“What do you think we will find inside?” asked Tix, glancing over his spectacles. Edon had never understood how Tix could see in the night with them, but Tix claimed they were a ‘special kind’ that he had invented. Edon did mentally admit though, he didn’t understand most of the things that Tix made. “I’m not sure. I doubt it’s much that’s valuable given it’s in the Hobble. It’s likely a front for something else, like our kitchen.

  The group had decided on sneaking into the building the next night the mysterious man was expected, rather than ambushing him in the open. Tix, Edon, and Rahn waited on an adjacent roof as Dims searched around the building for a way in. The cool night sky was clear this night, which unsettled Edon. He preferred to work under cloud cover. The sprawling city was well lit under the full moon, which made it harder to stay hidden on the rooftops. The soft chirp of a city sparrow came from the building’s direction. Dims’ signal. Edon, Tix, and Rahn silently made their way down to the street, and crept around the side of the building. Glancing quickly first to make sure they weren’t seen, Edon waved the other two into the front door of the building, and then quickly followed inside. Dims quietly shut the door behind them.

  “Did you search the building already?” Edon asked, looking at Dims. “Aye. Not a soul in the building, not even a bedroom. Some sort of old storage house it seems, dust covers half the place.” As Edon’s eyes adjusted to the dimmer light, he looked around. A small dining table sat in the main area, with three chairs around it. By what Edon could discern in the dim light, only one of them had been used recently. Maybe he is working alone. A small staircase went up to the second floor, going along the back wall. Small bookshelves and cabinets were along the rest of the wall. Some hung open, most had cobwebs draped across them like a sheet. Nothing was on the bookshelves save an odd candelabra or rotting book. Edon motioned to Rahn and Dims. “The two of you stay down here and wait for our friend. Find a good spot to hide, but make sure he gets inside before you make your move.” The two nodded affirmatively, and went to the corners of the room to find a spot. Tix followed Edon as he made his way up the stairs. As he took the final step, Edon found the upstairs area even more sparse.

  Moonlight streamed in through the few windows, creating beams that made the cobwebs seem like a translucent maze. No furniture adorned the floor, just the odd scattered item cast across the floor. However, one pathway straight to the back of the room was free of cobwebs, leading directly to a small chest. By the looks of it, Dims had already taken the courtesy of leaving it open for Edon, lock cast to the side. Edon crept up, and peered into the container to see what lay within. At the bottom sat a small parchment book, an inkwell, and a leather bound tome. Tix’s small hand darted past Edon’s face, grabbing the volume before Edon could protest, flipping through it. Edon could see Tix’s eyes go wide, his face sitting directly in the moonbeam coming in from the small window. A sparrow call came from downstairs, signaling them. Edon turned to go back down the stairs.

  “How come we didn’t hear any struggle?” Tix whispered, puzzled. Edon shook his head. “I need to remember to get you to come on more of these, you spend far too much time in your shop tinkering. Rahn’s soul abilities can create a bubble of silence.” Tix paused for a moment, then followed Edon, clearly still thinking. As they came back downstairs, Edon saw Dims tying their mystery man to a chair, and Rahn sitting in the corner, playing his dulcimer. As he stepped off the stairs, he broke the bubble of Rahn’s spell, now hearing the soft tones of the instrument. “Nobody else with him?” Edon asked. Dims shook his head. “He surrendered instantly, dint want any fighting.” Looking their mystery man over, Edon wasn’t surprised.

  He was a slim man, and with Dims having cast the hooded robe off, Edon could see the clothes he was wearing. They were by no means pompous, but more in the practical style of a merchant. The man’s hair was messy and disheveled, as if he had not had a clean bath for weeks. The clothes were similar, covered with dirt and wrinkled. Edon sat in the chair across, and spoke to the man. Time to finally get some answers.

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  “We can start this simple. Who are you, and why are you walking through our streets to come here once every three days?” The man nervously looked around, and spotted Tix flipping through his book. “My name is Fitan. I came here to deliver that book to an interested party in Siltar.” The Silver Capital? Edon thought. This certainly is more interesting than I had expected. Edon motioned for him to continue. “I’m not quite sure how, but we were given away before we landed at the port. My employer paid smugglers to bring us over, posing as a passenger ship. Before we landed, members of the Silver Kingdom’s military were waiting for us on shore. Our captain would have run, but they already had the port gate closed. There was no chance we were going to fight our way out on a passenger vessel.” Fitan paused, catching his breath. “And the book?” Edon asked, glancing back over to Tix. By now, Tix had sat down on the floor, and was examining the book closely on each page, rather than flipping through it.

  “The book is an old volume on soul techniques, the type of text that is illegal in the Empire. What my buyer wanted with it, I’m not quite sure. When we got into port, I managed to slip through, I’m not sure how. There were crates of goods on the ship, some history books, spices, and various things designed to disguise the true purpose of the journey. I’m not even sure if the captain knew my true intentions.” Edon pointed to the ceiling, motioning to the building. “This place?”

  “A designated rendezvous. I’ve been coming here for a few weeks, but my contact never showed. I suspect he may have been apprehended as well. This was the last night I was coming, in the chance that he did.” Close call.

  “How’d you get out of here? We watched.” Fitan nodded to one of the bookcases. “Bolt hole underneath there. There’s a mechanism underneath to get outside the city. I’ve been staying outside the walls, hiding at night.” This building could be useful…good to know. Edon strode over to Rahn, who was still softly playing the dulcimer. Nobody would be able to hear them from outside the building even if someone shouted. The effect, however, produced a faint echo, like sound bouncing around inside the bubble of Rahn’s spell.

  “What do you think?” Edon asked, gauging Rahn’s reaction to the events. As often was, Rahn wore a neutral expression, not giving away his thoughts. He replied in a whisper. “Seems like a good opportunity to me. Some rich aristocrat wants to pay under the table for a contraband book? We’ve done jobs in Siltar before. We’d have to leave someone in charge of operations here, but it wouldn’t be too long. Two months likely.” Edon shook his head nervously. “If we get caught, we’d be hanged most likely.” Rahn raised his eyebrow, looking Edon in the eyes. “Compared to our normal activities? Not like the silverspears would let us walk free if they caught us doing our normal business.” Edon furrowed his brow, knowing that Rahn was dancing around the issue. “This counts as treason, as well as the fact that the silverspears are already looking for him. They wouldn’t think twice about slicing our throats.” Rahn shrugged. “I would do it, assuming we can get paid. That being said, this is your crew. We’ve always gone by whatever you’ve decided since you took the reins.” Edon turned back to the table, thinking to himself.

  Even with the seemingly low risk, this would easily be the most dangerous job they had undertaken with him at the helm. He preferred to keep operations quiet, pinch things nobody would miss, plan things until you could read them like a book. This would be entirely different. Anyone joining would be risking life and limb, a traitor to the crown. Payment most likely great, but ultimately uncertain. The crew remaining in Hogun would be alone for a time, left to continue operations without a regular leader. Yet, there was something about this that Edon couldn’t ignore. He couldn’t fail like he had before, never again he had promised himself. A chance to undermine the Empire that had taken everything from him? How was he to decide between that and those who he cared about risking their lives? Edon made his decision, and strode back over to Fitan.

  “If you’d be willing to entertain my idea, I have a proposal that I believe could benefit everyone here.”