Feeling please with myself for avoiding the second trap, I let myself indulge in a small fantasy. Tomorrow, I imagined, the Jackalman guard would be called in front of his very angry superior to explain why his crossbows hadn�t stopped a burglar.� I grinned in the darkness as I imagined a vindictive guard boss ordering my least favourite guard to clean the latrines.
My spirits much improved I set about opening the door in front of me.
Once inside the guard barrack proper, I had to fight my instincts.� Given the second trap, I was glad that I hadn�t tried to take the first crossbow and now I had to resist a pile of loot.� All manner of weapons were stored here along with standard guard gear.
A window provided just enough ambient light for me to make out an array of lockers.� Each seemed to have a name prominently displayed, but it was too dark for me to make out details.� I didn�t know the Jackalman�s name anyway so I started opening lockers at random.� None of them were locked, they clearly trusted to their crossbows to keep out miscreants and, to be fair, it had almost worked.
A few minutes rummaging gave me what I needed.� First of all, a sturdy belt that I could wrap around my torso to keep my makeshift bandage in place.� With my second hand free, I could rummage much faster.� My shirt was busy keeping me from bleeding, so I helped myself to a guard�s uniform.� Hidden under my cloak it wouldn�t draw attention.
I never really felt at ease without several options for weaponry, so I grabbed a few daggers and a nice-looking short sword.� There was a small amount of money, which of course I took, but then I had to remind myself that I had a big climb ahead and a time limit.
Nevertheless, I took the time to find what was presumably the guard captain�s desk and had a good look inside.� Two drawers opened easily and contained nothing useful to me.� It was all writing equipment.� I didn�t need it.� The third drawer was locked and took a bit of persuasion and some choice language to get it open.� I pulled the drawer free of the desk and tipped its contents onto the desktop.� I had left too much mayhem in my rushed ransacking of the barracks, there was no covering this up.� I didn�t really feel the need to try.� The only reason to hide a theft is to buy some time before its discovered.� Anything that�s worth taking will be noticed if it�s gone, sooner or later.
Tonight, I intended to be long gone by the time anyone showed up at the barracks for work next morning.� They�d probably launch an investigation and throw their weight around DownTown, but I�d be safe for two reasons:� I would hopefully be over the wall into Faircrest by then and I wasn�t going to try to sell any of my loot.� Crimes got more complicated the more people that are involved.