The City of Brass

Lucia, the shining city. Its brass domes glitter, promising riches. The spires twist towards the heavens, as if they too wanted to be on an adventure. Below the majesty of the sky, it bustles with activity. Information is bought and sold, crimes are commissioned and executed with artistry, people are swindled with but a breath, and a kiss.

It is in this rowdy not-quite underworld that you make your business. As a frequent visitor of the Tower Inn, you can read the comings and goings of people like the tide. You've seen it all, pretty much, but that's not enough for you, is it. That's why you're here. That's why you're working for Silvereye. You live for the thrill of adventure., or, perhaps, the glint of gold coin? There might be an entirely different reason as to why you've chosen the profession of treasure hunter, but the fact of the matter is, you're not the only one.

Recently, you've been approached for a mission. There's a reward greater than any you've seen until now, true, but it's challenging, you've been told. You won't make it on your own, he says. You'll need a team. And what better place to look for a team than the Tower?

Servio was bent double, breathing heavily. By Numitor, Elise was fast. He jumped down from the stack of crates he was standing on and sprawled on a mass of rope. This was, what, the third drink he owed her? His wallet bled at the thought. He was sure he'd have won this time. It was that damn cat's fault. Distracting him at the most inopportune moment...

Once his heart decided that his ribcage was still a better landlord than the cruel outside world, Servio stood. He walked along the pier, breathing in the sea air deeply. It was free and worked wonders for his cold. No reason to pass it up. The smell of fish guts, hard work and the wind came together in a peculiar symphony that appealed to his nose.

Along the way, the workers called out his name in greeting. Evidently he'd been coming this way too often. That wouldn't do. Maybe he'd go past the chimneystacks tomorrow. Or take the main road. Hmm. Servio thought he heard someone say something about money. He shouted back a 'next time I get paid' and quickened his pace.

Soon enough the Tower was in view. Smoke was trailing up from the roof. His stomach growled. The last time he'd eaten one of Asia's meals was two or three days ago. Maybe he could use his puppy face on her. Enough time had probably passed since the last time he tried. Hopefully. Servio strode through the doors.

There wasn't much of a crowd yet. A few people were drinking in the corner. Food-scented smoke hung in the air. Some others were talking by the counter. Alex was there, tuning a lute. He waved at him as he weaved through the tables. His eyes scanned the room for Elise. She was at the counter, talking to Asia. Servio frowned. Her body exuded anticipation. He could tell the woman was just waiting to show up to him.

Servio steeled himself and plopped down next to her, putting his arm around her shoulder. "Hey there, Miss Fleetfoot," he said, grinning.

Elise rolled her eyes. "Hey there, Mister I'll-trip-on-flat-ground."

"That's such a mouthful."

"So are you going to buy me a drink or what?"

"I fully intend to... eventually."

Another hand clapped down on Servio's shoulder.

"That might just be very soon."

He recognized Silvereye's deep, smooth tone immediately. Servio's skin tried to crawl away.

"What a turn of events!" Servio exclaimed, turning around to face his employer. "Do you perchance have a job for me?"

Silvereye grinned. "That I do. Recently, a lampshade thief has been causing trouble down in Artist's Street. I originally had dispatched Merc to take care of it..."

Servio frowned.

"...but he's a slippery one. The reward has gone up. I thought he'd need the backup."

Servio was out the door in a flash, dragging Elise with him. "Come on! We'll show that uptight bastard up real good this time."

“You’re still buying me a drink, by the way!” Elise chuckled as she got on her own two feet. Servio merely groaned at her –- he’s probably short on cash. Doesn’t matter, he just got a job anyway.

“Up for another race?” She nudged her friend, but he sheepishly rejected the idea.

“If it means another drink on me, no thanks. I won’t have enough money by then.”

“You’re no fun at all.”

The two of them continued their way to Artist’s street, all the while trying to pull pranks on one another. Just a few moments ago, Elise stole Servio’s wallet without his knowledge. The only time the lad found out was when she had been juggling it in the air. Least to say, he was annoyed. Unfortunately for him, this only sparked more mischievous thoughts into Elise’s head. She decided though, as she looked at him, that she’d wait a little later when he’s less on guard. It wouldn’t be fun pulling off a prank if the victim knew something was coming.

“So, a lampshade thief huh? That’s pretty weird.” Elise whistled a tune.

“You’re just as weird.”

“Only takes one to know one,” she said, sticking her tongue out at him. “If I were the thief, I’d have stolen whatever looked pretty or valuable. I could sell those things to unknowing merchants.”

“Well, the man’s got a thing for lampshades. We can’t do anything much about that!”

For a while, after Servio said those things that he did, Elise went quiet. Not because of the lampshade thief talk, but because of the scene around her. They had just reached Artist’s street! People left and right visited the stores lined up on both sides of the road. Some had baskets of bread, probably from early morning groceries, others had heavy objects on their back, and a few more were carrying their children to go window shopping. She grew excited and without thinking, grabbed Servio then ran into the crowded street.

“We’re here for a mission, remember?” Servio tried to remind his friend, but she only looked at him for a while and grinned.

“We’re here, we might as well enjoy ourselves even for a bit! I’m sure we can wait before showing up to Merc,” she winked. “Besides, when have you ever turned down doing something fun?”

Without having much more say in the issue, as well as because Elise held on to his wrist, Servio followed her as she went around, looking at the items presented through the window. Elise was fascinated with these things, these were her inspirations for her sketches after all! When she was resting from having an adventure or job, she’d sit somewhere and draw whatever interested her. Maybe later after this thief business, she could draw what most caught her attention. She could show everyone else in the inn what it was that piqued her interest!

After a few more rounds of going around, Elise and Servio noticed a man sitting on some wooden crates outside a shop.

Looks like its show time. I hope I manage the hostility.

After one look at Servio, who had a smug look on his face, Elise sighed. She knows what’s about to happen. Without further thoughts though, she smiled and waved at the familiar figure.

“Hi, Merc! Backup here to save the day.”

That should just about do it.

Merc pulled his hands back gently, trying not to upset the lightly placed mechanism. He had placed the brass sphere very delicately upon the top of the pile of wooden crates, then lumbered back down the pile slowly. Any movement, however light, could set the mechanism off. Merc had placed it specifically here, as he had been scouting out the area for a good while now. All the robberies presumably undertaken by the illusive thief, about twenty, were in a two mile radius, and they all specifically targeted shops with houses attached, something that narrowed down the possible marks quickly. There were four places within the area that had that description, and Merc had scouted out each one. At each, Merc had placed a similar sphere at every inconspicuous entrance, like windows, and in places that they would be undisturbed. This one was placed on the crate mound, directly beneath a window.

There may be some collateral damage, but Merc figured it wouldn't matter if he caught the thief. Apparently the guy had a thing for lampshades- everyone's got a hobby, thought Merc.

