The Tale of Three
Chapter 11
Questions for a king
"So, that makes one broken wing, a mild laceration in a left arm, a small hand wound, and a skull fracture. Yeah, I think that about covers it. Oh yeah, and a nose bleed."
Jenkins, Meteora, Mariposa, and Archibald were sitting in Lucitor castles "infirmary". This was being fairly generous though, as the only real medical things they saw was the doctor himself, a few tools, and a couple of bandages and casts. The rest was just a small room with a few chairs and a table. The doctor had just spent 1 hour inspecting them, seemingly pulling information about their injuries out of nowhere. He had just finished putting a bandage on Mariposa and Jenkins wounds, and then putting some kind of giant cast on Archibald's wing. Jenkins looked at Meteora.
"So, is she gonna be alright?" Jenkins asked. He wasn't sure how bad her fracture was, or if she received brain damage. She seemed to be able to walk and talk just fine though, so It seemed like there wasn't any permanent damage.
"Oh yes." The doctor answered. "She'll be fine. It's a linear fracture, so there is no real permanent damage. It'll heal up in the next week or so. Just don't let her get any more head injuries."
Jenkins sighed in relief. Good. Everything was alright. Well, almost alright. They were all still hurt in one way or another, and it would probably be best if they stayed in the Underworld until they all healed completely. But that was a good thing. They had plenty of time to figure things out and plan ahead while they were there.
Then again, this all depended on what happened next. Archibald has said that there would be a greeting committee, and Jenkins hoped that they wouldn't be displeased once he told them they weren't planning on staying here forever. They were going to stay here and heal, then find out what they needed to know, get some supplies, then get out. As much as Jenkins secretly wanted to just stay here and never go back to the surface, he couldn't. And besides, due to the giant demons that Jenkins had seen earlier, and with Archibald talking about them being unhappy with the people from Earthni staying there, the Underworld was probably about to get involved in a civil war. And he did not want to be down here when that happened.
The doctor left the room without saying anything else. All in all, the strangest part about the whole experience was that the doctor was human. And he seemed completely used to everything around him. Jenkins wondered how many people were in the castle. He also wondered why the Lucitors had just allowed them to be let in. Unless the Lucitors weren't in power anymore…
"Archibald."
"Yeah?"
"Who's in charge around here? Who's the leader?"
"That would be King Dave and Queen Wraithmelior Lucitor. They've ruled here since before we even arrived. They're in charge."
The Lucitors were still in charge? Interesting. Jenkins thought that they might have given up the throne or done something else after they were trapped off from all other dimensions and after Tom disappeared. That or someone else would have forcefully taken power. Jenkins only met them once, and they seemed nice enough, so there wasn't any disdain between them. Hopefully Jenkins could meet them, (assuming they weren't part of the "greeting committee", which he suspected they were) and explain their situation with the magic and Janna.
He also hoped that the meeting with leaders of this group didn't end up the same way as the last group.
He did have a few more questions for Archibald though. If they were going to stay in the Underworld and the castle for a while, then he wanted to know how this place worked.
"Archibald, can I ask you a few questions?"
Archibald, who was seemingly attempting to move his cast in a more comfortable position, heard and nodded without even looking at him.
"Okay. How does the Underworld work?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, you said this place is like a sanctuary, right?"
"Yeah."
"So, how does it work? Do people just come here and get food, do they stay here, or it is something else."
"After the war-"
"There wasn't a war."
"What do you mean? The humans that came down here told me that the nukes had likely been launched because of a war."
"What happened with those nukes wasn't a war. It was a slaughter. Attempted genocide. There was no war. Just an evil lizard."
"Who do you mean?"
"Seth of Septaris. He stormed the E.D.F.'s headquarters, took control of the nuclear system, and blew up everything. No war. Just Seth."
Archibald looked shocked, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Jenkins remembered that he, Meteora, Mariposa, everyone else from the party, and Seth himself were really the only ones alive who knew this fact. It must have been hard, to believe in one thing only to be told it was all a lie.
"Seth? That lizard guy that Eclipsa told us to look out for? She told us he broke free from some kind of crystal prison, and that he might be coming to the city, so she told us to keep an eye out for him."
"Well, he broke out of two prisons. The second time though, we kept it out of the public eye so there would be a mass panic or anything like that."
"Maybe you shouldn't have done that. People might have found him."
"Yeah. We shouldn't…"
He shook his head. "Now, for my questions. Like I said, how does this place work. If we stay here, will we get food? Water? Is there some kind of system?"
"Yes there is. We all do our jobs around the castle and we get paid in food and water and other things. We all sleep in the dungeons, which have been converted to be more comfortable and to accommodate all of us. We help out around the castle, do random things, or sometimes just do whatever. But we do get taken care of. Although sometimes I believe it's out of pity more than care for us."
