The Chronicles - Page 12

"I want you to know, that I'm happy for you,"

As the song played, Amadeth leaned forward. She snorted as hard as she could in her current state, and leaned back with a long and contented sigh. The straw stood upwards out of the hole where her nose should have been, before she exhaled strongly and blew it out of her face.

"I wish nothing but the best for you both."

"You don't have to do this," Firinar stated, his voice coming from Amadeth's armour which lay in a heap on the floor. Amadeth chuckled.

"Why not? It's over. I've failed." She laughed.

"Who cares!" Firine yelled. "We can still have fun!"

"And I'm here to remind you of the mess you left when you went away,"

Amadeth looked at the super computer in front of her, built into her ship's walls. She looked at the vial of liquid, the straw surrounded by flecks of cocaine, and the pistol that rested in front of it, then she looked to Arimus who slept peacefully in the corner, before a final glance at her robotic armour.

"You look very well, things look peaceful; I'm not quite so well,"

"We can find another universe, twy a new Malali. Or we can twy another Ion!" Firine suggested. Amadeth perked up, and grinned happily.

"That sounds great," she stated warmly. Leaning back into her chair, she silently sat unmoving for a short stretch of contemplation.

"It's not fair to deny me, of the cross I bear that you gave to me,"

Flicking a few switches, Amadeth remotely deactivated her armour, and Firinar and Firine along with it. She popped the vial in front of her and drank what was inside, a potion that would counteract her healing, and then she held the pistol to her head.

"And I'm not gonna fade as soon as you close your eyes."

Arimus awoke as Amadeth pulled the trigger.

Ishmael/Skahrscherad & the murder

---

Ishmael was sat on the edge of a table, his eyes fixed on the window. On the other side of it, a bird locked eyes with him, its head perpetually tilted slightly to one side.

He’d been pacing in frustration when it landed. He was bored, above all else, but also irritated by his enforced powerlessness. And the fact that he couldn’t walk past a reflective surface without wanting to pitch magic at the disgusting reflection it showed him.

He could see his own face in the window, but his focus wasn’t on that. Phillip’s face blurred out into irrelevance as his eyes focused on the bird.

It was a pigeon.

Ishmael didn’t like pigeons. He’d never liked them. They were a step up from rats, flying plague-carriers festering with dirt and covering everything in their filth. They weren’t even important. Ishmael had been half way through mentally putting together a spell to look for crows, in the hopes that it would find him Torlinus, but he had no use for a pigeon.

It cooed, that horrible warbling sound, but didn’t take its eyes from Ishmael.

He broke away from the impromptu staring contest first, rising sharply from the table and stalking across the room, slamming his fist down into the window hard enough to make the glass quiver in its frame. He brought it down again and again, until his hand began to ache, but the pigeon didn’t move.

“Flying rat,” he muttered, turning away. He wouldn’t let it get to him. What did it matter? Perhaps it was a little more intelligent than the average pigeon because of the inherent magic that lingered around the building. Not that ‘more intelligent’ was saying much in this case.

He could feel it looking at him.

Still angry, Ishmael stalked out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him with a near-deafening bang of wood in frame. Nobody looked at him. The one person he passed quickly averted her gaze and pretended he wasn’t in the corridor. He’d picked up a reputation as a weird one, as someone who played with dark things. He liked that it hadn’t taken long for his name to spread.

One day they’ll be afraid to even speak of me.

In the main chamber, the most important people in the Wizarding Circle were casting some sort of spell, to try and determine the cause for the black light in the ley lines. The darkness didn’t particularly bother Ishmael. Even though it wasn’t his, he was used to it.

A pigeon landed on the windowsill of the room he was in, and looked at him. A vein twitched in his forehead, and he stormed over to the window, opened it, and grabbed the bird with both hands.

“Listen here, you filthy creature,” he hissed at it. “Leave me alone. Stop following me. Stop looking at me. You’re a damn pigeon, there’s nothing you could want from me.”

The pigeon tilted its head to the side and cooed.

Ishmael’s fingers twitched. He was seconds away from just snapping its neck, but something was telling him to stop. The pigeon hadn’t struggled, hadn’t pecked or scratched at him or so much as attempted to get away. Something was obviously going on. he’d worked that one out when a pigeon had landed on his windowsill and had a staring competition with him, though.

Still snarling and muttering under his breath in irritation, Ishmael walked back up to his room with pigeon in hand. He let go with his left to close the door, then released the bird into the confines of his room. It fluttered onto his table and cooed.

“Pigeons,” he muttered darkly, pulling his book of Naming spells from under his bed. Maggie would have had a stroke if she knew it was there, which was why Ishmael had been toying with the idea of letting her find it, but for the moment it remained hidden. He disabled the protective charms with a few quick words and flicked through it, looking for Names that would help him work out why exactly he was being stalked by the most devoted pigeon in London.

He tore the rug from the floor and flung it onto the bed, the pigeon watching, entirely unruffled. He flicked open his pocket knife and tore symbols into the wooden floor, a snarl etched permanently onto his face as he worked. Reduced to this. He hated it, hated how powerless he had become despite having access to some of the strongest magics in the world. Oh, how he hated it. it was Torlinus’ fault.

Torlinus...

He barked out Names, and the pigeon squawked in alarm as a dark-touched arm reached up and pulled it into the centre of Ishmael’s circle. Ishmael frowned at it. That was not a spirit that was supposed to have darkness in it, of that he was certain.

He sat down and cupped in his hands the liquid that was pooling on the floor, putting the edge of his hands to his mouth and tipping his head back, drinking it. Images and ideas flashed through his mind, and he gasped aloud at the pain brought on by the sudden rush of them all. He heard the pigeon fly up to the wardrobe as the spirit dissipated, but groaned and lay on his side rather than anything else. Pain. Did spirits feel pain? Ishmael doubted it. It was a very mortal thing to feel.

In one of the images, he saw a coin. There were birds, and not pigeons this time. He lay tense, hardly daring to hope. Had he found him? Had he finally found Torlinus?

No. He could twist the world in his favour, but he never got things like this just by chance.

The pigeon was cooing insistently as he pushed himself back into a sitting position, one hand on his forehead to counteract his encroaching headache. The last few fleeting echoes of the spell ran through his head, and with a huff he forced himself to his feet and pulled the rug from the bed, pushing it back into position over his circle with one foot. He glanced at the pigeon, then opened the window. The bird stayed exactly where it was.

“Fine,” he murmured, pulling Phillip’s coat from the door with a look of distaste. He needed new clothes. He needed to find a better host than Phillip. Maybe some appearance-altering magic, if such spells existed. His skin was already starting to tan with darkness exposure, he’d been casting so many spells.

---

“Where are you going?” Maggie demanded as he headed for the door. He stopped mid-step, repressing the sigh of irritation.

“Out,” he responded. She folded her arms, the scowl on her face enough to deter armies from war. Ishmael started walking again.

“No. You’re not,” she told him, and marched in front of the door. “I told you. Stay here. I can’t be having you wandering around London with what’s going on.”

“I think I can take care of myself,” Ishmael responded, perhaps a little too curtly. Maggie gave him a searching look, reaching out to grab his wrist as he moved forwards again. He smacked her away, anger flaring within him.

“You’ve changed too much, Phillip,” she muttered. Ishmael could smell the spell components in her pockets as she reached for them, narrowed his eyes and spat out a spell.

She froze. Panic hit her a few seconds later, fear in her eyes as she found herself unable to even breath. She couldn’t make a sound, so immobile had he made her. He wrapped one hand around her throat and pressed her against the wall, waiting until she had begun to turn blue before murmuring the words to reverse it. she gasped and coughed and sputtered, struggling against his grip with everything she had. Even against Phillip’s meagre body, it wasn’t much.

“I am not Phillip,” he growled, and she choked as he tightened his grip. “I will not tell you who I am because Names have power, even if you and your pathetic Circle refuses to use it. suffice to know that I have not been Phillip since the ley lines changed, and you would do well to fear me.” There was desperation in her eyes as she looked at him, but it didn’t sway him. “I am leaving. Chances are I will not be coming back. Do as you will with your Circle, I care not. But do not try to look for me.” He scowled. “If anyone comes after me and brings a fight, expect that I will kill them. I wield more power than you and your components will ever hold in a lifetime.” He threw her violently to the side, and she cried out in pain as she hit the stone floor, scrabbling for her pockets, to reach the materials for a spell. “Goodbye, Maggie,” he snarled, opening the door and slamming it behind him as he left.

There was a pigeon sat on one of the cars in the parking lot.

Ishmael gritted his teeth and walked straight past it.

---

Ishmael could always tell when he was dreaming because there was far more darkness than there should have been. He awoke into the dream curled up on the cold, dark floor, blinking in an attempt to get some light into his eyes. He tried to move, and found his movement severely restricted. Cursing, he shifted, trying to get a better look at what had restrained him.

“Ishmael.”

He froze. The shudder that had gone through him at the sound of his Name meant that there was power behind the invisible speaker, and he was bound and, as a failed attempt to reply revealed, gagged. He was helpless, and all his senses screamed in protest at the intrusion.

The spirit knelt by him, the faint light exuding from her form enough to show Ishmael that he was bound by the darkness itself. He tried to twist away from her, but made little traction. He hissed through the gag as she ran the back of clawed, scaly hands across his cheek. The contact burned, and left in its wake a raw, red mark and the faint smell of charred skin.

