A/N: Oren, Sophia, and Lopov pn out their heist.

  It's a little tough since they aren't intending on letting Lopov know the other half of their pn.

  -x-X-x-

  "So your pn is to bust into the most fortified building in the city. For what, exactly? You do know that its covered in suppression runes right?"

  With the God of Thievery and Shadows tentatively on their side, Oren had finally let up on pinning him to his chair. In fact, the three of them had relocated to another room altogether. Of had woken up before that, but the big man had ultimately been sent away by Lopov.

  No doubt that was a source of consternation and confusion, given the loyalty he'd shown when he'd tried to have his boss' back… but the truth was, Lopov hadn't told a single one of his people that he was a god. To them he was just the Kingpin, the best damn thief around and the one who'd managed to not only bring them all together in the first pce, but also keep them organized and make them very, very rich.

  If any of them HAD found out that Lopov was a god at any point, they almost certainly would have tried to sell his ass to the God Hunters up top so that they could take over and reap the lion's share of the rewards from everything he'd built down here. No honor among thieves, after all.

  This led to the rather humorous (at least for Oren and Sophia) set of circumstances where Lopov literally couldn't trust any of his people with what they were going to be talking about and instead was forced to bring them to his pnning room alone.

  The center of this room is dominated by a big table which the God of Thievery has id a map of the city out on top of. And in the center of that map, in the center of Skycastle's rings… lies the God Hunter Headquarters, the former Grand Cathedral to Law that's been repurposed into a monument to the destruction of everything divine.

  "We didn't know for sure, but we certainly had our suspicions yes. As for why we want in there… well, we're looking for weapons against Tyranos, obviously."

  Sophia's response is measured. Careful. They don't want to give everything away, but Lopov needs to know enough to be able to help them, obviously. Indeed, even with just this much, it takes the Void God only a few seconds to figure out what she's talking about.

  "The Celestial Armory. You want to ransack the Celestial Armory."

  Sophia and Oren exchange a gnce at that, because even just having such a thing's existence confirmed was excellent information.

  "Is that what they're calling the pce where they're storing all of the items made of Celestial Metal? Because if so, yes… that is indeed our goal."

  Leaning back, Lopov runs his fingers through his salt and pepper beard for a moment consideringly.

  "It's what we Void Gods have taken to calling it. The God Hunters don't even know what they're doing, gathering all of those artifacts into one pce for us. Still, that's your pn is it? You're hoping to arm yourselves enough to be able to kill Tyranos. That's a pretty tall order, don't you think? Nothing in that armory is going to be as good as what Tyranos forced the God of Forges to make for him."

  Oren perks up. There was an opening that they could use without giving the entire game away.

  "What are you talking about? The armor and bde Tyranos now wields were made by a demon bcksmith. I met him."

  Lopov stares at him for a moment and then a look of almost-pity spreads across his face. Its more mocking than sincere though.

  "You did mention that didn't you? You said Tyranos 'fooled' you. Is that how he did it? Fucked with your senses? Sorry for you to find out this way, but there's no such thing as demons, Otherworlder. Figured you should have realized that after you learned what you did to the Heavens."

  Oren pretends to flinch, even as Lopov turns his eyes towards Sophia.

  "I'm surprised you hadn't told him that yet."

  Sophia looks to Oren and he looks back at her for a long, pregnant moment.

  "… We hadn't had a chance to discuss that topic yet. And he hadn't mentioned a 'demon bcksmith' either. This God of Forges… does he still live?"

  Lopov shrugs.

  "Eh, he should be, I guess. Tyranos has been pretty busy with other stuff. The problem is, the God of Forges is kept in the Void, and only Tyranos has access at this point."

  Sophia and Oren exchange a more surreptitious gnce as Lopov looks off to the side in thought for a moment. They didn't want to make their true goal overly clear to the God of Thievery, mostly because they didn't trust him as far as they could throw him. Well, they didn't trust him as far as Sophia could throw him anyways.

  That said, they needed to know everything they could about the God of Forges. Especially if he was in the Void, because that meant they needed to know how to GET to the Void.

  "Well, it's irrelevant anyways then. There's no way back to the Void at this point."

  Oren shoots Sophia a look at that, because… well, it was a bit heavy-handed of her. Fortunately, it pays off in a big way, mostly because the Void God is still under the mistaken impression that Sophia herself is some sort of Void God that he missed. In the end, Lopov just nods at her words, even commiserating with them while unknowingly giving them everything they wanted.

  "That's right. There's the portal we used to get to the Mortal Pnes, but that's in the catacombs underneath the Grand Cathedral and its blood-locked anyways. Only Tyranos can open it at this point."

  And there it was. Oren tries not to get too excited and he can see Sophia also having to control her reaction, the corners of her mouth threatening to twitch upwards into a full blown grin. Blood-locked. Only Tyranos could open it… or someone who shared his blood. But of course, as far as Lopov is concerned, Tyranos has no family left in either the Heavens or the Mortal Pnes.

  He'd never been more grateful for excessive compartmentalization before. From the look of things, the King of the Void had taken it to the extreme and told most of his fellow Void Gods as little as absolutely possible about the specifics. He especially hadn't told them about Oren's 'betrayal' or the survival of his niece Sophia.

  Sharing yet another gnce with the aforementioned niece, aka someone else who could in fact unlock this portal to the Void, Oren gives her the slightest nod which she returns before turning back to the task at hand.

  "Well, it's not like it matters. Who would want to go to the Void anyways? We don't need anything but the contents of the Celestial Armory."

  Lopov frowns a bit.

  "I already said-!"

  But Sophia cuts him off.

  "You're forgetting something, Lopov."

