#marierousseau

(Written in Second Person perspective)

AI Art Prompt: “Assassin a dark metropolis”

You are Marie a self trained assassin born of the Middle class. In the metropolis of Yurkana anything is possible. Will you bring down a corrupt government, become apart of an evil system, live a good life or the life of a criminal? The choice is yours and the possibilities are endless in this beautiful and dark city. You wake up to find a disturbing note on your nightstand about how you shouldn't try to escape. The note says the door to your room is now unlocked and you are free to go.

Curious you step out of your room only to find that all the guards in the hallways are dead.

> You grab a weapon from one of the guards.

You grab a short sword from a dead guard's hand and hide behind a corner.

"I know you're here, assassin! Show yourself! You may have killed my guards, but you cannot defeat me!" the baron roars.

> You find a window to escape.

You open the window and the fresh air hits your face. It's a long drop down to the ground but you have no other choice. You jump out of the window.

The fall hurts, but not enough to kill you. You are able to stand up and look around.

> You get to Passions Ions.

You run down dark alleyways and explore the city. After an hour of running the guards seemingly forget about you and you are not being chased anymore. You have no idea how they can't find you out, but you are grateful.

> You ask a homeless person how to get to The Passion Ions.

"Hey sir, uhh do you know how to get to The Passion Ions?"

The homeless man at first acts like he didn't hear you. He sits on the ground with a bottle of wine resting against his knees. His clothes reek of vomit and dirt.

> You say "Hey! Did you hear me? I can't remember where The Passion Ions is!"

"Go straight down this street for five blocks, then turn right. You can't miss it."

He begins to take a drink from his bottle, but then stops.

"Hey kid you got two bucks?"

You are annoyed by him and his smell.

> You ignore him and head to the Passion Ions.

You walk through the street and see a lot of people around. You try to be careful not to bump into any of them. You don't know if the guards are still looking for you.

You arrive at The Passion Ions and see a neon sign flashing above the door. You walk in.

You see a large bar on the left and a long hallway on the right. The hallway has multiple doors which leads you to assume that there are a lot of people staying here.

A woman n with long blonde hair walks up to you.

> You say "Miss Bo?"

She smiles with glossy red lipstick smeared on her teeth.

"That would be me, do I know you?"

You explain who you are and that she helped saved your life a long time ago. She smiles and says that she's glad you're still alive.

> You say "One problem. I can't seem to remember what happened to me last night. I woke up at some nobles house with his guardsmen all dead."

She starts laughing and says you're lucky to be alive. Apparently the noble that you were at was a big spender and hosted many important people. You killing all his guards would have been a major problem so she's glad that you left when you did or else you might have been caught or worse.

> You say "That's just it! I didn't kill any guards. They were dead already. I received a note telling me not to escape, but I'm free to go. What does this all mean?"

She thinks for a moment and says it seems like you're being given a chance. She explains that the guards were probably killed by someone else and you just got caught in the middle. Whoever killed the guards wants you to think that you murdered them, but giving you the opportunity to escape is a nice touch.

You tell Miss Bo how you hate these fucking city games and ask her for a drink and room. She brings you to the bar and says you can stay as long as you need until you figure something out. The guards know better than to fuck with Miss Bo and her establishment, so you'll be safe while you're there.

You sit down and have a drink; you feel like you're forgetting something, but you can't put your finger on it. Before you leaves you ask Miss Bo one more question.

"Do you know who the hell I am?"

"You're a fucking asshole that's who you are. You do this every fucking time you come here. You get blackout drunk, start fights, and fuck my girls! What the fuck is wrong with you?"

You apologize and say that you'll try to keep it down.

You get to your room and turn on the announcements radio. Surprisingly there are no reports of dead guards or assassins. Someone must want this quiet. The good news is that means no one is pursuing ing you which means you have a chance to find out who tried to set you up. The bad news is you don’t know where to start.

You think back to the conversation with the old man. "The last ones were framed, too." What did that mean? The other assassins were framed, too? What common thread connects all of this?

Wait, the nobles. They're the connection here. The first person, David, was set up by a noble. The second person, you, was framed by a noble. The third and fourth people killed were nobles! Maybe there's something there.

> You get some rest and wake up in the morning.

You go to sleep and wake up in the morning. You feel a lot more clear headed.

"Morning, sunshine," says Melcar. "How do you feel?"

> You say "Like an idiot. That fall yesterday must have given me temporary amnesia "

"Yeah, I was wondering... you did a lot of stupid shit yesterday, if you don't mind me saying."

"Yep, it seems like I did," you say. "But that's in the past now. What's important is the future."

"Indeed it is," says Melcar.

You remember who you are. A deadly assassin. You go to the breakfast room and find Miss Bo cooking up eggs and bacon.

You realize you're starving and eat as much as you can. After you're finished, you feel like you could lift up a horse.

"Wow, kid. I'm glad to see that eating is something you do well," says Miss Bo.

> You say "I do other things well too..."

"I bet you do, kid," she says with a wink. That's when the door bursts open.

"We got a situation!" yells a guard.

"What is it?" asks Miss Bo.

"The Count is dead."

> You say "Which Count? From which Provence?"

"Whichever Count is the most important one in Semna," says the guard.

"That would be Count Vuul," says Miss Bo.

"How did he die?" you ask.

"He was found in his study with his head bashed in by an oddly shaped mithril lectionary."

"An oddly shaped what?" you ask.

"A book made out of mithril," says Miss Bo.

> You say "Ok? Semna Provence is not far from here. Since no one's looking for me I'll go check it out and search for clues."

"You sure you're up for that, kid?" asks Miss Bo.

"I feel like I could lift a horse," you say.

"Well, alright then. This seems like a job for our resident mercenary."

You walk outside and get into the carriage.

You arrive at the dead Counts mansion in Semna Provence. There are guards everywhere. Miss Bo called in a favor before you arrived so the guards allowed you in the mansion to take a look around. You walk in the mansion. There are weird paintings wherever you look. You don't have time to appreciate any of that though, you have a job to do.

You walk in the study, where you find a twisted and brutal crime scene. You kneel down next to the body.

> You search body for clues.

Under the Count's body, you find a journal. You look through it to see if the Count had any last messages. There are just a bunch of nonsense scrawlings.

You close the book and put it under your arm.

> You search the Counts desk for clues.

You look through the drawers of the desk. You find a few pieces of parchment.

"Clues about what?"

You look up at see a woman with dark black skin. She smiles at you and says:

"The killer, of course."

"You must be the famous Detective Shade."

"I may not have the luxury to know your name, but I know what you are," she says with a smile and scrutinizing eyes.

You eyes dart towards the nearest exit.

"No need to run," says Detective Shade "This time I'm not after you."

"Then what do you want." You asked.

"I want whosever after you and your kind." She replies.

"So you're here to help?"

She laughs and says: "help, definitely not, but I'm not here to hinder either."

"What do you want in exchange for this information?" you ask.

She smiles and says:

"You handle all the dirty work my profession won't allow me to do and in exchange you keep me in the loop."

"That doesn't sound very beneficial for you." You say with a snort.

"Oh but it is, see, I get the drop first and I get promoted to noble captain." She replies slyly.

“And if I refuse?” you ask.

“Oh, then I just kill you here. And if you escape I hunt you down like a dog.” She replies as matter of fact.

"Always a motive in this fucking city," you say with a stone face.

"Ok deal." You reply

"Perfect," replies Shade, as she takes a seat.

"First thing I want to know is who are you exactly?"

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