02||TRICKS OF THE TRADE

"Did you see it?" someone asked their companion, their voice but a whisper in the busy streets of Ketterdam. "Did you see the way half the menagerie went up in flames?" another one wondered. Word spread fast in the barrel, like a wildfire, everyone hearing about the misfortune that befell the poor tante Heleen. While some couldn't care less about the woman, others were curious what really happened and who did it in the first place. And one of the few people who knew, was no one else then Kaz Brekker.

"An interesting development. The question is, where can we find her?" Dirtyhands questioned. "If she even wants to be found." Jesper remarked. The three crow's had gathered themselves in Kaz's office, trying to determine a plan before calling in the rest of the dregs if necessary. "We need to find her today. Or we'll have have big problem." Inej chimed in, a serious look on her face. "Before we do that, Inej, you said this almost sankta of yours freed that friend from the menagerie. Did the girl describe what the inferni looks like?" Brekker noted, folding his hands neatly over the head of his cane as he sat down, the ghost of a plan formulating in his mind.

"The girl said that she washed up ashore in the harbor. Big scars carved in het face. They weren't too young but not to old either. She's short, brown hair with dark eyes. It might seem tough but Kesh mentioned that if she's near you, you'd know." The sharpshooter snickered slightly "Must be some intimidating fiery presence." He joked before earning a cold glare from Kaz. "This is serious. It's only been a few hours since it happened and Pekka Rollins already caught wind of it."

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If Anya didn't know any better, she swore that news had already spread about the lighting of the menagerie. Walking in the shadows of the streets, the raven-haired heard many theories arise from its people.

'Apparently it was an attack from a competitor.'

'I heard it was a failed assassination.'

'Really? It was probably an accident caused by one of the costumers.'

'You're all idiots. This was the handiwork of a grisha.
And not just your run of
the mill inferni if you ask me.'

Unlike most of the other young grisha at the little palace, the Oryalen woman was keenly interested in the world when she was a child. Besides her harsh training, the inferni would sneak out and run to the library, snagging a book or two, maybe three, under her kefta every once in a while. She'd read stories of long forgotten saints and creatures like dragons and the places they came from.

Her eyes would wander over all kinds of different versions of maps, always ignoring the dark scar that was the fold on them. Like any other sensible person would, the young grisha woman wanted to learn as much as she could about the world, for one day that information might be worth her weight in gold times three. Or maybe even a key in her survival.

The edges of Anya's scared lips turned up, a soft smile on them as she thanked her younger self for her burning curiosity. In doing so, the raven-haired knew about many things, including the seething underbelly of Ketterdam that is the barrel and the people such as Pekka Rollins that she sure as hell wouldn't ask to help her cross the fold.

"Heard boss is looking for her after Inej gave him that tip." The Oryalen woman halted in her steps after hearing the name of Kesh's friend, curiously turning her head around the corner before mixing in with the crowd and getting closer to the two burley men. "What's the possibility that the almost sankta is still alive? She probably bloody died in Fjerda, Brekker knows it, everyone at the crow club knows it." The second man looked at the ground, lightly disappointed in the reaction of his friend. "Yeah but still, to cross the fold, they'll probably need someone with a lot of knowledge about East-Ravka and that's her."

'I need to cross the fold and this Brekker needs information about East-Ravka. Interesting.' the inferni thought, a plan formulating in her mind. If she wanted in on whatever job this would be, she'd need to find him before anyone else found her.

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The crow club was slowly calming down for the evening, a few people still desperately loosing their money at the tables and a few that hung around the bar. "Where was she last sighted? Did any of our contacts see anything?" the bastard of the barrel demanded. "At a certain moment we thought we had found a young woman that fit her description. She kept her mouth covered but as soon as we started talking, we saw she only had a cut over her eyebrow." one of the dregs mumbled with annoyance.

"Maybe I should go out and look for her?" Inej proposed, scratching the back of her neck. "It's a good thing we're closing earlier. I've been itching for another mission." Jesper replies, hands greedily snaking around his revolvers. As Kaz was about to scold him that it wasn't the right time yet something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. A lone figure was sitting at the bar, sipping their drink slowly. "Sorry lass but we're closing for the night." The wraith's brow knitted together as she recognized Kesh's clothes. 'What's she doing here? She shouldn't be drinking!' the Suli woman's mind blazed.

"Who are you?" Dirtyhands' voice boomed through the room. The figure gestured at them to wait as they downed their drink and slammed it down. In the blink of an eye, the hand that was in the air waved around swiftly before all the light of the candles flicked into her hand and died, leaving the room pitch black.

"She's here." the sharpshooter whispered, hands on his revolvers once more. "It wasn't a question of when you'd find me." the strangers voice resonated of the walls from the crow club, her presence seemingly everywhere. "It was one of me finding you." A chair scrapped the floor, an enormous flame lighting up as it engulfed the strangers hand and illuminated the figure, kicking up her boots on the table. But what really drew their attention to the mystery woman, were the horrid scars slashed across her face. "I think this is the part where you offer me a job. The name is Anya by the way."

