Private Tales Jeux d'Espionnage

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse Rose excelled in many things but assassinations had become one of her favorite pastimes. She got paid to kill vampires, humans, elves, and any other race that needed to be taught a lesson. Of course, vampires posed the greatest challenge and that is what Saoirse lived for...well...lived her undead life for at least.

The vampire had taken the long game approach to this particular kill. Greyrock Castle was not a particularly easy place to get in and out of without being spotted. If she went about assassinating Lady Victoria O'Connor's favorite pet spy in her tradition fashion, she may not make it out in a single piece. There was only one way in and it was to walk through the front door with the recommendation from Lord Burnett, a weasley vampire who owed her a favor and owed Victoria some loyalty. Poor Burnett had no idea why Saoirse was looking to join the coven and offer her skills and she suspected that he would meet his ultimate demise shortly after she dispatched her target.

Saoirse had been at Greyrock for a few nights now. The first night was spent getting introduced to the Lady and making polite conversation. The second night was spent showing the Lady that Saoirse could be a useful spy and an invaluable member of the Greyrock Castle, Lady Victoria, and (eventually - wink wink) the Greyrock Coven. The third night was spent getting situated in her new room, which she had to admit was nice after being a homeless traveler for a hundred years.

Now she woke from her slumber on the fourth night in the castle. Tonight she met her target. Tonight she met Mephistopheles. She had already thought about how ridiculous his name was at least a thousand times in the past three months as she prepared for this job.

As she walked down the hall to the indicated office of Mephistopheles, she made sure that her long blonde hair was perfectly in place and her simple black dress with its generous amount of cleavage showing was straight and perfect. She needed to stop using that word. She was annoying herself.

Saoirse stood up straighter and lifted her chin before raising a fist to knock on the large wooden door in front of her.

 

[Mephistopheles]

In the dark room, behind a dark desk, was the very picture of elven poise. His every feature seemed to have been cut with impossibly delicate tools. Icy white skin slashed against raven hair, straight and shining, while dark eyes scanned over faded parchment. The dim candlelight was just enough to reveal the red tint hidden in those irises.

He was well dressed in dark blues and black, with accents of steel where his armor shone through. The metal was pointed and light, with ornate decoration in a strange mixture of elven and vampiric style.

His office had no windows. Three out of the four walls were lined with shelves, desks, and cabinets. Despite the number of objects upon them, it was incredibly tidy. Books were stacked parallel, papers rolled impeccably, and there was not a speck of dust on any of the mysterious instruments of gleaming silver. Everything was still. Everything was quiet.

Mephistopheles’ face crinkled at the knock, the first hint that it was skin and muscle and not stone. He didn’t like being interrupted, but since no one knew his schedule but himself he was interrupted quite a lot.

“Enter,” he called. His voice was a soothing baritone, gliding effortlessly to the door despite his agitation. He did not look up from his reading.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

“Enter."

Saoirse turned the handle and slowly pushed the door open. Her eyes only took a single second to adjust to the darkness. She looked around the office with obvious admiration. He was a reader and she could appreciate that. Expanding ones knowledge was a never ending endeavor when you lived forever. The vampires who never wanted to improve themselves or grow their knowledge lived a sad existence.

Mephistopheles, she assumed, sat behind his desk and read something quite intently. She stepped into the office and closed the door behind herself. She took a few more steps towards the desk before she spoke. Saoirse did not sit, she simply continued to stand with her hands clasped in front of her.

"Lord Mephistopheles, I am Saoirse Rose. I am new here and I was a spy and informant for my original coven. I was told that I would be working for you as that is where my skills lie."

She finished her speech, her introduction.

 

[Mephistopheles]

He did not look up. He saw a pair of elegant boots cross into his field of vision, then the hem of Saoirse's dress. He stopped reading, but did not lift his head. She was new, she smelled of the outside, and her inflection was... foreign.

His tensed for but a moment on the corner of the parchment. Working with him? Just like that? "Who told you this?" he asked, finally lifting his gaze. He felt a single pulse pass through him, she was much prettier than he'd expected, and his eyes hitched imperceptibly on her dress before reaching her face.

