Teo pushed open the doors to a wide hall, bright with fluorescent lights. A voice called out to them, but they sprinted down the hall without looking back, their footsteps echoing loudly. This hall would lead to the rest of the Tower, and from there, they would reach the reception ballroom.

Another wide door faced them at the end of the hall, with a padlock. Teo withdrew a large set of keys that he must have stolen from a guard.

“Ryuu isn’t the only one who can open doors for you, is he?” he asked as he tried a few different keys before getting the correct one.

She let out a shaky laugh as he pushed open the door. The sounds of the pandemonium in the prison were still too close for her to relax. As they shut the door behind them, some of the din died down.

Half of her, whatever was left from her parents’ faith, was tempted to send a quick prayer to Kalaan and Isar for the prisoners to get out safely. But the other half knew that people had to save themselves in Kosín. She hoped the prisoners would escape, whether the Mothers listened to any of their prayers or not.

Her heart ached as she thought of her own parents, Ynes, and Raurie’s and Ryuu’s parents—all those who hadn’t escaped. There was nothing she could do for them. But if even one Inosen returned to their family safely tonight, then she would feel like she’d done something to honor the parents she’d lost.

42

They’d reached the levels aboveground by exiting from the tenth floor of the prison, but the Tower itself rose roughly thirty stories into the air, and the nearest path to the ballroom was still a few floors up.

They ran, orange lights on the walls flicking past in a blur. They took cover behind corners whenever Diamond Guards sped by them in the opposite direction, toward the prison. Time ticked by steadily, and each time they had to hide from a guard, Aina cursed with impatience.

Soon, an alarm went off. A cacophony of bells rang above and below them, blending with the sound of guards running toward the prison. Every few feet they ran, she expected a guard to appear and shoot them where they stood.

As they raced up another flight of stairs, yet another bell joined the din, this one rhythmic instead of resounding.

“That’s eleven,” she shouted to Teo as she counted the chimes. “We only have an hour.”

Aina led the way, picking up the pace. There were so many twisting corridors and stairwells that it would be easy to get lost, but she kept replaying Ryuu’s voice reciting the Tower’s layout and focused on reaching the ballroom where Ryuu and Raurie waited for them.

In the eastern wing of the building, they ran up a spiral staircase through one of the Tower’s many turrets. Torches were spaced along the walls. The orange flames made their statues gigantic on the stone steps as they ascended. Alarms continued blaring, but soon they were high up enough that the noise was smothered under the thick floors, and all she could hear was their footsteps and her own racing pulse.