Chapter 17 was already in works a few days ago, and I managed to finish it today. Hopefully you guys like it!

Chapter 17: Shadow of the Reaper

The man in the white coat sat in the bar, drinking a cup of water. There were other people around, too, and up on the stage were men playing Arabic instruments. People danced, laughed, and enjoyed themselves for the evening. The man kept his eye on the lead player, however. As the waitress came by, dressed scantily in her Persian skirt, Tsau, looking years older out of prison, looked up at her and pulled his hood down.

"Excuse me, miss," the 22 year old asked. "Who is that, playing up on stage?"

She smiled at the handsome young man. "Oh, that's Hakim, dear. He's the owner."

Tsau smiled at her and looked back up at him. "He's wonderful. Do you mind telling him that I'd like to buy him a drink?"

He placed a few gold coins on the table and she returned a grin, picking up the gold coins. "Yeah, I'll do that for you."

"Thank you," Tsau smiled.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The pedestrians gasped at the sounding of his name, not knowing who he really was until the British revealed his identity.

"Only one Falcon could cause such destruction," the captain added. "And that Falcon is Tsau, the Reaper. I hereby place you under arrest."

Tsau looked over his shoulder, then turned around. "Ghost me."

"Well," the captain replied, stepping in front of Zi to protect her. She was still in a slight shock from pulling the trigger. "You are wanted dead or alive. I used to think you were an urban legend, but now I have you, and the reward will be substantial."

"Tsau is an urban legend," he answered, reloading his trigun. "He doesn't exist anymore. I'm just another man."

The captain aimed his handgun. "You raise that weapon, and I'll shoot you."

"Either way, I'll be dead if you succeed," Tsau replied. "Captain, you know too much about the Reaper. As his former comrade, I know he would not allow this."

"Former?"

"That's right," Tsau replied. "The Reaper has stepped down from his duty as a White Falcon. He is an everyman, now, just like each one of you."

The captain smirked. "One less Falcon will not hurt the law of this city. Open fire."

Zi looked up with wide eyes. "No, don't—"

Right as they pulled the triggers, Tsau seemed to be untouchable as he barely avoided the gunfire while headed towards the side of a building to take cover. He, himself, was surprised that he barely dodged them. Behind the cover, he drew his Dagger of Black Death and watched as they took time to reload, which was a big mistake. He charged forward and shot the first man, who fell down, and used the momentum to cut the next across the throat with his dagger. Right after, he switched the chambers and aimed the gun again, but it was swatted away by the opposing soldier's rifle. Tsau quickly reached for a shuriken and hurled it to the soldier's chest, killing him. Zi watched frantically from a slight distance. There was no reason to kill these men, but Tsau was doing it anyway. He could have run away, but instead he was fighting.

Tsau drew his short katana and hacked away the last few panicking, reloading soldiers, leaving the captain in his sights. Sheathing his weapons and picking up the trigun, Tsau watched as the captain drew his rapier.

"Let us settle this with honor," he said.

Tsau let out a dark chuckle. "You believe that there's honor in battle?"

"Of course," the captain replied. "It is what makes us soldiers so strong."

"Then you are a fool," Tsau said deeply.

Tsau quickly aimed the gun and fired his second shot into the captain's head, causing him to collapse to the ground and twitch a bit before he died. Zi was now afraid of the man who stood before here; a man who didn't seem to mind what he does for a living. Before she could get up, a British soldier came up from behind her and helped her by the arm.

"Let's get you to safety, miss," he said, helping her stand. "Come with me."

Without thinking, Zi followed him in her slight passive state. The cold realization of who Tsau really was gave her a wake up call. As they took several more paces away from the scene, a last shot fired from behind and hit the soldier in the back, killing him instantly. He fell forward and his life completely disappeared in Zi's eyes. Tsau came up to her and looked at her dead in the eyes. His eyes were unchanged. Still composed, relaxed, but she could see that they were crystallizing. Pretty soon, Tsau will be lost forever.

