Another day, another shekel, another assignment. This time the Khatta was given an odd double assignment. The first half was to deal with a notorious bully that was scaring customers for some obscure bar. Since the target was going to be troublesome, Galand would be given a partner: a black Skreek known as Flicker, a more experienced guild-member who had earned a small reputation for always completing a job.

The meeting place for the Khatta and the Skreek was arranged to be in the sewers which connected to the Warrens: a web of passageways that wove their way from Underside all the way back to the surface of the island. For once, Skye didn't even have to transport the Khatta up; he simply walked. The smell left something to be desired, and the feeling of always being watched from something in the water left a certain taste of unease during the trip.

Equally as uneasy was the second half of the assignment. After Flicker and "Ashes" took down Grunt the Jupani… Ashes was to kill Flicker by slipping a pill into his drink. Flicker had apparently also earned a reputation for getting slocked at the Three Thieves after an assignment and "talking too much".

If one were to know where to look, one might see, standing in a darkened spot of the treatment plant, a flash of gray fur amidst a black cloak. Ashes, his ears slightly flattened against the noise, waits patiently, eyes scanning the area for any signs of the Skreek he is to meet.

Water sloshes noisily, and the stench is thick in here. Amazing how much filth the citizens of Rephidim produce…

Ashes doesn't seem to mind too much. If he does, his stance and expression betray no hint of discord… no hint of anything other than calm, cool serenity. Hands folded in the sleeves of his robes, he stands and waits, outwardly seeming to be oblivious to all around him, lost in thought.

A flash of shadow catches the Khatta's eye. He was lucky to spot it… but someone who is extremely good at sneaking seems to be drawing close.

Fingers find the hilts of daggers in their wrist sheaths beneath his robes, but do not reveal the blades as yet. The odd gray Khatta turns to face the one who approaches him. His calm blue-gray eyes look directly at the newcomer, unwavering and unblinking.

The new arrival freezes… and then the glowing light of the room reflects off of a mouthful of grinning rodent teeth. "Good reflexes… and good eyes. I can see why the Faceless Men like you." A midnight black figure steps out from the shadows. An obsidian furred Skreek in midnight blue robes grins at Ashes; his hands sport claws that glint like… metal? "Ashes, I presume?"

In response, Ashes offers a slight bow from the waist, his eyes never leaving the rodent, and his hands still folded before him. Straightening up, he says in his cool, neutral voice, "I am. And you would be Flicker?"

"That I be," the Skreek answers. He has one blue eye and one brown eye. The blue one looks the Khatta up and down as if sizing him up. "You've been given instructions, correct?"

Ashes nods, replying, "We are to educate a Jupani, name of Grunt. Grunt uses his bulk and strength to ruin a bar's business. We are to remove that obstacle."

Flicker grins even wider, showing off one golden tooth. "Ah… an iceman. Working with the icemen are always interesting. They either don't blink at all when their guts get spilled out, or melt when they see the first drop of blood… "

Ashes cracks a very slight smile. "Pain is but an illusion of the mind, a distraction from the body to divert the spirit and mind from their tasks. If one refuses to embrace the illusion, it has no power… " As he says this, he draws a dagger from his sleeve and slashes a short, shallow incision on his left forearm. Not enough to really hurt, or impede the use of the arm, but enough to bleed. "And as for the drop of blood… " He raises the bloodied blade to his lips and licks the thin line of blood from its length, then replaces the blade in its sheath, and produces a bandage, wrapping it over the cut.

"Forget I said 'iceman'. Yer a sadist." The Skreek's grin actually widens as he flexes his fingers. Each fingertip has an inch long claw, each one tipped in metal. "But for this line of work, we need sadists, I suppose. Follow me, Ashes… and mind that sticker. This guy ain't yer typical money dodger."

Ashes nods, saying cryptically, "One does not need to be close to bleed another." He looks at the Skreek's hands, and cracks another slight smile. "Nice claws."

