(Scene 7) The Snow Palace - The Throne Room

Alistair, after managing to heave himself from the icy matress made his way towards the battlefield. His wounds still ailed him, as many servants effectively pointed out to him on his way there.

" Sir, you're gravely injured." way to state the obvious.

" How would you feel if you had just been frozen almost entirely from the inside out, hm?" Alistair snapped, then continued on his way, leaving the servant entirely speechless.

" Wait." Alistair turned on his heel " Where exactly is the battlefield."

The servant pointed him in the right direction. Alistair noddd, and coninued on his way, eventually finding his destination.

Upon entering the grand hall Alistair felt a wave of emotion. Envy and shame most plagued his mind. He spotted a notch in the wall. The same notch created by his scythe having been thrown by the Empress. Shame. The superpowered empress. Envy.

Alistair stole a glance at his wrist. A snowflake tattoo. The same tattoo that managed to freeze him. The same that caused him such pain. Rage.

The Empress watched silently from her throne. She shifted slightly, for her ass was starting to pain her slightly. She had been sitting unmoving in the chair for two hours straight since Vittoria left.

She saw a succession of intense emotion play across his face. She could tell that provoking him would not be the wisest thing to do... as much as it irked her to admit it, he was a much better fighter than she expected. She decided it could not hurt to try and talk to him, she had nothing to fear after all... she beat him once, she could do it again.

"That mark isn't permanent, you know," she said loudly, as she rested her chin on her fist.

" Might as well be." he replied silently, more for himself than anyone, unmoving, and immediately shut down. all trace of emotion left his features. He looked at the Empress coldly and bowed the slightest bit.

Alistairs ego had been injured. Something that, to him, was far worse than any mortal wound. He ralized his rudeness in not replying directly.

" Thats good." he replied to the empress. He turned to face her directly " They're coming. I should greet them." he said, poroceeding to exit the room once more. Her presence made him uncomfortable. However, her presence was to his advantage.

" If i may be so bold." he began " Might her majesty be interested in accompanying me on a boon to quell her assailants." he nearl;y giggled at the believability of his feighned formailty.

"Pardon?" She inquired mildly. She looked shiftily to the side as she waited for a more in-depth explanation of his request. It wasn't like her to zone out like this...

Alistair chuckled " Your assailants. You know. People who want to kill you. Kill you dead." he looked at her, his expression grave " surely you didnt think that having brought me so near to death that there would not be others. I have a life transmitter." He pulled down the collar of his shirt to reveal the tiny chip placed on the back of his neck.

" They are probably already on their way." he paused for dramatic effect and inhaled slowly " If you do not want to die, i would suggest that you come with me. I was being nice before, but this is for your own safety. I'm not askng anymore. Now get your ass up off that overgrown ice cube and follow me."

She burst out in laughter. "Are you joking?" She gasped in between breaths. "My safety!" she clutched her sides as she was overcome by a fit of mirthful laughter.

"Oh that was funny," she said breathlessly, wiping away a tear and settling comfortably back on her throne. "And what do you think will happen if I decide not to?"

He remained silent and walked out of the room, a knowing bounce in his step. Alistair drew a dagger from the pouch on his lower back and began to walk down the halls, alert, and money hungry. He cared not for the life of her royal pain in the ass, but it was his job and title at stake. He had to at least look like he was willing to throw his life away for her.

She sighed. She knew he didn't like her... and she was fairly certain as to why. She saw the flash of hurt in his eyes, even though she knew he was trying hard to hide it. He missed Trev, and she knew she shouldn't feel anything for the rude little son of bitch, but she couldn't rid herself of that little bit of guilt gnawing away at her insides.

She knew he would defend her nonetheless, because Trev was completely in her power and because he was an assassin. Assassins, like prostitutes, like love and friends and everything else in the world, were bound to serve her once she decided she wanted them, because they all operate under the same concept. They all sell out to the highest bidder. And there was no one who could compete with her.

Regardless of all this, she was tired of being left alone with nothing but her thoughts. She could use some action again. So she rose to her feet and in a flash, appeared in front of Alistair, with a cold smile on her face.

Alistair stopped cold and looked knowingly into the eyes of the empress " Youre so predictable." he said before walking past her " Stay behind me. And stay close." he muttered. He meant it.

