Title: The Price of Life
Rating: T
Summary: What is the price of life? To an assassin, its any payment their employer is willing to offer. To a anima, it is their freedom and feeling of belonging. To a girl who refuses to share her past, well, she won't tell. SenrixOC slight HuskyxNana
A/N: Oh my god I finally finished it! It took me two days to figure out the title for this fic. God those two days sucked… but I did it! I really loved the idea for this fic. I finally bought vol. 10 of the manga and became suddenly and insanely obsessed with this series and like 5 fic ideas popped into my head. Don't know if I'll do them all but I definitely will do this one. Well, enjoy chapter one!
Edit: Just touched up the spelling and grammar a bit.
Chapter One
The cold winter wind bit into her without remorse. It seared her skin where it was exposed and numbed the rest of her body. White frost had formed throughout her pale grey hair and on her long eyelashes. She couldn't take a good breath because the freezing air burned her lungs as she inhaled, making her exhale again quickly. She wouldn't last much longer in this weather and since she had no way to get back to her village, she would undoubtedly die here in this frozen mountain pass.
She curled up tighter, hugging her knees closer to her chest and burying her face deeper into her arms, bracing herself for the inevitable. At least with the cold her body would just slowly shut down and she would fall asleep and cease to move. It would be an easy passing.
It was the waiting that was killing her.
Not in a hundred years would she hurry her own demise but the waiting and suffering in the cold was becoming unbearable. She was sitting with her back against an ice wall as far out of the reach of the wind as she could, which wasn't far at all.
Just as she was beginning to feel comfortable with her fate, a noise made itself heard the crushed her hopes of an easy death. She heard the pounding of paws against snow, the heavy panting of an animal in the cold air, and the chilling howl that signalled their coming; wolves.
She looked up in fear and saw the approaching pack through the blowing snow. They were coming for her. This wasn't what she wanted. She wanted to die peacefully by slowly freezing to death, not being torn apart by a pack of savage beasts! She felt panic rising in her throat as she stifled a terrified scream. She felt the cold talons of terror grip her heart, colder than anything the wind or mountains could summon, sending a chill down her spine.
They approached her slowly, heads close to the ground, sampling the air around them with their super sensitive noses. Their eyes were trained on her, waiting for her to move. She started to breath heavily, fighting down the rising panic. She was fighting a losing battle.
The lead wolf with fur as white as the snow that billowed around them and eyes as blue as the clearest morning sky walked calmly towards her.
"This is it," she thought. "I'm going to die here. A horrible, painful death!"
The other wolves took a few steps towards her as well.
"I don't want to die here!" Her mind was screaming at her now, telling her to run, but her frozen legs would not respond. It wouldn't matter anyways. There was no way she could possibly outrun this beautiful creature of the wild.
The wolves closed in on her now, their eyes intense.
"I don't want to die."
The wolves suddenly stood erect, ears listening, as if they had just heard or felt something. The wind around the wolves and the girl began to move in odd patterns, patterns not caused by the wind.
"I don't want to die!"
Then suddenly, she felt something course through her. Something that had not been there before began to manifest itself in her being. The wolves stopped and were staring at her with bright eyes that reflected the moon now clear in the sky above.
She felt some of her physical features began to morph. Her ears changed, for one. They changed from the soft, pink flesh ears on the side of her head she was used to and turned into large, furry black ones on the top of her head. She felt her teeth begin to grow long and sharp, like fangs, and her vision suddenly changed and revealed to her the secrets of the night. Her finger nails sprouted into long claws sharper than any blade she had ever seen. Her spine grew at the base of her back, sprouting into a long black tail. Lastly, her legs changed from the knee down. Her feet changed into large paws with long claws at the end of each tow. Sleek black fur encased her legs from the knee down, completing her transformation.
She stood now before the wolves in her battered clothing, no longer as a normal human, but a wolf +anima. The wolves looked up at her with respect now and not hunger. She still felt terrified but she knew now in her heart she was safe. These wolves would not leave one of their own to starve or freeze to death in the cold.
The wolves all turned to leave. They ran for a couple of steps before they turned back to her. They expected her to follow them. They would lead her to a safe place where she could live with them and wait out the storm.
Smiling happily, she used her new legs for the first time. The speed, power, and agility they granted her was rivalled only by the wild wolves from which she had obtained her anima. Gliding gracefully over the soft snow, she took off after the wolves.
Night fell silently and swiftly over the capital city of Stella, as it always had. The city was next to lifeless. No people moved in the streets or within the palace grounds. The only stirring of life came from the guards patrolling the three towers of the castle. A soft breeze whispered through the branches of the trees in the gardens and courtyards of Stella, carrying the fresh scent of evening flowers and a refreshing respite after the heat of the day. The darkness within the city was nearly complete except for where the stars and the moon illuminated the soft ground.
