Author's Note:

So ends Volume 4. I'm going to be taking a short 2-3 day break to recharge my batteries but if you like or don't like this new style, please for the love of all that is holy -let me know-. I sincerely hope those of you who're reading this enjoy it and will stick around for Volume 5: "Dangerous Game"

Chapter 5

"You're seriously going in like that." The older man studied the group as he ran his hand through his greasy hair. It struggled to keep his skull covered in the center and under the muted light from the street lamp. "I've got respect for ya, Bree, but don't you think it's a bit of an invitation to look at yer chest?"

"You mean like you've been doing?" She smiled lightly. "I can take care of things once we get inside. Worry not."

Kat hugged her arms over her own chest when she thought the man was glancing her way. His gaze fell to the floor of the tiny room for a moment. "Yeah, alright. Come on. . ."

The man was taller than Vaius but solidly built; squared off shoulders, a stomach that said he probably enjoyed Chauntea's bounty a bit too much. He didn't give off the creepy vibe but something still felt slightly off about him. He seemed skittish in some way that Kat couldn't quite understand. Surely Bree couldn't have missed it. Maybe that's why she was being slightly cool to him.

They followed him out of the inn room, downstairs and into the basement without the bartender so much as acknowledging their presence. The room itself was spacious and temperature controlled to a balmy warmth that, Kat imagined, helped the casks of wine ferment their contents. She licked her lips at the thought.

"The invitation is open to you, yes." Bree whispered and cast a glance her way.

"Huh?"

"Nothing dear." She smirked.

Vaius tugged his hood down a bit lower to shade his face but it couldn't hide the smirk. Kat blushed. Invitation. Right.

"Sorry to disappoint, I had my mind elsewhere."

"I'm sure."

The pudgy man stooped at the rear most section of wall and pulled tiny, almost invisible string from between a pair of bricks. No thinking person would've seen it if they didn't know it was there. But then that was the entire point, wasn't it? Kat swallowed as he pulled the hatch open.

She could smell the acidic stench of the sewer even before he'd finished opening it but as soon as the door hit the top of its arc, the smell faded into a mercifully tame scent that reminded Kat of cows. It was bearable this way even if not ideal.

"You're going to go down a few hundred paces and take a right. It'll be the first grate on the left- takes you right to the sleeping quarters."

"You're not coming?" Vaius glanced at him and then to Bree with a slightly concerned expression.

"You said get you there. Didn't say nothin about breaking in. I'm gettn too old for that life. . . 'sides. I got a wife t'think about these days. Gave her my word I wouldn't get into trouble no more. You know how it goes." He gave Bree a long look as if silently pleading.

She looked at him for a moment and shrugged. "I'm sure your children will remember your mistakes should they be made tonight, hm?" He stiffened. She smiled slightly. "In we go!"

Kat pursed her lips, watching his eyes follow her as she ducked into the dingy sewer. There was genuine fear in his gaze and a certain knowing that set the hairs on the back of Kat's neck on end. What was it about this woman that could inspire that reaction in people, not with a sharp sword or loud voice but a whisper and a smile?

The sewers themselves were composed of heavy stone paths that lined either side of a shallow slit trench that carried waste off into the gloom only to be filled once more with fresh water. The smell was even more sedate once Kat was actually crossed the threshold.

"I- I'm sure it'll be just fine. Just follow the directions, you'll see."

"Will do! It was good to see you again!"

The hatch slammed shut in response and plunged the entire corridor into utter darkness. Kat muttered to herself even before she ran into Vaius. "Oof. Sorry." She whispered. His slender hand touched her shoulder and then her bicep, sliding down her arm to take his hand. They followed Bree's unerring lead until they came to the corner he'd told them about.

"Bets on him selling us out?" Vaius whispered.

"Fifty coin and a back massage."

"Deal."

"Kathrine?"

"Y- Yeah?"

"Two to one odds?"

Kat frowned. "You guys really don't take anything seriously, do you? If he did-"

"You're over thinking things, dear. Start with the assumption that you're going to be sold out and everything just gets easier from there."

"What about Nyx, though?"

"He can take care of himself. The ship, too." Bree paused for a moment. "Ah. Here we are." They started forward again. Kat's heart beat in her throat. They were really going to do this, weren't they? They were going to break into this place and steal everything they could. But it was for a good reason, wasn't it? Kat swallowed when they stopped. She opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she heard a some metallic clicking that sounded like bolts being snapped in two.

It could've been a hundred different things. Kat warned herself even as a creaking sound broke the stillness. Vaius lead her through the gate into a cramped chamber only to have Bree push them both to the side. Kathrine caught a flash of movement in her vision right before she heard foot falls on something metal. It sounded like a ladder.

