Europe, 1869. 8.37 pm.

          An unknown woman rode on a horse, the horse galloping continuously on the stone path, the street dimly lit by the gas lights. The houses surrounding the place was dark and the shops were closed; the streets were also deserted. 

          Everyone was probably at the ball, held by the Lord of the mansion.

          The woman was dressed in a maroon-colored gown, riding the horse without any difficulty, showing that she was trained in riding one. Her straight, jet black hair, reaching all the way down to her back and hazel eyes blended in with the shadows, her face had hints of freckles here and there; she had a sharp nose and a pointed chin, her thin eyebrows raising a little when she heard laughter from nearby.

          “Whoa there, Luna.” She said softly to her horse, halting her as she neighed and the woman gave her horse, Luna, a comforting pat on her mane. She quickly turned Luna to another direction, telling her to hide in the dark alleyway as she got off from her silently, her shoes touching the stone path.

          “Stay.” She told Luna and it just huffed in response, understanding her master’s order.

          A smiled flitted across the woman’s face as she gave Luna another pat.

          “I will come back for you Luna, I promise.” She whispered gently to her, jogging off in her dress, outside of the alleyway. She slowed herself to a walk when she approached a large mansion and she gazed at it, allowing herself to appreciate the sight in front of her for a moment.

          The pathway to the mansion was lit up with gas lamps, that were designed beautifully and in the middle of it, there was a large fountain, decorated with a patch of grass, bushes and flowers. The mansion was enormous, and its walls were painted a light beige colour, a few parts of it mixed with white.

          The windows were large and perfectly cleaned and had lights streaming out of them, some of the windows even lead to a balcony.

          The woman scanned around, the balcony had a few people standing, taking a break from the dancing and chatting with their few friends.

          She faintly heard the lively music playing from inside of the mansion and people walking in and out from the mansion, the women giggling and the men guffawing loudly.

          Stealing something from this mansion would be a pleasure.

          The woman walked gracefully inside of the mansion, camouflaging in with all the glamourous women inside who were beautiful gowns like her, fans in their gloved hands.

          I almost forgot about those silly things.

          The woman brought her gloved hands up, flipping her fan open as she waved them in front of her face, appearing coy. She scanned her surroundings discreetly, a gorgeous chandelier was hanging from the top of the ceiling and the marbled floor was polished, seeing the reflection of everyone standing around on the floor.

          Her hazel eyes lighted up when they landed on the stairs, leading to upstairs. She headed slowly in that direction, trying her best not to attract anyone’s attention.

          “Pardon me, milady.”

          The woman stopped when someone bowed in front of her.

          “Would you do me the honour of a dance?” The man asked her, raising his head up and offering his hand to her.

          “Of course, milord.” The woman forced a smile on her face, knowing it was basic etiquette to accept a dance from a gentleman.

          Just a little more, I would have reached those lovely stairs and avoided this ridiculous dancing.

          Gingerly placing her petite hand on the gentleman’s palm, he guided her across the while marbled, polished floor. They swayed their bodies, matching the beat of the music.

          “May I know what your name is, milady?”

          This was the question the woman, Emi Winters, avoided the most in her life.

          “Elizabeth.” Emi lied, the forced smile still on her face.

          The gentleman opened his mouth, when suddenly, the lights in the ballroom went out, causing panic throughout the room. A smirk covered Emi’s face as the man let go of her, looking out for any suspicious or dangerous movement.

          This is my lucky day.

          “What happened?”

          “Why is it suddenly so dark?”

          “I can hardly see anything!”

          In the midst of the confusion, Emi sneaked to the stairs, climbing it and realising that it wasn’t only the ballroom lights, it was the whole mansion.

          This is odd.

          Emi frowned, walking down the dark hallway, her footsteps being muted by the carpet. The moonlight helped a little, allowing her to see as she opened a door to a room and she heard crackling in the background, letting out a sigh of relief.

          Finally.

          She glanced around, quickly removing her dress and gloves by tearing her dress apart, flinging it into the fireplace, which was made of bricks and she stretched.

          “The dress was suffocating me!” She whispered to herself, stretching her arms and legs. The room was brighter here, due to the fireplace and the moonlight lighting it up and she was wearing a black leather, one piece suit under the dress.

          It covered everything, all the way up to her shoulders and she had black-coloured belt, with pouches on it around her waist; slanting a little at one side.

          She untied the ribbon from her wrist, tying her hair up quickly with it, into a ponytail and removing the black cloth tied around her left thigh, to tie it around her face, only revealing her eyes and she exited the room silently. Walking down the hallway, she quickly hid in a dark corner when she saw a guard patrolling the hallway, a lantern in his hand.

          The guard did a horrible job at his patrolling, not bothering to check the corners as he walked past Emi, stifling a yawn.