Merc had just finished the task, and decided to sit delicately upon a wooden crate that was segregated from the rest of the pile. The dark wood groaned under his weight. Looking up, he caught the light from the midday sun, reflecting off of the brass roofs. Had it really taken that long? Thirty-two minutes, it had taken him. He needed to step up his game.

"Hi, Merc! Backup here to save the day."

Merc twisted his gaze down the street, in the same way an eagle twitches its head for prey. Elise was there waving, and so was the other one, who stood resolutely. Glaring intently, almost pleading, at the sphere to stay dormant, he got up off the crate. He quickly scanned the crowds for anyone that may be around watching, then walked around into an alley, scattered with yet more boxes.

"Be a little quieter-" Merc started as the two came into view, before Servio cut across him in a blaring tone.

"Sorry, what did you say?" A few people looked over in interest at the alley, before dismissing the incident- the three of them were hidden in the alleyway, behind a load of boxes.

Merc winced and Servio smiled, but then advanced quietly alongside Elise. He obviously had no wish for the job to go wrong, which was sensible- Silvereye was not the friendliest of people when annoyed. As they got nearer, Merc sat on his haunches, so he could no longer see over the crates, and the other two did the same.

"What's the plan?" asked Elise, genuinely excited.

"I've been thinking and planning, and I believe this place to be the next target for our artful pilferer. Of course, I could be wrong, so I have trapped the other expected targets. He's a daytime type of thief, the one that tries to show up all the rest." Merc looked around, and then through a crack in the pile of boxes.

"What do you mean by trapped?" Servio obviously saw many flaws with the plan.

Gesturing to the brass sphere on the mound of crates, Merc whispered, "Those spheres are something Alex and I came up with. Like a bomb, but not explosive- they fire a blast of steam, plus... special ingredients. Either way, if our elusive man tries to get in somewhere, we'll nab him when we do our rounds." Apparently, this didn't satisfy Servio's questions, nor Elise's. "Yes, others could set them off, but then we'll just take them to Silvereye too. It'll work, I know it will."

"Right, well, if it doesn't, you can take the blame."

"Guys, I think someone's coming!" Elise had been looking attentively through one of the cracks in the barricade of boxes, and she dropped down to her stomach, whispering. The three of them wriggled, slid, and trundled away quietly, disappearing around a corner in the alleyway.

"What exactly did you see, Elise?" Servio was now speaking in a quick, fervent whisper, while Elise whispered about seeing a shadow from one of the alleyways. "I don't think anyone would be coming down an alleyway that just happens to be next to where we expect a theft!" Servio flicked his wrist and his brass and silver watch (which Merc presumed was stolen) and the little hatch opened on it, displaying a time of just past midday.

"If that's him, we could get him now, surprise him." Servio slid out for a better look, before being pulled back by a meaty hand.

"If that's him. You don't know. We don't know. Wait a little." Merc's whisper was one of warning.

The man was wearing a black coat, but didn't look like the perfect thief. But sure enough, the man stood on the verge of the alleyway, just before it joined Artist's Street. And he didn't move slightly. The three of them waited there, with only once Merc almost giving them away when he shuffled and nudged a crate with a large foot. The noise went unnoticed, however, but not by Servio, who glared at him.

Until at last, after a solid hour of waiting for the man to move, he did.

The man suddenly started moving, taking a quick glance around the crowds, then took a few steps towards the mound of crates beneath the window. He didn't take another step as he noticed Merc's brass sphere, balanced perfectly on the uppermost crate. The man then proceeded to wait again, one hand on the boxes, one foot in the air, ready to climb up. Merc played out the scenarios in his head, if they stayed silent, if they revealed themselves- but alas, Servio had chosen for him. He raised a hand, counting down from five. In the tension, Merc's elbow twitched, hitting a box, which made a tiny, grating sound.

It was enough for the thief. In a fluid motion, he jumped up to reach the sphere and sent it sailing to behind where the three of them hid. In midair, the sphere worked effortlessly, whirring and gyrating. However, once it hit the cobbled alley ground, it dented. Merc knew something bad would happen. He was not disappointed, as the main spray nozzle bent upwards, which sent the steam into the brass casing. The brass casing wasn't thick, and so the sphere exploded, sending orange-brown sheets of torn metal outwards, which were quickly enveloped by the green steam that had also puffed out.

Servio had protected Elise while Merc had turned over, but luckily, the metal had been fortunate enough to miss.

"Bloody brilliant idea there, Merc! Really, congratulations, you've succeeded in almost killing the three of us!" Servio was puncuating every word with a new flail of the hand.

"I'm sorry, but you fail to see you were the ones who had to come, when I made it perfectly obvious to Silvereye that he would have his thief. Let that sink into your amazingly miniscule brain for a second-"

"Oh, f-"

Elise, however, shouted the two of them down. "Seriously, stop. People are going to be informing the guard over this, plus our guy's run off."

Merc sighed. She was right, and Silvereye wouldn't want them back empty-handed.

It was that time again.

The whisper of a footstep sounded somewhere nearby. Alex glanced at his hunting partner, Centra, and she nodded wordlessly. Alex narrowed his eyes, glaring at the spot in the vibrant green bushes from which the rustling had come. His breathing slowed and he began to worry he'd stopped altogether.

"I did hear that, didn't I?" he whispered.

Centra flicked him on the shoulder. That usually meant shut up. She must have heard it too. They weren't deep into the forest, perhaps only half a mile from the closest edge. They barely ever encountered game large enough to make that sort of noise at this depth. They stood, tensed and still, until the silence became thick enough to choke on.

"I've been around you too much," Centra muttered, "I'm going mad."

Alex ignored the taunt. "So you don't think there was anything?"

"No. I ... no." Centra shook her head and turned away.

She began to march up the mossy path that led to the stream most of the game drank from. Alex could feel the moisture on his lips dribble down his chin at the thought of its delicate tinkle as it trickled along the gorge. He fell in line behind Centra, doing his best to attune his senses to the sounds and smells of the forest.

As his thoughts began to wander, he felt his toes clip a tree root and before he could register anything, he was tumbling forwards, his damn pointy nose leading the way. He thumped into the forest floor and groaned. Dull pain stabbed into his abdomen, where a sharp rock threatened to pierce his shirt.

Centra dragged him up and glowered at him.

"If you're not careful you're going to either frighten away all the game in the entire forest," she paused, "Or set off one of my traps."

Alex glanced at the ground, realising with a jolt that there was a steel trap with sinister sharp jaws lying in wait but a yard from where he'd landed.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Don't be sorry," Centra reprimanded, "Just pay attention."

They crept forward slower now. The traps starting to appear was usually a sign that they were getting close to the area of the forest that was most densely inhabited with large game. Alex was not going to lose them their catch, not today. Not again.

Crash!

It had been the same sound of snapping twigs as the first noise, only far louder. Alex gasped and almost toppled off balance again.

"What the fuck was that?" Centra muttered.

Alex shook his head, his eyes wide. He croaked, "If I didn't know you, Centra, I'd say I heard a wobble there."

"Whatever, Alex."

