The streets were eerily silent.  Down in the market, all the vendors had apparently closed up shop.  Now they were standing around, talking to one another and milling about.  I wondered if, since the miners were taking a couple of months off, if the vendors would be as well?  

But I couldn't wonder about this any longer.  Daxton, on feet as light and quick as a mountain lion's, was heading like an arrow for the town Courthouse.  

He ducked into the first alley we'd gone into that morning.  I let him pick the path, because he would know where Megidil was likely to be.  

Not even bothering to check any of the other buildings, we scurried down behind them.  Then we came to end, where the alley branched out into a wide open space and the Courthouse was right in front of us.  

Here, behind the cover of the stable, Daxton crouched on the balls of his feet.  "Now we wait," he murmured.

"For what?"  I crouched down next to him. 

"For the message from the miners to come to the Mayor."  

Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.  "Daxton, did Mr. Lotcin ever mention this town having a council?" 

He glanced irritatingly at me.  "You don't need me to tell you that he didn't." 

I shrugged.  "Just checking."  

I pondered this as we waited there.  Most towns had a council, but Mr. Lotcin had never mentioned anything about it.  I wondered if it was part of the system the mysterious Ravagerian had suggested.  As it was, it appeared that the Mayor and the Sheriff with his few deputies, if he had any, were the only legal authorities in town.  

Bringing me back to the present, Daxton shifted his weight slightly.  I chided myself for not being more aware and focused on the Courthouse.  

It wasn't as nice, big, or ornate, as the ones in Terreth or Ladris had been.  But it was the biggest building in town, unless you counted the Clock Tower.  And the best one as well, the wood was shiny and dark, the windows completely clean.  It was the only building in town that had steps leading up to it, and two pillars on the porch, along with double doors.  

The air around us was still and quiet.  I almost felt that it was waiting with us.  

Because it was so still, the light pitter - pattering of foot steps was easy to hear.  We craned our necks around just in time to see a flash of the messenger through the gap between the stable and the other building.

The youth passed the stable, his hair blown back in his hurry.  His face was sparkling with breathless excitement.  There could be no doubt that this was the messenger.  

He bounded up the steps of the Courthouse without breaking stride.  Instead of going inside, he raised his clenched fists to the doors.  They shuddered as he threw all his strength into pounding on them.  Then he stopped and leaned forward, putting his ear to them.  After a moment, he smirked and turned to bound down the steps again. 

There, at the bottom of the steps, he stood and waited with arms crossed.  

Within a few moments, there was the sound of several pairs of footsteps in the Courthouse.  The doors creaked in the stillness as they were shoved open by two servants.  

Out walked Mayor Tale first, followed by the Sheriff, and the Sheriff by the man we sought.  Megidil had all four of his men with him.  I tensed at the sight of them, but Daxton made no move.

"What is the meaning of this?"  The Mayor snapped out.  We had no trouble hearing him.

"An urgent message, Mayor, from the miners."  The youth seemed to be barely containing a mixture of contempt and glee. 

The Mayor's eyes narrowed.  "And?"

"He already knows, else he wouldn't have sent for Megidil," Daxton murmured, and I nodded in agreement.

The youth straightened, and his face became more solemn.  "This, Mayor of Time's Tale, is the message from the miners of Time's Tale."

"Mayor Tale, since you took office after the death of the previous Mayor, you have not acted with honor towards us.  You have threatened to starve us, took away part of our rest days, and been unfair in your dealings toward us.  Therefore, this day, the miners have decided to stop all work.  And it will stay that way until you revoke all of your previous decisions."  

The youth paused.  "We warn you not to try to force us into continuing our mining.  We have every means necessary at our disposal to oppose you.  We know that you are, in other respects, honorable, and we ask that you show that honor to us.  This is our message to you, Mayor Tale."  The youth bowed himself slightly and stepped back.  But his grin sullied the respectful gesture.  

The Mayor was scowling.  "So they really decided to do it, did they?"  He growled and whirled around to march back into the courthouse. 

The youth's grin grew even wider, if that were possible, and he left this side of town in a sprint.  A minute later, a servant dressed in what seemed to be a uniform came out and walked quickly down the road.  Daxton and I silently assumed he was going to call the assembly of the town, as Mr. Lotcin had predicted.

"Come on."  Daxton was on his feet and dashing across the open space on light feet.  After glancing around one last time, I followed him.

We ran up alongside the Courthouse steps and then down the side of the huge building.  As we dashed, I realized that Redwar's conditioning work had done something for me.  I wasn't out of breath as bad as I would have been before.

  Daxton was around the corner of the building before I was. "Perfect," he murmured as I rounded the corner.  His hand was on the door knob of a rather plain looking wood door at  the back of the building.  

Obviously, he was not content to just observe from the outside.  

He deftly turned the knob, which let out a few squeaks.  Apparently the Mayor didn't think it necessary to keep this door locked. 

Daxton drew one of his daggers and pushed the door open slowly.  I laid my hand on my own dagger. 

He scanned whatever was on the inside before nodding and slipping in.  I followed close behind, and took in the room for myself as I shut the door.  

It wasn't a room at all, but a small hallway which led into one.  At the moment, it appeared no one was here. 

Daxton stepped into it.  "Nothing but a bunch of dusty old books and scrolls.  This must be where they keep the town records." 

"You'd think they'd keep the door locked then."

He shrugged.  "Who'd want to steal these?" He gestured with his dagger to the shelves before moving to the door on the other side of the room.  

I clamped my mouth down on the thought that he sounded just like Derrek, and therefore just like an ordinary boy.  Instead, I shrugged in return and stepped to the side as he went towards the next closed door. 

He opened the door, using it to block himself from someone's view on the other side.  But there was no one.  Instead, there was an blank wall in front of us, and in front of it a strip of empty hallway.  

Daxton stepped lightly around the door and peeked out into it.  With a wave of his hand, I followed him into the empty space.  

My hackles went up when I heard human voices, but there was no one in the short hallway which spanned the width of the courthouse.  At the ends of the hallway were two doors.  I turned, and saw that behind us were two doors, one of which we'd just come through.  

This must be the back of the courthouse where they store records and other things.  If so, then I was pretty sure I knew what the two doors at the end of the hallway led to, if this building was constructed as other Thathian courthouse buildings. Daxton was already moving toward the one on my left, so I followed him. 

His hand landed on the door handle, but he didn't turn it.  Instead, he pressed his ear against the door.  His face morphed into dissatisfaction.  

Then he slid down, to where the gap existed between the floor and the door, and cut his eyes up to me.  "Keep watch."  

I didn't understand why he said that, until he flattened himself against the floor.  Pressing his face in an awkward position between the door and the floor, he had his ear in the gap.  If we had to run, getting up from there wouldn't be easy, and now I understood why he wanted me to 'keep watch.'  

He listened for a couple of minutes, with me resisting the urge to say "Well?" 

"Megidil's here."  

I perked up, expecting more information, but he didn't give it.  Restraining a sigh, I scanned the empty hallway for the 10th time.  

"Mayor Tale just wants them to challenge the leaders of the 'rebellion' to a fight.  Winner gets their way with the mines..." Daxton's voice was flat, as if he was relaying street names.