I looked up from the dinner plates I was washing.
Oh-ho~ Who’s that over there, looking my way with such weak and un-hidden killing intent? And he’s on a rooftop, in plain sight no less. Do they take me for an idiot? I would say that he’s been sent to kill me or something, but that would make him an assassin. And calling him an assassin would be a grave insult to all other assassins. Did they send a new guy after me or something?
Eh, it doesn’t matter. If someone’s trying to kill me, I might as well respond in kind, no?
However, the killing intent disappeared without warning. Huh? I look more closely at the “assassin”, and see him shaking up on his rooftop, his eyes wide.
Wow. I guess he’s not here to try and kill me after all.
But why was he here in the first place? I don’t think anyone would want to kill me at the moment, given that there’s nothing around me that would warrant such a thing. And, given how only three or four people have even the slightest inkling to my true power level, I don’t think it’s about that either. Besides, who the hell would send such a poor assassin to try and kill me, even knowing how powerful I am?
No, I think this is about something else. Or, someone else.
Sigh~ Am I going to have to do something about this?
Or is it going to work itself out?
Well, knowing my luck, I’ll end up getting involved whether I want to or not. It’s kinda what happens with me.
I quietly observe as the assassin sits on the rooftop for a few minutes longer, before getting up and packing up the gun he would have used to kill me. Seeing it in profile, I recognized it’s make and manufacturer.
The “assassin” was going to try and kill me with a Dursten-Feuer railgun set to 50 caliber. Yeah, that removes any doubt in my mind—the person who sent this amateur doesn’t know how strong I am. Such a firearm would have barely counted as tickling me. At my level, only weapons infused with sufficient amount of Mana energy can harm me. Meaning, that any would-be assassin has to be at my own power level, or at least equipped with a legendary artifact. Of course, the schmuck on the rooftop has neither.
Although, his weapon would indicate that whatever group sent his has quite the funding. Last time I checked, that rail-gun cost about as much as a medium-sized corvette. Those don’t come cheaply, you know.
I’m thinking that I already know who’s behind this little joke.
It might be time for Ussen’s father and I to meet, face to face. Otherwise, he might get too cocky.
Ah, but first, I have some other stuff to do. I want to hear Ussen’s side of the story before acting rashly. And who knows, I might even be wrong, and all this is about something else. I’d hate to do something that blows up in my face later.
Right, so I have to find Ussen, get him to talk to me, and do whatever else I have to. Preferably, I’d like to have this done before morning. I still have to meet the others in Ashenload to finish that quest tomorrow.
I sit down in front of my computer, and crack my knuckles. Then, I start combing through the city data for mentions or whispers of Ussen while also going through the surveillance archives in order to find him.
Let’s see—where was he earlier today?
Ah, there. Found you. Now to just retrace his steps.
Ten minutes later, I got up from the computer. It looks like he got home somehow after finishing his job and holed up in his room. However, he soon left through the window and escaped into a seedier part of the city. Looks like I’ll need to wear something a bit sturdier and more intimidating than the PJ’s I have on now. And maybe also arm myself heavily. I don’t know what it is, but strange things always happen when I enter that part of the city. Attempted muggings, kidnapping rings, robberies happing in front of me, or that one time where a grenade just freaking fell from the sky and exploded next to me—Nothing normal happens there. So, yeah. I’m arming myself.
I also put on my Halo protective gear, which consisted of loose pants tucked into knee-high boots, a shirt with a black vest over it, a small jacket, and some convenient belt loops. There were also some gloves. There were some luminescent yellow lines on the outfit, which were basically areas for Mana to flow. The whole outfit has a protective field around it, powered by my own Mana. It can take some fairly heavy blows.
I also grabbed a small satchel and a spare katana, and hung them from the belt loops.
The goal here is to be as conspicuous as possible. By wearing some fairly high-end protective gear, and a fairly good nano-blade katana, I stand out quite a bit. Pair that with my face and body (or lack thereof), and I’m kinda noticeable.
There are a few reasons I want to stand out.
