The day was almost finishing, and the sun was setting. The sky was bright with just a few clouds around, being painted in tones of orange and red, with some pink colored glow on the few clouds around.

The citizens of the dragon city were still walking to and for, though most of them had already went back home. Still, there were a few dragons around, all of them walking around, and going to several places and taking care of their own business and minding their own lives. Some of them walked form one place to another, others in direction to their homes, and some were spending time in some places, like the bar called "Drunken Wyrm".

This bar was well known for offering the strongest alcoholic drinks around, and some of them were either faked or illegal, or even both. There were some of them were so strong that a single sip was enough to make someone starting to stumble as tried to walk and to say things that would normally not dare to say.

This bar was known for being some nice place for meeting, and it was known for being visited by some "dubious customers", which came there for several reasons. They said the place was some important point for some illegal things, but there was not an actual proof of it, otherwise, the Dragon Guard would already have shut down the place. Yet, even without proofs, the meetings that happened in there were well known for whoever had a good connection or knowledge of the underworld of the city.

The place was a good place for almost anyone, though; most of the customers were just some dragons who were after a good drink, and wished a few moments to get distracted from their daily troubles, or a place where they knew they could relax without worrying about getting into troubles.

At the present moment, the bar was half empty, and there were some dragons in there. There are three dragons in there, involved into a drinking game, all of them laughing hard. There was another group of dragons into another table, and they seemed to be very secretive as they cornered in there, as to avoid been seen by anyone. There was some sound of sniffing as someone with good eyes could see that they were spreading some lines of some strange powder over the table before dipping their heads in it and sniffing deeply, and soon before, they gave sighs, and some of them moaned softly.

These dragons were clearly some drug users, and they were avoided by the rest of the people, since they knew that they could be very violent and that they usually didn't cared about laws or about the consequences of their actions. But, these dragons were not the focus of our attention.

The focus was on the balcony, nearing it, as they both sipped into their respective drinks.

They were both dragons, and both of them were wearing some very long and thick cloaks covering their bodies, from head to tail and long enough to hide till their paws. One of them was wearing a forest-green colored cloak, and two long wings with indigo blue membrane came out of its back, and a tail coming out of under the cloak with one tailblade which looked didn't needed to much imagination to be seen like a scorpion's stinger. A strong and midnight blue muzzle came out of his hood, which covered his head, horns and the shadows obscured his face.

By his side, was another dragoness, this one with a more vivid choice of colors, as her cloak was red-violet in color, and it covered the whole body, which was a bit smaller than the other dragon. The wings, unlike the friend, were hidden beneath the cloak, and the tail which came out of the back of it was long, and it had no tail blade. A slender muzzle came out of the cloak, and it was crimson colored.

These two dragons drank from their cups, which were made out of wood, and thus, hidden the content from view from the outside. The dragon of the forest-green coat, which was large, and clearly bigger than his companion, took large gulps of whatever was inside of his cup, while the smaller one, by his side, was taking small sips of her own cup. They both looked like they were only casual, and they didn't seemed to be there to do anything other than drinking.

And that was exactly what they wanted everyone to think.

The two dragons took drinks, and the bigger one slammed his cup twice in the balcony, as he said "Another round, Leeran! And don't spare drink this time!"

Soon came the bartender, who was also the owner of the bar. He was a middle-aged dragon, named Leeran. He was orange colored with two long horns, well, one of them was long, as the other had been broken years ago and now was only the stub in place. He had long wings with red membrane and spikes running his back, and a tailblade shaped like an arrow. His eyes were deep green.

He walked up, and he asked "Do you want a bigger cup also?" he said, sounding angry for being talked like that. The hooded dragon only answered "Only if you fill it to the brim with your better bourbon!"

Leeran snorted, and he picked up the plate, walking away. A few moments, later, he came back, and he place a bigger cup than the last over the table, and walked away, saying "I hope you choke on it!"

The hooded dragon looked at Leeran as he walked off. Anyone who had seen it would think they didn't liked each other one bit. It was better that way, so Leeran would stay out of problems. The hooded dragon looked at his cup, and he could see a small piece of paper peeking out of the cup.

Thank you again, Leeran. The dragon thought as he gently pushed the paper from under the cup, where the bartender, who was also their intermediator, had placed it.

Leeran was a good old friend, and he often acted as a mediator between them and their clients. Of course, in their line of work, you had to be subtle into these kinds of things, and Leeran was. Anyhow, they had to put up this show, in order to avoid suspicions and to keep Leeran and his family safe.

The hooded dragon took out the paper, and he unfolded it over his claw, making sure that no one was saying. The paper was an old piece of scroll, and in it, there was one thing written.

Dorian Starwing, male, 48 years old

Natural death

And along, there was the address and a brief description of the said dragon. The hooded dragon read it quickly, and he passed the paper subtly to the dragoness, whom was on his side. She also read it in less than five seconds, and then, she placed the scroll on her mouth and swallowed it.

They both resumed drinking, and after a while, they both had already finished, and they already got up to leave. As they did, one of the other dragons who was in place, one bulky brown colored dragon, who was drunk, stumbled over them, and he fixated his eyes into the hooded dragoness.

"My, my! By the gods!" he said, as he stumbled in her direction "What have we here? What a cutie like you are you doing hiding your beautiful body?"

The dragoness stopped on her tracks, and she slowly turned her head to the drunk dragon "Sorry, are you speaking to me?" she asked in a sweet tone. Sweet as venom.

