The sun rose and fell on a young woman toiling diligently over battered
binding and tattered pages. Dust rose in clouds from the numerous shelves,
the work of two foxes swishing their tails along the old wood. Silence was
the order of the day, and most days, but that was the way Rabe liked it,
and that was the way it had always been. As a new day dawned fresh in the
world of the living, the pseudo-hermit librarian lifted her head from her
work and stretched. Sunlight fell through the windows like waterfalls,
drenching the dusty floorboards with golden warmth and sparking Rabe to
leave the Library for a while. She was beginning to get up and go home for
food when the door opened.
Bella entered the library, her dress ripped. She giggled out of the irony of being in a library the way she looked. She saw Rabe sitting at the desk and smiled. Flicking her chocolate hair over her shoulder, she continued to walk through the rows of books. Bella sighed, closing her ice blue eyes and inhaled the smell of the books.
Her fingers brushed against the spine of an art book and she narrowed her eyes, attempting to read the letters. She'd never been very good at this 'reading' thing. Her fingers brushed off clots of dust as she pulled one out. She opened the decaying book to see marvelous paintings. She grinned down at them but then shook her head and placed it back on the shelf. After she'd looked through numerous books she finally sighed loudly and sat down on the stool she'd been using to reach the books.
Rabe meandered over to her, attempting to hide the fact that she was REALLY excited to have someone looking for something other than an almanac. As she gently tapped on the stranger's shoulder, the foxes rubbed against her legs in hopes of catching a glimpse up her skirt. Rabe pushed them away with her foot.
"Need some help?"
Bella turned to look at Rabe. "Oh." She grinned. "Yes actually, I'm looking for a book about drawing portraits." Raising an eyebrow at Rabe she motioned for her to show her the way.
Trying to bottle her eagerness for later use, the librarian led the way down the aisle. She turned once to the left, and once more to the right almost immediately after. This led them to a large wall that was badly in need of a dusting. Rabe frowned.
"I need to work on that...Well, here you are. Lots to choose from, so take as long as you want. As soon as you've picked, bring them up to the front de-"
She was interrupted by a large crash, as the wall was blown inward and a cackling maniac in green landed on the ruin of torn pages and scattered masterpieces. What appeared to be a small leprechaun was standing in the rubble. It immediately began chucking books at the two females it spotted, yelling things that probably shouldn't be repeated.
Rabe's eyes narrowed, a crossed lowercase 'h' glowed on her forehead, and the foxes knew enough to step back as they heard organ music play. She had completely forgotten there was someone else in the room, what with that being a very rare occurance indeed.
Bella let out a terrified scream as they tiny little bugger made it's way into the library. Noticing the 'h' on Rabe's forehead her eyes widened a little and took her 'friend's' transformation as a hint. The Chicago Overture played in a fast tempo as she, herself, was raised into the air and began to spin.
As Sailorsaturn finished her transformation, she glanced over to see her patron doing the same. She blinked, wide-eyed, and gave the leprechaun enough time to start a rain of Fae gold in the library.
"That's it, you're going to ruin the rest of my books that way. The pen is mightier than the sword! I am Sailorsaturn!" She began to spin her Quill, readying herself to attack. The leprechaun only watched, becoming slightly dizzy in the process.
As Bella's--I mean Sailorvenus's feet touched the floor she quickly noticed Sailorsaturn's "speech" and decided quickly to make up her own. A thought shot to her head and before she knew what she was doing the words tumbled from her mouth. "You could call me the mistress of muderers, The carrier of sleep! I am your worst dream... Die!" Her eyes became a mysterious dark blue and her princess tiara shimmered.
She raised an eyebrow and looked down at the little thingy running around. That thing seriously freaked her out. She looked over at Sailorsaturn and gave her a quizzical look.
This was met only with a very scary grin. You don't mess with a librarian's books.
"Needle Impact!" Sailorsatrun threw her Quill, landing it square above the leprechauns head. It paused in it's onslaught of literature to look up. It looked back at her and pointed, laughing.
"You miss-OWOWOWOWOWOWOOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!" He was set into a scatterbained dance to avoid feather daggers, and was attempting to cover his head with his arms.
Sailorvenus looked at the leprechaun to Sailorsaturn and back again. This was her chance to shine. She grinned and stared at the little bugger. "HEY!" She yelled at it. It stopped from it's screaming and stared. It's little green eyes bugging out at her. It once again started screaming "OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!" and jumping around. "That's it." She muttered under her breath.
"VENUS" Sailorvenus lifted her long arms into the air an flung open her hands, fanning them out. "SLEEPING" A white power appeared out from inbetween her hands, shooting at the little, deformed, munchkin. "POWDER!" The powder shot at the leprechaun and wherever it touched the things skin the skin ripped off, leaven open gashes on his skin.
"AUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!" The leprechaun's now even more deformed face screamed out at them. Sailorv ran over to Sailorsaturn. "My attack wasn't strong enough," She gripped onto the other girls hand. "We need to combine.. or do something!"
"Gah! I don't know! I can't do much else except...Well, destroy everything. And...That's not a good idea. Maybe we could..." The girl's mismatched eyes wandered, and fell on the fox brothers, who were currently hiding under an off-kilter shelf.
A few minutes later they were flying through the air yelling various things that sounded like a cross between 'augh' and a fox's screech. The little green man they were intended to hit was not happy and started scrambling away, getting caught on his own mess of broken binding and scattered shelves.
"That's it." Sailorvenus closed her eyes tightly. "STOP!" She screamed. Everything went completely silent for about 5 minutes. In that time frame she took that as a energy builder.
'I'll try this one more time.' She thought.
"VENUS" Sailorvenus lifted her arms into the air once again an flung open her hands, fanning them out. "SLEEPING" A white power sprang out from inbetween her hands, shooting at the little monster. "POWDER!" The powder shot at the leprechaun. It screamed in agony and fell to the floor, twitching and moaning.
Saturn restrained the urge to do a victory dance and attacked the creature with her feather again before it finally exploded into green light and dust, leaving behind the faint smell of burnt shamrocks. She dusted herself off and knocked the dust on the tip of her feather off on her boot. Her attention was then turned to the stranger she had just fought beside.
"Well, what quest are YOU on? I'm not up to cleaning all of this up just yet...And a monotonous life can sometimes be boring. So I guess I could travel with you, if you like." Not bothering to revert to normal, Saturn began absentmindedly picking up books in salvageable shape around her and stacking them neatly in the middle of all the chaos.
Venus stared at her dumbstruck. "W-what about YOU'RE quest." She stuttered. "AND my art book." She fainted then, falling over onto the dusty floor, sending dust into the air in a giant cloud.
"....Oh great, more mess." Saturn sighed and reverted to her normal self, then began poking the unconcsious senshi with a random art book.
Venus moaned and rolled over when the art books tapped her. She sat slowly, batting the book away from her. Her head spun quickly as she looked over at Saturn. She held out her hand slowly. "Hi. I'm Bella."
Her hand was hesitantly and briskly shook, and then the librarian raised an eyebrow. "I'm Rabe. So, are you taking me along or not? I've nothing else to do..."
"Sure thing." Venus raised an eyebrow back and stood up. She detransformed and smiled, picking up the art book on the ground. "This is what I needed."
Rabe paused, then smiled. "Wilhelm and Jacob, me boys, we're going on an adventure."
*****
At the change in Richelle's voice, Cécile narrowed her eyes. What was this girl implying, after all of the hospitality she provided? It wasn't as though they'd done anything to hurt her, aside from the little steak fiasco, and even then, the girl wouldn't accept a repayment. Perhaps the inquiry about the King was a bit much, but it didn't seem as though what she had said made their mission obvious. Cécile tried to control a growl from slipping into her incredulous voice, "Excuse me?" She pushed her chair back from the table and stood up, a grim expression replacing the polite smile, "I don't believe we have done any wrong to you as guests. Certainly my uncle's behavior is odd, but you can't blame him when he is as mentally...affected as he is. We have no intention of staying here anyway, since we were well on our way until we found you and your damned steak."
The baker turned to Wolf, who was still in the middle of eating, with a glare that told him to get up before she had to make him do it. "Let's go, Uncle Warren. We're not welcome here." A part of her was altogether unsurprised about rejection. She had felt it all of her life whenever she traveled to other towns in the Second Kingdom, especially in the north. Rifling through her pockets for money, though it was in Second Kingdom currency, she glanced back at Richelle, her voice cold and unfriendly, "Thank you for your food and service." Cécile slapped the coinage on the table and moved for the door.
Richelle stood to the side, watching Cécile as she talked. "I can't let you leave without an explanation. You haven't been forthright with me--which under the circumstances is understandable, but outright lying..." Richelle shook her head. "What did he mean by the tenth kingdom? Only folk I've heard of going over there are the Four and the bad guys. And if you truly didn't mean to go to the castle you would never have gotten lost this way." she gave Wolf a look. "Even if you smelled my steak."
At these words, Cécile froze and stiffly turned to look at Wolf. What had he said when she wasn't here?!? How could he be so...so...STUPID? She tried to contain the horror from flooding into her expression. They were just as good as dead if this girl had any idea of their true identities. Once again, the baker reached for her neck while Richelle continued speaking.
"As guests you are very nice, my parents shouldn't even notice you were here you were so nice and tidy--as...travelers you leave much to be desired for." Her eyes flicked back and forth between the door and the two. She could, obstensibly, make it if she transformed. She wasn't so sure she could take on a wolf, full grown or not, without serious injury, destruction to the house and one of them running off and telling every bad guy in the kingdom where they could find her. *What to do, what to do...*
Following Richelle's eyes, Cécile looked back at the door, and then to Wolf. Were she an actual animal, her fur would be standing on end and bristling at this point. Their hostess was a threat to them, she could just feel it in her gut and smell it in the air. The tingle that she had felt the night before had returned, creating a deep seated worry. Still focusing her gaze on Wolf, she brushed back the hair from her face, revealing a feral, golden eye. Cécile swallowed, then spoke in a calm, yet tense voice, "Run." She made no movements herself, only inclining her head towards the door. He stared back, almost blankly. The urgency rose as she repeated herself, "Wolf, RUN! NOW!"
