A woman ran through the city streets, desperate to reach her destination as quickly as possible. She wore an old hooded cloak that shielded her identity from the passersby, which was a necessity as her mission was secret. Perhaps her most distinguishing feature was the bag that she wore on her back, within which a baby boy was resting, having been rocked to sleep by the back and forth motion of the woman’s running and the darkness of the night surrounding them.

When the woman reached the next intersection, she stopped to catch her breath, leaning against a wall for support. The cobblestone street, freshly cleaned, gleamed in the light emerging from a nearby window. There was no moon, so the night was pitch black, lit only by whatever light emanated from streetlights and open windows. There was little street traffic other than the young woman, so there was little risk of being spotted. After resting a moment, the woman continued on.

After a while, the woman happened upon a small house, her destination. Walking up the front path determinedly, she knocked upon the door three times before waiting patiently for a reply.

Ten seconds passed before the door opened. “Who are you?” the balding man who answered inquired, squinting out into the gloom. He looked just about ready to go to bed.

The woman removed her hood, allowing the man to see her face. “Your Majesty!” he exclaimed in surprise. Indeed, the woman facing him was the Queen of Marisia herself. Her long blonde hair was clearly visible in the darkness while her dark green eyes stared down at the homeowner. Seeing he wasn’t going to move, the Queen invited herself inside, pushing past him roughly.

The Queen sat down in a chair while the man rebolted his front door. “If this is about that other thing, I told you I had to give up!” he whispered furiously once he was done, glancing around anxiously.

“It isn’t,” the Queen replied, her voice sharp in the oppressive atmosphere of the man’s blubbering. “I analyzed your findings myself and determined that it was indeed a futile effort. There was no more to be done.”

The man breathed a sigh of relief. “Then what do you need from me this fine evening? Surely this isn’t a simple house call. You could have visited my shop like you always do.”

“Of course not,” she replied, crossing her legs. She removed the baby from her bag and cradled it gently. “My reason for coming is because of this child. I do not know if it is possible, but I would like to ask a favor of you anyways.”

The man gazed intently at the child. “Is that your daughter?” he asked.

“No,” she replied. “My daughter Rachel is with Madelaine right now. I know it’s late, but I need a favor. I have taken it upon myself to protect this child from any danger that may befall him. He isn’t Human, but I disguised him as one to avoid suspicion.” With a flick of her pinkie, the child’s Human form vanished, showing a rather different humanoid creature, with ruddy brown skin and fiery red hair. “He is one of the last of his kind,” the Queen explained. “He has a twin, but I decided to keep them separated for their own safety. After all, he is the one that wants them.” She waved her hand again and the child’s disguise reappeared.

Whoever he was made the man shiver in fear. “Whatever you are planning, I will have nothing to do with it!” he snapped, backing into a corner. He’d been on his way to make tea, but had now given up. The Queen placed the baby back into the bag and placed the bag on a table.

“Really, this is where you draw the line?” the Queen said in annoyance, reaching into her bag and withdrawing a long staff. It was her own personal Royal Staff, but considering it was nearly as long as she was tall, it was a wonder how it even fit in her belongings. It was made of solid gold, with a green glass orb on top.

“Easy for you to say, with you carrying that,” said the man. He was eyeing it greedily, mentally gauging how much it would sell for.

The Queen twirled the Staff between her fingers absentmindedly in a well-practiced motion. “All the Staff does is keep him from bothering me. I don’t need it to take him on,” she replied. “Look, I know it’s dangerous, a lot more dangerous than moving around your usual black market goods. Just try to not get caught by the guards, okay?”

“That’s the least of my worries!” he snapped angrily. “You’re not just asking me to risk my life and my business! You’re asking me to do something that is highly likely to attract the Emperor’s attention! We both know he’s petty enough to not just kill people outright he doesn’t like! He’ll torture my family!”

“You don’t say,” the Queen replied sarcastically. “It’s not like I used to work for him or anything, so there’s no way I’d know the risks or how to distract him. Please, enlighten me some more.”

The guy still looked scared, but from the way she was looking at him, he decided that arguing further about it was pointless. “What is it you need?” he asked.

“Supplies of your usual fare,” she replied. “If I’m going to get ahead of the Emperor, I have to split up this child and his twin, and I’ll need some things from other worlds that are not easy to find. I’ll make a list; do you have pen and paper?”

The man gestured to the desk, and the Queen rose from her chair and walked over. Leaning over the desk, she began to write out a rather long list of supplies. She had a bit of trouble with the quill pen, though, and kept poking holes in the paper. “Stupid thing,” she muttered after a few times of this happening. Frustrated, she slammed the quill in the ink pot and took out a plastic ballpoint pen she’d brought with her to finish her list. When she was done, she handed it over to him. “There, I believe that’s everything. If there’s anything else, I’ll tell you when I return.”

“This is…asking a lot of us,” said the man, scanning over the list quickly. “I can’t imagine what you’d need these things for.”

“Good,” she replied simply. “If you agree, I’ll allow you to found your own store within my city. Bigger market, more customers, you know. Plus, the capital is right on the coast and nearer the big trade routes. Provided you pay your taxes and don't bring undue attention to yourself, I’ll ignore your side businesses and keep you out of trouble with the law. That should be ample compensation, should it not? Oh, and I’ll pay you for the goods, too, but you already knew that, right?”

“You’d better keep him away from me,” the guy muttered under his breath.

“The catch is that you can do whatever you want, but you provide me with a list of all your dirty dealings,” she said, bending over and staring him straight in the eyes maybe half a foot in front of his face. “I have enough trouble with contraband as it is, so since I can’t crack down on it if I want this favor done I’m at least going to keep an eye on it. And that means keeping an eye on you Mr. Furango. No money, no payoffs, just intel in return for a better location for trade.”

The way she was looking at him said clearly that while he was free to decline, she would be highly irritated if he did and would probably smart off to him again. “Look, I’ll think about it, all right?” he said eventually, taking a step back from her gaze. “I’ll talk to my guys and see if this is feasible or not. That good for you?”

“For now,” she said, gathering up her belongings. After adjusting the pack on her back, she said, “You’re lucky because you get to sleep now. I still have to take the child to his new home. Farewell, Mr. Furango.” Then she left the house, unbolting and opening the door with a wave of her hand. She put the hood back on and disappeared into the night.

The Queen walked further down the street, then ducked into an alleyway after checking to see if she was being followed. A man was sitting on a bench in a courtyard, and rose when he saw her. “Rebecca,” he said in greeting.

“Eric,” she nodded at him. “Sorry about the wait, but I needed to take care of something real quick. Here’s the little guy I told you about.”

She took the baby out of her bag and went to pass him over. “Wait. Tell me something only you would know.”

“I will always hate you,” the guy responded.

“And you have every right to,” she replied, passing over the baby.

He gazed at it. “You said he’s some sort of magical being?”

“In a sense. He’s not human like us, so on Earth he will excel in ways nobody will be able to predict. I’ll check in on him whenever I can. I appreciate you doing this for me, Eric.”

“I’ve never been one to let injustice stand,” he replied, “and I also won’t let a child grow up without a family. He has no living relatives that can take him?”

“None that I’m aware of.”

“Then we’ll do our best to raise him,” Eric promised. Satisfied, she pointed her Staff at a wall and conjured a fiery opening from nothingness. The man stepped into it with the baby and the opening shut behind him.

“Good luck, kid,” Rebecca said to herself. She twirled her Staff and vanished into thin air.