“You may think of me as Light, Ishmael,” she remarked in response to his unspoken question. “I have invaded your dreams because I require your help.” Ishmael narrowed his eyes, wriggling in a renewed attempt to free himself. She was not going the right way about securing his aid. “In return, I will give you Torlinus.”

Ishmael froze. He, like all sane wizards, was wary of making bonds with a spirit, but there were not many ways that sentence could be twisted. He attempted to make a noise, and with a wave of her hand the gag disappeared.

“I do not trust you, Spirit,” he spat. “If you want my help, release me from these restraints.” She only raised a delicate silver eyebrow in response, and Ishmael narrowed his eyes and invoked Names. The darkness coiled around him, then slithered away like snakes. Red marks tracked over his joints where it had touched, and as he stood with a swish of robes he felt pain in his ankles.

“I am sure that you have seen the Change,” Light began, starting to pace back and forth. Ishmael folded his arms, his eyes following her progress with unease. “There is darkness seeping into the world, Ishmael.”

“And why should that concern me, Spirit?” he responded, waving a pitch-black hand as if in example. “There is no wizard alive who knows the darkness better than I.” Light’s smile caused the tiniest spark of concern to bite through Ishmael’s self-assured shell.

“That will not stop it from devouring you just as it will devour all the magic in this world,” she informed him bluntly. “Everything will be lost to it, even you. Perhaps you will be lost the latest, but you will still die. And it will not be a pleasant death.” Ishmael scoffed.

“Your words do not scare me, spirit,” he dismissed. “You want my help, and you offered me a deal. Cease trying to make me commit to something for nothing.” Light’s face flickered in annoyance, then she inclined her head once.

“Torlinus,” she murmured. “That is who you chase, yes? The man who stole your immortality.” Ishmael’s hands clenched into fists just at the reminder of it. the fool, the cheat, the coward. How he hated him.

“And you know where he is?” he demanded. The spirit smiled, and Ishmael took an unconscious step backwards. A pleased spirit was never a good thing for a mortal wizard, and he felt very mortal at that moment.

“I do,” she agreed, inclining her head. “And I need you to help him.” Ishmael sputtered in incoherent confusion as a response.
“Help him? You want me to help the man who cheated me and ran like a coward with my right?” he demanded. “How is that ‘giving me Torlinus’?” Light shrugged, the action seeming almost effortless.

“If you succeed, and you defeat the darkness,” she responded, “then I no longer care what happens to either of you.” Ishmael paused, thoughts racing through his mind. Working with Torlinus. Could he do that? What if the man simply fled once more once they were done?

No. This time he would be ready. Once the darkness was defeated, there would be nowhere on the earth that Torlinus would be safe.

“Deal,” he responded. Light held out her hand, and he shook it despite the way the contact burned into his skin like a hot brand. She nodded, pleased.

“Good,” she decided. “So it is bound. When you wake, the birds will show you where to go.” Ishmael made a slight noise, unconcerned.

“I will be ready,” he responded.



The rest of his dreams were nothing but darkness.

---

The alarm call of the birds went off mere seconds before Skahrscherad felt his barrier fizzle and die as though a mere child had put it together. He narrowed his eyes, on the alert, the Names for a spell lingering on his magically-enhanced tongue.

“Torlinus!” a voice called out. The tone was unfamiliar, but the name made Skahrscherad’s blood run cold. “I know you’re here, you coward.”

The man – or, perhaps, boy – was nothing much. Scrawny and skinny, a coat two sizes too big for him slung over his shoulders and sporting a healthy coating of the winter snow. His hair was dark and blonde, his skin a light tan. His eyes were wicked, and his gaze met Skahrscherad’s almost immediately.

“A little friend told me you’d be here, Torlinus,” he whispered. “Did you miss me?” Skahrscherad remained entirely silent. “Oh? Can’t talk? That’s a shame. I have magic that will bind you more than well eno-”

“How do you know my old name?” Skahrscherad demanded. The boy looked put out.

“How could you possibly forget me?” he responded in kind, and smiled. Even in the unfamiliar form he was wearing, Skahrscherad knew that sly, wicked smile.

“Ishmael,” he muttered. A silence fell over the forest. The murder knew the name, more as a vague, evil spectre than anything solid. To them, Skahrscherad had just named the thing he had, perhaps unwittingly, made them fear the most.

The air was tense.

“Hm? More attack birds,” Ishmael muttered, sounding put out. “Well, as much as I’d like to, I’m not here to take back what’s mine. I have a deal with a spirit.” He shrugged, dislodging some of the snow that had settled on his shoulders. “To help you kill this darkness you seem so unwilling to face.”

“I had thought you would be on its side, necromancer,” Skahrscherad as good as spat. Ishmael looked wounded.

“Dark magician at the very worst. I prefer grey, actually,” he disagreed. “And my multiple sources tell me that it wouldn’t be in my best interests to support it. some are admittedly more reliable than others, but you can’t deny a consensus, can you, Torlinus?” Skahrscherad remained unimpressed, which seemed to throw Ishmael off somewhat. The wizard was invoking his Name, and it was not working. Likely he’d been battling with the same frustration ever since he reappeared, whenever that may have been.

“Even if I am willing to work with you, which I am not,” Skahrscherad informed him, “I do not see what we could do.” Ishmael grinned. It was feral and hungry for blood, and reminded Skahrscherad uncomfortably of Hooktalon.

“Isn’t it obvious?” he responded. “You find out what you’re fighting.” He leant back against a tree trunk, the impact sending flakes of snow drifting towards the ground, shaken from their branches. “And you learn how to kill it.” Skahrscherad made the noise of the terminally unimpressed.

“You make sound easy what is near-impossible,” he disagreed. Ishmael shrugged.

“If you believe so, clearly you are not as powerful as I believed you to be,” he responded. “As Light believed you to be.” That brought Skahrscherad up short, and Ishmael saw it. “Shall we race, little bird?” Ishmael taunted him. “shall we see who is the first to bring it out, who is the first to truly dispel it?” In a few murmured words, a coin so mockingly similar to the one Skahrscherad had been bound with all those years ago formed in Ishmael’s hands, and he flipped it. “I’ll be in touch,” he continued, standing properly once more. “Don’t go anywhere, now.” He smirked. “Not that I can’t find you if you do, of course.” Skahrscherad said nothing as the boy walked away, staying silent even as Roosts-high-trees landed next to him, her unbreakable stick held tight in her beak. Soars-with-clouds landed in one of the boy’s footprints, looking up at the two of them with concern in her eyes. The question was obvious, and all of the members of the murder that he could see were asking it: what do we do?

“Tell Strongbeak I need to speak to him,” he muttered, his gaze hardening. “I have a message to send to Ishmael. I will do what he will find impossible, and I will spite him in the doing of it, too.” He ruffled his feathers, unblinking as the snow began to fall.

“We’re going to break his coin.”

---

"Greetings, men in large hats and coats. Wildcard here, and I have a problem I wish for you to sleuth: What happens when you send one man to catch the greatest thieves in the world? It was a fun game, I must admit; all this new technology really spiced things up. Watching Hearts seduce my assassin was hilarious, and learning of Clubs' true operations was most interesting indeed. I really thought you had them in Monte Carlo... or should I say, had us... or maybe we had them... it's so hard to keep track of my allegiances.

"The fact I'm calling you on this number should show you how much I know of your various organisations. I've already taken the slush from Red Sea Trading, and I've got the evidence to show just exactly which arms deals all that excess money came from. If you target me again I will hit you all harder than you've ever been hit before. The money will go first, then the public will turn against you. The military will dissolve, and once you become that vulnerable there'll be nothing you can do but be absorbed into whichever superpower decides to snatch you up first. You could always press that red button you've been fondling for years now... oh, that would be fun.

"In case you haven't figured out the answer to my riddle, Johnny Hoyle is dead. I will not contact you again.

"Game over."

♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣





Clubs

"He actually said that to them?" the young girl asked as the vehicle she sat in drove on. The woman driving had been telling her about the organisation she belonged to, a group known as Clubs. They were once part of the Four Suits, the greatest thieves in recent history. It was a long tale but they had had a long journey.

Hearts was a confidence trickster mostly in it for thrills. Spades was a business-man who kept things running smoothly; the de-facto leader of the four. Diamonds was like Spades, but more ruthless, and less apprehensive about the darker side of the criminal world. And then there was Clubs, a group originally formed by a man known (to them) as King. He dealt with the other Suits and organised the operations. After his death his Queen took over; Queen was an efficient leader of the group oft called their very own Spades. Her right hand was Jack, the face of the group who ran communications with the other Suits. Her left hand was Ace, an all-purpose mercenary who dealt with the dirtier work. Ten lead the numbers; Two through Nine were either in training or were acting operatives. For a long time Hearts, Spades, and Diamonds thought Clubs was just one man, and then one woman after 'his wife' took over.

Then of course there was Wildcard, the Joker of the pack. He was... a difficult man. He'd work with the Suits on his whim but always with his own little game in mind. Some called him a genius and some called him insane; after Monte Carlo everyone called him both.

"He really did," the older woman replied. Her Japanese accent made her Swahili quite amusing to hear. "The tape reminds me of how far we have to go." The young girl tried not to smile too obviously.

"So what happened to him?"

"Wildcard began targeting larger marks on his own, almost stole the Taj Mahal. Last we know he got a hard-on for some private investigator. They played with each other until they both fell down the Reichenbach... I think, I'm not really sure anymore."

