The Shadower

by Punk19

With their just being returned to Moas, Angel and her sons are trying to settle into their new environment; it's not long before they become stressed by some force that continues to shadow and torment them and it's not long before their family adds more stress to what they're feeling. Who is shadowing them and will he stop to allow them to return to their former, new way of living?

9. Chapter 9

"Morning, Bile."

Due to how poor his sleep was, he barely caught her greeting—he was much like a typical human; it took him a few days to get use to a place and then be able to sleep for an entire eight hours.

The new sights that had been on the level that he had found himself as being on last night, coupled by the sounds that had been heard and the fact that his mama hadn't been near or with him, had had a good hand in keeping him up. His and his brothers' mother had said nothing on staying up on the level with them all night—come time for them to go to bed, she had disappeared. He presumed that she had gone down to the house's second level but it was also quite possible that she had just taken up one of the available rooms that were on the level that he and his brothers had found themselves as being moved to—she had stayed with them all afternoon, and then for most of the evening, then she had just disappeared.

He guessed that the curious absence of his mother was a good thing—the maternal figure had decided that it was time for them to be "weaned" of her constant company and that it was time for them to regain their sense of independence.

"Morning, Eshal." he said after turning to acknowledge the one who had greeted him.

"Sleep well?" Eshal asked him.

"Not really—after moving to a new place, it takes me a few days before I can get in a good eight hours of sleep." Bile replied honestly.

"If anything's missing in your chamber, or if there's something wrong or that you don't like with your chamber, tell daddy." Eshal said. "He'll do what he can in fixing it."

"I will, thank you." Bile said. The scrolls that had been noted as being missing in his and Lhaklar's rooms had been found in Hazaar's room while Lhaklar's, Hazaar's, and Lazeer's Acidic power books had "found" themselves as being "filed" in the old man's library; all of the items that had been displaced had been squared away and the books had been returned. After thirty minutes to an hour had passed, he had found that most of his music discs were missing—all he had of his collection was in the black canvas bag that had been returned to him a few days ago; everything else in his collection was missing. The boombox that he and Lhaklar had shared had been found as being in Lazeer's room; after careful deliberation, it had been decided to let it remain in the room. Lhaklar's missing poster and magazines were still missing. Other than his wanting the bulk of his music collection back, and wanting something with which to play them on, he couldn't think of anything that he'd want in his room.

"Think you, our brothers, and mam will be taking breakfast in the dining room this morning?" Eshal asked. She had since taken up a position on the wall; her back, and elbows, were against the wall while her bottom half was free of the wall.

Eshal was three hundred and one years older than he—she should know that she was giving out a sort of signal by what she was doing. While the position of leaning against the wall was very innocent the act of her moving her waist in and out wasn't; he felt uncomfortable right after her hips started pipping—the women in the bars that he had visited while being a resident of Earth had done this... it was usually done in a flirtatious or seductive way and, wouldn't you know it but he had actually had a few women do it with him. He was neither interested in his sister in that way nor wanted to be; he wished that she'd stop doing what she was doing with her hips.

Eshal was wearing a long-flowing purple, pink, and black tie-dye dress, that had silver designs around the neck and hems; the dress fit her somewhat loosely, so none of her body could be seen—the top was also closed, so no cleavage could be seen, which was a relief for him.

He, as a child, had called Eshal his sister; even though there was no full-on blood relation to them they had still called and revered one another as siblings. The act of her pipping her hips at him gave him the impression that she was trying to gain his interest, which wouldn't be happening in this century or the next. He wasn't going to repeat history in picking a member of the family as a mate and he for damn sure wasn't going to stand and watch a member of his family try to seduce him—he turned his gaze away from his sister; he neither made eye contact with her or looked at her when she went to speak to him again.

"We might—depends on my brothers."

"Think daddy wants you guys downstairs for your meals from now on," Eshal said. "I'm only allowed to eat in my chamber when I'm sick, or badly injured."

"I'll keep that in mind, and I'll relay that to my brothers when I see them." Bile said as he looked down the hallway. It took just two seconds before the door that belonged to Lazeer's bedroom was opened; after seeing the door open, he started towards it. "Speaking of which, I see one now. Excuse me."

Eshal's bedroom, he noted, was across the hall from his own; when he started down the hallway, he expected for her to head in the opposite direction—both Lhaklar's and Lazeer's bedrooms were located away from the stairs while his and Hazaar's were located closer to the stairs. Eshal, instead of doing as he had expected of her to do, followed him—he found this to be a trifle bit annoying. How could he speak with his brother, and possibly do an "air cleaning" of the events that happened yesterday, with her around? Surely, the Man of the House wanted her to be downstairs... at her place at the table, or near to where the table was. He started to wonder why she was still on the level; her hair was all fixed up, her face was clean and fresh, and she looked ready for the day's events... surely there was no reason for her to still be up here.

His alarm had been set for 8:00; it had been pre-set for this time when he had been on Earth and, owing to the device having a memory built into it, he hadn't had to re-set it so that it'd go off at the same time. After getting up from bed, then looking the room over, he had gotten dressed; the pair of jeans that he was wearing looked muddy on the knees when they really weren't and the blue shirt that he was wearing was lacking both of its sleeves—the bottom portion of his shirt was "pulverized" while the single tear that was present to the shirt's chest area was very prominent. The socks that were on his feet were brown while the foot-ware that was over them were his usuals—boots, but this time being rather scuffed up and being of the combat variety. Though the idea of his donning a piece of "man's jewelry" had crossed his mind he had decided against it—no need to shock his father, or cause anyone in the house to wonder who he was.

"I don't need to ask if you're cranky or not this morning." Bile said after reaching within talking distance of his youngest brother. Lazeer looked rather ragged; the dark blue bags that were under his eyes were quite extreme while the dark areas that were on his cheeks and forehead were a little less prominent. "Looks like you—"

"Yeah, I've slept none. So what." Lazeer snapped. Bile was fast in holding his hands up.

"Whoa now, Little Brother! I think you'll be needing a nap after breakfast."

"Dad'll let him sleep after breakfast," Eshal said. "You look terrible, Lazeer."

"I am terrible." Lazeer, yet again, snapped. He walked around his two siblings then made his way down the hall; Lhaklar left his room at the precise moment that he reached the portion of the hallway that it was on. When Lhaklar stepped into their cranky brother's path, he received a shock by finding himself being shoved back.

"Someone better warn the old man about what's in store after we get to the table." Bile said out loud.

"Is he always like that in the morning?" Eshal asked. "Daddy's right patient, but he won't allow for him to be like that for long without reprimanding him."

"Only when he hasn't had any sleep," Bile replied, then quickly added, "or when he's depressed. Hazaar's ten times worse in the morning."

"Dad's real worried about Hazaar—he says that he's acting out."

"If a belt had been taken to you for no reason you'd "act out" as well" Bile said lowly before starting towards Lhaklar.

Lazeer, he'd discover an hour to two hours later, hadn't gotten a wink of sleep last night; Lhaklar, when he approached him, looked to of gotten a few hours of sleep—the bags that were under his eyes were present but they weren't as dark as one who hadn't had any sleep would have. Lhaklar was still getting dressed when he exited his bedroom; the red and brown striped, long sleeve, button down shirt was still being buttoned while the brown belt that was around the pair of dark red corduroy pants wasn't done—the zipper and button on the pants were in place but the belt had just been thrown on. The pair of brown shoes, that were on his brother's feet, were nicely tied. He and his brother said a few words to one another then they started down the hall; Lazeer had managed to put a stop to his progress in going to the stairwell that'd take him to the house's second level—to their surprise, they saw that Hazaar and their mother were talking to him. It sadly sounded like that old depression that their youngest brother had been so gripped by when he had been a resident of Earth was back. Eshal, by the time that he and Lhaklar were meeting with their mother, had already gone towards the stairwell and then started descending it.

"Ma—" Bile said after reaching within talking distance of his mother.

"We're to go downstairs for breakfast." Angel was fast in relaying. "You boys just eat your breakfast, I wish to speak with your father about a few things."

"Our licenses?" Lhaklar speculated.