"Why?"
"Well, how would you feel towards a bunch of starving️, injured, sick people came coming to your home one day and asked you for help?"
"I would feel sorry for them and help them."
"Yes. But that is not the attitude demons have. I honestly think it pleases them to know that the only reason we're alive is because of us, and due to that fact they keep us alive down here."
"Okay, if that is true, then that is horrible."
"Yeah, well, we have no other choice. We don't know where else to go. According to the stories from people who arrived here, there's not really that much left in the real world. Maybe a few small communities, but not that many. It's mostly just murderous gangs of people prowling around, killing and stealing whatever they can."
"...You just described almost every single person we found in the last 15 years."
Archibald's head dropped and he suddenly got a look of discouragement. "So it's true. There's nothing left out there."
Jenkins couldn't have this. Although he hardly knew Archibald, the last thing he wanted was for Archibald's sudden hopelessness to spread around to other people. Losing hope was the first step in never rebuilding a better world.
"Not true. It is quite possible there are still people out there. Actually good people who want to help others. I mean, how about all the people that found the portal and you guys took in?"
"Well...I suppose you're right. Still though, I do wonder how many "good" people are left out there."
"However many there are, I'm sure they'll all accomplish a step in rebuilding this world. That's what you said the Underworld was trying to do right? Rebuild?"
"Well, it's still kinda in the planning stage…"
Jenkins sighed. Time to talk about something else.
"So, What will happen to us when we meet this greeting committee or whatever you call it?"
"Well, they'll probably ask you a few questions, and these ones will be much more personal than the ones I asked you. They will find out where you could be of use."
"Be of use?"
"Around the castle. We do live here, and we work here. I mean, you are planning on staying, right?"
"No. No, we are not."
"But why not?"
"While it may come as a shock, we still have things to do. We're looking for people, and I intend to find them. We're gonna stay here until we heal these wounds, and then we're gonna leave."
Meteora and Mariposa just stood nearby and listened to this. They weren't sure if they wanted to agree with this plan. While he did have a point, in that they were looking for people, they also didn't want to leave the second they healed their wounds. There could be more to this place. They shouldn't have just one singular goal in mind. They should try and accomplish multiple things.
"But what if the people you're looking for are here, in the Underworld?"
"Well that depends." He took a deep breath. "Do you know the names of every single person that came to the Underworld to his castle?"
"Mostly, yeah."
"Alright, judging by your earlier comments, I take it neither Eclipsa or Globgor are here, correct?"
"Yes, unfortunately. We do not know where that have gone."
"I assumed so. Now, is there anyone here by the names of Rafael or Angie Diaz?"
Archibald pauses for a moment. "Hmmmm...no. No, there isn't ."
Jenkins silently cursed. It was worth a shot, but he knew that it wouldn't be that easy. Where even were they? What had happened to them? His mind started to wander to after that car crashed. Wait, what had happened? What did he-"
"So, do you plan on doing anything here before you leave?"
Archibald question ended Jenkins train of thought. "Oh, I'm planning on looking a few things up. You she a library here, right?"
"Oh yes. It's huge."
"Good. I plan on doing some reading."
Before Archibald could ask him on what exactly he meant by that, the doctor suddenly came back into the room.
"Alright, the greeting committee want to talk to you guys. So, Archibald, take them to the Committee."
Archibald nodded and walked out of the room, signaling for the others to follow him. They all followed Archibald out of the rooms Don walked through the halls of the castle. It was exactly what one would expect a demons castle to look, with demonic paintings, tapestries, and other things littering the halls.
Jenkins was still wondering how this would all play out. This all depended on what would happen with this "greeting committee". With the way people talked about it…
" Hey Archibald."
"What is it?"
"The greeting committee is just the leaders of this place, right?"
"...How did you know?"
"Well, with the way everybody talked about them, I feel like they're not just some random people that took a job of greeting people."
"We haven't really talked much about them at all."
"It was enough for me to tell."
"Hm. And yes, it's the leaders. The King and queen. They'll meet with you."
"And ask more questions?"
"Yup."
"Great."
They all then walked in silence for a while until they got to what appeared to be some kind of meeting room. The room could be considered less "demonic" than most other rooms in the castle, likely to make new people coming to the castle less uncomfortable. Jenkins suddenly got flashbacks of Janna taking them to her room to talk, and then what happened afterwards. Hopefully it wasn't the same here. At least if they had to escape for some reason, the halls were more recognizable than the ones at Janna's hideout.
They all sat down in rather uncomfortable chairs, and waited. Nobody said a word. They all just started at the doorway, waiting for someone to arrive.