The woman was Japanese, probably in her thirties. She was tall, and wore black, pinstriped trousers, along with a black, pinstriped vest over a white shirt. The sleeves of the shirt were rolled up to reveal muscular, tattooed arms. The shirt was buttoned to the top and an untied tie hung loosely around her neck. On her feet were a pair of dirty boots; at the other end her hair was clipped short, she was almost bald, and her gaunt face appeared tired in spite of her demeanour. There was scarring from a burn around her right eye, a scar from a blade across her left cheek, and a small chunk of her bottom lip was missing to reveal a golden tooth behind it; in the centre of her forehead she had been branded, like cattle, with the Clubs insignia.

The young girl was frightened of her at first, but she spoke in a way that made her at ease for some reason. She decided to keep the woman speaking. "Are the Four Suits still active?"

"No. After the Monte Carlo heist Diamonds made a play against Spades; Spades hired the original Ace of Clubs to deal with him, and neither she nor Diamonds were seen again. A few months later the Wildcard reshuffled the deck and Hearts vanished, along with the first Jack. Spades left the game for good as well; struck a deal. Landed oil contracts, weapons, drugs, all of the legal kind. The Four Suits were no more... yet the bitch still won't change our moniker." The Japanese woman laughed. The young girl smiled, not quite sure what most of that meant. "We're here," she said, pulling into the open drive of a huge mansion. The gates closed after the vehicle passed.

"No turning back after you walk through the door," the woman warned. The girl shrugged.

"Turning back stopped being an option a long time ago," she stated. The woman laughed, and stepped out of the vehicle. She walked up the thirteen steps leading to the entrance, skipping the thirteenth, and opened a door into the mansion. The young girl waited apprehensively at the bottom of the steps, her sub-machine gun still strapped over her shoulder, before she followed. As she reached the thirteenth step she raised and extended her small leg with great effort, reaching the top without touching it.

The older woman laughed again, louder than the previous times. "You'll fit right in," she remarked as the girl walked inside.

The mansion's exterior was only shadowed by its interior, an amusing paradox which wasn't lost on the young girl. "Wow," she whispered, managing to express her thoughts verbally as the other woman walked towards the stairs to the second floor. Two other women eyed the young girl suspiciously; she ignored them.

After a short while the Japanese woman whistled sharply and snapped the girl back into reality. "Queen will know we are here. We do not want to make her wait." The girl ran towards, and then up, the stairs, soon finding herself at the side of the Japanese woman again. The woman laughed, a laugh which was quickly becoming obnoxious, before she began to walk down the hall. The girl followed.

"Can I know your name now?" She had asked the woman's name a few times upon their meeting and during the drive.

"No," the woman said. "But you can call me Ace. What's your name?" The young girl slowed her pace before realising she had and speeding up again. The woman knew her name... so why ask?

"My name-"

"Is Two," Ace interrupted. "Your name is Two. Understood?" The girl nodded.

"Understood."

Before long Ace was walking through a large set of dark, wooden doors, with Two shuffling at her heels. Beyond the threshold was a huge room decorated with dark colours, and with various portraits and display cases around it. At the centre of the right wall was a large portrait of a man wearing a black pinstriped suit and trilby hat, adorned in jewellery that would more commonly be seen on royalty. A few of the pieces were in the display cases around the room, but the most eye-catching case held a set of gold-plated, jewelled playing cards. The plaque beneath named them the Colvinski Card Collection, and it appeared that one was missing.

At the head of the room, in front of towering windows which let in the moon's glow, was a huge, dark, wooden desk. Behind the desk sat a woman, and in front of the desk were three seats, one occupied and two vacant. The woman behind the desk said something in a language that the girl couldn't understand, and Ace replied in the same language. After a few exchanges, Ace sat down and beckoned for Two to do the same. "Have you used that before?" the woman behind the desk asked, speaking Swahili.

The woman appeared to be in her late forties; she wore a pinstripe suit, with a white shirt and black tie, neatly tied up so that a white Clubs insignia was displayed on the knot. The jacket of the suit was clearly too big for her small body, though the vest and trousers fit perfectly. Atop her head a pinstriped trilby covered dark hair. The woman seemed to have applied her eye-liner a little too thick; from her left eye there was a black line edging downwards, almost like a tear, and from her right eye there were two.

"Yes," Two replied, looking down at her weapon then glancing at the other woman beside her.

She appeared South Asian, perhaps Indian or Iranian, and she was much younger than the other two women, barely an adult. Her hair was black and long, flowing freely about her shoulders. Unlike the others she wore a pinstripe skirt rather than trousers, and where Ace wore black boots she wore high heels. She wore no shirt or tie, only a pinstripe dress vest which aptly showed off a cleavage that would weaken any man's knees, and most women's. Her face reminded Two of what she imagined when she used to be told of goddesses, and stirred strange feelings which were quickly dismissed and ignored. Around the woman's neck was a long, thin chain; on the end of the chain was a gem-encrusted Clubs medallion, the sapphires matching her earrings, rings, and nail polish.

In her hand she held a bowl filled with... well, Two wasn't really sure what it was. She said something in a language the girl couldn't understand, and offered the bowl towards her. Two took a piece of the small, soft... thing in the bowl and chewed it; it tasted like chicken, but smaller, and more flavourful. It was pleasant. She said something else, this time to Ace.

"Jack," Ace began, gesturing towards the South Asian woman before continuing in Swahili. "Wants to know how old you are." The girl told Ace, and the woman in the trilby frowned as Ace translated for Jack. Two decided that the woman wearing the hat must have been Queen.

"Why not just bring me a babe ripped from her mother's breast?" Queen asked, not seeming to care whether Two heard her or whether Jack could understand her.

"She's had combat experience," Ace explained. "Warlord's daughter, one of those crazy tribal fuckers. She's been training and in live combat since she could hold a weapon, and she was the sole survivor of a massacre four years ago. This all proves that she has what the last Two didn't."

"What happened to the last Two?" the girl asked without thinking, desperately wanting to change the subject. The three women looked at her, and Queen spoke.

"Your predecessor used what we gave her to make money on the side, and screwed us on our cut." Queen opened a drawer and pulled out a cigar, placing it into her mouth and lighting it. The cigar was far too big for her small mouth, and when she spoke her words were indecipherable. Two looked to Ace.

"We killed her," she explained nonchalantly. Jack placed the bowl in Two's lap, and smiled warmly at the girl. She said something else to Ace that Two couldn't understand, and Ace replied with a rude hand gesture. Queen stood, smoke seeping out of her mouth as she spoke.

"Look, I've never turned anyone capable away yet," she began, before giving Ace a harsh look. "Even if they're clearly not old enough for this shit," Ace rolled her eyes, stood, and walked towards the exit of the room. "I won't start now. If you want in, you're in. We'll train you up, keep you fed, look after your people, and give you your cut when you're ready for it. In return you do what I say, when I say. You steal what I tell you to steal, kill who I tell you to kill, and die when I tell you to die. You'll fight hard but from herein you'll never fight alone." She puffed her cigar again. "Final chance to back out. Will you join us?"

Slowly, Two nodded.

"Then welcome to Clubs."

♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♥ ♥ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣

"... and that is how you rip a man's balls off," Ten stated proudly. Two raised her hand.

"Why do need learn this?" she asked.

"Why do we need to learn this," Ten corrected. A lot of time had passed, yet Two was learning English rather slowly. This was mostly because no-one was formally trying to teach her; Ten didn't have much time for language studies, and Jack did what she could when she was around but not speaking the girl's native tongue made her a less than optimal teacher. "Honestly kid, you don't need to learn it... but why would you not want to?" Two rolled her eyes. Ten was a lot like Ace, but unlike Ace she was much more frightening when she spoke. After a while Two had gotten used to them, and Seven, though she never truly felt at ease in their presence.

"Jack's back," Six called, poking her head into the training room.

"Already?" Two asked.

"No," Six shouted, already running away as wisps of blonde hair trailed away from the door. "The first Jack."

Two looked at Ten. Ten looked back. The two of them then darted out of the room, straight towards where Six had went: Queen's study. (The current) Jack, Seven, Four, and Three were out on jobs. Ace was meant to be home, although for the past day no-one had seen her. Everyone else was standing around the door of Queen's study, peeking inside at the original Jack. Only Queen, Ace, Ten, and Four of the current Clubs had ever met her. She sat in tense silence, her posture betraying her nerves. Straight black hair was tied into a ponytail hanging down the back of a beige long-coat. She was at enough of an angle that Two could see she was dark-skinned, and had a face of beauty which matched, if not surpassed, the current Jack's.

"Who's that man with them?"

"Shh."

"Before we begin," the man began, speaking in an accent Two didn't recognise. He reached into the pocket of his jacket. "I wish to return this to you. It was fun to play with, but ultimately it belongs here with the rest of them." He held something which sparkled, a gold, rectangular thing the size of his palm.

"What is that?"

"King of Hearts."

"The Colvinski King of Hearts?"

"Shush."

Queen took the gold plated card and looked it over, then let it fall onto her desk. "And what about her?" she asked, gesturing towards the original Jack. "Are you returning her as well? Was she fun to play with?"

"Queen-"

"Do not call me that." There was another tense silence. Two held her breath.

"Moira, I'm sorry for what happened," she went on. "But it was time to move on. The Suits were dead."

"We left more than enough compensation for the card," the man added.

