"Mr Karkaroff, you are making me a very unhappy man by meddling in my business. I'll give you one chance to think it over. I'll send you directions on where to find me." He cut the call on his way to see how Eric was doing.
"You've got everything in place, haven't you?" He was slightly worried at how chilled Eric was, joking with his buddies.
"We've done this a hundred times bro'. Only this time we hit them with a dart once you give the word. Not that hard you know?" He joked, rapping his knuckles against Raymond's head. "Come on Ray, when have we ever failed you? Look at how jacked the guys are."
"Okay, but no matter what happens, you can't interfere, even if they take me on. Promise?"
"Promise." He begrudgingly said, looking into his brother's eyes. He was determined to keep the family safe from the Inquisitor and if he should interfere, it would cause more problems. He could understand the logic, but that didn't make him worry any less.
"He'll be here soon to scout the area. You sure you won't be seen?"
"We don't have to be anywhere near the target to get to it. These aren't your regular drones, you know. Of course, we won't be seen butthead!" He rolled his eyes. "Now, piss off and get your bit started." He dismissed Raymond who took up his station in a dilapidated building, waiting patiently.
Not long after, he heard the wheels of cars crunching on the loose gravel on the road, and doors opening. Alexis and his men cautiously entered the room, quickly encircling them both, while Raymond reached his hand out to him.
"Mr Karkaroff, I'm honoured to make your acquaintance, especially after I've heard so much about you."
"Inquisitor." He inclined his head, briefly taking Raymond's hand. "Only exaggerated stories," he quipped. "Now you on the other hand, your word seems to be absolute law in the city. I wonder how one man could achieve this?"
"Before I tell you any of my secrets, I must admit that I'm somewhat disappointed that you had to bring your whole gang to talk to me."
"Well, you know what it's like, it's better to have a little insurance. But not you, you don't seem like the man who'd work with others. So tell me exactly why I'm here, Inquisitor?"
"I want you to leave. There is no place for you in my city."
"Why would I take orders from a man who won't even show his face? That's not the way I do business."
"You are in my part of the world, the way we do business is up to me. Now, I'll do you a favour, what do you say?" Raymond didn't back off. He was well aware of the men that surrounded him, each with a weapon in hand, ready to kill him.
"And what would that be?"
"If you stop what you're doing, I'll leave you and your men alive to head back home." He waited for the message to sink in. "But remember, then you'll owe me a favour."
"And why would I do that?" He laughed. "I don't think you understand the situation that you're in Inquisitor. I have this place surrounded. Even if you did bring anyone with you, they wouldn't be able to save you." He laughed with malice again.
"The men outside." This was the phrase he and Eric agreed upon to get the drones in the air and shoot darts like it's raining bird shit.
"Starting to get a little worried, Inquisitor?" He taunted.
"Not at all. I never worry." He looked straight into Alexis' eyes. "You however should be checking on what's happening outside." He watched as the man in front of him nodded to someone at the back of the room.
When the door opened again, his eyes widened in surprise, he looked back at Raymond. Who was this man who was able to take out every person he had on the ground without them hearing a thing and in such a short time as well? He was starting to worry that the rumours were true and that this man could have his whole existence erased without a moment's warning.
"It seems as if I've underestimated you." He smiled lazily. "But no, I've been asked to find something and while I'm here, I may as well have a look around to aqyire some... property, let's say."
"What you're looking for cannot be found and what you're suggesting is off the table. You'll accept my very gracious deal and you will be gone by tomorrow."
Karkaroff looked at the man in front of him, dressed completely in a black suit, his gruesome white mask hiding his face, while a hat covered the rest of him. He may talk a big game, but now that he was alone, there was no way he was getting out of here alive.
"Sorry, Inquisitor, but this is my town now and you can sit back and enjoy the ride. I'll handle things from here." He nodded to the men around the room again and they all stepped closer.
