A Not-So-Successful Mission

Life, Failure / Mishap

Natalya and Dimitri are sent to Flottenheim with two targets. Dimitri is after a high elf named Fenneck Frostears and Natalya is after a high elf named Erikur Oblonsky. They take two days to get into a forest just north of Flottenheim where they find them. Natalya successfully lures Erikur into a trap and stabs him fatally. Dimitri is not successful and ends up taking a volley of arrows in his side. Dimitri and Natalya manage to escape back into the mountains as Fenneck gets distracted by grief.

Natalya opened her door and saw an officer waiting there. "General Pufuktin wishes to speak with you now," he said before turning and leaving the common room. Natalya sighed in disappointment and reluctantly went to Pufuktin's office. As she approached, she saw the door was open and Dimitri was inside, standing at attention in front of Pufuktin's desk. "Ah, Natalya, close door behind you," Pufuktin told her as she walked in. "Yes, sir," she said, obeying him before joining Dimitri at attention. Pufuktin was sitting in his chair looking over some documents. "You have a job," he told them, waving a folder at each of them. Natalya reached out, took it and opened it to see the job description and a quick sketch of her target in the corner. He was a high elf named Erikur Oblonsky in Flottenheim. "This is a test. We'll see if Natalya is ready to be a soldier," Pufuktin explained. Dimitri nodded formally. "Yes, sir." Pufuktin looked at Natalya and met her eyes. "Do a good job and you'll become a sergeant," he told her. Natalya nodded understandingly. "Yes, sir. Thank you," she told him. He gave them a curt nod. "Now go," he ordered, waving them toward the door. They got into the hall and Dimitri closed the door behind them and led Natalya into a common space. "We need to pack for the journey," he told her. "What - how are we getting there? Is it even safe to go into Glitterfjell?" she asked him, never having done an actual job herself before. She had shadowed Dimitri a couple times but they had been small jobs in Gornoslav or Vladigrad, never another country. "Hush!" Dimitri scolded her. "Sorry," Natalya replied. "Come with me," he said. He lead her down into the compound until they made it to the storage room. Dimitri gave the attendant their job id and the attendant gave them the packs they should take and a couple of heavy winter cloaks. "Looks like we'll be hiking through the mountains. We'll take a carriage to the southern outpost and from there, we're on foot," he said, rifling through the packs to make sure they had what they needed. "Okay," Natalya said, deciding to just follow his lead. They headed back up and exited the compound. Dimitri helped her into the back of the rickety carriage and he climbed in behind her. They sat next to each other, bundled in their new warm cloaks Natalya was becoming very found of and settled in for the long ride. Natalya leaned against the window and looked out at the white landscape around them. Dimitri closed his eyes and fell asleep. Natalya watched him intently. Sleeping was strange to her but Dimitri seemed to enjoy it. He seemed peaceful when he was asleep. They finally reached the outpost and Natalya gently prodded him awake. "Ugh." He said groggily. "We're here," Natalya informed him. "Oh, so we are," he said, disappointed to have to wake up, looking out the window. They got out of the carriage and went into the outpost to check in. Natalya let Dimitri take care of the official business and before long they were trekking toward the mountains to the south. They traveled through the forest of Vladigrad which consisted of dead trees and snow. It didn't start snowing in earnest until they made it into the mountains. Dimitri huddled against Natalya as they tried to find a safe enough spot to camp for the night. They finally found an alcove in which they could build their tent and Natalya helped Dimitri put it together. They worked quickly, not bothering to speak until it was finally up. They climbed inside and sealed the entrance. They were both shaking from the snow and cold and Dimitri hurriedly took out the heating stone which radiated a warm heat and an orange light, similar to a small campfire. "They couldn't have given us enchanted cloaks or something a bit more useful?" Dimitri complained as he got out their bedrolls and laid them out on the ground. "That would be too easy," Natalya joked. He chuckled, "Some vacation, huh?" he said jokingly. Natalya laughed. "Great place for a honeymoon," she joked. He laughed through his chattering teeth. "You know, I am kinda glad to get away from the compound for a bit. Especially with good company," he told her playfully as he shook the snow off his cloak in the entrance. Natalya pulled her boots off. "Me too." "Your feet are gonna freeze!" he told