"Is there anywhere cozier than Hogsmeade?"
A beat.
"Yeah, right."
A cool wind blew over town on this particularly murky evening; lights were out and all the good, law-abiding folk had already left the streets, leaving behind only drunkards and the dredges of society. This was the time of the miscreants and dark wizards, where they could roam the streets with impugnity and commit to their dastardly doings. Well, ALMOST. Ever since masked vigilantes started showing up, the villainous elements of the wizarding world finally had something to look out for. No one really knows how or why these young masked avengers took it upon themselves to combat the criminal underworld, but they've been operating at an efficiency that Officer Singer could only dream of reaching.
It was starting to look like evil was going to be all but eradicated, but then one more mysterious masked person came into town. Burden. In the short time he'd began operating in Hogsmeade, he'd already cut himself a fearsome reputation among the citizenry. He showed up to interfere with the vigilante-ism and disappeared just as suddenly as he arrived, thwarting their do-gooding and allowing other villains to make their scores unopposed.
Tonight was shaping up to be another such night for him.
Atop his perch on the Shrieking Shack the masked miscreant watched over a heist going on at Zonko's. The clownish proprietor of that store had it too good for too long, and some enterprising wizards decided it was time to teach that place a costly lesson. However, with the threat of vigilanteism looming over their heads, they needed a little bit of help. They needed The Burden to come and make sure their operation wouldn't get interrupted.
"Any second now..." He breathed out, lifting himself to a stand and slipping his mask over his eyes. The most dangerous of the heroes would be none other than the Night Hawk, a young upstart whose enjoyed tremendous success tracking down even the sneakiest crooks in town and bringing them his brand of eldritch justice. More times than he could count they've gotten into tangles with one another, and every time the fracas was fierce, and close. One of these days one would unmask the other and end that man's nightly wanderings; a day Burden very much looked forward to. "Right on cue."
A window broke, smoke billowed out from the cracked panes and a yell of surprise sang into the twilight. Burden smirked, kicking off from the roof and neatly striking the cobblestone below. He'd take his time with this one; his employers didn't matter as much as the fun he intended to have this evening.
"Stop what you're doing and come quietly!" A resolute voice proclaimed from inside the cloud of smoke mere moments before a blast of force banished it all and blew over a few shelves. "I can't promise you'll be unharmed if you don't surrender!" Added the voice, now revealed as belonging to none other than the Night Hawk! Wand in hand and standing mightier than an oak, the black-clad hero stared down the cadre of criminals spread throughout the place. Near instantly the men opened fire, raining blasts of magic onto the Night Hawk's position. Displays and the shelves they sat upon were blown to smithereens in the assault, raining splinters and formerly colorful and extravagant toys all over the shop floor.
Child's play.
He moved like smoke, blitzing between the formidable crimson streaks of light before stopping abruptly before his target. The criminal's eyes grew wide in the half-second before the sharp crack of Night Hawk's fist brought darkness to the man's world. "Reduct-!" One of the dark wizards took what he believed to be an opportunity to fire upon Night Hawk, but before he could even finish his incantation the hero's boot had lodged itself into his throat. Gagging, the man was unable to do anything when the vigilante took hold of him and flipped him over his shoulder, using the hapless mage as a barrier from the several other spells now hurtling his way.
When the salvo started to relent the Night Hawk gave off a slight smirk and placed the tip of his wand upon his human shield's chest. "Depulso," said he, and the body was pitched forward as if struck by a troll's club; right into another one of the mages and sending them both out a previously broken window. Only one trembling wreck of a wizard was left now, and before he knew it he was standing face to face with the Night Hawk and losing all of his nerve.
"Mercy! Mercyyyyyyyyyy!"
The Night Hawk's eyes narrowed behind his mask, adopting an almost predatory aspect for the moment or so their eyes met. After that, the wizza was rendered unconscious with a solid chop to the temples, falling to a heap on the ground and leaving Zonko's clear of the criminal element. The "authority" would be here pretty soon by his estimate, they could handle the arrest and incarceration of these crooks.
"My work here is done!" The hero triumphantly announced, grasping the hem of his cape and flourishing it as he turned to leave. "Or not..."
Standing there, leaned against the windowsill with his arms crossed over his chest was none other than The Burden! The malevolent masked maurader gave off a dry chuckle while brandishing his wand Night Hawk's way, wordlessly throwing a sizzling confringo the hero's way. In response the Night Hawk spun on his heel and a bolt of lightning crashed through the ceiling and obliterated the fireball before it could reach him. In the flash of light the Night Hawk leapt forward, fist already flying toward his fated foe!
There was a crash, The Burden's fist met the Night Hawk's, causing sparks to fly and for both men to separate from the amount of force.
"This is gonna be a long night." The Night Hawk mouthed, and simultaneously did Burden express the same, but twisted sentiment. "This is gonna be a FUN night."
WILL NIGHT HAWK PREVAIL OVER BURDEN? WHAT POSSIBLY COULD THE VILLAIN HAVE IN STORE FOR OUR HERO? WATCH FOR THE OWL DELIVERING THE NEXT ISSUE OF NIGHT HAWK VS BURDEN!