by Joe Kuster
“In my realm, we have flying, uhm… bubble carriages? Are those ze right words?” Abby asked.
TJ shrugged, and Rachel just looked bewildered.
Rachel replied, “No idea, Cupcake.”
“Cupcake?” Abby asked, looking confused.
She grinned. “After earlier, I get to give you a nickname. So… Cupcake.”
“Why Cupcake?” Abby asked.
Rachel winked mischievously. “Because I got to lick the icing off you.”
Abby blushed scarlet. “It doesn’t always taste like sugared strawberries. He cheats with magic.”
“Which part? You, or his—”
“Hush, someone is coming,” TJ hissed.
Heavy boots clomped along the paving stones below. In response, TJ concentrated on casting one of his new castings. The detection spell caused a minor shift in his vision as a glowing aura around the church became visible.
All around the building’s white stone exterior, a magical smoke wafted from the ground. The strange visage followed the extensive stonework before gathering in pools just above the slate roof. Tendrils of fog danced atop the church, sending little blobs into the sky where they dissipated into the night air. TJ could clearly see steps leading down to a basement. The magic seemed thickest at that point and seemed to spread out from there.
As the man approached the church’s perimeter and checked that the door was locked, there was a flash of blue light that momentarily caused a ring of visible sigils in the air. There had also been a strange glow coming from the man’s pants pocket. TJ didn’t know the first thing about avoiding enchantments, but the blue sigils had seemed to vibrate with power.
TJ whispered, “I think he’s got some sort of magical key in his pocket. No idea what happens without it.”
The man continued his path across the little courtyard and leaned against the railings of the far building.
TJ raised his hand, groping around with his magic, but the man was too far away for any of his non-lethal talents. Which was probably just as well since tonight was simply to figure out how the church’s magical security system and the occasional walk-by of the various guards worked.
It hadn’t taken long to figure out that the church paid the guard to keep an eye on their grounds, which Rachel informed him was something many shop owners did as well. The patrolmen had to be on duty anyway, so if no one told them what route to take, they could collect some extra pay along the way.
Taking a small ball bearing from his pocket, he tossed it where it would land down the stairs to the basement. His throw was spot on, but he never heard it land. He also hadn’t seen it bounce. It had just gotten close, and he’d lost sight of it.
Frowning, he tried again, aiming a bit further away. He heard the metal ball smack against the paving stones, then bounce once more, then nothing.
Whispering, he asked, “Does anyone have any food other than the F-I-S-H I brought?”
Faith’s ears twitched his way, but she didn’t show any sign of recognition.
Rachel shook her head and admitted, “I ate the chocolate I brought already.”
“I have something,” Abby said and produced a half-eaten pastry.
Tearing off a chunk, he used his magic to fling the corner of the sweet roll in a perfect arch that sent it tumbling down the church’s stairs.
It took several minutes, but he watched as one of the gray rats scampered along the nearby street, zeroing in on the smell. As it approached the stairs, the animal disappeared. After only a few seconds, the rat returned, carrying the bait in its mouth.
“I think the building we’re looking at is a glamour,” TJ said.
Rachel frowned. “So, we have no idea what the church really looks like, or if it’s actually empty. Those dark windows might just be an illusion.”
“We need to know what it looks like inside if possible,” Abby said.
Peering down at the shadow cat that was demanding his right hand, TJ crunched through his options. The sigils hadn’t flared when the rat had entered the area of effect. So, he guessed that they would fire only when the key was present, or perhaps the spell had been modified to ignore smaller animals. Unfortunately, the building was just a bit out of his familiar’s telepathy range.
“Faith, can you fly down and take a peek? Search the stairwell or try to look into a window and then let me know what you see,” TJ asked.
Comfy.
More scritches.
Having anticipated this precise objection, he reached into his pocket and retrieved a rolled-up piece of waxed paper. He then removed the spell he had put on it. Instantly the smell of salted fish permeated the rooftop.
Faith shifted, releasing his hand and began pushing to try to get the mackerel.
“After. Just avoid being seen,” TJ said.
Irritating birdman.
TJ glared at the cat until it looked away.
Fine.
Her shadows shifted until they formed into black feathered wings. Being clever enough to avoid dropping in view of the bored guard across the street, she leaped off the back of the roof. Moments later, he saw her sauntering from shadow to shadow, her tail twisting and curling as she went. She paused as a rat scurried by, and TJ winced. He’d never depended on her when distractions were present.
Flicking her tail angrily, she turned her head away from the rodent, then slipped across the road. Reaching the church’s perimeter, she dropped out of sight. One moment she was there, then the next she was gone.
The seconds stretched to minutes as TJ’s nerves began to fray. He was about to jump down and look for Faith as she reappeared, hovering over the church roof. She dove down the alleyway like a bat, then landed gracefully atop a rat. With a flick of her shadows, she cut the animal in half. She then twisted away, the tip of her tail curling back and forth in a declaration of her superiority.
TJ shook his head softly. “My familiar is a demon. A tiny, adorable little demon.”
In moments, she’d slipped back up to the roof, completely unnoticed. She made a beeline for her meal, ignoring her warlock and the humans.
