Out Of The Shadows
Chapter Eleven:
Pretty, Petty Thieves, Part 2
"Now, that Zyntris was just trying to frighten you, dearie," Imoen returned upstairs to find that woman, the one who had spoken up against the ruffians, patting Aerie's hand as words rolled out of her mouth like spider silk… she hadn't gotten into even more trouble, had she? "With Mae'Var spending all his time in the basement, Zyntris has gotten it into his walnut sized brain that he should be in charge."
"He was s-succeeding," the Elf stuttered, shifting on her feet like she really needed to go somewhere and was too polite to say so. "A-at least until…"
"Until your friend decided to make his nose wider," the thief said with a cat like grin, "of course, fights happen here often but it's been a while since I've seen someone so skilled in the art of grievous bodily harm… let alone another female…" she purred, putting her little finger on the corner of her ruby lips as she eyed the druid.
"Er, r-right," Aerie turned to face Jaheira also. "Thank you," she said, bowing her head.
The druid turned away and snorted. "You really must learn to look after yourself, child," Jaheira really had never been good at accepting people's gratitude. Since you couldn't punch them for it, she didn't know what to do with it.
"Oh…" Aerie's eyes lit up suddenly. Her ears stood up as well. "Imoen!" She padded quickly across the floorboards.
"You pleased to see me?" The redhead smiled warmly.
"O-of course I am! Why?"
"Just not a reaction I'm used to… it's usually 'oh Gods, it's her again', and stuff like that… plus, I was only gone a couple of minutes."
"Sorry," Aerie flushed with embarrassment. "I-I was just being silly… I didn't get along with everyone in the circus, b-but at least I knew all of them. The city is much bigger than I thought; so many people. I-I don't know how you do it…"
"Do what?" Imoen looked past Aerie for a second. That thief lady was talking away to Jaheira. Imoen couldn't hear them, but it was clear that whatever the thief was saying it was making the druid rather uncomfortable.
"Talk to all of them."
"Well, Shadow Thieves probably aren't the very best folks to be introduced to on your first day, but trust me; you haven't gotta be afraid of most people," the redhead explained, putting an arm around the Elf. "Most people are okay."
"W-what about Mae'Var?" Aerie whispered.
"He's not okay," Imoen shook her head, trying not to remember the cages and the torture and the knives and the blood still on his hands... "He's someone you should be afraid of."
"I'm still not clear about what kind of 'evidence' w-we're supposed to be looking for."
"Renal just wants a reason to remove Mae'Var from his position, and right now I can't see any reason not to go along with that. Just keep your eyes and ears open for anything that might harm other Shadow Thieves in any way. In the meantime we'd better prove that we're good honourable thieves."
"I-its like a story I read once," Aerie sighed, "a bounty hunter had to go undercover with this gang to get to their leader."
"What happened?"
"Oh, he got them all in the end. A-although, that was some time after they'd realised who he was and beaten him and left him for dead in a burning down barn…"
"Okay, good. Thanks for sharing. I think we'll probably try to avoid the whole being left for dead thing."
"I-I wonder if they have it in the shop…"
As she wondered about that, a new face, grinning broadly, thrust itself between the two of the embracing them both around the shoulders. "So," the Thief purred, "Mae'Var has decided to let you stay. How delightful. Truly there aren't enough sisters in The Shadow Thieves."
"Truly?" Imoen blinked in surprise. She couldn't have heard them, could she?
"I suppose he'll be wanting you to sign that contract thing, yes?"
"Yeah," Imoen remembered Mae'Var mentioning something about that. "But I've never heard of thieves having contracts before…"
"I know, but ever since Mae'Var hired that wizard they've got everyone signing these ridiculous things. It just says Mae'Var is not liable for any activities you might be caught in, and should the unthinkable everything you own passes on to him, including your body. He likes to… experiment, see."
Imoen's spine tingled at the word 'experiment'… Irenicus… Khalid… she had to shake herself. Needed to stay composed and focused. "So, you say Mae'Var spends all his time down there?"
"Lately, yes. I'm sure he's planning something, but he's keeping most of us out of the loop. Last person who tried to pry… well, we shan't be seeing his face round here again. But enough about that dreary stuff; follow me and I'll get you set up, give you the grand tour of our facility then give you your induction."
