"That again?" he sneered, gesturing toward the small pistol his twin held carefully in one hand. "You're pointing that toy at me again?"
"Nothing's changed Knives." Vash the Stampede peered over his trademark sunglasses, green eyes flashing, "Not even after a hundred and fifty years."
The violet-eyed disaster smiled grimly, "No, I suppose not…but we shall see; we shall see." At this last word, Knives lunged forward, becoming a pale white blur against the dark backdrop of the rapidly darkening sky.
Suddenly, there was an ear-splitting screech as a large, black raven hurtled through the air toward the two brothers. As the bird drew closer, it began to shift and change; rapidly taking on a human form.
Startled, Vash whirled around, aiming his gun on the spot where the creature seemed to be heading. Silently, Knives put a hand on his brother's arm.
"No Vash," he shook his head, "She won't land there, she's too smart for that."
The 'humanoid typhoon' turned to face his twin, "You know this…this thing?"
Knives nodded, his eyes taking on a strange misty quality as if he were somewhere else, "Yes, I know her…"
Suddenly, a cold, cynical voice that seemed almost devoid of human emotion rang out of the darkness behind them, "Yes, Vash the Stampede, this is true. Your brother and I have met on occasion."
Both brothers spun around and inhaled sharply.
She was roughly 5'5" with pale skin, and sharp marblesque features accentuated by pale gray eyes and raven hair. Her slight frame was cloaked in a charcoal-colored duster over a black turtleneck, black pants, and knee-high black boots. With her, she carried a small, brown paper bag.
Vash narrowed his eyes dangerously, "Who and what are you?"
"I wouldn't do that if I were you, brother," Knives murmured under his breath so that the newcomer couldn't hear him.
The shape-shifter smiled coolly, "I am called Onyx, but as far as what I am…" Her eyes narrowed into an unfriendly glare, "That is none of your business."
"Wrong answer!" Quick as lightning, Vash raised his gun to shoot, but just as he pulled the trigger, a pencil-thin beam of white light flew from the shadows, destroying the bullet, and sending the pistol flying. As the dust settled, he barely glimpsed something receding into her hand. What was that? he wondered.
Suddenly, Onyx laughed, but it was a short, shallow laugh that spoke more of a sorrowful cruelty than of any real mirth. "Well, well, well…" she shook her head slowly, "Isn't this funny? I come here to find two brothers trying to kill each other, and when I would endeavor to prevent it, one of them tries to kill me!"
"Oh yes," she reached into the bag and pulled out a long, red coat. "This belongs to you, does it not? I ran into these two girls on my way here, recognized the coat, and offered to take it off their hands…they thought I was crazy." She tossed the coat at him, and noting his fearful expression, added on to her statement. "Don't worry, I saw to it that they escaped safely," she paused, and for a moment, it her eyes seemed to soften a bit, "Oh, and Vash? You should be careful. The smaller, dark-haired girl…I think Meryl Strife was her name. She worries about you…and not because she's worried about her job." Suddenly, she turned her back on them and began to walk away.
"Wait!" Vash swallowed loudly as the enigmatic woman looked over her shoulder at him, raising one arched eyebrow in askance. "Where are you going?"
Onyx shook her head, "I will be back shortly, I just have some unfinished business to take care of. While I'm gone, maybe you should try speaking to your brother, since you seem to be so interested in my history…"
Sighing, she turned toward Knives, who had remained silent up to that point. "Knives," she dropped her voice to a whisper, "You have my consent to tell him everything you know…within reason, of course." And with that, she disappeared into the darkness.