There was silence. Wolf looked back at her darkly, tilting his head downward as if to look at her on eyelevel. "I will do no such thing. We are wolves, Cécile." There, he had said it. There was no use dancing around it anymore. "We do not run. This isn't just your world that's in danger here... they
want Virginia too. Do you think I'll run from that?" His words were hard and cold; the truth.
His words struck a chord in her. For a moment, Cécile felt strangely relieved and pleased by his words -- she wasn't alone anymore. She didn't need to pretend she was anything other than a wolf at heart. But she didn't have time to gush over warm feelings. Whether or not he was a fully grown man, he hadn't been able to ward off the attack that led him back to the Nine Kingdoms. If this girl, whom Cécile could already sense magical powers in, was just as dangerous, if not moreso, then... "Wolf, you don't know what you're up against... I can handle it, trust me!" Or rather, trust Sailormars, which even she couldn't do. She had only transformed once before in her entire life...but now wasn't a good time to doubt her powers. "Take the horses and get to the palace before it's too late. I'll catch up with you, I promise." This time, it was more of a plea than a command.
*******
"The lights came from upstairs--so those are our best bet. D'you think we should split up or do you reckon there might be another spider monster?" Gio said as her fuku fell off in the form of multicolored string, leaving her red suit behind. She straighted her top hat and looked at Alice squarely. "I'll be fine without the torch, if light is a problem."
"Your crazy if you think I'm going to wander around this place without back up," was Alice's reply as she gingerly stepped over the spider juices. "Besides, it's a well-known fact that enemies get stronger as the hero goes on. If it takes two of us to kill the first, it would be a kamikaze mission to go on alone."
"Well, all right then." Gio said before she began up the right hand staircase. "We'll try this one first and see where it goes. If all else fails, we could just make a racket. That's sure to bring someone down."
"Brilliant plan, as long as we don't die, I don't really care," Alice carefully positioned herself behind Gio as they started up the musty staircase. There were cobwebs here as well, but mostly near the ceiling. She squinted at the steps as they were climbing. "This staircase must have been used a lot at one point in time, it's worn in on one side..."
"Isn't that nice," Gio said distractedly as she fanned away the cobwebs. Squinting in the ever increasing darkness, the stairs continued for several minutes until Alice's legs felt quite numb. Then they came into a narrow hallway, which was equally dark.
Alice pursed her lips disapprovingly, "I wouldn't expect a member of the phylum Coniferophyta to notice details such as that, which might clue us in on possible inhabitants." She peered into the shadowy hallway, wishing she had her purse with her. A flashlight would be so much more reliable than the torch's flickering light.
"Notice that soon as we're out of a life or death situation the smartass switch gets turned back on," Gio muttered as she stormed into the hallway. "HELLO! ANYONE HERE!" She turned around to face Alice and began to walk backwards. "We don't mean you any harm.... we just want directions...!"
"...please don't eat us, please don't fricassee us," Alice mumbled under her breath, instinctively crouching slightly as she walked. "...don't ravish us... killing is not preferred..." She kept quietly whispering this mantra of sorts, looking around her for any signs of movement.
---
The day had hardly begun when a young boy in armor could be seen trudging through the lush forest landscape. In his hand he clutched a strange but ornate dagger, and his face was a mask of confidence. Today he would fight the beast, and today he would win yet again. Such as it always was, so it will always be.
Arriving in a clearing, he saw the target of his quest. A simple cave, on the opposite end of the grassy clearing. Taking a deep breath, the armored boy called, "Foul beast, today you die! Come out here and meet your maker!"
Clutching the dagger tighter, the boy waited. He knew he wouldn't have to wait long.
Slowly, from the depths of the cave, came a large, hulking shadow. As it emerged into the light, the figure was revealed: a large, dangerous-looking dragon, strong in build with ashen gray armored scales and large, powerful wings which flexed as it crawled out of the cave on all fours. Its tail twitched and swayed behind it, and its eyes seemed to almost glow an angry yellow gleam as it bared its sharp teeth and let out a low breath.
"Come to take my head again, boy?" it asked in a deep, gruff voice.
The boy raised his dagger and pointed it at the beast, grinning. "And I shall be victorious! Jabberwocky, I shall slay you once and for all!"
In the Jabberwocky's mind, he knew that no matter what he said, The Boy was right. In a storybook, the end is already written. He couldn't change it, no matter how much he tried. But if there was one thing he learned from his years upon years of repeating this battle, it was that if he had to die, he would at least die with honor. Slowly, the beast rose up on its hind legs, standing near straight before The Boy, lowering his head to stare at him. "Then so be it. Let us begin this dance all over again."
And begin it did. The Boy rushed the Jabberwocky, knife poised, but the Jabberwocky was prepared for this. Flapping its powerful wings, it took to the air above The Boy, and tried to flap down and stomp him with his powerful hind legs.
Under normal circumstances this would have been an effective ploy, as The Boy was too reckless in his charge to be able to efficiently dodge the attack. However, the Jabberwocky realized, that no matter how hard he fought something would happen to save The Boy. That damned Boy. And he was right. He wasn't sure which moved, him or The Boy, but his perfectly aimed kick wound up short of The Boy's position. The Boy took this chance and took another lunge at the Jabberwocky, trying to climb up its back to its neck.
The Jabberwocky was quick to respond to this attempt. He reached behind him and grabbed The Boy, pulling him off and flinging him into a nearby tree. "Let's see if you can stop this, Boy," the beast grumbled, as it reared back its powerful head and let loose a blast of flame breath at the fallen Boy.
For a moment, there was a glimmer of hope. Perhaps he had finally escaped this cycle. But that hope was quickly dashed as the Boy emerged from the flames. Completely unharmed. It was as if he were a god, or a titan, or a mere immortal. The Jabberwocky scowled, and The Boy laughed. "You can't beat me, foul creature! You should know that by now!"
"Do not count yourself the victor just yet, child," the Jabberwocky warned. "Fate may be on my side yet."
"Fate is never on the side of evil scum like you!" the Boy declared, raising his dagger. "Fate shines on those with the light of good in their hearts, like me!"
For a moment, the Jabberwocky thought he would be sick. But he knew the Boy was partly right. Fate would not smile on him. It never would.
But then, something happened. Something that surprised both combatants. In the middle of the clearing, a glowing white light started as a flicker, and then grew brighter and brighter. "What is that?!" The Boy shouted, shielding his eyes from the glare.
The Jabberwocky just stared at the light. "Salvation." He dropped to all fours and raced for the light...
---
The senshi pair had found themselves in a musty old library, wall to wall in leather-bound books. The sounds of their footsteps was muffled by frayed and warped carpets. Alice felt her her fingers itching and twitching at the mere scent of them. She raised the torch in a semicircle, trying to comprehend the height of the shelves.
"Let's stop here for just a moment, I see something useful..." On small desks, or tables, she wasn't sure which, there were oil lamps. Alice stopped to light one.
"How do you know they have any oil left?" she heard Gio ask, a slight edge in her voice.
The wick caught. "Oil doesn't evaporate." Alice smiled, the light of the lamp only revealing her mouth and face, her brilliant blues eyes glimmering every once in a while. The lamp smoked, she knew it would, but it couldn't be helped since the torch was already starting to burn out. She offered the lamp to Gio, who waved it away. Shrugging, she found some stone floor and mashed the torch end into the granite, snuffing it out. The lamp provided much clearer and more reliable light.
As she stood up, gold leaf on a binding caught her eye and stopping her mid- motion. It was impossible. Lewis Carroll was born long after the glories of the brothers Grimm. Bound in red fabric with gold leaf reading "Through the Looking-Glass" in clean, angular script. The book sat so innocently on the shelf, between the Aberdeen Bestiary and the Aeneid. But it was there, nonetheless, mocking her, teasing her....
Tempting her.
She straightened up, not even feeling the quiver in her left pocket, and pulled it off the shelf with her middle finger. She examined it for another brief, yet agonizing second, and opened the book.
Blinding blue light beamed through the writing a moment before covering the entire page, a great blast of hot air accompanying it. Alice had felt gale force winds that were tamer. The winds knocked her back into the bookshelf, which in turn dumped some books on her. The book remained still, despite the winds and through squinted eyes, Alice saw.
From the flash of light started to emerge a large, inhuman form that roared in triumph. As it emerged farther, though, from out of the light came what looked like chains. A large metal shackle snapped itself on to the beast's neck, and the light flashed brighter.
When it died down, a young dark skinned man lay on the floor, bare except for some shorts, his body wrapped in shiny chains and shackles on his arms, legs, and neck. Perhaps the strangest thing about him was the fact that he had a long, ash gray tail. He lay prone on the ground while from the glowing light came another form.
The Boy had recklessly charged yet again, and this time paid the price as he ran headfirst into the bookcase next to Alice.
At this point, Gio had had enough of the blowing winds and the people hitting the bookcases. She fought against the winds as she trudged towards the book, forcing the thick cover closed. As soon as the book shut, the lights ended and the winds stopped. She surveyed the situation, wondering just what had happened.
The chained boy on the ground slowly forced himself to his feet when he regained consciousness. "Oh my head..." He placed his hand to his forehead... when he realized that his hand had changed. Quickly feeling over the rest of his body, he looked down at himself. "What happened to me?!" he shouted in surprise and anger.
From the bookcase, The Boy pushed himself to his feet, looking around before catching sight of the transformed boy. Wasting no time, he pointed the dagger and called, "Taking human form won't save you! I shall slay you, foul beast, no matter what form you take!" In typical fashion, the Boy tried to rush the Jabberwocky again. It had always worked before, he knew it would work again.
