The Game Is Afoot
Neil forced down the panic in his throat and accepted the offer to dance.
“So, would you like to offer an explanation to this situation?” Riko whispered into his ear as Neil panicked.
“I- I didn't intend for this to happen. After Palmetto I can get out of your hair as quickly as I can,” Neil wished he could just disappear.
“Or I can just stage a little accident for you,” Riko murmured into his ear.
Neil could feel the burning stares of everyone watching them dance, but he couldn’t care less, he could only focus on the melody and not slipping up.
“But, that would lead to the queen putting the pieces together and charging me with murder, so you have to play my lovestruck little fiance,” Neil could feel Riko’s annoyance at that fact, but then it disappeared.
Neil wasn’t sure if that was a blessing or a curse.
“Or,” Riko began.
A small smile played on his lips.
“Or?” Neil stumbled a little, but felt Riko’s hand on his back to stabilize him.
“Find out who the Masterpuppeteer is and tell me.”
“I- ok,” Neil let out a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t something impossible.
“And then we can declare our engagement as part of the game,” Riko smiled sweetly.
Neil nodded.
“But first we have to make it convincing,” Riko grinned at him.
Neil didn’t know what that meant until Riko kissed him.
Neil’s first hint should’ve been the ties to his past.
Neil’s second hint should’ve been the coin.
Neil’s third hint should’ve been how he didn’t want to stop kissing him.
Neil’s fourth hint should’ve been how he tasted heartbreak and blood.
He pushed Riko away the second he felt Riko bite his lip hard enough to draw blood.
Everyone at the party was frozen in place except for Neil and Riko, though he thought he saw a flash of blond hair moving.
He saw Riko lick the ruby red blood from his lip.
“You can’t be the Prince of Hearts. That’s impossible,” Neil muttered.
Riko laughed, “It very much isn’t.”
“Why didn’t I die right then and there then,” Neil challenged, he thought his heart would be racing, but it just beat ever so slowly.
“You won’t, unless you don’t find out who the Masterpuppeteer is and tell me, just a little bit of incentive to make sure you don’t run,” Riko caressed Neil’s cheek.
Neil slapped him away, he was furious.
He was ageless, but he could still be killed And he wouldn’t accept death at the hands of Riko.
“Don’t be a child, you might only have 5 days left to live after all,” he acted as if Neil accepting his fate would be the rational thing to do.
Neil fumed as Riko walked off, and everyone resumed dancing as if nothing happened as he walked to the edge of the party.
His mother told him all about each of the fates, and he knew how Riko symbolized unrequited love and irrevocable mistakes.
He knew about his powers too, how he could control emotions, stop heartbeats, and how his kiss was fatal to all but his true love.
He now knew how Riko was connected to his past, and the fact he was a fate made him a much bigger threat.
He could contact his father most likely anytime, and since he was out of his card prison, so could his father.
So could Lola.
So could Romero.
Neil couldn’t breathe. He had to run, but then he would be dead anyways.
He was panicking, but his heart didn’t speed up. He only felt the same beat, slower than he’s ever felt it.
“Not so happy engagement?” A voice said beside him.
Neil took in a few uneven breaths as he shot a glare towards the short man beside him.
“I don’t think it’s any of your business.”
“I know.”
“Then why’d you ask?” Neil snapped.
“It's the only interesting thing that's happened at the palace,” he said it as if it was the simplest thing in the world.
“My life is not your source of enjoyment,” Neil snarled.
Before Andrew could respond, Katelyn appeared.
“Neil, what just happened,” she hissed.
Before she noticed Andrew, he walked away.
“It’s hard to explain, but we’re sorta engaged now?”
Katelyn gaped, “What the- Neil just tell me. You aren’t going to get killed for this are you?”
“I won’t get killed,” Neil lied.
“Neil,” she raised his eyebrow at him.
“It’s fine, I’m fine. Katelyn, let it go.”
She still looked skeptical but didn’t push it.
~~~
A dark skinned woman came in on a unicycle at the chime that signaled midnight.
She wore iridescent makeup that glowed blue and gold, and simple commoners clothes.
