Cassiopeia hissed as she opened up the iron reinforced oaken doors.
Her father's-or rather at this point in time, her sister's- office was quite prominent. With it located on one of the highest echelons of High Command and adorned with the tall imposing doors, it symbolized both the lasting strength and high status of the Du Couteau name, and within, the inside of the quarters was no different.
Dimly lit from a large fireplace in the corner of the room and from a small tinted window, the room was as menacing as Cass remembered. And of course the hundreds of varying dangerous blades lining the walls made everything much more terrifying.
Ah, she remembered how unaffiliated Noxians used to come to this place. She always wondered how they felt when they saw this sight, if she herself as a Du Couteau found it imposing. How could they possibly stand in here, especially when General Marcus du Couteau himself had sat in that large black chair, glaring down at them with his unflinching and callous emerald orbs. And even worse, how could they attempt to be fearless in his presence when bringing him bad news? Especially when he would stand up and pluck a random blade off the wall to hold against their necks, pressing it against them with controlled fury as he requested each and every detail of the failed mission?
Ooh, she got chills just thinking of such memories, and had to smirk at the thoughts.
But alas, with her father no longer present in his office, and his bloodthirsty, blade frenzied daughter in his place, Cass would not get to be privy to such an exchange again. Although, she supposed it was for the best for this current setting, as his absence allowed her to be much more...free with her words regarding her situation, as she respected her sister much, much less than she did her father.
"Katarina," she began to speak, addressing her ever smirking sister, "...what the hell do you want?" She muttered in finish, already exercising said freedom in her words. "Why am I here?"
Katarina raised a brow, and grew her smirk, as if finding Cass's words to be humorous. "Oh why hello to you too, dear sister. How nice it is to see you. After all, I haven't seen you all day today, or yesterday for that matter. How are you doing, Cass?" she replied with a sarcastic chuckle, acting as if she actually cared about how her sister was feeling. However, Cass was not amused at her pleasantries. Not at all.
"Don't even start toying with me. I'm not taking too kindly to being interrupted from my relaxing morning to come here and discuss Shurima of all places, and I swear...if you don't get to the point of why I'm here-fast-I can and will poison you in your sleep," she hissed, baring fangs.
"Alright, alright. Jeez, and people say I'm the aggressive one…" Katarina gave a roll of her eyes, and another chuckle, much to her sister's annoyance. However, she heeded Cass's words and let her humor drop, relaxing her serpentine sister mildly.
"Anyways, like I said in my letter, some significant shit is brewing in Shurima, and High Command wants to get a taste at it. So they came to us, asking for you in specific."
Cass scowled. "And why do they need me to go? After all, why not you or anyone else? Hell, why aren't they even sending a large scale offensive like they did in the Freljord or Ionia?"
"Because things are different than they were in the Freljord or Ionia. High Command wants a small covert op for this, with only two to three members in it, and one of those members being you. And as for why you specifically, they told me that they believe your experience there and way with words can allow us access to information," Katarina explained.
Cass scowled at her sister's words. It was bullshit, but she couldn't really argue. After all, to disobey an order from High Command meant not only treason, but it would force her into exile to avoid a death sentence, and that was an existence she'd rather not explore, despite her animosity towards Shurima.
"Fine. With whom would I be going with to that hellhole? You?" she reluctantly asked. However, her sister merely shook her head at her.
"Nah. High Command needs me for other things since I'm the 'regent head of our household'. But I figure Talon can suffice for my absence."
"Talon? And what will he do to help me? Kill targets unessecarily? Terrorize little children with his gritty appearance?" Cass muttered with a roll of her eyes.
"No...he has...other skills than just knowing how to hold a blade right and look menacing," Katarina attempted to argue. But her words were flat to both of them, and she knew it.
"Sure he does. And I still have my legs and not this frustrating tail," Cass deadpanned with a shake of said tail to accompany her sarcasm, only causing her sister to frown.
"...Alright, maybe he is only useful as a blade hand. But hey, that counts for something, right?"
Cass rolled her eyes and was about to respond before a new voice interrupted.
"...you two do realize," the voice started, before its owner stepped out of a shrouded corner of the room with an unamused expression, "that I'm right here, right?"
Cass looked over to the now revealed Talon, and merely smirked at his disgruntled appearance. "Well, if you don't want to hear us talk bad about you behind your back, don't lurk in the shadows, dear. After all, you can't not expect your feelings to get hurt if you are within earshot of a conversation focused on you and your...inabilities."
"Whatever," Talon muttered with annoyance evident in his voice, turning to Katarina. "So I'm going to Shurima with her?"
"Correct. You two will be gathering information on the newly arisen emperor there and his agendas. And while you are at it, find out what the hell is causing that large ass storm near his palace. High Command wants to know if we can cause one ourselves over a certain honor-horny nation, so anything you can get on that is good too. And once you complete both objectives, report back to me through this transmitter and we will discuss how to proceed afterwards." Katarina finishes by handing Talon a small runed device, and Cass a folder.
"Oh? And what is this folder?" Cass questioned as she turned the folder in her hands and examined within it.
"That's your mission debriefing. Everything that you need to know and that Noxus has gathered on Shurima is in there. Consult it if you need to see what to do and whatnot."
Cass took a moment to concentrate on the folder. It held several reports documents within it, including xer'sai sights, rumors of the half-bird, half-man emperor controlling the sand of the desert itself, trade supply lines, and much more. It would indeed prove highly useful on her journey.
"Excellent...is there any else of value that you can provide?" Cass murmured, as she continued to examine the folder.
"Just some small advice: don't let your guard down, because the last time you did, you came home missing legs," Katarina gave.
Cass frowned and paused in memory. After all, her sister was right. She had let herself be too relaxed her first expedition, and walked right into that trap. It had been a harsh lesson too; one that was learnt through the pain of slithering through that burning sand until she found a Noxian envoy at the nearest camp.
But it was not a mistake she was looking to make a second time.
"Oh don't worry, dear sister. I plan to not let a single thing go astray this time. No, not...a…single...thing…"
Author's Notes
Ah, I really needed to get this out much sooner, but hopefully, I'll get back to a more consistent schedule shortly.