"You are the only cute thing in here." Said the drunken dragon, nearing her, and with a drunk smile in his face.

"I'm here with my husband." She said, and the hooded dragon looked at the guy. The brown dragon looked at the hooded dragon, and he scowled "Oh, never mind him." He said "Come with me, I can make you forget about him in a few seconds." He said, and he reached out to try touch her with his paw.

However, as soon as he tried, he let out a pained cry as the dragoness had grabbed his paw and twisted it painfully. She made a quick turn, and she spun him around, throwing him away, and making him land into a table, crushing it under himself and startling the ones who were into it.

There was a small commotion as everyone turned their heads to look. The brown dragon stumbled over the crushed table under him as he tried to get up. "You bitch!" he said, trying to get up "I'm going to-" he started, but he trailed on his voice, as he looked over, and he saw the hooded dragoness over him. Her hood was still covering her face into shadows, but he could see two red, glowing orbs, which were her eyes.

In the moment he catch sigh of these orbs, he felt like his guts had turned into ice. He felt a cold and unnerving fear spreading into his insides, and freezing the blood on his veins and even the inside of his bones. He could only stared helplessly into these red orbs, unable to move, unable even to blink. He was petrified from pure fear.

"Listen here, you piece of trash." She said, each of her words sounding like a threat to his very soul "If you ever talk to me like that again, or try to touch me, or even look at me the wrong way again, I'm going to made you regret the day that you left your egg. Got it?"

The brown dragon stared at her, his eyes widened in fear, unable to say or do anything. The only sound that came as an answer was a hissing sound like water. The dragon had just lost control of his bladder.

The hooded dragoness eyed him "I'll take that as a yes." She said, and simply turned and walked away, leaving the poor dragon still paralyzed from terror. The dragon with the hood, her husband, was still waiting for her. They both nuzzled, and so, they started making their way to out of the bar, no one else daring to do anything to them.

Once they were out, the hooded dragon said, "That was unnecessary." As he looked at her, and she chuckled "Like you didn't wanted to do anything to him when he started hitting on me." She said smiling "I think you should defend me a little more."

"I didn't knew you needed to be defended." Said the hooded dragon, with a smile, and she chuckled at him "You are far too calm for my taste." She said, and he answered back "In our line of work, being able to keep calm in any situation is a good advantage."

She chuckled at him, and she neared him as both walked, almost nuzzling him as they were very close together. "So, the poor unfortunate dragon is called Dorian Starwing, huh?" she said, and the dragon nodded "Must be from some rich family, the name seems noble." He answered, "I think we will have to prepare for this job."

And so, they both walked forward, leaving the bar behind, and at all the time, being completely sure that they were not being followed by anyone. In their line of work, they had to be very careful, for each moment could appear a new danger as they were both into a rather dangerous and delicate kind of work.

They were going to need a while to get ready to get the job done. They had to get what they needed, to analyze the situation carefully, and to be ready to any kind of problem that could appear in the way. Also, they had to think carefully into which way to do the job just as it had been requested by their sponsors.

Yeah, the life of a killer for rent was not easy.


For the next days, these two dragons stablished a strict routine, based on their new target.

As the dragoness had suspected, the dragon really was from a noble family, and he was rich. He was a green colored dragon with yellow underbelly, long brown colored horns on his head, indigo colored wing-membrane and yellow eyes. His tail had a mace-shaped tailblade, and he was muscled.

For the following days, they followed subtly that dragon, being sure to never call attention and to remain as hidden as it was possible. They followed this dragon, and learned all they could about him.

He never got out of the house before midday, and he went outside straight to places to eat and to drink. He spend his days into restaurants and walking into places to do all kinds of shopping. He bought food, and bought also some jewelry to give to some dragonesses who he got to know.

At night, he usually came back home companied with some dubious dragoness, who went away some hours later, and usually not looking happy. And at some nights, he gave a few parties, in which appeared some dragons who would make a lot of noise, and with the company of some beautiful dragonesses.

Also, sometimes he got out and went to more secluded parts of the city, after a few things that he could buy, but which were not exactly legal. Things like "Dream Dust". One powerful drug that, once inhaled, gave the person what they called a "Living Dream", and which caused extreme happiness and satisfaction. Some said that the drug gave you the illusion of having the biggest and deepest wishes of your heart fulfilled. Well, none of the two dragons could know it, for neither of them had ever tasted it, and they had absolutely no plan to do so.

And also, this dragon would often get into some kind of discussion with people, and he would calm to be "highly important", and that he deserved respect and that the "lower people" should do what he wanted and not get in his way. He often mistreated people who disagreed with him, and he usually threated others as if they were his inferiors, especially if they were clearly poorer than him.

In a few words, that dragon was an absolute spoiled, rich a-hole.

"No wonder someone wants him dead." Said the dragoness, after coming back from her last vigil and reporting all she had to say to her partner. "If I met this guy on the street I would also want him to die." She finished, scowling.

"Well, that is our job, right?" asked the dragon, who now was without his cape and hood. It was now possible to see the two small horns coming out of his head, along with all his plated midnight blue skin, and his red eyes, which looked at the dragoness. "We were hired to get rid of this guy, and that's what we are going to do."