“All of those who received an invite to Palmetto head back to your rooms, there you will find the first clue. And remember, it’s just a game, so don’t get lost in the fiction,” she grinned mischievously and cycled back out.
A quarter of the party quickly ran to where they lived in the castle, Neil and Katelyn included.
He reached his bed and saw an envelope on it.
It was bright orange with an ivory piece of parchment inside it.
The path to victory is lined with
mistakes and regrets
It will cause you to
question your sanity and the people around you
Your first clue leads to
forgotten faces
Clue number two leads to
forgotten memories in the rubble
Number three leads to
a past best left uncovered
And four will cost you
things you hold precious
Finally number five will lead to
a path forgotten
No one is guaranteed to succeed
But if you do
the Masterpuppteer will be the first person you see
Neil walked out to find Katelyn pacing around in the hallway.
“Neil! What do you think the first clue means?” Katelyn asked.
Neil thought for a second, “I think I know where to go, come on.”
“Really? Where?” Katelyn asked as they walked out into the street.
“The overgrown courtyard.”
“Ooooh- Neil look at the stars,” Katelyn pointed up at the stars.
Neil looked up at the constellations that were moving up in the sky. The stars moved and shifted constantly.
Everything looked brighter and sharper. Everything was tinged with magic, though if he squinted he could see right through it.
He didn't. He just took it all in.
He saw a stand selling spun sugar that no one noticed. There were plenty of other stands with long lines, but there was no one even looking at it.
The man running the stand noticed his stare, and waved at him.
Katelyn followed his gaze and after a second dragged him there.
“How much does a stick of spun sugar cost?” Katelyn chirped.
“Last lie you told,” the man said.
Katelyn looked very confused but complied, “That I said that one girl’s dress was pretty when it actually looked very ugly.”
The man laughed and handed her a stick of spun sugar, “What about you?”
“I don’t really like sweets,” Neil muttered.
Katelyn said bye to the man, and they walked away. Katelyn took a bite of her spun sugar and her eyes widened.
“Neil!”
“Hmm?”
“The lights look like hearts!” Katelyn jumped up and down in excitement.
She took another bite of her spun sugar.
She squealed, “Now they look like stars! What do you the roasted meat does!?”
Neil just raised an eye at her, “Do you just want to go around with Aaron and go to all the concession stands?”
“I- maybe,” she admitted, “But I want to help you solve the puzzle, that’s the whole reason we’re here!”
“How about we go off on our own and meet up at the end of each night. Then we can review what we’ve figured out?” Neil suggested.
“Oooh that could work.”
“You could also drag Aaron with you.”
Katelyn blushed and shoved him, “Fuck off.”
“Oh hey! Is that Aaron?” Neil meant it as a joke, but then he actually saw Aaron.
“I know that’s a trick,” she rolled her eyes.
“What’s a trick?” Aaron asked.
“Nothing,” she shot a glare at Neil.
Katelyn started telling Aaron about the spun sugar, and Neil slipped away towards the courtyard.
As he walked towards the courtyard, he inhaled the scent of magic in the air. He wished he could enjoy it carelessly, but his heartbeat felt slow, reminding him of the fact his life was at stake.
That made him walk a little faster.
At one point, he saw a familiar dark skinned girl holding candied apples.
“Hey, weren’t you the one who announced the start of Palmetto?”
She grinned, ”And aren’t you the prince’s cute fiance?”
“Unfortunately,” he muttered.
“He’s a huge ass. I’m Dan by the way,” she stuck out her hand.
“I’m Neil,” he awkwardly shook her hand.
“Would you like a candied apple?”
“Depends on what it costs,” he glanced warily at the apples.
She raised an eyebrow at him, “Already gotten a chance to head to one of the other stands?”
“My friend got some spun sugar,” he said.
“I love the spun sugar. Matt really makes the best,” she said, “a candied apple costs the first person that broke your heart.”
“I’ve never had my heart broken,” he stared at her confused.
She frowned, but handed him a candied apple.
“Remember that time passes quickly during Palmetto,” she called after him as she walked away.
