22Disgusted, Fiona was about to turn around when she caught sight of one small girl standing next to a lady dressed in fabulous pink silk. The tiny girl, who came up only to the waist of the older woman, seized a moment when no one was looking and bumped deliberately into the lady, liberating the pink clothed woman of her purse in one movement. The lady turned at first in indignation and then in surprise as the minuscule child behind her.
The child had chosen her victim carefully. The lady squealed and picked the girl up, coddling her and ordering the well-dressed man nearby to buy the child some candy and pastries. The crafty girl accepted the gifts with an amazing smile and a curtsy, which prompted the lady to ask for a silver piece of the man. The man obliged, and Fiona laughed in amazement for the gifted child. That one would see promotion.
Promotion, thought Fiona merrily as she turned around and began to climb up the side of the building, abduction is more like it. Not that any of them would mind.
Which was true. Every child starting on the streets who was lucky enough to be found belonged to the Fairies, the lowest of the low. After that, the older and more experienced groups chose the ones that would be better for their gangs. The wars over the certain gifted children were as vicious as the ones of the best stealing places, the gold for silence bribes, and food. After everything, it came down to food.
That, and paying the Demon taxes. The Demons were the best of the best. Anyone who had witnessed a Demon steal something was killed on instant. There was said to be magical and divine intervention on their side, but Fiona had never believed any of that. All that was on their side was years of training, the best poisons and cunning. As well as fear. All of the younger groups were frightened to death of the Demons, not only for their magical powers, but also for their inventive torture methods. The taxes were paid in gold, more gold for the younger and less experienced groups and less for the older. Thus motivating the Fairies to get better faster. The tax collector had come by already that month, and was not expected for another two. Not that you'll be gettin' anythin' next time you scum! Fiona thought determinedly. This time, she would get the Demon King good and proper.
Swinging up over a large, partially painted oaken beam, Fiona pushed aside the fabric that had been cunningly painted to look like rotten wooden slats. With the faint light that came from below during the meetings of the Peasant's Resistance, The flap looked like the rest of the building: old and rotting crawling with insects.
Fiona personally thought that she had chosen a good place. Here she could listen to anything and everything said by the Resistance. Here she could keep up with the news that mattered.
The other children strewn about the hiding place rushed to where she stood, but Vermo got there first. The group watched their tall, thin, black- haired, green-eyed leader in front of them expectantly. Vermo's mischievous blue eyes sparkled as he voiced everyone's question, "Any luck today?"
"Well, I may have found the best of the flock, but before I indulge, what did you bring home to me, ragamuffins? I'm not half starved." The entire group looked sheepishly away from their leader, and several of them cleared their throats nervously. Fiona arched an eyebrow at Vermo. "Nothin'?"
"Fi, there was something. Actually, we'd had a good day today. But them Framp showed up again today. He took everything we had. Even the silvers from under the floor boards."
"Framp?" Fiona said quietly. The entire group knew this was the way the girl got angry, quietly. Framp was the tax collector for the Demons. The little scab was good for one thing: finding money and taking it from younger children. The bully had no more courage than he had prestige among his group.
"Did you try to stop it?" Fiona said trying to keep her anger down. The group nodded some producing scars on their upper arms and faces.
"Aye, we did," said a smaller member, and skinny boy with a shock of blond hair, "he 'ad Crabby and Zid wid him, though. Against those two, we're nothing, even big Brack over there." He said, pointing over his shoulder at a muscular boy of about sixteen, who was massaging his breastbone.
"Why have they come again this month. By their standards, we were all right for another two months. There's something going on that we haven't heard in the Resistance council. Something is happening inside this city, in the country of Ollanee. We need to find out what that is." Fiona turned to her band and said, "I'll be right back, I've got to visit Cloud and Midge. They could tell me some more."
Vermo sighed exhaustedly. "All right Fi, be careful." Fiona smiled and went back the way she had come.
Cloud and Midge were leaders of two different groups that were allied to the Dragons. On opposite sides of the city, they were a pain to walk to every week, but better that than be betrayed by a neglected ally.
Cloud looked up in surprise as the black haired thief walked silently into the room. Through the darkness, Fiona saw sleeping bodies and smelled the faint aroma of fresh bread.
"Fiona, did they come to you to?" Fiona was taken aback. Cloud was never so straightforward. Usually, he dropped subtle hints like a courtier and smiled a charming smile that usually got what he wanted. His manner now suggested unease. Fiona could understand that.
"Yeah, they did. You paid your taxes this month, right?"
"Aye. So did Midge, and Jran, and Cho Kim. All of them. Somethin's up, somethin' bad."
Fiona nodded. "I know, and I'm tryin' to think what. Did you send any spies after them when they left?"
Cloud scratched the back of his ear. "Nah, I wasn't there. Was lookin' for new recruits."
Fiona snapped her head up to look at the tow headed bow in front of her. " I wasn't there when they came either. An' I was doin' the same thing you were." Both boy and girl stared at each other in bemusement.
"Right, send someone over if you find anythin' else out, ok?"
Cloud nodded and said, "If I had food, I would gladly share it with you."
"And if I had gold or safety, I would share it with the world."
Only the slight rustle of fabric told Cloud that the green-eyed girl was gone.
"He tell them to give money and food. I not there, they tell me this later."
