Ambitions as a Thief [C]

Spoiler:

Exhaling sharply the red haired woman pushes her bangs from her face, suddenly annoyed with her hair’s placement. Well, she was annoyed with everything right now. She had been having trouble picking up jobs lately, a majority of her regular employers turning her away. She wasn’t aware of the reason for a while which only served to irritate her further. It wasn’t until she left the last potential client’s office that she was informed of the reason; apparently her previous actions had caught up with her. The recent burglaries executed by the Black Fingers came to a hault as the halfling confronted them, leaving a trail of beaten or dead men through one of the city’s side streets. While that could be overlooked, the guards had somehow come to the conclusion that she was possibly involved in the heist considering how she had fled the scene so quickly. The battle had been messy and confusing, but did they really believe that she was involved in a burglary? According to the man she had spoken to, no one really saw who had taken the bandits out and she was too nervous to go to the police on this matter, fearing that she would be arrested.

Sighing again with a more dramatic edge, the halfling continues down the alleyway, feet hitting the dirt heavily in frustration as she walked. ”Well now, what has you so frustrated, young one? Having trouble finding employment?” She tilts her head to the side with a sneer as she is addressed, finding the source of the voice blending into the shadows of the alley. She really was not in the mood to deal with this. ”Listen old man, unless you’re about to offer me a job—“ The hooded man interrupts her with a chuckle, stepping out of the darkness. ”Oh my, what a sharp tongue you have. But if you’d only be patient and listen, you’d see that is exactly what I am here to offer you.” Pausing, the young woman turns fully toward the man much to his delight. He grins a crooked, toothy smile and goes on to explain the details of the job he had to offer.

”You want me to steal.” It was more of a statement than a question, to which the old man meets with another chuckle. ”My dear, don’t think of it as stealing. Simply think of it as…helping the local economy.” Ayero grimaces, still not fond of the idea when she’s already under suspicion for a crime she hadn’t committed. ”I’m not the right person for this job.”

”Oh, come now, it’s not that hard. I’m an old man that can’t move around well; you’re a woman who no one will hire. You’re not going to find another job here, at least not for a while. So what do you say?”

”I can’t believe I agreed to this.” The halfling grumbles to herself as she secures her cloak tightly and throws the hood over her head. This is stealing. Actual stealing that I could actually get in trouble for. On the other hand…the old man did say that this sand was used to make false gold so…that means that whoever has it is probably planning to do the same thing… She tried to rationalize her actions in her head without much success. Luckily, her thoughts are interrupted by the clatter of a horse-drawn cart ambling slowly down the road. She readies herself, pressing her body against the wall of the alley she had hidden in.

[587/1000]

Waiting until the cart had passed, the young woman snuck along the side of the wall out into the road. Still pressed tightly to the wall, she moves as slowly as possible while still keeping up with the wagon. Looking around to ensure that no one else was present on the nearly desert street, she swiftly approaches the back of the cart, eyes trained on the piles of plump bags it was carrying. With quick movements, she’s able to silently gather five bags into her arms. Somewhat relieved, she sneaks back towards the alleyway, suddenly stopping when one of the bags slips out of her arms and onto the ground with a dull thunk, it’s contents scattering along the dirt road. Hearing the noise, the cart stops and the men guarding the cart turn around.

”THIEF!”

Shit

Heaving up the remaining bags in her hands, the halfling draws her weapon at the rapidly approaching men. She hits the first one with two diagonal strikes to the chest, crossing to form an X. The next one approaches her with his spear lifted, but the woman cuts the wooden pole of the weapon in two with her blade before elbowing him in the chest and delivering a sharp blow to the side of his body with her foot for good measure. Wanting nothing more than to get out of here and get paid, she makes another run for the cart only to be intercepted by the three remaining men.

In that moment she figured that she could drop the bags of sand and hightail it out of here, but she’d risk them coming after her. Perhaps, she determined, it would be better to continue this job. After all, the guards didn’t look all that tough. One charges at her with his sword which she easily blocks, jamming her elbow into the point between his forearm and upper arm in order to paralyze it. Shocked, the man’s weapon clatters to the ground and gives him a solid punch in the jaw. She turns to face the other two with their spears pointed towards her defensively. Lowering her body momentarily, she sweep kicks the both of them, returning to a normal stance and delivers three wide slashes across their chests. She flies back to the cart, not interested in sticking around and seeing if anyone was conscious enough to retaliate. Swiping a fifth bag of gold, she takes off down the nearest alley way and doesn’t stop running until she’s sure that she’s far away from them, making sure to take plenty of turns as she does so.

”My that took you long enough. I suppose that’s the price of being clumsy, hmm?” Startled, Ayero jumps and nearly drops the bags in her arms at the old man’s sudden appearance. ”You certainly made quite a mess, but you did complete the job. Well done.” The man chuckles, tossing her a bag of coins which lands at her feet.

[1082/1000]