Okay, she really was scared. If 'Whatever' was the best she could come up with, she must have been terrified. If Centra was terrified, then they must have been in danger. They arranged themselves back to back and levelled their weapons. Something big enough to make such a horrific noise must have been able to move fast.

"It could be anywhere by now," Alex whispered.

"I know that," Centra hissed, "Shut up."

Some bushes to Alex's right began to rustle and Alex knew with a tense certainty that whatever had been following them was definitely going to emerge within the next few moments. His heartbeat juddered, unsure of itself and he almost totally forgot to breathe.

A young girl.

The bushes had parted and out stepped the energetic but off-kilter figure of a young girl. And not just any girl.

"Kiara!" Centra bellowed, breaking the code of silence that had ruled their hunting trips.

Kiara stepped forward and waved awkwardly. "Hey, Alex."

She didn't even glance at Centra. Alex could understand; Centra could be more than unnerving when she got angry.

"Hi, Kiara," Alex replied, "What are you doing here?"

Kiara's bottom lip jutted out into a pout. "It's not fair! How come you get to go hunting? Centra never takes me hunting. Elise still refuses to teach me Eskrima. I ... I thought you'd understand."

Alex paced calmly towards her. "Why would you think that, exactly?"

"Because you let me fence. You're the only one that doesn't treat me like a little girl!" Kiara exclaimed.

Alex felt a stab of guilt for having only moments ago thought of her as a 'little girl' emerging from the bushes.

"It's not the same," he insisted, "Fencing is not only physically safe - with all the guards you're practically wrapped in bandages before you even start. It's mentally safe. Do you honestly think you could kill a deer?"

Kiara made to protest but Centra hurried forward and slammed her hand over Kiara's mouth. Alex cast her a questioning glance.

"There was a weird noise," she whispered. Then, after a long pause, "Like a bang or a thump or -"

CRASH.

Kiara-- Spider

When recounting this tale again to everyone she met, Kiara would never mention the fact that she screamed when that.. thing (which she couldn't actually see because of the curtain of leaves and twigs that showered on them) jumped out of the trees where she had been hiding a mere second ago and landed with a soft thump on the ground.

But she did scream. Even Centra's hand couldn't muffle it. Then, to her everlasting shame, the mess settled down to reveal... a metal contraption. A cube the size of her head sat atop a cylindrical tube that rose from the ground, sprayed the same color as the trees and bushes around them, (which was why no one had spotted it so far). The bottom of the cylinder had what resembled two tiny glass eyes. It was probably set there by another hunter... or mayhap it was one of those curious instruments that captured the scenery like a painting. How it landed like that was a mystery.

She huffed in embarrassment, and shook her head, all the guilt she had briefly felt for following them deserted her. What she wanted was for Centra to take her hand away. She wasn't a baby, blast it!

Centra removed her hand only to lightly grip her shoulder instead, and Alex didn't relax his stance either. To her look of confusion, Alex whispered, "It's still moving."

It was. To be exact, it was quivering, like it had a pulse. She had seen bug-like devices used to purify the air (mostly by lotus-junkies who took their drinks behind the Inn) but she could discern no immediate use for the thing that lay sadly two feet away from them. But then, why did it seem familiar...?

"It looks harmless," she said casually, stepping towards it to take a better look. Centra's grip on her tightened and she was pulled back.

"Don't go near it," Centra hissed. She exchanged a glance with Alex, and an unspoken agreement passed between them. Alex cautiously drew closer to the device and prodded it with his short-ish sword. Or was it a long-ish knife? She drew a breath as he prodded it again, a little harder. For a second, nothing happened.

Then eight legs shot out of the top of the machinery. Alex jumped back as the long spindly legs thrashed around like a cockroach on its back, missing him by an inch.

Centra started backing away. "Guys," she said. "As curious as this might seem, I don't think we should interfere with it."

Kiara nodded, then stopped when she realized that it meant she agreed with Centra. It was then that she noticed the glass eyes she had seen earlier were flickering red. That usually was not a good sign. "Let's g-"

What happened next went something like this:

1) The cockroach-machine flipped on it's back in one sudden move.
2) They ran.

There was nothing heroic to be said for that, but something about the fact that they were being chased by a cockroach-like machine with a girraffe-long neck (kind of) and red eyes made her giggle.

She looked back at their chaser. It's closing up on us, she realized. Two parts of the bottom side of the cube-body opened up, but she could not see clearly what came out of it. A sense of forbode washed over her, what if it wanted to kill them? She felt a tug on her hand as Alex growled at her to keep her eyes on the ground. She shook her head, and squashed away the part of her that was trying to remember where she had seen that contraption before.

Centra, who was leading the way, wove through the trees and dived into a line of bushes with expertise. They were in the dense part of the forest now, where the trees were so close together sunlight barely wove through the dark leaves. Centra slowed her pace now, but still walked them deeper into the forest.

"I think that's enough. I doubt it followed us here," Kiara said a while later. Centra stopped and looked around as though waking from a trance. She nodded once, and Kiara felt a small pang of triumph, as though Centra's agreement meant she approved of her.

"We should report this to Silvereye," said Centra.

Alex hesitated then he looked at them both and said, "I'll go back and check if it followed us."

"No. I'll go," Centra countered. "I know the forest more than you do."

They continued arguing for a full minute before Centra consented to Alex leaving. "If I don't come back in an hour-"

"We'll look for you," pipped in Kiara.

He shook his head. "Go to Silvereye. He'll know what to do."

And before they could respond to that, he left. It strangely sounded like some sort of farewell. Kiara pushed unbidden thoughts away and watched Centra sit crosslegged against a tree to catch her breath.

"Well, that was something else," said Kiara, attempting to start a conversation.

Centra glared at her. "You shouldn't be here in the first place." She patted the top of her trousers, looking for her weapon-- then froze. She looked through her boots then looked at Kiara. "Do you have my knife?"

"No.."

She swore and stood up, starting to pace. "I must have dropped it when we started running. It couldn't have been on the trail, I would have felt it, I should have felt it was missing.."

She spun around to face Kiara. "I have to go get the weapon now," she said desperately.

"I'll come with you! Or you can wait-"

"No." Centra spoke the word with vehemence. "I can't wait. It will be too late. Stay here. Don't move from this place. The creature can't come here. Alex is coming back. Tell him what happened. If I come back before him, he doesn't have to know. Understood?"

Kiara bit her lip. "Yes."

Centra smiled and ruffled her hair. "Good."

***

Time snailed by for Kiara. She paced up and down, she attempted to climb the thick oak trees, she practiced a few warm-up excercises to pass time. What seemed like an eternity later, she heard a rustle. Heart thumping in her chest, she stood up. "Alex?" she called, her voice quivering.

Then something came out of the trees. Centra was wrong, she realized: the contraption found her. And this time it was close enough for her to see what was on the underside of the body. Teeth. Rows and rows of sharp teeth.

Kiara screamed.

"Nyeh-nyeh I'm so cunning, look at me with my fancy fucking acid traps," Servio muttered.

