Chapter Two:
There were many things that Shade could easily label Looker as, and a few choice description such as amicable and unfashionable came to mind. However, was she going to stand around until they could add murderer to her list?
To quote Hamlet Act 3, Scene 3, line 87 - "No"
Of course Shade didn't know that she was quoting Shakespeare, but it was what she muttered under her breath as she slowly buried her face in her arms. This stranger, Looker, had played them all along with his friendly act, and distracted them enough to get a head start on her uncle. Her eyes clouded up at the now very likely possibility that they'd get to his room too late. Her mind occupied with the single thought, she leaned on her partner and quietly teared up.
Strieter held Shade gently, and rubbed her side, his eyes still focused on where Looker was last, fists now clenched. Normally, he'd freeze up in his usual happy-go-lucky state, but not now. Not freaking now. He gritted his teeth, mentally jump-starting his psyche, and tried his best to focus on the next logical action.
They had to stop Looker. But how? He could just disappear in their faces, and they wouldn't know where to find him.
No - they did.
Shade gave a short yelp of surprise as Stri grabbed her hand and ran down the hall. The two tore through a long stretch, and Shade almost flew as Stri turned sharply on his heels, arriving in front of a map kiosk. He took a moment to identify Cooper's backstage dressing room as where he'd most likely be at that moment, and raced off with Shade.
As Shade's ability was still unmastered, and Stri's still fresh off the boat, he wasn't very confident of stopping the villain with their own power. However, there were still friends that could help, that knew how to deal with the enemy on his own terms.
Stri whipped out his phone and held it up to his ear, still maintaining the same speed as before. Shade was surprised at the fact that she wasn't able to see how fast he dialed, but she was a tiny bit relieved when he started talking again.
"Daisy, it's me. Get Brandon and meet me at the magician's dressing room. Sure. Just tell Brandon that we're dealing with magic and that it's a bad guy...yes I said bad guy. Please, I need your help."
He didn't even bother putting his phone back in his pocket as they skidded past a hallway, and had to backtrack to take the right hallway. It was dark, but Shade threw her hands at the lights, and they lit the entire hallway perfectly. Stri didn't have to look at the map to determine that they were right near the room, and gradually came to a stop at the end of the hall.
Shade opened her mouth to inquire, but one look and a couple of code hand gestures from Strieter answered her question perfectly. The girl nodded, and took the lead, very gradually peeking from the side of the door in order to see what was going on in the dressing room.
Her eyes widened as she witnessed her uncle signing an autograph for Looker, both participants casually laughing. She herself was taken aback by this sudden switch of personality. This was the man who had just disappeared in front of them and stated that he was going to kill her uncle, right? Her stomach did a somersault as she couldn't help but accept the fact that the signature was maybe a distraction.
Acting on her own impulses, she discreetly dashed over to hide behind a cabinet in the room. This put her within listening distance, and she stilled herself, determined to hear the two out. She again stuck her head out to see the scene for herself, namely her uncle's laughter dying down, and Looker tightening his muffler around his face.
"My, you have quite a flair for stories, young man~".
"Actually, before I go, I wanted to tell you another story. It's not funny, but it's worth hearing."
"Tell away, my dear~"
Looker had a glint in his eyes, and Shade looked on in apprehensive suspicion.
"It's actually one my sister told me, about a group of magicians that traveled through Europe and Asia in search of a legendary power. Maybe you've heard of this one before?"
Shade blinked in surprise. Her uncle kept on smiling and twirling his mustache, but his fleeting, instantaneous look of fear and sudden onset of sweat didn't escape her notice.
"Oho? Maybe I do, it sounds very interesting altogeth-~"
The young man's hands flew to Cooper's shirt, and he slammed the elder up against the wall, breathing heavily as the portly magician started squirming and trying to flail his arms to break the hold. Shade withdrew the pen she always carried and crouched - the muffled man wasn't choking her uncle, but pinning him wasn't acceptable either.
"Your niece is in this room, and I'll wait until she's ready to hear it before I say."
She dropped the pen in astonishment. How did he-?
"Get over here, miss. This story is for you both."
Found out, she stood up and made her way to her uncle's side, who was still at the villain's mercy. Looker sighed, and angrily glanced back at the elder magician.