"I know." Said the dragoness, who also was without hood, and now her body was clearly visible. She was slender, and had a very attractive figure. Her whole body is red-violet in color, with a softer violet for her underbelly, and she had white colored claws on each one of her paws. Her eyes were redder than the blue dragon's, and on her back, instead of two wings - as it would be normal for dragons - there were five. It was a birth anomaly, she had come out of her egg with more wings than normal, and they stayed on her back for years, without giving her any kind of problem, aside from the harassing and jokes from some dragons who believed they were funny.

"I just wish we could do this now." She said, her red eyes emitting one softly glow. "You should have seen what he did today! He screamed with a little hatchling until she cried only because she bumped into his leg! And he even acted as if he was right!" she said, the glow in her eyes intensification "That low-life bastard! In that moment I wish I could have just screeched right on his face with my-"

"Hazard…" the blue dragon said at her, his face serene and calm. She looked at him, and then she snorted "Relax, I didn't did it, but I wish I could had." She said, looking around. "That guy just gets on my nerves, everything about him is wrong. I'm surprised that you can stay calm after all we discovered about him, Shock." She said, directing herself to the dragon "Don't you want to kill him?"

"I do." Was his simple answer, as Shock, the dragon, looked at Hazard "But I think that there will be a right time for this, and till them, we need to remain calm, and wait for this right moment, and then, we can kill him."

"When this moment arrive I'm gonna rip out his wings." She said, flexing her claws as she imagined herself doing so, and that arrogant dragon in tears and begging for mercy.

"The death needs to seem natural." Said Shock "That was what the hirer requested, remember?" he said, and she snarled slightly, baring her teeth. The way she did it would make many brave dragons to recoil and search for a hiding spot, but Shock only looked at her, and he smiled, and said "If it makes you feel better, you can watch him die when the job is done. You can let him know that we did it."

Hazard looked at him, and she said "I'd still like to rip out his eyes." She looked at the dragon, but she smiled "But, I guess that this will be good too." And she inched closer, and nuzzled Shock "Thank you for thinking of me, darling."

Shock purred softly "You know that I love you, Hazard." He said, nuzzling her back and he purred as he did it. "After all, that's why you are my mate." He said, and she smirked as they kept nuzzling for a few minutes.


The job of killing people for rent was a job like any other. You had to work hard to make it work and to have to receive your payment. It was hard, and sometimes you've got to make some mess with your hands in order to earn your gain, and there was some risks in this job, and you came back home tired and wanting nothing more than a good rest after the job is completed.

And, like in every job, you was working in name of someone. And each hirer had different requests. For some it was for the death to seem natural or an accident. For some, it was to pass some short of message. There was even some jobs in which another person has to take the blame. But a work was a work, and you had to get it done if you wanted to have your money.

Some people would see another living being as a part of the society, and someone with family and friends and a live of its own. For Shock, and Hazard, however, once they were hired and the payment was good enough, the target became only that: a target, a thing to be eliminated in order for them to get the money.

But, not even this made it easier sometimes. Their first time killing was not an easy one, and each one of them was going to say the same thing. But, after a while, they did got used to it and after a while, it was just a regular thing, and they now didn't lost a single night of sleep because of it.

Sometimes, though, killing was even easier, even when the target was someone as despicable as this Dorian Starwing. Hazard, in particular, took personal pleasure into putting the ones like him in their place, usually by scaring them until they got wet before finishing them. This was maybe her favorite situation in this job, besides being paid.

The only part was to decide how to make the job the way the hirer requested. Like, finding out how to make Dorian's death seems natural. Well, it was possible, though hard, making him die without any sign of violence, usually by using poison. The right poisons could kill quickly without leaving marks or obvious signs, and making it look like the poor unsuspecting victim seem to have died out of a heart attack or some disease.

The only thing was to get near enough for the victim be poisoned and then walk away without calling much attention. And, despite the better judgement, Hazard convinced Shock to use an… less subtle approach in order to do this job. She wanted that guy to know perfectly well who was killing him, and she wasn't going to let anyone one, even her own mate, take this small pleasure from her.

So, with all set already, they put their plan in motion. Firstly, they arrived in the place they knew that Dorian went everyday, into on poor part of the city, one less known part, well know because of the dragonesses with dubious morals, were there and were waiting for someone who would pay for some "illegal pleasures", or something like that.

Hazard remained near an alley, and she waited there. Normally, she would never want to be confused by one of these easy dragonesses, however, jobs remained you to sometimes do things you are really not comfortable with. And being mistaken as one of them was not as bad as it was going to be doing what she needed to do next for the rest of the job.

She waited there, looking at the sky, which was acquiring an orange glow, and slowly darkening as the sun was setting, making the orange change slowly to a purplish tone. Hazard remained in the shadows of the alley, and she waited in there, until she finally saw him.

Dorian Starwing, no doubt, she would recognize the brown dragon anywhere. Even if she didn't, it was easy to recognize him by the way he walked around as if he was a member of the royal family. He passed by the place as if he was seeing his kingdom, and he shot glares to anyone that came too near him as if they were trash. By his side, there was a heavy purse of coins, and he used a heavy cloak to cover himself, but it didn't helped against anyone who knew him personally, as Hazard and Shock felt like they already did, for the time they had spent spying on him.

Hazard looked at him as he walked, and she waited until he passed very near the alley she was in. It was time to work.