Flicker hops over a bit of piping and ducks into a tunnel partially covered by moss and boards. "I like to get close," he chitters.

"I will admit to preferring to do it myself," the Khatta says as he follows, keeping up easily, "However, if this one is truly as difficult as you say, caution is advisable, and the ability to strike from a distance useful."

"Caution loses jobs. I got to where I am by leaping at every chance I got! Remember that!" And to punctuate that remark, the Skreek leaps over a bit of piping and does a back-flip, his claws whistling through the air as he hacks at a phantom opponent.

The Khatta watches with an air of faint amusement, then steps over the piping and continues to follow the Skreek.

The walk is a quiet one for the most part, as the rat seems to be working himself up into 'professional mode'. They continue through the sewers, through tunnels, secret passages, and finally to the base of a ladder.

Ashes asks, his voice a low purr, "We are close?"

The rat tests the rungs of the ladder. "Yeah. The wolfie is probably playing nappie-poo right now. Can you pick a lock?"

Ashes nods. "I have some small skill, though I am not yet a master."

"You'll haveta rely on me then. Don't worry… I always watch out for my partner." The Skreek winks that odd blue eye of his and starts to climb up the ladder.

The Khatta smiles quietly, then follows up a few beats later.

Ashes' companion jumps from shadow to shadow and instructs the Khatta to do the same, as they wind their way down the filthy streets of Darkside and towards a rickety building with boarded up windows. "Just a bit farther."

Ashes follows suit, staying close behind Flicker, keeping a careful eye out to the rear.

Finally, the rat manages to get to a back door, and starts poking at the lock with a metal fingertip. The chitin lock is no match for hard steel and soon the door pops open. Winking again at Ashes, Flicker ducks inside.

The Khatta follows, his face taking on an expression of serene almost-joy as he folds his hands inside his sleeves, fingering his blades, ready to draw them.

Flicker puts a finger to his lips and motions for Ashes to move behind him. The building is almost as grungy on the inside… but it seems that several families live here. Perhaps they can't afford anything else, or perhaps they like living here. The Skreek dashes upstairs silently and starts working on another doorknob on the second floor.

Ashes follows up the steps quietly, eyes and ears scanning the surroundings for signs of anyone noticing them.

*Krik!* The lock relents to Flicker's ministrations and the door opens. Nodding to the Khatta, the rat vanishes inside.

The Khatta slips inside, quietly closing the door behind him. It wouldn't do to have any sounds of struggle heard, after all. He looks about the room a moment before proceeding further.

Flicker raises his nose to the air and sniffs. He points to a curtained doorway and holds his hand down so that it's about waist level. He then points to another staircase, holds his hand up about a foot over his head and then brings his hand down to draw his finger across his throat.

Ashes nods, crouching low and slipping a dagger from his sleeve.

The rat dashes upstairs and then stops suddenly. Moments before Ashes crashes into him, he exhales angrily and kneels down.

Ashes freezes, ears perking for any noise at all, looking at Flicker questioningly.

The rat points down, drawing an invisible line over a stair… or maybe not so invisible. There's a thread there! A tripwire no doubt.

Carefully, Flicker steps over it and continues upwards.

The Khatta nods, and examines the wire, looking to make sure there isn't a backup wire, then follows.

Ashes finds himself in a bedroom with a snoring Jupani curled up in a massive bed. Grinning, the Skreek moves in for the kill…

The Khatta stands where he can get a good angle, and flips a knife up into his hand, poised for throwing should it be required.

Flicker leaps for the bed, and is suddenly caught in the gut as a meaty fist flies out and slams him into a dresser on the wall. An instant later, there's a mountain of very angry, and very awake Jupani… staring… right… at… the Khatta.

Ashes doesn't hesitate, but throws the knife, hard and fast, aiming for the Jupani's heart, then rolls to the side, reaching for the machete-like blade in its spine sheath.

The wolf grabs its blanket and holds it up, catching the weapon with amazing speed. It then hurls the cloth aside and makes a leap for the Khatta, "Die, intruder!"

