The only humans in a world of Magic

“We won’t disappoint you,” Noah repeated, in a need to convince both himself and the boss. Then he grabbed Marth’s and got out of the building as fast as he could without making it look like a flight. Outside, he finally felt like he could breathe again. Not that the air was much better or held more oxygen. But at least he could see the sky, the cloud covered sky.

He held a close eye on everyone, as well as he could, as they made their way to the docks. There, hidden in a corner, was their home. He stepped over the rope of one of Violet’s traps, making sure Marth did the same. It wouldn’t be the first time they had to entangle him from a trap, and it wouldn’t be the last. Marth’s safety had been the main reason, Noah had insisted Violet and Axise didn’t make the traps lethal.

After he untied the rope keeping the door closed, it creaked open and Noah stepped into their home. Everything was old and some kind of broken, it reeked of mould, and the food storage was always running on empty. But it wasn’t the streets. The roof held the rain out -- mostly, and they collectively had gathered things and memories, what made it truly feel like home.

Noah nodded at Violet and gestured to the dining area with the fire pit in the middle of it, and the food stored in the back. “Axise, do you want to help Marth with the fire? Violet, do you want to join in the heist planning?” he asked, making his way over to the living area.
 
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Marth followed along the familiar path leading to the warehouse, a childlike giddiness still residing in him, thinking about the heist.
He could say he was excited but that would be an understatement to the fun he knew he would have to rummage around during the heist.

Marth wasn't that bothered by the overall stench of whatever smell reeked inside the warehouse. He was reminded of his sleeping bag and corner, with all his little bobbles and trinkets, not to mentions the supplies he had gathered throughout the group's travel. He'd be excited to make use of some of his tools when climbing or even lockpicking a door.

Marth heard his name being said by Violet. He looked at her for instructions. While he admired Noah being the leader, he found Violets and Axises' crafty work fascinating. The two had crafted him many supplies over the years. He went over to the food storage, gathering some supplies for the food. Now he wanted to focus on the food, he would have to think about the heist later. He looked over to Axise after Noah's instructions, giving her a friendly smile as he sat down to work on the fish.
 
Axise smiled, finally happy to be out of that god-forsaken building. The whole place just radiated awful energy, making her shudder as the group made their way down the street towards home.

Home. It wasn't much, just a run-down old warehouse. But it housed the four humans, and that worked well enough. Axise stepped over the rope holding a trap in place, not even needing to look down. Both she and Violet knew where every trap around the place was, although sometimes she'd set one off by mistake. At Noah's insistence, they made the traps non-lethal, which Axise thought was no fun. But, it was for Marth's safety, so they complied.

Axise stepped inside and looked around, the musty air filling their lungs. Several old machines sat around, in various forms of being taken apart. The machines were her passion project, something she'd tinker with when bored. She'd been so lost in thought she almost didn't catch what Noah said.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I got it," They said, whipping their head around to look at Noah. She nods and motions for Marth to come along, reminding him about how to properly prepare everything.
 
(time skip the next day)
The skies here were much clearer, much fresher and felt a little nice. There were tall buildings, and sprawling homes and communities. Elves were dressed very nice here. Walking about, and minding their businesses. And the humans? There were on the roof of one of the buildings. The homes and buildings were all squished together. So hopping from one building to another was very easy to do. And quite quick. The only problem arrives when there was a street between the two buildings.

"Okay, everyone. Remember to do not fall. It would make everyone's day very inconvenient" Violet reminded the others. She was standing right at the edge of the roof. There was a rather small path separating them from the next house. Nothing surprising since that path was on the map, so there should be a plan to get across. Violet looked to Noah, hoping the leader had some great ideas on how they could get to the other side.
 
Noah stood on the rooftops, dressed in the darkest clothes they had. It was an early summer morning, late enough for the sun to peek in, but early enough that the people were still soundly asleep. If everything went well, they’ll be out before the sun was up completely and home when the professor would notice things missing.

“Hush, Violet. You are frightening Marth.” He turned to Marth holding up the elven rope that connected him with Marth and Marth with Violet and Violet with Axise. “If someone falls, we’ll catch them.”

