The little girl led the way as the Foreigner trailed slightly behind her. He couldn’t see any sign of Clips or Maw but there was this tense pressure he could feel behind him. His nerves were slightly on edge at the scraping of metal on metal, an innocuous enough sound when not reminiscent of the dagger-like claws that Clips wielded.

“So, I assume you’re hot stuff walking around with coinage like that in the Backstreets, but you don’t look the part.” She commented. The Foreigner didn’t really trust in the capabilities of this girl either but she’d been the first person to offer him (contractual) assistance and he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity. “Are you a Fixer or…” the question hung in the air as she waited for a response. My puzzled face gave her what she needed to know. “Right… um, if Clips and Maw were interested in a mark like you, that’s probably why. Lucky for you, I’m feeling generous today!” She flexed her arm out of her coat, exposing a surprising amount of muscle for someone with such a small frame.

“Where are we going exactly? We’ve been walking in a straight line for a few minutes now.” The Foreigner asked. She smiled.

“We’re waiting for the First Bell.” On cue, wailing sounds erupted from the dark alleyways and the ground trembled, the shaking increasing with each step taken on the girls path. She began running and the Foreigner kept pace. “Looks like they’re coming out of the woodwork too!” The Foreigner turned around to see Clips, his body low in a prowling position with hands outstretched, running towards him at full speed. Maw was keeping pace, holding onto what looked to be a ball of crimson wire in front of him. The crowds, on their part, were idly shuffling away from the sound, the collective traffic moving from the current main road they were on, through the connecting alleyways and out to another main road. Even their shifting didn’t slow the Foreigners pursuers down.

“What is happening! What is this noise?” The Foreigner yelled at his guide. There was no response.

“I see you’ve made friends with our elusive rat! It doesn’t matter! If she runs off, you won’t!” Maw was shouting out threats, his partner gaining on the Foreigner.

“Left!” She yelled, ducking into a narrow crevice of an alleyway. He reacted in one fluid motion, ducking into the crevice and through the piled rubbish. Clips and Maw kept pursuit, their footfalls intermingled with the now deafening cacophony of wailing and… wetness? “We’ve got a path coming up but you won’t be able to take it! I need you to run alone until you reach your path. You’ll know it when you see it.” She was speaking in riddles. It was frustrating to be so out of his element, whatever his element used to be. The Foreigner turned back to look at his pursuers and saw they were slowing down. Maw was grinning end to end as the Foreigner neared the other end of the alleyway.

The sounds boomed through his chest now, wet noises intermingled with the snapping of branches, the wailing echoing in his mind leaving him disoriented and teetering close to the ground. His final step was taken out to the open road and he understood why Clips and Maw had halted their pursuit. He had discovered the source of this Bell.

A humanoid flesh golem stood in the middle of the road from end to end, its height reaching up to the third or fourth story of the buildings in the area. There was no head to speak of, merely a head shaped archway in between its overly muscular shoulders with a calling bell delicately hanging in between it all. Its skin writhed with the motions of hundreds of arms, hands outstretched and reaching for similarly petrified pedestrians on the road and unresponsive bodies lying around. Shuffling beneath the behemoths feet were diminutive meat lumps with scrawny arms and legs. Bored through their roundish bodies were hanging bells cast in crimson tinged copper.

“A-a-a-a…” a bystander whimpered, unable to let out a sound as they were lifted off from the ground and into the front of the creature. It was a mesmerizing moment made all the more impactful by the gentle ringing of the smaller bells. His body was in a panic with every reflex pushing him to run away but there was something cathartic about being here, in the moment.

“Run!” The disorientation subsided and in that instance, terror took over. The Foreigner took the path ahead of him, the deafening cacophony now a roaring wave of music calling him back to the ensemble. To participate. However futile it was, he blocked his ears to drive the noise out and reached the other side of the alleyway in one piece. He focused on the beat of his heart, its frantic thrumming, his eyes shut tight, legs pushing forward until he lost himself. All at once he found peace, the trembling of the earth and the bass in his body subsided. He opened his eyes and found himself staring at the first bit of greenery he’d seen in his adventure through this forsaken city. A gnarled tree covered in green moss and mushrooms stood in the center of a plaza that the alleyway opened up to. Behind the tree stood a warehouse with wide reflective windows. And who else but his guide coming out of the building. She recognized him and her playful demeanor pivoted to one of shock and confusion. The Foreigner pressed on.

“Hey, you’re here...” The girl sheepishly commented. The Foreigner walked through the open field and past the tree. “I never had a doubt in my mind that-” Her reaction wasn’t fast enough. He swung with a right hook, catching her on the jaw and flinging her to the side.

“You deserved that.” Called out a familiar voice. Opening the door to the warehouse was a scrawny boy in an oversized rag of a shirt with colored glass embedded in his skin. His eyes were smooth mirrors reflecting the Foreigner back at him. “You look a little pale. Why don’t you come inside? I’m sure you have many questions.”