Chapter # 10

Blinking through dimensions is fun. Especially when you don't have any clue as to where you are going, you are travelling with a diabolical maniac and he wants you to assassinate someone. It's interesting enough how you come by people like this. In the world I have inhabited for almost a year, you can't live on a prayer. You must have friends. And there are obviously people who need friends in order to grow stronger. Reaper is one of them. My other friend, the one who had helped Pacifica and Dipper is someone I have met through Reaper. He was just the link between me and another realm , not a mentor and especially not a friend. It's that sort of acquaintance, so to speak that annoys you to death, but you need him near you. However, I am sure that this is not what anyone would have in mind, because right now I am going to aid in the elimination of someone. This will surely add me to some sort of blacklist, but I am a man of my word and I was bound to do this.

We soon arrived at our destination on a sunny beach, the sea wetting our feet as we reappeared in the mortal plane. I watched him frowning as he mumbled some words in a language I couldn't understand, nor wanted to. As soon as he finished his incantation, day turned to night and we were surrounded by tourists and townsfolk who were nowhere to be seen as we landed.

"You have a lot of explaining to do" I said as I approached him, breaking his trance.

"You only need to know of our target. Nothing more, nothing less. We have to move now, I have little time."

"Go ahead, I'll bug you with the details later."

"Cliché or not I was ordered to deal with a certain fellow that has broken the vow of our world. He has renounced his spectral form in order to gain wealth and fortune at the cost of betraying his kind."

"And you require the help of a fourteen year old boy who had stumbled upon, and I can't stress this enough, your world, because…"

"You may think you have been just an unfortunate accident, but you and all the Falls have long been chosen. Our rulers had known the course of the present for more than you can imagine. You are gifted, my friend and you don't know it, but you are. I know you think little of me, because I know what I have to do…"

"Now you definitely have a lot to explain" I responded abruptly as I listened to his briefing.

I was feeling as if I was a spy on a mission, when I actually was a hitman waiting for his target to reveal itself and die. We were out to hunt down what was now known as a Brazilian billionaire. Of course he lived in a big mansion with an equally big garden and an equally tough to beat security. He started by performing simple tasks for a certain cartel he was now a part of and slowly worked his way up the hierarchy becoming the leader's right hand. He stabbed him in the back ( literally) the following night, forcibly taking control of his empire. But he had no ability to run such a vast business, so he stepped down, employing a marionette to keep it on track, while still doing his bidding. Tonight he was supposed to "supervise" a trade and by supervise I mean influence, because as I could change dreams as I desired, he could change people's perception of reality.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked the stone cold man who brought me into this.

"You mean if we go in and raid the building or if we do a stealthy in and out?"

"Precisely."

"The latter."

"Should we go in?" I continued, watching in awe as we stood in front of 10 feet tall marble walls blocked us from seeing inside the court. "You know I can be invisible, right? I should be able to finish this in less than ten minutes and be back."

Reaper let out a sarcastic laugh.

"If it were that easy I would've gone in myself. We are mere humans the second we step on his estate. His influence gathered many exiled beings who sought shelter. He took them in and in exchange they vowed to protect him…"he ended with a long sigh.

"I should inform you that apart from my powers I have no physical strength, no combat experience, no parkour abilities and I am not good at strategical thinking. In other words, I am beginning to question your reasons to bring me here."

"Save the humbleness for your little friends. I know what you're capable of so you can't get out of this. Now accept your fate and let's go." He grunted as he put on his white skull mask and with a swift motion, threw a grappling hook and jumped the fence. I followed suit, using the last of my powers and I stepped into unknown territory.

The second we stepped on the grass an alarm sounded, warning all the guards on duty of our arrival. I heard footsteps on the alleyway behind us and immediately grabbed Reaper and shoved him into a nearby bush, while I hid behind a tree. The siren was still ringing by the time, the pair of guards, finishing their "Nothing suspicious here" chatter have gone. I signaled my friend to get up and we were making our way to the mansion.

