As Garrett strode up the marble stairs to the balcony overlooking the dance hall, he contemplated. Gods! Do these nobles have anything more boring to talk about besides politics and trade? It's a wonder they keep their heads propped up while they talk! Bah! no matter, time to go to work. He walked confidently out of the hall, the music fading out behind him. The corridor was wide and the occasional guest stood leaning against the wall sipping some wine, or chatting in lowered tones with someone else. Garrett leaned against the wall near a doorframe. When he was sure nobody was looking he twisted the handle and went inside. It was a darkened living room. He made his way through, ever so quietly, and exited out the door at the other end. He was at a junture in the another hallway, the half-pannelled corridor led off to the left and right. Garrett took the left passage and arrived at an open area in the hall with passages leading off in every direction. A guard stood against the wall chatting to a serving girl who giggled and wrung her dress tightly in her hands. As Garrett approched the guard looked up and quietly spoke something to the girl who flounced off, smiling. The guard turned to address Garrett. "Sir, it is the demand of mister van Wyker that all guests remain in the ballroom." Garrett strode up to him and beckoned him to listen. "You see, the thing about that i-. Quick as a flash Garrett grabbed the man and twirled him around, slamming him face first into the wall several times. The man fell unconcious to the floor as Garrett let him drop. He grabbed the man's wrist and dragged him into a hall closet. He left him laying on the floor and closed the door. He walked back to the man's post and opened a set of doubledoors with square panes of glass set into them. He arrived on a stone balcony overlooking the inner courtyard. The courtyard was fairly small and the balcony ran in a square around it, supported by pillars on the first floor and overhung by the roof. The courtyard was a central cobblestone area surrounded by flowerbeds, trees, and open lawns of dark grass. In the center was a statue of some famous person, one hand outstreteched to the sky above. There were around four guards, each on standing beneath the balcony, facing towards the center of the courtyard. Another two were on the otherside of the atrium created by the balcony and the house looming up around it.
Garrett ducked low behind the balcony wall and made his way around to the right-side, exiting through a door there. He moved down another hallway and up a flight of steps at the end of the hall. He reached the top and started down another hallway when he heard footsteps. He ducked into a sideroom and waited until two guards passed him. He exited and went down the way they had come. He reached another T-intersection and took a left. As he did so he heard the sounds of more steps around the corner. He again ducked into a sideroom but as he peeked out of a crack in the door he saw the guards coming towards the room. The door hinges were on the outside forcing someone to pull the door open out into the hall giving Garrett no chance of hiding behind the door as it opened. He leapt onto a small side table and jumped, easily catching the ceiling beam with the assistance of his boots. He hung there upside down and motionless, gripping the beam with his legs and hands. The door opened moments after he had done this and three guards walked in, talking loudly. They stopped and sat in the various furniture in the room conversing easliy and laughing uproriously quite frequently. Garrett could feel his grip weakening from the strain. Slowly, his hands began to slip off the beam. First one went, then the other, he was now hanging by his legs only. They to soon began to give way. Then, went at last he could hold on no longer he jumped, pushing off quietly but firmly from the beam. He cockscrewed through the air, robbing himself of forward momentum at the appropriate time when he had just finished passing over the guard's heads. He landed behind the couch they sat on with a muffled thump, hands splaying against the carpet. The guards stopped talking as Garrett lay there, trying to control his breathing. "Hey, did you guys hear somethin'?" one said "I ain't heard nothin'" the second replied "Yeah, ya bloody taffer! Getting yourself all worked up 'bout nuthin'." The third agreed. "Shattup! I thought I heard something." The first said indignantly. With that they resumed their regular conversation. Garrett crawled quietly away and out a nearby door.
