Rhenor wanted to fight back, but as long as he and Kaz had blades against their throats, they weren't going to win this. So, for now, he just let himself be led into a dark, narrow alley that led nowhere. That was smart on their attackers' part because unless Rhenor and Kaz managed to defeat them, there would be nowhere to run.

"What do you want?" Rhenor tried asking, but the woman threatening him with the knife didn't answer and instead only pushed him to go faster until they reached the end of the alley. The smell here was certainly much less pleasant than on the main streets.

As soon as he was pushed forward and the knife left his throat, Rhenor turned around and raised his fists as next to him Kaz collided with the wall with a gasp. Rhenor glared at the man who had caused that.

The two of them didn't look too threatening, despite the knives, but Rhenor wouldn't underestimate them. Their faces were half covered with scarfs, but he could still see that they seemed fairly young—definitely younger than Rhenor's twenty-five years. But when he looked into their eyes, he could tell they weren't young in spirit. Unlike most of the people in Sigallah, these two must have lived through many hardships and worries, not that often seen even in the mountains.

"Who are you?" the man demanded. They were still holding knives towards them, which was the only reason Rhen hadn't drawn his bow. He didn't think he'd manage it fast enough.

"Who are you?" Rhenor snapped back, clenching his fists tighter since he had nothing else to use as a weapon.

"Do you really think we'd tell you? We don't wear these for fun," the woman grumbled, pointing at the scarf over her mouth and nose. "Now, my friend here asked you something. Who are you, and what do you want with Elaya?"

Rhenor frowned, so confused that he put his fists down without really meaning to.

"Well?" the man barked. "Do you work for the dragons?"

These people had a lot of questions, and they didn't even wait for the answers. A very odd approach, in Rhenor's opinion.

"No, of course, we don't. Do we look like their servants?" Rhen couldn't help but sound sarcastic due to how ridiculous and untrue the suspicion was. He just hoped they wouldn't end up with stab wounds because of it.

"Don't lie. Why else would you be looking for Elaya?"

Before Rhenor could reply, Kaz jumped in. "Wait, you know Elaya?"

The two masked attackers exchanged a look while Kaz continued, his voice growing faster and faster as he went. "Is she okay? We've come all the way here to meet with her. I've been so worried about her. Can you take us to—"

"Okay, calm down," the man stopped him, lowering his dagger and raising his hand. Kaz shut up, but it was clear he was having trouble staying still. He didn't look very happy, mostly just worried and anxious, but there seemed to be a spark of hopefulness in his eyes when he looked over at Rhen.

"How do you know Elaya?" the woman asked, looking noticeably more suspicious of them than the man.

"She's my friend. I've known her for twenty years." Kaz's shoulders sank as he said this, looking down at the ground. Rhenor had to admit that this had surprised him. He'd known that Kaz and Elaya were good friends—even just based on what he'd done for her—but twenty years? At most Kaz could be maybe something over twenty, so that meant he and Elaya had known each other for their whole lives.

Rhenor looked over at the man and woman who were still holding their knives out. The man had lowered his, however. He seemed to be about to say something when "They're lying, obviously. They're bounty hunters. Or spies."

Rhenor had a difficult time not laughing at that. He could respect her not trusting them, especially given that they were looking for a wanted magic user, but the idea of him and Kaz being spies for the kingdom was almost amusing.

He wondered how these two even knew they were looking for Elaya, but then again, Kaz and Rhenor had both said her name more than once in public, especially in that tavern, assuming that no one would recognize it.

"Do you truly think these two are spies? Look at them," the man whispered to the woman, but not quietly enough for Rhen not to hear them. He folded his arms in annoyance, now feeling a little insulted.

"That could be a ruse," the woman hissed back. She glared first at him, and then at Kaz before grabbing the man's elbow and turning him around. They whispered to each other for a moment while Rhenor's patience started to wear thin.

