Ultimate Assassin Saga: Woodlands

It had been prophesied that the Star Elves would come into contact with a being of the Abyss with good intentions on a far away planet. Because of this, they were to join together and to become his ally. However, before he left the Whispering Jungle, he was to end the plagues that were wrought upon them. The prophecy said that once that was done, that he could move on, and in the end, there would be a great war. This war would be between the country that he had come from and the country that he would bring about. Basically, there was going to be a war between Dalkia and the Wilds which had been foretold he was to bring together under one banner.

Once again, it still sounded fanciful, but again, he found himself believing it. Maybe it was his optimism, but he would like to believe that he could do such a thing, that he would survive. However, the prophecy had said nothing about who won the war, who died and who lived. It just said that he would bring the Wilds together under his leadership and that they would wage war with Dalkia. He could believe bringing the Wilds together under one banner because he'd already drawn the people of the High Forest as well as the people of the Tundra into an alliance with him. If he kept going this way, every people of the Wilds would be his ally.

He had to be careful how he handled this though.

If he operated solely on the faith of the prophecy coming true, then he would fail. He couldn't just expect it to happen and have it happen. No, he would have to work for it. In fact, he knew that he still had to work for the alliance of the Star Elves. After all, he was suppose to help them with some problem that they were having before he could leave the Whispering Jungle. However, none of the Star Elves were willing to tell him just yet what that issue might be. It was maddening to have something in his hands that he could deal with and not have anyone tell him what it was so he COULD handle it.

Sighing in aggravation, the Command Assassin sat up in the bed. He ran a hand over his face and tried to still his thoughts, but they just wouldn't calm down. No matter how hard he tried, they continued to pound behind his eyes, insisting that he think them and there seemed to be nothing that he could do to stop them. It was starting to drive him mad and he cursed low under his breath.

Letting his hand fall away from his face, Acheron sighed and shook his head. He didn't know what his problem was. Ever since he'd come here, he found that his patience as well as his anger was getting harder and harder to control. There was no real reason for it, but it was a fact none the less. There didn't seem to be anything that he could do to prevent himself from getting angry, even though he wanted to. He looked over at his pile of clothing laying on the chair in the corner, but there was one glaringly obvious missing piece: his Diamond Blade.

The Chaos Demon sighed and cursed inwardly. He didn't think that they were trying to keep him disarmed for nefarious reasons, but they had yet to give him back his blade. Because of that, his guard was higher than ever before, though he did trust them somewhat. True, he could simply manifest a sword just like the last one and that would take away his aggravation, but that wasn't the point. The point was that he wanted them to give his sword back as a gesture of good faith and trust.

The Command Assassin pulled back the thin quilt, revealing his naked body beneath it and he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He pushed to his feet and he walked fluidly across the room, but he didn't go to his clothing. No, he went to the small square window on one wall and he stopped in front of it, looking out at the land beyond. The Whispering Jungle was all around them, looking like a shadowy backdrop against the civilization that the Star Elves had created here.

Not for the first time he found himself wondering why the Whispering Jungle was called thus. He'd heard no whispers since he'd been in the Jungle, but he also didn't feel that the name was wrong. In some odd way, it seemed to fit the Jungle in all ways and caused him to stare at the Jungle in wonder. There was no one outside at this point because of how late it was at night, and when he looked into the sky, he could see the waning silver moon in the sky, surprised that the mirror dimension had the same moon cycles as the Mortal Plane.

Cursing to himself, Acheron turned away from the window and he intended to go back to the bed. Before he reached the bed however, there was a knock at his door and he stopped, frowning at the knock. Who would be here in the middle of the night to visit with him? He didn't even know that many people around here, only knowing three and it was unlikely that any of the three would be visiting him in the middle of the night.

Looking down at himself, the Chaos Demon knew that he couldn't answer the door without any clothes on. Well, he could and make the person completely uncomfortable, but he saw no reason for that. He turned and walked over to the chair with his clothing in it, grabbing up his pants. He quickly slipped them up his long, tree like legs and he snapped them at the front. That done, he walked across the room towards the door and he stopped in front of the door, opening the door to see who it was on the other side.

Standing on the other side of the door, hands down in front of her and head down while she bit her bottom lip, was his guide. She stood there, looking unsure of herself and he could understand why she would be unsure about herself. After all, he towered over her by nearly two feet, and if she stood behind him, no one would be able to see her behind him. He noticed something else as well. She wasn't dressed in the dress she'd worn earlier today, but was now in a thin white nightgown with a low cut neckline and a high hem that nearly revealed all of her.

The Command Assassin raised a brow at the sight of the Elf standing there. What was she doing here in the middle of the night and dressed the way she was? He took a step back, not wanting to be close to her just in case she'd come for what he believed she'd come for. However, he could sense no lust in her aura and that caused him to calm down quite a bit.

"How may I be of service to you?" Acheron asked, his curiosity showing through in his voice. He watched the woman as she stepped deeper into the room and closed the door behind her. However, she still looked unsure about being where she was and he had to wonder why that was.