          She continued her journey down the hallway, opening every door and closing them, not bothering to check inside the rooms.

          A locked room.

          That’s what I need to look for.

          Eventually, she stumbled upon a locked room, a small smile on her face as she dug her hands into one of the pouches, taking out different designs of lock picks.

          She skillfully unlocked the door, a satisfying click being heard and she opened the door as silently as she could. In the past, the clicking sound made her feel happy but now, all she felt was emptiness.

          She was so used to her job, used to stealing, that nothing mattered to her now except the price of the object she stole.

          The more I steal, the better.

          Emi entered the room, her steps once again muffled by the carpeted floor glancing warily and closing the door quietly. The moonlight streamed into the room from the door opened at the balcony, providing enough light for her to see in the darkness.

          An overwhelming feeling of longingness overcame her as she stared at the opened balcony, a slight breeze blowing at her and she closed her eyes.

          The more I steal, the closer I am towards my freedom.

          She was startled out of her thoughts when she heard grunts and groans at the far corner of the room, it was now then she noticed that this place was a bedroom.

          “What is happening over there?” Emi mumbled to herself, heading towards that direction and she walked past the dressing table, beside the balcony, only to halt in her steps when something sparkled at the dressing table.

          She squinted her eyes, noticing it was an object trapped in between the drawers.

          No way!

          It couldn’t possibly be…

          She quickly walked towards the drawers, ignoring the fact that there were other people in the bedroom. Trying to open the drawer, she realised it was futile, since it was locked.

          This is unfortunate.

          Emi sighed to herself, only to frown when a thought occurred in her mind after inspecting the drawer.

          Wait a minute…

          There isn’t any keyhole for this drawer, how strange.

          Her face brightened up significantly as she bent down, her hand going under the drawer and slid her hand around it. She felt something brush over her hand and she flicked it, the drawer opening immediately, catching the object in her hands.

          She straightened herself, observing the object in her hands. The object was a necklace, the necklace was silver in colour and Emi knew it was gold. The necklace probably reached the collarbone of the person, and the middle of the necklace resembled a small hourglass, the top part of the hourglass was empty, while the bottom was filled with patterns of intricate designs. The design surrounding it were also complex upon closer inspection.

          “Wow.” Emi whispered in amazement, astonished at the ornate necklace, knowing it was definitely the item she was looking for, all this time.

          I really can’t believe it!

          I found it! One of the greatest jewelry created in the world.

          The Timeless Necklace.

          Emi’s finger touched it gently, impressed at the materials used in making this.

          It really does live up to the reputation of being one of the greatest jewelry.

          It’s a masterpiece, there is absolutely no flaws in the design or material.

          “It’s so beautiful.”

          The groans and grunts from before were heard again, making Emi snap out of her daze and hurriedly latching the necklace onto her neck. She didn’t bother checking what was happening, since she achieved what she wanted.

          Now I understand why he wants this necklace so badly.

          Sneaking to the balcony, Emi recalled the conversation she had with someone many years ago.

          “Find it, and that is when I will set you free.”

          “What happens if I am not able to find it?”

          “You will stay here, forever.”

          She bit on her lip.

          Freedom.

          The moonlight shone on her and the groans and grunts immediately stopped, making her look at the direction of where the groans and grunts came from, one of her foot already stepping outside of the balcony.

          “Mmf mmph!”

          “Be quiet! Tell me where the necklace is!”

          “Mmmm! Mpf-“

          Emi’s eyes widened, the person’s pleas for help were being muffled by the cloth around his mouth and he was tied to a chair. The worst thing was that the person was looking at her, straight in the eyes, imploring her and the person apprehending him noticed, turning around to look at her.

          They all froze on the spot, no one daring to move a muscle.

          Is that not Lord Morand, the Lord of this mansion?

          He is being apprehended by someone…

          She couldn’t see the face of the apprehender, the moonlight only revealing his body and he seemed burly. She carefully observed him, noticing something eye-catching, glancing sharply at his arms and ears.

          Red dragon tattoos on his arms.

          An earring on his right ear.

          For the first time in her life, Emi Winters felt terrified of what she saw.

          A feather earring, just touching his neck that was red in colour.

          She stumbled backwards, her face turning pale.

          There is no doubt, this has to be them!

          I have to get out of here, now!

          She took another step forward to the balcony and the apprehender, whom she was terrified of, spoke up and she tensed up.

          “Bloody hell! How did you get in here? I remembered locking the door.”

          “Mmpf mm!” Lord Morand looked at Emi pleadingly, desperately yelling for help.

          “Quiet! Hey you, lady, ans—wait, is that not the necklace?” He pointed towards her neck, making her grab onto it tightly.

          I have no choice now.

          He swiftly unsheathed his sword, from his hip and ran towards her at incredible speed.

          Crap, he’s too fast!

