"Regia Kollegros. The famed Butcher of Steeltown." The man speaking was an ugly little toad. Probably a mutant of some kind; they were unfortunately common on this level of the city. His teeth were pointed, and his pupils were like those of a cat.
"That's my name, Sek. If you use it too much, you might wear it out." Regia was hanging upside down, her legs tied to an exposed girder that made up the building's structure. Her arms were tied loosely behind her back, though apparently secure enough to keep Sek satisfied.
"You have the mouth your reputation suggests, too. But you picked the wrong target today." Sek smiled, exposing all of his teeth. He probably thought it was threatening, but Regia thought it looked silly.
"If you say so, Sek. Any chance you could let me down? All the blood is rushing to my head, and I could use a nap. After I finish with you, of course."
Sek's eyes flashed angrily, and Regia could see him restraining himself. A little more needling, and she'd have just the opening she needed.
"Boss, you want some help with her?" This time it was Sek's bodyguard, a massive man with bulging muscles. Regia filed him away as a potential threat, but he didn't seem bright enough to worry about immediately.
"No, I'll handle this. Now, where were we when I caught you?" Sek drew a long knife from his coat and held it to her throat. "Just think of the boost to my reputation! Me, Sek Talen, the man who killed the scourge of the underworld! The followers will flock to me."
"If you say so, ugly. I don't know why anyone would follow a mug like that, though. Do they not have mirrors down here, or what?"
"Enough!" Sek was getting angrier and angrier. Just what she needed. "Still your tongue before I cut it out, wench!"
"Ooh, that's a fancy word! Did you learn that from your buddy there? It looks like he has you beat in the brains department. Maybe he should be running the show."
"I said enough!" Sek reached for her mouth in an effort to grab her tongue, but was in no way expecting her reaction. With a quick snap, she bit his hand between the thumb and index finger, drawing blood and causing him to drop the knife.
As it started to fall, Regia jerked her head forward, faster than anyone could react. She caught the handle of the knife in her teeth, then flipped it upward. It whistled through the air and severed the rope holding her up, causing her to fall to the ground. Rather than landing on her head, however, she did a cartwheel in the air and landed on her legs. Now free of gravity, she quickly unbound her hands and caught the knife as it fell to the ground, all in the span of a few seconds.
Sek was caught completely unprepared. Still grasping his hand, he stumbled backwards onto his tailbone, as the assassin landed perfectly in front of him. His bodyguard was quicker than she gave him credit for; as she landed, she saw he had managed to draw his weapon and aim it at her. With another lightning quick motion, however, she had thrown the knife again. This time, it landed between the bodyguard's eyes and stayed there.
"Now, Sek, what was that about cutting out tongues?" Regia shook off the last of the rope still hanging onto her legs, then took a stride toward the wounded crime boss.
"Wait- wait a minute, now, we can work this out! I can pay you!" Sek's voice shook as he scrambled backward on his arms in a futile attempt to distance himself from the assassin. Regia noticed him trying to reach inside his coat, presumably for another weapon.
"It's too late for that, Sek. It was too late for that the minute your thugs knocked me out. By the Warp, it was over the second I said yes to the contract. You just didn't know it yet."
"No, it's over now!" Apparently the fear was an act; Sek pulled a small laspistol from his coat and pointed it at her head. Regia simply laughed, and this time, the fear on Sek's face was more genuine.
"Let me tell you something, Sek. You've heard all the stories about Steeltown, right? Twelve enforcers for the 9th District dead, in less than twenty minutes. Every single one of them had more weapons on his person than you could fit on a battalion of guardsmen. And I still beat him." Regia's smile widened as Sek's hands began to shake. "Now what makes you think that a simple little pistol is going to stop me?"
Sek fired, but his shaking hands caused the shot to blow past her left ear. With a deft step, Regia moved closer, and then disarmed the man with a quick twist of his wrist. As the gun began to fall, she grabbed it as easily as she had taken the knife earlier and held it to his head.
