Muzayaf Huia
Huia's vision turned blurry, and with it came a migraine. He was troubled. He closed his eyes tightly, struggling to accept the decision being made. This wasn't like stealing small scraps from locals as usual—this was the Alfheim Empire they were discussing.
"Uh…?" Huia muttered, his voice barely audible. Am I the only one with some sense around this table? He wondered.
"Do you guys even understand what you're trying to do?" he asked, looking between Adinim and Akhaqia, doubt filling his eyes.
"Have I ever let you all down before?" Akhaqia replied. "Whenever I develop a scheme, it's always a success."
Huia thought about it. He remembered how Akhaqia was a mad genius but still felt wary. Adinim's voice suddenly interrupted his.
"Don't tell me you're scared now, Huia," Adinim said teasingly.
"I have never been scared before in my life."" He paused for a moment before continuing, his tone dripping with mockery. After all, it's not like I'm an elf, one who could die if things go wrong. I am a god and immortal. "Praise me! I, the B'yakhad Valor, have returned," Huia responded sarcastically. His tone was sarcastic. He continued, his voice not serious: "Why would I be scared? It's not like they're going to butcher us, too, if we mess up or anything."
Adinim smirked. "Try again," he said in a dry tone, but his expression grew serious. "They wouldn't let us go and try again, but that's fine with me. There's nothing else they could take from me. Nothing they could do that they haven't already done." He paused for a moment. "I have nothing to lose."
Huia, thinking and considering all the horrific things the Alfheim Empire could do—killing the families of those involved or torturing them slowly, painfully, until they wished they were dead—thought, Well, clearly Adinim lacks creativity in all the ways the Alfheim Empire could mess with him. Or is he just plain stupid?
And then it dawned on him that maybe he was not so stupid. That's why Adinim has been reckless all these years. No one is looking after him or expecting anything from him. He doesn't care about living. Does he have a death wish?
With all his experiences with Adinim, Huia knew there was no stopping him. Despite his reluctance, he couldn't turn his back on the plan to steal from a supply chain that had been untouchable for years. More importantly, he couldn't turn his back on Adinim. He was the only person who had ever been there for him.
With a heavy sigh, Huia lowered his head, clutching his hair in frustration as though he might tear it out. He took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind. He expressed his concerns about the plan and its potential risks, secretly hoping to dissuade them, though he knew better.
"All right, fine," he said, his voice lacking conviction. "But when we're hanging upside down by our legs, suffering from whatever twisted punishment they come up with, don't say I didn't warn y'all because I did."
Maadhela Akhaqia
Despite Huia's reluctant acceptance of the plan, Akhaqia jumped.
"So, about the tracklance..." Akhaqia began, leaving his thought hanging.
Before he could finish, Huia cut in. "How will you get into a tracklance that travels three hundred miles per hour? That's going to be our biggest problem."
Akhaqia paused, then replied, "That's our biggest problem?"
Huia interrupted with a questioning look on his face. "That's our biggest problem?" he echoed. "What about the fact that it levitates? You can't just shoot the track path to stop it. It's impossible to stop unless it's programmed to. And it moves insanely fast."
"I have an idea," Akhaqia continued, ignoring Huia's growing concern. "It would be hard to stop it in place, so we either have to wait for it at the end of its trips or the beginning… or we could do something entirely different."
Huia, paying close attention to every word Akhaqia said, began feeling more willing to carry out the plan. He still believed there was some risk, but like with previous heists, being a thief involves taking some risks.
The group had already decided on their actions, but before going through everything, they sat at the table, reflecting on what they had just discussed.
Adinim and Akhaqia envisioned all the wealth they could gain from the situation—possibilities that made it nearly impossible for Akhaqia to turn down. After all, if he got lucky, he might have enough to leave the Alfheim Empire and provide a better future for his sister elsewhere.
Adinim, on the other hand, was simply satisfied with the idea of ruining the Alfheim Empire's supplies—nothing more, nothing less.
Meanwhile, Huia was thinking about the opposite: Akhaqia's plans, all the chaos that could ensue, and the potential for everything to go wrong. Despite his doubts, Huia was willing to proceed because, as always, the plan sounded terrific, and Akhaqia's plans always came through; hopefully, it would do the same this time because, if needed, the plan had to work; this would be it.
This resulted in the trio sitting in the silent room, so quiet that if a pen fell, the whole room would hear it.
The silence was broken. The sound of the door they had closed caught everyone's attention. When they looked, it was a girl with two huge eyes; who else could it be other than sweet little Lily?
Lily nervously peeked her head into the room. Her innocent eyes scanned the room. She was looking for Adinim. Of course, she wanted to play—that's why she originally came into the room—but being shy, she stayed behind the door until now. Now, she tried opening the door after hearing all the fun discussions that had been had between Akhaqia, Adinim, and Huia. She wanted to be part of it, too.
She asked, "Are you guys playing the thief game again?"
After hearing that, Akhaqia first looked at her with a worried look. Then, after looking at her, his gaze softened a bit. Even though she wasn't supposed to be here, Akhaqia couldn't bring himself to yell at her.
"Yes," Akhaqia said, "and you don't follow the rules. Remember the rule of staying away from the room when discussions occur," he said in a polite voice.
Lily looked at Akhaqia like a sad puppy and said, "Yes, you can't participate."
Lily's face simultaneously expressed a hint of sadness and disappointment, and she asked, "Well, can I… play with Adinim?"
Akhaqia took a deep breath. "No, you can't play with Adinim. Maybe you can play with Adinim as much as you want tomorrow."
"To… tomorrow?" She responded.
"Okay," Lily said softly, looking down at the floor, her head lowered as she nervously twirled her thumbs.
Akhaqia smiled gently, reaching out to ruffle her hair with affection. "Come on, Lily. Go play with your toys, and I promise I, Akhaqia the Third, will personally make sure Adinim plays with you tomorrow."
Lily glanced over at Adinim, waiting for confirmation, her big eyes filled with hope, wondering if what Akhaqia said was true.
Adinim smiled and said, "You have my word."
This ignited a spark of excitement in little Lily, filling her with newfound energy. Eager to play with Adinim soon, Lily ran out of the room to enjoy her toys, her excitement palpable.
After Lily had left, Akhaqia looked at Adinim. Huia looked at them both.
"All right, tomorrow," Akhaqia said. Then they all said it in unison, like sharp steel, "Tomorrow."
This was their ritual before a massive heist.
After their so-called ritual, Adinim and Huia made their way out of the house. Now that they were out of the house, they could see as clearly as day that it was nearly nighttime, so they made their way home—if it can be called that.