"And what did you leave me when you took her?" Queen asked. "How did you compensate for the nights I spent awake, worried that my Jack was dead, or worse? How did you compensate for taking away my child!?"

"She's a smart dame, you know she is. You didn't have to-"

"Ace!" Queen screamed. A gunshot echoed in the large room, and hit the floor a few feet away from the man after flying past his face. He didn't flinch. "You will leave this room, and stay in the hall until I send her back to you, or Ace kills you. Clear?"

"Crystal," he replied.

Ace rolled over and swung down from her position atop the bookshelf, smoking pistol in hand. After holstering the pistol she pulled a balaclava off of her head, and the man stood up. "Long time no see, Jack," Ace greeted, not even looking at the seated woman. "Queen must be so relieved to have you back."

"Piss off, Three," the old Jack replied. By now the man was already at the door, waiting and watching in front of the the other nosey Clubs' operatives. Ace's face screwed up in anger.

"Make me, b-"

"Enough!" Queen roared, slamming her hands on her desk and standing. Her chair flew back into the wall behind her; for a small, old woman, Queen could make a hell of a lot of noise. "You have your orders Ace," she said through gritted teeth. "Get out, and shut the doors behind you." Ace gave a quick mock-salute then walked away.

Most of the numbers dispersed whilst she approached and pushed the man out of the room; Two and Six remained behind. "You've make Queen angry," Two stated as Ace closed the doors. The man smirked. He looked to be in his forties, maybe thirties, and had a rugged handsomeness. Two had been shown various films about a man called James Bond (as part of her language studies) and she could see this man easily fitting that role.

"Pissing off dames is a bad habit of mine," he conceded. "Speaking of which..." He pointed at Two, then looked at Ace.

"Too young," Ace explained with a laugh. The man shrugged, and followed Ace who led him to a bench at the top of the stairs. Two and Six observed the man curiously.

"That is..." Six began, unable to finish.

"Must be," Two agreed. "He is Hearts."

"Hey!" Nine called up the stairs, Texan accent as thick as ever. Hearts peeked down to the lower floor at the same time as Six and Two, and received a raised middle finger for his trouble. "Queen's gonna be mighty pissed when she comes outta there. You young'nes wanna be some'here else when tha' happens."

The two teenage girls exchanged looks, and headed for the stairs. "Hey kid," Hearts called. Six ignored him, but Two stopped and turned. "This was Jack's. Judging by what's going on in there, I doubt she'll need it from herein." He tossed something shiny through the air and Two caught it; a diamond pin in the shape of a Club. "Put it to good use."

Ace eyed Two suspiciously, and then laughed as the girl pocketed the pin and walked away.

♣ ♣ ♥ ♦ ♠ ♦ ♥ ♣ ♣

"But why me?" Two asked. It had been many years since Hearts and the original Jack had left Clubs' mansion. That day they informed Queen that Spades was working on something huge, something bigger than Monte Carlo and its aftermath, and he required their assistance with it. After a lot of debate between Queen, Ace, Jack, and Ten, Clubs finally decided that she would accept their continuously offered invite.

Unlike Ace, Jack, and Queen, Two liked to keep things simple. She wore black shoes, pinstripe trousers, a pinstripe vest, white shirt, and tie. Her hair was pulled into tight cornrows, which she tied into a low ponytail. Though she had grown much taller, being half-way between Jack and Ace, she was still a scrawny thing; what she lacked in power she made up for in speed and agility.

"Why do I have to come?" Two's English was almost perfect, and she was finally old enough and skilled enough to become an active operative; she did wish she could pick herself a higher number, though.

"Because you were asked for personally. No idea why, just shut up and keep your eyes open," Ace scolded. Queen, Jack, Ace, and Two were walking through an office building, being entirely conspicuous about who they were. Jack still didn't deem it necessary for her to wear a shirt under her vest, much to the delight of the workers, and Ace was fully equipped with whip and pistols. The woman who was leading them to Spades' office had to call up for special permission to let them through the metal detectors.

Before long the woman opened the doors to a large conference room and the four Clubs strolled in. "That'll be all," Spades called. His accent sounded British but deformed in some way, perhaps changed by living away from home for too long, or in somebody else's. The woman nodded and left them to their business, closing the doors behind her. Within the room sat Hearts and the original Jack, seated at a long meeting table. "A pleasure to see you again Moira," Spades stated. He was an older man, over sixty at a guess, with hair slowly turning white. His height was imposing, and his cropped beard gave him a wise and dangerous look.

"You can still call me Queen," she replied.

"As you wish. Please, be seated." Queen, Ace, Jack, and Two took the set out places opposite Hearts and the original Jack. "Given what we're about to discuss you may call me Spades once more. Of course you remember Hearts, and the new Diamonds."

"New Diamonds?" Two quietly pondered.

"Jack," Jack stated, pointing towards the original Jack. Looking at her, Two realised that the woman was wearing ruby-red earrings in the shape of the diamonds suit. She also sensed the rage Queen must have been feeling about it. "Evidently she's moved up in the world."

"Hearts and Diamonds are aware of the situation, so I shan't go on for too long," Spades told them. "I have a proposal."

The lights dimmed and the wall lit up with images. A monstrous hulk of metal and flesh unloaded bullets, flames, and missiles on a giant building surrounding by snow and ice. Planes crashed into an urban area as tanks fired into buildings, all whilst a man orchestrated the destruction from atop a nearby roof. A monster, the likes of which existed only in the minds of the demented, called fire to rain down upon a city. A blind child laughed excitedly as buildings crumbled around him. Words were written on a page, and mountains turned to ash and smoke.

"So?" Queen finally asked, halfway through the presentation. The images faded and the lights shone once more. "What is this?"

Spades, still standing, explained. "What you just saw were real images. Grey Matter Industries held a conference in an undisclosed location some time ago, and they invited the most powerful and wealthy people from around the world in order to make them a proposition." The lights dimmed again as the wall lit-up with images for a second time.

"Do you believe me now?" a man questioned, walking a slow circuit behind each of the people in the room as they remained silent. The man was scrawny, wearing a lab coat and glasses along with the devil's grin. "I have more if you will, hours upon hours of footage all consisting of these duels. Australia, England, China, Africa, the Caribbean, the Middle East, the US, all in no pattern and seemingly random yet always dissolving down to a battle between two of these fighters. From these beings magic flows; it is real, and with your aid I will bring this new discovery to the world!"

"So you want... an investment?" Ace asked, causing the images on the wall to fade and for the lights to shine again. Jack smirked next to her, as did Diamonds across the table.

"It'll be like an investment," Hearts answered, smirking, making sure to maintain eye contact with at least one of them at all times. "We want you gals with us again. We want the Four Suits back."

"For this!?" Jack blurted in amusement, chuckling when she noticed how loud she had been. "You want us to come work with you to... chase fairy tales and... ghosts?"

"If you wish to word it like that, then yes," Spades replied, staring out of the window, hands behind his back.

"I'd have imagined if these things existed we'd have known a lot more about them by now," Jack went on. Spades shrugged.

"I have explanations for that as well, if you'll listen." Spades didn't go on, noticing that Queen had her arm raised in a gesture for silence; her other hand was digging around in her jacket.

"Let's assume this is all true," she began, before clipping a cigar and then lighting it. She took a few puffs then continued. "Why should we care? Since the Four Suits dissolved we've been doing fine on our own. We have what we need already."

"And that's all there is to it?" Hearts questioned. "I remember when you broads used to be fun," he added, turning to Diamonds. Queen scowled, and looked to Diamonds as well... and both she and Hearts froze on her. Jack, and Spades, noticing this, looked at Diamonds too; Ace was busy cleaning her fingernails with her combat knife.

Diamonds was leaning forward, hands flat on the table, eyes squinted. She was glaring directly across from her. She was glaring at Two.

Every eye in the room, excluding Ace's, turned to look at Two. The girl was staring down at her feet, her body shaking, sweat dripping from her face. With everyone else silent the quiet sounds of her moaning could be heard, as well as the constant chatter of her teeth. Slowly, very slowly, she pulled her hand out from beneath the table and stared at it as she turned it over, looking from palm to finger to nail.

"Two!" Queen called. Two gasped, pulling her head back and looking to her left. "What's wrong with you?" Again, there was silence. Spades regarded Diamonds with suspicion as Hearts looked between the two of them, an eyebrow arched. "Answer me," Queen coldly demanded.

"They're..." Two responded, voice barely a whisper.

"What did she say?"

"She said," Jack began, pausing to swallow. "They're real."

"You were seven years old," Diamonds spoke. "You didn't know what it was, passed it off as a nightmare or a hallucination. The Cloaked Devil. The Monster of Shadow. The End of All Things."

"What's she talking about?" Jack demanded, noticing how Two was shaking once again. Spades coughed. For a third time the lights dimmed, and the wall lit-up.

Diamonds' face appeared on the wall, younger than she currently was. She had a bruise under her eye and what appeared to be bits of cloth wrapped around her neck, stained with wet blood; the sleeves of her shirt had been ripped off. "Hearts, something went wrong," she stated in a panic. "I'm not..." She quietened her voice. "I'm not alone, and they're not just archaeologists." Quickly she glanced around, then looked into the camera again. "I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to try to record it. If I don't make it out, I want you to... I... I was fond of you." The camera fell to the woman's side as she began to run; she appeared to be in some kind of cave, or ancient tomb. In the distance a dark, cold voice spoke.

