Closed Stealing from Sleepers (Shadyn)

[Sayana]

Fall 56, 515 – Alvadas Nightside

Yester-‘dawn’ Fabel had suggested that Sayana take a day off. She had been focusing so hard on learning her lines and memorizing the story to her big performance that she had started dreaming about the play in her sleep. Reluctantly she agreed and managed to get a fitful sleep in the brightness of the day at the Cubacious Inn. As much as she loved Syna, the beautiful sun goddess wasn’t giving her any rest and after only four bells she was awake again and unable to fall asleep.

Bleary-eyed, the Eypharian left the Inn dressed in a black dress with a dark purple cloak covering her. She sought the darkness, anything but the blinding bright Syna who was so firmly fixed in the sky. Stumbling along the winding streets of Alvadas, she hardly paid attention to where she was going. As long as it felt like Syna was slowly descending, or there was the illusion of that, then she was headed in the right direction. Sayana smiled grimly when she reached the strip of dawn and dusk after a good half bell of walking, and sighed in relief as she reached the nighttime half of the city. She was almost tempted to curl up in the streets right then and there and fall asleep, but something else caught her eye.

Under the cover of darkness there were people on the streets walking about. And yet, something looked off. In fact, they oddly reminded Sayana of how she had been walking earlier, wandering, and with little to no focus. Curiously, she started to trail one man who seemed particularly disoriented. With her cloak she kept her arms covered so as not to attract attention and she stayed about half a block behind him, tucked in the bend of the road or in a side street. He seemed in a daze, walking slowly and stopping at odd times. Once he turned around and she quickly slipped into a doorway so as not to be seen. Breathing slowly she kept her back against the door for a chime or two and kept as flat as possible in the little bit of protection the doorway provided.

When she dared to come out again, she looked about the streets but it seemed as though he was gone. With a frown, she continued in the direction that he had last been going and when she rounded the bend in the street she spotted him once more. However, now he was sitting on a bench in a little park just off the cobblestone street. Squinting hard, she could see that his head was tilted. By his expression he looked to have fallen asleep and was maybe even drooling.

With a devilish grin Sayana slowly crept forwards. For once she was quite glad of her dark clothing as it helped conceal her in the nighttime streets. As she tip-toed the last couple of steps she thought about what frightening thing she could say that was perfectly innocent at the same time. Once she was situated precisely behind him she clasped her hands hard upon his shoulders and yelled, “Fire! Fire!”

The stranger woke with a start and in utter confusion. “What? Where?! Where am I?” Sayana on the other hand couldn’t contain herself and laughed loudly at the reaction. With a grin and a wave, she skipped off into the darkness leaving him alone in his bewilderment. However, even as she was leaving she realized he had said something odd. He hadn’t known where he was. Hadn’t he just sat down there and fallen asleep? Or had he been asleep for much longer than she had originally thought?

[Sayana]

After that first little prank, the Eypharian was feeling much more awake and started to seek out another victim. As she roamed the darkened streets she pulled up her hood so as to walk more discreetly. Some of the people she saw were clearly awake since they talked and gestured animatedly, while others seemed like they were in a daze and walked slowly without direction. While she had never actually encountered someone who sleepwalked, she had heard it was possible and now she questioned if the extended darkness had somehow prompted such behaviour.

Sayana spotted her next target, a woman this time. There were more people on the street now, but the woman was distinctly looking ‘out of it’. The Eypharian looked around trying to plan out her best move and although it was dark, there were more people out and about with lanterns and the like. She kept to the shadows at first, sneaking along the wall of a building with her hood up, but then she stepped out into the moonlight and took off the hood. It was better to attempt to blend in with the other people at this point and she tried to casually walk amongst the other Alvads while slowly making her way towards her target.

It was hard to walk causally when she had a specific destination in mind, and it was harder still to determine whether she was doing a good job and avoiding attention. Still, she tried to ease the tension in her shoulders and slowly pursue the sleepwalking woman. As Sayana neared her, she slowly matched the woman’s pace to start walking alongside her.