He retraced his steps back to the hall he had been in and went in his original direction. He came upon the room he was looking for, the bathroom. He pressed his ear against the door to make sure there was nobody inside before entering. He opened the small window behind the toilet and stood up on the seat. He scrunched himself up as small as possible, tucking all his equipment close to his body. He sucked in a breath of air, and the thrust himself through headfirst. His middle stuck for a moment as his dagger caught on the frame. He pulled it straight and continued until he was out to his waist. He turned over onto his back, and grabbed the overhanging roof. He pulled his legs from the window and scrambled over the gutter. The night air was still quite warm, with a slight breeze feeling cool on the face. Garrett stood and walked along the sloped, tiled roof. The roof of a tower jutted out above the landscape of roofing. It was this tower which Garrett made for. He kept to the center of the roof in case a guard decided to take a look up. He leapt from roof to roof and made his way over to the tower. At length he arrived at the tower roof. Reaching into his cloak he removed the coil of rope and secured it to a narrow chimmney stack sticking out from the tower roof. Bracing his feet against the wall he rappelled himself down a floor, touching down lightly on the window sill. He peered into the lit office. Richard sat at his desk, going over some parchments. The room was finely furnished and lit by the flickering light of the fire which crackled in the hearth. The oaken desk, which Richard sat at was covered with typical study items and to the left of the window were bookshelves dominating one corner of the room, from floor to low ceiling. Paintings decorated the walls and various items of value were displayed proudly on marble pedestals. The fireplace mantle held more collectibles and a glass case containing an antique sword was set in the wall above it.
Garrett had not counted on the office being occupied. This would change things slightly. He pulled his dagger from its sheath and slid it into the crack between the shutters, lifting the latch. He pushed the windows open and entered silently, leaving the rope dangling outside. He pulled his blackjack from it's concealed place on his person and crept up behind Richard. Garrett dealt him a swift blow and he slumped forward onto his desk, unconcious. He pulled the man's unconcious form off the desk so that he slumped back in his chair. Garrett flicked through the papers on the desk and when he found nothing related to the Vestrius, he began searching the desk drawers. Still he found no sign of any document relating to the Vestrius. He searched most of the room, disturbing as little as possible, yet still he found nothing. Garrett stood in the center and turned slowly around, examining every feature of the office. Then he noticed the painting. It was of a large predatory cat of some sort, orange with black stripes covered it's back. "A tiger I believe they call it." Garrett thought. The picture was crooked and looked as though it had been moved around somewhat. There was also a chip in the frame, not the kind of care a collector like van Wyker would give to one of his prized possesions. He went over and lifted the painting from it's peg. A metal door was set into the wall behind it. The door was studded with metal dots around the perimeter and there was a long handle set above a keyhole to the left of the door. "Why do they always hide them behind the paintings?" Garrett thought as he unfurled his lockpick set. He went to work, switching through several different picks quite often. Eventually after much work the lock clicked. He turned the handle and pulled the door open. Inside was a small stack of coins and a few expensive gems on satin cloths. Garrett took these without hesitation. He then turned his attention to the papers that were in the safe. It wasn't until he got to the bottom of the very back pile that he found what he was seeking. It was a yellowed envelope stamped with the wax seal of the Moonshadow's guild (a cresent moon with a cloaked figure as it's shadow). There were words written in flowing script on the front.
Richard van Wyker
Concerning the Vestrius
The seal had been broken. Garrett opened the envelope and unfolded the letter.
Richard
Recently you requested to purchase a certain artifact in the possession of the Moonshadow guild. The Vestrius. While your offer of 10,000 was quite tempting. I'm afraid that there are other matters and endeavours which our guild is concerned with, that, require the Vestrius to be kept in our possesion. I hope you are not to concerned with our refusal. We still have a wealth of other items for sale which, we are sure you would be interested in. Should you wish to peruse these items in detail, I cordially extend the welcome of the guild to visit our premises whenever you please. However, there are certain conditions which we ask you to abide by. Firstly, this letter must be kept in the safest place you possibly have available to yourself. Secondly, there are procedures you must go through in order to enter out guildhouse. We would not want uninvited guests to enter our halls. Therefore, listen carefully to these next instructions. To enter our guild, you must go to the dockside tavern "Three Mugs". Talk to the bartender and ask for today's special. There is no special on the menu, so he will know what your talking about. He will lead you into an alleyway behind the bar. Here, you must go to the brick wall at the end and speak the password: golden rod. The hidden doors will slide open and a guild member will let you in. He will allow you entrance to the guildhouse and be your guide.
