Fate/Fallen Prince

11 - A Thousand Eyes

The crow had sat on the windowsill for a long time. The message it had held was surprising to say the least. Miss Haley had already read it several times over, yet Austis could see her eyes scanning it yet again.

She breathed heavily. This was it. Their way out was just handed to them on a silver platter. Or a black crow in this case. She hadn't even thought about looking for tunnels. But she needed a way to get both herself and Austis to them without getting caught. She'd have to figure it out on the fly.

She picked up an empty plate and walked towards the door. She opened it and peaked outside to make sure no one was around. Austis's room was no longer guarded because of the army outside their walls, so it would be relatively easy to sneak outside the room. However, gaurds still roamed the halls.

"Come, little prince, we can leave this place." Haley motioned for him to follow.

She wrapped an arm around his shoulder and ushered him out of the room. They sped down the hallway and checked around the corner before running down that one.

This escape would be painstakingly long, but it would ensure the safety of the prince. Haley's mind was only focused on the objective at hand.

-------

Gerald hadn't expected to be part of an escape plan. The end of the tunnels came to a mine outside the castle walls. That is where Gerald waited. Ten other men accompanied him.

He had told Terran that he should be the one waiting here, but the elder prince wished to stay with King Arthur. Strange of him, but the archer didn't pay much attention to it.

This post was rather boring. They'd been sitting there for days now. Norden would likely arrive before Geralds party made it back. Sir Lancelot seemed just as annoyed with this outcome. He hadn't said a word, nor made a single move since they arrived.

"The crows still circle us." A soldier said.

"Aye, the Lady Haven will keep her eye here. Whether we fail or succeed, someone needs to inform the others." Gerald said.

It hadn't really crossed his mind that they were constantly being watched. Normally, it would be off-putting, but now it felt like a good thing.

"We can't afford to fail." Lancelot said, "If the young Dean isn't saved, he'll likely die in that castle."

The first words the knight spoke were quite grim. Though, Gerald could understand. Mordred, Gawain, and Tristan were all on the front lines. Yet the bravest knight in all the lands sat at the entrance of a long abandoned mine.

"He has the blood of Dean, like his father before him. The kingdom may have fallen from their grasp, but the Deans will always survive." Gerald spoke, "So let's do as we're told and await his arrival."

He had been at the fall. He was young, of course, and didn't quite have the reputation he had now. He had been knighted by Austrin Dean merely a week before the Shay's launched their assault. In the end, it was Kaston who told Gerald to escape the castle with Terran.

"Then, we'll go back to the others where we belong."

-------

"I might get anxious waiting like this." Terran said.

Terran and Artoria stood with a bulk of the army overlooking the main gates.

"I would be surprised if you weren't already." The king replied.

Terran gave a small grin, attempting to momentarily forget his fear. Artoria tried her best to comfort him.

"It may best to send Gerald and the rest inside to retrieve them." Terran said, "It would be safer that way."