A Thiefs Tale

Fog settled on the dark waters of the Creyts, lending its cover to the small boat slowly moving

down the river. While strange, it wasnt uncommon for a fisherman to be plying his trade late at night as

certain valuable fish could only be caught when the stars were overhead. But the man on this boat was

no angler, the mask covering the lower half his face betrayed such information.

The engine of the small craft hummed softly, adding its steam to the surrounding mist. Slowly

the man, Gavin, moved the tiller changing direction. As the boat maneuvered to an alcove on one of the

walls on either side of the Creyts, Gavin decreased the speed to an infuriatingly slow pace.

Grabbing the side of the walkway in the alcove he stopped the boat completely, tying the vessel

to a cleat. Gavin hopped out, hoping it would still there when he returned and casually followed the

walkway to a stone staircase. He was in one of the wealthiest districts of the city, a place that knew no

hunger or fear of disease. The people who lived here were aristocrats and the obscenely wealthy upper

class. Even this late at night those people were still awake, carousing, for they didnt have to wake with

the sun to work.

Gavin strolled down the cobblestone street, careful to avoid the light given off by the gas lamps

that lined the street. His destination tonight was one of the many mansions within this district, this one

in particular was owned by a Lord Atkinson. A powerful nobleman who was unafraid to use his influence

and his collection of blackmail for the most petty of things. Already the polished stone structure of

Atkinson was within Gavins sight.

But he didnt approach the mansion, instead turning down an alley by the building next to the

estate. This building too belonged to Atkinson, the head office of his shipping business he owned. While

his house was surrounded by a spiked fence and filled with armed guards the office building was

relatively abandoned during the night, protected only by a locked door and an easily bribed guard.
 Gavin took out the heavy iron key he had acquired from the absent guard and slid it into the

door. He could have just picked the lock, but he wasnt one to waste effort when an easier solution

presented itself. The building was dark save for the gas lamp light filtering through the windows.

A few reception desks were on the first floor, cubicles with cheap furniture populated the

second and third floors, while the fourth was the definition of decadent. Gold trimmed walls, padded

velvet chairs, electric lights on all the desks, coffee machines, copy pens, and a plethora of paintings and

busts.

Moving through the posh office Gavin resisted the admittedly strong urge to snatch a few

souvenirs, the less evidence of a theft the better for this particular job. He examined the many windows

the line the walls before choosing one next to the end of the building. A quick pop of the latch and some

creative acrobatics had Gavin on the roof. He didnt bother or worry about closing the window, during

these hot summer months windows were frequently opened during the day and many times forgotten

to be closed.

The distance between the office building and the estates roof was too great to jump, even with

a running start and a disregard for stealth. However, the distance between the office and one of the tall,

smooth pillars placed alongside the fence was much more manageable.

From his vantage point Gavin looked down at the patrolling guards. He took his time to study

the patrolling men, their illuminated paths kept their eyes from adjusting to the dark of night making the

night shrouded Gavin virtually invisible.

Their patrols took longer due to their sluggish steps, their senses dulled from sleep deprivation,

and laziness caused them to make far fewer passes as they should. While the state of the guards were

bad for the man living in the estate, it was a boon for Gavin.
 As one guard rounded the corner of the estate and with no sign of another Gavin made his leap.

The distance between his soft body and the hard cobble stone street ensured he wouldnt be walking

back if he fell from such a height. Injuries sustained from such a fall would ensure his death, whether he

would suffer and agonize for a few days before or die upon impact was left in the hands of fate.

Adrenaline surged through his veins, his hearts pounding engulfed his ears, an audacious grin spread

across his covered face.

This was far from Gavins first dance with the Mistress of Death, in fact they waltzed at least

once a week, but he always managed to elude her kiss. Gavin adored his dances with the vixen in black,

its the only time he could truly appreciate that grand ballroom.

With one foot planted firmly on the top of the pillar he once again cheated her out of a kiss, but

the dance was far from over. If a guard spotted him Gavin would soon be overwhelmed with the mans

colleagues with little chance for escape. Without stopping or even setting down his other foot Gavin

hopped off the pillar into the estate grounds, ending his trip through the air with a roll to disperse the

momentum he had built up.

And without skipping a beat he started to scale the side of the manor till he reached the roof. He

traversed the steep sloop around the building before dropping onto a balcony that had a magnificent

view of the river. The room connected to the balcony was Atkinsons personal study, within it was

Gavins target for the night.

There was no keyhole on the outside of the balcony door that barred his entrance, it would be

silly if there was. Not many thieves, not the good ones at least, tried to enter a building through a

balcony as there were only a few possibilities to get inside.

Breaking the glass and unlocking it from the inside was the quickest and easiest, but also let

every guard in the neighborhood know just what you were doing. One could also use specialty tools to
move the bolt that held the door shut. But Gavin decided to once again try the lazy mans way, turning

the knobs to see if they were unlocked. Sure enough they were.

The studys walls were lined with bookshelves and paintings, placed in the center was an ornate

table surrounded by large padded chairs, and off to the side was a large desk with golden leaves adoring

it and a tall painting behind it. Guessing the subject of the painting was easy if one knew the great ego

the rich possessed.

Gavin silently approached the flat Atkinson who looked down upon him. Pushing the painted

man and the gold frame he lived in aside revealed a safe the painting was supposed to guard. The safe

was black with the seemingly mandatory gold trim, eight rollers with numbers engraved on them kept

others from getting to the valuables stashed within.

A hundred thousand possible combinations now blocked Gavin from his goal. He memorized the

position the rollers were in and then quickly ran through the list of likely combinations he had compiled

during his information gathering. Combination after combination failed; the default combination,

Atkinsons old work safe combination, and one that a maid saw him use all failed to loosen the handle of

the safe. Gavin was about to try a new method when, as luck would have it, the last one on his list

turned out to be correct, the nobles own date of birth.

Gavin left his professional demeanor and planted his face in his palm. He couldnt decide what

he was more upset about, that someone would use such a clich code to guard their valuables or that a

master thief such as himself didnt try that combination first.

The safe was filled with stacks of money, gold bricks, folders, and books. Gavins target for the

evening, the Black Book which was ironically bound in light brown leather, laid at the back of the safe

hidden behind the other contents.

 With the book secured Gavin closed the safe and put the rollers back to the position they were

in before his visit. It wasnt long before he was back on the roof looking for a good escape position.

Unlike when he entered the estate Gavin couldnt see where many of the guards were and if one was

about to round a corner. Once again it was up to his luck to save him.

Jumping from the roof of the manor he performed the same stunt that got him into the estate.

Flying through the air, planting one foot on the fence pillar, dropping to the ground, and ending with a

roll. Standing up Gavin had the urge to bow as was proper to do when one ended a dance.