#and if i get cheated out of my golden dice? you'll see me on the goddamn news.

[corvigae]

GOD DAMMIT LARIAN YOU COULDN'T HAVE GIVEN ME LIKE TWO MORE DAYS TO FINISH MY HONOR RUN AND ASTARION ORIGIN??

prayer circle that my mods don't break with the new patch and that i can finish my shit before i uninstall them 🙏🙏🙏

[weeinterpreter]

Ok that trope bingo thing got me all excited I can’t wait to read all the amazing work 😔🔥

How about this, Everyone is a suspect trope and it’s just the cast playing Monopoly and someone stole money and they’re trying to figure out who :)

@me-fangirlingxxx

So sorry for the long wait! It took me so long, but here we are. I hope you enjoy this! It turned into a smaller episode, but will be part of a bigger story, so please bear with me.

What's a Trope Bingo?

What's the Evil Association of Evil Villains?

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5][Part 6] [Part 7] [Part 8]

Part 1. Monopoly.

Jon laughed, "Well, Arty, looks like I win and you lose."

Artemis groaned as he moved his pawn to Park Place.

"That'll be 1500 dollars, please," the millionaire said, his golden bracelets clinking against each other. Artemis shot him a dark look and counted his money.

"Don't look so sad, Arty," Jon said lightly. "It's just a game."

"I'm not sad," Artemis snapped, shifting in the comfortable leather armchair. It had been Jon's idea to play Monopoly. Ever since the President of the Evil Association of Evil Villains had approved the blueprints for the Secret Evil Lair, Jon had been adamant that the place had to have an arcade and a bowling alley. The proposals hadn't been approved yet, so Jon had spent all his free time in adding a game room, trying to get his fellow villains to play with him.

"I just find it funny that I seem to land on Park Place every single round. Are you sure the dice aren't loaded?"

Jon placed a hand on his heart. "Artemis, I am a criminal, but I have standards. I would never trick a fellow member. That's beneath me. You just have terrible luck today."

Artemis made a non-committal sound and handed over the paper notes. "I still find it odd. Regardless, I have been thinking about our heists. Why have they all failed? I finally know why."

Arno and Butler paled, while Jon thought hard.

"Beats me."

"It's obvious, Jon. Think about it. What did all our missions have in common?"

Arno shot Butler a panicked look, his hands trembling as he sat up.

"They were too obvious," Artemis said.

Butler frowned. "Too obvious?"

"Yes, beams melting the ozone layer? Come on. It's what movie villains would do. Instead, we have to think subtler. Less obvious."

Jon nodded. "What do you suggest instead?"

Artemis gave him his signature vampire smile. "Glad you are asking. I was thinking-" he handed Butler the dice, who let them promptly drop to the floor.

Arno Blunt sneered. "Scared you'll end up on my street, Butler?"

Artemis cleared his throat with a lift of his eyebrow. He didn't appreciate the interruption, and was about to start anew when Butler rolled his dice. They both landed on a 'six'. Arno's eyes widened.

"Impossible," he exclaimed and grabbed the dice, eyeing them from all sides. "You are cheating."

Butler shrugged. "We are all using the same dice. How would I be cheating?"

"Gentlemen, if I may," Artemis began. Before he could lie out his genius plan, though, the lights went out.

"What the-?"

"Not to worry," said Artemis. "The emergency generator should kick in any moment now."

As if on cue, an eerie green light came to life, illuminating the sitting room. Jon blinked, squinting his eyes when he noticed something on the table.

"Hey, why is all the money gone?"

Everybody looked, and indeed, there was not a single note lying on the table. Jon furrowed his brows.

"Come on, Arty. I know this is not your strongest game, but theft?"

"My money is gone, too," Artemis said. "As you can see. Besides, what would I do with play money?"

Both criminals looked at their bodyguards. Butler lifted his empty hands.

"Arno?"

The giant threw the dice on the table.

"What? Like, I'm that petty? It's a stupid game to begin with. Like, what is this, kindergarten?"

Artemis placed a finger on his chin. "How intriguing."

"What is?" Jon asked, confused.

"Clearly, one of us is lying. The question is, why?"

Arno snorted. "Maybe it was you, kiddo. Since you are so intrigued by the whole thing."

Artemis didn't answer. He let his gaze wander across the room. It got caught on a white card that had imbedded itself into the wall. Walking over to it, the boy pulled it out and examined it for a moment. The thick, expensive paper was empty except for two symbols. Artemis frowned, studying the first, unable to remember where he had seen it before. It looked like a secret message, as if someone had written one letter above another. He wondered if he could scan it and decipher the message on his computer at Fowl Manor.

The second symbol, however, was much easier to interpret. It was a winking smiley.

Jon tapped his foot in an erratic rhythm. "What is it?"

Artemis looked up. "We've been robbed."

To be continued.