To say that he was surprised would be an understatement, but the bastard of the barrel wouldn't show this to anyone. He simply pulled back a chair, sitting down infront of her. "And why would I do that?" he wondered, narrowing his eyes at the woman with a harsh tone. "Let call it...a mutual investment. You need information about East-Ravka and I can provide that for you. However, I need to get back across the fold and so do you. So in exchange for getting across the fold, I'll help you nick whatever it is that you're looking for." the inferni stated, folding her hands neatly under her chin as she leaned forward on the table, her focus on Kaz as she assumed that he was Brekker.

Jesper stared her down, his eyes locking with hers for a split second as a chill went down his spine." Eager to get back to your commanding officers are you?" It was as if the Zemeni man had triggered something when he saw her jaw tighten and Anya shot him a glare. "I am done with them. It's as simple as that." Kaz Brekker could see it in her eyes, something was burning in them, something that was all to familiar to himself. It was hatred. He knew most people presumed the raven-haired to be dead but here she was, alive and as well as she could be, a thirst for revenge raging in her eyes.

"It seems we have ourselves a deal." Dirtyhands simply noted, earning a look from Jesper and Inej before begrudgingly holding out his hand, only to be met with refusal. "Sorry, I don't really do handshakes." He silently thanked her inside his head, pushing down the tormenting voice inside it. The Oryalen woman stood up in a swift motion before calmly dividing up the fire ball in her hands in tiny, flickering embers. The wraith eyes widened in awe as she looked at the light spectacle. She didn't understand why they'd call someone who could do this the almost sankta instead of a full title.

Carefully guiding the embers back to their candles, lighting up the room once more, the young grisha woman regarded the mysterious trio as they watched her every move, removing the cap of her hood. "So, boss, what's our next move?"

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After one of the dregs rushed into the club, he alerted the trio, now a quartet, that they had intercepted a note from Dreesen to Pekka Rollins that he needed a heartrender from the Orchid. Before any of the still present dregs in the club could react, the inerfni, sharpshooter, bastard of the barrel and wraith were well on their way to the Ochrid to steal the heartrender right from under Pekka's nose and head to the wealthy merchant's house.

The leaves crunched under their feet as the 4, now 5, marched through the trees to the enormous gatted mansion. "You're paying me by the hour you know." the blonde heartrender remarked, leading to Anya rolling her eyes and Kaz bluntly telling the woman that Pekka had probably already killed her boss at this moment to shut her up.

"Who are you? You're not with Pekka's crew." the Zemeni man across the gate questioned threateningly. Brekker quirked his brow before tossing over a bag of coins. "And you're not in Pekka's pocket anymore if you don't owe him." the man caught the bag in one fell swoop, beady eyes lingering on each and every one of them before he opened the gate. The group quickly moved towards the front door, hearing the man behind them shout that on of the coins had a hole, Jesper grinning like an idiot and Dirtyhands hurrying the group inside before they're lead to Dreesen's office.

It was a menacing view to behold, the five of them walking through the halls as if the raven-haired, the dagger expert, the gunslinger, the cold and calculated man and even the heartrender that they brought along owned the placed, before the doors were opened. A large man sat behind his desk, a giant grey mustache on his face and a scrutinizing looked as he narrowed his eyes. "One look and I can tell. Criminals." He spit out in disgust with venom on his words.

The Oryalen woman scoffed softly so no one could hear. 'As if this man was participating in legal trade and Pekka Rollins wasn't a criminal himself.' She thought. The tension in the air was palpable as the bastard of the barrel stared the man across the room down menacingly. "We heard you needed a heartrender." Dreesen perked up, as I he finally started paying attention to the rifraf lot that was standing in his office. "She stays, you leave." The old man stated coldly, the blonde walking towards him only to be stopped with a smack of Kaz's cane, earning a look from the grisha as the other grisha woman tried to contain her snort.

"I have a different proposal." Brekker started, a determined look crossing through his eyes. "She stays and we get an exclusive on the job." The graying man scoffed, clearly annoyed at the words of the famed dirtyhands. "Mister Brekker, no business man worth his salt hires his first applicant." The bastard of the barrel let out an almost non audible chuckle, barely heard by his companions. 'He's gonna threaten him isn't he?' The inferni thought to herself. "Of course I'm going to have to report you to the guild for holding a prisoner without a chain of title."

The second the sentence had left his raspy throat, the already thick tension in the room started to fester and grow like an open wound as Dreesen's help subtly put their hands on their gun holster, forming a non verbal threat. The sharpshooter's hands did the same, casually pushing his coat aside as Inej's hand rested on the sheath of a dagger and Anya's hands were ready to flicker with flames. Kaz looked down at Dreesen's men in distrust and disdain. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. You'll find that I have...very powerful people on my side." Brekker continued, giving the raven-haired a side glance as an unspoken message passed between the two.

