Disclaimer: Don't own. Must I repeat myself?.
Author's Note: Sorry for the long delay. Just really busy at the end of the school year, with finals, exams, papers, projects, and field trips, graduation, what-not. Pity me. Enjoy this chappie.
"You have failed me," a voice whispered in the dark. "I am disappointed."
The voice spoke an archaic form of Latin that had last been used centuries before the time of Julius Caesar. "Very disappointed." It was impossible to tell whether the voice was male or female, and at times it even sounded as if two people could be talking together.
"I was assured that all was in readiness… I was assured that Flamel would be captured and slain… I was assured that Perenelle would be disposed of and that the wins would be apprehended and delivered into our hands…"
The voice trailed away.
"And yet Flamel remains free… Perenelle in no longer imprisoned in a cell, no longer trapped on the island. The twins have escaped. And we still do not have the complete Codex. I am disappointed," the voice in the shadows repeated.
Dee licked his suddenly dry lips. People who disappointed the Dark Elders tended to disappear. An Elder master had the power to grant human subjects immorality, but it was a gift that could be withdrawn with a single touch. Depending on how long the human had been immortal, sudden and often catastrophic old age raced through the body, centuries of time aging and destroying flesh and organs. In a matter of heartbeats, a healthy-looking human could be reduced to a pile of leathery skin and powdered bones.
"You have failed me," the voice repeated.
Dee was silent, fully aware that his very long life was now hanging by a thread. He was both powerful and important, but wasn't irreplaceable. The Dark Elders had other human agents they could send after Flamel and the twins. Many others.
So Dee chose his next words carefully. Otherwise, they'd be his last words.
"It won't happen again, Master."
"No, it will not. What makes you think that I'd give you another chance? You have failed too many times already. You have failed me, and embarrassed me. I had recommended you to the other Elders, suggesting you for this task. You. Have. Failed. Why shouldn't I strike you down this very moment?"
Dee remained silent.
"And yet, let me suggest that all is not lost. Let me suggest that we are closer now than we have ever been. We have cause for hope. We have confirmed that the humani children are indeed the twins of legend. And we are so very close."
"Therefore, we will give you one more chance."
Dee let out a breath he wasn't aware he had been holding. He'd live, for now, for a while, at least.
But the speaker, Dee's Master, wasn't finished yet.
"One last chance, Dee. Fail this, then I will temporarily remove the gift of immortality and allow your humani body to age to its very limit… and then, at the moment before your death, I will make you immortal again." There was a rasp that might have been a chuckle or indrawn breath. "Think about how that will feel: your brilliant mind trapped in an ancient and feeble body, unable to see or hear clearly, unable to walk or move, in constant pain from a score of ailments. You will be forever ancient and yet undying. Fail me and this will be your destiny. I will trap you in this aged fleshy shell for eternity."
Dee nodded, swallowed hard and then said with as much confidence as he could muster, "I will not fail you."
"I know you won't. And to make sure that your success is ensured, I have asked an acquaintance of mine to help you in your mission as a partner."
The unspoken message: If you fail, then we WILL hunt you down, and find you. You can run, but you can't hide. And when we do locate you…..This partner will be watching.
Dee was only slightly surprised. Of coure they'd want to make sure he wouldn't try to slip away. He ground his teeth toether. That would just make things slightly more complicated. However, this wouldn't be the first time he had to work with others. The Sphinx, Machiavelli, the Archon Cernunnos… but who would it this time?
"Forgive me, Master, but who exactly is this person?"
"You should know better than to question my don't you worry, he's worthy of the title as your better. Then again, he is not humani, so maybe that makes all the difference."
"His kind originated in a different Shadowrealm. He was trapped here due to unforeseen circumstances, as his original Shadowrealm is isolated and practically impossible to travel in or out of. He is presumable the last of his kind, as most of his fellow brothers and sisters had been killed by humani, despite their near invincibility. That's really all we know about his origins. As for his skills, we know he can regenerate instantaneously, is probably immortal, has extremely fast reflexes, and fights well enough that he could probably fight the Shadow and survive."
