Song- devil like you // Gareth Dunlop
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"For someone who pretends to be all knight-in-shining-armour, you really are quite the opposite," A disembodied voice said, the tone laced with scorn. 

Avyanna whipped her head around to face Diem, who stood a few feet away, leaning against the door frame with his arms folded. Ava itched to slap the smirk right off his face, but pretended to be civil. She had stormed off into an adjoining room to be alone and was willing to ward off unsolicited company.

"What do you want Katz?" She inhaled deeply, a last-ditch attempt at reigning her temper. Katz studied Ava for a while before moving. He ambled forward, hands shoved in his pockets as he placed one careful foot in front of the other. Avyanna couldn't help but notice how remarkable he looked, his hair in place and his clothes unrumpled. Almost as if he took the time be presentable before heading downstairs. 

Always with the dramatic entrance.

"You don't want people to dulcify shit, do you? So here is the unaldulterated truth," He leaned down low and whispered in Ava's ear, "You are a coward." He straightened up and scanned her face for her reaction. Avyanna struggled to keep her anger from showing, balling her fists tightly so she wouldn't have the urge to break Diem's nose. 

Katz looked unsatisfied with her reaction and decided to push her further. Cocking his head sideways, he said something he knew would tip the raven-haired girl off. "And I know why you're here. It's not optimism or bravery-" He waved a hand in the air as if to underline his statement -"It's absurdity, because he is dead."

Avyanna's head stayed lowered so Katz couldn't see her face. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her knuckles started going white. The cadenced movement of her shoulders and her tense form made Katz take a step back, yet it couldn't hold him from taunting at her one last time.

"Oh was I too mean? You gonna cry no-" 

He was cut off mid-sentence as Ava's fist connected with the left side of his jaw. His head snapped up with a sickening crack and he stumbled onto the floor. Katz let his hand graze the underside of his face and drew it back, fingers covered in red from the blood that made it's way down from his mouth. He looked at it a while, then at the girl who was glowering at him. Ava expected him to throw a fit or at least fight back. But much to her surprise, he smiled. Not a full, pleasant smile you'd be charmed to see, no. It was a half grin, revealing that he succeeded in getting the desired response out of her.

Using his elbows and hands, he manage to stand up, rather unsteady on the footing. Wiping off the blood with the back of his palm, he turned around and made his way out with a rolling gait.

"You're despicable," Ava spat out with utmost disgust. Diem stopped mid-step, using the door frame to swing himself in her direction, and met her gaze.

"I've been called so much worse, love." With that, he left.

✘✘✘

"What do we do? We've got VALUABLE information, potentially disastrous and if ANY of the Council or Crown members find out we are so dead. Dead meat. Done for. Maybe they'll send knives to kill us, you know? Secure the evidence, eliminate the witnesses?"  

To say Bexley was freaking out was an understatement. He was in a full blown panic mode, pacing around the bar as Ethel, Harry and Beckett watched him amusedly. The brunet had his hands clasped behind his back as he came up with scenarios about ways the Crown would kill them.

"You know what we should do? Confess to the crime before they track us down," He declared.

Beckett stretched his arms before replying, "Track us to where mate? We're literally half a mile from the Council." Bexley's eyes widened in realization and he snapped his fingers.

"You're right! We should just kill each other. Mercy, you know?"

Ethel sunk her head in her hands and groaned as Bexley kept ranting. The three of them, though quite shaken, had taken the information quite well. Obviously, it was a great deal of pressure having knowledge of Barquet's last resort. Maybe it wasn't even a last resort.

"God, will you calm down?" Ethel exclaimed. Aillard chose not to respond and kept mumbling under his breath.

Harry fished around in his pockets and retrieved a cigarette which he proceeded to light and hold to his lips. As he puffed out a ring of smoke, Beckett turned to the other two and spoke in a low register, "We need to do something 'bout him."

The Devons exchanged a glance before Harry cleared his throat and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Our boy here is losing it. Can't do much till we're around but if  'e is alone, he snaps, goes down the guilt spiral, goes to the Council, rats us out and we're actually done for." He shifted in his seat as the other two tried to figure out what he was hinting at.

He swiped the cigarette from Harry's mouth and rolled it between his index and thumb. "We can't just sit around lookin' pretty either. If Cennet's involved in this, they ain't gonna bring the Assassins back when shit goes south."     

Stubbing the lit end against the table, Beckett stood up and held Bexley by the shoulders.

"Hey, look at me mate. I know you're stressed out, but we cannot go to the Council. You think they don't know about this? The only people with access to intelligencia can't read a map?"

Bexley stopped hyperventilating and met Beckett's eye. "What are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying they KNOW, Aillard. The Council knows about this. There's a reason they're not parading around, announcing this." He turned out to face the duo.

"Cennet wants Barquet to weaponize. If Barquet attacks, it voids the peace treaty. Which means-"

"-Cennet doesn't have to get revenge under the table anymore," Bexley interrupted.

Everyone sat in a heavy silence, the responsibility and weight of what they knew, finally dawning on them. The Assassins weren't the heroes. They were puppets, sent to distract the Barquetian Crown. If the four didn't decide to put out the fire, they'd burn down with it.     

✘✘✘

Avyanna made her way back to the Hector and Ace as a static filled sound filled every nook of the room, echoing in the dome. It was mildly unnerving, but didn't hold a candle to the shock waves the siren sent. Almost as abruptly as it started, the noise ceased, only to be replaced by a deep make voice.

"Fifty seven kids were selected from the chosen cities in Cennet. Those with the potential to train, to serve, to kill. Handpicked by our Mages..."

He made them seem like goods, commodities, the way he referred to the kids. Handpicked. Ava shook her head to clear the thoughts that were clouding her mind, keen to let every word sink in, no matter how much she deplored the Crown and the trainer.

"We have trained you for over a month. This may not be enough time to create the finest Assassin, maybe. However we must know who has the resilience to fight, and who lacks it. Only the best of the best become Assassins for our nation. We cannot afford setbacks or liabilities. This final test is to weed those out. In the next thirty minutes, you will be entering a faux circuit, an arena. The aim? Survive. Find the exit. Create allies. The first two groups to make their way out will make the cut. Divide and conquer."

Ava glanced at the other two only to find them staring back at her, mouths agape and sweat forming on their brows. She looked around to see the kids in various states of panic and denial. She was scared too, but this was her one shot. If she proved herself, no one would be able to question her again.

Taking a deep breath, she raised her head and looked to the boys.

"Kingsley, Loughty." They snapped to attention on hearing their names and met her stern gaze. "Stick with me."

Thirty minutes was an awfully short duration and try as she may, Ava was growing increasingly anxious. She couldn't push away the flutter of restlessness.

Meanwhile, Kingsley snuck glances at her. She was a tough one but he couldn't shake the image of her folded up into herself, whimpering and vulnerable. He hadn't a clue why she broke down but felt it best not to bring that up.

Before he could approach her, the lights clicked off. The room exploded with sudden whispers or exclamations. A whirring sound erupted from the walls and one by one, the walls lifted up in sections.

Light flooded in, momentarily blinding all of them. Ava blinked the phosphenes away and as soon as her vision cleared and a gasp escaped her lips. A mass of trees and vines and boughs as far as the eye could see. A panoramic stretch of green and brown.

The Circuit.