"Our cigarettes?" Hazaar asked.

"My pot?" Bile whispered.

"My poster and magazines?" Lhaklar said.

"My music discs?" Bile smiled after this was all said; while everything of what they had just asked about was important they were doing nothing more than throwing it at their mother. It seemed like that old normal way of life was returning to them.

"Yes, yes, and yes—I'm going to do my best to get you your things today." Angel replied. "Lhaklar, I'm going to let you talk to your father about your poster and magazines first. If you can't get him to give them back, I'll see if I can."

"I love you." Lhaklar said.

It looked like he and his brothers had experienced a similar sleeping period last night; he, like they, had slept very little. He might of had two or three hours worth of sleep before finding himself as being wide awake; the idea of turning the room's tv on and then watching some of it until he felt sleepy again had crossed his mind, as had his going back to work on his passenger car model—he didn't know how his father was when he found that one of his children were found to be awake after light's out so he hadn't done neither of them things. He and his brothers had piddled around in their rooms... had built models, or had just taken in the sights of the rooms, but they hadn't settled into them yet. By way of poking around in his room's closet, he had found that the two posters, that had been in his old room, but that were found to be missing in his new room, were in it. The one of an unknown galaxy exploding had been unrolled, and then looked at, before being re-rolled up and then put down while the one of an alien aircraft being on a collision course with an asteroid had been unrolled and then put up on the back of the closet door.

He was moody, as he usually was after getting up from bed, but he was fine; he was hoping that his mother would get his father to relinquish all that he had taken from them and he was hoping that the meal that was about to be consumed wouldn't be an awkward one—this was the first time that he and his were to eat with their father and sister... that was a little concerning to him, but at least his mother would be close to keep anything that happened low.

He was quite confident that it'd take a few words from his mother before the smokes were returned; their mother, after learning that they were all smoking, had said that as long as they didn't smoke all the time, or got addicted or obsessive over their smokes, they could smoke—she had been a little hard on Bile after learning of his partaking in smoking pot but she hadn't said anything about his needing to stop his habit. He was also quite confident that it'd take a few words before their father relinquished Bile's and Lhaklar's driver's licenses and his and Lazeer's learner's permits—their mother had done the teaching of them on how to drive a vehicle herself and she had also fronted the cash for the tests and licenses, and permits, to be made. Unless word came to her on their driving dangerously, or about how they were raking in driving ticket after driving ticket, she was fine with their driving.

It took a little under eight minutes to reach the room that was called the dining room; his mother led them down the stairwell that connected the second and third levels, then she led them down the second level's hallway, then she led them down the staircase that wound around the foyer's right side. The trek to the dining room took so long because they were either stopping to take in the sights or because they were waiting for the hired help to make room for them to go down the three hallways that they traversed after reaching the house's first level. He and his brothers were "forced" to put a halt to their trip after they reached the room that they were being led to.

"I should NOT be but so surprised that it'd be THIS big!" he thought after seeing the room that they had been led to.

The walls were light blue in color while the floor had a blue marble-like tile to it; the ceiling above matched the walls in color but it looked a bit too shiny to him. It almost looked like a silver-toned paint had been used on the ceiling, which had a coffered looked to it. A row of ribbed glass dome lights hung from the ceiling's center—the room, alone, looked fancy... the hanging lights gave it an even more fancy appearance and feeling.

The table that was in the room's center was long; it looked like it could seat over sixty people. From a distance, it looked to be made out of plain black-painted wood; when he and his approached it, they saw that it was actually made out of black granite stone. The legs that held it up were accent-like in appearance, but were quite sturdy regardless of their delicate appearance. In the center of the table was a gold T and S—he guessed that the old man had gotten the table made special and then had also come up with the idea of putting his initials on it. The chairs that were under the table were very normal in appearance; due to the walnut wood having been painted a very dark chocolate color, they matched the table almost perfectly. The cream and black striped cushions that were on the chairs' backs and seats looked rather comfortable.

Eshal, as expected, had beat them to the room; she was seated in the chair that was on the right side of the table. Their mother, after leading them into the room, took the chair that was across from her. They, at first, took any chair that they wanted to take; after hearing Eshal clear her throat, then seeing her give their mother a look, they got up then "arranged" themselves in order of birth—for him, this was a silly way to eat a meal but, if it appeased Miss. Highness, who seemed to think that things had to go "by order" in the house owned by the old man, he moved to the chair that was between the ones that Lhaklar and Lazeer were sitting on with no fuss. Eshal's face grew very light after this was done; their mother merely nodded her head at them then simply looked forward.

Naturally, the chair that was at the head of the table was vacant—while on Earth, the chair that was at the head of the table had been reserved specifically for their mother; on Moas, that chair was reserved for their father, who was the progenitor of their family.

They had no more been seated before the one who owned the chair that was at the table's front end walked in; he took them in then he approached the chair that seemed to be waiting patiently for him.

"Good morning," TazirVile said after taking his place at the table. "Everyone sleep well?"

"Decently—it'll take a few more days for me to settle in." Lhaklar was the first to respond.

"Same here." Bile said.

"Normal. After getting the place built, then furnished, and then after moving into it, it took me nearly two days before I could get in a full night's sleep." TazirVile said. Seeing as he hadn't heard anything from his two younger sons, he addressed them. "What about you two? Sleep well?"

"Maybe an hour," Lazeer replied in a near whisper.

"Five, maybe six hours," Hazaar lied.

"Lucky shit." Bile looked down the table at his younger brother; he dropped his left eye in a wink.

"Bile," Bile looked at his adoptive father, who, despite speaking so calmly, had had a very serious tone to his voice. "I'll ask only once now. No cursing inside the house or outside of it. Let's show some common decency alright."

"Yessir." Bile said. He looked at his mother, who nodded her head at him; he knew well that he could curse in front of her. She had let him use the smaller range of curse words while in her company but she was very against his going out and using both the small and large range of curse words in public. She wanted him to respect others—some people just didn't like cursing... some were offended by it.

The man commented on their being "appropriately seated" then he took a small, silver bell out from under the table; by way of using a small bit of his Telepathy, which, owing to how non-sentient things also having the ability to retain memories, could be used on buildings, he saw that there was a small hook under the table's head. The bell, he knew, would be removed from the hook when it was desired to be used and then it'd be returned to the hook after it was used.

Three Goblin butlers, clad in either black or light blue tuxedos, walked into the room after the bell was rung; each man was carrying a tray. The trays were placed on the table; the three Goblins left and then returned to the room two more times after the trays were on the table—silver dishes, eating utensils, and plates and bowls were placed to the table then they went on their way. Once the Goblins were done with their third trip to the room they bowed then left; their father, as if on cue, stood then started removing the tops to the various trays and dishes that were on the table. He started making himself a plate once all of the tops to the trays and dishes were removed.

A plate, consisting of a pancake and a half, and two sausage patties, was what he made for himself; a bowl of what they believed was porridge was placed beside the plate just before the man re-took his seat. Whether it was fate or coincidence they didn't know but, right when the man's seat was re-taken, a maid walked into the room; she had a tray on her that contained seven drinks on it. She placed a chocolate-colored drink before their father then she placed a similar looking drink before Eshal; she was on her way to giving them and their mother their drinks when their father cleared his throat. The man stood up then relinquished the maid of her tray; he dismissed the maid then he did the "honors" of distributing their drinks himself. With that matter squared away, he re-took his seat then set in on his breakfast.

Eshal was fast in placing two pancakes and two sausage patties on her plate; a bowl of eggs, and then a bowl of what looked to be rice crispies cereal, that had more than enough blueberry and raspberry berries in it, was made next. Their mother took up a single pancake; she placed two sausage patties, four bacon slices, and then a small amount of eggs on the side of her plate before sitting back in her chair. Bile and Lhaklar made their breakfasts next; Bile placed two pancakes on his plate, then grabbed four bacon slices, before hesitating on grabbing a sausage patty. In the end, he decided that the pancakes and bacon slices were enough; he sat back in his chair then started in on his meal. Lhaklar's plate consisted of a pancake and a half, a decent sized helping of eggs, and two sausage patties; he decided to forgo the bacon that morning. The plates that Hazaar and Lazeer made were very similar to one another; they had two pancakes, two sausage patties, and five slices of bacon on their plates. Hazaar was the only one of them to get a bowl of eggs to go along with his meal.