A sleek black cat yawned on a pillow in the back corner, though it had roused itself little more than Mephistopheles had at Saoirse's introduction.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse could tell already that he was going to be someone that she would have to work extra hard to get close to. She did not mind though. She had an infinite amount of years and the client was also a vampire so she needn't rush if she did not have to.

"Lady Victoria told me this," Saoirse answered at Mephistopheles finally looked up to check her out. The vampire assassin continued to stand there with a sweet smile on her face.

Her eyes shifted towards the black cat but only for a moment before her gaze returned to the spy. "You like to read?" She asked as she nodded to the bookshelves. It was a legitimate question. He could just collect them after all.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles' dark eyes followed her nod and flicked back to her. "Of course," he answered. "Don't you?"

He finally rolled up the piece of parchment that he had been studying and set it aside, rising from his chair with a nonchalant grace. His outfit was perfectly pressed not a seam out of line. His hair looked as though every strand had been hand placed, and it moved little as he took a few long steps around the desk.

His eyes absorbed her, this time deliberately, and this time searching for function, not pleasure.

She was only a few inches shorter than he was, with hair as fair and flaxen as his was jet. She had an angular, powerful sort of face, the kind found on queens that conquered their thrones rather than inherited them. She looked capable enough, though in their kind physical appearances revealed little. After all, their bodies were but static vessels for unholy souls.

Lady Victoria had been a good patron. Greyrock was small, but pleasantly unlike the other covens. Perhaps it was the relative youth of Lady O'Connor, but things did not seem so entrenched in tradition for tradition's sake. Not that this was always a good thing, he considered given recent revelations, but she had always allowed Mephistopheles to do things his way, so long as he got results.

He did get results.

Still... he did not appreciate having an associate dropped at his door without notice. He sighed. "What can you do?"

For me was implied. How are you useful?

The cat yawned again.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

"Of course, I enjoy reading. It is the best past time especially when I have unlimited amounts of it," Saoirse replied with a smile.

She one hundred percent wanted to just go through his bookshelves and make a reading list. Perhaps she would get the chance before she left. She would need to sell her act, of course, even though her love of reading was no act.

Saoirse studied Mephistopheles at the same time he studied her. He was taller than herself but just as lean and muscular. His facial features had a sly look. She could not describe it but he reminded her of an animal for some reason. It was not something that gave her pause though. He was handsome and dark. She always got a little sad when she had to kill someone so good looking. It was really unfair to the world. A job was a job though.

His sigh caused the assassin to narrow her eyes. Was she so boring already? At least his question meant he was willing to consider this arrangement and that was the first step.

"As I said before, I was a spy and informant for my previous coven. I can, also, shift into a bat, mist, and a panther. Some of the skills that I have developed include collecting information by any means necessary, slipping in and out of locations undetected, and..." slitting throats of those that I am paid to kill. No, she could not say that. Not right now. "And following clues."

 

[Mephistopheles]

His face didn't move as she spoke, nor did his eyes give any indication that anything had aroused his attention. Her resume was impressive, if it were true, but he should give Lady O'Connor more credit than that. Surely she would not have sent him someone useless.

He was a little offended that she had felt the need to send him anyone at all, but his was not a place to question.

"You are cassylvian, which means you must be well acquainted with the Reach. Tell me, which noble house would have the most direct influence on Greyrock's silver trade?"

A test, and on a topic he hoped would be too mundane for Saoirse to have thought about. She was glamorous, clearly dressed to impress. To impress him, he supposed. Someone like that had a good head for manipulation and infiltration, but was she all flash and no substance?

Manipulating and killing people was easy. Knowing who to manipulate and kill was harder.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse smiled at his question. A test. Of course she had done plenty of research before she had come here. This question was on the newer side of the information though. She had actually gathered the little tidbit he was looking for while she was working her way over the Greyrock. It took quite a few months for her to get ready but she never stopped gathering information for a job. It was an ever evolving world around her.

"That would be the House of Trandenshire," the vampire assassin smiled slightly smugly as she knew the answer but after a few seconds (and before he could inform her of his game) she continued. "Oh wait...sorry...Greyrock discontinued its silver trade about six months ago..."

