Hitting Your Mark (Zer0)

[kleineklementine]

((This takes place five years or so before present in Zantaric.))

It had been years since Zahi Akello had been in Zantaric and it was only business that brought her back to her birthplace. Karr Reihe was a black-market entrepreneur whose business was growing quite nicely across Adela and Serendipity. And that was the problem. He'd started setting up shop in Arca and in Wolf territory in Serendipity, and the rising hot shot didn't want to play nice. The Soot Wolves did not take kindly to upstarts who didn't cooperate.

The Blood Wolf watched him, drinking and playing cards and making deals in a smoky speakeasy, from the shadows of the street. It was raining and she pulled the scarf covering her hair and shadowing her mis-matched eyes further over her brow. Carraway, the Red Jackal, had sent her here because she knew the streets of the rogue city the best. But Zahi did not want to be here longer than necessary, and she had her own reasons not to be recognized.

A large man, a typical Zantaric thug, kept moving between Reihe and the slit in the speakeasy window and Zahi's shot. She wanted a nice, clean death with no links to the Soot Wolves. One dart. She just needed a clear shot. And if things got ugly? Well, she was ready for that, too. But she preferred things clean. All she had to do was wait.

[Zer0ic]

   Dovanthis had been paid to assassinate Karr Reihe and return his head to the client. Mr. Reihe was stepping on toes. His black market traded was undercutting the competition that had been around for centuries. Dovan's client was a board of the most infamous crooks in the underground criminal markets.

   Reihe appeared to like his drink and gamble amongst his biggest allies. This was the place of opportunity, because they'd pay extra for the heads of his most trusted as well. He counted eight heads in the room, four members of the poker table being high priority targets and the other four being their hired right hands standing behind each of them respectively.

   He turned into smoke and appeared on the poker table. "Tonight you all die," he said sealing off the room with ice. The leaders, Reihe being one, backed away from the table and allowed their thugs to get to him. They tried to strike him with their weapons, but he just made swords of ice and countered each attack, handling all four of them with ease . "You four will suffer for your disrespect," Dovan said to Reihe and his allies.

   Reihe stepped forward and offered to pay him if he would not kill him. The other three followed him in the plea for their lives. "If I want your money, I'll take it from your lifeless flesh," he counter offered.

[kleineklementine]

A window had just opened for Zahi, the big thug of a man had gotten up to get a drink. She lifted the shaft of the blow dart and inhaled, but before she could send the poisoned dart into Reihe's neck and disappear back into the night, the room filled with smoke. Silently cursing, Zahi moved the pipe back to her side, concealing it again in her urchin's rags. The woman wasn't close enough to hear every murmured word that passed around the card table, but Zahi certainly heard this:

"Tonight you all die."

And then in a moment the room was sealed from within with ice. There was no outward change in the counterence of the Blood Wolf, but inwardly Zahi groaned. Assassins. Despite the similarities in their work, she held a particular distaste for the breed. Half ot hem, she was certain, thought there were extra points to be had for theatrics – and they would not disappoint! Such overly dramatic statements and showmanship were, in her opinion, sloppy, risky, and entirely unprofessional. But for now she would put her opinions on style aside. She drew a little closer to hear what happened in the speakeasy, but stayed hidden in the shadows. She wanted Reihe dead, but it didn't matter to her how he died. The guild didn't want its name on Reihe's head. So, if this man wanted to make a show of killing the upstart kingpin, it was fine with her. But he better not make a mess of it.


Inside the speakeasy, Reihe laughed at Dovan's counter-offer. "Well, I tried to play nice," he replied with a booming laugh. Surely the assassin didn't think he was so poorly defended? Or that he was the first one to take Karr Reihe by surprise? "You should've taken the money."

The four large thugs drew back and a scrawny, unimpressive man stepped forward. He'd been keeping a low profile in the corner of the room, but now he straightened his spindly frame; with a gesture of his hands, a ring of blue and purple flames flashed across the room, melting the ice barrier Dovan constructed instantly. In the same instant, the mage sent a swarm of fireballs at the assassin.


Outside, Zahi tensed when the flames melted the ice in a flash. Yup, she thought, looks like it would be a mess.

