Kid Kthulhu: The Awakening, Chapter 9: The New Complication
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Brother Elder shook his head. "I'm sorry, but it's true, Mr. Michaels. Yes, you did brave incredible odds, taking great risks. No one can fault you for that. But the simple fact is this: this," and here he held up a glittering crystal, "is not the Shining Trapezohedron. It's a very good imitation, I'll grant you that. But it's only an imitation."
Cal swore. He and Kris were in Brother Elder's office back at Innsmouth. "So the whole trip was for nothing."
"Not for nothing. You did extinguish a nest of the enemy, and you made sure that, if those books were there, they are there no longer." The building had burned flat. "So no other innocent-or perhaps not so innocent-human soul will stumble over them and be seduced by the promises of power in the books. If they were ever there at all.
"We have added to our fund of knowledge." He'd already shared the video of the fire girl bathing in Mount Etna with them. "This whole endeavor….seems to have been a trap. But was it a trap for you, or for her? Or was it perhaps for both?
"Plus we now know, not only of her existence, but also her involvement in this matter, which we didn't know before."
"But who is she?"
"Unknown. But…judging from her abilities, I would say she has some connection to Hastur. Hastur, as I may have mentioned, is known predominately for his mastery of fire."
Cal thought. "So….could she be, like, the daughter of Hastur?"
"It's quite possible. For certain there's a connection there someplace. The problem is, we have no knowledge of any other organization such as our own revolving around Hastur. Prior to this, it was thought that he had simply returned to the stars from whence he came. But if our surmises are correct, he apparently still exerts some influence over this world, as well." He sighed. "Anyway, while we can't call this mission a complete success, neither can we call it a complete failure. We—I—will have to research this fire girl, to see what role she plays in all this."
Outside, Kris caught up with Cal, hooking her arm through his. "Cal? You're not…you know…depressed about this, are you?"
He thought. "Well, maybe a little. I mean, first mission and I can't help but feel like I bollixed it totally, Kris. I didn't get the books, I didn't get the Trapezohedron…it just all seems like it was an enormous waste of time."
She leaned her head against his arm. "Well, don't be. Brother Elder's right: you did accomplish some of your goals. For a first mission it wasn't all that bad."
"Hmph."
"Tell you what. Let's go home an' I'll whip up some lasagna. You know you can eat your weight in lasagna. How's that sound?"
His spirits lifted a little. Yeah, he did like Kris's lasagna. "Okay. You're on!"
…..
Monday morning: Cal and Kris had arrived early, and were talking about some of the things Arkham High had planned for its student body. "…tellin' ya, Cal, these tail-gate parties are where it's at. I mean, free food, music, and the game starting. We just gotta go!"
"Hey, I'm game. But fair warning: the first sign of booze or drugs, an' I'm outta there."
"Well, you and me both, on that. But we could just circulate. And you don't have anything else planned,"—meaning as Kid Kthulhu—"…it'll be fun!" The other classmembers had been steadily trickling in.
"Class!" Ms. Kellam rapped on her desk for attention. "I have the honor of announcing a new addition to our class. She's an exchange student from Scotland. Please welcome Miss Aidoann McCloud."
Cal and Kris's jaws dropped in unison. The girl who'd just come in, and was presently standing in front of the class, was none other than their erstwhile adversary from the previous night, the fire girl.
…..
Lunch: Cal and Kris sat at their usual spot. Aidoann had selected a spot as far away from anyone as she could get, closer to the door. "Cal…it couldn't possibly be…I mean….could it?" Kris's face was pale, and she couldn't seem to take her eyes off the newcomer.
"It's her, Kris. I got a pretty good look at her that night-*"
"Yeah," Kris smirked, "I saw you gettin' a 'pretty good look.'"
"Of her face. C'mon, Kris."
"It wasn't her face that made your eyes bug out of your head, you letch, you. Oh, I understand, ya big dummy. Hot, naked girl in your arms…if you didn't get an eyeful, they'd probably take away your official 'Fight Club' bar of soap." But then she sobered. "You suppose she tracked us here?"
