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“Illan,” he hollers out to him. “They’re arresting me!”

“Let me through,” he hears him say to the guards blocking his way into the room. One of the guards out in the hallway glances inside and when he receives a nod from his officer, steps aside and allows Illan to come in.

To the officer, he asks, “What’s going on here?”

Nodding to James, he replies, “He’s being placed under arrest.”

“By whose order?” asks Illan.

“By order of the Royal Court,” the officer says.

“Why?”

“He won’t say or doesn’t know,” James tells him. Finally dressed, he glances into the worried eyes of Dave and says, “Stay with Illan. I’m sure we’ll have this all cleared up in no time.”

“Okay,” he says.

Escorted out of the room, the guards fall in place around him as they lead him down the hallway. As he leaves the room, he sees a worried and anxious Miko standing in the hall not more than a few feet away.

“James?” he asks, fearfully.

“Don’t worry,” he assures his friend. “I’m sure this is all a big misunderstanding.”

“I hope so,” he says as Illan comes out of the room and they watch him being led away. Just as he begins descending the stairs, he hears Miko holler, “Don’t eat anything!”

Don’t eat anything. That’s good advice. On a previous occasion back in Lythylla, he had eaten food laced with a narcotic which rendered his magical abilities useless. He may get hungry, but he really doesn’t plan on eating or drinking anything while he’s incarcerated. He just may need his magic working.

Outside the inn, their party turns down the street toward the gate leading into the castle area. The streets are filled with soldiers and guards. “What’s going on?” James asks his guards.

Unresponsive, they ignore his question as they continue marching on toward the gates. Once past, he’s led across the courtyard and through the gates of the castle itself.

The flurry of activity within the castle is even more harried than that which was witnessed outside. Pages are racing through the halls and men-at-arms are stationed everywhere.

Instead of taking him to the Royal Court as he at first expected, they take him through a different set of hallways and finally down a flight of steps into what has to be the castle’s dungeon.

At the bottom of the stairs lies a room with several holding cells for prisoners. Currently they’re all empty though they look as if they could hold several hundred in a pinch. They move to the first pen and one of the guards opens the cell door. The guard behind James pushes him on the back, indicating for him to enter.

Seeing no benefit to resisting at this time, he acquiesces and walks forward. Turning around to face his guards as they close and lock the door, he sees them about to leave and asks, “Can you at least leave me a torch for light?”

One of the guards gives him a look of contempt and says, “You’re supposed to be some fancy mage, why don’t you make your own light?” His fellows all begin chuckling and laughing at that.

Shrugging, James says, “Very well.” Suddenly, the entire area is filled with a blinding white light as dozens of extremely bright orbs blossom into life throughout the room.

The reaction from the guards is all he could hope for when they turn tale and run out of the room. Chuckling to himself as the last man runs up the stairs leaving him alone, he cancels the spell. The darkness of the holding area lasts but briefly before his normal glowing orb springs to life next to him on the bench. He leans back and tries to get comfortable.

Smiling to himself, he feels under his shirt and rubs the slug belt he had put on when he got dressed to come here. The guards hadn’t even realized what it was. Alone in the dark, he ponders why he’s here and waits.

After James and his escort of guards goes down the stairs, Illan gestures Miko to follow him into James’ room and close the door.

To Dave he asks, “Just what happened?”

Shrugging, he looks up from where he’s sitting on the bed and replies, “I don’t know. They just came and took him.” Dave’s command of the language has greatly improved