No, it most definitely is not!

Before Kaiz could bolt away, however, a familiar voice cut in, “Relax. We have a job.”

Viz emerged from below the tree, his sword attached to his belt. He always wore his enchanted gambeson-like armor, many wondered if he slept in it, but he rarely brought his blade with him. Like the robe the woman wore, a color Kaiz knew only he could see slightly masked the weapon. It would normally be a calming sight, but current circumstances made it the opposite.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?”

Viz elaborated, “She knows you’re with me. Snake sent her with a job for us.”

“Leave me out.”

Kaiz didn’t need to hear anything else. He wanted nothing to do with her or Snake. The job might pay well, but they both just got paid. Handsomely. He wouldn’t spend all his coin for a while, he didn’t need to rush into whatever dangerous job Snake offered.

“You ain’t got a choice.”

Kaiz looked at the woman skeptically, “Why not? What do you want from me?”

She sneered as if the answer was obvious, “Cloaks.”

No way.

He glanced at his ‘partner’. It was one thing to figure out that Kaiz belonged to the same crew as Viz. In the past he’d worked hard to mask their relation, but his vigilance had slipped in recent times. Now, it wasn’t an impossible feat to uncover the connection. Snake would definitely have the resources to do so.

No law banned tanlars from the city markets, but guards and general city dwellers found any and every reason to harass them if they were caught. Kaiz had seen many tanlars robbed of their purchased goods in broad daylight. He’d never been robbed himself though, and not just because he wore a disguise. No one had ever detected he wasn’t titled. He didn’t know how, but he could stroll by guards all day long and they’d never notice he was a tanlar. That meant whenever their crew needed goods or gear they couldn’t source off the blackmarket, he went to go buy them himself. There was a trail there if someone cared to look deeply.

Snake finding out he was a runner, though, that was impossible. There were absolutely no visible connections between Kaiz and the runner people called the ‘Silent Ghost’. That, he made absolutely sure. Only, and exactly, seven people knew the truth. Outside of Crypt, who would never squeal for warped reasons, he trusted each of them with his life. They wouldn’t betray him, would they?

“Stop it. Seriously? No one said a thing, they’ve been watching you for months.”

What?!

“Impossible.” I’d have seen them. Even the archer girl never got close to home, “How?”

“I don’t kn—”

“Doesn’t matter, Snake—”

The woman had cut Viz off, growing bored with their conversation. Little did she know, Viz didn’t tolerate that. With a speed unbefitting a tanlar, he slid his sword from his belt and balanced it in front of her neck. The pace and fluidity of the motion left her with no time to react. Before she could move a muscle, the tip of his blade hung a mere centimeter away from her throat.

“You’ve insulted us once today. This makes it twice. There will not be a third.”

She looked at the blade, petrified. If Viz had extended only a bit further, she’d be dead. Being gifted with a title meant nothing if she couldn’t react to the simple swing of a sword.

“Snake and I, have a deal. You’re just the pawn he’s using. Don’t think for a moment you speak for him.” After allowing the threat to marinate for a few seconds, he pointed his sword in the direction he just appeared from, “Now get inside.”

The woman dashed into Kaiz’s home with haste, fear proving yet again to be truly a potent motivator. As soon as she disappeared from sight, Viz let a deep breath flow through him. He no doubt chastised himself for allowing his anger to get the best of him again.

Well. That’s definitely Snake’s mark on her robe.

Kaiz picked up his books, “So what now?”

“Now, we go do that job.”

“No.”

“What? Why?”

Kaiz raised an eyebrow, “Work for Snake? I wouldn’t do that at the best of times. Now you want me to do it after I just find out he’s been secretly tailing me, through means I can’t fathom, for months on end?”

Viz sighed, “Look. I know, trust me I get it. But we can’t afford to turn this deal down.”

“You say ‘we’, but you really mean ‘you’. I just risked my life for ‘we’ like two weeks ago. I became a runner because they were the simplest jobs; get in, get out, don’t get caught. I don’t know what this job is, but it’s Snake. He only offers jobs he isn’t willing to risk his own men for. I’m not running two suicide missions back to back. With what we did to Conan, this could just be a trap.”