"Induction?" Imoen didn't much like the sound of that; she imagined being made to walk on coals while dressed as a puffin…
"Nothing to worry about; just a few rules, or guidelines, have to be explained. You are from out of town, yes?"
"Yeah… are you Anishai?"
"Indeed. Assassin extraordinaire and Shadow Thief of good standing. Now come along, all of you," if she glided out of the room, beckoning them to follow.
"She… s-seems friendly," Aerie blinked.
"Yeah," Imoen tilted her head, "very friendly…"
"Hmmm… so, that's the name you go by, is it?" Anishai peered over the parchment Imoen had just handed her. "Miss Creant?"
"Er… i-it's, ah," Imoen rubbed the back of her head, a little ashamed, "a-actually, it's Imoen."
"Im-o-en," Anishai repeated, rolling the name around on her tongue. "How delectable… well, this hardly matters," she dropped the papers on the desk. "Now, the grand tour!" She swept them all out of the room. "On the ground floor is the shop, which you must have come through, yes?"
"Are… a-are the books all… stolen?" Aerie tried to ask as delicately as she could.
"Oh, no; that's all perfectly legal and above board. We have a deal with the temple of Oghma to supply tomes they no longer want or need. They don't inquire about the running of this place too much. Guess they're just happy the books don't get burned; that used to happen, you know."
"P-people used to burn books?" Aerie gasped in abject horror.
"Been one or two rulers in history that have been a bit finicky about the written word."
"That's horrible," the Elf shook her head, like that was the very worst crime that could happen in any totalitarian state.
"So, obviously apart from there are a couple of storerooms and recreational areas down here. Now, up here," Anishai led them up the stairs, "are the training rooms."
There was a long room that ran about half the length of the building, with doors with various types of lock propped all along one wall. There were also wooden training dummies with sacks of sawdust at each end of the crossbar that represented arms and dressed up in coats. As the party watched, a young rogue was trying to lift a purse from within one deep pocket; unfortunately, he got too close and touched the dummies body. There was a crackling, his back then his hair shot straight up, and then to rub it in even more the dummy pivoted about bringing him down with a clothesline.
"Important to stay on your toes," Anishai explained. "Of course, thieves should really avoid unnecessary fighting, but for those of you of a more belligerent disposition, we also have a new sparring room," at first glance, the room she led them to now looked quite ordinary, although with weapon racks at one end. Closer examination of the walls and doorframes revealed various runes that glowed slightly to the touch. "You can really go at it in here; swords, spells… nothing can hurt you. I don't understand how such things work, but its magic."
"A-amazing," Aerie was knelt down, poring over the runes. She seemed to have suddenly become far more alive and alert somehow, perhaps now that she had found something that piqued her interest. "It's quantum, I think. This room is isolated from the rest of reality, e-everything in it existing in multiple states at once… you can't die in here because, i-in a sense, everything in here is already both alive and dead," she explained, growing more and more excited, "until we leave, and then we go back to states we were in when we entered… i-it's an amazing piece of magic engineering…"
"Sounds like boring Gnome stuff to me," Imoen gestured uncaringly, although she smiled slightly as Aerie reddened, realising that people were looking at her. "We had a place a bit like it in Candlekeep, though."
Imoen recalled it fondly. She'd never been in there before. Guards trained in there, but she'd never had much interest in battle while growing up. But the day before she left, Gorion insisted she get some practice before hitting the road. She was with a few others, while the wizard kept summoning illusionary beast of increasing toughness… it scared the life out of her at first, but that only encouraged her instinct to fight. As she got into the swing of things and realised she couldn't really be hurt (although strictly speaking, according to the rules, she did die about five or six times), she kept asking the wizard for more, until eventually he collapsed from exhaustion, which she counted as a triumphant victory for pig-headedness.
The memory faded as a hand slapped down on her shoulder. She turned her head to see Anishai's sparkling white teeth glaring at her. "Fancy a quick match?" The thief purred.
