Chapter 2

June 10, 2021

Seattle, the Emerald City. She was finally going to be involved with the mess that had been created there. It had been only a matter of time, of course; sooner or later someone would have tried to hire her, for one side of the conflict or the other. And now that had happened, freeing her to do what needed to be done.

As a professional she couldn't go anywhere uninvited, her clientèle would never approve of that, and then she might lose them. But all of her clients knew her rules, and it was because of following those self-imposed rules that she was now allowed to go back to the United States of America.

Back to the country where people died, where part of her was born, and where the military kept trying to mess up the world. She didn't want to go there because of the memories, but memories also made her want to go back. Memories that were both good and bad. The internal conflict was one of the main reasons she didn't dare go back there, but what she wanted didn't matter. Nothing had ever really mattered since the rain.

But once again it was up to her to clean the mess, so clean it she would.

White had wanted her to kill what he thought of as the leader of the so-called transgenics. Which meant that she would now read up on this 452 and her friends. Most of the information Dawn had about the girl had been collected during the past months. After all, if she knew that was going to be hired anyway, it was logical that she'd be prepared before it even happened.

A genetically enhanced killing machine who hated guns. According to the information she'd gathered, that hatred was caused by one of her teammates being shot by the base-commander. When that happened her unit ran for it. They escaped the base and went to ground.

The information she had collected stopped there. For the next decade there were only rumors, rumors about children exhibiting feats they couldn't possibly be capable of. There were so many that it became impossible to figure out which ones were about 452, or Max Gueverra as she was also known. Some of the sightings she had been able to confirm as one of the escaped X-5s, but they were mixed up with the usual suspects as well.

The 2015 sighting in Chicago had been a Slayer, the rumors that enthralled most of Houston in 2016 had been a pack of vampires and that was just the confirmed supernatural stuff. And of course, besides the supernatural, there had also been the projects other governments had set up, like the Red Series.

All in all, the whole situation was one big mess in which it was impossible to find a single empowered person. The only positive thing about the area she had to search, was that the average American citizen didn't have access to the same genetic enhancements that were cropping up in the rest of world.

But somehow the girl had eventually found her way into Seattle. Most likely this had happened in 2019, when the rumors about people like her had started to crop up again. And now she was entrenched in what was known as Terminal City, unreachable, heavily defended, but still so incredibly vulnerable. The girl was raised in an environment where she had always been surrounded by people and, like the good little soldier she was, that meant she'd have friends.

Picking up some of the other files, Dawn started considering the best way to get close enough to 452. There were a number of people she could use; her 'brother' Zack who she had discovered lived on some farm, unfortunately using a wild card like that would lead to other problems. 452's normal friends didn't create any problems like that though. She couldn't understand why nobody had made use of them yet, as it was obvious to her that 452's biggest weaknesses were friends like the ones called 'Original Cindy' and 'Sketchy'.

Opening the windows of her apartment she allowed the fresh air to breeze over her, while briefly considering the dangers she was about to face in Seattle. Among 452's friends there was someone she knew, she might not have met him but she knew his reputation. Someone who would undoubtedly figure out she was coming and what the most likely purpose of her visit would be.

It must have been about twelve or thirteen years since she the young and naive reporter had hounded her tracks, but he would remember what the consequences of her return to the States would be. The only good thing about that was that he had never found out what she looked like, so there wasn't much of a chance that a sniper would be waiting when her plane landed.

Not that he would do that of course. She snorted while considering that; the rich boy might not be as naive as he once was, but blatant murder was still something he wouldn't order.

Anyway, she could come up with an idea on who to approach while on the plane. Now she first had to make arrangements for the flight, her stay in Seattle, and, of course, her tools of the trade.

X.X.X

The criminal underworld had been shaken up when the phone calls had started. Noir was coming to town. Within hours rumors had spread out over the entire city and the panic had set in. Wherever possible, the bosses went to ground in heavily fortified buildings, leaving the running of their territories to their underlings.

Orders went out and street crime changed its appearance, nobody knew what Noir looked like, but they were all aware she was a woman. As a consequence, women could walk the streets of Seattle without fear of being assaulted for the first time in years. Smalltime crooks, who weren't yet aware of what was going on, were quickly informed that it was in their own best interest not to call any attention on themselves. No boss wanted anyone in their territory to call the wrath of Death upon them, you never knew who she'd end up blaming.

