There is a weak point! It is there! I know it!” His indignant voice rang out, , “Just give me soldier, I’ll train him, teach him. We will beat them!” he breathed heavily, his chest heaving.

Kieran raised one of his eyes brows, dismissing them man with that small gesture, “I’m sure we will, sir, but your crazy schemes will have nothing to do with it, all they need is a good thrashing. They are cowards, all of them, and they will run and hide. They will cower beneath us!”

A murmur of what Kieran took as agreement ran across the table. The Council members were all old doddering fools and none of them were hard to convince. It was Renald that was the problem, his outspoken opinions put mutinous ideas in the Council’s heads, he would have to go, soon.

Kieran sighed, he so loved to gloat and it would be a pity to dispose of Renald before he had been humiliated and proved wrong.

Tuning back into the conversation he realised that Renald was still looking thunderous but had quieted down, the other Council members were looking at him for guidance.

Kieran stood up “Well if that’s all, I shall get onto mobilizing our soldiers, you may all go.”

He panned his eyes about the room, meeting each persons’ for a second before sliding smoothly on. He had learnt a long time ago that it was an almost foolproof way to keep respect. When he came to Renald his mouth twisted into a small triumphant smile and was rewarded with a dark glare, around him the Council members got up sighing in relief and let the room.

When they were all gone Renald turned and faced Kieran. “It wont work you know, the group has gained the citizens trust, by crushing them you crush what is left of their respect for this government.” His fierce eyes met Kieran’s without fear, “I will not be a part of it.” Abruptly Renald turned and exited and he was left alone.

Tipping his head back, Kieran laughed.

The country was dying.

Pockets of land dotted over the length of the land were slowly dying out. Villages were struck by illnesses and the field would produce fewer crops year after year. Soldiers ranged the countryside in groups pillaging and pushing down any groups of resistors.

Except one. They were called Freedom and they fought the soldiers and brought food to the hungry, they were allusive and nobody had ever found their source or their hideout. The Council, needless to say, hated them, all because Kieran said to.

But the peasants loved Freedom and sabotaged the Council’s soldiers whenever possible, Kieran did not find this remotely worrying, ‘Rule with fear’ was his motto. And rule he did, though the whole reason the Council had been established was to create an equal government, rumor was that he intended to announce his Kingship as soon as Freedom had been destroyed.

Renald had other ideas. He was part of the Council so he knew the total extent of the corruption and he had a plan to reverse it.

It was all set up; he had packed his bags and was awaiting daylight, his resignation must be as wide-spread as possible.

He was walking through an empty corridor, all too aware of the rough parchment scroll that he held in his hand, his throat was dry and the part of him that liked comfort screamed at him to run. Sense was all that kept him there, he knew that look in Kieran’s eyes, without drastic action he would be dead in a few days.

He had already talked to the local newsreader; at daybreak the whole town would know that he was no longer in the Council, but it would be noon before Kieran did if his calculations were correct. That way he would have time to get out before Kieran’s soldiers came after him but Freedom would have those few extra hours to find him.

He came to a door and stopped, it was plain mahogany and no different to any other doors down the hallway but Renald knew better. His hand turned the bronze handle and he slipped into a lushly furnished study, lowering his eyes so not to see the dirty wealth. Placing the scroll upon the desk, he turned quickly, closed the door behind him and marched off down the corridor.

Freedom was in the air, he could smell it.

Kieran raised his eyes slowly from the parchment in his hands, his face was distorted in hate and fury. His mind had finally clicked.

Renald. Freedom.

“Get that man!” he shrieked and with a swish of his robes rushed from the room, his confused and rather scared attendants trailing after him.

“No, no, no…” Renald wasn’t young and his throat was constricted with fear as he charged through the woods. He could hear the shouts and the clumsy crashes of the soldiers chasing him, everything had gone wrong.

He broke through into a clearing and bent down, bracing his hands in his knees and trying to catch his breath, the sunlight hit the back of his neck and he sighed. If he was going to die, let it be in sunlight not beneath an anonymous tree.

Taking two steps backwards, he stood in the center of the clearing, squared his shoulders and faced the noises with as much courage as he could master.

He was so distracted by the noises that he heard nothing until a strange-smelling cloth dropped over his face and strong hands wrenched him backward, into the shady trees. The darkness came for him.

Renald woke, tensed and ready for the pain he expected to come fast and hard. When nothing happened he squeezed opened his eyes.

Two brown eyes stared back, just inches from his face, Renald leaned back reflexively and the eyes were removed. Renald realised that he was on a chair, his hands and legs firmly secured, in a small room, with old brick walls and a cold draught.

“That’s definitely him,” said a coarse voice.

“Hmm, do you think we can get much out of him?” another voice asked, they were both male but not distinctive.

