The stone behind Robin’s back was cold and hard, but the fire in front of him was cheery and warm. Porridge sat in bowls, ready to be shared out. Robin and the Sisters Sharp were once again holed up in their camp outside Bordertown.

The atmosphere was all over convivial. Though Basgar and Gis had struck at the rebels during their celebration, none of the leaders had been taken, and while there were some casualties, in the accounting Basgar and Gis lost far more than their opponents.

‘You don’t think they’ll shut the town down, try to impose some sort of martial law?’ Grathilde was asking Lantha.

‘No. They can’t afford to.’ Lantha sounded smug. ‘Basgar and Gis have a tenuous grip as it is. Not only will they be afraid they’ll send even more rebels into the arms of the resistance, they’ll be afraid of insulting the Merchant Lords of the Gilded Lands. They need those funds to help drive their war against the Marcher Lords. For now.’

‘So they’ll keep the gates open and trade flowing.’

‘They’ll be checking everyone close, though, I should expect,’ Fiamah said.

‘They were before, anyway,’ Ora-Jean complained. ‘That’s why we’ve dilly-dallied here as long as we have.’ She shot a glance at Lantha. ‘No longer, though, I’m guessing.’

‘No,’ the rogue agreed, ‘we don’t need to cool our heels any longer. We’ve set Basgar and Gis up with quite a bit of trouble to keep themselves occupied with. We should be moving on to Noviel. There are reports to make.’

Robin knew better than to expect she’d mention to who.

‘So I expect we’ll be needing one more diversion, just to make sure we slip through that northern gate with a minimum of trouble,’ he said instead.

‘You expect right,’ Lantha said with a smile. ‘Think you can manage?’

‘Oh, Definitely.’ Robin cocked his head. ‘Are you sure that Basgar and Gis won’t just crush Avanus and his friends as soon as we’re gone though?’

‘Quite certain,’ Lantha said firmly. ‘You saw what happened last night. Surprise attack and they not only had a plan, they had a plan they didn’t let us in on? And they all held their own in the fight, as well as escaped with minimal losses. No. They don’t need us. Things will be well in hand here.’

‘I suppose you’re right,’ Robin said, reaching for his share of the porridge.

‘She usually is,’ Grathilde grumbled.

‘So we push on to Noviel?’ Ora-Jean asked in between bites of porridge and significant glances at Robin (to make sure he kept using his powers to make the stuff taste delicious).

‘We do,’ Lantha confirmed. ‘Basgar is currently preoccupied, and his troubles will only increase with the little problems we seeded throughout the town. Now’s the time to make our escape.’

‘We still need a diversion,’ Robin said. ‘To cover our progress, sure, but also to hit Gis one last time. I think we still owe him and that little snake of his a bad turn after all they put us through beneath the mountain.’

There were general murmurs of agreement.

‘I could desecrate his temple?’ Robin suggested, his mind going back to all the construction, the priest’s quarters, and the mysteries he’d only sort of rifled through in that chest (if it had survived the fire he set).

‘Personal to Gis, but also likely to draw Urkhan’s direct wrath. Probably not an effective enough target to distract the guards at the northern gate,’ Lantha said.

Fiamah looked torn between approval and outrage at the idea.

‘We’ve already hit their supply stockpiles, so we can’t hit those again,’ Ora-Jean pointed out, ‘and we don’t really have the bodies or magic for a direct assault on the Keep. Attacking their morale won’t work as a diversion, so what does that leave?’

‘Assassination attempt,’ Grathilde offered.

‘Rob the treasury,’ Robin said at the same time.

‘Neither of those are easy,’ Fiamah pointed out.

‘Which is why we don’t actually go through with it,’ Robin countered. ‘We don’t need to succeed. In fact, we want them to get wind of things. If they’re running off after the valuables in the safe, they’re not watching the back door for someone leaving through it. They’re afraid of what’s coming in, not what’s getting out.’

‘Robbing the treasury is probably easier,’ Grathilde said grudgingly. ‘We know generally where it is, and they’d call in a lot of guards to protect it. If we took a shot at killing Basgar, eh, he’s too mobile and the focus would be on concealing him or defending him. That wouldn’t need as many guards.’

‘Exactly.’ Robin grinned. ‘Hit someone in the purse and he feels it. We already know Basgar is desperate for funds. Look at how he interacts with the Merchants of the Gilded Lands. And we’re already started messing with—’

Robin went quiet at a glance from Lantha. Right. Don’t brag about plans. There are people who can pluck words out of the air and scrying mirrors and who knows what else. If they wanted all of their little surprises for Basgar to actually be surprises, it was better to minimise mentioning them.

‘So we have to figure out how to rob the treasury. In one of the most secure fortresses in the land.’ Fiamah looked profoundly skeptical. Or possibly disapproving. ‘This does not seem a wise course of action.’

‘If we were actually going to try and rob it, no, it wouldn’t be,’ Robin agreed, ‘but we’re not. We’re just going to convince them that we are, and that we have everything we need to do it.’

‘And I suppose you have an idea how to accomplish that, do you?’

‘Oh yes,’ Robin grinned. ‘A certain watch captain is going to get a visit from an old friend bearing the news. If you four go and spread some rumours, make some purchases, then yes, I think we can heighten the tension to the point that they’ll be on a hair trigger. Then it’s just a matter of making it look good and skipping out the gate while the guards run toward the treasury.’

‘What if they don’t?’ Grathilde asked pessimistically.

