Chapter 3
As my eyes slowly adjusted to the dim interior of the building, I could vaguely make out the layout of the first floor. It appeared to be a reception area, with sectionals hugging oval-shaped coffee tables to either side of me. Near the far wall I could make out what looked to be a desk area. I felt a fluttering near my hand. I instinctively recoiled.
"It's me, you goof." The Nice stretched out her hand. I turned my palm out for her as she grasped it. "What do you see?"
"Not much..." I muttered, squinting at my surroundings. "I think I see a desk. That could be important."
I tugged her towards the far wall. As we reached the desk, she suddenly stopped.
"Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" I was busily rummaging through the stacks of paperwork on the desk, trying to make out anything like a directory.
"There it is again. Shut up," she hissed. I came up from the desk and stood with my head tilted, straining to listen. Yes, there it was. A short squeak staccatoed into the surrounding silence. Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
A harsh, grating laugh punctuated the squeaks.
"Come on out, dearies. I can hardly cause harm considering how crotchety I am, no?"
I looked at Gumball's eyes. She hesitated, then nodded.
I called out to her. "Inability to cause harm doesn't mean lack of desire."
At this, she laughed again. She sounded in pain.
"How wise you are. Perhaps..."
"Perhaps what?"
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
"Perhaps I will regret this." Out of nowhere a positively ancient woman with a haggard face and a shawl appeared directly in front of me, baring her teeth in a macabre grin. In one hand she held a vial of liquid. I couldn't tell what it was in the darkness, but the way she gingerly carried it away from her person made me certain that whatever it was, it was bad news.
Startled, I jumped back, dragging a bunch of paper stacks off the desk. They slid to the carpeted floor with a soft thud.
The Nice gasped. "What happened to you?"
"Happened? Dearie, nothing happened. I have seen. You presume to know much, but I have seen how little you know."
"What do you want? Who are you?" I demanded.
"Oh, sweet Moe. As ignorant as ever." She turned to speak to The Nice. As she opened her mouth, I interrupted.
"Hey, nobody but my partner speaks to me that way." She flashed her toothy grin, illuminated in the dark room.
"Oh, of course. Where are my manners? I'm Gumball. Gumball the Wise..."
I looked quizzically at The Nice. She nodded with a somber look on her face. Or was it just the darkness?
"Now, my dears. Shall we play a game?" She cackled, which gave me no great enthusiasm for her "game". "I have here two vials. One is a deadly poison, extracted from iocane powder. The other is a reagent, which diminishes the effectiveness of the iocane powder. Do you see where I'm going with this, dearie?"
I gulped. "What do you want?"
"Simple. I want to die. Oh, dearie, no need to look so stunned. Yes, you won't understand yet. Soon, I promise."
"Look, man, if you want to die, I'm not stopping you."
"Oh, but you are. You have a place in all of this too, dearie. Now, listen to me. The game is simple. I will ask you a question. If you get the answer right, I will let you be. But if you get it wrong..." she grinned. "I will force feed you this poison."
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah right. I've got like 50 kilograms on you. I've had enough of this. Come on, Nice. Let's... Nice? Where did-" The Nice was nowhere to be seen. The Wise cackled, and in a surprising display of athleticism she leapt over the desk and tackled me to the ground, pinning my arms with a cane.
Good news, I had figured out why she was squeaking. Bad news, she was unstoppering the vial with her teeth while she leaned over me. "Grrr... you must bench, huh?" I coughed out as I struggled to free my arms. She had gotten the stopper free of the vial. Laughing in that hideous way, she slowly brought the vial to my face...
THUD.
The Wise collapsed, poison spilling all over my jacket. I sat up, dragging myself out from underneath her unconscious body.
Standing over her was The Nice, holding a clay planter in her hand, breathing heavily.
"Thanks for the save," I gasped.
"Mhmm. I'm not always nice..."
"Let's find the stairs."
The Nice nodded, dropping the pot from her hand. "She won't be like that for long."
"You know her. Can you please tell me what's going on?"
"All in good time, Moe. We need to move, before The Wise wakes up. There are plenty of us... them... in here, and not all of them will be so friendly."
"You call that friendly?" I eyed the prone blob in the dark.
"We should get moving. I'll explain on the way."
"Square deal. So... which way to the stairs?"