The Burning City (The Guildmaster Thief Book 2)

by Jake Kerr

  "Hold." The voice was deep and icy cold. Rogers stood still. "What's your business in the Pit?"

  "A force of Merchant guards and Knights approach. Kenda let me through to warn you. I'm looking for Graf."

  "Who are you?"

  "Rogers. I work the inner orchards. As I said, I saw a force preparing to head this way, and I came to help."

  After a moment, the silence was broken by the sound of chains clinking and then the grinding of metal. As the door opened, an old man with long grey hair looked up at Rogers with a big smile on his face. "Well met, Rogers. I am Graf." Graf stood aside and waved Rogers in.

  Entering the house confirmed Rogers' assessment. The rooms were cramped but solidly built. The knights could storm the houses but clearing them would lead to heavy casualties. However, looking at the group facing him confirmed his other assessment--they were poorly armed and would be overwhelmed in a traditional battle. Counterattacks and charges would be impossible with staves and knives and fireplace pokers as their main weapons.

  "These are the men of my family. We have other families defending their houses up and down the lane and throughout the neighborhood. Our force is small, but we are one with the land, and we have our secrets." Rogers nodded. He was surrounded by a group of five men, with another group peering in through the door to another room. "Tell us of these traitorous Merchants and Knights," Graf spat.

  "There are a score of Merchant Guards up front, but I am sure that the Knight forces will be close behind. They are in full battle armor." Glancing at the weapons, Rogers was losing confidence. One of the men had a broomstick as a weapon.

  "How long until they reach us?"

  Rogers didn't expect them to march right away, but the sad truth was that they were close and could swoop in at any moment. "They are already within striking distance. We should prepare immediately."

  "We are prepared," one of the men said. He carried a sword and slapped the flat of it against his palm.

  Graf slapped Rogers on the back. "Ready to die?"

  Rogers ignored the comment. "So what is your plan? You are blessed with natural defenses in your lanes and houses. How do you intend to use them?"

  Graf looked at one of the other men as if asking for a translation of words he didn't understand. The man shrugged. Graf turned to Rogers and said forcefully, "We will defend our houses."

  "Do you have archers?"

  "I believe so. Each family has some bows for hunting game in the Outer Fields during the Hunting Season."

  "How are they arrayed?" Graf looked blankly at Rogers. This is bad, he thought. "So, tell me, what is your strategy? How will you best use your archers? Where is your first line of defense?"

  Graf stood up straight. "We will defend our houses!"

  As Rogers had feared, there was no organized defense. The marvelous defenses of the Pit would go to waste, especially the deadly cul de sac. "This will not work. You need to have a plan." Rogers knew that Graf was the leader of the Pit, otherwise Kenda would not have pointed him to him. So even if each family was left to defend their own houses, Graf would be able to change things.

  Pointing out the front of the house, Rogers continued, "They are heavily armed. If you defend house-by-house, they will have a difficult time clearing the Pit, but they will wipe out many of the families. All it will do is slow them down. We need to draw them into a situation where we can attack them, causing great casualties. I don't know if this will stop them, but it will give them pause."

  "And how do you know this?" It was a younger man who had orangish red hair and brilliant blue eyes. He looked angry and ready to fight.

  "Before I joined the Harvest Guild I apprenticed to the Knights. I have seen the Knights practice and know at least how they will approach. They are heavily armored and will cut through individual defenses easily." Turning from the red-haired man to Graf, Rogers held out his hands, palm up. "But they follow a force of Merchant Guards who have less discipline, and that is our chance. They will march like Knights, but make mistakes. If we draw them into a place where they cannot escape and we cause great casualties, it may make the Knights delay their approach."

  "How does a delay help us?"

  "It gives us time to create traps and better organized defenses within the houses."

  Graf nodded. "So what did your Knight apprenticeship teach you?" Graf replied, his voice not questioning or mocking but rather curious, if a bit skeptical.

