Lyra could move with and agile grace that was the envy of the entire guild. She could flit soundlessly through the shadows as if she was one herself. Her skill as a thief was legendary. So why was she so worried about stealing the Sand Emerald? If anyone could accomplish it, it would be her. Lyra sighed and frowned deeply. Her bright green eyes looked troubled, as if there was a sand storm raging behind them.

“What’s wrong, Lyra?” her good friend Nadine asked. They were sitting in their favorite spot, the roof of the building where the Thieves’ Guild was hidden. From the roof you could look out over the whole city of Bahata and even glimpse a bit of The Sands. The setting sun cast a reddish glow over the sand-colored buildings, making them appear to be on fire.

“It’s just…” Lyra began, searching for the right words. “It’s just that I have a very bad feeling about tonight. It’s not like it seems too difficult… No, I can definitely accomplish it if everything goes to plan. But that’s what I’m worried about! What if something goes wrong?” Lyra twirled her curly brown hair around her finger nervously. Nadine just rolled her eyes.

“Nothing ever goes wrong for you, Lyra!” she said. “So stop worrying! Just pray to Mariel if you still feel nervous.” The two girls sat in silence for the next few minutes, watching as the sun slowly fell out of their view and the world grew dark.

“Time to go,” Nadine said softly, making Lyra jump. “Are you ready?” Lyra nodded as reassuringly as she could, and they started to make their way down the rickety wooden steps. When they finally arrived at the main chamber, a hush fell over the crowd gathered there. Lyra looked at none of them, sure that if she did they would be able to sense her fear. She approached a small and disorderly shrine erected for Mariel, the goddess of thieves, swindlers, and general ne’er-do-wells. She knelt and bowed her head.

‘Mariel…” Lyra thought, ‘please watch over me tonight. I’m not sure if it is a message from you, but I have a bad feeling about this burglary. Please protect me and keep me from harm. I swear that with the money I earn from the Sand Emerald I will create a beautiful shrine for you, right next to this one. Thank you.’ Lyra fervently hoped that Mariel had heard her prayer. This would be a bad time to not have an all-powerful being watching over her. Lyra abruptly snapped out of her thoughts. She was being silly! Nothing would go wrong if she had the goddesses’ protection! At that, Lyra walked out the door without so much as a backward glance at the rest of the guild, though she still felt their stares upon her.

oOo

As she stepped out of the hidden entrance of the guild, Lyra breathed a sigh of relief. Now she could push her worries to the back of her mind and concentrate on the one thing she did best. Anyone watching Lyra closely at that moment would have been shocked. It was as if she had melted into the shadows without a trace. She was in her element.

No one noticed Lyra as she moved towards the heart of the city, where the palace was located. When she arrived she took a deep breath and glanced up at the magnificent building she would soon be infiltrating. The palace of Bahata was home to the empress, Varia. Unlike all the other Bahatian buildings, constructed out of rough sandstone, the palace was made completely out of marble. Almost every inch of the palace was covered in beautiful carved designs and murals, most depicting the great deeds of past monarchs. And if that wasn’t enough to take your breath away, the sheer size of the structure certainly would.

Lyra stood admiring the palace for a few seconds more, and then she crept silently around to the back wall. Even the walls were marble, which made them impossible to climb… for your average thief. Of course, Lyra could hardly be called “average.” She scaled the wall with ease, finding hand and footholds where there should have been none. She leapt gracefully onto the battlements, almost directly next to a patrolling guard. His eyes widened in surprise and he opened his mouth to shout for help, but the only sound he made was a pained gurgling. Lyra had already wiped down and sheathed her knife when he collapsed motionless against the wall.

Wasting no time, the girl thief jumped down from the marble wall and dashed across the courtyard. She practically flew up the wall of the palace, which was especially easy to climb thanks to the many carved designs. When she came to a window, Lyra peered inside. She noted the one lightly armed sentry at the end of the corridor and the plentiful shadows, thanks to the flickering torches Empress Varia was so fond of. The guard was so drowsy that he failed to notice the window slowly inching open, or the shadow that slipped discreetly into the corridor. Lyra made her way towards the sentry carefully, always sticking to the shadows. The shadows danced, and Lyra danced with them, never falling behind or leaving herself exposed. The guard, trying desperately to stay awake, didn’t notice her until she was right in front of him. And by then, of course, it was too late. Another life lost to the biting edge of Lyra’s knife…

She slipped into the main hallway and immediately sank deeper into the shadows. The hall was positively swarming with guards. This would be more difficult than she had thought.

Lyra knew that if she stayed in one place for too long, the shadows would betray her. So she had to keep moving. Glancing around, Lyra spotted what she was looking for. The stairwell used by the servants, which led to every floor in the palace, had two guards. How could she dispatch them both at the same time without being noticed? She had an idea in mind as she snuck up on the sentries, who were talking to each other in bored tones. She appeared behind them like a phantom of death, stabbing them both simultaneously. Though they made wretched gasping noises, they were drowned out by the crackling of the torches. Lyra then propped them against the wall so they simply looked half asleep, hoping it would buy her some time.

She hurried down the stairwell marveling at the ornate golden banister and the perfectly smooth marble steps. And to think, it was for the servants! Lyra stopped in her tracks as she reached the very bottom of the stairwell, where there stood the largest door she had ever seen. It was made of marble, but not the kind featured throughout most of the palace. This was black marble, and it gleamed as if it was new. There was no lock that Lyra could identify, but there was a beautiful relief image of a lion’s head, placed in the very center of the door. Its mouth was open in a roar of fury, and its eyes were glowing rubies of remarkable size. Lyra attempted both pushing and pulling on the door, but to no avail. She frowned deeply, knowing that she didn’t have much time before the dead guards were discovered. Just as she thought this, startled shouting broke out above.

“Intruder!” she heard someone yell. “There is an intruder in the palace!” The sound of many heavily armored feet echoed on the staircase. Panicking, Lyra tried the door one last time. It swung open without as much as a creak. Blinking in astonishment, Lyra slipped inside and closed the heavy door gently behind her. After wiping the sweat off her brow and regaining her composure, Lyra turned and almost gasped out loud at what she saw.

oOo

A/N: This an old and very bad story, but I was in the mood to type something up, so... Ah well.