The meal was consumed in complete silence; it seemed to take forever for their mother to wipe her mouth and then say something about the items that were missing or that their father had confessed to having that they wanted returned to them. Bile, who figured that she had waited until the man was less enthused with his breakfast, paid "special" attention to what was said between the two of them.

"So, what did you do with the smokes that you took from the boys?" she asked.

"They're in a box," TazirVile replied. "I'm letting you have the honor of disposing them."

"I'd like to partake in that honor after breakfast," Angel said. "They won't be getting them back."

"Glad to hear you say that," TazirVile said. "With us adults, it's alright. With them, it isn't—their lungs are much too undeveloped to handle cigarette smoke."

"What have you done with their licenses?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary—they're in the safe that's in my office. Why?"

"I'd like for them to be given to me after breakfast as well." Angel said. She was fast in coming up with an explanation to why she wanted the licenses and learner's permits returned to her after her husband gave her a hard look. "I was the one who put up the cash for the tests to be done and for the licenses, and permits, to be made, so I should be the one to hold onto them until the boys are appropriately aged enough to drive."

"Alright, I'll hand them over after breakfast as well." TazirVile said.

"Bile's missing most of his music collection, you know where it is?" Angel asked.

"There's a few items that haven't been placed in the boys' chambers," TazirVile said. "If his collection of music isn't in his chamber in an hour or two, ask me that question again. I'll see to where they are and to having them returned to him. Most of what the boys have noted as being missing is safe—all in a box in one of the rooms on the level that their chambers are on." TazirVile was fast in replying.

With the smooth way his mother had taken things in asking about their missing stuff, he thought that he'd have it in the ballpark and then some when it came time for him to ask about his magazines and poster. He, in a way, was looking forward to the verbal exchange that he and the old man would have later on about the two items.

The drinks that they had been given for their morning beverage he remembered; he had come across his father making them one day when he had been a little kid—the old man, along with reprimanding him for telling Bile what he had seen, had also tried to play what he had made off on something else. It had taken his parents two weeks to get him back "on schedule" with his morning beverage, which was nothing more than a protein shake that had food coloring and flavor in it. He, as a child, had favored the white chocolate shake; his father had obviously remembered this and had obviously made this for him that morning. Bile had a strawberry flavored shake while Hazaar and Lazeer had chocolate flavored shakes; their mother had a vanilla shake. He said nothing on what he knew of on the drink; he, and his siblings, ate their meal, then drank their beverage, then sat back in their chairs.

When the meal was done, their father re-rang the bell; the same Goblins who brought the trays and dishes in came into the room. They removed all of what they had either eaten off of, or with, or all that they had placed on the table then they left the room. After the Goblins left, his father started one of them after-meal conversations.

"So, Lazeer," TazirVile said. Lazeer looked up then at him quickly. "where, exactly did you find that pocketknife of yours? I take it that it was found on Earth?"

"Uh-huh." Lazeer nodded his head. "There was a fellow on the corner of Weston and Bridge street—near to where the Flea Market is—that was selling the knives."

Bile instantly knew who his brother was referring to; Mr. Wilmont, an eighty-something year old man, was a gentle soul. Even though he lived in his car he sold enough of what he put out on the towel, or on the line that he hung between the two posts that held the Weston and Bridge street signs up, to pay for a single night at a motel. Most of what he made was given to his daughter—he and his now-deceased wife had had three kids; two of their kids were dead while the third was married and had two kids of her own. The only surviving daughter of Mr. Wilmont was having a time with home finances so her father had taken to the helm in trying to help her out.

"How much was spent on that knife of yours?" TazirVile asked his son.

"A dollar twelve."

"Got just one?"

"Yessir."

"Son, you needn't use the "sir" terminology with me. Dad'll be enough, alright?" TazirVile said.

"Okay." Lazeer said weakly.

"Eldass returns tomorrow," TazirVile said after a brief moment of silence occurred at the table. "He's been on vacation since the latter part of October. He's looking forward to seeing all of you."

"What were his injuries? How badly injured was he?" Angel asked.

"Had a few bruised ribs; the two-inch long gash, that was found on the back and top of his head, and the nine-inch long gash that was found on his chest were the main items that kept him from returning to work."

"Ow!" Angel exclaimed while making a face. After making the face, then calming down, she asked, "Where's Homsi these days?"

"He's also on vacation—one of my Generals really roughed him up." TazirVile replied. "Most of his ribs were broken and the tissue and muscle that's around his lower back was bruised. He won't be able to return to work for another week to two weeks."

Ouch; the injuries that the two just spoken about Goblins had gained while being on Earth sounded right painful! While he was young, and while he didn't have all that many personal battles to his credit, he did know a good deal about injuries.

During his tenure at Pronghorn Academy of Sorcery and Magic, when he had run track, and then been apart of the wrestling team, he had sustained many injuries—one time, when he had been doing a simple training run on the school's track, he had pulled his hamstring and, in one of his first-done training sessions for the school's wrestling team, he had sustained a broken left arm. His ankle, in one of the first runs that he had done for the school, had come close to being shattered as well. Naturally, with his being on the wrestling team, he had known that he'd get a few bruises and cuts to himself; one time, an opponent of his had had the nerve in trying to take him out by a blow to the inner thigh. He, as was natural of any male, had had a time in getting up and then walking afterwards; he was glad that the guy hadn't aimed his punch up higher because, if that had happened, he wouldn't of been able to get up, much less go to his classes, afterwards—and the guy might of had the same issue too because, after he finally did recover from such a blow, he would of come for him and then roughed him up worse than what he had done to him.

A man's sack was sacred and damn was it fragile! A hit down below the belt would put one of the male gender out of commission for a few minutes to maybe a few hours; if the hit was bad enough, it might also put one out for a few days or even weeks. While his man's sack had been struck, and injured, in the past he hadn't gone running after the one who had attacked it—most of the time, it had been a brother of his who had done the hit; none of his brothers had hit him on purpose so there had been no reason for his to up and run after and then beat them to a pulp for their deed.

Their father asked their mother a few questions on the car after the matter on the knife was spoken of; he asked her if she wanted to continue owning it, then, after being told that she did, he asked if she wanted it to be changed from being gasoline-powered to energy-powered. She, after a moment's pause to think it over, said that she did.

Lhaklar found that his good, brown leather jacket, that had tassels hanging from the shoulders, and his coonskin cap, that had a raccoon tail attached to its back, was in his father's possession; by the time he returned to his room, he'd find both items safely placed in his closet. All of the finger knives that he owned had been retrieved after being removed from his person and then stashed in one of their father's armory rooms—he was told that he'd be allowed to look at them but not have them; the old man said that he would only be allowed to have them returned to his possession after he aged a bit more.

The pair of brass knuckles that he owned had been found; like with Lhaklar's finger knives, which Lhaklar had purchased on the planet Viro for $10, they were in one of the house's armory rooms. While he and his brother would prefer for the two items to be returned to them they didn't comment or say anything about their desire in wanting them back. Like with Lhaklar, he was told that he'd be allowed to have his brass knuckles after he aged a bit more.

"Explore a little more than the second level today," TazirVile said as he stood up. "I've got a few paper matters to take care of, plus a bag to two bag's worth of mail to go through—if any of you wish to speak to me, or have any questions, I'll be in my office. My office is on the second level, as always. A gully washer is expected to blow through shortly; it'll be waging war on the world that's outside of these walls for at least three days."

The normal routine would of happened if they had still been on Earth. He and Bile would leave the apartment to either walk the town, or gawk at the ladies, or possibly search for a woman to sleep with; Hazaar would go out to do his thing, which none of them really knew of, while Lazeer would probably be the only one to remain in the apartment—if the sun had been hidden behind the clouds, he might leave the apartment while, if it had been forecast to be sunny all day, he'd remain indoors and complain about how his eye was causing him to lose out on so much. If a companion wasn't found, or if the opportunity to gawk at the women was low, he and Bile would go out to do a little hunting; he'd be the only one to partake in fishing if no one was available to be gawked at or to sleep with. He and his brothers would smoke their smokes while being out and about and they might also get into a little bit of mischief as well. Their mother, seeing as this was a weekday, would be heading off to work—they'd not see her until lunchtime and then, after lunch was done and over with, they'd not see her until after they got back before curfew, which was seven o'clock.

