literature

Shifting Sands (Chapter 1)

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Chapter One

I stood on the ledge and watched the sun set beyond the horizon. As the darkness fell, I felt the air chill and the sky come alive with the light of stars. The sky was clear of clouds or cover…and the light of the moon cast its holy glow over the entire city of sand. The buildings and homes that stood scattered all over the place were as numerous as sand in the desert; there was no end to them. The sultans palace, which stood in all its majesty to the far corner of the city, cast a commanding shadow over the land. The lights of torches and lamps began to appear in the windows and on the rooftops of buildings, as if the city was trying to compete with the dazzling stars above it. This was a peaceful and tranquil night. The city was closing its eyes and sleeping under the deep blue night sky. The Kingdom of Samadiin was now sleeping.

“Ridiculous.” I whispered to myself.

Anyone who had grown up in the city knew that this was a city that never slept and never rested. When the sun went down and the hardworking and honest people nestled themselves into their bed, that was when the citizens of the night came awoke and came alive. The wise citizen knows to keep his doors tightly shut and his valuables locked away at night, for it is a different world when the sun sets. The beggars, cutthroats, rapists, thieves, and whores thrived under the starry sky and, at night, the law is nonexistent. Under the Arabian Night, the spirits of the desert rule the streets…and he who is the lowest criminal by day is greater even than the sultan. I grinned to myself as I reflected on this knowledge.

“Tonight…I’m the King of Thieves.” I chuckled to myself. My eyes were trained on the palace tonight. This was going to be my biggest hit yet! I had been planning this job for months, and tonight was the night I had been waiting for! The Sultan, Afzal was holding a party in the palace…and all of the rich and powerful will be in attendance. For a normal thief, this is a perfect opportunity to rob the houses of the party guests…but these thieves simply lack cunning and imagination. Tonight, the sultan will be putting all of his wealth and his power on display…his treasury will be wide open. I grinned to myself imagining all the loot stashed away in that palace….just waiting for me.
I crouched low and I became aware of my surroundings…taking in everything I could see, smell, hear, and feel. The cold wind slapped my bare chest. My wild black hair flapped uncontrollably. I took the grey cloth sash that I wore around my neck and wove it over my head to be a hood…to protect my face from the cold. I felt the golden anklet around my right ankle and the two arm bands around my biceps. I took a moment to touch the ring around my finger…my most prized possession. I felt my heart churn as I felt it’s smooth cold surface. Another breeze rushed over my bare chest and back and I snapped out of my daze. Now was certainly not the time to be going weak-kneed…it was time to move….now or never.
“Now.” I whispered. I leaped from the ledge.

I dove for the earth and reached out my hand, grabbing a clothes line. I snapped it with a flick of the wrist as it swung me to the next building. I released my grip and grabbed the wall, climbing like monkey to the top of the house and onto the roof. I moved fluidly and without ceasing. This city was my playground…it was a jungle of rooftops and pathways. I leaped from roof to roof easily. I ran up walls and leaped for balconies with little effort and moved through tiny cracks and holes that other thieves would hesitate to go near. I dove, jumped, and rolled through the intricate maze of buildings, roofs, and streets.
I had been free running before I could walk. I knew every secret of the city and every roof. There was no gap I couldn’t leap and no ledge I couldn’t fall from that I couldn’t catch myself. This is not confidence…it is fact. I ran along wooden beams and I could soar across the city. I was streaking towards the palace at blinding speed. I didn’t need to slow down, because I the night air filled me with determination. The thought of what laid within the palace drove me forward. I laughed despite myself as I practically flew towards it. It took no longer than 10 minutes for me to finally reach the front of the palace gates.

