CHAPTER 4
Gathering Information
Asks the curious of his quandary,
Denied the knowledge of his wisdom,
And the thirst for knowledge unwillingly becomes that of his enemy's blood
*************************************************************
The darkness enveloped the bleak and weary stars above the slumbering city streets. Garrett
had taken to the abandoned and silent rooftops of the Thieve's Highway. A windy, dark,
stealthy, and solitary path of the flat toped buildings proved safe for the disgruntled thief. A
wounded leg presented a cut so finely sliced that it appeared as if a perfect line of blood had been
whipped onto his leg by the wind. Garrett wondered what type of arrow Cerris had used. He had
skill with the bow indeed. The novice thief who had been killed embodied the sprinting speed of
a true runner, yet Cerris was not only able to hit him with a three second head start, but did so
through a closed door in view. Garrett felt as if the only thing that had saved his life were the
three flash bombs dispersed at the right time, unbalancing Cerris's aim just enough for a miss.
Garrett wished he had taken a better look at the mysterious man who he would not recognize if
he were to see him in a crowd. Unlike Garrett, however, the strange man seemed to know
exactly who he was and that seemed to prove a big problem. The wounded thief needed answers
quickly of Cerris the Huntsman. More times than others, knowledge proved to be the most
useful tool one could posses. But one thing was for sure: Garrett had a bounty on his head.
After scouting the streets below and moving from rooftop to rooftop ever so often, Garrett
knew he would have to stop by his apartment for supplies and money. A paranoid mist clouded
the thief's usual sureness and every once in a while he would look behind him. Every strange
sound from afar could be that of a silent assassin, arching his bow in secrecy on a balcony.
Garrett had faith in his abilities of stealth and continued on a familiar rout home which provided
deep shadows.
The cautious thief reached his apartment and slowly entered as if he was robbing his own
room. The air was still as death and the darkness shrouded the halls of the apartment. Garrett
grabbed for his pick locks when he reached his door. A true thief never believes he is good
enough at what he does. Perfection was that of impossible to retain but should always be reached
for no matter how far away. The thief believed in pick locking any lock, even his own, to
improve his time in doing so. Sometimes he could be in a lighted hall and come across a locked
door with a guard approaching. To be able to open a locked door even in half a second faster
could mean the difference between getting caught and making it alive for another day. Garrett
picked his lock in minimal timing and entered slowly and quietly, as if somehow the assassin had
outrun the thief to his room.
After much observation, Garrett confirmed his aloneness. Not lighting the candle stick on the
nearby table, Garrett waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room. Soon the thief
found his closet. Opening the door carefully, Garrett knelt down to raise the loose plywood
boards inside. One by one, each were stacked on the side until enough were out of the way.
Inside were most of Garrett's wealth and some supplies. His hand reached for five hundred
dollars worth of gold as well as more supplies in case he would run into any unwelcome
assassins. The night was still young and Garrett needed to visit a reliable source for information
on his assassin. Garrett did not like asking for information from others but the sources he
received from him were always accurate, whether it was a tip or a map. Garrett knew he was still
at his joint not far from the apartment. Quickly cleaning his wound, Garrett, fluffed the pillow
under the sheets to leave a humanistic lump; just another routine safety measure Garrett
implemented before he left. Holding onto the rope from his window, he left his room to leave
from a different place where he came in to make sure he could not be tailed. Once the thief
climbed down the rope, he melted into the shadows that were ever so abundant at this time at
night. The cold air blew through allies of the streets and a rat now and then would scurry
across the littered asphalt from buildings that neglected maintenance. When the thief came to a
wall with a wooden sliding window out in a dark ally, he knocked on it.
"State your purpose," a man said from behind the wooden wall.
"I seek information on a bounty huntsman," Garrett replied as he looked down the musty ally
and then back to the closed wooden sliding window. A body guard stood nearby, watching to see
if Garrett would cause problems for the man behind the wooden wall.
A slight pause. "Cerris is a dangerous man. I can supply you information tomorrow," the
man said. "It will take time to retrieve this information,"
Garrett looked both ways in the ally again, then replied, "Done. I will return here tomorrow
at the same time," Garrett whispered. Garrett slowly walked out of the ally and zigzagged
throughout the streets and decided to stay at the local inn for the night.
