Crystal Quest: Chapter 1
"Come along now! Stay in line! Article 32, Paragraph 12, Subsection 54 of the MAVO handbook clearly states that during tours of MAVO, the Monsters and Villains Organization, you WILL NOT DEVIATE from the path set out for you by your tour guide, namely me, Ickly Bognostroclum, the Keeper of the Gate! Failure to follow my directions will result in IMMEDIATE EXPULSION from the MAVO premises, as stated in Article 32, Paragraph 12, Subsection 56!" Ickly Bognostroclum was a villain who did things by the book, and he didn't have patience for those unwilling to do as he ordered. The group of slobs he had to lead around was hardly worth his time. He couldn't wait to get back to the front entrance. "Alright now stop! This is the Great Hall of MAVO. Better monsters and villains than yourselves have tried and failed to enter these hallowed halls!"
"Um, excuse me? Are we going to get to meet the Supreme Oppressor?" said a small voice, piping up from the mass of bodies crowded into the hall.
"WHO SAID THAT! I DID NOT GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO SPEAK!" Despite his small stature, Bognostroclum seemed to tower over them all, larger than even the giant drool beast. The entire tour group seemed to shrink under his hateful glare. No one dared to speak. Only one person was considered more intimidating than Ickly Bognostroclum was, and that was the Supreme Oppressor himself.
Ickly backed away and put his hand behind his back. He walked back and forth across the space in front of the tour group like a drill instructor.
"So, you want to meet His Evilness, the Supreme Oppressor, do you?" Ickly almost seemed to be smiling and all the members of the tour group started to relax, breathing an audible sigh of relief. Ickly turned toward the group. No, he was definitely NOT smiling.
"THE DAY YOU GET TO MEET THE SUPREME OPPRESSOR WILL BE THE DAY HE PERSONALLY DECIDES TO END YOUR WORTHLESS EXISTENCE! THE SUPREME OPPRESSOR WILL NOT BE SEEN BY ANY NON-MAVO MEMBERS! ARTICLE 9, PARAGRAPH 6, SUBSECTION 32! NOW, ON WITH THE TOUR! GET IN LINE! SINGLE FILE!" Ickly continued to shout out orders as the frightened group struggled to form a line.
As the tour group filed out of the Great Hall, two figures emerged from a shadowed alcove.
"Oh my! Are those the new recruits? They seem very -- inexperienced," said Mrs. Maggotheart, the MAVO dues collector, captain of the MAVO airship ECLIPSE, and leader of the MAVO pirates, as she nervously wrung her hands together. The potential recruits were definitely not what she had hoped for.
Eleanor Tweeg disgustedly banged her walking cane against the ground. "A sorry bunch of losers if ever I saw any. I almost think my son, Tweegy, would be preferable."
"I just hope they can pay their dues," said Mrs. Maggotheart, sounding more threatening than hopeful.
"Ah, yes. This is indeed a sad, sad day in the history of MAVO. And speaking of which, Eleanor, how is that boy of yours?" asked the Understander of Legends, one of the most respected members of MAVO. She joined the other women and watched as the tour group disappeared into the inner recesses of MAVO headquarters.
"Hopeless, as usual. I hear he spent some time with his no-good father. I can only imagine how that might have ruined him. Not that there was much there to ruin," said Eleanor, almost spitting the words as though they left a bad taste in her mouth.
Mrs. Maggotheart looked up and spoke cheerfully to Eleanor. "He DID finally pay his dues!"
"My dear Mrs. Maggotheart, you're obsessing," the Understander said, smiling.
"Oh dear, I suppose you're right. It's just that, oh, I can't wait for them to finish rebuilding the Eclipse! To be out in the bitter night air, plundering and pillaging. That's the way for a villain to live!"
"Be patient, Mrs. Maggotheart. Everything goes according to plan," assured the Understander.
"And how is Quellor? I haven't seen or heard anything of him in weeks." Eleanor Tweeg sighed and gazed longingly across the Hall at the door leading to the Supreme Oppressor's throne room. "Ah, Quellor. Now there's a villain's villain."
"Ever since the Iliop stole the crystals, the Supreme Oppressor has locked himself away. He won't even speak to Bognostroclum," said the Understander.
"So, who ordered this new recruiting drive?" asked Mrs. Maggotheart.
"I did." The Understander turned to one of the heavily inscribed walls that decorated MAVO headquarters and traced the pattern with her hand. These were walls that only she could read. Lucky for her -- in an organization like MAVO it was important to be indispensable.