"You okay?" Tsau asked her. "Izzi, look at me."

Her eyes that stared off into space looked at him. "I-I'm fine."

"You're in a post-traumatic state. Just breathe and things will be fine," he said calmly. "I think we should head back a bit and get you taken care of before we head out."

As Tsau escorted her back to his hideout, she began to breathe uneasily from what had just happened. The merchants paid little attention, however, for they were too busy to keep their sights on assassins.

"You'll be fine," Tsau asserted. "Just get a bit of rest."

"Why did you have to kill him?" Zi said with an edgy tone. "He was just trying to help me, Tsau."

"One less assassin is good for this city," Tsau stated. "8 less corrupt guards are better."

"But he had a family," she said. "He was somebody. How could you do something like that, Tsau?"

Tsau looked down. "This is my work. Now you see the true, cold, dark nature of what I do."

"That soldier—"

"That soldier is expendable," Tsau alleged. "Just like me."

Zi looked at him with a melancholy expression. "Did you know who he was?"

"No."

"Then why did you kill him?"

Tsau kept a hard appearance. "Do I always have to know someone before I kill them?"

"But," Zi retaliated. "Those soldiers had someone to lose, Tsau. You, however, don't really have anything to hold on to, do you…Reaper?"

Tsau swallowed her words with some difficulty.

She was quite surprised that he didn't come up with a sharp answer to her question. "Maybe that woman, the Predatory, was right…you love to kill."

"It's my job," Tsau said. "It's my purpose. I have no choice."

"You always had a choice," Zi stated. "A smart person like you should have realized that by now. I think you just decided to go with the killing. Over 722 assassinations, huh? A contract for that woman, too. On top of that, you have killed over 1000 people in your lifetime, a number that only murderers dream of. Are you a murderer, Tsau?"

Tsau could not look at her. "Yes. I am a killer. An assassin. It is my place in this world, and a world that only I will understand. A world that makes sense only to me. It is hard for people like you to understand."

"You didn't even know him."

Tsau turned to her with that cold look. "Do you remember the massacre back in our country? Do you?"

She replied with only a nod.

"Thousands of people slain in only one night. No one else cared what happened, so long as the massacre wasn't headed their way. Did you shed a tear for any of them? Did you know any of those victims?" he asked sharply.

She shook her head. "N-no…"

"You didn't know any of those British soldiers, either, did you?" he said harshly.

Zi scoffed and looked away.

"Look, the thing here is that you have to adapt to the situation," Tsau stated. "I finished off the Predatory the way she wanted to, and soldiers showed up. I had to adapt to it. Adaptations, change, any damn thing that will help you stay alive. That's my priority right next to getting the contract done. The ground is large enough to hold more bodies. Improvise with what you have. Improvise."

"More philosophies from an assassin, huh?" she said sarcastically.

"I'm sure there are more than a billion people in this world we live in," Tsau replied sharply. "And you're throwing a fit over a couple of dead people."

She smiled. "An answer I'd only expect from you, then. A name such as 'The Reaper' suits you."

They didn't talk for the rest of the walk back. Zi wasn't going to stop him. She couldn't. Farah was right, in the sense that Tsau was completely different from any other person. Callous, cold-hearted, and Zi also noticed that in his voice that he was beginning to completely lose himself. His mask of composure was slipping, and it will only be a matter of time before Tsau falls into becoming a person like the Predatory. With his prior actions, Zi grasped the fact that he had no redeeming qualities in him. Everything he does is for some selfish reason. If he was protecting her, it was because he signed a contract to do it. Tsau is truly a man of business, completely amoral to its bare definition, and in her mind she had trouble not letting him go. He wasn't the same charismatic Tsau she once knew. The same person she hid feelings for. He is everything that his enemies are, and that's what she knew she had to accept before she, herself, falls apart. Instead of heading back to his house, they walked another direction, towards the Gilded Fountain, where Altair Muhammad Hassan was located. Strangely, Zi felt apologetic to Tsau. Usually she was tougher and would retaliate from such behavior, but since it was Tsau, she was different. His behavior was rubbing off on her.

