Second Level Chapt. 15

Wolken had already left our side, and moved to talk to a dark bay Mescar, who looked like a foal next to him. I heard them conversing in Mescan, but my attention was focused on the ever tightening circle of Mescars around us. I had shrunk back without even realizing it, lowering my center of gravity and letting my wings angle down and back, hovering over Donicon. The Mescars still inched forward, some with their teeth bared slightly in the beginning of a snarl. Shiara landed behind me, and her hooves clattered loudly against the stone. Wolken turned to see what the noise was, and saw the shrinking circle of Mescars.
He snarled something that I was glad I didn't know the meaning of to the bay Mescar, and whirled around. He bared his teeth and pushed his way through the circle to Donicon's head, and started to snarl in Mescan. He paced around the circle, pushing up against the Mescars so they had no choice but to move back, giving the three of us room to move. Shiara had already moved to the back of the stretcher, so that we could take off if we had to.
Wolken ended his pacing in front of me, standing like a wall between the Mescars and Donicon.  He raised his voice and switched to Canyon, so that Shiara and I could understand him, I was sure.
"This Flier ended our war, and you would reward him by killing his companions and him? I cannot allow that to happen. Anyone who wishes to harm these three will have to do it over my dead body."
The Mescars looked uncertainly at the bay Wolken had spoken to. He spoke to them in Mescan, presumably translating what Wolken had just said. Then they began to back away. A few took off, heading in the direction of the Mescan city. As if a flood had been released, they all took off, all headed in the same direction.
The only one left was the bay Mescar that Wolken had spoken to. Wolken stalked toward him, fangs bared. The other Mescar didn't flinch or back off, but he started talking quickly. Wolken stopped moving toward him, but he didn't relax his threatening stance. They snarled back and forth, Wolken looking suspicious, the bay Mescar looking worried.
Finally, Wolken looked back at Donicon and the rest of us, shook his head, and snarled something over his shoulder at the other Mescar. He snorted and trotted forward, shaking his mane across his neck. I sank lower in my crouch as he came up to me, but Wolken moved between us.
"He wants to make certain the peace will hold. He also says they imprisoned most of the captives in the lowest caverns. There are a few left in the upper rooms, but…" I shook my head. I already knew where the flier I needed was. He had been a captive long before the Mescars had invaded.
"The only person who will believe me now isn't down there.  The Council imprisoned him years ago for refusing to let a Mescar he found die. He's up here." I took off as I spoke, launching myself upward, towards the uppermost levels of the city. Wolken and Shiara took a hold of the stretcher while I lead the way to the Elders' jail. Normally, Fliers are forbidden to go anywhere near there, but there was no one left to enforce the rules anymore. Besides, those particular rules had never stopped me before. Trenton had been one of Donicon's best friends when he was young, and my teacher had often turned a blind eye when I had made thin excuses to go and visit the old healer.
Once, Pirate and I had been messing around on the rim of the Canyon, and Pirate had badly sprained his wing. I went to the only person I could: Trenton. Pirate and I still got the scolding of our lives, but Trenton had put Pirate back together enough to get him down to the infirmary.  Since then, I tried to sneak in and see him as often as I could. He had no one to talk to, no one to provide companionship. It was even worse for him, because when the Council had him brought in for his "trial", one of the guards had blinded him by accident. He had had no one to help him adjust, to help him cope. His family rejected him, and his mentor wasn't allowed to even look at him. But perhaps the worst thing that the Council had done to Trenton was to keep him in the dark about the fate of his Mescar. The Mescar, barely healed from the wounds that had nearly killed him, had tried to protect Trenton from the guards that came for the two of them. When the two were dragged apart, Trenton was never told what had happened to his friend.
I landed, hooves clopping along the familiar passage. I left the Mescars, Shiara and Donicon at the entrance in an effort to keep the prisoners, most of whom would gladly kill any of us, unaware of our presence. I was almost halfway through the line of cells before I heard the tell tale sounds that my friend was awake:  hoof beats in a regular rhythm, followed by a swishing sound that I knew was his wing, rubbing along the ground, telling him where the walls were as he paced around his cell. It wasn't really necessary, because he had lived in that same room for years. Occasionally, though, the guards would leave things lying around, just for the sake of hearing Trenton trip over them as he paced.
"Trenton!" I called as loud as I could, forgetting the other prisoners I had been trying to avoid alerting. The pacing stopped, and I heard his intake of breath. The other prisoners began to rustle and jeer, taunting and yelling at each other and at me.
"Fadrid?" His voice was hesitant and rusty. I felt a brief moment of anger towards the guards and the Council. It was obvious to me, who knew him so well, that he hadn't spoken to anyone for weeks. It happened sometimes, when I couldn't find a way to get away long enough to see him. No one else cared enough to even speak to Trenton.
I skidded to a stop, just outside Trenton's door. The lock was just a rusty as it had always been. I slid carefully through the crack in the wall next to the door, and almost ran into Trenton.
"Trenton! I –please, Trenton, I need your help! Donicon's hurt, and Mescars have taken over the Canyon! Please, Donicon will die if he doesn't get help now,  and you're the best healer I know. Please!"
"Slow down! What happened? And how do you propose to get me out of here? You know full well what will happen to both of us if I "escape". I don't have anything left to loose, but I can't let you ruin your life for my sake!"
I stamped my hoof. Trenton was just trying to make me think the situation through logically, but I didn't have time for that. Donicon was dying, and Trenton was trying to think the situation through logically!
"Trenton, no one is left! I'm sure the Council and Logian got away from the Mescars, but they won't come back until they can figure a way to drive away the Mescars! By then, we can find a way to get you away from here. The guards never saw me coming and going, they won't be able to accuse me, and Donicon is too weak to have helped you. Please, he's dying Trenton! You know me, you know I'm not over reacting!"
"I know. But, how are you going to get me out? You know I'm not going to be able to go through that crack you squeeze through. Unless you have the keys, I'm trapped." Trenton shook his head helplessly. "I can't…Fadrid, you know I would do anything for Donicon. But theres no way for me to get out!"