Everyone stared in shock at what they had just seen. The mysterious man ran down a side street and out of view but had killed three ogres almost single-handedly.
"We have to meet that guy!" James said.
"How do you propose we do that? We don't even know what he looks like." Derek said.
"I don't know, but think about what he could do to help with the quest?" James said.
"He would definitely help in fights with monsters," Kedron said.
"But then we would leave this town without him," DeeDee said.
"This town needs to wake up and realize what's happening anyway," James said. "This guy could really help us out in setting things right for the world."
"He's not gonna undo the apocalypse," Bobby said.
"That's not what I mean by set the world right. I mean help stop whatever is messing with the vending machines." James said.
"He would be an asset for sure," Tom said. "We can ask around if anyone knows who he is and go from there."
"Fine, Tom, myself, and James will go look around and see if we can track this guy down," Derek said.
"Oh, no, I'm going too," Kiera said.
"OK, Kiera too. The rest of you stay here and rest and watch the room. We will return after doing some inquiring to see if we can find out who he is." Derek said.
Everyone agreed with the plan and went to their rooms to rest for a while. Tom, Derek, James, and Kiera headed out with Squirrel to see if they could find the identity of the man in the kabuki mask. Jerky appeared on Kiera's shoulder as they were leaving the room and she gave him a piece of meat to eat, scratching his head.
Walking downstairs, the first stop was the front desk to talk with Clarice.
"Hello Clarice," James said. "I really like saying that."
"Well, hello. Is the room to your liking?" Clarice asked.
"It's wonderful. We really appreciate you setting us up with it." Tom said. "We do have a question for you though."
"Certainly, I will do anything I can to help you," Clarice replied.
"Excellent! What can you tell us about the masked man who fights off the monsters?" Tom asked.
Clarice's face tightened slightly at this question, but being a good front desk guest relations person, she did not stop smiling.
"Oh, not a lot I guess. He's a mysterious person who started helping slay monsters in the town when they started appearing. The townspeople call him the masked avenger. I haven't done much digging into his identity since he went to such trouble to hide it." Clarice said. "Plus when someone starts running around taking care of problems like that, most people just let him do it."
"So you have no idea who he is?" Tom asked.
"Not a clue," Clarice replied.
"OK. Can you think of anyone that might know more?" Derek asked.
"Maybe the head of the guard? He is the one responsible for a lot of the security in the town and might have a better idea." Clarice offered.
"Cool. Thank you for the help!" Tom said.
With that, the group left the hotel. Ubenounced to them, Clarice picked up the phone when the door to the hotel closed.
"Mr. Mayor. Yes, it's Clarice. I'm wonderful thank you for asking. Listen, those new visitors. Yes, the group in the penthouse. We might have a little problem."
Outside the hotel, Tom, Derek, James, and Kiera stood on the sidewalk with Squirrel next to Kiera.
"Any thoughts where the head of security might be? Should we ask Clarice?" Kiera asked.
"The courthouse. that is where the mayor is, so likely he is there as well. It seems to be the center of official business so even if we can't find him there, someone will know and we can talk with the mayor again." Derek said.
"I thought the same," Tom agreed nodding.
Walking over to the courthouse, the group was greeted by multiple people going about their business with a simple wave. Everyone seemed friendly and that was definitely odd with the experiences they were having recently.
Arriving at the courthouse, the team walked in the front door. The courthouse was a little like taking a step back in time. It felt a little like every police station in eighties cop shows with desks spread out in the middle of the room and offices lining three of the walls. Ceiling fans hung from the ceiling, no longer turning in the Texas weather because of the lack of electricity, but the room was lit with windows along the back wall.
Sitting in an office with an open door at the far end of the room was the mayor. He noticed their entrance and exited the office to greet them.
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"Hello again, travelers. How might I be of service to you on this fine day?" Jeffery greeted them.
"We were wondering about the masked avenger. He seems like an incredible person. He might be able to help with our quest." Tom said.
"He really is incredible, isn't he? It's too bad we don't know who he is. We would very much like to show him our gratitude for everything he has done for us."Jeffery said.
"You really have no idea who he might be? I would have thought as mayor that you would know your citizens?" Derek said.
"Oh, I do. But there is the distinct possibility that he came here as a visitor and has taken up residence somewhere. I mean, I can't blame him, this is a pretty wonderful town." Jeffery said gesturing with his hands.
"I guess that's true. Have you done any investigating to try to find who he is?" Tom asked.
"I certainly have. We wanted to have a party to celebrate his accomplishments. But every avenue I have gone down has left me with exactly zero answers as to the identity of that mysterious man. He just seems to vanish after he fights off the monsters and no one is too keen on asking him for any answers while he's fighting. That would mean putting ourselves in a lot of danger and possibly interfering with his work." Jeffery answered.
"Alright. Well, we appreciate your help. Can you direct us to the head of security for the town? We noticed you have a well-maintained border and we are interested in picking his brain about the ideas he has implemented to keep up such lovely appearances and order." Derek asked.
