The start of the keymaster

He's down! One! TWO! -

The crowd was cheering too loudly to hear the announcers on the tv overhead. I tried to lean closer, my eyes studying the match between the two fighters closely. It was only a recording of course, but I couldn't remember if this was one I've actually seen before or not. The winning fighter had his opponent pinned to the floor, his legs locked around the loser's arm holding his clenched fist with both of his hands. They were both red in the face, struggling against the opponent's strength, but the count hit three before the man on the bottom was able to break free. I let out a long breath and downed the rest of my drink. The bar patrons around were all talking at once abkut different things, but for the most part, the topic on everyones mind was the fight on TV. The winner in this fight apparently went on to become some crazed serial killer or something, but other people say his murders were all for revenge against some group that had hurt his family. Another rumor said that he was a vigilante that eventually turned evil. Whatever the case, the man was nothing but another story told at the bar on nights like these. The old waterlogged lumber of the make shift counter top was covered in water rings like the one his glass left behind. It was impossible to guess how many gallons of alcohol got drank or wasted over the years, but just thinking about it made him even more thirsty.

Hey, Celeste. Bring me another whiskey neat, please.

Celeste turned and gave me this flirty smile with a wink. She was so cute. One day, maybe after enough of these drinks, I'll finally ask her out, but I see countless men and women pass through here. The majority of them eventually try to shoot their shot with the hot bar tender, but I've never seen her give anyone a chance. I slumped a little further back into the bar still as she finished filling the glass with the clear alcohol and slid it across the bar and into my open and waiting hand. I took a long sip and let the warm feeling fill my stomach as my eyes slowly shut. The noise room around me drifted lazily through my consciousness. Nothing grabbed my attention, and my thoughts were on nothing in particular. It could have been argued that I was asleep at the bar stool. I didn't even notice as someone came by and sat in the stool next to mine. They tried to ask if it was open, which I heard, but I guess I had no reason to believe they were talking to me. It didn't occur to me that he was waiting for a reply even as he sat, so it really surprised me when I opened my eyes to watch the glass reach my lips and noticed a middle aged, red haired man leaning forward and staring intently into my eyes. The reflex to spit my drink back into the glass was too much to resist, and with a sputter and a quick wipe of the liquid running down my chin I leaned further away from the stranger. He was suddenly so close and I've always had a problem with strangers getting close to me too quickly. Call me paranoid, but I say I'm careful.

Ha! Ha! Ha! Were you asleep there, buddy? Didn't mean to wake you! Ha!

His voice was louder than any other's in the bar. Or at least, that's what it seemed like at first. The tone in the room had changed since he closed his eyes but he didn't noitce, which again was probably the result of the alcohol. The bar was emptying slowly. And the ones left were either making their way to the door, or seemingly stuck to their seats, but all eyes were locked on the older man beside me. I adjusted myself in my seat and prepared to retake that sip of whiskey I just wasted, but that's when I noticed the look on Celeste's face. She was usually confidently leaning forward on the bar, flirting with customers and smiling was her base line, but her expression now made her almost unrecognizable. I've never seen a look of fear like that on anyone, but especially not her. In a way, somewhere in a part of his mind where his conscious mind wasn't even present, anger started to swell at the sight of her in fear. She was even backing away slowly from the bar, and her eyes slowly drifted from me to this older guy beside me. I drunkenly started piecing a few things together, namely, it was him who was making her afraid. My anger was starting to make its way out into the forefront of my mind, and as I turned to evaluate my new bar mate again, I recognized a difference in the man's composure. He was looking up at the slow-mo scene of the fight on the television. The winner was standing in the middle of the ring, hands up and smiling at the cheering crowd.

Funny. Seems like it was just yesterday that fight was recorded.

His voice made it evident he was reminiscing about the fight. He was staring up at the screen with a look of pride that made me miss my parents. I looked over at Celeste again, who had made it to the very end if the bar, she looked over at me and blinked tears out of her dark brown eyes. My heart raced a little. She was so cute. I could feel the warmth filling my cheeks, and worried for a moment that she could see me blushing, then a heavy hand slapped my shoulder and I was brought back into reality. I scowled into my glass and tossed the rest of the drink back. I let out a long breath and tilted my head to look at the old man again. He was pretty fit, and dressed in a white karate uniform, still staring wistfully up at the freeze frame of his victory. I tried to reach out and sense his power, but even this close he felt like a weakling. Even if he were actively suppressing it, being this close should have given me something off of which to gauge his strength. So the fact that I could feel so little either meant he was a weakling, or he was talented at hiding his power level. Considering I've been drinking, it made it pretty easy to gamble on that and try something to pass the time.

Hey. Old man.

Hm?

I met his gaze. My grip on the glass tightened. The air was frozen still, and silence had fallen. It was always like this in the seconds before combat started. It was something I had grown so used to that this moment was almost enough to sober me up. I focused my magic and let it start to build. I could feel it welling up but the man wasn't reacting yet. He was just holding his gaze on mine, his attention unwavering. His lack of a reaction was a little insulting, so I reached down and summoned up all of my strength. I let my magical energies erupt from me, allowing wisps of flames to manifest around me. Finally he reacted, but only with a confident laugh.

Oh ho! You've got a real scary look, guy.

Suddenly there was a flash of white light. No, it was more like suddenly losing your sight and hearing and feeling all at once. There was a fraction of a memory just before the flash though, where it really seemed like the man next to him vanished from sight. I couldn't even start the thought of where he went before losing consciousness, though. My senses were completely overwhelmed by his immense reserve of magic power. It was like being thrust to the bottom of the ocean in less than a second. The pressure alone knocked me out cold, but this wasn't the last time I would see the old man. He would go on to tell the others in the guild that my courage and willingness to fight was why he recruited me, but I always had the feeling that he was looking for someone strong for a special reason. He's always kept to himself, though, so I'm sure nobody even knows, if there is something to know. That man who was the center of so many false rumors and stories that were nowhere close to the truth was the leader of the Jinx Guild, and that night, he brought me to their base of operations and made me a regular member. After my first mission, I was given a rank that set me apart from all the others. I'm both the newest recruited member of the guild as well as its only S ranked member. That was all just two months ago. Today I set out on my next mission, the quest to reclaim the golden zodiac key of the ram.

1526 words

1526 / 5000 for Golden Key of the Ram