In front of him he could see a pool of blood and he knew what was coming. He dove to the ground, taking the empress with him and -- just as expected-- from around the corner there came a huge mace attatched to a chain of silver. No, not iron. Silver. the mace hit the wall and it began to snow, leaving a huge dent in the wall above both of their heads.

" Darrien!" he shouted, exasperated and mildly amused. No answer. Not good. Alistair ran to the corner and looked around. There, sprawled on the floor looking incredibly drained, was Cocoa. Always the effective distraction.

Alistair sighed and turned back to the empress who, in that moment appeared to be in a somewhat comprimising position. With darriens dagger at her throat.


Alistair waved at him curtly. Darrien looked confused momentarily, the gestured towards the empress. alistair nodded. Darrien, looking ever so unamused, removed his dagger from her throat and bowed in fake remorse.

Alistair chuckled.

((g'night))

The Empress's eyes narrowed. She did not like being mocked.

Alistair giggled at the sight.

" I am ahahahaah, so-so hehe sorry." he strode over to Darrien and yanked him by the ear, taking him into the throne room and gestured for the Empress to follow. Darrien grunted but remained submissive. Cocoa was still on the floor behind Alistair. She was fine there until the guards found her. She could handle herself.

" Where is Merc?" Alistair whispered into Darrien's now red ear.

" He told us to come and get you. From what he said, I gather he has no intention of coming here..."

Alistair let out a sigh of relief. In reality, he was more afraid for their lives than that of the Empress. And if Merc wasnt coming, then all are accounted for.

"What do they want? Why are they here?"

" You hire us, you hire them." CoCoa stumbled lazily into the room " Yeah, her too..."

The Empress sighed, and the urge to slap herself in the forehead subsided. "I knew thaat... but that still doesn't answer my question."

Alistair's eyes were like daggers looking at the empress " Though their efforts might have been a little sloppy," he sighed " They were here to assassinate you in a most terrible manor, as is customary in a guild of assassins. Their success I had no doubt in." He pat Darrien on the shoulder " And this one is my..." he looked for the correct phrasing " Understudy..."

The Empress stared. And then smirked.

"I see. And what are they going to do now?"

Alistair was mildly taken aback by the question. He hadn't thought it out, though he had no intention of asking them, for they did what he said " They are going to become full-time servants of this fine establishment." he said with a " After such a time as I see fit, or at your request, they will be fully at your command your highness."

He despised the formality of the whole situation. He despised the palace. He despised the Empress. Not her money, but her guts. Which lead him to another point.

" The Guild of Assassins. I want it reinstated." he said suddenly " I'm sorry, did I fail to mention this as a condition of hiring the rest of my men?"

"I think you are confusing yourself. You no longer have any leverage in the bargain. Our deal was done. You lost and I hired you," she glared pointedly at his comrades, making sure they heard her clearly.

"I could have killed you just as easily. Coincidentally, I get everyone else under your command as well. So please, don't get your hideous knickers in a twist. If you want me to reinstating the Assassin's Guild... well. This is an entirely different deal. So give me one good reason..." she paused. "On second thought... one reason is not enough."

" One reason will be plenty for you." he said aggressively " It is the only reason I wanted this job in the first place. And I dont remember signing any contract. This is under the table work. I can change my terms of employment at any time if I so choose."

There was a silence.

"You forget who you're dealing with," she said softly, venom coating her every word. There was a soft metallic whisper as her claws slowly slid from their sheaths. She smiled dangerously.

"You would do well to remember who I am and what I can do to you if I so choose."

Alistair scoffed and motioned for the empress to calm down " You forget yourself, Empress. If it were not for our guilds support, you not be in power. Our guild and the Thug guild have largely been the deciding factor in our government. The queen shut us down. And you owe us." Darrien nodded in agreement , his hand at the ready to unsheathe his katana, should the need arise. Cocoa stumbled clumsily into the room, trailed by two guards. She took a pair of black leather gloves out of her messenger bag and handed them to Alistair before turning around and sticking her tongue out at the guards.

" You would not be so foolish as to challenge me a second time." he chuckled " Genetic engineering isn't all that uncommon nowadays, you know..."