When you are a ghost you get a few perks, such as you naturally move stealthily and silently. This is how the two of us have managed to walk on the main alley, sneaking from shadow to shadow, unnoticed by anyone. However, we still had to find a way to get inside and picking a lock was not an option. If only an opportunity would arise… As I was thinking about a way in, lady luck decided to finally shine upon us. The back door opened and a big black man came out, puffing a cigarette. I would die if I would reproduce the entire conversation between him and the stars to whom he complained about his misery for half an hour until he decided to go back in. With quick steps, Reaper jumped and stopped the door right before it closed and we were in. Now we only had to find our target…

"We're out of time…We must find him fast…" Reaper mumbled as we passed through an empty hallway.

"Time? What is this a race against the clock? What time?"

"Work now, questions later."

He then ran away with loud thuds, forgetting every bit of common sense. It wasn't long until his sudden mad run was noticed by nearby guards. I could hear their guns clicking and the doors opening as they were all making their way to intercept us.

"We need to run. NOW!" I shouted as Reaper knocked down a door and froze.

He stumbled upon the most guarded room of all time. And our target was obviously there…

"Who are you people and why did you feel the dire need to crash into my estate?" A sharp, bird-like voice asked.

"You don't know who we are but you know who sent us." Reaper replied

"Indeed. And now the only thing that keeps me from killing you is this boy you brought."

"Excuse me?" I chimed in their little conversation.

"Oh, pardon my manners. Let me introduce myself. I am now known as Paolo Ortez, but Reaper here used to call me Jester, for I have backstabbed him a lot of times. Now, poor him he is trying to kill me and prove to me that he was right. Spare me of that look of betrayal. I know what he said and I really don't want to feel your angst."

"Ok, then," I responded promptly. "How does your barrier work?"

"As long as I am alive, it will keep anyone like you from using his abilities, of any kind. There are no exceptions. Of course, you're thinking of killing me instantly and then running away, but if you move just the tiniest bit, be sure that your head will be pinned to that wall by 20 bullets."

I tested his words. By slightly moving my hand, I caused a flurry of iron to outline it. That moment, I realized that I was in a whole lot of trouble. His monologue marked the end of our mission, as we were immediately put to sleep by a well-aimed tranquilizer dart. The next thing I remember was waking up tied in a room, sitting in front of a chair who seemed to have had a person in it, because a loose piece of rope was lying on the floor. A small note was covered by his former ties. It was more scribbled then written, signaling that whoever wrote it was in a hurry. It read:

"You must kill the Jester. My time on your home realm was limited. Good luck!"

Very helpful. He left a kid to carry on a task not even the best men could pull off. But I knew a sure thing. I needed to carry on his will. First order of business was getting myself out of this room. By breathing in and out heavily, I managed to loosen the piece of rope tying me to my chair and now here I was roaming an empty room. Seemingly empty. These bad guys are really idiots in essence. They left a perfectly good crowbar under a pile of junk. With two cranks near the door's springs( yes this door has springs) and I was out. Unfortunately I didn't predict there were going to be guards nearby that would be alerted of my presence… The second the first one rose his rifle, I punched his comrade and used him as a meat shield. Undoubtedly he didn't shoot, so I slowly and undetectably approached him, then, when the distance was small enough, I shoved my prisoner into him, knocking them both out. Now I had a gun…

I was locked in close proximity to the aforementioned hallway and as I walked its length I couldn't help but wonder what was I doing here…For all I know, I was about to kill a man who hasn't been proven guilty nor innocent. I was simply keeping my word towards Reaper and this was enough reason for me to doubt. I couldn't trust none of them to tell the truth, so I just had to assume everything was false to begin with. This meant that either if I killed a man or not, it could end badly. So either way I was screwed from the beginning. I either lose my credibility or my innocence…

I smashed down the door, only to be greeted by a surprising sight. Ortez was sitting, alone in a chair, waiting with a cigar in his mouth. It was as if he was expecting me to come…

"It took you more, than expected. Have a seat." He invited me on a big armchair, aside him.