The first is actually a bit counter-intuitive. You see so many people walking into the shadier parts of the city with cloak and dagger, completely covered and wearing masks and the like. I can tell you that those people are the first to be targeted by thugs and muggers. It shows that you’re uncomfortable, which is entirely the wrong thing to come across as. You want to swagger into places like that, make it seem like it’s nothing to you. People will assume that A: you belong there, or B: you aren’t someone to be trifled with.
The second reason is because I want Ussen to see me coming. I’m banking on his familiarity with me to keep him from running.
And the third is because I look badass with the gear on. What? It’s true.
After checking over everything a final time, I left my apartment, and started heading to where Ussen is.
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Meanwhile, Ussen was simply wandering around the Crypt district of Jor. It has the dubious reputation of being disreputable, and a place where trouble tends to find you. Ussen couldn’t feel more at home though. Most of his early years were spent here, learning the in’s and out’s of the darker trades. A part of him wished he didn’t feel so comfortable in that sort of place, though.
He sighed, and kicked at a small rock on the ground. It bounced off down the narrow and dimly lit street. Every so often, the yellowed lights of a bar or tavern broke up the darkness, and the sounds of it’s patrons echoed through the otherwise quiet night. And if it isn’t a bar disrupting the peace, it’s a mugging in the alleys, or the pleasure houses masquerading as fine restaurants and wine shops.
Actually, Ussen didn’t think there was a single bit of peace in the Crypt district during the night. Rather, daytime was when things got…tame.
In the back of his mind, he wondered about what could have been, instead of what is. Those thoughts were interrupted fairly quickly though, by a woman’s shout in one of the alleyways, and the laughter of several grown men.
Ussen paused for a second, hesitating. He began to take a step forward, away from the alley. Then he stopped and turned around, a look of disgust and loathing adorning his face. He walked into the alleyway, immediately taking in the sight of a lone woman trying in vain to fend off three big and burly men. They had her backed up against a wall, and were pretty much just toying with the poor woman now, who had a look of intense fear on her face—a distinct counterpoint to the lust and greed in the eyes of the men.
Ussen walked right up to the men without them noticing, so intent were they on toying with their prey. Without any preamble, he went into his Awakening, and swiped a hand through the first man’s chest.
His hand simply phased through the man, not stopping nor showing any record of its passage. It came back out with a glowing and wiggling…thing held in his grip. Ussen immediately tossed the wispy object into his mouth, and ate it.
This action caused something strange to happen to the man. His eyes immediately went glassy, and his mouth dropped open. He just…stopped, frozen in place. He was breathing, and indeed his heart was still beating, but nothing else was happening. The other men continued harassing the woman, and tearing at her clothes. They hadn’t yet noticed that one among their number had ceased to function.
Ussen stepped around the still man, and moved on to the next one. A similar motion to the first brought this man to a halt as well, except the glowing cloud like substance from this one was a dark and cloudy grey, as opposed to the light grey of the other one. Ussen tossed this one to the ground, where it slowly dissipated.
“What the fuck? Tom? Freddy?” Said the last man, who had finally noticed that something was wrong. Before he could do anything else though, Ussen’s hand swiped through his chest as well, leaving three men without their souls.
Ussen exited his Awakened form, and walked over to the three men. Considering them for a moment, he called back over his shoulder.
“Go home, miss. No one will save you next time.”
He heard quiet sobbing as the woman got up, and ran out of the alley. He pointedly ignored the puddle of liquid that had appeared where she had been standing.
Instead, he went up to the men, and fished out a line of wire held between two handles.
A minute later, he walked out of the alleyway, his mood having taken a distinct turn for the worse. He wasn’t sure if it was because of what he had to do, or the fact that he was capable of doing it in the first place.
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He kicked at another rock in the street, and it clattered away from him in a confused and wobbly fashion. He shook his head and turned around, walking in the opposite direction. This brought Ussen past the Midnight Markets—an open air trades ground set up in the Crypt district’s squares. The catch was that the markets were only open during the night, and were frequented by people looking for things not normally available in a more…. respectable market.
