An Assassin's Adventure: The Great Conjunction

Chapter 47: Brewing

Once Hit finalised the groundwork for his mission, he made a beeline towards the southwest, skulking within alleyways this time as preparation for the next stage of his task. The man had chosen to make a game of tailing anyone he came across along the way, as practice for his imminent espionage within the far more sinister region of Daedalus Street. Hit now kneeled on a bungalow's roof and frowned down at an interesting sight.

A group of armoured ruffians stood in a circle chuckling darkly to one another, their yellowed teeth giving the gathering a sense of rottenness. Simple leather armour covered the men's bulky bodies, with most of the neglected vestments being caked in dirt and grime from the wastrels' unkempt lifestyles. The menacing individuals were surrounding a lone male adventurer, who shook at the terrible turn of events. The unfortunate fellow was a young human wearing beguiling crimson robes, likely the reason for his capture.

The apparent leader of his assailants, a muscly, bearded human, chuckled darkly and inched closer to his victim, arms spread apart as a faux peace offering, offset by the dagger clearly visible in his belt. "Look, kid. We don't wanna hurt ya. Just hand over everything you've got, and we'll be on our merry way. What do ya say?" Lips parted to reveal a toothy grin, beset by an array of glimmery golden teeth. His lackeys mimicked their leader and closed in around their prey, cackling at its whimpers and rising desperation.

Surprisingly, fury burned in the cornered man's eyes, and he extended an arm towards the most imposing of his opponents, daring him to take another step. "S-Stay back, o-or I'll burn you all to a crisp!" Brown eyes shivered as hatred and panic darted across them, an external manifestation of the man's internal struggle to use deadly force.

The cage of criminals guffawed at the pitiful attempt at intimidation, with some holding onto their companion's shoulders for support. The leader was no different and craned his head skywards as he unleashed bellows of laughter. "GAHAHAHA!!!" He wiped away tears of laughter and held his head in pity for the poor boy. "Pretty poor excuse for a bluff, lad! Like an urchin like you could..."

Enchanted light blazed in the dim corridor as a fiery magic circle burst into life a few inches from the young lad's arm: it was an energy projection inlayed with numerous winding lines and alien symbols that pulsed with an incandescent rage that hungered to burn everything in its path. The alley's walls became an infernal plane as a circle of demonic shadows danced upon it, their jittery movements becoming more erratic as the ring of ruffians shivered in fright.

The cornered adventurer strained as he began chanting a powerful vow to smoulder everything in creation. "Oh, mighty Ifrit who presides over infernos, I call upon you now to uphold your promise to blaze upon..."

His commanding voice forced his opponents into action: the previously assured assailants stepped back, gaping at the impossible display from someone so young. Their chief was far more experienced with matters of life and death, and was able to unsheathe his dagger, worry dripping down his ashen face in the form of a cold sweat. "A-A Mage! Cut out his tongue!"

*Whooosh*

This horrifying order seemed to have an unexpected effect as the mage halted abruptly in his speech. Crimson lines vaporised from the earthly plane, leaving behind nothing but a warm breeze and gasps of relief. Their creator shivered in fear and drew his arm back, realising his deadly mistake.

The head bandit adopted a feral grin and stepped forth, regaining his absolute confidence in the situation. "IDIOT!!! Even a musclehead like me knows that you need far longer than that to cast yer spell, kid! You must be a novice guttersnipe from the school district!" He then tensed himself, readying to zip ahead at the petrified boy in front of him. "I can't just let you go after that little display, brat... Besides, if you're going to go for the kill, you've gotta follow through...!"