Braver, but less intelligent, people took notice of different things. There was a price on Noir's head. Most police forces had offered money for information about her whereabouts but these people didn't care about those contracts. The law wanted her alive; there were other people who wanted her dead. Aside from the fact that those who wanted her dead paid better, even these bounty hunters weren't stupid enough not to realize that the most likely outcome of turning a professional assassin over alive meant that they wouldn't live to spend the bounty.

….…

But one man just looked at it all, not bothering to hide his contempt for all these panicked reactions. That Noir would come to Seattle was something that anyone could have predicted a long time before, and so he'd taken his own precautions upon arriving in the city. The chances of her not being hired during a situations like this were close to zero. And this very inevitableness was the reason he had moved to Seattle a couple of months ago.

Unlike everyone else though, he had a good idea of what she'd look like. It had been a long time since he last saw her but there was no chance in hell that he'd ever forget about her.

"Jack."

"Yeah boss," his protégé answered him. He'd taken the kid under his wings almost two years ago and he was indeed shaping up to be a decent thief. Nowhere near his own level of course, but then he'd had a lot more experience.

"Who do you think hired her?"

Jack didn't need anymore information, the boy had always been good at understanding what he meant. With a thoughtful expression on his face Jack returned his gaze. "Well boss, I figure it's someone with a shitload of money."

"That doesn't exactly come as a surprise now, does it? She's expensive."

"I know, I know, I was just working myself towards the goal y'know. Anyhow, I don't think it's one of the bosses since they've all gone to ground. That leaves the rich people. I'd say one of them wants to off someone."

"Wouldn't the boss that hired her go to ground as well, in order to allay suspicions?"

"Allay suspicions boss? What kinda talk is that? Anyhow, I figure that they would've prepared for it, an' not let it look as panicky as all this."

"Point," he conceded. "How 'bout the freaks?"

"Nah, they ain't got the money for that kind of thing. And besides, who'd they want dead?" That was indeed a good question, and anyway, he was pretty sure that the freaks would be able to do most of their killing themselves. But Jack had forgotten something.

"How about the government?"

"The government?" Jack frowned, "what'd they wanna hire her for?"

"To kill the freaks?"

"I don't like the government but I kinda doubt even they'd go that far to deal with them. Geez, there are hundreds of 'em. Even someone like Noir couldn't get them all."

"She wouldn't have to. What's it they say? Cut of the head and the rest'll follow?" And everyone knew who the head-freak was. Damn shame actually, a pretty girl like that. He'd even heard she was a good thief as well, trained by Moody himself if his information was reliable.

"Could be, could be." At least the boy was considering it, even if he clearly wasn't convinced. "But wouldn't she like, y'know, be suspicious 'bout workin' for the government?"

"She'll be suspicious, but this is a military project that has gone, as they say, FUBAR, an' she hates that." Everyone knew that bit of information, but with that knowledge also came the realization that he might actually be the only person left alive who knew the reasons for that hatred.

"So you think she'll go and kill what'shername? The pretty one?"

"452, yeah I think so. And after that she'll go after the government types who're behind it."

"The ones who hired her?" Clearly Jack didn't believe that and he had to admit there was something wrong about it. If they knew she'd go for a mission like this, they must've also known what she'd do to those who controlled the project.

"Maybe someone else hired her then, someone who doesn't like the government people either."

"Y'mean someone who'd like to see the freaks dead, an' the government people as well?"

"Could be he just doesn't care about the government."

"You've got an idea 'bout who it is, don't you?" Jack suddenly realized, and he had to admit that the boy had caught on faster than he'd anticipated.

"Yeah, I do. Remember the mess with the hostage thing?"

"At the Jam Pony? Sure."

"Remember the snipers?"

"The ones the cops said wouldn't be there? Yeah, I remember thinkin' it was strange they were there. Clemente always seemed like a good guy to me, didn't think he'd go back on his word."

"He didn't."

"What?"

He licked his lips, suddenly doubting the wisdom of telling the boy about this. It would mean Jack might become a target as well, but on the other hand his protégé deserved to know the truth of what was going on. "The snipers were NSA. They worked for that guy who got wrapped up when they assaulted the place."

"An' you figure that guy hired Noir? It doesn't really make sense to me, y'know. He mightn't like the freaks much, but he can't go 'round his own people."

"Yeah, but there's just something about the guy that doesn't smell right."

"Why would we care anyway? It's not like she's gonna waste us."