"Why that is a lovely idea! We would love to help the city of Dallas with some of the ideas we have implemented here. He should be on the second floor of this building. He has an office there." Jeffery said.
"Thank you, Mr. Mayor," Derek said.
"Oh, never you mind the fancy titles. Just call me Jeffery." Jeffery said.
And with that, he turned back to his office and closed the door. On the wall that held the entrance door, a woman cracked a door open and looked out to make sure no one was around. She gestured to the four to come over closer to her. When they got to the door she opened it all the way and ushered them in quickly.
"You all are looking into the masked avenger?" She asked.
"We are, but who are you exactly?" Tom asked.
"I'm Patty, the mayor's assistant," The woman said.
"Nice to meet you Patty, I'm..." Tom began but Patty cut him off.
"It doesn't matter right now we only have a minute before you need to be heading upstairs," Patty said. "I happen to know who the masked avenger is."
"You do?! That's great!" James said.
"SHHHHHH! Not so loud!" Patty hushed him. "The masked avenger is actually the mayor's son. But nobody wants to talk about it."
"Seriously?" Derek asked.
"Seriously! I haven't been here too long. Only got into town a month or so ago. The old mayor of the town was killed on the first day of the strange events that have been happening. Jeffery came along and helped organize everything and the people here made him the mayor." Patty said.
"We figured something was off," Tom said.
"You're damn right something is wrong. Everyone here is now pretending like nothing ever happened and the mayor's son has been cleaning up all the messes." Patty said.
"But why wouldn't the mayor want to take credit for that?" Derek asked.
"Because then he'd have to admit something was happening. He wants everyone here to just pretend the world went on like it was." Patty said.
"Do you know where we can find the mayor's son at? We'd really like to talk to him." Tom said.
"He has a place just outside of town in an abandoned church. He stays there to stay out of sight." Patty said.
"Thank you, Patty, you have been very helpful," James said.
"Don't you go blabbing to nobody that I told ya! I'll deny it!" Patty said.
"Mums the word, we promise," Kiera assured her.
"Now get upstairs. I'm sure the mayor called Edward to tell him you were coming." Patty said. "It'll be suspicious if you don't get there soon."
Leaving the office as quietly as they could, the team walked up the stairs to the second story. It was similar to the first in the layout, but the head of security had taken one of the desks in the middle of the room instead of one of the offices.
"Ah! You must be the new visitors. My name is Edward, I'm the head of security for Decatur." Edward said, standing and smiling at them.
Edward was a man wearing a pin stripped suit with his hair slicked over to the right side of his head, a heavy amount of Gel, and a very large curled mustache that almost covered his mouth.
"Yes, we are wanting to ask you about some of the procedures you put in place to keep this town so lovely so that we might see about using some of them in Dallas," Derek said.
"Well, I am happy to help out a fellow Texas city. What kind of things do you want to know about in particular?" Edward asked.
"What did you do to keep the city going and working with such efficiency and how do you keep it safe are our biggest questions," Derek said.
"Well, that's quite simple. Everyone here has a task that they are to perform. Some will help with cleaning up the garbage whenever they see it, others are set to working on removing any bodies so the streets can stay clear. Others will move vehicles, and still others are working on the power situation. Many many jobs are needed to keep a city in order." Edward began.
"And the security at the borders?" Derek asked.
"That is something we decided we needed when we heard about what was happening in Rhome. We didn't want anyone coming to town that might try to cause the people here harm." Edward said.
"What if they just lied and said they were good to get in?" James asked.
"We do have security wandering the city as well. If anyone is acting out, they will be dealt with swiftly and put in the city jail." Edward said.
"And I'm assuming you have people whose job is to work at the jail?" Tom asked.
"Why, yes we do. they are there to keep the inmates in line and comfortable. We aren't animals after all." Edward said.
"How long will those people be in jail for?" Tom asked.
"That depends on the nature of their crime. But once they have repaid their debt to society we will release them and send them out of the town." Edward said.
"And then the guards just keep them from coming back?" Derek asked.
"You are a bright one, I can tell," Edward said putting one finger to his nose and pointing at Derek.
"Well I am the head of security for a group in Dallas for a reason," Derek said smiling, but Tom could see the smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Ah! A fellow law officer! It is good to meet you. I'm assuming this is not quite as feasible with a town the size of Dallas, though." Edward said.
"It's true, but we are considering zoning off part of the city to implement some of these ideas in a more localized area," Derek replied.
"That definitely could work. Use the buildings as barriers of sorts to keep out the ruffians," Edward said musing.
"Exactly. I think I need to see a bit more of the town though to see the full infrastructure you have put in place. I appreciate you taking the time to speak with us, but we will let you get back to your business and do a little sightseeing." Derek said.
"Very good. If you have any more questions feel free to find me again and we can talk more business." Edward said sitting back down.
Tom, Derek, James, and Kiera walked back down the stairs and left the courthouse.
"So, they are just faking it," James said.
"Definitely. This form of security is sloppy at best." Derek said. "But I didn't want to tell him what we were really after."
"We should walk around and pretend to see some things, but I think it's time to pay a visit to the mayor's son," Tom said.