"Hey, you." She said as he passed, and the dragon stopped for a moment, and looked at her, being this the first time he noticed her. "Yes, you, with this big purse of yours." She said, approaching him more, and coming out of the shadows which were hiding her. She had chosen for an interesting arrangement for herself. She was wearing a reddish-violet scarf around her neck, which seemed to be made of silk, and which dragged into the ground for being so long. She was also wearing some gold colored jewelry with some red and violet crystals in them. Her wings were hidden into a long coat which covered her back, but don't moved past her hips. She smirked as she came closer to him.

Anyone who did not knew Hazard would easily mistake her with one of the dragonesses of that place, with all her small physical imperfections hidden behind a torrent of insinuations. She even shook her hips seductively, putting up her best smile for that hooded dragon as she walked closer to him.

"So, what do you carry in this purse, big guy?" she asked as she was nearer him, offering a smile "Maybe something that will bring you some company in this lonely night?" she spoke, hating to have to talk nice to a guy like that.

He looked at her, at her face and body, and slowly, a smile creeped over his face. "Well, it depends on what kind of 'company' you can offer me." He said, walking nearer her. Hazard was satisfied for seeing the plan working, but she was not satisfied for having to still be nice to him for the plan to move forward.

"Well, I can offer you a good company for the night." Hazard said, putting all her effort to sound nice and easy "If you give me the right motivation, I can offer you one company very good for this lonely and cold night, and keep you warm." She said, approaching him.

Dorian smiled at her, and he inched closer "Well, I have something that would be worth this company." He said "I was looking for a blue dragoness, and you are a bit old to me." He said, seeming not care if he was hurt her feelings, and Hazard had to hols herself back not to kill him right on the spot. "But, you are not to be thrown away, neither." He said, again, approaching "I guess we can both make this work out." He said, liking his lips suggestively, and Hazard could feel his breath on her neck.

She had to hold herself from throwing up all over him. She would love to do this and watch him walk away, but, if she did, the job could not be done right. And she and her mate had a reputation about doing their job efficiently.

So, she forced herself to keep the smile and the pose, and she said "I can assure you, I can make a very good company." Her tone was as sweet as poison, the kind that could make you drop dead in terrible agony in just a few seconds.

Dorian smiled at her, and he said "Why don't we go to my home?" his tone was inviting, and yet, suggestive "We can get a lot more comfortable in there."

"Seems very good." She said in answer, and soon, she was walking along with him. He made sure that they were taking a path in which no one would see them together. A dragon of his lineage could not risk being seems with one of these dragonesses. This was exactly what Hazard wanted, for no one could see them together, even because, she didn't wanted to be mistaken by someone who would get along with him, not in a million years.

Above them, into the roofs of the area of the city, another dragon was looking down at them, from above. Shock looked down as he saw Hazard walking along with Dorian, keeping close to him, but not very much, and taking a less crowded path to his home. Yeah, everything was going according to plan.

So, as he looked down, Shock spread his wings, and flapped them very silently, slowly getting altitude and starting to hoover silently like a shadow in the night, not for a single moment losing track of the two dragons who were beneath him.


They had to walk the whole way, and the place was really far. All the time, Dorian made question of both of them remaining hidden, where no one would be able to sight them. He could not let anyone see him with her, and Hazard knew it fairly well, even living alone, he could not risk having someone he knew knowing that he wanted this kind of "company", for he had an image to keep.

He guided her to the back of his house and was very blunt when he told her to use the backwards entrance, and the lock the door once she was in. He went to the other side, to go into the front door, while he left her behind. Once he was out of sight, Hazard could finally drop her smile, and the expression on her face would have made anyone turn around and run for their dear lives.

That guy was exactly everything she hated the most. He was arrogant, he was spoiled, and he thought he could have anything he wanted just because he had money and influence. She really wished that the time of taking the smile off his face would come soon. Looking up, she was able to saw one figure with her well trained eyes.

Shock was hoovering all the time, she knew that neither him nor her were likely to make mistakes in their line of job. This came from years of doing it, and offer intense training.

So, Hazard unlocked the door, and she walked inside. She walked into an service area, from where usually the servants come, and she closed the door behind her. She did, however, let the door slightly open, and she did not locked it. As so, she walked inside, stopping for a moment to recompose herself, and force the smile and the attitude back on herself.

So, with that same smile, and the easy attitude, she walked into the house.

She passed by a very luxurious kitchen, with the floor made out of marble, and it sparkled as she passed. She barely even minded it, and walked into the living room, where Dorian had just came in. She smiled at him, and she said "You house is beautiful."

"What are you doing!?" he said in urgency, and he rushed at her. That previous attitude disappearing completely as he looked at the windows, as if someone could be spying through them in that same moment. "I told you to wait there!" he said very harshly.

Hazard could have gave him a glare that would make him never talk like that to her again, but she remained composed, and she said "Oh, I just felt lonely, and I want to see you."

"This way you will get out of here without being paid." He said harshly at her, and he practically dragged her out of the living room and into the second floor, into the place that was his room.

Hazard could have easily ripped out his leg for being so forceful to her, or even daring to touch her without her consent. But she knew that a dragon with a ripped leg would go against what the client had requested. So, she had to comply like an obedient dragoness, and let him drag her to his bedroom.

The place was well furniture, and was very big, and the bed, was wide and very luxurious. It was the kind of place that many dragonesses would dream to have their first time, for being big, beautiful, and very elegant.

