The Guild of Thieves

*Zanetti*

They called her the Ghost’s Whisper. Her true name was Zanetti, and tonight she was sneaking by the Lijun, the criminal underworld of Ettenberg. They called her the Ghost’s Whisper because that’s what she was to the rest of the world, a whisper on the wind, and like a ghost she was never truly there, the only trace of her presence being a suspicion. Zanetti slipped out of the shadows and into the market of Lijun, wearing a mask of course. Her mask was white on top, with gold and black swirls at the bottom, creating a beautiful pattern. It was a risk to stand out at the Lijun, a risk she took knowing people feared her name, and the mask was a symbol of her name.

People cleared a path for Zanetti, slightly nodding their heads out of respect, or just looking away. It was also a risk to be known by the Ghost’s Whisper. The barkers advertising their products quieted as she walked by, the jingling of bells in shop doors silenced, and the noises coming from cages of animals hushed.

Zanetti slipped into a shop that sold potions, the place she called home. She pulled off her mask to reveal her face to the shopkeeper. Zanetti had an odd face, not beautiful in the sense of the Merchants, who focused on material things and perfection, but beautiful to any thief in the whole of Lijun. She had brown skin, with ink black brows and lashes. She had a thin nose and dark eyes, slightly sunken. On the left side of her face, a large scar marred her pretty features, taking out half her lips and a part of her nose, going up all the way to her eye, but stopping just before. The scar went down to the base of her neck, stopping around her collarbone.

When the Shopkeeper saw her face, he pulled a lever, and a shelf, piled high with odd trinkets, clicked. Zanetti opened the hidden door the rest of the way, walked into the passage it opened, and shut it behind her. There was a lantern hanging by the entrance, and even in the dark Zanetti found it, lighting it with a match and holding it out in front of her. She tied the strings of her mask around her belt, so it hung around her waist and she didn’t have to carry it. The passage itself was made of stones, with intricate symbols carved in each of them. The symbols were to help new members find their way. Zanetti knew the way by heart, not even needing a lantern to find the door. The door was made of dark wood, with metal bands holding it together. She knocked three times, paused, then knocked again. The door was opened from the inside, and Zanetti walked in. The door was opened by a man, a tall man, with dark brown hair and light brown eyes. He had a crooked nose and a cracked tooth, but other than that he was normal. He was Ivan Stravinsky, the man with gold in his blood. There were two more people in the room, a woman, Sophia Stravinsky, a tall woman with fair skin, brown hair and light hazel eyes, a permanent scowl on her face. She was the younger sister of Ivan Stravinsky. The other person in the room was a man, Lanai Maun. He was on the shorter side, pretty, blonde, with dark tan skin, and itching for a fight.

The room itself was dimly lit, with three lanterns hanging from the ceiling, with a large table in the center of the room, with matching chairs. There was a small shelf on the wall, with gems and expensive trinkets displayed on it. On the table there were cards, a few at each seat, along with some scattered cards in the center of the table. They had been playing a game, but had given up.

“You’re all early,” Zanetti said, taking her seat after hanging her lantern on one of the chains from the ceiling, lighting the room a bit better.

“And Ulan is late,” said Ivan, sitting down next to Zanetti.

“Isn’t he the one who called us here?” said Sophia, crossing her arms in annoyance. Lanai just laughed.

“He’ll show,” Zanetti said, “or he’ll have to pay later,” Lanai laughed again. As if the Ghost’s Whisper summoned him, there were three knocks on the door, a pause, then another knock. Ivan got up to let Ulan in.

“You're late,” Sophia said, a threatening growl to her voice.

“Yes, yes I’ll have to pay later, I don’t care,” Ulan said. He set a briefcase down on the table, and cracked it open. Inside was a small sculpture of a hand, made of gold. “I need to make this thing disappear,” Ulan said, resting his hands on the table. Zanetti leaned over to inspect the sculpture. Ivan licked his lips.

“40,000 silver pieces, at least,” he said. None of them touched it, in fear the gold poison rumor was true.

“40,482 silver pieces, actually,” said Ulan. Sophia got up from her chair to inspect the gold hand. She smacked Ulan in the back of the head.

