Through the sewers

"I’ll take care of those two." Adams voice was low, but none of them doubted his sincerity as he drew his sword from its sheath with a quiet ring. "Once I begin, you two get His Holiness out of the Templar compound." Adam saluted the Oracle with his sword, he turned to Mika and drew her close to him with a huge hug as he drew Mika’s slender frame against his he whispered quietly into her ear. His voice was low, but Winlay was close enough to the pair to hear what he said.

"Take care of them, both of them."

Winlay hadn't meant to eavesdrop and was a little ashamed of herself when Adam turned to her. His grey eyes locked with hers and Winlay felt her knees buckle as he stepped closer. "Don't be surprised if you see me again, I'm not ready to give up on living just yet." He stepped past Winlay to the door and Winlay had to resist the urge she felt to reach out and touch him just to confirm that he was real.

"Wait" the Oracle's thin voice cut through the small cell "I hate to ruin your heroic dramatics Adam, but you'll have to impress these girls some other time." Pulling himself to his feet the Oracle continued "All of these older buildings are connected by underground access passages, I was much younger when I first realized just how much the of what the Landers built was hidden away under these original buildings."

The leader of the Church of Xelta was standing nearly upright holding on to one of the many iron rings that were driven into the walls of the cell. His robes were filthy, his face hidden by weeks’ worth of caked dirt, blood and unshaved facial hair, but even in his weakened condition he exuded a charisma and confidence. Winlay understood why thousands of pilgrims flocked to the Holy Palace to hear him speak each Landing Day.

"You two help him." Instructed Adam "I'll make sure we have a clear path." He stopped by the door "Are we going right or left?" He asked the Oracle. For the next several minutes the quartet moved through to Templar's prison, heading down even deeper into the underground chambers. Winlay could hear sounds of chains clinking and the moaning of other prisoners but ignored everyone else as she and Mika half carried the Oracle slowly down the dimly lit hallways. All the light in the prison lower levels came from the light panels in the ceiling, and only about half of the panels still worked.

At last the Oracle pointed to an iron grate that was placed in the center of the floor. Adam was able to lift the heavy grid revealing a black hole in the floor. Winlay wondered if they would have to crawl through the tunnels in the dark, but before she could say anything both Mika and Adam removed the X's that hung from their necks and suddenly two beams of light pierced the blackness. Winlay stared at he friend in amazement.

"How do you do that?" She asked but Mika just smiled sheepishly at Winlay.

"I guess we'll have to add that to the list as well."

Adam jumped into the gaping hole landing in several inches of slop. As the two girls helped lower the Oracle into his arms Winlay critically evaluated the man's deteriorating condition. She couldn't imagine how he was able to push himself as much as he had. It was an odd relief to have Adam slide the grate back into place. Now at least they were unlikely to run into any random Templars, but at the same time it felt like the four of them had entered a new world that they might never leave.

“If we follow the flow downstream we should eventually reach the gate by the gardens” the Oracle told them, “or we can try to come up under one of the closer convent buildings like the library or main hall.”