The trio exited the tavern into the cool night air of Chrimoria. It was dark out at the time, yet there were still plenty of people roaming the streets.


    Mathias rushed to catch up to Holden and Sable, and asked, “So, how are you going to find my sword? Divination magic? Maybe a tracking spell of some kind?”


    “Do you even know how costly that would be?” Sable asked. “The caster would need to have seen your sword first, then cast the spell. Even if there were a diviner who had seen it, a spell that’ll constantly track a specific object would cost you a lot of digmata to cover the materials. I’m talking several gold coins at least. Not to mention diviners are hard to find to begin with. They can easily upcharge you.”


    Mathias gulped. “So, how are we going to find it then?”


    Holden hummed a bit as they walked down the street without answering Mathias’s question. He then blurted out loud enough for the entire block to hear, “Hey, has anyone seen a sword wandering around on its own coming through here.”


    “Oh, yes,” Sable said sarcastically. “That’ll definitely get us some leads. Why don’t we just go wandering around town shouting like a bunch of mad men.” Sable then mumbled. “Real top-notch detective work, idiot.”


    Mathias’s jaw just about dropped to the ground. “What!? Is this your idea of finding my sword? Are you sure you’re really a detective?”


    Sable chuckled. “He’s got a good point there.”


    A man in raggedly clothing raised his hand up in the air. “Hey, I saw a walking sword come through here.”


    The man was disheveled. His eye was twitching, and he looked malnourished. Holden wouldn’t judge a book by its cover, though. Hidden beneath the unsightly appearance of this vagrant were a pair of sharp eyes that likely had seen many things. Holden got the impression that this man had a tragic past befitting his misfortune.


    Holden tossed the man a couple digmata. “Tell me exactly what you say.” He then shoved Mathias forward. “If your information turns out to be helpful, this young man will be glad to throw a little more digmata your way.”


    The disheveled man grinned. “You know exactly how to do business on the streets. Follow me. I’ll show you where I saw it.” He led them down an alley toward an area where it intersected, making a t-shape with another alley. “It was right here that I saw it. There was this sword just floating on by, when this little green creature suddenly tried grabbing it. I think it was a goblin.”


    “A goblin,” Holden said, looking around and noticing a manhole in the middle of the intersecting alley. “So, this goblin took the sword?”


    “Naw, it didn’t. Maybe my sight isn’t what it used to be, but it looked like the goblin was in a tug-of-war against something for the sword. Of course, there wasn’t anything pulling on the other side of that sword, as far as I could see. Of course, I’ve been around long enough to know that doesn’t mean there was nothing there.”


    Sable brushed up against Holden’s leg and sniffed the spot the disheveled man had pointed out. There was a wretched smell in the air that made Sable’s face contort. “It definitely smells like something from the sewers came here. Doesn’t mean this vagrant isn’t either crazy, or just scamming us, though.”


    “Hey, I ain’t crazy,” the disheveled man said while shaking a fist at Sable.


    “You can hear me?” Sable’s ears were flat against his head, showing his nervousness.


    “Of course I can hear you. I’m not deaf. Dumb cat.”


    Holden laughed under his breath.


    “So, you can use magic then?” Sable asked, since only magic users could hear him talk without being aware that he had the capability. “By chance could your magic help us locate the sword?”


    The disheveled man scratched his cheek. “Eh, sorry. Best I can do is make some flames with my magic. Got no fancy tracking spells, or divination. Just offensive magic.”


    “Regardless, thank you for the information,” Holden said.


    The disheveled man then leaned in toward Mathias. “You better come back and give me that digmata I was promised after you find your sword, kid.”


    Mathias put his hands in front of him and took a step back. “I promise. I will. Thank you.”


    The disheveled man then walked off, leaving Holden, Sable, and Mathias in the alley. The three of them huddled together to speak, questioning whether or not they could even believe the story that disheveled man told them.


    Sable was the first to speak up. “So, what’s the consensus? That man was crazy, right?”


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    “Yeah. I don’t think we can trust his word,” Mathias concurred. “There was something off about that guy.”


    Holden wasn’t surprised by Sable and Mathias’s reactions. People often judged the homeless, suspecting them of being deranged. However, Holden knew better than to jump to those sorts of conclusions. He could tell the man was both clear of mind and telling the truth. “I think his story has some merit. It’s worth looking into. But we need someone with an ear to the ground in the criminal underworld. If someone stole your sword, they likely are trying to sell it.”


    Mathias scowled. “That sword could fetch a very high price. It’s not like they could just sell it to a fence.”


    Holden gave Mathias a sideways glance. “We’re talking about the criminal underworld here. For the pricier things, thieves have options other than a fence.”


    “What do you mean?” Mathias asked.


    “Just follow me, kid. And stay close. We’re headed to the south side of town. That country bumpkin look on your face will make you a prime target for pickpockets.”


    ***


    The south side of Chrimoria was where the slums were located. This side of town mainly housed struggling merchants who were barely able to make a living, people in lower paying positions, and some of the more unsavory elements of the city.