“Fool boy,” Sophia said, “Calling the Guild for a simple task, if I had some good sense in me I’d walk out that door right now,” Sophia said. Lanai, who had remained silent since Ulan’s arrival, chuckled.

“Fool girl, actually Soph,” he said, “That there’s gonna be the Mystique hand. You can’t make that thing vanish,” Lanai said. Zanetti rested back in her chair.

“The reappearing hand,” Zanetti said.

“Easy,” said Ivan. Ulan closed the briefcase, and in unison, Zanetti, Ivan, Sophia and Lanai got up from their seats and exited the room.

*Ivan*

Ivan Stravinsky was known as the man with gold in his blood. There was a rumor that circled Lijun, that he was the one who famously poisoned the merchants gold, causing three of them to drop dead in the middle of the merchants hall. Ever since, Ivan had been the only one brave enough to trade in gold instead of silver. People didn’t accept gold pieces anymore, they only ever traded in silver. He had scared an entire market into a new currency. He was nowhere near as feared as The Ghost’s Whisper, but people still trembled at the mention of his name. He would never tell Zanetti, or anyone really, if it really was him who poisoned the gold.

When he traveled through Lijun, he wore a mask too, and like Zanetti’s it was a symbol of his power. As if it was a cruel mockery of the Merchants, he wore a mask with gold coins painted all over it, with a slight purple outline on each coin. Purple was the color that represents something dangerous in Ettenberg. Ivan’s nickname wasn’t as popular as the Ghost’s Whisper, but it was still spoken occasionally. They called him Greed’s Missionary. The underworld of Lijun thought the gold was poisoned as a warning to the rest of the world that greed would get you killed. Ivan was a vigilante as the Lijun saw.

Tonight he was walking through the shadows with the rest of the Guild, followed closely by Zanetti. Ulan walked in the center of the group, carrying the briefcase close to his chest. Why he had the briefcase, Ivan didn’t know, but that wasn’t a question the Guild often asked. Ivan and Zanetti had worked together once before she joined the Guild, and that was why Ivan asked her to join. She could make things disappear without a trace, as if they never even existed. Ivan paused.

“Ghost, time for you to go,” he said. Zanetti nodded, and slipped into the shadows. From here, she would go off bribing and threatening anyone who knew anything about the Mystique hand. Ivan would take care of the physical evidence, the sculpture itself. Ivan and the Guild continued walking down the streets of the Lijun searching for the right shop. The shop they were looking for was right around the corner. It was a small shop that sold spices, mostly illegal, hard to find spices. It had a small sign on top of the shop that said Lindo's Spices. There was a closed sign hanging in the front door, but that didn’t stop the Guild. They had a deal with the owner, they were allowed in his shop at any time they wanted, and the Guild wouldn’t tell anyone where he got his spices.

Lanai, who had the key, opened the door for the rest of them. In the basement of the shop, there was a large metal pot supposedly made of the strongest metal in the world. The shop owner had a magic flame in his basement, gifted to him by one of the Merchant’s daughters, who happened to be a magic user. Their plan to rid themselves of the hand was to hide it in plain sight. They were going to melt it. Ivan opened the hatch to the basement and climbed down, Ulan close behind him. Sophia and Lanai stayed topside to watch out for trouble. Whoever Ulan got the golden hand worth 40,482 silver pieces from, was bound to come looking for it. It would take a while to melt the hand, even with a magic flame. Ulan placed the golden hand in the pot, which was currently empty. Ivan flicked on the contraption the magic flame came from, and they waited. Ulan paced anxiously around the basement, and Ivan leaned against the wall, occasionally calling up to Sophia to check if they were still in the clear.

After about thirty minutes, the hand was halfway melted, and Ulan’s worst fears came true. Sophia and Lanai rushed down the ladder to the basement.

“Three guys walking the street, big guns,” Lanai said, holding in laughter, closing the hatch behind him.

“They see you?” Ivan asked, keeping his voice level and calm, keeping a smile from his face. Sophia shook her head.

