Neena had learned not so long ago
that crime, especially around
The trick in getting things from others was diverting their attention. If you wanted to be honest and forthright, you ended up paying for it. However, if you let their own greed put them into positions they normally wouldn't be, you could ease them of the burden of their wealth without much problem.
For example, sneaking into the shop sprite-sized and stealing the sprites while the merchant was waiting for a human sized version of herself to come in was a much easier and cheaper proposition than having to come in and pay for the same merchandise. Besides, she thought wryly as she tripped the protective wards around the upstairs window, there was no certainty that the merchant HADN'T figured out she was a sprite when he'd been using his appraisal glass. If so, he'd be stupid to not have invited a mage to capture her here so he could collect a finders' fee.
Staying sprite sized, she traced a thin circle on the window with her mithril tipped dagger, then leaned gently on the circle until it fell inward on the window sill with a tiny clink. She paused, waiting for the sound of footsteps heading upstairs, then looked down in surprise as she heard noise in the alley below. She looked over the edge and saw two figures in the dark, both cloaked and just out of the light of the shop window below. She squinted hard, trying to see and hear more clearly. Obviously, some sort of transaction was going on, as she could see haggling motions going on. Finally, one figure, somewhat leaner than the other, handed over something that caught a brief, yet unmistakable glint of magic crystal. More bundles were handed to the other larger figure, each of which went into darkness of one cloak's depths to the other's. At last, a bag that gave the jingle of gold was handed back to the lean figure, who turned back up the alley to leave.
Neena frowned. Was this the merchant's contact, bringing more sprites? Who was he? The larger figure walked the opposite direction, ruling out a friend of the merchant's. This man had to be working independently if he wasn't going inside. Leaning forward even more to watch the seller walk away, she chanted quietly, "Come on, look up, you bastard…lemme see your face."
Almost as if he had heard her, the figure looked up in her direction just before he rounded the corner. Neena ducked back with a gasp, but not before she caught the face of the figure selling magical figurines in the alley.
It was
Angry tears stung her eyes as she
plastered herself against the glass to hide herself. Damn him for making me trust him!, she
growled to herself. I swear, when I find
him….no, when
However, there still were sprites in the shop below that needed to be gotten to before they were sold away. She had to get them before she left, but she needed to act fast. Without a second thought, she ducked in through the glass and flew straight downstairs. She paused at the edge of the stairwell, peeking around the corner into the room. She could see the merchant walking toward the back room curtain, where a light was still on. Alighting on the floor, she scrambled across in the dark, hiding behind display cases and other furniture on the way.
The moment she felt the chill of
dark magic, she knew she'd made the mistake
Every part of her locked up unnecessarily. The hold spell that had been cast on her made it impossible to move, whether she wanted to or not, but reflex had made her try to freeze in place while simultaneously throwing a invisibility spell. She felt the heavy footsteps behind her, but couldn't see the giant feet until they came around her into her limited field of vision.
"Surely you don’t think I can't see you," came an unnaturally soft voice above her. She felt another sweep of magic that made her shudder and dropped her invisibility, leaving her feeling almost as uncomfortable as the magic had felt. "I had expected you to be bigger, but this saves me the trouble of getting you to a manageable size."
A pale hand dropped down around her and she found she could move again, but only briefly as the fingers closed around her. Struggling for any movement at all, she grasped the handle of her dagger, only to have it picked away from her between the giant thumb and forefinger. A deliberate pressure to her rib cage from the immense thumb made breathing suddenly very difficult. She struggled harder, her desire to live overriding any need to maintain cool and focus. She could feel her captor watching her, waiting for her to nearly lose consciousness before easing up and allowing her to gasp for air. "Let's not do anything rash, little one. Your magic is not important enough to let you live should you try to shed elven blood." The face suddenly loomed blinding pale in the darkness and Neena swallowed a cold lump of fear she as lay in his palm, painfully drawing breath.
She had been wrong on two counts tonight.
The merchant hadn't gotten a mage after all.
He had gotten an artist.
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