    Gangs, vagrants, and street urchins roamed the various roads and alleyways that made up the south side. Fortunately, Holden and the others were able to avoid running into trouble. The place they were headed to was a pawn shop located near the center of the south side called Martin’s Magnificent Marvels.


    A little bell that hung right above the door rang the moment Holden entered. Mathias walked in with him while Sable trailed right behind the two.


    The pawn shop itself was rather small, but contained multiple shelves displaying several items. Some were exquisite glassware, others were magic items, and there were even some leather-bound books, along with various other expensive looking objects.


    A bald, middle-aged man sat behind the cashier’s counter, tapping his finger out of boredom until he saw Holden walk in. This man was Martin, the proprietor of the pawn shop, and he wasn’t too pleased to see Holden “Oh joy. The great detective graces me with his presence,” the man said sarcastically. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”


    Holden looked around the room at all of the items displayed, but didn’t see Mathias’s sword among them. “I’m looking for something. A sword. Pretty exquisite. Just went missing a couple hours again. Anyone turn in anything like that?”


    Martin huffed, then turned his head while closing his eyes so Holden couldn’t see his facial expression. “No. Nothing like that. Even if someone did, do you really think I’d tell you for free?”


    “Of course not. That’s not how things work. This is business. Everything comes at a price.”


    Crack! Everyone turned toward the sound of shattering glass. Sable was standing on the shelf where some of the glassware was and had knocked over one of the pieces when Martin refused to answer Holden’s question.


    “Hey, how did that cat get in here!?” Martin shouted, brimming with anger.


    Sable chuckled. “Oops, did I do that? How clumsy of me.”


    Martin wasn’t a magic user, nor was he aware that Sable was a cait-sith, so Sable just sounded like a regular cat to him.


    “You troublesome alley cat.” Martin walked around the counter and went to grab Sable off of the shelf. However, Sable suddenly disappeared, then reappeared on a different shelf only a few feet away.


    Crack! Sable started walking all over the shelf, knocking multiple items over. Some were delicate enough to break when they hit the ground, others ended up dented, while some just hit the floor without being damaged at all.


    Martin waved his hands around in distress. “No! Some of those items are worth dozens of gold coins! Holden, remove that cat for me, please.”


    Holden put his hands on his hips and smirked. “You’ll be giving me all the information I ask for in exchange, right?”


    “Yes, yes, yes. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. Please just save my shop.”


    Sable yawned while stretching when Holden picked him up off the shelf, and tossed him outside. The cait-sith then started scratching at the door. “Hey, don’t just toss me out like some wild animal. At least treat me with care. Holden! Holden! Holden! Get back here and apologize!”


    Holden ignored Sable’s shouting, and returned to talking to Martin. “So, the sword?”


    Martin sighed. “I heard from a customer who left a few minutes before you about a floating sword in the sewers. You know how thieves like to use them to avoid the guards. Not sure why a sword would be floating, though.”


    “Is it possible some kind of creature was carrying it? Maybe a goblin?”


    “Well, goblins can turn invisible. So can fairies and pixies.”


    Sable was able to hear the conversation despite being outside. His ears perked up the moment Martin mentioned pixies. “I bet you it’s that pixie who freed me from captivity. This case is getting more interesting by the second. Let’s go Holden. We have to find that sword.”


    Mathias raised an eyebrow in confusion. “What’s that cat going on about?”


    “I’ll explain later,” Holden replied. “Anything else you can tell me, Martin?”


    Martin scratched his chin for a moment before an idea came to mind. “There’s a fence I do business with at timers. She sells me any items of value she con’s off of those who don’t know any better. Look for a beastfolk by the name of Scallia. She’s a bird woman that hangs out in the undercity. Find Ike’s Undercroft Pub. She’s usually there most of the time.”


    Holden thanked Martin for his help. He and Mathias left the pawn shop, and met up with Sable outside, who was glaring at Holden.


    Sable’s tail twitched in irritation. “How could you just grab me by the scruff of my collar and toss me outside like that?”


    “Call it revenge for all the snarky comments,” Holden retorted. “That being said, that was a pretty clever rouse. Since when were you able to teleport?”


    Sable held his chin up with pride. “Do you see this blue gem on my forehead? Not only does it signify my identity as a cait-sith, it also signifies that I’m part of the azure bloodline. All cait-sith from this bloodline can cast minor teleport.”


    “If you could teleport all this time, then why’d you need me to save you when we first met?”


    Sable huffed. “It’s not like I could’ve in those circumstances. Cantrips have their limitations after all.”


    Minor teleport was a cantrip, which was the lowest rank of spell. A cantrip required so little magic that a spell caster could theoretically continually cast it without ever running out of mana, the energy used to fuel magic. The cantrip, minor teleportation, allowed the user to teleport up to five feet away, as long as they weren’t restrained by anyone. Even someone simply touching the caster would prevent the spell from working. Of course, Holden wasn’t aware of this limitation.


    Mathias slapped his forehead. “Do you two always banter like this? Can we get back to finding my sword?”