The Crimson Assassin

Chapter 6

"... 78... 79... 80... 81..." Elentiya puffed.

"What are you doing?" Castol asked with astonishment, as Elentiya was doing chin ups on her bed which she had moved into a vertical position.

"What do you mean?" She replied, not pausing from the chin ups she was doing.

"You're doing chin ups," he stated.

"Yes... I do them... every morning... Don't you?" She said as a bead of sweat emerged on her brow.

"No."

"Oh, so you do weights? No. Stomach crunches?"

"No and no."

"So you're one of those 'run in the morning' kind of guys?" She chuckled.

"No. I mean yes, but why does that have any import--" He paused and recomposed himself. "What I'm asking is why you're doing this. It's five in the morning."

A big grin widened among Elentiya's face. It was an unexpected pleasure to have already irritated Castol so early in the morning.

"... 99... 100." She mumbled as she jumped of her propped up bed, "my master makes me do two hundred every morning, but I only do a hundred when he's not around."

Elentiya hated her master's training methods, but she didn't know how to shake off her old habits. The one thing she knew was that she was always at her strongest with him. Not just because of the training, but he was like a father to her. She was finally starting to appreciate everything he had done for her - only just realising that was probably the meaning behind this punishment.

"So, why are you here so early?" She smirked. "Trying to get a peek whilst I was sleeping? Is that what you're into?"

"Can you just be serious for once?" Castol sighed, as his patience was wearing thin. He always found himself having to think about what he was said before speaking with Elentiya. He wished she was just like any other assassin he'd met... arrested - focused, obedient and most of all silent.

"Yes, but where's the fun in that?" She laughed.

"You are such a child!"

"You are such a child!" She mimicked, "I'll have you know that I'm almost 18 years old."

On the outside Castol slightly raised a brow, but inside he was actually quite shocked and almost impressed. She was a first-class assassin and was only 17, most didn't reach that status till 25 at the very least.

"Who is your master by the way?" He leaned in with interest.

"What did you want to talk about?" She replied, completely avoiding the question.

Castol couldn't help but find himself staring at her, completely intrigued by her mysterious ways. "... We have a meeting with Hollin." He said then looked at the old, but reliable mahogany clock that stood in the room. "In five minutes." He added, "Let's go, we're going to be late."

Without even giving Elentiya time to talk back, he dragged her out of her bedroom, but suddenly felt no force against him. Only just realising that she had escaped his grip and was still at the door.

"I'm not going!" She said with conviction. "You obviously haven't noticed, but I'm in my nightgown. Can't we reschedule?" She yawned.

"No..." He said, feeling a bit bad for her. She was too young to be involved in royal business - even if she was an assassin, but then again people thought the same about him. It wasn't common for a 21 year old who wasn't of nobility to become a Royal Guard, let alone the Seventh Captain of Terran.

Before he realised what he was doing, he had already put his jacket on Elentiya, "Here have this. Let's go."