Free-write of a story.

"Jolly good show, fellows."

The compliment was directed towards a band of three, performing in the lively marketplace, with a small audience amongst the bustling crowd that were shopping for goods of all kinds. The fountain behind them glistened with a radiant demeanor as water continuously spewed from the mouths of the ornaments that decorated the fountain. Garnering a few claps from the audience, the band bowed humbly as coins were thrown towards their collecting box.

"Thank you all for enjoying our performance!" the three shouted in unison. The miniscule band consisted of a meek-looking drummer, whom had a visage that was not the ugliest, but could possibly pass off as below average. Standing on the left was a burlesque man with a detached sentiment, with eyes that give off a strange vibe to whomever stared at them long enough. He played a trumpet and handled it delicately. Between these two was a regal looking man playing the lute. He had the body of an active youth and crisp, golden hair complemented with a pair of gleaming, blue eyes. Together, the three formed their own motley crew.

As their performance ended, some began to go back to their everyday business, or to pick up what they were doing before being stopped by the band's tranquil music. Some came up to the band to personally thank them for the performance, offering a handshake or two. The trio smiled at their new-found fans and politely rejected a few cheers for an encore.

"We must be going, now, for we've got matters to attend to", the middleman explained. From that, the three began to pack their instruments and examine the components of their bags. The audience has completely scattered now, even those who cheered for more. No one paid attention to what the trio was doing anymore.

"Are we…ready for this?" the meek man nervously chattered.

"We're already here, aren't we?" the burlesque man growled.

"There has been no setbacks and everything has been going smoothly so far. Don't tell me you two have already lost your wits after the first experiment!" the regal man exclaimed. The other two glanced at him, and felt reassured about the plan. They began to take out a white, spherical object.

"One, two…THREE!" They lifted the object together, and dropped it into the fountain. The spherical object began to glow and started moving towards the middle of the basin. It rolled past the decorative features and fit itself firmly into an opening that appeared to be exactly the size of the spherical object. Then, the object stopped glowing. The motley crew waited for a minute, then two, then three.

"Is it…broken?" the burlesque man questioned.

"No, no, no! I-It couldn't have! W-We didn't work t-this hard t-to fail!" the meek man shouted.

"It's alright, just wait a bit." the regal man said, with a confident look. He took out a locket and flipped it open. Inside it was a picture of a elegant woman in her twenties, smiling brightly. The man smiled for a bit. "Elaine…it'll be done, soon."

As the town's clock struck 9, the fountain began to glow. A sudden flash of light enveloped the entire town and vanished the moment it occurred. The residents felt disorientated, but did not seem to notice anything different, so they proceeded to their activities. The fountain had vanished.

Such word. Much praise. o/