The Forty Thieves III (Book)

You see a book.

It weighs 13.00 oz.

## Content

> The Forty Thieves III
>
>

> Her mind though remained unmoved with its intent. Marjana would wait till they fell asleep from their wine and laughter and then she would approach closer. While she waited she took note of the mountains of gold and small piles of rubies and emeralds, gilt weaponry, and decorations of the finest craft, it did nothing short of impress her. Soon all the men had fallen asleep and so Marjana moved towards their camp. As soft-footed and nimble as she was as she approached the dagger indeed took away the sound of her very self and Marjana felt as if she was as the fire in the place, weightless and scenery. The dagger picked between many of the sleeping men, one after the other it passed over them, like the angel of death sparing their miserable sins, until finally the dagger grew heavy and weighted towards a single soul while Marjana's arm seem to grow in strength. Immediately she recognized the man, the features of the complexion and visage were unmistakable, it was herself as she had seen in the well so many times upon getting water. Marjana saw visions of her life, of her peasantry, or squalor, or humiliation, of the whips she recieved when on a job for hire so she could feed her or buy medicine for her mother, the gruel she had to eat when she showed late to the food dispensary after a long day heaving rocks and beams of wood which was for a man's frame and bulk, of the whoops and yiyiyis in the streets as she walked that would not be tolerated had she had a father to protect her honor and guard her from such disrespect, how her mother had kept them in the same place even though better opportunities lay beyond because she wanted to put faith that her father would one day return --- the girl was brought back to what her eyes could see rather than her memory as a blood-curdling scream was let out and the man below her waist was pulsing ribbons of blood out from his neck where the dagger had pierced clean through to the other side. The other men awoke to the howlish gurgles as Marjana shared eyes for the first and last time ever with her father. Those eyes glazed quickly and the man, not any father of her's, died quickly.
>
>

> Marjana was caught. No dagger could save her now, no silent escape was possible, no amount of cleverness or skill could outdo her from this situation. She would die here and she was resigned to it. But something was awry... the remaing thieves seemed to be in bemusement at the happening, Marjana equally so by their lack of action. It was after many minutes where one man who seemed to command some level of respect and veteran status of the men said "Your name my lady", Marjana spoke it, he nodded his head, "what is it we do now?" Marjana looked at him with searching eyes and an slight upturned and crooked chin, he went on sensing the confusion "You command us, you are our leader now, for you have killed our former leader of us, The Forty Thieves, it is to you we look for our design." You see Marjana had created something unyet known to the legendary traditions of The Forty. It is law of their band that no women may be of their group, know of their whereabouts, or be involved in their activities/interests, no families may be allowed, and no wives. However there is another tradition to their law as well, when the leader of their band is killed it is who killed him that takes his place. So Marjana by killing her father, though she had not known this, as he had only recently ascended by vote to be the leader of the band as the previous had died in a raid, had herself by the first tradition of the band become the leader of The Forty. This is the legend of how a girl became a leader of the skilled men of the desert. True or not we do not know, but it is said that since there have been more tales common in the speech of traveling men of being waylayed and accosted, stolen from, ransomed, and bribed to corruption.
>
>

## Location

In a crate inside Ankrahmun apothecary library.