The cat's claws slip out of their sheaths on his hands and feet, the toe-claws gleaming dimly from the open-toe sandals he wears. He sidesteps the leap, swinging the blade for a slash at his opponent!

The blade manages to cut a gash on the wolf's side… but the wolf also manages to score a blow against the Khatta's ribs, knocking him backwards.

Grunt puts a hand against his side, smearing the blood and growling even deeper now.

Ashes rolls to his feet, openly grinning, his eyes empty save for a kind of hellish glee as he charges Grunt, feinting to one side then dodging to the other, his blade flicking out again.

Moaning, Flicker also starts to rouse himself.

The wolf's luck isn't so good this time as Ashes' blade strikes his arm. A wild punch from the wolf narrowly misses the Khatta's face. If the blow had connected, the Khatta's head probably would not be attached to his neck anymore.

Flicker spits out a mouthful of blood and flexes his fingers, snarling.

The Khatta starts to chuckle softly as he dances about on the balls of his feet, lunging in for a quick slash, then fading back in no set pattern.

The wolf roars, but seems to have the sense to duck when he sees the machete blade whistling towards his head. He uses the brief opening to his advantage and manages to plant a hard punch against the Khatta's jaw. The taste of blood fills Ashes' mouth and he can feel a tooth roll free with his tongue.

Ashes takes a moment to lick some blood from his mouth. "Mmm… delicious." He darts forward again, slashing this time with not only the blade, but with the claws of his other hand, raking them at Grunt's face, then darting back again, ducking when he sees the arm coming.

Around this time, Flicker also leaps into action. His steel claws rake bloody channel's in the wolf's back as Ashes' own knife makes the wound in the wolf's side grow deeper.

Suffering an assault from both sides, Grunt's return blows miss wildly.

The Khatta continues his deadly dance, lunging in to swipe at Grunt's belly with his razor-sharp claws, then darting back with a parting slash of the blade.

Loss of blood and the sheer number of wounds causes the wolf to stumble, and the cat and rat are eager for the opening as they move in and hack at the wolf. With a gurgling sigh… Grunt breathes his last.

Blood is everywhere, although judging from the trickles flowing from the two assassins, it's not all the wolf's.

Ashes gathers up his weapons, wipes them off on the Jupani's bedclothes, and tucks them away, then examines his own wounds, murmuring, "Nice fight."

"Pteaugh." Flicker spits on the corpse. "That could have been cleaner. Maybe there was a tripwire I mi-… " he freezes in mid-sentence and darts his head in the direction of the door, raising his taloned hands as if preparing for a second fight.

The curtain covering the doorway moves slightly.

Ashes ducks his hand inside his robes, producing a small hand-held crossbow pistol that appears to be a "double-barrel" model. He aims it at the door, chest-level, a dagger suddenly appearing in his left hand.

The curtains open and out steps… a Jupani cub. She looks at the wolf, the Skreek, and the Khatta. Her mouth opens up to a scream but no noise comes out.

Flicker relaxes. "Sorry, kid. Yer daddy should have been nicer to strangers."

Ashes stands there, looking at the cub, still holding his weapons. He asks the Skreek, "What do we do with her?"

"Nothin'… " the Skreek answers and walks over the corpse. He brushes past the cub – who dashes away as though the rat would burn her – and then vanishes through the curtain.

The cub takes a hesitant step towards the larger wolf. "D-d-daddy?"

The Khatta shrugs, hides his hardware again, and follows the Skreek.

"DADDY!" the cub screams, her voice trailing off into sobs that weaken as theKhatta walks away.

… And with every step, the Khatta's face grows harder and harder, less andless human. He catches up with Flicker and murmurs, "We should have dispatchedher."

The rat spits another dribble of blood on the ground as he exits the building. The cold night air whistles around him and riffles his robes. "We wasn't paid to. You never take liberties with orders, Ashes. Rule number one. I did once and got notched from the third circle to grunt level." He shakes his head. "Man… Those was the days."

