Okay, I have reached the end of what I had prewritten so, I may take a while between chapters now, instead of having one ready a few days after a review. Since I now know that someone wants me to continue I will try and keep up. So, if does take a while, don't give up on me.

I'm glad you liked the last chapter gurl of gondor. Thanks for reviewing.

Also, if anyone has any suggestions, don't be afraid to let me know, I have reached a bit of a writers block with this story. Some ideas might give me a kick-start. I can't promise I'll use them, but they will get me thinking and I very well may incorporate them into the story.

So, ENJOY ^_^

Around a large conference table in one of the smaller war rooms in Alton's castle sat Hercules, Jaxon, Kelonor, Alton, and, quite reluctantly, Autolocus. They had just finished discussing the visit from Phadrion's messenger, who hadn't known a thing about the rescue. The overall decision had been to keep the army on full alert and watch Phadrion's reaction and hope he had enough reason to back off. Now, however, they had moved on to the more personal matter, Iolaus' rescue and Autolocus' mysterious jeweled band.

"How long have you been planning this heist of yours?" Alton asked, glancing quickly around the room, as if making sure nothing was gone. While Kelonor and Jaxon had never heard about Autolocus, Alton, like many kings, knew all about him. He did have quite a reputation. Although, the man sitting at his table really didn't look all that much like the king of thieves he had pictured.

"I honestly don't know what you are talking about. I own that band, I've had it for some weeks."

"Really, if this band was yours, why were you hiding it up your sleeve? Tell us that." Jaxon queried leaning forward on his hands. Autolocus averted his eyes as he spouted out a response.

"Because I knew Hercules would never believe me, so I hid it in hopes that I could avoid this very conversation."

"You know Autolocus, I was the first one to come across you and I saw no sign of it then. Not only that but you made it quite clear that you had no idea that Hercules was anywhere near you when you came back with me." Kelonor pointed out logically.

"Yeah, well, you never know who is going to show up and there are lots of people who would love to take that from me, so I just didn't keep it visible."

"Kelonor has a very good point Autolocus. If, as you say, you are the owner of this marvelous jeweled band, you would have no reason to hide it. It would seem that rather, you would want to at least let people get a glimpse of it. You seem like the type that likes to have people's envy." No one missed the fact that Autolocus could find no response to this though he did manage to look remarkably put upon. Hercules had kept silent during this exchange but he had been thinking about the series of events that had followed once they had entered the castle.

"Autolocus, I remember that when we were in the castle you were determined to go off on your own, and you also knew far too much about the castle. I noticed that you were disappointed when we entered the room with Phadrion's seal, and you avoided answering any questions about why you were there. Then, when I asked for someone to get Iolaus out of the fight, you brought him deeper into the castle. Iolaus was telling me how you brought him out a tunnel from a room that you took a while to find it in. I just realized that you brought Iolaus into the treasure room in an attempt to find what it was that you were looking for, this jeweled band. Since Iolaus was blind there was no way he could have known this. It was a rather ingenious plan, except you really should have found a better hiding place than up you sleeve."

"Sometimes Hercules, you are too smart for your own good. Now I just have to ask what any of this has to do with Iolaus. Who cares that I was there on a job? I helped you out and I got what I wanted, well I had what I wanted. There is no connection between the two, so why don't we just drop it, I'll take my prize and leave." Autolocus held out his hand expectantly, but not really to anyone's surprise, Hercules merely shook his head.

"You know I wouldn't give this back to you, connection or not, but something tells me there is. I have never seen anything like this before. I think I'll have Hephaestus take a look at it for me. Do you mind Alton? I should be back in less than a day."

"I think, Hercules, that that is a very good idea. Do you need anything? No, at least have Marion give you some supper before you leave. I still have Iolaus to give me advice with Phadrion. I think I'll go give him a visit now and catch him up." Alton pushed his chair back and headed towards the door. On the way out he told the guard to have Marion prepare Hercules a meal. He told Hercules that someone would come to get him when it was ready. With that he walked out.

"Come on Hercules, this isn't funny. Just give it to me and I'll go. I'll even split the profits 50/50."

"Forget it. There is something peculiar about this band, and I intend to find out. I guess since I'm not leaving right away we can try to figure some things out still. I've mentioned this to Alton, but I haven't told you yet. Jaxon, Kelonor, do you remember the voice that told us about the medallion and note pertaining to Iolaus?"
"Yeah, do you know anything else about who it might be?" Kelonor answered.

"Well, I was wondering how the person got Iolaus' medallion in the first place. I had assumed that Phadrion had taken it from him and this person had then taken it back. However, Iolaus says that someone asked him for it in order to prove that the note was really about Iolaus and not some hoax."
"Wait, are you saying that you think that somehow this person was able to travel between here and that dungeon, without getting caught and never being seen, just to give us information on someone they have probably never met?" Jaxon questioned incredulously.

