First snow at night was always a spectacle. Eren remembered when they were younger, Emi would run outside to make a snow angel; even in her pyjamas. Their mother would shout, dad would join Emi in the snow.
It was always a happy time.
A time now past, a memory. One that would live with the young man until it was time to move on, which if what Thanatos said was true... He would be here for a long time.
"Mmmph." A voice, a moan; muffled from a hand over her mouth.
A narrow alleyway, filled with the detritus of the city. Piled up bags of garbage, a dumpster filled to the brim, the smell of the stale air that clings to a place rarely visited by people. The sound of water dripping from a pipe, the slush of boots on snow. Two people, a man, and a woman. The latter was the one to produce the sound.
"Be quiet." Ordered the man, a harsh, cold tone of voice.
Eyes of a cold lifeless blue stared down at the smaller woman; barely covered in a small skirt and crop top. Her face a mixture of fear and disgust, tears welling up at the edges of her eyes.
"You scream-" The man pulled out a small knife, the blade pointed to her throat. "-And I kill you."
The coldness of the metal was felt through the leather gloves of the man as they pressed the tip against the jugular vein of the young woman, slowly pushing it further in.
"Now say Ahhhh and don't use your teeth- AHHHHHHH." The man was yanked high into the shadows. Only the sound of a gurgle and blood splashing onto the snowy alleyway remained. The young woman looked up in horror, but no one was to be seen.
Azure eyes, cold and lifeless. They watched the woman flee, ensuring she left the cold; into a nearby restaurant.
'Maybe in another time.' Thought Eren, the body of the man now dead at their feet.
*Bzzt* *Bzzt*
~
Eren,
On the outskirts of ward 4 there has been sightings of Order of light members.
Please investigate further.
- Baelor.
~
The order of light. The mole that he and Baelor had planted. It certainly kicked the hornets' nest, as they say. He began his trek along the rooftops.
---
An abandoned overlook; the ocean in full view. It was a place of urban decay, the kind where the city forgot to look after. Graffiti covered the walls, snow slowly covering them up. The sound of waves lapping onto the shore and the distant drone of cars on the nearby road.
A group of four vans parked on the old concrete; people gathered around them. Men and women clad in white armour, each holding either a staff or a sword, some even holding large tomes. They were waiting for something or someone.
"Sir. How do we know that the target will come here?" One of the knights said to a man dressed in the same armour, but more ornate, a fair cloak draped over the shoulders and a sword on the hip.
"We have his mole. If they want her back, they will come." He replied.
*Whoosh*
The snowfall stopped; the sound of the ocean waves ceased. The feeling of life suddenly drained from the area, as if the entire place was devoid of it. Then a cold breeze. A chill ran up every knights' spines.
"Sir..." One of the knights pointed to an overhead structure. Where two azure eyes peered down at the group. The figure leaped down; landing on one knee, sending a plume of snow into the air.
"Are you the one known as The Reaper?" Asked the knight in an ornate cloak and a sword at the hip. He stepped forward, standing tall in front of the cloaked figure before them.
"..."
"I am Ota Hidemasa. Right hand of the Prophet, Shield of the light."
A name that did have some familiarity but not the face. A standard above average looking Japanese male; hair cut in a military buzz with a large scar over the man's left cheek, not particularly old or young.
"We have something that belongs to you-"
*Clatter* *Clatter*
Chain rattling came from one of the vans, A woman who looked a little roughed up and tired.
'Shadow number 8.' The sole survivor of the squad that had failed to steal the thumb drive from the Silvermane. The mission clearly fell through and they caught her in the act.
"An exchange, her life for the information on that device." Ota said with authority in the tone.
"No..." Was all he said, eyes beginning to disappear into the shadows.
"Wait! Knights. Leave us alone." Ota ordered.
Those azure eyes returned; still hidden by the shadows of the hood.
"Sir? He will kill us if-"
"If he wanted to kill us, we would all be dead already." Ota replied, hand waving to the side.
He was right. Eren had the ability to kill them without so much of a whisper from any of them.
The knights began to return to their vans; leaving only Eren, Ota and shadow 8 Hase. Who was still chained on the ground.
*Clink* *Clink* *Clink*
Ota unshackled the woman, pulling her to her feet and brushing her off.
"Go." He said, allowing her to go freely. Hase looked at the Reaper, then promptly began running off into the winter city.
'Back to the shadows.' Thought Eren as she ran away.
"That Thumbstick... Is it as bad as they say?" Asked Ota as he watched Hase leave the scene. His expression was one of concern, a stark contrast to what one would expect from this order of light.
This man didn't seem to be like the fanatical and dogmatic knights that he had once encountered all those years ago. He seemed reasonable; which made Eren more concerned.
"Yes..." Replied the Reaper.
"Dammit!" Ota punched the van's side door. A loud thud of metal echoed along the concrete.
Every second become further removed from Eren's experience with the order. Was this man one of them? A knight of the fanatics or was Ota Hidemasa a reasonable man with white eyes.
*Sigh*
"You've made a lot of people nervous." Ota said, finally breaking the silence between the two.
"Destroying several criminal guilds, having an entire police department after you, being investigated by the goblin Dominus, you've even got some of the order interested in your activities. All within half a year. I'm almost impressed." He continued, a small chuckle at the end.
"What do you want?"
"A peace offering, sooner or later our factions will cross. I want to soften the eventual clash as much as possible." Ota explained, hands behind their back, a firm militaristic stance.
"Peace..." Thoughts back to who was affiliated with that evidence. Keeping them alive? Allowing them to prosper with what they did in the past? Disgust and anger filled the Reaper's mind.
"No peace... Not while they still draw breath." The Reaper stated, voice taking a tone of disdain and hatred.
"It was worth a shot." Turning his back to the Reaper.
"If... I had the chance. I would end them all too... For now, I am the only thing keeping the wolves at bay." Ota explained, walking back to the van.
"You protect them... Your no better than the rest of the monsters that-"
"I know. For evil to prosper, all that is required is for good men to do nothing." A hand rested on the door to the van, hesitating for a moment before opening.
"I wish I had your strength to end this." Ota said, disappearing into the van.
"For now. I'll keep this all quiet You keep your side out of our way, I'll keep the order in their ward. The prophet has a lot on his mind. We will meet again, masked one."
The van drove off leaving the Reaper with many questions that needed to be answered for sure; but for now he had another objective that needed to be completed.