Assassin's Heart

Chapter 5

She and Shade had sat in silence for a couple minutes after Heath and his assassin had left. Anger festered so deep in her heart, that she figured it might explode. So much for "discussing the testing."She had wanted to chase after that smirking asshole and bash his face into the wall, but knew she was already in deep shit with Shade and didn't want to make the situation worse then she already had. After what seemed like hours, she shot up out of her seat, knocking her chair over backwards, and stalked off towards the trap door that lead down to the suites. She had almost made it to the bar at the back, when Shade grabbed her arm and ripped her around to face him.

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Shade snarled. "I told you not to talk!" His nails dug into the flesh on her arm as he shouted.

"What?! You expected me to sit around while they insulted me to the end of Valaya and back? You weren't even going to defend me, were you?!" she accused, her eyes flickering wildly.

"The last thing we needed was for Heath to try extra hard to ensure his assassin's win a place in the Guild. Elbowing him in the gut wasn't exactly what I would call hospitable, and now he will want revenge" Shade shouted angrily.

"Let them come!" Eliya hissed. "It will look even better to the Shadow's when Heath and his assassin's come strutting in like the cocky bastards they are, only to be cut down by a female assassin..." Shade shook his head angrily before releasing her arm, nail marks dug into her pale skin.

"You might have just ruined your chances at getting into the Guild!" Shade snarled as Eliya turned away and stalked towards the trapdoor that led to her courters.

"No," she exclaimed. "I just ruined their chances..."

The next two weeks were busied with intense training. Shade spared no expense, making sure each of his five assassins that were to compete in the testing were well equipped with new weapons and clothing. Since no one knew exactly what the testing would look like, or where it would take place, the training was a broad range of physical combat, defensive manoeuvres, and strength building. The five that had been chosen were Eliya, Thomas, Darnell, Finn, and Ross. The Black Tide had almost been ripped apart when Shade had announced the names, the other five assassins, including the hulking brute Xander, had practically rioted when their names weren't called.

When things had calmed down, the training began, and brutal it was. Shade had them sweating from 4:00am to 10:00pm, completing back breaking tasks and scrimmaging against each other until one of them collapsed with exhaustion. Despite all this, Eliya strived to keep her wits about her as she worked alongside her fellow assassins. She knew that the second the testing began, they too would become her enemies, and she had to know every strength and weakness that each possessed. Each day of training she chose to observe a new opponent. The first day it was Thomas, though she already knew mostly everything about him because he had always been the closest thing to a friend she had ever had. If she had her way, it would be her and Thomas going to the Guild at the end of all this. He was most skilled in hand to hand combat, using his own two hands for both offense and defence. He hated the mess that blood made, which lead to Darnell who she examined the next day. His assassinations were never quick and painless; he loved to watch people suffer. He was good with daggers, but his prized weapon was an iron hatchet that he wore at his waist at all times, using it to swing and hack at anything or anyone near him. Darnell's flaw was that he was loud, his boxy frame preventing him from sneaking up on anyone. Eliya made sure to note this before she observed Finn the next day. Out of all the other candidates, Eliya knew Finn was the most like her. He was very well rounded and was good at just about everything. He had the same stance and muscular body structure as Thomas, except his dark brown scraggily hair was a stark contrast to Thomas's blonde hair. The problem with Finn was that he could be overly confident and reckless, always trying to attempt impossible manoeuvres that would almost kill him in the process. Ross was examined the next day, and Eliya knew that underneath his short, skinny body, there was the mind of a weasel. Ross was the oldest of the five assassins, somewhere in his mid thirties but looked older. His face was sunk in and his ribs stuck out, giving him a sickly look. Darnell was always jeering at him, saying he was less a man and more of a useless rat, but Eliya knew the truth. Besides herself, Ross was the only other assassin who had a perfect kill list. What he lacked in strength, he made up for with wit and sneakiness. Thrice the IQ of Darnell, Ross was capable of killing three men without even being near them. Not only this, but he was so sly and silent that you would never hear him coming. Eliya shivered at the thought, refusing to underestimate him. In the end, she knew each and every one of these assassins would be a major threat during the testing, not to mention the other five from Heath's house, including that target stealing mutt. As the days passed, she kicked herself for so freely giving away her own name and never demanding his. She wanted to know exactly who he was as she knocked him out cold, or, better yet if the rules accepted it, killed him. The days seemed too long, but at the same time not long enough as the day of the testing loomed ahead. It was in these days that Eliya realized that no matter what the outcome, she would never be the same once the testing was complete.