High Stakes Practice

Towering stone walls surrounding the palace were separated only by wrought iron gates, each with a stern-faced guard decked in armor out front ensuring it remained shut. All walls had their weakness, however, and I considered myself a gold star at finding them. There were years of experience at my disposal, after all. To get in a place surrounded by walls you had to find the place people had forgotten about. Maintaining walls this huge took work people didn't always want to put in, which left useful flaws; shoddy locks, moveable stones, holes, sections open to sewers, and so on. 

'...Sewers are a last resort though.' 

I shuddered at the memory. 

Poisoning guards to fall asleep or get confused would normally be my method of choice, but right now those cards weren't on the table. I had to get in and get the poison first, so through the wall it was. 

Luckily for me, the trip up to the castle remained worth it. Just behind a series of bushes along the stone, thick and twisted with vines, peeked a small hole. Nothing a skinny teen couldn't fit through. Or a particularly underfed 18-year-old. Likely no one had noticed it due to the overgrowth, and because this area of the city seemed particularly desolate. Almost unusually so. Was it because it bordered the Outreaches? 

In we go. 

The stones pinched my skin with each wiggle and turn to get through the opening. I popped out the other side no worse for wear, but covered in a bit of dirt. It brushed off easily, though the thorns proved more finicky. No one's eyes were upon me, so before emerging into the open I shut my own eyes and focused on the surroundings. Just as I had done with Yiriel earlier, I called upon the forces of magic in and around me for aid. How far I could stretch my awareness, or if I could sense other magic; all of these things needed determining. 

What better place to try than where magic would most likely be used? 

The world dimmed moment by moment until nothing remained within me but that spark of power. Each time I summoned it I became more comfortable with ordering it around. As I called it I could also sense both Diane and Yiriel, and while it wasn't much I determined they were both alive and loyal. The contract remained intact. Through steady breaths, the sensations around me heightened like they had at the bar, and I realized something about my 'innate magic.' It didn't apply to everything around me; while I could detect plants, structures, and energy, the feeling remained superficial. The thing my magic truly focused on was humans. 

There were plenty of those around to sense, too. Just within a few hundred feet of me were a handful of guards, patrolling the area in rhythmic patterns to cover as much ground as possible. Behind their stoic faces and metal masks were people like any other, full of feeling. 

'He wants a promotion. He craves a large beer and a hunk of meat. He wishes he could go back to bed. She wants a female apprentice-' 

Oh? A female apprentice. Were they a knight? I probed further, sorting through the general emotions of the figure, finding the answer to be yes. They were a female knight, though that's all I could tell along with their desires. Training Diane would become a priority soon. This information could prove advantageous. 

I opened my eyes. Now that I knew where the guards were, making it through this place would be easier. Pushing out through the thicket, I kept some of my attention on the feeling of magic, just in case I hadn't noticed something nearby. It would harm my reputation to be caught in a trap. Even if it was magic. I fixed the hood over my head, and eyed the surroundings through the dark. 

The large, towering spires and stone walls didn't do justice to how intricate and rich this place was on the inside. Ivory and gold entanglements decorated lamposts, while fountains of stunning granite spewed water out of carved fish and dragon heads. The pathways were lined with ethereal, jeweled flowers, tangling up delicate white iron arches. Beyond that, the palace itself sported enormous, mosaic-covered windows depicting bursts of light, a holy-looking hooded figure, and brave knights slaying terrible beasts. Through the clear glass expensive chandeliers were suspended with a hundred candles on each, their warm glow lighting pathways lined with deep red carpets. 

'Now that is the kind of place to be comfortable.' 

I nodded in approval. Their beds were probably second to none in downy pillows and tantalizingly silky sheets. A perfect place to take naps, followed by long walks around the groomed gardens. 

'Becoming King is too much work though. Should I marry rich? Ah, but politics are such a grind...' 

Better to create your own little kingdom, safe somewhere else. Enough power to be alone, and enough wealth to have a comfy bed and bath. That was the dream. 

Okay, where was this greenhouse? 

I'd been wandering the perimeter for some time now, slipping into the shadows when I sensed a guard and then continuing forward after they passed. Occasionally I detected magic, but it appeared to be coming from the entrances to the palace itself. It seemed security focused on protecting the castle's insides and not the surroundings. That worked better for me. 

Rounding a sizeable hedge, I peeked over the brush and berries of a botanical maze to see the hints of a glass building looming in the distance, its triangle roof coming to a peak above trellises, crates, and vines. 

'There you are.' 

The area of my magic expanded, focusing directly on the building in the distance. No one was guarding it, excluding a single knight passing by. Once he moved on I needed to get in and out before the next knight rounded the bend. Slipping along the trimmed hedge, there was no sound but the occasional rustle of leaves in the wind. Face buried in the greenery, my nose tickled with the lovely but intense scent of florals. The light of his torch faded as he moved out of sight and behind the hedge. 

