Hey guys. I am seeing new favorites and new follows and that's great to see. Thanks for the support, even though I've been sporadic with the past few chapters. I'd like to blame it all on work, but there also has been a slight inspiration issue. That said, I've actually had this chapter for a while, I just wanted to add more to it. Now that I have started to add more, I realize it should be a new chapter, so this is what I have for you. With my ramblings aside, Enjoy!

Anna

She sat horrified. So much death. So much destruction. All by her hand. Now the man was telling her to confront it all. She didn't want to face the numbers. "They came to take me back, didn't they?" that was the first thing she could after an uncomfortably long silence.

"They sent a grunt to do their dirty work." The reply was curt, and he chuckled. "Even now you worry for others. You may not see it now, but I think you'll turn out all right."

"What do I do?" She trembled, and felt the nudge from Midnight comforting her.

"For now, go to the mountain. In four day's time there will be a ship leaving this port called the Siren's Call. The captain will take you on as a hired hand." He explained.

"How do you know?" Her mind began racing. "I'm kind of well known."

"Let me finish. You'll approach the ship at dawn. That's when the ship will be setting sail. As to how I know that the captain will help you, I will arrange it."

"How will this help me?" She could sense that Midnight was giving him the same look that she was.

"The captain owes me a favor. I served as a crewmember on that ship before Esmerelle got too big to be on a ship." He stood and started looking at the blades in the courtyard, testing them. "Who knew that having a dragon, even just a young dragon is useful when raiding."

"And this captain can be trusted?" She asked. She wondered about his current actions.

"With my life. It was that very ship I sailed on when I ran, however It took me some time to find something to do. It helped the wanderlust, and kept my skills sharp." Dissatisfied with the blades, he walked back to the fallen princess. "There is one more thing."

Surprise filled her when he removed his twin blades. "You're gonna need these," he remarked, handing them reverently to her.

"I can't take these." Anna just didn't feel worthy of taking them.

"You need new weapons, and I think you've gotten the co-ordination to dual-wield. The captain can help you out with that as well." after a few moments, he spoke again. "The person who passed these blades to me told me that I was on the edge of personal change. The blades marked me as a part of something greater. Then he handed me a rock and sent me on my way. That rock proved to be Esmerelle's egg. You already know what those are, and what these symbolize. That's going to open some doors for you, but close some too. Above all, you will learn more about yourself than you ever knew."

She took the blades cautiously, afraid he was going to yank them back. There was no way she deserved this. "How do you know?"

"Because we all go through a trial by fire. That's what life is about. The trials that you and I face are similar in the gravity of the situation. We both have killed a lot of people. We both have dragons. The only major difference is that you can still count the number of people you killed if you tried hard enough. Not that I recommend that." He removed his hands from the blades and helped secure them in her gear. "Thing is, we're at a very chaotic time that causes us to fight for what we believe in. Now, I could have you fight, unsure of those reasons, or have you find them for yourself. Which would you prefer?"

She stared into those steel-orbs that entranced her sister, and she saw the honesty that hid under the mask of wit and confidence. She couldn't bring herself to answer, but just nodded. With a whispered expression of gratitude, she left. Winding her ways through her childhood home, she saw intruders. Ignoring them, and letting them pass without seeing her was one thing. Getting out without the guards seeing, that was another.

Corvino

"She shouldn't be by herself." the ancient voice came from behind him.

"It won't do her much good to be here." He turned to see Pabbie. "You're going to say that she needs love, but it's worthless when it's given to someone who can't love the reflection they see in the mirror each day."

The troll was about to respond when a clattering of boots rang through the walls. "Get those two out. I'll handle this." The tone in his voice was dark. As had happened all to often lately, the Killer came out to play, and this time, there wasn't going to be anything standing but him.

Elsa

She heard the march, and ran towards the courtyard. She peered around the wall to see Corvino standing in the courtyard alone, and without his blades. Even without the twin blades, however, she knew he was far from unarmed. He spoke, and at first she thought he was talking to her. Then she noticed the group beginning to surround him.

"Glad to see you all made it. No doubt sent by Queen Tarja to bring Princess Anna back. Thing is, she's gone now. Beyond your reach, and the best part is, she slipped away from underneath your nose. You'll have to settle for me."

The group seemed considerable, and before Elsa could start counting, they began rushing the former assassin. She had seen something similar once before, but that was just with highwaymen. These were obviously some sort of soldiers whom had been trained. Numbers seemed to make up for quite a bit, but Corvino still seemed to find a way to keep himself in the fight. Surprisingly, he still had yet to incapacitate one of them.

As the skirmish continued, it became apparent that he was being corraled indoors. The queen knew that while the narrow hallways of the castle would prove to be beneficial in limiting the numbers, it also limited his movement potential. She began to formulate an idea, and froze doorways along the halls. If he was to be corraled, he would go someplace where he still would have some advantage.

She finished sealing off the empty ballroom, as what looked to descend into an all-out brawl against one man spilled into the room. By this time, Corvino had procured a chain with a hook on it. Elsa sealed herself from the ballroom and watched from behind the ice as the former assassin continued the fight as close to his terms as possible. The one thing that stuck out to Elsa was the lack of the steel colored orbs she had fallen for, instead seemingly replaced with black shadows.

Corvino

He noticed the guidance he was getting from a certain queen. One of the men led with a hook at the end of a reach of chain. Instead of dodging, he rolled, and tugged the chain, commandeering it. The sinister weapon went out with a flash, slicing the poor man's throat open. During the kill, a single thought crossed his mind. One.

Using his reflexes, he dodged a hammer blow, which then hit the man moving to flank the former assassin. An audible crunch was heard, as that man was felled. The wielder of the hammer was so shocked that he barely registered the chain wrapped around his throat until it was too late. One swift tug snapped the man's neck. Three.

