“Are you sure he is a patriot?” asked the sergeant of the squad of soldiers.

“We are positive,” replied one of the arresting soldiers.

“We will get him into the Old Keep immediately,” declared the sergeant. “King Mectin will be pleased.”

“The king will most certainly be pleased,” retorted one of the arresting soldiers, “which is why my partner and I will be taking him in. We did what was necessary to capture him. No one else is going to take the credit.”

The sergeant glared at the arresting soldiers for a moment before shaking his head. “Neither of you are authorized to enter the Old Keep. I will take the prisoner, but you can be assured that both of you will get credit for his capture.”

“You just run ahead and tell King Mectin that we are bringing a patriot in,” countered one of the arresting soldiers. If he doesn’t trust us inside the Old Keep, he can just come out and fetch the prisoner himself. We are not turning him over to anyone but the king. This patriot probably knows the entire rebel organization. His capture is worth a great deal, and we mean to enjoy the benefits of his capture.”

“I will have you working as sentries in the Barrier for this,” spat the sergeant.

One of the arresting soldiers laughed. “Sergeant, I will outrank you before the sun sets. You won’t be assigning me anywhere. If I were you, I would be careful about giving me such ideas.”

The sergeant growled in defeat and turned to one of his subordinates. He sent the subordinate to the Old Keep to announce that his squad was bringing in a patriot. As soon as the chosen man was dispatched, the sergeant ordered his men to escort the two arresting soldiers and their captive. While the arresting soldiers would get the credit for the arrest, the sergeant planned to be included when the rewards were handed out.