  "Well, my immediate thought is that the best spot to defend is outside your front door. The cul de sac provides us cover on three sides as we attack them where they cannot defend themselves. Is there anywhere else like that in the neighborhood?"

  "No. There are dead end alleys, but they are too small and out-of-the-way to be a place for us to attack as a group."

  Rogers thought about the layout of the neighborhood. The guards and knights knew the Pit would be a bit more difficult than other locations, hence the show of force, but they would also be cocky. Clearing the Lower Quarter so easily had most assuredly led to overconfidence. This made him think that they would just start moving house-by-house and lane-by-lane. Slow but sure.

  "So we need to somehow draw the guards and knights here, making them ignore moving house-by-house."

  "My friends and I could attack and retreat. Would they follow us?" It was a young man who had been standing off to the side.

  "You would need to cause injury. Do you have bows?"

  "Yes! We could shoot from a distance until they charge, and then we could retreat to here."

  Graf spoke to the young man. "Rao, that sounds dangerous."

  "Nothing about this isn't dangerous," Rogers interjected.

  "You brought up bows. That is another part of the plan. In fact, let me lay it out for you." Rogers looked around and walked over to a table. He grabbed three plates and arranged them into a rough outline of the cul de sac. Holding up a glass, he said, "This represents the guards." Placing the glass in the middle of the plates, Rogers continued, "The guards will be drawn here. Rao mentioned archers. This is critical. You'll need to place archers on the second floor or roof of all these houses." Rogers tapped the plates, indicating the houses surrounding the cul de sac. Looking up, Rogers smiled. "This--" He tapped the glass. "Is going to be target practice for all of these archers." He then tapped the plates, one after another.

  "And then we rush out and finish them off!" The voice came from a middle-aged man, the one who was wielding a broomstick.

  16

  Our Broken, Burning City

  As Raef returned to the library, he felt optimistic. He had solved one mystery of Ness' past. The city was connected to the east via a road--the Dragon Road--that somehow had been lost to history and yet was right there in front of everyone. Of course, it was blocked in the mountain, but it almost certainly also led to the west. Wait, Ralan had traveled along the road to Gaotteland, Raef thought. I can simply ask him.

  Ralan had been spending all his time on his balcony, peering off into the distance, doing his best to see what was happening in the Flats and Lower Triangle. The distance was too great, however, so Raef figured Ralan did it to feel like he was in control of the situation, although that was clearly not the case. All he could do was wait for Alard to return and Coode to maintain the order in the Old Quarter and for Dirk to arrange a strong defense.

  "If you want something to do, you should help me," Raef said as he approached his friend, who was indeed on his balcony.

  "I don't do well with books," Ralan replied, turning to Raef. "But some conversation wouldn't hurt." Ralan motioned to a bench. "Tell me how your studies are going. Discover any new secrets?"

  "You will be happy to know that I got on a horse to do some research."

  "Pray tell. It must have been important to drag you away from your books." Ralan smiled.

  "Well, I've been hoping to have confirmation before filling you in on several important and major discoveries, and I have evidence, so the time is right to finally shar
e what I've found."

  "Important and major?" Ralan turned to face Raef, his attention fully on what Raef was about to explain.

  "Well, in historical terms. I'm not sure what it means today." Raef pulled out the map of the world that showed the cities on the other side of the mountains, the Dragon's Teeth. "I've shown this to you before. We had talked about how there must have been a trading pass over the mountain."

  "Yes. Did you find it? You mentioned the Magic Guild blocked it."

  "I did find it, but it wasn't over the mountain." Raef tapped the map. "It's a road through the mountain."

  "Through the mountain? How can that be? We have trouble mining ore; how can there be a road?"

  "I thought the same thing, and I don't know the answer, but there is a road. The trouble is that just inside the entrance to the north of here it has collapsed. That's what I believe is meant by the Magic Guild blocking the road. They must have fled down the road from Ness and then brought the mountain down, making it impassable."