Finally, someone did arrive. It was two demon guards, dressed in similar armor to the ones that had attacked them earlier, only with different colors. They were flanking the King, Dave. Jenkins remembered him. For whatever reason, he married the giant demon Wraithmelior and became King if the Underworld for whatever reason. Not even the weirdest marriage Jenkins had ever seen. But it was just Dave. Wraithmelior was nowhere in sight.
Archibald quickly got up off his chair, strode up straight and bowed. He then signaled to the others to do the same. Meteora and Mariposa slowly got up off their chairs and did the same, while Jenkins remained sitting and just did this little head bow thing.
Dave stepped forward and sat down in his own chair, while Archibald and the others sat down in their own again.
He looked at each of them slowly, as if trying to remember who they were.
Jenkins spoke up, wanting to get this over with.
"Dave-"
"Wait. Give me a minute."
He continued staring at them. They all started back at him with confusion, except for Archibald, who acted as if this was completely normal. Finally he stopped and spoke.
"Sorry about that. I like to know exactly who I'm talking to."
Meteora looked at him like he was mental. "What do you mean by that?"
"Oh, I was trying to recognize all of you."
Jenkins lifted one of his eyebrows. "You know, you could have just asked us, and besides, you've only ever met two of us."
"I know, but I still wanted to try. Now, let's begin. So-"
"Where's the queen?" Jenkins asked.
"Sorry?"
"Wraithmelior. You wife. The queen. Archibald said we'd be meeting both you and her."
"Oh yes. She currently dealing with...other matters right now. And besides, she wouldn't fit in this room. So it's just me. Now, like Archibald probably told you, I'm going to ask you a few things. I'm going to ask you the questions Jenkins, considering how you appear to be the leader of your little trio."
"So you do remember me."
"Yeah. I don't think we had much interaction though. I honestly found you to be slightly aloof about the Underworlds problems when I told you about them.
"Well, when you have my job, you kinda get tired of hearing people complain about all the crappy things happening to them."
Dave laughed at this. "Ha! Try being a king. Hearing people complain and having to deal with their problems is the the whole job."
"Well, it looks like we understand each other."
"Indeed. Now, for my first question, what have you been doing there?"
"Out there? You mean, on the surface?"
"Yeah."
"Umm...surviving. We haven't really done much at all."
"Like I expected. That's basically the answer everybody gives me. I've heard some pretty crazy things from some people."
"Well it's the truth. There isn't really time to do anything. You have to survive and…" Jenkins suddenly stopped talking.
"Is something wrong?"
"I just remembered. Do you have any food or water? We haven't eaten or drank anything in a day."
"Oh yes. After we finish this, you'll get some food and water."
"Thanks. How do you guys get food and water anyways? Do you grow it? We're underground, it should be impossible to grow anything without enough sunlight."
"Oh...the castle had a huge food and water supply in case of a siege from enemies. And I do mean huge. It took up dozens of rooms below the castle. Our ancestors took every precaution. It was meant to last centuries for the royal family and palace staff. We thought it would be best if it was used for a better purpose."
"But there's a lot more people now, isn't there?"
"Yes. The supplies should last roughly...five more years. I think."
"Do...the people living here know that?"
"Yes. But by then, we're hoping that Earthni or whatever it was called is ready to be repopulated. Maybe the soil can be fertile again, and rivers and lakes could be clean."
'Five more years is not nearly long enough." Jenkins thought. 'While some soil should be good for planting, it's going to be hard to find fertile soil and clean water in the same area. Going back to living up there will be far from easy. But I shouldn't tell them that, should I? No. Don't tell them. It's not worth the hassle.' Jenkins just slowly nodded, as if he was agreeing to Dave's plan.
But on the subject if not having food or water, Jenkins hadn't really been bothered by it...yet, but he felt like it was a different story for Meteora and Mariposa. They looked famished.
"Okay, my next question is, what kind of survivors have you encountered?"
"I feel like we already told Archibald some of this stuff. Can't he just tell you?"
"Actually, the question he should have asked before he brought you here is "how many people have you encountered?" Not what kinds of people you encountered. He did ask that right?" Dave's eyes darted over to Archibald, who suddenly looked nervous.
"Yes. Yes, he asked that."
"Ah, Good." He looked away from Archibald, who breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"Now, like I asked, what kinds of people have you encountered?"
"Ehh...mostly people that were trying to kill us and take our stuff. We didn't really see many people that could be considered good. Hell, just a day or two ago, we were basically captured and attacked by a bunch of people who called themselves the Black priest that were led by a person that I knew in the past. The worst part was, it that they had magic." Jenkins expected Dave to look surprised at this, but he just nodded his head, as if expecting that response.
"Yes. The Black priests. I have heard a lot of horror stories about them. I believe they are trying to find the entrance to this place. We've sent many of our greatest demon warriors to fight them, to drive them out of that mountain, to get them to leave, but they always overpower us. We always have to fight them on their territory. And with that magic that have, sometimes we feel as if there's no real chance."
