A Roll of the Die - 1. Inception
Copyright© 2026 by Michael Loucks
Day 8
Milos woke when Fia slipped into his room with a pitcher of water for the basin.
"Thank you," he said, happy Willa had snuck out of the room an hour earlier.
"Are you in need of anything?" she asked. "Hot dandelion tea, perhaps?"
"That would be nice, thank you."
"I'll return at once!" Fia promised.
She left, and Milos climbed from the bed. He quickly began washing himself so he could gird himself and put on his tunic before Fia returned. Unfortunately, she returned before he could finish, though it wasn't really a concern, as servants often saw their masters in various states of undress. That said, Milos didn't want to embarrass the young girl.
"Your tea," she said, getting an eyeful of Milos' naked, muscular body. "Is there anything else?"
"No, thank you."
She lingered, not moving her eyes from him, so Milos turned away.
"You may have me, if you wish," she offered.
It was also not uncommon for servants to provide that service to their masters, especially servant girls with the younger men in the family they served.
"That is not necessary," Milos replied gently, turning to face her, but holding a washing cloth to shield his groin.
"I am not compelled," Fia replied. "I desire it, and have since I first saw you four years ago."
"I'm flattered and pleased by the offer, but I must be off after a quick breakfast. I am expected in Fulham today, and that means a long, hard ride to cover the distance."
Fia's face fell, "You do not desire me?"
"I do, but I have pressing business in Fulham."
"Please visit again soon," she requested.
That was the same request Willa had made, and he'd replied to Willa that he'd do his best, but wasn't sure when it would be.
"If and when my business permits it," Milos said.
"I hope it is soon!" Fia said, sounding both hopeful and inviting.
She left the room, and Milos finished washing. He downed his tea, put on his tunic and breeches, and packed his few things. He went to the kitchen and asked for bread, cheese, and bacon, which were quickly prepared. Once he had eaten, he returned to his room, donned his armor, grabbed his pack, and left the house. He walked to the barn to retrieve his horse, and a stable boy assisted him in saddling the horse. A few minutes later, Milos bade his uncle farewell and was on his way to Fulham at a pace that would bring him there before dusk.
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"We plan to sneak into the wizard's compound tomorrow night," Matthias said when Milos arrived at the Soaring Falcon Inn just before dusk, having ridden hard from Dal Valley.
Matthias updated him on what had happened and what he and Lisette had discovered.
"Just you and Lisette? Not Miri?" Milos asked.
"I have a talisman to protect me from magic," Matthias said. "Lisette will wait in the cave for me to return after she guides me to the wall by the herb garden. She will serve as a lookout, though that is contingent on Kranos taking the bait."
"Because he cannot resist both a summons from the King and an opportunity to kill Matthias," Miri observed.
"How can you forge the summons?" Milos inquired.
"The Lord Mayor will forge it, as he has a copy of his brother's signet ring, something of which his brother is not aware. The Bailiff will deliver it, so it will seem official. To ensure Kranos believes Matthias is in Haven, he and Lisette will set out before first light and hide in the woods until nightfall."
"Why not just kill him now?" Milos suggested.
"According to the Lord Mayor," Miri said, "it has to be after the Commander of the King's Guard is executed for Alfred's murder, so as not to raise suspicion."
"But won't Kranos realize it's a double-cross?"
"I only plan to locate the items tonight," Matthias said. "Getting him away gives me much more time to explore the house and grounds. Then, once the Razor Claws kill Prince Alfred and we frame the Commander, I sneak in and grab the items, then we wait for Kranos to react. Karla will kill him with a surprise shot on the road outside the compound."
"Why not just kill him when you go to retrieve the items?" Milos asked.
"If the opportunity presents itself, I will. But taking him by surprise in his compound is likely impossible, due to wards he will have set and guards who patrol the grounds. It will be much easier on the open road, firing from cover. The reason I need so much time tonight is to find the wards and take note of the guards and their patrol patterns."
"Extremely risky," Milos counseled.
"Give us another plan, then," Karla requested.
"A coördinated strike," Milos suggested. "Kill both at the same time. Are the Razor Claws in motion?"
"Yes," Karla replied. "Alfred will be stabbed with the Commander's dagger, and the bloody dagger will be found in the Commander's scabbard in his quarters. The female Guild member who followed me will seduce the Commander to plant the evidence, then testify she saw him return from the murder with blood on his hands."
"You're sure she will succeed?" Milos asked.
"She has been leading him on for a moon or more, and he is lusting for her," Karla replied. "That was part of the plan arranged by the Lord Mayor."
"When?"
"She sent word to Pavel that it will be tonight."
