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The Guilded Cage, Ch 4

Lonesome but Not Alone

Despite how ominous and foreboding the decrepit passages and long forgotten rooms, Jace had always found the half-buried halls of the temple to Holus. In many ways it reminded him of his own past life: there were little hints to how it must have been in its heyday but, for the most part, it had gathered dust and remained in the shadows. One part of him liked to think that such a connection was why he chose to shelter among its many rooms, but mostly he realized it was because the Elves never bothered to explore the underground ruins beneath St. Almar.

Jace didn't have anything against the elves, but Dylan didn't trust them and, considering his top priority was Jace's safety, they spent most of their free time wherever Elves weren't. The subterranean ruins of the Temple of Holus was a relatively recent discovery for the young Lion and his brother; his new friends at the Assembly used it for their private meetings and, when it wasn't in use, it remained otherwise empty. According to Dylan it was the perfect place to lay low and so moving in was the obvious next step.

Letting out a wide yawn and stretching as only a Lion could, Jace sat up in bed. 'Bed' was a generous term for the broad stone slab that had probably served as a kneeling bench at one point but, covered with a few cushions and two bolts of cloth it was comfortable enough for his needs-- he'd certainly had worse so he wasn't about to complain... not that he would since it'd only result in Dylan giving him grief over it.

The side room that Jace had chosen as his bedroom what a small one with what appeared to be a personal altar resting against the back wall. The young Lion knew little about the faith of Holus but he remembered hearing that prayers were just as important to do privately as they were to do as a congregation. That didn't matter to much to him, of course, and he'd repurposed the altar to serve as a shelf for his meager personal belongings. More importantly he liked to think of it as a bed for his brother.

The sword, resting serenely on the strip of crimson silk adorning the altar glimmered in the magical torchlight of two glowing bronze bars affixed to the wall. "It's about time you're up... sometimes I wonder if you just plan on sleeping the whole day away."

Jace felt his ears blush and the young Lion slid off of his sleeping bench, scratching his lower back as he yawned and stretched again. "Morning, Dylan..."

The young Lion rubbed various parts of his body, doing a quick visual check of his fur to make certain that the bumps and bruises he'd taken the prior night hadn't left any lasting damage. Although none of his newest injuries would cause significant scarring his fur was, nevertheless, interspersed with a spider web of scars; life on the streets was not kind. Dylan's voice was immediately softer. "I'm supposed to be protecting you, Little Brother... you shouldn't have to deal with this kind of thing."

It was a common objection his brother had to their survival, but it never really accomplished much; neither of them could help what their lives had become. Regardless, Dylan helped plenty since Jace was not built for the life they lived and he would have died several times over if not for his brother's guidance. Smiling back to the fine weapon, the Lion offered up his most reassuring smile. "You do plenty... don't be so hard on yourself."

Anyone else wouldn't have been able to read the blade's expression, but Jace recognized what would have been the sword's chiding smirk. "So I should be hard on you instead, sleepy head? It's almost noon!"

The young Lion snorted, sticking his tongue out at the weapon as he looked around for his clothes. "Well, that's what happens when I don't go to bed until after dawn... Billy and Truncheon kept me out later than usual tracking down information about that Orc."

Finally locating his groin wrapping, Jace leaned over to pick it up, eliciting quite a response from his older brother. "Hey! I may not have eyes but I don't need to see my little brother's tail ho--"

It was an old joke between them. Straightening back up, the young Lion donned his undergarment and tucked himself into the cloth. "Then don't look."

Dylan didn't miss a beat. "That's not how this works and you know it. I don't have eyes I can close!"

Jace rolled his eyes as he began donning his breeches, one leg at a time. "Yeah? Well what are you going to do one day when I find someone to bring back home and--"

Their discussion was cut short when the young Lion heard the sound of movement echoing from the empty halls outside. Although by that point it was obvious that he'd noticed something, Dylan wasn't about to be outdone and provided a warning anyway. "Shh-- someone's here!"

Dylan had a plan for just about everything and the appearance of someone where there shouldn't be someone had a specific response: maintain an innocent presence, identify who was present, then act accordingly. Part of an 'innocent presence' meant avoiding any obviously illegal activity and, unfortunately, that included having a sword-- St. Almar's guards looked down on armed civilians. Quickly slipping his tunic on, Jace slipped a small dagger into his belt against the small of his back and slowly opened the door to his room, peering out into the main chamber.

There was a good chance that the larger room was once open to the sky but, since the entire temple had slid beneath the earth it was no longer a courtyard. The center of the room was taken up by a large, circular fountain whose water continued to flow, only the fluid came out slightly thicker and had a gentle greenish glow. That illumination made it easy to see that he wasn't alone but it also helped him identify those present: they were members of the Assembly, thus he felt immediately more at ease.

Dainty-paw-stepping around the thin ledge at the base of the fountain was a little coyote pup and, chasing after it was a Beast-Kin Coyote dressed in a robe made of a plethora of cloths sewn together in a patchwork pattern. Closer to the left tunnel leading out of the main room a Beast-Kin Bat was talking with a Hobgoblin while a Kobold was inspecting the wall opposite them. Since he hadn't yet been noticed Jace closed the door quietly behind him before speaking up. "Um... hello? There's no meeting today."

The abandoned temple was the chosen meeting place for the various cells of the Assembly but, other than himself, he knew of no other members who made use of it for any reason other than that. The Kobold was the first to speak up, asking him something about a hole in the wall used by the Nibblers. Jace didn't know a lot about the Nibblers, save for the fact that some of the higher-ups of the Assembly wanted to make peace with them and work together. He also knew that they had a tunnel leading deeper into the underground. Pointing to the wall further to the Kobold's left, Jace offered a simple "I... think when Snick usually shows up he comes out of the wall over there..."

Snick, of course, was the resident member of the Assembly who also belonged to the Nibblers; other than the newcomer who wore Watch armor, Jace didn't know of any other Kobolds who were members of the Assembly. That thought took back seat in his mind however as the Coyote and Hobgoblin took an interest in him. From there it was a matter of carefully avoiding providing too much information; he didn't think there was a problem with him taking shelter in the temple but Dylan had told him time and time again that it was easier to do so without permission so best to avoid bringing it up.

Fortunately he succeeded, thanks in no small part to Snick suddenly appearing by moving a cap stone from a hidden tunnel almost exactly where Jace had pointed. The young lion exchanged a few pleasantries to the visitors, offered them a greeting from his brother so they would know he wasn't there alone, and then let them leave.

Once they were gone, Jace let out a steadying breath; he didn't mind meeting new people but Dylan had always been the better brother when it came to handling folks. Slipping back into the room, he glanced to where the sword lay, still atop the silk on the altar. "It's okay... just some Assembly members."

Dylan's response was as critical as ever and mindful of Jace's safety. "Alright... gather up everything. You got all the rest you're gonna get-- we better head back out into the city and see if we can find out any news about what's going on with the Assembly."

Jace was relieved that his brother was willing to address some concerns Jace had about the group. Although there was occasional need for violence, it was something that Dylan was always trying to keep away from Jace but The Assembly seemed convinced that the young Lion would be best suited helping them in the trenches at the ground level in the war on the streets. Dylan had promised that he'd see what they could do about finding another role for Jace and, thankfully, it seemed that would be their focus for the day.

Jace earnestly hoped that he could continue to help the Assembly but, at the same time, he didn't like the idea of anyone getting hurt... especially not by his paw and his brother's blade.