Times were difficult for Tellius; the newly elected senators were just as bad as the previous ones, if not worse. The continent was filled with warring tribes and nations, all because of the senators' blood pacts. Sanaki had sworn that she would keep a very watchful eye on them, but she had neglected her duties. Now, all the laguz tribes were forced to obey the senators' whim and this led to thefts, raids, and deaths all across the land. Until now, the senators had left Crimea alone and allowed it to flourish once more as a nation. Unfortunately, the hawk tribes were beginning to steal crops and destroy farmland. Elincia would have none of this but she didn't know what to do. Blood pacts were tricky, especially if the laguz tribes were involved. Not only would the pact have to be destroyed, but the person who signed it would have to die as well. She did not want to kill any laguz, but if it meant saving their homeland and hers, so be it.
"My queen, what is bothering you on this lovely afternoon? Surely you must be enjoying the sunlight shining down upon us. And the breeze is so gentle, so calming…" Bastian came up behind her, eloquent as always. "I'm just wondering how to end this blood pact issue. Why would anyone want to use something to terrible?" Elincia sighed. "Allow me, milady. You should not trouble yourself with such issues. Enjoy the passing season, go and stroll in the gardens, go frolic in the falling leaves. Leave this political nonsense to your humble count," he said with a deep bow. It was true, Bastian did have a knack when it came to politics, and she trusted him to continue the job he had been doing for years. "Alright Bastian, I'll leave everything to you, then. But please tell me, how do you plan on handling this?"
"Ah, you worry too much, your majesty. Not to worry, I will handle everything and I promise to keep you informed. Now go, go! Enjoy this beautiful weather while you can!" he said, opening his arms as if embracing the air itself. "Thank you, Bastian. I can always count on you." Elincia walked away, leaving the count to his own thoughts. The only thoughts running through his head was how much money he would have to spend on resolving these issues. It was already obvious how he was going to get the job done…hire assassins.
Bastian was standing next to a small lake, not far from Crimea's palace, but far enough that no one would come looking for him. "Volke," he stated the name, knowing that the fireman was probably somewhere behind him in the trees. Volke walked out from the shadows and looked expectantly at his constant employer. "I'm sure you know of the blood pacts that have enslaved the laguz nations. Elincia has charged me with the job of destroying them. I trust…you know what you have to do?" Bastian didn't even turn around to look at the rogue. "500,000," came the deep voice. "Hm…before I agree to anything. I have someone I want you to spar with. Right here, right now. No killing, mind you. I just want you to assess each others skills."
A second person walked out from behind the trees dressed in the loose clothes typical of any thief, rogue, or assassin. A hood came up over his head and a bandana was tied around his mouth. No words needed to be said between the two assassins. Both immediately fell into a natural fighting stance as the stared at each other, daring the other to make the first move. Volke struck first; he wasn't one to wait around. He crouched before rushing his opponent, ready to come out of his low position and swing his blade at any time. The other thief spun out of the way and parried the slash of Volke's knife. A split second after the knives clashed together, both men jumped backwards and resumed their fighting stances, slowly circling each other. This time, the masked assassin moved first. He ran straight for Volke at a blinding speed, his knife poised to run him through. Ha, he'll have to do much better than that. A frontal attack this early in the fight is a bad idea. This will end much quicker that I expected Volke though, ready to counter the other's attack. However, the masked rogue knew very well that this kind of tactic didn't work on anyone except those with little experience. He was only hoping to catch Volke off guard. Just before reaching him, the other thief jumped off of the ground, as if he was going to flip over his opponent. Volke brought his knife above his head, preparing to slash at the belly of the leaping figure. The masked assassin, yet again, expected this and twisted his body, landing soundlessly to the side of Volke. His hand shot out, the knife pointed at Volke's back, but Volke turned at the last moment and parried once more. Again, the two jumped back, regarding each other warily. And so it went, they circled, struck, parried, and retreated. Their knives clashed again and again as they tested each other's skills and strengths.
"That's enough," came Bastian's voice. Both assassins turned to him, their knives still raised. "Volke, the two of you are evenly matched, are you not?" Volke gave a small, quick nod, confirming 'yes'. "Good then, because the two of you will be working together as partners for this mission. Volke, this is the Shadow. I'm sure you've heard of his work." Bastian gestured to the masked man. Volke turned in surprise. The Shadow? He had heard of the Shadow's work and his skills. He was fast and accurate, silent and deadly; that was how he earned his name. Aside from himself, the Shadow was probably the most well-known assassin in Tellius. It was surprising to be standing face to face, but it was good to know that they were equal in fighting skill. "Since the two of you will be working together, I think you need to show him who you really are, my Shadow," Bastian said.
Volke watched, curious, as the Shadow closed his eyes as his hands reached up to remove his hood. In one swift motion, the hood along with the loose cloak accompanying it came flying off. A woman stood in front of Volke, completely clad in black. Her long-sleeved tunic had two buckles on the front left and underneath she had a light armor guard protecting her ample chest and flat stomach. Her pants were tight fitting, like her tunic, and she had had a few sheathed knives on the side of her thighs. Her long hair was midnight black and an equally dark scarf was around her neck, the ends billowing out behind her. Her eyes were a deep sapphire blue and held a sharp, determined glint. Her lips were small and full, but set in a grim line.
The famed Shadow was…a woman? It had taken him off guard, to know that a female was so high up in this line of work. Volke felt something stir within him; something he had never felt before. This girl was so very dangerous…yet so very attractive. He hadn't met too many women in his business, and the ones that he did meet were usually killed within moments. So to see this woman standing before him, equal in skill and prowess, was something quite extraordinary. Obviously, she was very fit and toned, but something about the way she held herself made Volke's heart twinge, ever so slightly.
"Well, secret's out. The Shadow is really a woman, as you can clearly see. Her real name is Alanna. Alanna, I'm sure you've heard of the Fireman." Bastian nodded in Volke's direction. Alanna turned to her former opponent and the two gave each other a small nod of recognition. "Good. Now that that's settled, I will briefly describe your assignment. You are to travel to the Senators' homesteads in Begnion and steal the blood pact from them. Do not destroy them, but bring them to me. I'd like to observe them before disposing of them. Once those are in my hands, I will have you focus on the assassination of the rulers of the laguz tribes." Volke and Alanna nodded at him; neither was one for words. "Alanna, I'll be paying you the same as I'll be paying Volke. 250 now, 250 later." Alanna nodded again as Bastian handed each of his two hired hands a sack of gold coins.
Alanna and Volke turned their back to Bastian as the stealthily retreated into the forest again. It was going to be a long walk to Begnion…