"I was going to allow you to keep this, since I have no use for it, but your ignorance prevents such generosity," it stated. There was a sound of metal breaking. "I shall take the Airnalief Eye and leave. Consider my leaving you alive a test... not mercy." Diamonds kept running as the sound of beating wings grew louder, and then quieter. More words were spoken, this time by another voice, more distant, harder to understand.

Before long Diamonds and the camera came to a gargantuan room which expanded upwards. At the very top, a cloaked figure with wings landed on the up-most platform. Various bridges connected openings in the walls to each other, and from one such opening ran a humanoid. It was brown, or wearing brown, and had long blue hair; it used some kind of grappling hook to swing upwards. Upon it reaching the entrance of the large tomb sounds of battle commenced. The monstrous voice of before screamed, metals clashed, and two moving statues of Anubis howled as they were thrown from the high platform. The camera zoomed in on the two remaining figures as best as it could.

"This is no time for us to fight each other," the voice of the cloaked monster called, his wings still unfurled, a veil of shadow covering his face.

"Why?" the blue-haired woman asked. She was purple-skinned, and had some kind of chain wrapped around her arm; the end of the chain held a green sword, and moved as if it were alive. "Would it take away your chance to escape?" she finished, face screwed up in disgust.

"No," the monster answered as howls echoed below him. "Because of them." From all around the room other statues ran to the walls, and then up them, as if gravity was not a rule but merely an option.

The camera fell to the ground, the image shaking violently before settling; Diamonds lay in view seemingly unconscious. Three stone statues, like the two that fell, ran ahead of the camera and dived away from the bridge. The feet of a fourth came into view next to Diamond's head. It bent and picked the camera up, turning it before looking into the lens. It screamed, a harrowing, feral cry, and the image was replaced with static. The picture faded as the lights came back on.

Spades took a deep breath before he walked to the conference table and sat at the head of it. "Every image I have shown you has been from live recordings of real beings. These things are becoming a more prevalent presence in our world, and I say our world intentionally." Ace picked her head up to look at Queen whose eyes were firmly locked on Spades. Jack held Two's hand, Two herself sitting perfectly still and staring into the table. Hearts and Diamonds casually observed them, the former with his hands resting behind his head. "I do not wish to exploit them, or use them; I do not wish for them to be here at all... but if recent patterns are to be trusted then they are coming, and we are powerless to stop it. I, for one, will not allow what I have built to be destroyed on the whims of these monsters. We've spent years studying them, and if we're ever going to defend ourselves against them then now is the time to act.

"I, for one, intend to protect what is mine. Will you join me?"

Two raised her head and quietly spoke for her group. "Yes we will."

♣ ♣ ♣ ♣

Six months passed whilst preparations were made. The information Clubs had learnt was restricted to the four members present at the meeting; all the Numbers, excluding Two, were oblivious to it. If today went well they would be told, and prepared.

"What if it's him?" Two asked, Diamond's old Clubs pin attached to her uniform.

"It won't be," Jack reassured her. "If it works at all."

"But what if it is!" the younger demanded.

"Then we accomplish our objectives as ordered," Ace spat with a scowl. "Check your weapon and shut the fuck up."

"You sound tense, Ace," Queen spoke into their ears. She was watching from their mansion.

"Yeah, well, I ain't exactly thrilled about all this." Ace followed her own advice and went over her rifle for the twelfth time since they left that morning. "Especially bringing the kid along." Two gave Ace a sour look; she was twenty by now, an adult with thirteen jobs under her belt. They were mostly small, but she had two heists and an assassination which she imagined was enough to earn some respect.

"You're there to watch, not to fight," Queen answered. "Worry less about her and more about your temper." Angrily Ace grabbed her ear-piece and threw it into the grass. They were standing in a large cluster of trees, next to a wide, open field. "She doesn't like things more powerful than herself," Queen went on, for Two's benefit. "Keep an eye on her Jack. I don't want to lose you and Two."

Two noticed that Queen said nothing about losing Ace but kept the thought to herself. Ace was checking her pistols, after which she practised drawing her sword. Jack was fingering her medallion, this one encrusted with jades, her hand covered in a pattern of mehndi. Two... The Cloaked Devil. The Monster of Shadow. The End of All Things. She shuddered, recalling the monster of her childhood, the creature who had haunted her dreams for her entire life. She recalled the fire, the blood, the screaming... and the laughter.

"You okay?" Jack asked, putting a hand on Two's shoulder. She regarded the hand and then looked at the woman.

"Not really," she answered. Jack looked worried, so Two smiled. "I'm doing better than Ace, though." Ace swiftly grabbed at the handle of her sword and pulled it free, muttered something about it not being fast enough, and sheathed it again. Jack and Two giggled.

"Look alive," Queen called into their ears. "We're picking something up." Jack gave Two a final look; the junior nodded, and both of them ran to the tree line. "Readings suggest two humans," their leader added. "Nothing major. Remember, do not engage."

"No," Jack muttered in reply, looking out across the grassy plain through a pair of binoculars. "I don't think we will." Two wished to add to the sarcastic reply but found herself unable to. She was entirely speechless.

"We can't see it clearly," Queen stated. "What is that?" Jack slowly lowered the binoculars.

"It appears to be a metal giant with pipes for a face and his pet bat... and when I say pet bat, I mean human-sized bat. With clothes. And hair. He-"

"Wait," Two interrupted, grabbing the binoculars and looking through them. "The metal man... he's opening."

"Opening?" Queen echoed.

"Yeah, his chest... there's steam..." she trailed off. Jack snatched the binoculars from her and looked through them.

"There's a human. I think the metal man is some kind of robotic-suit; it's letting off a lot of steam. The guy's... five-nine at a guess, blonde, small ponytail; wearing fatigues so he must be military. The bat's dark with white patches; he may be camouflaged. Pale hair, horns, camo robe, pink-ish wings that are kind of like arms, and... and now he's looking right at us..."

"What?" Two asked in surprise. Jack kept the binoculars to her eyes, her mouth open.

"He's staring right at us."

"Get out of there," Queen ordered intensely. "We have what we need. Meet Diamonds at the rendezvous, now!"

Jack and Two slowly pulled away into better cover before they stood, and then noticed that Ace was sitting against a tree with her rifle aimed upwards, her teeth bared and her head trembling violently. Following the rifle Jack saw another bat-humanoid-thing standing casually on a large branch, this one black and larger than the other one. She raised her own rifle towards it. Two followed suit. "We don't want any trouble," Jack explained, unknowing as to whether she would be understood. The bat seemed to find this highly amusing. It gestured towards Ace with a shrug. "Okay, she might want trouble, but we don't." Two looked away from the bat to Ace; there was a rip in her trousers where her leg had been cut. It wasn't an insignificant wound.

"It's showing me things," Ace stated, speaking with great effort and pain. "Soldiers. Fifteen. Armed." Ace kept her eyes staring into those of the bat. "Can't you, ugh... see them?" she asked, coughing. Jack and Two didn't answer. "Firing their weapons, and... dying."

"What the fuck are you doing!?" Queen screamed. "Run!"

Everyone stood their ground. "It's warning us," Jack ventured. "Can you speak back to it?"

"I've been telling, it to fuck off since... since I saw it. So no, I g-guess."

"Can you feel anything?"

"Fucking run!"

"Confusion. Amusement."

"Guys," Two began, head turned away from the black bat. "The others are gone." The black bat raised its head at this, looking at where the other bat and the blonde man in the metal suit had been. With some kind of screech, it spread its wings and flew out of the trees, avoiding gunfire from Ace's weapon. Ace then broke.

She dropped her gun and grabbed at her head, screaming in pain. Jack knelt by her side whilst Two aimed upwards, scouring the branches above them. "What's happening!?" Queen demanded. Ace stopped screaming, breathing heavily, hands still cradling her skull.

"I don't know," Jack responded. "But we're getting out of here." Strapping her weapon over her shoulder, Jack pulled Ace to her feet. She took one arm and Two took the other, and they proceeded to drag her toward the rendezvous.

"What's she muttering?" Queen asked, unable to hear. Two dropped her head so she could listen to Ace more clearly.

"Luther... Remiel... Mikaere..." she whispered, her voice a hollow croak. "Luther... Remiel... Mikaere..."

♥ ♦ ♠ ♦ ♥

Diamonds walked into her and Hearts' home, one of many which they shared, and tiredly shrugged off her beige long-coat. It fell to the floor, and she ignored Hearts as he sarcastically glared at it. He continued to look with mock-frustration as she walked over his expensive rug in her dirty boots, and sank onto his expensive couch with a tired sigh. "No kiss?" he asked, looking towards her. Diamonds picked up a book that sat on a table nearby; she kissed the cover, then threw it at him. Hearts laughed. "Dames," he muttered, smiling. "Like a box of chocolates; you never know which ones you're allergic to."

"Am I interrupting?" Spades' voice called. His face appeared on the large plasma screen attached to the wall. Hearts always hated how he did that without invitation; if the situation wasn't so dire he'd have thrown the blasted thing away by now.

"Yes," Hearts dryly said, playing with his phone.

"No," Diamonds corrected, sitting up.

"Good. How went the day?"

"We got the information we needed," Hearts answered. "Though that was a one time thing; I ain't staring at a monitor all day again." He smiled, continuing to play with his phone, knowing Diamonds at least would find amusement in the irony.

"You won't have to," Spades went on. "I'll take over such things from here. And Two?"

