2. The Assassin ††

NOAH wanted nothing but a good day.

The pain of the week had really laid out on him, and just if he wasn't his basketball team's captain, maybe he wouldn't have felt the pressure of losing to a very unskilled team in the league.

Noah held the memories afresh like it had just happened a minute ago. He remembered the dunky basketball being in his possession as he stood right in front of the net pole. But something had jerked him right off his senses and sent him to the fear zone, something he himself couldn't decipher. And whatever it was, he didn't seem to have gotten over it.

Noah was reminiscent of how Victor Vex, his biggest sport rival, smirked at him as he stood paralyzed in front of the net pole. His teammates had yelled out his name repeatedly, urging him to dunk the ball into the net. They had even emphasized how easy of a job that was. But Noah had found being petrified an interesting hobby, and was doing a pretty awesome job as the team's captain.

He rigorously shook the thought off his head and strapped his bag. It was a cool Friday afternoon, and he had found sudden interest in walking back home from school. It was certainly not the excuse that he had no money on him to take a taxi.

The rain had began to let out from the sky, and dark clouds covered the surface, blocking light from the azure. Noah figured he would have to run from the incoming storm, but disappointment and dissatisfaction crowded his legs that they wouldn't do anything but trek miserably.

The streets were quiet and lone, the only sounds were the continuous rain showers hitting rooftops and the consistent barks of stray dogs. Noah walked along the dark roads, completely drenched from the rain, he seemed to have been the only one outside, but it didn't bother him. Considering the fact that a shadow stood at the far end of the street.

Wait!... A shadow.

Noah suddenly stopped moving, trying to access if he saw right. The rain clouds had blocked the sky's lighting that he couldn't tell if it was imaginary or if a shadow the size of two men really stood few metres ahead of him. He contemplated on whether to run or wait for the shadow to materialize itself, but whatever he decision there were, he needed to make them before some shit got real.

He glared deep into the darkness, posing like a western cowboy that was ready for a street feud. Noah didn't know so much, but if a giant looking shadow stood still afar off, probably staring deep at him also, it meant that his next wrong move might probably be his last.

A momentum later, the grizzly looking shadow walked out of the darkness, and Noah couldn't deny his surprise when a golden armored creature appeared right in front of him, weilding a bronze sword. But what really left him amazed were the immediate typographics that appeared around him on the walls and floors if the street.

"URGENT TASK, DEFEAT TALOS' ASSASSIN. PENALTY FOR FAILURE IS SUPPOSED DEATH."

Noah's heart shifted.

These words were commands that even himself could understand even if they were written in a diverse language. And they glowed in a bright golden manner as he read them. This wasn't how he saw his day going. The last time he encountered one of those urgent tasks, he had had to fight a monster with an upper human body and lower snake's skin. The dracaena had almost gotten him killed and swallowed in a brink but only with the warning had he gotten saved.

And even now, while he was still trying to get over the sick emotional trauma that haunted him from his last escapade, a creature with golden armor and a bronze sword was challenging him to his death.

"Look dude, I don't know what or you are," Noah started to say. "But I really don't wanna fight you, is there a chance we can talk this out?"

No response. The creature simply stared, it's fiery blue eyes scowling at Noah.

On observing it's complete obliviousness to his diplomacy, Noah opened his mouth again to elaborate further, but even before he could speak, the creature did a jump spin and kicked him in the face.

"Urgh...!" Noah groaned as the he landed hard on the floor, few metres aback from where he had been kicked.

He rose up in attempt to rebuild himself but the assassin rushed at him with an unsheath sword. Adrenaline filled up Noah's veins and he moved aside to duck the assassin's blade.

Noah found time to stand up to his feets, but there was less time to devise a plan on how to block the assassin's attacks. He had nothing on him to call a weapon, even his backpack had been flung long out of sight when he was kicked.

Great, there wasn't any alternatives to survive this fight... Just his death.

The assassin rose up and glared furiously at Noah, he must've been surprised that the boy was still alive and standing. He clenched more tightly to his sword and rushed at him, opening a cut in his left shoulder.

Noah stifled the cries of pain that dared to escape from his mouth, he quickly held on to his shoulder as blood poured from it, soaking his already wet clothes. He breathed heavily as the pain stung him, trying to subdue himself.

"Wha.. What do you want?" Noah managed to ask. Now that he thought about it, it seemed like the creature couldn't speak.

"I'll take the hearth." It suddenly said.

"The.... What now?"

"Nevermind, I didn't think you'd be compliant." He raised his sword and charged at Noah again.

Noah sensed the approaching peril, and so he moved away just in time to sidestep the assassin's blade. However, it only infuriated the creature, and unlike anyone had expected, he let his sword drop to the floor.

"You must think this would be easy," Noah said under a groan as the assassin charged at him with bare hands

"I guess you're right afterall."

The assassin landed an uppercut on his face and kicked hard on his guts that he was thrown to the nearest wall. There his neck was grappled and choked.

Noah cough as he was constricted, he definitely didn't see himself dying this way.

"I don't have what you want." He managed, struggling with the assassin's armor hands.

"Die!" The assassin barked as he put more pressure into the choke. His eyes seemed to glow in a more intense blue color.