Since they weren't on Earth anymore, and since they had nothing to do and didn't know what to do, they decided to split up and then explore the house. They left the dining room as a group before splitting up; Bile took Lazeer after they reached the hallway that branched off the one that the dining room was on while he took Hazaar. They went down the hallway in opposite directions after taking on their "charges".

While going down the hallway that the foyer's hallway was on, he made himself stay away from the foyer; he didn't want to head up and bother his father about his missing magazines or his Marilyn Monroe poster just yet—he was going to wait until the man was so enthused with what he was doing in his office before going up to speak with him about them items.

"What's a 'gully washer'?" Hazaar asked after they went down the hallway that ran off the foyer. The hallway that they were on was long and wide; it had a balcony, that looked to have a stretch of the second level's hallway on it, above it.

"A right bad storm." Lhaklar replied. "Something like a small hurricane, or tropical storm—lots of rain, wind, thunder and lightning... hail may be present as well."

"They have hurricanes here?" Hazaar asked. He, ever since he could remember, liked storms; if what was to be experienced in the next few days was what his brother was describing then he had a feeling that he'd be "tasting window" here and soon.

"Somewhat—the winds aren't as bad, though. Gully washers are more like flash floods, but with some of the qualities of a hurricane or tropical storm. Sometimes, it'll rain so hard that you won't be able to see anything—and, once it starts raining, it won't let up for a while." Lhaklar replied.

"Think it'll flood here?" Hazaar asked. Thanks to his brother's description of the storm, he was really looking forward to seeing and experiencing the storm now.

"If so, only to th—"

"Only to the horse pastures."

He had been so interested in getting information on the "gully washer" that he hadn't been paying any mind to his surroundings. He and his brother were still in the long and wide hallway that had the balcony above it; there were many other hallways coming off the one that they were on but they hadn't turned to go down any of them yet. The hallway, that looked to have a sort of glass-like wall to it, that was surrounded by what looked to be rock or stone, had someone in it; the Goblin, who was just now stepping out from the hallway, was the very one who had come into his bedroom last afternoon.

The hallway that they were on had neoclassical, white upholstered benches placed before the entrance of each opening that another hallway either started or ended at; a classical vase, that was a white-gold color, was at the end of each of the benches that were on the left side of the hallway. On the right side of the hallway, on each of the grooves that had been made in the wall, was a bronze vase that had some of the most wicked looking bat designs that he had ever seen on them. There were a few of the neoclassical benches on the right side of the hallway as well, but they were more spread out than that of what was on the hallway's left side. A large opening was to the far end of the hallway; judging by the shadow that could be seen in this opening, he guessed that a staircase was in the opening.

There were many photographs on the hallway walls; some were of bats that were flying out of their caves while others depicted a single bat that was either flying about, or clinging to a branch, or that was chowing down on an insect that it had just caught. The other photographs that were on the hallway walls were of his family—his father and Eshal included in the mix, of course.

The walls were a mostly dark gray color; the white trees, that were painted on them, had tiny bats perched on their many branches. The floor was, quite surprisingly, made out of white stone while the ceiling was a white-gold color; from what he could see, there were three other balconies that overlooked the hallway. A gold glass chandelier, that looked more than a little heavy, was in the center of the hallway's ceiling; the strands that the gold glass hung from seemed to have a long stretch on them. To him, it looked like each of the chandelier's strands had been made out of genuine pearl.

The Goblin named Daosi, who had "barged" into his room yesterday, stood perfectly still for all of two seconds before creeping out from the hallway that he was standing in; this one particular Goblin, after entering his room, then hunting him, who had been in the bathroom at the time, down, had given him a good, long stare before saying Hello... Haaahzaaah—the way he had said his name had scared the bejeebers out of him, as had his presence in the very room that he had just gotten through taking a piss in.

"Yes, thank you, I remember that well. If it flooded, it never went much past the farthest horse pasture, which is also the nearest one to the beach." Lhaklar said. Even he had jumped after hearing and then seeing the Goblin.

"Finally coming out of your shell, Haaahzaaah?" Daosi said. He forgot all about Lhaklar being in the hallway, and he completely forgot about the two boys being sons of his employer. "Or did you pop back in?"

"What do you want?" Lhaklar asked. The Goblin stopped, then gave him a look, then produced a sound that was very similar to that of a low hiss.

"My father will be returning tomorrow, you be sure to keep that wreck of a brother of yours on a thin leash." Daosi said to Lhaklar. "I'm loyal to your parents, and to Miss. Eshal; I'm not loyal to either of you two or to your two brothers."

"You need to head off now." Lhaklar said. He stepped before the Goblin, who stood four foot, five and a half inches tall. The Goblin hissed then, without warning, swung his fist; Lhaklar yelled, then grabbed his knee, then swung his own fist. "I said go on! Leave us be!"

"You just remember what I said." Daosi laughed; he had ducked Lhaklar's fist. Instead of simply turning around and then going down the hallway that he had previously been on he turned then went down the hallway that they were on.

Seeing as the hallway that Daosi had just vacated was "Goblin-free" they went down it; his impression of the Goblin that they had just had a few words with, and that he had just had a small to-do with, was simple enough—the man was crazy and he obviously had it out for his brother. He could care less about himself; his knee was throbbing, and it would probably continue to do so for another fifteen to twenty minutes, but he wasn't worrying about it. Hazaar was his main concern. Hazaar had a tendency to be a bit of a hot head, and he had a tendency to be negative, and to forget things when times of stress were encountered, but he didn't deserve to be targeted by any of the Goblins in their father's service.

Even though he would of enjoyed seeing his brother kick the Goblin's ass—Hazaar had the Goblin by six inches, and he probably outweighed the man by fifty or so pounds—he did have to remind himself that the Goblin was older than his brother; the man, for all he knew, probably knew well the tactics on how to defend himself and he'd probably also be faster and more limber than Hazaar. He didn't want to see his younger brother be bloodied, or broken, by one in their father's service—he'd fight the Goblin off for his brother if such an act of violence ever came around. For some reason, he had a feeling that the Goblin was more out for Hazaar than for him—Daosi, while speaking with him, and while also throwing that punch at him, had targeted Hazaar more than he had him.

He could really care less about how loyal the man was to his father, and, for the record, he could care less about that "loyalty-giving" thing that the Goblins did with the employers that they wanted to work for forever—he wasn't about to let any Goblin, whether male or female, have at Hazaar or at Lazeer or even at Bile.

He had no more started going down the hallway that Daosi had been on when he stopped; Hazaar, who was playing heel clip with him, walked right into him—due to what they were seeing, he said nothing adverse about his sudden stop.

"Are... are those... Striped bats?" Hazaar asked.

The hallway that they were on had two cages on it; the two walls, that had thick glass on them, that was surrounded by stone, contained two very different types of bats in them. To the left, in the cage that was half-dark, was a colony of bats that were very strikingly patterned—while they were a mostly black color they had light brown to tan stripes on their heads, bellies, and backs; the muzzle of a few of the animals that were flying in the left-side hallway-contained cage had a light brown to tan stripe on it while, on others, the muzzle was completely black. To him, the bats that were in the cage that was to the left of the hallway looked like mini flying badgers—the name of Niumbaha superba came to him quickly; the species had been discovered in July of 2012. The humans had tried to save it from extinction; fifty years after its discovery, it went extinct. His father had managed to get a few on the third birthday trip that their mother had taken him on—mother had made a point every few years to arouse him all sweetly; after he consumed a breakfast that she made especially for him, she'd tell him to get up, get dressed, then to follow her to Earth for "a surprise", which had mostly been her taking him to see the planet's many various bat species.