He continued walking towards the courtyard, debating whether or not to actually take a bite out of the candied apple.
At one point he did, and immediately the world changed.
Everything dulled, and looked like stone. The only color were the scattered patches of green moss littered in the cracks of buildings.
Then the world returned brighter than before.
Neil took that as a hint he was going on the right path.
He took another bite of the candied apple and savored it, even though he thought it was too sweet.
The world turned gray and green again, but he ignored it.
When he reached the courtyard, he only saw a few other people, where when he was here with Katelyn and Aaron a few days ago it was completely deserted.
He was here, but now what. This was the first clue, the forgotten faces.
He took another bite of the candy apple to see if there was anything he missed.
But there was nothing, everything only became brighter.
He had gone in the right direction, but now where would he go?
He absentmindedly peeled the candy off of the apple as he walked around the courtyard, avoiding looking at the faces of the statues.
He smelled the familiar scent of smoke and his feet drew him towards it.
Then, he found an alive familiar face, snacking on a hoard of candy while scribbling in a journal.
“How many secrets did you have to exchange to get all of that?” Neil asked the figure sitting on the bench.
The figure tensed slightly, before putting away his journal, and Neil saw it wasn’t a journal.
It was a book on the fates.
“None,” Andrew said, taking a sip from his hot chocolate.
Neil scoffed, “Then what did you have to exchange?”
“A few truths.”
“Did you come just for the food?” Andrew didn’t seem concerned finding the answers to the next clue.
“Once you’ve already seen it all before, it gets old quickly,” Andrew shrugged.
“You’ve been before!?”
“Don’t ask stupid questions,” he rolled his eyes.
“Fine, have you met the Masterpuppeteer before? Do you know who they are?”
Andrew was silent for a moment, “They’re a monster.”
Neil looked at him confused, “I don’t think a monster would make something so beautiful. I feel like they would use their magic for something bad. Like the fates had done.”
Andrew’s face twisted when Neil said beautiful, “Go play your little game then.”
Neil shrugged and walked away, but not before noticing Andrew pick up his book again and started scribbling again.
~~~
Neil absentmindedly walked down a familiar path through the courtyard. He felt the blood drain from his face when he realized where he arrived.
The ruins of his childhood home. There were a few stands scattered around the rubble.
Clue number two leads to forgotten memories in the rubble..
Neil felt sick when he remembered that.
The night still smelled of sugar, but it was too sweet.
Too rotten.
Neil gagged, and pinched his nose, but that just made him taste the rotten air.
He solved the first two clues, but now where would the third lead.
The first two both had to do with the Fates, Lola’s statues and where the Fates used to reign.
If he didn’t have Riko’s threat riding on his shoulders, he would’ve given up on the game and just went to each of the stands to get snacks every night and watched the stars. Then he would run as far as he could away from this cursed place and cursed game.
But he had to solve each of the clues.
He had to revisit his past.
But he took the time to look up at the stars again, trying to enjoy the overly sweet scent in the air just in case he died in a few days.
He just took the time to head to one of the stands littered throughout the rubble.
The stand was filled with all sorts of popped corn: caramel, cheesy, salty, buttery, and a lot more he didn’t recognize.
“How much does one cost?” Neil asked the man running the stand.
“The last thing you did nice for someone, or what was a nice thing someone did for you?” He chirped.
“Oh, my friend Katelyn stopped me from getting punched.”
“Is she here too?” He asked.
“Yes, but she’s probably going to every concession stand getting food right now.”
He nodded and handed Neil some buttery popped corn.
“How are you enjoying Palmetto so far? I remember my first time here, it was amazing,” he sighed happily.
“You were a player here before you were a performer?” Neil asked, surprised.
“Yeah, I’m Jeremy by the way.”
“I’m Neil,” he still felt weird saying it, the more he said it the more real it felt.
He had never been the same person for more than a year.
But he’d been Neil for more than 2 years.
And he wasn’t sure if he could let go of it.
But that might not matter anyways.
“Well, Neil. I hope you enjoy Palmetto,” Jeremy waved Neil goodbye as Neil went back to walking through the ruins for more clues.