“Then we hunker down and wait for them to pass,” Ivan said. Ulan had started shaking at this point, fearful of the men with guns. It wasn’t Ulan’s fault. He was a child, he didn’t know better. Ulan, younger than the rest of the Guild, was seventeen, and only joined so he could stop eating scraps and make a living. He was a scrawny kid, not muscular like the rest of them, with big bulging brown eyes and buzzed brown hair. He was twitchy, jumping at anything even remotely frightening. He wasn’t made for thieving. Ivan checked the hand again. This time, the hand was almost completely melted, only a few chunks remaining. Ivan got a smaller pot that the shopkeeper left in the shop and poured the melted gold into it. He would leave it in the shop, and the shopkeeper, the greedy fool, would no doubt graciously accept it. Now it was a waiting game.

Just as the Guild members thought they were safe, they heard footsteps from the shop. Poor Ulan nearly fainted. The hinges on the hatch creaked, and the hatch opened.

“There you are,” said Zanetti, sticking her masked face through the hatch, “Oh dear,” she said, looking at Ulan, who looked frightened out of his mind, “I guess you really did pay later,” Lanai snickered at this, and gently punched him in the arm. He sighed.

“There were no men with guns, were there?” Ulan said. Ivan smiled.

“Next time you call a meeting, don’t be late,” Ivan said as Lanai continued laughing. Ulan threw his hands up in the air in defeat.

*Ulan*

Ulan was the newest member of the Guild, and therefore the easiest to pick on. He was a young boy, only seventeen, and he had nothing but his wit, and according to Sophia, even his wit wasn’t worth much. Ulan hadn’t thought himself as much of a thief, he thought he could be a Merchant, maybe get in good with one, marry a Merchant’s daughter, live the high life, but he was never a good flirt either.

He met a Merchant named Holly Jan, and out of pure luck, began an apprenticeship under him. Holly Jan was a fat, balding old man with a hunched over back and rotting teeth. His breath was awful enough to kill a fly, and nobody could stand to be near him. Not his wife, who left seven year ago, and not his daughter, who was eighteen years old, and perfect for Ulan. His daughter's name was Misha, a beautiful girl with red hair and rosy cheeks, and the sweetest blue eyes, and Ulan thought she was his ticket to fortune. Holly Jan was outraged, and kicked Ulan out of his house, yelling and screaming the whole time. His face turned red and he angrily waved his arms while his daughter rolled her eyes at him.

It was there Ulan saw his final option in life, thievery. He had managed to steal three precious gemstones from Holly Jan’s collection, and he’d been so furious at him for something else that he completely missed the gems. The gems he’d stolen were worth more than he could have possibly imagined, a ruby half the size of his fist, a sapphire the size of his eye, and a large emerald on a pure gold ring. He had tried to sell them at the Merchants market, but every merchant he ran into threatened to turn him in, so he turned to the Lijun. It was then he went to a stand in the middle of the market, run by Ivan Stravinsky. He had placed the gemstones on the counter and asked “How much can I get for these?”. Ivan studied the gemstones that Ulan placed on his table. “Where did you get those?” Ivan asked him. Ulan just shrugged and responded “Stole them”, and to that Ivan pulled him aside behind the stand and said, “You kid, can get a job from those,”.

That was how Ulan ended up with the Guild, not because he was feared throughout the market, not because he had true skill, but because he ran into Mr. Stravinsky. The reason he had the Mystique hand was ridiculous, it was because he was doing a favor for a Merchant's son. Ulan still hung around the Merchant’s market, because the Merchants, innocent as they may seem, have secrets that could destroy them, and they would pay big to make them disappear. The Guild made problems disappear, so now Ulan was alone in his apartment in the Merchant’s sector, something he could never afford on his own, counting his money. His apartment was nice, an expensive place with a fancy doorway. Thieving paid more than working. His apartment had four rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, a bedroom, and a lounge. It was more than he needed, more than he deserved. Again, he counted his money, 56,000 silver pieces, which was nothing compared to the Merchant’s standards.