"Please don't try anything dumb." Raymond sighed. "This is a new suit and I really didn't want it damaged, but if you insist. First I'll finish off your men and then the two of us can have a more private chat. I think that's reasonable since I don't think you are the type of man who would get violent unless your opponent was tied down."
"Who the fuck do you think you are? The Boogieman? I've gone up against bigger assholes than you, so bring it on!" He shouted, stepping away from Raymond.
Before anybody could move, he crouched down, stretched out his arms and shot darts as he was spinning around. He managed to take out quite a few men who were laying twitching on the ground. He immediately turned his attention to the rest of the men holding metal bats and knives. At least they weren't stupid enough to start shooting around in a closed room.
As they threw themselves at him, he used every trick in his book to bring them to their knees as quickly as possible. It seemed like there was an endless stream on mean with various weapons streaming around him. If he didn't stop this soon, he wasn't going to hold out.
"Lay down crouching on the ground, protecting your head." He heard Eric's voice behind the mask. Why wasn't he surprised that Eric and his buddies were checking up on him? "Just do it! Let them hit you as hard as they can, we're calibrating your suit to protect that area."
Without arguing, Raymond did as he was told, in situations like this, trust was important. Eric had a plan up his sleeve and he needed to trust him now. Tucking his legs under him and protecting his head, he felt the dull thud of each blow and kick. True to form, the suit seemed to prioritise protecting the areas taking the most beatings. But even after a while, he started feeling a buzzing sensation the more they beat him.
"You're gonna have to help me here buddy, It's starting to feel like there's electricity buzzing around my suit. It's not going to hold long." He quietly grunted into the microphone, still feeling the dull thud of each blow.
"Brilliant!" Eric's voice sounded excited. "Just as we thought, the suit can retain certain types of energy directed to it! Amazing!"
"Great and all, but I'm about to explode here." He reminded Eric as another jolt of electricity coursed through him.
"When I say NOW, push up really hard. Make sure to make your stance as big as possible. The bigger your stance, the more energy displacement. Okay, NOW!
Raymond jumped up arms outstretched, his feet planted firmly on the ground. It felt as if cardboard boxes were being thrown from his back. The energy he felt before that was building up in his suit shot in a wave of electricity all around him. It was an odd feeling as the suit momentarily tightened around him.
Looking around, there weren't many of Karkaroff's men left.
"I'm feeling generous," he straightened his suit and brushed some of the dirt from it, "I will let you and the rest of your men go if you stop what you're doing and leave tomorrow. As you can see, there really is only room for one here."
"I must say that I'm not easily impressed, but it seems that the rumours of the great Inquisitor were true." Now that he'd seen this man in action, he knew that there was more to him than met the eye. The fact that he never made a move to attack him, was even more intriguing.
"Nobody ever wins against me." He chuckled. "Now, what do you say, I give you your life and you do me a favour and leave. As I said, the city isn't big enough for the two of us and what you're looking for can't be found."
Pulling two of the explosive disks from the belt of his trousers, he flung them behind him, closing his eyes against the blinding light that flashed across the room. Leaping forward, he grabbed Karkaroff by the throat.
"This is your last warning. Next time you'll find yourself in a hole rotting while I make your life a living hell that you can't control." Slapping his face, Raymond pulled a card from his pocket and handed it to Karkaroff, who looked at it in confusion. Instead of a mask like there'd always been before it was a drawing of a joker.
"What's this supposed to mean?" He asked.
"An open invitation for anyone to kill you if you're still in this town by tomorrow evening. You're quite unique in that you're only the second person to have one."
"What happened to the first?" Karkaroff asked half fascinated, half disgusted.
"After seeing my real face, he lost his mind and gouged out his own eyes." He let that image sink in before continuing, "Would you like to see?" He lifted his hands toward his mask, watching as the other leapt back and with the few men still standing around him left through a back door.
With a sigh, Raymond looked at the damage around him. All this to prove to one man that he should leave. He hoped that the rest of the guild appreciated his efforts.