Falon paced back and forth in his study. (Okay, maybe paced isn't the right
word for a Gaboo, but the attitude is right.) Fang glared at him.
"Any news, *Professor Falon*?"
"No."
"That should be, 'No, *Lord Fang*', my dear Falon." He smirked. "I don't believe that you are remembering that."
"VERY FUNNY, FANG." Falon's eyes narrowed to slits. "But I must thank you for the information on the medallions' hidden power. Without your help, I never would have been able to do *this*." Chuckling softly, Falon unleashed a blast of power from his medallion at Fang's stiff left wing.
Fang dropped, unconscious. Falon left the room, muttering happily under his breath.
**********
"I'm afraid you made a mistake, Sir Frostbit." Sting gasped for breath. "I don't wear Amber. Only the Orange." He collapsed back into his bed.
"All right then. I'll make sure the records state that. And I think you should know that you may never be able to use your left arm properly again." Sir Frostbit stood stiffly next to Sting. "So next time, don't underestimate the rookies." He turned on his heel and left.
"Damn," Sting muttered. "What have I gotten into here?"
**********
"So how did it go? And don't attack me like you did Fang, Falon. I don't care that you're a scientist and a physician. I'll kill you if I have to… *unlike* Fang."
"I don't know if I'll be able to fix the wing." Falon shrank back, nervous.
"The more pressing question is…" Jen smiled nastily. "…how will you live your life if you *don't* fix it? I may not like Fang, but I like *you* even less. Fang is valuable. You're expendable." She charged a quick Lightning attack in her hands and blasted Falon. "Don't forget."
"I-I-I won't." Falon shrank even smaller.
"And one more thing…"
"Yes?"
"When Fang wakes up, tell him that I don't wear the Black… yet. He seemed to be confused about the subject when we talked yesterday." With another nasty smile, Jen left the room.
**********
Æseri kicked lightly at a clump of grass. He'd been practicing channeling the medallion's power all afternoon and felt that he was getting the hang of it. "Yeh… I like this… YA!!" he jumped into the air like a madman. "I'M… THE DEVIL… ON… FOUR… FEET!!!!"
"Well, I certainly hope you're pleased with yourself, Mr. Devil-on-four- feet, because you're in deep trouble." Jen walked up to him.
"Devils are supposed to make trouble, girlie." Æseri grinned psychotically. "'Specially my kind. Don't go pokin' your nose into matters of power you don't understand."
"Shut up, rookie." Jen walked over to Æseri, picked him up and threw him into a nearby tree. "You can mouth off to me when you outrank me, but not till then… in other words, you'll do as I say for as long as you're capable of walking like the rest of us."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Æseri snapped. "I don't get it!"
"You're in the ranks of White, rookie. I'm in the ranks of Gray… soon to be Black. You'll have to ascend eight levels just to get to the Gray… and by that time I'll be at least as Silver or Bloodstone." She grinned at him. "So you clean my *boots*, rookie. At least you would, so be grateful I don't wear boots." She spat in the dirt in front of him.
"Okay, okay… sheesh. Don't get all riled up on me, girlie." Æseri tried to grin.
"And don't call me 'girlie'."
"Who are you to give me orders, girlie?"
"Jen." Jen charged up all of the lightning energy she could, backed it with the strength of her Gray medallion and blasted it all at Æseri. He crumpled, unconscious before he even hit the ground.
**********
"Jen, I am dissapointed to ssay that you are caussing trouble again. What iss the problem here?"
"Master Lucifer, kindly don't ask. I don't know. But why is it you dealing with this instead of Dævoro or Mister High And Mighty?" Jen smiled inwardly. Lucifer was the only member of the Ruling Triat she didn't mind dealing with. Actually, she liked Lucifer a lot… he wasn't overly formal like Dævoro or arrogant like Sir Frostbit.
"Misster High And Mighty?" *And* he had a bit of a sense of humor.
"Sir Frostbit. He acts like he owns the world, Lucifer." Jen shrugged. "Most of us don't like him."
"That does not strike me ass odd, Jen." Lucifer smiled, an odd act for a Joker. "I'm not quite sso evil ass other Jokerss. Not that it matterss. I am not fond of Ssir Frosstbit in the leasst."
"Really? That's a bit of a shock." Jen grinned.
"Ssir Frosstbit doess not make any effort to make himsself likeable, Jen." He paused a moment, thinking. "But that doess not take away from the fact that if thiss continues at the rate it iss going, the rookie will be dead before the year iss out."
"Hopefully he'd have wised up by then."
"Æsseri hass much potential, Jen. You would do well to remember that. You are dissmissed."
Jen left the room. She had expected to be reprimanded at the least… most of the Devils who irritated Lucifer found themselves in the infirmary for several weeks.
"And here I am… whatever."
**********
"I don't suggest you try to move, Mr. Devil-on-four-feet," said a cool voice from… somewhere.
"Where am I?" Æseri tried to ask, but he couldn't move his mouth. "What happened?"