"You were right," Diamonds confirmed. Hearts raised his eyes, looking between the woman and the TV screen. "There is something about her, something... I don't know. It's insignificant right now, but I don't think it will be for long." Hearts laughed.

"And here I am thinking it was meant to be us making secret ploys behind their backs," he said, looking at Diamonds.

"I'll fill you in later."

"I thought that was my job." He received another flying book for that comment.

"Hearts, I want you to take over with our field missions," Spades continued, ignoring their exchange. "I'll send you what intel I can get, and leave the rest to you." Hearts winked at the screen, firing his imaginary finger gun then going back to his phone. "The Queen of Clubs is currently briefing the Numbers; before long they'll be ready to act as our soldiers in this war. Diamonds, continue watching the Two of Clubs. I want us to know what exactly she is before she does, understood?"

"You know," Hearts began, thumbs typing away. "You're still not our boss."

"Then stop following my orders," Spades threw back, causing Hearts to laugh. "Diamonds. Two. Understood?"

"Yeah, I got it," she replied. "Wait... what about Clubs? Do we tell the others?"

"You know what them broads are like," Hearts answered, not giving Spades a chance. "They're so tight-knit their cycles are probably all synchronised. She's one of them now, which means..." he trailed off, seeing the expression of sadness on Diamonds' face.

"Which means," Spades continued for him. "We can't trust them to do what may be necessary. Eyes open, mouth shut. They'll know when they need to know."

♣

"The Cloaked Devil!" an elderly woman screamed in Swahili, running through the burning village.

"Monster! Monster of Shadow! Mo-" a man called, before his voice trailed off into horrifying death-gurgles.

"Fools!" a deep and terrible voice screamed. "I am no mere monster, no puny devil!" The back of its cloak ripped, and giant wings unfurled beneath the moonlight. "I am the End of All Things!" There were two screams; they were no ordinary screams, they were piercing and dark, and came from beneath the monster's cloak. The young girl touched her ear, and saw blood when she looked at her finger.

Desperately the girl ran. Her father kept weapons in their home; his most prized possession was a dagger made of rock. He claimed it was ancient and powerful, though he hadn't shown or told anyone how. As tears streamed down her face the young girl knelt next to a chest and grabbed at the lock that kept it secure. "Yes, run," the monster's voice called from outside. "Run like the parasites you are." More screams echoed as the monster laughed. Shaking, the young girl ran to the other side of the room; her father was lying in the corner with a gaping hole in his chest. She tried not to look at his face as she pulled his pistol from his hand.

The girl stumbled and fell as she ran, the gun sliding out of her hand and across the floor. For a few seconds she stayed on her hands and knees, holding her breath, completely silent. The shouting had stopped. There was no more screaming. The only sound was the crackle of the fire. Slowly, quietly, she exhaled, and began to breathe again. Was that it? Was he gone?

"Found you!" the monster roared, followed by insane laughter. The young girl screamed and fell to her side, shielding her face. Outside a man cried as the monster gleefully eviscerated him. The girl lowered her arm, seeing that she was actually still alone.

Breathing heavier than she ever had, certain her heart would soon explode, the girl scrambled for the gun and then ran to the chest. She aimed the weapon at the lock with both hands and buried her face into her shoulder as she fired. After a bang, clank, and rumble, the girl raised her head. Still holding the gun she opened the chest and looked through it; bricks of gold, drug packages, bundles of money... the Stone Dagger.

"No, please, mercy!" a woman begged outside.

"I'm giving you a swift death, am I not?" the monster replied, seemingly offended.

The young girl knelt by the chest, trying to calm her breathing as she held the gun and dagger. Before long, she ran outside. "What is this?" the monster mused, looking at the small girl. She stood across the path, gun raised. "A village of supposed warlords and soldiers, and only a little girl stands and fights?" He turned around to face her fully with a low rumbling chuckle. His tendril of shadow released the remains of the woman it had been holding up, and he spoke through a veil of shadow which covered his face. "Well, it would only be fair to allow you the first move." His wings retracted, and he held out his arms.

The girl squeezed her handgun and shot at the monster; she fired seven bullets before the weapon clicked empty, and the recoil caused three of them to miss the creature entirely. For all the good they did they may as well have all missed. With a face screwed up in anguish the girl dropped the gun. "I have one of those as well," the monster stated. He raised his arm and, from the end of his sleeve, he extended a grotesque, discoloured finger that pointed to his left. A ball of dark energy formed at the tip of the finger and then flew away, blasting through huts and trees until it exploded in the distance, accompanied by the screams of three men.

The young girl raised the Stone Dagger, her arm violently shaking. The monster was clearly amused. "I also have one of those." From beneath his cloak, carried by tendrils of shadow, came a gargantuan, red, serrated sword. The girls eyes widened with further terror. "Forgive me, I was mistaken," the monster continued. "I have two." Carried by another shadow came a second blade, this one a mirror to the first but blue where it was red. The girl's eyes were just about ready to explode, and again the monster laughed. She looked to her left, to the small building where her dead father lay, and then she charged at the monster through tears and terror.

She was but a step away when the shadows grabbed her by the throat and picked her up. The monster allowed the shadow veil around his face to fade; the girl wanted to scream at his twisted visage, but she found herself unable. A shadowy tendril took the Stone Dagger from her hand and held it up between their faces. "I recall this," the monster said, tilting his head slightly. "Rather powerful. Certainly not suitable for children." Another shadow rose up, and began to stroke the blade. "I'm afraid you don't know how to use it correctly," he continued whilst the shadow played with the switches on the dagger's handle. "I wonder what would happen if..." The monster's shadowy tendrils stabbed him in the face with the Stone Dagger. The weapon began to shine with dark energy, and the shadow stabbed him again. It shone brighter. The switches constantly shifted in colour whilst flicking themselves between positions, as if on their own whim. "I could use a pet, something to take the children off my hands as I need," he stated, raising his red and blue swords. He stabbed them with the blade as well, and it began to shine so bright that it looked as if it there was no dagger remaining, only blinding darkness. "If memory serves, this should end very well for you."

The tendril of shadow around the girl's neck moved her away from the monster, and then tightened. Things were beginning to darken, the world was quiet, her lungs... she felt something sharp, something painful; it woke her up, her heart, her... she fell. Blood exploded out of her mouth. On her knees the girl felt her chest. There was a wound, deep, continuously bleeding. In front of her the Stone Dagger lay on the floor covered in blood. She held her hand in front of her eyes; she looked from palm, to finger, to nail. It was all covered in blood. "Well," the monster began. "That didn't work." Her vision was fading. Sounds were becoming muffled. She fell onto her face. "Pity." The darkness took her.

Weeks later the girl would awaken in the closest hospital. Apparently a woman in a beige coat had carried her in and paid a considerable sum for her to be cared for. The girl didn't question it, didn't think to question it; her mind was elsewhere.

After her recovery she would return to where her village had been, and find nothing; no bodies, no dagger, no monster.

Of course, this time it was different.

These times were always different.

She walked through the village. No bodies. No dagger. Monster. "Hello again," he greeted, swords in hand. The veil of shadow disappeared from around his face, and his grotesque mouth formed what some might consider a grin. "I've come back for you."

Two awoke screaming.

A New Face
---------
*lights turn on in the training room*

Trainer: Well done Jorgon, that was good, but next time keep the lights on so i can see wht your doing

Jorgon: Okay master

Trainer: ok jorgon, lets see how well you combat is now, we tested your magic amd it worked, well from the looks of it

*3 tigers are raised and let out of cages*

*Jorgon pulls out his axe and slashes at each of them and kills them in 4 swings*

Jorgon: Hmph, so when we gonna go into some real combat?

Trainer: Soon, we are still waiting for someone to challenge you.

Jorgon: Can't i just challenge someone?

Trainer: No, you have much to learn.

*Jorgon places his axe on the closest table then punches the trainer*

Trainer: STOP THAT NOW!
*jorgon throws another punch but this time the trainer reverses it and pins him to the floor*

Trainer: Will you stop now?

Jorgon: fine

Trainer: great, now i want you to meet my last trainee that went on to become a legendary Martial Arts Expert

*The man walks towadds Jorgon*

*Jorgon turns around to pick up his axe*

Mae: Woah man, im not here to fight

Jorgon: Well i am

*jorgon swings at Mae 5 times before being punched in the nose*

Mae: you want to carry on?

Jorgon: Bitch please, ive already won

Mae: Not while im still standing you haven't

*jorgon sighs*

*as Jorgon turns around Mae starts moving towards him*

*jorgon suddenly uses shockwave on Mae electricuting him and killing him*

Jorgon: make sure you'll clean up the mess will ya' master

*Jorgon leaves the room and carries on training in his quaters*

Clief lay in the hospital bed staring at the ceiling as the doctors checked his blood pressure and heart rate. They asked him questions, but the voice inside his head drowned them out, he wasn't interested in listening to them. If it wasn't for his body still being in shock, he'd have left this place a week ago. The fact was though, his body wasn't responding very well to what his mind told it to do. Moving his limbs wasn't a problem, but he had no real strength when using them. He wasn't sure if it was because of the trauma his body had recently received, or his mind, not that he was thinking about it. The only thoughts on his mind while awake was Sarah's limp body and Cotib's sly smile whilst doing it. The memory of his torture was also vivid in his mind, those words etched into his brain. The main thing that stood out was that he was simply doing the dirty work for someone else. Someone else was to blame for his grieving; it didn't stop his hatred for Cotib but rather added something else to hate. That's all he had to hold onto at the moment, his hatred for everything. He hated the doctors trying to help him when he should have died. He hated Cotib for cutting down Sarah, he hated the people he was working for. He hated everything to the point that he had even lost contact with his dragon spirit Duegan. The Crystal sword leant against the wall next to the bed, a dull blue now.

