We were right. It only took half an hour for Darwith to master the skill, so we spent our spare time sharpening our weapons (for some reason, Sir Castor didn't take them away from us), doing our 'business', going over our mission and goals, and resting up. I hadn't had a wink of sleep in the past 24 hours, and my limbs were killing me. I lay on the worn mattress, trying to sleep. As I rolled around in discomfort, I realized it was still far more comfortable than some of the beds I had slept on in the past few days. In fact, it reminded me of the bed I had back in Perfideth. Yet sleep would still not come. This isn't going to work, I realized after a few minutes. Giving up on sleep, I meditated.

Breathe in . . . Breathe out . . .

In my drifting consciousness, I detected a small presence near me. It wasn't Lark, nor was it Darwith. Is Sir Castor here already?

I opened my eyes, but he was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, the painful realization hit me. Someone's invading my brain!

I leapt up, and struggled to think of what to do in this situation. Come on, Birchen! What are you supposed to do when someone invades your brain?!

Oh, for goodness sake, calm down. It's just me, Delilah. A gentle voice whispered in my mind. I stop, stunned. Lark, who was reading over in the corner, stared at me curiously.

"Are you okay?" She asked, one brow higher than another.

'Yeah, I fine.' I mouthed. Lark nodded slowly and continued reading her book.

So, where are you guys right now? Delilah asked.

I'm surprised you haven't figured out already. Aren't you, like, in my mind right now? Are you going to, uh, 'contact' Lark and Darwith as well? I thought to her.

No. This spell is surprisingly hard to keep and it drains a lot of my energy. It would exhaust me if I tried contact them. And, also, I can't seem to access anything other than your conscious thoughts. You would have to be thinking about it for me to 'hear' it.

Oh. We're in the dungeons.

There's only one dungeon in the whole of Allevith, isn't there? The one under the palace.

The palace? I recall walking past a magnificent marble building, with turrets and all.

Yes, the palace. What is it?

Doesn't that mean that we, as in Lark, Darwith and I, are amazing close to the jewel?

Oh yeah! Then, tell me truthfully, do you have a plan to get out?

Why, do you doubt us? Yes, we do have a plan.

What type of plan? When and where can we meet?

It's just a simple truth deduction. We pretend to have an overdose of truth serum, act mad, go crazy, then escape.

Oh. Isn't that... a bit accident prone? It's definitely not one of your better plans.

I bit my lip, unsure of how to respond.

Never mind that. I trust that your skills good enough to escape unharmed. Do you think you can meet us at the Cherished Garden?

That will be a bit difficult...and especially if get wounded. Perhaps somewhere closer?

Let me see...the entrance is guarded heavily, and to break in means that I need to break out as well. That's too risky...Oh! What about the Central Marketplace? It's busy and crowded - good to blend in to. Plus, it's close the dungeon.

The idea did not appeal to to me in any way. No, hard to escape and there's too many witnesses.

Alright then, what about a nice small restaurant by the Museum? The Sleepy Starberry. It's quiet, deserted and has heaps of entrances and exits.

I nodded slowly, then realising that she probably can't see me.

That seems like a good place to meet up. We can eat lunch while we're there. See you there in half an hour then.

You too. Anything else that is needed to discuss?

Not much. Just remember to stock up on our supplies. Get that Mind Linking potion. DON'T GO OVER THE BUDGET!

Sure thing, Commander.

She left, leaving a peaceful silence. I lay back down, trying to fall asleep.

She was joking when she called me commander, wasn't she?

Author's Note

I TOTALLY did not just abandon Wattpad for 'bout 2 months :) Anyways, this chapter took awhile to edit - I hope you guys like it! Hopefully, I'll be back to updating weekly.