《The Thief's Coin》


 Chapter 1

    Thieving. It was fun, profitable, and rarely challenging, according to Alister.


    His wings folded as his scaly body dove into the entrance hole of Lithon¡¯s Jewel: a town of outlaws and corrupt nobles. He landed and walked to the city gate, which was opened for him when he showed his ID. His friend was there waiting for him.


    ¡°Alister!¡± Maya cried. ¡°You¡¯re late.¡±


    Maya was a human. Humans were frowned upon by most mystic beings, as they tried to become like them once upon a time. But even though Alister was a dragon, a type of mystic being, he did not mind most humans. But he would mind them if they were taking his chances at attaining money.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± said the green dragon. ¡°Money and gold called, I could not resist.¡±


    Maya laughed. ¡°You are so greedy¡­ and late. We were supposed to infiltrate Syl Manor thirty minutes ago.¡± Maya¡¯s expression changed to one of annoyance.


    ¡°Oh. Shall we head over there then?¡±


    ¡°Of course not dummy, they would¡¯ve locked the vault by a spell by now,¡± said Maya.


    Alister knew he had failed her. She was the only one who took notice and initiated a friendship. His parents were too busy dodging the authorities of other kingdoms and for which they had been put somewhere away so the city of Lithon would not be known to the kings. As if they could spend the time looking for them, with the war and all.


    In any case, they needed to move on, his little distraction had cost them more than they gained, and he was just about broke.


    ¡°Do you have a plan B,¡± Alister asked.


    ¡°I wish.¡±


    ¡°Conning that griffin over there might help,¡± said Alister.


    The griffin stepped away as if he had overheard them, revealing a sign he had just tacked to a board.


    Now hiring Thieves of great skill.


    Go to the palace and allow the King to examine you.


    This was quite a surprise. What could he be thinking, thought Alister. Is he not busy profiting from the war? Plundering the plunder of small villages, while the nearby kings were too busy keeping the troops in line.


    ¡°Should we apply?¡± asked Maya. ¡°it will likely pay off¡­¡±


    ¡°You know me, of course, I would go. Money once again beckons.¡±


    Before they went to the palace, they found an ally to find food scraps, then went to the sewer where they slept.


    It didn¡¯t smell nice. But Alister had gotten used to it after a year of¡­ homelessness and fifteen years of thievery. He had started when he was two and had grown more and more adept at speaking with a silver tongue and being quick of hand.


    The food scraps they had gotten were actually edible this time. Maya had found a small banquet and stole the food that they threw, which was still perfectly good to eat. Better, probably.


    In any case, it was a nice blessing from above. But why would someone reward a thief? Most in the city of Lithon would, either being corrupt or lazy.


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    When came morn¡¯ they needed to wash up from the sewery the smell emanating from their bodies. Not having any soap, or, water for bathing, they needed to find another way to cover their smell and grime.


    They bought some cheap perfume and some scrubby brushes and made themselves more presentable for the palace.


    Lithon¡¯s palace fell short of even being called one. It was great, but small. About the size of a small mansion. The gate was rusted and needed to be replaced. It was closed at well.


    ¡°What business do you have?¡± called down an elderly griffin.


    ¡°We are here to test our thievery for the king¡¯s benefit,¡± said Alister.


    ¡°One moment,¡± said an elderly man from the guard tower across from the griffin. ¡°Uh. I¡¯m too old for this measly task,¡± he muttered.


    ¡°Oh, shut up, you grump. You always say you''re too old. You are only seventy and still function, so quit your complaining.¡±


    ¡°Well, at least I don¡¯t need hearing aids, Fred!¡±


    ¡°Well, I don''t need dentures,¡± said the griffin.


    The gate raised and as they continued bickering. But that was normal for these gatekeepers.


    Alister was at a loss of where to go next. Not knowing where the test was, he and Maya kept walking and pacing ¡®til a dragon rounded the corner.


    ¡°Hey, you. Come over here,¡± the dragon hollered. ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    ¡°Sir,¡± said Maya. ¡°we are here to test for the king our thievery.¡±


    ¡°Then young lady, you cannot go, as you are a human.¡±


    ¡°Excuse me,¡± said Maya calmly, ¡°but I¡¯ll be going with my friend, to help him.¡± She handed him a small sack of coins. ¡°I think this might help you change your mind.¡±


    The guard carefully took it and counted the amount. During this, Alister had been able to take a few coins and a fake digital watch, as the real ones were outrageous in expense, but a fake one could still sell for a small sum.