Ussen watched the crowds in the square. Most of them had weapons by their sides, and some sort of protective gear. Only a precious few were wearing masks, or covering all of themselves up. Ussen noticed that the pickpockets were shadowing those with masks on, choosing them as prime targets. Ussen almost laughed at that. Seeing people new to the Crypts always had its entertainment value, in a dark sort of way.
Of course, he didn’t actually laugh. His mood was still too foul for that.
He sat down on a staircase off to the side, and decided to watch as the people passed by. Watching others always helped Ussen. It kept him from thinking about his own situation, and his past experiences. It was therapeutic watching others go about their relatively easy lives.
Because he was watching the crowds, there was no way for him to miss it.
All the sudden, it seemed like the people down in the market parted, making space for something, or someone. Ussen could see fear in the eyes of some people, but couldn’t see the source of it. At least, until a small and petite person stepped into his line of sight—one that was shockingly familiar. And behind her…Ussen’s eyes widened, and he immediately got up. Because, behind his friend Revy, thugs from the Crypt boss’s group were walking, silently glaring at her.
Ussen passed through the crowd, and walked straight through the empty space towards Revy. Grabbing her hand, he kept walking, plunging straight into the other side of the crowd. Not caring about the people he was jostling, he wanted to get Revy out of there as soon as possible. She wasn’t equipped to deal with the underworld like he was.
Practically running, he almost didn’t care if Revy couldn’t keep up. He didn’t think about that. It didn’t matter anyways, since she was keeping to his pace with shocking ease. But again, Ussen wasn’t paying attention to that, wasn’t thinking about it. He was focusing on only one thing—getting Revy out of the Crypts.
And when he finally did, and stopped well outside the Crypt’s borders, he rounded on Revy.
“What the hell are you thinking?! Don’t you know how dangerous that place is?!” He shouted, not caring that it was night, and people were probably sleeping outside of the Crypts.
Revy, simply tilted her head in a confused manor, and stared at Ussen with her blank expression.
“Yes? Came for you. Questions.” She said succinctly.
“You know how dangerous it is, and yet you still go?!” Said Ussen, still yelling at Revy. He didn’t even consider the fact that apparently Revy knew exactly where to find him, and has questions about something so pressing that she would go into the Crypts.
“Yes?” Answered Revy once more. “Have questions about earlier.”
“Ugh! Look, we have to get you home, before anyone decides to follow you, okay?” He said, speaking slower than normal. If he were to calm down, Ussen would have noticed that Revy was getting a bit annoyed at this point. Just a little annoyed...
She crossed her arms, and stared straight at Ussen.
“We need…to….” , began Ussen. “Are you…glaring at me?” He asked, sounding genuinely perturbed.
Revy nodded.
“Being stupid. I have questions.” She said, just a hint of crossness entering her voice.
“Can it wait?” Asked Ussen. “We need to get out of here.”
Revy sighed, before reluctantly nodding. She felt that Ussen wouldn’t relax until he perceived that they were safe. Never mind the fact that the space around Revy was among the safest in the city. Well, granted, Ussen had no way of knowing that.
So, Revy lead Ussen back to her house. Ussen realized where they were going about halfway into the journey there. He’d been in Revy’s apartment before, but not in any official way.
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I opened the apartment door, and ushered Ussen into my home. He was looking kinda fidgety for some reason, while I brought him to my couch and sat him down. Taking care to rearrange my sword, I sat down in the chair opposite the couch. There’s a coffee table between us with some of my books still on it, and I could tell that Ussen was eyeing their titles. I cleared my throat, and grabbed his attention again.
“Father threatening you?” I asked, getting straight to the point.
Ussen jerked in his seat, a look of shock on his face. Ah, I’ll take that as a yes.
“How…do you know about that, Revy?” He asked, a look of disbelief still on his face.
I shrugged.
“Rooftop assassin. Hard to miss.”
“But…How?” He asked.