A moment later a spear of light cut through the darkness from a trap door above them. Bree was pushing it up with one hand, just far enough to see. She waited a moment. And another. "Up we go." She whispered as she pushed the trap door up enough to fit through.

Kat was right behind her, accidentally stealing a glance up her skirt. She looked away quickly enough but the image of her powerful legs had seared itself into her mind. Focus. She slipped through the door into a rectangular room with several bunk beds lining either side. In the center were a few throw rugs including the one that had covered the door. The room itself was spartan with only a writing desk in the corner to break up the monotony of the stone walls.

A man was sleeping in one of the bunks completely heedless to their intrusion. Kat swallowed and glanced at Bree for direction. She in turn looked at the man and held up a finger.

Vaius, meanwhile, took up a position near the single door opposite their entrance to keep an eye on it. He motioned Kat to follow and pointed to the opposite side. With a soft murmur he leaned in. "Did you prepare those sleep spells she asked for?"

"Yeah."

"Good girl."

"What's she doing?" She looked over to see Bree murmuring into the man's ear. After a couple of seconds she gave him a gentle shake and placed a hand on his chest. His eyes shot open and she leaned over him blocking his face from Kat and Vaius.

"Probably asking for directions."

"Hey-" She licked her lips. "I know it's not the best time to ask but do you know what she is?"

"What she is? What do you mean?"

"Like what race she is?"

"Oh. . ." He glanced after her and shrugged. "I think she's an Aasimar. Why?"

"But you don't know."

"Not really been an issue. . ."

"Found it." Bree appeared at their side seemingly out of nowhere. Kat jumped. She smiled. "Yes, hello to you too." Her arm hooked around Kat's waist. "The library is right upstairs. The Artifacts and Relics section is in the northeastern corner."

Kat leaned back to peek around Bree's shoulder. The man was facing away from them snoring soundly. Some part of her was relieved he was alive but she was all the more curious how Bree had managed to find out the information. When she looked to Bree the woman winked.

"He's also hung like a bull."

"No he isn't, he's right there-" Kat blinked. "Oh, come on."

Bree's hand slipped to Kat's butt and patted it before giving it a firm, possessive squeeze. Kat bit into her lower lip but she couldn't bring herself to get mad. "Never change, dear. You're far too much fun. This way, then!" She stepped right up to the door and pulled on the handle as though it were the most obvious thing in the world to do. Like they weren't sneaking around. "Your notion was right about the wards, by the way. Shame they don't have it inside, hm?" She winked at Kat.

"They don't?"

"Not a one."

Kat glanced at the sleeping man again before they walked through the door into an expansive hallway lined with marble pillars and an intricate stone stair case to the far right that spiraled up in opposite directions to the second story balcony. Massive double doors to the left had been opened just slightly showing the empty street beyond. Within the chamber a wide blue carpet swept through the center of the floor flanked on either side by square marble tiles that glistened in the flickering light from the candelabras.

It didn't occur to her until they were starting up the steps that there was no one around. She was just about to mention it when Bree glanced back and motioned them to follow her in a straight line. And then Kat understood why.

A man walked by her. She could feel his presence tickling the fringe of her consciousness and only when he was practically touching her could she hear his footsteps. She froze. Vaius pushed her forward gently. They followed Bree up the stairs, passing a couple of others who seemed every bit as oblivious to them as they were to the world around them.

They continued up around the spiraling stair case until they got to the door above the sleeping quarters. It opened just slightly at Bree's approach before she even had a chance to touch it. Kat tried to press herself against the wall thinking there was someone nearby but the door continued opening to allow her entry. Not once did she pause as she marched them into the library.

The library itself took up more space than the building could have realistically contained and the moment she passed through the doors, Kat could feel the tingle of magic that told her they weren't necessarily on the same plane any more. If they were, it was probably some kind of morphic trait that the builders had designed into the structure.

Bookshelves lined the walls up several stories before arching inward to meet the domed ceiling. Rune signs divided sections of the library into topics like philosophy, planar history, agriculture and a multitude of others Kat really had no interest in. Square pillars with extrusions had been set up every fifteen paces and pulsed with a glowing blue light that flared up to almost blinding the moment Bree came within five paces.

It was surreal to see the pillars light and fade as Bree lead them through the center isle. Shadows danced in the void of her wake, speared through by the next pillar when she approached. If anyone was in the library at the time, surely they'd have seen it. Why weren't they being stopped?