Now, illusionary beasts were one thing, but an assassin…. Even if she couldn't die, Imoen wasn't confident she could win, and she couldn't bear the thought of losing in front of Aerie who looked up to her now. She wasn't comfortable with what she imagined the forfeit might be if she lost either…
"Maybe later," she said, thinking fast of a way to change the subject so that she didn't seem like a wimp in front of Aerie. "You know, this would be a good place to store fruit and vegetables as well… keep 'em fresh."
Anishai pondered this for a second. "I hadn't thought of that," she said, "maybe we could open a restaurant. I'm sure those sailor boys would pay good coin for completely fresh food instead of those stale biscuits they have at sea… perhaps you should suggest it to Mae'Var?"
"I might go and do that right now, actually… er, are we done here?"
"Well, upstairs are the sleeping quarters… I'm sure we'll find have plenty of time to get you settled into a bed. You should also study this," she pulled a pocket sized book out of the pouch on her belt. "Just a few rules and regulations you should follow."
Imoen took the book, opening it to a random page. "'Muggings,'" she read out loud, arching an eyebrow. "'Make sure the items you take value no more than fifty gold, and that the victim signs two copies of the receipt; one for themselves, and one for you…' er, receipt?"
"It's for your own protection, darling, in case you get caught. You see, the law states that the penalty for stealing fifty gold or less is two years in jail. So much as a copper more… you get fitted for a nice new rope necklace."
"Heavy…"
"Gravity does its work, yes."
"Well, I'll be sure to look at this," Imoen said, hastily stuffing the book into her belt and backing towards the door. "I'll probably just look around for a while, if that's okay?"
"Okay… do be sure to pop back if you have any more questions, my dear," Anishai purred, licking her lips. "I shall be delighted to answer them," Imoen quickened her pace.
Aerie stood up and started padding after the redhead. She'd only taken one pace, when she had to look around, her eyes widening fearfully as she saw whose hand it was clamped on her shoulder.
"Not you," Jaheira said, her green eyes narrowing menacingly. "You need a few lessons, and now is as good a time as any to start."
Aerie gulped and shivered. Unfortunately, Imoen had already gone again. She would have to face this on her own. She couldn't run; she was no coward. Although she feared trying her best might not be nearly good enough this time…
Imoen was alone for the first time since escaping. Well, there were some other thieves about but after Zyntris the others were avoiding her. Upstairs was exactly what Anishai had said; sleeping quarters, with rows of beds lined against the walls like the Monk's dorms in Candlekeep. There were a few separate bedrooms, and one door she found to be sealed magically. The enchantment was too powerful for her to break right now, so she just made a mental note of it and moved on. It was too soon to bring too much attention to herself.
She'd already learnt that Mae'Var didn't trust most of the thieves here; imagine that. She had to find who he did trust or, failing that, make it into his little circle herself. That meant not only playing along, but appearing to play extremely well. Although she was concerned about what kind of tasks a man like Mae'Var might require for her to prove herself, there was no point in speculating about it. She would just have to wait and see, and then think of something.
Since she was alone, she could gather her thoughts. As usual, it seemed that life was rushing by like a river, and she was caught up in the current. She sighed; was it always going to be like this? Aerie had said that unlike fate, which preordained and completely unavoidable, a person could have some control over their destiny. It had never felt like that to Imoen, not since fleeing her home. Jaheira might as well have kept her on a leash. Not that she thought the druid didn't have her best interests at heart, but… no one else could die while she stood by powerless. She had to start being in control.
Renal had said he would let her have this guild. She didn't know what to make of him… people were scared of him, and she doubted he'd gotten so far up in The Shadow Thieves die to his good looks and charm… although he did have a certain charisma, she had to admit. It wasn't just fear that made people follow him… they respected him as well. Brus clearly did, anyway. She felt he would probably keep his word.