He shook his head. "I don't think so. We were careful not to leave our real names with the hotel staff, and I doubt they supplied her with any accurate description. If they had, she'd've probably gone all Hiroshima on us before now. But I don't think her being here is complete coincidence, either."
"Well, then," said Kris, squaring her shoulders, "there's really only one thing to do. C'mon." And she got her tray and led him over to the red-haired exchange student. "Kris! What're you doing?" But he followed along behind her.
"Hi there!" Kris said to the girl, who just then looked up in surprise. "Mind if we join you?"
Aidoann examined the newcomers, the short, dark, energetic girl, and the tall, slim sandy-blond haired boy. Of course, she knew all about American teenagers, but these didn't seem so bad. They were at least clean; evidently, they paid some attention to personal hygiene. She couldn't see any needle tracks on any of their exposed flesh, and their eyes were clear, at least right now they were. And if the girl was pregnant, she wasn't showing.
She started to tell them that she'd rather be alone, when it occurred to her: she was, after all, a stranger in a strange land, here. It wouldn't hurt to make the acquaintance of some of the locals. They could prove to be useful sources of information. "I…suppose not."
"Awesome!" The two sat down, at the table across from her. "I'm Kris, by the way, and this is Cal. And you're…Aidoann? You go by Ann, or Annie?"
"No. I go by 'Aidoann.' That is, after all, my name." They could hear the faint Scottish brogue in her voice.
The dark haired girl just shrugged. "Sure. So you're from Scotland? Glasgow?"
"No. I am from Dumbarton. It is not far from Glasgow, however." Just how much should she reveal to these people, anyway?
As she talked, she sized up the two newcomers. The brunette seemed to do most of the talking, but she noticed the boy looking at her, examining her. Hm, she thought. Not bad looking. Too bad he was an American. He'd probably lost his virginity in the sixth grade, if not before, and, for all she knew, might well be paying child support even now. After all, that was American men for you: penises on legs. She resolutely kept her lips from forming into a sneer. Behave, Aidoann. You are a guest in this country, after all. And you won't be here long enough for any of this to matter.
The girl was still talking. "…just wanted to come over and say welcome to Arkham, and to the States, in general." She glanced at the boy. "Both Cal and I are from this area, so we've never really traveled abroad."
You keep referring to the both of you, thought Aidoann. Of course, they were a couple. Naturally. Probably living together, even if they were underage. She knew "morals" had gone out of style long ago in this country…they were probably, what was it called? Oh, yes: banging each other every night. And every other chance they got.
"Uh, Aidoann? I'm not sure you really want to eat that." The one called Cal indicated a serving of some sort of grayish…something on her tray.
"Oh? And why might that be?"
"That's what we call 'Mystery Meat.' We don't know what it is. It's usually edible, of course, but…seldom good." Aidoann noticed that they had not touched their own servings of the "mystery meat." "Hey, Aidoann. You know what most of us do, on days like today? We've got time, so we usually head over to the Burger King across the street. Believe me, the food's much better."
Aidoann looked at her tray. Truth; she was hungry. Her powers used up a lot of calories. But she didn't doubt but that this "mystery meat" could easily be something she'd really rather not put in her mouth right then. At least, not until she knew more about what it was. And, while she was at it, how it was prepared. "But do we have time?" She checked her watch: thirty minutes till next class.
"Sure! Come on! We'll all go!" And Kris led the way, as they turned in their trays and headed out the door, headed for the Burger King.
Once there, Aidoann was confronted by the bewildering menus. True, they had fast-food places back home, but the ones she was accustomed to weren't quite so…hectic. But, she guessed, it was lunchtime.
And the menu items were subtly different.
Cal and Kris had both placed their order, and the clerk behind the desk had asked her what she wanted. Hm. What to get?
Kris noticed her eyes lingering on one of the menu items, one of the "limited time specials." "Uh, Aidoann? If I were you, I might not get that particular item. At least not unless you're used to very spicy foods."
Aidoann looked at the shorter girl next to her. That had sounded suspiciously like a challenge. "Why do you say that?"
