I'm so surprised that I got this chapter done so soon. I thought it
was going to be another week or so. I'm very tired all of the time, and yet
I can't fall asleep at night. I hope I'm not getting sick again.
My humble thanks go out to:
To Dr. Griffin (for chapter 13): Thanks for the advice!!! Hyde is eternally grateful!!
To Ares: Hmmm...a rabid dog on extreme quantities of sugar? Okay, I'm officially scared now!
To Silent Bob 546: You want me to torture Dori? Sure!
To galabalesh: Well, let's just see, shall we?
To Etcetera Kit: Back in my high school chemistry class, we watched a video where some solid potassium was dropped into a bowl of water, and it made a huge explosion. I'm just guessing the reaction is the same with liquid potassium. Get ready for some Dorian action!
To Graymoon74: I have a friend who hates sarcasm, so we all be extra sarcastic to him. It's hilarious. Anyway, yeah, Hyde's going to keep on drinking. Why would he stop just because he has his own body?
To Ares (again): Hyde drunkenness I can definitely give you. Mina drunkenness we're going to have to see about, but it's probably doable.
And now, without further ado, here is chapter 15!
*
With Sawyer, Jekyll, Skinner, Nemo, and Mina watching him, Simon Linoge emptied a small black bag on the dining room table to reveal four white odd-shaped marbles and one black one. Weirding stones.
"It's very simple," he explained to them. "You each draw a stone from the bag. After everybody has drawn, you will reveal your stones. The person that draws the black stone gets to give Dorian his poisoned tea."
"I can't believe we're resorting to this," Tom Sawyer groaned. "Why couldn't one of us just volunteer?"
"Nobody wanted to," Nemo scoffed.
"Is everything in Heaven decided this way?" asked Jekyll, raising an eyebrow.
"No, but most things in Hell are," Simon said, a trace of a smile on his face. "I find weirding stones a very fair way to decide things. I refuse to just pick a number between one and ten."
"I know, picking a number between one and ten is kind of fixed," Batsie agreed. "The winning number always seems to be seven." Picking a number was the preferred way of deciding things in Heaven.
"I can't go through with this," Skinner shook. "If it turns out to be me, that bastard Dorian will murder me the moment he gets free, I know it."
"Back when I worked on the Atlantica, Rodney, we had a saying," Andre McCane cut in. "'You can kill me now, but I will kick your butt continuously in the afterlife.'"
"Amen," grinned Donna.
"Dorian's an immortal. He doesn't have an afterlife," Jekyll muttered, but nobody heard him.
"Hey, just to even things up, how about adding another white stone to the pot, Simon?" asked McCane. "I'll draw too."
"Gladly," Simon smiled. He tapped his palm with his cane, and another white stone appeared. He tossed it into the bag. "Any others before we draw? Donna?"
Donna shook her head in disgust. "That man is revolting. I refuse to face him again."
"One question," Nemo said. "Can you fix this by making a certain person draw the black stone?"
"I can, but I give my word to you as an angel of the Lord that I will not," Simon said.
"And I'll watch him, Captain," Batsie added. Nemo sighed thankfully.
"All right, now," Simon said. "Everybody line up. Let's get this over with."
Holding their breaths, the five members of the League and Andre McCane lined up and prepared to draw stones.
* * *
"OH, GOD!!!!"
Tom Sawyer stared at his open palm in disbelief. He had drawn the black stone.
"Why did you have to mend my leg?" he begged Simon. "Why can't I still be upstairs in bed, still injured, but exempt from participating in this insanity?"
"It may be insanity, but it's our only hope," said Skinner in a cheerful voice. He was very happy that he had drawn a white stone.
"Andre, please!!!" Tom begged McCane. "Could you take the tray in for me?"
Luckily for McCane, Simon answered for him. "No, Tom. You agreed to the terms, I'm sorry."
"You swear you didn't fix this, Simon?"
"I swear I didn't fix it, Tom."
"He didn't fix it, Tom," Batsie added.
Tom just moaned in agony. "What about Hyde? Why couldn't he draw, Jekyll?"
"Dorian doesn't trust Hyde," Mina told him. "He told me so earlier. He wouldn't drink anything Hyde brought to him."
"Well, why can't you just get a crewman to do it, Nemo?"
"They're not involved in this," Nemo said. "We're the ones who want to get rid of him, Sawyer."
"Oh, quit stalling!" cried Donna impatiently. She picked up the breakfast tray from the dining room table and shoved it into Tom's hands. "Just get going!!!"