He grabbed the loose ending of the rope with two hands. He turned them around, twisting it. “Let there be two,” he whispered, and just like that he had a second rope.

At first, he had been sceptical about a rope that could split this easily, but the elven woman had ensured him it would only break when he wanted it to, and till so far it had never betrayed him. It hadn’t been cheap, but the gold coins he paid with weren’t real. He didn’t like to do that, but he had to, to keep his siblings safe.

He took the extra piece and stretched it out. Longer and longer as he whispered at it softly. Then he took a small iron hook, bent in shape by fire and Axise, out of his bag and connected it with the rope. He took a deep breath, took a step back and it swung it to the roof at the other side where it wrapped around the chimney.

Noah gave a short pull to ensure it was steady and wrapped the other end on the chimney at their roof, a bit higher than it was at the other end. Yet he made sure not to tie it too high, so they could get back if they moved the rope at the other side up.

After ensuring this end was stuck as well, he took the loose end of the rope once again, bound a hook to it and hooked it onto the zipline. When it was soundly attached, he cut the rope in between him and Marth. He repeated this for all of them, ensuring each of them was always either connected to the zipline, or one of the others.

He double-checked if everyone was safely attached and spoke, “remember to hold your rope and to never touch the zipline when you go down. I go first, then Marth, then Violet and then Axise. Everyone understood?”
 
Marth glanced over the rooftop, the gentle morning breeze rustling his tangled hair. He found himself constantly finding new details about his surroundings in the city which he had never come across in the slums. Everything was neat, tidy, and organized but still stylish and filled to the brim with ornaments of decoration. He fiddled with his hands, cracking his fingers, stretching his ankles so he was ready for the job. He wrapped his palms in ragged pieces of cloth to strengthen his grip, just in case.

His gaze followed Noah as he attached the zipline. Marth trusted himself with climbing freehand but wasn't really sure whether he could put his trust in the piece of rope. He expressed some comfort when Noah revealed that he would be going first. He fiddled with his rope but stopped in worry of it wearing out and snapping. He could take a fall off a roof in the slums. The muddy ground would always soften his fall. But in the city, if he fell, he'd be certain it would break his entire body. Marth tried to focus on something else, realizing his mind was wandering a little too far. He had learned from Violet to erase any doubt when doing a job. Worries came later. He focused on the shiny roof tiles taking short little steps, allowing himself to hear the chain-like sound conducted, awaiting Noah.
 
Axise looked at the buildings surrounding them. Small, squished, but quaint. They'd love to have a house like this one day. The cool morning breeze blew through her hair, tossing it out of her face so she could see. The sight was one to behold, that's for sure. It was exhilarating, yet terrifying, being in such a nice place. She looked over the edge of the roof and bit her lip, knowing that one wrong step could mean breaking something or possibly death, as she'd very nearly encountered many times before.

She fidgeted, glancing around while Noah spoke. She could never really keep eye contact when people talked, something that always got her in trouble back at the orphanage. When he took hold of the rope, Axise snapped to attention to watch. The way the rope split always fascinated her, the magic working in mysterious ways she couldn't understand yet. When he attached them all to the zipline, she took a deep breath and awaited Noah's instruction.
 
There were a lot of cops on the street, walking around and just having a presence. Luckily none of them had decided to bother looking up yet, but they might. "Little bit of advice, keep your eyes close until you're on the other side. It's less frightening that way." She advised. Looking forward, thinking and concentrating. For a moment, she had hesitated until she finally closed her eyes. Then she used the top to get to the other side. Ziplining really quickly until her feet were touching the next roof. She hated tightly but always tried to push through without seeming too afraid of it.
"Alright, your turn Axise." Violet spoke out. She didn't want to shout too loud. Since there was still the crowd under them.

There's a really large concentration of people there. Just a lot. Violet looked forward to noticing they were close to some kind of part or recreational area. So there were people coming and going. Their target was just beyond the park. She could even see the target from this area. An apartment from the looks of it. Something decently middle class with a front porch.

"There's the target. Just a few jumping away."
 
Noah checked everyone's rope, one more time. Looked at each of them, making sure everyone knew what to do. Axise seemed anxious, distracted, but as he made eye contact he saw her focus and knew she would know what to do.

