Chapter 10

Cristoff woke when the sun was still far below the horizon. An Assassin looked over him, holding a lantern. Cristoff squinted and waved the light away. He got up slowly, bringing his mind into focus.

"You should be ready to go now, Malekan. I do not tolerate laziness." Said the woman who held the lamp. Cristoff blinked until his eyes adjusted

"I'm sorry, I'm not used to being woken at such an hour." Said Cristoff, trying to sound resentful

"Then get used to it. I want you in the main hall at this time tomorrow morning. If I must wake you again, you may find yourself missing an eyebrow."

Cristoff paused at the threat and looked at the woman, she was short, her features highlighted by the light she held. Her dark skin was given an orange tinge, making it seem darker, almost unnatural, her small nose and bright blue eyes made her look comely, though Cristoff doubted that she would appreciate any attempts to woo her. He donned his Assassin robes and followed her out the door when she abruptly turned and left. She walked at a brisk pace, though Cristoff easily kept up, staying a respectful distance behind her. He tried to make conversation as they ascended the stairs that led to the surface,

"So, what should I call you then?"

The woman responded without turning,

"You may call me mentor Alena, or simply mentor."

"Alright then, mentor Alena, I am-"

"Cristoff Malekan, yes I know." Alena stopped to speak to him directly, "Do not take me for an ordinary woman, boy. I joined the brotherhood after my mother, and she was fierce in the extreme. She was the daughter of a great khal, so do not think me weak." She turned back and continued through the main hall, where Assassins could be seen poring over scrolls or their hidden blades by candlelight. Cristoff had a thought suddenly, and before he could stop himself, spoke.

"Why is a woman like yourself an Assassin?" he blurted.

Alena twitched, and one of the other Assassins turned and looked at him with a worried expression. Alena turned slowly, her eyes staring daggers into Cristoff's. She was half a head shorter than him, but she made him want to crawl under a rock right then. Instead of getting angry, like Cristoff expected her to, she explained in an icy tone,

"The question you ask answers itself. You ask because you presume that a woman cannot perform the act of taking a man's life. You are wrong. They say that poison is a woman's weapon, but is it not more effective than a blade? Poison can kill quickly, or slowly, or painfully, or painlessly. It can kill with a single drop, whereas a blade may require many cuts. Poison reaches through armour, attacking through our natural weakness, almost as if we are welcoming it. it is things like this that you must learn, Malekan. For us, there is no such thing as man or woman, only the target, and what stands between us, be it a lord's palace or a beggar."

Cristoff waited a few heartbeats before responding, "We are not to kill innocents." He said firmly

Alena looked at him as if he were a curious child, one slender eyebrow raised, "That is true, but I did not say how one might get past a beggar. Again, you must look with your eyes, listen with your ears." She spun on her heels and walked up the stairs to reach the top of the derelict shell of the building which belied the interior's true nature. Alena stood against the failing moon when Cristoff finally caught up with her.

"Cristoff, look around you. What do you see?" she asked

Cristoff looked at the nightscape of Qarth, "I see the queen of cities sleeping."

Alena nodded, "And what do you hear?"

Cristoff closed his eyes and concentrated on the sounds of the night, he could hear faint chirping of insects below, the quiet murmur of men in the night walking the streets, and many other sounds that he could not place

"I hear the city is not truly sleeping."

Alena nodded again, "Good, you may just become one of us after all. Your eyes tell you one thing, your ears tell you another, which one do you believe?"

Cristoff remembered the Assassin posing as the guard captain in Asshai who said the same thing, but Cristoff was still confused, "My ears?" he guessed. Alena gave him a sharp slap over his head.

"No, for what if you cannot hear? Will you make yourself blind as well as deaf? No, what you do not realise is that they tell you the same thing. The city sleeps, yet in its slumber it stirs. While it stirs, it is asleep. Do you understand?"

"No."

"Good, if you said yes I would have known you to be lying."

"How could you have known?" asked Cristoff

"Again, see with your eyes, hear with your ears. A man's face is like a book, once you learn the letters, you can read what's behind his face."

Cristoff felt like this was going to be a long day, but he listened to Alena intently, as it was all he could do for now.