But this time, for some reason, it didn't. The Jabberwocky jumped, despite the chains, and kicked The Boy in the back as he passed. However, it was then that he realized that his legs were connected to a ball and chain. As a result, he wound up being pulled back to the ground quickly. "Damn," he muttered. He needed to figure out what was going on without that damn child after him. "I'll see you later, boy," the Jabberwocky shouted, as from his back a pair of ash gray wings sprouted, and he dashed for the window of the dimly lit library, jumping out of it and gliding down the wall of the castle towards one of the lower floors.
The Boy regained his bearings in time to see the Jabberwocky jump out the window. He rushed to the portal in the wall, but was too late to see where he had gone. "He's gone!" the boy pouted, leaning against the windowsill.
A wind-blown and somewhat confused Gio stood next to the closed book, her eyes darting side to side. "What...the hell...just happened here...?"
Standing up amidst injured books, Alice gathered her wits faster than she could finger comb and rebraid her hair. "It appears that we have two..." she looked the Boy over and in lieu of her original choice of words, decided on, "Creatures of writing. One of whom escaped. What is your name?" She indicated to the boy, finishing her braid and pulling her hood up once more.
The boy turned from the window to face the speaker. Being the young teenager he was, he turned to a boastful mass of Jell-o as soon as he was sure she was addressing her. "I am Gregor, the greatest warrior in all the land!" he announced, sheathing his dagger and bowing gracefully. At least he thought it was graceful. He just wound up looking like a fool. "And who might you be, fair maiden?"
Alice was far from impressed and half-expected his voice to crack, but she decided to play along since it took longer to transform and kick his ass than it took him to draw his sword. She curtsied, using her raincoat like a dress. "O mighty warrior, I am naught but a peasant maid and do not deserve the respect and formalities," she smiled sweetly, any trace of her less pleasant bits completely absent. "But if you do so wish for my name, some people call me 'Alice.' And this is my escort and guardian, Gio." Alice motioned to Gio with her hand.
"Didn't look so dangerous to me," Gio said as she looked out the way the ...thing had left. "Just had a pair of wings. Wearing chains, even." She rested her hand on her hip, the other tipping her hat to one side.
"I assure you," The Boy said, "that that THING is a fearsome creature who lives for naught but death and destruction!" Of course, he didn't know that for sure. He only knew stories told by people from his village about what the Jabberwocky had done, but he wasn't about to tell them that. "The Jabberwocky must be slain!"
"How simply awful," gaped Alice, delicately covering her mouth with a pale hand. "How can you possibly pit yourself against such a creature without fear of your own destruction? I would be utterly terrified!"
At this time Gio found it appropriate to begin to cough violently in her little corner, smirking between her violent fits. A giggle escaped here or there, too, but it wasn't too obvious. What do you know, Alice could be funny sometimes...
"Worry not for me, fair maiden!" The Boy stated with bolstered courage. "For I have the power of good on my side! And good shall always triumph over evil!"
"Oh my! Oh my, oh my, oh my!" cried Alice in false delight, "You are so selfless, brave warrior! Perhaps I could ask you the tiniest of favors? I would be utterly in your debt if you could help us, o fierce Gregor?" Alice had reduced herself to a simpering young girl, much to her own pleasure. Idiots are much easier to deal with when you act like an idiot with them.
"But of course, fair maiden!" The Boy responded, smiling stupidly. "What is it you wish of me?" At that moment he probably would have jumped out the window behind him if she asked him to and still smiled about it.
"We're in a terrible predicament, you see.... We are oh so very lost and when we went into this castle in hope of finding someone who could tell us directions, we've encountered these awful beasts. We just barely escaped from the last one. And I was wondering if you could possibly help us out of the castle and back on the road? You're so brave, I'm sure it would be no problem for you."
"And what about that beast thing? I'd be glad to help you," Gio said after a few minutes of silence. She looked so much bigger and stronger than the Boy was. She placed her hand over the spot where her marionette was hidden. "I'm sure together we could get it, eh? Let Alice rest a while, and we'll go hunt it out."
"I agree," The Boy stated. Then he began, "Fair maiden Alice, your manservant and I shall hunt down the beast and slay it while you rest yourself! Fear not, we shall be victorious!", as if the thought was his own idea. With that, he took Alice's hand and kissed it, turning around and heading out of the room, expecting Gio to follow close behind.
Alice, quite happy not to participate in the adventures, waved off the two heroes with a kleenex and settled down with the Aberdeen Bestiary.
*******
The dark hoods were pulled over their faces, though through the darkness bled green and wine colored eyes. The eyes glowed like the riverstones that laid at the bottom of the streams they carressed with their gloved fingertips. The forest they traveled through sprouted narrow, gnarled trees and a mist that ate the hems of their cloaks. Leaves rustled and took flight as they passed.
The two figures held hands, through their sleeveless cloaks their hands were seen swinging back and forth in unison. One that wore a green suede cloak held a lantern in her other hand, as she led the other cloaked one the darkness fled from them, scattering shadows across the wood.
"When owls call the breathless moon
In the blue veil of the night
The shadows of the trees appear
Amidst the lantern light.."
Their voices echoed throughout the forest. Animals stopped in their tracks to listen to them, for their song was not an unfamilair one, their glinting eyes caught by the light of the lantern. They danced on air as they passed, their feet never gracing the ground with its fragile touch. The sound of their song was an eerie one, a strange reminder of the things one had forgotten long ago, when they rocked in the cradle. Oh, what a weird sight they must have been, so strange and yet wonderous to see two girls dancing through the air, their voices like angels.
Suddenly the greek cloaked one stopped and pressed her feet into the soft, leaf-covered earth just before the thick trunks of a tree began. She sprang upwards, the girl in the soft blue coak following behind limply. As they broke through the canopy of leaves, a burst of color surrounded them and floated to the ground. They looked at the pale sky, clouds undistinguishable. The latter girl reached her hand up to perhaps just touch the surface of it, it was so close--before they took a great tumble and were sent half-giggling, half-singing through the branches of a large tree to the ground again.
"We've been rambling all the night
And some time of this day
Now returning back again
...We bring a garland gay."
As they nearly had impact with the ground, a flock of common birds took flight around them, catching their dresses as they flew. The bluecloakedgirl laughed and held the numerous layers of her dress down as they darted between a old dead tree and a riverbed, and soon the birds had all but diminished.
They played games like this, in midair. Acrobatics and just general mischief, as if taunting gravity to take them and send them crashing to the Earth. It was a vain fight for gravity though--try as it might, it would never catch the green cloaked girl and any of those she assisted. They spun and flipped, and bounced off the side of rocks to catapult through the air laughing like children.
"And so they linked their hands and danced
Round in circles and in rows
And so the journey of the night descends
When all the shades are gone."
But these childish games didn't last. The green cloaked girl slowed to a stop. Her hands trembled, even tucked inside the other girl's hand, who now looked on in a puzzled expression. Gloved fingers tucked themselves in her hood as the green cloaked girl slipped the cloth down to her shoulders, revealing soft brown hair. Her ornate eyes darkened and her lip trembled-- though she had no idea why.
In her irises, though, you could see shadows, and the sound of hoof beats roared...
The presence of such strangers in the forest had disturbed something deep within the trees. It had believed that the vicinity would have been empty, silent and private, but the sound of delicate laughter quickly shattered this image. The figure and source of the hoof beats felt nothing but anger and a sense of threatening by voices that were so uncommon. It stormed forward as an unnaturally large black shadow with a sallow golden light hanging to its side, most certainly having focused on the girls just ahead like a hunting animal singled out a target.
Effortlessly it wove through trees that were second nature to it at a full gallop, and the closer it came the more clear it's identity was. The thick shadow cleared into a defined profile of human and animal. On the back of a large coal black horse was what appeared to be a man, or what was left of him. He brandished in one hand a sword, while the other proudly held the golden light--a pumpkin. However, even with all of these items, the figure was missing something verykey. He did not duck or dodge and branches that were bold enough to extend at the level of his head, for there was no need; the horseman had no head to be in danger of scratches. Despite this, he rode forward with what might have been mistaken for perfect vision, locked in on the intruders.
Dido stood frozen for a moment and looked at the headless spectre. Her wine eyes showed little emotion, until her lips open and she began to speak. "He doesn't look too happy with us... who is he? And where did his head go...?"
But this wasn't a time for answers. Quickly, the brown haired girl grabbed the other's hand and jumped to the ground. With the impact they sprung upwards, just as the horseman came at them, and narrowly they missed the swinging blade. Eulalia's breath was caught as she desperately looked for an exit--a mud puddle, a stream, anything reflective they could pass through--but there was nothing there to give her comfort. She could hide..but Dido couldn't, and they certainly couldn't out run the ghost... He came like a wildfire, so stealthily until he had been right there. Why hadn't she seen him? A hopeless look rested on her face as she glanced at Dido, who was still pondering why the man had no head and why they were in the middle of the big forest.
"Lala, what are we going to do...?" Dido said after a few minutes of observation, though it did her little good.
Eulalia opened her mouth to speak, and they darted past another blow that would've been fatal. The cold black fingertips of a dead tree scraped Eulalia's skin and she trembled. Grasping Dido by the shoulders and looking at her deeply, Eulalia bit her lip. "Dido... I .... I want you to run from here."
"Lala! You can't leave me! He'll...he'll chase me! The man with no head! Why is he chasing us?"
"He won't chase you if I'm distracting him, I think!" Eulalia said with a breathless voice as she untangled herself.
"But I'll get lost!"
"Just keep running. Don't stop. Call for Archos, she'll be able to help you."
"Lala..." Dido's wine eyes were clouded with tears as she slipped her hood off, revealing her teal hair in the tints of blue that painted the forest. But then her tears went away. Eulalia wasn't sure if Dido just accepted her command or merely forgot why she was scared, but she turned to go. As soon as she let go of Eulalia's hands, she dropped to the ground on all fours. There was a mad scramble as she rushed to get to her feet and she began to run.