No, they weren't even close to the kind of target she usually had, but that wasn't important. Nothing was important, how many times had she spoken that short phrase? Shaking his head at the memories, he let out a short barking laugh. "I've got some business with her. She and I need to have a long overdue conversation."

As he took a sip of his drink he didn't pay any attention to Jack's reaction to that news, after all it wasn't as if the choking and other expressions of surprise were in any way unexpected.

X.X.X

From the criminals led three major lines of communication. The first of these ended up at the other underworld.

The small contingency of vampires and demons that had survived the purges, caused by the revelation that there were non-humans running around, took the news in stride. They were aware of Noir's reputation, but they also knew that she seldom took action against vampires and demons. Her targets had mostly been humans, and as long as they'd stay away from her, they would be safe.

Some of them questioned this decision however, after all what could a mere human do against them? They wouldn't let some little girl dictate their orders and swore they'd deal with her when she arrived. So, here as well, orders had to be given before demons started to disappear into the proverbial woodwork.

And here too, there were those who didn't believe those orders counted for them. Most demons didn't have a lot of money and they needed it. Money was an easy way to get certain things, especially since the city of Seattle had been steadily turning into a no-go zone. The bars that previously catered to the community had been closed down and, more often than not, reopened in a different city. Therefore money had been steadily regaining its ancient attractiveness, and with the government watching closely for non-humans it was getting more expensive to travel for every day that passed.

Like stupidity, bounty hunters weren't limited to the human race.

….…

But sometimes it wasn't the money they were after. A year before, Carlos had been the master of the city. He was the one all demons went to if they wanted something, and he had the muscle to ensure they didn't try another way. By now however, his muscle was gone. Some of his enforcers had been victims of the purges, others had left the city, and some had decided to go out for themselves.

His empire, painstakingly built after the Pulse, was crumbling and he needed something to get back on top. Something that would once again let the demons bow down to something as impure as a vampire. Something that would inspire fear among even his greatest competitors, and now someone who would be capable of generating that fear was coming to Seattle.

"Listen up people, we're going to regain our place at the top of the city. Everybody will remember why they shouldn't mess with us."

"How're we gonna do that boss?"

Good, someone had asked the question. "We are going to bring in a new member."

The sudden shuffling of feet from the brighter part of his minions made it understood they had an inkling of what was to come. Not all of them were able to think that far ahead though. "Who, boss?"

"Noir."

One of the things about vampires he had noticed was that when they went quiet, they really went quiet. As the saying goes, the silence was deafening.

He had never paid a lot of attention to what race a demon was—he thought of himself as an equal opportunity vampire—but when a purple demon broke the silence he spent a moment wishing he knew what it was. "An' how're we gonna do that? She's killed demons before, and it's said she doesn't like us but doesn't think we're important enough to kill."

"She's human, isn't she?"

"Sure, nothing special 'bout her, not like the barcodes."

"Right," Carlos said. He had to convince them this was the right action to take, as he wouldn't be able to do it alone. "She's human. Which means she'll have human weaknesses. She may be a very good fighter, but that doesn't mean she can beat us. We're stronger than she is, we can keep fighting longer, and if we do it right she might not even notice us until it's too late.

"We will find her, corner her, and in the end." He bared his teeth in an approximation of an evil smile. "We'll turn her, making her one of us."

X.X.X

The second communication line that started in the underworld led to those people who didn't think of themselves as criminals, although the law often held a different opinion. These men and women were the elite. Most of them had always had money and while the Pulse had often hit them hard, it hadn't hit them as hard as it did the common people.

Unlike the common people who needed to pay close attention to their money, and feared they might lose it, the elite hadn't needed to worry about it. Their money had been invested, they owned the businesses and houses people worked and lived in. They had off-shore bank accounts and expensive, but easily liquidated, art. After the Pulse hit they might have lost half of what they owned, but as the rest of the country had lost a higher percentage the gap with the common people had actually widened.

Among these people the news was received differently. If there was no other way, assassins had for a long time been the accepted means to deal with one's competitors. That way you kept your own hands clean and as all members of the elite were able to hire an assassin, everyone had an even chance in their dealings. But since there were no real problems between the elite at that time, it was obvious to them that none of their peers had been the one to hire Noir. After all, while assassinations were the gentlemanly way to kill ones opponents, they were still a messy business that nobody of standing would use, unless absolutely necessary.