“Good evening my dear lady. How are you this fine night?” The Eypharian asked in a soft but friendly voice while placing a hand lightly upon the woman’s shoulders. The sleepwalker tilted her head curiously, though not fully understanding at first. “Hello, how may I help you?” The sleepwalker finally replied though her words were slow.

It was strange to be talking to someone who was most likely asleep, but Sayana continued nevertheless. She looked over the woman who was dressed rather well and spotted a pretty jeweled bracelet. “You have a fine bracelet there, would you care to show it to me?” The Eypharian asked while maintaining a pleasant tone. The sleepwalker slowed to a stop and then fumbled with the piece of jewelry. While keeping her other arms concealed, Sayana held out a high hand expectantly. The sleepwalker placed the bracelet in her hand and the Eypharian looked at it curiously.

“It was lovely meeting you Miss,” Sayana spoke with a smile and dropped her hand to her side still holding onto the bracelet. “Have a good evening.” With a wave of her other hand she started to casually walk away.

“Hey! Stop thief! Give that back!” Shouted an onlooker who was clearly not asleep. Petch. Sayana dropped the bracelet and bolted down the street. Clearly she hadn’t been as subtle as she had intended to be and just like any other common thief she instinctively panicked when caught. Her boots pounded upon the cobblestone as she ran and she ducked into an alley and turned sharply again in attempt to lose any pursuit. By now her hood was up once more and she was keeping to the shadows. She slipped into yet another small street and pressed her back against the wall panting. She listened for signs being followed but either she had been quick enough or not worth the effort once she had dropped the jewelry.

[Sayana]

She was somewhat shaken by the encounter, having not expected to be noticed or caught. Yet there was something enticing about it all. It was the whole idea of proving one’s skills and being better, quicker, and defter to obtain a prize. The bracelet might have had some sentimental value, but who would be that much worse off with a few less mizas?

Sayana made sure that her next target was alone. She stalked him carefully and kept to the shadows while staying at least half a block away. He was of average height and dressed rather plainly though it was hard to tell where he kept his coins. The Eypharian tried to get a little closer but when he turned aimlessly she quickly ducked out of sight.

Treading cautiously she continued following him and her eyes searched his clothing. Maybe he hid his coins in pockets, though it might be unfortunate for her if she had to get that close and personal. He was wearing a coat of sorts and she presumed that it probably got chilly being nighttime for so long. That’s when she spotted a slight bulge in his coat pocket. Aha, that might be something.

She trailed him, ever so slowly gaining upon him. Despite the fact that she was sure he was another sleepwalker, she didn’t want to accidentally wake him and have it all go to waste. Her pace began to match his so that her footsteps wouldn’t be heard as different from his own and soon she was directly behind him. Suddenly she had an idea. What if she just cut the pocket so that the coins would fall out? Swiftly she drew one of her small throwing daggers using her mid hand and with a high she tugged just slightly at the cloak he wore in preparation to do the theft.

With a swift and practiced hand, she cut the fabric and with a low hand she was ready to catch the coins that fell out. However, there were many more coins than she expected and more than half of them clattered loudly upon the cobblestones the instant the pocket was cut. Oh shyke! She took the handful of coins that she had managed to catch and dashed away as the sleepwalker slowly awoke from his dreams.

When she had safely fled the scene Sayana looked at the handful of coins and inwardly cursed. It was hardly worth a thing. There were two silvers and maybe a dozen copper coins for all her efforts. Still, she had succeeded and managed to get away. Though the running was both exciting and exhausting.

Alright, one more. As she sneaked about the darkened streets she spied a rather tall manShadyn. She kept herself well covered by the cloak and tried not to make any sharp movements. While his size might be seen as intimidating, he might also have something of value. The Eypharian’s eyes searched for various possessions on him and most importantly his money purse. She’d need to catch him alone before she made a move but she could at least start by tracking him and following him until she knew for sure there wouldn’t be anyone else around.