Saoirse let the words hang in the air between them. She was no fool and she would not be tested like she was one. It was not appreciated.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles arched a single eyebrow, the most motion his face had shown since the beginning of this encounter. "Yes," he concurred. "Trandenshire was our primary trade point for silver until our Lady restricted the metal."

Looking around Mephistopheles' office and indeed all of Greyrock would have shown Saoirse that, indeed, no silver was anywhere to be found. Victoria had not provided a reason for the abrupt change of policy, and although she was not required to explain herself in any capacity, Mephistopheles had appreciated her relative transparency in other issues. The shift in policy concerned him, but not as much as why he thought she had done it.

"House Trandenshire is obviously displeased with the change, we used to make them a great deal of money." He picked up the rolled parchment from the desk and turned to hand it Saoirse. "This was intercepted en route to the Allir stone."


To Baron Rogerre,

I found your letter to be a most welcome surprise. I am not aware of any foul dealings in the house of Greyrock, nor of its mistress O'Connor, though I do not doubt that something may be amiss. I have enjoyed many long years of profitable trade and cooperation with Greyrock. This was until last spring's thaw, when our relationship was unceremoniously severed.

I have not injured the house of O'Connor, nor have I given any other cause for this dismissal. A shift in her Ladyship's humour would be explanatory, and if it be madness I should take somewhat less insult from her offenses. If you know of this, I welcome a solution, provided that the house of Trandenshire may resume our normal business.

~Lord Osgar Trandenshire IV​

Mephistopheles allowed Saoirse time to read the letter. Lord Trandenshire himself was not a concern, merely a disgruntled middleman who could do little except bluster about profits. On the other hand, the involvement of Baron Rogerre, a powerful vampire and leader of his own sizeable coven in the western Reach, was deeply concerning.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

It has been a strange change to be sure. Silver did not harm vampires and having it on hand was a good idea in case there was a werewolf attack. There was no love lost between the two races and it was not unusual for there to be attacks between packs and covens. It begged the question if the Lady was in her right mind.

She took the parchment from Mephistopheles and unrolled it slowly like something may jump out to attack her. Nothing did, of course, it was just a letter.

Her first thoughts upon finishing it was that she was not the only one who believed the Lady O'Connor had gone mad. She did not share her thoughts though. The state of mind of Victoria O'Connor was not why she was here.

Before she spoke, she made a mental note to reach out to Baron Rogerre once she was done with this assassination. Perhaps he had a plan that would need someone already ingratiated into the Greyrock Coven...well...if she made it out of here in one piece after killing Mephistopheles that is.

"Baron Rogerre is certainly a concern. It would have been nice to intercept that original missive," she rolled the parchment back up and returned it to the spy master. "Would it be possible to send this one on its way and stake out the Barons estate for a reply. That may give us more of a clue towards his intentions."

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles took the parchment and, for the first time, bent his lip into the barest hint of a smile. "A good plan, and one I already conceived. This letter is a copy, the Baron should already have the original." He replaced the roll on his desk as the cat, now risen, rubbed against his boot.

"Your instincts are good," he said with reluctance. "It appears our Lady was not wrong to send you to me."

He returned to his seat and folded his hands, leaning back and studying Saoirse. "Rose," he said the name slowly, letting it roll over his tongue like a sweet. "Is that a born name, or sired?" His question was obvious. If she had been given that surname upon her transformation then it was a very short leap to her history in the Crystal Rose coven. A coven that had fallen, and violently at that.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse noticed the tiny smile and she was quite pleased to have passed his first test. She had no doubts there would be plenty more to follow with him. He was no someone who trusted easily or, perhaps, not at all.

His question was one she completely expected but it still caught her off guard. Most vampires took their coven name when they were turned but her case was slightly different.

"I have carried the surname for the whole of my life. I was adopted by Imogen Rose when I was a toddler after my birth parents were killed. I, obviously, kept it after I was sired by her at the age of twenty-five. So in a way, it is both because I do not remember my birth name. Rose is the only name I have ever known."

It was a long answer for a simple question.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles's face resumed its stony nature with her story. "My condolences, then, for your family."

A coven lost, circumstances aside, was a significant event. Especially for one born into it. For that one sentence, at least, he was sincere.

