Two Worlds

Gerrit considered resisting but was quickly convinced that Vissende Beer's plan was safer for everyone. He gave him directions how to get to the Heliograph's tower unobtrusively, while helping him put on a guard's uniform. "Should I signal you when Renate and Kwikstaart are safe?" Gerrit asked.
"Is there a chance you won't succeed in your plan, then?" was Vissende Beer's question in return.
Gerrit knew there was no chance, but he couldn't admit that without arousing suspicion. "There's always a chance." he answered vaguely. He wondered if he should give the Imperial officer's letter to him after all, or if he should hold on to it for a while.
"We'll just have to take that risk." said Vissende Beer gruffly. “The moment we part ways I'll be on my way to send a message and you'll make sure they get out safely. I'll see you here again. Then I'll hear if it went well.'

Without another word, Vissende Beer left the to carry out the plan. Gerrit liked the deciseveness of this man. He wondered if it was time to change sides already. Considering the prudency of it, he made his way to the tower where Renate and Kwikstaart were being held. A platoon of guards stood guard at the entrance to the stairwell. The guard was doubled after the rescue attempt that morning. He beckoned the lieutenant along as he entered the tower. At the top of the spiral staircase he ordered the guard at the door to let him into the room where the two women were held.
"Come on, ladies." he said, beckoning with his arm. "You will be moved to another place."
Renate immediately jumped to gather all her things together. 'Why?' wanted Kwikstaart to know, continuing to sit and folding her arms.
'I'll explain that to you on the way. We are in a hurry.' said Gerrit impatiently.
Kwikstaart gave him a stern look "First explain to me what's going on." she demanded. Renate was already standing with her duffel bag in her hands and looked from Kwikstaart to the man. 'Kwikstaart?' she asked softly. Kwikstaart ignored her and continued to exchange hostile looks with Gerrit. The man gave in. 'An attempt has been made to capture you by a man of Arthur's. Maybe you know him. Vissende Beer."
"Was that the noise outside our door this morning?" Renate asked. Gerrit nodded. He got an idea. The letter he should have given to Vissende Beer would come in handy now. "Here is proof. We found a letter on him.” He handed it to Kwikstaart. They read the letter with shocked expressions on their faces. "He betrayed us." hissed Renate. "Apparently you were right, Kwikstaart."
Gerrit nodded. “So you need to get to a place where the Imperial soldiers or Vissende Beer can't find you, and we're in a hurry. They are already in the harbor, and I cannot oppose them openly.” Renate was already waiting clicking her tongue impatiently when she saw Kwikstaart dawdling. Kwikstaart read the letter again and looked at the strange seal of the envelope. It looked thicker than usual. She wanted to investigate why that was, but Renate's impatient look urged her to hurry. She put the letter back in the envelope and slipped it into her coat pocket. They followed the man outside.
"Get ready to run." Kwikstaart whispered to Renate in passing. Renate looked surprised but nodded anyway. Surrounded by the guards, the girls descended the steps and crossed the courtyard of the fortress to the gate.
"Where are you taking us?" asked Renate, walking next to Gerrit.
"You'll see." he replied curtly, looking around vigilantly. The party walked to the gate and came out on the harbor street. From this vantage point, they had a good view of the harbor, as the cobbled street sloped down rather steeply. 'What is that?' asked Renate. She pointed to a metal ship, on which menacing-looking barrels protruded from several domes on the deck. Kwikstaart followed her gaze and also stopped in surprise.
"A battleship of the Empire." Gerrit explained.
They had to step aside for a cart that wanted to drive through the gate. One of the guards nudged Kwikstaart in the back to force her out of the path of the horse pulling the cart. Kwikstaart didn't think twice. She turned around and gripped the guard's outstretched hand tightly. She ducked under his arm without letting go. The surprised guard was forced to bend over