her. She sighed. "I just want to stretch my toes for a bit. I'll be fine," she assured him. He rolled his eyes at her and sat down in his bed. "Come here," he told her. She walked over and joined him. He gently picked up her feet and started rubbing them and her ankles to release the tension from their long trek through the heavy snow. "You don't have to do that," she told him reluctantly, hoping he would keep going. "I know," he said, popping her toes, "I just don't want you complaining all day tomorrow." He gave her a playful smile. She sat back, enjoying her massage. "Do you really think I'm ready?" she asked him, feeling nervous about the job. He nodded. "You've been ready for years. Pufuktin just didn't want you to skip too far in front of your peers," he explained. "You mean Milosh?" Natalya said coyly. Dimitri smiled. "Perhaps. But being the good sergeant I am, I probably shouldn't discuss such things," he told her teasingly. He started rubbing her lower legs and Natalya found herself enjoying his touch. Dimitri was strong but surprisingly gentle. It was cold, though, and Dimitri eventually laid her legs down and pulled his cloak around his shoulders. "I should get to sleep," he said, yawning. Natalya found yawning to be adorable. He was the only person she knew who did it and she found it to be a charming noise. "Okay. Thank you," Natalya said, grateful for the massage. Dimitri was still shivering as he laid down on his bedroll and tried to get situated. "Is sleeping nice?" Natalya asked, curiously watching him. He smiled at her. "It's an escape, I guess," he commented. "You just check out for a few hours. Sometimes you dream, sometimes you don't. Have you ever tried it?" he asked her. "Elves can't sleep," she smirked back at him. He rolled his eyes. "Can't and won't are two different things," he pointed out. "Have you tried it?" he asked her again. "Like if you laid down and sort of did your meditating thing would that be the same?" She shrugged. "I guess I haven't," she said, conceding his point. "Come here." He patted the spot next to him and Natalya laid down across from him. He pulled the blanket over so that she could climb in. It was nice being this close to him, especially in the cold. "Try it," he told her, giving her a small smirk. She reached over and grabbed her pillow and blanket from her own bed and they combined the two and got comfy next to each other. Natalya enjoyed Dimitri's closeness and wished she could lay against him. She looked across the pillows into his bright blue eyes reflecting in the light radiating from the heat stone. "Your eyes are the most elvish thing about you," she said thoughtfully. "Is that a compliment?" he asked her, smiling and raising an eyebrow. She shrugged. "I don't know. I like them, if that's what you mean," she told him. He smiled and closed his eyes. "Goodnight, Nat," he told her, turning on his back and yawning as he said her name. "Goodnight," she told him sweetly. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep to no avail and eventually just meditated like normal. When she finished she noticed Dimitri still sleeping and shivering restlessly. She went ahead and scooted up against him and reached her arms around him comfortingly. He curled up into her arms and she held him till dawn. She enjoyed being close to him. He was warm and comforting, unlike the other elves in the compound. Finally after a few more hours Dimitri woke up and groaned as he rubbed his eyes. He realized Natalya was touching him and he quickly turned to face her. "What are you doing?!" he asked her, clearly freaked out by Natalya's affections. "I... I just..." Natalya wasn't sure what to say. He pulled away from her. "Don't do that!" he scolded her. "I'm sorry," Natalya said, retreating into herself, upset she had offended him. He sighed and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry," he said, softening his tone. "We can't do that, Natalya," he told her sadly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have told you to sleep next to me. That's my fault," he said, shaking his head. Natalya looked down in shame. "Nat..." Dimitri reached out and gently laid a hand on her back. "I'm not mad at you. We just... we can't do that. We'd get in a bunch of trouble if..." He struggled to find the right words. Natalya looked up at him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. You looked cold and..." She trailed off sadly. Dimitri scooted back over to her and gave her a small side hug. "Come on, we should get moving. We have another long day ahead of us," he told her, rubbing her back comfortingly. She nodded and they started packing up their tent. They started moving again through the cold harsh mountains. