Blade of Memories: Black Shadow #1
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One
LYNN STAYED IN the shadows. Watching.
The guards stood in their usual positions behind the battlements on top of the wall that divided Upper Iridan from the lower half of the city. Regular notches in the parapet wall showed only the upper half of the guards standing on the guarded walkway, but nothing looked out of the ordinary for this time of night.
Still, a heaviness in the air kept her from moving from the rooftop she hid on. She couldn’t afford to be careless when she was so close to being done with this city.
There. She saw the extra guards standing inside one of the covered lookouts not far along the wall. So, they are taking the Black Shadow seriously, she thought with a thrill of pride. Now that she knew where the extra guards were hiding, she would just change her route. There was more than one way into Upper Iridan.
Staying in the shadows, Lynn jumped easily from one rooftop to another, heading closer to the bay and its cliff face overlooking the ocean. The wider gaps between lookouts and fewer guards made it a better place to jump over the wall. Plus, they wouldn’t be expecting it since this section was mostly a straight drop to the ground on the other side, except for one tiny merchant shop’s roof.
The roof she stood on now was in poor repair, held together by hopes and dreams like much of Lower Iridan. A coop of pigeons kept her company while she shook out her arms and prepared to jump. Lynn assessed her balance beads while waiting for the guards to march further along the wall. They were an expensive bit of magic. The crystal beads were almost fully covered in molten rock to hide the magic glow, only the carved sigil and a small section that touched her skin were uncovered, and they were threaded onto a leather cord on her wrist. They increased her agility and speed, and were the only reason she’d be able to make a jump like this.
She adjusted her canvas bag to rest between her shoulder blades and tied it tight. It was light for the moment, but it wouldn’t be for long. Then she ran straight for the wall in front of her.
Lynn’s legs pumped with extra speed, and then she launched off the edge of the roof toward the top lip of the wall. The rush of air forced her eyes into slits, so she almost missed grabbing the rough brick with her hands and skidding onto the walkway itself. It was just wide enough for two men to walk abreast, with the parapet ledges to keep them from falling down to the ground below. With a quick glance to confirm where she was going, Lynn threw herself off the other side and landed on the roof of the shop below her.
A short walk later, she jumped off the end of the roof into a manicured garden complete with a softly glowing crystal fountain. Lynn quickly hid in the nearby bushes to check her balance beads. They were currently glowing half as bright as they had before her jump. Half-gone already, not a good sign. Time to conserve her magic.
The quiet of midnight surrounded her as she ran between trees and bushes arranged for the pleasure of the officials, scholars, and the royalty who lived here. Nothing as nice, or as green, could be found in Lower Iridan. Lynn passed the markets, scholar residences, the college with its giant clock tower, and all the Junior Ministers homes. She paused in the shadows before the magically lit main road that led to the Prince’s enclosure. She couldn’t see any guards making their rounds. The Blue Vollonite lighting made it hard to find shadows to hide in, but with a burst of speed thanks to her balance beads she made it across without drawing any attention. A necessary use of her remaining magic. Seeing Dondor Castle up close again made her want to go back to the castle library, but that wasn’t the job tonight. Besides, staring at a painting to try to make sense of things wouldn’t help her.
Now that she was close, she headed directly to the Minister of Rites’s home. The lights were on, but her sources said that no one aside from a sleepy guard would be inside. Lynn found handholds to climb up the side of the building, and easily pulled herself onto the tiled roof. The tiles were smooth and curved, making it difficult not to slip. She had to make careful footsteps in her soft leather soled boots and knew with every step she was using up a bit more magic. It would be worth it though.
Near the center of the roof were panels of glass alternating with flat wooden planks. Her entry point. The light was off in the room below, but that didn’t mean the sleepy guard wouldn’t be nearby. She would need to be silent.
Lynn pulled the canvas bag off her back and pulled out the tools she needed. Her dagger pried out the fresh tar from the corner of the window until her finger fit underneath. She scratched out a large square into the glass, and then tapped it with the heel of her dagger. The glass snapped out, her single finger providing the leverage she needed to keep it from falling inside, though it was still tricky to grab. Gingerly, she placed it down on the wooden plank beside her.
The opening was just large enough for her to squeeze through, so she left her bag outside and dropped into the dark room. Her feet made almost no sound when she landed.
Lynn’s hood obstructed her vision, so she pulled it off and took a deep breath to calm her excitement. The room was like a long hallway that displayed the Minister’s treasures and prized possessions. Traditional paintings hung on the walls, and busts of important people and sculptures rested on little tables, but Lynn’s eyes were drawn to the glowing pieces. Glowing meant magic. Magic meant money. The Minister’s wife had insisted on bringing their art collection with them from Dukana on their mandatory tour of Iridan, which meant that many of the pieces in this room had never been on this continent before. These pieces would be worth a lot of money.
