A Breach in the Clock Department
Prologue:
[August 28th - 8:02 pm]
It was an average sunny day in paradise. Heaven was at its normal 73°, and the angels were at peace.
All except for one. Tony, a terrier, was a rising guardian, and was becoming Annabelle's right paw dog. The only problem was that he was always advising her. Never was it: "Go take a day off Anthony." or "You've done quite enough, Anthony", it especially made him annoyed to be called by his real name. Today was one of the worst for him. He'd been busy for what seemed like hours, but time is meaningless if you're dead.
Tony was rushing through the golden lands of heaven that afternoon. "I'm coming Annabelle, I'm coming." He rushed past the beaches. Scurried through the Great Hall and raced up the stairs that led to Annabelle's private room. He burst into the doorway, out of breath. "I…I," he said between pants, "I'm here. What is it?"
Annabelle the Heavenly Whippet stood her ground, still looking out over Heaven. "Ah, I see you've arrived Tony."
"Yeah. I'd be here sooner if it wasn't for the fact my wings sorta, you know, got torn on the last mission you sent me on."
"Is it done?"
"What? My wings? Done for, if you mean that,"
"No. The renovations. I realize we've been working on them for years, and I'd love to have the satisfaction of seeing Heaven finished."
"What do you mean, Annabelle? The rivers are flowing, the grass is growing, the buildings are built, the fillings are filled, what else is there!"
Annabelle made a head turn, letting Tony see the unpleased look in her eyes. "Sorry. But what is it? Is it anything I can do?"
Annabelle paused to take a breath. "You recall the…incident a bit over 70 years ago."
"I'm afraid I don't Miss Annabelle." Tony said with worry. "Could you maybe, perhaps, remind me?"
The whippet sighed. "Concerning Mr. Barkin. Charles B. Barkin."
Oh him. Tony thought. It had been some time since Charlie had left, but his attitude left everybody wondering how pure he was. "Ah, yes. He did the, uh, thing! Yeah, and there was another, thing and…"
"You have absolutely no idea of what I'm talking about, do you, Anthony?"
"No, Annabelle. Sorry, Annabelle."
"In the Spring of 1939, Charles had died, and being the dog he was, despite his habit of cheating, scamming, infidelity, robbery," Annabelle stopped to control herself. "Charles arrived in Heaven. But when I…sadly told him that he was dead. Yet he wasn't too pleased with that fact. And so he stole back his life watch and revived himself. But since his watch was with him, he was immortal. Only the destruction of his watch brought him back to life as a corpse."
"That's a great story and all, but what does that have to do with the renovation?"
"I want to be sure nothing like that ever, ever, happens again. I want the watches, clocks, and time keepers locked away where no one will ever find them."
"Then I'm afraid it hasn't been done yet."
"It isn't like there's any hurry for the project to be finished, but I digress. Belladonna has been very quiet recently. We can never tell just what she is planning." Annabelle spoke as the sun set on Heaven and plunged the lands into darkness. "And on an unrelated note, have the lights been installed?"
Tony clapped, and light filled Heaven once more.
"Good job Anthony, good job. You are dismissed."
Chapter 1:
[August 28th - 8:39 pm.]
Night had fallen on the streets of New Orleans, and the brisk air of Summer was beginning to disappear. Soon Autumn would arrive and the air would start to cool. With the cooling mixing with the worst part of hurricane season arriving, the last portion of Summer had to be appreciated. And through what better means than a good night out?
Mickey knew there were few places still around for a dog to get good eats. In fact, it had been that way for many decades. But the Lhasa Opsa was able to find himself in the newest café in the south: the Tout Le Monde. Performances, food, a view of the ocean, the place was nigh on perfection.
Mickey was relaxing at a table in the back, enjoying the rich French culture, as his waiter walked over to him. "Sir, what may I get you tonight?"
"Yes, I think I'll just settle for your…" Mickey began. "He looked over the menu one last time. "…Don't take this as odd, but I'll have your Vore Lover's Special."
"Just to remind you sir, you have your choice of prey."
"Rats, if you don't mind, good sir."
"Very well then. Your meal will be out in just a moment."