I kept low to the ground, legs aching in protest, approaching the greenhouse door like a stalking predator. The handle was cool to the touch, and unwilling to budge. I stared down at the culprit. A lock. 

My head filled with curses towards myself for missing such an obvious thing. Of course, it would be locked, and I hadn't brought a single pick. With a cursory glance around, nothing looked to be usable, either. This was no simple lock like the one on the shop doors, this place didn't skimp on anything. I wouldn't either if I had a room full of poisonous materials. Mind racing in a panic, I considered options. Did I leave and come back? No, there was no time. Did I risk searching for a tool? I'd been here too long already-

Wait. My mind clung to a sudden thought. 

'Could I use magic?' 

The cup from earlier. If I'd been the one to shatter it, could I do it again? 

I wrapped my fingers around the sturdy lock, immersing in the energy all around me. The feeling directed itself towards the lock, and I succumbed to each wave of power as I let it into the world, nurturing the sensations. Sounds, sights, and smells all tuned out as a picture began to emerge. Springs attached to the upper pins, lowering into pin tumblers filling out the shear line. They needed to be adjusted just right, some up, others kept still, so that all could be turned away all at once from their prison of attachment. 

I flicked a finger. Up it went. I moved another, and the piece followed suit. Bit by bit, like learning a simple song on the piano my fingers danced in tandem, desperate to find that perfect rhythm. When I reached the pinnacle of the song, the moment that drew the emotion and tied it all together, I twisted my wrist. 

Click.

The lock slipped off, tumbling into my open palm before it hit the ground. It fit nicely in my pants pocket. Pulling open the door with ease, I slipped past the frosted glass and let it shut behind me just as I sensed a guard approaching the area. Cool walls pressed against my back as I shuddered through shallow breaths, adrenaline pumping through my veins. A pounding heart that couldn't be calmed fluttered with the mirth of realizing what I did. I lock-picked a door. Without touching it. With magic. 

'What else can I do? How much can I move? Is it only small objects? Is it like telekinesis in those sci-fi novels?'

I patted flushed cheeks with both hands to return to the moment. Not now. 

There was no concern about being seen, the greenhouse fortunately being made of delicate frosted glass. The opaque material produced a darkness greater than the ambient night, but with my left eye navigation wasn't an issue.

As I approached the first row of plants, thick with diverse, flowering greenery, I stumbled. Vertigo racked my vision, a pounding headache increasing in intensity with each passing moment. A creeping chill formed in my hands, slithering up my veins and into my chest. What was going on? I had experienced similar situations while starving after days without food, but never quite like this. My stomach made no twists or growls with hunger. I needed something, but I didn't know what. 

No. I must get some plants first. Anything would do, just a simple poison to restrict movement, cloud the mind, cause delays, result in illness- 

There. A gorgeous, white lily flower caught my eye from the middle of the greenhouse. Its petals fell like layers of a ball gown over the stem, a stunning staple for any bouquet. The flower wasn't what kept my interest though. 

Hecklben's Right Eye. A root ball that forms under Heckleben's Lily. The lily leaves are filled with a deadly poison, designed to kill animals drawn by the flower's scent and appearance. When the animals are intoxicated and fall over dead, their decomposing body nourishes the flower. Bugs that travel to the rot pollinate and spread their seeds. The toxins made for the leaves begin their formation in the root ball as a much safer compound. Instead of death, consuming the roots will cause significant nervous system delays. 

Essentially, it will make you a shit fighter. 

'Perfect.'

I didn't have the energy to take anything else, feeling weaker by the minute, so I yanked a single flower root and all from a flourishing group of them and stuck it in my bag. 

My shoulders slammed into the doorframe on the way out, unable to keep steady on shaky legs. Trembling hands snapped the lock back into place, shaking through ragged breaths. This place was so cold. Why was it so cold? 

I might be seen at this rate, unable to focus on my surroundings. To ensure my most characteristic trait wouldn't be noticed, I pulled the white bandages from my bag and wrapped them around my left eye. The world became darker, but nothing I couldn't navigate by lamplight. 

I froze, head perking up despite the pain. Someone was watching me. I could always tell if I was being watched. How? Where? No one was nearby, except for a guard that would shortly be upon me. But he didn't see me. Was it magic? 

No time to worry about it. No killing intent and no act to approach meant I could ignore it, for now. Besides, they didn't seem to know where I was, or who I was. The sense of being watched was too weak for that. It seemed they knew something was roaming the grounds that didn't belong, just not exactly what or where. Fine by me. Sense all you want. 

I need to leave- 

My legs trembled, caving as I collapsed to the ground. No. Not now. 

'Get up! Get up, damn it!' 

Blood rushed away from my head, and with a final attempt to push myself up I collapsed, too weak to resist. The darkness of the night faded into a greater shadow as my consciousness faded. Just before everything went dark, I felt an odd parch in my throat, accompanied by a buzzing power coursing through my limbs. 

Eyes shutting closed, I succumbed to the cold.