“Let me get this straight,” Hayun said, golden eyes wide and his hair slightly mussed from running his fingers through it. “You’re here in Bardo to steal from Carwyn, of Carwyn Tech Inc. The single wealthiest, most powerful, most influential person in the city, in the region. And you want my help?”
The three of them were sitting around the rickety kitchen table eating a late lunch and getting to know each other. The sisters had been busy all morning gathering supplies, making calls and unpacking. Hayun, not wanting to be in the way and feeling utterly useless in the cramped apartment, had taken himself on a self-guided walking tour of Bardo.
The three main boulevards of the city were grand and sweeping, just as every movie had portrayed them, with glass-fronted shops and sliding doors. Tall apartment buildings rose to the sky, their walls coated in green growth that fed its residents. To Hayun’s dismay the parks and gardens, even the benches and tables along the river were gated and cost a pretty penny to use. The neighborhoods between them were labyrinths of twisting roads and alleys each with its own character and flavor, offering specialized goods. There were apothecaries offering herbal remedies, tailors displaying repurposed clothes, and soap shops smelling of animal fat, citrus, and salt. Many had hand painted signs and displays showcasing their wares as they fought for business.
Hayun was stopped short when he had turned a corner on the north west side of the city to find tents lining the allies and a dozen families cramped in apartments meant for one. The reality of human needs was thrown into sharp relief. The streets here were un-swept and crowded with peddlers, children playing unsupervised, and people slumped in a drug or alcohol induced stupor. These were people still in survival mode as though the earth were still burning and resources dwindling. He had never heard of people living in such conditions and wondered why they didn’t move to the countryside. There wasn’t much to do there and the work was hard, but at least there was enough food to go around and space to breathe.
Hayun’s favorite was the glittering river which twisted like a fat snake through the middle of it all. Overhead, the sky trolley sped across the sky like a net connecting every corner of the metropolis. Even after one morning wandering its streets, Hayun could see why it was called ‘The City of a Thousand Faces.’
“Well, if you’re gonna stay, you might as well help,” Loupe pointed out, attempting to take a sip of her already empty smoothie. “It's for the people you saw in the slums that we’re doing this. We’ll use the money to provide supplies, food, and even housing for those in need. Sometimes all they need is a little money to get them out of their contracts with Carwyn Tech or get a train out to the countryside where they can begin an apprenticeship or a farm.” Loupe dropped the empty cup in the sink and collapsed onto the bed.
“Sleep on it,” Reina suggested. “We won’t force you either way. And you can stay here as long as you need.”
“Good luck finding another job,” Loupe mumbled, which prompted a sharp look from Reina. “I’m just saying,” she said, rolling her eyes and shrugging her shoulders. “It’s nearly impossible to get a job with a livable wage, even with experience. Let alone one that isn’t in some way affiliated with Carwyn Tech. They own this city.”
Hayun did not understand what Loupe meant, but the last thing he was worried about right now was finding a normal job. “May I ask how you plan on robbing the wealthiest person in Bardo?” he asked
“Well… we’re still working out the details,” answered Loupe.
“First we’ll need Malak on our side,” added Reina
“Who’s Malak?”
At first there was no reply. The sisters weren’t looking at each other, but they also weren’t not looking at each other. Their way of communicating without speaking was starting to get on his nerves.
“Xir a thief and knows the city better than Carwyn himself,” Reina answered, getting up to dump her plate in the sink. “If anyone is gonna get up into Carwyn’s estate and accounts safely, it’ll be Malak.”
“We’re meeting with xem this afternoon,” Loupe added.
“I was going to go to that alone,” Reina said, turning to look at her sister.
Loupe stood up. “Hell no. This is our mission, not your mission. I get equal say in things.”
“Xir my contact.”
“So what?” Loupe shouted. “This meeting is a vital part of the mission and I want to be there.”
Reina threw up her hands in surrender. “Fine. Hayun, you can come too if you want.”
Hayun, who had been sitting quietly throughout the short argument, was surprised to be addressed directly. “Me?’
“Yes, you,” Loupe snapped with leftover frustration. “Please come, it’ll be a good experience for you too. Give you an idea of how we work.”
Hayun shrugged. “I guess it’s a date.”
