"Oh give me a break, he dodged it again," Rei sighed. He leapt at the assassin again and swung his right dagger in a wide arc. The assassin immediately disappeared in a puff of smoke. Without blinking, Rei reached for an icicle and threw it far left. Amadeus felt the wind on his face as the icicle soared past, missing him by inches. The icicle made contact with one of the assassin's onyx daggers, knocking it out of his hand. The assassin did a backflip and retrieved his dagger before merging into the darkness again.

One immediately stepped in between the danger and Amadeus, using his large frame as a shield. Izumi drew her icicles from her belt but frowned when she could not get a clear shot at the assassin. Rei and the assassin traded flurries of dagger attacks at intense speeds, making them look like blurred lines to Amadeus.

"Stay back Izzy, this is not a battle you can win." Rei shouted as he fended off a low arc swing of the assassin's dagger. The assassin was holding his daggers with the blade facing outwards, focusing on piercing or stabbing motions. Rei however was holding his daggers with the blade facing inwards, resting against his forearms – this stance focused on slashing motions. Both of them had very different fighting styles but Rei seemed to be able to keep up with the assassin.

*******

Izumi's years of training kicked in, overriding her emotions as a daughter. She obeyed her commander's orders and hesitantly sheathed her icicles. She stood back quietly, watching the battle unfold. Her body remains alert and tense, ready to be called in at any moment.

Izumi gave Amadeus a concerned look and drew two icicles from her belt. One continued to cover Amadeus with a single arm, like a father stopping his son from running across the road.

Rei didn't look like he needed any help. He was fighting toe-to-toe with the assassin. To Amadeus, it looked like he was winning. With a back step, Rei feigned to the left and slashed to the right, finally making contact with the assassin. The assassin stumbled backwards; some of his blood fresh on Rei's frost dagger. The assassin trembled slightly, but kept a firm grip on his daggers.

Suddenly Rei's eyes opened wide. "What is—" He didn't manage to finish his sentence; both his frost daggers slipped from his hands and fell onto the ground with a thud. He shortly collapsed onto the floor. Rei didn't need to see the assassin's face to know that he was amused by this turn of events. Wasting no time, he dashed forward to deliver a deathblow on Rei.

"Father!" shouted Izumi as she threw two icicles in the assassin's path, just slowing him down in time to reach her father's side. She immediately drew her frost daggers and crouched low, assuming the basic defensive stance that she learned in during her martial arts training.

The assassin clashed with her next, and she locked her daggers with his. Fully utilizing her low center of gravity, she flung him over her head and slammed him hard on the ground with the momentum of his own attack. She quickly spun around and plunged her dagger into the assassin's heart but all it pierced was the sandy ground. The assassin had managed to roll away and immediately vanished again.

Concentrating, Izumi closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. Focusing her sixth sense, she became increasingly aware of her surroundings. The assassin was circling the campfire, counter-clockwise.

It suddenly dawned upon Rei what had happened. "The water," Rei muttered weakly, interrupting her concentration.

"What is it, father?" Izumi asked while attempting keeping her supernatural senses on alert. She was expecting another attack. The assassin wouldn't have been scared off so easily.

"The water," Rei continued, "he put night essence into it."

A deep sense of dread filled Izumi's heart. She knew all too well what night essence was. It had paralyzed Rei first due to the exertion of his body during the fight with the assassin. It was only a matter of time before it affected the rest of them.

"Who drank the water from the waterskin?" she asked in panic. It was a redundant question. She had seen all of them share the water during their journey.

"Noburu!" she cursed under her breath. She only had seconds to defeat the assassin before her body would succumb to the paralysis.

Amadeus and One looked at each other and saw each other's bodies grow limp and drop to the ground. Interesting, Amadeus thought as he tried to wiggle his fingers but they remained lifeless. He could no longer control part of his body below the neck.

Izumi was the last one standing between them and death. Fear started to grip her as she watched the assassin appear from the darkness, his onyx mask bathed in the orange glow from the campfire. The face drawn on it looked menacing and the person behind it remained veiled in anonymity. The assassin took his time, twirling a dagger casually in one hand. He surveyed the scene and turned his attention towards Rei.

"You will not harm my father!" Izumi cried and immediately launched herself at the assassin with every intention to go for the killing blow. She swung wildly at the assassin, but felt the energy drain out of her limbs. Her daggers slipped from her fingers, sliding across the ground away from her. It didn't matter how far they slid away, she could no longer move any part of her body.

The assassin glanced at her but ignored her and continued walking towards Rei. With each step the assassin took, Izumi's hope for survival diminished. Move! Please! She desperately commanded her legs to no avail. A childhood memory flashed before her eyes.

A flash of lightning had pierced the night sky, illuminating the treetops of Ichi. A low rumble escalated into an explosive boom of thunder which echoed throughout the Lost Valley. Tiny footsteps found their way to Rei's bedroom.

"Father, father! Help!" A younger Izumi shrieked, standing at the frame of the door. She was only three-and-a-half feet tall.

"What is it, Izzy?" Rei mumbled as he turned sleepily on his side to face her.

"The loud noises, they scare me," she said, tears streaming down her face.

Rei patted the empty space next to him and smiled comfortingly at her.

She didn't need a second invitation and pounced onto the bed, scrambling beneath the sheets. She held up the blanket over her face, and two blue tear stained eyes peeked out from underneath it.

Rei reached out and wiped a tear from her cheek. "Don't be afraid, Izzy. It's only thunder. The sky is just rumbling because it's hungry."

Izumi's eyes widened. They were innocent and filled with wonder. "The sky gets hungry?" she whispered curiously.

Rei nodded and put his arm around her.

"Can I sleep here tonight, father?" she pleaded.

"Sure," he grinned.

Izumi smiled in delight and snuggled against Rei, comforted by his presence. They lay there in silence for about a minute.

"Father?" Izumi said, breaking the silence.

"Hmm?"

"What was mother like?"

Rei paused, the question catching him off-guard. "Well," he started. "She was very beautiful and very strong." He pinched her nose playfully. "Just like you."

Izumi giggled in response. "Do I look like her?"

Rei nodded. "You look exactly like her. You have her eyes."

"Was she a better scout than you?" Izumi teased.

"Well... she tries." Rei laughed. "But no," Rei stuck out his tongue at her. His face suddenly serious, he lovingly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "She would've been proud of you, Izzy, just as I am." he whispered.

Izumi beamed happily at his words, momentarily forgetting the thunderstorm raging outside.

"I don't tell you this enough, but I give thanks every day for you. Your mother would be so jealous that I get to wake up every day and watch you grow up." Rei bent over to kiss her forehead.

Izumi's vision faded and her eyes focused back on the present. Rei turned to look at her with a gentle smile on his face – it was the face of someone who had lived his life with no regrets. He mouthed the words 'I love you'.

A tear left Izumi's eye and slowly made its way down her cheek, leaving a wet trail across her face. "I love you too, father," she whispered. She watched helplessly as the assassin held his daggers firmly in his final steps towards Rei. He stopped and looked down at him from behind his mask. Izumi wanted to scream but no words came out. She held her breath. Goodbye, father. I'll be with you soon.

Author's Note: So I did a poll last week, I wonder how many of you guess that the assassin would win? If you liked what you've read so far, don't forget to comment and vote! It encourages me to keep writing on. Follow me too, to get updates on what I'm working on. 

This chapter is dedicated to _CutieChick_ for her insightful comments and voting on every single chapter. I appreciate it :)