"There you are. Miss Stoneriver, if you'd be so kind?" She motioned to the corner under a sign marked Marvels and Relics.

Kat bit into her lower lip hard enough to turn the skin white from lack of blood flow. But she complied. The tomes were ancient and musty and stretched for what felt like hundreds of feet above her head. How could she possibly find what she was looking for in all of this?

"Mister Vaius, you know your role."

"Right." Vaius broke off to a smaller section of the racks out of Kat's line of sight.

All the while Bree watched her with a patient, almost motherly expression. "Would you like a hand, dear?"

Of course she did. But if Bree knew what Kat did, that meant she could probably figure out whatever it was Kat was going to find before she could. "No, I'll uh. . . Oh, here we go." She picked up a random book and flipped through it quickly before replacing it. "How much time do we have?"

"As much as we need, my dearest Kathrine. Do it once. Do it right."

Kat glanced over to see the woman clasping her hands behind her back standing only a few feet away. She was busy browsing the scroll racks. Just beyond her a couple of books slid free from the shelf and floated into a position as though someone was carrying them. Kat pursed her lips and went back to her shelf. She was quick, she had to be. Of the dozens of books, even at eye level very few of them were directly related to artifacts of Oghma and fewer still seemed to have anything to do with amulets. After the fiftieth book Kat exhaled her frustration.

"Kathrine." Bree was holding out her shoulder bag. "Take what looks important. We can sort out the who's and what's later. You might want to start from the top, though."

"Huh? How'm I gonna get up there, though?"

"You are a mage, right?" She smiled, teasing.

"Yeah but that's kindda not something I do. I'm not really a fan of-"

Bree motioned dismissively. Following the gesture from her hand a ladder rolled along rails Kat hadn't seen to stop right before her. She saw another ladder roll along the opposite side with Vaius pushing off along the rails with a stack of books piled on top of the metal 'wings' on either side of the ladder meant for holding materials. They threatened to spill off as he rolled to a stop under a section titled for Draconic Artifacts.

Kat looked up at him for a moment before she took to the ladder and scampered up to the top. The very first book she found was aptly titled: "Divine Artifacts of the All Knowing One".

It couldn't have been more than ten minutes before Bree lost interest in the scrolls and books around the library, feigning an interest in the glowing pillars who's light now filled the entire library as though it was a summer day. Kat's search had expanded to include a couple dozen other titles relating to the nature of divine artifacts and their effects along with ways to potentially stunt their power. With her stack of books chosen she began working her way down the ladder, placing them neatly in a pile in the center.

Bree watched her peripherally as she poked and prodded the glowing pillar, eliciting a crack of electricity from it now and then when her finger stabbed at the runes. As Kathrine unloaded the fruits of her research, the woman picked a few books off the shelf to add to the pile along with Vaius's own and eventually grabbed a few scrolls seemingly at random, throwing them atop the stack. "This'll do nicely. Good work."

"How're we going to get all this stuff-"

"You're carrying it." She motioned to the shoulder bag she'd given Kathrine with a smile. "Quickly now, unless you've anything to finish?"

"Uh. Okay?"

There was a short pause before she spoke again. "You are a mage, aren't you?"

"Yes, but I'm a priest first?"

"And you've never seen a Bag of Holding before. . .?"

"A bag-" Her cheeks burned. "O- Of course! Sure. . . Oops."

"Atagirl." Vaius smirked as Kat slipped the first book into the bag. The small leather bag didn't expand with the increased girth of the book or even the third. By the time she had all the books in, the leather still hadn't moved a hair's breadth out of its original size nor had it gained any significant weight. Supposedly Bags of Holding were common if top tier equipment for those with exceptionally deep pockets or those who were very fortunate to chance across them. Kat had to wonder which Bree was. But then maybe she didn't need to know.

No. She really didn't.

Once all the books were in place, Kat looked about. "Sure no one'll see us?"

"Let them wonder." Bree turned on her heel with a little smile.

Wonder. This was all just one big game to her, wasn't it? Kat slung the shoulder bag when the woman started towards the door. In the end it almost seemed as everyone around them were as insignificant as ants to her splendor. In some ways they were. But how was it she could make herself and those with her invisible to the outside world and the outside world invisible to her? Was that somehow representative of her world view? More importantly, how could Kat counteract it?

It had to have been magic. Some kind of advanced illusion that could've probably been defeated by a True Seeing spell or a Disjunction of some sort. But the real issue, aside from logistics, was the issue of casting it. Bree hadn't uttered a single word just like she hadn't when she opened the portal for the ship. And then there was the issue of the inn which still made no sense.