Merc glowered at him, but said nothing. How he disliked his mug. Always so superior, always so cool. Even dyed slightly green, he still managed to retain his composure. Servio kicked a barrel. There was a resounding clang and another loud curse.

To their side, Elise sighed. It was a deep, long sigh of resignation, and focused the contenders' attention on her. She appeared to be deep in thought, though her eyes were fiery. Servio was wary of those eyes.

"We could argue, yes," she said, "and we could lose our money. Instead of arguing, I propose we catch him."

"How?" Servio asked. "We've probably lost him by now."

"Not so," Elise replied. "Artist Street is long, tortuous and, at this time of the day, quite crowded. Our guy might be able to blend in with the crowd -- at street level -- but he won't be able to escape so easily."

"And you two are quite good at... unconventional movement." Merc nodded, catching on. "We can spot him from the skies. But what will I do?"

"We split up," Elise said. "We need to be able to cover as much ground as possible... but what then?"

"If we find him, we can force him to the abandoned trade school," Merc suggested. "We all know where it is, we can converge there."

"Sounds like a plan," Servio said. He was more pleased that he would be able to get away from Merc than anything, but if somehow this worked, all the better. "Let's take to the stars, then."

*

Chimney-stacks and brooms wasn't quite what Servio had meant when he said stars, but it would have to do. He moved briskly forward, careful not to trip over mysterious protruding shingles. He scanned the street below for their target. At least, out of all of this, he'd managed to get a good look at him. Short, crazy-eyed and bearded. Fairly easy to spot.

Artist's Street was very long and very narrow. To Servio's right, there were more buildings, which led to the nicer districts and eventually the ocean. That was a different part of the city, and street-bound, it would be difficult for him to get to it. He could see Elise on the opposite rooftop, slinking cat-like between water tanks and ledges, covering what ground he couldn't. Merc was hopefully not being useless.

They moved forward, coordinated. They looked down, carefully, profiling each individual in the crowd. They would find him.

Well, this plan is better than putting up with Merc and Servio’s squabbling.

Elise continued to survey the streets below them. She could see Merc walking amongst the crowd, keeping his eye out for the thief. He had gotten a cap – either he brought that along with him the entire time, or he secretly managed to get one somehow. That didn’t matter though, so long as they weren’t recognized and they catch the man, then they’d be fine. Honestly though, had that flop earlier not happened, they would probably be back at the Tower by now, with her drowning in all the drinks Servio owed her. Whatever the case, they had to focus on the task at hand now.

She jumped and climbed on to a higher ledge – not too high up for her to have longer time going down should she see the culprit, but not too low to be spotted either. It was just the right spot to keep watch.

I wish I brought something along with me to fight against him, should we need to. Servio should have something that would have to do later on. I should always keep my stuff handy from now on. Why’d I leave my weapon in the inn anyway?!

After some time of watching and fighting herself internally, someone caught her eye – the person was checking that alley they were in earlier, as well as looking behind him from time to time. Now why would a decent man do that unless he was being watched?

Elise paid closer attention to him. He was short and bearded… hold on. Wasn’t that what the thief looked like?!

Quietly, Elise signalled Servio to look at the man she was checking, so as to make sure she didn’t mistake his identity. Servio looked down and noticed who it was she was pointing to – without much more signals, Servio nodded and made his way down. Elise followed. Once she was back on the street, she walked her way to Merc, nudging him to where the thief was. When everyone had their eye on the target, they dispersed – Elise to the left, Servio to the right, and Merc at the middle, so that should the thief decide to run away again, someone would be ready for him.

This should be easy now.

Alas, it was not the case. Once Elise was into position, the man noticed that she had kept her eyes on him, so he made a run for it.

“Drat! Servio, throw whatever item you have over here!” Elise screamed, picking up her pace as not to lose the thief all over again. Servio threw a broom he spotted overhead and in one fluid motion, Elise caught it. It was now or never.

And she knew her team wouldn’t take never for an answer. He definitely won’t get away this time.

Merc sighed, before darting alongside Servio and Elise down the street, taking care to avoid anyone in the way. The street was brimming with people, all milling around to get to shops and workplaces. Merc yelled for them to move out the way, Elise lightly shoved bystanders to the side with the long broom, and Servio slid through the block of bodies.

"OI, STOP THAT MAN!" Merc roared repeatedly, to no avail.

They were halfway down the street when the guard appeared. Coming out of a mouth from a side road, there were four of them, each in full leather- bracers, tunic, gloves, breeches- with a cast iron frame over the top, and black cloth in swathes across their torso and legs. One man stood taller than the rest, at the front, with a brass frame and a long, garnet cape that trailed behind him. Although his words were inaudible over the hubbub of the street, his brisk pointing of the hand at the chase, followed by the three other men advancing forward, had a clear enough meaning.

Merc gave an urgent look to Elise, who sped up running, letting Merc's bellowing clear the way forward. Servio, who had just reappeared from a cluster of civilians from the left, added his shout to Merc's, and the crowd parted, exposing the thief running down the centre, now without a shroud of people to hide him.

It was only when the chase left Artist Street and entered the street to the north, The Wideway, that the thief began to slow and stumble. The street, a hotspot for vendors, had a fair few workers pulling carts full of 'fresh' vegetables. Twice the thief jumped over the carts that pulled into his way, a look of incredulity on the vendor's face. When this happened, Merc had to meander around the cart while the others followed the thief in his acrobatics.

The third time, the thief was not so lucky.

The cart was carrying a cage of chickens, all clucking. The thief jumped, but turned in midair, and caught his right shin on the edge of the cage, sending the chickens manic. Servio skidded to a stop, shortly followed by Elise, then Merc, who quickly threw a brass mechanism to Servio. Catching it, which a brief, "Onto his mouth!" from Merc, Servio placed the mask-like mechanism over the panicking thief's mouh and nose. A quick judder, and he stopped panicking, and his eyes lulled shut.

"Merc, take him quickly. We've attracted too much attention." Elise jabbed a thumb at the approaching guard, who barged through the populace in their way. Merc nodded, and scooped up the unconscious thief. The other two split up, Elise to the left, and Servio to the right.

Merc, with the thief over his shoulder, ran straight forward, into an alley. He had memorised the various routes back to the Tower across Lucia, much like the others would have done. Digging something else from his satchel-like bag, he chucked the long brass rod over his shoulder just as he entered the alleyway. Hearing a loud flumph from behind him, he carried on running. Hopefully, the guard would realise the steam jets were hot enough to melt flesh and not follow.

He really, really had to thank Alex when he got back.

Alex's eyes flicked around the forest from tree top to spidery root to dense bush. He exhaled shakily and scanned around him one last time. Not a giant mechanical spider in sight. Alex shuddered. He couldn't see it, true, but that by no means meant it couldn't see him.

Alex swivelled one hundred and eighty degrees to face back in the direction he'd come. He scanned the forest again and, seeing nothing, hunched his shoulders forward and powered along the beaten trail. After a few moments of relative calm, leftover adrenaline from the encounter took hold of him and he accelerated to a sprint.