* * *
Tom Sawyer. Someone Dorian hadn't seen in a while.
"Ah. Good morning, Mr. Sawyer," Dorian said, an evil smile spreading across his face.
"He's chained to the wall, and he still smiles," Tom thought to himself silently, trying not to spill any of the tea on the tray. "Is this stupid idea of Batsie's even going to work?"
"Good morning, Dorian," said Tom sincerely. He was trying to be as natural as he could. "I know an immortal such as yourself does not require eating to obtain energy, but the captain insisted I bring you some breakfast."
"Well, well. How lovely," Dorian sneered.
Reaching into his pocket for the key that Nemo had given him, Tom unlocked the door of Dorian's prison cell...which was okay, because Dorian's arms were still chained to the wall...and slid the tray neatly inside. Then he locked the door with the key, slipped it back into his pocket, and pressed a button on the wall that automatically released Dorian's arm shackles.
"Dorian, do you mind if I ask you a question?"
Dorian looked up at him. "Make it quick, Sawyer."
"How did you survive?"
Dorian laughed. Tom had a feeling that he was not in his right mind. "It's about time one of you asked. In all seriousness, though, it was quite a freak accident. After Mina revealed to me my painting, it was burned in the fire that destroyed the Mongolian fortress. Because the painting was burned, the Dorian inside the painting died."
"And you came back to life." Tom thought, and it suddenly hit him. "So, there's always one Dorian alive at all times. Whether it be in human form, or in the painting. And since the painting is destroyed, you are now immortal without any weaknesses," he added, very disappointed.
"Right you are," Dorian grinned. "Now, may I ask you one?" Tom only nodded.
"Simon Linoge. I've seen him on this ship. How did you happen to meet him?" Dorian asked, picking up the teacup on the breakfast tray.
A harmless question, Tom thought to himself. He might as well answer it. "We met him through his wife. And we met her through a mutual friend of the League's."
"Ah," Dorian said. He took a sip of the tea.
Tom tried not to stare, but he couldn't help it. What was going to happen?
*
Yes, folks, yet another cliffhanger. I'm so sorry, but I just don't feel like writing anymore tonight.
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and I hope Dorian's "reason" was enough to satisfy you all (actually, it was the only thing I could come up with.) I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can. Remember to REVIEW!
~ Alisonia
My humble thanks go out to:
To Dr. Griffin (for chapter 13): Thanks for the advice!!! Hyde is eternally grateful!!
To Ares: Hmmm...a rabid dog on extreme quantities of sugar? Okay, I'm officially scared now!
To Silent Bob 546: You want me to torture Dori? Sure!
To galabalesh: Well, let's just see, shall we?
To Etcetera Kit: Back in my high school chemistry class, we watched a video where some solid potassium was dropped into a bowl of water, and it made a huge explosion. I'm just guessing the reaction is the same with liquid potassium. Get ready for some Dorian action!
To Graymoon74: I have a friend who hates sarcasm, so we all be extra sarcastic to him. It's hilarious. Anyway, yeah, Hyde's going to keep on drinking. Why would he stop just because he has his own body?
To Ares (again): Hyde drunkenness I can definitely give you. Mina drunkenness we're going to have to see about, but it's probably doable.
And now, without further ado, here is chapter 15!
*
With Sawyer, Jekyll, Skinner, Nemo, and Mina watching him, Simon Linoge emptied a small black bag on the dining room table to reveal four white odd-shaped marbles and one black one. Weirding stones.
"It's very simple," he explained to them. "You each draw a stone from the bag. After everybody has drawn, you will reveal your stones. The person that draws the black stone gets to give Dorian his poisoned tea."
"I can't believe we're resorting to this," Tom Sawyer groaned. "Why couldn't one of us just volunteer?"
"Nobody wanted to," Nemo scoffed.
"Is everything in Heaven decided this way?" asked Jekyll, raising an eyebrow.
"No, but most things in Hell are," Simon said, a trace of a smile on his face. "I find weirding stones a very fair way to decide things. I refuse to just pick a number between one and ten."
"I know, picking a number between one and ten is kind of fixed," Batsie agreed. "The winning number always seems to be seven." Picking a number was the preferred way of deciding things in Heaven.
"I can't go through with this," Skinner shook. "If it turns out to be me, that bastard Dorian will murder me the moment he gets free, I know it."
"Back when I worked on the Atlantica, Rodney, we had a saying," Andre McCane cut in. "'You can kill me now, but I will kick your butt continuously in the afterlife.'"
