Nico stood in the middle of the field shocked, eyes widening at the sight before him. Barrels flew off the wagons and sped down into the field. Some tumbled over and cracked, leaving red jelly spilled all over the ground. Other barrels gained speed as they rolled towards the group of Hounds. Some even hit large rocks in the field and launched into the air, raining down on the already panicking thugs.

He shielded his face as a barrel exploded nearby, jelly and burning wood fragments pelting his arms. His ears rang from the blast, but through it, he heard a low, dangerous chuckle. He spun around, searching through the crowd and smoke. He heard that voice before. A flash of silver shot across the field. Nico spun his head to follow it but as fast as it appeared, it disappeared in the smoke. He tried to figure out where the voice was coming from when a loud scream from behind caught his attention.

Nico turned around to see a Hound charging at him with an axe in his hand. The Hound jumped over burning bodies, cutting through the tall grass. "This is your fault!" The Hound screamed. "I will kill-." A sudden arrow through his throat finished his sentence for him.

Watching the Hound drop to the ground instantly shook off his shock as Nico sprang into action. He kicked over a cracked barrel near him and lit the leaking contents with a swing of his flaming sword. The barrel rolled a minute before exploding, buying him space as men scattered from the blast. Arrows continued whistling through the smoke, picking off thugs trying to flank Nico's position.

The battle ended as quickly as it began. Smoke started disappearing into the night as the fires began dying down. The remaining Hounds either ran into the woods screaming or laid dead in the field. Demut's wolves whimpered as they dragged his lifeless body back into the woods.

Nico sauntered over to Rosa, she brushed away stray locks of red hair out of her eyes as he approached. Her tunic was covered in dirt, matching Nico's minus the blood, but she didn't seem to notice. He waved to catch her attention, making sure she knew he wasn't her next target. She smiled when she saw him.

"Rosa, you're incredible! Standing on this wagon makes me feel like I'm standing in front of a commander leading her army." Nico exclaimed as he bent down, taking a moment to catch his breath. "Where did you learn to do all this?"

"What? Oh, you mean the bow? Let's just say I had a good teacher," Rosa replied as she turned, hiding her face.

"I've only seen the Doge's Royal guard have such accuracy as you do," Nico said. "But the barrels, I mean. Where did you even get the idea?"

Rosa shrugged. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. We were outnumbered and I knew they were never going to honor the Holmgang, so I had to even the odds somehow."

"You did more than even the odds." Nico shook his head in amazement. "You completely turned destiny to our favor."

"Why thank you." Rosa dipped into a playful curtsy, then straightened. "Sorry about using the barrels, I know you were supposed to bring them all back."

Nico shrugged. "I don't think the Council will be mad that we had to use them. The Hounds didn't get them, that's the important part. Being that I'm on thin ice as it is, I'd probably be executed if I were to lose these."

"So, what now? It is still dark, and your guards are tired." She pointed at the guards. They were in the field picking up anything useful as they checked the bodies for anyone faking death. All of them looked tired, shoulders hanging low. "Do we head to Venice, or—"

A flash of silver darted across the camp. Nico saw it but only a second too late to react. The wagon Rosa was standing on creaked. He tilted his head to the left, hand tightening around his sword hilt as he looked past Rosa's head. There stood a hooded figure behind her, tall and muscular, holding a long silver dagger. Based on what facial features he could see, this hooded figure was a woman. Her cold gray eyes settled on Nico as her blade settled against Rosa's back.

But before anyone could say a word, Rosa turned.

She swung her bow hard, ready to smack anything in her swinging radius. The hooded woman's reaction was unearthly as she dropped to the floor, the bow making a loud swish as it swung past. Nico couldn't even blink before the mystery woman was back up again and grabbed Rosa. She pulled out her dagger and rested it on Rosa's neck.

"Well, well. If it isn't Nico Cornaro."

Nico's eyes narrowed. He knew that voice.

"You- You were at the Doge's Palace."

"Guilty as charged." The woman nodded her head. "You Sir, having been keeping me busy these last couple days. Now, If you want this pretty girl to live, have your men load the remaining barrels into this wagon. Don't do what I say and I'll make sure to finish what we started in Venice."

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Nico shifted into a defensive stance, raising his sword. "Why don't you come down and finish me now? If I remember right, I was the one about to finish you."

"Love to, but busy. Now start loading." She moved her dagger slightly, causing a small cut on Rosa's neck.

Nico put his sword away and raised his hands in surrender. This isn't good.

"Hey! Rude hooded lady!" Rosa yelled out, her face red. Her tone was sharp. "Who do you think you are letting him decide my fate!"

Rosa followed up her statement with a quick thrash of the back of her head into the women's chin. As both of them moved back, Rosa reached down and clamped her teeth in the woman's hand. The woman screamed and snatched her hand back, allowing Rosa to break free from her grip. The woman stumbled back in pain, not prepared for Rosa's foot to fly in and make contact with her chest and pushed her off the wagon. As the woman left backwards, she grabbed Rosa's foot and pulled Rosa off the wagon with her.

