The Assassins Guild

The Assassins Guild.
The very name evokes mystery, conspiracy, and intrigue. Who are they? Why do they do what they do? These questions and more plague the minds of anyone that has heard of this shadowy organization. And tonight, we have a very special treat for our viewers - our own Mark LeSalle successfully contacted an alleged assassin for an interview. What follows next is that very interview, unedited.

M: [click, and rustling] There, I think it’s working. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.
B: I have to admit, I was rather intrigued by the idea of an interview.
M: For the record, I am Mark LeSalle, reporter for the Galactic Inquirer. I am joined by....?
B: You may call me whatever you would like.
M: All right. What about... Baal?
B: That is acceptable.
M: This is Baal, a member of the infamous Assassins Guild, and who has kindly agreed to an interview. To note, I’m blindfolded and using an audio-only recorder - and from the sound of it, you’re using a voice scrambler?
B: Yes.
M: All right - down to business. I’ll ask questions, and you give me as much answer as you feel comfortable.
B: Very well.
M: First off, just how many assassins are there in the guild?
B: [hissing laugh] There are enough to fulfill the demand.
M: Is there a central location you all operate from?
B: I must pass on answering that one.
M: Let me rephrase a little. Is there a chain of command, a structure to the Guild?
B: [pause] Yes. We have a leader, heavily protected of course, and a hierarchy of officers below him that we call “governors.”
M: “Governor” - why is that?
B: They “govern” the assassins in a specific area.
M: How many governors are there?
B: How many galactic nations are there?
M: [pause] Over a hundred at least, not to mention the over-arching governments.... If you have that many governors, over more assassins.... my god....
B: Then you now have a basic idea.
M: [nervous sound] Let me ask you the question that’s on the minds of many, Baal.
B: Very well.
M: We know the Assassins Guild exists. Is it true that, when Altena was introduced to the Confederacy of Galactic Nations, a new human-created assassin organization was created?
B: Yes.
M: And this organization is called Assassin Tech Inc., or ATI?
B: [hissing chuckle] You are well informed. Yes, that is correct.
M: Is it true that the humans formed ATI because the Guild does not allow them into its ranks?
[long pause]
Baal?
B: I will say this - death cares not for species, race, or gender. It cares not for innocence or guilt. It cares not for age, for experience, for skill, or for potential. It cares not for ethics or for morality. It merely IS, and it comes for all of us. Why should the Guild, we artisans of death, show prejudice when death itself does not?
M: I... I see. [subdued] Ahem. The galaxy at large seems to regard you - assassins - as dishonorable cowards. How do you respond to that?
B: “Honor” is an illusion perpetuated by those who need an excuse to hide behind. It is archaic and irrelevant. As for cowardice - yes, anyone can use a weapon and take life. Look at any war that has drafted the young, inexperienced members of a species and taught them to kill. You can put a gun in a child’s hand, and if they pull the trigger at the opportune moment, you have a killer.
No.
What we do is only called cowardice by those who have never thought beyond their mundane existence. An assassin exists alongside everyone else, a predator in the midst of unsuspecting prey. But this predator only hunts those who are marked. It will walk into the nests of the most fearsome prey, perhaps never to walk out again, but it will never waver. It knows not fear but seeks only the kill, a kill made with artistry and grace, faster and subtler than anyone can perceive.
Why do you think the guild has existed for so long, yet only rumors are known about us? Because we transcend the ordinary.
M: That... is amazing. [chime sounds] We’re almost out of time. One last question before you go?
B: Very well. What is it?
M: How long have you been an assassin?
B: [pause] How old are you?
M: Uh, I’m thirty-two.
B: Longer than you have been alive, and a dozen lifetimes more.
M: I see. Thank you for your time, Baal. [click]

Regretfully, Mark was shot during a gang battle late yesterday evening. He was in critical care throughout the night, and passed away early this morning due to surgery complications. We will mourn his loss, both as a reporter, and as family.