The sun shined down brightly upon the city of Al De Baran. The white marble stones making up the buildings and walkways were bright with the sun's life-giving rays. The water that ran into the city coming from the east made gentle noises with the soft breeze that blew past. It was mid-summer, so the cool feeling of the breeze refreshed the busybodies of the market place. Adventurers from all over had come to see the many attractions, like the Kafra Corporation, or the old clock tower that looked over the city in all directions like a guard. From a distance, the town looked to be stone-faced, unmovable. It was by far one of Rune-Midgarts most respected cities. But when one got within town borders, all they would hear is the constant murmuring of conversations between numerous people. The streets – especially nearest the clock tower – were crowded with adventurers, talk buzzing back and forth about almost anything. But most of all, rumors flew about concerning the old clock tower. People assumed it was haunted.
One man didn't talk to anyone though. He was leaning against a lone wall, eating an apple as he watched the people go about their business before him. He was a young man, fit and respectable. His eyes seemed cold, but he held not one grudge against anyone. His fit form was dawned in a red vest, respective of the Rogues that wandered about. It wasn't rare to see them in Al De Baran, but seeing a resident of the city becoming one was very much so. He wore a pair of black pants that were a little long for his legs, covering the heels of his leather shoes. A black studded belt with a skull buckle intimidated any who would look at him, along with the spiked wristbands he wore. Black hair framed his face, the sides to about his ears being long enough to reach his chin, though the back was short, only reaching his neck. He was just relaxing, standing out against the gray-white wall of the building, several feet away from the clock tower in the center of the city, deep in his own thought. This thought was broken by a cry through the crowds.
"Stop that man! He has my purse!" An elderly lady cried out.
The young man's eyes suddenly flicked in the direction of the cry, and surely enough, a dirty little Thief was pushing and shoving his way through the crowds to escape with the stolen purse. The Thief wore a sort of mask that framed his eyes, his blue hair contrasting it. The jacket he wore was complementary to Thieves, having a few designs on the shoulders, and left open He wore a tan sweater beneath, and black pants that went down to his knees, like knickers. On his feet, he wore long socks, and a pair of boots lined with lunatic fur. So, he was quiet while he ran, but the young Rogue never let him leave his sight, and calmly moved to intercept the Thief. Slowly he walked while the Thief ran and pushed through the crowds. Soon, the Rogue stopped calmly, and just as the Thief ran past, he thrust his fist out, it connecting with his cheek and most of his nose. The Thief spun around once, falling to the ground as the Rogue stood over him.
"I'd advise you to return that." The Rogue said, taking another bite of his apple.
Ayndi Hakmashi was the Rogue's name, and he was fairly young, in his late twenties. He was an Al De Baran vigilante, doing what was right, regardless of the law. He helped people, and if he had to face persecution, it didn't matter to him. He was highly respected by some folks in the city, and he'd developed a kind of quiet reputation. He rarely spoke to anyone, but everyone knew that his intensions were pure. He would never had gone out of his way to harm someone unless it was necessary, not back then anyways. He had no family, and seemingly had no home. He figured if he acquired a home, the wrong kinds of people could pinpoint his location. That didn't mean he never had a home, he just never had a house.
Ayndi took the purse from the young Thief and let him on his way. He then turned, walking through the crowd, and handing the purse back to the woman. She couldn't have been more thankful. She thanked him, offered him rewards, and even questioned why there weren't any people like him around when she was young. He told her to think nothing of it, refused the rewards, and left the question up to her to answer. He couldn't say that he played the part of town hero for the recognition. In fact, he didn't like being a hero that much, he just did what was right. He decided then that it was about time he got out of sight for a while, and he headed away from the crowds. He went into one of the far corners of the city, making sure nobody was looking, and then touched a certain panel on the wall. The panel triggered a switch that opened a section of the ground before him, revealing a staircase. This was his home.
It was rather cozy, but not much compared to the things the people who lived in real houses had. It was a small section underground. He had managed to build four walls out of wood, and a roof and floor out of stone. Within this small room, there were only necessities, in other words, one bed, two lamps, a few personal possessions, and food, lots and lots of preserved food. Sure, it wasn't the best, but it was a place he figured he could retire to, in order to be alone with his thoughts. Most often he was left to think about his life, what it was and what it was before his mother died. And he did just that, sighing as he moved to the bed and sat upon it. He then laid out on it with a sigh, staring at the ceiling.
He could remember the first time he had come to Al De Baran, the first time he became a "hero." He lived in Izlude before that, but the town didn't offer enough for him. His mother, giving birth to him at a much older age, needed him to work when he was a teenager. So they moved to Al De Baran, a more populated city, with more shops and ways to make money. Of course, Ayndi was already a Thief by then, having been forced into stealing so that his mother and him could live. Unfortunately, a year after moving to the bigger city, his mother died of old age. He was nineteen at the time, and had a steady job. Of course he mourned over the loss, but he also pushed on and continued to work to support himself. He only became a "hero" one day by saving a girl. He was walking home one night when he heard screaming from inside a house. Using his skills as a Thief, he quickly went about picking the lock to the front door and barging in. Two men were in the house, he could hear them, and a woman, and they were all struggling.