With their peers eliminated as clients it was obvious to them that they couldn't possibly be the targets. None of the lesser folk would dare to attack them like that. In some houses there was speculation about who the target might be, and when talking to their peers they always took note of who mentioned who as a possible target.

After all, knowledge had never ceased to be power.

….…

For these people, however, the appearance of an assassin was a small diversion while business as usual went on.

"Have you heard about Noir?" Jacob Masters was asked by his colleague and sometimes partner.

"Oh yes, she has been hired for a job here, hasn't she? Who do you think her target is?"

"I figure it has something to do with them." Them. Among the elite this had become the word to describe the inhabitants of Terminal City.

"Yes, you might be right about that. And it would be a wonderful solution to that dreadful situation." The two men were silent for a moment after that, pondering the effects that would have. But it wasn't long before they went on to more important business.

"Say, I hear that Ms. Summers is coming to town."

"You have heard correctly, my friend. She called me this morning to see if we were home. Samantha is looking forward to seeing her again," Jacob answered the man as they continued their walk through his villa.

"Wonderful, I have a business proposition I'd like to put to her," was Victor's smug reply.

"Interesting, is it something to do with your assets in France?"

"Actually yes, I was considering a venture that concerns one of her companies and it might be a good idea to discuss it with her."

Ah, Jacob thought, a business deal. It might be a good idea to pay some attention to Victor though, he was looking for a wife and Dawn was, as always, still single. But there were possibilities there as well. If he'd hook the two of them up it might be profitable for him. Surely they would be grateful, and if it meant her friend would be here more often, Samantha would be ecstatic as well.

"That sounds interesting, why don't you come over for dinner tomorrow? She'll land in the afternoon and that way you might get to her first. You would have the entire evening to persuade her."

From Victor's grateful look it was clear he had guessed correctly and he started thinking about what something like that might do for his own enterprises.

Dawn Summers, a name that among the elite was well known. The woman had appeared in Paris several months before the Pulse, and had been loaded with money. Nobody knew where she had gotten it, or how, but she didn't really use it until after the Pulse had hit. With no way for anyone to discover for themselves just where she'd gotten the money, nobody found out. After all, a well-raised person would never even think of posing posing such a rude question.

Sometimes hiding out in the open was indeed the best way not to be noticed.

X.X.X

And then the third line came into play. In some cases the differences between the people on both sides of the law became blurry. There were informers, who snitched on their fellow criminals, and there were the crooked cops who worked for those who paid them the most money.

How the information reached the police wasn't important, the only thing that mattered was that it did. Most officers had no idea of the significance of this information until it was explained to them. Noir had always been the business of special groups within the federal law-enforcement units.

Normal cops didn't have to worry about professional assassins. With few exceptions most cases involving them were handed over to the FBI, who would then do their best to capture the perpetrator. This wasn't because the detectives who'd start out handling the case were incompetent; but as assassins hardly ever restricted their actions to a single state, or even a small number of them, it always simply came down to a matter of jurisdiction.

And this was the case with Noir as well. She had never undertaken any overt action against police officers, therefore lacking the moniker of copkiller. There were warrants out for her arrest, but after the Pulse she hadn't been in the United States very often. And since there was no use in checking outdated warrants, hardly anyone remembered her.

In cases like this it wasn't the law that had the longest memory.

Once the situation was explained to them however, the police took its own precautions. The increased security only increased the earlier created safety on the streets, and it didn't take long before people realized the streets hadn't been this safe since before the Pulse.

The officers too wondered why she was coming to town but, after a call for information to the FBI, they drew the same conclusion everyone else had. It had something to do with the freaks. Decisions needed to be made and after long discussions it was eventually decided they should try to apprehend her before she killed any of the freaks. Not everyone was happy about that decision, but unlike the other groups these orders would be followed. At least if the people on the spot didn't believe they'd get away with something else.

This line didn't stop at the police though, as one of the officers who was eventually informed was detective Matt Sung, informant of Eyes Only. And while his colleagues were busy making bets on how many freaks would get killed, he contacted the person who he knew would be able to help. Logan Cale, his personal link to Eyes Only.

….…

"Noir," Logan said after he'd been told the story. The two of them had decided upon their usual meeting place at the waterfront, and Matt used the opportunity to get some fresh air.

"That's what they say. You've heard of her?"

"Oh yes, she was very big before the pulse. I actually did a couple of articles on her."

