Clowns

Soon the jeep arrived, its tires crunching on the gravel road nearby. It stopped near our setup and out walked a tall man in a yellow jacket, with some sort of combat lamp strapped to his head.

"Out camping?" he called to us, striding forward with purpose. "I'm Enforcer Samuel. I'll need to see one of your IDs."

Ashley stepped forward first, volunteering to retrieve her wallet from the jeep. As she approached, there was a hint of caution in the air; after all, the enforcer looked like he could handle himself in a fight.

However, technically, we shouldn't have had any issues.

"We're from The Maxwell Region," Ashley explained as she handed over her ID. "But we have permission to camp here."

The enforcer cast a peculiar glance at Ashley before taking her ID card. With a small device, he scanned it and then handed it back.

"Normally, I'd just leave," he began, "but since you're not from around here, I'll need everyone's IDs," he stated firmly.

This got me a little worried; it looked like the officer was looking for trouble. 

One by one, we gave him our ID's and I watched him scan them. I had a bad premonition about what might happen when he finds out about my last name. But I complied, handing over my ID.

Who would have thought... When he scanned mine, he paused, his eyes narrowing as he read the screen.

"Kid!", he yelled, looking straight at me, "Are you just a civilian, or are you part of the Mafia?"

"..."

I wanted to say that I was just a civilian, but the enforcer seemed to have seen the hesitation in my voice, as he immediately pulled out his phone and began dialing.

He spoke into his phone with a serious tone. "Jester Ignis, this is Enforcer Samuel. I've encountered some suspicious individuals near Weston, Conant. It would be best if you could come here."

I glanced at the others, feeling a knot of worry in my stomach. Our simple camping trip could be turning into something dangerous.

Jared's eyebrows were raised, and he looked worried. "I knew you were suspicious." he muttered.

Ruby looked at me, concern in her eyes. "What's going on, Graham?" she asked.

"Let's just wait. I'm sure it'll be explained," I said.

Emily leaned in close, whispering in my ear, "Are you sure we'll be okay? You should have told Ashley who you are before we came here."

I reassured her with a nod. "It'll be fine."

"Hey! What are you whispering about?" The enforcer interrupted us.

"I was just saying that everything would be fine because we came here to camp; that's it." I told the Enforcer, trying to keep my voice steady. "Why can't we just leave and call it a day?"

He shook his head. "We need to be sure about what you were doing here. My superior will decide what to do."

Just then, another jeep arrived, and a man with comically colored hair, in shades of red, blue, green, and yellow, emerged, wearing a similar yellow jacket to the enforcer's.

He consulted with Enforcer Samuel before approaching us.

"Are you a part of THE Maxwell Family?" he asked me directly.

"Yes," I replied.

"Stand here for a minute," he instructed calmly, then began to walk around our campsite, assessing the situation.

Ashley leaned in close, her voice barely above a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

I had assumed that my surname would have given it away, but perhaps there were many people with the last name Maxwell in the region.

I managed to sneak a glance at the Jester—what a strange title, by the way—as he moved.

I noticed a constant flow of green and blue lines within him, in and out of his heart. He was clearly an advanced Kainen user.

When he returned, he addressed the group. "Everyone else, other than Graham Maxwell, drive away from here."

"Why?!" Emily protested, her voice filled with frustration.

The Jester shot her an annoyed glance before saying, "Enforcer Samuel! Get this kid Graham into the car," he ordered before turning away without another word.

Just as he commanded, Enforcer Samuel moved forward taking steps firmly on the ground, I closed my eyes just for a split second to assess the danger level; the man clearly wasn't using Kainen.

I could probably take him.

"Yeah, I'm out," Anna declared abruptly. "Peace." With that, she turned on her heel and began to walk away from the tense situation.

As Enforcer Samuel came closer, I hesitated. Should I fight? Should I defend myself? Or should I allow myself to be captured?

"WHOOSH!" Suddenly, there was a loud sound of something flying through the air at high speed.

"BOOM!!!"

With a thunderous boom, something crashed into the ground right in front of my eyes.

The force of the impact sent pieces of earth flying in all directions, and everyone around us yelled in confusion. Enforcer Samuel was thrown off balance, tumbling to the side, while I stumbled backward in shock.

Ignis, the Jester, heard the commotion and spun around to see what was going on.

Out of nowhere, two men in black suits stood in the center; their black hair was partially dyed crimson.

"You should keep your hands away from this man, Clowns!" one of the men in black suits declared boldly.

Jester Ignis's expression turned pale as he stared at them, clearly intimidated.

It dawned on me that these newcomers were far more formidable than I had initially realized. Ignis had just traversed the entire camp without detecting anyone in hiding, which most likely meant they possessed superior strength and abilities.

When I closed my eyes for a moment, I saw something amazing. Their lines of energy sped through their bodies at very high speeds, like NASCAR cars on a track.

Not to mention, I never knew it was possible to move at such high speeds as they did.

Everyone was quiet; no one wanted to become the target.

Jester Ignis, although somewhat shaken, regained his composure and spoke up. "What are you doing on our turf! This is illegal trespassing. I will be forced to report it to the Leader," he declared firmly.

The man standing to my left stepped forward, his voice calm yet commanding. "We are here to protect the Young Master of the Maxwell Mafia. You can report whatever you want. Don Aiden Maxwell will handle this matter accordingly," he stated assertively.

Ignis's expression twisted into a cringe of frustration and resignation. He seemed to realize he had no chance against them.

"Ah, screw it," he muttered under his breath. "If it wasn't for the Anarchists, I'd not let you go. But I don't have the time."

With a defeated air, he retreated to his Jeep and climbed inside. "I hope that you will leave this place. Knox isn't someone you want to cross," he warned before starting the engine and driving away.

Everyone's eyes turned to me.

 "Young Master?" Ruby asked, puzzled.