The Onyx assassin stopped and knelt down next to Rei. Rei stared at death in the eye without a hint of fear. He grinned at the assassin, his eyes turning into slits. Izumi watched in horror as the assassin cocked his head to one side and raised his dagger over Rei. Izumi shut her eyes tightly and looked away.

In a swift downwards motion, the assassin sheathed one of his onyx daggers on his hip belt, leaving one of his hands free. With his free hand, he patted Rei's face three times, as if to say 'Nice try, but you lost'. Rei's smug smile quickly turned into confusion. "What are you doing? You were trying so hard to kill me a minute ago."

The assassin ignored Rei. Standing back up, he turned towards Amadeus.

"Get back here!" Rei shouted. "Hey, I'm talking to you!"

"Father, what's happening?" Izumi asked with a trembling voice. They were all paralyzed and at the mercy of a skilled Onyx Assassin.

The confusion on Rei's face faded as he realized what was about to happen. Velox Tacitoque, swift and silent. The Onyx Assassins never kill unnecessarily.

"Amadeus, get out of here!" Rei shouted with urgency in his voice. "The assassin isn't after any of us. He only wants you!"

Hearing this, Amadeus struggled in place desperately willing his body to cooperate. His body trembled in response but refused to move. He watched as the assassin steadily approached him. The campfire crackled in the background, flickering in the wind. Behind the assassin, in the distance, he spotted the tiny lights that dotted the peak of the mountain range – the Jagged Peaks. Is this how it ends? I was so close... we were going to reach the Jagged Peaks tomorrow morning.

Amadeus turned his head to look at Izumi. There was no fear in his eyes, only resignation. There's no point in giving in to fear now. I'm paralyzed from the head down, there's nothing I can do. At least the rest of them are safe, I should be brave for them. He smiled weakly at Izumi, who looked afraid. There's so much I wish I could've told you."

Izumi didn't return the smile. She looked confused and fearful. What is this I'm feeling? Life just goes back to normal. Father is safe. I should be relieved, but I'm not. Thoughts raced through her head. Why do I even care if this commoner dies? I just met him yesterday. Somehow, he's... different.

"Amadeus, don't die!" she screamed. "I don't want you to die!"

With dagger in hand, the assassin slanted his head, examining his mark. They paid me so much to kill this little boy? I'm insulted. He left his drinking water alone in the Rokuth town for hours. It was so easy to slip in the night essence.

Warmth bloomed within Amadeus's heart upon hearing what Izumi said. He was glad that he meant something to Izumi. With renewed strength, he tried to reason to the assassin. "Hang on, let's talk about this. I surrender, there's no need to kill me." The assassin remained silent, ignoring his pleas. There's no surrending to an assassin. Raising his dagger, the assassin prepared to claim his mark.

I'm not going to talk my way out of this one, Amadeus thought as he shut his eyes tight and cringed, anticipating the assassin's strike.

*******

Velox Tacitoque. This had been recited mentally many times before in the past, being a tradition of the Order. The Onyx Order always recited their creed before claiming a mark. Holding the dagger in both hands, the assassin plunged it deep into Amadeus' heart.

Crunch.

To the assassin's surprise, the dagger sounded like it had hit a rock. No... it wasn't a rock, it was a large hand. The Rokuth whom was travelling with them had reached out at the last moment and held the dagger in place, only an inch away from the mark's heart. The assassin pulled back with a swift backflip, and simultaneously drew another dagger before flowing back into a fighting stance. The situation had just changed from one of clear victory to a very dangerous one indeed. The Rokuth would have to be approached with caution; his dormant ability to be evaluated.

"One?" the mark muttered at the Rokuth, with both eyes widened in surprise.

How is he still moving? The assassin thought in disbelief while tensely circling the Rokuth known as One. Out of the many assassinations in the past, never had anyone been able to recover from such a large dose of night essence so quickly.

"Night essence..." One said, while getting to his feet. "Not affect Rokuth for long." He turned to face the assassin and stretched his neck. "Immune system strong, flush out essence from blood."

