The assassin rushed to emerge into the shadows of the dark alley.
"Dammit" she whispered and wiped the bloody scratch on her face while removing crimson hair strands to improve her vision. Her narrowed eyes made her scar stand out even more. Not detecting her enemy's silhouette through the blackness she took a moment to lean against the wall. She groaned in pain as she removed a black arrow stuck in the flesh of her thigh. As she pressed her palm onto her waist, the pain was renewed and her hand was painted with her own blood.
"Dammit" she swore again. Sound of footsteps made her grab her only weaponry, a pair of daggers tied with thongs onto her back. Having calculated the approximate position of the one who hunted her down she followed her instincts deeper into the Noxian underworld.
"You can't run forever" a voice echoed from a small distance behind. A calm, concentrated voice, slightly sadistic... It was obvious that he enjoyed the chase.
"Try me" she whispered as an answer only she heard.
However, the woman was well-aware that running was nothing but a temporary solution. Not only did her wounds slow her down, but also indicated her way with a trail of ruby blood. In her situation, facing her opponent wasn't a viable option either. Evaluating her alternatives, she struggled to make use of her only advantage: the location. These districts hosted the dawn of her successful career as an assassin during her late adolescence, not many years ago. She used to know this area well-enough to navigate blindly. Navigate and avoid the main drawback of these streets she ended up facing now...
"Dead-end" she realized as she faced the filthy wall decaying after years of exposure to the dump, mold-smelling air. An arrow ablaze with a dark fire flew just next to her and filled the narrow space with an otherworldly purple light. As she turned around her emerald gaze met the man after her. Tall and slender he would look totally normal if he wasn't corrupted from within. Greyish-white hair and deathly pale skin, branches of dark matter covering his arms and body up to his abdominal muscles. The only clothing on him was his scarlet scarf curled around his neck. His eyes cruelly blank, appearing murderous. He was evil.
The assassin was trapped. Well-aware of that fact she attempted a last attack. Taking a better hold of her blades she flashed near the man with a "Shunpo" her unique teleporting ability and aimed for his heart. The man, anticipating her reaction, blocked her attack with his ebony bow whose surface was merely scratched and countered by piercing his hand through the wound of her waist, ripping of the flesh deep enough to almost smash her rib. The woman fell onto her knees, immobilized from the pain that accompanied a wave of blood flowing onto her side and then dripping onto the dirty pavement. She struggled to breathe and raised her head to face her enemy's man grinned and with brilliant precision aimed another arrow to her shoulder. She didn't even try to dodge it, not to give him the pleasure of her failing to. She didn't manage not to scream though, as the sharp edge of it severed her muscles and tendons.
"Does it hurt, Katarina?" he asked and kneeled near her. His face reflected a vindictive rage that reached the point of madness.
"No, I am screaming in agony because it's fun to!" she thought ironically but decided not to admit her pain. She turned her head the other direction but he violently grabbed her chin to rotate her face in front of his, once again.
"I hope it does! Cause it hurt me more when my temple was violated and my family slain!" he shouted.
"Does that hurt you, Varus, or your guilt? Your inability to protect the ones you loved cause you prioritized a duty you failed to serve?" Katarina answered, aggravating him even more.
Varus fiercely stood up and prepared to shoot the assassin with his dark bindings, rendering her unable to move. Katarina grinned, expecting this reaction that only confirmed the effects of her words on him. As the ghostly chain tightened up around her weakened body, Varus grabbed her from her neck and brutally pushed her body against the rough stone wall, with a force that made a couple of her ribs break. She screamed again, for as long as the pressure on her neck allowed her to.
"I failed to serve my duty? I consumed the evilness I guarded so it didn't end up in Noxian hands. I became a monster to protect this power from your greed, monsters!" a flame of anger burned into his eyes as he spoke those words.
"But you know what made me a true monster? Discovering the devastated village of mine and entering the ruins of my home, only to find...Only to find my beautiful,young,pregnant wife, the woman I loved more than my life lying in a lake of blood with her neck cut open. The neck I used to kiss goodnight... And near her, the bodies of my children, of my son, that was brutally murdered, actually sliced in pieces, in his effort to protect his little sister, a blond angel that ended up beheaded. That's what made me a true monster, Katarina Du Couteau, General of the Noxian army!" he tightened his grip around her neck even more, as she was growing pale and a bluish bruised shade spread over her lips.
"My revenge on you, is just the beginning... I will sate my lust for revenge and slay every Noxian, starting with your allies!" she whispered to her.
"Don't... underestimate...them" Katarina answered and gasped to breathe. She was a about to feint from the lack of oxygen and the excessive blood loss... She was running out of time.
"Don't underestimate us indeed" whispered a familiar voice behind Varus. A skillful assassin stabbed the archer, throwing him on the ground and caught Katarina into his arms as her bindings disappeared.
"Talon" she whispered out of breath and smile as she looked at him.
"Katarina" he answered to her call and helped her stand on her feet.
"Shall I execute this Ionian bastard, milady?" he asked and grinned as he stared at his defeated opponent. Katarina didn't answer but referred to the Ionian:
"Some just do not abandon their families the way you did." Varus grimaced and avoided to look at her. His wound was rapidly bleeding and he expected the finishing blow sooner or later. He was defeated and tortured by his guilt.
"Before seeking revenge, discover who is to blame. As a General I ordered many villages like yours to be destroyed during the War. But some, like Karma and Irelia for instance, found their way to protect their loved ones... Where were you when my forces invaded you village? When my forces slew your family? You could have negotiated, you could have fought or at least die by their side! But you "protected" your temple! Are Noxians to blame after all?" Katarina smiled in the view of her physically and mentally devastated opponent.
"Tu as joue, et tu as perdu, Varus. Even your ambush to exterminate me while I was already fatigued failed!" she continued.
"Talon, don't give him the finishing blow... Right now all this pathetic son of a bitch craves is him live tormented by his remorse and reminiscence of his mistakes" the Sinister Blade decided to moved away escorted by her Shadow. The Arrow of Retribution was lying in the dark alley, lost and bleeding, knowing he had failed...