Violet stood in her room at the thieves guild in Lostia, her hands full of different metal plates of armor.

  The limestone walls had an off-yellow almost white color. The room had a twin-sized bed, a dresser, and a standing mirror. But apart from that it was fairly empty.

  "Are you leaving again?" a small voice asked.

  "Yes. But I'll be back soon this time." she placed a fanciful dagger on the table alongside her other gear. Carlton had managed to convince Rose to give it to her before she left, as an apology gift. The apology in question was not accepted of course- that woman was a psychopath.

  But she did appreciate the dagger. She'd have to think of a name for it. The blade was black with a red and gold hilt. Besides being beautiful, it also had a potent paralyzing affect. She examined her gear again. A long sword, armor, and tiny satchel with a capacity enchantment.

  "Every time you leave the others pick on me." the boy sniffled as if he was about to cry. Violet rolled her eyes and smiled.

  "They pick on you because you keep telling them you're my favorite."

  The boy became flustered and started to fidget with the hem of his shirt. "Noooo...", "Yeees.... You need to learn to stand up for yourself Garret, or people never leave you alone. Even if you're a capable man, without confidence no one will ever respect you. People are fickle like that.... Have you been practicing like I told you?" she asked. She sat down at her mirror and offered him a hairbrush.

  He took it and started brushing her hair. The wiry brown strands gradually got more volume as he brushed. "I hate blacksmithing, Magni yells at me."

  Violet groaned internally, but did not show it. Children were always little balls of complaints. Couldn't they just do as they were told for once?

  "He yells at you because he's invested in you. He wants you to succeed because at this point it's costing him time to teach you, and later he hopes you'll look after the shop in his old age. That was the deal. Plenty of the others would jump at the chance to work with him. Try, Garret. And I mean really try. Could you do that for me?"

  He looked down a bit and mumbled; "I guess."

  "Good. Now stop pulling so hard you're going to yank my hair out."

  After applying her typical makeup she told Garret to go play and found Colypheus. He was also in the middle of his preparations. He saw her enter the armory- a larger chamber in the thieves guild.

  "Violet, I see the armor I had commissioned fits."

  She rolled her shoulders. "It's a bit heavy. Not really my style.", "You say that but apparently you're our killing guard commanders in 1 on 1 duels."

  She cringed, Rose's antics are still catching up with her. She's woken with cold sweats in the night, images of that swamp playing back through her dreams. The mans surprised, satisfied expression as if she had proved his point about her.

  "When do we leave for Malton estate?" she asked.

  "In an hour, I have my sister looking after the rookies. The other heads have their people going to different noble houses, so the timing as to be perfect. If one house gets a warning, this whole thing will turn into a shit show." he said, raising an arm so the armorer could fasten a large pauldron to his shoulder.

  Another man walked over- Mateo- a human man, like nearly all of Lostias' inhabitants, or Adun itself for that matter. "My crew is ready whenever you are Colypheus, we don't like to make fancy preparations and all, we just like to get to work." he tossed a knife up and twirled it between his fingers as it fell, blade end downwards.

  "How you doin' Violet?" he asked.

  She ignored him. "Send for me when we're heading out." she said and quickly left the room. Mateo followed closely after her. The halls of the guild were chaotic in the moments before a mission of this scale.

  "Where've you been Violet? You haven't been avoidin' me 'ave you?" he asked with a crooked smile. "It was one night, Mateo."

  "So that's how it is then.", Violet groaned, but this time it wasn't internally; "I thought I made it obvious with how I was gone in the morning."

  "You're the one with a bit of a misunderstanding, I'm not asking anything but a bit of fun."

  "Not interested. I wasn't overly impressed the last time."

  At that, Mateo stopped and starred at her. "Bitch."

  She couldn't help but smile a bit as she left the guild.

  It's not that she had something against Mateo- he was fine. A cut throat and criminal, but that's the sort of man she rubbed shoulders with. That was her lot in life.

  Violet honestly just didn't enjoy herself with Mateo and besides- she wasn't relationship material. And neither was anyone else for that matter. That sort of thing was a fairy tale as far as she was concerned, something you had to suspend your disbelief to engage in. Like a theater play.

  Only country bumpkins or princesses got to marry out of ideas like 'love', and that's only because their tiny brains are easily tricked into it.

  She had left the thieves guild and now was moving through the city streets at a brisk pace. She didn't have that much time before she left and wanted to give a final goodbye in case anything happened.

  Violet just needed security and money so that she could take care of who really mattered to her.

  The children.

  Lostia had an orphanage. It was a town known for it, the town of lost people. It was where Violet grew up, though it has changed a bit since she was a child. Now, it had her.

  She reached the front doors of the cathedral. A shanty town had been erected around it. There were the sounds of crying babies, barking dogs, and laughing children.

  She pushed through to the main cathedrals large ornate doors and entered the once-marble hall that had long been replaced with a dirt floor.

  A priest was helping the other grown orphans or adults serve the morning soup.