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," Dimitri told her over the cold wind. "It was... nice." He gave her a small smile. Natalya gave him a shy smile back and felt the small flutter in her heart she sometimes felt being with Dimitri. He was the closest thing she had to a best friend, even though they didn't really tell each other much about their lives. She liked him and trusted him more than any of the others in the compound. All of a sudden, they heard a growl and looked up as a large white cat pounced at them from the rocks overhead. It leaped onto Dimitri who casually shoved it off of himself, only taking a small slash in his shoulder. "What the hell?" he said as if the beast were only a minor inconvenience. The cat turned and faced them, growling in anger. Natalya drew her rapier and charged the cat but it easily jumped out of the way and hissed at her. Dimitri drew his bow and fired two arrows into its flank causing it to stumble back. It lashed out its claws at Natalya and slashed across her legs, causing her to yelp in pain. She backed away slightly and swiped her rapier at it, whacking the cat in the side of the head with the flat of the blade. It snarled at her menacingly but stopped as Dimitri's arrow sliced through its neck, killing it almost instantly. Dimitri walked up to her. "You okay?" he asked rather casually. "It was just a scratch," she said. Dimitri studied the beast for a moment. "We should keep going. It's getting cold," he said, pulling his arrows from the cat's body. "Getting cold? What do you call what it's been all morning?" Natalya asked him teasingly. He rolled his eyes and smiled. "Come on, this way," he said, turning and walking south. They continued on until they found another place to camp for the night. They were close to the forest and the next day would be the job. They built the tent and got inside for the night. They shook off their snowy clothes and Dimitri pulled out the heat stone and some rations for a sad dinner. Natalya started making her bed, sad that they wouldn't be alongside each other. Dimitri seemed to notice. "Hey Nat?" he asked her. Natalya looked over at him. "Yeah?" she replied, her voice shaking slightly from her shivering. He sighed. "Maybe it is actually a good idea to... sleep together," he suggested. "It's really cold out and we both need good rest before tomorrow." He nervously raised his brow as he asked her. Natalya tried to hide her excitement. "Yeah, to keep warm," she nodded. Dimitri moved his blanket and bedroll over to hers and they laid down next to each other, slowly getting comfortable pressed up against one another. The fluttering in Natalya's heart was very apparent to her with his touch and she relaxed into his big, strong, warm chest. Dimitri was gentle and he made sure to avoid touching her anywhere that would lead to anything inappropriate. He was always very respectful of her body compared to the other soldiers and generals she'd trained with which she appreciated, but sometimes found disappointing. Of all the people in the KAV, he was the only one she wanted to touch her body. "Did you manage to sleep last night?" Dimitri asked her softly. She giggled. "No. It's too hard to just... relax like that, I guess." She still wasn't exactly sure what sleep was or how he even managed to do it. Dimitri chuckled. Natalya was spooned into his chest and one of his hands was on her waist, gently caressing her. Natalya sighed happily. "I could live up here," she said thoughtfully, enjoying the sound of the wind outside. "It's too fucking cold up here," Dimitri laughed, shaking his head at her. She sighed. "It's better than home," she said sadly. Dimitri pulled her in tight to his chest and she felt his lips kiss the top of her head. "I guess it is, isn't it?" he said woefully. He kissed her head again. "Goodnight, Nat," he said before nuzzling into her hair and falling asleep. "Goodnight, Dimitri," Natalya told him sweetly as he started to softly snore. The sun started to crest the mountains and Natalya gently woke Dimitri from his rest. He softly smiled at her gentle touch and sighed as he sat up. "You ready?" he asked her, reluctant to leave their warm bubble under their blankets. Natalya nodded. "Should be easy, right? Just a couple rangers?" she asked nervously. Dimitri nodded and started getting ready. When they were packed, they headed toward the pass and dropped their packs in a decided rendezvous point and took what they needed down into the forest. In their notes, it had been observed that the two rangers took a daily morning stroll together through the woods. This was their only chance. "Be careful, Nat. Do not get captured. Supposedly your guy is a sorcerer or something so be careful and be quick," Dimitri told her, looking deep into her eyes. Natalya nodded. "You too," she said, trying to hide her nerves from Dimitri. They split up and took their positions. Natalya found a spot at the base of