Darkness encompassed a lavish manor, lit by moonlight and lamps that cast eerie shadows upon the moss covered walls. The man- no, the killer drew in his breath. He tugged on the steel wire connected to his harness. Steady. Good. He tightened his sweaty grip on two pistols. Orchestral Music could be faintly heard through the walls. Men and women in fancy dresses and suits wandered and danced about the ballroom floor. Large, bulky men surrounded the exits. No doubt hired guns.
The killer peered through the skylight at the crowd below him. He could only see one of his targets. A Russian crime lord. The others, his two personal guards, was nowhere to be seen. The killer produced a glass cutter and made a small hole in the skylight. He released several smoke bombs into the crowded ballroom. As he heard the chaos unravel, he backed up and ran at the skylight. He smashed through the glass, the wire keeping him from going at high velocity. He landed and unhooked his harness. He drew in a breath and ran into the cloud of smoke that now spread throughout the residence.
He squinted his eyes and aimed his guns right at the spot he'd predicted his target would be. He fired. He heard blood splatter and a scream. Male. One of pain. The scream had come from the victim. But, he wasn't dead. Jace ran through the smoke and found the man he'd shot. Not the one. Only a guard.
The killer exited the ballroom and went looking for his target. He encountered and shot two guards in front of his target's study. He kicked the door open. Inside, the corpse of the personal guard laid on the ground. The window was wide open. A shadowy figure held a blade to his target's neck. Jace aimed a gun at the figure.
"Let him go. Unless you want a hole in your head."
The figure spoke, "Oh? But I thought you wanted him dead." It was a female.
"He's my kill."
"You're so petty, Jace Beleren."
"How do you know my name?"
"All in good time, boy." The figure's knife slid across the neck of Jace's target. Blood spilled from it as he was dropped. Jace opened fire as the figure leapt out the window. He fired onto the pavement, but failed to hit anything but stone. She was gone.
"What do you make of it, Gideon?" Jace asked. He sipped coffee out of a mug. Morning sunlight shone through the windows of a cafe. The bulky greek man that sat across from him made an expression of deep concentration.
"I don't know. The only thing I can think of is...no. That'd never happen."
"What?" Jace looked at Gideon.
"Well, there's this organization that goes about pretty unnoticed and steals kills from professional assassins. We don't know their motive, but they seem like they want to put people like us out of business."
"I'm gonna find this bitch and gut her. No one takes kills from me."
"Okay...on another subject, have you heard about the new agent?"
"What new agent?"
"Josu's little sister is transferring to the Execution corps. Heard she's just as good as you."
Jace snorted, "Sure. No one's matched my body count in years. I'm still offering five million to anyone who kills more people than me each month."
"Maybe you'll finally get a partner. If she's as good as they say, you two will get along fine."
"I don't need a partner, Gideon. She'll just slow me down. Speaking of which, we're late." Jace hopped out of his seat and began his way outside.
"Wait are you blaming me for this?" Gideon followed.
"What if I am?"
"You were the one who wanted to stop by!"
"And now we're late."
Jace collapsed in his cubicle. Of course, it wasn't for long. A note to him asked he report to the director's office immediately.
"God damnit all." he mumbled.
Jace trudged up the stainless steel staircase that led to Director Ugin's 'office.' He could live there if he wanted to. It's basically a hotel suite. Jace grabbed the doorknob and entered the room.
Ugin's imposing presence still emanated around the office even with his tendency to where baby blue suits. No one knows where he gets them or how many he has. Standing next to him, is a girl with deep...purple eyes? Jace had never seen this person before. Long black hair fell down one of her shoulders, slightly curled at the ends. She wore a black and violet pantsuit, black tights and heels.
"Ah, Mr. Beleren. So glad you could come by."
"Y-you wanted to see me, sir?"
"Yes. It has come to my attention that your last target was indeed eliminated," Ugin stared down at his desk.
"Well, what can I say sir? I-"
"But the killer wasn't you."
"W-what?"
"Don't think I don't know the capabilities and habits of all my agents. You only use a knife if need be. And even if you did run out of bullets, you'd never be able to so quickly and cleanly slit someone's throat." Ugin said, sternly.
"I have a perfectly good explanatio-"
"I don't want to hear your excuses. Agent Beleren, you are one of my finest assassins, so I'll give you an offer. Either I put you suspension and send you to Tibet for eighteen months,"
"What's the other option?"
"You can swallow your damned pride and get a partner."
"A partner?"
"Yes. And I just so happen to have a transfer needing one. She insists on not doing so, like yourself, but both you and her need each other's help."
"Who is she?"
"This," Ugin gestured to the girl beside him, "Is Liliana Vess. She transferred here from the Execution corps in France. And I want the next target on your list dead in Forty-eight hours or it's your ass."
"Understood." I muttered. I walked out of the director's office. Liliana followed me.
