((Greetings readers, it's Zaya! I've been gone for a while and all the promises of continuing this story have been further procrastinated all these years. Well, NO MORE! I am continuing the story but please bear in mind that I've have had years to improve and my style is different. Re-reading this story, I didn't actually find a lot of problems with it fundamentally but plotting and pace was erratic. I hope this new pace and style will entice more readers to continue to enjoy this. The first three original chapters will not be edited to the new style – they're fine the way they are.))

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After she had been helped from the river, soaked to the bone and shivering from the late night cold of the evening, De'Onna wasn't surprised to hear that she had once again been thrown from one extreme of a situation to another. She was starting to think that this world was out to get her.

The guard, whom she'd come to learn was named Sinclair, was leading her to the station that she had heard of before. She sniffled, her nose already ice cold. The guard looked at her with worry and frowned.

"C'mon now, we're almost there. I'll have a blanket ready and we can get to the paperwork." His voice sounded like he was tired as well, or maybe he was just tired of running into her as trouble.

"Y-Yeah, but y-y-ain't gonna jail me, r-right?" She stuttered and wanted to clamp her mouth shut. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms to warm them up. It was a vain attempt because just then the wind rushed over body, nearly toppling her to ground from the force and chilliness of it.

"That'll come later, y'wench." He chuckled and reached behind her, placing a hand at her back to gently ease her along. "-Right now, I want to make sure y'get there intact and alive. The captain'll have my head if I lose ANOTHER perp." As they walked, De'Onna gave a pathetic little giggle, followed by a groan at how cold it was.

"Man, 'p-perp' is a s-s-step up today, considering!"

It didn't take long to get to the station, though it did feel longer perhaps because of the cold. She was grateful that it wasn't an open entranced building. Sinclair opened the door and upon entering the building, she was surprised to see two more city watch guards sitting a tablet, no doubt playing a board game to pass the time. They looked up and she flushed when one whistled obscenely at her soaked state.

"What'd ya catch this time, eh?"

"Why d'you always get the women, ya Taffer?!"

With an irritated glare, Sinclair scoffed and chastised them, "Well, if you two would stay on duty more often, y'might actually see something more interesting!" He walked past her and placed his hand on her shoulder, leading her upstairs, "-And no, you taffers, I'm getting her dry so stop staring."

Confused and perhaps a bit scared, De'Onna walked up the stairs and into the barracks of the officers' quarters. There wasn't anyone up here, "W-why isn't anyone sleeping? Isn't i-i-it late?" She looked to Sinclair and her shook his head.

"No, actually, it's pretty early in the morning." He faced the window and pointed outside. He leaned down and De'Onna looked where he point ed to see that there was, indeed light on the horizon, "I'd wager it's about halfway to five in the mornin'. We've only just started our shift." At that, De'Onna let out a sigh of relief.

At least something was going her way this time.

"Here, get into bed and I'll fetch ya a blanket. The paper work can wait for now." He told her and she gave a nod, looking at the bed with a weary expression. Though it was made of straw and stitched cloth it wasn't any less appealing that a Temper-Pedic. She sat down and looked up in time to accept the blanket Sinclair gave her. She winkled her nose. It was itchy as hell and she could swear she smelled some sort of foul odor coming from it. Sinclair noticed this and he let out an irritated sigh, "Sorry, some mead got spilled on it . . . again."

She smiled wearily, "It's fine, t-thanks." She threw it over herself and eased her body to lie down. The moment she was horizontal and somewhat comfortable, an immediate sensation of exhaustion wash over and she started to close her eyes, "Oh goodness. . . " She seemed to purr and Sinclair snorted in laughter.

"Such a weird girl . . ." He chuckled walked away, going back down stairs.

As darkness eased into her consciousness, she remembered what her day had been like. So much had happened that she honestly regretted her wish from before. This world was frightening and she'd never seen anything like it. She began to dream of what this world would be like for her if she had to stay here forever.

