The Incredible Pickpocket Assassin “PenelopeBrimstone” of Castle Creek Rock.

A story about a sweet little girl

The Incredible Pickpocket Assassin “PenelopeBrimstone” of Castle Creek Rock.

     

     This is a tell-all tale of the early beginnings of some the more momentous moments and inciting incidents concerning the most feared and prolific assassin of the known worlds.  Aside from being the deadliest of assassins, she’s also the greatest pickpocket and all-around thief of the known multi-verse. 

     

     She’s charming, conniving, lying, deadly and inspiring: an assassin, master thief, and pickpocket extraordinaire that goes by the name of PenelopeBrimstone.  Oh, before I forget, PenelopeBrimstone is a favorite alias of hers and one in which is notoriously infamous and/ or eye-popping famous, (it’s all relative) amongst the known worlds. Her given name at birth is Penelope Rosa Testaleoni, her close friends, lovers, and relatives call her Pennylane, Pennypen, or Pennypeepie when she’s in one of her more playful moods.  

     

     When she was just a wee little thing of seven or so, she broke into her father’s study by expertly picking the door lock with tools she crafted with her tiny little hands.  She then proceeded to kill the lizard hound that guarded the room with a tiny pin prick to the brain. She used one of the safety pins that held together one of the ribbons to her dress. The determined child then cracked her daddy’s state of the art anti-theft safe with the deft touch of nimble fingers and acute hearing. She used safecracking methods that only masters of the trade understood.  She retrieved from the safe her mother’s pearled diamond necklace, leaving the rest of the priceless items untouched. The little darling later presented her newly prized trophy to her mother and father during dinner. Needless to say, her parents were thrilled beyond belief. Tears of joy flooded out from their surprised and stunned eyes. Their reaction was totally within the norm being that Pennylane’s mother was a legendary assassin and her father a master thief.  They were also the titular heads of their respective guilds, the thieving and assassin guilds of the twelve provinces of Castle Creek Rock.  Their precocious Pennylane was a child progeny of the ages. They attributed her extraordinary killing and thieving skills to their own superior murderess and larcenous genes.

Note: the lizard hound was a family pet and much beloved by pennypen and her parents. But sentiment and her love for the hound had to be emotionally curtailed in order to get the job done.  She could have paralyzed the hound but she needed a first kill and what better way to impress her parents by killing something that they all loved. 

     

     On her sixteenth birthday the legend of PenelopeBrimstone took root. It was at her coming out party where she was officially introduced to the five infamy guilds: counterfeiting, grifting, assassination, prostitution and theft. These guilds controlled all the nefarious and dark dealings of the twelve provinces, as well as the ones with the guise of legitimacy. All the bosses and their command staff of the infamy cartels were in attendance due to her parents’ positions in their prospective guilds.   They all heard rumors about her skills and beauty and were quite curious to see if they were just mere rumor or actual fact.

    

     They soon found it was fact, not rumor.  She beguiled and bedazzled all those that experienced her wit, smile and touch.  Aside from her thieving and murderous attributes she was also exceedingly beautiful. Her red hair was as dazzling as a ring of fire and her alabaster skin was as soft as a summer rain. Her scent took your breath away; it filled your nostrils with memories of lilacs and roses. Pennylane’s kaleidoscope eyes were mesmerizing. They changed from blue to green to brown and on rare occasions even to red and purple, depending on which mood she deigned to be in. Her slender body with curves in all those right and delicious places stirred lustful urgings amongst male and female alike.   To say that her coming out was a success was a vast understatement.

     

     Although her beauty and charm beguiled everyone who met her, this was not what made her legend take root. It was what she did that night when all eyes were watching her every move that made the guilds realize what an extraordinary person this really was. She picked    pockets, purses, necklaces, and rings and even those things that were hidden within the crevices of one’s body, of everyone that attended the gathering, except for her parents of course. This was an astonishing feat being that there were a few dozen people in that room and not even two hours had passed since the party began.

     

     Pandemonium broke loose when it dawned on the guests that they were robbed in plain sight. Screaming and shouting was at a fever pitch. They demanded the thieves show themselves at once. This was an outrage and damn embarrassing as well. What group would dare steal from the top criminals in all the twelve provinces?  But as we all know it was no group or criminal gang that did the pocket picking.  A maniacal gut-churning laugh was heard in the hall. It came from none other than Pennylane.