[Shadyn]

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Shadyn was lost. That was certain. He was trying desperately to focus on where he wanted to go, but considering he had never seen the place, that was rather difficult. Ionu was not giving him any help…perhaps because he had a telepathic eagle breaking his concentration every few seconds.

You know, Shadyn, it would go much faster if you were up here. I can see all the streets from up here…it’s actually rather fascinating watching them shift and change all the time. You can –

Shadyn cut him off by enragedly signing commands – Silence! Thinking!!

He shook his head wearily. Onlookers must have thought him insane…wandering aimlessly, making absurd gesticulations to no visible person…then again, many of them appeared to be somnambulists, so they probably weren’t thinking much about him anyway. They were also useless in giving directions…he had given up on that a long time ago. Besides, the illusions would have already made their directions obsolete anyway…

Making a left turn, he walked for a couple minutes before coming to a dead end. Fustrated, he took a seat on an overturned box and tried to picture the description he had been given of the restaurant. He had already forgotten the name, however, so that availed him little. Shadyn swatted at the feather dangling just in front of his left ear absent mindedly, watching a torch from across the street cast shifting beams of light off of the gold decoration on his katinu.

This isn’t going to get you anywhere. Just try to picture ANY place, and maybe that will work, he told himself. He closed his eyes and rested his chin on his chest, picturing some quaint ale-hall or sensibly refined restaurant.




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[Sayana]

As Sayana followed him, she made sure to keep a good distance behind him. The darkness of the night provided a fair bit of cover and occasionally when he slowed to look around, she simply had to remain motionless in the shadows next to a wall to avoid attracting attention. Even as she tracked him with light footsteps, she tried to figure out whether he was indeed asleep or not. The tall man was certainly more animated than most of the sleepwalkers. Now and then he made distinct gestures with his hands and he seemed frustrated. Crazy? Maybe. Though the dancer couldn’t help but wonder if he was merely an actor trying to memorize lines and movements. Maybe he so immersed in it that he started dreaming about those lines.

He turned left around a corner and Sayana quickly dashed to the turning point so that she’d both gain on him and also make sure she didn’t lose him to a second turn. She couldn’t see anyone around yet she still tried to stay near the shadows to avoid attracting attention. As she peered around the bend, Sayana smiled as she caught sight of him once more. However, it was at this point that she noticed something rather pertinent. Unlike her other victims, this man carried weapons strapped to his back. Two swords and an axe. She wondered how good he was with them.

The Eypharian continued to trail him, now getting a little closer than before. The street was certainly empty and all she had to worry about was whether he turned around. Almost just as she thought that, he began turning around to sit on a box. Shyke! With light feet she danced around him so that she stayed behind his back as he turned. It was only when he sat down did she realize the reason. They had come to a dead end. With her back pressed against the wall, she was now only a couple paces behind him. Her heart hammered in her chest but she was able to slowly calm down and keep her breathing quiet as he sat upon the box for a few moments.

So he was armed. Maybe he was good, maybe he was not, but she didn’t want to take any chances. Sayana crept forwards and quietly drew one of her small throwing daggers in her left high hand. Just as she was about to bring the blade to his throat, his hand twitched at a feather near his ear. Immediately she snatched her hand back, yet he hadn’t seemed to notice anything. She kept a pace behind him as she tried to determine the best way to disarm him. Then his head started to droop. Aha, it seemed like he was finally falling asleep or into a deeper sleep.

She gave him an extra chime to get settled in and then finally approached. Instead of going for his throat, her high left hand brought the dagger to rest its cool metal upon the back of his neck, while simultaneously gripping the handles of his weapons with her other high and her two mids.

“Where do you keep your mizas, kind sir?” She whispered in a soft silky voice into his ear. “I should like to have them.”

