He suspected Vosh had something up his sleeve to make it more difficult. And as if on cue, Vosh climbed up the ladder to the trap door and closed it, cutting off all the light to the room and making it impossible to even see your hand in front of your face. There was a loud thump on the ground which Rizzo assumed was Vosh jumping off the ladder.
Rizzo waited a few seconds, trying to give his eyes time to adjust. It was no use though; the room was too dark. He had heard nothing since Vosh jumped down, so he tried to walk toward the ladder. He crept slowly across the ground, doing his best to not trip over anything.
The ladder was only a few feet away and Rizzo made it there quickly. He reached his arms out blindly trying to feel for Vosh. He found the corner of the wall where the ladder was but nothing else.
Rizzo turned around to face the rest of the room. “This is ridiculous!” said Rizzo, growing even more frustrated. “Do you really want to spend all day tiptoeing around here blindly?” A few seconds passed and then out of nowhere a tiny, hard object smacked him directly on the forehead. “Ouch. What the hell was that?” Muffled laughter echoed from the far side of the room.
How the hell did he make it all the way over there without making a sound, he thought to himself.
Rizzo stood there rubbing the spot on his forehead, and then he bent over to grab whatever Vosh had thrown. He felt along the ground until he found what seemed to be a small pebble about the size of his fingertip. How in the world did Vosh hit him in the pitch dark?
“You have to search the room and find me without making a noise,” said Vosh from the darkness, the sound coming from a different direction than where the pebble had just come from. Rizzo did not understand how he was moving so quietly. Once again, Vosh was showing off his thieving skills. “I won’t move until I hear you make a noise, but if you do make a noise, I will throw something at you and then move to a different spot. Sounds fun, huh?”
Rizzo squeezed the pebble, his frustration quickly changing into determination. He wanted to beat Vosh at his own game. He walked blindly in the direction the voice had come from, hands cautiously outstretched. His steps were a little quicker this time, wanting to get this over with.
When he was close to what he guessed was the center of the room, his foot struck something, kicking it across the floor with a metal clacking noise. Rizzo froze, not wanting to even breathe as he listened intently for some sound of movement.
The only thing that greeted him was another thump as he was smacked on the side of his neck by another pebble. His hand reached up to rub the stinging sensation out. He listened for some sound of movement to give him a direction of where to go. The only sound though was his own shallow breathing.
Rizzo stood still and took a few seconds to think. It seemed impossible for Vosh to move so silently. The room was quiet, so it should be easy to hear any movement. Plus, there were plenty of random items on the ground that to hit. Vosh was obviously skilled at this little game, but Rizzo figured the odds were good that eventually, he would catch him if he wandered around long enough.
Rizzo tried repeatedly to stealthily search the room, but it was no use. He kept making some type of noise, which was always followed by a rock hitting him. Not once did Rizzo hear Vosh move, a feat that seemed impossible. He knew Vosh was trying to prove a point and teach him how to move quietly, but no matter how hard he tried, he would never possess the same skills. That was something Vosh was born with.
Rizzo had his own set of skills though. He was a problem solver and believed there was a solution to anything and everything. He tried to think of all that had happened since the beginning.
Every time he made a noise Vosh would hit him with a pebble as a type of punishment. But that also let him know what direction Vosh was. Which did little good seeing that each time he made a noise Vosh would move to another random location.
Just then he got a brilliant idea. He bent down and picked up the most recent rock that Vosh had thrown. He pocketed the rock and continued to walk around until he found the corner of the room with the ladder. He then followed the wall until he got close to what he thought would be the middle of the room.
A few more noises were made while trying to get his bearings, and in return he was hit with more rocks that he continued to collect. Once he made it to the middle of the wall, he tossed one rock towards a corner, making a noise as it skittered across the ground. Then he stretched his arms towards the center of the room, with one hand still touching the wall.
As expected, a second sound came from the direction he had thrown the pebble that sounded similar. Rizzo readied himself, standing with his arms outstretched. He waited a few seconds hoping Vosh would run straight into him, but no luck on the first attempt. Rizzo continued throwing rocks, forcing Vosh to move throughout the room, all the while staying where he was, waiting patiently.
