As it turned out, the mini-discussion about ethics almost lasted too long in and of itself, as Ranma and his new companions found themselves racing to get through a rapidly closing set of steel doors. They somehow managed to squeak through (though Vaan came close to losing an arm, which, among other things, would likely have resulted in their escape attempt losing all of its secrecy). Still, everyone was in one piece, so they paused for a few seconds to regain their bearings.
“Well, we aren’t getting out that way,” Vaan commented after a futile attempt to reopen the steel slabs. “Where exactly are we, anyway?”
“In all likelihood, this was the dungeon proper of Nalbina before its ramshackle expansion,” Balthier answered. “After all, why would there even be an oubliette here if some part of it wasn’t actually intended to be used as a dungeon in the first place?” He sneered slightly as he looked at the dozen or so soldiers milling about the hall. “There are more turnkeys than cutpurses down here.”
“Well, if this is the only other way out, it’d make sense ta have a bunch of them around, right?” Ranma asked.
Balthier couldn’t argue with that, which is why he didn’t respond to the newest member of the party (losing arguments was extremely unbecoming of a leading man, after all). He sighed slightly as he put his shotgun into the holster on his back and unsheathed the dagger he used as a backup weapon. “I’ve had my fill of chains,” he commented to no one in particular. “Let’s tread lightly, shall we?”
This strategy turned out to be a very successful one; after all, all four members of the party had some sort of experience with thievery, and thus had some practical experience in the art of not being noticed (even when tailing an Archadian judge and his contingent). The few instances when it seemed that they were about to be noticed were inevitably rectified by Ranma, who seemed intent on demonstrating just how effective his martial arts could be—which was very effective, given that he managed to completely incapacitate fully trained and armed soldier without having to resort to the levels of lethality that Balthier had been certain would necessarily come into play. So it was perhaps a bit more than mere good fortune that allowed them to follow the judge to a door that was so ornately decorated that it almost seemed to be nothing more than a bas-relief on the wall.
Of course, this soon revealed itself to be far more than an ornate piece of artwork, as one of the warrior-mages in the judge’s entourage began intoning some arcane enchantment, causing the rococo whorls and flourishes to glow and recede, revealing a passageway into another chamber. The Archadian contingent entered, followed soon after by the four escapees.
The chamber was significantly more well-lit than other parts of the dungeon, though whether that was due to the room having more sconces or to the lighter shade of the stonework wasn’t entirely clear. Either way, this somewhat surprised Ranma, since this was the part of the dungeon that was apparently supposed to be a dungeon, and he had been under the impression that dungeons were supposed to be dark, dank, and/or dreary. Then again, it could have been a safety issue, considering the massive hole in floor that was so deep that one couldn’t really see the bottom.
That, Carbuncle’s voice suddenly intoned, is an oubliette.
Ya mean it’s just a hole in the ground?
A hole in the ground where they put people who are supposed to be forgotten about.
Dang. So, what, there’s somebody down there?
Most likely, otherwise this judge wouldn’t have bothered coming here.
Sure enough, the sound of slowly clanking winch was soon followed by the appearance of a rusty iron cage containing a grizzled man who had been bound in the center—though given how emaciated the man looked, the actual bindings seemed to border on overkill. Either this man was more dangerous than he looked, or he’d done something that had really pissed somebody important off (or both). As soon as the cage had reached its apex, the judge removed his helmet, revealing a face that looked oddly similar to that of the prisoner’s, albeit without the scraggly hair and even scragglier beard.
“You have grown very thin, Basch,” the judge stated to start the conversation. Ranma took note of the name—mostly because Vaan’s attention perked up almost as soon as it had been spoken. “Less than a shadow. Less than a man. Sentenced to death and yet you live. Why?”
The prisoner—Basch, presumably—drew a ragged breath before answering: “To silence Ondore. How many times must I say it?”
“Is that all?”
“Why not ask Vayne himself? Is he not one of your masters?”
The judge appeared quite ready to avoid this line of conversation, and instead moved on to something else. “We’ve caught a leader of the insurgence. She is being brought from Rabanastre. The woman Amalia. Who could that be?”
Ranma, of course, didn’t have a clue what any of this had to do with anything. Hey, Carbuncle. You got any idea what the hell’s going on?
Not really, the Esper replied. I could probably put in a call to the central office for more information, but then I wouldn’t be available to you if things go to hell for an hour or two. In that time, you’ll probably be able to learn even more from the locals.
If you say so.
The interrogation continued on, with Ranma only paying half-attention to the content—something about throwing away a country, or something like that. Eventually, the judge and his underlings exited the oubliette, leaving the caged man hanging. It was then that the four escapees came out from where they had been hiding, which soon caught the man’s attention.
“You! You’re no Imperials. Please, you must get me out of here.”
Without really thinking, Ranma moved towards the caged man, but was interrupted by Balthier: “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. After all, we’re going to be in more than enough trouble as it is if we manage to escape from this place, and aiding and abetting a regicide is not going to help matters.”
“Uh, regicide?” Ranma asked, again confused by the vocabulary.
“A kingslayer,” Fran explained. “One who takes a life necessary for the keeping of order.”
“Oh, right. So that makes him a bad guy, then.”
“Indeed it does,” Balthier replied. “That’s why he was summarily executed, or so it was said.”
“But… isn’t he still alive?”
“True, but I’m sure if you wait long enough, he will indeed be counted among the deceased.”
Vaan, however, appeared unwilling to stick around for that long, as he suddenly lurched forward, jumping onto the prisoner’s cage. If he noticed how the metallic cell was swinging over the huge maw in the floor, he didn’t show it; his priorities at the moment lay elsewhere. “Damn it! Why are you alive?! This is your fault! Everything that’s happened is because of you! Everyone that died! Every single one…”
Ranma looked around nervously. “Uh, Vaan, I ain’t sure that screaming at the top of your lungs is a particularly good idea…”
This was confirmed almost immediately by a small commotion at the oubliette’s entrance. “As perilous as the Mist is, I prefer it to the Archadians,” Fran commented.
Balthier’s reaction was not that much different from his partner’s, as he joined Vaan and Fran on the cage. “Wonderful. It appears that we’ve no way to go but down. Ranma—hit the release!”
The release was several feet away from the actual cage, but from what he had seen, Balthier was fairly certain that Ranma was quite capable of reaching the cage (or at least the chain it was suspended from) before it was too far away. Ranma, it seemed, shared that certainty, as he didn’t hesitate for a moment before kicking the large catch that was holding the cage’s winch in place—and even more impressively, using the excess momentum of the kick to simultaneously launch himself towards the rest of the party (and one rather shocked prisoner). However, it seemed that the all the extra weight was making the cage descend even faster than expected, as it had fallen a good 3 or 4 meters by the time Ranma reached the spot where it had been—yet this, too, was hardly an obstacle, as the martial artist simply grabbed the chain and held on, seemingly unbothered by the lack of footing available. In fact, if the grin on his face was any indication, he seemed to be having the time of his life: “Yahoo!”
Meanwhile, Carbuncle wasn’t entirely certain whether his new summoner’s daredevilry was a good sign or not. Do you have a death wish or something?
Oh, quit being such a spoilsport, came Ranma’s curt reply.
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(Posted Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:09)
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