'Don't screw this up.'
His blue irises spoke.

'Trust me, I won't.'
The Oryalen woman's replied.

"No business man worth his salt bargains for what he can take." Dirtyhands added, hissing the words from behind his teeth with irritation. The graying man took a deep breath, as if he was considering the word carefully before he spoke. "Alright. Come on." He replied heavily, leading them down to the basement.

As the group descended into barely lit darkness, a hunched over form sat tied to a chair and a burlap sack pulled over his head. The mystery man's chest was heaving up and down and even though it was impossible for the inferni to posses the capabilities of the heartrender standing next to her, she knew that the man was scared for his life. "Who's this?" The bastard of the barrel demanded. Dreesen smirked languidly at him, a chill of disgust running up Anya's spine. "This..." the old man walked behind his captive, pulling off the sack from his head. "...is Alexei Stepanov."

Something in the raven-haired woman's breathe hitched as she regarded the dirt and wound covered man, a vague sense of familiarity washing over her. Jesper's brow furrowed at her reaction, not understanding why it happened. "Do...do you know him?" He whispered worriedly. "He's a cartographer in the first army. I used to run into them back when..." the young grisha woman nodded slowly before clearing her throat softly, shaking the clawing dread of the memories at her spine from her."He crossed the fold two weeks ago. Alone. And on foot."

The few of the group that allowed the outside world to see their feeling on their face had been struck with a confused look while the others simply remained silent. "How?" The inferni questioned, curiosity holding her in a vice grip and earning a surprised side glance from Jesper. It was as if Dreesen only now noticed her for the first time, narrowing his beady eyes at her. "Allegedly he was one of the few witness to...an event." The old man paused as he poured himself a drink, the captive groaning in thirst. Inej squeezed her eyes closed, feeling Alexei's suffering to her bones, grabbing a glass and filling it with water before giving it to the Stepanov man. "What kind of event?" Kaz inquired.

"I know an expedition was swarmed by volcra. But it wasn't a total loss. Something unexplained happened." The five all looked at each other, eager to hear the rest of Dreesen's explanation. "A device detonated, it destroyed the volcra and lit up the dark like a forest fire." Brekker turned his head to Anya, narrowing his blue eyes, that now looked as if a storm was ragging. 'It wasn't me you idiot.' She yelled at him inside her head. "Of course if it was real fire, no one would've survived. It was something no one had seen before. And young Alexei here doesn't seem to recall the particular event." The graying man pointed out.

The captive locked eyes with the raven-haired, searching for something, maybe a glimmer of hope that she could get him out of there. The heartrender looked at Dirtyhands, asking for permission to walk towards Alexei before she did so, crouching down. Her hand stroke the side of his face, then stroking over his tied hand. "You can speak and I shall just listen." The poor young man nodded, swayed by the woman's powers. "What happened in the fold? What saved you?" He hesitated, weighing his words before the woman pushed on. "You won't believe me but...it was a sun summoner."

It was like getting struck by thunder bolt and lightning, like the wild waves of the sea were trying to pull her down all over again. The grisha woman just stared ahead of her, staring at the man with wide eyes as the world seemed to chip away around her. "Who was it?" Dreesen asked him, looking him dead in the eye. The cartographer swallowed visibly. "If you tell me...will you let me go?" His voice trembled at the thought of home. 'At least you have a home to go back to.' The Oryalen woman thought as she slowly became aware of her surroundings again. "You can go anywhere in the world from Ketterdam Alexei, if you just tell me the name." The old man sweet talked him, but the crows knew better that it was nothing but a laced threat.

"Her name is...Alina Starkov. You'll set me free now, won't you?" Dreesen turned around, grabbing the gun on his belt before firing a bullet at Alexei, his body dropping dead to floor. "Now, we are currently the only people West of the fold that know this. I am sending out a ship for West-Ravka at dawn." The inferni, bastard of the barrel, wraith and sharpshooter shot each other a fleeting look, catching on to what the merchant meant. "If you prove to have a way through the fold and back, I'll put you on that ship with an advance. And if not, the job will go to Pekka Rollins."

Kaz's brow furrowed ever so slight, almost unnoticeable to the crew and even himself. 'How the hell are we going to pull this off?' everyone questioned. "Give me a day. I'll have a plan." Brekker replied, the tone a bit to eager then he wanted it to. "As I said Mister Brekker, you and your crew have until sunrise. If you haven't got a plan by then, the ship will have sailed. The prize is one million kruge. Now bring me Alina Starkov."

Even though she would never admit it to a living soul, Anya's heart was beating rapidly in her chest as realisation dawned on her, her facial expression remaining as cold as the Fjerdan permafrost. If the Sun Summoner wasn't indeed some phony like most other saint, then the raven-haired knew she was heading straight back to the one place she dreaded or even hated. The one place she hoped to never enter again. The little palace.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
So finally a new
chapter! The last one
was posted during
the exams, I passed and
graduated! And
now the memes!

I hope you
enjoyed it!