lest she break his arm. She kicked him in the behind and the surprised man landed on the cobbles in front of the horse. The horse reared and the guards scrambled to safety so as not to be kicked by it.
'Run.' Kwikstaart yelled, and they sprinted through the gate. Pursued by the guards, they ran as fast as they could down the harbor street. "Quick, that alley." Renate gasped, pointing at a gap between the houses. Renate and Kwikstaart ducked into the narrow street and knocked over a bunch of bag bearers. They jumped over the men and their potatoes spilling out of the bags over the road. Behind them they heard the swearing and ranting of the bag bearers and the guards arguing with them to let them through. After a few more alleys it became silent. Breathless, they stopped and listened for any sounds of a chase. "Looks like we've lost them." Renate whispered. 'What now?' Kwikstaart thought for a moment, peering at the harbor at the end of the alley.

The officer of the guards came running back to the gate. He saluted Gerrit. 'My Lord. My men lost them in the city.' The gentleman nodded impatiently. 'Never mind. The main thing is that they must not get off the island. Have your guards at the harbor gates and I will send others to look out for them in the city.' Gerrit turned and left the worried guardsman behind. It wasn't important anymore. If Vissende Beer had sent the message, Arthur and his fleet were probably already on their way to Ruidveste. In the commotion of a battle, the girls will not be able to get off the island, even without the guards blocking their escape.

The girls found refuge in a cafe on the outskirts of the city. It was full of people that Kwikstaart didn't expect to be together in a pub. Rough dockers, probably freedmen and slaves, sat at tables together with nicely dressed Freeborns. The Innkeeper seemed a little taken aback by the unexpected patronage. The guests were earily silent. Normally with such a crowd it was not so quiet in the pub. It seemed to Kwikstaart that the visitors were not done with digesting the events of the day.
Four uniformed men entered. Two were guards. The other two Kwikstaart recognized as Imperial soldiers. One of them had something in his hands and, peering at it, he walked over to the table where Kwikstaart and Renate were sitting. He looked up and surveyed the company. "Vissende Beer?" he asked a man he felt fit the description. The man shook his head in surprise.

"Your papers." barked one of the guards. The man hurriedly handed over his pass and the guard leafed through it. "Show your brand," he barked. The man bared his arm to show the place where each slave was marked. "This isn't him." said the guard. That man actually is a slave, so it cannot be him.
The soldier looked around the table intently. His eyes rested on the girls who stared at him anxiously. He shook his head. “I don't think this thing is working.” He said to his companion. “it's pointing clearly to where those two girls are sitting, and we were supposed to find a man.” The other soldier stooped to look under the table. A guard went to the pub owner to ask if they could look upstairs.
The soldier with the device looked at his colleague. "Should we check them out?" he asked softly. “Just to be sure. They look suspicious.”
Kwikstaart felt her heart throb in her throat. "What do you want from those wenchies?" a burly fellow at another table intervened. Kwikstaart looked around. They had become the focus of attention in the pub. The faces told her that the guests were getting annoyed with the guards and the soldiers.
The soldiers noticed it too. “Keep calm, folks. This is none of your business.' One of them commanded.
The guards looked back at their colleagues when they heard this. One look at the bystanders was enough. In an instant they were at the door and on their way out. The soldiers were surprised by the sudden departure of the guards. Glancing around, their startled expressions made place for worried ones. Slowly they began to back up to the door. The soldier with his hands free drew a gun. "Everyone just stays calm." he said imploringly, pointing the barrel in turn at several men who had stood up menacingly. At the door they turned and threw themselves through the doorway into the street. Men almost fell over each other to get to the street as well. "Catch them." someone shouted.
Renate was laughing. Kwikstaart looked at her. "What's so funny about this?" she asked.
"That they could be so stupid as to think they could do this safely on an island of the Eendracht." she replied.
Kwikstaart wasn't sure how to react to that. She got up. 'Let’s get lost.' she said. She found the behavior of the soldiers incomprehensible. Suddenly, with an expression of sudden understanding she reached for the envelope in her coat and fingered over the thick seal. She made up her mind and broke the seal into two pieces. A piece of metal became visible. “What is this?” she asked Renate.

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