Chapter One

   Lightning ripped through the night sky, bringing with it the promise of an impending rainstorm. All over the village of Shèngsuo, farmers sat in their beds at home, hoping for the rain to fall and bring life to their crops in the field. The streets were mostly empty, the population of the village having retired for the night. Only a few night stalls are open and the traders hung hurricane lamps inside to shed light on their wares.

   A black wagon pulled by two horses rolled down a street, its wheels disturbing the silence of the night. As it passed, all the open stalls in its path quickly closed up as their owners recognized the wagon. It was over that had brought suffering on many of the traders in the village. When it went past them without stopping, many traders sighed in relief. It seemed that the heavens were lenient with them tonight despite what the weather might suggest. In front of the wagon, the rider gripped the reins tightly, his face set in a grimace. He was not supposed to be doing this right now. His normal job included exploitative raids on the villagers for food and funds for his organization.

   Recently he had been tasked by his employer to transport something very valuable and had been ordered to bring the item unfailingly tonight. When the order had come, he had been surprised and scared at once. His role in the organization was not a vital I've and none of the higher ups usually cared about what he did, so long as he produced results that satisfied them. Now that he had been given such an important task directly from their leader, he would make sure he did not fail.

   Not that he could afford to. His leader was not a merciful individual.

   The wagon came to a halt in front of a large black gate guarded by armed guards with large sheathed swords slung across their backs. The gate was the only entrance into the wagon's destination: a large compound containing four buildings linked together to form a square. In the middle of the square, there was a tower-like structure that was obviously the most important part of the whole thing. The entire place was fenced by fifteen feet tall walls and guards stood along the walls, ready to draw their swords at any sight of an uninvited guest.

   From the outside, the compound looked like a well fortified army garrison but it actually served a different purpose. It was the dwelling place of a very deadly individual, a person whose very name struck terror into the hearts of even the bravest of warriors.

   The rider came down and walked up to the guards at the gate, his face so set in a frown. He rolled up his sleeve to reveal the dark jade tattoo in his forearm. It was a sign that bound all members of the association to its creator.

   "I've pledged myself to fufil Her wishes," he recited the secret password to them. Two guards nodded and stepped back to open the heavy metal gate. The man all but ran back to his wagon and tugged on the reins to direct the horses inside. The gates shut behind them with a loud clang and the man shuddered slightly. He had never been into the organization headquarters before and he did not want mess up on his first time.

   Thee wagon moved slowly to the front of the building facing the gate and he quickly got down and moved to the back to retrieve the precious cargo. It was a beautiful ornate chest that had good mosaic drawings imprinted on its body. The edges were smooth and several precious stones decorated the box, giving it an old but exquisite appearance. The chest sat in the middle of the dark room of the wagon atop a red velvet cushion.

   The man stopped and went back to his seat to get the lamp that hung in the front of his wagon. Returning with the lamp for slightly better illumination, he took hold of the chest by its handles. The skin of his hands glistened with a light sweat as he carefully lifted the chest out of the wagon. His entire attention was on the item he was carrying, making him completely oblivious to the four dark figures hanging at the four corners of the wagon's ceiling. They were perfectly still, their chests rising every so slightly with each intake of breath. The figures were dressed in black clothing with their heads wrapped with a black cloth as well, leaving only their eyes glinting with the light from the lamp as they watched the man take the chest out of the wagon.

   A small breeze blew past the man and snuffed out the light of the lamp. An indescribable fear creeped into his heart as he felt the sensation of being watched. Quickly he placed the chest back into the wagon and fished about in his pockets for a matchbox. Finding one, he struck a match and relit the lamp. Its yellow light filled the small room in the wagon again, only this time there was nothing inside except the chest. The man's actions became hurried as he took the chest and closed the wagon. He walked up to the front door of the building with the chest in hand and knocked once. A few seconds later, the door slid backwards to open and reveal a hefty muscular man wearing only a pair of loose trousers and a simple shirt that clung tightly to his form. He stared down at the delivery man hardly and the smaller man nearly cowered in fear.

   "Do you have it?" The hefty man asked in a booming voice.

   "Y-yes, I-I do... it's in here," the man replied shakily and held up the chest. The muscular man looked at the chest in an appraising manner. Once he was convinced, he stepped aside with a grunt of approval for the man to pass. The wagon rider swallowed deeply and walked in, his mission having been without a hitch so far.

   The large man put his head out to look around the compound for any unfamiliar sight. On finding none but the recently arrived wagon, he turned around to go back inside. A soft whistle cut through the silence as a long metal chain extended from the darkness behind him and wrapped itself tightly around his neck., immediately cutting off his air supply and silencing his voice. Before he could even do anything about it, the chain was drawn back sharply with enough strength to drag him as well despite his size, into the darkness outside.

   The soft sound of a rapidly twisted neck sounded and everywhere feel silent one more. Then, like formless phantoms, four shadows slipped into the building quickly and silently. The encounter had been so quick and quiet that none of the guards patrolling the inside walls had noticed anything. The door that had been left open was gently pushed close by a soft breeze that merely ruffled the flower bushes planted in the compound.