"I never compromise."

Quick Prey

Prologue

Don't worry we won't fail you or Demacia.

In the king's name,

Quinn and Valor

Quinn waited for her blue ink to dry before she rolled up the parchment. Valor glared at her while she attached the carrier to his body armor; he knew that she was about to send him do deliver the letter she had been writing for the last half hour to Prince Jarvan. Quinn patted her friend and lifted him to the windowsill. She watched as her partner flew off back to a Demacian camp just outside the border of Noxus with the letter— assuring Prince Jarvan that they are close to bringing this Noxian assassin to justice. Although Quinn knew that she had no new leads on Talon—she almost felt like she was lying to all of Demacia. The scout shut the window and collapsed onto the small wooden chair behind her with a long groan.

"Come on Quinn," Quinn sighed as she forced herself off the chair, "I need to keep my word to the Prince and go find Talon."

Chapter 4

That was a really, really bizarre dream I had last night. Quinn thought while she pulled her hood over her face as she left the inn she spent the last night in. She had no idea where to check for any sign of Talon, but she decided that the Leaky Barrel was somewhere she could check off her list. The night prior she had a close call of her identity being uncovered by a couple of thugs, but she made it out of the bar after a brawl erupted.

I dreamt I was caught in a giant spider web in pure darkness. My armor, my weapons, and Valor were nowhere to be found… it was just me and the chilling blackness. There was no explanation for it, but all I heard in the dark was a woman laughing—and I swear I heard Talon's voice beneath the laughter, whispering something. No matter, it was just a dream; I better keep my head in the game.

Quinn kept her eyes to the dirt filled cracks between cobblestone paths as she thought where to check first. The scout only looked up once to look at the sky, clouds were beginning to form like it was going to rain soon. Quinn smiled as she looked back down at the black stones; she always liked the rain. The way the rain made pinewood trees smell and the light mist always reminded her of hometown outside Demacia. Quinn froze when she saw a dark cloak swaying before her eyes. The Demacian's skin began to crawl underneath her hood as the figure walked casually a few feet in front of her. Quinn began to pace a bit faster until she was just steps behind the cloaked man. She could hear him humming merrily as he strolled.

When she was inches behind him, the man stopped humming and turned into a narrow alley. Quinn made a sharp turn and noticed that the target was sprinting down the alley, knocking over trash cans to block his pursuer's path. The Demacian hurried after him, ignoring the rotten stench coming from the garbage and scattering rats in the tight area of the alley. Quinn felt almost proud as the target's way was blocked by a giant wall covered in graffiti and wanted posters—a dead end. She pulled a dagger from her belt and pressed it to the man's neck, his back still to the scout.

"Turn around Talon," Quinn smirked as she caught her breath, "Give yourself up in the name of Demacia! I've finally caught you…" Quinn's heart sank when the man turned his scarred face to her—it wasn't Talon. Noticing her distraction, the man swiped the dagger from Quinn's hand and shoved her to the ground. A rat scurried over Quinn's shoulder as she tried to get up, making her scream. Her hands slipped in the muddy alley preventing her from regaining her footing.

"No use screaming, sweet cheeks. No one is going to hear you from here." The man said as he kicked Quinn back on her behind. He knelt down on top of her, "You know there is a pretty large bounty for that Demacian that has been running around Noxus, although I'd never thought you'd be such a pretty girl. But we're going to have a little fun before we turn you into the High Command, what do you say?" The man chuckled as he grasped Quinn's face between his dirty fingers.

Quinn tried to kick the large man off of her as he shredded her cloak with the short dagger, but he was too heavy. The scout tried to get the blade away from her, but she ended up cutting her hand. In your dreams, creep! Quinn growled as she bit deep into the man's hand, ignoring the dirt and blood on her tongue as she took the advantage of his screaming and got back to her feet. The scout ignored the slippery mud and trash as she sprinted for the streets.

When she thought she was finally free, another man with a gun blocked her path to the streets, pointing his gun straight at her. Quinn's boots slid in the alleyway as the man advanced toward her, she turned and saw the other coming at her from behind not looking happy as he grasped his bloody hand. That's what he meant by 'we'! Oh, I'm in some deep trouble now!

"You're going to pay for that honey," the man sneered from a few feet away, "I was going to go easy on you, but I guess we're going to have to be forceful if you're going to be like that." Both men leaped for the scout, but Quinn jumped on some crates. She glanced up and saw a torn flag hanging just above her—if I can get ahold of that flag, I can climb out of here. Quinn hopped a few times to reach the flag but it was just too high. The men below only laughed at her as she kept on jumping without a purpose.

"I love it when girls try to run." The man with the handgun snickered, "It makes me want them more." He crawled on the crates, licking his lips as he grasped Quinn's ankle. Her whole body trembled as she thought of what the thugs had in mind for her, but she shook her head. Get it together, Quinn! What would Prince Jarvan do in this situation? The scout quickly kicked the man in the face as he began to crawl up her leg. That's right; he would fight back! A Demacian never gives up!

Quinn felt the adrenaline coursing though her veins, but her heart stopped as she noticed that her kick didn't even faze the man—it only made his drunken expression more disgusting. Quinn's eyes widened as both men were on top of the crates now, making the rotted wood shatter under their combined weigh. Quinn covered her face as she waited for the worst.