a large tree where she sat down and tried to look injured. She shouted, "Help! Please! Anybody!" first in Elvish, then in common. She saw two figures moving through the trees turn toward her. She couldn't make out which was which, just that they were two high elf males. One started running towards her and she noticed the other draw his bow and look around. The one coming towards her was her target, Erikur. He was a generic looking high elf with light brown hair and pretty green eyes. He fell right into Natalya's trap as he squatted down next to her. "What's wrong?" He asked her, his face full of confusion and concern. He had a soft voice and a sweet, gentle demeanor. Natalya noted to herself that his companion was much smarter as she saw him turn and run in the other direction, back toward Dimitri. "My... my leg." Natalya said, feigning pain. As Erikur leaned down to look at her leg she seamlessly brought her dagger up into his side. She winced with unexpected guilt as he let out a cry of pain and fell to the ground. Natalya drew her dagger from his side. "I'm sorry," she said automatically as his green eyes met hers. They were full of sadness and betrayal and Natalya felt a strong pang of guilt and heartbreak as she watched him die. He seemed so pure and innocent. He was wearing a beautiful lavender hide armor and he had pretty purple feather earrings in his ears. She stared at the elf in horror and shock over what she had done. Suddenly she heard the voice of the other elf. "Erik!" he called out. Natalya got up and ran to find Dimitri. She heard the other elf coming and she hid behind a tree and heard him run back towards Erikur's body. "Erikur!" she heard him shout again. He had a beautiful song-like voice and Natalya couldn't help but enjoy the sound of it. Suddenly she felt fear come over her. Dimitri. Why had this elf gotten away? Or was Dimitri coming up behind him? Or... Dimitri got hit instead. Natalya felt her heart lurch and she ran through the forest, searching for him. Natalya moved as silently as she could, trying to avoid the other elf, until she finally heard Dimitri heaving in the underbrush. She crouched down in the snow and saw that he had taken three arrows grouped close together in the center of his sternum. He winced as she touched his chest and checked the wounds. She let out a small sigh of relief, as it looked like his armor had stopped the arrows just enough to prevent them from piercing any vitals. He looked at her. "Go, run! Mine got away. He'll come back to finish the job," he told her. "I'm not going to leave you here. They'll torture you for information if they don't kill you!" She tried to talk some sense into him. "I'm not gonna let that happen," she promised him, looking deep into his eyes. "Nat, it's too risky. There's no time and I'll leave a trail of blood," Dimitri argued with her, wincing from the pain. "He's a ranger. He'll be able to track us down before I'm able to run," he told her, sounding defeated. Natalya looked back towards where the other elf had gone and saw nothing. She put a stick in Dimitri's mouth for him to clench and she gently pulled the arrows from his chest. He groaned in pain as she did and started to bleed. When she pulled the last arrow out she realized they had left their bandages in the pass. She pressed a hand against the wound, trying to quell the bleeding as much as she could until she could treat it properly. She kept checking to see if the other elf was on his way back or not and she started to get nervous and desperate. She felt tears brim her eyes as Dimitri started bleeding out in front of her. They were running out of time. She laid her hand on his chest and tried to summon magic. She knew it was possible and she started praying and pleading under her breath to every god she could think of. She felt her hand start to glow and she saw the pain in Dimitri's eyes soften. He looked at her in shock as the wounds closed from the magical glow. Natalya sighed with relief. "Come on!" she said, helping him to his feet. They stood up and started to run back towards the mountains. Back towards their home. It started to snow heavily which helped hide their tracks and Natalya felt grateful. They grabbed their camping packs as they ran by and kept running and climbing. It had been too close. Way too close. They moved through the mountains, moving as fast as the dangerous mountains would allow them until it was dark. Dimitri had been wincing in pain all day and finally collapsed into the snow, scaring Natalya. "Dimitri!" she exclaimed, kneeling next to him in the snow. He looked exhausted. "I need to rest," he admitted weakly. Natalya nodded and they moved down into a ravine. Natalya pitched the tent with some help from Dimitri, who was sitting in the snow, trying to focus on breathing. He looked scared and