Kaleb offered a shrug. “I mean, it's possible. You had a look over there and couldn't find her. If she's in this city at all, this special auction probably warrants a look. But it won't be easy to get in. First off, you caused quite the ruckus back there. I won't be surprised if other mercenary guards come stomping around in search of us. And then there's the fact that they're not just going to let the owner of a stolen Faelyr stroll into an auction where said Faelyr is being sold off, you know? We're going to have to be crafty about it.”
“If we can find out where the auction is being held, I'll find us a way in,” she promised.
“I'll look into it. It's possible nothing will come of this, but it seems worth investigating. Give me a minute.” Kaleb urged her to stand down while he approached the vendor hawking tickets to the exclusive auction. “I'll see what details I can glean from the guy. In the meantime... don't go killing anybody, all right?”
Minx watched Kaleb pass through the crowd and toward the ticket seller. I hope this works, she thought. If Mau is really there, we need to save her. Time isn't on our side...
Chapter 10
In his dealings with the ticket seller, Kaleb had come away with a pair of tickets to the event. The auction was set to take place the next day, in a large stone building nestled deep within the city of Karn. This building, as best they could tell during their surveillance, boasted three entry points and would likely be manned with guards at the time of the auction. The buy-in was somewhat costly, but rumors of exquisite wares and rare specimens circulated amongst the market-goers. It was decided that the two of them would stay overnight in the city, both of them taking rooms in a small inn under fake names.
Minx went further than her counterpart in the way of caution, opting for a disguise to keep her from standing out. During the day, before checking in at the inn, she picked up a long, black cloak, the hood of which hung low over her face and obscured her true identity. While wearing it, she looked just like any other unremarkable traveler in the bustling city. She kept her quiver and bow on her at all times, walking the city armed as so many others chose to do.
She spent the night in her gritty room, the door barred with furniture to ward off thieves or mercenaries with grudges, and was thankful to sleep on a bed, no matter how lumpy it was. She awoke early in the morning, just past daybreak, and found Kaleb awaiting her in the lobby of the inn. They reviewed their plans over breakfast and spent the remainder of the morning strolling in the vicinity of the auction building, keeping a low profile.
Morning faded into afternoon and finally it came time for them to launch their operation.
They could not be sure what caliber of guard would await them outside the auction house, but presumed that their combined strength—that of a Fae huntress and a fire dragon of the Pyra clan—would be more than sufficient to overpower the security. They selected the eastern entrance to the sprawling stone building for its relative seclusion and nearness to a long alley that allowed them various places to keep watch.
A half-hour before the expected start of the auction, Kaleb and Minx split up, each of them entering the east alley from opposite routes. Strolling leisurely, careful not to attract undue attention, they met in the middle and quietly made their way to the building entrance. As expected, the door was manned by not one, but four guards. These figures stationed at the door, all of them hardy Plurn stock, were armed to the teeth with axes and garbed in form-fitting leather armor. The muscled guards muttered quietly to one another, their feline eyes scanning the crowds in search of trouble.
“So, is this all?” asked Kaleb. “Four Plurn?”
Minx looked upward, noting shadows on the nearby rooftops. “I don't think so. There are more waiting nearby in case of trouble.”
“Perhaps we should warn them,” he joked. “They'll need several more men to make it a fair fight.”
The time had come for them to attempt their infiltration. They planned to present their tickets, and if at all possible, avoid a fight with the guards. If they could blend into the crowd and merely attend the auction as regular customers, their position would be far more advantageous. It was possible that the guards were on the lookout for them—Minx, especially, due to her violence against the mercenary the day previous, as well as her associations with a certain Faelyr who might wind up on the auction floor.
They stepped forth, heads low, and held out their tickets for the guards.
One of the Plurn took the tickets in turn, inspecting them, and then gave a grunt. “All right, come this way,” he ordered.
It was one of his fellows, a Plurn with a silver streak of fur over his eye, who stopped them. “Hold on a minute, let me see that.” He plucked the tickets from the other guard's grasp and held them up to the light. Then, grumbling, waved them in. “They're legit, let 'em in.”
The first guard added gruffly, “Check any weapons in the door, there.”
Maintaining low profiles, Minx and Kaleb slipped into the building. A Plurn waited near the door, and he accepted Minx's bow and quiver without a word. She was loathing to hand either of them over, but in the interest of maintaining her secrecy, she complied without complaint. Leaving the entrance and starting into the auction hall proper, she took in her surroundings from beneath the edge of her hood.
Inside, the sights that awaited them proved curious.
If the array of stock sold in the open-air bazaar was disquieting, then the menagerie