He considered pushing them out of the way and running, but if they knew Elaya, they had to convince them to bring them to her. That was why they'd come here, after all. Kaz shot him an unsure look, which Rhen responded to by running a hand over Kaz's back.

Finally, the two turned around again. The man sighed, folding his arms while the woman put her hands on her hips.

"You'll be coming with us." The woman reached into the satchel at her hip as she said this and pulled out a length of rope. "If it turns out you are spies, we'll see how much we can ransom you for."

Oh, for the love of Hermea. Were they really going to willingly let themselves be captured by these people just for the possibility that they might know where the woman they were looking for was?

Kaz shot him a pleading look, and Rhen sighed tiredly. Of course, they were going to do exactly that. Of course.

Rhenor did his best not to resist as the man tied his hands together with the rope tightly in front of him, though he couldn't help but roll his eyes a little at the free length of rope that was left, presumably to drag him around with. He really hoped this would get them somewhere.

He couldn't not protest though when the man started to tie a piece of cloth around his eyes.

"This is all incredibly unnecessary," he argued, but he wasn't allowed to continue that thought because a second later a piece of fabric was forced inside of his mouth. Rhenor let out an irritated breath through his nose, biting down on the foul-tasting fabric as it too was tied behind his head tightly.

These people had clearly come prepared for this, and yet they hadn't even bothered forcing Rhenor to put his bag and bow down. They hadn't even searched him, though he truly couldn't do much in his current situation.

"Try to run, and we'll make you regret it," the woman said, followed by a muffled grunt and the sound of stumbling from Kaz. Rhenor had no idea what she'd done to him, but he already wanted to fight her.

At a pull on the rope and therefore his wrists Rhenor started walking, hoping that these people were mature enough not to let him walk into things on purpose. He thought of raising his arms and trying to at least push the blindfold up, so he knew where they were being led, but he couldn't get his hands anywhere near close enough with how the man was holding the rope.

He stumbled a few times due to the uneven cobbled street as they continued being pulled to gods knew where. They seemed to take a lot of turns, which may have been the point because Rhenor had no idea which way they'd gone at this point.

And he had tried to remember all the turns they took. He really had. But it was just too much when he couldn't see anything.

The walk seemed to drag on forever. So much so that he almost bumped into the person in front of him when they stopped, having not realized that he wasn't being pulled forward anymore.

There was the sound of old hinges creaking and a thud. Probably a door?

"Get ready for a fall."

Rhenor did a double-take, blindly turning the way the voice had come from. He wanted to ask—no, demand they explain—what this was supposed to mean, but of course, he couldn't with the gag in his mouth.

He was barely given any time to process what was going to happen before he was pushed forward and fell down, crashing a second later onto a hard surface. Rhenor gasped as the impact forced the air out of his lungs, but he had at least managed to somewhat catch himself with his bound hands, so at least his face came out unscathed.

There was a thud next to him as presumably one of the people who had captured them jumped down as well, and Rhen was dragged to his feet again. He followed wherever he was being pulled to and grunted as he was pushed to the ground again, falling onto his knees as the rope he had been led around with was tied to something above him, forcing him to keep his arms up.

He bit into his gag angrily, pulling on the rope but it didn't budge. He proceeded to move his legs so he was sitting more comfortably, as next to him, Kaz was forced to the ground and likely secured just like Rhenor had been.

Rhen sighed. Hopefully, they wouldn't have to stay like this for long because Rhenor wasn't sure how much longer he could stay patient for before he tried to get away in earnest. That didn't mean he'd manage it, of course, especially since he was blind right now, but he would try.

"Watch them. I'll go get Elaya," the woman said, followed by the sound of footsteps. Rhenor wondered where they were. They were most likely underground, possibly in a cellar or basement, which would make sense since these people were most likely criminals. Surely, they wouldn't disguise their faces only to hide their identity from Kaz and Rhenor, so it would make sense to have a hideout somewhere out of the way. But it was certainly odd that a group of petty thieves would be willing to capture and plan to ransom the dragons' spies back to them. That was no simple, low-risk crime. They could be hanged for such a thing.