-

Of all things that would wake her, a slight noise was the culprit. She groaned, shifting in the bed and unwilling to wake. She could feel that her clothes were still damp, but she was warm and that's all she cared about. Curiously, she pulled the covers away from her head and quickly pulled them right back over her head when she was met with stark brightness. "Nooo! It's too early!" She closed her eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

A moment passed, her ears listening to the sounds outside through the open window. It was like the sound of a thunderstorm but more calm and made of the sounds of people talking, metal on metal, and rocks against rocks. She made a little game of trying to figure out what made what sounds did what.

Then something caught her attention.

Her eyes widened underneath the covers and she threw off the blanket, looking around wildly. All at once, she felt the rush of cold air and warm sun hit her body but she did not realize them. She stared out at a window across the room, but it wasn't the window she noticed but the figure that stood within it.

In the window ledge, idly dropping two stones in his hands was a dark-clad figure. She stared at him with an expression of wonder and awe. Questions invaded her mind! How had he found her? Why was he just staring at her? Why was he making noise?!

Wait . . . why was he out and about during the day?

". . . You look surprised." He spoke, his voice as rough as she remembered in the game. He was loud enough for her to hear but not loud enough to attract attention.

She didn't know what to say but had to think of something. She gave a dumb nod, "W-well, yeah – you're staring at me." She realized that that was an oddly succinct thing to say. Garrett paused, no longer dropping of his stones and he pulled his head back a bit. He gave a grunt of acknowledgment and dropped his stones out the window.

"-Fair enough." He said and stood up from his spot on the ledge. She swallowed nervously when he walked over to her. He sat down and gave a glance around himself, spotting a small bag. She guessed that it might have been gold and he must have too because he plucked it from the ground and cut it open. He emptied the bag of gold and relocated it into a pocket on his per, patting it for good measure and looked up at her. Again, she swallowed nervously.

Why is he here? Does he know something about me? He's a Keeper, yeah but that doesn't mean he knows that I-

"You don't belong here."

Her mouth hung open, just staring at him before she closed it, never mind.

"Ah-? Erm, How-?" She had to stop herself then, choosing instead to play dumb, "What do you mean, 'I don't belong here'? I should say that to you." She sounded offended and gave him a dirty look. It would have work has he not suddenly stood up and she squeaked nervously.

"It's exactly what I mean. Don't play dumb because I don't have the time." He hissed, looking her over and scoffed, "-You don't look dangerous. You don't even look older than fifteen." She knew he was just talking to himself, but given that he'd just accused her of being a kid, she couldn't help actually being offended.

"Wow, that's rude! I'm eighteen!" She glared at him, unaware it might have been wiser to keep that to her own self. She'd played this game before and knew that it wasn't a happy place to be in. There was famine and death and disease and all sorts of nastiness but she didn't realize that this wasn't a game anymore. It was more than real to her.

She just didn't realize that and kept thinking that it wasn't hard as it must have been on normal. The game she was going play was on the difficulty 'Expert' but the reality of it was that she was thrown into a new difficulty.

'Hell'.

"Do forgive me." Garrett retorted with fierce sarcasm and she realized that she had rebuffed his own self-reflective thoughts. She frowned a little, feeling shame and look at him in confusion.

"Okay, but what do you mean? I don't think I'm dangerous, personally." She pulled the blanket around her tighter, eyeing him cautiously, "-How do you know me? I've never met you."

"I'm aware." He hissed, as if she had spoken the obvious. "I was told to kill you, and if you'll stop the 'Damsel in Distress' act, I might explain it." He sat back down and gave a sigh, "-I'm not an assassin. I abhor killing unless necessary, but the situation is complicated. I've been asked many things by the Keepers, but killing wasn't one."

She tried to keep her cool, remain stoic and aloof to what she had just heard. However, before she could stop herself she blurted out loudly, "What?!" The moment she said it, she slapped a hand over her mouth and jerked her gaze toward the stairs. She really didn't mean to say that so loud but everything was happening so fast! As she waited for the sound of footsteps to come running up she was relieved to know that no one did.

Garrett, however, was not amused.

He pulled her off the bed and walked to the window. De'Onna followed, her face burning red and she was pulled in front of it. She looked out and marveled out just how many people were out there. She leaned forward but was pulled back, forced to look at Garrett as he spoke.