Again, the unspoken word: Find out more, and report back.
Dee bowed. "Understood. When will I meet this person?"
Shuffling, rustling sounds in the darkened room…. And from the shadows a creature stepped out into a shaft of moonlight.
There really were no words to describe it.
It was humanoid, at least. A thin frame, but one could see those lean muscles that could toss a 50 ton rock across the room like a pebble. Deathly pale skin, made paler in the silver washed out light of the moon. A strange outfit- a black leather tank-top, accompanied by matching wristbands and a- was that really a- skort?
Dee's eyes were drawn to a splash of red. A tattoo, apparently, or some kind of marking, on this being's upper left thigh. The tattoo depicted a six-pointed star, surrounded by the image of a dragon devouring its own tail, all in blood-red. Dee had dealt with enough Elders and monsters to recognize the ouroboros
Lanky hair, hued dark green, hung from the head in long spikes. Absurdly, Dee was reminded of the fronds of a palm tree. Said hair was held in place by a black hairband with a triangular marking adorning it.
But it was its (for Dee was having a hard time identifying it as a 'he', especially with that hair and outfit) face that really caught Dee's attention, that really proved that it truly wasn't human. Sharp pointed face, like a knife, whose cruel features were thrown into sharper relief in the partial darkness. Wide grin, feral like a weasel's, with impossibly sharp teeth that gleamed white. Eyes, violet like amethysts, slitted pupils like a cat's, glittering with malice. An overall expression that reminded Dee of a shark- predatory, cold, and hungry. Dee could clearly see the arrogance, the sadistic qualities, the cruelty, the bloodlust.
Dee decided that his Master was correct- there was no way this was human. No matter how horribly self-centered and violent the humani were, they could never match the malice that made up this very creature's being.
Dee shivered, suddenly very, truly afraid, the first time in centuries. Unconsciously, his aura responded to his emotions, and crackled to life around him, surrounding him in sickly bright yellow light. The smell of rotten eggs, of sulphur, permeated the room. The creature knew what effect it had on Dee (no doubt it was aware) and it reveled in it, grin growing wider.
After a long, uncomfortable moment, it spoke. It's voice sent shivers up Dee's spine.
" It will be a pleasure to be working with you, Magician." It licked its extremely red tongue over its sharp, sharp teeth. "You can call me… Envy."
Meanwhile, back with our friends in Risemburg...
Josh and Sophie walked together along the small dirt path. Josh was still gingerly carrying the container of stew. His eyes scanned the path ahead for any rocks or other debris he could've tripped over, and Sophie walked pensively at his side, lost in thought. She finally spoke up.
"That Edward must be a really nice guy, having saved Hallin's family and all. I wonder why he lives so far from town. It can't be easy having to travel all this way, especially when you need to buy groceries and supplies and stuff." Josh shrugged, nearly spilling the stew down his shirt.
"Dunno. Maybe he's just socially awkward. Maybe he's a loner and likes the isolation. Maybe he's a complete psycho. Who really knows, besides him? I actually don't really care."
Sophie huffed. "Geez, what's eating you? It was just a train of thought."
Josh frowned. "Don't mind me. Just a bit grumpy I guess. Flamel and Perenelle drag us to the other side of the globe for our 'safety', but once here, they leave us alone to fend for ourselves. Not that I mind being away from them, but if we're here to be safe, how come they're not here? How do they know that right at this moment Dee's agents aren't tracking us and hunting us down?"
Sophie was quiet for a moment, and Josh felt guilty for dumping this on her, but he needed her to see that the Flamels couldn't be trusted. But when she replied, she did it angrily, surprising Josh.
"Maybe they're searching for a teacher for us, or trying to throw Dee off our tracks, or sticking their necks out in thousands of other ways for us, putting their lives in danger. Their dying, Josh, dying! They could be going after the Codex, and renewing their life force, if they weren't worried for us.. Why can't you see they've been trying to help us, only trying to help us? Stop focusing on yourself and your paranoia, and try to be thankful!"
