Assassin's Encounter

Dreygo was suddenly awoken by his dreams of the past. The unending cries, screams, and wafting sea of flames flooded his dreams. His shirt was soaked wet with sweat and Elaine peacefully slept on the floor with only the extra sheets that comforted her.

He looked for Viriel but there was no sign of him. The faint light of the morning sun found its way through in between the blinds.

He tried to stretch his body, his arms outward, and a slight discomfort felt as freshly healed wounds on his chest. It seemed forever that he slept that numbed his feet as he tried to place them on the floor. He grabbed a glass of water on the side table and drank it whole. The water only filled his stomach but not his hunger.

"Elaine." He called and coughed right after.

She did not flinch and continued with her sleep, her mouth slightly opened. Dreygo glanced at her and urged him to stare at her slightly shown midriff as her white shirt unconsciously lifted.

The sheets covered most of her legs but slightly exposed her pale-skin thigh. Dreygo noticed a series of bandages with patches of blood untidily laid on the floor beside her. A basin of water holding a soaked cloth was placed beside the bandages.

Her hair was disorganized and spread along with the sheets. Some of it covered half of her face and her hands spread outwardly. Dreygo was sympathetically watching a beautiful woman, exhausted to have attended his wounds. Dreygo slowly bent towards her and reached as he gently ran his finger to her forehead.

'Beautiful creature.' Dreygo thought.

His mind was malicious but he fought it and urged himself to be decent. Elaine flinched upon the tingling sensation from Dreygo's touch and her eyes suddenly opened. Dreygo immediately pulled his finger out and quickly spun back sitting on the bed.

Elaine was half awoke and yawned. She uttered indistinctive words and then repeated them. "How are you?" She said while rubbing her eyes.

"I'm better," Dreygo said dryly.

"You better eat. You haven't eaten for two days." She demanded.

Elaine stood up and folded the sheets neatly.

"Where is Viriel?" Dreygo asked.

"He went back to the tropics through a portal. To his assigned territory. He could not stay longer because some 'stronger' angel would come and punish him of some sort. He was not clear about it." She mused while placing the sheets inside the cabinet.

"When is he coming back?" Drerygo asked.

"I do not know. He said that he must first ensure that the angel of the first rank will not follow us. He might kill you in an instant."

Elaine called the front desk through a landline phone held by a corner table. She ordered a club sandwich for herself and a whole roast chicken for Dreygo. Their food was served by a scrawny hotel boy and they placed the food on a small round table.

Dreygo stood from his bed but almost struggled to find his balance. Elaine immediately wrapped her arms around his waist, preventing him to fall. The lovely scent carried by her hair delighted Dreygo's senses as she rested her head on his chest. Dreygo gently wrapped his right arm to her shoulder as they gently walked towards the table.

Elaine carefully placed Dreygo in his seat and their eyes leveled in the process, their faces inches closer to each other. Dreygo stared at those dark eyes and they stared back at him. Her mouth semi-opened and Dreygo witnessed her cheeks flush in an instant.

He could feel Elaine's breathing caressing his chin. His heart was uncontrollably pounding fast and his body froze. Dreygo missed this feeling and he was not able to define this jolt of sensation.

Hell provided him with only a few dark sensations of hatred, anger, wrath, frustrations, and all the negative emotions that he could define. He had also forgotten what might trigger these comfortable feelings of excitement, happiness, and hope.

'Maybe because of her. Is this what they call, Love? Am I capable of it?' He was perturbed with questions.

Their stares stayed for significantly longer and as the moment turned awkward, Elaine immediately pulled herself away. She smiled with a hint of slight embarrassment and sat across the small round table. She crossed her legs and her posture sturdy, leaning against the table. Dreygo saw Elaine uncomfortably looking away from his eyes and sometimes they would promptly fall back to his. She focused on her sandwich and said,

"We should eat."

Dreygo smiled at the golden-brown colored roast chicken and his belly groaned in hunger. He grabbed one whole chicken leg, jerked it out separating itself from its body, and dug his teeth into the meat. The roast chicken marinade sauce smeared upon his cheek while munching on his food.

Elaine, as usual, took small bites from her sandwich and smiled at the Harbinger as the latter gobbled a mouthful of chicken meat and swallowed almost without chewing it. Dreygo did not talk and not one slight moment that his mouth was empty. Limb by limb, front, and back, even the neck, until what was left on his plate were bits of bones.

He burped hard and ended his meal with a glass of water. Dreygo felt revitalized, and his stomach celebrated the feast. Elaine carefully finished her sandwich and gently wiped her mouth with a piece of tissue.

"Do women always eat slowly?" Dreygo asked.

"Y-Yeah," Elaine answered. She finished with a glass of orange juice.

"We could not wait for Viriel to come back. We should do something productive today." Dreygo mused. Suddenly his senses veered to his mission.

Elaine agreed with Dreygo to do reconnaissance on Zi Lok's fortress. They asked for a map from the front desk and Elaine arranged a car rental for them to use.

A red sedan car was delivered to them and they drove to the nearest utility shop to buy what they needed for the recon. The quiet neighborhood held a small utility shop within Ningqo. They arrived with their car parked in front and went inside. They were greeted by a fat, a middle-aged man who stood behind his display counter holding guns and knives.

"Hello, customers!" The man said with a local Cheenean accent.

"We would like to buy binoculars, a sniper rifle, two handguns, and two body vests," Elaine said.

The man was slightly shocked by the orders and he did not move a muscle, staring at Elaine. His face with a hint of doubt puckered his forehead in between his brows.

"It would cost you big. Do you have money?" The man asked.

Dreygo spun back to the car and took a duffel bag of cash. He went back to the store and slammed the bag on the display counter, in front of the man. He opened it and the man's eyes widened with disbelief.

"Well, in this case, I am happy to serve you." He mused, smiling.

The man took the orders one by one while introducing his pieces professionally. "Modified frags with a blast radius of 10 meters. Colt 45 handguns, with mags extensions. Long barrelled sniper rifle, ten bullets on the mag, estimated accurate range of eight hundred meters. Military-grade binoculars and military-grade bulletproof vests. Lightweight but could handle small-sized bullets." He said while placing each item on top of the display counter.

The man was happy upon receiving the payment and Dreygo shoved the items in one bag.

"You got to teach me how to use these," Dreygo said to Elaine while he carried the bag on his shoulder.

"Now you are talking. After our recon. We will find a gun range." Elaine said. She was excited that her skills could contribute to Dreygo's mission.

They went out of the shop but they stopped at the door as the Zi Lok Assassin stood before their eyes. A black-clad short man with knives holstered all over his vest. He carried a samurai sword holstered in his belt. His tattoos popped out from his body common to any Zi Lok member.

The neighborhood was quiet and it was perfect timing for a kill.

Dreygo shoved Elaine at his back as she sobbed in fear.

"You are dead, woman!" The assassin said.