CH-20: A Thief's Game

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Special mentions:

•Dragon Cross

•AJ

•Benoît Valtin

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In an instant, without a word spoken or a moment of thought.

I reacted to Black Fox's revelation of my real name.

Venom's tentacles swiftly extended towards his head, aiming to strike.

It didn't matter if he was a person of interest or a respected patron of the bar; he knew my true identity, which made him a potential threat.

The elongated whips of Venom's tentacles reached out, attempting to tear into his face.

However, he had anticipated the attack and managed to push himself back, using the chair to create a barrier, narrowly escaping my grasp.

"Whoo." He whistled as he rolled back, quickly recovering by pressing his hands against the floor and executing a cartwheel.

Undeterred, I leaped onto the table and charged towards him, still reaching out with my arms.

He tried to roll to his side but I had seen his eyes darting to his right.

Adjusting my direction, I aimed to intercept him but he swiftly changed course with a shoulder drop, evading my attack.

He smirked, likely thinking he had bought himself some time. Little did he know the true versatility of Venom.

I spun around, twirling the whip-like appendages towards him once more.

This time, he ducked down to avoid the strike. Anticipating his move, another elongation of the tentacles emerged from my chest, aimed directly at his neck.

He saw the incoming attack but his reaction was a fraction too slow. Although he attempted to jump over using his acrobatic abilities, I managed to catch him with Venom, slamming the tentacle against him with force.

Pressing him against the wall, causing the entire booth to tremble, I approached him, my mask shifting back to reveal my young face.

"How?" I growled, my voice intertwined with Venom's, my claws raised threateningly towards his face.

"Not so sarcastic now, are we?" He commented with a smile still lingering on his face.

"How?!" I roared, my stoic glare intensifying as I pressed my claw against his chest, drawing out blood.

He winced at the wound but his expression remained unchanged.

His eyes locked with mine and within their depths, I detected a glimmer of trust and clarity but I knew better than to trust him.

"I had the Thief Guild run a search on your moniker." He finally revealed, realizing that I wouldn't let him go or go easy on him without an explanation.

Maintaining my emotionless demeanor, I nodded, silently urging him to continue.

"You have quite the reputation." He added. "I used a third-party account to look for you in the Bar database. His tech isn't as impenetrable as Caliban thinks it is."

"And how did you discover my name?" I asked, a hint of mistrust seeping into my words.

I peered into his eyes, delving into his mind, reading his thoughts with every word he spoke.

I couldn't fully trust him after all, he was a thief, a professional liar. It was crucial to determine the veracity of his words.

"Caliban had your work profile linked to a document ID." He sighed and as I confirmed he wasn't lying, I slowly retracted my claws.

"At first, I was astounded to learn you were just a child." He scoffed. "But then I concluded that you must be a shape-shifting mutant—"

His gaze wandered over Venom's suit before he rolled his eyes. "And obviously, you're something more than just a shape-shifter."

"What do you plan to do with the information you acquired?" I leaned closer, intensifying my glare, casting a judgmental gaze upon him.

Numerous possibilities raced through my mind: threats, blackmail, extortion, or forcing a job upon me.

He wasn't foolish enough to make direct contact if he intended to pursue the former two options and considering the extravagant suit he wore, I doubted he needed money.

This left me with the latter possibility but it seemed unwise for him to reveal the information he had acquired in a direct confrontation.

"Tell me!" I yelled, noticing his silence, and slammed him against the wall once again.

"I wanted to recruit you." He finally confessed, and it checked out as the truth when I delved into his thoughts.

"For what?" I inquired.

"To be my apprentice."

"To be your what?" I asked, my tone lowering as if I were talking to someone with a bit of a loose screw.

"I see potential in you, Venom." Black Fox leaned his head closer as much as he could against my grip. "You can become a great thief with the right mentor."

I blinked and raised my eyebrows, realizing his thoughts aligned with his words.

"Ha.." I scoffed, shaking my head. "I don't know if you've heard, but I'm no thief, I'm an assassin."

I slowly loosened my grip on him and let him down. As soon as he landed on his feet, I retracted the suit back into me. He adjusted his suit, straightening it and dusting his pants before giving me an incredulous look.

"We all start somewhere in this line of work, kid. It doesn't mean our choices define our path." The old man sighed, his experienced eyes briefly revealing real emotions before he regained composure. "At least not at your age."

"Well anyway." I had a realization in the midst of his words.

"Why on earth would I be your apprentice in the first place?" I asked the obvious. "I outsmarted you in the heist two days ago. What could you possibly teach me when I've already surpassed you?"

"First of all, just because you outsmarted me doesn't make you a skilled thief." He reasoned.

"You do realize you just called yourself a lousy thief, right?" I countered with a mischievous smirk.

He tried to come up with a response, but no words came out, so he decided to move on, knowing I had won this round.

"Second of all, you didn't defeat me. Your powers did." He smiled, pointing at Venom of the black suit from his view. "You relied on your powers, something I don't have, to surpass me."

"Well, life isn't fair, dude." I shrugged.

"It's not about fairness, young man. It's about strength." He corrected me.

"You rely on your power to enhance your strength and skill, a skill that isn't truly yours. Remove your powers, and you're left with nothing."

"..." I couldn't argue with his comment because deep down, I knew he was right.

If someone took Venom away from me or found a way to suppress my mutation, I would just be an 11-year-old kid with the mind of a 22.

That was one of the many reasons I wanted to train myself, so that one day I could fully utilize my powers without relying on them too heavily.

"Everything you rely on can and will fail someday, and when it does, it's up to you to save yourself." He said, coming closer. I didn't step back as I cautiously read his thoughts. He didn't seem to have any malicious intentions.

"Let me guide you." He said softly, placing his hand on my shoulder in a fatherly gesture.

I looked into his eyes, then down at his hand on my shoulder, and slowly slipped away from his touch.

"You're a thief. Why should I believe anything you say?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

I could read his mind and know when he was lying but he didn't need to know that.

This question was more of a test to his integrity, to gauge his perspective on the job.

His eyes lit up with a proud smile, as if I had found the missing pieces of the puzzle.

"Well..." He trailed off, taking his eyes away from me for a moment of thought.

A smirk formed on his face as he stopped, his gaze locking back onto me. The grin carried a mix of emotions, none of which were reassuring.

"You shouldn't."