A Monster From Another Land


"Th-th-th-th-that's … n-n-n-n-n-not … "

Darius's tongue slipped and tripped over the words horribly. The presence of the knife-wielding man was enough to stop his heart; now he had to muster up every little drop of courage in his being to tell him he's gotten a wrong book. This latest feat ordered by Capricorn was rather simple, yet somehow the second-in-command managed to screw it up. The man shaking in fear reconsidered his thoughts as Basta played around with his knife. He -was- illiterate and he never managed to bring the wrong book before. This time … he was not looking for Inkheart. Basta had memorized how the word 'Inkheart' looked by now and he never made a mistake when hunting the ill-fated book. However, it was not Inkheart Capricorn sought out this time. He instead wished to hold a summoning ritual … but the book Basta brought was going to doom them all …

"Wh-wh-wh-what's that D-D-D-Darius?" Basta sneered, his grin wide and evil. Scaring the four-eyed man never got old. Mocking him was a delicacy he enjoyed the most.

Darius took three steps back involuntarily, shuddering from the low mockingly-sweet voice that carried the scent of peppermint. "It's n-n-n-not the r-r-right b-b-b-book." Dear Lord … his stammering had increased ten-fold. Especially at the sight of Basta taking slow strides towards him with a frown, and a blade in the moonlight shining through the lone window of the room.

"What do you mean it's not the right book you little worm?" Basta hissed with a glare. Darius stumbled back and fell hard on his behind. "I …. I well … I-"

Basta groaned, his patience wearing thin. If he waited for this man to explain himself fully the sun would rise to begin a new day. He'd much rather go home and rest after the long driving, the threatening and the hideous deciphering of book titles. If it indeed was the wrong book as the little squirming worm suggested Capricorn would pour his anger over him. He could not have that. He did not want to disappoint him.

He extended a hand and grabbed Darius by his clothes, dragging him and the book out to the hallway. Darius was kept prisoner in Capricorn's house, he might as well take the matter to him directly. The man was whimpering and shaking but it was not something Basta was not used to or could not very easily ignore.

He turned right at the end of the hallway, behind him the staircase and in front of him to his right a door leading to Capricorn's room. He was making his way to it just fine until he was interrupted by a familiar hateful voice.

"Where do you think you're going?" Mortola, the bird-like lady, huffed from behind him. He turned to see her scowling ugly face and her hands upon her hips.

He considered her for a moment with a scowl of his own and then turned, ignoring her. "You are not to go in there!" She hissed behind him. "He is not to be disturbed tonight!" He rolled his eyes reaching the door. "Whatever it is come back tomorrow!"

A small grin crept over his lips as he looked at her, slowly raising his hand and knocking the door before she could reach him. She hissed and growled at him like a demented cat, but to her annoyance she was too late.

Capricorn's unconcerned call was heard from behind the door, "Enter."

She bared her teeth at Basta but he was smiling with triumph and smugness as he clicked the door open, shoving Darius inside.

Capricorn sat on his armchair, already dressed in his red silk nightwear with his red velvet night robe comfortably fastened over it. He considered Basta with his cold grey eyes as he pushed the useless reader inside, the old hag hurrying in behind them.

"You must have -very- good reason to knock on my door this late at night Basta." Capricorn mouthed softly, the menace in his voice evident for those ears sensitive to it.

Mortola turned to Basta with a glare seething, "I told you it can wait-"

"I did not address you."

She halted herself immediately at the fact the cold man had just pronounced. It could be seen on her face her disgust for the man smiling so happily at her discomfort; the fear from the man that she might've angered. Both sets of eyes were on her, before the cold grey pair moved to meet with the darker set of eyes.

"Oh I have sir." He answered quickly with the enthusiasm of a child about to rat out a fellow naughty boy and relish the sight of his punishment. "I came back with a book for the summoning and D-D-D-Darius says it's no good."

Capricorn slowly shifted, causing the man with the glasses to go white. He leaned forward in his chair, firstly waving Mortola away. She grudgingly left the room and closed the door behind her. His breathing was steady as were the rest of his movements. His eyes slowly shifted from Basta to Darius and back. "He's the one that can read … "

The matter of fact tone that accompanied the quiet murmur sent shivers down Basta's spine. A minute ago he was sure he was about to put Darius in big trouble. The tables however seemed to be turning on him … A flash of panic was evident on his face.

"Y-Yes my lord but you said I should pick one with a foreboding cover and that's what I did!" He thrust an accusing finger at the helpless reader, "He didn't even open the pages to confirm it was no good! He didn't even read it at all before he said was it was the wrong b-b-b-book!"

Darius flinched at imitation, this time flawless, of his stuttering.

Capricorn turned to him, a fine eyebrow rose slightly, "Is there a reason Darius why you are deeming a book useless to me without so much as a look inside?"

The man pushed his glasses back with a shaking hand as he paled. He kept his eyes decidedly to the floor in fear as he nodded, "It's n-not a … n-n-novel."

Capricorn took one glance at the book. He could not read the letters in large orange writing, but he could very well understand the illustration. It had two boys standing back to back with determined eyes separated by a large sword held by a man in the distance as if he was slicing between them. He noticed the glare on the man who held the sword, then turned back to Darius, "Is it not a story?"

Darius seemed taken aback by the question, Basta surveyed him wearily. "Y-Yes … it is."

"Then what seems to be the problem?" Capricorn huffed, the tiniest hint of annoyance could be heard in his voice.

Darius, if possible, paled further. Basta on the other hand seemed to regain his confidence.

"It's a s-s-story b-b-but not a n-n-novel."

"Why n-n-n-n-not?!" Basta snapped. He had had it with stammering for one night. Darius seemed to cower at the former's anger.