“Well?” TJ asked.
Eating.
Abby and Rachel broke into giggles.
“For not actually being a cat, she’s good at pretending,” Rachel said with a grin.
Waiting impatiently, the trio watched as Faith stripped the flesh from her dinner. Only once she’d stopped and begun grooming by rubbing her paws over her face did anyone speak.
“Well?” TJ tried again.
Darkness.
“Darkness? What’s that mean?” he tried.
No light.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I know what darkness is. Was it entirely dark? Everything inside their bubble?” he asked.
Yes.
All darkness.
Felt building, but not building.
Everyone shared a confused look.
Abby guessed, “So, ze building zat we see, is not ze building you felt?”
Yes.
“Did you find a way in?” Rachel asked.
Faith twisted her head to the side, as though giving the question serious thought.
Stairs down to door.
Locked.
TJ rubbed his chin. “Do you think you could have forced it open? Or maybe used your shadow to unlock it?”
Need to disable lock.
No break.
Tingle of fire magic.
Her response caused a sour expression across the group.
“So… you think the door would explode if forced open?” TJ asked.
Yes.
Not certain.
Rachel replied, “The guard usually just breaks doors down. I don’t know the first thing about bypassing locks. Do either of you?”
Abby glanced at TJ, but he quickly shook his head.
Sighing, they settled back into observation mode. Unfortunately, the only thing that happened aside from the guard occasionally taking a leak in the alley was the new guard
replacing him sometime in the small hours. There were no gaps in coverage. Someone was always watching the basement steps. Unfortunately, street-side vendors would be filing into the area when the sun came up, so there wasn’t any time it would be vacant.
Yawning, TJ turned back to the group. Rachel was still awake, but Abby was fast asleep and nestled under the noblewoman’s cloak. Rachel was slowly running her fingers through the other woman’s hair while she maintained her watch.
Deciding to get off the roof before it got light enough out that anyone would notice them, TJ motioned back toward the inn. Getting a nod in return, Rachel gently coaxed Abby back to alertness by whispering in her ear. The concubine blinked confusedly, then planted a sleepy kiss on Rachel’s lips. Rachel’s eyebrows shot up as she processed what had happened, and she looked at TJ with panic evident on her face.
Suppressing a chuckle, he could only grin as he scooped up the sleepy minx and unfurled his wings. The redhead gave a surprised squeak as he carried her straight off the edge of the roof. Fortunately, he was able to ease them off the three-story building with only a few firm flaps of his wings. He sprung into the air the moment she was on her feet, then met Rachel on the rooftop.
“I didn’t expect her to do that,” Rachel hissed.
TJ gave her a broad grin. “So… you’re open to all forms of love when I’m in the middle, but the moment she aims it at you, you’re not comfortable?”
Rachel frowned, looking pensive. “You don’t seem upset. My father would have been furious if someone kissed Mother.”
“Why would I mind? It’s nice to be reminded that you’re loved or cared for. Which I’m pretty sure was all that was. Although, I suppose the real question is, how do you feel about it?” TJ asked.
She adjusted her cloak, lost in thought for nearly half a minute as she fiddled with her buttons. “She’s a good cuddler, and it was nice to have her next to me. I’ve never kissed a woman before, and I guess it just surprised me.”
He shrugged. “Just let Abby know if you aren’t comfortable. If you’re expecting me to get jealous, remember where I came from. My own parents weren’t allowed to be married, and both had their own on-and-off side relationships. Some with our captors. Some not. A few of those were same-sex. It’s not really a thing worth thinking about to me. There are shitty parts of my old life, but I’m ok with the love-is-love mantra. Find warmth and happiness where you can because you never know when your time will come. I tend to think this realm is too uptight, personally. The fact I’ve only seen men and women as couples here means that there’s probably a lot of secretly unhappy people.”
She pursed her lips in an impossibly cute way that forced TJ to provide her with a kiss on the nose as he scooped her into his arms.
Giving a soft giggle, she said, “Well, any child of mine will be yours. I’m fairly certain the Duchess would have my head if that weren’t the case.”
“She’d probably put us both on a pike,” he agreed with a chuckle. “It’s weird how much she was obsessed with having humans with bigger essence pools. At any rate, I don’t mind if you and Abby enjoy each other’s company. Besides, she’s stuck with us as much as we are with each other, and she’ll keep our secrets. It’s really whatever you want there, love. I just want you both happy.”
Not giving her a chance to prepare, TJ stepped off the back of the roof. She gave a startled yelp and dug her nails into his back. Again, he was able to flap fast enough to ease them to the ground.
Rachel smacked his chest. “Warn me before you do that!”
TJ just grinned back at her. He had no intention of ever warning her unless he had to. It was simply too fun to watch grounders panic in freefall.
Sliding her to her feet, he briefly debated if he could give her wings of her own. He poked inward, but his magic seemed uncertain. TJ assumed he could craft her or Abby the flesh and feathers if he copied his own, but the magic imbued into them seemed beyond him for now.
