The Thick Of It 73.

Winter.

They drop down through the massive building that houses the Kuradum ruling council's treasury.
With lord Farque falling the fifty feet to the ground floor and landing, barely bending his knees as he does so.
While Mira Reinholt the mage floats down after the undead warlord, who he lands next to.
The once powerful mage glances up through the holes in the various floors his mageglobe created from the roof.
Then he looks at the large, heavily armoured deathlord standing next to him.
"What's that?" quietly asks Mira Reinholt the mage who gestures away to their left, the direction he hears something.
"That lot trying to get in through the backdoors" is the quiet reply from lord Farque who continues with "There's a handful of guards who have barricaded the doors".
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque briefly pauses, before he says "I don't expect them to last much longer".
Then the deathlord of Farque nods his full helmed head for the mage Reinholt to follow him.
The lord of the death realm leads the way, heading to the right into a large chamber here on the ground floor of the massive treasury building.
The undead being who has the name of Draugadrottin that the people of his lands also know him by.
Comes to a stop, and points away to the right, to a set of steps that lead down.
"Goes down to the next level" says the large heavily armoured deathlord in the eerily quiet chamber.
"Antechambers no doubt" adds the undead warlord, who follows that with "The vaults are the levels below that".
The mage from the city-state of Vexil, which he's in exile from, nods his hooded head.
"They're making their way down to the vaults" quietly says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who has the elven name of Des'tier. Which translates into the common language as, The Destroyer.
"Just the three of them?" asks the spellcaster who is also a highly skilled swordmaster.
Draugadrottin nods his full helmed head yes, then quietly says "They'll be going for the notes of credit" followed by "No way they can carry chests of coins out of here by themselves".
The deathlord of Farque momentarily pauses as he thinks of something, then he quietly adds in a slightly sour sounding tone of voice "Unless that fucking sorceress creates another rift, and they just take the chests and lockers out through that".
Mira Reinholt winces when he hears that. He's already restricted in what he can do.
As he can't cast a spell or create a mageglobe that's too destructive. As it will probably destroy a lot of the wealth down in the treasury vaults.
Which is being used to pay them and their army in the war against the rebel forces of councilman Hirrye.
Now there's a good chance a lot of that could disappear through a rift if that sorceress and those with her get their way.
The two of them, the undead warlord and the Vexilian mage in exile quickly head to the nearby set of steps that go down to the underground antechambers.
They get to the steps and head down them. As they do, the spellcaster who was once the most powerful mage of his generation to be found anywhere in the Southlands.
Until he was stripped of most of his powers a number of years ago, when he went offworld through a rift/void spell he accidentally cast.
Senses in all directions as far as he can. He knows he won't be able to sense the rebel sorceress Losmena.
As she wears an amulet similar to the one he wears. Which hides them from other practitioners of magic.
And that he'll have to rely on lord Farque to keep an eye, so to speak. On the powerful young sorceress who is working with the self styled duke of Kuradum. The ex councilman, Hirrye.
As they near the bottom of the steps, the large, heavily armoured deathlord stops, and holds up a gauntleted hand.
Before the exiled Vexilian mage can ask what's going on, the lord of the death realm quietly tells him "They've broken in up there".
The undead warlord follows that with "The last of the door guards have fallen".
Looking at the mage who serves upon his personal council, the lord and ruler of the lands Farque quietly says to him "Send that lot a welcoming gift".
The practitioner of magic who is part of a family that owns and runs one of the most successful, not to mention, wealthiest trading companies. Not just in the city-state of Vexil, but in all of the Southlands.
Nods his black hooded head in understanding, then he creates a mageglobe in his gloved right hand.
The living piece of magic shoots off, heading up the steps the two humans, one dead and the other living, have just come down.
And makes it's way into the large chamber above them, then it takes off to the back of the massive building.
To where rebel soldiers have just entered the treasury building of the ruling council of Kuradum.
The large undead being in the full suit of heavy plate armour, that's a dark blue and black in colour.
Along with the swordmaster in the black leather armour, over which he wears a black hooded cloak.
Make their way off the steps and into an underground corridor. As they do, the sound of an explosion can be heard and felt from the very back of the building, where Mira Reinholt's mageglobe has just come to the end of it's short life.
They all look at one another as they hear and feel an explosion somewhere up above them.
"Sounds like it was at the back of the building" quietly says councilman Hirrye.
"It was" quietly says Losmena the sorceress, who follows that with "I couldn't sense it until the explosion".
The powerful spellcaster briefly pauses, then she continues with "Most likely that mage who attacked us".
The ex councilman who intends to rule the city-state of Kuradum by himself one day soon, grimaces when he hears that from the attractive teenage sorceress.
"No doubt attacking our men getting into the back of the building" quietly says subcommander Phogarn, the assistant to the rebel leader, councilman Hirrye.