At the same time, Eulalia raised her glove and closed her eyes, sending her transformation into action. She felt herself rise not of her own accord, the hems of her skirts lazily waving in the wind, though just a few minutes ago there hadn't been any. Slowly, the rose that was wrapped around her glove began to glow. Eulalia felt herself go numb, and Sailorviator immediately took over.
She landed and the holy light died, as she crouched a shard of glass materialized in her waiting hand. Squinting, Viator saw the horse's flank as it attempted to chase the fleeing Dido. Scowling, Viator shouted.
"IF YOU DON'T MIND, I'M OVER HERE!"
Already frustrated by being unable to strike down his opponents, the horseman slowed and turned sharply towards the girl who had yelled at him. Even without a face he seethed rage and a willingness to engage in a real battle, rather than the merry-go-round mockery of it with useless dodges and swings. His now detained steed pawed the ground impatiently, obviously just as willing. It took two labored steps towards Viator, it's rider forcing it not to take off after the fleeing woman again.
The headless horseman rose his sword in threat again, advancing on the one stranger that was still present, using the perfectly balanced pumpkin as a light as if to look at her face. If he could deal with this one quickly, the rider felt assured the one who ran would be within reach as well. With this, he urged the beast of burden forward, blade swinging madly.
His blade met the glass one that Viator swung at the same time, her eyes glinting with a fiery anger that Eulalia's eyes did not know. She held her place for an amazing length of time, just staring blankly at the man with no face. Anything at all to make sure Dido got further away, to make sure that they could complete their mission. She snapped to reality and then with a cry of anger she pushed the blade forward. It shattered, leaving traces of glass over the leaf-covered ground. She tightened her grip over what was left of the blade, before bounding off the ground, flipping over herself several times.
The horseman turned the stump of his neck to follow the pattern of flight expressed by the girl. His horse whinnied and shifted it's position at the noise and movement, and the rider didn't bother to calm the animal. Instead, he inspected the new nicks on his blade from the glass weapon. As soon as she landed, he made his mount rush forward for another attack, feeling more hastened than ever to be rid of the threat.
As she landed, she oriented her gravity once more. She was hovering sideways, her head turned back to look at the approaching horseman upside down. With a swift push, she was off again, half-running, half-flying through the woods, darting between trees she thought the horse could not make headway through. This was good in theory, but the thinner, weaker trees were sliced in half by the horseman's blade. Viator looked back with a horrified expression as he drew nearer and nearer. Nothing seemed like it could stop him; she was dealing with a spectre, a being of neither realm.
The chase continued for what seemed like hours for the speculum soldier. Everywhere she turned, she leapt from the closeness of the blade, leaving pieces of her uniform the blade caught behind, fluttering to the ground before trampled by thunderous horse hooves. Mist that had only been a blanket on the ground before now grew waist-deep as they neared a stream; at last, a stream! Viator had found her exit.
Looking back, her eyes caught the visage of the headless horseman once more. Her heart stopped--for the first time, Eulalia managed to catch up with Viator's win-or-flee spirit--and fear took her breath away. Somewhere deep within her, she realized that once upon a time, that spectre had been good. He had been a lonely soldier, just like she, and had died. A tear slipped from her eyes as she crawled to the water's surface. The sword swung down on her just as she was disappearing.
Had she not moved, the blade would've killed her. But she had slipped away, and since then only her back had been sliced, not severed. The sound of the water echoed and the heavy pant of the horse, who nearly reared and struck the pond bottom with its hooves. There was no girl to strike. Silently, the horseman portrayed his frustrated state of mind, violently waving his glowing pumpkin in protest.
He did not notice the flicker of light behind him. Green eyes blurred with tears as the speculum soldier reappeared behind him. Eulalia did not like hurting things, truth be told. It was a necessary evil. But the spectre needed rest--everyone needed rest. There was only one way. If the ghost had a head, the broken remain of the glass lance Viator swung would've taken it off, clean at the neck. But since someone had apparently beat her to it, the glass flew through the air and instead hit his pumpkin. To anyone else, this would have appeared to be a fatal move. But this move would be the one to save Viator, and bring her just a bit closer to her goal.
The pumpkin fell from his hands, the brimstone's light disappearing into the stream as it rolled. Instantly, a change began to take place. Her eyes were there, and focused, but yet she couldn't see. Numbly, she reached over her shoulder where a stinging pain had began to eat away at her conscious. Retrieving her hand, she noticed that now both gloves were stained with her own blood. Her eyes unfocused from there. For the first time in her life, Sailorviator, the senshi of travel and teleportation, fell.
The fall lasted forever, as tears streamed from her eyes. They hung in the air like rain drops. For a moment, her heart beat, her breath succumbed to the sounds of the forest. The owls hooted. The crickets chirped. In the spaces the canopy of leaves left behind, tiny stars dotted the sky.
'What a beautiful night,' Viator thought as a small smile claimed her lips. Her uniform faded away, forming pieces of glass that sunk into the forest's grounds, leaving bloody gloves and a dust rose gown behind. Her eyes lost their glow as an uneasy sleep took her. In the meantime, another pair of green eyes were watching her in horror. Then, all Eulalia could see was light.
"I'm..sorry..... sorry..." Eulalia whispered through dry lips, before even the pleasures of speech were lost to her. And there she laid, a broken winged bird who couldn't fly, crumpled in the ground with blood-stained hands and dirt beneath her fingernails. She slept.
"Oh my lord..." a voice said softly, though it fell on seemingly deaf ears. A long, thin shadow lingered over Eulalia's body. "What have I done...?"
*******
On their way out, Gio walked with her arms behind her head as she looked up at the flying buttresses that adorned the sides of the hallway. "So, how vicious and terrible is this supposive beast?" She said, unamused. "It certainly didn't seem to stay and fight." Her gaze was particularly piercing.
"Quite vicious, I must say," Gregor responded, hand on the dagger at his waist anxiously. "He has destroyed villages and killed innocent people with no thought about his actions! As to why he ran, he must have been afraid of my great strength and knew he stood no chance for survival..." What he forgot to mention was that he hadn't actually SEEN the Jabberwocky kill or destroy anything. He only heard rumors and stories told to him by his elders.
"Ah huh," Gio said with enough enthusiasm to seem honest, but not quite enough to seem enthused. Quite frankly, she wasn't sure if this boy could box his own shadow, much less slay a monster of some sort. She cocked her head to the side, her footsteps halting. "Eh... d'you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Gregor asked, blinking and clueless.
Normally, Gio would've sighed in exasperation. However, since she had picked up a trace, her curiosity was sparked. The distant scuttle was heard in the background. "I think it might be..."
Wham. There went a stone wall, revealing eight hairy black legs.
"Another spider. Shit!"
Gregor simply laughed arrogantly. "Worry not, young man! I shall slay this beast as a warm up to my confrontation with the beast!" Grinning, he pulled the dagger from the hilt on his hip, and moved to attack the spider.
He sliced downwards toward the spider, which scuttled back far enough to avoid the blade, before head butting Gregor into a nearby wall. Gregor oomph-ed as he hit, dropping the blade. As he tried to recover, the spider reeled back a bit and spat out a glob of green liquid. Gregor just barely evaded the shot, turning to see what had happened. Where the liquid landed, the very brick began to melt away. Gregor's eyes widened and he made a sound akin to a whimper, as he grabbed his knife and tried to get as far away from the spider as he could.
"Blast..." Gio cursed as tumbled backwards, pulling the marionette from her jacket. There was no time to transform now--now that there was a toothpick, er, child to protect. The little backtrack she had done was made up for as she flew at the spider, the marionette's blades swinging as she attacked one of the giant legs, sending pieces of its meat everywhere. This resulted in a high-pitched scream from the spider as it reared that half-severed leg, with Gio still attached. Gio screamed, though it wasn't particularly in fright. "HELLO!? Someone?! Anyone? Stop this carriage ride, dammit!"
As if to answer her question, as quick as a flash, the half-severed leg was completely severed. Shortly after, four more legs fell away from the spider's body. The creature screamed in pain again, as it fell. "You should know better than to pick on those weaker than you," a voice said from the darkness.
"Eh? Who's that?" Gio called as she thumped to the ground. Either Gregor had suddenly went through puberty, or there was someone else. "Thanks, by the way!" She removed her marionette from the stone floor and looked around.
"No problem," the voice replied. The spider managed to get on its remaining feet, and appeared to be readying another corrosive shot. "Don't worry about this thing, I'll take care of it." Without another word, the spider lumbered towards the shadows where the waiting attacker stood. All Gio could hear was the sounds of a fight, as someone lay swift attacks to the spider, and the squishing sounds which could only be attributed to the spider being ripped to pieces. Then, it was all over, as the figure stepped into view of Gio.
It was the Jabberwocky. Or at least, the human it had become.
*************
Broken Fairy Tales: Senshi of the Ten Kingdoms.
The chapters of this story are taken directly from a play-by-email by the same name. Each of the writers, including myself, have given consent to having their work published under this name, with due credit.
'Something Wicked This Way Comes', episode five of Broken Fairy Tales, was written by Mags, Molly, Koi, Alex, Ryu, Gena, Sushi, and Jeff. Love you guys! 3
The song 'Mummer's Dance', sung by Dido and Eulalia in this chapter was originally performed by Loreena McKennit.
This is a crossover between 'Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon', and the NBC/Hallmark miniseries 'The Tenth Kingdom', that aired in 1998/1999. 'Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon' and 'The Tenth Kingdom' do not belong to the people who wrote Broken Fairy tales and we do not claim rights to any of the aforementioned television shows. We do, however, claim rights to our original characters, the Senshi of the Ten Kingdoms. Icabod Crane, the Headless Horseman and the Jabberwocky are properties of Washington Irving and Lewis Carol respectively--we have only borrowed them. They are copyrighted to their creators.