"Jen happened. Don't bother her, kid. You'll just get hurt even more." Fang laughed. "You've got to be Æseri, right?"
"Uh, yeah. Who are you?"
"Fang. I've felt Jen's wrath before, too, kid. We're in this together."
"*You* haven't had to take a fully charged Lightning attack backed by all of Jen's Gray strength, Fang. That's what put me here."
"And you've survived to tell the tale. You must be one of those 'Never say die' types, kid. We like those here." Fang grinned, his wolf like head turning to face Æseri. "You'll be a good member to the Devils, I can see that. Them humans are getting uppity and Jen's been killing too many."
"That's not good."
"Damn straight it's not!" Fang shouted. "Humans are valuable. We can ransom 'em off to human traders for quite a sum. Jen's killed at least a dozen in the past couple of months. Usually we lose maybe three a year."
"Ouch." Æseri tried to sit. "We can't let that keep going on."
"You're one to talk, kid. You nearly killed old Sting."
"Really?"
"Oh, hell yeah. You really are a devil. By the time you make it to the ranks of Green or Orange you'll really be one of us."
"Thanks, Fang."
"Any time, kid."
**********
"Rex! Come here!" Rex sighed and walked into the house. "Rex! We don't have all day! Hurry up!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming," he muttered. "Don't get all psycho on me, dood."
"Rex, my brother's here and I want him impressed with the service!"
"Which brother?" Rex asked as he dashed into the room.
"Ahriman. You remember him?"
Rex paled, remembering the last time he and the Jaggernaut (Beaclon/Joker) had met. "All too well, mister Dhakkan."
"Call me 'boss', Rex."
"Dhakkan, isn't this a little overboard for just one guy?"
"Stupid human… how could you understand? He's a Jaggernaut." The Sloth Beetle (Beaclon/Tiger) shook his head sadly. "Jaggernauts have a long memory for slights."
"So, basically, you don't want him here but you don't dare not invite him?"
"Exactly."
"I'm not that stupid, boss. Humans aren't any smarter or stupider than monsters."
"You're a third-generation Kulian, Rex. By then we've managed to breed out intelligence."
"So this island is called Kul?"
"Of course. What did you expect?"
"Nobody ever told me where I live, boss. I'd know this island was Kul if somebody'd told me. But nobody did." He sighed. "It's got to be the Blue Devils. They're destroying the humans here."
"The Devils know what they're doing, Rex. I'm one of them." Dhakkan indicated the Red medallion around his neck. "I've got influence to keep you safe, but I don't want to get hurt if you start speaking against them."
"I'll lay low, boss."
"Good."
"Any news, *Professor Falon*?"
"No."
"That should be, 'No, *Lord Fang*', my dear Falon." He smirked. "I don't believe that you are remembering that."
"VERY FUNNY, FANG." Falon's eyes narrowed to slits. "But I must thank you for the information on the medallions' hidden power. Without your help, I never would have been able to do *this*." Chuckling softly, Falon unleashed a blast of power from his medallion at Fang's stiff left wing.
Fang dropped, unconscious. Falon left the room, muttering happily under his breath.
**********
"I'm afraid you made a mistake, Sir Frostbit." Sting gasped for breath. "I don't wear Amber. Only the Orange." He collapsed back into his bed.
"All right then. I'll make sure the records state that. And I think you should know that you may never be able to use your left arm properly again." Sir Frostbit stood stiffly next to Sting. "So next time, don't underestimate the rookies." He turned on his heel and left.
"Damn," Sting muttered. "What have I gotten into here?"
**********
"So how did it go? And don't attack me like you did Fang, Falon. I don't care that you're a scientist and a physician. I'll kill you if I have to… *unlike* Fang."
"I don't know if I'll be able to fix the wing." Falon shrank back, nervous.
"The more pressing question is…" Jen smiled nastily. "…how will you live your life if you *don't* fix it? I may not like Fang, but I like *you* even less. Fang is valuable. You're expendable." She charged a quick Lightning attack in her hands and blasted Falon. "Don't forget."
"I-I-I won't." Falon shrank even smaller.
"And one more thing…"
"Yes?"
"When Fang wakes up, tell him that I don't wear the Black… yet. He seemed to be confused about the subject when we talked yesterday." With another nasty smile, Jen left the room.
**********
Æseri kicked lightly at a clump of grass. He'd been practicing channeling the medallion's power all afternoon and felt that he was getting the hang of it. "Yeh… I like this… YA!!" he jumped into the air like a madman. "I'M… THE DEVIL… ON… FOUR… FEET!!!!"
"Well, I certainly hope you're pleased with yourself, Mr. Devil-on-four- feet, because you're in deep trouble." Jen walked up to him.
"Devils are supposed to make trouble, girlie." Æseri grinned psychotically. "'Specially my kind. Don't go pokin' your nose into matters of power you don't understand."
"Shut up, rookie." Jen walked over to Æseri, picked him up and threw him into a nearby tree. "You can mouth off to me when you outrank me, but not till then… in other words, you'll do as I say for as long as you're capable of walking like the rest of us."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Æseri snapped. "I don't get it!"