Dorian, whoever, cut out the illusion very quickly, when he said "Okay now" and he practically threw Hazard forward, almost making her stumble to the ground, and he said "From now on you will refer to me as 'sir' or 'highness', got it?" he asked sternly. Anyone would thing that the charming dragon which brought them there from that place had been replaced with a general from an army.

"Don't you even want to know my name?" Hazard asked, and he practically shouted at her, "You will only speak when you have permission!"

Hazard whished now only to hit his face until he was spitting all his teeth. Did that guy did it with every dragoness he ever brought there? No wonder they all left the place being angry. He was an even greater jerk than he had seemed at first sight.

"And you will not dare to look at me that way!" he said when he saw the glare that Hazard was giving him. Many would have been intimidated by the way he was talking, and the way he was towering over her. But Hazard was not like other dragonesses. She stood her ground, and looked defiantly at him "Or what?"

Dorian looked at her stunned, as if no one had ever talked to him like that, and Hazard thought it was very possible, due to him being such a spoiled brat who was used to have all that he wanted. But the surprise was soon replaced with anger, as he snarled at her, baring his teeth, and he raised his paw, ready to smack her in the face.

"Don't you dare." Said another voice, and Dorian quickly turned around, to see a strange dragon in the door, looking at him with calculative eyes. Dorian was caught off guard, and he looked at this new dragon "Who are you!?" he demanded "How did you got in?"

The midnight-blue dragon ignored him, and kept a calm expression as he walked forward. Dorian turned to Hazard, who was smiling softly.

"You!" he said accusingly "You brought him here! You bitch!"

"Wash your mouth" said Shock calmly, "I don't like people talking like that to my mate." And he approached slowly.

"You two!" he said "You will never take anything from my home! I'll call the guard!" he turned around to leave, but Hazard grabbed his tail, and she easily pulled him and threw him into the bed.

Dorian fell into it, and he quickly had to scramble to get up, and he saw the two dragons looking at him as he was into the bed. The dragoness smiled at him, but this smile was completely different from the ones she showed him before, this one was wicked and only looking at her made his blood freeze.

For the first time, Dorian realized that he was into deep trouble, for these two were not the kind which seemed to be easily scared.

"Y-you can take anything you want!" he said, now the fear becoming obvious into him "There is a lot of money, and there is a safe into the living room behind a picture!"

They shared a look, and Shock said "Well, this would be good." He said "But, the client didn't requested it to be a robbery, did he?"

"Client?" asked Dorian, not getting it, but he was ignored.

"No, he didn't." said Hazard, with a cruel smirk on her face "He ordered it to seem a natural death."

Horrified comprehension quickly spread into Dorian's face as he realized just what was going on. Hazard smiled at him, and she approached "Got it now, pretty boy?" she asked with a tone sweet and poisonous "We are here because you made someone so angry that this person wants you dead."

Dorian looked at both dragons, and at other sides, as if he was searching for a possible escape route. But he found none.

"No…" he said "Please… Y-you don't have to do that! How much they are paying you? I double it!" he said, but Hazard and Shock kept approaching him slowly, like predators stalking their prey "I-I-I triple it!"

But they ignored, and kept approaching "I'll pay anything! Just leave me alone!" he said, the arrogance and confidence quickly leaving all his features, and Hazard chuckled at him "Sorry, pretty boy." She said "But, after the way you talked to me, there is no chance I can let you go."

"You bitch!" he screamed, and was about to jump over her, but Hazard quickly reacted, she opened her mouth, and let out a screeching sound, which was companied by red colored rings of force. These rings enveloped Dorian, and he let out a gasp as red electricity crackled over his body, and he felt like all of his muscles has turned into stone as a wave of pure and absolute horror filled his heart.

He let out a single wheezing sound as he slumped into the bed, shaking and twitching his body slightly, more scared then he ever had been in his life.

Shock looked at the dragon in the bed, and then at his mate, who looked back at him, and offered a smile "What? He is not going to live till tomorrow anyway. So, I guess it doesn't matter if he knows what we can do, right?" her tone was sweet and her expression was innocent. Shock could only sigh, as she had some short of reasoning behind it, and he was not in the mood for arguing.

Hazard smirked as she felt like she had won again. Shock simply walked in direction to Dorian, who was still shaking into the bed, but unable to move of so much horror. The dragon could only watch helplessly as the blue dragon walked to him, and stood at a few feet away from him.

Shock looked down at him, and he approached his face "Now, to get the job done." He said, and as he did, some puffs of green smoke came out of his mouth.

Dorian barely had time to think or react, as Shock held his head, and opened his mouth forcefully, and opened his own mouth, and then, a torrent of green smoke expelled from his mouth, an d was forced inside of Dorian's maw.

Dorian's eyes widened as he felt the acid taste of that smoke moving inside his mouth, and being forced down his gullets, almost feeling as if it was a liquid of so thick it was. He could have tried to spit it out, but Shock held his head in place, and the lingering effect of the fear he was feeling was still impeding him to move. He could only gag and cough uselessly as the green smoke forced itself down his throat.

Shock kept expelling the smoke into Dorian's mouth, his maw so close at his that he could close his teeth around his mouth if he wanted. But this was enough for now, so, he kept sending green smoke into the brown dragon's mouth for almost one minute, before he finally stopped, and let go of his head.

Dorian's head fell right back into the bed, and he finally was able to cough, and the small puffs of green smoke that came out of his mouth quickly evaporated in thin air. He had swallowed a lot of the smoke, and now, he was feeling very strange in the inside. He was starting to sweat, and soon, he was also trembling and he felt his legs all go limp as they spasmed.

