Little Maybelle

“Took y’long enough, eh, Karim? Where’s the rest of the deck?” Karim picked a few cards from her deck at random: a Jack, Queen, King, and Ace (wow, what luck!) and threw them into the air. As they hit the ground, a man walked in, the only face-up card: Jack. “Damn it, is it just you two?!” Of course it was! The cards rarely lied, though circumstances did change from time to time... “for now I want you two to head on over to Lil’ Maybelle. Not the main district, but that shady little area behind that… that spot apart from the popular bit, behind that rental shop or whatever.” Ahaha! A shady part like that? Sure, Itex might go there, none ever populated the area. It was worth checking out anyone there. “And you know the drill – keep away from civilians.” Yes, mother. It wasn't like Amy always ranted on and on and on and on about... the Jack left, wind from his cape scattering the cards and flipping two of them in the process... Karim should be getting on her way as well. A car drove in as Karim left, probably a poor soul left to face Liesel's wrath... Ahahaha! Sadly, it wasn't worth getting caught up in the back-draft to stay and watch.

It was still raining. The parasol came up, and it twirled as Karim pranced through the back streets on the way to Lil' Maybelle. So much had happened, so little, but it was time to face Itex! Who could they be? Would they be excited at all to meet them? Hahaha, of course not. But fights were just boring, weren't they? This was... thievery, yes, guile, deception, trickery... magic. Would they see it coming? Not at all, but it would help to have more than just the two versus them, however many. Oh, they were there weren't they. Amy pushed her back to attention on the streets, to the mask she kept on her. Ah, masks! They were such fun! People never knowing who you were, always guessing, guessing, guessing... And who was this lovely mask? It seemed like only yesterday it was another... Was it?

---

Amara walked out of the News From Throme offices, holding her umbrella and notepad as she walked through Throme. There was a meeting today, and a chance to confront Itex; Karim needed to be prepared. Amara shook her consciousness into awareness, making her keep watch for anyone interesting, pointing it out to her as needed. Masquerade needed a new target, and it would be stupid to let the enemy know Karim as herself from the get-go. Wrapping her coat around herself, Amara walked out toward Sagaro Mall, where people would still be walking even on miserable days like today. Karim kept a lookout and pointed toward one, a man walking briskly with a suit and briefcase, some businessman. Him? Karim gave assent. Whatever you want...

Amara walked up to the man, "Hello, could I have a few seconds of your time? I'm Amara Calen, from News From Throme. It's nice to meet you." She held out a hand which the man accepted and shook cautiously. "Umm... may I help you? I'm- I'm in a rush, you see? Business, you know, as usual?" "Oh, I'm terribly sorry to disturb you, but I'm conducting a survey for the papers; it won't take more than a moment of your time, and then we'll be on our separate ways again." The man sighed and pushed up his glasses, "Alright, but... only a few questions. I have an important meeting to go to, you know?" The conversation continued for not long after that, but habits didn't escape Amara's eyes. He shifted from foot to foot, answered questions evasively. He adjusted his tie, pushed his glasses up constantly, his eyes darted from here to there in conversation. He kept looking at his wrist for a watch that wasn't there. Whatever he was doing, he seemed nervous of it; the briefcase never left his hand for a moment. It looked heavy.

They parted, and Karim took over, following from above, making adjustments to the mask as needed...

---

Yes, Amy, no need to remind me... Ahaha! Hah. The mask went on, and Karim transformed, an Arthur Thorne standing there instead. The white suit was replaced by a darker one, a navy, dampened by the rain. His black umbrella (no longer the well-designed white parasol) did little to stop the rain hitting his legs or even the lower part of his suit. His glasses were taken off from time to time to be wiped clean then pushed back on and periodically pushed up again as they slid down the bridge of his nose. His brown briefcase by his side was wet and not getting any drier. He picked it up and began walking briskly through the backstreets of Maybelle. From time to time, he shifted his items in his hands: putting down the briefcase to wipe his glasses, moving it to the same hand as the umbrella, setting the umbrella aside quickly to dry his glasses using both hands (this got his already damp, dark brown, close-cropped hair even more wet).