[Zer0ic]

   Reihe, never showing fear, continued to deny his soon to be death. Dovan thought he back to his count earlier, because he originally counted ninth people in the room, but the ninth he thought was a scrawny waiter. Turning his attention from Reihe to the waiter in the corner, Dovan said, "If I wanted your coin my profession would be a thief. I'll be taking your life and your head for the exchange of coin."

   The tiny man came out of the shadowy corner and into the light. Dovan thought it was clever of Reihe to disguise his protective mage as a waiter. Most assassins, including him, find no need in killing a target of no value, but this was a valued target.

   The waiter served up some brilliant blue and deep purple flames around the room to form a circle around the poker table. Then, he dished out a side of fireballs. Dovan, now with water in hand, evaded the flock of fireballs, then thought, "Impressive fire magic. Few have the ability to melt away my ice, because I fortify it with large doses of magical energy."

   Out of the corner of his eye he saw everyone take off running out of the now un-iced room with the exception of Reihe and his mage. Dovan knew they didn't run because of him. They ran because of the waiter. He was obviously powerful, but not enough to scare away Dovan or Reihe.

   Reihe, with a crooked grin, stood and watch for the battle to unfold. Dovan dodge a second multitude of fireballs by turning into smoke and instantly appeared behind the waiter. "Take this," he said sending a roundhouse kick to his head.

[kleineklementine]

Zahi melted into the shadows, unseen, as people streamed out of the speakeasy. She watched, unimpressed, as the two magicians dueled, sputtering fire and ice. What a mess. At first, she leaned against the alley wall, certain that the scene would be too chaotic to make a move until the fight calmed down. But then she noticed the three men shift positions in the room. Reihe was now aligned again with the narrow opening in the speakeasy's wooden shutters.  Zahi was poised again now, the blow dart pipe just short of her lips. Reihe was in line with the window, but the fight was going on in front of him. Zahi was confident that she would get an opening, but it could happen at any moment, and probably would not last for long. She would have to take it immediately once she saw it.


Inside the speakeasy, the fire mage – who seemed to have grown in height and stature upon invoking his magic – snarled at Dovan, flames whirling up around him. Reihe, meanwhile, stood back, watching the fight with a smug grin and the occasional chuckle. He was accustomed to, and enjoyed, watching other people fight his battles. You didn't stay alive, after all, by fighting your own battles.

The mage was conjuring a giant fireball, building flames and fire and energy up around him to unleash on Dovan when the Draconian hit him square in the face with the roundhouse kick, causing the fire to explode in the faces of both men, and the mage dropped to the ground.


This was the moment. This was the opening. The flames rushed up, and then cleared and for only a moment both men were out of the way, knocked back by the fire. One, tiny dart no larger than a wasp, lodged into Reihe's neck. A fraction of a second later, the upstart crime boss went stiff.

But the fire mage was angry and, not noticing that the slumped body of Reihe was growing quickly gray in pallor, he sprung to his feet. He wouldn't be bested by this assassin. With a dramatic thrust of his arms and loud yell, a dragon made of flame and ember sprung to life and sprung upon Dovan. The spell was a powerful one and sapped quite a bit of the mage's energy, but this was now a matter of pride for him.


Outside, Zahi was fairly confident that she had hit her target. Cleanly, without theatrics, and with nothing tying the murder to the Soot Wolves. But she couldn't be certain with the fight raging inside blocking her view. So for now she would have to wait. Noiselessly, she sprung up from the alley up a drain pipe and crouched on a roof opposite of the speakeasy, hidden in the shadow of its eaves. When the mages were done, she could verify her work.

[Zer0ic]

   The waiter seemed to increase in size as he conjured rampaging flames building up to create an enormous charged fireball. Flames rushed across his body as Dovan's kick landed against the side of his head. The ball of fire exploded, throwing them across the room. Right when he hit the floor Dovan became smoke and reappeared standing.

   Dovan saw Reihe was still watching them with a grin that said, "I'm a smug asshole." Then, he went limp and emotionless. He face was devoid of his smile, his body was seemed overly relaxed, and he was losing his complexion. He went to cut his head off, but the waiter, or Dragonman as he was in his super hero mode, thrusts forth his arms with a roar, sending a burning creature of flames at him. The blaze climbed his back, but he stopped it by using air magic to feed the fire with all the air in the room. And without oxygen to sustain itself the creature became snuffed out.

