Maru has?"

"The scraps here in your tower was the first operational airship. It was in its testing stages... we have another in development. But there is talk of abandoning the whole project due to this... incident. Now it is just a matter of covering it up and maintaining peaceful relations."

"One look at these documents and the King will have all he needs to declare Maru openly hostile. War would be inevitable."

One look at those documents and that seal would save Tallis. He wouldn't even have to commit treason.

"If you want the King to never see or hear of this document again, I suggest you sign this. This new trade agreement will bind Maru to supply Alderias with whatever materials and resources it needs to expand our own technologies, for five years, in exchange for Alderias's rare substances and herbs. We are even generously willing to give funds to your Guild of Magical Arts."

"The same faction that you were once the beneficiary of. I see you have generously added your own compensation here."

"Alchemy is, as always, the stuff of myth. I know my worth."

Nazam... that snake... he is not only going to let Tallis take the fall but also hide the plans of our enemies? Focus, Sienna. The document is right there... if the ambassador takes it out of the room with him, it'll be easier to steal it from him than try to get past one of Nazam's spells.

The ambassador signed the trade agreement and stamped it with a seal of Maru. Ambassador seals were as good as their rulers' seals. That is why the position of Ambassador was a very prestigious position.

I looked up at Tallis, but the hope I thought I would find was absent on his face. That's when a light emitted from the table that had me swiveling my head around. The ambassador leapt back when he tried to pick up the schematics.

Purple flames in the shape of a sigil ignited along the parchment then the flames spread to consume the entirety of the documents. And just like that, it was gone without a trace, not a single scorch mark or bit of ash. I'm sure mine and the ambassador's face mirrored one another, luckily, I think his gasp of shock hid mine.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The ambassador was red faced.

Nazam was blowing on the seal and ink of the contract. "I am doing you a favor, my friend. You have no further need for the schematic. And now you can say you've seen with your own eyes; it has been destroyed. The boy will take the fall for this as an isolated aggressor ensuring his silence. I suspect you can forge some papers to help with this regard. And with this trade agreement, both countries will prosper. To Maru. May Your Legacy Remain."