One turned towards the assassin, and they both faced off; staring eye to eye. The assassin noticed that there something weird about his eyes. They were no longer a dull yellow. During reconnaissance, the Rokuth was perceived to be clearly not a threat. He had kind and innocent eyes, and was not suited for fighting. Those eyes were now replaced with fiery glowing ones. They shone brightly with a golden hue.

"Leave master alone," One warned. Both of the Izenths remained motionless, and could only watch on in amazement.

Alright, the rest of the group are still down, so it's still a one on one battle; my specialty. Let's see what this Rokuth is made of.

The assassin swung both Onyx daggers diagonally one after another, drawing an 'X' in the air. The daggers released shadows of themselves which spun and slashed at One. One stood his ground, neither deflecting nor dodging them. They penetrated his body directly before dissipating into thin air.

"Last warning," One growled, unaffected by the attack. "One not like to fight, but One will fight to protect master. You better le-"

The assassin didn't let One finish, and wasted no time in lunging forward with a strike into One's eye, trying to puncture it.

Without missing a beat, One caught the onyx dagger with his hand effortlessly and immediately followed up with an uppercut to the face. The assassin immediately let go of the dagger and kicked off One's torso, flipping backwards to dodge the attack. The uppercut connected with a pocket of air; and the force released was enough to send a small shockwave outwards.

Exhaustion is starting to catch up with me. I wasn't trained for long drawn-out fights. It has always been about getting in and out quickly. I thought the night essence would have worked, but I made the mistake of underestimating my opponents.

Glancing down at the remaining onyx dagger, the assassin gripped it tightly in desperation. I need to finish this soon or my magic reserve will be drained. I have to go all out. Pointing the single onyx dagger towards One, a burst of numerous blade shaped shadows was launched from its tip. They penetrated One's body with precision.

One glanced at the shadow daggers which had embedded themselves in his arms and chest. For a moment, he looked like a giant rocky porcupine. With a grunt, he flexed and watched the shadow daggers fade away into thin air. "You give One no choice then," One said. Holding up the onyx dagger in his hand, One snapped it into half between his fingers as though it was a tiny twig.

How can a Rokuth with such a tiny rock be a threat to me? It's impossible for him to be this strong. The assassin looked visibly disturbed for the first time since the battle started. Vanishing into thin air again, all that was left was an unusual calm.

"Stay alert, he's not gone yet!" the annoying Izenth girl shouted. "I can still feel his presence with my sixth sense."

One nodded in acknowledgement. He cracked his knuckles and balled his hands into fists, preparing for the next attack.

That's just great. Now I've lost the element of surprise. I should've killed her first... 'Don't kill unnecessarily', they said. 'Only take out the mark', they said. Pfft.

The assassin appeared behind One, flanking him. If I can't defeat the Rokuth, I'll just go directly for the mark and escape. I always get my mark. The onyx dagger once again plunged quickly towards the mark's heart as the annoying Izenth girl screamed in the background. Velox Tacitoque.

Inches before the dagger pierced the mark's heart, the assassin felt a set of large knuckles make contact at stomach level, and the pain was immediate. The force of the attack was nothing that had ever been felt before. How can something so big move so quickly? The incredible force sent the assassin's limp body flying. It rolled several times after colliding with the ground before gradually coming to a stop.

I can't move my limbs... and my magic reverse has been fully depleted. It was my last desperate attempt to take the Rokuth down. Being in this vulnerable state, the assassin started to break out in cold sweat. I just need to buy some time. Once I recover a fraction more of my magic reserve, I can vanish out of here.

"Boo." One grunted, causing the assassin to jerk up in a fright. Swiftly, One reached out one hand and went straight for the throat. He slowly tightened his grip, causing a sudden rush of frenzied squirming.

How did he appear next to me so quickly? Confusion was soon replaced with desperation as there was now a struggle to draw air. I... can't... breathe... Thrashing desperately, the assassin pulled at One's arm as the grip tightened further, threatening to crush the throat. Looking into One's glowing eyes, fear started to take over. I was too reckless. Is this the end for me? Slowly, the squirming started to weaken.