As the waiter walked off, Mickey sighed. "Man, this place is great. Now then if only there was…"
But Mickey was interrupted as a young lady poodle ambled over to him. "Excuse me, but do you mind if I rest my little legs here?" she spoke in a French accent.
Oh boy, I'm in heaven. Mickey thought. "No, miss. You can sit here."
The poodle sat next to Mickey, almost hovering above him. "So, what brings a dog like you to a place like this?" she spoke.
"You know, the urge of going places, seeing new faces. Adventure and danger, such like that." After the mishap some months ago, Mickey knew better than to reveal his true reasons for being in Louisiana.
"Well aren't you the thrill seeker? What's your name, little doggie?"
"Mickalavich. But just call me Mickey."
"Mickalavich, is that Russian?"
"Tibetan, actually."
"Ooh, Tibet is quite a distance from here. I'm Inconnu. But you can just call me Unknown, because that's what it translates to."
"Your parents were quite clever." Mickey chuckled.
"As were yours, Mickey." Inconnu said, getting ever closer to Mickey.
But almost right on cue, the waiter returned with a cage in hand. Inconnu scooted her seat further away. "Here is your meal sir." the waiter calmly said as he put the cage on the table; inside was four young rats.
"So you're a Vore lover, too? You love the feel of the prey sliding down your throat?"
"The fact that you used too in your sentence makes the fact just that much better." Mickey responded as he pulled out a rat. Raising it above his maw, he dropped it into his mouth and swallowed, letting the rat slide gently down his throat. He picked out another one and held by its tail. "Would you like one, Unknown?"
Inconnu took the rat invitation in paw. "Would I ever." She gulped down the rat just as quickly as Mickey, and whined in delight.
"Beautiful and feisty, I like that in a woman." The two reached into the cage and each grabbed a rat.
"To us, Mickalavich?" Inconnu said, prompting a rat toast.
"To us, Inconnu." The dogs clinked their rats and swallowed in rhythm. Not a moment sooner had the two dined than had the waiter, once again, returned.
"Good news, sir. For being our first customer to try our Vore Lover's Special, your meal has been paid for, courtesy of the manager."
"Well then," Mickey said delightfully, "My thanks to the manager. And compliments to the one who caught those delicious little rats."
"Sure, sir." the waiter monotonously added as he walked off.
Inconnu turned to Mickey. "Well aren't you the luckiest dog in the café?"
"You mean for the free meal, or for meeting you?"
"Oh Mickey, you're such the charmer. But," Inconnu whispered sadly. "I have to go. Pups to raise, bills to pay, and so forth. Perhaps I'll see you again sometime Mickey?"
"Perhaps. Virtually nothing that could get me to leave this beautiful town." Mickey watched the poodle gracefully walk out of the Tout Le Monde and wink back as she strolled out on the streets. Mickey looked up at the golden laced clock over the exit.
"8:50 already?" Mickey knew the streets of New Orleans were a dangerous place, and it only gets riskier as the night rolls on. "Guess I should be going," he muttered to himself. "You never know what some thugs have hidden in their sleeves."
Mickey got out of his chair and began to follow suit out of the café. The skies had grown darker. There were no clouds but it seemed as if lightning was exploding amidst the sky. But Mickey was focused on finding his way back to his new home. Now then…I go left, then down two blocks, he thought. But his train of thought was interrupted by being stuck on the head with a hard object.
"Yawrlp!" Mickey cried out as he lost consciousness.
[August 28th - 8:40 pm]
Tony was relaxing on the beach in Heaven. It was a strange sight for anyone to see him not working. But Tony was making the most of the night. "It's about time." he spoke to himself. "I swear Annabelle is so demanding." Tony laid back on the golden sands. He looked up at the night sky, and began to just drift away.
For about fives seconds, that is.
A blood curdling scream rings out, and Tony's paradise relaxation is shattered. He starts to get up and try to see where the scream came from. He sees a husky trapped in the pond. Tony rushes over to the downed dog. "What's going on?"
The husky, female, was in tears. "I was swimming, and just getting out, when the water got all sticky."
Tony stuck a paw into what was once crystal blue waters. When he pulled it back out, it was covered with thick, brown sludge. "Mud? But how?"