Are you a fan of sailormoon, the tenth kingdom, or just fairy tales? If you're a good writer and would like to contribute, visit our site at www32.brinkster.com/cwmrpg/broken
We're currently looking for someone to play Sailor Commoneo and we're always looking for Knights, so if you're interested please check it out. ^_^
Bella entered the library, her dress ripped. She giggled out of the irony of being in a library the way she looked. She saw Rabe sitting at the desk and smiled. Flicking her chocolate hair over her shoulder, she continued to walk through the rows of books. Bella sighed, closing her ice blue eyes and inhaled the smell of the books.
Her fingers brushed against the spine of an art book and she narrowed her eyes, attempting to read the letters. She'd never been very good at this 'reading' thing. Her fingers brushed off clots of dust as she pulled one out. She opened the decaying book to see marvelous paintings. She grinned down at them but then shook her head and placed it back on the shelf. After she'd looked through numerous books she finally sighed loudly and sat down on the stool she'd been using to reach the books.
Rabe meandered over to her, attempting to hide the fact that she was REALLY excited to have someone looking for something other than an almanac. As she gently tapped on the stranger's shoulder, the foxes rubbed against her legs in hopes of catching a glimpse up her skirt. Rabe pushed them away with her foot.
"Need some help?"
Bella turned to look at Rabe. "Oh." She grinned. "Yes actually, I'm looking for a book about drawing portraits." Raising an eyebrow at Rabe she motioned for her to show her the way.
Trying to bottle her eagerness for later use, the librarian led the way down the aisle. She turned once to the left, and once more to the right almost immediately after. This led them to a large wall that was badly in need of a dusting. Rabe frowned.
"I need to work on that...Well, here you are. Lots to choose from, so take as long as you want. As soon as you've picked, bring them up to the front de-"
She was interrupted by a large crash, as the wall was blown inward and a cackling maniac in green landed on the ruin of torn pages and scattered masterpieces. What appeared to be a small leprechaun was standing in the rubble. It immediately began chucking books at the two females it spotted, yelling things that probably shouldn't be repeated.
Rabe's eyes narrowed, a crossed lowercase 'h' glowed on her forehead, and the foxes knew enough to step back as they heard organ music play. She had completely forgotten there was someone else in the room, what with that being a very rare occurance indeed.
Bella let out a terrified scream as they tiny little bugger made it's way into the library. Noticing the 'h' on Rabe's forehead her eyes widened a little and took her 'friend's' transformation as a hint. The Chicago Overture played in a fast tempo as she, herself, was raised into the air and began to spin.
As Sailorsaturn finished her transformation, she glanced over to see her patron doing the same. She blinked, wide-eyed, and gave the leprechaun enough time to start a rain of Fae gold in the library.
"That's it, you're going to ruin the rest of my books that way. The pen is mightier than the sword! I am Sailorsaturn!" She began to spin her Quill, readying herself to attack. The leprechaun only watched, becoming slightly dizzy in the process.
As Bella's--I mean Sailorvenus's feet touched the floor she quickly noticed Sailorsaturn's "speech" and decided quickly to make up her own. A thought shot to her head and before she knew what she was doing the words tumbled from her mouth. "You could call me the mistress of muderers, The carrier of sleep! I am your worst dream... Die!" Her eyes became a mysterious dark blue and her princess tiara shimmered.
She raised an eyebrow and looked down at the little thingy running around. That thing seriously freaked her out. She looked over at Sailorsaturn and gave her a quizzical look.
This was met only with a very scary grin. You don't mess with a librarian's books.
"Needle Impact!" Sailorsatrun threw her Quill, landing it square above the leprechauns head. It paused in it's onslaught of literature to look up. It looked back at her and pointed, laughing.
"You miss-OWOWOWOWOWOWOOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!" He was set into a scatterbained dance to avoid feather daggers, and was attempting to cover his head with his arms.
Sailorvenus looked at the leprechaun to Sailorsaturn and back again. This was her chance to shine. She grinned and stared at the little bugger. "HEY!" She yelled at it. It stopped from it's screaming and stared. It's little green eyes bugging out at her. It once again started screaming "OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW!!" and jumping around. "That's it." She muttered under her breath.
"VENUS" Sailorvenus lifted her long arms into the air an flung open her hands, fanning them out. "SLEEPING" A white power appeared out from inbetween her hands, shooting at the little, deformed, munchkin. "POWDER!" The powder shot at the leprechaun and wherever it touched the things skin the skin ripped off, leaven open gashes on his skin.
"AUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!" The leprechaun's now even more deformed face screamed out at them. Sailorv ran over to Sailorsaturn. "My attack wasn't strong enough," She gripped onto the other girls hand. "We need to combine.. or do something!"
"Gah! I don't know! I can't do much else except...Well, destroy everything. And...That's not a good idea. Maybe we could..." The girl's mismatched eyes wandered, and fell on the fox brothers, who were currently hiding under an off-kilter shelf.
A few minutes later they were flying through the air yelling various things that sounded like a cross between 'augh' and a fox's screech. The little green man they were intended to hit was not happy and started scrambling away, getting caught on his own mess of broken binding and scattered shelves.
"That's it." Sailorvenus closed her eyes tightly. "STOP!" She screamed. Everything went completely silent for about 5 minutes. In that time frame she took that as a energy builder.
'I'll try this one more time.' She thought.
"VENUS" Sailorvenus lifted her arms into the air once again an flung open her hands, fanning them out. "SLEEPING" A white power sprang out from inbetween her hands, shooting at the little monster. "POWDER!" The powder shot at the leprechaun. It screamed in agony and fell to the floor, twitching and moaning.
Saturn restrained the urge to do a victory dance and attacked the creature with her feather again before it finally exploded into green light and dust, leaving behind the faint smell of burnt shamrocks. She dusted herself off and knocked the dust on the tip of her feather off on her boot. Her attention was then turned to the stranger she had just fought beside.
"Well, what quest are YOU on? I'm not up to cleaning all of this up just yet...And a monotonous life can sometimes be boring. So I guess I could travel with you, if you like." Not bothering to revert to normal, Saturn began absentmindedly picking up books in salvageable shape around her and stacking them neatly in the middle of all the chaos.
Venus stared at her dumbstruck. "W-what about YOU'RE quest." She stuttered. "AND my art book." She fainted then, falling over onto the dusty floor, sending dust into the air in a giant cloud.
"....Oh great, more mess." Saturn sighed and reverted to her normal self, then began poking the unconcsious senshi with a random art book.
Venus moaned and rolled over when the art books tapped her. She sat slowly, batting the book away from her. Her head spun quickly as she looked over at Saturn. She held out her hand slowly. "Hi. I'm Bella."
Her hand was hesitantly and briskly shook, and then the librarian raised an eyebrow. "I'm Rabe. So, are you taking me along or not? I've nothing else to do..."
"Sure thing." Venus raised an eyebrow back and stood up. She detransformed and smiled, picking up the art book on the ground. "This is what I needed."
Rabe paused, then smiled. "Wilhelm and Jacob, me boys, we're going on an adventure."
*****
At the change in Richelle's voice, Cécile narrowed her eyes. What was this girl implying, after all of the hospitality she provided? It wasn't as though they'd done anything to hurt her, aside from the little steak fiasco, and even then, the girl wouldn't accept a repayment. Perhaps the inquiry about the King was a bit much, but it didn't seem as though what she had said made their mission obvious. Cécile tried to control a growl from slipping into her incredulous voice, "Excuse me?" She pushed her chair back from the table and stood up, a grim expression replacing the polite smile, "I don't believe we have done any wrong to you as guests. Certainly my uncle's behavior is odd, but you can't blame him when he is as mentally...affected as he is. We have no intention of staying here anyway, since we were well on our way until we found you and your damned steak."
The baker turned to Wolf, who was still in the middle of eating, with a glare that told him to get up before she had to make him do it. "Let's go, Uncle Warren. We're not welcome here." A part of her was altogether unsurprised about rejection. She had felt it all of her life whenever she traveled to other towns in the Second Kingdom, especially in the north. Rifling through her pockets for money, though it was in Second Kingdom currency, she glanced back at Richelle, her voice cold and unfriendly, "Thank you for your food and service." Cécile slapped the coinage on the table and moved for the door.
Richelle stood to the side, watching Cécile as she talked. "I can't let you leave without an explanation. You haven't been forthright with me--which under the circumstances is understandable, but outright lying..." Richelle shook her head. "What did he mean by the tenth kingdom? Only folk I've heard of going over there are the Four and the bad guys. And if you truly didn't mean to go to the castle you would never have gotten lost this way." she gave Wolf a look. "Even if you smelled my steak."
At these words, Cécile froze and stiffly turned to look at Wolf. What had he said when she wasn't here?!? How could he be so...so...STUPID? She tried to contain the horror from flooding into her expression. They were just as good as dead if this girl had any idea of their true identities. Once again, the baker reached for her neck while Richelle continued speaking.
"As guests you are very nice, my parents shouldn't even notice you were here you were so nice and tidy--as...travelers you leave much to be desired for." Her eyes flicked back and forth between the door and the two. She could, obstensibly, make it if she transformed. She wasn't so sure she could take on a wolf, full grown or not, without serious injury, destruction to the house and one of them running off and telling every bad guy in the kingdom where they could find her. *What to do, what to do...*
Following Richelle's eyes, Cécile looked back at the door, and then to Wolf. Were she an actual animal, her fur would be standing on end and bristling at this point. Their hostess was a threat to them, she could just feel it in her gut and smell it in the air. The tingle that she had felt the night before had returned, creating a deep seated worry. Still focusing her gaze on Wolf, she brushed back the hair from her face, revealing a feral, golden eye. Cécile swallowed, then spoke in a calm, yet tense voice, "Run." She made no movements herself, only inclining her head towards the door. He stared back, almost blankly. The urgency rose as she repeated herself, "Wolf, RUN! NOW!"
