Deception

Chapter 1

          It was barely morning with fog covering the whole marketplace like a blanket. It was the perfect time for thieves to run around. Atheena looked down at the capital city of Delka from a rooftop. This always helped her calm down and focus. She didn't have to steal much today - just a loaf of bread, some fruits and two blankets.

          Quietly jumping down from the rooftop, she crept out of the alleyway and onto the not so busy streets. The more experienced thieves were already lurking around, vying for a golden opportunity. Atheena leisurely walked up to the unmanned apple stall and swiped two apples from the crates. She munched on one unnoticed, shadowed in the back alley observing the scurrying rats.

          She didn't mind relinquishing the early mornings to the oldest thieves. She had plenty of time to spare and in fact, was quite better at stealing from the masses under immense scrutiny. It was after all, how she had learnt. Atheena shook her head free of her darker thoughts. Travelling down that old, unpleasant road would result in anything but good.

          The sun rose and the streets filled up with people. Now this was a truly opportune moment for her. Thievery was very common in Delka. The nobles, so bored and rich, paid no mind to thieves. In fact, they made a contest out of it. The more one was stolen from, the richer and more desirable they looked to outsiders.

          Easily mingling in with the crowd Atheena quickly made her way around the market. It was never a good idea to linger unnecessarily. She was no longer the foolish girl of seven years ago. She darted in and out taking only what she absolutely needed. A veteran at the scene, nobody caught her.

          She picked up the blankets last. They were the hardest to conceal, so it was quite logical to steal them at the very end. Another trait she had picked up over the years. Walking with the flow, she eyed the black and blue blankets at the edge of the stall. It was a lucky coincidence that the stall happened to be located near an alleyway. However, as she went to snatch away the blankets, a pale, delicate-looking hand stopped her.

          "Don't you know what the consequences for stealing are?"

          Atheena stared at the young man, who couldn't be all that much older than her, with a stony expression. "Of course, I do," she answered. It had been a long time since she had been caught. She did not enjoy the feeling. Out of the corner of her eye, she spied the royal insignia - a leopard on a tree branch - peeking out from the edges of his cloak. "What is his royal highness doing out in the streets?" she questioned.

          The prince, the crown prince Julian actually, smirked slightly, "I'm in need of your service."

          Atheena's face instantly turned wary. "If you need to find something then you have your spiders for that. Why are you looking for me?"

          "My spiders can't find what I need," he looked at her carefully. "You know I was wondering how you got back into thievery. Your brother lost his hands as punishment, did he not? At such a young age, it should have been quite traumatic."

          She was very much on guard now. "Guess it wasn't as horrifying an experience as you thought," she responded curtly.

          Julian kept going, ignoring her statement. "Well, I got a bit curious, so I sent my spiders to do a little bit of digging and guess what they found out. Around the same week of your brother's...unfortunate incident, a young girl was taken in by the Ottys. In fact, she was trained there for at least fiv --"

          "Alright, enough!" shouted Atheena. "What is it that you're looking for?"

          Julian smiled, "An artifact referred to as Lapizasverdte."