“Not trying to ruin how much fun we are having here, but how the hell are we supposed to steal the gem if we aren’t even allowed inside?” said Vosh as he emptied the shovel into the barrel.
“We will find a way,” said Rizzo. “We just have to wait for an opportunity... Or make one.” He knew Vosh was already thinking this job was impossible, but there was always a way. They just had to be patient and keep their eyes open.
“Uh huh,” said Vosh. “I think the real reason you are here is so you can make sure Lodin doesn’t end up bedding Selena. I’ve seen the way you look at her since the very first time you saw her at the inn.”
“It’s not like that,” said Rizzo. “Selena and I have grown close, but not in that way. She’s more like a sister to me. If anything, I’m trying to protect her from Lodin.”
Vosh didn’t look like he believed a word of what he said, but Rizzo honestly felt she wasn’t the one for him. She was a talented woman and probably the most beautiful person he had ever seen, but he just didn’t see her like that. Maybe at one point, he did, but as he got to know her that feeling faded. Not that there was anything wrong with her though.
“I’m sure,” said Vosh teasingly. “But seriously, how are we supposed to steal this gem when we are outside shoveling horse shit. She still didn’t even tell us where the vault is at.”
“Maybe she did,” said Rizzo as he remembered her slipping a piece of paper into the back of his pants.
He pulled it out and unfolded it. Vosh put down the shovel and walked over to him, trying to read the note over his shoulder. On one side it was a map of what looked to be the inside of the Lancaster house and on the other was a written note.
As you have probably already found out, I’m not going to be too much help on this job. I’ve done my best to outline a map for you, leading to where they keep the vault. There’s a red circle around one of the walls that has a fake bookcase which serves as a secret door. Lodin showed it to me one day when he was showing off his family’s wealth. He made me turn around when he opened it, but he never left that area, so there must be some secret on the bookcase itself to open it. Unfortunately, that’s the only information I have for you. Good luck.
“Well, at least now we know where the room is at,” said Rizzo, trying to be positive.
“It doesn’t do us any good if we can’t get inside,” said Vosh hopelessly.
“We are one step closer though,” said Rizzo.
“One step closer to what?” They jumped at the sound of Bill’s voice behind them. Rizzo crumpled the note and palmed it quickly before turning around.
“To being able to pay off some old debts,” said Rizzo, trying to think quickly.
“You won’t be if I see you without a shovel in your hand again,” said Bill seriously. It was obvious he took pride in his work, even though he was mistreated.
“I’m sorry,” said Vosh. “It won’t happen again.” He grabbed his shovel and went back to work.
The rest of the day went by without either of them getting a chance to examine the perimeter of the house. Bill paid them and walked them to the gate, watching them every step of the way. It seemed that he was very loyal to the Lancaster family, regardless of what he thought of Lodin. Rizzo was realizing more and more how difficult this job would really be.
When they made it back to the guild, Garen was waiting for them in the meeting room.
“What the hell is that smell?” said Garen disgustedly as they sat down. He tried covering his nose to block the stench, but it did little to help.
“That is the smell of failure,” said Vosh, not happy.
“You didn’t expect to complete this job in one day, did you?” asked Garen. “Like I’ve already said, I’ve been trying to get that gem for years now. It even took Selena weeks before she was able to find out where the vault was.”
“He’s just being dramatic,” said Rizzo. “But it’s going to be a lot more difficult than we originally thought, seeing as we can’t even get inside the house.”
“What do you mean you can’t get inside the house?” asked Garen.
“They have us cleaning horse shit outside in the stables,” said Vosh, clearly upset. Garen tried to hold it back, but he couldn’t help laughing. “That’s not funny.”
“It’s a little funny,” said Garen, still laughing. “Sorry to hear you had a shitty day.” He laughed for a while longer but eventually calmed down. “But I see your point. I hate to say I told you so about this not being easy. This is where you excel though Rizzo, doing the impossible. Have you come up with any ideas yet?”
“Not even close,” said Rizzo. “There are too many people around and we are closely monitored while we work. And even when we are done they escort us out of the gate.” He hated admitting it, but he was at a loss for what to do.
“Well, keep your head up,” said Garen. “I’m sure you will think of something. If not, then at least you found another career path.” He was relentless with the jokes.
“Still not funny,” said Vosh. “I’ll be sure to bring you a souvenir next time.”
Chapter eleven
The next day Rizzo woke up and started his normal routine, running the obstacle course a few times, then going to train with Will. Now, after the few months of training, Rizzo was becoming quite the swordsman and Will was no longer able to just toy with him and get away with it.
Today his mind was distracted during their sparring match, thinking only of the job. Will noticed his distraction and punished him for it, deflecting one of his thrust and then using his sword to sweep the legs out from under him. He fell hard to the ground, knocking the wind out of him.
“If your mind is not in the battle, then you are going to get yourself killed,” said Will, sounding upset but also concerned. They had been training together for months now and never once did Rizzo lose focus like he did now.
“Sorry,” said Rizzo as he got to his feet. “I’ll do better. Let’s go again.”