"You're a loud mouth, you know that?" He pointed out the window and if she could see beyond the shadow of his hood she might have noticed his angry expression, "Down the street, you'll find a pub. Go to Sylvester and ask for a person named 'John'; he'll tell you where to go from there." H stood up once finished and turned around, jumping into the frame of the window. She wasn't sure what to do with what he said and the directions he gave were fading from her memory fast.

"Wait a minute, why?!" She said to him and didn't realize her voice was calling attention to herself. She heard footsteps coming up the stairs and looked behind her. When she turned back, something was thrown at her and she gasped loudly, almost dropping whatever it was. When she secured it in her hands she realized that it was a flash bomb and looked up at Garrett.

He was already in the building across from her and opening the window. With a final glance at her, he disappeared into the house and she was left standing there; a flash bomb in one hand that she had no idea how to use, and guards quickly running up stairs to her in the other.

"O-Oh . . . shit."

"Hey, you!" She jumped at the call and put the flash bomb in her shirt before she turned around. Three guards stopped in front of her and crowded the window, looking outside of it. Their swords were at the ready and she was pulled away, "Where'd he go?! Did you see where he went?!" She stared at them, unsure of what to say. One looked at her and yelled in anger, "Did you help him escape?!"

"What, no! He tried to-to-!" She wanted to tell them that he threatened her, but the words did not come. However, the lack of saying anything made the difference. They stopped, as if punched in the face and stared at her in horror.

"That dog!"

"SOUND THE ALARMS!"

"We've got a serial rapist on the loose!"

The calls were quick and it wasn't long until the alarms were sounded. She was shuffled down the stairs, passed the guards that were on high alert. Like a hive, the station was alive with energy and excitement. She bit her lip. How am I going to do any of those things Garrett said to do?

Although they all seemed engrossed in their duties, buzzing around like bees to their next assignment, all seemed to halt suddenly. A man with a similar, but different type of blue uniform opened his door. He had dark black hair and a noticeable goatee but what stood out prevalently was his calculating gaze. It was dark, catching the eye of nearly all the officers in the room. They were stood at attention as well, so it was easy to see that this person was of high influence. When her gaze caught his, she looked down to avoid it but the damage was done. She could hear his boots stomp along the floor as he walked over.

"Is this the reason for the alarm?" He asked and she could hear that he was livid.

"Yes sir. We had a perpetrator in the second floor window and she seemed to be following his movement. We believe she may have assaulted and we're going to take her to a secure area to question her and make sure she is-" Sinclair, whom she knew was the officer behind her, was suddenly interrupted.

"I don't care about the details of what is done with her." He hissed. "Just take care of her." She looked up just as he looked down at her, a contemptuous look on his face, "-If a thief or assassin dared to assault her here, then perhaps she has elicited that reaction for a reason."

At that, De'Onna's mouth jaw dropped from where she stood and she stared at the man in horrific shock.

"Yes, Sheriff, I will make sure she is booked properly."

She looked down and away, her face burning for a different reason. She remembered why he felt so familiar and it was ironic that he would accuse of her prostitution even though he was the very reason it existed. I'll remember this.

"Good." He spoke, and he looked around at the other officers, "-back to your duties. I'll return once my meeting with Karras is finished." Before he walked off, he sent her a sour look. Once he was out of the building, everything went back to the way it was.

A sigh came from behind her and she looked up, noticing the steely expression and a cold feeling jumped through her. She was nudged to move and she could feel Sinclair's gaze her back. If she didn't have long to live, she had to think of some way to escape. They were almost at the door when she spoke up.

"W-wait a minute, I left something upstairs!" She started to move but Sinclair gripped her shoulder and held her place.

"No, you didn't. You didn't even come here with anything."

Well, fuck! Make everything hard for me! She thought with a frown and Sinclair opened the door to the outside. She only had a moment to see it before, near the window, but now she could practically feel the congestion of the streets. Were they so close to the Market place for a reason? She walked forward, lead by Sinclair and felt claustrophobic once they started into the crowds. However, as they did, people were moving out of their way. It was as if they were rocks in a river and the river was parting itself for them to pass.