Finally, he got lucky when a sprinting Vosh slammed his head right into Rizzo’s, running right over him and dragging them both to the ground. Rizzo wrapped his arms around the Vosh, holding on to him as he panicked and struggled to break free.
“I got you!” said Rizzo, still dazed from being hit on the head. Vosh fought for a few seconds but eventually gave up, realizing he was caught. When Vosh calmed down, Rizzo released him and they both scrambled to their feet.
“You cheated,” Vosh said angrily as he walked over to the trap door to open it and let the light back in the room.
“You said all I had to do was catch you, and I did,” said Rizzo proudly, grinning from ear to ear.
“You still cheated,” said Vosh, slightly calmer. Vosh was a man of his word though and after opening the trap door, he walked to Rizzo and handed him the bells. “As promised.”
“Thanks,” said Rizzo as he took them. “How were you able to move around the room like that though?” Vosh chuckled.
"You always have to understand everything,” said Vosh. “I scoped out the room the second I came in. Plus, I have plenty of experience moving around in the dark. There’s no secret to it, you just have to practice. Which brings me to the reason I came here." Vosh had a smirk on his face that let Rizzo know he was very excited about something. "The guild has another job for me. And I thought you might be able to help, there’s a little extra coin in it for you." Vosh had been doing small jobs for the Thieves Guild with the hopes of one day being recognized.
"Did you get the job from Sten?" asked Rizzo, knowing that Sten was the main fence Vosh used. The Thieves Guild paid Sten to find capable people for smaller, menial tasks in some of their larger jobs. Most of the time they were creating simple distractions or the occasional task of watching people and studying their habits to find opportunities.
“Of course," said Vosh, his face beaming with joy. "And there’s one more thing. This job will give us our first chance to enter the Noble’s District. That means it pays better and more importantly, it means someone is thinking I can handle harder jobs."
"I think I might sit this one out,” said Rizzo. "Thanks for the offer though." He watched as Vosh's excitement quickly deflated, followed by a puzzled and curious look.
"What did you do?" Vosh asked Rizzo suspiciously.
Normally, he was always more than willing to make a little extra coin by helping with jobs. And he had always been curious as to what the Noble’s District was like.
"I was at Phil's again this morning, and he saw me when I stole some of his food,” said Rizzo, avoiding having to look at Vosh. He knew Vosh would be upset with him for being caught stealing, especially with how much time he spent showing him how to not get caught. And the last thing he wanted was a guard to recognize him if he went back to the Merchant’s District, which you had to pass through to get to the Noble’s District.
A few seconds passed before Vosh spoke. "Well, at least you did not get arrested. Did they manage to get a good look at you?"
"Yes. Phil did not have anyone trying to buy food from him, so I didn’t have a distraction,” said Rizzo, trying to find a
good excuse. He then told Vosh the rest of the story about how he used Tarren to slow down Phil, and about going back to the stand to grab more food. "I managed to get a lot more food than usual. And I got..." Rizzo stopped mid-sentence as he hesitated to tell Vosh about the coin pouch. He knew he could trust Vosh, but years of living on the streets made it an instinct to be cautious.
Vosh raised an eyebrow. "Don't stop now, I can tell the best part is coming up."
"I had a chance to steal a bag of coins behind his stand, so I took it,” said Rizzo nervously. He knew the guards might not care about him stealing the fruit, but the coins were a different story.
"I am guessing you found a bit more than a few coppers,” said Vosh, sounding impressed. “And I'm sure it’s probably enough to last you a week or two. But when an opportunity like this comes around to make some good coin, you should take it. You never know how long it will be until you have another chance."
Rizzo always tried to listen to Vosh's advice. He knew more about how to make a life on the streets. After all, it was thanks to Vosh's advice he was still alive today. He was like an older brother to Rizzo, guiding him through life.
"I don’t want to go back into the city so soon,” Rizzo said. “One of the guards may recognize me.”
