Ptolema stuffed a huge piece of chocolate fudge into her mouth. Irik laughed as she choked it back up.

"Are you laughing at me?" She laughed through another mouthful of chocolate.

"If I was, I wouldn't admit it to you. I've seen what you've done to people that get in your way," Irik retorted.

"Well, that was a boost of confidence. Did you notice my sarcasm."

"Sure, you sounded like an asshole."

"Like your not one yourself!"

"I won't deny it."

Ptolema finished the entire box of fudge before taking the bag filled with the two heads Riker sliced off and walked out of the room. Irik stayed in the room to await her return.

Her mask bounced on her nose as she ran down the alleyways again. The town seemed to be awake as ever for today, considering the royal king is presenting himself in every town for a speech about illuminating magic, and why it's bad. Ptolema has always hated his speeches, for she loved and cherished magic.

She knocked on the door of Rohodly's wooden door. It squealed as he opened just enough to peak his green eye through. He laughed as he saw Ptolema standing with the bag in her hand and the usual mask on her face. She heard him click another lock open, then the door opened wide enough for her to slip inside of the house. He closed, and locked, the door behind her.

"Let me see!" Rohodly laughed with joy.

Ptolema set the bag on top of a new wooden table. It had a green felt fabric circle embedded in the middle of it. Sewed into the green felt was the royal family's symbol.

"I hate to talk politics with you, but I can not stand how the king treats his people and magical folk. It's just not right!" Ptolema released her anger.

"Did you not hear? The king fell ill a few days ago, so his son is coming around to give the speeches instead. The doctors say he isn't supposed to live much longer considering his illness."

"That's great!"

"I won't ask, but you still have headed to show me Ptolema!" He said eagerly while greedily looking at the bag on his newly bought wooden table. The felt wrinkled as Ptolema moved the bag around to pull the heads out. Rohodly yelped with joy like a kid wanting candy. Dry blood stained both of the heads' necks dark red. Ptolema hated seeing people dead but loved killing them. She liked the actual action part of the assassination job. Kolo taught her well. Rohodly grabbed the heads and tossed them under the loose wooden plank in the floor. He then gave Ptolema forty chions. She gave a slight smile-and-nod, then left. Irik awaited her in their room.

She counted the money out at the guild. She gave twenty chions to Riker and kept twenty for herself. The guild would not kick her out if she had enough to pay for rent, which she did. Irik had to pay his own rent - predictable.

"Change of plans Irik!" Ptolema cheered while jumping into the room and ripping her mask off. The door slammed behind her making Irik jump.

"What do you mean?" Irik asked while standing up.

"The king has recently fallen ill, so we're taking this chance to kill off as many royal guards as possible. Prince Dumbass will be giving the speeches in all the towns, so all security will be on him. Since he is the only heir to the throne after the king dies." Even talking about the 'no magic' speech the prince will give made Irik uneasy.

"How do expect us to get near the castle anyways. What if the king is heavily guarded because he's sick. He might get better."

"Since the king has killed off most of the magical healers, only regular doctors are left. They said that his life expectancy isn't long." A wicked grin spread across her face.

"You should keep your mask off. Your prettier this way."

"Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"Because I have a girlfriend doesn't mean I can't compliment another girl. And besides, she's off in Aquolop right now. She's trying to find a Poi tribe to rise against the royal family."

Ptolema smiled herself. She gave Irik a sketch of the entire castle. It had every way in, and every way out.

"Where did you get these. More like who did you kill for these?" Irik asked while rubbing his eyes to make sure he saw them correctly.

"That's classified," Ptolema chuckled back. She stole the sketch back and buckled her mask back over her face. She smiled through her mask for the sensation of feeling relieved of another successful plan coming true. She strutted out of the guild with Irik close behind.

When they met the edge of town, Irik spedran down the entire forest with Ptolema climbed onto his back. She felt the wind licking her face while leaves waved at her. Branches danced to the music of the birds. She did not want the feeling to end because for once, magically made her feel happy again. She tried cutting it out of her life, but when she saw Irik, and how much magic ran through his veins, she decided she needed him on her team.

Her daze ended when the beautiful - but deadly - castle poked into view. Everything seemed to be made out of the most expensive objects in the entire world. No wonder there are so many poor people in Tredifoque. The king uses the money to pay off his debts.