Without warning, his foot caught on something - probably another root - and he went flying through the air, only to crash heavily to the ground a few elongated seconds later. Immune to pain and embarrassment by now, he twisted around to inspect the offending root and sucked in a gasp at the sight of a long, silver knife, glinting in the few rays of sunlight managing to penetrate the thick canopy above.

Centra's weapon!

"Oh, shit, please no," Alex muttered.

Had he left Centra and Kiara alone with no weapon? With that thing on the loose?

Alex grabbed the knife and shot to his feet. He tore along the path with renewed fervour. He had to reach them before the spider. He would never let Big Spidey touch a single hair on Kiara's naïve little head. If Centra didn't have any weapons, though, he may have no choice. He bent his head forward and ran.

"Alex!"

Alex had no time to register who the shout had come from, other than that it had originated only a few feet in front of him. Before he could even look up, he had barrelled into its source and was lying flat on the ground again.

He craned his head to the side and registered with a groan that it was Centra hauling herself to her feet beside him. Not only was she probably about to tell him off for running with his eyes on the ground, but this meant Kiara was on her own.

"How many times have I warned you, you dolt!" Centra hissed, "Look where you're going when you're running. What if I had been the spider?"

Well, you're not.

Alex willed the words to come out. He urged himself to let them out.

Instead, he mumbled, "We have to get Kiara."

Silently, he handed her the knife. Her eyes dropped to the ground and she thanked him for it in a whisper.

"Come on," Centra murmured, "Let's go find her."

Alex nodded. Keeping his eyes up, he hurtled through the forest a few paces behind Centra. After less than a minute, a piercing shriek tore through the the trees and the bushes. Alex winced and Centra twisted round without stopping. Their eyes locked and they nodded. Without a word, Centra powered forward at a pace Alex could never even hope to match. She was out of sight within moments.

It was a cruel god who designed this plot-- Kiara was unarmed when the spider's dark form came into view.

Knowing very well that she had seconds -a minute at most - before the spider reached her, she jumped to her feet. Her joints protested at the sudden movements. Her hand went to the pendant around her neck. She had a decision to make: fight or flight?

Kiara thought in an instant. She turned back to the tree she had been sleeping against and climbed, summoning every ounce of power she had in her legs. Keeping one eye on the tree and the other on the spider, she continued her trek upwards. Climbing was one of her skills, and right now she needed to be as far away from the spider as possible until she could find something to defend herself with.

She glanced up once more. Almost there. As she was placing her foot around the tree, it went dead, and for a heart-stopping moment she thought she was going to fall. Girl, you’ve faced far worse than this, she fiercely told herself. But for the rest of the trek she kept her arms tightly wounded around the trunk of the tree lest her legs betrayed her again. Fear was a difficult beast to kill. She was convinced that the spider was right behind her every second, but that only cemented her made her resolve to get to the top.

Her left arm met something heavy when she was lifting herself up. It was a large branch; she had reached the top. She found the largest branch within reach, hauled herself onto it and straddled it. She peeked from around the trunk and surveyed the grounds.

The spider in question was trying untangle itself from a rope it had gotten stuck in. Good. Plan worked, she thought. Well, it worked so far, but there’s always room for error. Of course she had prepared for the possibility of the spider coming—the scream had been an instinctual call for Centra and Alex. If they were anywhere near. For now, she was on her own.

From her awkward position, she looked for something she could use to defend herself with. The options didn’t look promising. Just goddamn twigs and goddamn trees and not even any nests because what creature would come here? The spider was now resorting to rip at the layers of vines, and by watching its repeated movements and awkward clinking of steel, she realised it was moaning. Good. It wasn’t very smart, then.

Time get a closer look. When she (reluctantly) got to the part of the tree where its branches overlapped with a similar one next to it, she climbed over and onto the next tree. She continued this way for a surprisingly short time until she was a few trees away from the spider- she dared not get any nearer. She wasn’t sure if it followed their scent, or why it had singled her out and not gone after Alex or Centra. It probably thought she was the weaker one... and it had another think coming. This new angle gave her an idea. A devious idea. Probably stupid too, but her main concern was to stop this thing from following them. Time to take out her weapon.

She pulled out a sharp knife from her boot—a risky place to put it, but it hadn’t cut her yet. Ma was going to blow a fuse or two when she realised her daughter had taken the knife, but that wasn’t important at the moment.

This could either go brilliantly well, or terribly wrong. She crouched on the lowest branch she could find, squatted down, ready to pounce on the spider… when she heard a rustle coming from above, and a figure dropped down onto the branch next to her.

“Centra!”

“Kiara, what the devil were you going to do?”

“Uh.” She shifted awkwardly. Centra was puffing and panting, out of breath. “Look, I remembered something after you left. The teeth at the bottom? Those work with an internal clockwork structure. If I could just wedge my knife into it, we can stop it from shredding us to pieces.”

“By jumping onto its back and possibly getting yourself hacked in half?”
“No! Of course not, can’t you see it’s trapped? When you left, I arranged the vines around just in case it came. I made sure I knew where to climb and which branches to swing away from. I know what I’m doing. When I jump on it, it will be too busy trying to untangle itself to notice. I’ll just stick in the knife. It’s gonna block the ‘work inside and then we can break it apart. ”

A look of enlightenment failed to grace Centra's face. "How do you know that?"

"It’s known-"

"Are you," she interrupted, "going to use your knife for that?"

"Yes, and I have to do it now-"

"I'll do it."

Kiara blinked. Sure, she was somewhat relieved that Centra had followed her but she couldn't let her fight her battle. She had to do this quick, before the spider cut all the vines. "No, I'm doing it."

Centra let out a frustrated groan. "Okay, we'll do it together. I'll jump in front of it, you on top."

"Right. Aim for the teeth, that's where the working mechanism should be."
She counted down from three out loud (slightly aware of Centra's what-do-you-mean,-should? glare) and jumped from the branch and landed on top of the twitching spider. She had no idea if Centra followed or not, just that she had to cut off those tangled legs.

Hacking at them with her knife while holding on to the spider's neck with her left hand, she realised that the sounds she heard earlier were coming from within the machine. Pitiful moans. From the corner of her eye she could see Centra fighting with the free frontal-legs.

"Centra!" she called out.

"I'm a bit busy here!"

"The teeth, try for the teeth!"

Something brushed against her leg. Fuck, fuck fuck. The two legs she had managed to sever were curling around her ankles seeming to lose their extensions. She jumped, she tried to shake them off, but she couldn't for the life of her get them off without turning away from it without leaving herself wide open for attack. That one moment of hesitation was her mistake. The spider tipped over to the side, and in her surprise it managed to shake her off.

This was going bad- and even that was an understatement. She couldn't even get closer to where the opening was- her feet were bound together by the two legs she had cut off with her knife. Her knife- where was her knife?