“Great.” Reina sighed.
Loupe smiled.
As 4:30pm rolled around the apartment burst into a flurry of activity as everyone prepared for the meeting. Loupe rolled out of bed and put on her coat. Reina attempted to put her notes and files into a backpack while simultaneously pulling on her boots. Hayun got up from the armchair and grabbed his now clean jacket.
The three hurried through golden, light-washed streets of Bardo. Hayun, gangly and confused, Reina watchful and tense, Loupe practically skipping with excitement. They were hitting rush hour straight in the face and the crush of the people kept the sisters’ fingers interlocked and Loupe’s hand on Hayun’s sleeve to keep from losing each other.
The smells, sounds, and people completely overwhelmed Loupe, who’d never gotten used to the bustle of cities. Vendors pulled carts of roasting chestnuts and spiced corn on the cob to the office workers in their now crumpled suits and children ran home with learning pads swinging from their narrow shoulders.
“Where are we going?” Hayun asked as he was tugged down progressively narrower streets.
The sun hung low in the sky like a fat baby sleeping in the clouds, but the trio was awake and anxious.
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“Like Reina said,” sang Loupe. “We’re going to see Malak.”
“Yes, but where exactly is that?”
They stopped at a crosswalk and Loupe turned to face him, her face bright. “I’m not sure, exactly.”
She let out a small giggle that made Hayun smile without meaning to.
“It’s not far,” Reina assured, pulling them across the street just before the light changed.
Hayun was nervous and sweaty on one side of Loupe and Reina was tense and focused on the other. They turned the last corner and came to a small store front. The sign was intelligible with weathered, red lettering and there were black drapes in the windows. The rest of the street was occupied by tenements with shuttered windows and locked doors. It was the sort of shop you would never see unless you were looking for it.
The door opened onto a narrow hallway with steps leading into the ground. A single yellow lamp wrapped in cobwebs hung from the ceiling. Shutting the door behind them, the three made their way down the steps to a curtain of beads at the bottom.
Loupe pulled back the curtain and dipped her head into the darkness, her eyes wide and alert. She glanced back at Reina and Hayun who were pressing up against her, Reina’s slender hands resting on her shoulders. The beads rattled like falling rain as the trio took the first tremulous steps into the room.
It was a small and round space, strangely decorated in hues of deep reds, sunset oranges, and grand auburns that reminded Loupe of being in the belly of a giant beast. Every wall was covered in shelves and towering bookcases that held all manner of curious objects. There were serums in colored glass vials, bowls of stones, instruments with mirrors and gears that emitted a soft whirring sound and countless other things that Loupe had never seen. She almost tripped on a coat rack that would have toppled over had Reina not caught it. She tried to give Reina a grateful look but was instead met by Reina’s side eye which meant Loupe needed to behave herself. She hated that look.
“What do you want?”
The three of them whipped around, hearts thumping wildly.
A girl was sitting in a wicker pod that hung from the ceiling by a chain. One of her legs was tucked under her and the other drooped out, her big, red-painted toe just touching the ground enough so that she could swivel herself around.
Reina was the first to regain control of the situation, as usual. “Hi Estelle. We are here to see Malak.”
Loupe stared at the girl who could not be much older than sixteen and who had huge, orb-like eyes that glowed ultraviolet, probably due to some kind of radiation poisoning. She was very pretty and Loupe instantly felt jealous.
“Oh. It’s you,” she said in a tone of both sudden realization and prudish distaste. Gracefully, she lifted herself into a wheelchair. Once seated, she brushed her mane of purple curls over one shoulder and left the room through a little red door with peeling paint.
The girl’s departure seemed to have sucked all air from the room. Reina and Loupe's eyes met in the silence; Reina’s focused and weary telling Loupe to be careful and quiet while Loupe’s were round and optimistic telling her to think positively. Loupe could feel Hayun feeling left out so she turned and gave him a reassuring smile.
The slamming of a door and the entrance of a person who took up more space than xir body entered the room, shattering the silence like a flock of pigeons taking flight.