Dorian was slowly recovering the movements of his body, as the initial terror was going away, but now he was quivering violently into the bed, and he felt a terrible pain on his insides, as if he was being eaten away inside out.

Dorian was able only to let out pained wheezes as he didn't had enough strength to scream due to the immense pain into his insides. Both dragons looked at him as he squirmed in the bed, helplessly, and soon he was entering into shock.

Hazard chuckled, and she walked closer, lowering her head at Dorian's level "You like it?" she asked in a sweet whisper, "My husband's poison is of a very fast effect. It can eat away things, or it can cause any other effects." She explained to him "He can make a full variety of poisons, is a particular thing of him. You don't know how many dragons he already killed with these."

Dorian wheezed at her weakly, as he tried in vain to raise his paw at her, but he was too weak and he could only raise his trembling paw a few inches from he bed before it fell back. Hazard laughed at him "Maybe this will teach you not to treat others like you does. Bitch." She says, mocking him.

Dorian can only look at her for a moments, and then, his whole body convulses violently, and then, after a few seconds, he went completely limp, his eyes widened and void, and his skin pale.

Hazard smirked, and she turned to her husband "Another one to our list." She said, and Shock was actually able to smile at her, and he approached, and they both kissed, as if they didn't they hadn't just killed another dragon, and his body was not right there, and haven't even gone cold yet.

Hazard and Shock really loved each other. Though their personalities were very different, they shared a lot of things in common, like they both having come from poor families, and that they had to struggle a lot to live in this city. They both passed by lots of thins together since they first met. And also, they both could do things that normal dragons could not.

Hazard had this strange red ability, which inspired pure and absolute terror in the hearts of other dragons, which she referred about as "fear", and which could be used for a variety of purposes. She first discovered this ability when she was on her puberty, and her voice started to change. She quickly discovered good uses for it, like scaring away any jerk which wanted to mess with her.

Shock also has his own ability, one that clearly was of creating poison. He discovered this ability when he was already an adult and already working as a killer for rent. He attributed it at the great amounts of poison that he worked with, which always were his specialty. He soon horned it, and he discovered several different uses for this ability, and he was able to eliminate any target which came on his way.

They had discovered each other's secret during their first meeting, in which they both were hired to eliminate the same target. After their initial surprise for seeing each other, and what they were able to do, they quickly teamed up, and go the job done, receiving for both they hirers.

After that, they both started working together, soon uniting their individual fames into the one of as duo of murderers. And, after these years of working together, and keeping and sharing their secrets it was not surprise that they ended up falling in love. Nowadays, they were the most known assassins of the area, and they usually were never far apart from each other.

Hazard and Shock made an amazing duo, and a very interesting couple. Any dragon who had a minimal of a self-preservation sense, would avoid bring to himself the attention of the two unknown dragons which were only know by the name of "Last Breath".

Their true identities were unknown for the general public, and even among the darkest circles of the city, and publically, even the authorities said that they did not existed. Yet, they were known among the darkest places, and mentioned into dark whispers among the dragons the most dangerous districts, and even into the high class. They were famous and anonymous at the same time and, in their profession, was the best possible thing.


The next morning

The day had started as normal into the high class district, with people doing their normal business, and soon, their employers and servants were coming from the poorer parts to work onto the houses.

They worked on several chores in these houses, from cleaning and cooking to general housekeeping and also babysitting. They could afford these jobs, and the payment was well enough for them, and for the rest of their families.

Some dragons also arrived into the home they worked, coming from a poor district in there to work, they were two housekeepers and also one chef. They have worked in there for almost one year now, being the most recent of the last workers of this house. The previous workers had been fired, or had quit themselves.

The reason was the owner of the house, who was an absolute jerk. Always threating others as if they were trash or inferior to him, and not caring not a little bit about other people's feelings or about the problems. The workers of the house had been handling him for quite sometimes, always having to do so due to the good payment, and they constantly made effort to avoid giving him any reason to fire them.

So, they arrived early, and already started doing their chores, knowing full well that the boss did not liked being woke up early in the morning. Soon the breakfast was ready for him, and so, the housekeeper soon was taking it upstairs, to give him breakfast on the bed, as he liked.

She thought it was going to be another day, with him receiving the food and later maybe complaining that the food was not good enough. But, nothing could prepare her to what she would find.

Her boss was in the bed, sprayed over it, with his eyes widen and empty, he was all sprawled over it, not moving or even breathing.

She screamed and dropped all the food in the floor, and she was soon helped out by the two other employers, who were as shocked as her for seeing their patron like that. They soon were searching for help, and they found it into the neighbors, in their employers, actually, and soon, the news started spreading.

Dorian Starwing was found dead into his bedroom.

Soon the authorities were on the place, and soon, they saw the whole house. The entrance had not been forced, so it was unlikely that someone had broken in. There was absolutely no missing items on the house, so it was surely not a theft. One neighbor saw Dorian coming back home into the previous night, and entering the door after greeting him, and the deceased dragon didn't had a single scratch or wound on his body.

So, this all lead to only one logical conclusion: Starwing had died from a heart attack.

It was not unlikely for someone his age, and, according to his neighbors and also his employers, he didn't not cared very much for his own wealth, and so, they came to conclusion that this had finally took its toll on him.

Dorian Starwing had a natural death at his middle-forties.