Centra was similarly shaken off, but she still had her knife. Kiara watched -slightly dazed- as Centra struck at what appeared to be an air slit with her weapon. It left a dent, but that was all.

The spider seemed uninterested in her for now... she looked around for her knife, but it was as good as gone in the carpet of dirt that floored the forest.

And then she saw a brown-cladded flash jump onto the spider's back and wrestle it off Centra. Alex, she realised. Alex! And suddenly she knew what to do.

"Centra, throw me your knife!"

Centra looked bewildered but she flung her knife over. Kiara caught it (along the edge, but that didn't matter now), hacked at the leg-shackle and rolled over to where the machine engaged Alex in an earnest fight. Alex managed to lift the spider up by its legs, and she jumped up, found the dent Centra had made into the metal, and thumped her knife in with as much force as she could muster. Alex saw what she was doing.

"Move," he growled. He effectively slammed the machine on the ground at the side which Kiara had been targeting, then he turned it over again. The remaining two legs protested feebly. Kiara used that opportunity to take his weapon, and she jammed them into the much-wider hole in the side of the machine. This time they both caught on something. She pulled on them but they were wedged tightly inside.

"They're stuck," she said aloud. This observation was followed by a loud clang from the machinery and it stopped moving. The sound of three long, relieved exhales filled the clearing.

"That was bloody awesome," said Kiara. Centra marched to her, grabbed her hand and turned it over. Startled, Kiara realised that she was bleeding, the knife had left a long red line along her palm.

"Gods," breathed Alex. "Is anyone hurt anywhere else?

"No." Centra looked momentarily guilty. But that was replaced by sternness a second later. "If you're going to dive head-first in anything you want to do, you're gonna get hurt."

"But I just saved you two!"

"Alex saved us, not you."

"The spider would have come after you two anyway, you know." She glared at both of them for teaming up against her when she was the one who stopped the spider.

Alex coughed, then said, "Let's take it back to the Tower. Merc might know where it came from. Besides, we need to report this to Silvereye."

"Right," grunted Centra. And the three of them began the long process of carrying the spider towards the Inn. Questions will be raised if they dragged that thing across the market, so a different route had to be followed.

"You'll have to bandage that hand when we get there," Centra remarked. "It won't be pretty."

Kiara glanced down at her cloth-covered hand. It was throbbing now that she had nothing to distract her from it. "Honestly? After that spider, I don't think anything else will scare me."

"You won't be saying that when Asia disinfects it."

She blanched. She had forgotten about that until now. Ma was going to kill her. Alex laughed at the face she made.

"Guys," she said nervously. "It was a pleasure to fight spiders with you."

"Right guys, listen up, got a job for all of you."

Silvereye stood in the cellar, surrounded by the rest of the gang. Elise and Servio were standing close together, Servio resting on a large beer barrel. Alex stood to one side, slightly in the shadows, repeatedly screwing and unscrewing a nut onto a bolt. Merc sat on a sturdy-looking barrel, with Kiara standing next to him. Everyone had already guessed that Silvereye had a job to offer, bit the question was what it was about. Usually, only a couple of them got a shared job. Even more strange was that he'd brought them all in here.

"I've had a little birdy tell me a bit of info about our mystery spider. The one that attacked Kiara, Centra and Alex." Kiara held up a bandaged hand from where she had been cut. Centra looked ruffled.

"Goes by a nickname, The Brass Crown, and he's wanted by the guard for creating illegal devices. Unfortunately for him, he's wanted by us now too. We get answers and a brick of coin, which are two of my favourite things. Apparently he's a factory worker, which would explain how he's able to get all the stuff he needs, though we don't know where. Also, he lives on the Outskirts, so the places to cover are narrowed."

There was a short silence, before Servio cleared his throat, and said, "And...?"

Silvereye held up his hands. "That's it. All we got. Did you get anything else from the spider, Merc?"

Merc stood up from the barrel. Glancing at Alex, who kept his mouth tightly shut, he began to speak. "Alex believes the brass to be silcon tombac, a form of non-corrosive brass, something that has the ability to withstand rust and dissolution. This is a very particular type, because only a handful of factories make it. Including two on the Outskirts." Merc pointed to a factory to the north and one to the east. "I know the evidence is weak, but it may be a start."

"I think weak's an understatement! Who's to say our man works at either of those?" Servio asked. "He might go further into the city. Loads do- and and I don't blame them, the Outskirts aren't all cuddly."

"The Crown would need to take the brass home." Alex offered, then elaborated. "If he's taking back any amount, it would need to be a short distance."

"Not to mention he'd have to get past the guard." Kiara added, before Silvereye spoke up again.

"We'll have two teams- Elise, Servio and Kiara, you'll be observing the factory to the north, Damberton Brassmongers. Look for anything suspicious, take a snoop if you have to. Centra, Merc and Alex, look around the factory to the east, Hamilton & Sons. Do the same. If any of you find something worthy of my attention, tell me straight away."

Silvereye turned away, fiddling with a cask of wine. Everyone left, but Silvereye spoke softly to Merc, gesturing for him to come closer. "I understand if you don't want to go. Won't like it, but I'll understand."

"No. I'm fine."

"Right, well then... off with you."

Merc left, before sighing slightly. To be honest, he hadn't really wanted to go, but a sudden wave of salty humour overtook him. At least I might see Pigeon again. Not that she'd recognise me.

The Tower was empty, apart from the drunkards that were there all the time. The others had already left, it seemed. Silvereye was back behind the bar, and Merc thought of ordering a tonic water, before dismissing the idea and leaving as well. Centra and Alex were waiting outside, Alex playing with the nut and bolt again, and Centra standing silently. When Merc appeared, long cloak flapping behind him- for the weather had become brisk and frozen- Centra asked "Any ideas, genius?"

"Not at the current moment. How about you two?"

Alex, who had placed the tinker toy away, looked towards Centra, who stood resolutely. "I had an idea." Merc cross his arms. "Well, we've got the factory to the east, correct? The factory will be on the coast. The houses over there, I thought they might be a little... expensive, for a factory worker."

"Doesn't necessarily mean anything." said Centra bluntly. Alex folded.

"I say we meet up on the morrow, somewhere on the Outskirts, before first shift." Merc brushed the small spittle of rain off his shoulder, and turned up his collar.

"Sentinel Square...?" Alex proposed, again tinkering with that infernal nut and bolt.

"At four on the clock. Now if you'll excuse me, I need a walk." Merc turned away, and walked down the narrow, cobbled road, the dull sky finally dropping its flourish of rain.

There was Merc now.

Alex lived far closer to Sentinel Square than any of the rest of them so it was no surprise he'd made it there first. Still, he wouldn't have been surprised to find Centra waiting for him with her arms folded and her brow knitted when he'd arrived thirty minutes earlier, at twenty past three. He was surprised that out of the three of them she would in fact be last to arrive, unless she appeared and tore past Merc in the next three seconds.