As Tony made his deduction, the clouds that formed Heaven started to turn a demonic red, the roads once paved with kibble cracked and split. Tony knew that Annabelle needed to know, and raced through the disaster zone to the tower where she stayed. Rushing through Heaven, he could see angels in panic, hope diminishing, and general sadness. How could anyone find pleasure in causing this? he though as he ran.
By the time Tony had reached Annabelle's tower, she was already out front, waiting for him. "Anthony. I take it you've seen what's going on."
"Yes, Miss Annabelle. This is terrible!"
"Look, I need you to tell the other guardian angels to get everyone to the Halo Hall. You and me are going to the, as Charles put it, Clock Department."
"But Annabelle, this is unstoppable. Within moments, Heaven entirely could be decimated. We have to find somewhere else safe!"
"There's no time for that," Annabelle yelled, her tone getting sharper with each word. "We need to act now! We have to…" she paused, hearing crumbling behind her. "Look out!" she screamed as she pushed Tony out of the way of the tower, now falling apart.
"There is no way I am going to face whatever demons have managed to break through your 'perfect' defenses! This is not my issue!"
Annabelle snapped at Tony, "Damn it Tony! This isn't about any of us! It is about the dogs that are still alive!"
Tony, if he had a heart still beating, would have sworn that his heart skipped a beat. Annabelle had never been so angry, never had she yelled so aggressively, no one in the thousands of years there had heard her slip even the lightest of swears out her jaws.
"Y-yes, Annabelle." Tony whimpered.
Annabelle, heavily breathing, stopped to regain her composure. "Terribly sorry about that Anthony. But we have no time to lose." The two rush past the wrecked tower and out to the outer rims of Heaven itself. The farther they went, the more Tony become frightened.
"So the, uh, Clock Department is back here."
"Yes, as I said, I wanted to keep it far away, but I wanted it more protected as well, so putting it in the outskirts was the best idea."
Tony finally began to see the clocks Annabelle had mentioned. But he could also see a shadowy figure snatching ticking clocks and placing them in what seemed to be a basket. "Hey! Annabelle look! It's a demon!"
Annabelle narrowed her eyes. There is no way I'll let you jeopardize millions of dog lives! Annabelle lunged at the theft, sending it across the red skies. But the shadow retaliated and dashed over to the whippet and began clawing at her. Tony could only watch in shock as the two fought. The shadow and Annabelle tussled, turned, bit, and scratched at each other. It was anyone's guess as to who would win.
The fight raged on, but soon Annabelle had finally pinned the shadowy assailant to the ground. "This is over. You lose!" Annabelle raised her claws, she was willing to change her pacifist ways if it meant saving the lives of dogs. But the shadow saw the basket sitting next to a break in Heaven.
"I'm sorry miss," the shadow hissed, "But it's you who loses!" The shadow used its free leg to kick the basket out of Heaven and plummeting to the Earth below.
"No!" Annabelle yelled. She let go of the perpetrator and rushed over to where the clocks had fallen. When she turned around, the shadow was gone in a puff of black smoke.
Tony rushed over to Annabelle, hovering over the gap. "The clocks! What is gonna…are they gonna…?" he smashed the words together.
Annabelle felt around her neck. Her amulet tag was gone. "I can summon enough magic to stop them from shattering when they fall, but after that there's nothing I can do. That creature stole my source of power." Annabelle began chanting, "Uu mi, fe ret, to these watches, I protect!" An eruption of sparkles and shimmering mist told Annabelle that her magic had worked. But the power made her weak, and she fell onto her knees.
"Annabelle where did they land?" Tony asked.
"New…New Orleans." Annabelle struggled to whisper.
"Good. Now, can…can I get my life watch? I can just go down there and when I'm done just die and bring them back."
"No." Annabelle pointed to a statue in the distance. "Break it. Inside is… is enough magic to get you to San Francisco."
"And what do you want me to do when I get there?"
"Find, Charles. Find him Anthony. Take him to New Orleans. He knows that city. He just might be the only hope for the dogs those watches belong too." Annabelle blacked out, leaving Tony alone in consciousness at the sight of a Breach in the Clock Department.
Character Credit:
Mickey, Misc. Characters - Charmyte
Annabelle - MGM/Don Bluth