Thread: A Game of Cat and Mouse [AlluringEnigma x Iron and Wine]

Ever since real-life superheroes had grown in popularity, the City had seen more than its fair share. Deluded souls convinced that they were meant to make a difference, convinced that they had some destiny that made them capable of doing what the cops couldnt do. Wallace Dalmere paid the police for a reason. He paid the media too, but that didnt stop one of the networks from running an interview series with these so-called heroes. Each time he watched it, Mr. Dalmere grew furious under the collar, yet each and every time he couldnt tear his eyes away from the screen. This was his city, a city that belonged to those with the intelligence and the might to lead it into the new age, not freaks in masks and spandex acting like false gods for viewers to idolize. The face that a third of his drug trafficking had ground to a halt and still not fully recovered due to the first of these heroes, a mild-mannered machinist named Nelson Biggs but who went by the pseudonym Balefire. A smear campaign had driven Nelson Biggs to extreme lengths that ended with his incarceration in a high-security prison but even with such a clean destruction of his nemesis, Mr. Dalmere had grown to hate everything that these vigilantes stood for. He was in the middle of watching the second part of an interview the network hosted with a superheroine named Crystal when Tiron was let past his bodyguards. From the corner of his eye, Mr. Dalmere noticed Tiron looked like hed gone six rounds with someone, well, someone built like Mr. Dalmere. Theres ice in the freezer, but, goddamnit, dont bleed on the upholstrey or the alpaca. Then explain to me why you look like a sack of ground pork. His eyes didnt break from the screen, watching the teenager explain her grand philosophy of how it was her mission to stand up for those who couldnt stand up for themselves. The interview followed more like a celebrity round-table with the interviewer extolling Crystals costume and discussion about what that bold choice in her costume meant. Can you believe this shit? She dresses like a stripper, picks a stripper name, is articulate as a high schooler, and they air her on the 8 oclock news. The news I bought off! After a moment, Tiron murmured in disbelief, Boss, boss, thats her, thats her, the one who did this to me. Tiron pointed at the cute masked face on the screen, his voice muffled but intelligible through a bag of ice. She wants to meet you, at the parking lot in front of the old steel mill, tomorrow night. She- she wanted me to pretend she was a business partner. Mr. Dalmere was incredulous. She beat you? A fucking teenage girl? She doesnt know who the hell shes messing with. Tomorrow night? Fine. Shell get a fucking business proposal then. There was an unnerving silence throughout the large parking lot. It hadnt been used since the steel mill shut down, but there were plenty of rusted cars and buses strewn about. The absence of street lights made everything dark, though the moon and stars, and ambient light from the street provided enough to see by. After several heartbeats, a hulking figure shifted in the darkness, moving around from behind one of the cars. Just as Crystals vision was beginning to adjust for the dim light, picking out signs of shapes moving in the gloom, the massive man rapped on the hood of the car, his voice booming, Light em up! A pair of high beams flashed on from behind the massive man, silhouetting him and partially blinding Crystal. Another pair of high beams turned on from her left, further disorienting her. There were dozens of men slipping out of cars or from behind crumbling structures, armed with pistols, rifles, baseball bats, and machetes. I would say introductions were in order, but Im afraid wearing a mask and using a stripper name doesnt exactly grant you legitimacy as an adult! The massive man taunted her in his gritty booming voice. He stood nearly 65, built like a heavyweight boxer with massive arms and thighs bulging against his dark slacks. He wore slacks and a blazer, and lacked any hair, but beyond that, the high beams swallowed up any details of his face or identifying features. The men had her surrounded, and any direction of escape there were at least two or three of them, and one had even brought two pit bulls on a chain. Several video cameras floated among the men, with lights and microphones aimed at her. I believe you had a message for me, Crystal . Thats funny, because I have a message for you too, a message that I feel is very important for you to understand. Would you like to share first, or shall I?