The shock and surprise had made Kre try to jump to his feet, but his chair didn’t slide as he intended, his legs smashed against the table edge, and he ended up writhing on the floor muttering, “How? How?” though it sounded more like, “Ow! Ow!”
As for Beleg, the large man had been far more spooked than Kre, though he tried to play it off with no great success. Poor Virryn spent the better part of the next few minutes cleaning up the mess Beleg had sent scattering across the floor as he tripped over just about every piece of furniture in the room. He stood, finally, with a huff and a straightening of his jerkin. “Good day sir,” he said, as if reporting for duty. “I always had faith in you,” he added in that softer tone he used when he was really worried about someone.
“At ease gentlemen,” Talimar laughed as he helped Kre to his feet. “I am glad to see you both well and in good spirits.”
When they had all settled back in at the table, Virryn included, Kre finally managed to find his words. “How did you get in here? Aren’t there guards everywhere?”
Talimar shrugged, “There are, but they are looking for thieves and intruders. They are not looking for servants. Men like those who work for the creature they call master are not the sort of men to see anything in an Ylveryan other than the elf they despise so much.”
“Even so,” Kre continued, looking carefully at Talimar’s disguise, “could they not see you as much taller and broader than any woman in service here?”
“That is a trick you should learn,” Talimar said in response. “Learn to tighten your body up and shrink into yourself and you might find that you can literally be anyone you want to be, especially in the eyes of the dumb and blind.”
“Gentlemen,” Virryn said in the voice that Kre knew to be her exasperated one. “Perhaps we should move on to the planning.”
“As always,” Beleg murmured, “she is right. How much do you know?” he asked of Talimar.
“I have heard the little bit from you about the plan to have you killed in the arena, but that is all so far. I am only just now coming into this place. It is quite the maze.”
Kre and Beleg took the time to catch Talimar up on what they had discovered. Though hesitant at first, Beleg eventually explained all the parts that involved Barry, up to and including his late-night attack on Kre and subsequent fleeing.
Talimar gave Beleg a sharp look, “You will have to deal with that soon,” he advised sternly. Beleg only nodded in response, his head hanging down in what Kre could only assume was shame.
“As for you,” Talimar said, turning to Kre. “How is it that you have this ability with these blades? There is more to that then what was said, and I think we must find that answer if we are to be successful here.”
Talimar wasn’t expecting a response, which was fine with Kre as he wasn’t even sure how to respond to such a question. Instead, the leader of the Red Feathers moved on quickly and decisively. “This is by no means the best plan…” he began before laying out the next few steps for each of them.