He put a hand on Marth’s shoulder, who was fiddling with the rope. “Don’t worry it won’t snap.” A glance down to the street told him there were a few too many cops. “Don’t scream,” he warned. Then he hold on to his rope and jumped off the roof. He held his eyes fixed on the opposite side of the path.

He woosjed over and planted his feet on the other side. For now, he remained attached to the zipline. When everyone made it to the other end, he would detach everyone from the zipline and connected the ropes again.

When he stood steadily, he turned around and gestured for Marth to follow, holding out his arms to catch him.
 
"Don't scream," Noah warned. Marth nodded hastily as Noah wooshed to the other side on the zipline. Marth took steps forward, near the edge, eyes following Noah gliding across effortlessly.

He shook his wrists, arms, and ankles one last time to discard any nervous energy. He awaited Noah's signal and as soon as he saw him holding his arms out, he leaped. He had learned never to hesitate. The longer you hesitated, the more doubt would rise.

Marth wanted to follow Violet's advice of keeping his eyes shut, however, as soon as he felt the wind whistling in his ears he opened them. He gazed upon the streets, viewing the city as life flashed past him skidding across. No matter how exhilarating the ride was, he still kept his hands fastened tightly on his piece of rope until he eventually reached Noah's arms.
 
Axise made brief eye contact with Noah and nodded, assuring him she knew what to do. After Violet effortlessly crossed the gap between the buildings she felt a bit better knowing that it wasn't that hard. It was just getting over the mental block of taking that step off. She glanced around one more time as Violet called to her, then took a deep breath and stepped off the ledge.

Axise's eyes were shut tight as they rode, holding onto the rope for dear life. She trusted Noah when he said it wouldn't break, but there was always that little bit of fear. The ride seemed like it took an eternity, Axise trembling like a leaf the whole time. Then suddenly, her feet touched the roof of the other building and she stumbled forward into Violet's arms, collapsing to her knees. "Remind me to... never do that with my eyes closed again," She mutters into Violet's chest, her motion sickness acting up. She always forgot that closing her eyes was a bad idea when going fast.
 
Violet smiled at Axise, "Sorry, I forgot you get a little sick from that." she admitted. The big sister carefully wrapped her arms around Axise, and then kneeled when she felt that Axise collapse onto the floor. She kept her arms around her for a little bit longer. Just hugging a little. But after about three or so minutes, she slowly pulled away. Violet stood right up and helped Axise back on her feet. "Okay Noah, everything is going great," Violet said to him.

They had an almost clear route towards their destination. The apartment was up ahead and luckily the roofs were a little bit flatter on these parts. "We can just jump down to the front porch and break in from there. And then we just need to take whatever we can carry. So Marth, got any plans with your share of the gold coins?" Violet asked. Thinking it would be nice to have a nice fun conversation about the future. Now that there may be some real hope for the future and so on.
 
Noah cached Marth, placing him safely on the roof next to him. The two others followed without problems. Violet gracefully and fearless, Axise trembling.

“Are you ok?” Noah asked, as he scanned Axise, who looked pale, but not wounded. After Violet helped Axise back on her feet and he ensured she was ok, he smiled. “You should know not to listen to vi, by now.”

He tied everyone together again and they proceed the route he had drawn out on paper the day before. When they reached the apartment he stopped everyone again. “Don’t worry, I have a better plan. Marth.” Noah brushed through the boy’s hair. “You stay here if you see any law inforces going inside warn us. You remember the warning sign?” he asked.

Then he moved his attention to the others. “Axise, me and Violet go inside through the attic window.” He gestured at the window that luckily was half open for ventilation. If it was closed, they had to break it, which would have made a noise. “We get anything that seems important, and put it in the rucksacks.” He gestured at the rucksacks the three of them were carrying. “No, pressing buttons, no touching suspicious liquids. Everyone understood?”
 
Marth watched Violet effortlessly cross the zipline while worriedly giving Axise a smile of encouragement.

"I'm definitely gonna spend most of my share on food, no question. I'm going to try anything and everything there is to offer. The leftovers, I'll spend on a nice pair of boots or a colorful jacket," Marth replied with confidence.