So far, the information given to her had been accurate. She tried not to think about why or how. It didn’t take her long to find the plaque she was hired to steal; the low glow of magic in the room was enough to find her way by. This artwork in particular was a gold plaque with nine crystal jewels of differing size, and all three colors of magic split evenly among them. She carefully removed it from the stand and didn't touch the crystals spikes on the back since she didn’t feel like feeding any crystals tonight.
To climb back out she had to stand on a table, balancing carefully so as not to knock over the bust that currently lived on it. She slipped the plaque through the hole first, then pulled herself up. She pulled out the small blanket from her canvas bag, and wrapped up the plaque to protect her back from the spikes. Then into her bag it went, the tightness in her shoulders finally relaxing.
This was nice and easy, she thought as she made her way across the roof.
With a careful jump, she landed on the ground behind the home and found herself face-to-face with a guard dog tied to a tree. Dragon Shit! It barked out in alarm and Lynn ran.
The dog hadn't been accounted for and should not have been in the yard, or she should have been told about it. The Minister of Justice seemed to be taking her thieving very seriously.
From the dark front entry of a home to her left came a sudden bout of barking. She couldn’t see the dog but the noise in the otherwise quiet night startled her enough that she slid in an inky black puddle of water, and the straps of her bag slipped off her shoulders. It didn’t slow her down, though, she quickly repositioned the straps across her chest and pulled them tight. She wasn't about to let three hundred crowns worth of artwork break during her flight. But more dogs were barking now, all tied to the front of homes or shops that she passed. Lights inside the homes were flickering on as well. Some oil, some magic. It was going to get harder to stay hidden.
“Over there,” a guard shouted. Lynn spared a quick glance to see how close they were and couldn’t see them yet. More guards shouted in response, alerted to her presence by the dogs. Unfortunately, dark side roads like the one she was on could only take her so far. She’d have to cross more traveled roads, ones with lights on even this late at night, to get to a section of the wall she could climb or jump over. Using more of her magic, she ran through as many lit roads as possible, heading for the wall separating the two halves of Iridan. The salty smell of the ocean blew past her on the breeze. She was getting closer to the cliff.
Upper Iridan, outside of the Prince’s compound and the college, was mostly just widely-spaced fancy homes, towers, and shops. No rooftops close enough to travel along to help her escape faster. She'd have to hope the darkness of the side street would cover her enough. At her next chance, she turned down an unlit side street that would take her closer to the wall.
Cautious not to alert any more dogs to her presence, she jogged slower past the quiet homes and gated gardens, ever closer to the smell of the sea. Claws on cobblestone behind her made her breath catch in her throat. The guards were catching up to her and, apparently, they were letting the dogs loose to help them. Damn dogs seemed to be getting closer too. Lynn’s heart hammered in her chest as she picked up the pace.
The dark looming blackness ahead of her resolved into the wall the separated Upper Iridan from the cliff that ran straight down to the ocean. Her breath became more labored, and sweat dampened her scalp under her hood, but she didn't dare slow down. Not even to check her balance beads, though she was almost certain they were empty of magic by now. She’d be relying on her own skills alone.
The dogs barked again. They sounded close, their growls echoing off the row of shops to her left. Suddenly, a huge dog jumped out from between two shops and lunged at her with its jaws wide and ready to bite. Lynn dodged but still felt its warm fur brush against her arm. The dog, unable to stop, stumbled on the cobblestone. It scrambled to quickly get back on its feet an after her.
"The hells." The damn thing was going to get her if she didn’t move faster.
She pushed her aching legs harder, trying to gain an advantage over the beast. She swore she could feel its breathing right behind her. The scratching of claws on stone. No more barking, just low growls as it pursued her. No doubt focused more on catching her than on barking. She kept her eyes open to her surroundings. More shops meant the wall to Lower Iridan was close, but she wasn’t close to the right section of wall. If she angled back across some lit streets, she'd likely hit that merchant shop she’d used to jump the wall previously.
A quick glance at the next intersection showed that there were guards stationed under the pools of light on the next street over. Likely waiting for the dogs to bark again to direct them. That lovely shop was no longer an option.
The dog let out a howl from right behind her and she nearly tripped again.
"Back off, Beasty, I'm working." And thinking.
She needed a way out and the howl would have all those guards heading her way. Panic threatened to over take the calm ‘job mind’ she prided herself on. Sweat poured off her and she was running out of energy. She had to come up with something quickly.
There were a few more houses on her right, and then she'd be running along the road at the bottom of the wall. Had she been standing still she could have felt the rumble of the waves crashing at the bottom of the cliff.
