100 Faces Chapter 1(pt-1)

The sky was blood red. At least that is what it seemed to the eyes. A stench of iron and rust filled the air as the individual held the knife in their hand. The figure was looking at the sky. His face was stained in red. It seemed that the red sky had invaded the black sky. There was no moon, no stars, only the street lamps making a yellow glow. The figure had his face up, observing the cloudy sky. The redness made it seem blurry and dense. He was wearing a white masquerade mask with the rest of his chin to neck covered with black cloth. It was covering his full body. The coat, on the other hand, made a loud fashion statement.

There was an embroidered design mixed with gold and jewels stitched on them. The bright red jacket made a big statement-like appearance for him. That was not the only thing, though. He had the coat made long enough to cover the floor and slit on the sides, making it easy to move. The cape on his back was red as well but in a darker shade. There were frills covering his shoulders with golden borders. There were gold embroidered shoes as well on his feet. The figure stood still, watching the sky as he was searching for something, even though the bloodstain on the mask made it harder to see.

“What are you looking at so intently?” A voice called out to him.

The masked individual did not flinch in surprise. Instead, it waited till the owner of the voice reached closer. He knew the owner of the voice and let him come to the dim light.

“At least remove that stain. Isn’t it clouding your vision?” The voice asked again.

This time it was louder and clearer. It showed itself from the shadows and now approached closer to the light. The man with the masquerade mask slowly put his head down. His eyes fell on another figure lying close to his feet. It was dark, but the outline of the figure was clear to his eyes. His left hand reached over and slowly rubbed his eyes, as the feeling was getting annoying now.

“I wish there was a way to make the killing more splatterless; I hate how you ruin the gowns I design.” The voice this time managed to attract the masked individual better as he slowly took his attention off from the figure close to his feet and towards the voice.

The masked man’s head tilted, looking at the owner of the voice approaching him. It took some time and a light breath to reach his ears before the owner of the voice could be seen. Two black paws first entered the light. The masked man’s face looked down at the paws.

“I say you are getting messy like the others, and here I thought you would be cleaner.” The owner of the voice scoffed. His voice was almost like a mumble as he bit the cloth on the side of his mouth.

“I can enjoy the feeling of being agile in this body. I do not believe it is meant to approach dirty and sticky places.” The voice came out of the mouth of the black cat.

He complained as he stopped approaching the masked figure in the middle of the distance. The masked man slowly bends closer, almost like kneeling in a greeting, before accepting the cloth from the cat. The young black cat purred as he let go of the piece of fabric on the masked man’s palm. He shook his head, flinching, then purred again, licking its paws, then moving to brush the back of its ears, sitting down on the spot. The masquerade-masked man did not reply to his words; instead, he focused on cleaning his eyes.

“What do you try to see like that in the sky? Answer me at least. Was there someone there?” The cat was frowning as he kept licking his paw and brushing the back of his ears.

The masked man just shook his head in denial. “I see you are going to ignore my questions again.”

The cat frowned as he got up on all four of his paws again. He slowly went over to the figure lying close to them. He took steps closer but stayed four cat feet away.

“What have we here then?” He asked while walking around the figure. The masked man stayed in the same position, continuing to rub the blood platter on his face, or to be specific, his mask. He rubbed it softly in fear of not ruining the design.

His body was hunched, which covered the outline of his body as the cape slid down on the sides, covering it in such a way only his face could be seen a bit. His limbs were also covered in black cloth. Thus, only the outline could be understood if one were to look carefully. His body shook as he kept rubbing with the cloth more.

“This one is a big one….” The cat moved around the body and observed it.

His paws treading on the ground softly and slowly taking his time and making sure he is not heard. It is ridiculous when one thinks about it, as the place around them is like a ghost town. The ground is stone black on the corner of the street. The pitched black street on the main road also did not give any indication that it was a street on one side. For it was without any living being on both sides. Such a place was chosen by them, yet precautions were taken in such a way that it did not attract attention.

“I did not think this one would come to this corner of the street that to this late.” The man in the mask nodded his head as he slowly stood up on his feet. He passed the cloth from his right hand to the left and moved his cape to make it settle well around his body. His head nodded in agreement with the cat’s statement.

The black cat sniffed around the lying figure as he made a round. “Next time, try to keep the evidence from spilling on you. This does not clean well.”

He pointed his paw at the masked man. The man nodded again, but this time it was a bow, and then he raised his left hand and made gestures. Even his hand was covered in black gloves.

“You can talk; you know there is no one around us.” The cat sighed as he faced the masked man.

However, the masked man shook his head and gestured with his hands again. He was using sign language to communicate with the cat. “There is danger in recognizing the pitch of my voice.”

“You can use the voice modulator, you know. I did not give the machine to you to waste it in doing nothing.” The cat scoffed as he approached the masked man.

He took soft steps again, with an expression that screams he is repulsed by the scene as he moves away. The masked man did not bend over; rather, he stayed in the same spot. He shook his head again. “I saw it; they have a machine to remove the cover of the mask.”

“Your other job is helpful nowadays. I just hope they don’t recognize you, or else we have to move you again.” The cat sighed as he used his claw to climb up the masked man’s body. It was not a hard job; he used his claw-made grips on certain parts and lifted himself on her shoulder. He first shook his body to get rid of the stiffness and finally settled on the masked man’s shoulder.