Garrett slept for a few hours and then stayed awake until it grew dark once again. Cerris
puzzled Garrett. Obviously Cerris was paid off to assassinate Garrett but who would that be?
Garrett knew numerous people who would want him dead. Unless Cerris just wanted to hunt
Garrett for the pure pleasure in the urban hunt. Nevertheless, Garrett needed to get rid of Cerris
who threatened his area. Garrett had studied the city all too well to just leave. Garrett had no
plans in leaving any time soon.
"Garrett the Master Thief versus Cerris the Bounty huntsman," Garrett thought to himself.
This would indeed be a challenge. Garrett had fought against deadly foes before but Cerris had
been the only enemy to spot him out, to be one step ahead of him and sometimes even two steps
ahead of him.
Garrett understood Cerris was not like any enemy before. He spotted Garrett out when he
was in the underground gambling network where he was very well hidden. Every move Cerris
dealt proved to be at its maximum effect. Garrett did not want to admit his hunch, but it was as if
Cerris was holding back his true potential back in the gambling room.
Garrett had been walking through the streets as the last of the light in the sky became
engulfed in blackness. Garrett needed to obtain the information quick and then figure out how to
get rid of Cerris. Garrett looked around him as he walked in the same ally and headed toward the
wooden window. As he walked, he noticed how empty the area was. No one was in sight. As
Garrett walked next to the wooden wall, he raised his hand to knock but noticed the wooden
sliding window slightly opened.
Garrett suddenly realized what had happened and he became increasingly tense. Garrett
retracted back his hand from knocking and started to run back up the dark ally. Behind the
wooden sliding window, Cerris peered out of the thin crevice, bow arched from behind the
wooden wall. The always present body guard lay behind a trash can not far from where he used
to watch over the wooden wall, his throat slit deeply by a hunting knife. The man that was
suppose to supply Garrett information laid behind the wall, strangled to death when Cerris forced
opened the sliding window.
Garrett had noticed these differences just in time. Surly Cerris would have taken Garrett
down easily from behind the wooden wall. As Garrett ran through the streets, he looked behind
him back towards the ally. It was quite, like it had been before. Garrett was alone.
Gathering Information
Asks the curious of his quandary,
Denied the knowledge of his wisdom,
And the thirst for knowledge unwillingly becomes that of his enemy's blood
*************************************************************
The darkness enveloped the bleak and weary stars above the slumbering city streets. Garrett
had taken to the abandoned and silent rooftops of the Thieve's Highway. A windy, dark,
stealthy, and solitary path of the flat toped buildings proved safe for the disgruntled thief. A
wounded leg presented a cut so finely sliced that it appeared as if a perfect line of blood had been
whipped onto his leg by the wind. Garrett wondered what type of arrow Cerris had used. He had
skill with the bow indeed. The novice thief who had been killed embodied the sprinting speed of
a true runner, yet Cerris was not only able to hit him with a three second head start, but did so
through a closed door in view. Garrett felt as if the only thing that had saved his life were the
three flash bombs dispersed at the right time, unbalancing Cerris's aim just enough for a miss.
Garrett wished he had taken a better look at the mysterious man who he would not recognize if
he were to see him in a crowd. Unlike Garrett, however, the strange man seemed to know
exactly who he was and that seemed to prove a big problem. The wounded thief needed answers
quickly of Cerris the Huntsman. More times than others, knowledge proved to be the most
useful tool one could posses. But one thing was for sure: Garrett had a bounty on his head.
After scouting the streets below and moving from rooftop to rooftop ever so often, Garrett
knew he would have to stop by his apartment for supplies and money. A paranoid mist clouded
the thief's usual sureness and every once in a while he would look behind him. Every strange
sound from afar could be that of a silent assassin, arching his bow in secrecy on a balcony.
Garrett had faith in his abilities of stealth and continued on a familiar rout home which provided
deep shadows.
The cautious thief reached his apartment and slowly entered as if he was robbing his own
room. The air was still as death and the darkness shrouded the halls of the apartment. Garrett
grabbed for his pick locks when he reached his door. A true thief never believes he is good
enough at what he does. Perfection was that of impossible to retain but should always be reached
for no matter how far away. The thief believed in pick locking any lock, even his own, to
improve his time in doing so. Sometimes he could be in a lighted hall and come across a locked
door with a guard approaching. To be able to open a locked door even in half a second faster
could mean the difference between getting caught and making it alive for another day. Garrett
picked his lock in minimal timing and entered slowly and quietly, as if somehow the assassin had
outrun the thief to his room.