Those are all the required procedures for entering our halls. Now, the last condition of your visit is that you bring nobody with you on this visit. There are many items within our guildhouse that would not be taken lightly if certain people were to know that we had these items in our possession. You, we can trust but you must bring no other being with you. Other than these conditions, you have complete access to our guild and we hope you will honor us with the pleasure of your company soon.
Marlow Crick
Public Realations Contact
Garrett smiled in triumph as he finished the letter. He folded in back up and slide it into his jacket. Closing the safe, he turned and made for the window. He reached out to grab the rope when three arrows thunked into the roof near his head. He ducked back inside. From below he could hear shouts. "Intruder! Intruder in the house! Quickly, this way!" Garrett cursed. He could hear the guards to the office doors pounding on them. "Sir! What's going on sir?! Sir?!" "It's not openin', break it down!" The pounding became louder as they put their boots to the task. Garrett reached into his jacket and snatched up the gas mine. He twisted the gear underneath the mine and flung it to the floor in front of the doors. It clacked loudly as it armed. He leapt behind the desk as the doors flew open, the broken lock mechanism bursting from the frame. The two guards rushed in, swords drawn. One of them touched off the mine. It hissed as the pressure in the gas comparment released and the top opened. A cloud of green gas billowed out, enveloping the two men. They stopped dead and one after the other, fell unconcious in a heap on the floor. The gas dissipated in seconds and Garrett stood and ran for the door.
Throughout the house he could hear alarm bells ringing and the hurrying of feet along corridor floors. He ran for the nearest door and ran inside leaping furniture as he passed through. He reached the other end and dashed out into the hallway. Ahead was a wooden staircase ringed with a bannister. As his eyes fell upon it, three guards came pounding up. They shouted when they saw him. Garrett ran around to the backside of the bannister and vaulted it. He landed with a thump on the stairs below. His balance lost he began to tip backwards. He turned this momentum into a backwards flip which carried him to the bottom of the stairs. The guards turned and blundered back down. Garrett was off like a shot. He raced through the house dodging guards and servants. Eventually he reached the inner courtyard balcony. Having momentarily lost his pursuers he stopped for a moment to breath. A mistake. No less than five men exited across the atrium on the other side of the balcony. Three nocked arrows to their strings while the other two each ran around the balcony sides, swords drawn. Garrett turned to run back the way he came. At that moment a group of guards appeared at the door. He turned and looked at the overhanging roof. Without a second thought he grabbed the gutter rim and flipped himself up to the roof. The three guards with bows fired at him as he stood. He dove aside as the arrows clattered against the roof shingles. He backed up and took a running leap off the roof. His boots carried him a great deal farther than he otherwise could have jumped. His form sailed through the air and he landed rather unsteadily perched upon the head of the statue. The guards on the balcony fired again. Two of the arrows whizzed by close to his head and the third deflected off the statue.
Suddenly, the four doors on the ground level of the courtyard burst open and in flooded more men from every direction. They dispersed around the courtyard. All carried loaded bows aimed steadily at him. Garrett stood and raised his hands in surrender. They hesitated, lacking any real leadership. He used that moment to his advantage. He leaned slightly forward as if to lose his balance, the flashbomb he carried slipped out of his pocket and into his hand which he brought down to steady himself. He quickly slipped it partway up his sleeve. As he regained his stability the captain of the watch entered the courtyard. He looked up and saw Garrett's upraised hands. "You, come down here now!" Garrett nodded and made to climb down, the bowmen tracking him as he did so, then he stood back up. "How do I know you won't just kill me?" The officer replied without hesitation. "You don't, but you can be sure I will have you shot if you don't come down here NOW!" Garrett smiled and nodded. He bent down again, this time letting the flashbomb slide down his sleeve into his hand. He let it drop. As it fell he squeezed his eyes shut. There was a loud bang and seconds later a plethora of curses and screams as the bowmen concentrating so hard on him were momentarily blinded by the flash. They dropped their bows and staggered around, clutching at their eyes.