There were, of course, many thoughts and suspicions rippling in his head. How had she survived such a deliberate and total eradication of her kin? Had she been absent? Spared? Or had she conspired with the slaughterers and earned her life through treachery?

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Imogen pursed her lips and nodded at Mephistopheles' condolences. She had not just lost her sire and her coven, she had truly lost her family. It was a devastating loss that she was still recovering from and it never got easier to talk about.

She took the chance to answer the question that she was always asked next after people discovered who she was related to. It never failed because even vampires were curious and loved gossip.

"I was away gathering intel for my mother when the coven was attacked. I still do not know who ordered the attack or who carried it out but I came home to nothing save for still smoldering embers..."

Imogen was trying to hold her composure but it was growing increasingly harder to do so.

 

[Mephistopheles]

“Well, it has been… surprisingly fine meeting you Saoirse. I should have known our Mistress would not send me someone useless.” It was about as high praise one could expect form Mephistopheles.

The black cat had moved silently to Saoirse’s feet and, as if to punctuate Meph’s statement, rubbed against her shins with a loud purr.

“I will need to-” he was cut off by a knock on the door behind her, and he looked up sharply. “Enter.” Mephistopheles did not open doors himself when he didn’t have to. From here he could better respond to whatever might be coming through.

What came through was another vampire dressed in black leather armor and wearing a black cowl over his deathly pale features. He handed a scroll to Mephistopheles without a word and left the same way he came.

Mephistopheles’ black eyes swept across the letter. “That was quick,” he murmured. He folded the parchment and stored it in a breast pocket. “The Baron has replied, naming the location of a meeting in two days’ time. This is unusually rushed for him.”

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Surprisingly fine and not useless, Saoirse could only chuckle internally at the praise. She would take it though because he had not told her no or to get it so she was still on track. She had an actual job to do here and it was not to play spy for the rest of her days.

She looked down in surprise as the cat rubbed against her legs and purred. It was not that animals did not usually like her but she had just never had one go out of its way to get her attention. Maybe she would take the cat with her after she killed Mephistopheles.

Saoirse turned her head when he called for the knocker to enter and she watched the vampire deliver the message. Her eyes went from the messenger to the spy master as he read the missive.

"Do you think it is a trap? I have found that when people do something out of the ordinary, there is usually something suspicious."

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles gave his head a small tilt as he considered Saoirse's question. "It could be, but..." he scanned the letter again. "...I don't think it is. The Baron wants something to happen quickly and our Mistress is at the center of it."

His brow took on a crease of concern. Greyrock tended to be quiet as far as covens went. It was, admittedly, small and inconsequential to many of the larger houses. Within the past few decades, though, Victoria had made obvious efforts to increase her power. She had sought connections, made alliances, and significantly increased her domain's wealth. The castle guard had grown, and Saoirse herself was a symptom of expansion: foreigners with an interest in an up-and-coming house.

Change created weaknesses, and it was Mephistopheles' job to ensure those weaknesses were sealed before they could be exploited. The vetting of his new "assistant" would need to be accelerated.

He pulled a chair from its place by the wall to the center of the room. "Sit," he instructed.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse still did not like the sound of that. It may not be a trap but it certainly wasn't something good. She hoped that nothing would happen that would somehow put the coven on a lockdown. She needed to be able to get out of dodge as soon as she killed Mephistopheles.

The vampire looked down her nose at the chair before slowly making her way over to it and sitting. She sat straight with her chin still held high as she waited for what he wanted next.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles looked down at her. His pupils had dilated in focus. He paid attention to the minute movements of Saoirse's face, her hands, all the way to her feet. He watched her pupils, listened to her breathing and heartbeat (if either were present). This was not an infallible technique, but he was very, very good at telling if someone was lying to him.

"Why did you come here, and what do you know of Lady Victoria O'Connor's fiancée Lady Fallon?"

Since intercepting the Baron's communications Mephistopheles was all but certain of what the "madness" affecting his lady was believed to be. A hushed tension had hit the reach ever since the wedding announcement, and with good reason. A vampire leader marrying a werewolf? The distinction of "garou" would not make a difference to them. No, the word would be synonymous with lycanthrope, and the scandal was just as noisy.