  Ralan was going to say something, but Raef held up his finger. "I've been there. The road is paved with stones, even in the mountain itself. It is wide enough to fit two or three wagons, and it has a curb of some sort. You mentioned the road to the Outlands. Is it similar?"

  Ralan paused before answering, staring at Raef. "This is unbelievable, but the answer is yes. I couldn't understand it, but the road extended for miles from Ness to Gaotteland, and it was paved in stones, even through the plains." Ralan nodded out into the unknown from his balcony. "I don't know if it extended beyond there, but it must have."

  "It does. I am sure of it." Raef leaned forward, sitting on the edge of his chair. "Things are becoming clearer. We know there was some kind of guild civil war, and that it was at that time that the Magic Guild left Ness. We also know that this is what led to the Great Migration north of the river. So right about that time, Ness was a great trading center. There was even a State Guild that managed affairs with other cities."

  "You didn't tell me that!" Ralan exclaimed.

  "There are lots of guilds that have died out, and I wanted to get more clarity on what has happened. I didn't think Ness as a trading center would be that central to our history with a mountain behind us, and the only path a treacherous path over it. But now that we know there was a road, it is clear: Ness was a trading center of some importance, but that all ended with the departure of the Magic Guild, the destruction of the road east, and the closure of the gate on this side of the river."

  "So what happened?"

  "I don't know, but I'm sure it has something to do with the creation of our guild. It all happened at the same time, and the only missing piece is our guild history."

  Ralan stood up and started pacing. "Wilhelm noted that Pietro promised to re-open the trade routes with the Outlanders, and I said I would work toward that goal, but how can I do that if the route is blocked? I assumed that he meant trading with Ness so he could have food and goods, but what if he means trading with the cities beyond the mountain?"

  "It's been centuries since that road has been closed. He couldn't possibly mean that," Raef replied.

  "But what if he did? What if Ness has been in this fortress-like location for centuries, while the rest of the world waited for us to show weakness or for us to finally re-join them? Maybe this has been a process that was borne out of the creation of the Thieves Guild and our role is to finally heal our broken, burning city."

  Raef tapped his chin. "It's possible. There is nothing I can find about the Thieves Guild, though. There isn't a chapter or book about the creation of the guild. I've looked." Ralan had stopped pacing and was looking at Raef, as he continued. "You could help me. I found the secret of the road by looking in a small book on clothing. Maybe you can help go through some books and just browse for any mention of our guild. I could then do the deeper research."

  Throwing up his hands and then collapsing in his chair, a visibly frustrated Ralan replied, "I told you. I'm no good with books. I mean, I'm barely good at anything. I ask good questions, and Alard helps me follow up with answers, but I'm no Pietro. By the gods, old Pietro would be better for you than I am. I know he liked books, as his quarters in the Merchant Tower had shelves full of them."

  While Ralan rubbed his temple, Raef just stared at him, his jaw dropped open. "Did you say that Pietro's room in the Merchant Tower was full of books?"

  Ralan looked up. "Yes, a whole wall from floor to ceiling was covered with them." As Ralan answered a dawning comprehension filled his face.

  "It's them!" Raef replied with absolute certainty. "Those are the books that tell the Guild's history and who knows what else! Can you imagine their importance if Pietro felt it necessary to keep them close?" Raef stood up. "I must retrieve them. They are the key to everything!"

  Holding up his hands, Ralan spoke up. "Wait. Do I have to remind you that half of the Lower Quarter is either burning or overrun by armed guards rounding people up? First of all, how are you going to get there safely? Second of all, how are you going to get to Pietro's room? May I also remind you that it's in my brother's tower? And finally, how are you going to transport dozens of heavy books back to the Thieves Tower without raising suspicion?"

  "I'll find a way. This is too important for me not to."

  The next day Raef was dressed in the deep blue of a Merchant Guild member. A Thief guard was with him, similarly dressed in blue. They were taking a small wagon led by a single horse from Thieves Tower to the Great Bridge. On the wagon was a large chest filled with guilders. It was a significant display of wealth, and Ralan was shocked at the response when he asked if they had money for the mission. Apparently Pietro had gathered an enormous amount of money over the years.