"I thought it might boost morale and impress the Supreme Oppressor. But so far all I've seen are pathetic wimps who can only aspire to lick the bottom of my shoes."
Eleanor Tweeg sighed and shook her head. "I know exactly what you mean. It's this new generation; they're all lazy. All their lives they've had everything handed to them on a silver platter. Now in my day, if we wanted a silver platter we had to steal the silver and melt it down ourselves."
"You're SO right, why just the other day I was telling my husband. . .," said Mrs. Maggotheart, but before she could finish telling what transpired between her and her spouse she was interrupted. Suddenly the main door of the grand hall swung open, hitting the wall behind it with a loud BANG!
"BOGNOSTROCLUM!!"
The three ladies all jumped at the sudden noise and all three turned to see the huge figure of the Supreme Oppressor standing at the door.
"Quellor!"
"Your Supreme Wickedness!"
"Oh my!"
"Where is Bognostroclum?! I wish to speak to him at once! Why is he not at the Gate!" From deep within his cowl, the Supreme Oppressor's eyes glowed like blue flames. All three ladies cowered.
The Understander of Legends spoke.
"He's leading a tour of MAVO Headquarters. I organized a recruiting drive, but so far none of the candidates. . .."
"Find him and tell him to come to me at once!" Quellor turned on his heel and strode back to his throne room, ignoring all else. The door slammed shut behind him. The threesome looked at each other. Then they looked in the direction of the tour group.
"After you. . .."
In his throne room, Quellor sat with his most treasured possession, the Black Box, on his lap. He gazed deeply into the cracked crystal embedded in the device, as if searching for a hidden meaning or message within its depths.
"The crystals. I will have them again." He gently caressed the surface of the Black Box Crystal, tracing the crack across its surface. Just then the door of his throne room opened and Ickly Bognostroclum stepped inside. Quellor thought he looked oddly relieved.
"You wanted to see me sir?"
"Yes, Bognostroclum." Quellor stood and walked down the steps before his throne, past Bognostroclum. He gazed out into space, at nothing.
"Can you feel it, Bognostroclum?"
Ickly was confused. "Um, what should I be feeling, Your Despicableness?"
"The Iliop, Teddy Ruxpin. He thinks that he has won. He thinks that by taking the crystals back that he foiled our plans. But it's too late! Don't you see, Bognostroclum? Can't you feel it? The seal has been broken. Simply taking the crystals away can't stop it now!"
Ickly was sure that he looked just as stupid as he felt, but he listened in awe as the Supreme Oppressor continued.
"The crystals broke the seal; they facilitated the transition. But removing them could only slow the spread of evil into the world, it couldn't stop it! The ancient evil reawakens, even as we speak! The Iliops were fools to think they could keep it sealed forever! Soon, very soon, the Great Wall of Ying will crumble. The Hordes of Darkness will spill into Grundo with ME as their leader! The entire world will bow before the power of MAVO! I can feel the power flowing through me, power such as I have not felt in many, many years." Quellor turned and stood majestically with his hands on his hips. Ickly was awestruck. This was the leader he would follow to the ends of the earth. This was the reason why he had joined MAVO. This was. . . .
"Bognostroclum!"
"YES, YOUR GREAT SURLINESS!"
"As long as the Iliop has the crystals, the chance exists that he could still get in our way. I want you to gather the swiftest, most powerful, and most cunning of our allies! I want the Eclipse ready to depart first thing tomorrow! Most of all, I WANT THOSE CRYSTALS! I WILL HAVE THE ANCIENT POWER THAT WAS DENIED TO ME SO MANY YEARS AGO!"
"YES, IT WILL BE DONE AS YOU REQUEST, YOUR MALEVOLENCE!"
"THEN GO! SEE TO IT NOW!"
"YES, AT ONCE!!" Ickly, his eyes brimming with tears of pride, hurried out of the throne room to see to his master's bidding.
Quellor walked slowly back to his throne and put his hand against the cool crystal in his Black Box, his symbol of power. To him it represented both the power he currently had, and that which he would soon wield.
"And no Iliop, no child of Theodore, will be able to stop me."
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
This is chapter 1 of my fanfic, Crystal Quest. I'd like to thank Reid
Carson, my friend Cheree, and my sister Stephanie for pre-reading this
chapter for me. I'm very excited about this story. It sounds cheesy to
say, but it really is a labor of love on my part. ^_^ Please keep an
open mind while you read it.
Slayers is copyright a bunch of other people, and the video series is
distributed in the US by Central Park Media. Teddy Ruxpin was copyright
Alchemy II, created by Ken Forsse.