Cotib. I'll kill you. I'll kill you.

---

He had spent a few more days in that bed, slowly building strength in his legs. He was able to stand now and take baby steps with assistance, always trying to push them away. He felt so weak being unable to push humans away from him, still, they were helping him get his strength back; helping him towards achieving his new goal. Over the last few days though, his thought process had slightly changed. He was beginning to hate more things everyday. Today the machines that kept him alive were added to list, in fact, all machines were. They were creations of humans, the people that had sided with the Cartaha to erase the Tyen. They chose the wrong side; it had become apparent that they were slowly losing control of their own society, becoming lower class as the Cartaha took over. Clief, however, was not interested in that stuff any more, he was more concerned about destruction. Destruction of the people that took his home, the people that took his family, the person that took his friend. Destruction was now an entity eating away at his mind, corrupting it from what was truly important. He was a Tyen, the last, and the people that he should be stopping were no longer on his priority list. They were, but so was everything else.

---

The sun was just breaking the horizon, the sky beginning to light up. Birds could be heard in the nearby trees, chirping as they woke to another beautiful day. The doctors in the hospital were busy early today, there had been a massive car accident the night before, so they were working double time, trying to keep everyone involved alive. They were so busy that no one had come to check on Clief yet. This suited him just fine though, it gave him a chance to stand on his own and stumble his way over to his sword. His finger touched the crystal on the hilt, instantly lighting the blade up to it's normal colour. Duegan was clearly glad that he was able to walk to him. Feeling the sword in his hand again, Clief began to feel slightly stronger than he did in bed. He turned towards the door to find a nurse standing in the way.

“I'm glad you can walk on your own, but please, you must return to your bed so I can check your blood pressure,” she asked with a smile.

That smile reminded him of Sarah and he smiled back. Walking over to him she extended her hand to him. Clief looked at it and stopped smiling. His face turned blank as he lifted his sword up, slicing through the nurses extended arm. Blood splattered on his face and torso before she could react. Falling backwards she held her arm in pain, a high pitched scream pierced his ears and his smile returned again. Feeling as though he had shared some of his pain, he picked up the arm by the hand and shook it.

“Why thank you for your help.”

He tossed it back at the nurse, now covered in her own blood, passing out at the sight of her own arm in her lap. Clief turned and walked to the other side of the bed, in no rush despite the scream alerting several people in the area. His pants were on a chair next to the bed, still blood soaked. He pulled them on and took off the hospital gown. Glancing back to the door he saw two doctors standing there. They saw the nurse on the ground and looked back to Clief. One of them called out to security, the other pleading with the Tyen to put the sword down. Clief didn't pay much attention to him though, cutting through his stomach, his guts falling out and dropping to the floor. The doctors face went pale before dropping to his knees, one of them crushing an intestine. The Tyen walked straight past him, his feet soaking in the blood pooling on the tiles. Raising his own hand, the doctor looked on in horror as he watched the palm in front of his face begin to glow red. The last thing he would see in his life would be a ball of fire hitting his eyes. The hospital staff watched as his head burst into flames, the impact killing him, his body falling limp, collapsing to the ground. Security was running down the hall now, stopping as they saw Clief walk through the door way. Clief looked towards them, glaring at them as they tried to get everyone away from him.

Useless.

Why......ou...kil.....em..

Clief could see something behind them, or someone. He knew who it was he could see, but he couldn't believe it. Cotib was right there, mocking him, just out of his reach. Clief blinked and rubbed his eyes, when he looked back, Cotib was gone. It wasn't reassuring for Clief though, if he was edgy when he could see him, he had well and truly jumped off the edge now that he had disappeared. The security guards began to back away as a deep blue aura surrounded Clief, with streaks of red entering his eyes. His sword was now glowing, not its usual light blue, but more of a darkened colour. Everything about him seemed to darken from it's usual colour, his skin even went slightly more pale. The guards were now sprinting away from him, but it did them no good. Clief fired a Crescent Slice at them, cutting them in half. His aura began to spread, engulfing the walls around them, sucking the light from the area.

“Be gone.”

---

“Have you heard the news?”

“Which one, there is a lot going around lately.”

“That's true. I meant how they say that the 'Calamity' is in town.”

“You're kidding right!? He's killed a few hundred people now since the incident of Chroaning.”

“Yeah, brings the tally up to 563 known deaths. You might want to get your family out of this town, it'll be a ghost one soon.”

“That's enough of that don't you think?” said a voice from the shadows.

The two men talking at the bar fell silent as they looked to where the voice came from. They saw nothing but darkness in an already pretty dark pub. There were only a few other people in the building, all had fell silent as the man spoke.

“Calamity. I think I like that name. It's a name that strikes fear into peoples hearts. Seems fitting.”

The man stepped out from the shadows, he was an older man, with a large scar across his cheek. He wore a dark brown coat over black pants and a brown vest. His grey hair was short, but scruffy and he wore gloves with holes in the tips of the fingers.

“Do you know his origin though? They say he is a Tyen.”

“What!? That's impossible, the Cartaha got rid of them!” one of them blurted out.

“And look where that got us. Some people say that the Cartaha ran into some problems on their last raid. Something happened, something they couldn't explain. Of course, they told all of us that the Tyen were wiped out, probably to gain control quicker. Well, the story goes that they missed one of them, and this 'calamity' is him. Back for revenge against the world, back to destroy it.”

“You'd better cut your crap old man or I'll throw you out!” Yelled the bartender.

The old man fell silent, creeping back into the shadows. “He's here alright.”

---

“Where are they when we need them!?”

“Focus on the task at hand, we need to stop him here. He's gone through three towns now, it ends in this one!”

“Yes sir!”

Police officers, crouched behind some over turned cars, were huddled around their in charge. Some were jittery, hearing about the calamity on the its way. Giving his orders, the other officers spread out and entered the near by buildings, he was going to use himself as bait for it. He could see a man walking towards him, encased in a shroud of darkness. The sergeant could feel death in the air, it felt like a knife was pressed against his throat. The man got closer, walking slowly, drawing out the suspense. It was Clief, barely recognisable, his eyes and hair were darker now than they were at the hospital; that was the last true sighting of him. His sword was in his hand, completely dull now. The officer raised his hand up, commanding that Clief hand himself of to the police. The Tyen continued to move forwards, ignoring the sergeants pleas. His eye's widened as he watched Clief slice the air in front of him, sending a blue shock wave towards him. He told his body to move, but it wouldn't obey, the attack almost reaching him. He closed his eye's as he said goodbye to the world he had known; a world of ruin. He felt the attack hit him, sending him backwards, his body slamming against the tarmac. Opening his eyes, he was shocked to see he had survived before seeing a figure standing before him.

“You shouldn't accept death because you are afraid. You fight it, knowing you left this world trying to live.” he spoke.

“Uh..yes..yes thank you!!” The officer exclaimed.

“I wasn't talking to you. Get out of here!”

The officer scrambled to his feet and ran into one of the near by buildings. It was the old man from the bar that had saved him, now facing towards the 'Calamity'.

“I've never seen such a weak Tyen in my life. You've even lost contact with your spirit. I'm ashamed to have people afraid of you!” he yelled across the street.

Clief smirked at this comment, the thought of him being weak was an amusing notion. It was the exact reaction the old man had been seeking. He took a step forward, challenging the blue haired man in front of him to make a move. That's exactly what Clief did, sending another blue wave of energy with a swing of his sword. The old man easily ducked underneath it, continuing to move closer to his opponent. Clief realised he wasn't going to win this using simple tactics, so he decided to rush into combat.

“Very daring move against an opponent you know nothing about, sonny,” the old man instructed.

Clief ignored the comment, continuing to engage in combat. He swung his sword across his body, easily avoided by his elder. He proceeded to hack and slash at the old man, each swipe of his sword missing his target.

“No technique, very easy to read and avoid,” the man assessed Clief's techniques.

This angered the Tyen a little, and it showed in his increased ferocity in his attacks. The buildings surrounding them were being destroyed by the shock waves created by the speed of his sword. An attack was yet to be landed, so Clief changed his tactic a little, adding a little physical combat into the mix. Now using his sword in his right hand, he swung to the right, followed by a punch. Continuing his flow he spun around with a roundhouse kick, all three attacks avoided.

“Changing it up a little to throw me off, good in theory, but you still have no technique. I've seen enough,” the man proclaimed.

Clief went to punch him again but found himself countered. It was the first move besides dodging the old man had actually made. He placed his hand on the Tyen's shoulder, stopping the force of his punch mid thrust. The force sent Clief off balance, with his gravity now forcing him backwards. His opponent took advantage of this, hitting his chest with open palms. The hit sent Clief to the floor in a hurry, smacking his head on the pavement.

“I've been waiting for you. Seems I waited too long. Now to get out of here...”

Clief fell unconscious, the last thing he saw was the old man standing over him, then darkness.

Welcome. How would you introduce yourself in your own words?