   While oxygen slowly made its way back in the room the mage couldn't produce fire. This was his chance. Short of breath, he drew oxygen into his lung magically and snatched Reihe's body. Once out of the room he resealed it with ice leaving one small hole in front of him and began to pull the residual oxygen out of the room before completely sealing it, leaving Dragonman was left to suffocate.

   "Damn, you," he muttered quietly at Reihe's motionless body. "I think you need to lose a few pounds of ugly weight," he said forming a blade of ice in his right hand and in his left he held Reihe by the hair.

[kleineklementine]

The fire mage was already slumped from the effort of creating the dragon. But he was not entirely out of tricks. After all, Reihe didn't hire amateurs. After conjuring the dragon, he glanced back at Reihe in search of his master's approval. That was when he saw the man's grey face and slumped posture. But he didn't see the dart. Damn it! How had that been possible? He had been between Reihe and the intruder the entire time. Cursing the assassin, the fire mage suddenly recognized the decreasing oxygen in the room. He turned once, his eyes full of dark hatred for the man who had somehow (he thought) killed his master by some trick. They were eyes that held the promise of revenge. Then, while the air was draining the power from the dragon, the mage disappeared in a puff of flames, using up the last of the oxygen in the room.


From her perch shadowed above the streets of Zantaric, Zahi watched as Dovan exited the speakeasy with the grey, limp - clearly dead - form of Reihe. Well, that was her job done. At least he saved her the effort of having to enter the ruined speakeasy to verify that she had hit her mark, that Reihe was dead. She let out an inaudible snort, though, as Dovan raised the limp body by the hair, pulling back his magical blade. That sloppy assassin was going to take credit for her work. She wondered if he even knew what had killed the man. Well, it was no matter to her. She needed no proof of her work. Her word was evidence enough. Blood Wolves did not lie about their killings. And the Soot Wolves didn't want to be tied openly to killings in the criminal underworld of Zantaric. This was out of their territory. So let the fool, she thought to herself, think this work is his.

[Zer0ic]

   Dovan hesitated to cut his head as he found a dart in Reihe's neck. Out of honor for his true assassin he left Reihe in one piece. He was beaten to the kill and that was fine with him, because he was still going to get paid as the clients will find out about his death and not the other assassin.


   Putting on his Red Dragon Mask he, within his own consciousness, said, "Zennium, what is the control for the 6th Sense technique."

   Answering him in his mind, Zennium said, "You need to practice the technique more often. Anyways, you must channel primal energies to the brain and nervous system, and then release the energy immediately from your eyes."

   "Thanks." Dovan performed the technique and then exploded into smoke.

   "So, you're the true assassin of Reihe," he stated while appearing behind Zahi. Taking off his mask he said, "You did well. It was an honor to see you, or should I say, "not," see you in action." Once the mask was completely removed Zahi could see his candid smile.

   Dovan truly loved meeting others in his line of work. Always hoping to discuss strategy and tactics, but for some reason they never like the fact he was capable of finding them so easily. He was expecting Zahi to be no different. It always came down to one of two conclusions. They would either take off running or attack with everything they had.

[kleineklementine]

Zahi's eyes narrowed when the assassin in the street disappeared in a puff of smoke. Theatrics. Her body tensed, but she was not wholly surprised when Dovan appeared again next to her. She had, after all, already seen this trick once.

The Blood Wolf turned to face the assassin; with her urchin's robes hiding her form and the scarf hiding her face, it was not readily apparent if she was a man or a woman. Zahi did neither of the things he had expected. She didn't flee, she didn't attack. But she made a mental check of where all her weapons were. An assassin, perhaps angered to learn that he had been bested, would likely not have come in friendship. Especially if he thought the price on Reihe's head was at stake. But she wasn't going to rise to his bait.

In a cool, unimpressed tone, all she said was, "You won't get your bounty leaving the body in the street like that."

[Zer0ic]

   Actually taking a closer look at her he noticed if he didn't use the 6th Sense Technique or had heard her voice he wouldn't have known her gender with all that clothing she had on. Hell, she looked as if she was ready for winter and not an assassination.