Although she didn't know the first thing about running a guild… but maybe this was a chance for her to really begin a life of her own. She wouldn't be needing any assassins, she knew that, although she was sure Anishai had other talents that would be useful if she choose to stay. There were a lot of people down on their luck in a city like this, lost boys like Brus, homeless, destitute… maybe she could use it to help some of them; not just give them bread and water like the priests of Ilmater, but teach them proper skills. Maybe it could become a sort of agency that just did good things for people, and maybe a little petty larceny as well, just to keep Renal satisfied. Come to think of it, this could be lots of fun. Imoen the Guildmistress… she could get a sign and a cart, and maybe a name like Bloodscalp, only less gory. Like Pink Panther or something… or maybe she'd just stick with Imoen Winthrop… and she was sure Aerie would love helping out in the bookshop…
Had she left Aerie with the others again? Ah, well, no matter. The Elf couldn't just depend on Imoen all the time. It was important she make other friends…
Aerie tried to push back against Jaheira's sword with her own, wincing as her muscles strained from the effort. It just encouraged the druid to push harder, sending the smaller Elf sprawling backwards across the floor.
"Fool!" Jaheira snapped. "Do you really think you can match me in terms of strength? Learn to avoid or deflect my blows."
"Y-yes ma'am," the blonde whimpered, rising a little unsteadily to her feet and assuming a fighting stance again, which had been the first thing Jaheira had corrected her on. "I-I will try," she was still panting from the last round. The druid shook her head dispassionately and attacked.
Having seen Jaheira fighting before, Aerie hadn't entertained any notion that she had a chance of actually winning here. She focused on proving herself by putting up a good fight… however, that proved equally unrealistic. Nothing seemed to hurt or slow down Jaheira at all; she felt like she was fighting something made of solid iron. Every blow, even the ones Aerie successfully blocked, sent shockwaves all through the Elf, and it was much the same result every time she tried to strike back, she was just bounced away again.
It seemed utterly hopeless, and this round ended exactly the same as all the previous ones, none of which had lasted more than fifteen seconds, with Aerie sprawled on her back trying to catch her breath. Each time she had been a bit slower in getting back up; this time she wasn't sure she had any energy left. She tried to lift her arm, but it just flopped down again, the sword feeling like a great leaden weight.
"Poor, poor thing," Anishai cooed over the supine blonde, "I think she's all pooped out."
"Pitiful," Jaheira scoffed scornfully, but otherwise still completely composed. Not even a hair out of place, Aerie saw as she managed to roll on to her side, away from the thief. "How does someone so weak expect to survive here?"
Aerie gritted her teeth; there wasn't a single part of her body that didn't ache, but she knew she had to get up. It was slow, her legs wobbled and her knees banged together, and she was sure she'd fall down again as soon as someone breathed on her, but she made it, eventually.
"I… I-I'm not weak," she panted, trying her best to resume her stance. She was sure she saw Jaheira smile for a second, but the druid quickly snapped back to her stern gaze… was she enjoying hurting her like this? If she could just get one good hit on her, that would be enough of a moral victory…
"There's no faulting her bravery, is there?" Anishai shrugged helplessly.
"No," Jaheira nodded solemnly, "her courage has never been in question, at least not by me. Her common sense, on the other hand…" she sighed. "That is enough for today, child," she replaced her sword on the rack, "I think we shall have to start again with the basics, next time."
"N-next time?" Aerie gasped for breath. She couldn't say she wasn't a little relieved; she enjoyed the rush of combat, but not, she found, when it was completely one sided like this. She hoped next time was a long way off. She slumped to her knees, feeling rather ashamed for some reason, and humiliated, and she stayed like that until Minsc's shadow fell over her.
"Little Aerie will make a great hero!" He roared triumphantly, offering his hand. She took it, but… she was a little confused. "Rarely have we seen such courage from one so young, isn't that right, Boo?"
"Well… I-I think I'm probably older than Boo," she muttered and squinted, trying to work what he was talking about.
"A most impressive display," Yoshimo smiled warmly, patting her on the back. "Perhaps I can give you a few pointers for next time, hmm?"
"Erm… okay," now she was just becoming even more confused.
"The way you just kept getting back and letting her hit you!" Aerie gasped as Anishai suddenly flung herself around her. "It was exhilarating, my dear, absolutely exhilarating. Bit heart rending, too…"
"C-can't…. can't breathe…"
"Oh… I am sorry!" The thief said with a sheepish grin, loosening her grip. "Actually, I have a few minor tasks to attend to. I'm sure you can all get settled in your own." She winked and danced off.