There was silence. Wolf looked back at her darkly, tilting his head downward as if to look at her on eyelevel. "I will do no such thing. We are wolves, Cécile." There, he had said it. There was no use dancing around it anymore. "We do not run. This isn't just your world that's in danger here... they
want Virginia too. Do you think I'll run from that?" His words were hard and cold; the truth.
His words struck a chord in her. For a moment, Cécile felt strangely relieved and pleased by his words -- she wasn't alone anymore. She didn't need to pretend she was anything other than a wolf at heart. But she didn't have time to gush over warm feelings. Whether or not he was a fully grown man, he hadn't been able to ward off the attack that led him back to the Nine Kingdoms. If this girl, whom Cécile could already sense magical powers in, was just as dangerous, if not moreso, then... "Wolf, you don't know what you're up against... I can handle it, trust me!" Or rather, trust Sailormars, which even she couldn't do. She had only transformed once before in her entire life...but now wasn't a good time to doubt her powers. "Take the horses and get to the palace before it's too late. I'll catch up with you, I promise." This time, it was more of a plea than a command.
*******
"The lights came from upstairs--so those are our best bet. D'you think we should split up or do you reckon there might be another spider monster?" Gio said as her fuku fell off in the form of multicolored string, leaving her red suit behind. She straighted her top hat and looked at Alice squarely. "I'll be fine without the torch, if light is a problem."
"Your crazy if you think I'm going to wander around this place without back up," was Alice's reply as she gingerly stepped over the spider juices. "Besides, it's a well-known fact that enemies get stronger as the hero goes on. If it takes two of us to kill the first, it would be a kamikaze mission to go on alone."
"Well, all right then." Gio said before she began up the right hand staircase. "We'll try this one first and see where it goes. If all else fails, we could just make a racket. That's sure to bring someone down."
"Brilliant plan, as long as we don't die, I don't really care," Alice carefully positioned herself behind Gio as they started up the musty staircase. There were cobwebs here as well, but mostly near the ceiling. She squinted at the steps as they were climbing. "This staircase must have been used a lot at one point in time, it's worn in on one side..."
"Isn't that nice," Gio said distractedly as she fanned away the cobwebs. Squinting in the ever increasing darkness, the stairs continued for several minutes until Alice's legs felt quite numb. Then they came into a narrow hallway, which was equally dark.
Alice pursed her lips disapprovingly, "I wouldn't expect a member of the phylum Coniferophyta to notice details such as that, which might clue us in on possible inhabitants." She peered into the shadowy hallway, wishing she had her purse with her. A flashlight would be so much more reliable than the torch's flickering light.
"Notice that soon as we're out of a life or death situation the smartass switch gets turned back on," Gio muttered as she stormed into the hallway. "HELLO! ANYONE HERE!" She turned around to face Alice and began to walk backwards. "We don't mean you any harm.... we just want directions...!"
"...please don't eat us, please don't fricassee us," Alice mumbled under her breath, instinctively crouching slightly as she walked. "...don't ravish us... killing is not preferred..." She kept quietly whispering this mantra of sorts, looking around her for any signs of movement.
---
The day had hardly begun when a young boy in armor could be seen trudging through the lush forest landscape. In his hand he clutched a strange but ornate dagger, and his face was a mask of confidence. Today he would fight the beast, and today he would win yet again. Such as it always was, so it will always be.
Arriving in a clearing, he saw the target of his quest. A simple cave, on the opposite end of the grassy clearing. Taking a deep breath, the armored boy called, "Foul beast, today you die! Come out here and meet your maker!"
Clutching the dagger tighter, the boy waited. He knew he wouldn't have to wait long.
Slowly, from the depths of the cave, came a large, hulking shadow. As it emerged into the light, the figure was revealed: a large, dangerous-looking dragon, strong in build with ashen gray armored scales and large, powerful wings which flexed as it crawled out of the cave on all fours. Its tail twitched and swayed behind it, and its eyes seemed to almost glow an angry yellow gleam as it bared its sharp teeth and let out a low breath.
"Come to take my head again, boy?" it asked in a deep, gruff voice.
The boy raised his dagger and pointed it at the beast, grinning. "And I shall be victorious! Jabberwocky, I shall slay you once and for all!"
In the Jabberwocky's mind, he knew that no matter what he said, The Boy was right. In a storybook, the end is already written. He couldn't change it, no matter how much he tried. But if there was one thing he learned from his years upon years of repeating this battle, it was that if he had to die, he would at least die with honor. Slowly, the beast rose up on its hind legs, standing near straight before The Boy, lowering his head to stare at him. "Then so be it. Let us begin this dance all over again."
And begin it did. The Boy rushed the Jabberwocky, knife poised, but the Jabberwocky was prepared for this. Flapping its powerful wings, it took to the air above The Boy, and tried to flap down and stomp him with his powerful hind legs.
Under normal circumstances this would have been an effective ploy, as The Boy was too reckless in his charge to be able to efficiently dodge the attack. However, the Jabberwocky realized, that no matter how hard he fought something would happen to save The Boy. That damned Boy. And he was right. He wasn't sure which moved, him or The Boy, but his perfectly aimed kick wound up short of The Boy's position. The Boy took this chance and took another lunge at the Jabberwocky, trying to climb up its back to its neck.
The Jabberwocky was quick to respond to this attempt. He reached behind him and grabbed The Boy, pulling him off and flinging him into a nearby tree. "Let's see if you can stop this, Boy," the beast grumbled, as it reared back its powerful head and let loose a blast of flame breath at the fallen Boy.
For a moment, there was a glimmer of hope. Perhaps he had finally escaped this cycle. But that hope was quickly dashed as the Boy emerged from the flames. Completely unharmed. It was as if he were a god, or a titan, or a mere immortal. The Jabberwocky scowled, and The Boy laughed. "You can't beat me, foul creature! You should know that by now!"
"Do not count yourself the victor just yet, child," the Jabberwocky warned. "Fate may be on my side yet."
"Fate is never on the side of evil scum like you!" the Boy declared, raising his dagger. "Fate shines on those with the light of good in their hearts, like me!"
For a moment, the Jabberwocky thought he would be sick. But he knew the Boy was partly right. Fate would not smile on him. It never would.
But then, something happened. Something that surprised both combatants. In the middle of the clearing, a glowing white light started as a flicker, and then grew brighter and brighter. "What is that?!" The Boy shouted, shielding his eyes from the glare.
The Jabberwocky just stared at the light. "Salvation." He dropped to all fours and raced for the light...
---
The senshi pair had found themselves in a musty old library, wall to wall in leather-bound books. The sounds of their footsteps was muffled by frayed and warped carpets. Alice felt her her fingers itching and twitching at the mere scent of them. She raised the torch in a semicircle, trying to comprehend the height of the shelves.
"Let's stop here for just a moment, I see something useful..." On small desks, or tables, she wasn't sure which, there were oil lamps. Alice stopped to light one.
"How do you know they have any oil left?" she heard Gio ask, a slight edge in her voice.
The wick caught. "Oil doesn't evaporate." Alice smiled, the light of the lamp only revealing her mouth and face, her brilliant blues eyes glimmering every once in a while. The lamp smoked, she knew it would, but it couldn't be helped since the torch was already starting to burn out. She offered the lamp to Gio, who waved it away. Shrugging, she found some stone floor and mashed the torch end into the granite, snuffing it out. The lamp provided much clearer and more reliable light.
As she stood up, gold leaf on a binding caught her eye and stopping her mid- motion. It was impossible. Lewis Carroll was born long after the glories of the brothers Grimm. Bound in red fabric with gold leaf reading "Through the Looking-Glass" in clean, angular script. The book sat so innocently on the shelf, between the Aberdeen Bestiary and the Aeneid. But it was there, nonetheless, mocking her, teasing her....
Tempting her.
She straightened up, not even feeling the quiver in her left pocket, and pulled it off the shelf with her middle finger. She examined it for another brief, yet agonizing second, and opened the book.
Blinding blue light beamed through the writing a moment before covering the entire page, a great blast of hot air accompanying it. Alice had felt gale force winds that were tamer. The winds knocked her back into the bookshelf, which in turn dumped some books on her. The book remained still, despite the winds and through squinted eyes, Alice saw.
From the flash of light started to emerge a large, inhuman form that roared in triumph. As it emerged farther, though, from out of the light came what looked like chains. A large metal shackle snapped itself on to the beast's neck, and the light flashed brighter.
When it died down, a young dark skinned man lay on the floor, bare except for some shorts, his body wrapped in shiny chains and shackles on his arms, legs, and neck. Perhaps the strangest thing about him was the fact that he had a long, ash gray tail. He lay prone on the ground while from the glowing light came another form.
The Boy had recklessly charged yet again, and this time paid the price as he ran headfirst into the bookcase next to Alice.
At this point, Gio had had enough of the blowing winds and the people hitting the bookcases. She fought against the winds as she trudged towards the book, forcing the thick cover closed. As soon as the book shut, the lights ended and the winds stopped. She surveyed the situation, wondering just what had happened.
The chained boy on the ground slowly forced himself to his feet when he regained consciousness. "Oh my head..." He placed his hand to his forehead... when he realized that his hand had changed. Quickly feeling over the rest of his body, he looked down at himself. "What happened to me?!" he shouted in surprise and anger.
From the bookcase, The Boy pushed himself to his feet, looking around before catching sight of the transformed boy. Wasting no time, he pointed the dagger and called, "Taking human form won't save you! I shall slay you, foul beast, no matter what form you take!" In typical fashion, the Boy tried to rush the Jabberwocky again. It had always worked before, he knew it would work again.
But this time, for some reason, it didn't. The Jabberwocky jumped, despite the chains, and kicked The Boy in the back as he passed. However, it was then that he realized that his legs were connected to a ball and chain. As a result, he wound up being pulled back to the ground quickly. "Damn," he muttered. He needed to figure out what was going on without that damn child after him. "I'll see you later, boy," the Jabberwocky shouted, as from his back a pair of ash gray wings sprouted, and he dashed for the window of the dimly lit library, jumping out of it and gliding down the wall of the castle towards one of the lower floors.