He sat on the side of his bed, the bed full of feathers, soft and comfortable. He fell back on his bed and sighed. Ulan had nothing left to do for the night, so he went to sleep. Ulan was woken to a knock on his door. He jumped up out of his bed and threw on a gray robe that was hanging on a hook by the door to the bathroom. He opened his door, only to find a small tan envelope on the floor. He picked it up and inspected it, and found that it was sealed with green wax, the seal itself belonging to a well known Merchant, Holly Jan. He went back to his apartment, being sure to turn the silver key in the door, just in case Jan’s goons were hanging around. He sat back down and opened the letter. It read:

Dear Mr. Jounce,

I hear you’re running with the Guild of Thieves these days. I have a proposition for you and the Guild. Would you like to be rich? I can assume based on the burglary of my home that the answer is yes. If you are interested in my offer, meet my clerk Kim Lea at Luanne’s Port tomorrow night by 14:30.

Sincerely,

Trader Holly Jan.

Ulan considered the letter for a bit, looking it over, checking for some hidden code within the letter, but he found nothing. So, he got dressed and put on his wool coat and leather boots, and exited his apartment, wary of dark alleyways and corners. He was headed to the potions shop, where he would tell the shopkeeper to summon the Guild. On the way there, he spotted Lanai’s leopard print mask in one of the gambling dens. Lanai waved him over.

*Lanai*

Lanai counted tonight as a success, he also counted any night of destroying precious artifacts as a success. He said his goodbyes to the rest of the Guild and made his way down the Lijun, turning into the alley that housed his favorite gambling den. He wore a leopard print mask, a big joke between him and the Lijun, given that leopards were a sacred creature in Mishaal, his home country. Maybe he wore it to keep a little of his home with him, or maybe he wore it as a joke, mocking the nearly extinct animal.

The gamblers always tipped their hats to Lanai, a regular. He never played, because he knew the games were rigged, instead, he stayed at the bar, buying drinks for people who looked like they were about to leave, bothering the ones who walked away with the house’s money, accusing them of cheating. The house runners of this particular club, The Winterberry, enjoyed his visits. Everyone made more money when Lanai visited. Today he sat at one of the booths by the bar, the seat cushioned with crushed velvet. There was a man sitting next to him, in a white mask with tiny yellow and pink flowers, that only covered half of his face. He reeked of smoke.

“Do you speak Ette?” the man asked.

“I speak Ette just fine,” Lanai said. The man sighed.

“Good,” replied the man, taking a long drag of his cigar, “How’s betting the one in the gray mask is about to win it all?” he said, gesturing to a table in the corner, waving smoke through the air.

“Nah, it’s the pink spotted one that’s gonna win it,” said Lanai, leaning on the table. The man slapped out a silver piece on the table. Lanai pulled a silver piece out of his pocket, and said “You’re on,” with a hint of amusement to his voice. They observed the game for a while, and when the player with green and purple swirls on her mask collected all the chips, Lanai looked at the man with the flowered mask and shrugged, slipping his own money back in his pocket, and watching the man do the same.

As it was getting darker, Lanai spotted Ulan moving down the street. He waved his hand in the air, gesturing for Ulan to come in. Ulan stepped into the building, carefully looking at each corner, as if he was worried about something.

“What are you doin’ out here fool boy?” Lanai said to Ulan, who cautiously sat next to him. Ulan handed him a letter, and Lanai read it. Lanai raised an eyebrow. He handed the letter back to Ulan and sighed.

“I would tell you that you shouldn’t trust that Holly Jan, but since you’re already on your way to the Shopkeeper, I’d best help you out.” Lanai said, getting up to pay his tab, then heading out the door with Ulan.

“Are you really gonna help me?” Ulan said, picking up his pace to match Lanai’s.

“Are you blind? Read the letter, ‘rich’ it says, even Soph will show for money,” Lanai said, pointing out the word on the letter. The streets of the Lijun were busier now that night had fallen, and Ulan fought against the current of people to stay next to Lanai. It was at times like these Lanai wished he had the reputation of the Ghost’s Whisper. The area around the potion shop was crowded too, bustling with people wearing colorful masks. In the crowd, Sophia’s swirled rainbow mask was visible, trading a potion to a man for a small bag of coins. Lanai and Ulan shoved their way into the shop, cursing at people all the way. They finally made their way into the shop, and as they walked in, Ulan stumbled, then steadied himself. The shopkeeper looked up, and Lanai made his way over to the desk, and whispered to the shopkeeper,

“Summon the rest of the Guild, would you, Keep?” Lanai dragged Ulan back over to the desk, “And don’t tell them fool here sent for them, else they won’t come.” The Shopkeeper nodded, and sent out the signal, only to be heard by the members of the Guild. The Shopkeeper was a magic user, and had a special spell for communication. Magic was above Lanai’s head, and he chose a long time ago that he need not concern himself with it.