"Then we kill Kranos tonight as well," Milos declared. "The same plan for Matthias and Lisette, but Miri goes to surrender as part of the deception. I will accompany her, and Karla and Tristan will provide cover and backup. Once Miri arrives, Matthias scales the walls and begins to eliminate the guards, assisted by Karla and Tristan, if necessary. I will guard the gate to prevent anyone from escaping. Whoever sees Kranos first, kills him immediately."
"Reckless," Matthias countered. "Let me simply kill him by stealth, then assault his compound."
"That does make sense," Karla said. "Matthias is warded against magic."
"Then his first act should be to discharge Kranos' mana crystals," Miri suggested. "Just take them out of his presence, and they'll automatically discharge, rendering Kranos harmless, and without you having to rely on the untested talisman."
"And if he sleeps with them?" Lisette asked.
"Then simply kill him in his bed," Miri said firmly.
The six young adventurers continued to debate the best approach for another hour. When they finally settled on a plan, they gathered their weapons and departed for Kranos' compound. They used the path through the woods and separated where the path crossed the road. As Matthias, Miri, Karla, and Lisette made their way further along the path through the woods, Milos and Tristan moved along the road to take up positions to watch the two gates, and, if necessary, prevent Kranos' escape.
Lisette, armed with a dagger, went into the cave to watch the planned escape route while the others continued to the spot near the wall. Karla climbed the tree, and after ensuring there was no movement in the herb garden, drew her bow and used an imitation of an owl's call to signal Matthias and Miri.
Matthias silently scaled the wall, dropping soundlessly into the soft dirt of the herb garden, then made a similar imitation owl call. Karla replied with a double call signifying they were still clear, and a few seconds later, Miri dropped silently into the dirt next to Matthias.
The pair carefully made their way to the hedge, then stopped to watch and wait. Two minutes later, they signaled Karla, who left her perch in the tree, scaled the wall, and joined them next to the hedge. They waited two more minutes, then Matthias began moving stealthily towards the house, with Miri and Karla covering him.
Matthias saw a glint in the moonlight, froze, then carefully moved to the shadow of the house, where he would be nearly invisible. He drew his dagger and waited for the lone guard. As soon as the guard passed his hiding spot, Matthias sprang up, clasped his gloved hand over the guard's mouth, and drew his dagger across the guard's throat, slitting his windpipe and jugular veins.
Except for a surprised grunt, which was muffled by Matthias' gloved hand, the only sound was the guard crumpling to the ground. Matthias quickly dragged the body into the shadows and waited. Less than a minute later, a second guard appeared, calling out for his patrol partner.
Unfortunately, he took a wider path through the grassy area, at an angle that prevented Matthias from approaching him stealthily. The guard stopped, looked around, and began approaching Matthias as if he had spotted him. Not wanting a toe-to-toe fight he might lose, Matthias set his dagger on the ground and raised his pre-cocked light crossbow. He took aim, and just before the guard would have been able to see him, he fired.
The sound of the mechanism shattered the silence of the night, but before the guard realized what had happened, he grunted and dropped to the ground, the bolt protruding from both his right eye and the back of his head.
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For their part, Milos and Tristan had seen no movement at all from either the main gate or the side gate, nor had they heard an alarm raised, even after the loud report of the crossbow being fired. Unless they either saw movement or heard an alarm raised, they would await a signal from one of the others.
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In the cave, Lisette had picked the simple lock on the gate, a skill Matthias had taught her earlier in the day, and took a position at the base of the ladder. She crouched in the inky blackness, waiting for her friends to open the trap door, at which point she would unshield her lantern.
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Matthias crept towards the fallen guard, fully aware he was visible in the light of the nearly full moon. Just as he came to the body, he was surprised by the twang of a bow, and turned just in time to see the third guard collapse in a heap, one of Karla's arrows through his throat.
There was no way he could safely reach the third body, so he abandoned the guard he'd shot with the crossbow and moved back to cover. Five minutes later, with no movement or sound observed, he used an owl call to signal to Miri that he was ready for her to join him. Karla would cover them from the hedge and ensure they had a second clear escape route.
Matthias and Miri moved to a door, using the shadow of the manor house as cover. Miri quickly detected that the door was warded and signaled Matthias. Not wanting to risk alerting Kranos or any other guard or occupant of the house, Matthias unclipped a rope with a grappling hook from his belt. He removed the leather cover, which kept it silent as he moved, then expertly heaved it upwards, hooking the balcony rail, making just a slight thudding sound of metal on wood.
