text: Staring down intently, Aevia watched her target as he wove his way through one of the many crowded markets in Vace City. He was a noble, born of wealth and not afraid to flaunt or abuse it. She had been following him for several blocks now, using the rooftops of the tightly packed buildings in this portion of the city. With a graceful ease, that would seem effortless to any onlookers, she leapt gaps from two feet to eight feet without strain or concern. Her black hair, with streaks of bleached white showing throughout, streamed behind her as she went. When the nobleman reached his destination, a well guarded inn built of heavy stone blocks and polished wooden timber, he gave a nervous glance over his shoulder before being ushered inside by two doormen. Aevia crouched low, waiting on an adjacent roof with an ever vigilant eye on the doors and windows within her view. She pulled out her small crossbow, light enough to wield with one hand as needed. She grabbed a bolt from the quiver on her back, running a finger over its tip and blade out of habit. She snapped it into place, where it would hold fast until she pulled the trigger to set it free. If anyone got in her way, she would be ready. With it ready and loaded, she clasped the weapon back onto a strap over her shoulder. When she felt the appropriate time had passed, based on her recent observations of the nobles patterns, she raced across a series of rooftops in a roundabout way to the least guarded, most shadowed side of the inn. It did not take her long to locate the window to the room the man had taken, as she could hear the voice of the woman she had followed a few hours earlier to this same inn, the woman who had been sleeping with the noble in an effort to earn his offer of marriage. Aevia reached into one of the many pouches attached to her tight leather armour, finding two small, iron balls. The patrol guard, who did laps around the building every ten minutes, was now on the opposite side of the building, leaving just the stationary guard who seemed more alert than she would have liked. Waiting any longer could make things worse, so she proceeded to toss the balls several feet away from the guard, in such a way that they would roll further down the side of the building away from where she was. When the balls struck the cobblestone street they made a loud sound, catching the attention of the guard immediately. As they continued to bounce, a trail of grey smoke trailed behind them, quickly filling the street with a haze. They emitted a hissing sound, as the minor enchantment within them ran its course. The guard dashed towards the thin smoke and odd sounds, with his sword drawn and his posture showing he was ready to kill. Aevia took the opportunity to make a running dash towards the end of her rooftop, leaping the much larger gap of fifteen feet between her roof and the Inn. She sailed across the gap with a practiced ease, and minimized the sound of her landing with a crouch and a roll before spreading out her body and grasping at the wooden tiles of the rooftop. The impact was a bit painful, and she grimaced as some of the stiff, curled edges smashed into her armour. There would be bruises for certain, but nothing she hadn't experienced before. Not wanting to waste a moment, she slid herself to the edge of the roof, then dropped down, grasping the ledge of the roof. A quick glance saws that the smoke had risen to eye level, and was starting to disperse. It would not be long before the guard realized the distraction for what it was and began an alert inside the Inn. Thankfully the Inn was a haven for more than just this noble, it was an establishment for many of wealth to seek out their sins in secrecy. Aevia had placed herself exactly where she had wanted to be, swinging herself forward directly into the closed wooden shutters of the nobles room. The shutters swung inward, as she knew they would, for she had fixed the hinges and bypassed the lock several hours ago when she had uncovered where the mistress would be waiting. Bursting into the room feet first, Aevia landed on the plush carpet at an angle and slid forward on the plush carpet a few feet, falling backwards onto her outstretched hands. With the elegant grace and strength of a spider, Aevia snapped back forward into a standing position as she drew her hand crossbow and pointed it directly at the chest of the startled woman, who was already down to her underclothes from the nobles hasty fondling. "Don't move." Was all Aevia said, in a stern yet quiet voice. He made no effort to protect her, and actually fell away to cling to a nearby wall as she stared in shock at the weapon aimed her. "Take what you want, anything at all!" she shouted at