Imoen had returned, Aerie noticed as Anishai skirted round the redhead. She wasn't sure how long the redhead had been standing in the doorway, but she greeted the Elf with a nod and a lopsided grin. The others started to head up the stairs as well.
"You okay?" Imoen asked. "You look kinda… confused."
"I don't understand," the blonde shook her head. "T-they're all treating me almost like I won. That was… far from the case…"
"Well, ya came second," Imoen giggled, slapping Aerie gently on the arm. "That's pretty good for your first time against Jaheira."
"Er… right," that really hadn't helped make any more sense of it. "D-did you look around?"
"Yeah… wasn't much to see, to be honest. But there's a great view from up on the roof; wanna look?"
The view was… spectacular, Aerie thought. She could see all the docks below her, the ships with their white sails and little flags fluttering in the wind, the sun setting and melting into the ocean, it's golden light spreading around everyone and everything like a halo. She looked down into the street below, her feet dangling over the edge as she smiled contentedly… it was almost like being home, again.
"I used to fly up to the highest peaks in Faenya Dail, just to watch the sun set," the Elf sighed dreamily.
"Faenya Dail?" Imoen asked, next to her.
"T-the city I came from, originally. High up in the mountains… i-its not such a big city as this, though. But it was home… I-I always felt safe, there."
"In Candlekeep, I would climb to the tops of the towers sometimes," Imoen appeared to be joining in Aerie's romanticizing of the past. "From there you could see miles across the ocean, little ships way off in the distance, sailing an ocean of gold. 'Course," the redhead sniffed, "old Ulraunt didn't have time for what he called romantic nonsense. He would find me and say it's all pointless; just balls of gas and light reflecting and refracting and stuff like that."
"I-I know that," Aerie shook her head, "my father was… h-he is," she corrected herself, "w-what you would call a scientist, I think; someone who studies the natural world and understand how it works. I-I think that just makes it even more amazing; t-the whole universe is governed by laws, a-and if you understand them well enough, you can do almost anything."
"Like what?"
"L-like," Aerie thought a moment and then, faintly visible in the sky, she saw the answer and pointed at it. "Fly to the moon!"
"The moon, huh?" Imoen arched an eyebrow, doubtful. "Is that possible?"
"Well, a-air gets thinner the higher up you go, so y-you would probably have to figure out some way to breathe, but… why not?"
"You ever try it?"
"Well, a-again the air gets so thin it doesn't even support an Avariel's wings… so y-you couldn't fly in the traditional sense. But, U-Uncle Quayle showed me a gnomish invention once called a gong that used an explosive force to propel bullets… m-maybe something a bit like that would work…"
"You've actually thought about this, ain't ya?"
Aerie flushed slightly, and allowed herself to deflate a little. "I…found my chores in the circus very boring, sometimes. Although, w-when they kept me a cage, the things I would think about… see, m-my brain never went to sleep completely even then, s-so I would think about onions."
"Onions?"
Aerie nodded. "See, they would peel onions close to me sometimes, so I wondered, w-who decides how many layers of skin each onion has… I-I spent two years worrying about that…"
"Okay…"
"I just had to pass the time, somehow," the Elf shrugged.
"Maybe there's an Onion Fairy?"
"Yes… I-I thought about that. Even pretended I was asleep to catch of one… but I never did," Aerie sighed wistfully. "W-what about you?"
"I've never tried to catch an Onion Fairy, no."
"No," the Elf giggled, "but, d-didn't you think some strange things when you were younger?"
"I used to think I could learn how to fly… jumping off the steps in front of the library. I managed to stay in the air for three whole seconds, once. I thought if I concentrated hard enough, I could get it up to four, but Gorion stopped me from doing it again."
Aerie tried to stifle her laugh. "I-it takes more than just willpower, I'm afraid."
"I know that now, bufflehead," Imoen punched her on the arm, "I was seven at the time, and I'd read this dumb story where you just gotta think happy thoughts."
"Happy thoughts?" Aerie knew that wouldn't work either, but she tried to think of home, of soaring above the mountains, her old friends, her mother's soft white wings closing around her, making her feel safe…
"You okay?" Imoen asked. Aerie must have staring into space again.