"I'm sorry, Tsau," she finally said, speaking up as they pressed forward through the crowd. "I was weak. It won't happen again. It just hurts to know that you…well, I never expected for you to kill someone like that. I wasn't ready to kill someone either…"

"You don't need to explain yourself. You handled it quite well," Tsau replied. "Don't blame yourself for anything. Don't linger on failures; they'll only throw you off routine."

Zi nodded with silence. "Right."
Tsau sighed. "I didn't expect you to kill the Predatory. I didn't want you to bear the burden of killing someone. I didn't want you to see the world I see. After this is over, we should go our separate ways. We're worlds apart. You, Jack, Will, Elizabeth, and even Barbossa can't survive the world I live in."

"Um, are you alright?"

"I'm just fine," Tsau said. "And…another thing. No matter what happens, if we split at the end and never see each other again…"
"Yes?"

Tsau shook his head. "Nothing. I'll tell you when you're ready."

"You mean when you're ready," she replied with a smile. "Take your time, Tsau. I'll always be here to listen. Remember that."

He looked away. "Don't."

"Why not?"

"It doesn't matter what I think anymore," Tsau stated. "If we survive, then I'll tell you more about me."

"Then let me ask a few questions first. How did you get your name, 'Reaper'?" she asked in curiosity.

Tsau let out a chuckle with her statement. "It's what I do best. I take lives."

"Like Grimm Reaper?" she asked again.

He nodded. "Yes. Like that. If I became one of Zhao's Deaths, then my permanent name would be the Reaper. Just like Atrocity and Predatory."

"So is there anyone you like?" she asked. "In…particular?"

Tsau shook his head. "I've never really been interested with other people's lives."

"But don't you get lonely?" she asked.

"Sure," Tsau nodded. "But I have company every now and then. It's just that the way I live…it's a bit…"

She looked at him with a smile. "Asocial."

"Somewhat," Tsau said. "Almost everyone I come across dies at some point. Everyone I come across gets killed…as if I'm being punished. There are many…lonely dinners at the table. No one sits across. No one to talk to. Then, when everything ices over, you just accept it."
Zi looked at him but he didn't look back. "And adapt? Improvise?"

He slightly smiled. "Yeah, something like that."

She wrapped her arms around his arm and rested her head on his shoulder. "Sounds lonely, Tsau."

Perhaps there was hope for Tsau. Zi began to conclude that he was trying to fight his way back into being who he used to be. She could help him if she just talked to him. A smile came across her face after seeing the small glimpses of Tsau's former self.

"But…" Tsau said in his light tone. "I also saw that little kiss she gave you."

Zi began to blush. "Whaaat?! What kiss?!"

"Oh, nothing," he smiled a bit and cleared his throat. "I just have to say…it was quite…arousing."

She playfully shoved him. "Whatever, Tsau."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Jack, meet my superior," Blackwell said. "Drak Nesirus."

Jack watched the chair behind the desk turn around and looked at Drak dead in his eye. The entire facial structure was so similar to a man he knew. "Woah. I am quite waist deep in confusion right now, mate, and you are filling it up to the neck."

"So," he spoke in an almost familiar voice. The accent leaned more towards British. "You're Jack Sparrow. The famous pirate."

"Ah, so you know me as well," Jack replied. "The Immortal Cap'n Jack—"

"Yes, that's wonderful," Nesirus stated, cutting him off. "Tell me, how much do you know about that dagger?"

Jack smiled. "Ah, striking a deal, now, are we? You know, you look just like him. The straight face and everything."

"All will be clear when the time comes," Nesirus stated slickly. "Now, about that Dagger. I do have a plan, but it involves with betrayal. Are you ready to betray, pirate?"

"What's in it for me?" Jack asked.