Matthias tested that the balcony rail would hold his weight, then quickly climbed the rope to the balcony. Miri followed after him, and once she was on the balcony, Matthias unhooked the rope, coiled it, replaced the leather cover, and clipped it to his belt. The pair waited for any sign they had been detected, but heard nothing. Miri examined the door and quietly pronounced it free of wards, so Matthias picked the lock.
After waiting a minute, they crept inside and saw they were in a bedchamber. No lamp was lit, and neither the door nor the windows admitted enough moonlight to see by, so Miri used a precious mana crystal to cast a spell that gave her night vision for the next hour. Looking around, she saw the bed was occupied by a young girl, perhaps as old as fifteen. She also noticed that the door to the corridor had no key. More importantly, there was no light from the keyhole, indicating it was locked from the outside, with the key in the keyway. That very likely made the girl a prisoner.
Miri knew they couldn't risk the girl waking and likely giving them away, nor could she countenance killing a defenseless young girl, even if the girl was loyal to Kranos. That left her with only one good option — she used a second mana crystal to cast a sleep spell on the girl, which would keep the girl in a deep slumber for about eight hours.
With only eight crystals remaining, Miri could only use three more, as she needed five for her invisibility spell. She felt she had to keep that in reserve, as she was nowhere near as stealthy as Matthias, who could seem to disappear in any shadow or behind even minimal cover. She also lacked his martial ability and was proficient only with a dagger, and even then, she was outmatched by anyone with even moderate skill.
Matthias moved to examine the lock and was frustrated to find that the key in the opposite keyway had been turned, making it impossible to pick the lock, even with his level of proficiency at picking regular locks. Even a truly accomplished thief would have had a serious problem with the lock, which was, for all intents and purposes, jammed. Matthias wasn't surprised that the hinges were on the opposite side of the door from the room, which confirmed that the room was a cell, as he had surmised.
"Bad luck," he whispered to Miri, who had moved to his side. "There is no way through this door short of an axe, and I suspect it is reinforced with iron on the other side."
"The next balcony?" she suggested.
"That is our only realistic option at this point," he agreed.
They retreated from the room, Miri regretting what proved to be two wasted spells. She wondered if Kranos had discovered a way around the limits, for if he had, his power might be limitless, and their mission doomed before it had truly begun. Ultimately, it didn't matter, as they were committed, and Miri would rather die than be Kranos' slave and concubine.
The duo made their way back to the balcony, where Matthias judged that they could both easily traverse the gap by using protruding features of the wooden construction. He decided to take the risk of noise and carefully cocked his light crossbow, loading a bolt, then indicated to Miri that he would cover her. Miri nodded and began traversing the wall, using protruding beams, dropping safely onto the other balcony a moment later.
Miri tried to look into the room, but as with the girl's room, the door was solid, and the window was covered with oiled paper, which permitted only a tiny bit of light to pass. She made a hand signal to Matthias, who set his crossbow on the railing such that he'd be able to grab it from the other balcony. He quickly crossed the gap, dropping silently beside Miri on the second balcony, retrieving his crossbow.
Miri examined the door and found it was warded. She sighed because she had no choice but to use a third mana crystal to dispel the ward. She did so, reminding herself she had but two crystals remaining, if she were to keep a reserve for an invisibility spell. With the ward dispelled, Matthias tried to pick the lock, but his first pick broke with a loud snap. The pair froze and listened for movement. Hearing none, Matthias made a second attempt at the difficult lock. Unable to move the mechanism, he took a deep breath, reset, and on the third try, heard the satisfying click of the mechanism releasing.
Matthias carefully pushed open the door and signaled Miri to look into the darkened room. She did so, and seeing the room was empty, entered with Matthias following closely behind. The room they were in was much larger than the first and had to be Kranos' bedchamber, though the bed was empty. Miri scanned the room and saw a door she was certain led to the young girl's room, likely hidden behind a tapestry on the other side. She reproved herself for not searching for the concealed door, but set it aside as a lesson learned.
For his part, Matthias had moved to the door to the corridor and discovered it was unlocked. There would be plenty of time to search the bedchamber later, so he whispered for Miri to join him. Once she was by his side, he carefully opened the door just enough to peer out. He saw a brightly lit corridor with a carpet runner down the center of the wooden floor. That was convenient and would aid them in moving silently.
Matthias listened carefully for a moment and, having heard nothing, stepped into the corridor. Miri followed him, and they moved silently along the corridor past several doors, none of which was warded, nor did any light escape under them.
They reached a staircase, and after listening for a moment, they crept down the stairs to the ground floor. The house was quiet, and they saw nobody, so they began moving from room to room, searching. Finding no occupants, they moved to the stairs that led down to a basement. The stairs were well-lit by oil lamps, but they couldn't see the lower landing, as the stairs turned about three-quarters of the way down.
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