Aevia, raising her hands in the air without a thought of self defense. Aevia kept her outstretched weapon arm pointed at the woman, while turning her attention to the noble. "Harvin, Lord of Gnost... she stated, her slanted eyes showing no emotion. "Y..yyess..." He stuttered, while wetting himself in the process. "Your lady has a message for you, the Lady of Gnost that is." The noblemans' pupils expanded with a fear far beyond what he showed from her arrival. The stories of the nobles wife told her to be a very protective and wrathful woman. He didn't even attempt a response. "Return to Gnost, forget this mistress of yours, and understand that this will be the last time your adulteress habits leave you intact... or possibly even alive." Her deadpan tone, and unblinking stare, left no doubt as to who would be fulfilling the threat. The man fell to his knees as he pressed his palms together in a prayer motion. "I will, I swear! Just don't tell her about the others..." He groveled, tears forming in the corners of his eyes. Aevia hadn't known about the others, in fact she had only just found out about this one a few days ago when trying to figure out her next source of income. The Lady of Gnost had no idea who Aevia was, or that her dear Lord was ever disloyal to her. None of that mattered though, all that mattered was that he believed it, and he was certainly demonstrating that he did. "Toss me your coin pouch," she said, tilting her head to the table he had placed his belongings on. "If there's enough there then your secret is safe." "There's others!" the scantily clad mistress shouted out, realizing what he just admitted too. She dropped her hands and was about to rush at the Harvin in a fit of rage. Aevia let the bolt fly, after angling it downward. The woman's dash turned into a fall as the bolt tore through her bare foot, pinning it to the ground. She screamed in pain, clutching at the foot and trying to stem the blood with the bottom of her shift. Harvin tossed the pouch at her, while Aevia reloaded her weapon with a quick and practiced ease. She picked it off the floor and lifted it with one hand. "Twenty, that covers you for week." Aevia said, wondering how much she might get out of this wretch before he decided it wasn't worth it, or began to doubt her. She pressed a bit further. "That ring, give me that and I'll forget about you, and your whores." "That's worth a small farm!" He gasped, "I can't poss..." "Your choice." Aevia said curtly, turning towards the window. She knew the gaurds would likely be at the room soon. "I'll see you in Gnost." "It's yours!" He snapped, frantically trying to pull it off his finger. He kept trying, but to no avail. "But I can't get it off. I can send it to you, just don't tell her!." Aevia didn't have any desire to see this man again, or risk and future encounters with him or his connections. Time was running out. "Use her blood, now!" She snapped, pointing her crossbow at the wenches foot. Although the noble was shocked at her request, he dashed forward and shoved his fingers into the small pool of blood that had formed on the floorboards, then was able to pull the ring off with a few twists in the slippery crimson liquid. The woman didn't object, just wimpered in pain and frustration with what was transpiring. He tossed the ring to Aevia. "When you get to Gnost, speak nothing of this." Aevia said, making sure her words were clear and firm. "The Lady does not want to be reminded of why she sent me, and your silence is the only way she will forgive you. Should you speak of this, she has told me she will hire me to permanently prevent you from sleeping with others again." Aevia motioned her crossbow towards his pelvis as she said this, and the color drained from Harvin's face. "Understood?" she said, now perched in the ledge of the window. The noble grasped at his manhood with his bloody hands, nodding fervently but saying nothing else. Aevia jumped up and out of the window, grapping the roof ledge with a firm grip. With the elegance of a gymnast, and the strength of a climber, she then hopped and spun a half circle before grabbing the ledge again. A quick jerk of her upper arms and chest pulled her up onto the roof, where she heard a guard down below shout out "There, I see 'im up there." Aevia dropped down to the rooftop immediately, narrowly avoiding an arrow that whizzed overhead into the night sky. Breathing a sigh of relief for avoiding the attack, she crawled forward a few feet before making a relatively easy escape across the rooftops of the crowded city quarters. Her newly earned coins and ring would be able to support her for several months if she ran out of targets... although she never had run out of targets before.