Nesirus smirked. "I will help you spare the Dutchman for your use, provided that I receive 20 percent of your pillaging profits in the future."

"Let's see how far this goes, mate," Jack replied. "Jack Sparrow is the king of all deals."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After the people left the bar, Tsau sat alone with the musician and owner of the bar. Across the table, they talked and smiled, seeming to have a wonderful time. Hakim was a slightly chubby man, although with a shaven beard and definitely not Muslim. He seemed to be influenced by the British arrival in Aswad.

"Yes," Hakim nodded. "And one day, when I was still very young, through those doors…you wouldn't guess who came to visit."

Tsau had a smile. "Who?"

"The Prince of Persia," Hakim stated. Tsau had his mouth open in slight awe. "I'm telling you, the most honorable, most fashionable man came through those doors."

"Wow," Tsau replied.

"Yes, and he was definitely taught by some of the best musicians in the…" he paused to gather his words. "…world."

Tsau nodded. "So what happened?"

"I was young," he stated. "But I got to play with him. For one hour I spent time upstage playing with the Prince of Persia."

"Oh yeah?" Tsau asked. "How did it feel?"

Hakim shook his head. "Oh, it was, uh…intimidating."

"And how did you do?"

Chuckling, Hakim raised an eyebrow. "Well, you're not really shit when you're playing music with the Prince. And boy, he was good. He was a really polite man, but music was his passion. When he was playing, he was fierce and completely focused."

"What did he say to you after?"

"One word: good," Hakim replied. "What he meant by 'good' was 'skilled, but not ready,' and he definitely meant 'come see me when you're older, I might have a job for you.'"

Tsau kept a subtle smile. "And did you?"

Hakim shook his head. "No. I was selected to go into the British Support Corps of the Persian Army. When I came back, it was already too late."

"Amazing story," Tsau complimented. "I love it."

"Why thank you," Hakim replied. "It's great to have someone listen."

Tsau's smile died a bit as he was going to speak next. "I'd love to tell it to the people at Basim Asad."

As Hakim's cup reached his lips, he heard the words and his face immediately died and turned into one of shock. He set his cup down and looked at the man across the table with dead eyes. "Y-You know the people at Basim?"

"I know what you did there, too, along with your British Support Corps," Tsau said in a serious tone, watching the waitresses keeping busy in the back of the bar. He placed an amulet on the table. "My employer wanted you to see this before you go. Take a good look at it, Hakim."

Hakim looked down at the amulet, and in the middle, it was formed into somewhat the shape of a falcon spreading its wings. "…Altair?"

"That's right," Tsau said.

"Just when I thought you were an honest man," Hakim stated.

Tsau kept a strong gaze. "I am an honest man; an honest man with a contract to fulfill. I'll ask you one trivia question, and if you can answer it, I'll let you go."

Hakim breathed for another few moments before answering. "If you let me go, I'll run away from this city so far, it'll be as if I was dead. Okay, what is the question?"

"Where did the Prince learn music?" Tsau asked.

"I know everything there is to know about our Prince."

"Then answer."

Hakim swallowed. "He was sent to Oxford University with several princes and princesses around the world, and was influenced by the best musicians the world had to offer."

Tsau smiled. "Good, except you forgot one thing."

"And that is?"

The Falcon exposed his arm from under the table that was holding a throwing dart. At the flick of his wrist, Tsau sent the poison dart flying straight into Hakim's throat, killing him instantly. As Hakim began to fall towards the table, Tsau caught his head and rested it carefully on the top. Hastily, he pulled out his knife and scraped a stylish R on the wood table, leaving the White Falcon amulet as well.

"I'm still an assassin," Tsau said darkly. Seeing that no one was in sight, no one must have noticed, and the Reaper stood up and left the bar in silence. The shadow of the Reaper could be seen in the dim light on the way out for a slight moment, but it soon disappeared.

I'll get Chapter 18 done next, so don't leave your computers for too long, heh. Thanks for the reviews, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me.