She was quite certain she had effectively disarmed him since if he tried to reach for a weapon she’d already be holding its handle. Meanwhile, her low hands ran up and down the sides of his cloak seeking out pockets or bulges. If he was sleepwalking, she hoped she might get him to talk yet at the same time avoid waking him.

[Shadyn]

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A voice crept into his thoughts. It was soft enough that for a moment he thought it was Xarrt…except that Xarrt was not a woman. He noticed hands…multiple hands…sliding under his katinu to grab the hilts of his swords and the handle of his tomahawk. Processing this for a moment, he realized that this woman was an Eypharian. And she had the upper…and lower and middle…hand in the situation. But she hadn’t grabbed his waterskin. Of course she wouldn’t. Who would care about a worn old waterskin? Hehe…thank you Leth! Before he acted on this line of thought, he checked the lighting. The full moon was up…though he was certain it was actually daytime…but he was sitting on the edge of a shadow. It was barely distinguishable as a shadow at all…merely a bit more dim than the surrounding area. Still, it was out of direct moonlight. All he had to do was lean back…

Lifting up his head, he locked eyes with her, but made certain to keep his gaze soft. Perhaps she was a hypnotist who thought he was in a trance. Or maybe she thought he was a sleepwalker. Either way, she had addressed him directly asking for his money…not the habits of a normal thief.

“No mizas…pinions from Wind Reach, though. I can trade them for gold mizas. I have over forty of them tucked somewhere in here…”

He moved his right hand down to the leather waterskin, which he hoped looked enough like a large traveler’s leather coin-purse to keep her fooled. Situating his thumb on the nozzle of it, he slowly brought it up to chest height, where one of her hands was waiting to receive it. Instead of dropping it into her grasp, however, he whipped it up to his mouth and opened the nozzle, letting the crystalline water that glowed like starlight drain into his parted lips. He swallowed quickly then leaned backwards off of the stool into the shadow…and dematerialized. The look of shock on her face as his weapons and entire body vanished from within her grasp was quite satisfying. Xarrt apparently noticed the fact that Shadyn had deemed he was in enough danger to use Leth’s Water.

Shadyn! I see the aggressor! I’m coming down before they can escape

Shadyn, personally, would have declined such action, but Xarrt was too high up to hear his voice, and being immaterial prevented him from using hand signals. Thus, he grimaced slightly when the massive bird slammed into the earth at the mouth of the alley, letting his immense bulk serve as a living wall to the Eypharian. Wind Eagles…ho boy…I love them, but sometimes I wish they were just a bit less protective… Standing – though she would not have known it if he had been doing handstands –, he spoke with authoritatively, letting his powerful voice echo in the alley as he paced around her, being careful to remain out of direct moonlight.

“It would be wise for you to learn the appearance of an Inarta Endal. Our weapons our not our main defense…we leave that to our Wind Eagles, such as my mount right here. It is fortunate for you that I have instructed him not to interfere in my affairs without my command…if he had his way, you would be severely crushed and sliced under his powerful talons at this moment. Now…the question remains, what should I do to the person who was going to rob me of a rather large sum? It would seem such a shame to kill you, though attempting to restrain my weapons deserves that. Come to think of it, I haven’t fed Xarrt dinner yet, and since we will be travelling a great distance soon he could use the extra energy…Heh. Well…in Wind Reach, we would take from you a sum equal to what you saw fit to try to take from me…plus extra when it is considered that you assaulted an Endal and not just another citizen. Of course, we are not in my home, so…there are other options…I was looking for some entertainment tonight. This seems like a welcome diversion. Might actually make for an interesting night. So…what do YOU think would be a fitting result for your attempted crime, hm?”

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[Sayana]

Just as Sayana thought that she had him pinned down, he gulped down the water and she felt him dissolve within her grasp. In fact, for a tick she felt her own body tingle as it started to dematerialize. Surprised and shocked at the sensation, she jumped out of the way and immediately she felt normal again. Yet her victim, her target, was no longer to be seen. He was an invisible man. Or was he merely an illusion?

