Fragments Gallery
Watcher
Rain fell gently around her as Kaylan waited silently. The world below seemed tiny as she swept her watchful eye over it again. There was no sign of her mark yet, but sooner or later he would show himself. It was early evening, there was time yet.
Kaylan was perched on the head of a gargoyle far above the city streets. From her vantage point she could see most of this quarter of the city. To either side of her more of the great stone statues ranged along the cathedral's vaulted roof. The low roofed houses below did little to impede her view of the street which made this a perfect vantage point.
She was on the hunt.
She strengthened the protective bubble around her with a few quick words. The bubble had two functions; it both shielded her from the rain and kept other attentive eyes from seeing her. It was a useful spell for those in her line of work.
The contract this night was supposed to be simple one. The target was a wealthy merchant who had simply wronged the right people. They’d put a price on his head and she had been asked to take care of him. There were no restrictions on how he was to be eliminated, which was an added bonus. She prided herself on carrying out an employer’s requests on a contract. However sometimes it was nice to get the job done without the need to satisfy... other requirements.
Movement around her mark's manor caught her eye. She murmured a few words and then felt some of her strength drain from her body as magic sharpened her vision. His face kept into focus before her. He was older, round faced with grey flowing hair and a short mustache. That was him.
He glanced cautiously around himself as he left his manor. Someone must have told him about the price on his head. He walked quickly, not quite running but obviously in a hurry. Kaylan watched him walk down a few streets, his path taking him towards streets which were blocked from her view by the cathedral. When he was almost out of sight she set off in pursuit.
Her black and grey clothing swirled around her as she stirred to motion. Her cloak was grey fur with black lining, underneath that she wore black cloth formed to her shape with grey edging. The light wind caused her long black hair to flutter beneath her hood. Her stained black leather boots tapped lightly against the stone as she leapt from the gargoyle to the cathedral roof behind her.
She tracked the man as she ran, keeping her eyes on him until he rounded a corner and vanished beyond the far edge of the cathedral. She picked up her pace and within moments she stood atop that far edge staring out over the city.
The man hadn't gone too much further; it took her only seconds to locate him again. He was walking down a crowded broad avenue in the center of town. With a flick of her wrist a dagger appeared in Kaylan's hand, she inspected its edge and then returned it to the hidden sheathe it had emerged from. She was ready.
The man was continuing down the avenue, but he seemed to have slowed now that he was surrounded by other people. That suited Kaylan just fine; it gave her time to get down there. He was only a few streets over, he wasn't too far.
The cathedral wall was elaborately carved which provided Kaylan with plenty of handholds on the way down. She descended quickly and within moment she was nearing the ground. Instead of dropping down to the street she leapt backwards off the wall, passed over the street and twisted midair to latch onto a roof behind her. She lifted herself up and set off at a run across the rooftops.
Her passage across the rooftops was uneventful. She flashed past open windows without raising a cry of alarm and easily leapt from roof to roof. Had someone happened to look up they may have caught sight of her in the fading light, but no one ever looked up.
Upon arrival at the avenue she slowed and carefully searched through the crowds. There he was, a short way down the road from where she now stood. She dropped into a nearby alley and emerged onto the street.
Up ahead the man was slowly wandering along, seemingly lost in his thoughts. Kaylan slipped through the crowd effortlessly. She let her hood slide onto her back, hoods drew attention.
The mark was just in front of her now. The blade flicked into her hand once more as she brushed past the man and with a solid thrust the blade pierced first his clothing and then his flesh as it sought his heart.
Before her target knew what had happened she had already calmly swept past. A voice screamed behind her as Kaylan slipped into an alley a short way up the road. The wall was easy to scale and within moments she was once more kneeling on a rooftop. She smiled as she looked down on the commotion she had caused. The man was sprawled motionless on the cobblestones surrounded by shocked onlookers. The rain continued to pound down, the flow of water beneath the man carried a red tinge. Guards were beginning to stream into the avenue as the crowd's voice grew.
Her job was done. Unseen she slipped off across the rooftops.