Josh was shocked. He had never seen his twin so angry. She was always the polite, mild-mannered one, who was never angry, never rash, who always thought before doing anything. To see her so angry...
A flood of guilt washed over Josh like a tidal wave. Sophie must have been carrying all of that for days, on her mind. She was his sister, and he was supposed to protect her, take care of her. But no, he had been too preoccupied to notice how bothered she was. And that was simply inexcusable.
And yet...
he couldn't let it go, couldn't be thankful. The Flamels had done too much, caused too much damage. Yes, they had helped them, but only in their favor. He didn't want them to die, but he couldn't forgive them. But it made Sophie unhappy when he tried to explain his feelings.
So he lied.
He smiled with his teeth and nodded and agreed. Yes, yes, he saw it now, of course, silly him. And Sophie was happy and they continued through the woods, and didn't bring up this topic again.
Dee was talking on the phone, trying to find the whereabouts of the Flamels and the twins. He could sense the creature staring at his back, and couldn't get rid of the feeling that it was amused and would back stab him if allowed. Gulp. Unnerved as he was, he focused on the task at hand.
"So they bought plane tickets to Germany, yes I understand that, of course, but they obviously have moved on already. No, obviously they would have left, yes, see if you can track them. Gods, are you dense?" Dee hung up.
The creature...Envy...snorted. "Humans usually are. Nevertheless, they have their uses."
Dee started at its voice. "We'll be going to Germany, then."
"Germany, huh. Oh, the irony..."
Dee looked at Envy questionably, but it didn't elaborate. So Dee went for the whole "ask outright" approach.
"Pardon me, but why would this be ironic?"
Envy rolled its eyes. "Info-fishing for your master? Oh, what the hell. It's not like you could do much with this anyway."
"I first came to this Shadowrealm in about 1923. The Gate led directly to Germany. Unfortunately, I was temporarily handicapped, and powerless. Got stuck there, captured by humans. Met an old, friend, got my revenge. Left Germany afterwards, haven't been there since. It's just ironic that we should be going there, that's all. Nevertheless, I believe this is where my knowledge of the country comes into play. I lived in a place very similar in my world. We'll find your victims soon."
Dee found his curiosity piqued by the small story. Just who was the Envy character?
"What are you?"
Aw, crap. He hadn't meant to say that out loud.
Envy gave him an amused looked. He shook his head.
"You know my background already, don't you? I am what was known in my Shadowrealm as a Homunculus."
Dee thought about this for a moment.
"So you're a... I was under the impression that homunculi were diminutive human beings made by alchemy, usually through methods involving a flask and several chemical reactions."
Envy bared his teeth, and grimaced. "Partly correct. From where I come from, homunculi are made via alchemy, but we are not human, but superior beings. As for diminutive... do I look like a dwarf? No, I don't think so. The creation methods vary, from creating a body with alchemy, to a failed resurrection or human transmutation, to using a human as a base body. Usually we consume souls through fragments of what is known as a Philosopher's Stone, though if needed we can get our nutrients from a substance known as Red Stones." He smiled wickedly. "I'm afriad now that I've told you, I'm gonna have to kill you."
Dee wasn't sure whether or not Envy was joking. Probably was, since he wasn't, shouldn't, allowed to be killed. Yet. They still had a mission.
Change of topic, or a return to one.
"We should head out to Germany then. How are you planning to get there? Do you need me to-?"
Envy hissed. "The day I need a human to help me is the day I die. I'll be there, don't you worry. You take care of yourself. We wouldn't want to make Master angry now, would we?" Obviously, it was amused by Dee's punishment if they were to fail. "I'll meet you Munich." Saying that, it left.
Dee stared at where the Homunculus had been sitting, and shivered slightly. Fascinating, sure... but Dee felt that working with Envy could be the most dangerous thing he had ever done.
Author's Note: Might be another while before I can post again. I'd like to credit Michael Scott for majority of the scene between Dee and his Master. All I did was twist it slightly. If anyone wants to know, I took it form page 24 to 27 of Sorceress.
So, how was it? Comments, complaints? I'd love to know what you guys think. Please review!