"Ten minutes more", thought Leon to himself, as he descended the stairs. He mentally went over the sequence of events that was to follow.
His target's convoy would enter the town from the very road which ran below the window he was standing in. At half past three, Leon was to start walking on the road towards the convoy. A little after quarter to four, his target would have breathed his last.
Everything had been painstakingly planned. The Clairvoyant had predicted that the total solar eclipse of today, the sixteenth of March, 1485, would last around three minutes, starting at around quarter to four in the afternoon. The past three months had been spent in ensuring that the target would be in the right place at the right time. The target's retinue had already been infiltrated with one of his associates, who would signal Leon when to strike.
In the inner circles of the organization to which Leon belonged, he was known as "The King of Shadows". He was one of the most efficient assassins of their Order and yet only a handful of people had had the chance of meeting him face to face. He had perfected the art of looking forgettable, allowing him to escape undetected.
As Leon approached the convoy, the wind carried their voices to him. He could hear them talking about the eclipse. Some, in hushed tones, were debating why their Lord had decided to travel at such a time. He counted them to be about twenty or so, besides the target.
The gong of the clock indicated that it was quarter to four.
He stepped to the side of the road to let the convoy pass. As the front guards were past him, he heard a voice say out loud, "Look! It's starting now! Light the torches."
That was the signal Leon was waiting for.
As he made his way towards the body of the convoy, he could hear the panic in their voices as they realized that the torches as well as the matches had been soaked in water. He could smell fear in their breath, as they stood in the darkness, calling out to each other, trying to maintain formation. Without any form of lighting, they were completely blind for the next couple of minutes.
"Welcome to my world." whispered Leon softly as he drew out his daggers and made for his target.
ns 15.158.61.54da2