What in the Nine Hells was going on here?

Kat swallowed her questions as they trotted down the stairs with their ill-gotten goods. She'd find a way to return them as soon as time permitted but the relic was too important. If she was at least seen to be cooperative she could probably keep going until she knew for sure what Bree had intended. And if she was being honest with herself, she wanted to know what this thing could do too.

Bree sauntered up to the double doors at the front of the compound and pushed one forward. The marble underneath had been inscribed with a set of runes that were clearly visible even without magic augmentation. They were dispelling and anti-scrying runes that should have broke Bree's spell in an instant. Instead, the woman pushed the door open and stepped right into the cool night air without breaking stride.

A pair of men were standing outside dressed in full regalia watching over the half dozen men and women traversing the thoroughfare from one home to another or from shop window to window speaking quietly about prices or some other mundane affair.

No one even cast a glance their way or even stop to wonder about the door opening seemingly on its own. Bree must've felt Kat's questioning stare on her. She glanced back and winked as they started down the marble steps. No sooner did they hit the cobbles than one of the guards reached over and closed the door as though it happened all the time. Kat glanced up then to Bree, whispering. "You're a strange one."

"Oh, dear, you have no idea." She waggled her eyebrows playfully.

For some reason, Kat smiled.

# # # #

"And here I was going to give you up as casualties of the Ink Monster." Nyx hopped off the prow of the ship where he'd been curled up. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"Yeah, I think so." Kat looked to the sky, watching the incredible gears turn in every direction around the city. As far as the eye could see the individual islands amidst the featureless void were each designed to reflect the needs of a specific inhabitant race or group of races with very few, if any, being similar to one another. It boggled the mind trying to imagine the number of colonies that were hovering out in the darkness with only the edges of the cogs to bring them together. In some way it reminded her of her life.

That's kind of sad, actually. She sighed.

Vaius flipped his hood back. "Hm?"

"Nothing. We should get out of here before they know stuff's missing."

"Quite so-"

"Hey!" A man called from the balcony of the second story house they had docked the ship behind. "Good to see you're okay! Did you find what you were looking for?" Kat had to strain to make out his features as the ship began a gradual pull back away from the house.

"Consider us even!" Bree clasped her hands together, leaning over the rail. "And give your wife my regards, you're in better hands."

He paused for the briefest of moments. "Why don't you come celebrate. For old time's sake?"

"Old times, before or after you tried to kill me?"

"Times change! It was just business!"

"So is this."

Nyx and Vaius glanced at each other. "He sold us out, didn't he?" Nyx muttered. Vaius nodded.

"Just remember what I said." Bree waved once. The man paled. "You know I keep to my word."

"But- hey!" The ship pulled back a bit faster and started a wide turn around the edge of the block before beginning an ascent until it was almost clear of the city's skyline. From somewhere down below the man shouted after them. "You're still beautiful!"

Bree chuckled into a soft laugh that was so melodic, Kat almost lost herself in it's valleys and peaks. She looked at Kat, still smiling. "Marriage is terrible business, isn't it?" The ship turned slightly towards the way they'd come.

Kat frowned and opened her mouth to reply but her voice died on her lips when she saw the first mastless ship floating at the edge of the cog. It backed up into her throat when she saw the other fifty behind it.

Bree, noticing Kat's stare looked over her shoulder at the armada. "Oh. Vaius, be a dear and fetch me my brown pants."

3/4/1381 (Relative)

"I lay awake at night sometimes, hugging my pillow to my chest and wondering. Not about anything in particular, aside from the obvious things; am I doing what She wants me to; am I a good person in relation to what my parents wanted for us; how can I be a better priest. . .

It comes down to a couple simple things, I think. A willingness and a strong desire to be more than you are right now and following a specific code of conduct where others might fall short.

For me, it's our family values. They always meant the most to me growing up, and my father ensured I could recite them without thinking about it from a very early age. Then he spent the rest of his life showing me how to live them.

I think that's the one gift I can never really thank him enough for. He mortgaged the farm, put us all into debt and sold our produce at cut rate prices to pay for my tutor so I could learn how to manipulate The Weave and wield magic. But in the end, it's not that power which I find myself thankful for, but the simple and timeless gift of having our family's heart written into my soul.

Duty: To family, friends and community.

Strength: Even in the face of adversity.

Love: Moreso when things pull you apart.

Courage: To do what -is- right. Not what's convenient.

Sanctity: Spirit, mind and body. So no one can corrupt you.

Thanks, dad.

It's been three days since my last drink."

-Diary of Kathrine Stoneriver