"P-Please. Let her go," he cried out, knees bruised purple from the length of time spent kneeling in front of the armed woman and her captive. Tears streamed like an accursed waterfall down the sides of his face and air suddenly seemed like fire in his lungs, and yet he couldn't stop. Not when the barrel of a gun was placed firmly against the captive's temple and a careful finger teased the trigger.
"Take-Take me instead."A look passed over the woman's face as she held her captive tighter, digging the barrel deeper into the skin. Olive eyes narrowed at the man and her lips curled into a cold sneer.
"Don't worry. After I blast her brains out, you'll be next." She watched as the man cowered, shaking even harder if that were possible. A foul smell wafted to her already scrunched nose, and it didn't take long for her to identify that the cause was the stain that now painted the front of the terrified man's work pants. The image gave her pause and her hold on the captive slackened for a brief moment. The captive wiggled slightly, which was enough movement for Talcri to remember her job and regain her grip. She addressed the man again, catching his gaze and holding it,
"Unless you give the Big Boss what he wants."Instinctively, the man's head shook. There was simply no way; not when the carefully worded request first knocked on his door and not now when a family member was being threatened with death.
"Please." The plea escaped his lips, a prayer unheard by the one who he needed to hear.
The stoic mask remained on the pink-haired girl's face.
"Would you rather I kill her?"A choice. He was presented with a choice. Either his greatest treasure, or his... He glanced at the captive again, eyeing the hands clawing at the robotic arm that kept her, and wondered, not for the first time that morning, exactly what his connection with her is. He knew in the deepest of his heart and mind that she was family, but he couldn"y pinpoint just which role she played. Was it a sister, a daughter, or a niece? He supposed, in the face of things, it didn't matter. She was family, and she would die if he didn't succumb to the mobster's wishes. A choice. Was there even a choice to be made? He was damned if he did and damned if he didn't.
He spared another glance towards the captive, and he released a shaky sigh.
"Very well," he acceded, mustering all his strength to raise his hand. There was nothing special about the limb, but Talcri tossed her captive aside and formed the light emitted by the small bulb above them into a dagger. With a swipe, the man's hand was severed at the wrist, his screams filling the small cabin.
A grimace made its way to Talcri's lips as she recovered the hand, noticing the way the skin shifted from the pale white to an assortment of colours before settling on blue, and placed it inside a special container.
"Eugh, disgusting," she muttered, as the container sealed itself, giving a satisfying hiss as it did so.
"Aww," her captive cooed as she righted herself and approached the still screaming man.
"I can't believe you did that for me." She fell to a squat by him, catching his eyes as a slew of pleas and curses fell from his lips. Watching him, she couldn't help but smile softly.
"I really do appreciate it."The man whimpered as she retrieved a black dagger from her back. It was a faithful tool, and one that has never once disappointed her. The cold metal of the blade licked the skin of the man's neck. One second, the man was crying softly; the next, he lay lifeless on the floor. Talcri walked over to the two, a disapproving look on her face.
"You killed him," she remarked. There was no surprise in her voice, only resignment. She watched as her sister cleaned the blade of the dagger using the man's shirt and sheathed it to her back.
Jaica stood, a bright grin on her lips as she practically vibrated on the spot.
"Of course. We don't leave loose ends." Her head tilted to the side as she tried to take a peak at the container in Talcri's hands.
"You got it?""I did," the younger twin replied with a nod as she handed the container over. She wiped her hands on her jeans, cringing at the way they ended things.
"What does the Boss want with his hand? His Lunos is just changing something's color when he touches it. Nothing special."Despite herself, Jaica couldn't help but smile at the mention of the now dead man's Lunos. It was amusing when she'd first watched him do it; he touched the liquid in Jaica's glass with a finger and she had watched as it turned into a bright shade of green. For most people, the Lunos would be nothing, but the man was an artist - a painter. He valued that hand more than he valued anything. Why their Boss wanted the hand - and just the hand - was not something the knew, and so Jaica answered with a shrug.
"He has his reasons. Let's get this to the drop-off and we can celebrate by getting cake."Talcri blanched. They would celebrate with cake for killing a man. She watched as Jaica's lips broke out into an excited grin and the protest died on her lips. Her sister was simply doing this for them, nothing more. Just like how the man sacrificed his hand for a perceived family member, Talcri knew her sister would do the same. She eyed the corpse and allowed it to add another weight to her shoulders as she followed her sister out.
Jaica simply grinned and gave the men wandering in a high-five as they exited. The clean-up crew was always nice company, and they made the best jokes. Perhaps she'd buy them some cake too.
"Down the rabbit hole you go," Jaica sing-songed as she dropped the container into the chute, waving goodbye to it as it descended into the abyss. The screen atop it glowed a bright grin, a cheery thumbs-up appearing onto it. Talcri rolled her eyes, but accepted the credits that were transferred to their accounts.
She wished they didn't need it, but the pay was good and one did not simply leave the Big Boss' services. One day, though, she promised herself. She turned to her sister, ready to drag her out of the building that gave off an oppresive air to her, and noticed that Jaica was still staring at the screen. There were new orders presented, directed towards both of them. A name and a short profile was followed by the Big Boss' commands.
Talcri had never met the Boss personally, as he was never one to physically interact with his, for a lack of a better word, goons. He was shrouded by darkness, a field of secrecy keeping him away from both the eyes of the authorities and his own people. She was sure not even her sister has met the Boss in person, but with the soft smile slowly crawling onto Jaica's lips, she wondered if maybe she had assumed wrong. Jaica was, after all, one of the Boss' favourite pets.
She shook her herself out of her thoughts as Jaica turned back to her, her usual bright grin making the oppressive air take a few steps back from the sisters.
"We have a new assignment. Not much information though, so I'll have to start digging." She began to list all they knew in one hand,
"His name is Keefer Bernstein. Really old, and he used to run a mining company. We also have an address for his apartment, I believe. Oh, you'll love this. He's apparently loaded." Mischief danced in Jaica's eyes, which was not mirrored in her sister's.
"I'll try to find out more about him and you do your thing. Let's have cake at home tonight!"Talcri couldn't help but smile at her sister's chirpyness, even though she feared their new job might suffer the same fate as their recently finished one. She gave her sister a nod and took her leave towards the markets, where she was sure her friend would be hanging about. Jaica skipped in the opposite direction, intent on slithering right into the fray.
@BrokenPromise
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