“It’s not.” He stopped Kaiz before he could interrupt, “I get it, I get it. This time is different though. Do this one job and I’ll never ask something like this of you again.”

Kain scoffed, “You won’t keep that promise.”

Viz took a moment to carefully scrutinize his surroundings before whispering, “I swear it. I, Lovis Wilhelm Vogel, swear it on my name and my bloodline.”

Kaiz reeled back. Viz never said his name, not even just his given name. Yet he just swore on it. He just swore on his name.

What kind of deal did you agree to?!

Eyes wide in disbelief, Kaiz struggled to find the words, “Wha-what are we getting out of this?”

“A lot”

“Details.”

Viz returned to whispering, “Control of the whole North West Zone.”

Kaiz reeled back a second time, with even greater shock than the first.

Huh, what? No. Impossible. Why? How? No way. What? How?

“We’re not big enough.” Was the only reply Kaiz’s brain could muster.

“What do you think I’ve been up to while you lazed around all day?”

Kaiz didn’t even register the snide remark. “How much could we have possibly grown in twenty-two days?”

“Twenty-three days. And enough to control the North West Zone.”

“Details. I need details. Specific details.”

Viz groaned, “We can discuss this in excruciating detail later. This is neither the time nor the place. You asked what we’re getting, that’s what we’re getting.”

Kain wanted more. He didn’t understand what was going on; he hated that. Their crew was fairly stable. They had a nice slice of land, a decent roster of men, powerful connections. Everything an average gang could hope for. The keyword being ‘average’. They may have had certain secrets that made them stronger than they appeared, but no matter how you cut it they weren’t large enough to handle a whole zone. The logistics, the security, the money to pay for the logistics and security, the expertise to handle the money, logistics and security. Where was all of that going to come from? They weren’t things you could acquire in a matter of days or weeks.

I don’t like this.

“What about Conan? He’s been gearing up to take this zone for years.”

“He’s being moved east. We’ll be inheriting some of his stuff.”

Kaiz doubted Conan would be so accommodating, “We’re supposed to believe that?”

“I already have all his deeds. It was the down payment.”

Kaiz stared him in the eyes, “Show me.”

Viz stared back, but dumbfounded, “You think I would bring them out here?”

“True. Fair.”

Fuck.

“You’re sure this isn’t a trap?”

Viz tried to throw out a charismatic smirk, “As sure as I’ve ever been.” Neither the smirk nor the reassurance landed.

Fuck!

If he’s right, this is the opportunity of a lifetime. But why? Why would Snake give up so much? The North West Zone’s small and pretty poor, but it’s still a whole zone. He wants cloaks for this? Why? How is that an equal trade? Is he giving up on Conan entirely? Why make a deal when he could just take over? Wait. When did Viz set up this deal? Twenty-three days? That’s the day after the last run. Was that just a proof of concept? A trial run? The archer girl… is she one of Snake’s people? I’m assuming it was the same person twice. What if it was two different people? Were they both Snake’s? Why attack me? Was that a test, too?

There were too many questions. Everything about the job screamed danger. Everything about the whole situation screamed danger. Kaiz didn’t like it one bit. Yet, he knew he had only one option. He had to accept. He’d never seen anxiety mar Viz’s face like it did right now.

Damn it!

“Fine.” A wave of relief visibly crashed into Viz’s body. “But. If there isn’t a good plan in place, you’re going to need to find someone else. And. You owe me a new hideout. Even if Snake knows who I am, I don’t want him knowing where I live. I don’t trust this isn’t a trap.”

Maybe I can avoid Josslyn after all.

Viz perked up, “Alright, I’m already halfway there.”

Kaiz assumed that meant Viz was at least confident in his plan, but when he entered what was once his home and saw nothing but three chairs, he knew the truth of the matter. He could do only sigh. Viz was always five steps ahead.

Is this why you sent me on that errand you bastard?!