“What’s on your mind?” asked Will, not moving to a fighting stance. “Maybe I can help.”
Rizzo knew he couldn’t tell him about trying to break into the Lancaster house. They had started becoming good friends over their many training sessions and he had grown to trust Will, but Will’s sense of honor would cause a problem.
“I’ve just been thinking about a book I read recently that has me puzzled,” said Rizzo, trying to keep away from the real subject of what was distracting him.
“I know what you mean,” said Will. “There’s one war hero that I’ve read about that always amazes me with how he captures cities. He was best known for his siege tactics where he would starve his enemy until they were forced to surrender. One thing you should always remember is that the most important thing to people is food.”
His attention was drawn away as the sound of a door slamming echoed throughout the courtyard. Will looked towards the direction of the sound, anger on his face. It didn’t look like he was expecting any guest, and as if to confirm he walked over to the weapons rack and grabbed a sword.
“Wait here,” said Will as he walked towards the front of the house.
Rizzo was not a coward and refused to leave him to check out the disturbance alone, so he grabbed a sword as well. He picked it up with little effort, the months of training had paid off.
Will looked back and saw the weapon in his hand, then nodded his approval of him wanting to help. Rizzo knew that even if it was an intruder, he probably wouldn’t be needed. He pitied the unfortunate soul that decided it would be a good idea to break into Will’s house.
He hesitated as he realized it could be someone from the Thieves Guild. Then decided against it as they would never make that much noise.
Will walked determinedly through the house towards the front with Rizzo following close behind. When he entered the common room of the house, he immediately let down his guard. Rizzo froze as he saw who it was. Taren was walking around with a giant hammer in his hand, searching the room.
It was not someone he expected to see.
“Father?” asked Will, surprised. “What in the world are you doing here at this time of day?”
“I cracked my damn hammer in the forge today,” said Taren in his gruff voice.
“Wait, Taren is your father?” asked Rizzo, even more surprised than Will was.
“And how do you know who I am, boy?” asked Taren, squinting his eyes at Rizzo. “I have a good memory for anyone I make weapons for, and you are not one of my customers.” He felt his heart skip a beat as he realized his mistake. Why couldn’t he have kept his mouth shut.
“We’ve never met before, but you are well known.” Rizzo was scared that he might recognize him from the day he stole from Phil’s. Taren shrugged, accepting that as a good explanation.
“Is this the student you’ve told me about?” asked Taren. Will nodded his head yes. “My boy tells me you are quite the fighter.” He was thankful for the compliment, but he was still nowhere near as good as Will.
“Only because your son is a good teacher.” Replied Rizzo, making Taren chuckle proudly.
“He better be, I paid good coin to make sure he was trained by the best,” said Taren proudly. “I never expected him to get so good though. There were a few times that he embarrassed a trainer I hired for him. It’s a shame that he never wanted to follow the family tradition and become a blacksmith though.”
“I still know how to forge father,” said Will.
“Only because I made you learn the craft before you decided on anything else,” said Taren. “And don’t act like the work you did in the forge didn’t help out your fighting in the end. Look how strong it made you.” Rizzo couldn’t argue there, seeing that he was almost as big as his father. “Hey, since I’m obviously not going back to the forge today, why don’t you show me what you’ve taught this kid?”
“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea,” said Will. “What do you say, Rizzo? Care to have a real match to see how far you’ve come?”
“Why not.” Replied Rizzo, having wanted to test himself for some time now since they had only ever done light sparring.
“Well, sounds like it’s settled then,” said Taren as he motioned outside. “Lead the way.”
When they got to the courtyard Will walked over to the weapon rack to put away the real swords they were carrying. He then grabbed a blunted short sword and handed it to Rizzo. Then he grabbed one of the blunted great swords for himself, a massive weapon that he easily lifted with one hand.
His eyes opened wide as the thought of Will swinging that sword at him played out in his mind.
“Don’t worry,” said Will, seeing his hesitation. “The blades are dull, and I promise not to hurt you… That bad.” Rizzo did not like the idea of being crushed by that huge sword. “Make sure to keep your guard up though, I’m not going to be taking it easy on you. You ready?”
“I hope so,” said Rizzo, bringing his sword up defensively.
Will got into an offensive stance and performed a swift three-strike combination, forcing Rizzo back. It took every bit of skill he had to block one attack after the other. Combinations flowed together as if they were one, with Will striking at him repeatedly.
Rizzo knew that if he didn’t do something, this match would be over shortly. The power of Will’s blows kept knocking him off balance, forcing him further back. It took everything he had to withstand the onslaught. He couldn’t even begin to think about striking back.
Eventually, he started seeing a pattern to the attacks, just as Will had taught him, but the furious pace kept him from countering. Will was not joking when he said that he would not take it easy. He could see sweat start dripping down Will’s face, but he continued his pace, blow after blow raining down.
Rizzo did his best to make sure none of the attacks hit him directly. He learned early on in his training sessions that if he blocked at the right angle, he could shift the momentum of the blow without having the full weight crash down on him.