The self styled duke of Kuradum grimaces again when he hears that. And he hopes that some of his men have been able to survive that attack from the mage who has been targeting them since they came through the rift a little earlier.
The ex councilman, who was a popular figure amongst the public here in the city when he was part of the ruling council.
Then says to the subcommander and the sorceress "Head down an aisle each" followed by "Try and find any open letters of credits". Open as they have no figure written on them.
Both Phogarn and Losmena nod, and they start making their way down one of the aisles here in this vault.
The rebel leader himself, heads down a third aisle. Which like the others, is lit by a lantern that each of them is carrying.
As the sorceress Losmena doesn't want to cast unless she absolutely has to. Even though she wears an amulet that hides her power and spellcasting abilities from other practitioners of magic.
Hirrye goes by chest after chest of gold and silver coins. Hoping that some of his men make it down here, to carry them away.
He glances at a particular large stack of gold bars. That he hopes he'll end up with.
For he knows if he strips the ruling power of it's wealth, and it ends up with him.
He'll essentially have control of the city-state, and he won't have to continue with the war for Kuradum.
Which recently he's had a number of setbacks, compared to earlier in the campaign against the ruling council.
"Nothing" mutters the ex councilman when he gets to the end of the aisle he's gone down.
It's the same for the sorceress Losmena, who has been unable to find any letters of credit along the aisle she's gone through.
"Around here" comes the voice of subcommander Phogarn, who is the assistant to the rebel leader.
The former councilman and the spellcaster make their way around to the aisle in the vault that the rebel subcommander is in.
"Notes of credit?" asks councilman Hirrye as he and the young sorceress walk up to his assistant.
The subcommander shakes his head no, and says "Not that i found" followed by "But i did find these".
Phogarn holds up a number of scrolls, documents to be exact. From a row of shelves of them.
"Financial records of all the big trading companies, and large businesses in the city-state" says the rebel officer.
Looking at the shelves in question, the self styled duke of Kuradum gets an idea.
And he turns to the other two, and tells them "Burn them".
Two sets of eyebrows go up in surprise at that, and the rebel leader says to them "Trust me, this will be just as important as taking all the letters and notes of credit".
The ex councilman then adds in a slightly dry tone of voice "Hell, those companies and businesses might actually agree with this".
Subcommander Phogarn shrugs, then says "I'll do it". As the young sorceress was preparing to cast.
The assistant to councilman Hirrye smashes his oil lantern over the shelves, setting them, and the documents on them alight.
The rebel officer then heads after the other two, who are making their way to the next vault along.
Once the three of them are in it, councilman Hirrye as he holds his lantern up high to illuminate the vault a bit more, quietly says "Might have a bit more luck here".
As there's quite a few shelves in the aisles, that have rolled up scrolls on them. Usually what a letter of credit looks like.
""Quickly" says the so called duke of Kuradum, who follows that with "See if you can find any".
As the practitioner of magic and the subcommander move off to head down an aisle each.
Phogarn the assistant to councilman Hirrye, quietly says to the teenage sorceress "Get ready to take us out of here".
The powerful spellcaster who was born right here in the city of Kuradum nods her head in understanding. Before she turns into an aisle, and the rebel officer goes into the next aisle of shelves.
Here in the vaults underneath the massive building, that houses the treasury of the ruling council of the city-state of Kuradum.
It's the ex councilman, who one day soon, hopes to rule the city-state by himself, who finds them. And he calls out to the other two to join him, in the aisle he's in.
As they join him, the rebel leader is stuffing the letters of credit into one of the packs they've brought with them.
Subcommander Phogarn quickly does the same thing, and they soon have three packs full of open letters of credit.
"Let's go" quickly says the former member of the ruling council of Kuradum.
The trio hurry out of the vault they're in, as they do, the subcommander comes to a stop, and holds up a hand, and quietly says "You hear that?".
Phogarn turns and looks down the corridor, and quietly says to the other two "Listen".
They do, and after a moment, the sorceress Losmena nods, then says "I hear it". Councilman Hirrye hears it too, and he nods his head to indicate it.
All three of them know, not a single one of the men they brought with them through the rift. Wears heavy armour, with steel boots.
The underground vaults are spread out beneath the treasury buildings, with many of the vaults far apart from some of the others.
And the three of them clearly hear what can only be steel boots, making their way along one of the corridors that they took to get to where they are now.
The ex councilman, who was the former treasurer of the ruling council of the city-state.
Knows the underground chambers, vaults, and corridors, about as well as anyone alive.
So does subcommander Phogarn, who was once in command of the guard detail here at the treasury.
And the two of them share a look, then councilman Hirrye says "There?".
"Might as well" is the reply of the assistant to the rebel leader.
The ex councilman nods, and he quickly, and quietly says "This way".
And he leads the way, down the corridor, in the other direction they came from as they hope to get out of here with the packs stuff full of letters of credit, without getting caught . . . . . .