"Do all of them have magic? We only saw their leader use it."
"From what I've heard from other people who have encountered them, only a few of them have magic. Maybe two or three. Which according to you, apparently now includes their leader. I think it is very hard to learn though. We're not exactly sure how they have it."
"Have you tried to find a way to figure it out?"
"Yes. We've tried to use every spell that demons know, even ones that only we can use, but none of them work . We don't know how they do it."
"Have you tried looking at the books in your library? I heard there's tons of information in there."
"We have looked."
"In all of them?"
"Well, not all of them. There's still a few that's left."
"Good." Jenkins whispered to himself. "Then those are the ones we're going to look into."
"Sorry, What did you say?"
"Nothing, now keep going with your questions."
"Alright then. Now, what did you do before the apocalypse?"
"I feel like you should already know that."
"Yeah. You were the leader of the E.D.F. And you two…" He looked towards Meteora and Mariposa. "Judging by how old you look, I'm going to assume you were babies."
They both nodded.
"Unfortunate. That means you never got to experience what the world was like. I mean, I stayed down here once the Underworld was closed off from all other dimensions. Do you remember anything?"
Meteora frowned. "Just bits and pieces. I don't remember much about what happened before the apocalypse or what happened right after. But I sometimes remember other things. It sometimes feels like...past lives? Broken memories?"
"Hmm. What's your name?"
"Meteora."
Dave's eyes widened in shock. "Wait. That means you were the one who-"
"Yes." Jenkins interrupted. "Yes, this is her. But don't be afraid or anything. She's not like that anymore. She doesn't remember any of it."
Dave looked back at her. "My son Tom told me all about you. About what you did during that incident on Mewni. Do you truly remember none of it?"
Meteora leaned back in her chair in annoyance. "I have no idea what either of you are talking about."
Dave turned back to Jenkins. "You never told her?"
"I thought it would be best if she didn't know. Couldn't risk it happening again. Couldn't risk the memories returning and affecting her again."
"Hm. Good decision. But I'm still going to keep an eye on her if you're staying here."
"Well, that's just it…"
"What do your mean?"
"We're not really planning on staying here."
"How so?"
Jenkins took a deep breath and explained everything that had happened over the past few days. With Janna, with her having magic, with the voice Meteora said she heard, with the visions they saw in that mountain, and everything else. Meteora occasionally chimed In to help, but Mariposa stayed silent with a look of uncertainty on her face. Finally, Jenkins got to the point of asking if he could use the Lucitor's library to discover more about magic and the mysterious voice.
"So, What do you think?"
Dave contemplated all this for a moment.
"No."
"No?!"
"Yes. No. I don't want you using my library until I'm sure we can trust you. The knowledge in those books are old and dangerous, and I don't want just anybody using them. And besides, I'm not sure my grandfather-in-law Relicor will be happy with you just snooping around in there."
"Well, What can we do to make you and Relicor trust us?"
"Well, for starters-"
Suddenly, a rather large demon ran through the doorway covered in broken armor and wounds.
"My king!" It said, and then it bowed. "I was told to report to you when I returned."
Dave, with the tone in his voice expressing that he was obviously annoyed, responded to this. "I believe your orders were to report to the queen."
"She was the one that ordered me to report to you."
Dave sighed. "Alright, what is it?"
"The infiltration mission into the enemies base has failed completely! They knew we were coming, as we were too big to enter their base without being seen."
'Enemy base? Infiltration mission?' Jenkins thought. 'They must be talking about the demons terrorists or whatever. Too big to enter without being seen, huh?'
"My king, we need someone fast and small to be able to enter the base. We're too big to sneak in."
Dave shook his head. "There are no soldiers like that. Nobody with combat knowledge. There are no small soldiers."
Mariposa listened intently to all of this. They needed someone fast and small? Someone that could easily infiltrate someplace? She had an idea. One that would work out for both her group and the Underworld. One where everybody would win.
"Excuse me, King Dave?" She interjected. All eyes suddenly fell on her.
"Yes?"
"Perhaps we could work out some kind of deal…"
End chapter 11
A/N: Hmm, what does Mariposa have planned? I hope the introduction of Dave and the rest of the Underworld was good, along with everything else. The Underworld will probably be the main setting for the next few chapters, not exactly sure how many.
Also, the hardest part about writing this chapter was figuring out what to name it. I went though who knows how many options. Who knew that knowing what to call something could be so difficult. I'll probably have to look back on earlier chapters later on when this story reaches higher numbers to make sure I didn't give a new chapter an old title.
But as always, enjoy this chapter and thank you for reading and please PM me or leave a comment if you have any comments or questions.