The Striped bats that his father had taken from the planet looked to be fairing right well, and it looked like they had done more than reproduce themselves into a better than fine colony—he bet the humans would be digging their eyes out if they knew of his father having the bats in his possession.

The cage that was to the right of the hallway contained a colony of what looked to be Kitti's hog-nosed bats; like with the Striped bat, the Kitti's bat was extinct—2190 was the year that it had waved bye-bye to mankind. Like with the Striped bats, the Kittie's bats that were in his father's possession looked to of faired well in his father's care. Their cage was much like that of the one that was on the hallway's left side—half-dark, but being furnished with more than enough small trees and items that the animals could grab and then hold onto after either catching an insect or wanting to take a break from flying. Like with the Striped bat, his father had acquired the first individuals to his Kitti's hog-nosed bat colony after going on a birthday trip to Earth.

"I haven't seen so many fuckin' bats in my life!" Hazaar exclaimed.

"Mom wasn't kidding when she said that dad liked bats." Lhaklar said while leading him and his brother from the hallway.

"Liked? More like obsessed!" Hazaar exclaimed. "Was the hallway like this when you and Bile were five and six hundred years old?"

"N—"

He stopped after the memory clicked home; he remembered that his father had been the one who had designed the hallway and he also remembered that the man had overseen the work that had been done on it. It had taken all of six months for the hallway to be built to their father's qualifications—the interior walls had been gutted, and then hollowed out; the glass, that'd allow for the bats that'd take up the hallway-placed cages to be see, had been made and then carted to the house and then hallway; the interior walls had been set-up to meet the demands of the bats; and then the species of bats that's numbers had grown in a very short amount of time had been moved to their new cages. He and Bile hadn't been allowed to go into the hallway after the work on it was started; they had been allowed to see what was going on in it, and they had been allowed to watch their father, and his contractors and designers, get it ready for the animals that it had been set-up for, but they hadn't been allowed to cross the yellow tape or play with the many fascinated tools that had littered the hallway floor.

He and Bile had slipped into the hallway soon after it had been completed—their father had been releasing the Kitti's hog-nosed bats at the time; they had seen the bats flying from their cages and then they had seen them flying all around him, which had been kind of scary yet also cool at the same time. The man had let them watch as he released his colony of Striped bats as well. Both cages had trees, both of the artificial and real type, and bushes in them; the one stream that went along the bottoms of the two cages was what kept the bats hydrated. A chute was what delivered the bats' insects to them; the tunnel, that was in the far back of both cages, had a long tunnel in it—the bats' "indoor" enclosure was at the end of the tunnel. Only their father had access to the enclosures; he usually only went into the enclosure to check on the pups and to see if any of his bats were ill or unhealthy.

He and his brother had been allowed to look at the bats but, due to how young they were, they hadn't been allowed to interact with any of them—their mother, he remembered being told, had been nervous about the bats for a short period of time before accepting them; despite her cool nature with the bats, she had never allowed for them to handle or go near them.

"Yes. Yes—we were here when the hallway was rebuilt." Lhaklar answered the question asked to him. "He designed the hallway himself, then he called in a contractor to build it."

"How many—"

"I don't remember." Lhaklar replied. After exiting the Bat Hallway, he led his brother down the hallway that came off it. "Let's go down this hallway, then the one that comes off it, before we head back. I have an appointment with the old man that I don't want to miss."

"What's your "all important appointment" about?" Hazaar asked. He walked behind his brother for a bit before drawing up even with him.

"About my missing magazines and my poster—the Marilyn Monroe one."

"Oh, good luck on getting it back." Hazaar said.

As his sons explored their old home, and remembered things that they hadn't remembered in years, he was elbow deep in both paperwork and mail. The mail in the bag had been dumped and then sifted through quickly; the bills had been placed in one stack, then the junk mail, that'd do no more than line the cages in the room that his ill, unhealthy, or abandoned bat pups were kept in, had been put in another. The letters from his family had been put in the third pile, which wasn't as high as the other two piles. He had just sat down to look at the contents that were in the three piles when his wife both knocked and then entered the room—the mail had been forgotten right after she did so.

Ten minutes of talking to her, and of showing her around the room that she knew all too well, had happened; he had been affectionate, but he had also been a bit normal towards her—there was no need to weird or stress her out over having a husband who was too clingy or affectionate—, then he had gone to the room's hidden safe. The cigarettes, the bags of weed, the weed that was all rolled up in paper, the driver's licenses and learner's permits, and his sons' wands had all been removed from the safe and then placed in a box—all had been given to her, who had thanked him both vocally and with a small peck to the cheek.

While the cigarettes, and weed, needed to be discarded the wands were property that needed to be kept; he had no right in keeping the wands hidden or by keeping his sons from having them. The music discs that had been noted as being missing in Bile's bedroom chamber had been placed in their owner's chamber; a stereo had just been placed in the room at the time of their placing—Bile looked to not have a thing to listen to music on, so he had gone out of his way to get him something with which he could listen to his ear-rattling, noisy music with. Lhaklar, Hazaar, and Lazeer also had stereos in their rooms now. The game systems, with their games and various controllers, had also been placed in the rooms—one of the men in his service, who seemed to know what he was doing with game systems, had been the one to rig the systems up and to match the games with the systems that they went to. He hoped that the boys would be happy with the differences that had been done to their chambers—he was trying his best to keep them happy and to also give them a room with which they'd be happy with.

His wife, after spending ten minutes with him, had left to dispose of the cigarettes and marijuana that he had given her; he guessed that she'd be stashing the driver's licenses and learner's permits in one of the places that she had in the house that she used as a sort of "woman's safe" soon after the cigarettes and weed were destroyed. With his wife's good graces from his presence, he returned to the task that he had formerly been doing—reading the mail and, of course, doing the mass amount of paperwork that he was required to do that day.

"Place like mine gains more than the average amount in bills." he thought after opening the envelope that contained the electric bill.

Due to his place not being fully furnished, and the employee quarters not being as full as they were now, and to the place having just him as its primary resident, the bills had been a lot less than what they were now when it had first been constructed and then lived in. The monthly bills were a lot higher now that he had lived-in staff and that there was more than just himself as being the house's primary resident.

The piece of paper that was in the envelope had the amount of $5,265 on it; he had no problem with paying this—the bill was lower than normal due to him and his family not being home to use the electricity. The normal electric bill would cost him near double that amount.

The piece of paper that he took out of the next envelope, which had come from the company that he got his water from, had the amount of $2,950—again, this was low because of the fact that he and his had been away from the place. Except for the water that was pumped into his fish tanks, or that was given to his horses, sheep, goats, bats, and Platypuses, the only ones who had been frequent users of the house's water were the Goblins who lived in the staff's quarters; the normal bill would cost him over double the amount of what was on the piece of paper.

The piece of paper that he took out of the next envelope, which had come from the company that he got his natural gas from, contained the lowest bill in the stack—$378.08. The Goblins in the staff's quarters were the ones who used natural gas; he and his family, when the seasons turned and it grew cold out, used the house's central unit or simply threw a log in the fireplace.

The pieces of paper, that he took out of the next three envelopes, were from the companies that he got his cable, internet, and phone services from; they contained a near similar amount on them—$1,090 for the cable, $1,069 for the internet, and $1,088 for the telephone. If he and his had been home, these three bills would also be higher.

The property and house taxes weren't due until next year, in February; he'd have to shell $360,000 for that, which he was perfectly fine with—with what he got from his conquered realms on a daily to weekly basis, he could pay that three times a year and still be wealthy and well off.

After looking at the amounts that were in each of the envelopes that were in the bill pile, he took his touchpad up then started using it; the account that he used to pay his bills with housed $25,000 in it—with this being his bill-paying account, he made sure to fill it once at the near-end of a month and he also made sure to wire over the funds that remained in the account to one of his private vaults after the bill paying was done and over with. The act of his using a touchpad, and a bank account, to pay his bills with was a good one—not only would the bills be paid on time but he'd also be forgoing the cost of having to buy a stamp or having to mail out and then wonder if his bill payments were received.

