Harper's Pathos

Chapter Seventeen: First Steps

Dimly lit by moon, lantern, and torchlight, Morgan stood at the end of a small dock next to a bridge, staring out over the Tenu River which cut through the middle of the city. Cicadas buzzed and screamed from the foliage that was spread around the shore and water slapped against the riverbank as she took in the cool evening air. She reflected on the stories she had heard from other villagers when she was young. It's hot as blazes there! They would say, So hot it'll melt your skin off! Clearly they had never actually travelled. That was only during the day. It could grow rather chilly at night.

Well, she thought, Doesn't matter that those bumpkins were wrong. I'm seeing and experiencing it for myself now. That's more than they could ever say, innit? 

She leaned against a post attached to the dock and admired the reflection of the moon and stars on the surface of the water Nothin' like this back east...

"Truly a night blessed by Bas, is it not?" a familiar female voice came behind her, and Morgan turned to see Nadia and the two men striding along the shore. The three quickly joined her on the dock, and she looked to them with her arms crossed.

"The note said just after sunset. You're la- Shit!" the unstable post finally lurched back beneath the tall girl's weight, releasing a loud creak. She stumbled and staggered to maintain her footing and avoid falling into the river. A second later she managed to steady herself, but only after Abasi began laughing at her expense.

Morgan snarled in annoyance, glaring at the wooden post as if it could understand her anger. She had practiced that pose and thought about that line for longer than she would have liked to admit. She wanted to appear dignified, perhaps a little intimidating. That was surely ruined. The only thing that could have been a larger blow to her confidence was if she had actually  fallen into the river just then.

"Why the bloody hell'd we have to meet on this crumbling, shitty little dock?" her verbal mask flew off in her frustration.

"Because it's quiet and nondescript," Nadia answered.

"At least it would be if you stopped shouting," Abasi joked. At Morgan's glare turned onto him, he added, "Hey, it's not my fault you can't keep your balance." 

His smug smile made her want to hit him, but... He's right, she said to herself, Morgan, you worthless idiot. Do better. 

The sorceress took a deep breath to calm herself, then slipped back into her 'professional' pattern of speech. "Regardless," she began, a hint of aggravation still present in her voice, "Shall we begin? What might our first order of business be?"

"Let us go over what we have all done so far," Nadia suggested, "I sketched a map of the estate and noted guard patrols, entrances, and other points of interest. I can attest to its accuracy, as I worked there for quite some time."

"With that information," Abasi continued from her point, "I planned the three safest routes through the place to the safe, and found us a perfect way out. There's a sewer access tunnel that the servants use to clear blockage. It runs straight out of the sewer and into the river. It's damn close to the vault, too."

"And if there are servants there?" Morgan asked.

"We pay them not to be," Nadia explained, "They likely hate Sheik Amsu as much as I do. We should be able to bribe them without having to scrape too much off the top of our profit."

The Nayasian man laughed and clapped the woman on the back. "My little sister, always so manipulative! I'm so proud," he teased.

"I prefer pragmatic, but sure."

"So we go out through the sewer and into the river?" Mortimer interjected, "A boat would make this far easier, yes? Perhaps hidden somewhere nearby? I can procure it. I have already purchased masks for all of us, I can do the same for the boat as well as whatever other supplies will be needed."