Its form releases, growing in size slightly, matching the height of a passing nearby car, forced to veer off to the side. The car crashes into a parked taxi and is quickly exited, the two drivers race to the side of the street and hold each other.
The being’s loud bellow shakes a window in proximity, bothering a lot of the surrounding traffic. Then, whispers begin to hover along with the sounds of cars driving and bugs buzzing.
“Should we call someone?” “Is that a Blight?” “Someone had better take care of this, I have to get to work.”
Another daily, if not half-day, occurrence for the people to see another creature drag itself up from Hell beneath them.
The Blight, this monstrous little creature made of stone and molten rock, stands in the middle of the road, staring at Melody and Mason- somehow sensing they’ll be its opponents. The sluggish Blight raises one of its clumps of an arm and throws a molten chunk of the road at a nearby car. It misses, ultimately landing just before the car, but it can’t be ignored that it’s stopped everyone in their tracks. Regulations and learned behaviors of this world take over, and cars pull off to the side, and the drivers huddle over to the opposite side of the vehicle. It can’t be heard, but it’s not without history that sighs are probably released in each car. It’s a pretty well-accepted fact of the world at this time, and even more so it’s known that there are bound to be capable Blessed or Cursed around.
“Ugh, do you want it?” Mason lazily asks, leaning his head over from his slacker posture. Quickly assessing the creature to not be as tough as one would think, Mason offers it to Melody. He leans over and raises an eyebrow.
Melody grins brightly, leaning forward to meet Mason’s slouched height.“No, I think you got it.” Melody’s sickly sweet voice annoys Mason too often, but he relents.
“Haaaauuuuuugh”The creature moans and prepares another molten attack. It raises its thick arm from the ground and pulls up another sizable piece of the road. Over time, the Blight’s arms seem to take a sharper form, looking more like enormous fingers are gripping the red stone.
CrackowcackakThe road breaks free and unsettled concrete dust crops the street. On-lookers from a block away have their phones raised to their ears, and their hands above their eyes to shield from the Sun for better viewing.
Melody stops moving, planting her feet to the ground. She lets Mason walk a step past her, hopping to quickly reset her footing. After landing, Melody reaches for her hair and snatches loose the Halo tying it up. Holding the Halo just above her hand, she leads it down to her ankle and steps her foot through it. The Halo fixes to a spot and starts to glow brighter in short cycles. Vmm Vmm VmmVmm
“Haaaagh. Dammit, Blight.” Mason mocks the weak cry of the Blight, gritting his teeth at the newly bred creature from Hell. In a singular motion, Mason leaps up from his spot, keeping his head and torso to the air, his legs find their way behind him. A glance at him would show you that he’s in a striking pose, but you’d be lucky to see this, as it’s all happening in an instant- Pulling his sword to his side, Mason grips tightly at it and readies a true strike.
Melody lines up her fast and empowered kick to meet up with his feet. The two work in perfect synchronization. PHWACKMason is launched ferociously at the creature.
“Wraagh!” Mason yells out, launched forward and he draws his short-katana with inhuman speed. To the on-lookers, only a flash of red and steel streaks across the distance. Mason lands behind the Blight and huffs a short stream of hot steam through his grinning teeth.
“Wuuugh?” The Blight hums, calling out in confusion, almost mockingly sounding as it slowly turns over to Mason on the other side of him. Watching him closely, his wide jaw slips an inch lower with some spit-up lava connecting to the top. The Blight looks ready to throw another violent heap of volcanic concrete.
As Mason sheathes his blade, the Shikk of its closing syncs with red cracks of stoney scales appearing on the Blight’s midsection. With barely any time to react, Mason’s attack quickly shatters through the creature, exploding into a brilliant dark red light, and then into a small wisp.“Hah, Weakling.”
Mason stands upright with his eyes closed, he straps the katana up to his shoulder and nods down the street to Melody. The young lady waves back at him, jumping as she raises her arm skyward. She’s far enough away that he can’t hear her exactly, but knows her reaction to victory is an awkward chuckle. Mason stands straight and slowly paces over to the defeated Blight.
Melody runs over to meet Mason halfway, arriving at the flame. Standing around it, the two of them give each other a glance, and Melody nods to Mason. She giggles and Mason reaches out his hand knowingly. “Come on, you damn Blight. Gimme something good at least.”
FWEEROO
Mason lets his fingers be wrapped around by the red flame, a slight warmth reaches into his hand. Pushing further in, Mason winces not in pain but in hope- the way one might look at a pack of trading cards to hope for a reflective. Gripping into the center of the flame, hard and feasible material is stuck within. Melody’s eyes light up with the red flame and she lets her cheeks rise now too. Mason has his hand held outward, and then suddenly the flame wisps out of the air, vanishing upward. His closed fist is between him and Melody. The two share another glance and Mason grins.
“What is it?” Melody bounces around to his side, expectantly leaning into it.
Mason looks at her and then at his hand. He can already feel it’s a small prize for killing the creature. He opens it up and reveals a few scales in his palm, huffing out of his chest and slacking his posture again. The coin-shaped pieces of hardened Blight armor dance around in his palm. Mason tosses them up just to catch them again, swinging around to face her.
“Just easy money this time.”
Continued in PART 4…
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