"You should have left, when One gave you the chance," One growled.

"Stop!" a voice shouted.

One looked confused. "Master, I—"

"That's not us, One. That's not how we are. He's lost the battle. Let him go."

The glow slowly faded from One's eyes and he looked uncertain. Obediently, he loosened his grip and the assassin dropped lifelessly to the ground, trembling and gasping for air. I'm still alive. The mark... he just... saved me.

One stepped away and returned to the mark's side, never taking his eyes off the ground as he shuffled along slowly. There was shame burning in his eyes, revealing the regret and guilt within him. "If master had not stopped One..." One shook his head, refusing to complete his sentence.

"One is sorry master, One only meant to—"

"Don't be sorry," the mark smiled gently at One. "I know you only meant to protect me, and I thank you for that. There's no need to apologize."

"What I want to know is how that klutzy and timid Rokuth turned into a terrifying monstrosity of destruction!" the Izenth warrior known as Rei shouted. How can he joke at a time like this?

"Don't encourage him!" the mark reprimanded. It felt weird talking to each other without being able to look each other in the eye.

"How can both of you be so relaxed? Hello? Am I the only sane one still here? The assassin could still get up at any moment now!" the Izenth girl reminded them.

"Well, it'll be my turn to fight him then. I should regain control soon. I can feel the night essence fading from my body." Rei replied cheerfully, managing to wiggle his left foot.

"You both need to take things more seriously," the Izenth girl remarked.

"We are serious," the mark said with a grin. "Seriously lucky to be alive!" The assassin could've sworn that the annoying Izenth girl growled in frustration as Rei laughed in amusement.

"Be serious for a moment Amadeus, you were this close to being killed. Tell me, what is the assassin doing?" the Izenth girl asked with a shaky voice.

"He's still lying there motionless," Amadeus replied. "I don't think he's going to move anytime soon. One beat him up pretty badly." One whimpered at his words.

The assassin took in deep breaths, trying to recover from the draining chokehold. The ground nearby crunched as someone got to their feet. Who is that? Is the Rokuth coming back to finish me off? I only need a few more seconds...

"Rei is that you?" the mark asked with concern in his voice.

"No, it's the Nobles." Rei replied sarcastically.

The assassin breathed a sigh of relief. It was only Rei. The terrifying Rokuth was not coming back; at least not for now. It was about time for the Night essence to wear off for Rei. After all, he was a veteran Izenth scout and would have built-up some resistance to natural toxins over the years. The Izenth girl and the mark would be down for a much longer time than Rei.

"Not funny," the mark reprimanded Rei. "How long more will it be before I can get up?"

"You probably should just get some rest," Rei advised. "It's going to take until the morning for you to regain control of your body. Maybe half that time for Izzy."

It's time. I have just enough power. The assassin desperately squeezed the very last drop of magic from reserve, and melded into the night; disappearing from sight and reappearing a safe distance away. The assassin continued to observe from afar, needing more time to recover enough power to flee the Crystal Plains. I know that I've failed, but at least I will escape with my life. It's all thanks to... my mark. That boy... Amadeus.

In the distance, the mark— no, not the mark. He has a name; Amadeus. In the distance, Amadeus remained on the ground with One sitting in silence by his side.

"I'm not going to sleep until I'm sure we're safe from that assassin." Amadeus insisted.

"You're safe. The assassin's gone. It looks like he left in a hurry," Rei replied while dusting himself off. "I don't sense him in the near vicinity anymore. He could be watching from afar, but I doubt he'll be back again after the beating One gave him. We should be fine for now. I'll keep watch for another hour and hand over to One."

One grunted in agreement, but Amadeus only snored loudly in response. He had already fallen asleep.

*******

Author's Note: So... hope you guys like the end to the assassin fight. I'm sure you have a lot of questions, they'll be answered soon. Keep reading! Also, vote and comment if you enjoyed :).