He was leaning against a tall plinth on which a stone lion lounged with regal elegance. Feeling far less regal and elegant than his leonine companion, Alex yawned and shivered as Merc approached. Merc looked perfectly composed, as he always did. Alex raised a gangly arm to wave to him and greatly envied the smooth, super-cool salute he received in return.

"Morning," Merc greeted.

Alex nodded, then registered what Merc had said. "Wait, what do you mean morning? It's before five-thirty. It's still night-time."

Merc raised a bushy eyebrow. "Five-thirty? I thought you were usually down at the docks by five."

Alex shrugged. "I work nights. So, um, do you know the Outskirts at all?"

Merc had been grinning at Alex's declaration that he was nocturnal but froze almost entirely at the mention of the Outskirts. Alex cast his eyes to the ground. Now he'd really stepped in it. Maybe he should just keep his mouth shut all the time. If there was one thing his father had taught him, it was that he needed to keep his mouth shut.

"Not anymore," Merc replied.

There were a few moments of silence before Merc asked, "Did you read that essay I suggested?"

"The one about the ethics of biomechanical research?" Alex asked. Prompted by a nod from Merc, he continued, "Too opinionated. And not just the writer's opinions. The natural instincts of the reader were clearly being played off. I mean ... wait um, no. I forget."

Merc, who had been staring in the direction of Centra's house, turned to face him. "It's okay. You can go on."

Alex surveyed Merc's features. Every ounce of flesh within him, particularly his stomach, were compelling him to shut up. His brain was on Merc's side. Logically, he could only voice his own opinion and people could either take it or leave it. What if he was wrong, though? What if Merc didn't want to hear it?

Alex drew in a breath.

"Alex!" A loud female call slapped the breath back out.

"Hey, Centra," Alex mumbled.

Centra jogged up to the two of them and nudged Alex. "Lighten up, Buddy. Gods know it'll be long enough before the sun does."

As they began to head East, Merc exclaimed, "Hey, you want to do this in the daylight, be my guest!"

Centra rolled her eyes and nudged Alex again. Alex grunted agreement, with whom he didn't know.



The factory came at them through the fog like the head of an army charging at them. It had three main chimneys, which poked at the sky as if they were trying to barge in on the clouds. The rest of the place was as nondescript as a prison, and perhaps slightly more sinister for the fact that it was not intended to instil fear into the populace.

"On we go then," Merc muttered grimly.

Alex hunched his shoulders and followed close behind. Centra, the morning air starting to wake her up, strolled ahead of them. She could feel her receding figure daring them to catch up with her. They were as miserable as each other and as a drunkard on Monday morning so there wasn't much chance of that happening.

Centra reached the gates that marked the Hamilton and Sons' grounds long before the other two were likely to have even spotted it. She should probably have waited for them, she supposed, as she scaled the gate's bars, swung her legs over and dropped down to the other side. They would be able to guess where she had gone.

The morning was still painfully young so there wouldn't be many workers in. Probably just the managers. These would be the people in charge of personnel so hopefully one of them would be able to identify 'The Brass Crown'. A couple of dozen metres away, the front doors of the factory were sealed tightly shut. They were probably unlocked and she would probably be allowed in if she knocked. Still, they'd been sent there to snoop, hadn't they?

Centra ducked around the side of the building and traipsed through a patch of mossy weeds. Soon, she had located what seemed to be a maintenance entrance, though what happened at a factory other than maintenance Centra was at a loss to imagine. She leaned lightly against it and exhaled unashamedly with relief as it swung quietly open.

Alex and Merc would be able to guess she'd not use the front door as well, of course.

Centra slipped through the single door and shut it lightly but firmly behind her. The corridor she found herself in was furnished minimally with a dark wooden floor and greyish-brown walls that reflected the mundane nature of steelwork, in Centra's opinion. Sconces were scarce along the walls, adding yet more gloom to the early start and the boring building.

Centra sighed. Things had better get interesting real soon.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

The hairs on Kiara’s neck stood up as she turned to face her mother. Gods, she decided to finally talk to her now? She looked over her shoulder at Servio and Elise and shot them a glare. Elise dragged Servio (who hid behind his friend upon seeing Asia) through the Inn’s egress, leaving Kiara alone with her mother.

“Ma, I have somewhere to go.”

“You are not going on a silly mission to hunt down raving monsters with those lunatics.”

“Ma, don't call them lunatics! They're heroes.”

“Do you ever stop to think about my feelings when I came to check on you and found your bed empty?”

No, because you refused to speak to me since I came back! Kiara bit her lip and glanced at cloaked shape that sat snoring in the tiny vestibule. “Let’s talk about this somewhere-“

Her mother interrupted. “With Silvereye.” She turned on her heel and marched back inside to the bar. None of the costumers commented on Asia’s nightgown and fluffy slippers; they were either too drunk or too wise. Asia’s anger was something to behold, but Kiara refused to be coaxed into staying.

As per his night shift, Silvereye sat behind the bar, reading a book which he set down once he saw them coming. He wore an eyepiece fixed on his nose over his good eye, his left eye- Kiara wondered if his silver eye had something wrong.

He caught her staring at him. “Those lens reveal invisible ink,” he said to her.

She almost grinned. “Why would you need ‘em if you have your silver one?” Silvereye knew her the back of his hand.

Her mother gave a small cough. That was deadly. She never did this cough until she was really close to exploding. His good eye traveled to her. “Your mother looks upset,” he whispered loudly.

“Silvereye, you goddamn fool. This is madness. I don’t care what antics you come up with for your little team but leave my daughter out of it.”

Kiara bristled at being talked about like a little bird that was unable to fly. “Ma, I make my own decisions myself, this is what I want-“

“He poisoned your mind with all those thoughts of being a ‘hero’, Kiara,” growled Asia. “I thought you would get over the sneaking out and the fighting with boys. You’re still a child, for gods’ sake. Don't you ever think of how much I worry that one day they will come back and tell me that you're dead?” She turned again to Silvereye, her voice taking a dangerously low tone. “You stay away from her. No more of those hero antics. One more stunt and you’ll wish you were dead.”

Did her mom just threaten the man who scared half of Lucia? Silvereye was silent. Her mentor and her mother seemed to be locked in a blinking contest. After an eternity that was only broken by a snore coming from the front of the inn, Silvereye relaxed. “Well, I’ll certainly stop sending Kiara off if she wants me to.”

Her heart seemed to sink down to her toes at their collective gazes. True, she loved Silvereye to a fault, but she wished he didn't hand it over to her like this. Ma wasn't angry anymore. She looked defeated, tired. Kiara didn’t look at either at them when she answered. “Sure. Fine, I’ll stay, Ma. Forget about being a hero.”

If it were possible, her heart sank further at saying the words aloud. She loved her Ma, surely this was the right thing to do... But if so, why did she feel so miserable? Silvereye seemed almost amused at her decision. Looking at her mother, he brought the little finger of his right hand to his neck and drew an ‘X’ on his skin.

Ma covered her face with her hands. “Gods forgive me.” Her next words were for Kiara. “Next morning I will need help with the rooms. I don’t care who it is.”