He could practically feel the man watching them, even though he couldn't see or hear him. But it was getting increasingly uncomfortable. Thankfully, a few minutes later, the sound of footsteps came back, this time doubled. Suddenly, one pair of footsteps came to a halt.

"Oh my gods. Kaz?!" a female voice said, followed by the rush of footsteps as she ran to him. Rhenor tried not to feel too annoyed that he wasn't being paid attention to at all as he heard Kaz say her name with absolute giddiness, having clearly been freed. Rhen would appreciate getting the blindfold off at least.

"What in Seranis' name are you doing here?"

From the rustling sounds that followed, Rhenor assumed that they were hugging.

"We came looking for you," Kaz replied, sounding incredibly happy. Rhenor would have smiled if he could. He immediately felt even more annoyed then. He wanted to clear his throat to draw attention to himself since that was about the only sound he could make to express his impatience right now, but it seemed what Kaz had said had done it for him.

"Who is that?"

"Oh, right!"

Rhenor's wish finally came true as the blindfold and gag came off, letting him see Kaz's grinning face as the man proceeded to untie the rope around his wrists. With shocking ease, Rhenor had to admit.

"This is Rhen. We've been traveling together."

Rhenor decided not to point out that that was a bit of an understatement of their relationship and got up, rubbing his sore wrists. The man and woman who had brought them to this surprisingly well-furnished basement were still masked, but Elaya wasn't.

Rhenor wasn't sure how he'd imagined she would look, but she fit whatever mental image he'd had fairly well. Her hair was a very light blond and in a rather messy braid she wore in the front. She was currently watching him with her piercing blue eyes narrowed at him, her arms crossed over her chest where she was standing next to Kaz.

But Rhenor didn't even bother glaring at her when he noticed she was wearing something akin to leather armor. It was just the top half, with some layered leather and a few metal parts on the shoulders. But still, that couldn't have been cheap. And it would only make her stand out, wouldn't it?

"Are you sure about this bloke?" Elaya asked Kaz, and Rhenor did glare at her this time. He didn't appreciate being talked about like this as if he weren't in the room.

"Yes, of course! He's a friend." Kaz stared at the stone ground as Elaya raised an eyebrow at him, a small smirk on her face.

"Truly." She chuckled before relaxing her posture and stretching her arm towards Rhen, who just frowned at it. This woman moved very fast, didn't she? "Well, any friend of Kaz's is a friend of mine. Thankfully there's never a lot of those because I would never keep up."

Rhenor glared at her again. She was joking, he knew that, but it was still not a nice thing to joke about. Kaz didn't seem too bothered though. In fact, he was still grinning.

"Elaya Teris," she introduced herself, still holding out her hand, completely unbothered by Rhen's glare. Rhenor sighed and took her hand, shaking it as unenthusiastically as possible.

"Rhenor Wright."

"So, they aren't spies," the other woman said, almost sounding disappointed about that. Rhenor took a proper look around the room finally, noticing all the tapestries and rugs all over the relatively large space. There were even a couple of paintings on the walls. And there was a doorless frame leading to at least one other room. What house were they under? The person owning it must have been rich to afford such a large basement.

"No, we aren't spies," Rhenor confirmed with a grumble, scowling at the woman. Neither she nor the man had taken off the scarves still. Did they truly think if they showed their faces, he and Kaz would report them? "I already said so. We came here to meet with Elaya."

"Yes, exactly," Kaz said, smiling at his friend. It was heartwarming how happy just seeing her again had made him. Elaya put an arm around Kaz's shoulders, grinning as well, though she also gave Rhen a brief look that Rhenor couldn't identify. It certainly didn't look happy, though.

"Come on, you two, let's talk," Elaya said, jerking her head towards the other room and giving Rhen a very pointed look.

"Are you serious?" the masked woman asked as Elaya and Kaz made their way towards the door. Rhenor didn't even look at her or the man as he followed. He really could use a drink after all of this. Hopefully, Elaya had something.