Upon reaching the apartment Marth awaited instructions eagerly. He was almost dumbfounded when Noah suddenly expressed that he would be staying outside as a lookout. "Wait, huh.." Marth tried to intervene but Noah had already moved on to the rest of the plan. Marth remembered the warning sign but hadn't realized that this is what he would eventually be using it for.
 
Axise gratefully accepted the hug as she fell to her knees, burying her face into Violet's chest.

After a minute of this she stood up, her balance a bit off. "Y-yeah, I'm good. I just need a second," She responds to Noah, looking over at him. When he makes the comment about not listening to Violet she snickers. Once she felt better, she turned her attention to Noah and his plan. So Marth was staying out here while Axise, Noah, and Violet went in. She thought it seemed like a solid plan but then again, she trusted almost every plan Noah has. They haven't gotten the group into too much danger yet, she has no reason not to.

She listened intently and when Noah finished, she nodded and smiled. "Got it. This is gonna be so fun!" She whispers, excited. They hadn't done something like this for a while so the adrenaline was coursing through her body, making her anxious to get in there. She fidgeted with the rope around her waist, glancing around. When were they going to go? She was raring to do this.
 
'Yes, yes. Don't touch anything that's 'sciencey' or 'magical', common sense stuff. But yeah good advice," Violet said to Noah. She looked at the team, all three of them. Hopefully, this would go great. Violet took a look at the window, noticing a little small but hopefully everyone can fit. It would require some effort. "Okay, so I think we should go one at a time...Me first."

She stepped forward. "Okay...So. Careful not to slip." And then she laid down. Violet opened the window a little bit wider before slowly crawling through it. It took a little effort to squeeze through, it's a small window. And then plop.

"Oof..." she fell into the attic. The window was higher than she expected, and there was a good fall downwards. Nothing serious. Violet picked herself up. "There's going to be a bit of a fall. So careful!" Violet called out. She dusted her shirt. It was already dusty. But luckily they were surrounded by all kinds of junk and stuff. "Oh, make sure to tie a rope so we can escape!"
 
When they were at the window Noah disconnected everyone so the rope wouldn’t get in the way when they were inside. He left a part of the rope and a last warning to be careful with Marth before joining the others around the window.

As Violet disappeared inside he leaned forward. “Are you allright down there?” he asked as he peeked inside. There was Violet covered in dust, but standing. He took part of the rope and knotted it steardy at the window before dropping it down.

“You first.” He gestured at Axise. “Be careful with your hands. Don’t just slide down and unskin them.”
 
Marth crained his neck as far as he could, desperate to see inside the dusty attic. Even a little collection of trinkets and expensive furniture would have satisfied his adventuristic desires. Disappointed in the lack of a proper view he took a step back.

Defeated, he plopped down onto the roof, sitting down on the tiles while the rest disappeared into the depths of the house.
 
Axise watched Violet drop out of view with a thump. She heard the warning and Noah telling her to go next and nodded. She was glad she stretched before she left, or else this would have sucked.

"Wooo... okay. Here we go," She says, more to herself than anyone else. She carefully climbs up onto the rickety ledge and looks in. Treasures and artifacts of every kind seemed to be in there. It was dumbfounding that one man could have this much stuff. Maybe one day she'd have this much stuff. But that's wasn't important. Axise carefully shimmied her way through the tiny window, nearly getting herself stuck. "Why is this window so damn small?" She asked as she climbed in and gently dropped down to the floor.

When she landed, a cloud of dust kicked up into her face, causing her to sneeze. "Gah, sorry," She mutters, wiping her nose and praying no one's home.
 
The house was painfully boring at first. The attic was full of normal stuff. Dusty old boxes and old heirlooms. Some stuff may be valuable here though. But not what they're looking for. So Violet looked for the exit. A trapdoor that leads directly to the hallway. Unfortunately, it was locked and she couldn't break it. "Well, I'm not useful here, and I don't think we should break anything. Let's pick the lock to the trapdoor." She said to the group of people.

And then she continued to look and wander around. Violet walked over to Axise, and handed her a handkerchief. "The dust would be a little troublesome. Take care sugar."
 
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