As the first few regained their sight they looked back up at the statue. The empty statue.
Garrett raced through the corridors. He came upon a guard who had not yet seen the criminal. "sir! What's happening?" He asked Garrett. Garrett pointed back at the courtyard. "The thief…he…disappeared." He gasped out. "That's preposterous! He couldn't have just vanished!" The guard exclaimed. He moved up to Garrett and started to help him to a chair. "I'm telling you he's gone an-" Garrett slammed an open palm into the surprised man's forehead. He staggered back, his helmet falling from his head. The guard tried to blink away the coloured spots exploding in his vision. Garrett kicked high, smashing his boot into the guard's face. He did a pirouette and slammed into the wall, sliding limply to the ground. Garrett dragged the body into a nearby closet. A minute later he strode out wearing the guards heavy chainmail tunic, tabard, and leggings. He grabbed the man's helmet from the floor and strode off towards the ballroom.
The guests had all been herded into the center of the room and were being watched by a large amount of guards. Garrett walked in a little unsteadily, sweating heavily inside his disguise. The ragged wool tabard made him itch. The man in charge walked up to him as he entered. Garrett threw him a clumsy salute. "What the hell are you saluting me for you taffer? I'm a stand-in fool!" Garrett cursed inwardly and mumbled an apology, pulling his helmet over his face as far as possible. The man eyed him suspiciously. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be searching the house with the others?" "The captain says I'm to come assist in guarding the guests." Garrett said as gruffly as possible. "Why? We have more than enough men." Garrett began to sweat more as he felt the man's gaze on him. "He..uh..he want's me to guard the…uh…guests and…uh question some of them since they might know something about the intruder." Garrett said. He felt stupid even as he said it but decided to see if he could bluff his way through. "Why would they know anything about the thief?" the man questioned. "They might be a contact of his o-." The man cut him off. "They wouldn't know anything about him, listen your story doesn't check out I-" One of the guests spoke up, it was Galen. "Excuse me sir, but I must retrieve an item from my carriage, all this excitement has got me in quite a tizzy." "Madam I'm terribly sorry but my orders are that no one is to leave the ballroom alone until we are cleared to let you go." The guard replied. "Then why not send your friend there, I'm sure you wouldn't want a friend of your master going without." "Well I..uh…" The guard stammered. "Because men like Richard tend to listen to the needs of their friends. And if I were to need to get my things I'm sure he would allow me to. Or were I to need him to fire a certain guard he would listen without question, being my friend and such." The man gulped. "I have…uh…reconsidered the issue and I see no problem with sending you to your carriage, after all you will be with a guardsman." Galen smiled. "Wonderful, then I will take your man there and be off, don't worry sir, I will be back shortly." "Ahem…yes of course." He whispered to Garrett as he started to walk off. "I'll deal with you later." He strode out into the entrance hall with Galen beside him. She remained silent, her face an impassive mask.
They passed out into the warm night air of the front yard. Guards patrolled amongst the carriages, their drivers sitting quietly at their spots. Garrett led Galen on, avoiding most of the guards as inconspicuously as possible. They came to their carriage. The driver looked down from his seat at them. Garrett stepped up to him. "We need you to take us out of here as quietly and quickly as possible. Can you do that?" The man looked at him. "Sorry pal, but I value my life." Garrett reached into his tunic and pulled out the old woman's purse he lifted at the start of the party. He dropped the purse into the man's hand. "The driver looked at the purse and smiled. "But I value gold as well…get inside." Garrett nodded and pulled open the carriage door. Galen stepped inside and Garrett sat up front next to the driver. The carriage began moving down the path to the gates, the driver urging the horses on gently. The guards around the wagons started towards the carriage but Garrett stooped them with an upraised hand to indicate that the man was allowed. They moved back to their posts muttering and staring at the carriage as it moved off into the darkness. The carriage bumped off down the path. They reached the gate in moments. The guards there had been recalled to join in the search. Garrett stepped down and pushed them open. He remounted and the carriage rode out into the street and away. They were free.