"No one’s going to recognize you,” said Vosh. “It’s not like they will be hanging up posters of you around the city. Plus, there’s no way they will remember your face when you look like every other ugly kid running around these streets." Vosh smiled and went straight from being a big brother to being Rizzo's best friend. "Now if someone had seen my handsome face, it would be a totally different story! Who could forget a face like this?" Vosh raised one hand to his chin and looked at the ceiling with a cocky smile. Rizzo bent down and grabbed a grape from one of the piles of food and playfully threw it at Vosh.
In a blur of speed, Vosh grabbed it out of the air and threw it right back, hitting Rizzo directly on the forehead. Juice spattered as it smashed into his face. Vosh just stood there smiling, like nothing happened. Rizzo often forgot just how fast Vosh was, his skills and expertise of Sartram was the reason Rizzo trusted him so much. It calmed his fears about going back into the city.
"At least tell me what the job is first,” said Rizzo, giving up and deciding to help. "Hopefully this time it will be more exciting than being a lookout."
"Your part won’t be much more fun,” said Vosh. “I just need you to be a distraction. Me, on the other hand, I get to pickpocket a key from the person you are distracting." Vosh smiled with pride at having such an important job.
"A key?" asked Rizzo curiously. It was a very odd request for the Thieves Guild. “Why can’t they just pick the lock? Seeing as they are the best thieves in the city.”
“A new shop is opening up in the Noble’s District which supposedly has a locked door that is impossible to break into without a key.” Vosh liked to think that any lock could be picked. “The only part I don’t know is what kind of store it is. I’ve done my best to ask around, but it seems no one knows anything about it. I’m guessing the guild is wanting a way in so they can find out themselves.”
"Sounds like it could be difficult,” said Rizzo with a hint of excitement. He always enjoyed a challenge. “Ok, I’m in. But only on one condition. We have to stay far away from Tarren. That man will squeeze my head until it pops if he gets his hands on me.”
"Fair enough. I can understand if you are scared," said Vosh with a teasing smirk.
"I'm not scared," said Rizzo. "I just pissed off the biggest man in Sartram and I don't feel like trying my luck with him again.” Rizzo suddenly got a curious look. “By the way, how are you planning on getting us into the Noble’s District? Don’t you need a pass from the king if you’re not a noble?”
“I already have that taken care of,” replied Vosh. “Sten gave me a pass when I accepted the job. But we need to clean you up or it won’t matter if we have a pass or not. You look like a homeless street urchin.” Vosh sniffed the air around Rizzo. “And you smell like one too.”
“I don’t know about you, but I don’t have any clothes nice enough for the Noble’s District. And I can’t afford to just go out and buy some nobleman’s outfit,” said Rizzo. He could tell by Vosh’s reaction he had something up his sleeve.
“Don’t worry about that,” said Vosh mysteriously. “We just need to make a stop along the way. Oh, and you may have to work a little. Like I always tell you…”
“Ya, I know. Nothing in life is free,” said Rizzo, cutting Vosh off.
Chapter two
It was almost mid-day by the time Rizzo and Vosh made it to one of the wealthier parts of the town square. Rizzo looked around, thinking about how much different the Slums were compared to the Merchant’s District. He could only imagine how the Noble’s District must be.
The more he thought about it, the more nervous he got, wondering if he was in over his head. His past interactions with nobles were limited, having only seen a few in passing. And he had no clue how he was supposed to act. He feared that the guards would be able to tell instantly that he was not a noble and never allow him to enter, regardless of their pass. Rizzo pushed past his anxiety though, knowing how important this job was to Vosh.
Vosh stopped walking and looked around.
"What are we stopping for?" asked Rizzo, looking around as well. "Is something wrong?"
“There is an inn around here that is always full of drunk nobles. I just need to remember where it's at,” said Vosh, scanning the area. "Ah, there it is."
Vosh pointed down the street to a two-story building with a crowd standing in front. The building was massive, looking large enough to house an entire army. Elaborate arched windows were on both sides of the entrance allowing people passing by to see directly into the common room.
When they got close enough to see inside, they saw the inn was packed. Tables filled the common room and almost every single one was crowded with people sitting at them.