As she was trying to figure that out, a giant eagle suddenly landed at the mouth of the alley. Sayana swiftly drew her remaining daggers so that she had her two small throwing daggers in her highs and her slightly larger ornate dagger in her right mid. Her lakan remained at her hip, surely sending out danger signals to her beloved. She was blocked in, since she had followed him into this dead end, yet her eyes still darted about looking for potential exits.

Then came the speech. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the ‘inarta endal’ spoke. She needed to find a way out. Sayana caught sight of a couple back doors exiting into the alleyway, but they were close to the eagle and if she moved over there it would surely attract attention. Though it wasn’t the eagle she was really worried about. A good throw of a dagger would surely sink into its enormous wings and thus disable its flight. No, she was concerned about the invisible man. She couldn’t fight something she couldn’t see and if he wasn’t just an illusion, then he was far more dangerous than the eagle.

She spotted a couple of windows near the dead end. Angling her back to her destination, she looked up towards the eagle and feigned fear upon her face. Trembling slightly she lowered her weapons and stepped back and back and back. Jackpot. Her low hands reached the windowsill. Yet, unfortunately for her, his speech was coming to an end.

“You--You want me to fight your eagle? But its talons, and its beak…” Sayana spoke in a quivering voice. That’s what he wanted, wasn’t it? A display of cowardice and fear? In the meantime her low hands were fiddling with the window. It was stuck and didn’t want to open. Probably because no one wanted a lovely view of the alleyway. As she struggled with it, she realized he might have noticed something was up and thus attempted to distract him with large clumsy movements of her daggers. “I was only wanting a couple of coins. It’s not like I’m any good with these blades. And didn’t I ask you politely?”

Finally. The window seemed to budge just enough. “Just ask your eagle friend over there.” She gestured to the giant bird, then used that tick of distraction to spin around and wrench open the window all the way, and clamber up and over the window sill into the house. After tumbling inside, she quickly got to her feet and slammed the window shut once more.

As much as she’d like to hide inside the house so that the bird couldn’t get her, she had to keep moving otherwise the invisible man would. The Eypharian ran through the house and soon found the front door. Taking a tick to catch her breath, she slammed it open and dashed out onto the streets. However, instead of choosing a house immediately opposite, she ran into a store just over a bit. She hoped that if the bird hadn’t spotted her, she would be harder to find by not taking the most obvious choice. But to her dismay, the store owner was there when she slammed the door shut. “What in the--?” “Shhh, I’m being chased by a magic user.” She spoke urgently as she hushed him. She was vaguely aware of the dislike for magic within the city and sought to use it against her pursuer. In any case, it silenced the shopkeeper.

[Shadyn]

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The sudden change in the woman from confidence to fear was to be expected...but it was too perfect. Unfortunately, Shadyn could not very well intercept her when immaterial, but he did have one advantage -- he could run straight through the walls and furniture. He shouted a few instructions to Xarrt in Nari, as he fled through the walls.

He nearly died laughing. It was extremely humorous, at least from his point of view, and extraordinarily fun. He stayed right on her heels as she ran, thinking herself free.

Following the shadows of the buildings, he crossed the street and strolled through the door. He heard her announcement...which was not exactly true since he was merely using divinely blessed water, not exactly magic. But, just as he prepared to speak, a devilishly wonderful idea popped into his head. Striding over to where the frightened storekeeper stood beside her, he stepped into the exact spot where the man stood. Existing in the same space as another soul felt odd, but was not as odd as he expected it to be. When he spoke, the words seemed to come form the storekeeper himself...except they were obviously Shadyn's voice.

"Did you think you could outrun me? I do have certain distinct advantages when it comes to pursuit, especially in a place like this."

The storekeeper leapt nearly two feet into the air at the sound of a person speaking from seemingly within him. Shadyn strolled around the shop as he continued to speak.