"Come along now! Stay in line! Article 32, Paragraph 12, Subsection 54 of the MAVO handbook clearly states that during tours of MAVO, the Monsters and Villains Organization, you WILL NOT DEVIATE from the path set out for you by your tour guide, namely me, Ickly Bognostroclum, the Keeper of the Gate! Failure to follow my directions will result in IMMEDIATE EXPULSION from the MAVO premises, as stated in Article 32, Paragraph 12, Subsection 56!" Ickly Bognostroclum was a villain who did things by the book, and he didn't have patience for those unwilling to do as he ordered. The group of slobs he had to lead around was hardly worth his time. He couldn't wait to get back to the front entrance. "Alright now stop! This is the Great Hall of MAVO. Better monsters and villains than yourselves have tried and failed to enter these hallowed halls!"
"Um, excuse me? Are we going to get to meet the Supreme Oppressor?" said a small voice, piping up from the mass of bodies crowded into the hall.
"WHO SAID THAT! I DID NOT GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO SPEAK!" Despite his small stature, Bognostroclum seemed to tower over them all, larger than even the giant drool beast. The entire tour group seemed to shrink under his hateful glare. No one dared to speak. Only one person was considered more intimidating than Ickly Bognostroclum was, and that was the Supreme Oppressor himself.
Ickly backed away and put his hand behind his back. He walked back and forth across the space in front of the tour group like a drill instructor.
"So, you want to meet His Evilness, the Supreme Oppressor, do you?" Ickly almost seemed to be smiling and all the members of the tour group started to relax, breathing an audible sigh of relief. Ickly turned toward the group. No, he was definitely NOT smiling.
"THE DAY YOU GET TO MEET THE SUPREME OPPRESSOR WILL BE THE DAY HE PERSONALLY DECIDES TO END YOUR WORTHLESS EXISTENCE! THE SUPREME OPPRESSOR WILL NOT BE SEEN BY ANY NON-MAVO MEMBERS! ARTICLE 9, PARAGRAPH 6, SUBSECTION 32! NOW, ON WITH THE TOUR! GET IN LINE! SINGLE FILE!" Ickly continued to shout out orders as the frightened group struggled to form a line.
As the tour group filed out of the Great Hall, two figures emerged from a shadowed alcove.
"Oh my! Are those the new recruits? They seem very -- inexperienced," said Mrs. Maggotheart, the MAVO dues collector, captain of the MAVO airship ECLIPSE, and leader of the MAVO pirates, as she nervously wrung her hands together. The potential recruits were definitely not what she had hoped for.
Eleanor Tweeg disgustedly banged her walking cane against the ground. "A sorry bunch of losers if ever I saw any. I almost think my son, Tweegy, would be preferable."
"I just hope they can pay their dues," said Mrs. Maggotheart, sounding more threatening than hopeful.
"Ah, yes. This is indeed a sad, sad day in the history of MAVO. And speaking of which, Eleanor, how is that boy of yours?" asked the Understander of Legends, one of the most respected members of MAVO. She joined the other women and watched as the tour group disappeared into the inner recesses of MAVO headquarters.
"Hopeless, as usual. I hear he spent some time with his no-good father. I can only imagine how that might have ruined him. Not that there was much there to ruin," said Eleanor, almost spitting the words as though they left a bad taste in her mouth.
Mrs. Maggotheart looked up and spoke cheerfully to Eleanor. "He DID finally pay his dues!"
"My dear Mrs. Maggotheart, you're obsessing," the Understander said, smiling.
"Oh dear, I suppose you're right. It's just that, oh, I can't wait for them to finish rebuilding the Eclipse! To be out in the bitter night air, plundering and pillaging. That's the way for a villain to live!"
"Be patient, Mrs. Maggotheart. Everything goes according to plan," assured the Understander.
"And how is Quellor? I haven't seen or heard anything of him in weeks." Eleanor Tweeg sighed and gazed longingly across the Hall at the door leading to the Supreme Oppressor's throne room. "Ah, Quellor. Now there's a villain's villain."
"Ever since the Iliop stole the crystals, the Supreme Oppressor has locked himself away. He won't even speak to Bognostroclum," said the Understander.
"So, who ordered this new recruiting drive?" asked Mrs. Maggotheart.
"I did." The Understander turned to one of the heavily inscribed walls that decorated MAVO headquarters and traced the pattern with her hand. These were walls that only she could read. Lucky for her -- in an organization like MAVO it was important to be indispensable.
"I thought it might boost morale and impress the Supreme Oppressor. But so far all I've seen are pathetic wimps who can only aspire to lick the bottom of my shoes."
