Capítulo 59: Assassin of the West {58}

The overhanging pathways accompanied large, open windows to the market it was built over, making it a little harder to stay hidden.

Liam followed Aloysia through the passages attentively as she crouched below the gaps, dagger at hand.

On cue, she shut her eyes, focusing on the distant surroundings for sudden footsteps, but to her surprise, found none. "That's strange" she breathed, poking a head around the corner connecting to the centre structure. "The guards should be there..."

Liam held a hand to his mouth, silencing the loudness of his gasping. He pointed. "There is a dent on that wall, subtle, but if I'm correct, it would be where the guards should have been standing"

Aloyisa glossed her eyes on the wall, small traces of scratches in the guard's place. That wasn't good.

"That only means one thing then..." she swallowed, her grip on the dagger tightening, "She knows we're here"

"Zillah, you took care of the one before us right?" he whispered, back digging against a wall as his neck stretched to get better sight-lines.

"Of course, took longer than expected though, Aloysia was right, they were trained well"

Golden hair rested over her shoulders, dipping to her waist as she pulled the hood further down. Their eyes still green and blue.

"The main room should be up ahead, just beyond those stairs" She stated, pointing with her eyes.

More guards stood there, their backs to the twins as they both glanced to each other in confirmation. "I'll go from that side, you go from under the stair"

She nodded, slithering away without a moments thought toward the underbelly of the steps. Between each one, she could see the guards. One blow. That's all they needed.

Zelek wasted no time, using the wall to launch himself onto the unsuspecting guard out of the two that were closest. The guard yelped, falling with the assassin to the ground where Zelek went to reach for the side of her neck.

"What the-" she rushed, bolting her hands above her as she shoved Zelek off, leaping back into the air, breathing accelerated. "Who the hell are you?"

Zelek smirked, her weapon hidden behind his back. She didn't suspect a thing... too busy following his intent to notice the blade grab. "You'll see"

Meanwhile, Zillah grabbed the other's legs, pulling him flat to the floor. She instinctively swung from under the steps, stomping on the mans back as he fell, reaching to pinch his neck. The man grunted, a hand armed ready with a double edged blade and threw it behind him. Zillah swerved, landing back to the ground as she darted for him, stopping once he already gained back his footing.

They were fast.

No one moved.

A stalemate.

"Two assassins? Our master seriously needs to keep tabs on you lot" he growled, wiping the blood from his chin. He stared at Zillah, at her smirking stance.

His eyes swapped to that of his associate. "Should we call for her Abiona?"

She grit her teeth. "If these two got this far without a scratch, that might be necessary"

Allowing the tension to stew, he made the first move. Abruptly, he lunged backward, running for Abiona as she cupped her hands, blowing into the wind. It was an unspoken move that required absolute trust.

Zelek swore, diving toward her with her own weapon. The man blocked it, shielding the guard as the call went out.

Zillah ran to her twin. "Lets move"

They didn't get the chance.

Almost the second the sounds of the call dissipated on the winds, did two dart like needles shoot from somewhere unknown. Bearing feathers on its ends, the needle dug itself into the exposed necks of the twins.

Striking the dart meaninglessly, she pulled it from her neck. The world grew fuzzy as the sounds grew in intensity. The world was turning. Spinning her as if she were a ball.

The twins collapsed.

The guards sighed a sigh of relief, standing tall as they spoke a word of thanks to a silhouette sat on the roof.

The silhouette spoke, amused with herself, "Are you coming for revenge Shadow?"

She knew. She had to know.

The moment someone strayed from the tunnel she had laid out, was the defining moment that Aloysia realised the Viper knew she was not dealing with normal thieves.

"Liam.." she hesitated, standing up from her position, "If she knows, she'll be expecting us..."

Liam heard her hesitancy, standing up with her. His eyes hid the fear. "If that's the case, we can just walk right up to the top floor where she will most likely be waiting"

"My thoughts exactly" She added, sheathing her blade. An unknown emotion remained on her tongue... bitterness? Annoyance? She hated letting her enemy get the upper hand, especially if it was the Viper...

Her past sure had a way to creep up on her.