The man paused in the alleys, looking for a signpost, any directions to get anywhere. "Drat. Umm... where was it. He said we were meeting... forgotten, as usual. Gosh darnit, write these things down sometime! Hmm... what was the name?" Arthur continued on his way through the backstreets of Lil' Maybelle, that bit behind the rental shop. He may have looked distracted, but he was ever on the lookout for potential meeting spots and strange characters in meeting...

The umbrella wasn't helping at all. Arthur put aside his umbrella once again to dry his glasses; he had no idea where he was. Wandering the streets of Maybelle would only get you something if you were lucky, and that hadn't happened yet. Well, he was finding where suspicious people weren't, narrowing down the search. Maybe Liesel was wrong? Ahaha! A quick response, No, we were sent here for a reason. Quitting halfway would only bring punishment. But they were turned around; where was a sign? The glasses went back on, see-through-able again for now (sure, they weren't needed, but a disguise was a disguise; it needed to be perfect). A nearby street sign proclaimed this Orion Street, and a quick glance showed a coffee shop nearby, with eaves which would at least stop the rain for a little while.

Arthur walked past, as a man in a coat walked up to the door before him. He paused, waiting for something, as Arthur walked by. A voice in the head, Why'd he pause? Take note, pay attention. I will not have you slacking off here! So Arthur slowed down and paid attention. And felt a slight wave of heat... that shouldn't have been there. A quick turn of the head, a whispered "Decoy" followed just as quickly by "End." An onlooker might have seen another "Arthur" for a split second, less, actually. It started to appear in the back of the head before disappearing as quickly as it came, facing the other man, and its information was conveyed to Karim, the other image of Arthur.

The man was dry; his hair at the very least, his coat stiffer than it should have been after walking through however much rain. Coupled with the sudden heat, there was something strange going on here. A coffee shop was a meeting place, and this was no normal customer. Call it investigator's intuition or whatever. Keep track of that man. And don't be seen... ...Yes, yes, 'mother.' No need to remind me twice! Ahahaha! This looks to be an interesting day! Haha! At the end of the eaves, the end of the building, Arthur sat with his briefcase to the side, his umbrella down, his glasses wiped. The watch that wasn't there was fidgeted with, as a message was input to the communicator. "@J2: Orion St Cafe, suspiciously-dry man, keeping lookout, following if needed. Come here and help. P.S. you won't recognize me. Ahahaha! ;)"

Sitting there, an organizer was brought out from his coat and looked at, scribbled-in additions entered from time to time. Suddenly, the cafe door opened once again, and a pair came out, one the dry guy, the other a man with... some presence. Something just felt... strong about him, confident. As they walked off, Arthur finished his dry spell and packed up, opening the umbrella and picking up the briefcase. With safe distance, he headed off in a... similar direction, where he could keep tabs on the duo. Back at the end of the eaves, a piece of note paper was left, left for Jack when he arrived looking for her, the Joker.

Darn this blasted rain. Wiping off glasses every so often was beginning to be a large pain. Where was this pair headed on such a rainy night? Hopefully somewhere interesting, or this would be all for nothing. Arthur continued to follow after the two, hoping they wouldn't notice him, clutching his briefcase under his umbrella to keep it safe. The good news was, they were headed under cover: the mall in Lil' Maybelle, it was. Shaking off rain as he ducked through the entrance, Arthur collapsed his para- no, umbrella and wiped off his glasses once more.

Arthur Yes, that's who I am turned around, looking through the crowd and his watchless hand now and again. Now and again, his eyes alighted on the pair. And passed over them again before returning in another pass. Unless they suddenly sped up quickly, she... he wouldn't lose them in the crowd. What were they doing? Waiting at the stairs? Boring. Waiting again... would this night ever get interesting? Jack would respond. Eventually. They'd do something. Hopefully.