  The chest itself was under a tarp, and the plan was simple. As Ralan said, "Simple plans are the best plans. Remember how we freed you and Alard from the Knight dungeon." Raef was to cross the Great Bridge with a skilled guard and a story that they had been on a mission to collect the money that had been snuck into the Wretched Quarter by Harvest Guild refugees. They were to take the money to the Merchant Tower, with the tarp hiding the chest, and the guard acting as a deterrent against random curiosity. Of course, for official guards who would lift the top of the chest, the guilders would prove to be all too real.

  As the two of them approached the bridge, Raef turned to Tillson, the guard. "Do you think we will be accosted?" The nervousness in his voice was clear.

  Tillson shook his head. "I'm less concerned with guild members attacking us than running out of money after the various guards take their handfuls."

  "The guards do that? They would steal from merchants or demand a bribe?"

  Laughing, Tillson replied, "They don't call it stealing. Only thieves steal, don't you know?"

  17

  A Three-Pronged Challenge

  Orion was positively giddy when Vesper walked into his office. He pushed his chair back, stood up, and walked around to meet Vesper, something he rarely did. "Vesper! You don't look worse for wear, especially having made it through the Wretched Quarter."

  Vesper took Orion's outstretched hand and shook it. He was nervous at Orion's mood. Orion was always well-liked and friendly in his dim-witted, happy-go-lucky role in public, but his private persona was cruel and mercenary. If there wasn't an immediate goal achieved that helped his interests, Orion wasn't the type to shake a hand.

  "You are kind to overlook my bruises and weariness, Guildmaster."

  "Nonsense. You have done your job, and such is the price you paid. You are better for it." Orion waved to the couch for Vesper to sit, an honor he rarely bestowed on his Blade, even though he was Orion's most valuable guild member. "You did do your job, didn't you?"

  And there was the rub. Orion must have assumed from Vesper's presence that he had succeeded in assassinating Ralan. Vesper sat, wondering if his news would be perceived better or worse than having succeeded in his mission.

  "Alas, sir, I did not succeed in killing Rala
n, but I have even more valuable information." Orion frowned but didn't say anything. "This is going to sound unbelievable, but I assure you that it is true. I traveled along the banks of the Great River and through the Ash Fields to find this information, which I witnessed with my own eyes."

  Orion nodded. "No need to exaggerate, Vesper. Larsen is digging his own grave, so there is little that you can say regarding Ralan that will be worth more than my passing notice." Leaning back, Orion waved a hand. "Go on."

  "My first discovery is that the Wretched Quarter is inhabited by guild members of all our guilds. People doing menial jobs and who can't afford to live in the Flats, let alone the Lower Triangle."

  "Yes. Yes. Yes. I know this. This is why it's the Wretched Quarter. Our wretched guild members live in the streets there. It is sad, but it is the way it is."

  "But I discovered they are not living in the streets, and the Wretched Quarter is simply a facade. Behind the areas near the Great Bridge are taverns, town homes, and people living normally." Orion stared at Vesper, as he continued. "I daresay the lodgings are similar to the Lower Triangle." Better than the Flats, Vesper thought.

  "But it is lawless," Orion said, a tinge of uncertainty in his voice. "It is overrun by thieves."

  "It is not lawless, and it is not overrun by thieves, it is run by thieves--the Thieves Guild." With Orion's face frozen in shock, Vesper outlined nearly everything he had seen, from the Black Knights manning the walls to the clean streets and taverns in the Old Quarter to the organization of the guild members in all of the other guilds, including Craftsmen.

  At that Orion exploded in anger. "These vile thieves have infiltrated my own guild!?"

  "Sir, I'm afraid you don't grasp the gravity of the situation. They have not infiltrated the guild, they are part of the guild. They care for, feed, and shelter our guild members."