Despite the lingering sense of nausea, she held it together, guiding Liam to the top floor. It was silent, peaceful even, but the things that would be waiting for the assassin when she got to the top was daunting. As if the ghost of her younger self had somehow orchestrated it all.

Each step was another curse she added to her situation.

It was endless.

Liam however preferred the silent ascend. No fighting, no violence. They could be diplomatic at least...

A hand stopped his thoughts, snapping him back to the dense heat surrounding them. A door. Open wide and welcoming... it made her stomach roil. There was no doubt in her mind that the Viper was watching them both. She felt like a child again. Vulnerable and weak.

Holding their breaths, they walked into the dark room, the light shunned from the outside to welcome a cooler, comfier room; a desk, a sofa, two smaller rooms separated on the other sides...

It looked like a typical office room for the head, or in this case... an assassin.

Aloysia snapped her head, bowing in politeness, "Long time no see Viper... I hope you don't mind a last minute appointment that I would prefer to keep off the records? For an old friend."

Her words fed into the stillness. A beat.

"So you noticed me..." a chilling voice replied, "still as receptive as ever aren't you Shadow?

"It's hard not to hear you approaching when your footsteps still thunder... it's like you're just giving yourself away."

The woman laughed, her silhouette creeping out from a corner. Liam didn't even know she was there... so how did Aloysia spot her?

"You look different" she stated, glancing at a taller assassin that had filled out from her youth.

"You haven't"

Viper smiled, her appearance clear as day now; dark ebony skin, two swept back braids trailing down to her lower back, thickly woven and detailed with beads. Her armour matched that of her soldiers, but replacing the poncho was four drips of gold cloth, two on each shoulder, one running down her front, the other, her back. A tight fabric wrapped around her front, matching the intricacy of her snake tattoo spiralling from both arms over her chest to feed through to her toned stomach. Adorning her arms, metallic like claws drew up her elbow, complimenting the shine of her collection of piercings in her ears.

Beautiful trinkets including that of a hollow tube hung around her waist, complimenting the red bandana around her neck.

She was stunningly frightening.

"Why are you here?" she questioned, her body sauntering to her lavishly decorated desk, incense puffing from the corner. Her face was cold.

"Always so bitter, that's no way to greet an old friend."

"You're not an old friend, friends don't try to kill each other"

Aloysia chuckled, her expression masking the one of intimidation beneath her. Even with being who she was, this was her predecessor, she was ranked number 1 for a reason.

She trudged further in, the shadows left by the afternoon sun an orange glow.

Aloysia cleared her throat, "I would like to discuss something with you- nothing dangerous of course..."

Viper raised an eyebrow, intrigue in every movement she made while flipping some papers on her desk. "I don't believe that for a second, when you're involved, it always is"

She smirked, "But, you have me curious, why come to me? Why not look for someone else's help instead?"

The Shadow looked behind her, locking eyes with the prince and staying that way for far too long. Viper followed, her own beady eyes landing on him. She studied him, chuckling, "So that's why..."

Liam froze.

Aloysia sighed, regaining the composure. She held her head high.

"Who else to go to but second best huh? I thought as much"

"You know me so well Viper"

"Apparently not well enough" she shoved her weight onto her arms, the nails scratching the desk, "no one barges in here demanding an audience and leaves alive. Many have done so and many have failed."

Liam quivered at her tone, looking to Aloyisa who didn't flinch. That charm of hers returning.

Aloysia found the threat cute, "Company policy is it? Doesn't sound popular."

She sneered.

"Don't be so naïve viper... you're crown was knocked from your high and mighty head long ago... things have changed. People have changed. The world isn't as it seems anymore"

"Indeed it is, but it doesn't look like you've changed at all, still so incredibly guarded" her head twitched, body facing a room opposite her, "but... I must say, you no longer work alone, do you? What happened to all that talk about trusting no one in this line of work? Or was that it all it was... talk?"

The Shadow turned her head, the closed door was in fact ajar, a sliver of blonde hair past its border.

The twins.

Returning her vengeful gaze back to the assassin, Aloysia moved cautiously, "Careful where you are treading viper, I will not hesitate to put you in your place again."