In the Hall of Flowers, the old man with the anima of a rat sat beneath the portrait of Lady Marein while enjoying some sake. The Hall had changed a bit recently with the death of the former King. His portrait had been taken down and replaced with the portrait of Sailand's new young king, King Kean. While the many queens were not in fact married to the new king, they're portraits remained until such a time as the new king had many wives of his own.
In the courtyard of the palace another light pervaded the darkness of the night as several people entered. A tall, slender woman dressed in an elaborate dress of crimson and white that complimented the jewels strung around her throat walked in the centre of the group of people. Three of the female guards carried lanterns encasing small flames that illuminated the ground before them.
They walked for a ways in complete silence before they reached the ponds where she dismissed her guards. They protested momentarily but eventually left. Their mistress was not someone you wanted to cross. Especially since she was a queen.
Lady Dylana stared down at her dim reflection in the crystal clear waters for a moment. This was the place where she had finally secured her son's position as the future king. All it had taken was a simple push and her son's future was set. And then he had returned.
Two years ago, while the former king was still alive, Myrrha, the boy she thought she had drowned, had returned to Sailand. With his arrival her son's position as heir to the throne was in jeopardy. Myrrha and his mother Marein had always been the favourites of the king. If he was back then he would be the new heir to the throne.
Her fears, however, had been unfounded. As suddenly as he had appeared, Myrrha was gone. He had not been seen since. Two years had passed and Kean was now king. It no longer mattered if Myrrha returned or not. She had won.
For now, at least.
There was still more that could be done, so much more. She had barely begun to think on the possibilities when her thoughts were interrupted by a female voice that seemed to appear out of nowhere.
"You summoned me, Lady?"
Lady Dylana's heart almost skipped a beat. She had not heard the other person approach at all. After she had dismissed her guards, she had thought she was alone. Now she wasn't so sure. There was no telling how long the other woman had been there.
She turned towards the sound of the voice behind her. Through the deep shadows of the night Lady Dylana could not make out the figure of the other person. All that was visible of her was her slightly luminescent eyes that seemed oddly lupine.
Quickly composing herself, Lady Dylana addressed the young woman before her. "That depends," she said quietly, just loud enough to be heard. "Are you the assassin known as the Claws of Night?"
"I am," she replied. Her voice was flat, toneless, almost as if the one who possessed it held no emotions. It was somewhat disconcerting.
"I wish to acquire your services." She placed a slight emphasis on the word 'services'.
"Obviously," was her only response.
Lady Dylana's cheeks began to burn with the insult the assassin had just thrown her way. You should never insult a queen or imply that she was making some form of mistake. She fought down the retort that began to rise in her throat. For now she would just have to put up with the insults of the assassin. She would see that she was dealt with later.
"Yes. I hope you have no qualms about your targets." It would mean trouble if she did. If she was unwilling to carry this out assignment, then she was a liability. She would know too much and would have to be silenced.
"My allegiance lies neither here nor there. I am my own governor and as long as the pay is good, I care not who my target may be."
No one held her allegiance. Lady Dylana thought on this for a moment. If no one held her in check, then she could be dangerous. She could turn on her at any moment. She sighed aloud to herself. It was a risk she would have to take. She needed someone skilled for this job and she was rumoured to be the best in the art of death.
"Fine," Lady Dylana said finally. "As you know, my son Kean is now King of Sailand." Her face twisted into a cunning smile. "However, there is more than just Sailand available to rule."
The assassin seemed to catch on then. "You'll need more than just the King dead you know."
"I know that!" she snapped. Lady Dylana did not appreciate being looked down upon. Many of the other queens did so because of her heritage. However, now that her son was King, things had changed drastically, but the feeling remained
She calmed herself again before continuing. "Of course there is the King to attend to, as well as his son and any other heirs to the throne. Having his queen gone would be helpful too. Also the commander of the military. What's his name? Oh, right. Igneous." The queen paused for a minute.
"Is there more?" the assassin asked.
"Yes," she replied. "There is one last person. Prince Myrrha." She spat out the name venomously, as if it would poison her if she held it too long.
"And my payment?" she asked without batting an eye and who she had been asked to kill.
Lady Dylana withdrew a pouch from her robes and tossed it to the assassin. She heard her catch the pouch smoothly but could not see it due to the shadows that enshrouded her.
"You will find enough gillers in there to feed a village for a week." She heard the pouch opening and the money inside being shuffled around. Obviously the assassin was checking her spoils. "You will get the rest when you have completed your job."
"I take my leave then." The lights of her eyes blinked out and Lady Dylana was left alone again. A small wicked grin creased her thin lips as she turned back to the tower. Yes, so much to do.