Cormac squinted into the darkness. “Do you see anything, Ferret?”

“As in a shadow-colored dragon in shadow with bonuses to hide in shadows? Nope. Not a thing. Lots of mushrooms, though.”

Cormac glared at Ferret. “A simple ‘no’ would suffice.”

“Would it really?”

Peacock lunged from beside them, snapping the air by Cormac’s head.

Cormac’s eyes bugged out. He pinwheeled his arms, falling over backward with a squeal.

High-pitched laughter echoed around the cavern as Ferret clutched his sides and doubled over.

Cormac scrambled to his feet with a snarl. “Yes, hilarious, Shade. Now, if you children are all done playing, how about we get back to business?” He dusted his robes off and stomped off toward their living quarters, muttering insults all the way.

Ferret wiped tears from his eyes. “Good one, Peacock. I think the old Faefolk has to go change his robes. I like your new skills already.”

Peacock, who had been sitting with a smug grin on his face as he watched Cormac leave, snorted. “I do, too. Although, I wonder how useful he thinks I am now. If he can’t see me, what’s keeping me from stealing him blind?”

Ferret’s face fell and grew somber. “Nothing except the whole ‘reveal your presence to the world’ bit. He might not see you, but that doesn’t mean no one can.”

“Right.” Peacock’s tail whipped back and forth. “But what if he does? I’m tired of hiding behind him, following his orders like a puppy. Aren’t you?”

“Well, sure, I guess. He’s annoying as hell, but this is the longest I’ve ever had a character live, too. Besides, I thought you wanted to stay hidden from the world. I mean, look at you. I think the game agrees.”

Peacock cocked his head, then walked off to find Cormac, a frown on his face.

Ferret wasn’t entirely wrong. He’d definitely wanted to stay hidden, since he still wasn’t strong enough to take on Zenith Flight. But that was changing. Cormac’s fascination told Peacock there either wasn’t another dragon like him, or he was so rare he might as well not exist. That meant Zenith Flight wouldn’t be prepared for a stealth build dragon.

Of course, Peacock was only level twenty. If he went back now, he’d be swatted down like a fly. But, with Cormac’s increasing agitation, coupled with Peacock’s secret already circulating through at least one thief family, his time hiding in a cave was clearly running out.

*****

“My bad, is this yours?” Ferret grinned up at the heavily armed guard, looking for all the world like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Peacock watched from thick shadows at the edge of Krinios’ Central Building’s copious torchlight. Peacock held his breath and rolled his eyes, caught between dismay at Ferret’s quips and concern for his friend.

The guard, a plate mail covered, green-skinned mass of muscle that probably outweighed Ferret ten to one, hefted his enormous axe as he frowned at the potion bottle in Ferret’s hand. “Yes, it is.”

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The axe came down, slamming into the spot Ferret had been standing with enough force to visibly shake the guard’s arms.

“That’s the problem with Great Weapons,” Ferret taunted from his new position behind the guard. “All power, no speed.”

The brutish guard’s buddy, a much more lithe and leather garbed Faefolk, swung a long rapier at Ferret’s head.

Peacock’s heart skipped a beat as Ferret squeaked and doubled over.

“Whoa! Can’t say the same of that, can I?”

Peacock’s heart resumed beating as his friend dashed around the Central Building’s opposite corner, a devilish grin plastered on his face.

“Get into position.” Cormac’s voice vibrated through the earring clipped to Peacock’s frill.

He obliged, stifling a growl. Peacock hadn’t liked Cormac’s grand scheme when he first explained it to them. In the thick of it, he liked it even less.

Peacock followed the shadows down the right wall. His target became apparent. The cluster of multi-layered torches which ran the length of the Central Building gave out, the fires extinguished by some trickery of Cormacs. Shadow bathed a chunk of the wall, giving Peacock a clear path up the wall to the fourth floor.

Normally, patrolling Rebirths would flood the area with pointy things and sharp eyes. Thanks to Ferret’s distraction, the path remained quiet. Of course, that meant all the pointy things were pointed at him instead. Peacock swallowed his worry and scrambled up the wall. The best way to help his friend was to finish the job as quick as he could.

Peacock’s newfound dexterity had made power-leveling his climbing skill all too easy. He slithered up to the fourth-floor window without a sound.

One light tap and the window shimmered out of existence. Another unknown trick of Cormacs. Peacock’s scales itched in warning. Too easy.

He hit the cool stone floor in the middle of a pitch-black hallway. There wasn’t a living thing in sight, nor did Peacock hear anything. Curiouser and curiouser.

According to Cormac’s map, the upper floor’s hallway ran all the way around a large central vault. Inside the vault lay the city of Krinios’ best treasure. It served as a repository of the wealthiest and most powerful, a museum and elite trading post dealing in massive amounts of gold.

Peacock traced the eerily quiet hallway to the vault’s entrance. The double doors stretched floor to ceiling, intricate carvings of jungle flora and fauna covering every inch of them. Gems encrusted eyes, flowers and decorative curls. A thief would make a small fortune by prying out those alone. But Peacock wasn’t after small.

Cormac had jumped from ‘stay out of sight’ to ‘let’s take the biggest thing they’ve got.’ It was one of many oddities in the last day, and they were all making the frill down Peacock’s head and back stand at attention.

The doors slid open without protest. Peacock gasped. It was one thing to be told what’s in a room, and another to see it.

Glass cases and pedestals sat in neat rows on the floor, items of all shapes and sizes displayed within. Above him floated more display cases, taking advantage of the room’s high-vaulted ceiling without sacrificing order.

The room didn’t have a central light source. Instead, magical lights dotted each display, just the right color and brightness to best showcase each piece. Many glittered like stars, an illusion furthered by the deep blue carpet covering the floor, while jewel-encrusted engravings covered the walls.

Peacock took a tentative step inside, his breath hitching in his throat. Thief or no, this place was overwhelming. He shook his head. Focus. Ferret was putting his life on the line. Every second wasted put him closer to death.

Cormac, interestingly enough, wanted the artifact orbs held within the vault. As soon as he’d said it back in the cave, alarm bells had gone off in Peacock’s head. It was too close for coincidence. Cormac was playing them.

Peacock had considered taking Ferret and running right then, but the chance for more artifact abilities sounded too nice to pass up. Cormac wanted the orbs to himself. Peacock had no intention of giving them up.

All the way at the back wall, three orbs shining in near-blinding shades of red, green and silver floated next to the ceiling, surrounded by halos of fine gold filigree.

Peacock’s heart jumped against his chest, the sight of the rare items sending his thoughts into overdrive. What abilities hid in these? So many possibilities, so many potential ways to bring Zenith Flight down.

Positioning himself between the rows, Peacock stretched his wings. This was his maiden flight, in the middle of the biggest heist of his brief life, surrounded by people eager to kill him and probably about to get stabbed in the back. What a time.