"No need to be frightened...this isn't magic. This is the power of the god Leth. And no need to flee...it won't do you any good.
You are quite a crafty little lady, I must say. But…with the exaggerated fear aside, I would like a sincere answer to what should be done about your attempted robbery. And yes sir, this lady did try to rob me, thinking me a sleepwalker, I suppose.”

He walked over into the moonlight that was streaming through the display window, rematerializing but remaining little more than a silhouette…though this time with his tomahawk dangling from one hand.


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[Sayana]

When the shopkeeper ‘spoke’ it wasn’t in his earlier frightened voice. Instead it was in the distinct drawling tone of the man she had been running from. For a moment her eyes widened in surprise. Was he a ghost possessing the poor man? No, it was something to do with the water. A ghost wouldn’t have had to use something like that. But he had clearly gone through the door and was so immaterial that he was in the same space as the man. He wasn’t just invisible, he was immaterial.

As he continued speaking, Sayana held her blades warily. She could tell that he was moving away from the sound of his voice but to where precisely, she didn’t have the skill to determine. Her blades were ready should she need them but she still wasn’t sure if she could even use them on the man. Leth’s water? Was the magic tied to Leth in some way? Using his words as clues she tried to pick out the exact nature of the magical power he seemed to possess. Half of her wanted to believe this was all merely an illusion sent from the god of illusions, or even from Fabel himself, but it seemed too self-centered and vain for a true trickster. He clearly wanted to be proven the hero whereas a trickster wouldn’t care for such things.

At his accusation, she spoke up harshly. “Liar! First you steal from me while being invisible and now when I try to take back what is rightfully mine you accuse me of theft.” Turning to the shopkeeper she said, “Go. He’s a dangerous man. I’ll protect your shop.” The already frightened shopkeeper didn’t need much to be persuaded to leave and soon bolted from the store.

Yet during the exchange, the man’s shape had suddenly formed where the moonlight streamed in through the window. Had it been intentional? He seemed calm and unconcerned. Yes it was intentional. Yet the moonlight struck her as odd. Hadn’t he just spoken that the water was blessed by Leth?

She noted the axe in his hand. Was he any good with it? “Your moonwater… Once someone knows what it does, it’s no longer a secret. It wouldn’t take much to spread the word to a talented thief, or poisoner…” While she merely spoke a threat, she realized just how valuable such a thing would be to a true thief.

“As for ‘punishment’, how about we throw some weapons at each other?” She nodded at the axe he held in his hand. “And my punishment is that you get first throw. Unless, of course, you’ve never tried throwing something like that.” There was a slight mocking tone to her voice. “But we do it outside. Outside in the moonlight.”

[Shadyn]

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Shadyn, spun the blade lightly in his hand for a few minutes, remaining silent. The shopkeeper had not seen enough of him to identify him, so that was a moot point. As for a battle…she was certainly able to wield more weapons, and could probably do so with at least a decent level of skill…she was too eager to fight to be unused to her weapons. He, on the other hand, had only seven weapons – his tomahawk, talon swords, and four dire-bear claw daggers. The tomahawk was most certainly his most deadly weapon, but also his only true throwing weapon. Obviously his daggers COULD be thrown, but not only did he have no experience with daggers, but – aside from the surprise of pulling them out of his billowy pants – they were little more that trophies that were slightly useful. He could use his talon swords…but to truly have an advantage with them, he needed to use both…something he had never done. If only he had brought his bow, but of course not. Out of ALL these weapons, he didn’t have the one he needed…

“Oh I can use it…and you didn’t find four of my weapons –” he paused to extract the four daggers with his left hand by slipping his fingers through the gold rings on the ends…they might not have been useful to him, but there was no way she could know that in the dark – “nor another bag of useful materials blessed by Leth. But…I do not wish to kill for such a trivial matter. What’s done is done…though I do detest your lie…nevertheless, I have my request. It is rather simple, really…I was looking for a good place to pass the night. Alehouse, or fine establishment…I do not care. And you will be my guide. I think that is fair…so long as there is no double crossing…”



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