k_a_webb | Aurora’s World: Mackenzie: The Thieves’ Hideout (Reply)

Written for a Crowdfunded Creative Jam prompt: pull down the stairs that ye may go up.

Mackenzie checked to make sure she was alone before she reached up with her hand and grabbed hold of the chain. Only certain magic users were permitted to know of its existence, because it led to a safe place mostly inhabited by the thieves. She was lucky to be one of them, especially as she would never steal anyone’s magic, but instead she would help the people who couldn’t cope with blooming. It meant she had more magic than most of the thieves, she had to watch her back more than anyone else would, and if anyone ever found out who she really was…

Shaking her head Mackenzie put her foot on the first step, pushing all thoughts about her past out of her mind, because there were several telepaths who might be in the safe place when she entered. A couple of them she liked and trusted enough to talk to them about every day things, but she didn’t trust anyone enough to talk about who she had been before she bloomed. It didn’t matter if they liked her or not: if they found out the information would be all around the kingdom within a couple of hours and then she’d be in real trouble.

Once Mackenzie was in the safe place she headed straight for her room, because she didn’t really want to spend time with anyone. She didn’t want to be alone either, but it wasn’t as though she had any friends, and it was better to be alone than to have to deal with people she mostly didn’t like. Most of them were interested in one thing: power. It didn’t matter where they got it from as long as they had more of it than anyone else, which made everyone compete against each other, and, unfortunately, everyone wanted the amount of power Mackenzie had.

It wouldn’t happen, but they didn’t know that. None of them knew that one of the powers Mackenzie had gained when she’d bloomed was the ability to take someone else’s power without endangering herself. That was another one of those things she had to keep to herself, because there were some thieves who collected different abilities as well as power. She wasn’t the only one with the ability either, so she had to keep them safe as well as herself, because they weren’t as strong or as capable of using their powers as she was.

As she walked she nodded to a couple of people she thought, under different circumstances, she might like, picked up a bottle of something drinkable, and finally got the key to her room out of her top. Mackenzie kept it on a necklace, because if anyone thought they could steal it they would. It had taken her years to be able to afford even a small room of her own and she wasn’t going to let anyone steal it. Once she was in, with the door locked behind her, she kicked off her shoes. Sighing, she flumped onto her bed.

Mirrored from K. A. Webb Writing.