"This is the story of how thieves and pillagers came to my city and defiled our sacred hot spot - a story of how a band of magicians murdered my friends and neighbors in search of the legendary ability Vitality. But of course, of all people, you should know this one, right? After all, you were the one that led them. "
The pinned man gulped uncomfortably, and Shade's expression was a hybrid of surprise and curiosity as she looked at her uncle's frightened face. Did he really kill people for magic? Her uncle aside, she herself was caught off guard when she noticed Looker blinking rapidly, trying to conceal the fact that he was tearing up.
"Vitality is an ability that grants almost unheard of capabilities and additional enhancements to a user's power, and for centuries we've kept them hidden from everyone for their own good. We kept it hidden from people especially like you, who used your ability to sway the populace to your favor and murder my family for not divulging the secrets of this power to the likes of you. You're the reason we kept Vitality out of sight for years. How dare you."
Those quivering hands became still and released the collar within their grasp, letting Cooper fall to the ground. Looker quickly wiped his tears with the free end of his scarf, and glared at the older magician, awaiting some form of a response. The man himself was visibly distressed, and took a moment to compose himself before speaking.
"My boy, it was a terrible thing to do, and in hindsight, I would gladly do anything and everything to stop myself back then. It was a pointless search, and I'm really sorry for-"
Looker took a step forward and crushed the man's fingers with his heel, those azure eyes still burning with fury. He stuck one hand into his jacket, and with a smooth rolling movement, extended a collapsible estoc.
"I didn't haul my ass over here to get an apology from you; I came for your head. I came to make an example out of you, and to show the world what happens to anyone that commits sacrilege of the likes that you and your hired guns committed."
Shade couldn't take it any further, and she instinctively took a step with the aim of defending her uncle, but as soon as she moved, Looker glanced at her and someone instantaneously held her from behind. Whoever it was had a pretty solid grip, and she could only watch as the villain casually took a few steps towards the pleading man, dragging his estoc on the linoleum.
Her uncle's eyes met Looker's, and he clasped his hands together as a sign of clemency.
"Surely you could show a bit of mercy for me, an old man with a bad past~"
Looker's scarf almost flew off as the his face contorted in rage.
"Where was the mercy that you were supposed to show to my family? We took you all in on the first night here, and helped you out when you had no way around. Where was the mercy my parents were expecting when you used your ability to get our friends and kin to murder my parents? Answer me!"
The room fell silent as Shade began to realize that there was no turning back now. She clenched her fists as she stood in her place, angrily cursing out fate. It appeared to be true that her uncle had done horrible things to innocent people, and Looker would definitely be able to overpower her if she stood up for her uncle, maybe kill her too. But, her uncle was her uncle, and she'd stand by him, even if all she could do was talk back from her current position.
"Hey...Looker, do you really think vengeance will really solve anything here? Uncle Cooper's sorry from his heart. Just stop this already, please..."
He sighed and tossed the free edge of his muffler over his right shoulder. With another swift movement, the estoc was suddenly positioned at Cooper's chin, and his hand slightly bent so that the blade hovered over his heart. Looker glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
"From the heart, you said? Dear, I hate to break it to you, but your uncle and his other allies have always been this way. They started off this way, and they're never going to recant, even if that very same power they killed for has come back for them."
The blade quivered as his hand became a bit unsteady, and he let the tip of the estoc rest on Cooper's chest. With every sentence he finished, he pushed the tip against his chest for effect.
"There were five others along with you that came to my city, and there is nothing that will stop me from carrying out my duty. Every one of you rascals had an alias, and it took a while for me to get your names, I'll give you that. Those of you that are gone, and the rest of you that still live will all face retribution at my hands, in lieu of those that you -."
A drop of sweat landed in the fallen man's eye, and he reflexively tried to flush it out while Looker's blade still applied pressure over his heart. The muffled man muttered something under his breath, and threw Cooper a napkin from his pocket. Shade was furthermore stunned by this sudden break, and only raised a brow in response at this seemingly out of place act of kindness, though Looker reacted as if nothing had happened and continued.
"There were five of you that I took notice of, and it appears that you're the weakest of them all, Kevin Faber. If we're talking code names, then I can say for a fact that Ryu faced his retribution in Brunei, and Captain L.J. met his in Halifax. Your comrades-oh shit-"
In that instant, Shade could only gasp in shock as she saw Looker accidentally stumble over her uncle, the estoc subsequently being driven in by his forward motion. It was a hell of a fall, and she just stood there watching the two men untangle themselves with choice expletives being uttered every few seconds. After a couple of seconds, Shade felt second-hand embarrassment at the whole incident, and pulled Looker off her uncle. Her embarrassment suddenly gave way to horror as she saw her uncle trying to pull out the estoc that had gone completely through him.