Soon he would need to tell Lady O'Connor about the ripples she'd made. He would do so after he had more concrete evidence. Victoria knew his loyalty, but her behavior as it pertained to Fallon was... impulsive.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse watched Mephistopheles closely as he watched her movements. This was not the first time she had been questioned thusly at a new position. She knew how to answer the questions without answering the questions completely and she never lied. She would just leave out some things.

"Why did you come here, and what do you know of Lady Victoria O'Connor's fiancée Lady Fallon?"

The first question was easy but the second caught her off guard. She did not know anything about Lady Fallon. Her job was not about Lady Fallon so beyond the basics of the woman being a werewo...oooooh.

"I came here for work," she answered honestly. "And the only thing I know about Lady Fallon is that she is some type of werewolf. Do you think I am some assassin sent to kill Lady O'Connor or Lady Fallon?"

The question and the accusation that he would dare to distrust her were thrown back at him. She was not the problem and how dare he insinuate that she was!

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles raised his eyebrows. "Can you blame me? Knowing what you know?" He gestured that she could stand, if she chose. She had not lied, not that he could detect. "My Lady's personal affairs are... by definition my business but not my place to question. Regardless, you can see how this would play into our Baron's accusations of madness."

He handed the rolled paper to Saoirse. "The Baron is visiting Lord Trandenshire, in person, in one week." He began to pace the office. Saoirse had only just met him, and she would not appreciate how rare it was to see O'Connor's master of spies agitated.

He would never admit it, but he had his own feelings on Victoria's choice of lover. Foolish, certainly, to be so open about it. Whether Fallon was a werewolf or a "garou" or whatever didn't really matter, not when there were power-hungry nobles waiting to snap up every piece of fertile land they could find.

"We will have work to do in the evening. You should rest before next sunset."

If Saoirse were offended by his tests, she would have much more to complain about in the coming weeks.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse shook her even as a smirk curved her lips. It was clear that she had been giving him just a little bit of shit. Perhaps not the wisest idea but she lived to live dangerously and all.

"No, I cannot blame you. I would be asking the same question were our roles reversed," she said as she took the rolled paper from her new boss. Saoirse opened the letter as Mephistopheles spoke and paced. She was a pacer too whether she was agitated or not. It helped her think better for some reason.

"Of course," she agreed with his suggestion of rest.

Saoirse rose from her seat and started to walk towards the door. She paused just as she was about to open it. "Mephistopheles, I look forward to working for you," she smiled and then disappeared out of the room.

It was not long before she was back in her chambers fighting sleep. It claimed her anyways. Lying was exhausting work.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Mephistopheles remained in his study for a time after Saoirse had left. The Baron was a tricky foe. Not his motives, those were painfully obvious, but his strength. Rogerre outranked Victoria in both the old world order and the new (which was more or less just money). He commanded more forces than her, had more friends than her, and more respect than she did.

Mephistopheles had made his place here by protecting the coven, and he would continue to do so. Saoirse had... something about her that put him off his usual track, but he could not tell what it was. Maybe it was how new she was, or maybe it was her connection to and survival of the massacre of another coven. Maybe it was her sharp features and white-gold hair.

In any case, he did not sleep. The sun rose and fell with him reviewing maps and letters. Being spymaster meant that he did not enter the field often (lesser agents were easier to burn if discovered), but a task as sensitive as this required a certain expertise. It would also be an excellent test for the newcomer.

If she messed up he could always kill her and remove some loose ends.

~*~

He sent a messenger to fetch Saoirse the evening that they were to set out. He was waiting by the castle's front gates, observing the thin crescent moon overhead.

 

[Saoirse Rose]

Saoirse had dressed for travel tonight. Black pants, black blouse, and black boots. Yes...she did have a favorite color. It was green but she did not have many outfits in the deep green of the forest.

Her hands were clasped in front of her as the assassin walked towards the front gates and her target. She could dispatch him easily on this little jaunt. She would not even have to worry about escaping because she would not be on coven ground.

Yes...this was most convenient.

As she approached her boss, she closed her eyes and bowed her head in a respectful greeting.

"I am ready to set out whenever you are," she said with a soft smile.

Soon. Soon he would be dead.