Everyone was staring in the same direction towards a younger woman, singing and playing a harp. She was on a stage set against the right wall of the room, with a good distance between herself and the guest.
Rizzo could tell why everyone’s attention was focused on her. She was by far the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She had long red hair that hung down her left shoulder, covering her fair skin. Gentle eyes squinted as she smiled, her gaze wandering throughout the room as she sang. She looked a little older than Vosh, maybe early twenties.
Eventually, her gaze wandered to Rizzo, looking directly at him. Rizzo was paralyzed, unable to look away. He could feel her staring at him. Heat radiated from his skin as he blushed. His trance was broken as Vosh slapped him hard on the shoulder.
"Well you definitely have good taste,” said Vosh. "But she is way out of both our leagues." Vosh rustled Rizzo's hair in a teasing way. "Don’t let yourself get distracted. Now let's go inside and see if we can get some food and a room for you to clean up in."
"I can't afford to eat at a place like this, and I definitely can’t afford a room,” said Rizzo absentmindedly. His eyes were pulled back to the girl only to find that her attention was focused on the crowded room again. Was the moment their eyes locked only in his mind?
"I keep forgetting you’re new to the city and have never been inside an inn before. Food is fairly cheap, and I will take care of finding us a room." Vosh had a mischievous smile on his face. "Now let's get inside before it fills up completely."
Vosh walked to the door and opened it up. The music the girl was playing poured out into the streets. She had the voice of a goddess. Rizzo struggled to keep his mind focused on the task at hand, but he was astounded at everything. It was all so new to him and nothing like he had seen before.
Serving girls ran about the room with plates of food while people got drunk and laughed with one another. It seemed as if no one here had a care in the world. Places like this did not exist inside the Slums.
Rizzo followed
Vosh to a table in the back, as far away from the girl singing as you could get. There was a staircase next to them that Rizzo assumed led to where the rooms were at. Next to the back part of the staircase was the beginning of a long bar counter that went all the way to the wall on the other side of the inn. A very sweaty, heavyset man scurried back and forth behind the counter pouring drinks. There was a door behind the bar that Rizzo assumed was the kitchen, as people kept coming out carrying trays of food. Vosh signaled one of them to come over.
“Excuse me miss, any chance we could get a couple mugs of ale and two bowls of soup?” asked Vosh with as much charm as he could manage. The girl looked Rizzo up and down, judging him with a look of disgust.
“Soup costs two coppers per bowl and ale is a copper each.” The girl spoke in a demeaning tone as if she was ready to walk away and ignore them. It was obvious she didn’t think they had any coin. Vosh reached into a pocket on the inside of his cloak and pulled out a silver coin and handed it to her.
“We are short on time today, so if you are quick you can keep the change.” Even with how this girl was treating them Vosh kept a pleasant smile on his face as he handed her the coin. Seeing the coin made the girl change her expression.
“Right away sir,” said the girl. “My name is Melanie by the way. Let me know if there is anything else you need.” She scurried off and disappeared into the kitchen.
“The only thing people understand in this city is coin,” said Vosh after she had left. The smile was replaced with a serious look. “But, I guess I can relate to that.” Rizzo stood there staring at him with a dumbfounded expression.
“You just gave her a silver coin,” said Rizzo incredulously. “I know this job can’t be paying that much for you to throw coin away like that. Plus, I just saw a man give someone a handful of silver for a room key. There’s no way we can afford that. And I still don’t see how we are going to get new clothes and cleaned up before tonight.”
“Ahh Rizzo, when are you going to learn to just trust me?” Vosh looked like he was enjoying making Rizzo worry. He knew what Vosh was doing, but knowing didn’t help in the least, he still worried. “Well… I guess it wouldn’t hurt to go ahead and tell you that I don’t plan on paying for a room or for clothes.” Vosh waited a few seconds, enjoying the confused look on Rizzo’s face. “We are going to find someone here who’s about our size and already has a room. Then we are going to break into his room while he is down here and… borrow some clothes and maybe his bath for you.”
The Mage's Path (The Age of Legend Book 1) Page 3
