The Rise of the Daeterra

Green webs of energy filtered across her vision as shadows appeared where no other eye could see. However, the shadow they were looking for was nowhere in sight. The shadow across from her sighed for what had to be the third time within the hour. They had come in together an hour before under the guise of "a romantic evening" and her "date" had excused himself with the story of an emergency at the office, before sneaking around back, exchanging the suit for his armor and gear, and returning undetected.

"No way is he late to something as important as this."

"Are you really surprised, Cerin? He's late to everything. Though, given his track record, it is beyond me why the High Lady assigned him to such a mission," she chuckled.

"Unfortunately, he is one of the best Hunters of the Daeterra. While he is useful to us, it would be nice if he was a tad more punctual."

"Oh, Gavra, ye of little faith. I've been here the entire time, my friends. It is our invité d'honneur that is tardy. It seems your extra-sharp senses have become a bit dull-"

"The target is in sight," Edra reported from the rooftops outside. Marrok fell to a hush. All eyes turned towards the door as a group of suits and sunglasses paraded through past the Hostess, who simply paid them no mind. The crowds around, however, fell silent and watched the group of 7 file past, towards the private dining rooms. A woman walked beside the man, rose-gold mid-length dress matched with a pearl necklace and bracelet set.

"We've got the targets in the Sunset Room, third door on the left in the back hallway. We're going to have to be extra careful, there's guard dogs at the door."

"Give us a head-count, E," Evanna breathed, taking a sip from the glass of Merlot a waiter kindly set on her table.

Edra's eyes flashed with red, peering around the room down the corner. "Two outside, 6 inside. The dogs must have been here already. 8-on-5, not bad odds."

"We've had far worse, we can take them. Gav and I will take the back door, that's where they'll run to if the front is compromised. Marrok, Edra, front door. Evanna, guard the front door in case help is called from the outside."

Evanna chuckled, fiddling with the bracelet adorning her wrist. "I will remind you, Cerin dear, that you are not in charge of this job. Please, though, continue to do my job for me. Everybody, head in, and stay dark. This is as much a stealth mission as it is a hit."

Cerin muttered an apology, bringing about bouts of laughter from the others as they moved out. Her partner rose from the table and met Gavra in the back, Evanna watching the two slip through the door leading to the roof of the building, The other agents peered around the hallway corner, watching the movements of the guards as they awaited a signal.

"In position, take them," Gavra confirmed.

After that, the back of the restaurant erupted into Chaos, but nobody outside would know anything was out of the ordinary. Edra led Marrok down the hall, silently taking out the guards and dragging their limp corpses into a supply closet down the hall. "Guards are down, target is open," Marrok informed the others as he and Gavra slipped through the door into the Sunset Room.

The occupants of the room ate their meal in peace-filled bliss, unaware of the drop in their numbers outside, and more so unaware of the twist their day would soon take.

The first hit belonged to Edra, slithering over to stand just behind the closest guard to the door, and driving a bone-hilted dagger through the man's chest. She smirked at Marrok as blood gurgled in his throat, and he promptly dropped to the floor. One of the guards noticed, alerting the room, which burst into madness. The lady screamed, but her cries were immediately silenced by Marrok.

One arrow to the throat, right on target. Marrok never missed.

"What is happening? Call somebody, get help!" their target whispered to a guard beside him. A hand slipped into his pocket, pulling out a phone and pressing something. Just as he pulled his phone away, Cerin burst through the back door, noticed, and drew his sword, loosing the man's hand from his arm. The phone and severed limb dropped to the floor in a puddle of blood flowing like a river from the stump of his wrist, as the most unholy screams bubbled from his chest. The swordsman promptly finished the job with a single slice through the heart.

The remaining 4 guards made the fight evenly matched, but as the most skilled team of the Daeterra's army, evenly matched for the Hunters was only unfair for their opponents. Each took one, finishing the job in seconds. Another sword to the chest, a dagger to the throat, arrow to the head, and broken neck. Gavra had always been more hands-on.

Evanna smirked as she finished her wine, stopping the waiter and asking for the check with a flashy smile. He politely obliged and agreed to return momentarily. "Well done-" she was stopped as the doors were thrown open, two more suits walking through and heading towards the back door. "Excuse me for a moment."

She rose from her seat, stopping one of the guards with a hand to the chest. "Pardon me, monsieur, but my husband stepped outside for a smoke about ten minutes ago, and has not returned. I am awfully afraid of something happening to him, but it is dark outside, and well, would you please accompany me to go search for him? Just for a few minutes?"

The man looked to his partner, who sighed and waved the two off. "I'll go check on the boss, don't be long."

Evanna followed the man outside, leading him into an alley around the back of the building. "I believe this is where the restaurant allows people to smoke, sir. He just has to be around here somewhere," she said, as the two split up to search. Evanna smirked, ducking behind a trash bin and listening for the others.

"The other one is all yours, Van. All targets are neutralized," Cerin alerted.

"Thank you, dear. Clean up, I shall be there in a moment."

She rose from behind the bin, feeling herself slip into the darkness. "I cannot find anybody out here-" the guard paused as he found himself alone in the alley, looking around to find the woman. "Madam, where did you go?"

She chuckled, before snaking an arm around the man's throat. "Your boss? Gone, he and that cherie of his. 10 guards and not a single one of you could protect them, now that is truly impressive," with a sigh, she drove her own dagger through the man's chest, keeping it there and laughing as he choked, a veiled attempt at speaking leaving blood trickling down his chin.

"What-"

"Now, now, love. I wouldn't do that. I can promise you, they will never find us, and you will not survive to tell anyone anyway. Wouldn't you like to use your final breaths on something a tad more creative?"

Instead, he remained silent, save for the gargle of blood rising in his throat. "No? Well, I'm afraid I have other places to be. It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr..." she leaned down in the halo of the light from the window of the restaurant, reading a glistening bronze nametag. "Arquette. An intriguing name for an intriguing man. Enjoy your rest, Monsieur Arquette."

With a shivering breath, one final dribble of blood from his stained mouth, the man's heart stopped, leaving Evanna alone with one heavy body. As she had left the dagger in the man's chest, no blood had reached the concrete, leaving no clean-up for her. She simply knocked on the backdoor, handing the body off Cerin and instructing the others to wait for her at their place of residence. "I will be no longer than half an hour. Make sure you dispose of them and any identifying pieces here. Leave not a speck of dust out of place, do I make myself clear?" Her agents nodded, and she went back to her table inside, apologizing profusely to the waiter and explaining that she had simply stepped outside for a smoke.

The waiter handed her the bill, and she left a generous tip. Not all humans are bad, she thought. In another life, I suppose...

She gave the kind young man a dazzling smile and wave before taking her coat and exiting the premises, hailing a taxi to take her home. When she returned, it was as if nothing had happened. Her acquaintances were seated around the campfire outside, chattering quietly amongst themselves. When Evanna returned, they all settled in for the night, with a busy morning of travel ahead of them the next day.

In the morning, Cerin had flipped past the news, going back at the urging of Marrok.

"It is a sad day across the world, as hundreds of world leaders have gone missing with absolutely no sign of their whereabouts, or even signs of life. Everybody is asking the question, "what happened to them, and where do we go from here?"

Evanna looked up with a victorious grin from the kitchen table. "Where do we go, my dears?" she asked, mocking the reporter as she stood from the table, skin phasing out into an appearance that matched those of her friends scattered around the room, though with minor differences. An appearance of fair skin, with glittering tattoos beaming red with Hellfire circling her arms, and two small triangular horns atop her head. Black eyes peered across the room as two petite fangs grew into her smile.

"Straight to Hell, of course".