Ashes turns his head to look at the rat. "And what of the rule against witnesses, Flicker? I will admit to not knowing all the rules yet, but that would make sense even to me."

"Sometimes we want to be seen, Ashes." The Skreek ducks into a shadow and wipes his hand against his cloak. "Kids can tell the most frightening stories. The pup'll prolly tell everyone that two demons came in and ate her da', if some slaver doesn't get to her first. The Faceless Men knew he had a kid, prolly… and they didn't tell us to take care of her. They probably had a reason."

"Hmm… I see. Very well." He looks at Flicker. "What do we do now?"

Wiping his mouth, Flicker looks around. "We both need some cleaning up. I know a place where we can lick our wounds. Follow me." and with that the rat darts off down an alleyway and down a sewer pipe.

Ashes follows Flicker, looking around to make sure they're not being followed.

Several minutes later, the pair wind up in a somewhat dry chamber in the sewers. The smell isn't as bad, although there are probably much nicer places to be. "Here we be! Home sweet home. I was able to afford better, not vurra long ago, but then Lassie Luck stopped smiling on poor Flick."

Ashes cracks a small smile. "I've been there before. It's turned around recently, though."

The rat pulls out a rag and starts scraping it across his scratched ribs. "Heh. Grunts don't know real luck. We ain't as strong in the guild as we useta be… but that'll change soon enough."

The Khatta arches an eyebrow. "Oh? How so?"

Flicker points downwards. "That fat lizard Faraon. We showed him who was boss two years ago, when I was a big shot and 'ol Shadowspite stuck a knife in the Astromancer's back. The Temple burned down a lot of that fat lizard's moneypots 'caussa that. It won't take much to get 'em to do it again."

Ashes smiles. "Yes, the Templars seem to be rather excitable, at times."

The feline takes a rag and starts to dab his wounds, asking, "What can you tell me about this Faraon?"

"Is a big fat lizard that's too big for his skin," Flicker hisses. "He tried to frame us once by having one of the Astromancer candidates killed about a year ago… but the worm didn't have proof! Haw!"

As he finishes cleaning his wounds, the Skreek turns to a different type of painkiller, this time a bottle.

Ashes eyes the bottle. "You wouldn't have another of those, would you?"

"Here… first blood, first swig. Save some for me, though." And with that, the Skreek tosses the bottle to the Khatta.

Ashes smiles, grips the bottle around the neck and raises it, taking a good swig of the liquor, then ostensibly wipes the mouth off with his palm, concealing the pill dropped into the vessel.

The tablet seems to vanish the moment it touches the liquid. Flicker doesn't seem to notice as he takes the bottle back. "So what made you decide to get into this line of work. You want to be a hero? Want revenge?"

Ashes leans against the wall, folding his arms. "The truth?"

Swigging a mouthful of the stuff, the rat smirks, "No… I want you lie out your nose after I asked you an honest question. Of course I wanna know the truth."

Ashes smiles slightly. "The truth… I made the wrong set of friends, and this seems the best way to get out of the trouble I got into. As for why I am, as you said, an 'iceman' … one too many women out to make me or break me. No one took who I was very seriously… so… I changed who I was."

The Khatta smiles, a bit beatifically. "Besides… I like the work. The terrified scream of realization, the fervent struggle to cling to what is no longer rightfully theirs, and the sweet surrender of their last gasp… these are my music, my meat and mead… "

"Yer really sick… you know that?" Flicker chitters, swigging another mouthful off the deadly liquid. He stifles a yawn and his eyes droop slightly.

The Khatta chuckles softly, "So are you, my friend. So are you. We all must be a little sick to willingly take another's life… but the difference between you and I is that somehow you still care. I don't."

Flicker yawns again, "There's a difference between being detached and enjoying yer work." He shakes the bottle and peers at it. "Dagh… usually this stuff doesn't get to me until I've swigged half a bottle. Maybe 'ol Grunt hit me harder'n I thought!"

