Raz flipped a coin into the air, where it vanished. He relieved a man in a loose jacket of a few more coins. He examined them one at a time to see if there was anything unique. He flipped them each into the air like the last ones. He was a collector, but he had very specific requirements for his coins. They needed to mean something. This trash he would use to buy some supplies for one of his charities, or just give it to beggars. It had uses, but it wasn't worth much consideration.

He pulled out one of his favorite coins from his own pocket. It had a hole in the center and an unfamiliar script running around the edge. It was a ceremonial coin from an island just off the coast. They didn't use money out there and were only technically part of the kingdom. They used the coins as a reward for great accomplishment or service to the island village. After Raz returned a stolen relic to a village on the island, they awarded him with the coin. Raz didn't do much he was truly proud of, but he was proud of that.

A shout pulled his attention away from the coin, which returned to his pocket.

He made his way down a side street where a mass of humanity was gathering. When he came out onto a park square, he saw something he had never seen before. The skyfall here had stopped. There was a shimmer in the air where the water usually emerged, but no water fell.

It was rare he saw something new in Du'la'melio, his home for the better part of three decades, but this was something he'd never seen before.

Just as people were starting to chatter with worried voices, a guild representative floated into the air over the crowd. They were easy to identify by the magical symbol they projected over their head, probably using some construct.

"Attention citizens!" the guild representative called out, their construct magnifying their voice to be heard all over the area. "The skyfall pause is expected and nothing to worry about. The magic is being redirected into the dungeon temporarily. The water will remain off for at least a few hours, but we don't know exactly when they will return. For your safety, please stay out of the water drop zone in case it unexpectedly turns back on."

He expected he knew who was causing the dungeon issue. The man he had tried to rob yesterday. That was a problem. He had a little information about the man and could add the fact that he was probably running the dungeon to that. He needed to find someone who was interested in the former Arch-magus. Raz didn't imagine it would be a challenging sale. He knew from reputation that the man could be difficult to work with, and many people would pay to have any kind of leverage over a man with that kind of power.

He made his way to a local information specialist. Raz preferred to work out in the sunlight, where skill and planning kept him out of trouble, but sometimes it paid to have connections that worked out of the back out of dark alleys.

His information broker worked out of one such dark alley.

Raz knocked on a plain wooden door at the side of the alley, looking to the alley entrance to ensure there was no one around. A slot on the door opened up at eye level, and two dark eyes looked out into the alley.

"Oh, hey Shadowhand. Is Biff expecting you?"

Biff, the informant, was given his name by his mother, and he often said that going by anything else would be disrespectful to her memory. In Raz's defense, he hated his mother.

"He always knows, but I haven't made an appointment."

"Let me check," the bouncer said, closing the eye slot and leaving.

Raz leaned against the wall and flipped a coin, another one from his collection. It had a subtle enchantment, and would always land on whichever face you were thinking of when flipped. He liked to try to clear his mind before flipping it to see if it would ever do anything odd.

The slot opened, and the bouncer looked around before shutting it again and opening the door for Raz.

"Biff will see you now. He's in the back."

Raz thanked the man and headed back into the information den. Biff had many employees; most of them were either divination specialists or counter divination specialists, with a few that actually had classes that could be used for information gathering and recording. Even with nearly a dozen people at work at that moment, the den was quiet, with only hushed voices being used to communicate. Even here they knew not to be overheard.

Biff's office was at the back of the den. Raz knocked once and opened the door.

"Raz. It's been a while since I've seen you in here," Biff was a small, lean man. He had a friendly face and would blend into a crowd as easily as slip out of one.

"Biff. Haven't had much information to sell lately, and I haven't been taking too many jobs either. Working on my collection, mostly. Is that a new guy at the door? He recognized me, but I've never seen him before."

"He is. Ivan is his name. We had to get rid of Francis. Started bragging about working for me."

"You didn't kill him, did you?" Raz had liked Francis.

"No, no. Don't worry. We just shipped him down to Black Fort. He was always better muscle than bouncer anyway. Too boring for him.

"I think that's enough chitchat though Raz, what do you need from me?"

"Actually, I might have something for you. Information about a new guest in the city."

Biff's eyes sparkled. "That wouldn't be Olivander Casumus would it?"

"It is," Raz wasn't surprised. Anyone with any knowledge of big players and contacts throughout the city would have known of the arrival of someone as important as the former Arch-magus.

"Now I'm interested, Raz. None of my diviners can get anywhere near that man. Not even the people around him. He has powerful anti-divination effects. They're unusual though. It feels more like an enchantment instead of an active spell effect. You probably don't know anything about that though. What have you got for me?"