"Hold up. Remember when I thought I heard something in the dungeon Hercules? And also, Autolocus said he saw someone right before I showed up. Could it be that somehow this person is following us without us noticing?" Kelonor said with concern. No one liked the idea of an invisible follower, who knew what they might be up to, or who they may give allegiance.

"It's a possibility. So what we need to do is keep our eyes and ears opened. Once we settle this whole thing with Phadrion, we can concentrate on solving Iolaus' blindness, and on his mysterious rescuer." Throughout the whole conversation Autolocus had sat silently, listening to the banter and trying to follow along. When Kelonor had mentioned the person he'd seen, and how there might be some tracker around, he suddenly thought back to the walk out of the tunnel, and to the tunnel itself. He had felt as if he kept coming across some guards or something, but every time he stopped to listen there was nothing. What if whoever had made the note had somehow been in that tunnel. What if they had seen him steal that band? Could there be a connection? And if there was, where did Iolaus, Alton, and Phadrion fit in?
The guard came to collect Hercules, and the other two decided to join Alton with Iolaus. As everyone left Autolocus looked carefully about the chamber, looking for any sign of another presence. The room was silent, and nothing was out of place. Shaking his head he rose from the table and headed to the room the king had made available for him, he had some planning to do.

Alton had received another messenger from Phadrion. They had all been slightly surprised when Phadrion had opted to pretend he still had Iolaus. The consensus had been that somehow, Phadrion did not suspect Alton of managing to send a rescue party so soon. This was a pretty good deal; it meant that they had the upper hand. After the second message it had been decided that perhaps they should send one of their own.

"Okay, Kelonor, once we get this note written, I would like you to deliver it to him. See how he reacts and don't take anything he says at face value." Alton advised.

"I won't, don't worry. Now, are we going to end this with the message from Iolaus or begin with it?"

"End. He'll listen thinking that Alton is crazy for not excepting any of the terms. Then, at the very end he'll hear what I had to say. He won't be expecting this and he'll realize that he just lost a rather important advantage. How he responds after that will tell us how determined and willing he is to go all the way. Once we know that information, we can work from there." Iolaus explained. For a short while later they finished up the message. After giving Kelonor a few more last minute instructions, he headed down to the stables where Beldron waited with his horse. Jaxon left with Kelonor in order to accompany him down, he had wanted to be the one to go.

"We should know in a few hours how well this goes over. Until then we can only wait until Hercules and Kelonor return. My army is still on full alert and my scouts keep me informed on the movement of Phadrion's. You know Iolaus, it is times like these I wish I wasn't the king."

"And its times like these when we need you to be king more than any other. It would be nice if there was always peace, but that is just impossible. All you can hope for is more years of peace and prosperity than of war and famine."

"You should be a king Iolaus. Your subjects would love you." Alton smiled as he thought of a neighboring kingdom with Iolaus at the throne. It seemed to him that it would be fitting.

"Nah, I had a chance at it before, I really don't think it would work." Iolaus said with a brief look of melancholy. Alton was a bit confused, but knowing Iolaus, decided not to pursue the matter. Taking out two flagons and some wine Alton served himself and placed one in front of Iolaus.

"Tell me my friend, why is it that I never see you during those years of peace and prosperity. Instead it is only times like these that you show up. Don't get me wrong; I'm glad you do. It is just that I think it would be nice to just have time to catch up. I hear you are great at telling an audience all about your adventures. It seems to me that we have time. Would you care to show me if the rumors are true?"

"It would be a pleasure Al, a pleasure." Unable to see Alton's smirk at his nickname Iolaus straightened up and began his tale.

"It was a few years ago when Herc and I were called to assist with this monster that was terrorizing this village. We arrived in the middle of the day and there wasn't a soul around..."

Alone in his new room Autolocus sat and stared at the wall, thinking of a way to turn this into a beneficial situation. He would have to stay at least until Hercules came back, since he had his prize, after that he would slip out. There was just something that was nagging him. It wasn't that Alton was possibly going to war, after all, he was a thief. Thieves tend to stay away from open battles, or battles of any kind really. No, what was bugging him was what Kelonor had said earlier that day. If there was someone following their every move, it might very well be someone who wanted his jeweled band. Of course, he couldn't imagine why they wouldn't have just taken it in the tunnel, which led him to believe that there was something more going on.

"Just stop thinking Autolocus, just stop!" He suddenly burst out, shaking his head violently. He needed to get that band back. Whoever or whatever was following the other's had absolutely nothing to do with him. If it had had something to do with him and the band they would never have let him get out of the tunnel with it. So he had nothing to worry about except how to get it back from Hercules when he came back. With renewed energy Autolocus took out his gear and began to whistle while inspecting all of it to make sure it was working properly.

He was a little concerned with not having the advantage of surprise. He generally didn't attempt to steal from people who knew what he looked like let alone how he worked. This was going to be his most challenging heist yet.