  When the God of Thievery gives her a confused look, Sophia grins and gestures to Oren.

  "He's an Otherworlder. Long before the schism, long before any gods or goddesses were banished to the Void, his kind were such a dangerous threat that Tyranos and Law had to work hand in hand to defeat them. Well, Law isn't around anymore. And Tyranos is all alone."

  Shrugging, Sophia gazes down at the God Hunters' Headquarters.

  "The artifacts in the Celestial Armory might not measure up to Tyranos' armor and bde, but what if Tyranos can't measure up to Oren's strength and speed? We just need to get them closer to parity and our Otherworlder can seal the deal and bring the God of Tyranny and Conquest low once and for all."

  Sophia is getting really good at bullshitting, Oren reflects. They both knew that his chances against Tyranos in a one-on-one fight, no armor, no bde, were pretty damn bad. They'd already learned as much back in the cave where the King of the Void had revealed his true nature to the two of them.

  No, their only real hope didn't lie in arming themselves from the Celestial Armory… it y in pilfering enough metal from the armory to bring to the God of Forges in the Void to potentially create something on the same level as the weapon and armor he'd made in the first pce.

  But Lopov didn't need to know that. And fortunately as he eyes Oren specutively, he seems to buy the lie.

  "… You might have a point, yeah. But that pce is still a fortress, even more so for our kind. The suppression runes alone would make it impossible for us to infiltrate… unless you intend to send in the Otherworlder alone."

  No, that wasn't an option. Oren wasn't going to let him and Sophia be separated, not for anything. Fortunately, Sophia agrees with him and is already shaking her head.

  "No. We go in together."

  Orem notes how Lopov looks between the two of them curiously for a long moment after she delivers those words. He wonders what the God of Thievery makes of their retionship. They've done a good job of making it seem like they're not as close as they really are, or so Oren hopes. But only time will tell…

  "Then we'd have to find a way to deal with the suppression runes. I assume you have an idea of how to make this all work?"

  Smirking, Sophia gestures in the direction of the underground cavern.

  "I do. We use your people."

  Lopov narrows his eyes at that.

  "Excuse me?"

  But Sophia isn't backing down.

  "Don't pretend you actually care about them. Or that you trust any of them. If you did, some of them would be in here right now, working on this pn with us. Instead, you're stuck in here alone with me and an Otherworlder, all because you know that if any of your people discovered your true nature, they'd turn on you. They're disposable, admit it."

  Harsh. And yet… Oren can't bring himself to judge Sophia for what she's doing. They're here to do whatever it takes to defeat Tyranos. Even if that means sacrificing some criminals.

  Grumbling, Lopov eventually begrudgingly nods.

  "Tch, fine. Yes, they're disposable. But that doesn't mean I want to waste them on a suicide run when they could be more useful to me spent elsewhere."

  BAM!

  Smming her fist down on the table, Sophia gres as the God of Thievery jumps a little bit.

  "If you're not going to spend them now, when will you spend them? Because at the rate Tyranos is chewing through Void Gods, you might not get the chance. It's not like they're going to be of much use to you when he calls you up to the Heavens for a 'loyalty test'. Tell me Lopov, do you think you'd pass such a thing? Do you feel like you'd have a good chance of convincing him that you're his devoted servant?"

  Lopov grits his teeth and works his jaw while staring down at the map spread across the table for a moment.

  "… What exactly are you suggesting?"

  Sophia doesn't waste time, pointing to certain points on the Grand Cathedral's perimeter.

  "I'm suggesting you go all in. Muster everyone. All your people, all your little allied gangs. Tell them that it's for the biggest score of all… the city itself. Have them clear the way for us. Distracting the God Hunters, presenting a crisis that can't be ignored. Meanwhile, we'll enter through the catacombs. I assume you have a way in from underground. If you didn't, I think I would be very disappointed O' God of Thievery and Shadows."

  Huffing, Lopov rolls his eyes.

  "Of course I have a way in through the catacombs. But you still haven't answered my earlier question. How the fuck are you pnning to deal with the suppression runes? I ain't going in there with my divinity locked down. It would be suicide."

  On the one hand, Lopov constantly bringing up the suppression runes makes some sense given they're specifically geared to diminish his power and turn him into an ordinary mortal. On the other hand, his insistence on knowing how they're going to handle them is starting to feel a little suspicious.

  Oren has to remind himself… it's not paranoia when they're really out to get you. Maybe the God of Thievery wouldn't betray them like so many others had, but neither Oren nor Sophia were willing to just trust anymore. Not at this point.

  Still, they have to give him something from the sound of things. Sophia looks over at him and Oren gives her a nod after a moment. Turning back to Lopov, the goddess smirks.

  "Oren will handle the runes. He's done it before."

  Lopov's eyes narrow, but before he can demand more assurances and answers, Oren simply draws the Celestial Dagger and shows it to the Void God, watching his eyes go wide at the sight of the bde.

  "I can break the suppression runes. So long as the God Hunters are distracted with your people and the runes are all we have to deal with, it'll be smooth sailing thanks to this thing."

  In that moment, Oren sees a satisfaction in Lopov's eyes that tells him the God of Thievery is one hundred percent going to betray them. It's the satisfaction of a con artist who thinks they've finally extracted every bit of value from their mark. The satisfaction of a man who thinks he's thoroughly pulled the wool over his target's eyes.

  Feigning reluctant acceptance, Lopov slowly nods as he tears his eyes away from the dagger.

  "Very well. Then it seems we have a heist to pull off."

  Indeed they did. Though Oren could already tell… not all of them were making it out of this alive.

  -x-X-x-

  A/N: Sorry Lopov, but Oren and Sophia have been burned one too many times at this point. Your shit just ain't smelling like roses.

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