"You have an interested party?"

"Depends on what you're selling. There have been some recent developments that have…boosted interest in information on the man."

"I know why he's here, what he's doing, and where he's going."

Biff nodded, considering. "Anything about his party? We know he has a group, but we haven't had much information about them. Something happened up in Serin, but information has been coming out of the city very slowly."

"I do. I observed them for a little while. I can tell you a general group makeup, and some relationship information."

"Alright Raz. I'm interested. What's it going to cost me? I'm willing to go two favors on this, three if it's good."

Biff understood Raz. He wouldn't offer him money, that would be insulting. They had worked out a deal over the years, exchanging favors that had a rough value for information and services.

"I need a crew for a job. Small job, dangerous target."

"Powerful, or observant?" Biff asked to clarify what kind of danger he'd be sending people into.

"Both."

"Two favors for that."

Raz nodded, and they shook hands. They would work out the third favor if the information was worth it. Biff would never compromise his reputation by undervaluing the information given, so Raz wasn't worried about getting ripped off.

"Olivander is passing through, traveling south towards Mardareth."

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

"That makes sense I guess. Though it doesn't explain why he doesn't just go there directly."

"I don't know the reason for sure, but it's at least partly due to some of his traveling companions. He has taken on a pair of apprentices."

"That's surprising. Especially given that it was his last apprentice who got him kicked out of the capital."

"I heard it from the man himself. Not recognizing him, I accidentally stole his coin purse."

"Bold move, Raz. Did you get away with it?"

"No, I suspect he knew immediately. I covertly returned it after I found out who he was and he called me out on it later. I think he actually knew who I was the whole time."

"Haha! I'm glad you're still among the living Raz. So you had a conversation, and he told you he had taken on a pair of apprentices?"

"Yes. Two young adventurers. One is a massive young man. He'd be intimidating if he didn't look constantly surprised at every turn. The other is a dog. They're both Iron rank. Their group also has a guild agent, and a young woman who's a little stronger, both Steel rank. He didn't mention the last two to me, but he seemed fond of the apprentices."

"Good. Now you mentioned you know why he was here? I can probably guess."

"You can, I'm sure. His apprentices need experience. I'm unsure why he would have run the dungeon today. I'm sure his apprentices won't be able to run until tomorrow. Perhaps he just wanted to avoid the disruption on their runs."

"Perhaps. This information isn't quite worth another favor, but it is good. How about this?"

Biff opened a drawer and pulled out a coin, tossing it over.

The coin was obviously just a collector's item. It had a dragon on one side, and the reverse had an open book.

"Is this a commemorative coin? Is there a story behind it?" It wouldn't fit into his collection if there wasn't a story.

"There is. Those coins were forged after then Arch-Magus Olivander Casumus quelled the Serpent's Uprising. Not particularly rare, but given your interaction, it seems fitting. The dragon on the front of the coin is Gravenar, the Warlord of Dragons, and on the back is the weapon that killed him."

"A book?"

"Not a book, that's a Magus' grimoire."

That sent a chill up Raz's spine. He was suddenly unsure that he should have sold any information about Olivander at all.

"A fitting reminder…" he said to himself. He added the coin to his collection.

"It's a done deal then. Thanks for coming in, Raz. This information isn't the most valuable, but the value it does have is very time sensitive, so I must end our time together. I'll send someone by to discuss your job."

Raz nodded leaving the den immediately.

In the alley outside, he pulled out his new coin and examined it.

After a long moment, he made up his mind. It was a little late for regret, but he could at least hedge his bets.

Shadowhand slipped into a shadow near the end of the narrow alley. Boxes were stacked high and served as a wall, making the street at the mouth of the alley the only entrance. A moment after melding into the shadows, the slot on the door opened and Ivan looked out. Shadowhand averted his eyes lest they reflect the light.

Ivan snapped the slot closed, and then Biff walked out in casual street attire. Ivan followed him, an inconspicuous distance away.

Shadowhand would need to make sure to keep Biff in sight, in case Ivan was just a distraction. He didn't know what the bodyguard's abilities were, and wouldn't risk a scan so close to Biff's hideout.

Biff made a direct route to his destination, which surprised Shadowhand. When people made excuses to get you out of their offices, they were usually just that — excuses. It seemed Biff had been serious when he said the information was time sensitive.

Biff arrived at a manor that Shadowhand had visited a few times. None of which as a guest. One of the young lords in residence was good at making enemies, so there were naturally a wide variety of jobs to relieve him from his personal effects.

