Eleven. Of the fourteen high-leveled pickpockets working in the general market, eleven of them had had to deal with at least one tracking coin. One of the three lucky ones was Silver, while the other two thanked her for the warning. Everyone was feeling a bit put out by the strategy, but no one was willing to give up just yet.

Silver returned to her own area and decided to make one or two more hits before heading back. She didn’t want to push her luck too much, especially after having given two of her dechanters away. Thankfully, both marks passed without incident.

Making one last stop in the general market, Silver bought a bag of hard candies and two sticks of meat marinated in a sweet and spicy sauce. These the shopkeeper placed in a magically-sealed container that kept them warm until opened. The girl took the products with a smile and dashed off, habitually checking to make sure no one was following her. When she was certain no one was, she dodged into an alleyway and made her way back the way she had come.

Silver kept an eye out for any late tax collection patrols on her way, wanting to avoid awkward questions about her presence here. She’d been caught once, but they took her to be a lost girl separated from her parents. It had taken no small effort on her part to separate from them in the end. Even now, she wouldn’t have an issue playing innocent with her small stature, but it wasn’t an experience she relished repeating.

Taking a different path than would take her home, she entered a small building, if it could be called that. It was hardly taller than her own small frame and looked as though it would fall in on itself at any given moment.

“Mina, I’m here,” Silver announced.

A small head popped up from what one could mistake as a pile of rags in the corner. A girl with long black hair, grungy from lack of washing, smiled softly. This girl, who looked like she could be Silver’s age, actually was eight, give or take. She lived alone, her mother having died from illness two years prior. No one knew who her father was.

“Hi, Silva. Welcome back!” Mina always pronounced Silver’s name without a hard ‘r’, something Silver found endearing.

“Look at ye, sittin’ here without a wash. Yer gonna hafta get out of here someday. C’mon, let’s getcha washed up. Then I got a surprise for ya.”

Mina’s eyes lit up. “Ok!”

She obediently followed Silver to one of the local water basins. Like most of the slums, it was a mess with bugs drawn to the still water, threatening to bite any who came too near. If they had a mage available, they could have set up a water system like in the other districts which would ensure clean, free-flowing water even in this water-forsaken land. Unfortunately, that option wasn’t on the table. Silver swatted away the worst of the bugs as she led the way. She gave the younger girl’s hair a good scrubbing, then instructed her to get the worst of her dirt off.

Frowning, Silver turned around to peer up and down the side road as well as along the buildings. Her instincts had been telling her for some time that they were being watched, and she wanted to let whoever was watching know that she wasn’t pleased by it. Unfortunately, even with her sharp eyes, she couldn’t find the source of the disturbance. She turned back around in disappointment.

“Mina!” She snapped abruptly, eyes flying wide.

The other girl immediately froze, causing a large amount of water to splash all over the ground as a blue light dissipated. It took all of Silver’s self-control not to look around nervously which would inevitably tip anyone off to the strange occurrence if they hadn’t already noticed.

“Don’ use tha bucket ta draw too much water. It’s a waste,” she continued, more calmly this time.

Mina kept her head down and nodded. Of course, she hadn’t been using the bucket.

“If yer done, I’ll fill the bucket and bring it back. I wanted ta borrow yer fire pit in any case.”

With the bucket now in tow, the two girls walked back to the ramshackle structure. Silver noted that the eyes on them had now faded, for good or ill. Perhaps she had imagined it, but she wasn’t going to doubt her instincts on the matter.

She left the bucket outside and followed the now mostly clean girl back inside. Too bad no amount of scrubbing would rid the indoor cloths of their stench.

Mina sat, still subdued with her head down. Silver looked at her seriously.

“We’ve talked about why ya can’ just do that afore,” she said without preamble.

“I know, ‘M sorry. Jus’, no one was there, ‘n’...” Mina looked up with big, brown, pleading eyes that glistened with promised tears.

Silver wasn’t buying it. “It’s not ‘jus’,’ Mina. Someone was probably watchin’ us there. Do ya wan’ ta die? Or be taken away?”

“No, I…” Mina’s eyes now threatened true tears.

“Then make sure never ta do that again. Alone ‘r’ not.”

The other girl nodded and, satisfied her message got through, Silver smiled. “‘S long as ye understand. Now, let’s get ta the surprise.”

Mina’s eyes instantly fell upon the small box and pouch the older girl produced. Excitement cleared the downcast expression off her face in an instant. She looked at Silver, who nodded permission. Silver was amused by the self-restraint Mina made sure to show as she reached slowly for the items rather than falling upon them. Opening the box with the meat skewers, the younger girl pushed her long, waist-length hair out of the way of getting caught in the meal and tenderly nibbled on the edge. A moment later, the first stick’s meat was gone.

As she reached for the second stick, Mina paused and looked at Silver guiltily. “Yer not gonna eat?”

Silver shook her head with a smile. “I’ll eat later. I promised Rath I’d eat with him.”