"Amen," grinned Donna.
"Dorian's an immortal. He doesn't have an afterlife," Jekyll muttered, but nobody heard him.
"Hey, just to even things up, how about adding another white stone to the pot, Simon?" asked McCane. "I'll draw too."
"Gladly," Simon smiled. He tapped his palm with his cane, and another white stone appeared. He tossed it into the bag. "Any others before we draw? Donna?"
Donna shook her head in disgust. "That man is revolting. I refuse to face him again."
"One question," Nemo said. "Can you fix this by making a certain person draw the black stone?"
"I can, but I give my word to you as an angel of the Lord that I will not," Simon said.
"And I'll watch him, Captain," Batsie added. Nemo sighed thankfully.
"All right, now," Simon said. "Everybody line up. Let's get this over with."
Holding their breaths, the five members of the League and Andre McCane lined up and prepared to draw stones.
* * *
"OH, GOD!!!!"
Tom Sawyer stared at his open palm in disbelief. He had drawn the black stone.
"Why did you have to mend my leg?" he begged Simon. "Why can't I still be upstairs in bed, still injured, but exempt from participating in this insanity?"
"It may be insanity, but it's our only hope," said Skinner in a cheerful voice. He was very happy that he had drawn a white stone.
"Andre, please!!!" Tom begged McCane. "Could you take the tray in for me?"
Luckily for McCane, Simon answered for him. "No, Tom. You agreed to the terms, I'm sorry."
"You swear you didn't fix this, Simon?"
"I swear I didn't fix it, Tom."
"He didn't fix it, Tom," Batsie added.
Tom just moaned in agony. "What about Hyde? Why couldn't he draw, Jekyll?"
"Dorian doesn't trust Hyde," Mina told him. "He told me so earlier. He wouldn't drink anything Hyde brought to him."
"Well, why can't you just get a crewman to do it, Nemo?"
"They're not involved in this," Nemo said. "We're the ones who want to get rid of him, Sawyer."
"Oh, quit stalling!" cried Donna impatiently. She picked up the breakfast tray from the dining room table and shoved it into Tom's hands. "Just get going!!!"
* * *
Tom Sawyer. Someone Dorian hadn't seen in a while.
"Ah. Good morning, Mr. Sawyer," Dorian said, an evil smile spreading across his face.
"He's chained to the wall, and he still smiles," Tom thought to himself silently, trying not to spill any of the tea on the tray. "Is this stupid idea of Batsie's even going to work?"
"Good morning, Dorian," said Tom sincerely. He was trying to be as natural as he could. "I know an immortal such as yourself does not require eating to obtain energy, but the captain insisted I bring you some breakfast."
"Well, well. How lovely," Dorian sneered.
Reaching into his pocket for the key that Nemo had given him, Tom unlocked the door of Dorian's prison cell...which was okay, because Dorian's arms were still chained to the wall...and slid the tray neatly inside. Then he locked the door with the key, slipped it back into his pocket, and pressed a button on the wall that automatically released Dorian's arm shackles.
"Dorian, do you mind if I ask you a question?"
Dorian looked up at him. "Make it quick, Sawyer."
"How did you survive?"
Dorian laughed. Tom had a feeling that he was not in his right mind. "It's about time one of you asked. In all seriousness, though, it was quite a freak accident. After Mina revealed to me my painting, it was burned in the fire that destroyed the Mongolian fortress. Because the painting was burned, the Dorian inside the painting died."
"And you came back to life." Tom thought, and it suddenly hit him. "So, there's always one Dorian alive at all times. Whether it be in human form, or in the painting. And since the painting is destroyed, you are now immortal without any weaknesses," he added, very disappointed.
"Right you are," Dorian grinned. "Now, may I ask you one?" Tom only nodded.
"Simon Linoge. I've seen him on this ship. How did you happen to meet him?" Dorian asked, picking up the teacup on the breakfast tray.
A harmless question, Tom thought to himself. He might as well answer it. "We met him through his wife. And we met her through a mutual friend of the League's."
"Ah," Dorian said. He took a sip of the tea.
Tom tried not to stare, but he couldn't help it. What was going to happen?
*
Yes, folks, yet another cliffhanger. I'm so sorry, but I just don't feel like writing anymore tonight.
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and I hope Dorian's "reason" was enough to satisfy you all (actually, it was the only thing I could come up with.) I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can. Remember to REVIEW!
~ Alisonia