"Er… y-yes. Sorry… I was just thinking about my parents. W-what they're doing now," wondering if they remembered her at all, if they were still sad she'd left and never told them where she was going, or just angry she'd flown off where she shouldn't without their permission, again… "Um, sorry," she shook herself. "I-it's a beautiful sunset. Let's enjoy it…"
Aerie heard a very strange sort of gargling sound, like a machine for making coffee Quayle had shown her once, and… Imoen? The redhead saw her looking, swallowed and smiled innocently.
"Wh… what were you doing?" The Elf asked suspiciously.
"Nothing," Imoen shrugged. Aerie was clearly unconvinced. "Well, y'know, we're up here, they're down there… eh?"
"That's digus… oh," the Elf squinted, peering down at the street, "is that?" There was a woman with dark hair, covered in a fur coat trotting along to the tavern down the street. "Tira?"
Aerie looked up and exchanged a look with Imoen. Shrugging helplessly, they both started to gargle.
'Anishai…'
The assassin extraordinaire returned to her private room, finding herself strangely drawn to her dresser and in particular, a red jewel set into a ring. Peering closely, she caught a glimpse of a narrow, slit of an eye peering back through it at her.
"Oh… it's you," she sighed wearily, "what do you want now, dearie?"
'Things have taken an unexpected turn,' there was no voice to be heard; words were being beamed through the ring into her mind, like a lighthouse beam searing through fog. 'A couple of unexpected turns, in fact… but at least the later one can work to my advantage.'
"Really? How interesting," she yawned sarcastically. "Do tell me all about it darling, and don't leave out any detail."
'Kalah has failed. The child of the feather yet lives.'
"Child of the wh… oh, yes; you mentioned something about some prophecy or other… don't know why a clever man like you puts any stock in those things."
'There are ancient powers far beyond your understanding, fool!'
"Yes, you mentioned that once or twice as well. Please go on."
'The girl now with another enemy of mine; a daughter of Bhaal, no less.'
"Well that's just wonderful, dear. I'm sure she'd love to hear all the things you can tell her about her father… what has it got to with me?"
'They are with you, right now.'
"With…?" Anishai's eyes widened in realisation. She let herself fall into her comfy armchair. "You mean… Imoen?"
'The daughter of Bhaal, yes.'
"And so, the child of feather is…"
'Aerie, I believe is her name. Might just be a name those circus freaks gave her, I'm not sure… it hardly matters.'
"That little blonde slip of a girl?" Anishai was trying not to laugh. "She's the one you're so afraid of?"
'I told you…'
"Yes, ancient powers I wouldn't understand… but honestly, she seems harmless. How is she threat to you?"
'You would not understand. It is as when a snowflake falls in a river.'
"And?"
'I knew you wouldn't understand.'
"Right… well, what is it you want done, then?"
'Well that's a difficult one… why would anyone contact an assassin? I want the Avariel dead, fool.'
"And the daughter of Bhaal?"
'No… I have other plans for her.'
"I see. And what will you give for performing this service? I mean, I will be taking quite a big risk, after all, if she's so dangerous even to you."
'You get to live a little longer. I can give you, oh, two years back this time, hmm?'
"Five."
'Fine.'
"You really are afraid, aren't you?"
'What?'
"I said nothing, darling. Although I don't see why you can't just kill her yourself; I'm sure you're powerful enough."
'And what do you think would happen if I showed my true form in Athkatla? I would be hunted for decades.'
"It's just such a shame," Anishai sighed, relaxing back into her chair. "She seemed so… sweet."
'You're not thinking of reneging our deal are you? That would be most unwise.'
"Don't worry, darling… I am a professional. I will do my job regardless of how I personally feel."
'Good. No games this time. Just do it, and do it quickly.'
"Now who's being foolish, dear? I can't just kill anyone here… Mae'Var will ask questions. As will the Bloodscalp, I expect," she slipped back further, drifting to sleep, "I shall have to wait for a good opportunity to present itself. I've never failed to hit my mark."
'Yes, well… these people appear to be innovators when it comes to things like that. I would respect them, somewhat, if I didn't already despise them.'
"How delightful," Anishai said, purring herself to sleep.