upset. "Nat." He stopped her as she started to climb into the tent. "What?" she asked him. He stood up and grabbed her bow from the ground along with three arrows and handed them to her. She looked at him, confused. He walked a few feet away from her. "Shoot me. In the same spot as the other arrows," he told her, gesturing to his chest. She looked at him like he was stupid. "What do you mean?" she asked, bewildered. "You have to shoot me, Natalya," he told her again, firmer this time. She shook her head at him. "Dimitri I'm not gonna-" "Yes, you are!" he told her, looking her sharply in the eyes. "You can't use magic," he told her harshly. "What happened back there didn't happen. They'll be suspicious and I need an excuse for fucking up the job. If you hit me precisely where the other arrows were, and from far enough away, it won't pierce my sternum. I'll hold the heating stone right under the wound so you have an easier time aiming, and then you'll treat the wound immediately. Shoot me," he told her again. "Dimitri you're being ridi-" "That's an order!" He gave her a stern look and Natalya felt her heart drop. She looked down at the bow and back up at Dimitri, pleading with him not to make her do this. He met her eyes coldly and Natalya knew he was right. She shakily walked about a hundred feet away from him and notched an arrow. He gave her a small nod of approval and activated the heating stone. She reluctantly pulled back the arrow and aimed it just above the glowing orange dot on Dimitri's chest. She focused the arrow for what felt like ages before finally releasing it and flinching as it landed in Dimitri's chest exactly where the other arrows had been, causing him to grunt and stagger slightly. She felt tears start to fall down her cheeks. Dimitri stood firm and nodded for her to send the next arrow. Natalya felt her tears start to freeze against her cheeks and she carefully focused the next arrow, painfully releasing it and nearly splitting the other one. She quickly grabbed the last arrow, wanting this to be done and she fired it perfectly into the last hole in his armor before she had time to panic. As it hit she dropped her bow and ran to him as he stumbled down into the snow from the pain. "I'm so sorry!" she cried. "Get me into the tent," he said, gritting his teeth as his blood started to fall onto the snow. Natalya helped him to the tent and he collapsed onto the ground as she closed the flap. Natalya turned back and grabbed the first aid kit from their bags and the heating stone as Dimitri laid down, his breath becoming ragged. She set the heating stone next to them and carefully pulled out her arrows as Dimitri winced and cried in pain. She had to stop and wipe her own tears from her eyes as she carefully worked to stabilize him. When the arrows were out she carefully removed his armor and put a rag on the holes and began to apply pressure to stop the bleeding. As she held the cloth, she looked at Dimitri to see what she should do next. "You have to suture them," he told her, seeing the fear in her eyes. She found the suturing needle and some thread and shakily threaded the needle. "Be careful. It's okay, Nat. I'm okay," he said coughing, trying to hide his obvious pain from her and not convincing her in the slightest. "I'm trying!" she said frantically. She hated this. She hated that he made her do this. She stared at the first hole in his chest in horror as she saw the blood pouring out of it, pooling so that it was almost black. Dimitri gave her a sad look and Natalya realized in horror that his skin was almost completely white. "Nat, you have to. This is part of the job now. You have to be able to do this kind of thing," he told her calmly, his breath now a soft wheezing. She nodded and slowly went to work, trying not to throw up as she did. Dimitri closed his eyes and grunted through the pain as she sewed the arrow wounds closed. After what felt like eternity she finished suturing and Dimitri told her to wash off and wrap his chest so it would close off any leftover bleeding. Natalya did as he said and laid back in exhaustion next to him when she was finally done. Dimitri weakly found her hand and squeezed it, unable to sit up but stable for the time being. "Good job," he told her. "I'm sorry, Nat. It had to happen," he said sadly. She started crying and Dimitri rubbed her hand with his fingers. "I'm proud of you. You did a good job today," he said, giving her a weak smile. Natalya sat up and made them a bed as she cried and she helped Dimitri settle under the blankets next to her. He fell asleep almost instantly as she laid his head back on the small pillow. She studied his breathing throughout the night as she meditated, hoping she had done a good enough job with his wounds. The next morning, Natalya held Dimitri until he woke up on his own. He opened his