Xe was not tall so much as xe gave the impression of being tall. Xir dark hair was thick and curly, xir expression easy if completely devoid of genuine joy, and xir eyes snared them like a fishhook. There was a causal confidence to xir movements that drew you in without even trying, without anyone realizing it. Xe had a scar running from xir upper lip to the corner of xir mouth that twisted xir lips upward, but instead of making xem smile, it turned xir face into a permanent sneer. Loupe noticed xe was wearing a silver chain necklace, but the pendant was hidden under xir shirt.
Reina stiffened the moment xe entered the room and grabbed hold of Loupe’s wrist. Loupe wanted to tug free of the grip, but forced herself to remain still.
Malak’s eyes caught the movement, but xir face remained unreadable.
“Reina.” Xir voice sounded like oakwood fire, warm and dangerous.
“Malak,” Reina said, her own voice steady if a little deeper than usual.
The tension between them made Loupe uneasy. Reina did not usually notice people; she rarely thought about them or worried about them unless they were her family. But it was clear to Loupe that she had been thinking about Malak and she wondered why.
Hayun shifted uncomfortably.
“Who are your friends?” asked Malak.
Xe turned xir gaze to Hayun. Xe was fresh out of boyhood, xir features sharp and raw. Xir hazel eyes narrowed and flashed with recognition as xe scrutinized Hayun. How did a city thief know a country farmer? Hayun’s unease only seemed to intensify. He tried to hide it by standing a little straighter, clasping his hands in front of himself, and looking straight at Malak. Finally, Malak looked away as though xe had asked a question and finally got the answer xe wanted.
They were only a minute into the meeting and Loupe was already feeling intensely confused. Hayun caught Loupe’s glance and the weariness in his eyes made her feel a little sick. Reina, however, began the introductions they had rehearsed, her voice even and practiced and not at all scared or even nervous.
“We are going to rob Carwyn’s personal accounts. We have all necessary supplies and skills, we just need your particular expertise.”
Loupe marveled at the ease with which she wielded the power of words and influence and an inclination of Malak’s head suggested that xe appreciated these skills as well.
For a moment Malak was silent, the cogs of xir brain working so furiously that Loupe practically saw smoke coming out of xir ears. Although xe looked at all of them, xir eyes kept sliding back to Reina.
“I suppose all payment will come from the loot?” xe finally asked, xir expression carefully neutral.
Reina answered in the affirmative with Loupe offering a supportive nod. She wanted to contribute something useful to the conversation, but everything was moving so fast.
There was another moment of silence in which the whole world seemed to hold its breath and then Malak said, “yeah, I can do that. The plan is not perfect and I can’t accept it as a member of The Order of Thieves. Would you still be interested in a private deal?”
Loupe turned to her sister to see if she agreed that a private deal was too dangerous, especially with such a suspicious person when Malak continued.
“I believe this mission could be mutually beneficial.” At this, Malak’s eyes moved pointedly to Hayun before xe continued. “But this would require us to work more closely. More as a team. Is that something you would be open to?”
Loupe turned to Reina again, shaking her head slightly to the left, but Reina’s eyes were dark and contemplative. Inexplicably she glanced at Hayun who was bewildered and a bit sweaty even in the coolness of this underground room. Loupe turned back to her sister and squeezed her hand, silently begging her.
“Fine,” Reina said, nodding very curtly and dropping Loupe’s hand to extend it to Malak. Malak’s hand was large in hers as xe shook it just once, xir smile hooked. Loupe noticed xir left hand was wrapped in white bandages.
Loupe swallowed her anger whole. It burned all the way down.
“Since I cannot be seen with you here so we’ll have to find a new, secure location to go over the plan. Do you know of a place? If not, we can find or make one.”
“I know of a place,” said Loupe. If Reina could make decisions about this mission without her, then so could she.
Reina looked at her, eyes piercing. Loupe pointedly ignored her.
“Fantastic,” Malak said, with a grin. “Let’s go!”
The smile appeared so suddenly that it startled Loupe.
“Now?”
“No time like the present,” Malak replied with a wink.
Loupe shrugged. Reina coughed and wiped her nose with the back of her sleeve.
Malak grabbed a wool coat and scarf from a coat stand in the far corner and gestured to Loupe to lead the way. Together, with many weary, sidelong looks, the four of them climbed the steps out of the strange room and into the coming evening.