    The guard walked them to a door and opened it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make any moves, now,¡± he said.


    The two friends walked into the palace and entered the throne room.


    In a low bow, Alister said ¡°The king has called the thieves of the city. What can you do for his honor?¡±


    The king was not on the throne. princess was second in command, due to her cunning. Her black feathers too soften her sounds of movement. ¡°See this noble?¡± she said. ¡°He has a gem on him. If you can steal it, you will have past the first of three tests.¡±


    ¡°Sounds easy enough,¡± Maya whispered, shaking


    She doesn¡¯t believe that, Alister, in thought, said. What she thinks most of what people think of her is bad¡­


    ¡°Go ¡®round back, I will distract this dude, as you relieve him of his valuables as you relieve an apple of its flesh.¡±


    ¡°May you humble servant use the commode for a minute, your highness?¡± asked Maya.


    The princess waved her off as a guard pointed to a hall. Now was the time to distract this noble dude. In all honesty, he was quite ugly.


    ¡°Hey, you!¡± yelled Alister, disregarding manners. ¡°Come here.¡±


    The ugly noble plodded over and snorted a red flame, contrasting with his black scales. ¡°What is it, peasant?¡± he said gruffly.


    ¡°Oh, I just wanted to congratulate you on your ugliness. It takes years to master. You seem to have been practicing for your whole life. Is that true?¡±


    The noble looked irritated. ¡°Why am I ugly?¡±


    ¡°Then again, you aren¡¯t that ugly. You will likely find a beautiful maiden if you haven''t already,¡± said Alister. He saw Maya behind the ugly dude, waiting. He blinked three times, signaling to Maya.


    ¡°Well, young sir, you are such a peasant. While you say I¡¯m ugly, I hear is rotten with greed. That is why you are¨C¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± asked the young sir.


    ¡°Well,¡± the ugly noble sputtered. ¡°It''s just that I know you stole from me.¡±


    ¡°Ah yes. That was quite some time ago, was it not?¡±


    ¡°Harold, you are dismissed,¡± said the princess. ¡°You have done well here,¡± she then said to Maya and Alister. ¡°You show great potential. If you can go steal the thief¡¯s stone from Stanly, a noble in the city of Phyre. You will have an audience with the king if you succeed.¡±


    ¡°Will the Majesty tell us what the Thief¡¯s Stone is?¡± asked Maya. ¡°It will not involve hurting another. Correct? There are no guard animals?¡±


    Alister looked at Maya and shook his head. She was always cautious about robbing rich homes. Some afforded guard dogs, which the humans had been domesticating for years. Even though some were vicious, Alister knew Maya could not stand to see one hurt or tricked.


    ¡°The Thief¡¯s stone is a lesser artifact of the Thief¡¯s ring. It will allow the king more power. But be careful out there, the war still rages above.

 Chapter 2

    A plan. Alister needed a plan. The princess had graced them with lodging, as how they conquered the test, so he had a few days to make one. He would¡¯ve liked Maya¡¯s help, but she was talking to a noble who had seen her skill. Even though it was belittled by Alister¡¯s. He liked being better than others. He did not shove his skills down other people¡¯s throats.


    The room he had been granted was fairly large. It had tan walls and blue carpet, bookshelves lined one wall whereas windows lined another. A bed, couch, and CRT-TV took up the rest of the space. He had only seen them in bars, where he stole some of the expensive wine for a fence.


    He had wanted to taste it, but he knew he shouldn¡¯t. Yes, he was a thief, but he wouldn¡¯t want to drink, as it might harm his skills.


    The war might give me the upper hand. If I orchestrate this carefully, I could steal more than that. I could get more riches.


    The war had been raging for years. Some of the citizens of Lithon were refugees. They were only a small percentage of the population. Other underground cities cropped up during the war. Alister liked their train of thought in choosing each place. Most had chosen places with abandoned mines.


    But how would I incorporate the war into this? I can¡¯t have him hurt, lest I lose my pay.


    Alister knew he would solve this. He always found solutions. Maya¡¯s help was always appreciated. He didn¡¯t always need it.


    He had teamed up with her three years ago because he saw potential in her. He saw that she was not going to make it another week. She needed help.


    Maya might have some ideas, Alister admitted to himself. She is a refugee.