"God. You're insufferable." She scoffed. "Genetic engineering maybe be easy to come by, but like skill, it is the quality that matters... Nonetheless. Alistair, until you realize that you really have nothing that I want, I do not want to speak with you."

She glanced briefly at his cohorts and muttered something inaudible under her breath. And with a whirling of her white robes, disappeared with a smug smile. No one else could move as fast as she could, genetic engineering or not. That she was sure of. They, after all, did not train at the Elite Academy. And those who graduated from the Elite Academy... were unbeatable...

"A little full of herself, is she not?" Alistair put on the leather gloves, the insides of which pinched his skin and emmited a low, mechanical whirr.

Cocoa produced a small round device resembling an old compass from her back pocket. Darrien agreed.

"One of these days she'll see things our way."

Cocoa and darrien nodded in unison. Cocoa brought the compass like device up to the back of each glove. The device glowed an eerie blue and beeped. "All done." she said.

Alistair clenched his fist and grunted. "She's far too full of herself to be unbeatable," he said, punching the air in front of him. "Personally, I dont find the Elite academy to be all that productive. Their fighters are trained to look good. If only they could fight the way they look." he laughed.

Darrien let out a short chuckle, but then was silent. He looked forlorn. "Andreas fought to protect us from the Empress," he said, his gaze vacant, " and now you sell us out to her?"

Cocoa inadvertedly backed away a step or two. She had never been involved in the guild, nor did she want to begin doing so now. Sure, she had her opinions, but she had no right to voice them. Not here anyhow. What she did know, however was that Andreas was a freedom fighter back when the Assasins guild was first disbanded by the Queen. He had been, at one point, the lone member of the guild and, by default, the guildmaster. But that was about all she knew.

" Better than being hunted down," Alistair replied. "Besides, the Empress hold presidence over the Queen. If anyone is able to reinstate us, its her."

" Does it have to be reinstated at all? I mean, Andreas relinquished his rights to the guild. And an assasin can do his job without having to answer to a higher power cant we? Either way, it would likely be for the best, would it not?"

She tapped her fingers impatiently her arm as she waited for her minions to join her. It should not take long. She was pacing irritably across the length of the room, ignoring the security feed from the monitors that covered every wall. It would take the arguably moronic group of assassins a very long while to find her. Even though she was positive they had a tracking device, the labyrinthine corridors of her palace did not make navigation easy. There were several holographic rooms set up as well as the most sophisticated security system known to man built into the very bones of her domain.

She did not like Alistair, but she wasn't used to someone hating her so much. Regardless, he didn't seem to understand that she didn't need them. At all. It was only because he proved to be a formidable opponent that she had even considered. As well as Trey, Trey got along fine with her. He was probably still sore that she stole his best friend away from right under his nose, and male egoes were infinitely tricky to nurse. There was also the fact that she had his life sitting in her palms. She could end it, easily, if she so wished. She was positive she could tag all the others, if it came to it. She could tell he was the strongest one. The others were just canon fodder. She grinned all of a sudden. She had an idea... she would win over Alistair's loyalty. After all, how could he resist...?

"Empress!" came a chorus of voices outside the chamber door.

She waved her arm, and doors slid open after a few seconds of security unlocked itself at her wordless command.

A trio entered. Her best fighters, loyal only to her. If Alistair was smart, he would join them. If not, well, she always had other uses for him.

Amongst the three, the Princess, and her dear friend was the only female. She was the shortest but deadliest of them all. Known for her razor sharp wit and deceptively slow but lethal attacks. Enemies always underestimated her size, their final mistake, as it were.

The other two. Not nobility, but they came from good loyal families close to her own. Wu was her one of her dear advisors, rivaling Corvidae -- but of course they specialized in different areas. Corvidae was more concerned with politics, diplomacy, the grey matters of the grey matter. Wu was a general, a tactical genius, as well as a prized fighter. He was another one that people tended to overlook.

Lee was like a reincarnation of the legendary Bruce. Which was pretty much all she could say for him. Asides from the fact that he dressed well, and was a lady-magnet. He was attractive, to say the least.

"They will be coming," she told them. "Stupidity is difficult to predict, so I want you to station yourselves, and be ready if I call."

"Just a precaution," she said softly. And they saluted her in unison. "This empire will not fare well without its Empress at the head."