I just shrugged again. There’s no way I’m explaining everything to him. While I want my friends to have a basic idea of my strength, I don’t want them to know anything that might end up harming themselves, or our relationships with each other.
There was a silence for a while. Ussen’s fidgeting got worse the longer we went without speaking.
Finally, he broke it.
“Revy…What are you? Really?”
Huh, such an odd, if a somewhat expected question. There not really a good answer to it either, so I replied as best I could given my own difficulties and want for secrecy.
“Physical interpretation of phantasmal being.” I said, very plainly. Ussen looked extremely perplexed.
Well, I didn’t lie, right? I only made things as vague and obscure as possible.
Ussen cleared his throat.
“Well, if that’s all, then I’ll be going. My father doesn’t like it when I’m gone for too long. Thank you for…”
I pointed at him, cutting him off.
“Can handle father if want.” I said.
“Wait, what do you…”
“Can talk him. Father stop.”
“No, Revy. My father is not a man to be trifled with, okay? He’s far, far too strong for someone who tested as only a 1st divide Awakening. He’s too strong for me, and I’m really a 7th divide.” Explained Ussen, as if to a child. I do not think he gets it yet.
“What divide is father at?” I asked.
“…10th. He’s at the higher end of the 10th divide, Revy. There’s nothing I can do about any of this.”
I smile sweetly. Only at the 10th? This’ll be better than I thought it would be. Granted, assassins tend to have striking power equal to a whole divide above them, with the trade off being that they typically have weak defenses. So much Mana gets pulled into their attacks, that they have very little to spare for shielding.
“Wait here.” I tell Ussen. “Can handle this.”
He immediately gets up.
“No! Didn’t you listen to me?! My father’s not someone you can go up against!”
“Fine then. You come along.”
“That’s not what I’m saying, Revy!”
I got up regardless, and walked to the door.
“No, wait, Revy!”
I opened the door, and walked outside. It’s kind of funny. I think this is the most I’ve ever heard Ussen speak. Normally, he puts up a strong and silent front. Probably as a result of his upbringing. I can understand that.
“Revy, wait! This isn’t a good idea!” He called out while coming up behind me.
I ignored his ignorant pleas, and continued walking. Let’s see—Ussen’s house is…that way, right?
“House that direction, no?” I ask.
“Er, no! It’s on the other side of the town!”
Right, so it is in that direction. For an assassin trainee, you’d think Ussen would be a better liar.
I’ll spare you the details about the rest of the walk, since it was mostly just Ussen attempting to plead with me. I’m touched that he doesn’t wish to see me harmed, but you’d think he’d have gotten the hint by now. I guess people just put too much stock in the measurements taken upon Awakening—especially given how fool-proof they’re supposed to be. The fact that I’m stronger than I appear to be must not have crossed his mind at all. I don’t blame him. After all, I did spend years trying to appear as powerless and harmless as possible in order to live as normal a life as possible.
It’s only when my normalcy is threatened that I pull out the stops, and take true action. Like right now. I take slight exception to having a rail-gun pointed at my head, no matter how little damage I would have taken. It’s the principle of the matter, you know?
Eventually, Ussen’s family estate comes into view. I count at least fifteen guards, and quite a few security measures. I stop for a moment, drafting a plan of attack.
Ussen speaks up behind me.
“Don’t you see how many guards there are? All are at least at the 5th divide. Just go back home Revy—I’ll be fine. I’m okay with doing what my father tells me to, alright?”
I turn back to him, one eyebrow raised.
“Okay with killing?” I ask.
Ussen falters. I guess he’s not to that point yet, then. All assassins have to get there, but I believe his father’s going about it the wrong way. For one, he’s just been telling Ussen to go kill a target. I don’t think he’s ever taught Ussen detachment techniques, or compartmentalization.
My guess is that Ussen’s father is a natural born killer, and thus never had to learn those things himself. He might assume Ussen’s like him, or the fact that Ussen has a conscious never even occurred to him.
Bah, it doesn’t matter. All that matters is that he’s had a rail-gun pointed towards me.