There was a set of stairs leading up to nothing, but he still remembered what it looked like before.
And he remembered when he came down those stairs and saw his father burn a man to death.
And he remembered how mad his father was when he interrupted his work.
And remembered the punishment his father gave him.
He absentmindedly touched the burn scar on his shoulder and shuddered.
Then, he walked to a room where it’s pillars were still up.
Sort of.
It used to be the dining room, but people only ever ate in it once a week.
He never liked it, because his father always thought that he did something wrong.
And let Lola discipline him for his supposed mistake.
He turned his eyes towards another room.
But it was so destroyed, that only half of a wall and shelf remained.
A few scattered shattered bottles lined the shelf, and a few were still filled with liquid. There were a few rotten plants in pots around the room.
They were Lola’s experiments, trying to see what she could make that would lead to the most painful experience possible, or something that would loosen up someone’s tongue.
She was as sadistic as his father, and might’ve even been more.
He wondered whether or not either of them were out.
Riko is, and so is his uncle Stuart.
It all filled Neil with dread. He quickened his pace around the ruins. He wanted so badly to run, but his heart beating the same slow pace kept him from that.
Beat.
.
Beat.
.
Beat.
He tried to match his breathing to his heartbeats.
Inhale.
.
Exhale.
.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Inhale.
.
Inhale.
He could hear his mother yelling at him to run as he choked on his own breath.
He stumbled and sat onto the remains of a wall that stood about a foot and a half high.
“Having a panic attack?” A short figure with a rolled cigarette in his mouth asked.
He sat down on the same wall as Neil.
“Shut,” he tried to suck in another breath, “up.”
He inhaled the scent of smoke and it calmed him a little. He kept trying to even out his breaths, and he was successful.
Andrew offered Neil a rolled cigarette, and after hesitating, Neil took it.
He lit it up with a lighter he kept on him at times, he hated fire so he lit it as fast as he could.
“Didn’t know rubble could evoke such a reaction in someone, I guess you’ve solved the second clue,” the words sounded like a question, but the way he said it made it sound like a statement.
Neil inhaled more smoke and thought of his mother, “Maybe.”
They stood in comfortable silence as Neil was lost in thought. Andrew was staring at him, but Neil didn’t notice.
As he inhaled the smoke, he thought of when he burned his mother’s body after she died. He hated fire, but she told him to do it, as it would make her body harder to identify.
At some point, Neil broke the silence, “If Palmetto is so boring for you, why did you come?”
Andrew didn’t answer at first, “Because it’s slightly less boring than doing nothing.”
Neil didn’t understand why exactly Andrew found it boring, considering he knew the answers to the first clue already and was there before him, even when he made so many stops to get snacks.
And, he knew where the second clue led because of Neil. He would be concerned about Andrew beating him at Palmetto, but he made it clear to Neil that he couldn’t care less about the game.
But, maybe he could get Andrew to help him with the game so he could have more time to enjoy the magic.
“Why did the rubble invoke such a strong reaction from you?” Andrew asked.
“Bad memories,” Neil muttered.
Andrew was silent for a moment.
“Aaron said he went to the Conquered Isle of Trisda, and he picked up two bar workers that got invitations to Palmetto and decided to bring them along,” Andrew leaned in and raised an eyebrow at him, “And now a nobody from a nowhere bar on an island where invitations were never supposed to go, you have a past connected to the ruins of a fate stronghold, and is now the one closest to solving the game.”
Neil could feel his blood freeze, and he struggled to keep up the illusion of his brown eyes.
“You’re not adding up,” Andrew concluded.
“I’m not a math problem for you to solve,” Neil’s mouth moved before his brain even processed his own words.
“But I’ll still solve you,” Andrew was still staring at him intently.
Neil was reeling at how quickly Andrew put it together. His mother always told him never to underestimate people, yet Neil had done just that.
He underestimated the five foot tall man in front of him, and that just might’ve led to him being found out.
And the fact that he knew Andrew was knowledgeable on the Fates, he knew about what the rubble used to be, the forgotten faces of the victims of the Poisoner, and his book on the Fates.