It would be incredibly risky to jump the wall next to the cliff. Without her magic, the jump onto the wall would be difficult but not impossible. If it was daylight, she might be able to see the ledge on the other side of the wall. In the dark, she might overshoot it and end up falling into the ocean. If the rocks didn’t kill her, there were always the sea serpents to consider. Either way, it would probably be a painful death.
Beasty took a snap at her heels and the shouts of the guards were getting closer. Lynn bit her lip, her only option seemed to be that cliff. That meant it was time for some fancy footwork.
Lynn ran in front of the next home but right in front of it, she hooked her elbow around a thin tree and used it to turn more sharply than she would have been able to otherwise. The force of the turn almost pulling her arm from its shoulder in the process. She heard Beasty stumble when he tried to follow. All she needed was a few moments’ head start. She ran with everything she had left directly at the house, leaping onto a fountain, then the low end of the roof, then straight onto the roof proper. Always heading toward the cliff-wall.
And there was no way she was getting caught. Not now. She leapt off the end of the roof and stretched her arms above her as high as she could reach. Lynn managed to grab the top ledge of the battlement but her face and body still hit the rough stone wall, knocking the breath from her. Beasty circled far beneath her; no longer running, he was barking loudly to alert the guards to where she was. With great strain, she pulled herself over the wall lip and collapsed onto the walkway. More shouting and pounding footsteps. Time to get up.
That absolute black on the other side of the wall that met the glittering swirls of stars was the ocean. It seemed to suck up all the light beyond the wall. However, she could clearly see that the guards were closing in on her from both sides of the walkway. And was that one forming a fist-sized fireball? There was only one way to go.
She took a deep breath and swung off the other edge of the wall, keeping her hands on the ledge. With her feet dangling in the air, forehead pressed against the stone, she tried to see below her. Was she about to let go and land in the water, or was she going to be lucky and land on a small strip of land before the cliff face? Unfortunately, she couldn’t see anything below her. Just black.
Thudding footsteps caused her to look up. The guards were almost to her and the one who had been forming the fireball in his hands threw it at her hands still clutching the edge. She let go just before it hit, still feeling some of the heat when it blasted into the stone wall.
She landed with a thud on solid ground and a sigh of relief. The wall in front of her was the only thing she could see. Or rather, she could feel it more than she could see anything. With careful side steps, hands on the wall, she slid her feet towards lower Iridan. Closer to her temporary home, the docks, and all the cramped, overpopulated living space.
Floating lights ahead caused her to stop. Holding lanterns, the guards were blocking the end of the wall, where lower and upper Iridan met. They started walking towards her. If she tried to go the other way she would have to go all the way around to the other side of upper Iridan. That would take all night. Her heart dropped to her stomach. She had one other option, but it involved climbing down a cliff in the dark.
The light from the lower city was enough to see around her now. Lynn got down on her knees and carefully placed her feet onto the rocks of the cliff below. Minutes stretched out before she began to feel a little comfortable. Even in the dark, she had climbed enough buildings, walls, and cliffs to know what she was supposed to be doing. When the guards and their bright light reached her, she was a full body length down the cliff. She pressed herself as close to the rocks as possible, hoping her canvas bag would look like just another rock sticking out.
The guards moved on. Lynn took another step down only to slip on a wet rock.
Her arms and hands scraped at the rock, trying to find purchase as she fell toward the water. Her left arm found an outcropping of rock large enough to break her fall... and her arm.
The sickening sound of the bone crunching was louder than the waves crashing below her. Lynn couldn’t be sure if she let out a scream or not. She slid down slightly until her feet and other arm found a better grip on the outcropping. She stayed still, breathing through the pain. No guards came back to investigate and the tiny bobbing lights at the top of cliff continued to move away.
Lynn took the time to find out where she was. Below her, waves crashed into the rocks two body-lengths away. But not far off to her side was the gravel shoreline that connected to the Southern Docks.
With only one arm to balance, she carefully picked her way over the rocks and crevices closer to the shoreline. Even her substantial skills as a climber were being tested. She held her broken arm close to her body and kept herself from screaming when she bumped it. Sweat making her hands more slippery than they should be and a consistent stream of mumbled curses kept her focused on her actions.
With a small jump, she landed on the gravel shoreline and walked toward the Blue Vollonite lights of the docks. The magical light was bright enough to make it hard to see into the dark from within it, so she was safe for the moment. She’d heard that the Imperial City in Dukana used Red Vollonite which would let guards see into the dark easily enough that no one was able to approach the city like she was now. Here in Iridan, Red Vollonite was too rare to be wasted on lights.