The news of the death of a dragon with so much importance like Dorian Starwing soon spread across the neighborhood. Some grieved his death, and some were actually happy that he had been gone for good. But one thing was certain: no one was going to shed a single tear for him.

The residents talked among themselves about the occurrence and, of course, the employers soon heard about it too, and they also talked about it among themselves, and sure, when they came back home, in the middle of the afternoon, they shared the information with their families and friends.

And this information came into the ears of a duo of dragons, who could only share a look and smirk.


Again, the hooded dragons were back into the Drunken Wyrm, they were not a very regular duo of customers, for they came once every few days, and only stayed for a few drinks, never more than that.

The dragon of the green hood slammed the cup on the balcony, and he said "Another one!" loud enough to almost the whole bar to hear. Leeran grunted at the dragon, and he said "You already had too much!"

The green dragon slammed a small purse into the balcony, and he said "I want another one! And it better be better than this one you brought now!" he said, almost as if it was a threat. Leeran scowled at him, and picked the purse, and he soon came back with another cupful. Shock took the cup as Leeran walked away with the purse which had the coins, and also the paper indicating to the client the place where to left the money for the payment.

Shock smirked, and he finished the new cup in only one gulp, at the same time that Hazard just finished the last sip of her own. They both left a few extra coins in the table, and they both turned to leave, no one staying on their way this time.

"Another job well done." Hazard whispered at her husband as they both walked away from the bar, and Shock smirked at her, and he said "And we will receive a good amount for all the effort we did."

"I still don't believe they actually paid us to kill that bastard." She said, smirking "I would have killed him for free." She finished with a cruel smirk, and Shock could only chuckle as they both walked back home.

In their way home, they passed by some other dragons, it was already the end of the afternoon, and the sun had almost completely set, casting shadowy illumination over the area, and yet, there was some movement into the streets.

There were some dragons moving across the street, and some where whispering among themselves into small groups. Hazard and Shock shared a look, as it was not very common having this kind of movement in their neighborhood after the sun had set. In their way, one familiar face came to them.

"Guys! Guys!" called a voice, and they both turned to see another dragon, a teenager nearing adulthood, running in their direction. He was slender, with grey-colored scales and white underbelly, and he had two black horns on his head and a spade-shaped tailblade, and his eyes were yellow.

"Zik." Said Shock, complimenting the young grey dragon. Zik was one well known dragon around the neighborhood, and he was known for being like an "office boy" around the place, doing a little of everything in exchange for a few coins, like going to shopping for others, and also delivering messages. Zik would do almost anything, since it was not going to keep him into any troubles.

"Hey kid." Said Hazard to him "What is up?"

Zik stopped in front of them, and he looked at both "Haven't you heard?" he asked "The Royal Guard is coming here!"

For a moment, Hazard and Shock's hearts both gave a jump. They shared a look, and tried the best to hide their surprise and worry, both already thinking that maybe it was better to use one of their planned escape routes yet tonight.

"Coming here, you say?" asked Shock, with a neutral expression "And there is a reason?"

"They are sending patrols over the whole city tonight." Zik said "They are seeking for someone who escaped the prison of Grahar!"

Hazard and Shock both shared another look. Had they heard it right?

"Are you kidding?" asked Hazard to the young dragon "That place is impossible to escape. No one has ever escaped it since it was created three hundred years ago."

"Someone did!" Zik said "That is why everyone is searching around!" he continued telling "They don't know how he did it, but they know that somehow a black dragon managed to escape from his cell, and get out of the prison, and he flew away!"

Both Hazard and Shock shared another look. They never in their whole lives heard of someone who had actually managed to escape that prison. Grahar was a place that they had learned to fear in the years of their profession, because that place meant that you would never get out. If you were sent to there, you would stay there, age in there, and die in there. It was a place that was impossible to escape from.

Well, it seemed that it was not totally true.

"And, this black dragon." Asked Shock to the young dragon "They think he is still in town?"

"They believe so!" said Zik "They are searching all the town in order to see if they can find at least a small clue of him."

"Is he dangerous?" Asked Hazard, and Zik quickly answered "They say he is! He was arrested for murdering someone, and before he escaped, he attacked one of the dragons who had come to visit. They say that anyone who see him must inform the authorities immediately. There are even some saying that they will offer a reward for him!"

Hazard eyes sparkled for a moment, and Shock noticed. He said "Well, I just hope they get him before he hurts someone."

Zik nodded, and he quickly trotted away, and Hazard said "A reward would be advantageous."

Shock chuckled "Lets just forget the matter, okay?" he said in a sweet tone "We have just finished a job, and I want just to relax." He said, as he resumed walking. Hazard soon was following him as they went to their house.

Hazard and Shock lived into a nice house in the outskirts, relatively big, and it was well taken care of. It was not luxurious enough to call attention, but it was enough for their neighbors to notice that they had a good affair of money for themselves.

While they passed the gate, Hazard continued "I would still want to go after him." She said to her husband "Just to ask him how he managed to escape that place. He is the first to ever do it."

"Well, I think we will never know." Shock said, as he unlocked the door, and opened it. Once inside, both dragons took off their hoods, and soon, Shock closed the door, and he switched something that lighted the place. This illumination was due to the called "Sun Crystals", certain crystals which emitted their own light, and were used mainly for the illumination of the houses.

A gasp was heard by the two dragons as the lights went on and they entered their living room. Normally their house was kept locked, and, due to having absolutely no copies of the key, there was no one in their house during their absence. However, this was not the case.