The Boy regained his bearings in time to see the Jabberwocky jump out the window. He rushed to the portal in the wall, but was too late to see where he had gone. "He's gone!" the boy pouted, leaning against the windowsill.
A wind-blown and somewhat confused Gio stood next to the closed book, her eyes darting side to side. "What...the hell...just happened here...?"
Standing up amidst injured books, Alice gathered her wits faster than she could finger comb and rebraid her hair. "It appears that we have two..." she looked the Boy over and in lieu of her original choice of words, decided on, "Creatures of writing. One of whom escaped. What is your name?" She indicated to the boy, finishing her braid and pulling her hood up once more.
The boy turned from the window to face the speaker. Being the young teenager he was, he turned to a boastful mass of Jell-o as soon as he was sure she was addressing her. "I am Gregor, the greatest warrior in all the land!" he announced, sheathing his dagger and bowing gracefully. At least he thought it was graceful. He just wound up looking like a fool. "And who might you be, fair maiden?"
Alice was far from impressed and half-expected his voice to crack, but she decided to play along since it took longer to transform and kick his ass than it took him to draw his sword. She curtsied, using her raincoat like a dress. "O mighty warrior, I am naught but a peasant maid and do not deserve the respect and formalities," she smiled sweetly, any trace of her less pleasant bits completely absent. "But if you do so wish for my name, some people call me 'Alice.' And this is my escort and guardian, Gio." Alice motioned to Gio with her hand.
"Didn't look so dangerous to me," Gio said as she looked out the way the ...thing had left. "Just had a pair of wings. Wearing chains, even." She rested her hand on her hip, the other tipping her hat to one side.
"I assure you," The Boy said, "that that THING is a fearsome creature who lives for naught but death and destruction!" Of course, he didn't know that for sure. He only knew stories told by people from his village about what the Jabberwocky had done, but he wasn't about to tell them that. "The Jabberwocky must be slain!"
"How simply awful," gaped Alice, delicately covering her mouth with a pale hand. "How can you possibly pit yourself against such a creature without fear of your own destruction? I would be utterly terrified!"
At this time Gio found it appropriate to begin to cough violently in her little corner, smirking between her violent fits. A giggle escaped here or there, too, but it wasn't too obvious. What do you know, Alice could be funny sometimes...
"Worry not for me, fair maiden!" The Boy stated with bolstered courage. "For I have the power of good on my side! And good shall always triumph over evil!"
"Oh my! Oh my, oh my, oh my!" cried Alice in false delight, "You are so selfless, brave warrior! Perhaps I could ask you the tiniest of favors? I would be utterly in your debt if you could help us, o fierce Gregor?" Alice had reduced herself to a simpering young girl, much to her own pleasure. Idiots are much easier to deal with when you act like an idiot with them.
"But of course, fair maiden!" The Boy responded, smiling stupidly. "What is it you wish of me?" At that moment he probably would have jumped out the window behind him if she asked him to and still smiled about it.
"We're in a terrible predicament, you see.... We are oh so very lost and when we went into this castle in hope of finding someone who could tell us directions, we've encountered these awful beasts. We just barely escaped from the last one. And I was wondering if you could possibly help us out of the castle and back on the road? You're so brave, I'm sure it would be no problem for you."
"And what about that beast thing? I'd be glad to help you," Gio said after a few minutes of silence. She looked so much bigger and stronger than the Boy was. She placed her hand over the spot where her marionette was hidden. "I'm sure together we could get it, eh? Let Alice rest a while, and we'll go hunt it out."
"I agree," The Boy stated. Then he began, "Fair maiden Alice, your manservant and I shall hunt down the beast and slay it while you rest yourself! Fear not, we shall be victorious!", as if the thought was his own idea. With that, he took Alice's hand and kissed it, turning around and heading out of the room, expecting Gio to follow close behind.
Alice, quite happy not to participate in the adventures, waved off the two heroes with a kleenex and settled down with the Aberdeen Bestiary.
*******
The dark hoods were pulled over their faces, though through the darkness bled green and wine colored eyes. The eyes glowed like the riverstones that laid at the bottom of the streams they carressed with their gloved fingertips. The forest they traveled through sprouted narrow, gnarled trees and a mist that ate the hems of their cloaks. Leaves rustled and took flight as they passed.
The two figures held hands, through their sleeveless cloaks their hands were seen swinging back and forth in unison. One that wore a green suede cloak held a lantern in her other hand, as she led the other cloaked one the darkness fled from them, scattering shadows across the wood.
"When owls call the breathless moon
In the blue veil of the night
The shadows of the trees appear
Amidst the lantern light.."
Their voices echoed throughout the forest. Animals stopped in their tracks to listen to them, for their song was not an unfamilair one, their glinting eyes caught by the light of the lantern. They danced on air as they passed, their feet never gracing the ground with its fragile touch. The sound of their song was an eerie one, a strange reminder of the things one had forgotten long ago, when they rocked in the cradle. Oh, what a weird sight they must have been, so strange and yet wonderous to see two girls dancing through the air, their voices like angels.
Suddenly the greek cloaked one stopped and pressed her feet into the soft, leaf-covered earth just before the thick trunks of a tree began. She sprang upwards, the girl in the soft blue coak following behind limply. As they broke through the canopy of leaves, a burst of color surrounded them and floated to the ground. They looked at the pale sky, clouds undistinguishable. The latter girl reached her hand up to perhaps just touch the surface of it, it was so close--before they took a great tumble and were sent half-giggling, half-singing through the branches of a large tree to the ground again.
"We've been rambling all the night
And some time of this day
Now returning back again
...We bring a garland gay."
As they nearly had impact with the ground, a flock of common birds took flight around them, catching their dresses as they flew. The bluecloakedgirl laughed and held the numerous layers of her dress down as they darted between a old dead tree and a riverbed, and soon the birds had all but diminished.
They played games like this, in midair. Acrobatics and just general mischief, as if taunting gravity to take them and send them crashing to the Earth. It was a vain fight for gravity though--try as it might, it would never catch the green cloaked girl and any of those she assisted. They spun and flipped, and bounced off the side of rocks to catapult through the air laughing like children.
"And so they linked their hands and danced
Round in circles and in rows
And so the journey of the night descends
When all the shades are gone."
But these childish games didn't last. The green cloaked girl slowed to a stop. Her hands trembled, even tucked inside the other girl's hand, who now looked on in a puzzled expression. Gloved fingers tucked themselves in her hood as the green cloaked girl slipped the cloth down to her shoulders, revealing soft brown hair. Her ornate eyes darkened and her lip trembled-- though she had no idea why.
In her irises, though, you could see shadows, and the sound of hoof beats roared...
The presence of such strangers in the forest had disturbed something deep within the trees. It had believed that the vicinity would have been empty, silent and private, but the sound of delicate laughter quickly shattered this image. The figure and source of the hoof beats felt nothing but anger and a sense of threatening by voices that were so uncommon. It stormed forward as an unnaturally large black shadow with a sallow golden light hanging to its side, most certainly having focused on the girls just ahead like a hunting animal singled out a target.
Effortlessly it wove through trees that were second nature to it at a full gallop, and the closer it came the more clear it's identity was. The thick shadow cleared into a defined profile of human and animal. On the back of a large coal black horse was what appeared to be a man, or what was left of him. He brandished in one hand a sword, while the other proudly held the golden light--a pumpkin. However, even with all of these items, the figure was missing something verykey. He did not duck or dodge and branches that were bold enough to extend at the level of his head, for there was no need; the horseman had no head to be in danger of scratches. Despite this, he rode forward with what might have been mistaken for perfect vision, locked in on the intruders.
Dido stood frozen for a moment and looked at the headless spectre. Her wine eyes showed little emotion, until her lips open and she began to speak. "He doesn't look too happy with us... who is he? And where did his head go...?"
But this wasn't a time for answers. Quickly, the brown haired girl grabbed the other's hand and jumped to the ground. With the impact they sprung upwards, just as the horseman came at them, and narrowly they missed the swinging blade. Eulalia's breath was caught as she desperately looked for an exit--a mud puddle, a stream, anything reflective they could pass through--but there was nothing there to give her comfort. She could hide..but Dido couldn't, and they certainly couldn't out run the ghost... He came like a wildfire, so stealthily until he had been right there. Why hadn't she seen him? A hopeless look rested on her face as she glanced at Dido, who was still pondering why the man had no head and why they were in the middle of the big forest.
"Lala, what are we going to do...?" Dido said after a few minutes of observation, though it did her little good.
Eulalia opened her mouth to speak, and they darted past another blow that would've been fatal. The cold black fingertips of a dead tree scraped Eulalia's skin and she trembled. Grasping Dido by the shoulders and looking at her deeply, Eulalia bit her lip. "Dido... I .... I want you to run from here."
"Lala! You can't leave me! He'll...he'll chase me! The man with no head! Why is he chasing us?"
"He won't chase you if I'm distracting him, I think!" Eulalia said with a breathless voice as she untangled herself.
"But I'll get lost!"
"Just keep running. Don't stop. Call for Archos, she'll be able to help you."
"Lala..." Dido's wine eyes were clouded with tears as she slipped her hood off, revealing her teal hair in the tints of blue that painted the forest. But then her tears went away. Eulalia wasn't sure if Dido just accepted her command or merely forgot why she was scared, but she turned to go. As soon as she let go of Eulalia's hands, she dropped to the ground on all fours. There was a mad scramble as she rushed to get to her feet and she began to run.
At the same time, Eulalia raised her glove and closed her eyes, sending her transformation into action. She felt herself rise not of her own accord, the hems of her skirts lazily waving in the wind, though just a few minutes ago there hadn't been any. Slowly, the rose that was wrapped around her glove began to glow. Eulalia felt herself go numb, and Sailorviator immediately took over.