"You're in the ranks of White, rookie. I'm in the ranks of Gray… soon to be Black. You'll have to ascend eight levels just to get to the Gray… and by that time I'll be at least as Silver or Bloodstone." She grinned at him. "So you clean my *boots*, rookie. At least you would, so be grateful I don't wear boots." She spat in the dirt in front of him.
"Okay, okay… sheesh. Don't get all riled up on me, girlie." Æseri tried to grin.
"And don't call me 'girlie'."
"Who are you to give me orders, girlie?"
"Jen." Jen charged up all of the lightning energy she could, backed it with the strength of her Gray medallion and blasted it all at Æseri. He crumpled, unconscious before he even hit the ground.
**********
"Jen, I am dissapointed to ssay that you are caussing trouble again. What iss the problem here?"
"Master Lucifer, kindly don't ask. I don't know. But why is it you dealing with this instead of Dævoro or Mister High And Mighty?" Jen smiled inwardly. Lucifer was the only member of the Ruling Triat she didn't mind dealing with. Actually, she liked Lucifer a lot… he wasn't overly formal like Dævoro or arrogant like Sir Frostbit.
"Misster High And Mighty?" *And* he had a bit of a sense of humor.
"Sir Frostbit. He acts like he owns the world, Lucifer." Jen shrugged. "Most of us don't like him."
"That does not strike me ass odd, Jen." Lucifer smiled, an odd act for a Joker. "I'm not quite sso evil ass other Jokerss. Not that it matterss. I am not fond of Ssir Frosstbit in the leasst."
"Really? That's a bit of a shock." Jen grinned.
"Ssir Frosstbit doess not make any effort to make himsself likeable, Jen." He paused a moment, thinking. "But that doess not take away from the fact that if thiss continues at the rate it iss going, the rookie will be dead before the year iss out."
"Hopefully he'd have wised up by then."
"Æsseri hass much potential, Jen. You would do well to remember that. You are dissmissed."
Jen left the room. She had expected to be reprimanded at the least… most of the Devils who irritated Lucifer found themselves in the infirmary for several weeks.
"And here I am… whatever."
**********
"I don't suggest you try to move, Mr. Devil-on-four-feet," said a cool voice from… somewhere.
"Where am I?" Æseri tried to ask, but he couldn't move his mouth. "What happened?"
"Jen happened. Don't bother her, kid. You'll just get hurt even more." Fang laughed. "You've got to be Æseri, right?"
"Uh, yeah. Who are you?"
"Fang. I've felt Jen's wrath before, too, kid. We're in this together."
"*You* haven't had to take a fully charged Lightning attack backed by all of Jen's Gray strength, Fang. That's what put me here."
"And you've survived to tell the tale. You must be one of those 'Never say die' types, kid. We like those here." Fang grinned, his wolf like head turning to face Æseri. "You'll be a good member to the Devils, I can see that. Them humans are getting uppity and Jen's been killing too many."
"That's not good."
"Damn straight it's not!" Fang shouted. "Humans are valuable. We can ransom 'em off to human traders for quite a sum. Jen's killed at least a dozen in the past couple of months. Usually we lose maybe three a year."
"Ouch." Æseri tried to sit. "We can't let that keep going on."
"You're one to talk, kid. You nearly killed old Sting."
"Really?"
"Oh, hell yeah. You really are a devil. By the time you make it to the ranks of Green or Orange you'll really be one of us."
"Thanks, Fang."
"Any time, kid."
**********
"Rex! Come here!" Rex sighed and walked into the house. "Rex! We don't have all day! Hurry up!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming," he muttered. "Don't get all psycho on me, dood."
"Rex, my brother's here and I want him impressed with the service!"
"Which brother?" Rex asked as he dashed into the room.
"Ahriman. You remember him?"
Rex paled, remembering the last time he and the Jaggernaut (Beaclon/Joker) had met. "All too well, mister Dhakkan."
"Call me 'boss', Rex."
"Dhakkan, isn't this a little overboard for just one guy?"
"Stupid human… how could you understand? He's a Jaggernaut." The Sloth Beetle (Beaclon/Tiger) shook his head sadly. "Jaggernauts have a long memory for slights."
"So, basically, you don't want him here but you don't dare not invite him?"
"Exactly."
"I'm not that stupid, boss. Humans aren't any smarter or stupider than monsters."
"You're a third-generation Kulian, Rex. By then we've managed to breed out intelligence."
"So this island is called Kul?"
"Of course. What did you expect?"
"Nobody ever told me where I live, boss. I'd know this island was Kul if somebody'd told me. But nobody did." He sighed. "It's got to be the Blue Devils. They're destroying the humans here."
"The Devils know what they're doing, Rex. I'm one of them." Dhakkan indicated the Red medallion around his neck. "I've got influence to keep you safe, but I don't want to get hurt if you start speaking against them."
"I'll lay low, boss."
"Good."