After a few seconds of silence, Quinn peeked between her fingers. Quinn gasped as she saw the two men face first in garbage, dead. She swatted away dust that came from the old crates as she stood. The scout flipped over one of the men with her foot; he was surely dead with his throat slit ear to ear. Blood didn't even begin to pour until Quinn lifted the man's chin. Amazing! Only someone who was skilled with a blade could have executed such clean slashes like these… Wait…

"Now don't think I'm going to go quietly," rumbled a deep voice behind her. The scout heard that same voice that made her hair stand on end. Quinn's skin began to crawl as she realized who it was; it was the same voice from her dream. Her heart stopped as she turned and saw him there, examining the blood on his blade. Talon looked back at her with his dark eyes, "And don't give me any of that 'in the name of Demacia' crap. I just saved your life, you know."

Talon chuckled as he flicked the blood off his blade and it splattered onto one of the dead men's face. Quinn's stomached churned enough to almost make her vomit as Talon took a step towards her, his boot stepping around garbage and bodies so carefully—he never took his eyes off her. Just the low clink of his blades was enough to send a cold chill up her spine. Quinn didn't even realize that she wasn't breathing until she felt a pain in her chest. With Talon just a foot away from her, the Demacian accepted her fate and she closed her eyes. I'm sorry Valor… please take care of yourself—

"Come on," Talon whispered, interrupting the scout's thoughts. Wait, what? "Like that wannabe thug said, there is a bounty for you and—"

"You want the money, don't you." Quinn answered lowly as she hung her head. The scout almost screamed when Talon shoved her enough to make her jump backwards.

"Please you aren't even worth the money that's offered for your capture." Talon scoffed as he grabbed her by her collar. Quinn tried to pry his hands off her but she was thrown onto the wall behind her, she squeezed her eyes shut trying to ignore the pain. "I can kill you right here and now; your Demacian life is of no value to me." As soon as the scout opened her eyes the assassin had his blade at her neck. Her feet were off the ground just like when she first encountered him.

But his eyes—those same somber eyes that haunted yet mesmerized her—were just inches from her own. Even under the shadow of his hood, she could still make out their dark brown color; they were almost black. He looked fairly young but he was no younger than her; she couldn't see any wrinkles on his angled features. Quinn didn't realize she was staring until Talon furrowed his brow.

"But," Quinn felt Talon's grip loosen as he spoke although his tone was still harsh, "If you promise to stop following me around, I'll lead you out of Noxus." Talon lowered Quinn enough for her to get on the balls of her feet, but he still had his blade at her throat.

Quinn was astonished. I never thought that Talon would even be capable of giving mercy, if this is even some kind of mercy? Unless, he plans to kill me when I'm outside of the city… or he turns me in… Quinn thought as she pressed herself on the wall as Talon inched closer as he waited for some kind of response from her. The scout turned her face from the assassin as she heard him growl in annoyance.

"It doesn't matter to me what you choose; it's a lose-lose situation for you either way." Talon had his grip tighten on Quinn's collar as he spat. "Either I kill you here and now or you leave Noxus with your life and return to Demacia as a failure. The choice is yours." Quinn bit her lip as she thought of Talon's negotiation; either way she fails Demacia even if she lives or dies.

The Demacian hung her head as she sighed.

"Don't kill me here…" Quinn's voice broke as she looked at her mud covered boots, "Could you take me out of the city so I don't rot in this alley. I'm a failure if I live or die." Quinn heard Talon snarl as he dropped her. The scout hissed in pain as she landed on turned over trash cans, scaring more rats out of the waste.

"That was not an offer of mine, Demacian." Talon snarled, "Either you die here or you live and leave Noxus. It's too much work for me to lead you out of here and then kill you when I can just take your life here. Hell, if I wanted you to die I would just turn you in." Talon said as he rubbed his thumb over the edge of his arm blade. Quinn watched him vigilantly as she slowly got herself out of the garbage. She almost fell back on her rear when Talon looked her way. "So what is your choice?"

"Fine," Quinn sighed as she took off her helmet and ran her fingers through her hair, "Take me out of Noxus." The scout looked at Talon who had a somewhat disappointed look on his demeanor. What the hell is with that look… what does he want?

Quinn heard a small patter coming from the streets; it was raining. Rain was falling though some of the openings in the roof above the alley and it fell on Quinn's cheek. The scout heard Talon groan. Turning to him, she saw that he had stepped back from where the rain was creeping in with a scowl on his face. He looked at the ground in disgust as a puddle started to form. Glancing up at Quinn, he straightened his posture.

"Alright," Talon growled as he roughly grabbed Quinn's forearm, "We will leave when it stops raining. Come on, stop dragging your feet." Quinn had to trot to keep up with Talon's long stride. Talon stopped at the sidewalk as he looked out into the street. The rain was starting to make everything smell awful. Quinn covered her nose as Talon yanked her back into the alley, jumping over growing wet patches on the ground. "Why does it have to rain now?" she heard Talon mutter.

Talon kicked some trash cans and crates off of a hidden door in the ground. Quinn brought both of her hands to her face when Talon let go of her arm to lift the heavy door, making a horrendous smell creep from the dark hole—Quinn almost fainted. Talon chuckled at the repulsed scout and he breathed in the stench deeply.

"The rain is just going to get heavier," Talon said as he put one foot into the doorway and then looked over Quinn's Demacian wardrobe and torn cloak, "And I think it would be smart if we went through one of Noxus' many hidden passages since your disguise is ruined—you'll be spotted quicker than a rat in a rose bush." Talon said as he tore off the remaining rags on her shoulders and lent his hand out to Quinn. Quinn reluctantly grasped his fingertips as he led her into the dark passage…

Headcannons: Talon is used to the gross smells in Noxus—Quinn is not. Demacia and Noxus always have some type of surveillance on each other at all times.

Notes: Sorry I took so long updating; I've been stuck in solo q. Also, I suppose a longer chapter would mean longer the wait. Sorry guys.

Update: Another thank you to Jacob for helping me with dem errors.