As Lynn got closer, she saw people moving about the docks. At this hour of the night it would most likely be Dockers and sailors, but they would still notice if someone magically appeared from the cliff face. They might alert the constabulary, or perhaps the guards who stayed in upper Iridan or the outer walls. She'd have to stay on the outside of the light, close to the wall of rock and its shear face up to the upper city. She’d have to pass through the lower markets, which began at the base of the cliff, then make her way to the middle markets on the hill where her employer’s office was.
The lower markets were closed and dark when she arrived, and she was able to slip between the buildings and rest for a moment. Her arm ached but she didn't risk taking out the artwork for light to see how bad it looked. As long as she got to Mr. Darkan soon, he'd have someone to fix it up for her. She was thrilled this was her last job for him. He wanted more and more risk from her. He had been paying her more money, but at some point, she would have to stop before she was captured or killed. Perhaps stopping after the last job would have been better. It had been easy enough, and had gone right to plan.
Voices brought her attention back to her surroundings. They were muffled and far away. The guards wouldn’t have made it all the way down here yet. She had jumped off a cliff while they walked around it. However, the sooner she got away from the water the better.
The shops around her were dark, but there was enough light from the streets further over to see where she was going. Slinking from shop shadow-to-shadow wasn't the best way to get through the neighborhood, but her arm made climbing up to the relative safety of the rooftops impossible.
More voices. Closer this time. She couldn't tell if they were just drunks taking a late-night stroll or guards looking around. She wasn't about to find out. Time to open up a shop. Not her preferred career choice, but it would do in a pinch.
The closest shop was a blacksmith. Since it would have tools and weapons, it was not a good option. It would likely have a good strong lock. However, the lovely little dressmaker store two shops down was a perfect target. Who would possibly want to break into that store? Well, besides her.
Luck was on Lynn’s side, and the door wasn’t locked. Inside the darkness didn’t feel safe enough for her liking. She fumbled a bit before she found a backroom. The darkness inside was absolute. No windows to let in the moonlight. She felt around for something to shove into the bottom crack of the door, then reached into her bag and pulled out the blanket-wrapped artwork. She only needed to unwrap a corner in order to see the room around her clearly. Just three crystals from the gold plaque lit up the room like daylight.
The storeroom she was in had dresses and suits hanging on racks in various stages of completion. However, it was her arm that commanded her attention. A swollen lump protruded from the middle of her arm, and bleeding scratches all over made it look worse then she’d imagined. At least the bone wasn't sticking out. If she was lucky, no infection would have gotten in yet. Magic couldn't do anything for an infection. She found some plain linen and wrapped her arm with it, putting as much pressure as she could stand to bind her arm. With her arm the way it was, a disguise would be very helpful in making her escape.
A very pretty blue fabric caught her eye and, with her good arm, she pulled out the dress from one of the racks. It was a simple Aguara design, a new style corseted top and a full skirt, but over the glossy stiff fabric was the softest lace she’d every felt. Like silk only thicker. It was likely an import, expensive, and too unique to steal without a buyer first. The green one beside it however was almost boring. A standard middle class Aguara dress made of linen with nice flowy sleeves that would hide her bandage. Nothing unique about it, and no corset. It was a shame to leave the blue one, but she'd get away faster in a boring dress. And thankfully, it was a few sizes too big.
With difficulty, she pulled the simple green dress over her male dress shirt, vest, and snug trousers and pulled off her hood. Her hair was braided and pinned to the top of her head, and by removing a few pins, her braid unraveled. She knew her trousers and shirt made her look like a man in the shadows and that was exactly what she wanted the authorities to think.
Lynn’s shirt stuck out the top of the dress and without a bustle or corset it hung off her in the wrong places. She found a dull brown cloak and threw it on. Her bag would stand out with this outfit but if she tied it right, it would make do as a bustle. With a quick look around to memorize her surroundings, she covered up the artwork and put it back into the bag. It was lumpy and didn't tie up nicely under her skirt but it would do in the dark. She opened the door into the main shop area and fumbled her way to the back of the store looking for an exit into the alleyway.
It was hard to feel her way through the store after having light. Before long she found a series of doors, which led to the alleyway. There was nothing back there but a solid wall of rock and the back of the shops all the way to a crossroad.
Lynn wouldn’t have to cross Main street and its blue Vollonite light. Only a few streets in lower Iridan were still lit with oil this late into the night. By the time she saw another person, she had already made it to Middle Market, and it was only a few drunks here and there. Nothing she couldn’t handle, even with her arm the way it was.
She noticed an upper-class carriage stopped in an alley, and found a shadow to hide in. Thankfully, it was just a nobleman, feeding a few of his crystals on the drunk and homeless laying in the alley. That was the price one paid to sleep in the street, a price she knew too well. She continued on slowly so as not to draw attention to herself.
She had to see a man about some artwork. And to let him know she was quitting.
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