‘Basgar will be forced to strip the guardhouses to a skeleton crew,’ Lantha answered. ‘He can’t risk his wealth, and we’ve proven a credible threat already.’

‘Credible? We’re getting downright incredible with this one!’ Robin cackled.

***

‘I will investigate these accusations you’ve brought me and consider taking your information to Lords Basgar and Gis if I can find persuasive evidence that you are actually correct this time.’ The watch captain was an insufferably smug wanker.

Robin was on the top floor of a brothel, again. This time, however, he was firmly wrapped in an imitation of the disguise he’d seen Lena wear last time he was here. He’d just finished feeding the watch captain a mix of speculation and hearsay sprinkled with just enough information for the man to connect the dots between what he’d been told and the various rumours the Sisters Sharp were sowing.

The watch captain rose. Robin mirrored the action. They were done here anyway and his hands were getting tired from the constant [Lesser Phantasm] spells.

Robin waited until he was several streets away and safely hidden in an alleyway before he dropped the illusory disguise for his generic townsperson form.

He nearly jumped out of his fake skin when a voice broke the quiet around him.

‘Well, that was certainly informative.’

Lena appeared out of nowhere. The other bard smirked at his reaction but held up two hands, forestalling any violence.

‘Now, now, no need to get feisty! I’m here under a flag of truce.’

‘You’ll pardon my skepticism after your little display at The Bell and Boar,’ Robin said, his senses flaring, looking for an ambush, but his curiosity kept him where he was, listening.

‘Well, I sold out the ones I was paid to sell out, and you lit a fire of suspicion under Basgar and Gis that I haven’t been able to fully smother, so we’re a little bit even, right?’ Lena smiled winningly.

‘Not even close. What do you want?’

‘So suspicious! No need for that! We’re both professionals here. Can’t I just be extending a hand in friendship? Expressing admiration for the skill of, well, let’s just say a colleague.’

‘I’ve met some of your friends. I can see how you’d be in the market for some new ones.’ Robin jerked his head, indicating the watch captain. ‘That guy took an indecent amount of pleasure in your recent difficulties.’

Lena made an indelicate noise.

‘He’s always been a stuffed shirt and an idiot, even when we were children.’

‘So you really did grow up here.’ Robin was a tad surprised.

‘So how could I betray my home?’ Lena threw back an arm dramatically. ‘Please. This place changes hands once or twice a generation. It’s too ripe a plum. Prorna may seem sweet, but her lot had their issues.’

Robin didn’t probe. The politics were neither here nor there. What was important was escaping with his life and sanity, followed by finding out what Lena wanted. A distant third was using this interaction to enhance the treasury theft distraction plan.

‘Now, there may be one little thing you could do for me, if you were so inclined,’ Lena continued.

Here it was.

‘You know who I am, and who I’ve been working for,’ Lena began, ‘but we don’t know who you’re working for. Gis thinks it’s Noviel, based on the company you keep, but his auguries say different. If you give me a name, I could trade you some very useful information in return. I collect quite a lot from my various, ah, contracts, if you’re not interested in anything I might know about Lord Basgar’s plans.’

An information trade. Interesting. The old question game again.

Not that he had time to play.

‘I know you’re up to something,’ Lena tried a different tack. ‘I’ve been watching your friends. Arranging transport out of each of the three gates, purchasing more potions like the one I suspect your group used to escape The Bell and Boar—that was clever, by the way. Basgar nearly split Gis in half after that.’

‘I would have paid to see that,’ Robin said with a bit too much emotion.

‘So you have a personal reason to dislike the priest,’ Lena pounced. ‘Interesting.’

‘Anyone who had met the man or the snake that lives in his skull has reason to dislike him,’ Robin shot back.

‘Fair point.’ Lena shuddered. ‘I’ve never seen it myself, but one does hear things.’

‘No way a guy like Gis can keep it socketed,’ Robin agreed. ‘He’s the sort that just has to whip it out at the slightest provocation. Rude.’

‘So for you it’s more about Gis and for your friends it’s more about Basgar, isn’t it?’

Lena was far too sharp for Robin’s own good.

‘What can I say? I take it personally when a guy infringes on my rights and freedoms.’

‘So you’re going to hit him where it hurts.’

‘I am,’ Robin confirmed. This line of questioning was fine. This reinforced the plan and directed attention away from his origins and motivations. ‘As I told your friend back there, there’s a lot of stuff going on right now. A lot of places that Basgar and Gis could get their fingers snapped at, if they don’t watch where they’re putting those grubby mitts of theirs.’

‘I wouldn’t get overconfident if I were you,’ Lena said. ‘Lord Basgar has quite the suite of supporters. You and your friends have been lucky so far, but…’

Lena let the sentence trail off suggestively. She was trying to bait him with information again. Robin didn’t have time for this. And the possible payout wasn’t worth the risk. Not right now.

‘Tell you what,’ he said, ‘I’ll answer one question of yours, truthfully and to the best of my capabilities, if you give me your word that you’ll keep your nose out of the next matter I ask you to?’

‘Deal,’ Lena said. ‘What one thing do you want more than any other?’

‘Magic,’ Robin replied instantly. That was easy. He’d been chasing it his whole life on Earth, and now that he was here? A place with magic in abundance? He wanted as much as he could get his hands on.

If Lena took that to mean power, eh, that was her problem. Their deal was struck and Robin had other errands to run.

It was a lot of work faking a major heist!