Suddenly, the girl looked up into his eyes and he was struck for the first time with how beautiful she was. If he wasn't on the track of finding the woman he loved, he might've wished to dally with her as long as he could. However, that couldn't be and he knew it. Trissieal was the only woman for him and he knew it. To distract himself with another woman would be an injustice to himself, and most importantly, to Trissieal herself. Also, he wouldn't want her to learn of his indiscretion, and if he were to bring all of the Wilds under one banner, it was likely that she would want to see him once again.

Funnily enough, he didn't even know her name.

"What is your name?" Acheron asked before she could answer his previous question. She looked at him curiously, her head tilting to one side and her eyes narrowing on him. She didn't seem to know what he was speaking of and he began to wonder if she was mentally capable of comprehension. What he'd said was a very easy question after all and anyone over the age of four would be able to articulate an answer for his question. Then, she surprised him by opening her mouth and speaking.

"Forgive me for not telling you earlier. My name is Leera." the Star Elf said in a low, barely there voice. Even in this she showed how timid she was and it was quite the possibility that she feared him. He was a Demon after all and she was but an Elf. Elves - even Star Elves - knew the reputation of Demons, and even with a prophecy between them, she still feared him. That much he could sense from her without having to probe past the surface. "I come to you to apologize for our King. He is often direct and doesn't know how to be more political. Most find it to be annoying, though I don't see why. I myself would prefer someone were direct with me instead of dodging around what I had to say."

The Chaos Demon stared at the girl. He was surprised that she had just said so much. Her voice had gotten stronger with each word until she was talking at a normal level. Also, she was meeting his eyes and staring right at him as if she didn't have a second thought about what he was. Perhaps she didn't. Perhaps she saw that he was just a man and wasn't going to judge him on what he was, choosing instead to take the higher path.

That was a rare thing indeed, but it was known to happen. It was how he'd managed to become allies with the Amazons, Wood Elves, Wolfians, and the Barbarians over the past two years. Now, it was this sort of lack of prejudice that might get him an alliance with these Star Elves. However, he had something he had to do first. He didn't know what that was just yet, but he had a feeling that he could learn what the problem was if he merely asked the woman in front of him.

With that thought in mind, the Chaos Demon nearly smiled. He managed to curb the impulse, but he had to concentrate to do so. If he allowed his defenses to come down for even a moment, he would smile and he didn't want to appear condescending. That would destroy any confidence the Star Elf in front of him might have in him and he couldn't have that happening. He needed her as a source of information, knowing that he wasn't likely to be able to get anything else out of the rest of the Star Elves.

Carefully blanking his features, the Command Assassin took another step back and then another. Soon, he was beside the bed that he'd just been laying in and he sat down, resting one leg partially on top of the bed. He stared at her and she looked back at him, but she seemed to be having problems staring at his face. In fact, she looked like she wanted to turn and bolt from the room, but she didn't. Instead, she walked closer, the gown she wore swirling about her thighs as she did so and he watched her approach with eyes devoid of emotion, though his heart had sped up in his chest.

He tried to calm himself, telling himself that she was just a woman, but it didn't work. For all the control that he formerly had when he lived in Dalkia, he seemed to have none of that now. It had abandoned him and he found himself wishing that he could grasp it firmly in both hands at this point. He watched her walk closer, and after hesitating for a moment, she sat down on the bed as well, directly across from him. Then, she raised her eyes to his face, though they did dart down every now and again to stare at his chest.

He felt some sort of masculine pride at that, but he shoved it down. This wasn't why she was here and he knew it. Or at least that's what he believed. If she was here because she found him attractive and wanted to sleep with him, he would be forced to turn her down. He didn't like it and he really didn't want things to be awkward when dealing with her - he was sure that he would be seeing much more of her in the immediate future for some reason - but if she wanted to have sex with him, he would have to refuse.

Trissieal was the only woman for him and he wouldn't betray her.

"I only came here this night to apologize for father." Leera said, looking up at him with a small smile. She shook her head and she pushed back to her feet, obviously surprised by her own sociable actions towards him, but he was still confused by what she'd said. he stared at her, watching as the light from the window poured over her shoulders and made her gown nearly transparent, outlining the beauty of her body. After only a brief look, he stared into her face and frowned.

"Your father?" Acheron asked, not sure he understood. She had come here and apologized for the King's actions, not her father's. The moment that thought passed through his mind, he cursed himself inwardly for his stupidity and he realized his own mistake. He stared at her with new eyes, realizing that she wasn't here for sex, but to reveal who she was to him. Why she would do such a thing, he didn't know, but he was glad that she'd clarified her relationship with the King. "Your father is King Taro."

The Star Elf nodded her head, her simple black hair sliding across her slender, pale shoulders. He found himself liking how she looked the longer he was in her presence and there was a moment that he wondered if she were some sort of seductress, but he banned those thoughts from his mind, dismissing them as preposterous. Before he could say another word, the Star Elf turned away from him and he watched as she walked across the dark room towards the door to his room. She stopped at the door, and with a hand on the knob, she looked over her shoulder at him.

The Chaos Demon stared at the woman for a moment, wondering what she was going to say. His heart had slowed to a normal pace once she'd turned and was leaving the room. Now that she'd stopped to look over her shoulder at him, his heart was beating at an unsteady pace once again. He waited for what she would say and he was surprised to see a small smile grace her face.

