Post by BlacKitten on Sept 23, 2013 20:43:00 GMT -5
A fuzzy sensation alerted the young panda’s curious mind as he detected something moving somewhere within this city. It was vague, but he could identify the direction of that ‘something’. This was good news! It would appear that his playmate had fallen for his trap. His previous theft would have been a complete waste of time… well, almost a waste… as Maru blissfully chewed on his delicious sandwich. He laid out a trap, and someone had just taken the bait! Unlike all of his previous thefts, the note from his latest theft was special.
All of his notes were obviously made out of paper. However, what made the previous note different was that it was manifested from a sketch drawn on the ceiling. Thus, that paper was created by the panda, himself, thanks to his special powers. On top of that, the ink written on the paper was produced by his fingertips. The whole point was that Maru possessed a hidden ability; he was mentally aware of the locations of his sketches or objects!
After noon, the replicas of the food should have been turned to sketches, and afterwards, his mental awareness told him that the note was moving. That little sheet of paper was traveling towards the designated spot, The Hot Nuts. Due to this knowledge, the excited panda can now confirm that someone had accepted his game of hide-and-seek. Moreover, the fact that someone went to The United Plates of Amino Island must had went there from the indirect instructions of his previous notes.
Now that things were playing in his favor, the game had finally begun! Unfortunately, the panda had revealed his powers to his opponent, but that would have at least encouraged his playmate to continue the hunt now that Maru had the potential to pose as a bigger threat. It was an interesting method to tease his opponent’s reaction. As of now, the panda’s opponent was probably enraged yet determined. This was exactly as Maru had hoped for. If no one had picked up that note, it would mean that no one accepted this large scaled game that he created. Taking the bait and heading towards The Hot Nuts pleased him deeply because he can finally begin the game as it currently stood.
As of now, Maru was in the safe zone for several reasons. The hunter had no clue about his appearance, so he or she was chasing after something unknown. Additionally, the hunter didn’t know his real name due to the fake alias that held more meaning than it may appear. The panda held complete control as to where he would strike next, and he may choose to obey his note or not. In the worst case scenario, even if the hunter figured out where Maru was located, the panda can easily escape since he can detect the location of his playmate as long as the note was being kept in the hunter’s possession.
Taking his afternoon panda nap, Maru purposely slept through the designated time simply to annoy his opponent. “Zzzz…Zzzz”
5:30 PM at a random sword shop
Maru sauntered into a store that sold a verity of swords, mostly katana, and they were ridiculously expensive! There were also a few knives and short swords available. Only a few other customers were present, probably due to the fact that barely anyone could afford such a weapon, but these swords were nice to look at.
“May I have your attention,” the seller announced, “I’ll have to close the store soon’ I need to make some errands. The store will be reopening two hours from now. Thank you.”
After scrutinizing each sword in his hands, he left the store empty handed… for now. “Sketch Timer,” the panda casted a countdown.
5:45 PM at the Serine Casino
Being his first time to ever visit a casino, the young panda bear was unsure what it was about. There were colorful bright lights, and the place was just beginning to be packed with people as the evening flows by. Throughout his stay, the adorable little panda was taken advantage of by his ignorance. Someone invited him to play a game known as Blackjack. The goal was to achieve as close as possible to the sum of 21, and if one goes over that number, one would lose. There was one dealer who suffered the cards and one panda who innocently stared.
“Place your bet!” the dealer demanded with enthusiasm.
“Bet?” The panda stared at the colorful round ‘chips’ as these people would refer them.
Everything confused Maru, and he lost on his first round. However, on his second round against the dealer, the panda played a little trick. Whenever his cards went passed the sum of 21, he turned a smaller value card into a sketch behind the surface of another card, making it appear like two cards have become one. Thus, it decreased the sum lower, enough for him to achieve the exact sum of 21. Whenever his cards were returned to the deck, he secretly manifested the sketch back into its object form. That way, there wouldn’t be any suspicion of missing cards.
After several rounds, the unusually lucky panda obtained several ‘chips’, but he had no clue what to do with them. The dealer was kind enough to inform the ignorant panda of how the casino worked. Apparently, he had to go to the cashier station or the casino cage in order to trade the ‘chips’ or ‘tokens’ for beri that he had won. All these unfamiliar terms made him feel deeply naïve since he had never gambled before.
Obtaining 200 beri of cash, the panda had his first little taste of victory at a casino.
6:15 PM at the random sword shop again…
Maru stride by the store’s front window, peeking within the dark room. It was closed, but it would open back up in the next fifteen minutes. At 6:00, all of the swords that he had made physical contact with had turned into sketches. The panda could see his own reflection on the window, but as he laid his forehead against the solid glass, he noticed several swords were not present. Obviously, the front door was shut closed, and there was little ways of entering without wrecking anything.
As he took a closer glance at the door, particularly the bottom, he gave out a smirk beneath his mischievous panda head. “Sketch Relocation,” Pointing all ten fingers at the missing swords through the glass window, he carefully dragged several sketches across the floor from a distance. Thanks to the convenient small gap between the door and the cement ground, he successfully, dragged each sketch outside.
Hiding each sketch of a sword upon his cape, he wrote out a small little note on the floor as he passed it back under the door again, dragging it on the countertop. Afterwards, he manifested the note into a white sheet of paper with the words:
I’ll strike at the Casino Fantasy ~ Athena Padrum