     In a gleefully detached tone she said, “There’s no need to get your asses out of joint. This was just a little jest of mine, a demonstration to show off one of my talents as well as making my coming out party memorable and exciting. By the looks on your faces I think I achieved that beyond my expectations. It warms my heart to know that I can cause such uproar amongst friends. There’s no need for retaliation or safe-facing foolishness. Starting a war amongst the guilds is not my intention.  As you can see my parents are smiling and I suggest you all do the same. No harm was done and the theft was only temporary. All of your items are in the banquet hall at your assigned tables. It now time to eat. Go to your seats, enjoy the meal and untwist those knots out of your asses.”  

    

     It slowly sank in amongst the guests of the implied threat that was issued from the cherry red lips of Pennylane. Her parents were smiling, which implied that they were in on the joke. They were the heads of the two most powerful guilds. Starting a fuss or the makings of a war would only lead to disaster. They had no recourse but to grin and bear it. Also, there was something deadly about those mischievous eyes, the jaunty way that she carried herself and that ominous spine-tingling laugh; it just scared the hell out of them. She was formidable indeed and so they decided to cheer her rather than clamor for her head, all but one that is. Kalas Degrout was not amused; as a matter of fact, he was downright pissed.

     Kalas Degrout was the prime supreme of the grifting guild. He was a master manipulator, con-artist, as well as a former assassin. Kalas was not one to be trifled with. He was a formidable man.  In fact, it was he who recruited and trained Pennylane’s mother. She was about the same age as her daughter when she was inducted into the guild under his tutelage. Belladonna Testaleoni thought of Kalas as a father and trusted friend. He was also the godfather to Pennylane. His opinion among the guilds as well as the Testaleoni’s, carried much weight.

     

     Silence filled the room as they all watched Kalas approach PenelopeBrimstone with fire in his eyes. He grabbed her by the shoulders and said, “You brazen child, how dare you set out to humiliate us, not to mention your callous disregard for our wounded pride. You are indeed a talented and special child and will achieve greatness in this world and beyond, but you must display a sense of honor, loyalty, and devotion to the guild you serve and the others that belong to the charter. All the guilds are your quasi-family and although it’s perfectly fine to put us in our place, even kill us if we disobey our charters; it is not fine to disrespect your superiors and colleagues by the way you just did this night. I know it’s tempting to demonstrate how you mastered time and interdimensional manipulations, it’s quite impressive for one your age or any age for that matter, but to do it in a way that shames and belittles those that are a part of your inner circle is a joke gone too far. It can harbor hard feelings amongst the clans. You need to put this right without implied threats or subtle sarcasm.”

     Pennylane burst into tears and sobbed in her Godfathers arms. When her sobs subsided, she faced her guests and sincerely apologized for her callous behavior. She was only trying to impress her peers and have a little fun. She acknowledged that her pride made her disregard boundaries and she was willing to accept a whipping from the clans for her transgression. She got down on her knees, ripped open her blouse and bared her back.

All were deeply touched by her abject apology and her willingness to suffer the lash for making them look like fools.  They refused to take up the whip but instead covered up her back and gave her hugs and kisses rather than the lash. The party continued on late into the night.  

Epilogue

     After the party ended Kalas remained behind with Pennylane and her parents. He laughed heartedly, gave Pennylane a bearhug and said: “I thought you laid the tears and sobbing on a little too thick, but I was wrong, they ate it all up. It was a masterful performance; you truly are your mother and father’s daughter as well as from me, by giving that masterful performance on the art of manipulation.  This will put to rest any hidden resentments and animosities they may have had by humiliating them and showing them how helpless they were against your talents. Instead of thinking you as arrogant, lethal, and dangerous adversary that they need to tread lightly with, they now see you as a caring and righteous member of the clans.  You showed them your power, ruthlessness and leaderships skills as well as your empathy, humility and vulnerableness all in one swoop. Instead of them being wary of you they now embrace you and love you as their own. You my dear Penelope Brimstone have gone beyond everyone’s expectations. You’re now a power to be reckoned with in all the multi-dimensions.  

 

 

    

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author's Note

let her rip