No, this can't be happening, Shade thought. Please don't die Uncle Cooper. Please.
Looker stopped amidst brushing the dust off himself and stared dumbfoundedly at the waning magician. He facepalmed and expressed his multitude of feelings with one comprehensive word.
"Shit."
He walked up towards Cooper and knelt down, his blue eyes meeting the elder man's own, and cleared his throat.
"Mr. Faber, in my parents' final moments, they tried to tell me to forgive you all for your ignorance. I now see that it's not ignorance, but your headstrong lust for power that led you on. With this, I forgive you, and I wish you find my parents over there, and perhaps, maybe find what you were looking for."
Despite the tearing, Cooper's eyes followed the muffled man's figure as it rose and slowly walked away, before abruptly stopping and looking back - to him apparently. He felt something on his right arm and glanced over to see Shade still in shock, her hands clasped onto his. At Looker's voice, they both turned their hands.
"Faber, what message should I convey to your remaining partners in crime?"
Shade's face grew dark, and her hand started to become limp. Cooper noticed the decrease in pressure, and squeezed her hand to gain her attention, and braved a smile at her faltering expression. He reached into his coat pocket with his other hand, and took out a diary, placing it on Shade's lap before speaking to the villain once more.
"Boy, I'm thankful for the life I lived. I may not have been a perfect soul, but I know that we always have the chance to repent, though at a cost. If this is my path to repentance, then so be it. I had a well-defined goal that kept me going forward through the years, through the thick and thin. You two better make sure you know what yours are."
His breathing slowed down considerably, and Shade's cheek became wet with tears as she suddenly had to accept what was happening. She lowered her head with the intention of shading her tears from her uncle, but his fingers tenderly shifted her pink hair to the sides as she looked up at her uncle, still smiling in the face of death, struggling to get one last line in.
"It's a shame I never met your man. Maybe it's fate. It's up to you to decide."
His hand rolled over and his eyes closed, the last thing he ever saw was Shade's pleading expression. Nothing anybody could do about it now, unfortunately, and he passed without another word.
Shade turned her head and glared towards Looker, her hand at the ready. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes as he sighed.
"Please don't fuse the lights here - it'll be a much bigger mess to clean up.
The tension in the room was too intense as Shade wiped away her tears, her lips curling into what looked like a snarl, while Looked skywards with a look of resignation on his face. The moment was suddenly interrupted as an explosion went off behind him, and both Looker and Shade attempted to protect their eyes from the ensuing smoke.
Looker mentally berated himself for not expecting company, and became painfully aware of another hostile presence as the smoke itself began to form shapes and hammer into him, taking advantage of its cloudy nature to limit his vision. He tried blocking some attacks with his hands, but the smoke struck in other unprotected regions, and the villain ended up stumbling back to Shade's position.
Shade was a bit fazed at the noises inside the smoke, and Looker being pushed back. Was it yet another murderer? She clenched her teeth and stood up, ready to stand her ground if these new intruders attacked her. Her guard dropped when she heard Stri's voice faintly murmur something in the distance, and she gave up fighting when in one instant, the smoke parted in half to create a path down the middle.
Strieter was back.
Well, then there were two other girls that Shade didn't know, and Brandon, who cracked his knuckles as he strode across the room and stood halfway along his smoke-free path.
"Looker, yeah? Why worry about a mess when it's gonna be lights out for you?"
The scarf still covered the lower half of his face, but the faint outline of his grin was visible as Looker stood up. Both men squared up against each other with nearly lethal glares and taunting smiles.
"So you cosplay ToonTown huh? Didn't realize people still liked that stuff."
"Make like a bystander in a robbery and leave while you can."
Those previously mocking faces became serious as both men lowered their postures and tightened their fists. Shade gasped in realization as she realized what was about to transpire, as she observed both men suddenly lunge toward the other, one fist rearing and the other aimed for their opponents' head.
Everything was all in slow motion for Shade as she started to yell Brandon's name in support, while the two men got closer and closer, ready for the moment of impact.
It was clear to her that Brandon could fight, but the bigger question remained -
could he win against Looker?
