Prologue
Yay! Another great story from me! I don't know where all these ideas are coming from (although this one might derive from me reading Sarah J. Maas' novel Throne of Glass), but I think they have some source. I have no idea how I'm gonna keep updating all these stories, seeing that this is the fifth I need to keep up to date. I hope you like this and those who like fantasy novels, I really do recommend Mrs. Maas' writings!
My new OC, Claire Meurtier (=French word for murderer/assassin/killer) is a panther. Her family was from Quebec, Canada, thus the French name. Her fur is completely black as is her hair. Her eyes are dark purple, but they will change when she enters her "hunting mode". The new colour is predatory yellow. She also has a flair for dramatics when in the field as you will soon discover. And since this is a romance story and the pairing is [Sly X OC] you can guess who'll be falling for whom. Claire isn't as tall as Sly, but equally agile and stealthy and certainly more deadly. She is a professional assassin, whose allegiance lies with the highest bidder. Her weapon of choice is a set of six daggers of different length. She is also well-trained with different kinds of sword and other edged weapons. When receiving jobs and in the field Claire uses the code name Nocturne, meaning that no one really knows her real name. She also has a habit to draw, because... well, she needs some sort of hobby. Right? And of course, her past is tragic, 'cause what would suit the plot and all better? I think this is enough. Do enjoy the story!
A lithe, shadowy silhouette ran across the moon. A whisper in night, unheard by anyone, seen by no one. The shadow moved almost like a wraith through the roofs of Los Angeles. It was in search of its prey.
The shape stopped in the moonlight, revealing a feminine figure clad in dark robe. Her face was covered by a hood and only thing visible were the menacing yellow eyes that spelled only one thing: "Death"
Nocturne was on the move.
She was on the job to assassinate someone. A competitor of a local crime lord who he wanted to be rid off.
For her it was of course no challenge.
"As nothing ever is..." she thought, almost bored.
Her target was walking down a dark, remote alley, completely alone and totally defenceless. A perfect place for the kill.
"What kind of an idiot is he? This is going to be easy"
Nocturne slid down a drain pipe at the end of the alley. There was no sound to be heard. She stood there, in the middle of the alley, waiting for her prey to come closer, her dark clothes making her one with the darkness.
The figure slowly wobbled closer.
"He's drunk? This guy has a serious death wish"
Two of her daggers drawn, she leapt forwards.
Her victim was now right in front of her. The daggers were looming on his neck, threatening to cut through any minute.
"Who are you?" came a terrified whisper.
"That's of no importance"
"What do you want?"
"Your life"
"Why?" the whisper was barely audible.
"You're time has come. Oblivion awaits"
"No! Wait!"
His scream stopped abruptly and he felt hot, sticky liquid stream down his neck and chest. He fell to the ground, letting out a rattled wheeze.
"Night is my friend and Death is my ally" Nocturne chanted silently.
With the last stertorous sigh, life left her victim. Sparing last glance at the body, she smirked. It was a wild, almost mad smirk. She bent over the corpse and whispered: "Death never takes a wise man by surprise, for a wise man is ready to leave. Be wiser in the next world"
With that the assassin left the scene and melted back into the shadows...
"He's dead"
"GAAH!"
Her ears twitched irritably at the loud sound.
"Do you have to sneak around like that?"
This question was posed by rather fat lion who, at the moment, had a very indignant look on his face. She ignored the question and held out her hand.
"The money" it wasn't a request, it was a demand.
"He is dead?" the lion inquired.
"Yes"
His eyes narrowed.
"How can I know you're not lying"
Faster than a lighting, she was holding a knife to the lion's throat.
"Would you like to join him?"
He started shaking and sweating profusely as he gave a vigorous shake of his head.
"The money" Nocturne repeated, releasing the lion.
He brought his shaking hand under the desk and slowly lifted a briefcase and handed it to the assassin. She grabbed it swiftly and inspected the interior.
"This money better not be false" she began threateningly, "I get very upset when someone tries to trick me"
"I-It's all real" the lion stuttered.
"For your sake I hope so" she replied in an airy tone.
She held out a hand to the lion. He stared at it like some dangerous animal.
"It was a pleasure doing business with you" she said, bringing her hand closer to him.
He hesitantly grabbed the hand and gave it a weak shake.
Suddenly, she yanked the lion forward and at the same time flung one of her daggers at him, halting it before his left eye. He stared along the blade of the dagger for ten seconds, before falling flat on the floor. The fear had been too much for the lion. He had fainted and judging by the smell, also peed his pants.
