Rain poured heavily as if the clouds have been torn open from within, wetting the ground making muddy puddles.
The night sky added an eerie effect to this ongoing pour. A loud thunder lightened the sky, flashing the light for a mere second before vanishing once again.
The streets are deserted, the shops closed, nary a soul within eyesight. In such a sinister-looking place, sprinted a girl clad in a trench coat that must have weighed down on her due to rain.
The girl ran, her fists clenched, her breath unlabored, her steps precise as if she had lots of practice, crunching the small stones on the pavement under her shoes. Not far from her followed a male who is giving a gleeful laugh as he chased her. She never looked back, never checked her pursuer.
"Run little girl, run. The big bad Wolf may get you," the male taunted as he cackled a sinister chuckle.
With an aim known to her alone, she tore through the rain like a bullet until she turned in an alley with a dead end. Her steps slowing down she stood still facing the wall in a wide stance.
The male was not far behind her as he closed the exit of the alley, giving a smug grin at the woman. He licked his lips as he sauntered towards her, his steps careless, his eyes bright-tasting the victory that is not far away.
"I told you I would catch you," the male grinned as he rubbed his hands in anticipation.
"Tsk. Tsk. You should have listened to me. Now I will kill you slowly, very slowly as I devour you. I will savor the taste. You will watch me while I taste you inch-by-inch. I won't kill you until then," he said as if it's her fault for making him run this long to get killed.
The male is a rogue. Any species can turn rogue be it may a vampire, a wizard, or a werewolf. For a werewolf, turning rogue means who gave into the true nature of their beast, by killing and eating them and going feral.
They are just ghouls with a highly intelligent brain. A deadly combination. Some years ago, rogues were different. They are still ghouls but were unable to plan and execute properly. A mere sheep waiting to get slaughtered.
But something has changed them. The rogues who are going feral now are becoming more and more violent and cunning.
The male suddenly scoffed at the girl, "why are you not crying? Why are you not begging for your life? Don't I scare you, pretty girl? Do you want to see my teeth to fear me? Or are you just plain dumb?"
He enjoyed the whimpers, the pleas of the victims a lot. Especially the ones, who believe that he will leave him if they begged long enough. Fools. The guy likes to play with his victims. Dangling the fruit in front of them, before chomping on their neck. He wrinkled his nose at the girl who stood like a statue. This is not how it was supposed to be. This girl is taking out the pleasure from the hunt.
The girl who stood before him slowly turned and faced him. She then carefully slipped her gloves from her hands and put it in her pocket, and tied her hair in a leisure manner as if she has all the time in the world.
"What the hell are you doing!" The guy asked baffled at her leisurely fashion. She must have gone nuts, the guy reasoned it.
Instead of answering the girl unbuttoned her trench coat slowly, her head bend.
Frustrated at her disrespect towards him, the male stalked her until he was almost upon her when the girl casually slipped the ring from her left finger and put it inside her pocket.
The rogue who was advancing on her stood still bewildered and confused for a moment. The aura of the girl... it changed. It's as if a veil has been lifted. Her features became more pronounced. Where before a timid small girl was before him, now stood a giant of a girl with a hardened expression.
Ignoring the bewildered look, the girl cracked her knuckles and pulled the katana from behind her back.
The rogue sensed the aura emitting from the female before him. It's a commanding one. An alpha's aura to be exact. How can a human emit it?
"You... you are.. you are not a human," the rogue stuttered dumbfounded.
"Bingo! We have a winner here," the girl replied to him sarcastically.
"But you smelled like a human," the rogue asked not noticing his impending doom.
"I would answer you but currently I'm not in the mood to play 20-20," the girl swiped a well-practiced arc with her katana swiftly cutting the neck of the rogue, silencing him forever. He never stood a chance.
Azrian wiped the sword blade on the clothes of the rogue until not a single drop of blood is on it. She then stepped over the dead body and walked slowly in the still pouring rain. She neither looked right nor left as she sauntered. She knew that her wolf would sense and alert her if anyone is in the near vicinity.
"You were supposed to wait for us," said her teammate as she entered the Guild.
The Guild is a place where all kinds of supernaturals are trained to become assassins. Their only goal is to hunt the rogues. Azrian joined the Guild many years ago when she thought she lost everything to fate.
The Guild has given her purpose to live, to fight.
She looked at the pretty mage brunette. She shrugged carelessly and replied, "it was easy. Only one rogue. Why bother you all if I can handle it by myself?"
"Damnit Azrian! We are a team for a reason. What if that rogue has a team nearby? You know they are smarter than before. Why are you taking such risk with your life when we could have handled it together?" The brunette frowned as she tailed behind Azrian matching her steps.
Because she wants to. Risking her life keeps her sane. However, Azrian didn't voice out her thoughts.
"Chill Brenda. I'm still in one piece," Azrian said over her shoulder.
"This time. What happens the next time? Or the one after that? You cannot take the risks without paying the price one day. Then what will happen to us? This team needs you Azrian. We need you," Brenda asked frustration oozing out of her voice. She is the mother hen of the team.
And Azrian is the angry one. There are three more sups
supernaturals
in her team.
Reagan - a vampire, Willow- a fae, and Cassie- a human. Cassie might be just a human but she is no less than the other team members. Each different in nature as they are in species. Yet they would gladly guard the others back when it comes to the battle.
They were supposed to patrol as per their duty every night. But Azrian being the leader takes upon herself and instead of informing the details to her team, often strolls the streets by herself, facing the demons; both inner and outer.
There are male assassins in the Guild too. But she lucked out getting an all-female team. As she is an alpha, it would have been messy if a male didn't surrender to her. And guys won't bend their heads before a female without a proper incentive.
Though she can provide with one, she doesn't want to make an enemy out of one of her team members. Hence, she asked for an all-girls team.
"Relax. Everything is fine. I had it under control. Your ring did the trick," Azrian said over her shoulder as she removed her gear in her room. The ring Azrian is talking about can conceal the aura of the wearer, projecting the image of a weak human. Thus the rogue wasn't able to detect her power until it was too late.
Brenda who followed her into the room asked, "what made you so reckless? Why do you always trifle with your life?"
Brenda is a mage and as such, she can read the emotions of others. Thus the mother hen title. Because she reads them and tries to help the person. Azrian hates it when she does it with her.
"Stay out of my mind!" Azrian said angrily as she stalked her teammate until she is on the other side of the door before slamming the door on her face.
"I was just trying to help you," Brenda's guilty voice carried over the threshold.
"Go bug someone else for a change Brenda," Azrian countered not in the mood to hear the same lecture. Brenda left soon after knowing what is coming for her and her team tomorrow.
Azrian leaned against the door as the questions of Brenda opened an old wound. She gave a groan as she turned and hit the metal door hard.
"Son of a bitch!" Azrian shook her hand lessening the pain. She must have gotten used to it. Pain... her constant companion. Perhaps one day she will.