Fiona and Finn sprinted through Ekron's winding streets, Marconni's men hot on their heels. The city's labyrinthine layout seemed to shift and twist around them, offering fleeting glimpses of safety. The paved streets were slick with rain, making their flight even more treacherous. The sound of their pursuers' boots echoed ominously, a constant reminder of the danger they were in.
Meanwhile, Gran Pierrot sat atop a nearby rooftop, shuffling his deck of cards with mesmerizing grace. His eyes, sharp and calculating, scanned the chaos below. He paused, drawing a card.
"The Eight of Swords," he murmured, eyes narrowing. "Bound by fear and circumstance."
Fiona and Finn dashed down a narrow alley, appearing in the market. They paused to look around them before sprinting to the left, dodging market stalls and leaping over crates, which seemed to be more frequent as the market suddenly became busy, hindering their progress. The scent of spices and the chatter of merchants filled the air, creating a stark contrast to their desperate flight.
Guards closed in, their shouts reaching the two struggling girls, growing louder with each passing second.
Gran drew another card.
"The Knight of Wands," he said, a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "A bold move."
At that moment, a donkey pulling a wagon loaded with freshly harvested cabbages became wild and ran forward, careening around the corner and knocking down the guards, causing the wagon to overturn and pouring out the load of cabbages. The donkey reared, neighing in panic, as the farmer, a minotaur who seemed to have already been pissed for some reason, grabbed the guards and demanded they take responsibility.
Fiona and Finn seized the distraction, darting into a nearby tavern.
Inside, they blended with the rowdy patrons, momentarily hiding from their pursuers. The tavern was filled with the smell of ale and the sound of raucous laughter. Fiona's heart pounded in her chest as she and Finn ducked behind a group of burly orcs who'd just finished their shift at the mines and were comparing each other's wives while ogling the gorgon waitresses who walked by.
Gran's eyes gleamed as he watched from above.
"Not a bad outcome," he mused, drawing another card.
"The High Priestess," he intoned, his voice barely a whisper.
A man, under the influence of drink, got up and slowly approached Fiona and Finn with staggering footsteps, whispering about a girl named Poma and how she should give him another chance to show her a good time while slowly unstrapping his belt. Without hesitation, the pair fled into the kitchen and exited through the backdoor, emerging into a secluded courtyard that was dark due to the cloudy sky. Gran laughed at this.
He regained his composure and continued drawing. He clearly enjoyed watching the girls suffer. He could barely make out tears streaming down Fiona's cheeks and smiled. He pulled out a card.
"The Wheel of Fortune," he announced, his voice carrying a note of finality.
They made their way to the part of the market where fabrics were being woven. The guards were at the other side, both parties oblivious of each other. Fiona stumbled and hurt her knee. Her sister knelt down beside her and wiped the wound, tearing a part of her ragged skirt to bandage it.
Just then, a gust of wind blew, blowing away the fabric and revealing the location of the two girls to the guards, who at that moment turned to look in their direction.
Fiona and Finn froze, momentarily disoriented. The guards stormed toward them. They two came back to their senses and ran. This time it was Finn who led her sister by the hand, gripping her hand tightly.
Gran's eyes sparkled with amusement.
"This is all very amusing," he chuckled to himself. "They're so determined to escape, even though they're nearing a dead end. This is why I just can't stop toying with people."
He spotted Kojo walking lazily towards the Silver Palace in order to meet up with the others, his white hair standing out as well as the abnormal aura around him. Gran's expression changed as he sat calculating and observing their movements. He noticed that the two parties would meet up at the crossroads leading to the city square.
"Oh no, not yet," he decided, not wanting the fun to end, descending into the shadows.
Kojo yawned and was about to turn a corner when Gran stepped into his path.
"I suggest you don't take this route. It's being renovated," he said, his tone polite but firm.
Kojo's gaze narrowed, suspicion evident in his eyes.
"There are no renovations being made in this side of town. They were done two months ago," he said.
"Really? Wow, I guess I made a mistake," Gran said, feigning embarrassment. "Well, goodbye then." He said, tipping his hat and turning to walk away.
"Wait. Who are you?" Kojo demanded. "I've memorized the faces of everyone living in town, and you're not from here." He said, becoming tense.
Gran turned and bowed with a flourish.
"I'm simply a clown."
"A clown?" Kojo raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, the Clown Lord, Gran Pierrot." Kojo looked puzzled.
"What the fuck's going on?" he wondered.
"(No clue)," Sysia responded, just as confused as Kojo was.
Before he could ask anything, Gran was in his face.
"Now I'm going to perform a magic trick," he said, shuffling the cards in his hands, then putting them into two stacks in either hand and stretching them towards Kojo.
Kojo was confused but decided to play along.
"The Fool's Journey is fraught with peril," he murmured as Kojo drew the card.
"Hey, who're you calling a fool?" Kojo glared at him, his hand hovering over the stack of cards in Gran's left hand.
"Oh, I don't mean you, kind sir. Consider it a trick to increase the ominous aura as the trick is being performed."
Kojo rolled his eye and changed his mind, rather taking a card from the stack in Gran's right hand.
"The Ten of Pentacles," Gran read, a note of annoyance in his voice.
They ran into an alley. They could hear their pursuers approaching in the distance.
It was a dead end.
They saw a man loading a box of ingredients into a wagon that was covered with a tarp.
Fiona and Finn saw the sharplings go into a door to get more boxes.
They exchanged a glance, their breaths coming in ragged gasps, silent agreement passing between them. They went and hid themselves inside a large box, covering it with a lid just as the sharpling came and placed another box in it. They held their breath as the guards questioned if he had seen any girls around, and he denied it. They wanted to search the wagon. The two girls held onto each other more tightly. The sharpling said he couldn't allow that. The guard wanted to insist but saw the sharpling's menacingly clawed tail, like a scorpion, and changed his mind. He and his partner ran off while the sharpling stared after them, wondering what all that was about.
"Fate's threads are indeed complex. But I shall not interfere further," he said, his voice barely audible.
He continued stacking and unstacking the cards, performing tricks like spinning the cards on his fingertips. Kojo's eye twitched with impatience.
"I don't have time for this," he said, pushing the clown aside and walking away with his hands in his pockets.
"Thanks for your time," the Clown said cheerfully with a bow. Once Kojo moved out of hearing range, he straightened, his face far from cheerful.
"Tch. He just had to ruin my fun." He glared. A vibration drew his attention, and he reached inside his coat to pull out a golden pocket watch with engravings on it.
"Tch. My time's up," he said, turning to walk away. "Oh well, there's always next time," he said, walking away with one hand in his pocket while he dangled the watch by the chain with his other hand. A door appeared in front of him, and he casually walked into it, leaving Fiona, Finn, and their pursuers to the whims of fate.