"I am comfortable here, thank you."

"Don't be foolish, child. I have a lot to tell you," he said, while with a small wave of his hand, the lights grew dimmer.

I decided that the worst that could happen was that I was going to be killed by a chair related death. The second I sat down, my doubts were confirmed as I was feeling that I was glued to the seat… Typical…

"You know, what I do?" he asked more to himself than to me.

"I am not sure that I want to know."

"I am a liberator, my friend." He stated inflating his words. "I free those like you and me from the harsh prison they have been put into by an unfair and cruel mishap. Your mind has been plagued with images of me being a monster, but I am no such thing. I am pure and my work is pure, untainted by the filth of other realms. I can free you too, should you be willing…"

"I don't think I want that either."

"Your evasive answers are doing nothing but persuading me to try more… You will join my cause."

"Oh, spare me of your big revolutionary ideas will you? You people are the clear evidence of involution of society, be it earthly or not. Special snowflakes who thing that their brilliant thoughts and ideals are to be imposed over an unruly and barbarian world. Every single time one of you has erupted in history, the world had to face massive setbacks just because of liberators and freedom fighters who pursued no other interests but theirs. So, to conclude my statement, excuse me for having a certain degree of skepticism , but you people are empirically bad."

"Such a pity that you think so little of me, but my purpose is true. And I hope that you understand the following course of action…" he said, a frown settling on his face, while he reached in his pocket for something. He pulled a gun on me.

"You're going to kill me? For not believing in your cause?"

"And for breaking and entering, trespassing, vandalism and violence against my staff."

"That's not your call, mister Ortez. That's the local authorities'"

"Who I command and own?"

"Yes."

I answered simply and promptly, despite my heart racing, for every second I feared that a bullet would pierce my head. However his lingering gave me an idea. Ortez was continuously gesticulating while speaking and doing so, he brought the gun very close to me. So close, that I could reach out for it…

"Let me ask you a question now," I mumbled trying to think of a good mind boggler.

"Sure. Let your last words be heard by a humble man, who will undoubtedly answer it."

"Why do you think you, out of all people are fit to rule a new order and create an army to fight the ruling society?"

"That's not exactly what I intend to do. You see, despite I am currently in possession of a lot of troops, so to speak, I don't intend of forcing the current out of position. I want them to slowly rot from the inside, so they would become rulers over a big realm of nothingness. It's not the hand that fires the bullet that has the most satisfaction from the kill…"

Ironically, at the end of his foreseeing sentence, I had managed to kick the gun out of his hand, into the air and straight into mine, the roles being now reversed.

"What will you do now, that you have the upper hand?" He asked mockingly.

"First and foremost, force you to free me from my comfy cell."

"Done. Now what?"

"You are a self-proclaimed smart man, you can figure it out right?"

"Do it then. Kill me." He mumbled under his breath, as if he was trying to hide his intentions from someone.

"I won't give you the death you long for. You said it yourself. Satisfaction is not earned by the one who pulls the trigger, but by the one who benefits from the hit…Raise your barrier."

With swift hand gestures, that I didn't quite understand, I could feel my powers surging back to me and now I only had to do the job.

"You know, that I could kill you now and be gone in seconds, right?"

"You can, but you won't."

He was wrong. I pulled the trigger and he fell as if struck by lightning, then his body vanished, leaving behind a shroud of black mist. A siren immediately started flooding the atmosphere with its obnoxious sound and I immediately vanished and returned to the place I ported from… Immediately, I realized what Reaper's incantations signified. It created a time lapse for us to roam so that when I returned it would be as if no time has passed. Physics exist and I don't need to explain them to you. Either way, I came back seeing that the world was still shocked by Pacifica and I arriving. The course of actions went on unchanged, a rare occurrence when meddling with time… I still had one thing to do… Make things right.