   This winter dressed woman surprisingly didn't run, nor tried to kill him out of embarrassment for being found by him. She was placid, unconcerned by his appearance behind her, and suspicious of his actions. The suspicion in her eyes changed, she began to subtly flutter her eyes in every direction. She was counting her tools. That was an indication she wasn't an amateur who got lucky with stealing his kill, she was in fact a professional and it was her kill.

   In an impassive tone of voice she said, "You won't get your bounty leaving the body in the street like that."


   Dovan replied, "Doesn't matter to me if I get paid or not." Besides, the clients wouldn't mine a public display of Reihe's death. "I didn't kill the man anyways," he said while walking up to her stopping half a foot away and then continued, "You did. You deserve the reward."

   He took a long hard look into her eyes. He felt somberness in her brown eye and uneasiness in the hazel one. "What's wrong," he said in the tenderest voice he could produce.

[kleineklementine]

Zahi did not retreat when Dovan approached, stopping well within her personal space. But her body was poised for a fight if need be. There was something strange about this man and she didn't trust it. It seemed rather unlikely that he was just here to congratulate her.

"I don't know what you mean," she answered levelly, her expression impassive, her eyes not leaving his. Her outer countenance was cool, controlled, unconcerned. In fact, though she was ready for a fight, Zahi was unconcerned. She trusted her own abilities. "I'm not here for any reward. Let's just say I'm glad to see Karr Reihe dead. That's enough for me."

[Zer0ic]

   "Okay, whatever," he said reevaluating his thoughts. "I need to get straight to business anyways. I have a proposal for you," Dovan began to explain. "I would like to take Reihe's head, respectfully, and return it to my clients, but I also have a hit out for each and every one of them."

   He turned his back to her showing he had no intention to fight her. "I would like to receive payment for Reihe's head, and then assassinate them. I'll pay you half the amount received for both Reihe's head and their heads if you'd join in this removal of life," he proposed.

   "I'll be back here at midnight tomorrow to receive your answer. Tardiness will be understood as a no," he said before vanishing into a cloud of smoke.

[kleineklementine]

Zahi watched Dovan dispassionately as he explained his offer, with only a vague skepticism marking her shadowed features. His 'plan' reminded her of why she found assassins so distasteful. To make an agreement with someone, take their money, then immediately turn on them. Zahi didn't spend too much time thinking about morals and ethics and the like, but she did care a little about principle. And, anyway, the more people you turn on, the more people who will turn on you. It was fairly simple.

She didn't bother to make a response to his proposition before he - poof! - disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Zahi shook her head. More theatrics. She would not be returning tomorrow at midnight. She had no intentions of being in Zantaric at all by midnight tomorrow. Zahi had no interest in being in this place longer than she needed to. Reihe was dead, and she would return to Arca. Though even if she were not heading out, she thought to herself, Mr. Poofs-of-Smoke was not who she would want to work with.

"Good luck with your 'business,'" she said to the empty air where Dovan had been.



The rain continued as Zahi made her way through the dense forests outside of Zantaric. She had left the city after verifying that Reihe was dead and removed the talisman pendant the ex-crime boss had worn at all time for protection. For all the good that did him, it'd be a nice trinket to give to the Red Jackal. She turned the gold pendant in her hand now as she moved through the dark, wet forest. For many it would be impossible to navigate these dense forests in this condition, but Zahi knew where she was going. It gave her a chill how familiar this way still was to her after nearly twenty years.

It took an hour or so after leaving Zantaric to reach her destination: The ancient temple was barely visible in the dark of the rainy night, swallowed up by the forest. Zahi paused when she came into sight of it, listening. But she heard no sign of anyone else here. So she continued her approach, running her fingers across the wet, moss-covered stone of the temple as she entered. What God or Goddess had once been worshiped here, no one knew. But the ancient structure had been a refuge for Zahi for nearly a year. A long time ago. A child living in the wild, she had been the ghost of the temple.

Zahi passed through the threshold, pushing her way through the vegetation that draped over it. A vine pulled back the scarf that had covered her head and, leaving it like that, Zahi took in the familiar surroundings of the temple interior as her eyes adjusted to the low light. Walking slowly through the entrance, memories flooded back to her from time forgotten. As though she'd never been away, she followed her old route and climbed up into the shadowed upper chambers of the temple. She would stay the night here, then tomorrow begin her trip back to Serendipity and Arca.