Prologue

 A U T H O R ' S P O V

The night was still,the air heavy with tension.Inside the dimly lit warehouse,the woman moved like a shadow,her body concealed in black from head to toe.She knelt over her target - a man whose trembling pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears.

"Please don't-" he stammered but she silenced him with a quick and decisive motion.Her blade sleek and silent cut through the darkness as efficiently as it ended his words.The man's lifeless body slumped to the ground,his last breath echoing faintly in the cavernous space.

"Fucking old man tried human trafficking...again"

Her voice echoed in the room,the others present in the room stood silently watching,"You all can go" she said further to which they all nodded and went from there.

She wiped the blade clean and straightened,her movements meticulous.This was not crime of passion-it was a mission, executed with cold precision.

🔘🔘🔘

Outside not far from the warehouse,a sleek black car sat stalled on the side of the road. The driver cursed under his breath examining a punctured tire with a flashlight.

The car's passenger a tall man in black coat and mask stepped out irritation clear in his stance, "How long will this take?" He asked his voice low and clipped.

"Sir,could be a while" the driver replied,

" Something tore through the rubber like it was a paper."

"Then call for another car and send this car for repair." His voice sharp,"On it Sir" the driver replied hurriedly calling someone.

The man glances around his sharp blue eyes scanning the quiet moonlit street.That's when he heard it- a muffled tone,like a groan,carried on the wind.It came from the direction of the warehouse up ahead.

His hand instinctively moved to the hilt of his gun, strapped discreetly beneath his coat."Stay with the car" he ordered the driver,already moving towards the noise.

As he approached the warehouse,his footsteps silent on the gravel,he kept to the shadows. Peering through a broken window he saw a lady completely covered in black,standing over the body of a man she had just killed.

His brow furrowed. This wasn't random,her movements,the way she scanned her surroundings - it all spoke of training and purpose.

She turned suddenly,her head snapping towards the window,sensing his presence.Their eyes locked for the briefest second before she threw something towards him getting frustrated and bolted deeper into the warehouse.

He skillfully escaped the blade and without any hesitation he followed.

Inside,the space seemed to stretch infinitely,shadows pooling in every corner.The woman moved briskly,her footsteps barely making a sound.

🔘🔘🔘

The empty warehouse echoed with silence the faint hum of flickering lights,the only sound.The man stood tall,his face hidden behind a sleek black mask. His movements were deliberate each step calculated as his eyes scanned the shadows.

Then she appeared,stepping out of the darkness, like a ghost.Her form was entirely concealed,her body draped in a close-fitting,black ensemble that left no skin visible.Even her face was obscured beneath a fabric mask that melded shamelessly beneath her attire.

She moved swiftly catching him off guard.She didn't hesitate raising the gun which she retrieved from his hilt. This stunt of her surprised him,he raised an eyebrow amazed that this woman is something, something he should know.

He stepped towards her and her gun further points to his head,"Who are you?" He asked taking his hand up trying to hold her hand in which she had the gun pressed in his skull but she backed off swiftly raising her gun and fired a warning shot that zipped past his shoulder, embedding itself in the wall behind him.His body tensed but he didn't flinch.

"So you don't talk" his voice calm yet edged with a challenge.

Her only reply was the sound of another shot being chambered.

He moved quickly closing the distance between them before she could pull the trigger again. His hand caught her wrist twisting it just enough to make her lose her grip on the weapon.The gun clattered to the floor,skidding out of reach.

She spun, attempting to free herself but he was faster.He slammed her back against a rusted pillar pinning her there with his one arm while his other hand reached for her mask.

"Let's see who you are" he growled,but before he could lift the fabric,her knee shot up,catching him hard in the stomach.

He grunted in pain,stumbling back,but she didn't stop. She followed through a spinning kick to his side,the force of it driving him to one knee.

Recovering quickly,he lunged for her,his hands aiming for her throat. She ducked under his reach,her movements fluid and controlled,before countering with an elbow strike to his ribs.He staggered but didn't fall.

"Not bad" he muttered,his tone grudgingly respectful as he straightened.

Their fight continued without words,their bodies a blur of strikes and counters. She was agile her movements sharp and precise,while he fought with brute strength and unrelenting force.Each time he managed to grab her,she slipped away like smoke leaving him just out of reach.

For a moment,they were face-to-face or as close as anonymity would allow.The man's breathing was steady,his stance unshaken.The woman's eyes,the only part of her visible,turned with defiance.With a sharp push,she again slipped from his grasp.

Finally,as he prepared another strike,she darted backward,her hand brushing against the floor as if to steady herself. Then,in the blink of an eye,she was gone.

He froze, scanning the space around him.She had vanished leaving no trace but the faint scuff marks on the concrete.

The man straightened,his chest heaving.For the first time in a long while,he felt frustration claw at him.She'd escaped,he didn't even know who- or what- she was.

It's true if he wanted he could've killed her but no,he wanted to see her,when he looked at her brown eyes he felt something, something which he didn't know he could feel.

He is frustrated not because of her but because of what those brown orbs can him feel and this is the first time he has let anyone go out of his hands or if someone tries to even play this type of stunt he would either make them beg for death or he would just simply kill them.

"Meet you soon,Miss Shadow" he smirked,holding her yashmak which had dropped when she moved hastily out from there,he said looking out the window from where she vanished and left the warehouse.

[Yashmak is a type of veil which is used to cover face or simply a face veil]

:):):):):):):):):):):)

How was the prologue?