He scrunched up his face in thought. He really needed to just sit down and spend a few weeks testing the limits of his abilities. He hadn’t even bothered to try to make himself stronger or faster yet. He’d debated it on their travels, but he ran the risk of making himself even more clumsy while he adjusted.
Given how uncoordinated he already was, he’d need to have time to get used to whatever he did. That, of course, meant that any adjustments couldn’t happen until Serina’s tasks were complete.
Setting a path back to their lodging, they slunk through the back alleys, following Faith as she scouted ahead. She led them on a detour around a vagrant sleeping off his drink, but after a few minutes of travel, they were across the roadway from their room.
TJ started to step into the streetlights, but a small voice stopped him.
Danger.
Faith bolted across the road, negotiated around the stables, then flapped her way level with their room’s window.
Intruder.
The trio exchanged nervous glances but realized that Faith was correct when a shadowy figure eased out of their second-story window on the other side of where the shadow cat hovered.
They briefly held up something metallic, which made TJ growl in recognition. They had his royal crest. That meant they’d pried apart the lockbox hidden in the floorboards that had his gold as well. He’d planned on exchanging it tomorrow, and the entirety of his wealth had been in that box.
The thief shoved the glittering metal into a bag. After knotting the cords, the burglar swung the heavy sack over onto their back. The thief didn’t hesitate as they leaped across the buildings’ gap and then started running atop the adjacent rooftop.
In an impressive move, they swung across the signage and dropped to the ground. From there, they disappeared down an alley at a sprint he knew the other two couldn’t keep up with. Even he wouldn’t be able to catch them on foot.
“Rachel, keep Abby safe. Call the guard, and don’t go into the room until you’ve got backup. Faith, you’re with me so I can send you back with directions,” TJ yelled.
He sprung into the air and flapped madly, trying to catch up.
He had a thief to catch.
Chapter 26
TJ let out a furious string of curses as he pumped his wings. A rooftop whipped by uncomfortably close as he rolled to the left and put on a burst of speed. He kicked off a brick chimney to change directions as he then took the next right.
In the street below, he could see the figure in a dark cloak sprinting down alleys. They were insanely fast. Far faster than he’d expected. It wasn’t more than his maximum flight speed, but they shifted directions so quickly it was hard to keep up. Faith was doing a better job at cornering, but she was flapping with everything she had to keep up in the straightaways.
Seeing that their target was heading into a darkened slum section of the city, he guessed that they would probably go to ground soon. Seeing them take a break-neck turn into a long, narrow path behind some houses, he decided to make his move.
He passed his plans to Faith and tucked into a dive. Using just the barest edges of his wings to keep him stabilized, he shot through the air like a ballista bolt, taking them square in the back with his shoulder.
There was a loud series of cracks as he smashed them to the cobblestones. The sack tore free, and a glimmer of gold and coins scattered across the ground.
His momentum fetched him up against a graffiti-covered stone wall with a painful thud. The agony nearly caused him to black out, but he somehow managed to stay conscious. He tried to pick himself up, but his right arm wasn’t working.
Gritting his teeth, he scrambled to his feet and slammed some healing into his dislocated shoulder. It thudded into place with a horrendous grinding sensation. His fingers wove into a pattern, and words of power slipped from his lips. Targeting the ground, the alleyway exploded into darkness. TJ could still see fine, but the thief would be blinded and not see him coming.
In response to the sudden black fog, the hooded figure whip
ped left and right. They desperately groped around, trying to scoop the weighty gold disks back into the sack.
“You stole from the wrong person, asshole,” TJ yelled as he swung his boot firmly into their face.
The thief was taken entirely by surprise, and their hood shot back as they were knocked onto their back. Catching his first glimpse of the burglar, he was surprised by the pale face of the woman, and her hood caught on something to either side of her head that made him assume she was a high elf with sharply pointed ears.
Releasing the sack, the presumed elf squirmed her hands under her backside, then sprung into a flip. She broke into a run and quickly cleared the spell’s area of effect.
Seeing her cue, Faith landed at the end of the alleyway a hundred feet away.
Prey.
The thief missed a step as she processed the black cat with outstretched wings of shadow. However, her indecision only lasted a second as she bolted, deciding to slip past the animal.
Faith was having none of that.
Her wings whipped out and shifted into large spider legs, each four feet long and clad her shadows around her to give the visage of a demonic spider big enough to eat a pony. Bringing all her new appendages under her, the familiar rushed the rogue.
The transition had caused an instant change in their opponent’s perception of the cat’s threat level as the woman began shrieking and backpedaling. Faith gave a loud hiss as she launched forward like a thing that could make a creature from the pit wake up screaming.
Pivoting to the stone wall, the woman leaped, trying to throw a hand over the lip, but Faith snatched her ankle with a tendril of shadow. The woman smacked her face into the stonework and tumbled to the ground.
TJ was there in a flash and used his kinetic force to hold the woman down.
“Get it away from me!” she screamed as she curled into a ball.
Faith bared her fangs as her shadow limbs held her suspended above the thief’s face. The woman devolved into unintelligible sobs. TJ understood the reaction; Faith looked pants-pissing terrifying. So much so, he was hoping she didn’t give him night terrors in the process.