Before Kiara had time to register what that meant, her mother went out of the room. Her arrival to her own bedroom was punctuated with a slam of the door. She laughed nervously. “Well then.”

Silvereye peered at her. “She’s scared, you know.”

“Of me?”

“No, don’t be ridiculous, for you. You remind her of herself.”

“I am her daughter,” grumbled Kiara.

“Quite. Now I’ll leave you to your own devices.”

Kiara started. “How am I going to help Ma with work if I’m leaving with Servio and Elise?”

“She didn’t say it had to be you.”

That gave her a pause. “Oh. I see!” She turned away to leave. “Thanks, Silvereye.”

“Kiara.” She stopped. “Be safe. And trust the two you’re with.”

She blushed but nodded firmly. “I know.”

Now for her replacement… how was she going to find that? I should look for Servio and Elise. She might need just a bit more time to find someone, and in the meantime they can start heading to the factory in the north. She crossed the room and went into the small antechamber down which was the entrance. The sleeping figure she had seen there wasn’t there anymore… She opened the door and the cold night stung her face like an old friend.

She took a step outside, skin tingling—when something grabbed her wrist. Her immediate reaction was to grip the attacker’s wrist with her free hand, twist thwm around and pull them towards her; but the attacker yelped in pain. It was a feminine voice, she realized. Her ambusher yanked her hand away and stepped back.

“I mean no harm to you.”

Kiara stared. “I’ll believe that when you stop catching people unawares like that. Who are you? Pull back your hood.”

As her heartbeat slowed down to a normal pulse and her eyes adjusted in the darkness, she could make out the cloak-clad figure before her. The figure pulled back their hood. She realized that it was the same person she and her mom had seen inside in the vestibule, the regular who sometimes came with stories. What was her name again? Mara? Mina?

Kiara’s stance remained guarded. “What do you want?”

“Look, sweetie. I overheard you saying you needed someone to fill your place. I’m up for that.”

“I think you mean you were eavesdropping.” Kiara’s tone was sharp.

“No. It’s eavesdropping when you intend to listen to a private conversation. When it takes place right next to you, it’s called overhearing,” explained the woman throatily. She had a young, heart-shaped face and heavy-lidded eyes. Kiara would often wonder if she was born like that or if it were from drinking so much lotus-sap. "You can use a little help. I've done this kind of work before."

She looked at woman askance. “Why would you help me? What will you get out of this?”

“Oh, nothing. I sleep in the Inn anyway, and I’m good for coin and food. What I want-‘’ Here, the woman stepped closer to Kiara –“is a young girl’s kiss.”

Kiara suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. Well, if she were really this lucky, a kiss would be a small price for such big help, and Kiara was in no position to look for someone else herself. Then again, she had met this woman before, and she asked for the same price for her stories. “What’s your name again?”

“Maggie.”

“Maggie, you're nice, but if you ever catch my wrist like that, I'll break yours,” she said softly.

Maggie's snickered in amusement. "As you wish, darling. Apologies for frightening you."

With that, Kiara rose on the soles of her feet, then pressed a kiss to Maggie’s mouth. She quickly thought of last-second pointers. “Find Ma- uh, Asia- in the morning. She’ll tell you what to do. When you clean the rooms keep the master key with you in case the door closes while you’re inside. I think that’s it. I have to go, bye!”

Without waiting for an answer, she ran jumped down the wooden steps and into the road. Servio and Elise weren't very far away.

Servio brightened upon seeing her. She saw Elise grumble and hand him a coin. “I bet that you’d sneak out,” he explained.

“Thank you for your confidence in me,” she said darkly. She loved feeling like she worked for Silvereye, but really, why did he have to place her with them two? She wanted to be away from them as possible. “I’ll race you to the factory.”

“Oh no you don’t, Blondie,” said Elise. Kiara smiled sweetly at her. Bitch. “Look at what Servio got us.”

The lad in question led them to the back of a building not too far off the road. There was a stall behind the house with three small horses- perfect, as the factory was further north from here than the other factory was east.

“Are they yours?” asked Kiara. “Or did you steal them?”

“Ask me no questions and I’ll tell you no lies, Sweet.”

She snorted. Well, at least now they didn't have to talk while riding the horses. But even with that, it was going to be a long ride.

And she couldn't be happier.

“Well, take your pick of horse, princess. You might as well choose first.” Elise leaned on one of the stall’s columns. Jeez. Silvereye couldn’t have made a worse choice about who to join me and Servio. This chick’s going to be a handful.

“I’m good with any, thanks.” Kiara rolled her eyes, just as she held on to the rein of the brown horse with the black mane. “Now are we going to stand around here, or are we going to go to a factory?”

She sighed. No point of fussing over it now. Elise chose the horse nearest her and settled herself on its back. “Servio, you lead the way.”

He got on his horse and led it beside Elise’s. She could see that he sent her some sort of look. “Take it easy with the kid.” He whispered to her, before galloping away.

Easy for you to say. You’re not the one she constantly pranks.

Without saying anything anymore, Elise took a quick glimpse of Kiara then followed Servio’s route. They went past cobbled streets and some dimly lit areas. The night breeze feels nice. A few large rats here, some wooden crates there, and off they were to the clearing. The stone paths faded away into green lands with plants and flowers about. It was creepy at this time, Elise realized. Luckily there were still some stars out to provide some sort of consolation.

Elise coughed. “So, how did you manage to slip away from Asia?”

Elise kept up with the pace of Kiara, not wishing to leave her behind. It’s not like she didn’t trust the runt, but since she was the youngest member, and since Asia would scold her ear off if something happened to Kiara, she figured she’d keep an extra eye out for her. Just to pass the time, she thought of striking up a conversation. Hopefully, they wouldn’t be at each other’s throat.

“She just let me.”

Tough cookie to crack, ain’t she?

“Oh? No qualms about being with me and Servio?”

“Trouble here and there, but I fixed it.” Kiara said. She slapped the horse’s side and rode faster, trying to keep her distance from Elise.

What the… whatever. She wants to play that way then fine.

Some time passed until they managed to get away from the clearing onto the dry wastelands. Barren it was, with some sand, undeniably dried up soil, and few weeds about.

Yeesh. You think they’d have chosen some more comfortable place.

As they were riding off, closer and closer to the factory, Elise remembered something. She grabbed something from her belt bag and made the horse go faster, in order to catch up with Kiara.

“Hey, princess.” She called out loud enough for both members to hear. Kiara turned her gaze to Elise. She was holding something towards her. “Take it!”

Kiara took whatever it was and looked at it. It was medicine.

“Got it from the apothecary while we were waiting for you. You better use it for that hand of yours.”

“I’m not a kid!”

“Sure you aren’t, but better be safe than sorry later!”

On purpose, Elise went ahead of her and rode near Servio.

“So that’s why you disappeared for a while back there.” He snickered. “Acting like a big sister to her for once, Elise?”

“Oh shut up.”