“Don’t worry.” I said. “Killing is okay.”
And so I walked past the fence of Ussen’s home. Seeing five guards immediately snap to attention, and level various weapons at me, I smiled. It’s been so long since I could vent like this.
I drew my katana, and held it off to the side. The shields on my Halo protective gear were cranked all the way up. A shimmering yellow circle appeared over my head, a side effect of the protective gear’s intense shield output that had given the brand its name. Of course, that halo is normally green, but I’d made a few…adjustments to the gear.
The men, seeing that I was acting in a hostile manner, attacked. They’re well-trained, it seems. If a little weak. While they were running towards me with swords and daggers at the ready, I simply walked towards them, my own katana held away from my body in a ready position.
The men reached me at about the same time. I could hear Ussen yelling behind me, telling the men to not harm me. How sweet. He should be more worried about the guards though.
Three swords descended on me at the same time, from three different points before me. So, I did the sensible thing and took a step closer to the men, deflecting only the middle sword with a fluid parry. The other two were blocked by reinforcing my shield at those impact points. Following through with the parry, I swiped with my sword. The guard’s were in no position to block a high cut, with their swords down near the ground, so my katana sheered through their own protective shields and throats with ease. The three of them fell with a wet gurgle, and I eyed the other two guards—one of whom was staring at me with fear, and the other calling for backup. Ussen’s fallen silent behind me.
I continue walking forward.
“Want to speak with leader.” I call out in a clear and childish voice, belaying the violence I’d just committed.
“The likes of you don’t get to see him!” One of the guards called out.
I sigh, and begin walking calmly towards the group of guards who had just arrived. Please, please attack. And please be at least a little strong. Unfortunately, given the way these guards are shifting nervously, I don’t think any of them would be even a moderate challenge.
“I want to see leader.” I said.
Fortunately, it seems that Ussen’s father noticed the deaths on his property, as a middle aged man walked out the house’s front door. I could tell that he had knives on various points of his body, and an extremely well hidden killing intent roiled off him like a dense cloud. I’m sure that I’m the only one here able to notice it.
“Are you one of my son’s friends?” Asked the man with a disarming smile. “Just perfect. And here I was thinking of teaching him a lesson for going off on his own, when you show up on my doorstep, and kill three of my men.”
“However, weren’t you just a piddling 1st divide Awakener? You must have had quite the breakthrough to stand against my men. No matter. I’m afraid that I must set an example. No hard feelings, my dear?”
I smiled sweetly at him.
“No hard feelings? I like.”
“Oh! Are you making a joke, my dear girl? I’m afraid I do not quite understand.”
“Kill men, no hard feelings?” I say, that smile still on my face.
“Ah, you see, that’s not how this works. Rather, I hope you don’t have any hard feelings about me killing you.” He replied, before slamming his killing intent into me, and palming a cruel looking dagger. I think that’s one made for flaying? Oh well, it doesn’t matter.
Because, his killing intent is far too weak. It doesn’t do anything to me, though the guards are shaking in their boots. No, I’m not grinning anymore. This isn’t any fun at all.
Heedless of the killing intent, I take a solid step towards Ussen’s father.
“Oh? You can still walk? You must have hidden quite a bit of strength somehow.” He commented. He must not be able to see my eyes—my hair must be covering them.
Ah, you know what? Fuck it all.
I activated my Awakening.
And shattered his weak killing intent. Did you know that killing intent’s a type of domain? And do you know what type of Awakening rules domains? Mine.
“What the?” Said Ussen’s father, seeing the manifestation of his killing intent unravel before him.
I take another step towards him, and he sees my eyes. Or, rather, the single bright blue eye, almost glowing while the other retained it’s moss-green color. And I suppose he saw the anger in that eye.
“Sent assassin after me.” I say, taking another step.
“Wha…”
“Don’t want it happen again.” Another step.
I could faintly feel my own domains dimly manifesting themselves, their power pushing through my control ever so slightly. I reigned in control.
“Do. You. Understand?” I ask Ussen’s father.