"I would apologize for this, Sek, but it would be insincere. So I'm just going to say this: I hope the Emperor is more merciful than I am." She squeezed the trigger, and Sek's body slumped to the floor, his grotesque eyes staring blankly at the wall. Regia took a quick look around, found the door, and strode out as casual as could be.
LATER
"Good news, Simon!"
As Regia came home to the dwelling she shared with her adoptive father and mentor, she noticed something amiss. The door was ajar, something Simon would never allow, and she saw a silhouette in the window. Taller and thinner than Simon.
She pulled the gun she had taken from Sek. She didn't like using the unfamiliar weapon, but it was what she had on her, so it would do. She pushed the door open, as silently as possible, the gun held in front of her. She rounded the corner, and saw an unexpected sight.
Simon was sitting at a table, facing the man she had seen in silhouette. He wore a billowing cloak, its folds covered with trappings of faith. He turned around, having somehow heard her, and she saw an incredibly nondescript face, its expression completely neutral.
"Regia. Glad you could join us. How's Sek?" Simon's voice was reassuring, as always.
"I...don't know that we should talk in front of a stranger, sir." Regia's voice was even, but she kept a hand on her gun, just in case.
"Nonsense, girl, this is an old friend. Now, how is Sek?"
"He's dead, sir. He never saw it coming." The stranger stepped aside, making a way for Regia to take a seat at the table with Simon.
"Please, Miss Kollegros, take a seat. We have business to discuss." Unlike his face, the man's voice was distinctive; strong and filled with conviction. It was absolutely in command, too. The same kind of voice that Simon had used when training her. She took a seat without complaint.
"Regia, this is my old friend, Tarus Dart of the Ordo Hereitcus of His Majesty's Inquisition." The stranger nodded, and Regia went weak in the knees.
The Inquisition was rarely spoken of in the lower levels of Gunmetal City, for fear that it would somehow attract their attention. Still, she had heard of them; the fearless fighters of the alien and the heretic. Even a whiff of heresy could bring down their wrath, and they spared no one. Why would this man want to speak with her? And why did he know Simon?
"I know you have many questions, but be silent for now." Regia nodded at the command. "Good. I have need of an assassin, and an apprentice of Simon is sure to be of great skill."
"But for what, sir?" She unconsciously found herself using the same honorific she used for Simon. She also failed to notice this.
"I cannot tell you that now. Even here is not safe from my enemies." He took a suspicious glance around, then looked at her and smiled. "I will return soon. When I do so, you must be ready."
"But, sir, I have to know more! There are things I have to do, that I have to know-"
The Inquisitor's glare could have stopped a daemon in its tracks.
"Miss Kollegros, I do not have time for your petty concerns. My responsibility is to this Sector, and the entire Imperium. I have need of your assistance, and you will assist me. It is that simple."
Regia wanted to protest, but Simon put a hand on her arm, silent admonishment in his eyes. She fell silent instead, though she glared at the Inquisitor.
He smirked, the sort of grin one gets when remembering their younger days.
"I should return in two months. Be prepared." As he went to leave, he made one last turn toward Simon. "And it was good to see you again, old friend." With the final remark, he left.
Regia was silent for a moment, but the silence was too uncomfortable to maintain for long.
"You know an Inquisitor? Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you prepare me for something like this? And how can you let him walk all over me like that?"
Simon's expression was rueful.
"Tarus is an old friend of mine, from before I ever knew you. He did always have a flair for the dramatic, though, despite his seriousness." Simon smiled, lost in reminiscence for a moment. "If he needs your help, it must be important. You will assist him."
"But sir!"
"No buts, Regia. He is an Inquisitor, the highest servant of the Inquisition. If he needs your help, you are to drop everything and do it."
Regia sighed in resignation. She was clearly not going to win this argument. She never did against Simon.
"So what do you think he wants?"
"My dear, I have no idea."