In the middle of their living room, there was another dragon, one they had never seen before. This dragon had a pure black body with bone-white underbelly and crimson eyes. He had goat-like horns on his head and a scythe-like tailblade. He was toned, and on his face there was a look of pure shock and fear when he saw the two dragons in there, as he had just been caught.

There was a long moment of silence, as the three dragons looked at each other, before Shock finally broke it by saying "Hello?" his tone was very calm, but yet, the black dragon soon started panicking.

"Please!" he said in a near whisper, as if he was afraid of someone in the outside looking "Please! I mean no harm!"

Hazard gave one step forward "I have to say, my dear." She said with a cruel and rather sadistic smile on her face "You have chosen the wrong house to rob." Shock looked at her, and he could not help but feel slightly sorry for this black dragon, for he was about to know what Hazard could really do if someone made her angry.

"No! I didn't came to rob your house! I swear!" he said, and Hazard laughed "Why else would someone enter in someone's house while they are away?"

The black dragon could not answer, and, after a few moments of silence, he finally decided to tell the truth "Please! I just wanted to hide."

Shock looked at him, and Hazard also "Hide? From who? Your girlfriend?"

The black dragon did not answered, instead, he looked down. Hazard was about to give him a lesson, when Shock finally realized it.

"It is you." He said slowly, making both Hazard and the black dragon look at him "You are the dragon the guard is searching. The one who escaped Grahar."

Hazard's eyes widened as she realized it too. He was the black dragon. She turned her gaze to him, and he was almost cornering "Please!" he said, begging them "Please! Let me stay here and hide! I swear I'll not try anything!"

Hazard and Shock shared a look. This was not exactly what they imagined for a dragon who was able to escape Grahar. Sure, he looked strong, and he was somewhat frightening to other dragons, but he was now begging to be let to stay, instead of threatening and demanding in order to get what he wanted. This was not exactly the description of who was in Grahar.

They both looked at the black dragon, and Hazard asked "How did you escaped?"

"I found a way." Was his answer "I had to escape, I was arrested by something I didn't do! I'm innocent!"

Hazard scowled "Everyone says that."

"It is true!" the black dragon said, desperate. Shock looked at him right in the eyes as he said that, he looked also at his face, and at his body. One thing Shock had learned in his line of work was to evaluate people, and to know if they were or not lying by search9ing for small clues on their faces or in the rest of their bodies.

Shock was very good in saying if someone was lying and, as he looked at the black dragon, he found no signs that he was lying. Right the opposite, he found only clues that said that the black dragon at least believed that what he was saying was true.

Hazard was about to give another step on his direction, and she was saying "Well, anyway, we are going to turn you in and receive the reward." She added with a cruel smirk. The black dragon's eyes melted in the purest sorrow, and he said "No…" he seemed on verge of tears "No, please… I beg you…"

"Hazard, wait." Said Shock, making his wife look at him. One single look at his face was enough to tell her that Shock thought they should rethink it. "Oh, come on!" she said "We barely know him!" she said, but Shock continued to look at her, and he gestured with his head to the black dragon, indicating her to look at him.

And look at him she did. The black dragon now, despite his toned builsing, seemed now very fragile. He kept looking at them with his begging eyes "I don't want to go back." He said, his words sounding truer than anything that Hazard had heard that day "Please… I'll do anything…"

Hazard expression softened, and she looked back at Shock, before she let out a groan.


Knock, knock, knock

The door was tapped, and soon, it was opened. Hazard saw herself in front of a group of dragons bearing armors with the symbol of the crown. The leader of them stepped forward, and he said "Miss."

"Hello, sir." Hazard said in a sweet tone "It is something wrong?"

"Miss, would you by any chance having seems a black dragon with a scythe tailblade?" he asked, and Hazard made that she was thinking for a moment, and she said "not in recent times. Why, is something wrong?"

"This dragon is a dangerous criminal who is being searched."

Hazard made her best worry expression, and she said "Really? Is he around this area?"

"We are searching in the whole city. If you see him, or if you have any kind of clue of him, you must report immediately to the authorities."

"Oh, I will sir! You may be sure of that!"

"Thank you, and good night." The guard said, and soon, they all were going their own way. Hazard soon closed the dor, and she let out a big sigh that she had been holding. Inside, there was the Exedra and Shock, both relieved when she told them they had gone away and didn't suspected anything.

"You own us a big one." She said to Exedra, who could only say: "Thank you! Thank you! I'll never be able to thank you enough!"

"Well, this we may see." She said, looking at him "So, where do you plan to go to now?"

Exedra stopped for a moment, and he looked to the ground. Both dragons looked at him, and Shock asked "You don't have where to go, have you?"

Exedra looked at him, and he shook his head. Shock than gave one look at Hazard "Oh, no!" she said "We already prevented him from going back to jail, and we put ourselves at a great risk doing so!"

Shock only kept looking at her, and Exedra said: "I can stay hidden, and no one will see me!" he was almost pleading "I can do chores in the house to repay you."

Hazard looked at him, and back at her husband, who was still giving her that look. Hazard let out a heavy sigh "If we both are dragged to prison with him, I swear I'm going to kill both of you."

"Thank you!" said Exedra "Thank you! I'll do all I can to repay you!"

Hazard then said "Really?" and she gave a smug smirk "Do you cook? I'm starving."