Gwili cautiously looked around the corner of the tight, dimly-lit hallway as he walked through the palace. The sun had already dipped below the distant horizon, allowing him more freedom of movement through the maze of hallways leading away from the armory.
I haven't seen any guards in the area, but after seeing those hashishin basically come out of the stonework, I can't be too sure, he thought for a moment as he looked towards the far end of the hallway.
I could draw mana to see better, but I don't want to risk there being someone nearby who could potentially sense me. I wonder if Leona knew just how hard it would actually be to infiltrate a place like this successfully, Gwili thought as he put his back to the corner of the wall.
At the far end of the hall, he could hear the sounds of footsteps and a muffled conversation begin to bounce off the thick, stone walls.
Of course, they'd be doing rounds. Damn it, I just hope this armor I stole holds up against the scrutiny of any overly-curious eyes. I can't afford to fuck up now, he thought as he pulled the tan fabric around his neck up to the bridge of his nose.
He was wearing what he assumed to be a lower-ranking guardsman's armor, which he recalled from his experience when the group first entered the country. Having interacted with merchants and their guards over his many years in the Rhydian Pass, he did his best to ensure that his armor was correctly worn.
Stepping out from behind the corner with his head tilted downward just enough for the headpiece to help shield his eyes, he began descending the hall with his hand resting on the pommel of his stolen, curved sword. As the guardsmen's torch lit up the hallway more and more, he took a deep breath and tried to act as naturally as possible.
"...and then the Coltendian queen thanked Her Majesty for her hospitality. I was surprised that Her Majesty didn't seem to find any hint of sarcasm in her voice," one of the guards said with a slight chuckle in his voice. "How dare that foreign bitch disrespect our Queen that way? She should have her head on a platter and set out on display for all to see," the second guard said angrily.
"And risk the wrath of the Coltendians? By Yarathea, do you want to start an intercontinental war, Kamil?" the first asked, briefly halting his movements as he put a hand on the other's shoulder. "No, Sergeant Jashad, I-I didn't mean it for that reason," Kamil replied nervously, instinctively calling him by his full title to avoid further backlash. "Then what did you mean? Because it sounds to me like you do," the sergeant asked, regarding his subordinate intensely.
"I-I simply meant that Her Majesty should never have allowed the Coltendian Queen to disrespect her in such a way," Kamil replied shakily, with visible nervousness beginning to show in his eyes. Jashad sighed heavily and shook his head. "You must understand, Kamil, that it is not our place to make such decisions. Her Majesty can handle herself," Jashad said, regarding Kamil seriously.
"Of course, I understand that Sergeant, but even so…" Kamil trailed off, averting his gaze down and away momentarily. "I know you only want to protect her honor. I do, too, but it is not for us to make rash decisions that could eventually lead our people into suffering even more than they already do," Jashad said, leaning into Kamil's line of sight.
The people are suffering? They seemed fine to me when we came in, Gwili thought, overhearing the exchange as he walked.
He slowed his pace to match the pattern of their footsteps as they walked towards him again. Finally noticing his presence, Jashad regarded him curiously just as he was passing by. "You there," he said, prompting Gwili to come to a sudden halt.
Shiiiit, I've been had, he thought, squinting his eyes in a moment of frustration.
"Y-yes, Sergeant Jashad?" he replied with a raspier voice than usual in his best Harutian accent, turning to face the pair. "Who are you? Why are you walking around alone? Don't you know that no one is supposed to do their rounds alone?" Jashad asked curiously. "My apologies, Sergeant. My name is Rami, but my former guard leader was killed in the attack by those foreigners, and I have yet to be assigned a new one, given the situation," Gwili replied without missing a beat.
"Who was your guard lead?" Jashad asked, earning the elf a suspicious look. "Sergeant Nibal. He was a good man who defended me from an attack by the giant who was with the foreigners, Sergeant," Gwili said, trying his best to convey a sense of loss in his tone as he recalled one of the freshly scratched-out names he saw in the armory.
"Nibal? That oozing prick-sore saved you? I wouldn't have taken him for the heroic type," Jashad asked, growing increasingly curious as he took a step towards him. "I don't think anyone would have, Sergeant, but he took pity on me when I first came into the Guard because of the way I look," Gwili replied, lifting his head to finally reveal his lime-green eyes and pale skin shimmering with forced tears in the torchlight.
"By Yarathea, you're a half-breed," Kamil said, his and Jashad's dark-brown eyes widening as they took a step back.
That must really be a bad thing to be here, Gwili mentally noted.
"Yes, I am. When my mother discovered that my father had cheated on her with a pale merchant woman, she forced me to join the Guard when I came of age in hopes that I would be able to find my own way through this world. In all honesty, I think she just wanted to get rid of me, as the memory of his betrayal must have been too much for her to bear," Gwili said, averting his gaze once more.
Jashad regarded him with a slight look of distrust, but after a moment's consideration, he sighed heavily. "I don't know what Nibal saw in you, but I can understand why it's taken so long to get you a new guard lead," he said, putting a hand on Gwili's shoulder.
"I'm sure there's more to your story, but for now, you can patrol with us. There's not much else down the rest of this hall, so you'd only be wasting your time. Come, follow us," Jashad said, turning to stride down the hall once more.
That was too close for comfort, but I'm glad to have at least some sort of direction in this maze, Gwili thought as he nodded his head in agreement, sniffling some snot back into his nostrils.
He quickly fell into step with the other two as they returned down the halls he'd just come from. "So, how long have you been in Her Majesty's Guard?" Kamil asked as they walked. "I-I've only been here a few months since leaving training, and I'm still learning the inner workings of the palace," Gwili said, still feigning his recovery from the memories of his fake past.
"That's a surprise. I've never seen you around, much less in Sergeant Nibal's company," Kamil said with a curious tone. "He often tried to keep me away from the others as if I were a leper," Gwili began in a shaky tone.
"He never missed an opportunity to remind me that it was his duty to keep me hidden, but he never once treated me harshly because of my past," he continued in a reminiscent tone.
"It seems I didn't really know him at all, then," Jashad said over his shoulder. "He might have always been an oozing prick-sore on the surface, but I think there was more to him than just that, Sergeant," Gwili replied with a shrug. "It would seem so," Jashad said distantly.
They continued through the narrow halls that eventually widened, feeding back into the main areas of the Palace. They'd passed a few other guards along the way, though no one seemed to take much notice of Gwili as they passed.
Using these two as a meat shield is a good idea for now, but how the fuck am I supposed to get up to Zari's quarters? I've got to find a way to get out of this mess, he thought as they neared the Great Hall.
"Where does our route go from here, Sergeant?" he asked cautiously. "Why do you ask?" Jashad responded bluntly.