Shadowhand became a courier. There was no way to avoid attention going through the front door, but this disguise was purpose built. He used a spell that copied a uniform from a prestigious company. They were well known for important deliveries directly to lords and ladies. It was the perfect way to get into places he didn't belong.

He saw Biff enter, and Ivan took up a post across the street. Shadowhand made sure to keep his presence masked, though the guards he was about to interact with would see him.

"G'day sir. I have a delivery for the Lord's hands only, second one this week!" That was a believable lie. The lord had probably received more than that.

The guard started, having not noticed him immediately.

"What? Oh, yes, you're not even the first today. He's pretty upset, but he'll want whatever you have. You've been in the manor before?"

"Yes, sir. Last time I was directed to the study."

"Aye, that's where he is. Alright, be quick about it. We'll come looking if you're not out of here in ten minutes."

Shadowhand nodded and hurried past them. He knew where the study was.

As soon as he entered the manor, he took on the appearance of the guard he had just spoken with. It wasn't perfect, but across a hallway or a room, no one would notice that he was a little shorter than the man, or was missing the odd scar that Shadowhand hadn't had time to memorize.

He went directly to the study, as requested. He kept his attention averting magic up. It didn't work well when he wasn't around other people, but it would prevent people from doing a double take. He didn't stand right outside the study door when he arrived. Instead he stood at attention slightly down the hall.

From his dimensional space, he procured a magic construct that would allow him to hear through the wall. He stuck part of it onto the wall, and put the other piece in his ear. A trickle of mana later, and he could hear voices.

"—on the man. I did acquire some fresh information not fifteen minutes ago. Details that might allow you an opportunity for some semblance of revenge," Biff said.

"Oh? Based on what you've just told me, we have less chance of beating back the rain than getting revenge on this man," a man said. Shadowhand knew this one was the Lord of the manor, having encountered him before. Not the young lord that caused trouble, but his father. He caused an altogether different sort of trouble.

"He has some traveling companions. Two of them are his apprentices. Iron rank adventurers. I have some people out tracking them down as we speak. There were some other developments after your son ran into trouble..."

"Speak man. You'll be paid, but that's enough dancing around the issues," a third unfamiliar voice said.

"Of course. The man, Olivander, was able to complete the dungeon and achieved some conditions to allow the dungeon to evolve. We don't know exactly what that means yet, but he has sent his apprentices and their family out into the city for the day, while he does some work near the dungeon, presumably assisting with its enhancement."

"So the pups are unguarded?" the third man said.

"Precisely. One of the people traveling with them is a Gold rank adventurer, but he's not a magician, so a small period of separation is all you would need."

"Excellent work, Biff. Thank you for bringing this to my attention so quickly. Kevek, you may proceed."

"With pleasure, Lord Barwith."

Shadowhand pulled his magical construct away from the wall in a moment. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out an emergency transport device. He cracked it, and after a flash of magical light, he was back in one of his own hideouts.

Kevek Bloodhunter. He had made a mistake. He needed to save those kids. He didn't know where they were. He could tail a target as well as anyone, but he couldn't just find them. What he did know was that Olivander was probably still at the dungeon.

As quickly as he could, he climbed out of his hideout, deep within the city sewers.

* * *

"You know, this place looks a lot cooler with the huge waterfalls falling out of the sky," Gregory said.

"For sure."

"Will they come back soon?" Fezzic asked. "I'd love to see them."

"They'll probably be back on tomorrow, once the dungeon stabilizes," Jeremy said. "It was expected that they turn off during Olivander's run, but we never expected the dungeon evolution."

"Hey boys, I'm going to go find my wife. She's been gone inside that big store back there for a little too long, and I'm afraid what she's going to come out with," Burtrum said.

"You make a good argument, Burtrum," Zeke said. "We probably shouldn't have left them together."

"Sure, we're just going to be over here. I think I saw a stall with some good looking wraps!" Gregory said.

Burtrum and Zeke departed in a hurry.

A few minutes later, they found the wrap stand. Jeremy and Fezzic stepped up to order first.

"Hello cousin!" the stand's owner, a goblin, said. "Are you looking for something to remind you of home? I have bones!"

"Oh nice!" Fezzic said. "Hey Cooper, did you hear that? They have bones!"

When Cooper didn't speak into his mind, he turned around.

"Where did they go?"

Jeremy shrugged. "They just run off sometimes. We can stop to eat, they'll come back. Do you really eat bones?"