To hunt a monster

Overhead, a bird squawked. Beneath, the cold, snowy ground pressed against the still form of a man. Lying motionless between the two, a sniper lay as still as a statue, his hands wrapped around a long rifle.

The air was peaceful and quiet — almost too quiet. For two days, he had lain there, barely moving, waiting.

Waiting for his moment.

And then, at last, the reason for his vigil stepped into view. His target looked to be in his mid-twenties. It was strange — almost surreal — how many lives this one man had shattered.

The sniper adjusted for distance and wind. With a single, practised pull of the trigger, he ended a life.

Screams and alarms erupted below — but it didn’t matter anymore.

With a heavy sigh, the sniper slowly rose to his feet and disappeared into the snow. He slipped aboard the shuttle he had hidden there days ago.

Hours later.

He sat in a crowded bar, nursing a glass of whiskey. “Well, if it ain’t lil’ J! Still on that one-man crusade, huh? Still trying to clean up the galaxy?” A teasing, condescending voice came from behind him.

“Piss off, Melissa,” he muttered without looking.

The voice only laughed. A moment later, a woman slid into his lap, one hand curling around the back of his head.

“Now, is that any way to talk to your big sis?” she purred. She wore little more than a bikini top and shorts that left almost nothing to the imagination. Twin pistols were strapped to her thighs — flashy, but real.

“You’re not my sister. Now get off before I throw you off,” he growled.

Melissa grinned. “My, my, someone’s in a mood. Did that big, bad slaver you were tracking get away? Or did your client screw you on the payment again?”

She slid off his lap and into the seat across from him, speaking as if he were an infant.

“That was one time. When I was a rookie. Over ten years ago,” Jacob growled. His face twitched with annoyance — and for a brief, dangerous moment, he considered going for his pistol and ending her once and for all.

Melissa wagged a finger at him with one hand and brushed her fiery red hair back with the other. Then, with a smirk, she propped her boots on the table between them.

“Not while it gets under your skin, little Jacob,” she said in a mock baby voice.

“What do you want, Melissa?” Jacob snapped. “Spit it out while you still have teeth.”

She leaned forward, eyes narrowing. “I’m just wondering when you’re going to give up that pathetic crusade of yours,” she said, her voice dripping with venom. “What kind of assassin only kills criminals? You’re never going to fix the galaxy. All you are is another murderer with a gun.”

She didn’t stop there. Her voice dropped lower, colder. “Just like every bastard in here. Just like the ones you hunt. So tell me, Jacob — when do you turn the gun on yourself? You’re a monster. No different than the rest of us.”

Melissa leaned in, eyes gleaming with cruel amusement. “Do you really think the people out there will accept you?” she whispered. “That they’ll throw a parade and shower you with medals?”

She snorted. “Or are they more likely to look at you with fear and disgust? Normal people don’t like killers like us.” Her smirk widened. “So when are you going to stop playing the child, and come play with the adults?”

“I’m nothing like you,” Jacob said, voice low.

Melissa raised an eyebrow, her smile never fading. “No? Don’t you kill people for money?” she said, tone almost casual. “We’re the same. The only difference is… I care about getting paid.”

She leaned back in the booth, arms stretched across it like she owned the place. “There’s no such thing as justice, little J — only what people decide justice is,” she added, voice smooth as poison. “Look at the people you’re so desperate to help. You think they’re better? Kinder?”

She shook her head, almost laughing. “They’d gladly do unspeakable things if the shoe were on the other foot. You’re fighting for ghosts, Jacob. For lies.” She let the words settle in the air, watching him with a wicked grin. “Remember that dictator you killed last galactic year? The one you were so proud of?”

Her smile twisted. “Well, that planet devolved into a civil war. Every faction scrambling to take control. Over six million dead so far.” She leaned back and clapped her hands once — slow and mocking.

“And all because of you, little J.” Melissa tilted her head, voice soft but sharp as glass. “I’m impressed. For a man who swears never to harm the innocent, who claims only to hunt the guilty…” She leaned in closer, eyes gleaming. “You’ve got a lot of ‘innocent’ blood on your hands.”

Jacob didn’t flinch. “More people died under that tyrant,” he said evenly. “The civil war would’ve happened with or without my intervention.”

His jaw tightened. “My hands may not be completely clean… but I didn’t harm them myself.” He met her gaze, steady and cold. “But you didn’t come all this way just to annoy me. So I’ll ask again — spit it out. What do you want?”

Melissa clicked her tongue, then gave a lazy, amused smile — back to form. “I’ve got a job right up your alley,” she said. “Requires two — and you’re the only one in this dump skilled enough to actually be of use.”

She gestured loosely at the bar around them. “Most of these idiots would get killed in the first few seconds or give away my position. Don’t worry, though — it fits your precious moral code.”

Her smile sharpened like a blade. “Target’s as corrupt as they come. Bribery, embezzlement, murder, kidnapping, rape — you name it, it’s on his rap sheet. But since he’s the son of a senator in the Grand Republic, every single crime’s been swept under the rug.”

