Chapter 1

Beads of sweat dripped from his forehead down to his chin, as he clutched the dagger in his right hand. He gulped down a chunk of saliva in response to the unnerving silence which had ensued for close to a minute now. He tried really hard to concentrate and remain focused at the task at hand. Losing focus for a single second could cost him dearly.

“Kill or be killed”

The short sentence uttered by his opponent, not long ago, still rang in the back of his mind like a broken record, forcefully sharpening his senses and increasing his awareness to the maximum level he could afford to reach. His entire being, every fiber of his body and soul was fixated on one particular or rather on one particular person, his opponent. His opponent, who was about a hundred meters away, stared back at him with a condescending look etched on her ebony, beautiful face. Her dainty hands were deep in the pockets of her black, baggy shorts, which exposed her slim, straight legs. It was like she wasn’t even taking this seriously at all, but he knew that she was absolutely dangerous in every sense of the word. A grin comparable to the grin of a malevolent demon from hell, sizing up its prey appeared on her face, sending shivers down his spine and causing him to perspire the more on his on his forehead. If this was a battle of composure, he sure had lost a hundred times over, because his opponent wasn’t even breaking into a single sweat while he was resembling a fountain. The fight hadn’t begun yet but he was beginning to have cold feet.

He clutched his dagger tighter, as the unnerving silence ensued longer. He couldn’t control his nerves for much longer, so he diverted his attention to his only source of comfort standing close beside him, his partner. She, his partner, unlike him, was calm and composed, totally giving her undivided attention towards the opponent before them. Her clenched fists, which were an inch or two apart from each other, were slightly raised below her small round nose, ready to counter any sort of surprise attack thrown at her.

‘Perhaps this is just another routine to her.’ He thought to himself, knowing his partner was always that way, especially when it came to combat. She was always calm and collected, strategizing and determining the best possible course of action that would bring about the best result. That is who is partner is. That is

who is sister is.

He was nothing like her. As for him, he was more of an “act first, think later” kind of fellow and that had always found a way of getting on his sister’s nerve, whenever they were out on a mission together. She always complained after every mission about how he almost screwed the whole thing up, whereas they completed the task without exerting much effort. Of course, he understood her point of being more calculative and not just jump foolhardy into situations, but still, where’s the fun in that? Besides, he behaved that way, because he believed that even if anything were to go wrong, his sister would always have his back. She would always be there to give him cover and support, imbuing him with the confidence to charge wildly at his opponents without putting much thought into strategies. Why bother about plans and what not, when he has his sister by his side to do all that? His work mainly was to act as a distraction, while his sister applies the finishing touches. He believed that she simply won’t want to admit it, due to her standpoint of taking less risky moves, being more calculative and all that, because it worked perfectly against their opponents. Opponents they defeated in a manner of minutes. Opponents they hardly broke a sweat over. Opponents which are hardly comparable to the woman before them.

She was a different ball game altogether. She was ten times, maybe even more, stronger than any opponent or adversary they had ever faced. Hell, even a pack of giant gorillas wouldn’t dare to step in a ring with her after confirming her capability. And he sure knew her capabilities. She was freakishly and insanely strong. Strong to the point of bending the rules of heaven. His “act first, think later” disposition would definitely backfire if he dared to try, for his sister wouldn’t even have the chance to save his sorry *** from getting whopped. This time around he had to think and act smarter, calculate his next course of action and more importantly, be in complete sync with his sister. That way they might at least have a slight, meager chance of winning this.

Ddiiiiinnnnnngggggg!!!

A deafening noise which resounded out of nowhere reverberated across the hall, causing him to shiver a little. He knew what that sound meant all too well. It indicated the commencement of the fight. He returned his attention back to the opponent, readying himself into a combat stance, only to get shocked and alarmed. His heart literally skipped a beat, as he discovered that the opponent was no longer in her previous location. It was like she had suddenly vanished.

“Where did she –“

Before he could complete his rhetorical question, a fist flew squarely, at breakneck speed towards his face. Instinctively, he closed his eyes and rose his arms to guard his face, forgetting about the dagger in his hand.

‘If that fist hits me, I’m a goner.’ This was a woman who could punch holes through a wall without exerting much effort. Just imaging what would happen if the punch imparts his face was enough to send shudders down his

spine.

‘Something is wrong.’ He thought to himself, as he was expecting to feel the impact of the punch on his arms. He opened his eyes wide, only to discover, at the last second, a malignant kick hurtling its way towards the left side of his ribs.

“Shit!” He exclaimed, but there was nothing he could do to save himself from his fate. The kick landed squarely, the impact flinging him across the hallway like a kite cut off from its string, now at the mercy of the turbulent wind. His hands flailing in the air, trying to reach for any means of support, but all was to no avail. He slammed into a nearby pillar, leaving a dent, bounced off the pillar before clattering on to the cold, hard floor ungracefully.

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