Angel With A Shotgun [Levi Ackerman x OC] / Attack on Titan / Shingeki no Kyojin

Code XIII: Victory at a Cost

content warning: this chapter is somewhat graphic.

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"Wait!" Levi growled.

"I have asked you several times before, Levi, that you do not speak my name when there are others around," Xora said curtly. "I ask that you do not—"

"You're going to seduce him, aren't you?"

For a brief moment, it was visible in her eyes that he was not wrong, but she quickly turned away. "...There are things you must do as an agent for the IE. This is one of those things I must do. It will aid us in our mission."

Levi's hand latched onto Xora's wrist, his face twisted into a pout. "I don't want to see that filthy man's hands on you!"

"I don't want to do this. But for the Empire, I am willing to do anything. Not to mention, I'm sure this will be helpful." She pulled out the wad of cash from her pocket and placed it into his hand. "Besides, you underestimate the fact that I am fully capable of protecting myself in such a situation." And before he could protest more, Xora wrenched her wrist from his grip and slipped into the private room, making sure to close the door behind her.

The room smelled of a strong, musty cologne and stunk of sweat and alcohol. It was barely lit with a few dozen rose-scented candles, their embers flickering slowly to a death. The very man she'd been looking for had changed out of his clothing and was now waiting in the center of a canopy bed, apparently naked, only a thin, velvet-red sheet covering the lower half of his body. Jacque was sipping a dark liquid from a tall, thin wine glass and smoking a cigar. It took much of her strength to keep her face straight.

"You've finally arrived, my beautiful jewel," Jacque drawled. His hungry eyes followed Xora. "Smile for me." His pudgy fingers slowly curled inward, beckoning her towards the bed. Sucking in a quiet breath, Xora stepped forward, dragging her heels, pulling a thin vial of serum from a hidden pocket in her waistline. It contained chemicals engineered to tamper with the brain, allowing for someone like a trained agent to pull what they needed out of their victims. It created opportunities to distort a victim's sense of reality and thus become easily taken advantage of.

Though it did as it was intended, it did have side effects such as nausea, fatigue and disorientation. There was also a time limit; over the span of approximately eight minutes, the drinker would become gradually more and more disoriented until they felt completely unconscious. When they fell unconscious, the concoction would distort the memories to disguise whatever occurred.

"But first, a drink," Xora urged, turning to a pair of glasses filled to the brim with a deep berry wine. With her back blocking Jacque's view, she rolled her fingertip on the cap of vial. With a dip of her hand, she poured all of its contents into the glass, making sure to get every last drop. Xora stealthily slipped it back into her waistband and turned, handing the drink to the man.

"Such a smart woman," Jacque mused, gladly taking the contaminated glass as Xora handed it over, herself settling into the satin red blanket beside him. He tossed away his precious glass and cigar, both landing near the foot of the bed. "What a marvelous way to start such a beautiful night. Why don't we toast?"

Slicking on a smile, Xora nodded and let her glass knock against Jacque's. Mimicking him, Xora tipped back her head and brought the glass to her lips, but she turned her head and dumped it, letting it splash on the carpet. The sound was drowned out by Jacque's satisfied burp. Xora smiled pleasantly at him.

"That was delicious," Jacque marveled, letting his glass slip from his hand and fall to the floor as the effects of the concoction began to seep in. "It's a bit chilly tonight, isn't it? Come, embrace me." His beady, dark eyes became cloudier and fogged. Xora ignored his question and sat on the edge of the bed, maintaining her smile.

"Are you alright?" Xora asked, her voice full of convincing concern. "You look a bit pale."

"I'm perfectly fine," he answered, his voice shaking. "But I really think you might be too warm in those clothes. Might you take them off for me?"

With a shake of her head, she answered, "I'm much too shy."

"What can I do to convince you? Do you want me to act like your lover?"

Looking deep into his eyes with her ocean-colored hues, Xora said simply, "Let's get to know each other better. Can I aske you some questions to make me feel more comfortable?"

"Consider it done. Ask away." Laying his head back against the top of the bouncy pillows, Jacque's eyelids dropped even lower, gaze becoming unfocused and he stared, dazed, at the ceiling.

As she spoke, her voice smooth and sly, Xora ran her fingertips across the blanket. "Have you heard the news of the Mona Lisa's kidnapping? It wasn't reported to the republic, but as one of the Louvre's top donors, I'm sure they told you, didn't they?"

"But of course I knew," Jacque answered with confidence, his thick mustache quivering against his top lip. "In fact, I helped in getting the original out of there. A few of my friends an I thought it would be a great idea to do so in case someone else tried to first. Quite a feat, wouldn't you agree? But I must admit that after we were able to replace it, one of my friends took it, so I have no idea where it went." His voice was slowly becoming frailer, and his eyelids quivered.

"Oh? Can you tell me who else was involved besides you and Alan?"

"But of course. How could I forget? There were were women and another man. Emmaline, Marielle, and Solomon."

A bell rang in Xora's head the moment she heard the name Emmaline, her memories dating as far back to the gala weeks ago; she was the woman who had forced her to sing when their musical plans failed. Pursing her lips, Xora bit back a sigh when she realized she only had mere minutes left until Jacque would lose consciousness.

"Who is the person who made the counterfeit painting? Can you tell me who transported the original out of the museum and who replaced it?"

"The artist's name is Sylvane Piquet" Jacque slurred, his voice now just barely a whisper. "As for who was the one to get it out of there, I don't remember. Originally, I wasn't even a part of the plan; I only joined in after the latter part of planning." 

"Jacque," Xora started, glancing at her watch to find there was a mere ten seconds left on the clock—but she was caught by surprise when a surge of strength from Jacque flipped her onto her back. Gasping, all of the air was expelled from her lungs as he crushed her with his weight.

"Seraphina—" he started, but he was silenced with a sudden shudder and finally fell limp, completely crushing Xora's body.

A rush of adrenaline allowed Xora to twist her torso under Jacque's body. She mustered her strength and shoved him off of her and onto the floor. Her skin tingled. Her chest rose and fell quickly, hyperventilation settling in, and she fell to the floor. A prickle in her palm told her she'd landed on the pile of shattered glasses, a shard cutting her palm.

A thought appeared in her jumbled mind and her fingers trembled as they reached over to her left hand, where the ring still sat snugly around her ring finger. It took immense strength to make the pad of her index finger push down on the diamond, a faint click sounding as the diamond popped off and revealed a miniscule button engraved into the gold. Using her nail, Xora reluctantly pushed the button, hoping the outcome would be as she expected.

Feeling utterly filthy, Xora pulled her knees close, leaning her forehead on her arms as she waited for him.

"Levi..."

And surely enough, not even a moment later, the door burst open, an alarmed Levi appearing. His posture was tense, his eyes moving quickly between Jacque's body on the floor, the shattered glasses, and Xora. He was by her in no time, crouching down to meet her face to face. He grabbed her wrists, his eyes observing her worriedly.

"Xora," he whispered, stone eyes softening when they saw the fear in those crystals of hers. "...What happened in here?"