Jacob’s eyes narrowed further. “What’s in it for you?”

Melissa leaned in, lowering her voice just enough to pull him in. “Client says this guy kidnapped his daughter. Did unspeakable things. She took her own life afterwards.” Her tone flattened — no drama, no sarcasm. Just cold.

“He’s offering five million to put the bastard in the ground. Problem is, the guy’s security? All ex-Special Ops. I’m pretty sure one’s still active. We’re talking elite protection — the kind of setup that costs more than a small planet’s tax base.”

Jacob let out a quiet, resigned sigh. “Show me the file.”

Melissa raised a brow. “Don’t trust me?” She placed a hand over her heart. “I think I’ve been stabbed… right in my cold, black heart,” she moaned, overly dramatic.

“Do I have a reason to?” Jacob asked pointedly. “Last joint mission we ran — you left Greg to die.”

A smirk tugged at Melissa’s lips as she drew a dagger and began twirling it between her fingers. “Valid point,” she said with a shrug. “Also — promise we both get out of this alive. I won’t leave you for dead.” She glanced up with a grin, locking eyes with him. “You’re way too fun alive. Who else am I gonna bum drinks off if you croak it?” Chuckling to herself, she leaned back against the booth. “Anyway, that was Greg’s own fault. I told him — don’t push that button, don’t fight those guards. But did he listen? Nooo. He should be thankful I didn’t kill him myself, instead of just losing half his backside.” She smirked. “He’s alive. So what’s there to bitch about?”

“I had to have my arse completely rebuilt!” a voice barked from the next table. “I still don’t have feeling in the left cheek, Melissa!”

Jacob blinked and slowly turned his head.

Greg was sitting at the table beside them, glaring over his drink.

“Wah wah,” Melissa said, lazily waving the dagger in her hand. “All I’m hearing is a loser bitch.” She turned back to Jacob with a grin.

“Come on, lil’ J — it’s been ages since we did a mission together.”

Jacob sipped his drink. “What’s the split?”

“Fifty-fifty,” she said smoothly. “Equal parts vital, equal parts dangerous.”

He didn’t answer — just stared at her with narrowed eyes.

Melissa sighed and twirled a strand of her fiery hair. “Alright… look, I get it. You’re still sore about what happened on Dantera. In fairness, I did say I was sorry.”

Jacob’s eyebrows rose. “You left me naked, handcuffed to a bed, in the middle of a pirate base,” he said flatly.

She waved a hand like it was nothing. “Details, details. You got paid, didn’t you? Killed a bunch of pirates. What are you moaning about?”

Jacob leaned back, folding his arms. “The fact I got paid a fraction of what the deal was. Less than thirty percent.”

“Riiight,” Melissa said, dragging the word out. “I did forget about that…”

After a moment, she slid a datapad across the table.

“Look, I’m serious about this creep,” she said, her voice softening — just slightly. “Even I get the shivers thinking about someone like him walking free.”

Her eyes met Jacob’s. The smirk was gone. “I’m not trying to be some wannabe saint like you... but a girl’s gotta have principles. And scum like this? They need to be put down.”

Jacob picked up the datapad and started scrolling. His eyes narrowed with every line.

From the next table, Greg stood up and stepped closer.

Melissa didn’t even flinch. “We don’t need a troll-brained idiot on this run,” she said without looking at him. “I need someone who can count past three.”

Greg growled and took a step forward, looming over her. “Careful, Melissa.”

She looked up at him — and laughed, loud enough for the entire bar to hear. “Oh, honey,” she grinned, “I’m not intimidated by people who run out of vocabulary mid-sentence.”

The bar erupted in laughter. Greg flushed bright red and stormed out, muttering curses under his breath.

Jacob glanced sideways at her, raising one brow. “You should be careful. Greg won’t take that lying down.”

Melissa waved a hand dismissively. “I’m not worried about ape-human hybrids.”

With the distraction cleared, Jacob turned his attention back to the datapad — and nearly cracked it in his grip.

The evidence was overwhelming. From petty theft to slavery, with everything in between.

For a man like this, Jacob would’ve waived the fee without a second thought. But two and a half million credits was hard to ignore. With a deep, heavy sigh, Jacob responded, “Alright… I’m in. What’s your plan?”

Melissa’s grin widened. “Okay, so the target? Super paranoid. We’re not the first assassins sent after him — but we’ll be the last.”

She leaned forward, her voice dropping a notch as her tone grew more serious. “State-of-the-art home defence systems. Anti-ship guns. Shield barriers. Biometric scanners. Motion sensors. You name it, this little shit’s got it in spades.”

She tapped the datapad, pulling up a holographic layout of the compound — a sleek, fortress-like estate surrounded by energy fields and automated turrets.

Jacob raised an eyebrow. “Do I want to know how you got this intel?”

