The Holographic Trickster

Chapter 2 - I am the trickster

Getting myself into dangerous situations is my speciality, but somehow I get out of them in one piece, at least for now. When I was little, my father used to tell me that he could see into the future. He said that I can jump of a cliff, swin over the biggest ocean, fight the most dangerous animal in the univers and not die. He used to say that it was the gods will, that destiny is a path that has already been laid out for each single person. I remember I loved his stories about the gods and what plans they had for humanity, but as I grew older I stoped believing him.

I don't believe there is any God, why I still pray in my head and take these dangerous risks without being afraid of death, I don't know. Maybe just something I am used to after living with my father as a child. With the age I became more like my mother, she didnt believe in dad's God stuff either. The only thing my father and I had in common was that we loved a good challange. Before he passed away, he told me that as long as my heart beets, I can do anything! That is why I take risks, that's why I accept the challages that comes before me. It is because I am still alive.

The sun is on it's way down, I am just in time. After being home and changing to clean clothes I went to Moonshine, the bar right outside town, not far from my workshop. I open the door and enter the bar. The first person in the room that catches my eyes, is a man with black coat and a bowler hat sitting by the bar. The man is holding a cigarette in his left hand and a glass with a sort of liquid in the other. The man on the phone told me to look for a dark brown suitcase, and between this man's legs there is one.

I walk slowly towards the man while looking around. This is the first time I am in a bar outside the main town. I usually hear people talking shit about bars outside town, how poor and unorganized they are, but this one isn't bad. It's a lot of colorful lights on the walls and roof, most purple and blue, some of them even change from one color to another. The music in the background is catchy and the amount of people in here is telling me that this place is doing really good.

Only an arm length from the man I cough in a tone that makes him turn around. The man makes a surprised face. He takes his time looking at me, my face, my body, and then he notice the handbag I have under my arm. He puts away the glass and reaches out his hand, we do a handshake and he asks me to sit down.

"How can a kid like you take upon yourself such a dangerous mission? You must really want those parts," he says while taking off his hat.

"Is that so? It looks like you are desperate for something as well, making a deal with such a kid." I think I offended him a little because he is looking at me with strict eyes. I didn't mean to be rude. We have never actually seen eachother, we planned this over the phone and I think he was expected someone more mature or experienced looking.

He lifts his hand and pulls back the little amount of hair he has left on top of his almost bald head.

"Anyway..." he puts down the cigarette in an ashtray, "Do you have them?"

"Yes," I answer short as I grab my bag, "Here you go."

I handover the bag and he opens it.

"Five? well then."

He takes up one by one checking them for cracks or other damages. I am in excitement and turmoil, I have not taken a look on them properly myself. Unfortunately the last egg had one little crack.

"I am so sorry, I-," the words just fell out of my mouth. The man doesn't look pleased but changes quickly to a more calm expression.

"I'll take them, all five," a wave of relief hits my face, but he wasn't finished.

"but, I will give you fifteen silver pieces instead of twenty."

"We have a deal."

Putting another cigarette in his mouth, the man nods, "A pleasure doing business with you, kid."

He stands up from his chair and puts on his hat. Walking out of the bar, leaving nothing but the silver pieces he promised and a brown suitcase under the chair he sat on.

I open the suitcase to find two electronic parts, one for each boot.

"Finally," I say low to myself. I turn one of the parts around a little, inspecting it.

"What a cool thing you got there, huh?"

There is a dark haired male standing on the opposite side of the bar. He is probably the one running this place, or at least he looks like he is working here. The male is cleaning a glass, he must be the bartender. I take a look at his face, and I notice two beautiful brown eyes staring right at me. The guy makes a grin on his face.

"What do you need that for anyway?" He points towards the two parts in my hands.

"Aren't you a sneaky one, mind your own business." I put down the electronics, back into the suitcase and under the chair.

"Zero force components," he says shortly after.

"Excuse me?" I move my eyes from  the suitcase over to the young male.

"Those electronics you have there, thought you could fool me? I am the king of fools! Wait what?" He stood there thinking for a moment. A smile appears on my face, I try to keep the laughter inside. I turn away so he doesn't see me smiling, but I think he already saw it. An embarrassed laugh slips through his mouth.

"I am Elliott Witt by the way." He continues with the glass in his hand, still paying attention to me.

"My name is y/n," I say with a warm smile.

"So..." he looks at me curiously while continuing his sentence, "You wanna tell me why you need those components?"

"Are you serious right now?" I give him a stated look and lift my arms, and then I drop them on my lap.

"Comon, there must be something, because you won't tell," he makes a teasing facial expression and leans towards my face.

"Why can't you just leave me the heck alone!" I pull up my hand to push his face away. When I am about to touch his cheek, he disappears.

"What the-," his body just crumbled into small pixels. He is gone, and panic immediately overwhelms me, did I do this? In confusion, I look around. Did anybody just see what I did? No one reacted to what happened, I think these people are too drunk to even care. I start hearing laughter coming from something that looks like a staff room behind the bar desk. I feel anger building up inside me. I tie my fists, ready to hit something, or someone. Elliott appears between two curtains in the opening for the room, laughing harder than ever.

"I gotta admit... I may have tricked you," he places his hands on his hips, "I am amazing, I know," his grin is covering his face now. I want to crawl over the bar to punch that grinning face with all of my strength, but at the same time, I am kinda eased.

"Ok, Elliott, I will tell you why I need those parts, only if I get something in return." It looks like he is interested in the offer.

"I'll be nice, so tell me what you want."

"I want you to show me how you pulled off that performance of yours."

"Alright, I'll show you tomorrow morning, but first I want you to have a drink with me."