After much observation, Garrett confirmed his aloneness. Not lighting the candle stick on the
nearby table, Garrett waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room. Soon the thief
found his closet. Opening the door carefully, Garrett knelt down to raise the loose plywood
boards inside. One by one, each were stacked on the side until enough were out of the way.
Inside were most of Garrett's wealth and some supplies. His hand reached for five hundred
dollars worth of gold as well as more supplies in case he would run into any unwelcome
assassins. The night was still young and Garrett needed to visit a reliable source for information
on his assassin. Garrett did not like asking for information from others but the sources he
received from him were always accurate, whether it was a tip or a map. Garrett knew he was still
at his joint not far from the apartment. Quickly cleaning his wound, Garrett, fluffed the pillow
under the sheets to leave a humanistic lump; just another routine safety measure Garrett
implemented before he left. Holding onto the rope from his window, he left his room to leave
from a different place where he came in to make sure he could not be tailed. Once the thief
climbed down the rope, he melted into the shadows that were ever so abundant at this time at
night. The cold air blew through allies of the streets and a rat now and then would scurry
across the littered asphalt from buildings that neglected maintenance. When the thief came to a
wall with a wooden sliding window out in a dark ally, he knocked on it.
"State your purpose," a man said from behind the wooden wall.
"I seek information on a bounty huntsman," Garrett replied as he looked down the musty ally
and then back to the closed wooden sliding window. A body guard stood nearby, watching to see
if Garrett would cause problems for the man behind the wooden wall.
A slight pause. "Cerris is a dangerous man. I can supply you information tomorrow," the
man said. "It will take time to retrieve this information,"
Garrett looked both ways in the ally again, then replied, "Done. I will return here tomorrow
at the same time," Garrett whispered. Garrett slowly walked out of the ally and zigzagged
throughout the streets and decided to stay at the local inn for the night.
Garrett slept for a few hours and then stayed awake until it grew dark once again. Cerris
puzzled Garrett. Obviously Cerris was paid off to assassinate Garrett but who would that be?
Garrett knew numerous people who would want him dead. Unless Cerris just wanted to hunt
Garrett for the pure pleasure in the urban hunt. Nevertheless, Garrett needed to get rid of Cerris
who threatened his area. Garrett had studied the city all too well to just leave. Garrett had no
plans in leaving any time soon.
"Garrett the Master Thief versus Cerris the Bounty huntsman," Garrett thought to himself.
This would indeed be a challenge. Garrett had fought against deadly foes before but Cerris had
been the only enemy to spot him out, to be one step ahead of him and sometimes even two steps
ahead of him.
Garrett understood Cerris was not like any enemy before. He spotted Garrett out when he
was in the underground gambling network where he was very well hidden. Every move Cerris
dealt proved to be at its maximum effect. Garrett did not want to admit his hunch, but it was as if
Cerris was holding back his true potential back in the gambling room.
Garrett had been walking through the streets as the last of the light in the sky became
engulfed in blackness. Garrett needed to obtain the information quick and then figure out how to
get rid of Cerris. Garrett looked around him as he walked in the same ally and headed toward the
wooden window. As he walked, he noticed how empty the area was. No one was in sight. As
Garrett walked next to the wooden wall, he raised his hand to knock but noticed the wooden
sliding window slightly opened.
Garrett suddenly realized what had happened and he became increasingly tense. Garrett
retracted back his hand from knocking and started to run back up the dark ally. Behind the
wooden sliding window, Cerris peered out of the thin crevice, bow arched from behind the
wooden wall. The always present body guard lay behind a trash can not far from where he used
to watch over the wooden wall, his throat slit deeply by a hunting knife. The man that was
suppose to supply Garrett information laid behind the wall, strangled to death when Cerris forced
opened the sliding window.
Garrett had noticed these differences just in time. Surly Cerris would have taken Garrett
down easily from behind the wooden wall. As Garrett ran through the streets, he looked behind
him back towards the ally. It was quite, like it had been before. Garrett was alone.