It was too far to hear them or see their expressions. Hopefully something would happen that she could see, but until then, seeing was all that would happen. Karim drummed her fingers on her- Snap out of it! Amy was getting cross again because... right. Arthur looked at his watch in impatience and shifted from foot to foot. Ugh... waiting. He had things to do and places to be, but it would have to do. His gaze scanned the crowd again, and he waited...


Dek looked upward at the face of the mall, pausing for a moment before following Strength and Chariot into it. He waited for just a moment, reflecting on nothing before heading into the mall. The automatic doors slit open noiselessly, allowing the noise, smells, and sights from the inside of the mall to crash over him in a gentle wave. The faint smell of various foods combined with the dull hum of a massive crowd. He gave a slight smile, imagining all the different ways he could make these people trample over themselves in terror.

However, lost in his imagination, Dek almost lost sight of Chariot and Strength. For the first time in his memory, a small knot of terror wormed its way into his stomach. Fear of the repercussions from the Itex higher ups if he failed the assignment. That thread of fear vanished in an instant when he saw the two again standing at the foot of a large staircase, seemingly idle. He pouted. More waiting? This is bull. There's nothing to do but wait and wait and WAIT nowadays. I want the masked to come and play! He hummed as he considered how to best attract their attention.

Nothing came to mind for the moment, so Dek decided to lean back against a decorative column and just scan the crowd for anyone acting odd. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as he just stood there and waited. I HATE waiting. He scowled at the crowds, occasionally sticking his foot out to trip someone with a large amount of parcels and laughing as they tried to recover before inevitably falling on their face. Commotion from near where the two last were caught his attention. Some guy barrelled down the staircase, knocking people to their feet in some kind of rush. Dek laughed at the man's attitude, then something caught his eye.

A man seemed to be acting strangely, constantly fidgeting with his glasses, wrist, and clothing. The man was shitfting from foot to foot. Dek almost dismissed the man as a nervous wreck waiting to run to the bathrom when he realized that the man's nonchalance was just a sham. To the passerby, he seemed as normal man, just busting for a piss. When Dek stared at him again, he noticed the man's head movements were calculated, even occasionally lingering on Chariot and Strength. Now there's something you don't normally see. Finally, something to do! To hell if he's Itex or Masked! I'm so BORED. He pulled his hood back slightly, allowing the single glowing red eye to just catch the light enough to shine menacingly. A few people in the crowd noticed the sinister glint and gave him a wide berth. Others who bumped into him had their retorts die in their throats when they saw him before scurrying away. He strode directly towards the strange man, hoping he'd see him so he could glimpse the face he made when he saw Dek.


Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Watch, glasses, shifting feet. Boring, boring, boring waiting. They were still doing nothing, and no one else seemed to be approaching. Arthur shifted his feet again and turned his gaze... right into the glowing red eye of someone approaching. What? Arthur dropped his briefcase in surprise, his mouth dropping open in surprise, shock, and... well, just a little bit of fear, no words coming out. The briefcase fell to the floor with a thud... Yes, it thudded. And hit the floor. Briefcases are supposed to do that, right? Karim? Yes, it must have hit the floor with a thud, even if it was muffled by the crowd. Shaking away the shock, Arthur glanced back at his watchless arm and then everywhere but that man.

So they did come. Liesel was right this time... Where's that Jack when we need him? That man, he wasn't- he's not coming at me, is he? What madness was behind that red- Karim! Right. Behind the illusion, Karim gripped a knife in her suitcase-hand. Itex wouldn't cause trouble, not much anyway with such a large crowd around. Right? All that was needed was to hold out until Jack arrived, escape was possible, or the pair did- He knows. He knew he was on to them. This third knew he- she was watching the pair. How didn't matter, but he knew. Somehow.

