Adventure of nameless 1

The training hall sits in incense smoke and dust, every wooden dummy still as a carved shadow. Moonlight cuts through the high latticed windows. Then the doors bang open.

A young prodigy staggers in, blood on his sleeve, one arm locked around a limp, hidden prince. His breath comes ragged. He scans the room for cover.

Nameless stands near the center mat, black robe swallowing his shape, face covering half-lit by the window glow. The air seems to tighten around his red eyes.

Outside, fast footsteps strike the corridor, more than one pair, closing in. The hall remains open on all sides except the main door, and the prodigy shifts the prince's weight, ready to either hand him over or run.

Nameless lowers two fingers toward the floor, and the mat by the rear dais answers with a soft wooden click.

A narrow trap door breaks the seam of the boards, half-lost in shadow and dust.

Without opening his eyes, nameless settles deeper into stillness, breath measured as the hidden panel swings wider.

The prodigy hauls the unconscious prince toward the opening, shoulders shaking with relief and strain.

Footsteps slam closer in the corridor, then pause at the threshold as the dark gap swallows the prince from view.