  "Please sir, may I have some more?" a little girl asked, looking up at the priest with a streak of dirt on her cheek. He only smiled and scooped up another serving into her offered bowl. "Of course dear."

  He saw Violet approach, "Violet! Back again so soon? Things are going well I hope.", she found herself smiling as she embraced the man in a hug. "Everything is great." he rubbed her back warmly. "I'm glad, things are going well here too. The noble houses responded to our complaints about the bread."

  Violets eyes widened in surprise; "Really?"

  "Yes, yes. They're sending hardtack instead."

  And there it was.

  He saw her expression changed and chuckled; "I had doubts at first but then I discussed it with the kitchen, evidently this in the long run is better. It softens up plenty in a stew, like dumplings. And we can store it for longer without worrying about the mold, which was our problem to begin with. So for once, they actually did us a favor. Though they likely don't realize it." he laughed, but his eyes shone with also a hint of something else.

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  "Well... That's something." Violet let out an annoyed sigh.

  "What's wrong my child?"

  Violet looked up at the tall, thin man with apologetic eyes. "Ah. You're doing something dangerous again, then? Let's speak in my office." he smushed her arms together affectionately and lead her to the back office. It brought back memories for her, how she'd get in trouble and cry in her childhood years and he'd always be the one cleaning up after her.

  The room was still a native part of the cathedral so it was built of once polished stone. There was a long table for staff meetings. The walls were lined tables off to the side which held tankards of water and decorative pieces. Memorabilia.

  He stepped to a chair and sat down. He looked at her and the age old argument played out again in both of their minds. They found themselves sighing at the same time while they both remembered dramatic events that likely led to the creation of a few of the lines on his face.

  Violet was sorry she was such a burden, but she was only a child. And back then she and the others barely survived, she had to do something. And eventually, the priest had stopped pressuring her to change her ways and simply accepted her for who she was. He was good at that.

  "Your activities, with this guild of yours- they won't be traced back to the orphanage by any means?" he asked in a business like manor.

  "Like every other time you asked- no.", "And not doubt the orphanage will be receiving anonymous donations in the weeks that follow... Violet, I won't try to convince you to change your ways. You're a grown woman now. It's just, the children aren't. And they look up to you. What am I supposed to say to them when you don't return one of these times?"

  "Tell them the truth. That I made poor choices and refused to listen to your good advice."

  He chuckled remorsefully at her response, putting a palm on his face. "You don't have to go, you could become an adventurer. There numbers have been surging lately and new guilds are opening up all over the continent."

  Violet leaned back in her chair and put her boots on the already dirty table. "One dangerous job for another?" she smiled.

  "Ones legal. And a service to Adun. You're not just capable Violet, you're talented. There's no place in the cathedral I could keep you out of. You could pick locks, disarm traps. Folks like that are in demand in adventuring groups."

  She shook her head. "Maybe, if it were before. I know things now, the world isn't like what I thought. If I get back, I'll tell you. But I think it'll become common knowledge not before long."

  "Come on, tell me. What is this grand, world changing secret?" he asked, leaning in curiously.

  "Not enough time. And I have something else to tell you." she closed her eyes and folded her fingers together into fists on the table.

  "What is it?"

  "I'll just say it fast- I was doing a job, and I found this guy. His grandmother was a powerful healer with fate-reading magic, she told me I had a year. That's it." she splayed her fingers out as if to say it was not a big deal.

  The priests face said anything but that. He stood up from his chair and walked to the vestige of Minerva. God of light. The object represented her power, most cathedrals built in her name have at least this much. It could heal cuts and scrapes, but besides that was mostly a ornamental representation of her.

  "Tell me exactly what was said." he said, voice coarse.

  "It was a fortune, like I said. Fate reading magic.", "And you trust it? This isn't the words of some soothsayer?"

  Violet shook her head bitterly. "No. She wouldn't lie about this. Not with everything else she's told me. She said I was selfish, only looking after people I care about at the expense of others, and that I'd die soon. That was all."

  "A pretty accurate fortune in the first half I must say... But this, this is terrible Violet. There must be something we can do- I'll send a letter to paladin chapters, surely they'd send someone to help. It's their duty."

  "They'll take one look at me with their appraisal skills and know that aiding me would actually violate their oaths."

  "Then we could-"

  "Stop.", she said, taking his hand in hers. The middleaged man looked back at her in surprise.

  "It's okay. I've come to terms with it, in a strange way- I expected it. I've felt as if I've had a shadow over me for some time now. I thought I was crazy at first- but now I'm certain. It's this."

  He looked at her with frustration and sadness. "This can't stand, by her light- I know you haven't been a moral paragon but damn it you have a good heart, girl." he hugged her again.

  "There might be something..." she muttered. He held her out from him by the arms with a hopeful expression. "I recieved a quest, from the gods. An amulet, I'll be able to find it on my mission if everything goes well."

  He breathed a sigh of relief; "A quest from the gods! Such a rare privilege! Surely Minerva has seen your fate and has interceded on your behalf! This is joyous news, rewards for quests are life changing Violet."