Fiona looked at the girl in front of her. Cho Kim was two years younger and two inches shorter. The girl's slanted, almond shaped eyes and glossy black hair would have gotten her anything she wanted anywhere else but the streets. Cho Kim's pretty face was twisted with a mixture of contempt, confusion and worry. She was short and had the accent of the people far to the east, where she had been born.
"That is what I was tellin' you about. There are similarities to each robbery. In every one else's group, the leaders weren't there. The robbers were Framp, Crabby and Zid. But no one went after them to see what they said to each other." Fiona sighed in exasperation, "I wish I knew what was goin' on!"
A voice from the crowd around her said. "I followed them!" Several of the group members looked annoyed as a tiny girl pushed her way to the front. Fiona stared in amazement. It was the girl she had seen robbing the lady in pink silk!
"What did you hear?"
The little girl spoke in a blur. "Well, I was followin' as close as I could get, an' I heard the skinny fellow talkin' to the great burly ones. He was sayin' that the wizards were getting' real rough an' greedy, always whinin' to the king about there being not enough food for their fat stomachs, not enough jewelry to cram on their stubby fingers, an' all that. Then the biggest fellow says that if they want to rule a country, they need two things, magic and cunning. Then they get to talkin' about who's gonna be who in the new court, an' about how many slaves they're gonna have. That sounds real bad to me."
" Wizards? Would could they mean? The only wizards other than the king's are the." Horror sunk in. The whole band came to the same conclusion in the silence that ensued.
"The Argrulien."
The Argrulien were sorcerers, infamous men and women who went out of their way to destroy farms, cause floods and draughts and famine. The country of Ollanee was in turmoil because of thievery, murders and kidnapping, and the absence of a king made it even worse. Many people thought that it had been the Argrulien who had killed the young King Nethry in the prime of life, but the doctors in the castle had held that there had been no magic at all. The King had died from consumption, leaving no heir or Queen to continue with the ruling of the country.
Fiona looked down at the small girl in front of her and asked in a strange voice, " What's your name?"
The little one shrugged. "Don' have one."
"All right, then I'll name you. I call you Dama, which means clever. If Cho Kim agrees, you can come with me to join the Dragons."
Unsurpressed gasps of outrage that one so young should be promoted so soon escaped the bunch in front of Fiona. Cho Kim turned a dangerous eye on her band. The children quieted down. Fiona held back a faint smile of amusement. What made Cho so good was that she could look as harmless as any one of these children, but unlike them, her temper was dangerous to anyone who harmed or insulted anyone inside the band.
Cho nodded at Fiona, which was all the permission the tall girl needed. Taking Dama roughly by the arm, she exited the hideout, leaving plenty of worry behind.
Curiosity showed on the faces of the group that Fiona had left more then three hours earlier. After introducing Dama to the group, Fiona struck on to the most serious business. The whole story was told in less than a minute, and confusion rained for twice as long until Fiona moved away from the flap door and hit the wall with her palm. "We need help, though in this war."
"Uh, Fi, did I hear you right? Did you say war? With the Demons? ARE YOU BLOODY INSANE?"
Fiona turned to her friends. "Yes, Vermo, war. Just think. They've taken the taxes twice in one month from us, and they've done it for every other band. That means that they're trying to starve us. And by starving us, they must have some other resource planned then the lowlier groups. They're linked in with the Argrulien. That's the only logical explanation for any of it."
'All around the dingy little room, Fiona could see the shocked and frightened faces of her loyal band.
"Fi, do you realize what that means?" Vermo had walked up to her and was speaking quietly so as not to alarm the group anymore.
"Yes, Vermo, I do." Fiona looked down at her feet and mumbled, "It means that the kingdom will be taken over. The Demons themselves are bad enough, but together the Demons and the Argrulien can rule the country. It means that unless we do something, we're all going to die."
Vermo looked at her warily, "And what are we going to do?"
The beautiful green eyes of his friend looked up to him determinedly. "We're going to fight." Fiona ran over to the large wooden crate that served as a table. With a piece of parchment and a pen (stolen, of course) she wrote and read aloud as she did so.
"To His Excellency Jokenn the Murderer of Assassin's Cliff, We, the Dragons of Ollan City have recently made a shocking discovery. The Demons are banding together with the Argrulien to form a Guild that will soon take over the country. Unless something is done to stop them, the life and freedom of every hardworking thief, murderer and Black Apothecary is at stake, not to mention those of the everyday world. We are prepared to fight this battle, sir, but we cannot do it alone. Children cannot fight against sorcerers, not matter how good we are at thievery. But if we combine forces, my Lord, and strike together in this war, we are sure to be victorious. I ask not for every man you have, but for a few trustworthy (in a sense) and stouthearted men who will stop at nothing to gain what they desire. This is a mark of a good criminal is it not? I am prepared to pay you sixty percent of the spoils we collect.
Yours in thievery,
Fiona Fastfoot."
The whole gang looked amazed at their leader's daring. No one in any of the gangs had ever thought to contact Assassin's Cliff before. There was said to be an entire kingdom of thieves, murderers, villains of any type. Now the look on the faces around her was of wistful hope.
Fiona met Vermo's eye. They each saw what they were thinking on the other one's face. Maybe, just maybe, if I play my cards right, we can win this thing. Fiona looked at her band that were talking excitedly and making up their pallets to go to bed. I won't let them die. I'm their leader, I'm supposed to lead them so they won't get caught or killed, and that's what I'm goin' to do. THEY WILL NOT DIE!"