*Sophia*

Lanai and Ulan, the fool boy, were walking into the potion shop, or more of awkwardly shoving their way into the potion shop. Sophia was selling some of the overstock of the potion shop outside, where the noise of the rats looking to buy something magic couldn’t bother the Shopkeeper. The Stravinsky's owned the store, and it was Sophia’s job to sell the product. One man came back again and again, asking for a love potion. He wore a strange mask, painted to look like a melon. Perhaps he was a farmer, or he just had a strange adoration for melons. Sophia would tell him, again and again, there was no such thing. Today she held up a fizzing green liquid in a small jar to the man, and through the melon mask, she could see him eying it greedily.

“Is that the love potion?” he said before Sophia could get a word out.

“Closest thing we got,” she said, “It’s a hypnosis potion,” she said, and the man gave her a confused look. Sophia leaned back against the window of the potion shop. She swished the liquid in the jar.

“And what does it do?” asked the man, leaning closer, hand in his pocket.

“It puts the person in a deep coma for a short while, and anything you say to them will become fact as soon as they wake, although it is temporary,” Sophia said, not mentioning that it only lasted about ten minutes. It wasn't her best recipe.

“How much?” said the man, pulling a small sack of coins out of his pocket. Sophia eyes the bag, it had gold pieces, not silver as she usually bartered with. He must not have heard about her brother poisoning the gold.

“That whole bag there,” Sophia said, holding out her hand. The man eagerly handed it to her and took the potion. Sophia sighed. There was a small crate on the window’s edge holding the potions she was selling. The crate was made of oak, with a small handle on top, and a small metal hatch that held the box shut.

Sophia then received a telepathic signal, summoning the Guild to the potion shop. She packed up her potions and took the crate back to the potion shop. Lanai and Ulan were already by the desk where Shopkeeper was. Sophia placed the crate behind the desk with Shopkeeper, and stood next to the boys. The Shopkeeper, whose true name was Hollins, looked quite bored with them. Shopkeeper was a mute, and as far as Sophia knew, he had never spoken a word in his life. Zanetti and Ivan arrived a little later, and they waited for the people in the shop to clear out, mostly because they recognized the Ghost’s Whisper.

They slipped into the secret passage behind the bookshelf and walked down the stone passage to the big dark door and opened it. Ulan smacked the letter down on the table as the Guild took their seats. They all looked it over carefully.

“There are no hidden messages, no secrets, just a business proposal,” said Lanai.

“Luanne’s Port is neutral ground,” Sophia said.

“Ya know it should be taken into account that Holly Jan hates Ulan with a passion,” Ivan said. Ulan crossed his arms and scowled.

“Well, neutral ground is neutral ground,” Zanetti said.

“How about,” said Ivan, leaning forward, “Soph, Lanai and I meet the clerk, so Ghost and Ulan can hang back and watch for trouble.” Ivan said. The Guild nodded.

Sophia left first, knowing what the rest of the Guild would do. Ulan and Lanai would walk back to Ulan’s house because Ulan was scared of the monsters in Lijun, and Lanai liked the fool boy for some strange reason. Ivan and Zanetti would hang back for a while, discuss jobs and share information as they always do. Sophia never really felt accepted as a member of the Guild until Ulan joined with his childish beliefs and terrible skills. She was the second youngest member, at nineteen years old. When she was seventeen she immigrated to Ettenberg from her home country of Selinah. She never received a proper education in Selinah, and when her brother left home to chase his dreams in the wonderful land of Ettenberg, she thought that might also be her ticket to success. Sophia instead received a rude awakening when she couldn’t find a job anywhere in Ettenberg, only surviving with her brother's assistance.