"It's … a t-t-translated j-j-japanese m-m-manga … "

Basta glared at him pulling his knife out. This Darius had the -nerve- to make up ridiculous cow-dung. Capricorn held a hand to steady his second in command, eyes fixed on the man shaking with fear from the both of them. "You still haven't clarified where the problem is and my patience is starting to thin Darius. It be perhaps a good idea to have Basta and his knife play with you."

Darius panicked, reaching for the cursed book that was about to grant him a session with Basta's knife. He opened it with trembling fingers halfway, revealing it's contents to Capricorn and Basta. The cold-blooded man's brow crumpled into the tiniest of frowns. The fading traces of interest appeared in his grey eyes. He reached for the book and took it, investigating the illustrations that had writing over them. It looked like no book he's ever seen before.

In it he saw people drawn with no color. Letters littered the pages over the detailed illustrations. He saw a man with the largest sword he's ever seen or heard of. He could vaguely make out what was happening, but for once, as he held a book, he understood something from the pictures alone.

Basta seemed utterly lost and confused.

"It seems … " Capricorn murmured, still eyeing the strange book, "That you didn't open it to confirm it was a normal book Basta."

All color drained from Basta's pale face. How could he explain himself? He trashed half the library because all the books had vague incomprehensible covers and as he finally found this one he was glad to storm out?! He pursed his lips but then kept them shut, fear slowly creeping in on him.

"But that is not necessarily a bad thing … " Capricorn finished. He raised his head from the peculiar black and white pages and addressed Darius,

"Can you not read from it anyway? Words are scarce but they are in there." He huffed.

Darius was pained to explain as he found no voice to summon and the words took what seemed to be hours to form on his tongue. "T-T-The s-s-story is told th-th-through the p-p-pictures. Only d-dialogues or m-monologues are written d-d-down. I-I-I can read it t-t-to myself but a-a-aloud n-n-no one would u-u-understand. I-I-I'm n-n-not sure if I d-d-do read it that anything w-w-will c-c-come out of it." He swallowed after his explanation as if he had swallowed his own voice in a vow never to talk again.

Capricorn considered his words with no interest. He shrugged with a smile void of any mirth, "We shall try."

Basta sighed with relief in his head while Darius became even more nervous, "S-S-Sir … "

Capricorn raised a fine eyebrow eyeing him but said nothing, waiting for him to continue. "The c-c-characters, m-m-monsters in th-th-these things are q-q-quite different … "

Darius steadied his breath, eyes darting everywhere to avoid contact with grey orbs scrutinizing him. "Th-th-they may n-not be easy to c-c-control."

Capricorn let out an annoyed sigh as he leaned back into his chair. "The most dangerous thing in that book seems to be the man with the sword. It's a large magnificent one I admit but it's still a sword. With a few gunshots I think we can be persuasive enough."

Darius's lips trembled wanting to say more, but he doubted anything he came up with would deter Capricorn from his new-found want. He -wanted- this book. There was no going around that. He nodded weekly and Capricorn sighed further, scrutinizing both he and Basta. "Any further objections?"

They both shook their heads. Darius part his lips to confirm what he should be rehearsing for. "You want th-th-the m-m-man with the s-s-sword m-m-my lord?"

Capricorn was amused at how, for once, the man spoke sense. Or something that made sense to his ears. He was not sure what exactly he wanted to be read from the book. He reached for the book going through it lazily. It had pictures, so he would probably for once get a glimpse and choose what is it he wanted to be read out. There were children who held knives but he had enough of those. An old drunk, a guardian of the children and what seemed to be the villain were the three adults. Along with some people that seemed to have no significance appearing only once or twice. He finally closed it throwing it on small coffee table in front of him.

"He seems to be the thing that would be most useful to me so yes. Him and his sword." He turned to Basta with a thoughtful expression, "I need proper henchmen rather than the children he keeps picking up."

The second-in-command's face immediately radiated the sting from his master's comment. He looked at him with slight pleading in his eyes to reconsider his words but when Capricorn kept silent he turned his eyes away to something else. Darius couldn't help but wonder how a merciless murderer could suddenly behave like a kicked dog pained at his master's abuse.

"If that is all, you'd do well both of you to remove yourselves from my room."

The both of them scrambled about. Darius reached for the book while Basta reached for him to drag him out. As they proceeded down the hallway Darius opened the book to get acquainted with whom he would be reading out next. The man with the bandaged face and the big sword as tall as the wielder, half his width. He paled at the description of the man. Basta noticed his eyes bulge as he read quickly over the panels of the foreign book and shoved him into his room. He was about to close the door and lock it to be on his way, but he burned with curiosity as to why Darius seemed to fear what was on the pages almost more than Capricorn himself.

"What is it four eyes?" He spoke in a low threatening voice slipping into the room and slowly closing the door behind him. "Why do you look as white as a ghost eh?"

Darius stumbled back into a chair, eyes still glued to the pages of the book of black and white. "I-I-I … "

Basta stomped forward. "What?!" He snapped in a low voice, grabbing Darius by the collar and forcing him to look up to him. "Out with it!"

"I'm about to c-c-call out a m-m-monster … " Darius mumbled, fear clutching his heart. Basta wasn't the reason for it and for once he wished he had been. "A-a-and it's n-n-no b-b-brainless b-b-beast."


Ok … yeah I know I have another pending story ==" It's just I've been reading Paper Maid by Charivari and it's becoming my favourite Inkheart fanfic of all time. I also checked out the crossovers with Inkheart and was surprised there was yet to be a Naruto/Inkheart fanfic so … Imma give it a shot. Please R & R !