Escape rose in importance. She knew two, no, three, of them, and they didn't know her. Yet. And time was running out. It would be best to escape for now and let Jack handle the rest. Karim- no, she was Arthur - Arthur looked up to see what the man was doing, to find some escape if it was at all possible. He wasn't fit to fight this man, at least without backup, even if the other two weren't nearby. The red-eyed man hadn't reached him. Yet.

Dek slithered through the crowd towards the twitchy man, occasionally shoving hard to create a bit of a distraction. First impressions are most important. In no time at all, he had wound his way to the man. As he drew up to the twitcher, Dek drew a knife from his coat and gently pressed it into the man's side. He cleared his throat just enough to get his attention over the obvious point of the knife. He spoke just loud enough for the man to hear clearly, but not loud enough for the surrounding shoppers to hear.

"Good evening, friend-o! I see you're getting a good look around here, it's a lovely day for people watching, isn't it? But I'm sure you aren't REALLY people watching, right? If not, what ARE you doing?"

A knife. A KNIFE! Who in their right mind would just walk up to someone and put a knife to their- Oh, wait. This is the person holding a knife in her- his hand just in case. Still, that's just so terribly rude of him, wouldn't you say? Karim, he's talking to you. Who? What? Oh... right... him. A KNIFE!!! Really! The nerve!

Arthur turned to the red-eyed man, shaking visibly. "Ah! What are you-? Umm... I don't know, you know? Ah! Calm down, there are people watching! Ummm... wouldn't want to cause a commotion, I'm sure? Anywho, my- my boss, you know, he- he set up some... meeting of sorts here? I was to meet hereabouts, you know? But, you see, I'm still here after waiting this long. I was to meet someone, but they've not shown, you know? Hence the watching! This meeting's, well, it's- it's rather important, you see? Umm... you do see, right? Can you- you know, can you be on your way? It's just, umm... well, I've answered your questions, you know? Aha." This was said softly, of course. Others weren't to hear. Important business, you know? ;)

Dek chuckled menacingly while shaking his head. "You just don't get it. Not at all. Not. At. ALL." Dek pressed the knife further into Arthur's side to punctuate his remark, but not enough to pierce the skin. "You see, I've never been the trusting sort. As for causing commotions, well, you mistake me entirely. I quite like causing commotions. You could call it... a hobby. Or my specialty. I've gotten quite good." Dek turned to look at Arthur, fully revealing the massive red eye, and the utterly blank other side of the mask. "Now, you don't mind if I enlist you for some company do you? I'm feeling rather bored while I wait for my friends to finish their meetings. Unless you're wanting to cause some commotion, in which I'd be more than happy to oblige you." Dek just stared, waiting for the inevitable response.

"A-ah!" The knife was poking. Commotions? Company? All Karim was looking for was a way out of this mess... This man was definitely Itex, and he was with that other pair. They were here for some meeting, or so it appeared, and somehow this monster had caught her gaze. Ugh. Why must stealth be so... stealthy? Can't I just... stab him? Just once? No, not yet. Yes, I know. Meanwhile, Arthur cringed back from the knife, gripping his suitcase harder, and began looking around frantically, licking his lips and obviously nervous. "Uh, sir... Uh, sure... Uh... as long as it's... just company, right? You know, no commotions. Terribly, terribly difficult to sort out, you know? Umm... ahah? Could you maybe? Umm..." Arthur trailed off, looking down at the knife to his side, and continued to look around frantically. For an escape. Maybe for information. Was the other pair still just waiting? How boring...


Chariot, beginning to lead the way out of the main thoroughfair, paused as an almost invisible haze spread across the mall. 'Keep an eye out. There's someone in here with us.' He didn't need to say the word 'Masked' to emphasise what he meant. The subtle mental pressure that was little more than a buzzing fly to the mental bastion of the Chariot hovered with the accompanying haze.

