X2.1.5 – A Must-See Show

The whole city went dark. Then, one by one, flood lights of many colors came on, revealing circus pavilions, parades, elephants, bands and acrobats filling the streets below. The Jumpers gathered around the window, staring in amazement.

"Why the hell did Solstice bring her troupe of weirdos here, of all damn places?" Nirvana said with a groan.

"And now, of all times?" added Shiro shaking his head, causing his long ears to sway back and forth.

"Wasn't she in Green Gardens? What the hell is she doing all the way down in Grand Market?" the pink-haired woman asked.

"She's got the O.K. from Default World to move around, remember? She probably shares the wealth with some of the nobles, and they give her a pass, or something," said the white bunny.

"Traitor," Nirvana growled. "How can she call herself Free? She might as well put on a mask and call herself a Shadow, that rotten wench."

"It's so cool! I always wanted to see the circus," said C-Saw jumping up and down from excitement.

"You don't understand, kid. The city is about to be thrown into absolute chaos until Madame—Insanity leaves satisfied that she has 'entertained' enough people, and plundered the coffers of this place. This is plain bad for business," said Shiro.

"So what? Let's just—not go see the circus, then. What's the big deal?" asked Rosso.

"You still don't get it," Nirvana turned to him, "we are not going to be able to 'chose' to not see the circus—we are inside the circus now. Worst part is—we can't escape until that old wench lets us out, basically. Her magical, giant tent is impossible to tear open. We're stuck here until the circus decides to leave."

"Which means music, parties, shenanigans—absolute chaos," Shiro pointed out.

"What's wrong with all that?" C-Saw smiled. "I want to have some fun!"

"What's wrong is that it might go on for a nauseatingly long time. At least until everyone has seen the witch's show," Nirvana shook her head.

"Madame Solstice won't leave until everyone has paid their ticket, basically, which makes the whole thing one big ransom disguised as a show," said the rabbit-man.

"By the end, the whole thing turns into a desperate hunt to find the last people who haven't seen the show yet. Essentially, after most have been convinced to go see it, the remaining ones are dragged by the rest out of desperation to get the whole thing over with." Nirvana sighed. "Then, and only then, the ugly witch leaves, content, with piles of gold, aura, and money, leaving behind a whole city of people who just want a little bit of peace and quiet," she said as she rubbed her face with her hands.

"Solstice knows that the Syndicate's HQ is here, right? Does she know it's in the hotel?" asked Shiro turning over to his boss who answered with a nod while her hand on her forehead. "She's going to try to squeeze us dry then."

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"Maybe that's why she's here in the first place," Nirvana's eyes narrowed as she stared at the commotion outside of her window. "Shiro, get the girls together. I need you all to hide as much of our loot as possible, just in case we have—unexpected guests tonight. Go down to the crypt and stash it all there in vaults 17 through 22—as much as possible. Understood?"

"Right away, Lady Nirvana," Shiro bowed and walked out in a hurry.

"Girls," the crime boss said into a microphone, speaking over an intercom, "drop whatever it is you are doing. I need the twenty strongest among you to help Shiro in the crypt and then come with me. Madame Solstice is in town and we don't want to keep her waiting, do we?" She clicked the intercom off and turned to Roa's groups and said, "let's get this over with. Stay close and follow my lead. If it all goes well, she'll be satisfied with a nice sum of cash and then she'll leave us alone. She might already know the Shadows are after us for what happened to Lord Smog. This means her price is going to be extra steep this time. That's the best-case scenario." She crossed her arms, "at worst, this whole city turns into a battlefield. Let's try our best to use the easy way first—if we can," she said with a forced smile on her face.

"At least we'll see elephants," said C-Saw with a smile.

Nirvana led the way, walking ahead of the heroes, trailed by a group of her strongest henchwomen.

"Do you know this Madame Solstice lady?" asked Roa trying to keep up with Nirvana's long steps.

"Know her? Unfortunately, we crossed paths a few times throughout the centuries. I detest her—that's why I try to stay away from her stupid circus as much as possible. Nowadays, Free Society is a clusterfuck of shattered groups scattered all over the Innerverse. Most are just trying to survive, others opportunistically abuse the little powers they have to cheat their way through some local society they find themselves in. There are only a few organizations among the Free that manage to function at a higher level. You got yours truly's Calyxx Syndicate, Free Society's most formidable criminal enterprise. Then there's the Cat Mafia, one of my competitors, and Spexx's people, although he's not a problem anymore since the Gates showed up—too many floors of the Palace between us now. You got the Bara and the Froxo families running most bathhouses. The Vay's run the upper echelons—probably from the capital—wherever that may be nowadays. And of course—there's the damn circus."

"And this Solstice lady—she works for the Old Order?" asked Roa.

"She works for herself—always. But she has no moral quandaries concerning who her business partners are. As long as the wealth and power keep flowing into her coffers, and not out, she's ready to shake hands with anyone. Believe me when I say that her business model, no matter how morally dubious it may be, is quite profitable. That's why the circus is the only organization in Free Society allowed to pass through Default World untouched—and that includes through their Exits, and even their chokepoints."

"Are you serious? Not even the Gates stop her?" the little boy's mouth dropped.

"Nope. Imagine how much bribing she's done to convince the Heavenly Bastards to give her that kind of freedom of movement. And to think that with all that autonomy—she has never considered, even once, to help anyone but herself," Nirvana's steps grew longer as she got madder. "We're here. Make your auras whisper, stay close, be quiet--and follow my lead."

The street was filled with songs and performances. The locals were dancing and going along for now, still unaware that they were being help prisoners by their entertainers.

"Ah—if it isn't Miss Nirvana. We were expecting you," said a large, talking, blue rooster wearing a hat, as it stood at the entrance of the tent. His eyes scanned the group, narrowing when they fixed on the Sunflower.

"It's Lady—Nirvana," she said. "I need to speak to your boss."

"Yes. Of course. Right this way, Lady Nirvana," he said with a devious smile and a bow.

They reached a U-shaped train of circus wagons. Some had cages with strange animals in them, while others were playing music, holding large organs and bands playing on top of them. In the middle was the largest one, a wagon twice the size of all the others, much more ornate and covered in gold leaf. A set of wooden stairs came out of it where a long, red carpet magically unrolled itself until it reached all the way to their feet. The rooster pointed to the door and bowed.

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