She landed and the holy light died, as she crouched a shard of glass materialized in her waiting hand. Squinting, Viator saw the horse's flank as it attempted to chase the fleeing Dido. Scowling, Viator shouted.
"IF YOU DON'T MIND, I'M OVER HERE!"
Already frustrated by being unable to strike down his opponents, the horseman slowed and turned sharply towards the girl who had yelled at him. Even without a face he seethed rage and a willingness to engage in a real battle, rather than the merry-go-round mockery of it with useless dodges and swings. His now detained steed pawed the ground impatiently, obviously just as willing. It took two labored steps towards Viator, it's rider forcing it not to take off after the fleeing woman again.
The headless horseman rose his sword in threat again, advancing on the one stranger that was still present, using the perfectly balanced pumpkin as a light as if to look at her face. If he could deal with this one quickly, the rider felt assured the one who ran would be within reach as well. With this, he urged the beast of burden forward, blade swinging madly.
His blade met the glass one that Viator swung at the same time, her eyes glinting with a fiery anger that Eulalia's eyes did not know. She held her place for an amazing length of time, just staring blankly at the man with no face. Anything at all to make sure Dido got further away, to make sure that they could complete their mission. She snapped to reality and then with a cry of anger she pushed the blade forward. It shattered, leaving traces of glass over the leaf-covered ground. She tightened her grip over what was left of the blade, before bounding off the ground, flipping over herself several times.
The horseman turned the stump of his neck to follow the pattern of flight expressed by the girl. His horse whinnied and shifted it's position at the noise and movement, and the rider didn't bother to calm the animal. Instead, he inspected the new nicks on his blade from the glass weapon. As soon as she landed, he made his mount rush forward for another attack, feeling more hastened than ever to be rid of the threat.
As she landed, she oriented her gravity once more. She was hovering sideways, her head turned back to look at the approaching horseman upside down. With a swift push, she was off again, half-running, half-flying through the woods, darting between trees she thought the horse could not make headway through. This was good in theory, but the thinner, weaker trees were sliced in half by the horseman's blade. Viator looked back with a horrified expression as he drew nearer and nearer. Nothing seemed like it could stop him; she was dealing with a spectre, a being of neither realm.
The chase continued for what seemed like hours for the speculum soldier. Everywhere she turned, she leapt from the closeness of the blade, leaving pieces of her uniform the blade caught behind, fluttering to the ground before trampled by thunderous horse hooves. Mist that had only been a blanket on the ground before now grew waist-deep as they neared a stream; at last, a stream! Viator had found her exit.
Looking back, her eyes caught the visage of the headless horseman once more. Her heart stopped--for the first time, Eulalia managed to catch up with Viator's win-or-flee spirit--and fear took her breath away. Somewhere deep within her, she realized that once upon a time, that spectre had been good. He had been a lonely soldier, just like she, and had died. A tear slipped from her eyes as she crawled to the water's surface. The sword swung down on her just as she was disappearing.
Had she not moved, the blade would've killed her. But she had slipped away, and since then only her back had been sliced, not severed. The sound of the water echoed and the heavy pant of the horse, who nearly reared and struck the pond bottom with its hooves. There was no girl to strike. Silently, the horseman portrayed his frustrated state of mind, violently waving his glowing pumpkin in protest.
He did not notice the flicker of light behind him. Green eyes blurred with tears as the speculum soldier reappeared behind him. Eulalia did not like hurting things, truth be told. It was a necessary evil. But the spectre needed rest--everyone needed rest. There was only one way. If the ghost had a head, the broken remain of the glass lance Viator swung would've taken it off, clean at the neck. But since someone had apparently beat her to it, the glass flew through the air and instead hit his pumpkin. To anyone else, this would have appeared to be a fatal move. But this move would be the one to save Viator, and bring her just a bit closer to her goal.
The pumpkin fell from his hands, the brimstone's light disappearing into the stream as it rolled. Instantly, a change began to take place. Her eyes were there, and focused, but yet she couldn't see. Numbly, she reached over her shoulder where a stinging pain had began to eat away at her conscious. Retrieving her hand, she noticed that now both gloves were stained with her own blood. Her eyes unfocused from there. For the first time in her life, Sailorviator, the senshi of travel and teleportation, fell.
The fall lasted forever, as tears streamed from her eyes. They hung in the air like rain drops. For a moment, her heart beat, her breath succumbed to the sounds of the forest. The owls hooted. The crickets chirped. In the spaces the canopy of leaves left behind, tiny stars dotted the sky.
'What a beautiful night,' Viator thought as a small smile claimed her lips. Her uniform faded away, forming pieces of glass that sunk into the forest's grounds, leaving bloody gloves and a dust rose gown behind. Her eyes lost their glow as an uneasy sleep took her. In the meantime, another pair of green eyes were watching her in horror. Then, all Eulalia could see was light.
"I'm..sorry..... sorry..." Eulalia whispered through dry lips, before even the pleasures of speech were lost to her. And there she laid, a broken winged bird who couldn't fly, crumpled in the ground with blood-stained hands and dirt beneath her fingernails. She slept.
"Oh my lord..." a voice said softly, though it fell on seemingly deaf ears. A long, thin shadow lingered over Eulalia's body. "What have I done...?"
*******
On their way out, Gio walked with her arms behind her head as she looked up at the flying buttresses that adorned the sides of the hallway. "So, how vicious and terrible is this supposive beast?" She said, unamused. "It certainly didn't seem to stay and fight." Her gaze was particularly piercing.
"Quite vicious, I must say," Gregor responded, hand on the dagger at his waist anxiously. "He has destroyed villages and killed innocent people with no thought about his actions! As to why he ran, he must have been afraid of my great strength and knew he stood no chance for survival..." What he forgot to mention was that he hadn't actually SEEN the Jabberwocky kill or destroy anything. He only heard rumors and stories told to him by his elders.
"Ah huh," Gio said with enough enthusiasm to seem honest, but not quite enough to seem enthused. Quite frankly, she wasn't sure if this boy could box his own shadow, much less slay a monster of some sort. She cocked her head to the side, her footsteps halting. "Eh... d'you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Gregor asked, blinking and clueless.
Normally, Gio would've sighed in exasperation. However, since she had picked up a trace, her curiosity was sparked. The distant scuttle was heard in the background. "I think it might be..."
Wham. There went a stone wall, revealing eight hairy black legs.
"Another spider. Shit!"
Gregor simply laughed arrogantly. "Worry not, young man! I shall slay this beast as a warm up to my confrontation with the beast!" Grinning, he pulled the dagger from the hilt on his hip, and moved to attack the spider.
He sliced downwards toward the spider, which scuttled back far enough to avoid the blade, before head butting Gregor into a nearby wall. Gregor oomph-ed as he hit, dropping the blade. As he tried to recover, the spider reeled back a bit and spat out a glob of green liquid. Gregor just barely evaded the shot, turning to see what had happened. Where the liquid landed, the very brick began to melt away. Gregor's eyes widened and he made a sound akin to a whimper, as he grabbed his knife and tried to get as far away from the spider as he could.
"Blast..." Gio cursed as tumbled backwards, pulling the marionette from her jacket. There was no time to transform now--now that there was a toothpick, er, child to protect. The little backtrack she had done was made up for as she flew at the spider, the marionette's blades swinging as she attacked one of the giant legs, sending pieces of its meat everywhere. This resulted in a high-pitched scream from the spider as it reared that half-severed leg, with Gio still attached. Gio screamed, though it wasn't particularly in fright. "HELLO!? Someone?! Anyone? Stop this carriage ride, dammit!"
As if to answer her question, as quick as a flash, the half-severed leg was completely severed. Shortly after, four more legs fell away from the spider's body. The creature screamed in pain again, as it fell. "You should know better than to pick on those weaker than you," a voice said from the darkness.
"Eh? Who's that?" Gio called as she thumped to the ground. Either Gregor had suddenly went through puberty, or there was someone else. "Thanks, by the way!" She removed her marionette from the stone floor and looked around.
"No problem," the voice replied. The spider managed to get on its remaining feet, and appeared to be readying another corrosive shot. "Don't worry about this thing, I'll take care of it." Without another word, the spider lumbered towards the shadows where the waiting attacker stood. All Gio could hear was the sounds of a fight, as someone lay swift attacks to the spider, and the squishing sounds which could only be attributed to the spider being ripped to pieces. Then, it was all over, as the figure stepped into view of Gio.
It was the Jabberwocky. Or at least, the human it had become.
*************
Broken Fairy Tales: Senshi of the Ten Kingdoms.
The chapters of this story are taken directly from a play-by-email by the same name. Each of the writers, including myself, have given consent to having their work published under this name, with due credit.
'Something Wicked This Way Comes', episode five of Broken Fairy Tales, was written by Mags, Molly, Koi, Alex, Ryu, Gena, Sushi, and Jeff. Love you guys! 3
The song 'Mummer's Dance', sung by Dido and Eulalia in this chapter was originally performed by Loreena McKennit.
This is a crossover between 'Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon', and the NBC/Hallmark miniseries 'The Tenth Kingdom', that aired in 1998/1999. 'Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon' and 'The Tenth Kingdom' do not belong to the people who wrote Broken Fairy tales and we do not claim rights to any of the aforementioned television shows. We do, however, claim rights to our original characters, the Senshi of the Ten Kingdoms. Icabod Crane, the Headless Horseman and the Jabberwocky are properties of Washington Irving and Lewis Carol respectively--we have only borrowed them. They are copyrighted to their creators.
Are you a fan of sailormoon, the tenth kingdom, or just fairy tales? If you're a good writer and would like to contribute, visit our site at www32.brinkster.com/cwmrpg/broken
We're currently looking for someone to play Sailor Commoneo and we're always looking for Knights, so if you're interested please check it out. ^_^