$11,840.08 wasn't the only thing that was going out for the month's bills; he also had insurance, on his home and vehicles, to pay not to mention the insurance that he had on both himself, his wife, and Eshal as well. The bill for whatever repairs had been done to the employee quarters in the three months that he and his had been on Earth, looking for Angel and the boys, also needed to be paid. He was looking to be sending out a whopping ninety to two hundred and sixty thousand dollars that day to various companies.

"And I also have to send out three month's pay to the staff who didn't go to Earth with me and my family." he thought while grabbing and then using his stylus pen on his touchpad.

With his having as many vehicles as he had, his insurance for them was right high; $7,500 went out for that company then $54,500 went to the company that his home was insured through—his mansion's insurance was high for a reason. He had a lot invested in it, he and his lived in it, over two hundred Goblins lived under it... it was just better to have an insurance of that amount on the place.

The normal bills were paid, then the funds that remained in the account that he used to pay them with were wired over to one of his private vaults, then he paid the home and vehicle insurance bills; after doing this, he went on to pay the insurance policies that he had on himself, his wife, and Eshal. Another account, that had $2,000 in it, was what he used to pay the insurance bills with; $380 was sent for both his, his wife's, and Eshal's health insurance policy payments. Due to his age, and to his career of being a conqueror, the payment for his life insurance policy was very high—a whopping $695 was sent in for that insurance payment then the rest of what was in the account was wired over to one of his private vaults.

"While I'm at it, might as well make up accounts for the boys." he thought after paying all of that.

It took several minutes but, in the end, it was worth it. The boys had the same health insurance policies that he, their mother, and Eshal had—he'd have to shell out an additional $1,520 per month; he felt no qualms or beefs about sending that out. The policies were there to insure that they'd stay healthy and that, if anything came up, and they were sent off to the hospital, or anything medical came up with them, their hospital and medical bills would be paid.

After doing all of the bills, he placed his touchpad, and stylus, down then grabbed the first of the envelopes that were on the smaller pile. The biggie in bill paying was over, it was now time to read up on what all the family had sent him.

Dear Tazir,

It's been over a week since I've last heard word from you; either your phone lines are down, or the line that runs to your house has been turned off, and there's been no word coming through on the tv about the boys or their mother and I've received no mail from you regarding your family. Do hope that all is well with you and yours—when you get time, please contact me.

All of the tombstones that were placed in Surfeit cemetery were taken up and then smashed—they will not have a chance to be remade or replaced to the plots that were chosen for them to be placed on. The plots that were picked for the stones' use are now available for anyone who wishes to take them—hopefully, the five plots won't be put to use anytime soon. The cemetery sure had a peaceful feeling, and a good glow to it when I went in to remove the stones—gave me a good chill for a few seconds before realizing that it was just the Gods. They were smiling, and were ensuring me that what I was doing was right.

Came home to find that the three mares that I was looking forward to seeing foals from had given birth; one had a solid bay colt while the other two had spotted foals—you know me and my preferences, Lad. When I breed one of my horses, I do so with having the idea of a foal that has spots on it in mind. The bay colt will be reared until he's six months of age then he'll be sent to auction, along with the other foals that were born as being solid colored or that aren't up to par in my eyes. I also returned to find that the ones that I appointed to look after my indoor animals had slacked in their given chore—Chasan, Makan, and Zoodghin were suppose to be let out in the back periodically for a few hours each day and they were also suppose to be cared for; when I returned, I found three very bored, and stiff-legged, dogs who had obviously not seen a pair of grooming scissors, or a brush, in over a month. Found three Poodusians, Lad; imagine my face when I saw that my three Kuvasz's had turned into being Poodusians in the three months that I was away from home. The birds were fine, thank goodness, and so were the cats, but the dogs had been completed neglected—the ones appointed to keep tabs on my dogs were fired right after I got back. If they're not going to do as I've ordered them to do then why bother in keeping them on the payroll, right?

Looking forward to getting the word on my being able to come to your place to see the boys, and Angel, of course.

Take care,
Shaam K. S.

There was nothing else in the letter; his grandfather, a right nice man, who seemed to have a very good head on his shoulders, owned a slew of pets that he did seem to take very good care of. The three Kuvasz's that the man owned were very well behaved and trained while the two Cymric cats acted as any other feline would. The White Cockatoo's, well he had no opinion on them. Naturally, when the invitations for his family to come over to see and interact with the boys, and Angel, were sent out no pets owned by his family were to be permitted to come with their masters.

He had nothing against pets; everyone had their preference in what breed they wanted, and in what gender they wanted to own, and in what type of animal they wanted to bring home. His main reason in wanting just his family to come over was simple: he didn't want any of the family's vast assortment of pets to mess or ruin his home.

Kuruk's dog, Falaphie, had come over once; not only had her master let her soil the carpet on the second and third levels but he had also let her knock two fairly expensive statues over. Had he gotten an 'I'm sorry', or a reimbursement for the two broken statues, from his brother? No; Kuruk had just seen the mess, then had shrugged his shoulders, then had walked on—no care had been given to the spoiled carpets or the broken statues. His family, sadly and disgustingly, still regarded him as the weakling and as the one who deserved to not get the same amount of respect as another. They also still regarded him as one to push and then walk all over, which was just as infuriating as could be for him.

With his grandfather's letter read, he put that to the side then grabbed the one that was underneath it. He opened the envelope quickly then he removed the contents that were inside; the letter was read right after it was removed.

Dear Brother,

Haven't heard a thing from you since your return from Earth; phone calls go straight to voice mail, any letters that are sent to you aren't answered, and I've heard nor seen a thing on the news about you or the ones that you've recently returned home with—hope that you're just too damn busy to answer my correspondence. I cannot deny that I'm concerned about my granddaughter and grandson (Angel and Bile) and my nephews (Lhaklar, Hazaar, and Lazeer). Congratulations on having all three of your biological sons as being found to be alive and well and congratulations on having everyone in your family back home; the things that we've missed with the boys—birthdays, holidays, and the such. Consider it, for a minute, that you might just be on child #9 if not for their exit of Moas and then sixteen hundred year absence.

Everything is well here; Baruk has been a handful ever since we've returned home. I've had to reprimand him more than once since our return. Kaasa and Sudir are doing well; they're wondering when they'll be able to see their cousins. All of the family animals have been accounted for; Irka's pet Roe-Poe was found after we returned. I've gotten on Baruk for leaving the door to his bedroom chamber open many a time and he just doesn't seem to want to get the reason to why I've done so—as you know, I turn down the heating and cooling systems after me and mine go on any lengthy trips; the ones in the staff's quarters are the only ones to use the house's heating and cooling system during the times where me and mine are away. Irka's Roe-Poe rolled right into Baruk's cold room; she gave birth to a litter of six during our absence—of the six that were born only three survived. She's right depressed over the loss of half of her litter. Irka's not too happy about how depressed Gahzie is; she's still looking for the babies that she's lost.

Two of the mares that were due to foal at the time of my exit of Gamma Vile foaled; one had a red foal while the other had a black—you know how I am with my horses, Brother. I prefer gray and black over any other. Everything else is fine; all other pets are fine, no other new additions have been added, although I am keeping an eye on five mares, who are due to foal here soon.

Get in contact soon,
Kuruk S. S.

His brother hadn't been thinking when the purchase of his wife's Roe-Poe was made; Roe-Poe's, though being a new thing in the pet market, weren't an understood species. Most of the animals that were purchased were kept for a few months before being sent to the shelters; the care that was told to give to them by the "professionals" was wrong and the people who took the animals on either weren't able to keep up with the demands of their new pets or they grew tired of them.

Some Roe-Poe's bit; some were so unruly when they did their movements that they knocked certain things down; and, due to inadequate care provided by their purchasers, some got to being so damn fat that they couldn't move. The most concerning thing about Roe-Poe's was when one got pregnant—the animal was small, about ten inches tall, and was about the same in width; due to there being no limbs on the animal, and due to the animal being covered in thick fur, the birthing process was complicated. When a female Roe-Poe gave birth she did so by rolling back and forth; this put the babies that she had previously given birth to at risk of being rolled over and trampled. It also made for the unborn babies to be rolled into positions that'd cause them to not be able to be passed through the birth canal.

