Revenge // Midnight Rose Trilogy #1

F I V E // I S A D O R A

      My thoughts are like a toddler; expected to stay still, but intrtigued by too many other things. Though they were bouncing around, I force them down. Deep down where nobody, not even myself, could ever find them. My focus shifts towards the radiant sunrise. If you think the sunsets in the inner-city of Raveryn are pretty, then you are missing out. The countryside is extremely vibrant, with a sky full of tangerine orange and coral pink. Looking through the small apartment window, I am privileged enough to witness this beautiful sight rising over the rolling valleys and the beachs on the western portion of the island, every morning. It's one of the only things I can't get myself to ever take for granted.

      A protein berry blast smoothie swallowed, training clothes on, and morning yoga completed, I have ten minutes to get down to the arena and warm up for this session. Knowing what lies ahead, today will be a hard day of battle. But where's the fun in life if there's no pain or fear to put the thrill in areniline? Hopefully, with the arrival of this tournament, I'll be able to impress my mentor. All that's been on my mind for weeks is earning the rights to be assigned tasks again. It's been far too long since I've gotten to put my senses to use. Once you begin in the brutal killer industry, your mind corrupts faster than bread molds. It strives for violence - even if you come to Midnight Rose as innocent as a child. They will always find ways to turn a capable person into a monster.

      The shhuffling of feet, so quiet it's nearly silent, approach my magnolia door, but before the visitor could waste their time knocking, I called out, "Nora, come in."

       Creaking open slowly, a girl, with the skin as smooth as chocolate and bright eyes the color of cocoa beans, entered the room with a large smile. "Girlie we have ten-"

      "Ten minutes and twenty four point three eights seconds to get to the arena. I know."

      The girl, enthusiasm defeated, clearly had forgotten my five senses were just as strong as hers. Her warm touch wrapped around my wrist and dragged me towards our awaiting class.

    "Sooo did it happen again?" Nora whispered to me.

      "Did what happen?"

       "You know exactly what." She giggles. "Did Finn, your knight in shining armor, come to your rescue this morning?"

          "NORA!", I scold. "He is not my knight and I certainly do not need rescuing. He, and you, of course, are my best friends. Nothing more." I put more than enough emphasis on that last bit.

         "Whatever you say bestie, but in my opinion, anyone who thought it was a good idea to come to Midnight Rose needs rescuing.... Anyways though, I wanted to ask you about what you would rate the living accommodations for this month?"

       "Four out of five stars. The slackers are still a pain in the-"

       Being she's on the committee board, Nora isn't allowed to let anyone curse or break rules without their consequence, not even her closest friend. It's quite a stupid rule. We can be paid hundreds of thousands to commit murder, yet dropping an F-bomb can get you stripped of your titles? Is this supposed to be self control or something?

       "The slackers are obnoxious and I've begun to find that my plain old white modern room is boring. Not enough weapons lying around for me to experiment with either.... but, on the bright side, at least they've improved the food recipes. I mean my smoothie actually tasted like fruit this morning. Shocking, I know!"

      "right..." Nora jotted down my answer on her clipboard. "And last question, I was just wondering if you've decided on your thoughts for a uniform upgrade?"

        "No change. It's still just as comfortable and fire proof as before." I mumble, distracted as we enter through the small canopy. Soon enough, our vision opens up into the room of terf flooring and walls of targets. I glance around. There she is. Elaine Von Deer. Her eyes are cold and full of hatred, not just at me, but at the world. I've always wondered who broke her. As soon as she meets my contact, a single finger points from me to her.

        The left side of my chest pounds against my skin, rapidly. She is calling me over. Singling me out. What could I have done this time? I'm unaware how, but at some point in time, I decided that this woman was both my role model and my worst enemy. I slyly slip my way through the crowd of fellow assassins, until at last, I was standing directly in front of her.

      "Isadora, you're released from combat today."

       "What?" I must be in serious trouble... or in serious good fortune.

        "Meet me in my office. I'll tell you more there."

        Alone? In her office? I mean at least I know I'm not in trouble - the whole class would know by now if that was the case. Could I be getting my titles back? A spark of joy lights a small flame within me.

        The office, minimally decorated like the rest of the building, lets in very little light. In fact, there aren't even windows on her walls, only bright white luminescents dangling from the ceiling. She sits down, knees crossed, on a black cushioned desk stool. I stay awkwadly standing, feeling the weight under me shift left to right.

       Finally she spoke, eyes rolling,"You've been assigned an important task... only you if you're able to complete it of course."

       Right, right. I've always gotta be reminded of my one failure, where it wasn't even my fault! The victim had a family. Two little boys and a girl. I couldn't bring myself to spear a dagger into his heart, knowing how much his children would miss him. They were loved, unlike me. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I was the reason a happy family became miserable. Never, ever, would I bring the pain I have experienced through the years into another family. "Ma'am, I won't disappoint you."

       "We'll if that's the case, then you leave for your next mission tomorrow. But first, you need to spend the day with Jason Alleyway, training to play the part."

       "Who am I murdering? Playing a part? What's my pay?" I ask. I have so many questions that need answering. Why hasn't she told me who my victim is? Is this just a set up to make an even bigger embarrassment of me?

       "Your next victim is Prince Kieran Thindrel." she gives me an evil glare, "as for your pay, it'll be discussed only if you succeed. Though, you can expect somewhere around 50 million dollars, at least."

        Prince Kieran? The Prince I most surely despise? 50 million dollars? With that, I would buy Finn a house and get him far away from this demonic place. He doesn't deserve to be here - he needs a cottage in the woods where he can achieve his dreams. New weapons, nicer gear, maybe some better decorations for my dorm could all be bought. Daydreams of riches and importance cloud every thought. "Deal." I reply with a crooked smile spreading.

       "If you accomplish this mission, then you'll receive your authority back. Now my dear, please run off to Sir Alleyway's office space to get formal training."

      Not daring to ask anything else, I couldn't help but wonder what 'formal training' possibly referred to. Every task I had ever been assigned required sitting and waiting on the prey. Why would I possibly be required to interact with my victim?

      Either way, Adrenaline rushes through my veins as the realization strikes. I'm finally going to watch Kieran Thindrel die. All I know is I want to make sure it's the slowest, most painful death imaginable. It's what he deserves, after all.