This was one of the biggest red flags he’d ever seen, but he couldn’t run.
He couldn’t run.
Running was how he survived, and because of Riko he couldn’t run anymore.
Because if he did run, he’d be running right to his death.
“You look like a rabbit,” Andrew remarked, “like you’re gonna bolt at any second.“
Neil glared at him.
Andrew rolled his eyes, “Can I have your popped corn if you’re not going to eat it.”
“You had a pile of food earlier, just go to Jeremy’s stand.”
Andrew just shrugged and walked away, though not in the direction of any stand.
Neil glanced puzzledly at the stands and then back at Andrew, but when he looked back at Andrew, he was nowhere to be found.
Neil narrowed his eyes, Jeremy said that he was once a player at Palmetto, and Andrew said he was too.
Andrew could just be another part of the game, or he could’ve just been a very perceptive player.
Neil didn’t know which one was worse.
The rolled cigarette Andrew gave him finally burnt to a stub and he dropped it and shoved a handful of popped corn in his mouth.
Nothing happened at first, but then he looked up at the sky and the stars looked as if they were falling.
At one point, one fell in front of him.
A shining golden star sat in front of him.
A fallen star sat in front of him.
Neil made no move to pick it up.
He didn’t move at all.
He just stared at it.
He hated the game with a burning passion, and he didn't know what the Masterpuppeteer was planning, but he wished he did. Wished he could run.
But he gave up on wishing a long time ago.
Now, he had to focus on surviving.
He finally moved from his position of staring at the fallen star, and stared back at the paper with the clues on it.
He wanted to rip it up as he stared at clue three, “ a past best left uncovered. ”
Clues four and five both made his blood run cold.
He didn’t like the implications that he would lose things he holds precious.
He could be losing anything, his life, his humanity, ect.
And number five, “ a path forgotten. ”
He pondered it for a moment, but he shook his head.
The only path he remembered that he didn’t go down was the one his father planned for him, him becoming a full fledged Fate and helping him do his dirty work.
He shouldn’t, couldn’t , dwell on the future, even though that was how he and his mother survived for centuries.
He just thought about how much time he had left that night.
It felt like it had been only an hour or two so far, but Dan said time ran faster during Palmetto.
He didn’t know how many hours he had left in the night.
He knew he had to hurry, but he couldn’t bring himself to.
He hesitantly picked up the star.
It was warm, uncomfortably warm.
It was heavy, and he wondered if it was made out of real gold.
It could’ve, maybe Palmetto got the funds from the crown.
Neil didn’t care, it probably would disappear the moment he solved the third clue.
He looked up at the sky, and watched the stars move and make more constellations, but he couldn’t seem to make out any pictures.
They moved and swirled like smoke, and for a second he thought he could still smell the smoke from the cigarette Andrew gave him.
Neil thought about whether or not he could make illusions that could make the stars move.
He didn’t think he could, but he made the illusion of a few stars swirl around his fingers for a brief moment.
But, then he heard something behind him, he quickly put his hand down and dissipated the stars.
“Hello?” Neil said cautiously.
“Hello,” a girl in a black dress said.
She had white hair that transitioned into rainbow pastels and held a thick book that was bound in black leather.
She had a kind smile, but eyes that held something dark in them.
“Are you another performer for Palmetto?” Neil asked cautiously.
She laughed, “Sort of. I’m Renee, I record the history of Palmetto through pictures in my journal.“
Neil’s ears perked up, “I’m Neil. May I see?”
Her eyes grew unfocused, “Not yet.”
Neil slumped and watched as she chewed her lip.
Renee started to draw in her journal, the strokes of her pen sounded calming, but Neil was on edge.
What is she doing? He wondered.
He was getting nowhere, and it seemed like Renee would be of no help to him.
Nel huffed, annoyed, and started to walk away from the ruins.
“Neil,” Renee called after him, “I might be able to show you parts of my journal tomorrow night.”
Neil didn’t answer and kept walking, excitement coursing through him.
He might be able to figure out who the Masterpuppeteer was if Renee gave him enough information, but she also could give him false information so he just continued on to solve the third clue.