Typical of the situation, it was a rape. Ayndi moved quickly to the bedroom to find the two men, pinning a woman down to the one bed within it. When Ayndi made his presence known, the two men suddenly got angry, asking him about how he got off breaking into other people's homes, and told him to leave immediately. He didn't listen of course. Ayndi always had a sense of right and wrong that pretty much ran his life. He wasn't about to abandon a woman that could have quite possibly been risking personal injury. So, the men came at him, but they were poor fighters. Even in the small room, Ayndi was able to pummel them with ease. Even when beaten to a pulp though, they wouldn't leave, so Ayndi was forced to alert the authorities. The town guards were quickly involved, binding the beaten men's hands and taking them away to the jail. They also gave the young "hero" a thank-you on behalf of the entire city, and a personal thank-you from the woman he saved.
From that point on, he had become known as a law-enforcer, and was strongly suggested to join the city guard force. Seeing it as a higher source of income, he gladly accepted the job. He was put into training the next day, given a guidebook to follow, and was taught the laws and regulations of the city vigorously for two weeks. It ran mostly on an honor code that Ayndi could work with. It solidified the meaning of right and the meaning of wrong. After his final test, he was given the uniform, passing with flying colors, as they say. He couldn't say he liked the job too much, especially when he knew something wrong had occurred, but the guidelines prevented him from taking action. Very rarely did anything ever happen that was of any alarm. Most of the time, it was just stealing, or dealing with fighting couples. Other times it was watching over the boring crowds, to prevent any wrongs that could occur. The right way of enforcing the law was rather boring to the twenty-year-old at that time. He couldn't even harm someone unless absolutely necessary!
Ayndi's views on the law system faulted at one time. During a particularly harsh winter, a murder occurred late one night. The guards were sent to investigate the scene, and they found the dead body, but no evidence. Though, earlier during his shift, Ayndi saw someone sneaking around the area of which it occurred. It looked as if he did not live in the city either. The city guards questioned this man, but he had a good alibi, and people to confirm it. Though, somehow, Ayndi knew it was that man. He insisted it was the man, and they agreed to investigate the matter. For weeks, nothing turned up. Evidence was non-existent, and witnesses were very vague on any details they had. They didn't have enough proof to lock the guy up, and he was free to go. It was then that Ayndi knew the law system did not always follow right and wrong. One person could not make a difference in that world. So he quit, outraged, making a big scene as well.
Ayndi wanted to help people. He wanted justice to be served, whether the culprit left any evidence or not. He then learned of a secret organization from someone in a bar. They explained to him that they were called Rogues, and they did anything and everything outside of the law. Ayndi had heard of Rogues before, having once read an old children's story of a Rogue that stole money from rich people, and gave it to the poor people. He never once thought that someone like that could actually exist. When he heard that the Rogue's headquarters was located in the desert, he packed his things and left right away. It took him a day and a half of straight walking, but he soon left the heat of the summer plains, into the scorching burn of the desert during the hottest time of the year. It was by far one of the more foolish things that he had ever done, and never having entered the desert before in his life, he quickly got lost in the large expanse of sand.
As young and as willing as he was to go on, he was quickly running out of water. He spent one day in the desert before his canteen was three-quarters empty. He didn't expect to last a day, and he had nothing to sleep on. He merely had food to eat and water to drink. But the desert offered no place of rest, and the nights dropped in temperature to near freezing at some points. To his luck, when he was about to collapse, he found a town, called Morroc. He was relieved to find the town, and nearly had to crawl to the trough the barren desert to reach it. But, when he did, he was disappointed in knowing that he wasn't permitted entry. He reached the gates and nearly collapsed from exhaustion, and when the guards approached him, they just laughed. They merely stood over him while he lay there.
"Poor Thief must have lost his way from the other night!" One laughed.
Ayndi thought himself as stupid. He had heard gossip abouta civil war on the verge in Morroc during his travels, and there he was in a Thief's uniform. The two guards merely left him to die, not permitting him into the town. Ayndi was forced away, and out of sight, where he was definitely out of mind. He sat by a lone tree, gulping down the last bit of water with a sigh. Getting in seemed hopeless, and someone within the town must have known the location of the Rogue's Hideaway. He sulked about it for several minutes, when his prayers were answered in the form of another Thief. It was a young man, with spiked hair that seemed to flare out, and he wore the typical Thief uniform. He said his name was Jynx, and he agreed to help Ayndi into the town, and direct him towards the Rogue's Hideout. Jynx showed him a secret way in, and then took him to a bar. There, Ayndi bought himself a drink and sat down to talk with the boy.
It was strictly a business talk. Ayndi wasn't the kind to socialize with total strangers, so he got right to the point. Where was the Rogue's Hideaway, and where could he buy previsions. Jynx laughed, telling him that he would only let Ayndi know these things if he knew why. So, Ayndi told him. It was simply a matter of justice in its rightful place. The young Thief had mixed emotions about that, being someone who would do wrongs, but he told Ayndi anyways. He said that to the south west of Morroc, there was a waterfront, and there were many stalls anda large building that led underground. It may have looked like some sad attempt to sell things to porters, but in reality, the Rogues hid away there. Ayndi had no reason to doubt the boy, and he made certain that before he left the bar that he got water and food to take with him, and that he had a good night's sleep in the inn before he set off across the desert again.