Eleanor Tweeg sighed and shook her head. "I know exactly what you mean. It's this new generation; they're all lazy. All their lives they've had everything handed to them on a silver platter. Now in my day, if we wanted a silver platter we had to steal the silver and melt it down ourselves."
"You're SO right, why just the other day I was telling my husband. . .," said Mrs. Maggotheart, but before she could finish telling what transpired between her and her spouse she was interrupted. Suddenly the main door of the grand hall swung open, hitting the wall behind it with a loud BANG!
"BOGNOSTROCLUM!!"
The three ladies all jumped at the sudden noise and all three turned to see the huge figure of the Supreme Oppressor standing at the door.
"Quellor!"
"Your Supreme Wickedness!"
"Oh my!"
"Where is Bognostroclum?! I wish to speak to him at once! Why is he not at the Gate!" From deep within his cowl, the Supreme Oppressor's eyes glowed like blue flames. All three ladies cowered.
The Understander of Legends spoke.
"He's leading a tour of MAVO Headquarters. I organized a recruiting drive, but so far none of the candidates. . .."
"Find him and tell him to come to me at once!" Quellor turned on his heel and strode back to his throne room, ignoring all else. The door slammed shut behind him. The threesome looked at each other. Then they looked in the direction of the tour group.
"After you. . .."
In his throne room, Quellor sat with his most treasured possession, the Black Box, on his lap. He gazed deeply into the cracked crystal embedded in the device, as if searching for a hidden meaning or message within its depths.
"The crystals. I will have them again." He gently caressed the surface of the Black Box Crystal, tracing the crack across its surface. Just then the door of his throne room opened and Ickly Bognostroclum stepped inside. Quellor thought he looked oddly relieved.
"You wanted to see me sir?"
"Yes, Bognostroclum." Quellor stood and walked down the steps before his throne, past Bognostroclum. He gazed out into space, at nothing.
"Can you feel it, Bognostroclum?"
Ickly was confused. "Um, what should I be feeling, Your Despicableness?"
"The Iliop, Teddy Ruxpin. He thinks that he has won. He thinks that by taking the crystals back that he foiled our plans. But it's too late! Don't you see, Bognostroclum? Can't you feel it? The seal has been broken. Simply taking the crystals away can't stop it now!"
Ickly was sure that he looked just as stupid as he felt, but he listened in awe as the Supreme Oppressor continued.
"The crystals broke the seal; they facilitated the transition. But removing them could only slow the spread of evil into the world, it couldn't stop it! The ancient evil reawakens, even as we speak! The Iliops were fools to think they could keep it sealed forever! Soon, very soon, the Great Wall of Ying will crumble. The Hordes of Darkness will spill into Grundo with ME as their leader! The entire world will bow before the power of MAVO! I can feel the power flowing through me, power such as I have not felt in many, many years." Quellor turned and stood majestically with his hands on his hips. Ickly was awestruck. This was the leader he would follow to the ends of the earth. This was the reason why he had joined MAVO. This was. . . .
"Bognostroclum!"
"YES, YOUR GREAT SURLINESS!"
"As long as the Iliop has the crystals, the chance exists that he could still get in our way. I want you to gather the swiftest, most powerful, and most cunning of our allies! I want the Eclipse ready to depart first thing tomorrow! Most of all, I WANT THOSE CRYSTALS! I WILL HAVE THE ANCIENT POWER THAT WAS DENIED TO ME SO MANY YEARS AGO!"
"YES, IT WILL BE DONE AS YOU REQUEST, YOUR MALEVOLENCE!"
"THEN GO! SEE TO IT NOW!"
"YES, AT ONCE!!" Ickly, his eyes brimming with tears of pride, hurried out of the throne room to see to his master's bidding.
Quellor walked slowly back to his throne and put his hand against the cool crystal in his Black Box, his symbol of power. To him it represented both the power he currently had, and that which he would soon wield.
"And no Iliop, no child of Theodore, will be able to stop me."
TO BE CONTINUED . . .
This is chapter 1 of my fanfic, Crystal Quest. I'd like to thank Reid
Carson, my friend Cheree, and my sister Stephanie for pre-reading this
chapter for me. I'm very excited about this story. It sounds cheesy to
say, but it really is a labor of love on my part. ^_^ Please keep an
open mind while you read it.
Slayers is copyright a bunch of other people, and the video series is
distributed in the US by Central Park Media. Teddy Ruxpin was copyright
Alchemy II, created by Ken Forsse.