“Ok,” she responded with a nod before devouring the second stick. Silver wished she’d brought more. Mina opened the pouch and popped one of the candies into her mouth and sighed contentedly. “Thanks, Silver. I love you.”

Silver reached over and patted the younger girl’s head. “I love you too, even if ya hate ta listen.” That elicited a giggle. “Alrigh’, I’m gonna take care of business and head back. Rath’ll be annoyin’ if I’m late again.”

“Ok, see you tomorrow!”

“Wash yerself afore I come this time. Jus’ ‘cause we’re treated like animals doesn’ mean we gotta smell like ‘em. Tomorrow, I don’ work neither, so I’ll train ya a bit. Get ready!”

“Noooo,” the other girl moaned, falling back into her makeshift bed.

Chuckling, Silver exited the shack and picked up the bucket before walking the few paces to the fire pit. In truth, it was nothing more than a glorified hole dug into the ground and kept away from the wooden structures nearby. It never saw too much use, but nights could get bitter here.

A few pieces of slightly burned wood were already inside the hole, so she rearranged them. Then, she took out the nine purses she had snatched today, emptying all the coins into her personal pouch. With the stolen items now free of their burden, Silver gave the area a quick check before stacking them on her right hand and lowering them into the pit. Like when she ran, she took a deep breath, focusing on the palm of her hand. Energy rushed through her body to that point until she pushed it to combust. All at once, the pouches burst into flame, turning to ash in mere moments. The remains she scattered among the wood as smoke trailed into the sky. To finish the charade, she took the bucket and poured it into the pit. There was no fire inside, so she didn’t care to follow any specific method with the water.

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Satisfied with her work, Silver returned the bucket to the others gathered near the water basin, then took the familiar path home.

-------------

Silver pushed the door to the building she shared with Rath open and entered cautiously, watching from where his attack would come. Her eyes pierced the dim interior as though a magelight on its highest setting illuminated it. She looked up and just had time to roll forward before the dark-clad attacker plunged downward with two daggers held to end her life.

Taking advantage of the room, Silver let the roll carry her under the table where she stopped on her back. With one arm she hit the far side of the table so that it tilted and blocked her from the attacker. She followed the move up with a kick, sending the object forward even as she rolled back to her feet and drew her own weapons.

To her surprise, the assailant collided with the table and crashed to the floor under its weight. Silver hadn’t expected the result and hesitated for a brief second, but it was enough. The soft whisper of fabric behind her was all the warning she had of the second attacker, presumably freshly arrived from the second floor. Spinning, she raised her dagger to block his before aiming a kick straight into his solar plexus. She added a small bit of her strengthened force into the blow and man met wall with an anguished cry. Clearing the room with one eye but keeping her senses alert, she approached the first man and stepped on the table, further pinning him to the ground before he had the chance to get up.

“Where’s Rath?” she asked, eyes narrowed.

“Dead,” the voice growled.

“Where’s Rath?” Silver asked again, pushing her weight down on the table.

“I didn’ lie ta ya. Ye can check upstairs. Dead, with ye not far behind. It’s a revolution, sweetheart.”

Silver thought about killing the man for that last remark, but elected not to before heading up the stairs with a cautious eye out for any other surprises. There were none, save for Rath, toppled over on the ground. The girl drew the throwing knife from that morning out of her hip pouch and threw it to strike the wood near the man’s head. He didn’t move. She couldn’t tell if he was breathing. Silver stood still for a while before eyeing the pool around the man. It...smelled like blood. No. He couldn’t actually be...right?

She crept forward, pace by pace. It was definitely blood. For the first time, Silver felt alarmed and rushed up to him. “Rath? Rath?”

The strike was fast, yet she saw it. She saw every inch as it came closer, but no matter how she told her body to react, it wouldn’t move fast enough. The best she could do was to have the knife slice through her arm rather than something fatal. Not even allowing herself to wince at the pain, she kicked back and prepared to fight. However, it seemed like it was over.

Laughing, Rath sat up. “Gods alive, girl. Ye almost make me feel bad fer puttin’ this party tagether. Almost.”

Silver scowled at him, wishing she could turn everything she felt right now into a curse. Instead, she said nothing.

Rath plucked the throwing knife out of the wood again and spun it around his finger idly, continuing to grin. “Ya didn’ believe it at first. What gave it away?”

Not bothering to reply, she turned and headed back downstairs. The man from under the table had extricated himself and was helping the man she had kicked to stand up. He’d probably broken something. Good. Silver couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this furious. Rath attacking her was a homecoming tradition, but this was the first time he’d incited others to help. Manipulating her emotions was, in her book, unforgivable.

She picked up the table and flipped it back over, noticing it had cracked in a few places. Also good. When she placed it down with more force than was strictly needed, the men in the room flinched. The movement drew her glare back to them. “Out.” She commanded.

Both men jumped and, without another noise, they hurried out the door into the ever-darkening night. Silver stormed over to one lamp and clicked it on, doing the same to the rest as she moved around the room.