  She nodded, "I know... Just, -I have to go. Wish me luck. Okay? I'll check in on the kids before I leave, I don't have much time.", "I'll pray for you. I love you like a daughter, Violet. Please do what you can." he said pulling her into a final hug. "I will."

  After her conversation with the head priest, she went to the yard outside the church to see the children at play. At the sight of her they immediately crowded around her. "Violet!", they called.

  She laughed and gave each of them hugs and head ruffles. Garret was there too.

  "We learned a new game! It's called soccer, see!" they started crowding a ball, trying to kick it towards a line drawn in the dirt, but the horde of children made it impossible for the ball to escape.

  "Looks fun! I'll play a round!", at that- they all cheered.

  She danced between the children- kicking the ball away. It seemed like they abandoned any idea about teams and just wanted to see who could kick the ball into the goal first. Three feet shot out and bounced the ball up into the air- it landed in the dirt next to one of the outliers.

  A kid with a more orange hue to his skin, with mopey brown hair and freckles.

  "Oh, don't you dare!" she said playfully. They smiled mischievously. He picked up the ball and ran. "That's breaking the rules!" she and the other children laughed as they chased after him.

  That was until the child tripped and scrapped his knee. "Ooh!" the kids shouted. Some laughed. And the little soccer thief started bawling.

  Violet made a concerned expression and rushed up to kneel down next to him. "You all keep playing, we'll catch up!" she tossed the ball back and the horde chased after it.

  She put a hand on his back. "Hey, it's okay. It's just scary, I bet it doesn't even hurt.", "I-it huuurts~" he cried. The knee was bleeding a bit. "Let's get you to the vestige.", he sniffled, "O-okay." he said, wiping his eyes.

  Then Violet caught the sight of someone in her peripheral vision. She had developed an instinct for shady characters, and this guy was shady. He was wearing a hood and held his hands in his pockets. He ducked into a nearby back alley the moment she glanced. The crying child had stopped and was watching where she was looking.

  "That man is back." he said. "You've seen him around here before?", "All the time. He talks to people in that alley."

  "He does, does he?" she said, smiling but her brows were angry. "Yeah?" the boy said confused.

  Violet waved over to a woman in nun-like outfit who was washing clothes in a large basin. She noticed and hurried over, "Violet? Huey?" the woman with kind eyes said as she approached. "Could you take Huey to the vestige? He's had a bit of a scrape. I have something to check out."

  The nun looked over Violets shoulder knowingly. "Violet, you know what the head priest says about you-", "We both know what he says, but we can't let these worms get to close to the children. We know how that goes."

  She considered this for a moment, then nodded, taking Huey by the shoulders. "Just be careful, okay?", "I'm always careful."

  The nun led Huey into the cathedral and Violet went into the near backalley she had seen the man go.

  The alley was dingey, lined with rotted barrels and crates long abandoned by their perspective owners. Lived in by cats, judging by the smell. A man had been leaning back at the opposite end of the alley, but once he saw her- he went to leave.

  "Hey. Buddy. You a seller?" she asked. He flinched, then looked over his shoulder. "Who wants to know?"

  "I might be interested. What do ya' got?"

  He smiled- his mouth a checkerboard of missing teeth. "The good stuff. Cheap too-" Violet had been walking up to him eagerly as if she was interested in his product. But the moment he responded she slugged him in the jaw- gripping her dagger in her hand.

  He crumpled like a sack of potatoes.

  "Bleh, Jugger, help!" he cried out. A large bald man turned the corner and saw what was happening. He cracked his knuckles and made for her- "Hands of the merchandize rat." he swung at her with a right hook. She ducked it and nicked his arm with the dagger.

  He jumped back in shock and felt at his arm, then realized it was just a small cut.

  "Ha, missed me-" he fell over limply. His head hit the wall as he slid down. "MMhmhm?" his voice strained to say through the paralysis affect.

  "What the hell bitch, what's your problem?" The drug dealer pleaded from the ground. She looked down at him and smashed the pommel of her dagger into his mouth. Loosening the rest of his teeth. She dragged him up against the wall but the collar and held the knife to his throat.

  "You come around the orphanage again, and I'll fucking kill you."

  "Violet?" a tiny voice asked. A child was standing at the alley corner. "Garret?" she dropped the man to the floor, and took a step towards him. Garret flinched, his eyes fearful. "Garret, this guy- he was- Garret!" she shouted after him as he took off back towards the cathedral.

  "Ha, what, your kid thinks you're a crazy bitch? I wonder why-" Violet kicked him in the face. His head whipped back against the wall- knocking him unconscious.

  She went to go back to the cathedral, but there was a whistle. She turned around to see Celphy, Colypheus's sister standing there. "You sure fucked him up Violet..." she nudged the unconcious man with a foot. Then looked back at her. "It's time to go."

  Violet made a 'tsk' sound. She'd have to explain to Garret after the mission. She just hoped he wouldn't do anything stupid before then.