She spoke in a strange, sensual language that he didn't understand, but he understood that they were kind, soft words. With a nod of her head, she turned away from him and opened the door, stepping outside. When the door closed behind her, he sat back on the bed and sighed. He had no idea what it was that she'd said, but it was strangely comforting to him.

He ran the thoughts through his mind again and again. He lay back in the bed, threading his fingers behind his head and he crossed his legs at the ankles. He stared at the roof with a small smile gracing his lips and he continued to recount the softly spoken words. Again and again, he heard the words that she'd spoken and for some reason he believed that they translated to something very simple and kind: good night.

With that in mind, Acheron closed his eyes, and in seconds, he drifted off to sleep.

XXXXXXXXXX

Leera closed the door of the Demon behind her and she took a deep breath as she leaned back against the door. She'd found it difficult to speak to him while he was without his shirt and armor, but she'd somehow managed to compose herself enough to speak to him without giving away her intimate feelings. The moment she'd seen him framed in the doorway without his shirt on, she'd felt her body react to him. She could only hope that he hadn't noticed.

She pushed away from the door and she began to amble slowly down the hallway back towards her own room. There was no one around, everyone being asleep and safe in their beds tonight. Ninety percent of Star Elves never had to worry about danger and that was how they liked it. The other ten percent of Star Elves were the warriors and they were the one's that patrolled the Whispering Jungle around them to make sure the Undead weren't getting too close to the village.

That was the infliction the prophecy spoke of, but no one had any intention of telling Acheron. She had originally come to Acheron's room to inform him of the Zombies, Wraiths, and other such creatures that walked the Whispering Jungle, but she'd completely lost her mind when she saw him. Her mind kept drifting back to the scars on his torso, and at the time, she'd wanted to run her fingertips over each scar while he told her how he'd gotten them. In the end, she hadn't done so and she was glad because she had the feeling that she would've embarrassed herself by doing so.

She somehow sensed that there was another woman on his mind and she didn't want to encroach on that. After all, love was one of the most powerful forces on the planet and no matter how beautiful someone was, love always won. He might spend a few nights with her, showing her the beauty of sex, but she knew what would happen in the end. He would leave to find the woman that he really wanted and she would be left behind to nurse her broken heart.

Shaking her head to banish her silly romantic notions, the Star Elf walked faster and rounded the next corner. She narrowed her dark eyes, staring into the darkness of the hallway, and still not seeing anyone, she walked down the hallway towards her room. She was comfortable in the darkness and all alone because she didn't truly think there was any danger. After all, she was in the palace of the Star Elves and there were more than twenty thousand soldiers between her and any of the Undead of the Whispering Jungle.

She had nothing to worry about.

The Elf Princess stopped in front of her bedroom door, and after opening the door, she stepped inside. Closing the door, she turned and looked around the room, taking in the furnishings of her room. There was a painting of the ancestor who had brought the Star Elves to this planet hung above a large, feathered filled bed and that bed was covered in silk. Pushed against one wall was a small wooden dresser with only two drawers, but that was all that she needed to fit her clothing. The top drawer was for her daily clothing and the bottom was for her nightly clothing.

She snorted as she looked down at the sheer white nightgown and she reached down to pluck at the nightgown. She had no idea what she'd been thinking about putting this on to go see him, but there was no taking it back now. There was no telling what he'd thought about her coming to his room in such a sheer and revealing nightgown. Hells, he'd probably thought she'd come to sleep with him.

Laughing softly to herself, Leera walked over to her bed and she sat down on top of the bed. She ran a hand over her face and she shook her head, wondering just what the hell it was that she was going to do about the Demon. She found him attractive and just in the past two times she'd had to deal with him alone, she'd found it difficult not to throw herself at him. He was large, muscular, and very attractive. The scars didn't help either. It just lent to his attractive and dangerous air.

There wasn't a single Star Elf among the two hundred thousand of their numbers that looked like him. There were some really tall one's of course, but none like him. He was practically a giant compared to them and she didn't doubt that he could smash one of the Star Elves with one of his large, calloused hand. However, the Star Elves did have one thing to their advantage though she didn't know how effective it would be against him: technology.

The Star Elves had been a technologically advanced race of people thousands of years ago when they'd been on their home world, but now they were even more so. They used most of their technology in tandem with their magic and it worked out just fine. There was technology of convenience like the lights which were powered with electrical magic, but there was a darker, more violent side to their technology too. The technology that they'd developed was used to fight off the undead, and even though most Elves used blades, the majority of warriors carried Pulse Rifles with them when they went out into the Whispering Jungle to patrol the area.

One could never be too careful.

Sighing, Leera allowed her hand to fall to her thigh and she lay down on her bed. She tilted her body up as she pulled her quilt down and she slid under the cover. Pulling the quilt up to her neck, she rolled over onto her side and rested her hands under the sheet. Then, she closed her dark eyes, and after taking a moment to calm her mind, she drifted off into sleep, her dreams filled with Acheron and the illicit things that she'd love to do with him.

In her sleep, Leera smiled.