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The Thieves Guild

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by Jake Kerr.

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Episode 60:

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Orion's Plans.

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Orion could not believe the security around the
Merchant Guild Tower.

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When Larson sent him a message saying they needed
to talk, he expected Larson to visit

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him. He nearly always did. It was one of the
things that Orion enjoyed,

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Larson thinking that he was appealing to Orion's
fragile ego by visiting him,

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and that taking on the minor inconvenience was one
of the things that helped Larson get his

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way.

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The reality was that Orion let Larson get his way
because Orion took

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the long view. He let Larson win every minor
disagreement,

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knowing full well that Orion himself was arranging
all the pieces for him to eventually

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rule Ness, not Larson.

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In that eventual major conflict, Orion would come
out on top,

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yet he was visiting the merchant tower at Larson's
request.

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Not only that, Orion and his guards had to go
through a series of security checks that were

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absurd in the care they took. Orion finally
barked,

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"Fine, uh, if you question the weapons of my own
bodyguards, tell

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Larson to come visit me in my tower."

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As Orion turned, the merchant guards changed their
minds and let him through.

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As he walked into Larson's office, he found out
why Larson had finally made

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Orion go through the effort of being the one to
travel for a meeting.

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Larson stood up and walked briskly toward him.

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"Ah, so great to see you, old friend."

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Orion had to suppress rolling his eyes.

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He was hardly an old friend of Larson's.

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As Larson approached, Orion almost didn't
recognize him.

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He looked gaunt, almost fragile, and he had deep
circles under his eyes.

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"By the shadow of the mountain, Larson, what has
happened to you?"

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As they shook hands, Larson said, "I've been
threatened with assassination."

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"Certainly such a threat is not credible.

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Who would want to take your life?"

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Orion could think of a large number of people that
would want to cause harm to

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Larson.

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Larson laughed. "Polo, for one."

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Larson sighed as he turned and walked back toward
his desk.

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"He wasn't fond of our plan for our guilds to
merge." "Yes, but his opinion didn't

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matter until your younger brother ruined our
plan."

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Orion was still bitter over how Raylan had
destroyed their work, but he also

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enjoyed Larson squirming over every reminder of
it.

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"Well, that was unexpected, but as you know,
Raylan was only one no vote."

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"If you believe Polo is trying to assassinate you,
then I doubt that he's open to

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changing his vote." Orion grumbled, "There are
other solutions to that problem."

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Larson sat down and gave Orion a hard stare.

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"I'm afraid I'm not following you," Orion replied,
playing his role of the bumbling,

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stupid guild master. He knew exactly what Larson
was saying.

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Larson shook his head slightly and leaned back in
his chair.

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"I will be blunt, because our interests are
aligned.

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I've been trying to assassinate Polo for some
time."

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Orion scratched his chin. "That does seem to solve
the problem." "Yes, yes, I

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know that."

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Orion liked that Larson was getting impatient.

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Impatient people made stupid mistakes.

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"The trouble is that Polo is safe in Harvest
House, and there appears to be no way to reach

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him." "And you feel that Polo knows you're trying
to kill him and has sent

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an assassin after you?"

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Nodding his head, Larson replied, "There was a
message on my nightstand when I awoke a few days
ago.

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It said, 'If Polo dies, you will die next.'

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Uh, do you see my difficulty here?"

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Orion had to suppress the surge of joy he had just
felt.

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If he could have his blade assassinate Polo, and
the Harvest Guild then

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assassinated Larson, his entire plan would come to
fruition without any

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risk at all.

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Still, he had to play a role and express concern
for his friend.

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"Indeed.

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But what about Raylan? You could just kill him."

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Orion was trying to do just that with his own
blade. "That's a lost cause.

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The Wretched Quarter is too dangerous. I've
already told you that.

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We would need to take an army through, killing
everyone as we cleared it." "I do not have a

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problem with that." "It won't happen, Orion.

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We need another plan." "Well, I'm not good at
planning, Larson.

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You know that. I'm afraid I can't help you." Orion
enjoyed the suppressed anger

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on Larson's face. Larson actually thought that he
was dealing with a simple mind when

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Orion was already putting the pieces in place for
Larson's fall.

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"Yes, I appreciate your humility.

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Thankfully, I have a plan that is not so different
than your plan to clear the Wretched Quarter."

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For the first time, Orion was intrigued.

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When he entered, he'd expected Larson to complain
about Polo and ask for assistance in

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killing him. This was new. "And what is this
plan?" "We shall clear the Flats and

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Lower Triangle of Harvest Guild members. They will
be forced to relocate across the bridge.

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We will limit residency to members of the Knight,
Merchant, and Trade Guilds."

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Orion tried to make sense of the plan.

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He understood the strategy right away.

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By moving all the Harvest Guild members to the
Wretched Quarter, they would

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be miserable.

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The idea of merging with the Merchant Guild would
be something that the members

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of the guild would embrace wholeheartedly, as that
would allow them to return to their

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homes.

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Larson was effectively creating a guild merger
from the ground up, with

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Polo left powerless to the will of his guild
members.That's a

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fantastic plan, Larson, Orion exclaimed.

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He noticed that Larson breathed out as Orion
spoke.

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He was nervous I wouldn't go along with him, Orion
thought.

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Of course, while the strategy appeared sound, the
actual plan was

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disastrous. The Harvest Guild members wouldn't run
to the arms of the guild that kicked

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them out of the flats. The idea that they would
merge with the Merchant Guild

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out of necessity was absurd. Beyond that, the
entire idea of

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relocating hundreds of Harvest Guild members
without violence or other

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major problems was similarly absurd.

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Thank you, Orion. I'm glad you see the wisdom in
it.

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Orion could not believe Larson actually believed
his plan would work.

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It would effectively make him the most hated man
in Ness.

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Thinking it over, Orion decided that he didn't
need to assassinate Polo.

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This was even better for him.

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Larson would undoubtedly lead the city into a
disastrous civil unrest,

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and in the midst of it all, Orion would come in
and squash Larson,

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illustrating his own wisdom and leadership.

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As he picked up the pieces, he would put them back
together with one person, the

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undeniable emperor of the city, Orion.

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Yes, Larson, this is a plan that I can support
wholeheartedly.

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Orion stood up and reached across Larson's desk.

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Scrambling to match Orion's sudden movement,
Larson stood up and took Orion's

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hand. I will always be there for you, Guildmaster
Merchant.

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Thank you, Orion. With the city united under us,
we will usher Ness into a

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golden age.

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As he smiled and nodded, Orion saw a different
future, a fractured Ness united by

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Orion hanging Larson from a tree in Founders Park.

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Yes, Larson, I see a golden age ahead.

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(dramatic music)