She lucked out, but many others didn't. She knew the look of people from Selinah, the ones begging on the streets, because like her, they though Ettenberg was their way out. When Sophia arrived in Ettenberg with sixty silver pieces to her name, the first thing she did was find Ivan. What a surprise it was when she found him with the Ghost's Whisper and Lanai, getting rich from stealing.

*Zanetti*

The Ghost’s Whisper was on the roof of a warehouse overlooking Luanne’s Port. She crept closer to the railing, placing her hands on the iron bars, preparing to make a rapid descent if needed. Ulan was sitting close by her, trembling with fear. Ulan was afraid of his own shadow, and heights were a whole new story. Zanetti peered over the roof and watched Ivan, Sophia and Lanai enter the harbor. There was already someone waiting there, a Mishaal girl, with the same caramel skin and blonde hair as Lanai. She must be Holly Jan’s clerk, Kim Lea. She was clutching a book to her chest and nervously looking around. Luanne’s port was dead at this time of day, with all the fishermen out on the sea, and all the travelers gone with the wind. There were shipping crates scattered across the pavement of the port, and the Guild was partially obscured.

Zanetti watched calmly as the deep blue waves lapped the shore. She wasn’t expecting trouble, given it was neutral ground, but you never knew with the Merchants. A small fishing boat moored at a dock a good distance from where Kim Lea was standing, but it was close enough to keep an eye on.

“Ulan,” she said, looking to the boy to her left, “Would you mind keeping an eye on that ship? Tell me if anyone looks suspicious?” Zanetti said. Ulan nodded, and with the utmost caution, he crept closer to the edge to watch the ship. Zanetti sighed.

“You’re fine dear, there’s a rail,” she said, climbing over the rail and sitting on the top of it. Ulan pressed himself closer to the ground.

“How can you do that? I’d be too worried that I’d fall,” Ulan asked her, his voice shaking, “Are you crazy? That's a long drop,” Ulan clutched the railing like it was the only thing keeping him alive, as if the building beneath him wasn’t there.

“There’s an old secret to fear. I’ll tell it to you if you stand up,” Zanetti said, leaning dangerously forward. Ulan, shakily, rose to his feet. Zanetti smiled warmly. “The secret to fear is to accept it, because it can save your life. Fear keeps us alive, you know. It tells us that we shouldn't jump of a building, but it knows that you can keep your balance. Realistically, your brain knows no harm will come to you if you stand, or even climb onto the railing. As long as you know what you can do, and what is safe, you will be fine,” Zanetti said, rising to her feet on top of the railing, precariously balancing with her arms out.

She walked along the railing, not once wobbling, until she was in the same line of sight as Kim Lea. She sat back down on the rail and held on to the edges. Ulan stayed standing, not because Zanetti’s words eased his fear, but because he feared the pitying look she would give him if he sat back down. Zanetti couldn’t hear the words spoken by Ivan and Kim Lea, who were negotiating the business proposal, but she could see them. Kim Lea was pointing out at the harbor, and speaking with hand gestures, holding on to the book under her left arm. Zanetti knew deep in her soul there was no reason for her to be up on the roof of a warehouse other than to babysit Ulan. Ivan was being precautions, with the suspicion that Holly Jan hated Ulan so much he would try to have him assassinated, so he stuck Ulan on a roof with the best bodyguard in the world, The Ghost’s Whisper.

Zanetti saw Kim Lea hand Ivan the book and walk away. As soon as she was out of sight Zanetti leaped off the roof and landed on a shipping container. There were a few stacked shipping containers, so the jump was only about five feet, still, the landing stung her ankles. She leaped down to the next shipping container, then the next, before jumping down to the pavement right in front of Ivan. She stretched out her arms and dipped her head. She was no acrobat, but she knew haw to preform.

“Show off,” Ivan said. Zanetti giggled slightly. “Where’s the kid?” he asked.

“Cowering at the top of the warehouse,” Zanetti said, taking the book from his hands to look through it. Zanetti looked through the book, flipping page by page. The score was more that any of them had ever made in their entire thieving careers combined. Zanetti's eyes got big as she stared at Ivan's grinning face.

“Lanai, go get him,” said Ivan. Lanai smiled and nodded. “Everybody, pack your things. We have a mission,”