"Protect me!" Jas squeaked. There was a flash of light. When it cleared, the rebels looked exactly the same. Did the amulet not work?
"Yeah, see his light brown hair and blue eyes? There is no way this boy is royalty," said the rebel holding Jas.
"His face shape and nose are completely wrong, too. I wonder where he came from," said the second rebel.
"Some of our soldiers get a bit...excited at the prospect of battle," said the third. "It is possible his parents worked here, and were killed by one of our men on accident." Jas swallowed. Yes, his parents were almost certainly dead by now. And were it not for Anya's magic, he would be, too. Jas began to suck on his thumb for comfort.
"I like the little guy," said the rebel holding Jas. "I think he can come with us while we finish up checking for the tyrant Prince. Then we can take him to the room the workers are being kept in. One of them should know who he belongs to."
"If they do not?" asked the third rebel. The one holding Jas shrugged.
"Like I said, I rather like him. And Chalyssa and I have only had daughters so far. We would be more than happy to adopt a son." The idea of being adopted by a rebel terrified Jas so much he could feel warmth spreading through his diaper again. But, he reminded himself, anything was better than dead. If he was still alive, he could still find supporters somewhere.
Jas sucked on his thumb as he was carried through the halls. They stopped in the Royal Nursery, where the children of concubines and royal wives were kept. It was eerily empty. Jas hoped that all the babies and toddlers got to safety. In the nursery, the rebel that had gotten attached to him changed his diaper. They then resumed their patrol.
The patrol ended at a door that led to a storage room, which was guarded by two rebels. The rebel holding Jas entered. The storage room was full of palace workers that had been unable to escape before being captured. The rebel held Jas up high so everyone could see him.
"We found this child wandering the halls. Does anyone know who he belongs to? He tells us his name is Jas."