Escape from Bramholt (Part 2)

With effortless grace, Dravisha settled into the canoe, her movements fluid and deliberate. The guard followed suit, he and Dravisha taking up their paddle and motioning for Jenny to sit in the middle. As they pushed off from the wall, the narrow canal swallowed them whole, its shadowy waters reflecting faint ripples of light from above. The sound of dripping water echoed around them, punctuated only by the rhythmic splash of the paddles cutting through the surface.

It didn't take long for them to reach their destination. It was a rusted metal sewer gate embedded in the stone wall of the canal. The guard guided the canoe as close to the iron bars as possible, then reached out and grabbed hold of the gate. With a groan of protesting hinges, he pulled it open. 

They stepped out of the canoe into shallow, murky water that lapped at their boots. Slimy walls lined either side of the narrow passage, glistening faintly in the dim light. As soon as they entered, the air grew thick with the stench of rotten eggs and decaying algae. Jenny wrinkled her nose and waved her hand in front of her face as though she could physically bat the foul odour away.

"Ugh, I might start retching," Jenny muttered.

"Pff, you think this is bad, you should smell He… I mean my… uh… orphanage," Dravisha said, correcting herself mid-sentence as she realized she shouldn't reveal her demonic origin to the present company. Jenny shot her a glare, to which she could only give an apologetic shrug.

The guard grunted in acknowledgment, unfazed by her stumble. In his left hand, he held up a lantern he'd retrieved from the canoe, its flickering flame casting eerie shadows on the damp stone walls. He led the way through the labyrinthine tunnels, each step squelching softly against the wet ground. The sewers stretched out like an intricate web, a chaotic tangle of pipes, tunnels, and canals built over centuries by various rulers of Bramholt. By now, the system had become so dense and convoluted that even seasoned explorers could easily lose their way without precise knowledge or a detailed map.

As they ventured deeper, memories stirred in Jenny's mind. When she was younger, children whispered tales about flesh-eating colonies rumoured to dwell in these very tunnels. According to legend, anyone foolish enough to enter would meet a gruesome end, devoured alive by unseen horrors lurking in the shadows. Of course, Jenny knew better—these stories were nothing more than myths meant to scare kids into staying away. But rationality did little to quell the creeping dread clawing at her chest. Here, surrounded by suffocating darkness broken only by the weak glow of the lantern, every childhood fear came rushing back. Instinctively, she edged closer to Dravisha, seeking some semblance of comfort amidst the oppressive gloom.

Suddenly, a rat scuttled past. She jumped. A squeak tore from her throat. She clutched the Demoness. Her heart hammered.

Dravisha couldn't contain her laughter. "Who knew you were such a scaredy-cat? It's just a rat."

Jenny took a deep breath, hand still pressed to her hammering heart. "I hate the sewers."

"You, of all people, scared of a rat? After everything we've been through, I really didn't expect it," Dravisha said mockingly, shaking her head.

"I'm not... shut up," Jenny said defensively. She scanned the dark halls as if expecting dark, clawed hands to reach out and drag her into the abyss. She dug her fingers into Dravisha's arm. "Okay, maybe I am scared. So what?"

"Ahh, don't worry, little Jenny, I'll protect you from the mean old rats. Maybe we'll find something far more scawwy... like an itsy-bitsy spider," Dravisha cooed mockingly, walking her fingers up Jenny's arm like a spider.

Jenny rolled her eyes but continued to clutch the Demoness's arm. In a choice between humiliation and fear, she chose humiliation.

The guard grinned at her, then turned to look ahead again, his voice dropping ominously. "Rats be only the beginning. Soon, roaches be droppin' on ya, lass."

Jenny shuddered, burying herself deeper into Dravisha's side as she frantically scanned the surrounding rocks for any sign of the bugs.

"Sewers ain't no place for a comely lass," He added, looking back at her. "Takes guts, I tell ye. Try not to squeak at every turn."

It took Jenny every ounce of self-control not to flinch at every insect that passed. At one point, a flock of roaches swarmed past, several of them falling onto her. She freaked out, much to the amusement of both the Demoness and the guard. She frantically shook herself off, but could swear she still felt bugs crawling over her. The sewer gas also started to make her slightly lightheaded, and the abysmal smell only added to her growing anxiety.

"Don't worry, they be harmless," the guard said, flicking one off his shoulder.

"I hate the sewers. I hate the sewers," Jenny repeated like a mantra.

Her steps became more hurried; she wanted out of this place as soon as possible. Despite her pain, she maintained a fast pace. It took them about two hours to reach their destination. Waste moved through the tunnel out to the Havendorn River, the largest river in terms of width and depth in the Ecclesiastical Domain. A manhole entrance allowed access to the outside. Beyond that manhole, freedom awaited.

The guard went first up the ladder. He had told them to wait for his say-so. A while later came the all clear. Dravisha ascended the ladder next. If anything went wrong, the Demoness was better equipped to handle it. Jenny went last. As soon as she reached the outside, the cold, moist air of the river hit her. They were surrounded by jagged rock, and the city wall was only a few meters from them.

"Hark, I tell ye! Stick to the rocks and duck yer heads, ya don't want to be seen," The guard said in a gruff voice. He had to raise his voice over the sound of the river, which was cascading down a slight fall in the distance. "This is as far as I go, ya on yer own." He went back to the sewers, leaving Dravisha and Jenny alone.

Crouching low, they used the uneven terrain as cover, inching forward cautiously. Overhead, crows circled lazily, their harsh cries adding to the tension. As they crept along the rocky shoreline, the unmistakable sight of a mercenary camp came into view. From the banners fluttering in the breeze, Jenny recognized it immediately: the Eiserner Adler Company, infamous mercenaries led by none other than Sebastian von Adlersburg—the Scourge of Witches.

She had heard countless stories about him from the witches of Silberwald, especially from Eryndor Veyling. They spoke bitterly of how the region once rebelled against the Church's crushing tithes. Peasants stood up after many had starved. Sure, heretics and witches supported the uprising, seeing it as a way to weaken the Church, but it was based on the needs of the peasants first and foremost. Prince Archbishop Heinrich von Falkenstein hired the Eiserner Adler Company to crush the uprising. What followed was brutal and merciless: villages burned, civilians tortured, supplies looted, and anyone suspected of harbouring rebels or witches was tortured and executed without mercy. Sebastian earned his nickname that day, and his reputation struck fear into anyone who dared oppose the Church.

"How do we get past them?" Jenny whispered.

"We could take a swim in the river," Dravisha shrugged.

"My sides still hurt too much. I don't think I can swim that long."

Dravisha thought for a while. They couldn't get past the encampment undetected, not unless it was dark. Really dark. Then Dravisha could use her shadow magic to conceal them both, and they could sneak towards the forest. But they would need to wait hours on the rocks, in the cold air. 

"We wait until nightfall, then we move," Dravisha whispered. "That's our best bet."

Jenny huddled closer to Dravisha and clutched her coat tightly. One nice thing about demons was that they were always warm. "There is no better alternative, is there?" Jenny asked.

Dravisha shook her head. "Not one that I can see. When we move in the cover of night, I can envelop us in darkness, and we can move virtually undetectable through the night."

Jenny's stomach growled, and she sighed miserably. "So be it."