A sound on the stairs alerted her to Rath’s presence and she spun, releasing three of her own throwing daggers in one go. He leapt backward in surprise. “Those would’ve hit me!” he said accusingly, staring at her.

“They would’ve,” she agreed frostily. So frostily, it felt as though the temperature in the room dropped several degrees. She hoped he felt it, too.

“Yer still mad, I take it.” Rath scratched the back of his head looking a bit sheepish.

“Ya think so?”

“Alrigh’, maybe I went a bit too far and I’m sorry, but--”

“But? I don’ give a troll’s hairy ass about any buts.”

“Silver--”

“No. I know yer constant, serious attempts on my life are fer my own good, and I’ve accepted that much, but this?”

“It could happen,” Rath finally snapped at her, tired of being interrupted. “And ye need ta be prepared.”

“By settin’ somethin’ so obviously fake up? And then ya fake dead and make a sneak attack that only tha dead body could make? That’s supposed ta help?” As her temper flared, the glow of the magelights dimmed.

“I knew ya could handle somethin’ like today. Or I thought ya could. Clearly, I was mistaken.”

“Yeah, ye were. Guess ye’ll have to stick around fer me a while yet.”

For a while, they stood absolutely still, glaring daggers at one another. Rath was the first to relent. “Ok, let me explain in full. I wanted ta use tonight ta help cement yer reputation. That ye weren’ an easy mark. Well, I guess that got across.”

“The actual attacks I’ve fought off weren’ enough ta prove that?” This time, she resisted rolling her eyes, if barely.

“Well ye see, those attackers’re dead. People don’t necessarily believe it was ye that killed ‘em. I guessed ye’d leave these ones alive. Probably. And now they can tell the others.”

“And tha impressive fake death?”

“Well...show ‘em ye weren’ soft?”

“‘Cause me leavin’ ‘em alive while I wen’ up ta check on ya wasn’ soft.”

“I told ‘em there was a chance that ya’d figure it out. I think the message still got across.”

Silver shook her head and let go of the worst of her anger, the magelights returning to full strength. She was still mad at him, of course. And she wouldn’t let him get off that easily. It was a poor excuse at best. More than likely, he didn’t have a reason for it and just wanted to have fun.

“As if weaklings like those could make me think ye were dead. And that talk abou’ revolution, pathetic. Where’d ya get ‘em from, the shelter fer flunked assassins?”

Rath allowed a small smile to return to his face, sensing that the worst had passed. “They’re rookies, but they came quite recommended from their commander. I had ta work hard ta find someone ya didn’ recognize. And could take a beatin’. I was countin’ more on my act anyway.”

“Tha blood?”

“Pig. I thought it was a nice touch.”

“I saw yer attack.”

“Maybe ya did, but it don’ matter if ya can’ move fast enough ta dodge.’

Silver pointed to where the attack had hit on her arm, revealing only dried blood and no trace of a mark. “Good enough.”

“Not if it’d been poisoned.”

She stuck her tongue out at him, then drew two gold coins from her purse and tossed them his way. He raised an eyebrow as he caught them.

“Yer short one fer this week. And ye can’ tell me ya didn’ get more’n this today.”

“Ye can pay the other for me,” she said with a malicious smirk. “Injury money.”

“What injury? I don’ see no injury.”

“Injury money.”

“Alrigh’, fine. Just this once, though. And don’ go spreadin’ it around.”

Silver sat down, instantly releasing a bright smile on him. He cringed away and began preparing dinner.

“That reminds me. There were a lotta tracker coins around today.” She told him about everything she’d found out from her talks with the other pickpockets.

“Hm. I don’ think they took this long ta figure it out. More’n likely, it’s tha new guard commander. He’s a little annoyin’.”

Silver was surprised. That was the closest she’d ever heard Rath come to complementing an enemy. “He’s good, huh?”

“Not good, annoyin’. Ya need yer hearin’ checked, girl?”

She grinned. “So this new guard commander?”

“He’s a good deal more competent than tha usual sort they get, unfortunately for us folk tryin’ to make a honest livin’. Well, I’ll send out tha word ta be more alert when workin’. Here, dinner’s ready.”

“I...ate earlier.”

“I figured. I only made fer myself. Sit with me. Are ye sure yer eatin’, though? Ye haven’ grown hardly in years.”

“I am, I am,” Silver waved his concern off airily.

“Hm.” Rath gave her a critical look before letting the topic drop.

They shared a peaceful, if somewhat tense chat while Rath ate before heading to their separate rooms to sleep. This building prided itself as the largest one in the slums, perks of ruling the underground world. Not that that was saying too much in the area. As a result, they also enjoyed the occasional late night greeting, but the invaders foolish enough to try it were always dispatched quickly.

It was while lying in bed waiting for sleep to claim her that it hit Silver that the new commander may be part of the reason behind Rath’s little play. He would never admit it, but it was a possibility. It was against code to turn a coworker into the authorities, but you never knew what a money-hungry idiot would do. With that uncomfortable thought at the forefront of her mind, Silver managed to force herself into a fitful sleep.