Turning back to the direction he was heading, towards a small corner shop that seemed to be rather unfrequented, which sold sports equipment, Chariot tried to blend into the surrounding crowd, even though his partner's aura made that rather difficult..


Axilious almost slouched into the mall. He'd almost lost his way after the annoying braggart of an Itex agent escaped his clutches, and he was far from dry. His flambuoyant clothing almost dribbled all over the floor beneath him as he looked around rather curiously, trying to find either the Joker or another annoyingly riddled code to tell him where she'd gone haring off to this time.

Despite the unusual appearance and sopping clothes, most people passing him seemed to not even take a passing glance at the soaking figure or even at the world around them. Most seemed to be losing a grip on reality, though a few minds broke the haze to realise on some level how inappropriate the man was and that they were doing nothing at all anymore. At least it wouldn't seem like a big deal to them in a while. Shaking himself as if to dislodge the cold placidness, he strode boldly into the mall, an obvious figure to anyone whose minds broke the numbing haze.

Grunting assent at the Chariot's instruction, as if watching the crowds wasnt what they'd both been doing for the last few minutes, Strength followed, a apace behind, still reflexively quartering and scanning the mall as they moved. He glanced towards the easternmost entrance as they passed by, took another few steps then hesitated. Something was wrong. A slow blink, brow furrowing minutely as he realised that, despite looking towards the doors, he hadnt actually seen anything.

"Wait."

The instruction was barked, he was already turning back the way they had come. Confused, Strength paused, tilted his head a fraction to one side at the sight of the sopping wet man, dressed almost as if he'd stepped out of a romance novel, walking into the mall. Out of nowhere the guy seemed to swim out of focus, the air shimmering like a desert mirage and Strength squinted, eyes twitching. It last barely a second and only took a moment longer to realise that no one else was paying the guy any attention either, and from the looks of the him, swaggering forward without a care, barely even looking at anyone he passed, it was obvious he didnt expect them too. Which was odd. Dressed the way he was, he'd have drawn attention in a carnivale parade.

"Something's up." Strength turned to face the Chariot, indicated the anomaly with a nod, watching him move in the mirrored glass of the doors. "That guy, Mr Ren Fair. You know him?"


Dek almost rammed the knife home in the man's side, but a strange sensation prevented him from doing so. Something was "off". A feeling of absurdity hung in the air, making the hairs on the back of his neck begin to tingle and stand on end. He swept his gaze over the crowds, trying to find something to clarify the sense of wrongness. He couldn't see anything wrong at first. The masses were too busy going about their lives to care at all, as if they didn't feel anything at all. They didn't even notice someone just sitting in the crowd with a fog machine on full blast. Hold on. Fog machine? What jerkoff brings a fog machine into a mall? Dek looked back and forth to see if anyone else noticed the fog, but nobody seemed to notice the fog.

Dek's suspicious were roused immediately. He stared at the fog, trying to see what it was hiding. After a short moment, the fog dissappeared and the most bizzare dressed man was just standing in the middle of the crowd. Nobody noticed him at all, bizzarely. "Hey. Bud.", he said to his hostage, poking him with the tip of the blade to get his attention. "Do you see the fog?"

The knife was poking into his side. Arthur's glasses were slipping. He pushed them up, and then noticed a strange quiet around the room, as conversations were momentarily cut off. His gaze slipped around the room, and passed a patch of... haze. Ahaha! Finally made it, did he? Quickly, the haze solidified into Axilious, and Karim almost laughed! ...until she remembered just where she was, and the knife poking into her side...

The start of a smile disappeared as Arthur's eyes glazed over. For a short while, there was nothing, then a pain in his side as the knife pushed farther, and the end of a voice "-see the fog?" Arthur started. "Ah! Uhh... hmm?" As he looked for the fog this other man spoke of, his eyes glazed over once more, and he became motionless. Hahaha! Go after Jacky, and leave me alone! I'm as useless as these other normals, you know? Hahaha!