Chapter 37
"Welcome to The Monty Carlo. Zugon told me you'd be here," Vevok Joz tells Russ Knot from the deck of The Monty Carlo. Daemon Redo and Peon Frost are beside him, nodding convincingly.
"Oh no, not you again." Russ peers over the railing. His small dingy is already being carried away by the waves. "I'm just here to find my friends," he finishes nervously.
"Mary Poppins and Bert?" Vevok asks, scratching his chin. "Yes, they were here. Sadly The Monte Carlo wasn't right for them, so we parted ways."
"Parted ways? Which way did they go?" Russ glances anxiously to his left and right. Two beefy men have positioned themselves on either side of him while a strange woman waves a flashlight in his face. Everyone is dressed like Vevok Joz - in bathing suits, robes, and flip flops. What's more peculiar is that they're all dripping wet.
"We'll get to that, Russ Knot. But first you have to reach Cloud Nine to find the answers that you seek. The Ascendants and myself will help you with your journey, if you would care to follow me." Vevok motions to the men beside Russ, who each grab an arm and steer him along the deck.
"Wait a minute, where are we going? I'm afraid I'm on the clock. The office is expecting to hear from me. Would you mind if I give them a call?" Russ tries desperately to reach for his cell phone.
Vevok Joz gets to it first and tosses it overboard. "There's no need for that here. Besides, reception is terrible. I assure you Zugon will answer all your questions once you reach Cloud Nine."
"Cloud what?" Russ asks.
"Cloud Nine. But we'll get to that later, much later. Would you care for an apple?" Vevok offers, holding one out.
"Don't think so," Russ replies. Breaking free of the men, he runs down the deck and rounds the corner, with Kooky Byotch's connections in hot pursuit.
"There's no point in running! You're on a ship! You'll just go in circles!" Vevok yells, before eating the apple. "Oh well, he'll tire eventually," he tells Daemon Redo and Peon Frost.
"Until then, it looks like we've got two new recruits," Kooky Byotch says, holding her flashlight on the shocked man and woman standing next to the railing. Morty Magoo's gumshoes have also just climbed up the side of The Monte Carlo. After being greeted by soaking wet people dressed bizarrely in matching bathing suits and robes, they too are searching desperately for their missing dingy.
"Good evening," Vevok says, holding out his arms. "Welcome to The Monte Carlo. Zugon told me you'd be here. Say, would either of you like an apple?"