It didn't help her feel any better about how closer they were to being knocked around. She chimed in from behind, "Hey, don't you think we should get on the other side of the street? Y'know where there's NOT people about to run us over!" She had speaker louder but Sinclair didn't seem to care and replied all the same. He even had his accent.

"We don't have to – I'm an officer of the law and where we go the people had best get out of th'way!" As if to prove his point, he let out a laugh and eyed a boy running along with papers in hand. He threw out a leg just as he passed and, in a flurry of paper, he was sprawled on the ground. De'Onna looked between what happened and the officer and tried to figure out the point of such cruelty.

The boy got to his feet, cowering at the officer, and Sinclair just antagonized him more, "-Watch where you're going, brat! Don't want to be locked up, do ya?!" The boy jumped back, leaving his papers behind and ran off as fast as he could. Sinclair laughed, obviously enjoying the fear he elicited and De'Onna hung her head down. He looked over at her, expecting some sort of praise for what he did. What he found, though, made him deflate and frown – almost in guilt. They continued along in silence, but in his mind he knew why she didn't say anything.

The City Watch were practically celebrities now, able to strong arm almost any one. The Hammerites were almost all but gone, replaced by arrogant Mechanists. The scum of the city were at their mercy and anyone who was anyone would take advantage of that in his position. However, he did remember what it was like to be in poverty; to not be able to pay for food or take care of a family. His wife still loved him but he still got the looks from her when he beat the occasional vagabond or drunkard. Same as the one he was getting now.

It was a thrilling experience and he loved those moments . . . but he knew what he was becoming. He just couldn't afford to care.

As he reflected, De'Onna busied her mind with escape. She found one, but it was slim and . . . she didn't really want to hurt anybody.

In front of them was a carriage, closing distance fast and many of the already in the way citizens clearing the way. She had a decision to make and it killed her inside; knock the guard in front of her into the street and make a run for it – possibly killing him in the process? Or just make a run for it and risk being caught really easily.

She closed her eyes in preparation and the sound of the hooves upon the rock was almost deafening. She clenched her fists and prepared to make her decision.

Suddenly, she felt something crash into her from behind and she fell to the ground. Along the ground as well was Sinclair and he groaned upon hitting the ground. She looked up from the ground and saw a young man glaring at the officer with hate, picking up rocks from the ground and chucking them at him, "Y'hurt m'boy's legs you bloomin' PIG! –The hell d'you think yer doin', hurtin' chilren' like that!"

She stared at the young man who seemed no more than about sixteen or seventeen. He looked at her and she, feeling her throat tighten, met his gaze with her own defiant one. He seemed to understand something that she didn't and turned back to grill the guard once more. De'onna took this as her chance, not wanting to waste it, and quickly got to her feet and took off back down the street.

"Hey, wait!" Sinclair yelled but she didn't stop. Her eyes were scanning the crowd constantly; looking for some direction she could go in and somehow NOT find the station. She dodged people all sizes and shapes, looking around corners and running wherever she could get to. In doing so, she heard people muttering loudly and knew that if she didn't hide soon, she'd certainly be the talk of the town.

-If she wasn't already.

"C'mon, c'mon!" She hissed, looking down a four-way and deciding that – because she had already lost her way – she would pick the closest thing to what looked like a Hammerite church. From what she remembered in Thief, they were all but abandoned and if there was anyone who could help her, it would be the Hammerites.

She ran down a street at a brisk pace, not too slow but fast enough to keep her calm, and kept her gaze locked in front of her. Whenever she would hear the sound of chainmail she would step into an alley and do her best to avoid any city watch that was about.

She knew playing this game was nothing like the real thing, now. No amount of staying in shadow would guarantee her safety. After some time traversing the alley ways and thoroughly getting herself lost, she found what looked like a temple and walked up to the gates. With a single glance at the lock, she realized that she was at, yet another, impasse. She turned around to lean her back against the metal, and let out an exasperated sigh.

Today was really wearing on her nerves. As she attempted to catch her bearings, she couldn't help but play off the events out loud to vent her frustration "-nearly drowned, finally met Garrett, almost get killed by Garrett. Almost get killed by the only guard I thought liked me." She closed her eyes and grimaced, "Oh please, great Builder above, tell me what's going to kill me now!" She didn't realize that every word she spoke, getting angrier by the moment, had her literally yell her last statement out loud.