"You can take the east wing, over there. When I give the signal take out the guards on your side, then rip the door out of the wall, okay?" Ptolema quickly went over the plan. Irik cluelessly nodded his head and went to stand where Ptolema told him to. She had to take out these guards first, so they won't send off a signal when the other guards are seen dead. She loaded her bow with an arrow that she stole from Kolo's training facility. Her right hand is still a little tingly, but besides that, the magical healers fixed it up just fine. She loaded two more arrows behind a tree. Ptolema edged closer to a bush with thorns that tore into her clothes. Three guards, three arrows. She aimed between the bushes prickly leaves and shot. All three went down with little sound. She smiled at her success and crept through the bush to give Irik the signal. Blood, from the cuts Ptolema got by rubbing next to the thorns, dripped down her legs like rain. She ripped a piece of cloth from one of the dead guard's clothes to tie around her leg to help stop the bleeding (a trick she learned from a magical healer).

Once Ptolema was finished hiding the guards in the thorn bushes, she looked over to find out that Irik was finished and waiting for her in a mocking pose. He yawned making Ptolema mad. She punched his abs as hard as she could but did nothing to affect the bratty Poi in front of her. He laughed and rubbed her head. She hated being short, but Irik is Poi making him extra tall.

"Now what?" Irik asked while looking at the inside castle sewer system.

"Are you looking through the castle's sewer system?" Ptolema asked while walking up and looking in the direction where Irik was looking.

"My nose is more enhanced than humans. I hate sewers," Irik complained while pinching the end of his nose.

"Stop being a baby, and follow me," Ptolema whispered. She ran down the sewer until a ladder was in sight. She climbed to the top with Irik - still holding his nose - following right behind her. At the top of the ladder, she pushed a dusty wooden plank above her head to enter a dark abandoned secret room. According to the sketch, this secret room leads to the library, so Ptolema felt every wall for a door until her hands passed over a large bump in the wall: a doorknob. She gulped down her nervousness and twisted the handle.

Irik had to give the door two hard shoves before it completely opened. No one was in the library, not even the librarian. Ptolema silently cheered for her success. Irik silently judged behind her.

After making Irik do a victory dance, Ptolema leads him down the empty castle hallways while killing guards that happened to cross paths with them. Unfortunate souls, the guards were. After taking the guards out, they hid the bodies in the sewer that lay underneath the second floor of the castle. Ptolema thought of it as a snack for the animals that live in the castle sewers like rats, raccoons, uilys, and then some dumb crows that somehow happened to manage their way into the sewer.

The adrenalin Ptolema gained from killing all of the guards roared through her veins like a river. She wanted to kill the king right now.

Right now.

Right now...

Irik could not stop her as she ran towards the king's chamber. She hid behind the wall that paralleled the opposite door from the king's chamber, so the guards that guarded the front door would not see her. Irik took her by the shoulders and pointed to the library. With his Poi telepathy, he programmed into Ptolema's brain that they should leave right now. Ptolema shook her head side to side, then snuck a peek at the two guards that guarded the front door. She loaded two arrows, aimed for the opening near the neck in both of the guards' armor, then fired. Both guards went down without a groan. Irik knew what Ptolema wanted him to do before she told him. He ripped the door open killed thirteen guards, leaving two for Ptolema. She loved killing them but wished Irik would have left her more prey.

After killing all fifteen guards, they stuffed them into the king's closet. It was filled with dress suits and shoes sorted by color and style. Some were leather, some were cloth.

Ptolema walked towards the huge bed to find the king asleep in his bed. His face was a sickly green color, but his breaths were so tiny Ptolema could have thought he was already dead. The king's grey hairs were falling off of his head and lie on the white pillow under his head now.

Killing all of the guards seemed too easy. Too easy for them to already be this close to the king without a loss of breath. The guards were fighting like beginners - idiotic beginners! Ptolema looked down at the blood that stained her two daggers that she pulled out from her calf pocket. They were dull, but still killed all of the guards. Still cut through the guards' armor. Ptolema locked the door, feeling as if this seemed like a trap. Irik did not bother to ask her about it.

"How did he sleep through all that?" Ptolema asked after getting back from the door. Irik shrugged and starred into the king's sleepy face. Wrinkles curled around his eyes and lips. He touched his blade that was held in Ptolema's hand and nodded his head toward the king. She nodded while raising her blade over the king's heart. She drew in a breath.

"This is for all of those innocent Pois, and witches, and sorcerers, and wizards you killed just to have the world's power under your control," Ptolema raved. She brought the dagger down as fast as she could. It plunged into the king's chest.

Nothing.

No blood.

Nothing.

"That ain't the real king, bitches," a voice said from behind them before everything went black in Ptolema's vision. Then, she fell to the floor the soft thump following her fall.