"There's nothing to worry about," Elaya replied as she disappeared into the other room. Rhenor poked his head in, noting that this one, while smaller, looked fairly similar to the first room. However, there was a noticeable smell of food in here. Rhenor couldn't quite put his finger on what food, but he could smell smoked meat and bread. They must have had something stored in the cupboards around here.

Or perhaps even in the next room, which was right in front of him. This basement was absurdly large. But it was also entirely possible this wasn't out of the norm for Sigallah.

Elaya led them to the table in the middle of the room, sitting down after giving Kaz one more hug.

"I can't believe you came all the way here," she said as Rhen took a seat as well, putting his bag, bow, and quiver on the ground next to him. It was easier to relax when it was just Elaya with them. Not that he particularly liked her so far, but Rhenor had never been comfortable being watched by so many people at once. "I take it you were exiled?"

Kaz sighed, leaning against the table with his elbows. Rhen grasped his shoulder, hoping that would help comfort him at least a little, but he was immediately distracted by how ornate the table was. There were dragons carved into it, which he hated the very sight of, but beyond that, it must have been incredibly expensive. Had all of this been stolen, or had it all already been here before Elaya and the other two had moved in?

"I knew what the price would be," Kaz said, smiling up at Elaya again. "It was worth it. Besides, you saved my life. It was only fair I saved yours in turn."

Elaya gave him a slightly bittersweet smile before looking over at Rhenor. "Thanks for looking after him. Kaz isn't exactly an, um, experienced traveler."

Rhen raised his eyebrows at her odd tone. As if she was implying something, and he didn't understand or know what. But he gave a nod. He didn't mind helping Kaz at all, and he didn't see why he would mind in the future.

"I truly never thought I'd see you again, Kaz," she continued, smiling easily, but Rhenor could sense something was up. "This is cause to celebrate. We've recently come into possession of an aged bottle of beetroot blaze." She looked directly at Rhenor. "Mind getting it? It's in a crate in the next room."

She pointed at the door frame leading to the room he hadn't yet been in, narrowing his eyes at it. Well, this was obviously a ploy to get him to go away for a moment. But he supposed he understood. Elaya had no reason to trust him, aside from Rhenor having traveled with Kaz for a few weeks. Rhenor was mostly insulted by her not outright telling him to go away, though.

He shook his head and shrugged. He had wanted alcohol, after all. He'd only had beetroot blaze once, and he remembered it being very strong, which he certainly wouldn't mind right now.

Still, he found himself walking to the next room slowly and hesitantly. He wasn't sure why—if everything he'd heard so far was true, leaving Kaz with Elaya was the opposite of risky. But he couldn't help but feel protective of him. And he also had a feeling Elaya had already figured out what relationship he and Kaz had and might be interested in lecturing Kaz about it. Rhen didn't want him to have to listen to that.

But still, he went off to search for the alcohol, immediately knowing it would be a difficult task when he stepped into the small room. This one clearly served as storage space, judging by the number of wooden crates and boxes all around it. Something told Rhenor that all of this had been stolen, but to be honest, it made him respect Elaya and whoever the other people were a little more.

Whoever caused trouble for the rich would get a certain level of respect from him. But what he didn't fully understand was how they'd manage to operate here without being found out by now.

He'd think Elaya had been using her magical proficiency to get ahead, but one couldn't use magic without being tracked down immediately, so she must have had other skills aside from magic.

Even though he'd planned to take his time, he'd spent far too long looking for the bottle, only to eventually find it in a box in the back, propped up on a crate against the wall. It should have been immediately obvious, but it wasn't.

Hoping that Kaz and Elaya were done with their conversation by now, Rhenor was about to leave the room, only to overhear them talking. And he knew he shouldn't eavesdrop. He truly knew that. But he couldn't help it when it became obvious they were talking about him.

"You like him, huh?"