"See that word, 'habernero'? That's a very hot kind of pepper. They put slices of that on your burger for you. Of course, you can ask 'em to just hold those, not put 'em on. Everything else'd be the same."
Aidoann's face took on a resolute look. "As it happens, I love spicy foods. Yes!" she said to the clerk behind the counter, "give me one of those! With extra peppers!"
Kris and Cal exchanged glances.
Once they had their orders, and were seated, Kris began asking Aidoann about her home country. "So. Aidoann. Ever seen the Loch Ness monster?"
"No." Why did every fool American assume every Scots person had seen the Loch Ness creature? Had all Americans seen Bigfoot? She took a huge bite out of her burger…
…and almost stopped breathing when the pain exploded in her mouth. She stopped chewing, choked slightly, putting a hand to her mouth.
"Here." The boy, Cal, was handing her something in a small container. Some sort of liquid. She didn't even stop to think what it was; she just grabbed it and drank the contents down as if her life depended on it.
It was milk. Almost immediately, the fire in her mouth subsided, and she drew in a long, sucking breath. Her vision was still watery from the reaction, and she had to blink several times. Kris handed her some napkins, and she blew her nose. A fine spectacle I make, she thought to herself savagely, eyes watering, nose running, almost can't breathe…I must look like….I don't know what. I'll figure that out later.
Finally, she got herself under control, her eyes cleared up, and she was able to stop blowing her nose. "I, I…tha'…caught me…a little off guarrd." Now would come the time when they'd laugh at the stupid foreign girl, who thought she could handle this simple American dish. Well, she guessed she deserved it.
"It's alright, Aidoann," said Kris. "The first time I tried one of those things, I coughed and spat the pepper all the way across the table, right into Cal's shirt pocket. You kinda haveta work up to them. Believe me, you aren't the first person in here I've seen with that kind of reaction."
"I…I'm not?"
"'Course not. Some people don't even like spicy food, or at least food that spicy. That's why they offer you the option of the burger without the peppers."
"I feel like a fool."
"Well, you aren't. Here, you got some cheese on your blouse…" Kris moistened a napkin, reached over and dabbed at the splotch on her sleeve.
So much like my mother, thought Aidoann, with a pang of homesickness. "Ah, thank you, but I believe I can get that. But I suppose I will, er, eat this without the peppers…at least for now." And she began to pick out the hot peppers out of her burger. But soon I will eat these things by the spoonful. No-one and nothing makes a fool of me!
Cal was looking at his watch. "Well, we need to kinda snap it up. Next class is Mr. Brubaker, and you know how he is on punctuality."
"Noo. How is he?"
…
Later, back at her small apartment, Aidoann reflected on her day so far. It hadn't, she guessed, been a total disaster. Almost, but not total.
She hadn't found out any more about the Omnis Oculis, and she didn't even have any good leads. But it was a bit soon for real results, anyway.
And…she guessed she'd made some…friends, sort of. This 'Cal' and 'Kris' seemed like a nice couple. They hadn't laughed at her at the restaurant today, and had even seemed a bit sympathetic, though she could feel her temper rising a bit at the notion of anyone feeling sorry for her. She didn't want their sympathy; she'd just made a mistake, that was all. And they had, after all, tried to warn her. But her temper, for which she was justifiably famous back home, had arisen, so that she just had to try that awful pepper sandwich. Her mother had warned her about letting her temper get the better of her like that.
Thinking of her mother, Aidoann sighed. Putting her books down by the desk, she got out her cell phone. Her mum would be expecting her to call. Even if she didn't have anything to report, still, her mother wanted her little girl to report in regularly. Mum hadn't been too thrilled about her going to the States in the first place, seeing it as a wild and wooly place, with muggers, murderers, rapists, and, for all anyone knew, abducting space aliens lurking around every corner. After all, that was on practically every TV show out of America. And everyone knew law enforcement in the United States was a joke.
Sighing again, she pulled up her mum's number, and, settling down on the couch, placed the call.
To be continued…