I looked over the edge of the small inn that I was perched on and looked at the gates. As I expected, there were guards at the entrance…making sure that no one got in that wasn’t invited. I smirked at them. Such simple minded creatures…were they even human? How often has standing at attention with a sword in your hand ever kept a thief out of a building? Such a lack of creativity and imagination only made things that much easier for me. I scanned the building for an alternate entrance. It didn’t take long to find it. I looked at the nearest tower and saw an unlocked window…and there was no light on inside. Either someone was sleeping inside, or the room was empty, and I could enter without being noticed. The trick would be finding a way of getting over the gate without raising suspicion. Again, I chuckled to myself…there was always a way.
Around my waist was a long golden bead belt. Within the largest bead was a small compartment that held a very special powder. It was a little concoction that I had cooked up when dealing with stupid guards like these. I pulled up the small container and opened the small hole in the bottom. I allowed a small amount of the powder to fall into my hands. I rubbed the powder between my fingers and quickly dropped down from the roof towards the gate. Being careful to stay just out of eye sight, I took the powder and waited for the next guest to approach the guard. Just before the guest reached the guard, I threw the ball of powder in my hand at the ground near the guards feet.

*CRACK*

The powder struck the ground exploding on impact with a loud crack, similar to a fire cracker. The powder itself is harmless…the explosion it creates is harmless as well. However, in the middle of the night, the sound and light it makes is enough to terrify and distract a blundering guard or civilian.
“Arrgh!” The guard roared. His hand flew to his sword as the civilians began scrambling around in horror, screaming like lunatics. I would have laughed had I had the time. But for a thief, time is precious…and I had only bought myself a few seconds. I dashed across the street and to the gate. I leaped as high as I could and grabbed the top of the iron bars. I pulled myself up and over the gate and onto the grounds. My bare feet touched grass and it tickled my calloused feet. I rushed to the edge of the palace and began scaling the wall. I moved quickly and methodically up the side of the tower until I finally reached the window. I shoved it open silently and crawled into the empty room.

“Not a bad entrance.” I hissed silently. The room was too dark. I couldn’t see exactly what it was, but I knew that it was empty…there was no sound or movement in the room. I had made it into the palace successfully. I silently closed the window behind and crept over to the door leading into the palace main hall. I removed the hood from my head and let my sash hang over my shoulder and neck. I turned and suddenly saw my reflection in a large mirror hanging from the wall.
I looked over myself for a moment. My skin was tan and my hair was wild and black. I had stubble on my face and my eyes were a deep brown color. I didn’t often get to take a look at my face…appearances really didn’t matter to me. However, I had to admit that I didn’t look too bad. I wonder who I owed that to…was it my mother or father?
“Stop bringing them up.” I growled to myself. “They don’t matter…what matters is what’s waiting for you is the treasure waiting for you in this palace.” I turned to the door and lightly pushed it open. I scanned the halls and prepared to make my move. My hand brushed against the dagger at my side…I was ready for anything.

“Tonight is going to be the best night of my life.” I assured myself. “Tonight, I make off with the greatest treasure of my career.” I then took off down the hall silently, searching for the treasure room.
In honor of the fact that I have now uploaded 200 deviations, I have decided to finally upload a story that I have been working on for...well...a very long time.

When I was young, one of the first books I read was Tales of A Thousand and One Nights. I was always fascinated by these stories and I wanted to write a story like those...as if I could add my own tale to the mix. So I spent a long time trying to come up with the perfect story...with the perfect characters, the perfect setting, the perfect plot, and the perfect ending! And now, I finally have it. I call the story Shifting Sands and you'll see why soon enough.

I want to thank all of you who read and comment on my work for inspiring me to go on and improve so that I could finally upload this...and I also want to especially thank ~XxPhantomRiderxX for helping me come up with some phenomenal characters and an incredible idea for the story. I owe her a lot for this. Regardless, I insist that you go and check out her artwork, as she has drawn several of the pictures for my other stories such as Hand Held Cousin, I Live With A Witch, and The Sky Touchers. Go see her work and comment on it...she's amazingly talented!

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VoxMagi's avatar
Why did it take me so long to read this! Truly inspiring, and the descriptions and scenery flawless. Definitely write more when you can! Please!