Rhenor froze as he heard Elaya say this, standing right next to the door frame. He couldn't make himself move.

"Yes." Kaz sounded incredibly sad about that. Rhenor felt his heart flip, but not in a good way. "But I can't. I mean, he's a—"

"Yeah, and I feel a need to remind you that the people making these rules exiled you. Why do you even care?"

There was a sinking feeling in Rhenor's stomach.

"I just can't be with him. It's not right. What if they find out?"

Rhen stood there for a moment, unable to breathe. He could still hear them talking, but his brain refused to take in the words.

So that was Kaz's problem. He didn't think Rhenor was good enough for him. Or at least he felt someone close to the aristocracy shouldn't be with a commoner like Rhenor. Even though Rhen hoped more than anything that he was reading this all wrong, but he couldn't think of what else this could mean.

The bitterness this brought with it finally let him move. It felt like it wasn't even him walking out of the room, but he had certainly intended to. Both Kaz and Elaya fell silent as they saw him.

"Oh, you found it! Wonderful," Elaya said, grinning as she got up, presumably in search of something to pour the alcohol in. Kaz didn't bother pretending everything was fine, as he kept his eyes trained on the table, looking miserable. Seeing that immediately made it harder for Rhenor to feel resentful, but by the Seven he would try.

"Yes. You have quite a lot of things in there," Rhenor said, ignoring Kaz as he sat down next to him and put the bottle on the table. He couldn't look at him right now without risking glaring at him. And that would certainly not help the situation.

Elaya gave him a mysterious smirk. In an effort to not think about Kaz, and how much it hurt to think about him, Rhenor thought more about where exactly they were, and who these people were.

"So, those two who took us against our will—"

"Oh, right, sorry about that. They're just very...cautious," Elaya replied, sitting down, three glasses in hand, which she then put on the table with a clink. "Grew up on the streets, you see."

Rhenor somewhat knew what that was like.

"So they did steal all of this?"

Elaya laughed as she broke the bottle's seal and opened it, pouring the crimson liquid into the glasses. "Oh goodness, no. Not just them. This is simply storage for a group of, um, like-minded people."

"You mean thieves." Rhenor took one of the glasses, drinking half of the bitter, spicy drink before he even thought about the consequences. And to hell with them. He wanted to drown his sorrow and bitterness in alcohol much more than he feared possible dizziness and the resulting hangover.

Elaya was watching him with her eyebrow raised, looking impressed. Rhenor felt it a matter of pride not to cough to help some of the burning in his throat now, knowing that Elaya appreciated his drinking skills. He wasn't even sure why, but he stubbornly refused to even clear his throat.

He could already feel some of the effect of the alcohol on him. He could feel his skin growing hotter.

"Yes," she said with a smile, taking a sip of her own drink. "Thieves. Don't pretend you mind that they steal from the wealthy."

Rhenor shook his head. No, he truly didn't mind. In fact, he found it both amusing and commendable. But it still sounded far too dangerous.

Next to him, Kaz sputtered. "And you're involved with these people? What if you get caught?"

Elaya waved her hand, taking another sip of her blaze. "I haven't been that involved since I've only been here for a week or two. They offered me a place to hide from the guards, so I took it. And I help them organize, for the most part."

Elaya didn't seem that old or experienced, especially not to lead an organization of thieves. But somehow, despite that, she seemed to ooze confidence and skill. No wonder Kaz liked her, but it did pose the question of why and how the two of them had even become friends in the first place.

But Rhenor was doing his best not to think about Kaz at the moment, and especially not about where he came from.

"Especially now." Elaya sighed, finishing her drink and pouring herself another glass. Rhenor could feel his mind start buzzing, so even though he wanted to keep pace with her, he took a small sip instead, letting the spices warm him instead of burning his throat.

"Apparently, a little while before I got here," Elaya began, leaning onto the table, "the guards somehow found four of the five hideouts that are around the city."