Melissa tilted her head with a grin. “You? No, you do not. Getting intel is more my speciality than yours.”

Jacob rubbed his forehead. “Melissa, if you harmed someone innocent…” he growled.

She rolled her eyes. “Relax, J. I promise — no-one ‘innocent’ was harmed in the gathering of intel.”

Jacob continued to stare at her.

“Alrighty, Mr Judgy Pants. Don’t get your knickers in a twist — just someone the target owes money to. But in all seriousness, we’ll likely need to kill several guards. Maybe even staff.”

“I don’t mind killing armed guards,” Jacob said, tone sharp. “But you are not repeating the Kelvera incident. You burnt down that embassy — with us inside! The Kelverian government’s still hunting you.”

“That was a complete accident!” Melissa said, then grinned. “Ooh — have they put a bounty out yet?”

“Nothing anyone would collect on,” Jacob muttered. “Just a warrant for questioning.”

“Bah, how boring.” Melissa stretched out lazily. “But what can you expect from a race of pacifists?” She grinned. “If someone’s going to put a bounty on me, they might as well make it a big one.”

Jacob sighed. “You know, one of these days your luck’s going to run out — and you’re going to catch a bullet.”

Melissa let out a loud yawn and stretched like a lazy cat, squirming dramatically in her seat. “I’m like a cat. Got at least seven lives left.”

“More like two,” Jacob said dryly. “Remember that time in the Kepherian Empire? I had to carry you out on my back — or any of the other times I’ve saved you?”

Melissa nodded slowly “Oh right, I forgot about that… I was mostly blackout drunk,” she said with a shrug. “But this won’t be like that. Republic Special Forces are much softer than the Kepherians. What a darling you are, J — I knew you cared.”

She leaned back with a smirk. “If it were Kepherians, I wouldn’t get out of bed for less than ten million.” Jacob gave a small nod. “Hmm. Kepherians are stubbornly militaristic. I suppose four hundred years of war will do that.”

Reaching over, he pressed a button on the side of the table. A soft hum activated as a faint shimmer surrounded their booth — the privacy field. “Anyway, let’s get serious.”

His gaze returned to the datapad. “We’re not dealing with them — thankfully. This looks straightforward enough: one gets close, the other provides cover and overwatch. But out of the two of us, only you can get close to him.”

Melissa tilted her head, expression sharpening. “That’s why I need someone professional. Someone who won’t betray me once the job’s done.”

She tapped a glowing point on the compound map.

“But overwatch has its own risks. You’ll have to handle the patrols, breach the defence systems… and once the deed’s done, the only viable exit is here.”

Something about it didn’t sit right with him. Jacob frowned. “Why not make it a full team?” he asked. “A job like this — we’d need at least five others to pull it off clean.”

“Besides splitting the paycheque?” Melissa raised an eyebrow. “No-one else here is skilled enough to be of any use. The mercs and assassins in this place are third-rate — and that’s being generous.”

“There’s more to this than just splitting the paycheque,” he said, voice low. He was expecting a trap. “You could’ve asked anyone from the network — but you came to me, of all people. On a mission that’s damn near suicidal for just two to take on.”

Melissa’s smirk faded slightly. “I’ve got a contact. She can only get two people through the planet’s defence systems. I can’t risk bringing more backup — not with the chance this scum might slip away.”

Jacob studied her for a long moment. There was something different about her — the way she fidgeted more than usual, the way she avoided his eyes. “So this is personal...” he said quietly, a small smirk tugging at his lips. “Didn’t expect that from you.”

He paused, then looked her square in the eyes. “There’s no client, is there? You’re funding this yourself.”

Melissa froze — just for a moment. And that was all Jacob needed to know. She clicked her tongue and looked away, visibly annoyed.

“What happened?” he asked.

The smirk had vanished. She let out a long breath. “He got his hands on the daughter of a friend… a girl who’s like a niece to me. I wasn’t lying about that part.”

Her gaze flicked back to him. “But no one else would risk it all to help me on a revenge quest. And I don’t have the funds to hire a proper team.”

The edge in her voice softened. “I may mock your principles… I still think you’re a fool.”

Locking eyes with him, she added, “But I need your help to kill a monster. And no one kills monsters like you.”

For a moment, nothing. Then, silently, she placed her dagger on the table. “I also know you’d never betray me — not without a damn good reason.” Unflinching, she held his gaze. “I need a monster… to hunt a monster.”

The words hung in the air — sharp, deliberate, without apology. “So… will you help me or not?”

Jacob took a moment, swirling his drink as he thought it over.

The target was among the worst of the worst. There would be no court for him — no trial, no sentence. Not while his father was protecting him.

So it fell to him — to be the justice for countless victims.

To put an end to the chaos.

To hunt the untouchable.

There were far too many monsters out in the galaxy.

But soon, there would be one less.

He looked up, eyes steady.

“Alright, Melissa. You can count on me.”