I sat down my the swivel chair. Liliana sat in the chair across from my quaint little desk. I accessed my computer and brought up my hit list.
"Hey, boss." I looked up at my new partner, "Our next guy. Vicente Barboza. Heir to one of the three families that run the biggest drug cartel in South America. Big price on his head. Tell what you know?"
"How do you know what's on my list?"
She half giggled, half laughed, "Oh please. I know you keep all the details on your targets for the next three years."
"Oh yeah?"
She stood up and walked around to my side of the desk, "Oh yeah." she traced her finger along the lines of Jace's suit, "Tell you what. You give me my info and you get more of this."
"More of what?"
She pressed her lips against his. Jace tried to jerk back, but Liliana held him in place. After a good five seconds, she pulled away, "That and more, baby." she turned and strutted out of the building. Jace was so shocked, he could only stare until she was gone.
When he regained control, he exited his cubicle and entered the one next to him, "Josu, what the hell is your sister?"
"Huh?" the brown haired man stared up at Jace.
"Your sister. What in hell is she."
"Um...human? Look man, I don't understand your question." Josu shrugged.
"I need details. Strengths, weaknesses. History."
"Wait, are you gonna kill my sister?"
"No. She's my partner. And she just offered me sex in exchange for information on our next target. I would estimate she gets to know 78.6% of her targets and associates alike through sexual pleasures and primal urges. She aims for the core of one's instinctual past. You know how I get to know people."
"Yeah. You look up all the secrets in the world on them and draw your own conclusions from that, which are usually correct."
"Well?"
"Fine. I'm only doing this because I know you won't stop picking my brain until I crack. Where do I begin?"
"The beginning."
"Well, as you know, childhood was kind of a shit hole for us. Liliana tried to kill herself four times before she, um...before she was taken. She was kidnapped by a human trafficker when she was fifteen. She was sold into slavery in Europe and didn't come back for three years. She was beaten, defiled and demoralized. She requested that one of her buyer's hired guns shoot her. She only got a week of starvation for that. I asked how she escaped. She said she lied her way out. She began to pretend to have stockholm syndrome after about a half a year. Convince that piece of shit with a fair bit of cash she was into him. She asked to cook dinner for her buyer one night and stabbed him through the throat. She killed everyone of his guards too. With nothing but a steak knife. After that, she went underground in Paris for a year before contacting me again. She joined the Execution corps and has worked there since.
"She also happens to use seduction as her number one way of assassination. She speaks 23 different languages and has mastered 9 different martial arts as well as 15 different weapons that don't include guns."
"What about her personality?"
"Okay, now I'm starting to get the feeling you're stalking her."
"Everyone does when I pry them for info."
"Well, she has a near insatiable blood lust. She's pretty paranoid of those she doesn't trust and is pretty selfish. She also really likes freaking people out or turning them on. I'd be careful if you piss her off."
"Thanks, Josu. I'll have a full profile on likes, dislikes and attributes by tomorrow."
"You really scare me, sometimes." Josu said.
"Good. You always taught me fear is more priceless than any other emotion the human mind is capable of."
"Well, Liliana, I have yet to see how well you handle yourself in a fight," Jace said, the next day. Both of them and Gideon wore workout gear. Standard issue for combat training. White tank tops, grey shorts and a pair of cushioned gloves, "Many say you're the best. I'm not saying I don't believe you, but Gideon here is the best hand-to-hand combatant we've got and I'd like to gauge your skill for myself."
"Sounds fun," Liliana smirked, "Should I beat him to death or leave him on the brink of it."
"Don't think it'll be that easy." Gideon chuckled.
"Brink of death. We still need him to train rookies."
"Aww. That's dull."
"Dull isn't bad."
"Sure, old man."
"Hey, I'm only 22!"
"Well you need to work on...that," Liliana gestured to Jace's general face area, "Don't worry. It can be fixed."
"Just fight already."
Liliana wasted no time and had four scars from sharpened fingernails on Gideon's face in half a second. Gideon stumbled back. She turned about twice, kicking, then tripping him. Gideon grabbed her leg and easily tossed her across the foam mats they fought on. Liliana tore a staff off a weapon rack and ran, readying a strike.
Gideon blocked the attack with his bare arms, "I thought this was supposed to be hand-to-hand."
"Always use what's available to you. That I learn without a teacher." Liliana went for an overhead attack. Gideon caught the staff. Liliana yanked on it, but once she knew it was hopeless, she hopped onto it and jumped again, flipping over the muscle-bound man. She landed a blow with her elbow in his side. Jace stared in awe as Gideon fell, doubled over. She picked up the staff and aimed the end at Gideon's windpipe.
"Hm. Well done. It appears that you are indeed as good as they say."
"All legends come from some truth, Jace. Sometimes it's better to take people's word for it." Liliana dropped the staff and walked over to him, "So how about that job."
"You'll get your information."
"When?"
"We have less than twenty-four hours. How about now."