"Ah hah, we find thee at last, Salamander." Came a voice from her right and she could feel her heart jump in her chest.

You've got to be kidding me . . .

She didn't have to turn to know, herald by the sounds of loud footsteps that there were more Mechanists. They must have literally scoured the entire city looking for her because along with them was another clockwork sentinel, possibly even the very same that had captured her the first time. She leaned away from the gates, "You know we really have to stop meeting this way." She took a step back and looked over the group. The one lead the group, Brother Kreed if she remembered right, was closing in on her slowly. Worse yet, he had his mace raised and at the ready and the woman on his left had her crossbow aimed at her.

I really need to start running now.

"Nay, stay and chat awhile, friend."

"You know, I think I heard the Builder calling me, so I think I'm actually going to go." She nodded and gave a nervous smile, "-pray and all that." She took a few more steps and was almost turned around.

"I insist that thee stop before thou dost makes a mistake thou woudst regret." At that, she stopped and scowled. For some reason, that infuriated her. Ever since she had appeared, everything seemed to be her fault. She didn't want to be thrown into a deadly game! She didn't want to become some experiment to an obvious death sentence! She hated that Garrett was told to kill her, that the guards were practically told to kill her and now this.

Was this game out to get her or something? For all those times she didn't 'ghost' a mission? Well, news flash, Thief!

"Fuck you, I do what I want!" She yelled and took off again, running as fast as she could down the street and followed the iron fence line as much as she could go. A bolt whizzed past her head she grabbed the bars, turning the corner and quickly gaining more ground.

She stopped then and looked at the bars on her left. She was fast enough to get some distance, but they could catch her no matter the distance she put between them. She had an advantage, though, something they did not. She jumped at the bars and pulled herself up. She pushed her body through them as fast as she could, ignoring the pain at having to squish her breasts through another tight squeeze.

The sound of a cannon being loaded with a loud rising pitch made her heart lurch and she popped through the gate with a gasp - just as a cannon ball slammed against the metal and the fence reverberated at the force.

From the other side of the fence there was feral cry and she let out a most relieved sigh, falling back against the grass. Brother Kreed made a promise that she would be found sooner or later, but she didn't plan on sticking around long enough for him to actually make good on that.

She got to her feet, sluggish at first and made to jog at a quick pace to find some place to hide. The church was large, larger than she had imagined, but . . . it was familiar. She ran along the perimeter of it, passing a door on her left and turning a corner. Two sheds were on her right and they seemed dimly lit, enough that she might be able to hide in until nightfall.

Builder be praised, though he hasn't helped much today. She quickly ran up to a door and jiggled the handle. Locked, of course; she tried the other and hissed a silent 'yes!' at finding it unlocked before scrambling in. She closed it softly and backed up to the wall closest to the cathedral, sitting against it. She would be able to hear if anyone got close and get some much needed rest at the same time.

She closed her eyes, letting the silence wash over her. It didn't take long before a muffled sound caught her ear. Her brow knit in concentration and she tried to place what it was. Hm . . . chains? Dragging . . . chains. Wait, why are there dragging chains? Her eyes snapped open and she suddenly realized, with a newly bidden memory, where she was.

"Oh my god, 'Eavesdropping'?" She hissed and brought a hand up to her head, running it through her hair. It seemed that she, somehow - in some way - made it to Mechanist Seminary. "I should have gotten a clue with Truart." She muttered and felt so out of place and more than a little foolish. As she listened to the chains go away, she realized that there still wasn't much for her to do but sit and wait. Her eyes were already feeling heavy and she thought that a rest or nap would have been the best option anyway.

Garrett was going to pop up some time today, too. She smiled, for once, glad to have a plan and let her eyes close.

((I apologize for such a long wait. This story is back in the planning and rough draft stage and I hope to offer you more quality chapters. This has offered me some much needed self-reflection on my own style and I'm proud to present you work that is my best, even if it's just a self-insert hobby fic. ^^ Next chapter!))

"From the Builder, with Love."