The next day, making sure he was all ready, he left for the Rogue's Hideout, making sure he wasn't seen in his Thief uniform. He actually took the jacket off, and threw it away, and removed the lunatic fur from his boots. He may not have looked like a Thief then, and he was allowed to pass through the gates to start his trek across the sand again. Though this time, he knew where he was headed. It took him several hours, leaving from the southern exit of the town, to actually see a waterfront. By that time, he had drunk about half a canteen of water. Once he found that waterfront, he moved west, and he went west until the late afternoon, where he finally found the Rogue's Hideout. He was pleased to find that he could enter at his own free will.
He couldn't start training right away. He didn't have a Thief uniform, and the Rogues only allowed free people, like Thieves, to join their cause. They had to clarify that Ayndi was actually a Thief before he could start. The Rogues' Leader, the "Queen Of Thieves," sent her best people out to find out enough about Ayndi that would make him able to join, and he was kept there as a guest in the meantime. He found their leader to be an amazing woman. She seemed tactical, always planning ahead for anything she did involving the Rogues, and she had skills that far surpassed any of the others. She was even beautiful. Though she was younger than he was (and that surprised him most of all), he couldn't help but find her alluring in some way. But, he was an honorable man, and kept himself away from her. He would only talk with her professionally.
The men that were sent out to dig up as much as they could about Ayndi came back with a surprise. Somehow, they were able to dig up everything. They found his full name, where he lived, who his family was, his date and place of birth, jobs he had previously had, and any other things that stood out. The Queen Of Thieves was especially interested in how he used to be a guard for the city of Al De Baran, and she immediately began to question him. She asked him very opinion-based questions, and other things that would define his character. She even asked if he had ever gone to the Kafra Corporation, and for what purpose. She was surprised to find that he'd never seen a need to go there, even though the majority of the Kafra Corp. was run by women. After the short question period, Ayndi was immediately put under training by one of the toughest, most skilled trainers they had – next to the Queen herself.
During this training, Ayndi improved himself both physically and mentally. He learned how to wield a variety of different weapons, depending on the situation. Daggers for general purposes, swords for major combat, bows for long-range, he was required to learn and master all the weapon types before he could leave. He also learned how to improve his physique. He learned how to gain proper lift off his leaps, enabling him to jump high, and how to pace himself and breath while he ran, so he could seemingly run for hours. He also had to learn quality traits and skills that were specific to Rogues, that only Rogues were permitted to learn and use. The training all together took him several months, and he was able to live in the Hideout the whole time, to eat and sleep properly. He treated the experience in a well-minded nature, coming to the conclusion that it was good for him. At the last day, he was declared an official Rogue, being one of the best that training had ever offered. He was then allowed to go.
"Do as you please." The Queen Of Thieves told him. "No law can bind you now."
Even so, despite the "graduation," Ayndi had little idea as to how many Rogues there were. He was never able to learn that there were many connections, like an underground network of information, thus the reason they were able to gather so much about him. He headed straight back to Morroc to pick up more things for the trip home, and for another rest at the inn. Once he did, he started a long day and a half trek back to Al De Baran. It was unfortunate for him though, living as he did. His birthday was quickly approaching, and nobody was going to celebrate it. Instead, he went back to Al De Baran, and constructed the small "house" he lived in for the next several years. That way, nobody would ever know where he lived – not even the Rogues.
Ayndi was in his early twenties when he became a Rogue, and he was still a Rogue in his late twenties. He enjoyed what he did, not noticeably, but he did. But still, even though he did what was right, something was missing. True happiness was something he wanted to achieve, but he didn't know how to get it. What he knew for certain was that he didn't have it. Something ate away at him every day, and he didn't know how to fill the gap between it. Maybe it was how lonely he was, or at least the way he lived. He figured he must have gone wrong somewhere, but until he found out how, he'd just have to continue what he was doing. He'd have to be Al De Baran's little "hero."
He got out of his bed with a sigh, getting his things together again and heading back out to watch over the people. He did this the entire day before waiting until the dead of night to go back home. He did this day in and day out, the whole thing being like a routine. He wanted something to change, and he didn't expect it to happen. But he couldn't tell the future. He didn't know if he'd live this slightly meaningful life to its end, nor did he know if he was going to be part of something bigger, something much, much bigger. He didn't know what lied ahead of him, and it bothered him a bit. But his patience with life was soon to be rewarded, soon in a timely sense.
Ayndi Hakmashi was the Rogue's name, and he was fairly young, in his late twenties. He was an Al De Baran vigilante, doing what was right, regardless of the law. He helped people, and if he had to face persecution, it didn't matter to him. He was highly respected by some folks in the city, and he'd developed a kind of quiet reputation. He rarely spoke to anyone, but everyone knew that his intensions were pure. He would never had gone out of his way to harm someone unless it was necessary, not back then anyways. He had no family, and seemingly had no home. And he had absolutely no idea how his destiny was about to unfold.