“No…” Renald’s voice came out weak and croaky, he cleared his throat, “I come to help, the Council is corrupt I’ve been trying to contact you for years, I can tell you their weak spots and exactly what to do, I’m on your side.”

He heard a snort and then the dirty face was within his vision again. “And you expect us to believe that?” came a sardonic question.

Renald straightened his back and looked the man right in the eyes, “Do you really think I would risk my whole career and be chased through the woods by Kieran’s soldiers with out solidly believing in your cause? I am not an idiot and if I had not done something I would have been dead within the week, I know Kieran.”

A disgruntled ‘hmp’ and then the ties on his hands and legs were sliced, he was free. Rubbing his hands to get his blood moving Renald turned his eyes to the two men, “You believe me?” he asked, disbelieving.

The two men were an odd pair, one was a man of monstrous size with an unshaven face, he was the one Renald had seen, while the other was a young man, with a handsome, honest face and eyes that revealed an intelligence beyond his youth.

It was the young man that spoke, “Look here, Renald, we would question your motives but we have no time, so, you will tell us everything that you know, every single last bit of information. Then, I shall decide on a course of action.

“But…”

“I know what your going to say,” he said, cutting Renald off. “If you are an infiltrator then you will want to suggest some plans of your own, each of which Kieran will be fully prepared for, or, if you are on our side as you claim then you think that I am too young and inexperienced to make such a tactical decision as this.” He paused for a moment and studied Renald’s surprised face, the boy had gotten Renald’s thoughts correct down to the last word.

“But I promise you that I am fully capable of making such a decision, how else would I have become leader of Freedom?”

While Renald gaped at him he pulled up a chair and sat down in front of him.

“Now, tell all”

“Wait…” Renald fumbled, “I don’t even know your names”

The man smiled, “That, my friend, is exactly the point.”

Kieran was panicking. It had been three days since Renald had escaped, three quiet, peaceful days. And that was what scared him.

He had been packing all day, stuffing his jewels into saddlebags as well as, as much food as possible, in his haste he hadn’t left room for much water but he thought one container would be enough.

His manicured fingers had been bitten to the quick and his normally immaculate clothes were mused and food stained. It was coming to the evening of the third day and his fine-tuned intuition was kicking in and telling him to leave.

Wrapping an anonymous black coat around his shoulders and hooking his saddles bags over his arm he speed out of his bedchambers and down the hallways as fast as his frantic legs could carry him.

The Council was going to fall but he would not be taken down with it.

Inside the musty stables he yelled for a stable hand to ready his horse, after fidgeting impatiently for five minutes he jumped on his horse.

“My Lord! My Lord! Wait! Don’t go out, Freedom is attacking the castle, we don’t know who they got in! You must help us.” A frantic servant yelled as he rushed into the courtyard.

Kieran just smiled and flicked up his black hood, “Help yourself, I’m getting out of here.” Stabbing his horse viciously with his spurs he raced out of the courtyard.

A black horse was racing down a forest path, it reached a small clearing and was stopped by a lone figure standing before it.

“Hello Kieran” Renald said through his teeth.

Kieran’s eyes narrowed, “Renald.”

With no warning Kieran swung himself our his horse and stabbed at Renald with a dagger, Renald leapt backward, but not far enough, Kieran’s dagger sliced down his leg, cutting through his clothes and flesh.

Striking back quickly Renald scoured a line of blood across Kieran’s chest, he staggered and fell, years of indulging starting to show. Lying on the ground he was at the mercy of Renald.

Stabbing his short sword at Kieran’s throat, Renald growled, “I should kill you like the dog you are.”

“But you wont” Kieran replied and slashed down Renald’s arm before rolling out from underneath his sword. Staggering, he ran down the path, his horse long since disappeared into the woods, he glanced backward a few times but Renald did not follow.

Sheathing his sword he limped the opposite way down the path. The way towards Freedom.

Freedom took over the Council and the country rejoiced as aid was sent out to its struggling villages. Kieran was found two weeks later in a small village trying to sell a handful of jewels to a young girl, he was arrested on suspicion of theft and it wasn’t till his trial that they realised who he was, the country called for his death.

Renald’s leg never fully healed and for the first few weeks needed help walking, lying in his bed for a nap one day he was disrupted by three men entering the room.

One was the young man, Freedom’s leader and the other two were his two generals. They came in and stood next to him.

“Renald…” The young man began; he took a breath then continued. “I can’t believed that we didn’t believe you before, I am truly sorry, you risked a lot coming to us and even more by facing Kieran down. We are setting up another Council, a real one, and…we would like you be part of it, would you?”

Renald smiled at him, “Just tell me one thing.”

“Of course, anything” the man said sincerely.

“What is your name?”

He laughed, a loud full laugh, while his generals looked rather uncomfortable.

“Kieran, my name is Kieran.”