          Thinking quick, Emi unlatched the necklace from her neck.

          “Wait! You want the necklace? Here, take it!” She hollered at him, throwing it, purposefully aiming it at the Lord.

          Lord Morand widened his eyes as she threw it at him, but he was shoved aside quickly by the apprehender, making his chair lose balance and his body fell hard to the ground.

          Emi winced, looking at Lord Morand on the ground.

          That has to be painful.

          At least, I managed to move him out of the way, now, I have to get my precious necklace back.

          She grinned inwardly, taking a dagger out, that was strapped to her leg, hidden by her black boots. Skillfully, she spun it around her fingers, getting a careful aim at the necklace; almost in the apprehender’s hands.

          Her dagger was uniquely designed to be curved, since it was helpful in situations like this.

          She threw the dagger, the empty part of the hourglass hooking onto the curved part of the dagger, flying at an alarming speed towards the wall and the dagger jammed into it.

          “Wha—why you little!”

          He charged towards her with his sword again, and she dug her hands into one of her pouches again, a small black ball in her hands. She threw it at the ground, the black ball instantly exploding, and smoke was rising up from it rapidly. The apprehender lowered his sword, looking around in alert, his vision blinded and he started coughing profusely, from inhaling too much of it.

          Holding her breath, Emi ran towards him, aiming a roundhouse kick at his abdomen, making him gasp. Lifting another leg up, she swung it, aiming it at the back of his leg. He groaned in pain, crouched to the ground, one knee on the ground and she kicked him in the back again.

          Without any hesitation, she sprinted to her dagger; still jammed in the wall and pulled it out forcefully, taking the necklace, latching it back onto her neck.

          Emi grinned in victory, running to the balcony as the necklace around her neck bounced slightly at the movement.

          Well, I am done here.

          The doors burst open as dozens of guards marched into the room, making her jump. She dashed even faster, standing on the edge of the railing.

          “Stop right there!” One of the guards hollered and she ignored it, preparing to jump.

          “Don’t think it’s over yet, Shadow Rogue.” The apprehender whispered dangerously, kneeling on the ground and gasping in pain, wrapping an arm around his abdomen. He took in a deep breath before speaking again, his eyes glinting with something that made Emi shiver with fear.

          “No one gets away with messing with the Dragoons.”

          “I am not known for the Shadow Rogue for nothing either.” She smiled sweetly, launching herself into the air and flipping around, putting her fingers between her lips as she whistled loudly.

          From the same alleyway, Luna’s ears perked up and she neighed, running towards the direction of her master’s whistling.

          Landing safely on the ground, Emi did a shoulder roll, lessening the impact of the fall as she quickly stood up, unlatching the necklace from her neck and putting it inside one of her pouches.

          She heard the guards shouting out orders and she took off again, running back into the streets and she heard a horse galloping behind her, a smile on her face.

          “Hey there, Luna.” The horse let out a huff, standing beside her as she slowed to a stop and climbed onto it with ease, urging her horse to get away from here as fast as she could.

         

         

          ***************************************************************************************************

         

         

          “Whoa, whoa.”

          Luna came to a stop and Emi climbed down from her.

          She looked around warily, even though it was deserted, now she was at the part of the streets where it was more dangerous to be in.

          Especially for a girl.

          Her horse sensed her fear from her and she made a sound, taking a step closer towards Emi. In response, she smiled, Luna’s mane in a loving manner.

          “You are truly my only friend in this world, Luna.”

          She walked forward, Luna walking alongside her and her thoughts wandered off.

          Don’t think it’s over yet, Shadow Rogue.

          Emi’s knees buckled as she leaned onto Luna for support, letting out a shaky breath.

          Her horse stopped, rubbing herself against her master, showing her concern. Emi patted her, her hands trembling slightly as she took in deep calming breaths, her heart rate slowing down. Her body started relaxing and she closed her eyes, relishing in the scent of fresh air and the peaceful silence of the night.

          No one gets away with messing with the Dragoons.

          Her eyes snapped open as she remembered his deadly promise, she sighed and shaking her head, staring at the clear night sky, filled with stars.

          The Dragoons.

          They are a small group of mercenaries, but they are feared terribly by the people.

          Everyone in the group wears the same tattoo on their arm, along with the same position of the earring, as well as the design.

          They are extremely powerful and intellectual group, they could be eligible for any job. Despite that, they are still mercenaries, with an unknown purpose.

          It was surprising though.

          The person didn’t seem that strong as I thought, maybe he was caught off guard or underestimating me.

          Nevertheless, Emi Winters knew one thing very well after years and years of hearing rumours about them.

          Everyone that gets involved with them did not exactly receive a happy ending.

          Now, they have someone that is involved though.

          That someone is me.

 

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My very first chapter! Hope you guys liked it, it was so fun to write this :D!