The animal needed a temperature of seventy-two degrees to be happy; anything over that, they got sluggish, and they stopped eating. If the temperature was allowed to drop to below seventy-two degrees, they'd stop taking in food and water completely.

Irka had only had her Roe-Poe for three years; in them three years she had encountered issue after issue with the animal. The vet bills for just that one animal were shocking, while the fact that Gahzie had been pregnant twice before was just plain sad. The animal, while looking healthy before the trip to Earth was made, had doubled in size and weight since that second litter was born; he could imagine how big, and heavy, she was now that she had been allowed to breed and then have a third litter.

Vile, his nephew, and his wife's father, had gotten on him for the simple gesture that he had done in purchasing Angel a Sekhem—a member of the mammalian family that was known for its playfulness, mischievousness, and loyalty. Even though the animal had only been known in the pet market for five years he had known a good deal about it; just before his wife's first Sekhem was purchased, he had watched his wife as she played and interacted with the animals that had been in the shop that they had visited. A Sekhem was known to emit a hissing sound before sinking its teeth into the flesh of whatever it was that was either causing it stress, or that was causing it to be nervous or scared, or that was handling it too roughly; Angel had never been bit by her pet. She had always treated it well and it, in response, had never bit or scratched her.

After seeing how well his wife was in regards to her first Sekhem he had gone out to get her another, which had been joined about two years later with another; thanks to his giving the animals the Ever-Life potion, that'd cause them to live just as long as he and his wife did, all three of the animals that he had purchased for his wife were still alive and well. His wife, after coming to bed last night, had been thrilled after entering their chamber and then seeing that all three of her pets were present and lying on the bed—which they had been shoo'd from a few minutes after his wife's entrance of the room occurred; he had been more than thrilled over seeing that she was to join him in their chamber and he had also been looking very forward to having her sleeping beside him.

He had known what a Sekhem was when he had bought his wife her first one while his brother had known nothing on what a Roe-Poe was, much less anything that regarded the animal's needs. Kuruk had just entered the shop, had seen the animals, had picked one out, then had thrown the cash for the animal to the counter; no questions had been asked on what the animal's needs or requirements were.

"I shouldn't because I know that all that's in this is filth." he mumbled after taking the envelope that had his father's address on it up from his desk.

And, by "filth", he really meant just a torrent of words that had been written with the sole purpose of trying to make him feel belittled—his father and he had never seen eye to eye on things, and he had never gained the same sort of love that his father felt and expressed with Kuruk. The same love that the man held on reserve for Kuruk seemed to also be expressed with the grandkids—the old man seemed to hold in favor Baruk, Kaasa, and Sudir over Eshal and, he presumed, Bile, Lhaklar, Hazaar, and Lazeer; he had once had a fierce to-do with the man over the powers that Eshal was able to do and he did recall the words that had come from the man's mouth on what kind of powers his biological sons could do too.

Along with the favoring thing the man also held in top regards to one who was an active abuser to his offspring. His backside was teeming in scarring, most of which had come from his father's hands while the rest had come from the battles that he had done when he had been conquering a galaxy; he was quite sure that his younger half-brothers, Gaajah and Selik, also carried some scars on their backsides as well. His father was one who demanded respect; when he didn't get it from the ones that were in his family, he decided to dive into his bag of cruel, unusual, and oftentimes violent tortures. If he couldn't get respect from someone automatically, he tried the old tactic of beating it into that person—the fists would be used first then, if that didn't work, he'd go for one of his belts. As far as he knew, he never abused his female children; he just used normal disciplinary methods with the female offspring that he sired. He just used his mouth whenever it was one who wasn't related to him who wasn't giving him the respect that he both thought and believed he should receive.

Where the hell have you been since your return to Moas, Boy? I've called and you've neither answered nor returned my calls. I've written and have received no reply from you. I've seen no sight nor heard a thing of you being on the news—are the boys doing well or are they giving you grief? How's Angel—is she letting you take on the responsibility of both disciplining and teaching the boys or is she dominating on the parenting thing, like I sadly and infuriatingly think she is? It's right sad in knowing that you've raised a daughter practically on your own but that you've done nothing to get her to exhibit any of the powers that you, yourself, are able to do—while the passing of Energy and Acidic powers was well she has yet to show any attempts in being able to do as her sire is able to do in Elemental powers. You might not want to accept it but, on some instances, it's the roughness that brings a certain power out—be rough and tough on her and you might just be surprised with the results that you get. Now that you've got Angel, and her sons, back you'll find yourself as having plenty of practice in doing this—practice that you'll need, since I know that you and she will be adding to your family sometime in the future.

Get in contact with me as soon as you can; we have much to talk about.

Same old with him; he was never one for writing and then sending him a formal letter. He'd always write what he wanted to send to him before slapping it in an envelope and then mailing it out. He had to laugh about the man's attempt in "teaching" him how to be a father—he was quite confident in himself in his abilities of being a father and on how to handle both Eshal and the boys.

After reading his father's very informal letter, he stashed it back into its envelope; he had just taken the envelope that had one of his sisters' addresses on it up from his desk when a knock was heard. His head was jerked up after the wood of his office door was knocked on; he went from being interested in the mail to professional in an instant.

"If it's important, enter. If it's not, leave." TazirVile said loudly. After the door was opened, and the one who had knocked on it came into view, he wished that he could take what he had just said back; Lhaklar looked in shyly before doing a half-so entrance. "Son," he said after seeing that it was his son who had come to see him. "come in."

"Am I... am I disturbing anything?" Lhaklar asked.

The habit that he had made out of snapping at the one who "dared" to disturb him when he was in his office needed to be put to a stop and fast, he realized; he couldn't be snapping, and then telling the one who had knocked on his office door to enter if it's important or leave if it's not with his wife and sons being back home. They were still nervous, there was no need in his making them remain nervous or getting even more nervous around or of him.

Like with his wife, he would never turn any of his children out of his office, or tell them that they couldn't come in to see or speak with him. He had relished in his wife's company when she came around to visiting him earlier and he felt the same way with now receiving Lhaklar's company.

After seeing his son entering his office, then noting that he looked a bit nervous, he stood then rounded his desk; he went to his son, who automatically pulled to the side after he reached him. He dug into his patient and understanding side after that happened—his arm reached out, towards his son, then it was placed around his shoulders; he pulled his son in close to him then he started escorting him towards his desk. While on the way to his desk, he noticed that there was a very prominent look of non-recognition on his son's face.

"It's me, son." he said after realizing that he wasn't wearing his glasses; his goggled glasses were in their case, which was currently resting peacefully on his desk. His son, who hadn't seen him in sixteen hundred years, hadn't been able to recognize him due to his face lacking its usually placed goggled glasses. "There's no one other than your old man here."

"I know," his son said weakly. "Just... just seeing you without your glasses—"

"While I'm a frequent wearer of them I do need to let my eyes "air" out once in a while." TazirVile said. Lhaklar tittered in response.

"I saw the bat hallway—looks like you've still got a good colony." Lhaklar said.

"Bigger than what you saw my son," TazirVile said after having his son sit on the room's couch. He took one of the two chairs that were placed before his desk. "The Striped bats put out at least two to three litters a year."

"Don't think I saw any babies in the Striped bats' cage..." Lhaklar said, then muttered, "Course, I wasn't looking for any."

"There's probably more than five babies in that cage. I usually just let them breed, have their pups, then do a quick count a few weeks later." TazirVile said. "Them Striped bats are rather valuable—are they still extinct on Earth?"

"Unfortunately," Lhaklar sighed. "Quite a lot of animals on that planet have gone extinct due to—"

"Poaching, habitat encroachment, and diseases made from the stress that caused their immune systems to become weakened." TazirVile shook his head.

He had spent a few more minutes with Hazaar in walking down the house's many hallways before making the decision to back-track to the hallway that the bats were on; he had remembered the hallways that he and his brother had gone down so he hadn't gotten lost while on the way back to the hallway that Daosi had been on. Hazaar had followed him all the way; at the moment, his brother was waiting for him outside of the room's door—he had refused to come in with him; dad obviously didn't know that he was "waiting" for him to exit the room or that he was nearby.