"Really? Wonder why I've never heard of her then." That was strange, if she had been so big why hadn't he heard? He had still been a rookie at the time but he'd expected to have heard something about anyone as big as Logan implied.

"It's not that strange actually," the paraplegic answered, almost seeming to read his thoughts. "She's actually one of the biggest mysteries around. She named herself after an anime series, but instead of being ridiculed for it she actually has the skills that go with the name."

"Skills that go with the name?" Matt raised his eyebrow at that strange statement.

"Yeah, the series she named herself after was about a couple of assassins, who supposedly were the best in the world. I've watched it myself several times when I tried to understand her, but it never really helped me."

"Okay, so I take it she's dangerous."

"She's more than dangerous, Matt. I've got a feeling I know what she's here for, but what have you heard?"

He had to think about that for a moment, the obvious answer was, well, obvious, but maybe there was something he had missed before. But no, he had already gone over it all and there was only the obvious answer.

"The panicked way the criminal bosses have gone underground tells me that it's unlikely they hired her, even if they'd been able to afford her. And the, ah, upper classes," he had quickly changed his words as he remembered who he was speaking to. Logan Cale was after all a member of those upper classes, "don't act concerned, so we doubt anyone among them had reason to hire her. Which leaves only one other thing it could be about."

"I was afraid of that."

"You haven't heard anything else either?"

"You're the first person I've heard this from, but maybe Eyes Only has some more information by now. If not, I'll have to do some digging. Do you have any idea about who hired her?"

"None, but you think it's got to do with her actions against military projects?"

Matt watched the man carefully for his reaction to this question; in the past it had helped him to know how Logan reacted to something. He could always adapt his own behavior if he'd actually get to meet this Noir. "That is the most obvious answer, it was how I found out about her in the first place. She was hunting down a group of people that were involved with a lot of black ops project. It's a shame I never found out what project had given her the incentive to do so. It might have helped in this case."

"Well, I'm afraid I can't help you with anything else. If I find out anything though, I'll let you know," Matt said while turning to leave.

"Yeah, thanks. Oh, Matt." Turning back he waited to hear what the man had to say. "Do you happen to know where she'll be coming from?"

"From what we got from Interpol she's probably based in France, and we've got extra security for those flights."

"She probably won't take a direct flight. But thanks anyway."

"Sure thing, hey, tell Eyes Only he's still doing a good job."

X.X.X

"Max, this could be dangerous."

The young woman didn't seem to believe him though. "Relax Logan, who cares if White hired some kind of assassin. Do you really believe he'll be able to get in here?"

Why couldn't she understand the dangers? "What if she did manage?"

"She? You mean to tell me the assassin's a woman? Well, that changes it then, she's dangerous alright," Max sighed. "Come on Logan, how dangerous can one woman be? Nobody would be able to get through all of us; any normal that'd try to come into Terminal City, with murder on her mind, would be dead within moments." This was really frustrating; he had spent hours talking to informants in an attempt to find out who had made calls to France. And when he had finally discovered that White had been one of them he'd come directly to Terminal City in order to warn Max.

"This isn't some kind of second-rate assassin. We're talking about Noir here, she's the best in the business."

"Did I just hear you mention Noir?" It was Alec who interrupted as he'd obviously caught a snippet of their conversation. Logan wasn't exactly fond of the guy, but if the X-5 was able to convince Max of the danger he would be more than willing to put his personal feelings aside.

"Yes, Noir is coming here and I believe that White hired her."

"So you're telling me that Noir is coming for us?"

"Probably for Max, yes."

Alec seemed lost in thought for a moment before he spoke again. "You know, we were actually told about her at Manticore."

This finally seemed to get Max's attention, apparently if Manticore had thought it worthy to mention it must be important. "What for? She's a normal isn't she?"

"Probably."

"Probably? What do you mean probably? Wouldn't yes or no be a better answer?"

"Whoa Max, easy there. Look all I can tell you is what I've heard, okay? The guy who told us about her said she might have been involved in some kind of other project, but since she killed the only people who might know what it was about we can't be sure."

This was interesting information. He knew there had been a link between her and some of the projects he had been researching back then, but this was the first time he heard that the military didn't know what the connection was. "Do you know what the project was?"

"They never really told us, but I figure it was the one in California that was bombed. I think it was called the Initiative, or something."

I hope you all like the story so far, and don't forget to send me feedback.