The Missing Ace

Prologue

The audience knew that something spectacular the moment they had entered Theater 5 of the Music Sphere Hall, Moscow, Russia. "Good evening! Ladies and gentlemen!" A young and silvery voice was heard. Almost immediately after the voice had spoken, the crowd went into a roaring cheer as a black marble stage lit up. "Welcome! To the Music Sphere Hall!" A smoky voice added, the spotlights flickering as they were turned to the center stage. "Tonight, we will do one mind blowing magic trick that will rock the world." Spoke a modulated voice. "I'm Kin!" The modulated voice introduced himself as a dark haired teenage Asian boy stepped onto a walkway and made his way onto center stage as yellow spotlights flashed over him. He was a black tailcoat with a yellow underling over a white collared shirt. The crowd cheered loudly. "Kin! Kin! Kin!" The crowd chanted.

"The name's Garnet!" The smoky voice grinned behind the mic as a tall tan American appeared on another boardwalk, making his way towards the stage as red spotlights flooded over him. Garnet wore a full black waistcoat with a bright scarlet ruffled necktie and brooch. Men whistled as the ladies waved uncontrollably to gain his attention. "Garnet! Over here!" He heard a teenage girl call and stopped. "Over there?" He joked, looking in the direction of the voice. "Your name starts with an 'A'... AJ?" He wondered. Some girls shouted, but their voices were faint. "Ash? Did I hear that right? And... Jones? Ashlyn Jones?" He asked. Instantly, the girls were jumping on their seats, pointing at a friend. "Ashlyn! Here. My number!" He clicked his tongue as he gun pointed towards the crowd and hurried to the stage. The crowd settled a little as a girl, possibly Ashlyn, shrieked.

"And let's not forget," Garnet added, slowing down to a stop as he reached Kin's side for a high five, "our kawaī chīsaku josei of the show." Kin completed, "Lapis!" From the other corner of the stage, where all light blue lights shone through the smoke, emerged a young 12-year old Russian girl with dirty blonde hair that grazed her shoulders. Considering her age, she was flashy in her outfit as she wore a black and blue variant of a dress with a ruffled skirt and a headband, which was adorned with a large blue flower. Men and women cheered, screaming her name as people whistled with delight. "We are the Illumin!" The trio shouted in sync as they held both of their index fingers and thumb up to form a triangular shape in front of their right eyes momentarily before they pulled their hands away from each other. Lapis skipped over to Garnet. The American scoped the child up and rested her on his shoulders. "As for tonight, you may be wondering what we will be doing." She smiled, looking around at the audience whom were awaiting the show. "Does anyone want to have a guess?" She quizzed.

"Here, have a dollar." Kin walked up to the nearest girl while folding a dollar bill into a crane. When he was close enough, he tossed the paper bird and watched it flutter towards the girl who was stunned to see him that close. "You too, have a dollar." He tossed another dollar crane to the person next to her. He continued for another five people before he began frantically searching his pockets. "Well, I'm out of cash." Kin turned to Garnet and Lapis. "Do you have cash?" He asked. "None on us." Garnet frowned, dipping his hands into his pockets. "How about... we borrow from a friend." He suggested. Kin turned to the crowd. "How about it everyone? A dollar for everyone and there's... about a thousand of you's in here?" He pondered. "Three thousand." Lapis corrected. "Three thousand," Kin repeated, "So three thousand dollars, from a friend. And who is that friend?"

"I don't know?" Lapis giggled. The ladies awed. "I know a friend... he is here right now with us, Mr Roderich Edelweiss!" Garnet gestured to Tier B, where a spotlight shone over a dark haired Austrian. He stood up, in confusion. "Please come over." Garnet smiled, calling him over. As if hypnotized, Roderich obeyed and strolled over. As soon as the Austrian took a step onto the stage, Garnet squatted so that Lapis could slip off his shoulders. "Mr Roderich, we are best of friends, you know that?" She asked, skipping over. The man humbly nodded. "Yes. Yes we are." He mumbled. Lapis giggled again. "So let's play a game of poker!" She smiled, making Roderich a little dumbfounded. "If I win, I'll get half. And if you win, you get half." She explained as Garnet pulled out his deck of cards while Kin pulled out his own as well. "Half of what, may I inquire?" Roderich asked, snapping his wrists to adjust his jacket.