"So this thief organization—"

"Is just the three of us now, yes. And a few members who are in hiding, but we have no way of contacting them."

Rhenor stared down into his drink. Of course, this couldn't have lasted long. But it made him righteously angry with those guards. They were basically betraying their own kind for money. They could very easily just turn a blind eye to it. There were worse things that could happen to a person than having a few of their paintings stolen.

"You were almost captured by guards?!" Kaz's eyes were practically bulging out, full of horror. "Why are you still here?"

Elaya leaned in closer to them, looking directly at Rhenor as if she was trying to figure something out. "Those guards at the gates, checking travelers? Those weren't there when I arrived."

Was she trying to imply that they were there because of her? That sounded ridiculous to Rhen, even with the supposed magical powers Elaya was supposed to have.

"Well, as it turns out, they are there because a ship is scheduled to dock here tomorrow for supplies. A ship bringing in taxes from the island territories."

Rhenor gritted his teeth. Oh, now it all made perfect sense. The Dragon Lord in charge of Sigallah probably thought there was nothing to worry about from the inside now that its criminal underbelly had been dealt with, but there was still the threat of newcomers.

"There is a plan to steal that money right from underneath the dragons' snouts. But as you can see, currently we are a bit...undermanned."

Rhenor tilted his head, intrigued. Was she implying she would like his help on this? Under normal circumstances, he'd refuse. He didn't want to drag Kaz into more danger, particularly when that danger was the dragons' lackeys, but right now, he didn't care. If Kaz didn't want to help, that was fine with Rhenor, but he did. He wanted to take a stand, and this seemed like a great opportunity.

"Wait...." Kaz looked from Elaya to Rhenor, horrified. "You don't plan on going along with this, right? Either of you."

Elaya exchanged a look with Rhen before looking at Kaz again. "I'm already a fugitive."

Kaz gaped at her more. He looked so shocked and outraged that he couldn't seem to get a word out. It was sort of amusing to see, though Rhenor could feel his stomach twisting. Dammit, he didn't want to feel guilty over this. He had a right to be angry.

"And I want to help," Rhenor said, looking Elaya straight in the eye. "Assuming that once liberated, that money will go to people who need it."

"Yes, that was the plan," she confirmed, nodding and giving him a small but grateful smile. "That is actually where most of the money made from liberating goes. At least it did until now, since—"

"You can't be serious!" Kaz cut in, looking almost angry with them. Rhenor scowled at him. Kaz didn't like it when things didn't go his way, did he?

Rhenor immediately looked away, feeling ashamed for thinking this. He wasn't being fair. Kaz had gone along with things even if they didn't go his way most of the time. Right now he was just scared for his friend and...whatever Rhenor was to him. At some point in the future, a shameful secret, most likely.

"You were almost executed, and you'll just put yourself in danger again?"

Elaya put on a very serious expression. "That's exactly why I'm doing it. I'm tired of being oppressed because I'm a human. If I can do my part to oppose the dragons' rule, I will do it."

Rhenor clinked his glass with hers, finishing his drink. He would definitely drink to that sentiment. And since, by Kaz's own admission, he and Kaz had no future together, he didn't feel a need to stay out of this fight, either. If humans really were starting to resist the lizards' tyranny, he would gladly join in.

"B-but...." Kaz sputtered again, having nothing to say against this. "What if you get hurt? Or captured? They'll kill you."

"Then our deaths will have meant something." Rhenor was surprised by how much he meant that. He hadn't given the human rebellion that much thought because he hadn't thought it had a chance. But if there truly had been this much resistance in such a large city, maybe there was even more resistance in the Capital. Maybe there was hope of overthrowing the dragons and taking back the kingdom.

Kaz stared at both of them with a mixture of shock and desperation, but then he lowered his gaze, looking about the saddest Rhenor had ever seen him. The look tore at Rhen's heart, but he wouldn't give in and comfort him. Rhen was still angry with him and his damned standards, and he would have to keep reminding himself of that.

"So, what's the plan?"