Nico rushed over as both girls hit the ground behind the wagon. He could only see legs and dirt kick up in the air from the space between the wheels as he ran up. When he wrapped around the wagon both girls were standing fifteen feet apart, hands up and ready to strike. The woman's hood had fallen down and her face mask was torn off, probably by Rosa.

Now Nico could see her face properly. She was young, around his age, probably twenty-two or three. Her violet colored eyes were filled with anger as she tucked back dark red hair behind her eyes. She held up two daggers, ready to cut his head off if he wasn't paying attention. Under different circumstances he might have invited her to dinner. Dinner? Nico suddenly remembered he didn't get to eat dinner, that annoying wolf interrupted him. He noticed something odd though, her hands. They were black. Not painted black or wearing black gloves, her skin was black, almost dead looking. That was the signature sign of a Reaper, the most dangerous group of assassins ever. Known for being able to easily disappear, even in a room full of people.

Nico stopped his random thoughts, he had to focus. He pulled out his sword and instantly engulfed it in flames. The fight with Demut was taxing, keeping the flames lit was already starting to cause him to breath hard. It didn't matter though, He was determined to keep his new friend safe. "Touch her again and I will make sure that even your bones will burn away, leaving nothing left."

Nobody moved. The wind died. Rosa stood ready, staring at her attacker. The assassin stared at both of them but Nico never broke his stare, never blinked. Time itself slowed down, Nico's mind raced as he anticipated every move she could make. Then the assassin made the only move that would keep her alive; she ran.

Dust covered her tracks and she ran away, darting around the wagon. Nico instincts took over as he moved before he could even tell his body. He chased after her, only noticing Rosa's face for a split second. She looked frozen in place, her face white like she saw a ghost. But he couldn't stop to help her now, her attacker was on the run. He turned the corner only to immediately hard stop. He slid in the dirt and stopped as a dagger flew past, missing Nico's nose by only an inch.

He took a second before snapping back and turning towards where the dagger had flown from, except no one was there. The assassin was gone. Only dust under the moonlight. Guess their reputation wasn't just gossip. But Nico couldn't give up. He knew she wouldn't quit now. She had a job to do, and Reapers aren't known for quitting or failing. As he looked around something caught his eye. Dust kicked up into the air but there was no wind to cause it. Then again. More dust but farther away. As if something was there. Nico finally connected the dots. She never left.

He stood there, waiting. The moonlight and scattered torches wasn't much but enough for him to see the ground. Another. He slowly walked up to the kicked up dust, his sword leading. At the moment the five guards approached, clearly confused at what Nico was doing.

"There is an assassin hidden somewhere in the camp!" Nico called out, eyes focused forward the whole time. "Have your swords out and help me search."

The guards spread out and searched, swords out and ready. Nico was circling around the middle wagon when he heard a loud thump from behind. Instantly he turned around and looked around the corner. The sound came from one of the guard's bodies hitting the ground, dead. Nico wiped the sweat rolling down his face, realizing that him asking these soldiers to help just sentenced them to death. He quickly scanned the ground around the dead guard, looking for any movement.

There. To his left dust moved around. He didn't turn, pretending that he was still looking around in front of him. He felt the movement this time, the air changing like someone just darted around him. He focused as hard as he could, listening to even sound and every inch of ground around him.

The fires around him were crackling and soldiers' armor clanked as they walked around the other wagons. He tuned out everything he could until finally he heard it. A breath right behind him.

Instincts took over again as he instantly flinched. He swung his right elbow back and smack! The flying elbow made contact with something, even though he couldn't see anything behind him. The smack was followed by a thump from the ground, dust kicking up by something falling down. Then the loud ouch. Nico stood in disbelief as suddenly there was the assassin on the ground, holding her nose.

"Enough," he sighed with a heavy breath, his sword only a foot away from her face. "This fight is over."

The assassin held her nose to stop the blood starting to come out. "You got lucky." she growled.

"Call it what you want," Nico said. "You've lost. Now, we're going to have a little talk about why you're really here, and who hired you." He pressed the sword closer, the assassin stiffening. "Because you and I both know this was never really about the cargo."

The assassin just glared at him, eyes burning with rage, but she didn't deny it.

"Wait!" Rosa cried out, running forward and placing herself between Nico's sword and the assassin. "Stop Nico! She's my sister, Mary." Her voice faltered, but her eyes never left the woman she claimed to be family.

"Your... sister?" Nico blinked in confusion, lowering his sword slightly. He studied the assassin – this Mary – more closely. The resemblance was there; they shared the same fierce determination in their eyes, the same stubborn set of their mouths. But still, he hesitated. Nico gripped his sword tighter, torn between confusion and anger. This woman had tried to kill him. Twice. How could he trust her now?