The next group came in and the savagery increased, as he sliced open the belly of one man who wielded a double sword. Four. Corvino picked up the weapon and used it with limited efficiency. He missed the versitility that his dual blades gave him, but he adapted. He swung the blade around, stabbing one man chargin him, and slid back, hitting a second. Six.

One blade snapped as he brought it to block a blow from a greataxe. The response that the wielder got was for the former assassin to drop the broken weapon and whirl into the man's grip on the haft and then he screamed in horror as his elbows snapped. The relinquished weapon was then turned on it's wielder as the head of the weapon buried itself hungrily into the man's skull. Seven. As the Killer turned around, blood was beginning to drip off the blade of the axe. The crimson liquid would only begin to collect from there.

The border of savagery passed, he was pushing the border of brutality. The normally calculating assassin combined it with his fury, bringing it to bear at the expense of the intruders. He wheeled around seeing more challengers, and a sadistic grin crossed his face as he eyed a man wielding a greatsword. "More for the count, huh? Fair enough. Let's see how well you do."

Esmerelle

Her dreams turned dark. She slowly began to rouse herself, and what she saw was worse than any nightmare the dragon could have. She had expirienced the former assassin's darkness before, but this was something the dragon had never seen. Esmerelle knew she had to do something, so she got up and flew towards the capital, hoping to get there in time to convince her best friend of mercy.

As the dragon approached, she heard Corypheus roar. Her brother was chasing a group off into the hills, but she knew the meaning behind the sound. He wanted her help.

Brother, I can't. Something's wrong with Corvino. She hated how selfish that plea seemed. She knew that there was a small village there that needed to be protected.

You must do what you feel is right, sister. Just remember that he has proven skilled in combat. The response wasn't condescending, but it had a tone to it as if to point out what can happen in violent conflicts.

Esmerelle cursed silently, and flew to help her brother. The needs of the many would have to outweigh her own worries in this case. The chilling truth was that Corvino likely would handle the situation, and she would have to deal with the reprecussions later.

Elsa

This was beginning to put a foul taste in her mouth. The queen observed Corvino charge the man with the greatsword and chop the arm off. The reflexes were impressive to catch the hilt of the blade in his free hand, and there was a surge of strength that allowed him to dual-wield the two heavy weapons.

Her only reasoning that it was magic was cut short by a sickening crunch as the former assassin stepped on the disarmed man's head. Her blood ran cold when he spoke, as the voice was his, but it was devoid of any feeling. "Eight."

The greatsword blocked a few blows before the greataxe spun on it's arc, decapitating the agressors. "Twelve." Elsa couldn't bear to watch anymore and she made her way to the tower where the two had shared happier memories.

Corvino

Reverse grip, raise, throw. The blade impacted one soldier, and impaled the second one behind him. Fourteen. He spun the axe around with force, cleaving a brave soul who charged him. Fifteen. The haft of the axe was beginning to bow from the force of the blows that it was being used to give. Dodge, bash, cut. Sixteen. The axe was removed from that soldier's skull with a squelch. There were three left that he could see, but he knew that there was one person hiding in the shadows.

The three charged him as a group, and he manuvered and parried until two were taken out by their comrades missing the former assassin. The last man standing must have been green, because he stood there horrified seeing his compatriot dead by his hand. The response the man got as he looked at Corvino was the axe head burying itself hungrily in his head. Ninteen. As if symbolic, the haft broke, leaving the head in it's victim. Seeing no use in the broken weapon, the killer tossed it aside, beginning to return to a normal state.

"Impressive. I didn't know you had that in you." Corvino followed the sound of the voice and there stood a man in clothing he knew all too well.

"So Tarja is rebuilding the shadow? Interesting." Corvino begain circling a pile of bodies with the man keeping pace directly across from him. "You won't win." As the essence of violence left his consciousness, his hands reached to a set of daggers. This kill wasn't going to be his dark side, this one was all his.

"She shared stories of your prowess. I will be hailed as a hero for defeating you." The man drew a pair of obsidian-colored blades.

"Better and worse than you have tried." The duel between the two assassins began, and Corvino already was working to defend the blade disadvantage. The daggers he used sparked, each time the obsidian blades were blocked. "Nice blades. I may have to claim them when you fall."

"Better and worse than you have tried." the other assassin had wit, but the skills were Corvino's concern. As the clash continued, the prince observed that this man was younger, and a little stronger. The older assassin held the speed advantage however, and he pressed it when he could. The issue came in the fact that the distance couldn't be closed.

When the older assassin couldn't get close, he jumped back and launched a barrage of daggers towards the other man, hoping the scatter would collect a few hits. The other man seemed to block all of them, but the he grunted slighty. Corvino cursed the training, for had this been a normal opponent, he would be able to feel out where the hit was scored, and the severity. The grunt did cause a plan to form in the older man. He began firing more and more blades out, before running out of actual knives. A few more grunts, a few more hits. He coaxed the shadow magic, and bade knives to come out of his bracers. He flung them until his arms became sore. The other man was beginning to teeter, and that's when Corvino struck, breaking an arm, and claiming one of the obsidian blades. The hilt seemed to contour to his grip, and he launched a fury, and it became more apparent that he was drawing blood from the other man. Finally, the older assassin found an opening and sliced upwards, flinging blood in the air and felling the man.

Corvino picked up the other blade, and began to look them over. This was going to warrant more study. As he sheathed the blades, he noticed something seem to drip. Following the trail, he saw blood and gore along the ceiling and chandeliers. One thought rang through his head as he raised his hood. Gerda is going to kill me.

There you have it. Again, sorry for the delay. Next chapter will be sooner versus later. As always, feel free to review or message.