Rizzo could see that the strikes were getting slightly slower, and more sluggish. But he, on the other hand, was just getting warmed up, having been training constantly for months now. The hard work in both the guild training room and sparring with Will greatly paying off. Rizzo slowed his speed to make it seem like he was tiring as well.
Will stepped back for a quick respite, keeping his guard up in case Rizzo tried to attack. Rizzo acted as if he needed the respite as well and lowered the tip of his sword to rest on the ground, knowing that letting his guard down in a fight would infuriate Will.
Taking the bait, Will cut his respite short and renewed his attack, swinging wildly. Rizzo was patient, waiting for a chance to strike. He saw an opportunity as Will brought his sword up high to perform a powerful downward slash, most likely intended to hit Rizzo’s sword hard enough to knock him down.
Abandoning his act, he dashed to Will’s side to avoid the blow and make an attack of his own. The move surprised Will, and he knew there was no way to bring his sword up in time to block. His experience kicked in and he let go of his sword with one hand and grabbed Rizzo where he was holding the hilt of his sword, stopping his swing as if it hit a brick wall and then jerking him closer.
He panicked, unable to break away from the monstrous grip. Will used his inhuman strength to force Rizzo to his knees, then brought his sword around with his other hand, pointing the tip at his chest, clearly declaring him beaten.
“I honestly thought he had you there for a moment,” said Tarren, clapping from the courtyard. Will released him and backed away, proud of how well Rizzo had done.
“That was impressive,” said Will, winded from the battle. “I had not expected that sudden burst of energy at the end.”
“Thank you,” said Rizzo, happy with the praise. “But clearly my skills are nowhere near yours. The only reason I came close to winning was because I made you believe I was tiring.”
“So, that was an act,” said Will, realizing now that Rizzo was not breathing hard anymore. “Very impressive. Always remember that in a real battle it does not matter how you win. The only thing that matters is who’s standing in the end.”
“And you remember that just because I let you fight does not mean I will allow you to go into some stupid battle and get yourself killed,” said Tarren. Rizzo thought it was funny that someone thought they needed to be protective of Will. But then again Taren was still larger by a fair amount. “I don’t care what you do, as long as you’re not risking your life in some king’s war.”
“Don’t worry father,” said Will reassuringly. “I don’t plan on fighting in any wars. But someday I will travel to Meropis to enter the fighting tournaments.”
“Fighting tournaments?” asked Rizzo, puzzled.
“Yes, he won’t shut up about it,” said Tarren. “He’s been saving for almost his entire life to go.”
“Have you never heard of Meropis?” asked Will, the puzzled look on Rizzo’s face answering his question. “Meropis is the largest city in all of Avlodon and home to the famous fighting grounds were tournaments are held every year. Warriors travel from leagues away just to compete for their chance at glory.” He had seen that look before, in the eyes of Vosh when they were younger every time he talked about the Thieves Guild.
“You are planning on leaving Sartram then?” asked Rizzo, not wanting to see his friend go. Especially since there was still so much more to learn from Will.
“Not for quite some time,” said Will. “The voyage would cost a fortune, and I’m paying for it on my own.”
“Damn right you are,” said Tarren stubbornly. “I’m not going to pay to send you off somewhere that I’ll probably never see you again. You can’t blame a father for wanting to keep his son around for as long as possible. Don’t you agree, Rizzo?” Rizzo was not sure what to say, never having a family and not understanding what it felt like.
“Don’t you go dragging him into our business now,” said Will, coming to Rizzo’s aid so he didn’t have to answer
. Tarren scoffed but didn’t push the question further. “And I’ve already told you I think it’s best if I make it on my own anyway.”
Rizzo saw how much Taren cared for his son and was a little sad that he never had a connection like that. It made him wonder who his parents were, having never even met them before.
“I think that’s enough training for one day, don’t you think?” asked Rizzo, wanting to leave before this conversation got any deeper.
“Ya, I have to get going anyways,” said Will. “I’m going to help hand out some food for the people in the Slums. I hear last time there wasn’t enough to go around, and it caused some threats to be shouted from the crowd.” He didn’t know it, but he just sparked an idea inside Rizzo’s head, which he couldn’t wait to share with Garen and Vince.
That night Rizzo gathered Vosh and the guild-masters in the meeting room to present his idea. He was already seated at the table when the two walked in, smiling from ear to ear.
“I know how we can get into the Lancaster house,” said Rizzo eagerly, unable to wait for them to even sit down.
“Well, ok then,” said Garen as he pulled out a chair and sat down.
“You told me back when we were breaking into the prison that the only way the guards would abandon their post would be if the city was under attack right?” asked Rizzo.
“Yes, I did,” said Vince, not sure where he was going with this.
“Well, maybe the same idea will work to get the guards and people away from the Lancaster house,” said Rizzo, causing everyone to look at him with blank stares. “If they have a large enough attack at the front gate the nobles will have to use their personal guards to defend it.”
“You brought us here for that?” asked Vince. “The guild has a lot of resources, but not nearly enough to start a war with the guards.”
The Mage's Path (The Age of Legend Book 1) Page 14