His feet led him to the second clue, Neil wajered it could lead him to the third.
His feet carried him through the paths of Valenda, weaving in and out of semi familiar alleyways and streets.
He walked past many stands filled with different snacks and drinks.
For a second he thought he saw Andrew getting cider from an apple themed stand, but when he turned to check.
There was no one at the stand except for the person running it.
Neil just shook his head and continued walking.
At some point the night stopped smelling like sugar and the wind chilled.
Neil had zoned out as he walked. He was aware of the world around him, but not the buildings.
He was standing at the entrance of the Fallen Star church.
His father’s cult gathering place.
And he could hear familiar voices coming from the inside.
He knew this was where he was supposed to go, but he didn’t want to go inside.
Where there would be statues of his father, where if someone looked closely, they could see the resemblance between Neil and the Fallen Star.
He swallowed the bile rising in his throat and walked in.
There he saw Riko Moriyama, Jean Moreau, Kevin Day, and Andrew.
The only one who seemed to notice him was Andrew as Riko was yelling at Kevin in a language Neil didn’t understand.
Andrew looked like he was about to intervene at first, but when Neil came in he just said, “Riko, I think your fiance is here.”
“Best not do anything rash,” Andrew clucked his tongue at him.
Riko glared at him, but then Kevin, Riko and Jean turned his gaze towards Neil..
There was no recognition in Kevin’s eyes, and Riko froze at the sight of him though there wasn’t any recognition in his eyes either, he didn’t seem like he put things together yet.
But Jean.
There was recognition in those eyes as he mouthed his name.
Nathaniel.
Riko, Kevin, and Andrew didn’t notice this.
Neil stood frozen, he’d only seen Jean once, while he had seen Riko and Kevin many times before.
How could he have recognized me.
“Well, this is a surprise,” Riko said in an overly honeyed voice, “What is my wonderful fiance doing here?”
Riko sounded every bit the caring fiance, and by the look on Kevin’s and Jean’s faces, they didn’t know it was an act, and they were very surprised at Riko’s behavior.
Andrew, however, radiated waves of annoyance at Riko’s words.
“This is where the third clue led,” Neil, thankfully, did not stutter.
Kevin looked slightly impressed, while Andrew narrowed his eyes.
Riko looked delighted however, while Jean still stood frozen in shock. His eyes darted from Riko to Neil, and his hands trembled slightly.
Neil just stood there awkwardly, trying not to look at the statue of his father in the background.
Andrew dragged Kevin past Neil and towards the exit, but when he passed Neil he dragged Neil by his collar and whispered in the ear.
“When the night is over, meet me in the overgrown courtyard.”
Neil froze, and stared at the figures walking away, he could feel poison ivy green radiating off of Riko.
Neil flinched as Riko leaned in and whispered in his ear, “Don’t trust Andrew or Kevin.”
“As if I can trust you,” Neil shot back, even though he knew he shouldn’t trust Andrew nor Kevin.
Riko scoffed, “I hold your life in my hands, and I wouldn’t lead you in the wrong direction when I need you to do something for me.”
Neil glared at him, and didn’t reply.
Riko smirked, sauntered out, and motioned for Jean to follow him.
Jean did but on his way past Neil, he muttered, “You should’ve ran.”
Neil tensed at those words, he didn’’t know if Jean would tell Riko his true identity.
He could only hope as he walked out and ran as far as he could away from the church. The church could have led to the fourth clue, but Neil couldn’t stand being in the church any longer.
He ran towards the courtyard but didn’t head in yet. Even when he smelled the scent of smoke beckoning him closer.
He debated whether or not he should meet up with Andrew, as the sky turned light purple and pink.
The sun hadn’t come up yet, but Neil knew the night was over, the night felt like it was half as short as usual.
He couldn’t trust Andrew. He was probably just another part of the game, considering how he was already at the church with Kevin, who was a performer at Palmetto.
But, he could still provide hints and lead Neil in the right direction, so he went in.
The sun rose and cast everything in a golden light, making it look like there was a halo around Andrew’s head.
“You’re late.”