After entering the room, then noticing the man that should be his father but who wasn't wearing glasses, then learning that the man was his father, then being led to the room's couch, and then being coaxed into sitting down, he decided to start the conversation between he and his father about the poster that he wanted back slowly. The poster, he decided right then and there, was a tinge more important than his missing magazines.

After a few minutes of talking about the bats that were in the Bat Hallway, and about Earth's extinct life forms, he decided to dive into the issue that he wanted to speak to his father about.

"So, about my Marilyn Monroe poster," Lhaklar said. "I'd like for th—"

"Don't start on me about the poster, son." TazirVile said. "I was serious when we were on Earth. She's much too provocative and you are much too young to be looking at something like that."

"You let my brothers have their magazines." Lhaklar pointed out. The conversation between he and his father went downhill swiftly after he said that, and this, "And you let Bile have his two posters."

"I did, yes. If you haven't noticed, Lhaklar, them items aren't big or noticeable." TazirVile said strongly. "If them items had been poster-sized I wouldn't of given them back." after saying this, he said something pertaining to the returned posters of his adopted son's. "As for the two posters that were returned to your brother, there's nothing on them to be overly concerned about. Do you see the ladies in them two posters posing while being naked? They have clothes on; your poster is fully naked. That's something that you don't need to be looking at or have in your possession."

Things between the two of them went a bit too over-hand and fast; he, in response to being gotten on for having the poster, got angry. He stood up, then started voicing his opinion on his father getting on him for something that he shouldn't be getting on him about, then he was told—or, uh, demanded—to sit back down. The man started on him about respect, and on how he shouldn't be challenging him afterwards—the fact of his thinking that the man was picking favorites among his children was what caused him to explode, which caused his father to more than blow up in his face.

The magazines that had been returned to his brothers had fully naked women in them; if what the man had said about his not partaking in looking at such stuff was true then he wouldn't of allowed his brothers to have their magazines. The same went for the photographs that were in Bile's wallet—Bile still had them three photographs, and dad had to of seen them, yet he hadn't taken or said a thing pertaining to them. The fact that Lazeer had a new poster in his room, that depicted a woman who had some cleavage showing, gave him the belief that the man was playing favorites—Bile, Hazaar, and Lazeer had the things that depicted naked, semi-naked, or seductive women on them but all of the items that he owned of that caliber weren't in his possession nor had been returned to him.

His father, after giving him a few-minute lecture on respect, and on how one of his age shouldn't challenge their elders, stood then went back to his desk. He looked at the man for a few minutes before getting to his feet and then leaving the room; Hazaar, who noted that he wasn't in the best of moods, and who had heard all that had happened in the room that was their father's office, said nothing to him.

He went down the hall, towards the stairs that'd take him to the house's third level; once his ascent up the stairs was done, he went straight to his bedroom. Hazaar stopped mid-way to his brother's bedroom; he watched as his brother went on his way before turning and then going towards the room that he had been given yesterday. He had just entered the room when he heard the door to Lhaklar's bedroom being slammed shut.

The first thing that Hazaar saw, after entering his bedroom, was his mother, who was sitting on the room's bed.

"I take that your brother's meeting with your father didn't go well." Angel said. Hazaar shook his head. "Close the door, baby. I have a few things that I want to return to you."

He did so; it didn't matter if it was snowing, raining, or if the ground underfoot was cracking or breaking up—he did his utmost best to obey his mother. After closing his bedroom door, he turned then walked over to his mother.

She looked fresh; she looked as if she had just stepped out of the shower, and she was wearing a very pretty outfit. The pants that she was wearing looked similar to that of what a hippie would wear—from the knee on down, they had a flared belled look to them; except for the flared part, that was a very dark purple color, the entire piece was a very light purple color. The purple, slip-on shoes that were on her feet looked comfortable and so, too, did the cut-off-the-shoulder, tie-dye purple blouse that was worn over her top half. Besides the ring, that had an oval aquamarine gem set beautifully between three rows of diamonds, the top row having vanilla diamonds on it while the other two rows having chocolate diamonds on them, that she always wore she was wearing a purple amethyst ring, that had a sterling silver band on it; the ring that she regarded as her wedding ring was on the ring finger of her left hand while the other ring was on the index finger of that same hand. Other than the two rings, she was also wearing a three-strand purple amethyst and shell necklace.

"You look good, momma." he said after sitting beside her.

"Thank you, sweetie." Angel said. She stood for only a second; a brown box was removed from her left pants pocket before she sat back down. "Crescat," the box, which was nothing more than one of them cardboard types, grew from being small to normal sized. He was able to see that it had six packs of cigarettes, and two wands, in it.

"Momma,"

"Shhh, baby." Angel said. "There's several brands in here, which ones did you smoke?"

"Kamel and Marlboro, momma."

"You know the spell to hide these, right?" Angel asked, she gave all of what her son had said he smoked to her son. In all, she gave him three and a half packs of cigarettes; the remaining packs of cigarettes were of a brand called Black Devil. After giving the cigarettes over, she took the wand up then placed it on the room's stationed bedside table.

"The one where they're hidden in plain view but can't be seen?" Hazaar said after looking at and then stacking his just-returned smokes on his lap.

"No, not that one. Your daddy has a nose on him—he'll find them and fast if you use that spell on them."

"Could I hide them under the ground? Do the spell that'll—"

"Yes, Hazie. That one should keep them hidden and safe from your father." Angel nodded her head.

"Become hidden in the ground; let the dirt roll over and hide you; do not let yourself become known except to your owner." Hazaar said, his smokes suddenly disappeared from his lap. "I know the counter-spell well, momma, so I'll be able to get one or more whenever I want to have a smoke."

"Be careful now—smoke in secret and never inside. When your father decides to let you and your brothers explore the outside, smoke out there and always do so while hidden." Angel cautioned her son.

He promised that he would; with this matter squared away, and with his smokes now being safely hidden, he turned his attention to his wand. He was rather fond of the wand that he had gotten after all of his forms had been done and then signed by both the Dean of Pronghorn Academy of Sorcery and Magic and then his mother; it looked pretty basic but it was a very good instrument that one with magical powers or abilities, or who had been taught certain things that pertained to magic, could use. It was a plain, straight stick that was a light yellow color; the crystal ball, that was on its kell, had a tightly woven strand of dark brown leather coming from it. A leather strand wrapped around the wand a few times before coming to an abrupt stop.

His mother, after returning his missing items, then speaking to him about his returned smokes, gestured at the room's stationed bookcase; it was at this time that he saw that there was a new thing in his room. During his outing with his brother, a hand-carved wand holder had been placed to the bookcase's second shelf. After seeing this item, he got up; his wand was walked over to the bookcase and then placed on the item that was meant to hold it. With that done, he turned around.

He gasped, then his O-shaped mouth dropped, after he saw the stereo system, which hadn't been in his room that early morning.

"M-momma..." he stuttered.

"Yes, honey. Your daddy put in a stereo system while you was out." Angel said while standing up from the bed. "You keep them cigarettes well hidden. If you play that loud, use the Silencer spell, okay?"

"Yes, momma." Hazaar said. He started towards the stereo system; the logo on the system's front said UF-X3 in bright, blue letters. The system was big and tall; except for the indigo blue speakers, it was a mostly black color. It had a port for both discs and tapes. It was sitting on a sturdy, dark brown table, that looked to have stone legs on it—like with the wand holder, and the stereo system, this hadn't been in his room earlier.

Seeing as he had nothing to lose, he grabbed the disc that said The Massacre on it; the disc of music that he had just taken up from the music holder, which was yet another new piece to the room, and which was mounted on the wall above the stereo system, contained music that had been made by a man who had gone by the name of 50 Cent—his mother, Lhaklar, and Bile didn't much like the artist but he and Lazeer liked the guy's music.

After sliding the disc into the machine, then pressing the button that'd turn the machine on, he said the Silencer spell, which would make all sounds that occurred in his room not be able to be heard from outside of it. A wide smile formed on his face after the system started playing the first song on the disc that he had put into it.