Hidden behind the nearest manor to the curtain wall, Crow stared up at the northeastern battlement of the castle, trying to see how many archers were posted that night. Large clouds had rolled in after sunset, blocking out most of the stars and making it difficult to see in the darkness. He couldn’t say for sure, but it looked like there were just two bowmen standing in the embrasures. They stood rigidly, much more alert than the knights he and Penelope had previously encountered, as they looked out over the grounds surrounding the keep. There was no way he would make it to the wall without getting struck by an arrow if he tried to run out into the open now.

The thief removed his own bow from where it laid across his shoulder and drew an arrow from the quiver. His heart raced with a mixture of nervousness and excitement as he loaded the weapon and pointed it up at the archer on the left. In the past, he had never been able to do anything about bowmen. Because of their distance, they were untouchable to him unless he had made plans ahead of time to sabotage their weapons. It was the reason why he had so many scars from arrowheads—archers were his worst enemies. But now, armed with a longbow of his own, things would be different.

He steadied his breathing as he fixated his gaze on the man he had targeted, willing himself to focus. He had been able to hit a tree in the forest, but he had never hit something from this far of a distance before. If he wanted to strike the archer on the crenellation, he would need all of his concentration. Breathing in slowly, he drew back the bowstring to the corner of his mouth, sent a quick prayer to the Brerratic god of hunting, and then loosed the arrow.

It was too dark to see the arrow’s trajectory, but after a moment, he heard a faint outcry and saw the archer to the right fall down. He blinked in surprise. [i]I did it. I didn’t hit the one I was aiming for, but I hit something.[/i] Suddenly aware that he was still standing in the open, he ducked behind the wall again to hide from the other archer’s sight. Peeking around the corner, he saw that the remaining knight had done the same thing. He had vanished behind a merlon, likely scouting the area for whoever had struck down his partner.

Crow clicked his tongue. It would be a lot more difficult to hit the second bowman while his guard was up, especially since he had probably only struck the first one on a fluke. He gazed out at the curtain wall as he thought of a way to draw the man out of hiding. An idea formed, and he shifted uncomfortably, glancing back up at the crenellation. Was it really worth the risk? [i]If I don’t shoot him, he’ll just alert the guards inside the castle, and this mission will be over before it even began,[/i] he sighed. [i]Well, here goes nothing.[/i]

Stepping out from behind the wall, he ran into the field and headed straight for the keep. As he made his way towards the castle, he eyed the battlement where the remaining archer had hidden. As expected, the man appeared from behind a merlon as soon as he spotted the thief out in the open.

Moving quickly, Crow skidded to a stop and pulled another arrow from his quiver. He loaded his own bow and, taking aim as fast as he could, drew back the string to loose the arrow. He sent it flying and started to keep moving so he wouldn’t be a sitting target. Unfortunately, he wasn’t quite fast enough. He gritted his teeth as he felt something pierce his left leg, just above his knee. The archer on the battlement had drawn faster than him. Despite taking a hit, however, he saw that his shot hadn’t been entirely fruitless either. The figure on the roof clutched his arm, seeming to have been grazed by his arrow. In the next instant, he crumpled to the ground as the henbane worked its magic.

With the immediate threat of the archers out of the way, Crow took a moment to check his injury. He jogged over to the curtain wall to take advantage of the shadow in case he had missed any other knights, forcing himself to ignore the pain of the arrowhead imbedded in his leg. Once he was confident that he was safe, he shifted to the right, taking his weight off of the wounded leg as he inspected the severity, thankful that the darkness hid the blood from his sight. Though it pained him, it didn’t look like the arrow had pierced too deeply. He would be able to keep moving as long as he withstood the discomfort and was careful not to make it worse.

He looked up at the giant wall in front of him and then back down to the arrow shaft protruding from his leg, chewing on the inside of his lip in thought. If he tried to climb up to the third floor now, the shaft would catch on the divots in the stonework, but he couldn’t just take it out either. Removing the arrow would cause him to lose blood every time he put pressure on his left leg during the climb, and he didn’t want to arrive at the palace light-headed.

With only one option left, he reached for the shaft with both hands and grasped it firmly. Taking a steeling breath, he pulled the arrow in opposite directions until it snapped, leaving just a short piece attached that would be less likely to snag on the wall. He tossed aside the part of the shaft that he had broken off and tentatively put weight on his left leg. The sting of the arrowhead caused him to wince, but it wasn’t unbearable. He could handle it until he had time to treat the wound later on.

Finally ready to scale the wall, Crow stopped leaning on it and turned around to get a good look at the stonework. His earlier guess had been correct—the stone slabs were much smoother and wider than the ones that made up the castle in Brerra. However, there were still some creases between each slab and divots caused by weather damage that he could use to climb it. He laced his fingers together and pushed his arms forward, stretching out his wrists, [i]Let’s do this.[/i]

Reaching up, he grabbed hold of a crease with his left hand and found a pockmark with his right boot that he could use to lift himself up. Once he was off the ground, he stretched up higher to grip a large crack with his left hand, hugging his body close to the wall. So far, it looked like he wouldn’t have any trouble reaching the window on the third floor.

He continued to climb until he made it to what he guessed was the second level of the castle, where he paused to catch his breath. [i]I forgot how exhausting this is,[/i] he thought, closing his eyes and resting his cheek against the soothingly cold stone. After a moment, he looked up again to see how much farther he had to go before he would reach the window. Even though there was only one more floor to climb up, it still looked far away. He groaned inwardly, [i]Why do kings like tall ceilings so much? There’s nothing wrong with putting the third floor a little lower to the ground so thieves can reach it easier. So inconsiderate.[/i]

Not wanting to risk getting caught out in the open, Crow forced his tired body to keep moving towards the window. The last leg of the climb went by slower than the first as he grew more worn out, but he managed to reach the third floor without slipping. It was perfect timing too. As soon as he hauled himself onto the window ledge, he felt a drop of rain on his hand. He looked up at the sky and made a face. Apparently, the clouds in the sky were storm clouds after all. He turned to the window, trying to figure out how to get it open before the rain got heavier.

However, the more he looked, the more convinced he was that the window didn’t open at all. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. [i]Looks like I’m going to have to do this the old fashioned way.[/i] First checking to see if there were any guards visible in the hallway, he took an arrow out of the quiver and cocked it back in his hand, aiming the point at the glass. Then, he drove it into the window as hard as he could, turning away and closing his eyes in case any stray shards of glass flew towards him. There was a loud crashing noise as the glass shattered, granting him entrance to the corridor inside.

Crow hopped down from the ledge, careful to avoid the broken shards on the floor, and moved quickly to find a place to hide in case any knights in the castle had been close enough to hear him break in. He found a storage closet nearby and slipped inside, leaving the door cracked open just enough for him to watch the hallway without being seen. His green eyes swept over the empty corridor and his heart began to race anxiously, [i]Come on, Penelope. Where are you?[/i]