Thief 11
Now it can be told: the name I wanted to reveal early for this item was “The Phoenix Egg of Restoration.” This would almost certainly give its power and purpose away to a large percentage of the readers, and Phil wanted to play our cards closer to the vest. On the one hand, giving away its name would’ve made Isidro’s resurrection here feel less deus ex machina, but on the other, it would’ve ruined the surprise, and if Isidro knew its name and therefore could guess at just what he was stealing before he had it in hand, then the climax wouldn’t quite work. We’ll get there in a couple of pages.
Even if the glow of the egg in panel 2 didn’t tip them off, Rana and Yalaria would still be much too damn good at their jobs to assume Isidro was dead just because he’d taken an “unsurvivable” fall.
Oh, look, a literal Chekov’s gun. (Okay, not “literal” in the sense that anyone named Chekov made or owned it, but you get it. You get it.)
He’s going to hold the egg at gunpoint?
That or he’s going to try his luck and hit two birds with one flaming rock.
Well, to be fair, he “forced” their hands first. Wings? No, wait, they actually have separate hands at the ends of their wing… arms? Look, they’re not like other birds, okay?