Nocturne chuckled heartily and exited through the window.
"For a crime lord, he was easily scared"
Back in her apartment, Claire tossed the robe aside and stashed the money to a safe behind a painting. Her eyes had returned to their normal purple colour some time ago and now, all she wanted was to crawl into her bed and sleep as long as possible.
But she was denied of this pleasure by a beeping coming from her computer.
The panther let out a growl of annoyance as she marched to the laptop and flipped it open. There was a recorded message from someone by the name of Tessa Nochet. Claire clicked the play.
"Greetings, Nocturne" began a distorted voice, "I find myself in the need of your assassination skills. I am willing to pay handsomely. If you want to know more, arrive at the address displayed after this message by tomorrow, midnight"
The address appeared on the screen and Claire quickly memorized it.
The address vanished and it was replaced by number five. Five changed into four.
"A countdown?"
Three.
"The message is destroying itself" she realized.
Two.
"Wait a second, it's still linked to my computer... so, that means..."
One.
"Shit!" she tried to do something, but it was too late.
Zero.
The computer shut down.
"Dammit, how did this happen!?"
The message was loaded with a computer virus that corrupted the base drivers of the device, rendering it completely useless.
"I am definitely going to go meet them now, if nothing else, they owe me a new computer!" Claire thought, she wasn't pleased by this sort of invasion of her personal space.
Fortunately she didn't keep any confidential information stored in the computer.
The panther let out final huff of irritation and turned to go to bed.
The next day, late evening...
Nocturne was on the move again. She glided soundlessly on the rooftops, letting nothing stop her. The assassin had again put on the dark robe and the daggers were hidden in different places on her person.
The address she was headed was located in the more notorious part of the city, where you could find all kinds of lawbreakers.
The place was dilapidated building with no indication that someone would still bother using it, but Nocturne was used to meeting her clients in odd locations.
Inside of the building wasn't much better. Everything was covered in dust and little trash and it looked like no one had been there for years. Nevertheless, she went deeper into the abandoned edifice.
She went through the whole building, inspecting every room that there was. Nothing seemed out of order to her, until...
"Psst"
Her daggers were drawn immediately.
"Who's there?" the assassin demanded harshly.
The bookshelf that was in the room slid aside revealing a small corridor. In the mouth of the corridor stood wolf in scruffy looking suit. He didn't look that dangerous, but as she had learned through the hard way, looks can be deceiving.
"I'm here as an intercessor on Tessa Nochet's behalf" he informed her, "If you would kindly follow me"
The wolf turned on his heels and walked deeper into the corridor. The assassin follow him cautiously. The corridor wasn't long, it soon widened into a small room which had a table and two chair on each side.
The wolf went around the table and sat on the chair there. He gestured at the other one, trying to get her to sit down.
She did, eventually.
"So, what does Mrs. Nochet want from me?" Nocturne asked.
"What she wants is simple. You are to kill someone" the wolf informed.
"That so?" she asked, quirking a brow, "And here I thought she would want me to water her plants"
"She is willing to pay tidy sum for this assassination"
"How much?"
"We'll come to that. First I need to know if you're willing to take the job"
"Who is it exactly that needs to be put out of their misery?"
"Ever heard of Sly Cooper?"
Of course she had. The master thief was in the news regularly.
"Yes. So, he's the one Nochet wants dead?"
"Precisely"
"And the payment?"
The wolf lifted a briefcase from next to his chair and pushed it towards the panther.
"Half now and half once Mrs. Nochet is sure that Cooper has been eliminated" he informed, "She will also want proof of his demise. Preferably Cooper's head"
Nocturne smirked at that. She opened the briefcase. It had been divided in two compartments. The other was full of neat, sleek bank notes. In the other compartment was an expensive looking laptop.
"A laptop?" she enquired.
"A compensation for the one we corrupted for security reasons"
She nodded.
"Is there anything else I need to know?"
"Can you do this? Cooper is the best thief in the world"
The assassin snorted.
"I am the best assassin in the world"
"He has a gang to back him up"
"They're weaknesses for me to exploit"
"He's the master of moving in the night undetected"
Nocturne closed the briefcase, took it and turned to leave.
"Night is my friend and Death is my ally"
By those words, she left.
I do hope you liked it. As usual, I have no idea when I will next update. It may be soon or may not. We'll see. About my other chapters: The raccoon and the tigress isn't really proceeding. The Green Wolf is going rather well, its chapter has about 6000 words. Isabelle and Sly's chapter has 2000 words. I've written the opening flashback and I'm now considering how to begin the actual story. Review and stuff...