Ashes nods. "You did get hit rather hard – hard enough to go down for a few minutes while I was dancing the blade with him."

Flicker laughs, "Man, I must be getting old. Bah… anyway… where was we?"

Ashes hmms. "I was telling you why I got into the business… I said I changed who I was. This much is true. I sometimes go back to being my old self, when I tire of what I do now. And when I tire of that life, I come back to this one." He leans down and whispers conspiratorially, "I don't think my old self quite realizes that I'm in charge now."

The rat yawns again, his eyes half closing. "So stab yer knife in your head and kill that other personality before it gets too uppity." He takes another drink from the bottle and then his eyes pop open suddenly.

The Khatta takes a step back, his smile now that predatory, empty one he wears when in the midst of a kill, his hands folded inside his sleeves.

Flicker spits something into the palm of his hand, examines it, and then slumps. "So… did you decide to slip me a deathdream pill, or did someone pay you? Don't worry, Ashes… I ain't gonna try anything. It's too late anyhow."

Ashes says quietly, "It was part of my instructions. Someone felt you spoke too freely when intoxicated."

Ashes is no longer smiling.

"Feh… fifteen years of loyal service. I guess it was time for my retirement." The bottle slips from the rat's hands and shatters on the floor. "I hope they pay you good, Ashes. I hope they pay you good… "

Ashes says softly, "Part of me… This part of me feels they do. My other self… He is silently screaming. So… My payment is double, I suppose, and double-edged."

The cat says, "Good hunting in the next life, Flicker."

The Rat's eyes droop again and he slips, tumbling down against the pipes. "Hey Ash… go to my house in the Gooshurm path tunnel, not far from here. Take whatcha want. You'll probably need it… I always take care of my partners… " And with that the rat's eyes close. He continues to breathe. But every breath he takes seems more and more forced.

Ashes stands and watches over Flicker as he expires, a solemn expression on his face.

The breathing finally fades away altogether as the rat quietly slips away into darkness.

The Khatta stands for a moment longer, then turns, heading for the Gooshurm path tunnel as directed.

Flicker's home is… well… a rathole. Rags hang from the walls as well as a few discarded chitin weapons and papers. Sitting on a desk made of half-rotting wood is an ebony ring, much like Ashes' own.

Ashes looks around, moving to the desk and examining its contents, including the ring…

The ring seems smaller than Ashes', but might fit on his pinkie finger. Around the room are quite a few weapons, poisons, and even several intact contract papers. Quite a find really… maybe even enough to bring some proof of the guild's activities to someone.

The Khatta reads the contract papers briefly, then folds them into his robes, stuffing them in a pocket. He also selects a few of the weapons and poisons, being especially careful with these last.

Not knowing much about poisons, the cat isn't quite sure what he's getting. For all he knows, these could be Flicker's medicine stores or liquor, or some of the bottles might be deadly if you smell or touch them instead of drink them. Poisons are always such tricky things. The papers are too numerous to read in just one sitting, although the Khatta's searching manages to locate a diary of the rat – something to read later, most assuredly. The rest are just more knives, all of them old. Apparently Flick decided to give up on knives after he got his new claws.

Ashes hmms softly, and after a moment's debate, replaces the poisons on the desk, deciding not to trifle with them until he's determined more about them. He does take the diary and the papers however, as well as the two best of the old knives.

Looking around once more, Ashes turns and leaves, heading to collect his payment for the deeds done tonight, and to return to his home away from home at the Dome…

… Later, looking in the mirror as he removes his disguise, Galand pauses to look at himself, with his face half-Ashes, half-Ashur. He stops and murmurs, "Who are you… ?" A moment later, he stiffly turns away from the mirror and finishes removing his disguise, not looking in a single looking glass…

… And when he finally convinces himself to go to bed, he finds little rest at first, tossing and turning and murmuring his way through nightmares only he knows, until at last, he falls into a deep sleep… with a serene, empty smile on his lips.