"No need, I know my place, always have" she lifted the material around her bust slightly higher, there housed a white scar that slashed around her side, it hadn't faded at all. "Ever since that rooftop Shadow, I've known my place in this world, this scar proves that, as for you... you have no idea what you've just walked into."

"A room?"

Leaning back, Aloysia averted her eyes from the mark she had dealt with her own blades. The weapon in question laying heavily on her hip. She wouldn't let any emotions slip.

Covering her past hastily, Viper continued, "Don't act smart with me Shadow. Why are you here? What have you to gain from seeing me?"

"Absolutely nothing."

"Lie. You wouldn't risk coming here if you weren't backed to a corner... I wonder what trouble you've caught yourself up into now."

Aloysia crossed her arms, her matured face hell bent on staying calm.

"Nothing that concerns you, I am simply here to ask a favour."

"A favour? You have to be joking." Viper smiled amusingly, resting her body on the seat. "The great Shadow comes to her predecessor begging for help?

"I'm not begging."

"Well you should be."

The tension was life threatening. Liam marvelled in the confrontation, watching the ways in which assassins worked.

Aloysia sighed, "Unlike you I have my pride. I know when to walk away from a fight, if it means I can live to get another chance."

Ouch. Belinda sat up, her muscles tensing at the remark. It was clearly a jab at her past.

"I don't particularly like killing, too messy, just knocking them out cold gets the job done, leave the rest to the blood thirsty amateurs."

She dropped her feet on her desk, her fingers dancing in the air as the shine reflected from the sharp metal. "The chase, the build-up is a lot more stimulating"

"Wouldn't exactly call it efficient, but I must say my former assassin, you are in the wrong job if you think that way... trying to live a life without the dark conscience hanging over your shoulder, guilt ridden with all the deaths, is a near impossibility for our occupation."

Viper grinned. "It would be for someone like you, someone who holds no morals or remorse, no care for the common world" her voice raised, lips stern, almost frustrated, "On that blasted rooftop I took pity on you, on a child... and that hasn't changed, you are still the arrogant kid you were back then, only this time, you hold more power."

Aloysia grit her teeth, stepping over to the desk, slamming her hands on the papers. Her eyes writhed with hatred, her mind bubbled with blocking out the truth.

Belinda didn't back down, facing her challenge head on. "Me? I do my part for this kingdom, I help those who are lower than me to justify the killing; I merely do as I'm told, as required by the master clans. That's where you and I are different, you enjoy the killing, do it it as a pass time, and you have no one to rein in your murders, you answer to no one- and that can make anyone dangerous."

"I answer to myself." she spat.

"And look where that's got you, needing assistance when things turn south, that's why you are you and I am I."

Liam could sense the rage Aloysia felt, the hushed misery residing in that damaged heart. Her fingers where shaking.

"But whose at the top of all this?" she yelled, "Who stands at the top?"

"Excuse me?"

"The top of the food chain," her head dipped closer to Belinda's, the scars boiling with wrath, with a strong desire to validate herself, "The Shadow stands at the top, solo, and undefeated. You and your goons are beneath me, dealing with more betrayals than I have fingers. So yes Viper, that is where you and I ARE different... an empire beat by their enemies can rise once again, but an empire crumbled from within... that is forever broken, and the damage... un-repairable."

Swallowing the instinct to strike the broken assassin in front of her, she couldn't help but be blinded by that child who spared her years ago.

"Your point?"

Aloyisa was beyond caring, her eyes on full display as she leant closer, decorated with an ancient torment.

"People lie, take advantage of others at their lowest, do what's best for themselves even when they've made a promise. So if you don't trust anyone, you can never be betrayed."

Belinda arose from her seat, looming down to Aloysia who looked up with shaky lips.

"Being the best, standing at the top, it means nothing if you have no one who stands with you" she glided past the desk toward the sofa, stopping in her tracks, "I know from experience, so when that burden passed to you, I felt both relief and guilt, but ultimately, it was not my decision"

The assassins voice turned sincere, "but yours"

Silence.

Breathing in nothing but heat, Aloysia swivelled, facing the woman she almost killed four years ago.

Belinda faced Aloysia in return and smiled, the intent behind that smile foreign. "So I ask you this again, why have you come here?"