    Dinner was in an hour. Alister decided to go find another dude to rob. To pass the time.


    ***


    The food was good. Alister and Maya were not allowed at the royal table. But a lesser noble allowed them to eat with her. She was a bad cook. Her food was good, but her feathers got into the food, and she had imperfect kitchen hygiene. But that was the rule of unsanitary cooking that she failed at: Don¡¯t tell or let anyone know. But now he and Maya could make a plan.


    ¡°I was thinking,¡± said Alister. ¡°That we should use this war to our advantage. I was wondering if you had any ideas.¡±


    Maya shuddered. She found it hard to talk about the war. She was affected secondhand. Her and her parents were drafted. But she ran away. And later, she learn the military building was destroyed. She vowed to go underground, to not see any of this again.


    ¡°Well, most all I know is from newspapers.¡± Maya¡¯s voice had a shake that was barely noticeable.


    A moment of silence passed. ¡°Are you going to say more?¡± asked Alister.


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    ¡°Well, this idea just came to mind, but,¡± said Maya. ¡°We could print a false newspaper for that one building. Making them leave.¡±


    The green dragon smiled. ¡°Good idea.¡±


    Making a newspaper was easier than expected. The press was located next to the palace. It was run by nobles, so Alister had to show that he was given explicit permission from the princess that he could have the printers make them. It was going to be free of charge. But this city is a corrupt city, the secretary haggled the price to be two gold. A lesser noble¡¯s day¡¯s wage.


    Seeing he couldn¡¯t win, Alister gave in and paid. He could sense the displeasure radiating from Maya. She probably wanted me to haggle it down, at least.


    The secretary lead them to the printing press and asked for a copy of what they wanted made. It turned up being only a false front page. Maya had a better hand at making, so she would glue it to the front, making Steven Harold (for that was his full name) run.


    Alister and Maya sat by the wall. Minutes ticked by slowly as the printer people gathered the movable type for the printer keyboard and filled the ink.


    Tick¡­ Tock¡­


    Alister¡¯s heart was thumping in his tight chest. Precipice of anxiety closer and closer. Impatients flooded him and his ears throbbed. He felt absent from reality.  His brain was surrounded by sheets of thunder and rain, blotting out all else perceptible.


    He flinched when Maya said something to him. He heard the words, but they made little sense to him. Maya got up and took something from one of the men. It was a sheet of paper, but his brain had no words for it. Just anxiety. He closed his eyes and the rain poured ever more heavily in his brain.


    It did not help much. He tried to get up to walk out with Maya, but it was taking too much willpower. He flinched again. He felt paralyzed. Unable. helpless.


    He hated this part of himself. The part that got extremely anxious for absolutely no reason. He knew that he could only wait out the storm. So he did. He barely processed Maya dragging him out of the building, attracting many strange looks.


    She let him drop, the storm still raging in his mind. She sat beside him, silent. It wasnot time to talk about the mission. He didn¡¯t care at this moment. Only his anxiety was perceptible.


    Something in the back of his brain made him take one deep breath. Another. He kept going until he was calmer.


    ¡°Sorry for that,¡± said Alister. ¡°I thank you for helping me.¡±


    He was thankful. But he felt indebted to Maya for all she had done for him. He told himself that saving her and helping her was enough for a lifetime of helping. But he knew that was not the case. He knew he needed to repay her. But how?


    ¡°It¡¯s hard. Is it not?¡± she asked


    ¡°It is hell. It drains me¡­¡± Alister¡¯s eyes started to water. ¡°It¡­ I can¡¯t explain it. It, well¡­ It¡¯s just intense stress, like¡­ my brain is full of static.¡±


    Maya said nothing. Although it was midday, Alister took a nap.


    ***


    It was early sunset when he finally awoke. A sudden snore assaulted his ears and banished his grogginess. Of course, it was Maya. To repay her help during the panic, he was able to turn or snuff most of the lamps so they would not light and give them away.


    Even in a city of thieves, you had to stay in the shadows. If you didn¡¯t, it was a sign of weakness. Besides, dark places are where some of the best trash is found.


    He nudged Maya till she awoke as well.


    ¡°Rested?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Uh¡­ yeah¡ªI am,¡± Maya replied.


    ¡°We should leave soon. Are you almost ready?¡±


    ¡°I will gather some supplies, ok?¡± said the human. ¡°And don''t call anyone ugly. That was very rude. It shows badly on character.¡±