T.K and Zelo are both very young, at least compared to me. Zelo's only 16, pretty inexperienced, as he went to the academy only two years ago, along with several others I know by name. It wasn't rare to go on double missions, but triples weren't very common, especially with me and T.K. We were equal to two Zelos each, but I wasn't complaining. Zelo got very distracted, for some reason when he went on solo missions, so he always went along with someone else, and he might unknowingly give me some of the information I need to know. 

I met them at the assigned place, crossing Vega Bridge, a bridge built of glass and ice so frozen it will never melt, and crossed over the street to a clearing at the side of the opposite side of the river, the King's castle, set on a hill miles away, gleaming in the moonlight of midnight in the kingdom. T.K was staying in the shadows, dressed in black jeans, a black sweatshirt, and boots. A bandana covered his upper face and his blond hair was tucked under a cap. The 18 year old was leaning against a tree, eyes darting around, his arms folded. Zelo was there too, sitting cross legged under neighboring tree, wearing sweatpants and a leather jacket, a red mask hiding his lower features and a beanie hiding his bright pink hair from view. The two assassins were sitting silently, constantly scanning the perimeter, the waning moon lighting up the clearing enough to see slight forms. The clearing was empty, silent, but T.K still looked on edge.

I slipped into the clearing, opposite of T.K and Zelo, as to not startle one of them and get a knife in the throat. T.K nodded to me, a rare smile creeping up to twist his lips the tiniest bit, but Zelo grinned full on. I gave them a little smile back, and instinctively touched one of the blades tucked up my sleeve, making sure I still had it, but I would have noticed if a knife fell out of my sleeve. Zelo got up and walked over to me, and even though he wasn't the best in the business, he still had that unconscious grace of a trained killer, he still had that tilt of his head, still had that hand the weapon at his waist. He gave me a little bow and gave me the greeting gesture in the kingdom; a quick flipping of the right wrist so open palm is up, fingers slightly tucked in so the pinkie was closest to the palm, and pointer is furthest away. I repeated the gesture, and then did the same to T.K, who greeted me back. Zelo was, as always, the first to speak. 

"Hyung! I haven't seen you since the Lee assignment!" I nodded. 

"Yup. Come on, we've only got so much night hours left," I said, my usual response, but as soon as I realized what I said, I wanted to take them back. The point of this, besides just another assignment, was to find out what Zelo knew. I wanted to keep him talking, not shut him up. I mentally cursed myself as I backed up, careful to keep my face blank. T.K was as good as me at reading expressions, but he didn't say a word, instead falling in behind me as I ran out, Zelo close behind. 

The manor of the lord Choi wasn't far, maybe a mile run, and I had already ran several to get to Vega bridge, but I was a runner by blood and set the pace, fast enough that we would there in maybe 15 minutes, with all the obstacles of running in the semi-close together forest. Zelo was a runner, too, but T.K wasn't, so I slowed my pace for him to be able to keep pace with us so it wouldn't be dropping by the end of the mile. 

The trees gradually faded into brush, and it became harder to keep quiet as the brambles were hard to avoid and the leaves crackly underfoot, so we were forced to slowdown somewhat. But we arrived at the manor in good time, hiding out a couple hundred yards form the entrance to take it in. 

This particular manor, owned by the wealthy lord Siwon Choi, was one of the largest in the kingdom. The stables, which were directly off the road leading to this semi-deserted area, could house up to 40 horses, by my estimate, which was unusual for any other building besides the castle, which could hold maybe 60. The nearby town, run by the important peopel in this manor, was said to be one of the wealthiest. The sandstone, mined from the nearby mines, was used for the entire house, and reached in the sky with a large tower. No wall surrounded the house, which made the house easier to get into, but the stretch of land between us and the outside wall of the manor was bare, scattered with a couple of trees and benches. We would have to go around to the gardens to enter unnoticed. The manor was alive, though. Servants bustled around, a women's voice could be heard shouting orders, and soldiers strolled back and forth, which made me nervous. It was past midnight, the moon was still high in the sky. So what were they doing up? The lord or lady of the house were nowhere to be seen, though, and neither was the daughters that we were supposed to eliminate. The targets, were, I supposed, locked tightly away.

Something was wrong. Why would Zelo come on this mission with T.K and I? We would be more than capable, if the manor hadn't been woken up like this. A ball of worry formed in my gut, and I considered ditching the mission, but that would be worse. To disobey my employer, 2 nights in a row? That would be murder, surely. I exchanged a glance with T.K, on my left, and I could tell he felt the same as me. Something was off, but we couldn't turn back. Zelo gave a cough, a gun shot in the silence, and he adjusted his knife awkwardly when we both looked at him. 

"C'mon," I said quietly, beckoning the others to form a circle with me, and I crouched down, the grove of trees hiding the three of us from the view of the alive manor. 

"Here's what we'll do..."

10 minutes later, T.K, now dressed in the lighter clothes he wore underneath, is stationed near the gate, Zelo next to him. Both were positioned to step into bright light. They would pose as decoys, making a scene to get the guards to come running, while I'm at the edge of the gardens, able to see them from the angel where I was positioned, so I knew when to move. The night air was crisp, the crickets chirping their endless song, and I was crouched in the great shadow of an age-old weeping willow. I would be the one to enter fully into the manor first, and then I would have to hope that T.K and Zelo would kill or at least knock out the soldiers as to prevent them from hindering us from dealing with the lord and his wife and daughters. I just had to wait until I thought the coast was clear.

With the note at noon today came the map of the manor, to all of us, and I knew that T.K and Zelo had taken the pains to memorize everything on the paper; rooms, hallways, doors. We had decided that I would take out Lord Choi first, and then the wife, and then the daughters. It was agreed that when T.K and Zelo finished outside they would go inside, spreading out and dealing with the odd servants around the manor before going to the daughter's rooms in case I hadn't gotten there yet. The whole plan was supposed to be as neat as possible, quick, effortless. But I know it is never as simple as it seems.

A shadows passed close to me and I press myself to the ground, shallowing my breathing, abandoning my faithful watch of the still invisible T.K and Zelo to hide. They were taking too long. They must be up to something. Zelo may not be the best focuser in the world, but there's one thing he's better at than anyone I've met; tech. He can create anything from a couple of wires and a spring. I can make... a spring. And a circle of wire. 

When the footsteps have faded into the background, I lift myself up to my knees hesitantly, more aware of how close I am to the manor, and I am just looking back to the front door as a tree explodes. My eyes widening, I can only watch as another tree, in the same line of trees that border the walkway to the huge door explode into flames, and then another, and then another, all in quick succession and with perfect accuracy. Zelo and T.K have made their first move.

Soldiers rush another in confusion, and a couple screams litter the air, but soon enough the soldiers organized themselves and were ready to attack. But then, everything stopped. The trees slowly burned to the ground, the ash fell to the grass, and the bombs stopped flaming, for several stretching minutes. After a while, the soldiers started to relax, started to spread out, and that was there big mistake. 

The first one caught the front man, sending him flying back and crashing into the wall, clothes flaming and his mouth screaming. The second landed dead on in the middle of the panicking soldiers, and burst apart in a ripple of flame. T.K and Zelo still hadn't appeared form the shadows, but they were doing well. The soldiers would regroup soon enough, locate where the bombs were coming from, and try to attack them, but I trust that two trained assassins will be able to hold them off.

The quiet night is suddenly ripped through with blasts, yells, and tramples of feet. My cue to move. 

I get up, reach to twang the string of the bow slung over my shoulder, touch a knife in my sleeve, and disappear.