eyes groggily and gave her a sad look, seeing how restless she been all night. "Morning," he muttered to her, his face inches away from her own. His eyes were sadder than she'd ever seen them and he looked defeated. Natalya inched closer to him and felt herself becoming emotional. "Is this what it's like?" she whispered desperately to him. "Is this what our lives are going to be like?" He cocked his head at her and gave her a pitying look. "You're an assassin, Natalya. What did you expect? What did you think all this training was for?" he asked her. She shrugged. "It's just different. It shouldn't be like this. This was the only chance I had to make a better life for myself. It was supposed to be better than this. Better than just killing people." Her voice cracked as she remembered Erikur's eyes growing cold in front of her. She shook her head. "He didn't deserve that," she said, tears brimming her eyes. Dimitri sighed and forced himself to sit up, groaning as he did. "Nat, he committed crimes against Lenisily. Pretty high ones, too," he explained. "Those elves were Fenneck Frostears and Erikur Oblonsky, Natalya. The leaders of the coup that overthrew the Grand Duke Georgi Malenthot and caused Glitterfjell to secede from Lenisily. They worked directly with Baegla, the witch who supposedly killed the Grand Duchess by turning her into a pile of dust before forcing the Grand Duke to die in the mountains from banishment," he told her. "They aren't good people. They committed some the highest crimes ever against our country." He reached out and rubbed her back comfortingly. "Yeah, it's awful taking a life. I'm not trying to downplay the significance of that. But this is what we do. We're protecting our country from crazy pagans who want to overthrow King Staladin and create chaos. We're the good guys," he tried to assure her. Natalya sighed and leaned against Dimitri. "Everything it just so... awful for us, though," she countered. "I thought my life would get better if I made it out of the academy but it's just gotten worse," she said, trying to fight her tears. Dimitri kissed the top of her head gently. "I know. I did too. That's why we worked so hard, right? We had to work so much harder than the others, but we made it. This is the best it's going to get for people like us, Nat," he said, assuring her. "Look on the bright side - you're gonna be a sergeant now!" he suggested, trying to make her feel better. "I have nothing else to teach you," he said jokingly. She shook her head. "Clearly not after yesterday." She motioned to the pile of blood and bandages in the corner. Dimitri squeezed her hand and let out a chuckle which quickly turned to a groan. "There are some things you have to learn on the job," he said sadly. "Luckily you're a fast learner." He smiled down at her and she sighed. He tipped her chin up to look him in the eyes. "I'm proud of you, Natalya. You're the best student I could have ever asked for. I'm even more glad to have you in my life. I know you probably despise me at times but..." He looked into her eyes longingly. "It's nice, not being alone anymore. I know it's not fair that they treat you the way they do and I know you'd probably prefer not to be stuck with a half-human like me as your only friend but..." He trailed off sadly and started to flush from frustration. "Of course I don't think that," Natalya assured him, reaching up a hand to gently rub his cheek and pull his face to look down at hers. "You're the only person I've ever met who's treated me with an ounce of kindness, Dimitri," she told him, meeting the longing look in his eyes. They leaned in toward each other and Natalya felt the fluttering in her heart start up again. She moved to kiss him but he pulled away right before her lips met his. "We should get going," he said, snapping them both back to reality. Natalya nodded and they packed their things away and headed out into the snow, back toward their home. They finally made it to the southern outpost around midnight where a carriage was waiting to take them back to the compound. They climbed into the back and Dimitri leaned against Natalya as he slept. For the first time, an idea popped into her head. An idea that would change her life forever as she leaned into the fluttering feelings in her heart she felt with Dimitri's warm, strong body leaning against her own. She wanted to be with him, not like she had been with the men who just used her body all the time. She wanted to always rest next to him at night. She wanted to always go on adventures with him. To always work alongside him. To exist with him. She loved him. As she realized this, Dimitri nuzzled into her in his sleep and she smiled at his perfect face. The only truly good thing in her life. She gently leaned down and kissed his cold forehead and sighed as she started to meditate.