The Ducal guard's face was grave as he considered his options. He hadn't felt pressure like this in weeks. The man's mates were silent as the crypts, awaiting his decision. He breathed out, and made his decision with a pointed finger. 

Quietly, he uttered. "Pancreator... grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can-" 

"And the money to split the difference!" His mates roared, and they raised their glasses in a toast that clinked audibly. Choosing their drink of choice on their off day was never easy, but he'd chosen well and they drank heartily to their good fortune. The five of them had been suing for an off-day for over a month and finally they received their due.  

It pained Orion that they needed to do this, but he and Ragnar had passed through nearly a mile of Palace through sheer luck and quick thinking. They had even acted as if Ragnar was Orion's prisoner for a brief interval near the entrance of the hangar. Now the two hid behind an alcove, watching from a dark corner at the men, wearing unbuttoned and wrinkled uniforms now playing cards in this guardsman lounge room. 

"Don't kill them." Orion reminded Ragnar, and the Vuldrok nodded reluctantly. At that confirmation, Orion whispered for him to follow his lead, and the two big men crouched low and moved in unison past the equipment area toward the unsuspecting Ducal guards. As luck would have it, the men had already placed away their weapons. While outnumbered, Orion and Ragnar knew they had them. 

Suddenly the two turned the corner and were in eyesight, but the men were both too uncaring and too engrossed in their game to really care until they saw Orion grab a chair in the background and raise it to crash against the man closest to them. The chair became so much kindling and cards flew ubiquitously across the room as the guards began to shout. Ragnar had knocked one of them out with the butt of his axe and was currently flooring another with his massive fists. 

The last two men had time to raise themselves, and they weren't small or weak by any means. But they hadn't had any real experience in fighting save the odd drill in years, perhaps ever. It took only a minute for Orion and Ragnar to subdue them and hold them down until they confessed they would answer whatever questions they had. It felt almost blasphemous to put his fingers around the Ducal guard's throat, but Annika would be dead if he couldn't find her. 

"Where is the al-Malik Confessor?" 

The question was guttural, and the soldier didn't know how to speak for a moment until his head caught up with him. "W-What? How the hell should I know? We're off duty. Who are you?" He blundered, and vainly tried to loosen the grip on his neck. Orion's arms didn't budge, and he pulled the man around and shoved him against the wall. "Answer me or I'll cake the wall with your blood, knave!" 

He found he actually believed his own words, and for that he was ashamed. But this was no time to second guess himself. [@Penny]