Friends in Dark Places (Sin Kids Fantasy Verse)

> The night cloaked the capital city in a blanket of darkness, only the flickering candled light of the homes showed this cold stoned city had any kind of life in its walls
> The homes stacked atop one another in blocks and no more then 8 stories tall, lest the whole thing fall down on the heads of the families who lived inside.
> The roofs were hardened with hardened plaster and wood, gritted that made it easy to silently walked the roof tops without the fear of slipping off.
> Its no wonder the lower city was brimming with thieves, it was built to be snuck around.
> The space between the buildings lined with ropes where the people hung their garments and balconies to a get a good view of the wall right across from them.
> And between the wind would often blow, so hard sometimes that its not hard to believe a window would open on its own.
> Inside one of the many homes was a cramped room, a bed made amess with books and notes. Pages to pinned with chicken scratched writing of formulas and symbols of manner.
> And in the center of the it all a lab, stacked with brim with all sorts of beakers that encircled the alchemist who stood in the middle.
> Her eyes so focused on her work, she could never see the blade at her back.
> With the fling of a wrist the blade flew from across the room and into the desk.
> "Ah! Lupa!" Liby pulled the dagger from her desk. "You put a whole in notepad."
> The alchemist turned to see the rogue playing with another one of her many sharpened blades.
> Liby sighed looking at the blood on the blade that pierced her writings.
> "Need some help finding someone, if you're not busy."
> Liby pinched her brow as she turned around and set the bloody knife on table.
> "So I take it your target is still alive? Its not like you to let them get away."
> "Who said I let him?" Lupa walked up to the table watching Liby quickly sort through a nearby box filled small beakers of chemicals. "My hits don't usually walk off me cutting their throats open."
> "Hmm, then it might have been an undead."
> "That explains the smell. They always leave out these details on the high priced jobs."
> "Undeads arent allowed in the city walls, the fact they didn't know only shows that whoever this thing is, its smart enough to stay hidden, but apparently not enough to stay out of trouble."
> Liby took out a small cotton swab and dabbed the blood with a emerald mercury liquid.
> It moved slightly, Liby noting as she took another vile out.
> "We have millions of people living in this city, hard not to blend into the crowd. Even for someone who looks like a human raisin."
> "I could go for some raisins. You mind grabbing me some."
> "I'm an assassin, not a maid."
> "Good, you'd be a terrible maid." That was enough to make Lupa laugh and make her at least compassionate enough to walk to Liby's covert and scan through the jars for something that looked edible.
> "Those are shrunken goblin heads."
> "Do I want to know what you need those for?"
> "You can grind into a dull paste which helps make a handy illuminated torch that'll last twice as long as any fire."
> "Sounds Neat."
> "Its also taste that bad."
> "Do you want these instead of raisins?"
> "...Keep looking."
> "By the way, have you seen Lacy lately? She still owes me for our last trip to the pub."
> "She's out training, somewhere in the woods with some other Monks. Something about maintaining a steady fist or inner peace, monk stuff."
> "Well if she gets to you first, tell her I'll let the tab slide if I get to pick the place."
> "Not a fan of Dragon's Den?"
> "The name, the people, the drinks, and it smells like a dragons ass too." Lupa finally came to the table with a jar of raisins.
> "Thank you. But I don't see the problem, people know us there. And aren't you friends with the Barmaid? Cleo I think her name was?"
> "You two and her make it bearable. I just want a change of scenery." Liby thought on Lupa's words as she chewed on the dried grapes. "The whole city just feels so claustrophobic."
> Lupa watched as Liby mixed a small bottle and with several blend made into a rainbow of fluids, her eyes never leaving the brew in front of her as she boiled it.
> "Hard to believe considering how long we've lived here. I see it more secure then choking."
> "That depends on how tight the grip is." Lupa said staring at the moonlight peering through the window.
> "The people come here for that protection. Outside these walls is a world with no limitations than what science and magic make possible."
> "I guess living in a cage is better than being eaten alive."
> Liby swabbed the colored mercury on the blood. Making sure it blended together well.
> "No its more like a reservation, we all know who lives here and what goes on. Only the newest visitors and people born here don't know about the little cracks in the image of this kingdom. So, of course their happy with it, Ignorance is bliss."
> "I'll stick with being miserable then stupid."
> "Only if you let the problems bother you. But then again, I do enjoy our quests outside the city. Just means there's more to learn."
> The blood bubbled until a large bubble formed on it. Hardening before cracking. A small red leg kicked from the ball of blood. A small bug crawled out spreading tiny crimson wings.
> Liby held out a finger to the newborn insect. It crawled onto her finger as it flexed it newly made wings.
> "This is a Blood Bug, its made to find and return to the body it originally came from, I gave it a nice glow so you can see it in the dark." It began to fly and buzz around Lupa.
> "Thanks Lib', I'll buy you a new notepad with the reward money." Lupa said as she led the bug to the window.
> "Well if you want to pay me back, maybe you can cut off an arm or something, I could use an undead limb for some notes I had."
> "That weird, you're weird." Lupa was about to leap back onto the roofs before Liby tossed something at her. Lupa caught it and looked at the health potion.
> "That's thoughtful, but he's not that tough."
> "Its for your undead friend, health potions slow the dead down. Try to not let him run away this time."
> Lupa looked at the darkened city, watching the bug buzzing in the shadow of the night and looking back to her friend. Liby couldn't see it, but Lupa was smiling.
> "Thanks." The assassin whispered before getting back to work.
End.