Leo (scratches himself behind the ears): Well I was kind of hoping that Kovu would get here before we had to start, but I suppose he's running late. Anyway, you can call me Leo. I know it's not a very original name, but I guess the scientists who created me thought it was appropriate. For those who don't already know, I'm only half human, with the other half being cat (looks down at himself). I walk and talk just like any other person, though there are a few... Differences. Fur, claws, tail, that sort of thing.

Leo: There's not much else to say really. I enjoy fighting, riding my motorbike, and dressing in black. Oh yeah, I'm also a vigilante on the run from a corporation led by a mad scientist named Glados.

Leo (blinking slowly): I probably should have mentioned that part earlier.

What reason or reasons lead you to become involved in duels?

Leo: There are a lot of reasons really. Sometimes a person will get between me and something Grey Matter Industries related, so then of course I'll have to fight my way through them to get to it. Sometimes there's a misunderstanding. I'll knock over someone's coffee or bump into someone on the street, and then suddenly the two of us are trying to kill each another in a feline/human deathmatch. Sometimes an individual will be just too evil or too insane for me to leave alone, and I'll have to (mimes a quick one-two jab) - them up a little.

Leo: And sometimes when I'm really bored, I'll fight someone just for the fun of it. Can't say that it's always the smartest decision, but it usually is the most interesting (shrugs). What can I say? I'm a simple cat with simple tastes.

Do you have any favourite people/places/events from your past?

Leo (sitting up straight): Now there's an interesting question. My favourite place would definitely be the Grey Matter Industries facility where I was born. I lived there for 14 years, and while it wasn't always the most stimulating place, it was my home. I have a lot of good memories of my time there, even after how things ended.

Leo: As for favourite people, Jack Reynolds would definitely be one of them (turns away). I know I don't talk about him much, but he's really the closest thing I've ever had to a dad. All the other staff at the Grey Matter Industries base put up with me because it was their job, and because they would be fired if they didn't. Jack wasn't like that. Even when he had the day off he would come in, and we would talk and play together. He was always helping me, and ultimately he sacrificed himself to free me. Really, no words could describe how I grateful I am for what he did.

Leo: I'm not sure if he counts because he's still around, but Kovu would be another one of my favourite people. If Jack is sort of like my dad, then Kovu is a lot like my big brother. We argue a lot, but I know he's just trying to look out for me. I mean it can't be easy, working for Grey Matter Industries while at the same time secretly trying to shut them down. He's strong and smart, and I have a lot of respect for him.

Leo (looking over his shoulder): Just don't tell him I said that last part.

What are you currently up to?

Leo: Well right now I'm keeping a low profile. I blew up a whole convoy of Grey Matter Industries trucks just a few days ago, so the company has tons of soldiers searching the city for me. I'm actually hiding out in a Grey Matter safe house at the moment, and I know that sounds really stupid, but just know that it wasn't originally my idea.

Leo: You see, Kovu told me that the corporation doesn't monitor their own safe houses. He also told me that he knows which buildings are being used and when. As long as I tidy up before I leave, nobody will ever suspect a thing.

What are your hopes/plans/expectations for the future?

Leo: My plans for the future can basically be broken down into three simple goals (starts counting off his fingers). 1: Discover the truth behind why exactly me and the other experiments were created. 2: Shut down Grey Matter Industries and all of their illegal operations and activities. 3: Kill Glados.

Leo (scratching behind his ears again): Though not necessarily in that order.

Being half cat, do you have a habit of sleeping in ridiculous locations e.g. on top of computers?

Leo (shaking his head): I can happily tell you that this is nothing more than a stereotype. While I do sleep on the back of lounges, in cupboards, under chairs, in boxes and on top of pot plants, I do not sleep on computers.

Leo (eyes narrow): Though maybe if I could find one big enough...

Do you like pie? If so, what is your favourite flavour?

Leo: Well, that depends. As a cat, I lack the necessary receptors in my tongue to taste sweet things. That includes both fruit and dessert pies.

Leo: Though if you're talking about meat pies, then yes (grins), I love to eat a good pie.

You seem to have taken to human pop culture quite a bit during your time in the world - are there any films you really like, series you follow, games you totally own at or similar you'd like to mention?

Leo: Well there's a bit of a story behind that, actually. While I was living at the Grey Matter Industries base, someone early on decided it would be a great idea to raise me completely ignorant of the world's media. Movies, TV, games and books (throws up his arms), I wasn't allowed to have any of that stuff!

Leo: Jack Reynolds, however, thought that was stupid. Sometimes late at night, he'd bribe the guards and we'd go into one of the break rooms. He would bring games and cartoons and stuff, and we'd sit there and play/watch them. He always got into heaps of trouble afterwards, so we couldn't do it very often, but we had so much fun it didn't even matter.

Leo: Most of my favourites come from those nights. We watched a lot of Disney movies, so you can put most of those on the list. We also watched quite a few of the old Batman and Spider-Man cartoons, and a lot of other superhero shows now that I think about it. I remember Super Smash Brothers was our most played video game, even though I didn't know who half the characters were. Oh and Spyro the Dragon (claps hands)! I absolutely loved Spyro the Dragon, which me and Jack used to take turns playing.

Leo: I haven't really had many chances to play video games or watch cartoons since I went on the run, though I do stop by shopping centres and the cinema on occasion. Really, I love all kinds of media, and all the little bits and pieces I've seen so far just make me more excited to see what else is out there.

I just flipped a coin, guess what it landed on?

Leo (a little unsure, the feline looks behind himself, then turns back around with a long, furry appendage in hand): Tails?

Is there any weapon or special ability you wish you could get from another duelist?

Leo: Well as long as they don't come with all that emotional baggage, I wouldn't mind having some of Emote's powers. I get shot at a lot, so invulnerability would be kind of nice. And really, who wouldn't want the ability to manipulate energy into shapes and weapons?

Leo: I think Clief's sword can summon a dragon, so that would be pretty cool. It would also be awesome to practice necromancy like Ged does. Don't get me wrong, I'm not evil, but I am very practical. If those corpses are just going to be lying there, why not have them do something useful before you bury them?

Which duelist seems like they'd be the funnest to play with?

Leo: Definitely Basis. We're pretty similar when you think about it, what with us both being genetic experiments that enjoy fighting. It was really fun to battle him, and I think he would be a fun person to play games with as well.

Leo: Though if he tries to make me his pet again (suddenly becomes serious), there will be blood.

Have you ever had the urge to eat Crysis and Zone?

Leo: Well it's nothing personal, but I did inherit a lot of instincts from my feline genetics. One of those instincts is that small furry things are unquestionably delicious, and should be caught and eaten whenever possible (licks his lips). So when you think about it, it's really not my fault. In fact, it's their fault for being so tasty. Crysis and Zone are pretty good-natured, so I'm sure they understand (stomach suddenly rumbles), though I am sort of hungry now...

What is your favourite colour, food, and day of the week?

Leo: My favourite colour is green, my favourite food is hotdogs, and my favourite day of the week is Monday (grinning), mostly because nobody else seems to like Monday.

Leo (ducks his head a little): Though the one time I tried combining them made me long for Tuesday...

This one is for both Leo and Kovu. Can each of you tell us one embarrassing secret about the other?

Leo (hears a knock on the door): Come in!

Kovu (enters the room): I noticed you didn't lock the door, or ask me for the password for that matter. Are you trying to get yourself killed?

Leo: No, but right now I'm busy trying to answer this question. You and me are each supposed to reveal one embarrassing secret about the other... But since I don't have any embarrassing secrets, we can just skip right ahead to-

Kovu (sitting down): Oh no, I'm not letting this opportunity pass me by (turns to face the camera). Leo once spent an entire week wearing ladies underwear, and told me, and I quote: "Wow, you'd think all that lace would just get in the way, but it's really quite comfy".

Leo: Hey! I only wore those because I was short on clean underwear that week, and because I found an old box of clothes in an alleyway, and because I liked the silk (clears throat). To change the subject, Kovu loves rap music.

Kovu: That is not true, I simply-

Leo: He has over 400 gigabytes of hip hop uploaded onto his armour, bought a shirt signed by Snoop Dog on eBay, and once nearly failed a mission because he made a detour to visit a Rap Festival happening in New York.

Kovu (suddenly very quiet): Moving on...

Do you seriously expect me to believe that people don't notice you're a cat just because you wear a hood and gloves? People can't be that stupid!

Leo: Well I don't really do anything particularly sneaky. You'd be surprised how invisible you can be when you just keep your head down and don't say anything. I mean, most people don't even look up when they walk past you on the street, and even fewer try to get a good look at your face. And even if someone does notice there's something different about me, most of the time they'll just think I have a thick beard or that I'm wearing a mask or something (laughs a bit). Because really, which is more plausible, a guy with a lot of hair, or a walking, talking cat?

Leo: That's not to say I've never been caught, because I have been caught, dozens of times. But whenever that happens I just get on my bike and head to the next town (shrugs). That usually works.

Are there any more "secret successes" like Kovu that you know of? Would you like to meet them if there are any?

Leo: Well we don't know anything for sure, but Kovu did come across some interesting stuff in the Grey Matter Industries database a few weeks ago.

Kovu: Indeed. While looking through some of the company's old reports, I found some missions assigned to an operative referred to only as "R". Most of the information was classified, but the only other person who has a similar codename is myself, "K". I don't know whether this experiment was created before or after us, but whoever they are they've completed all their missions successfully, so we can't underestimate them.

Leo: As for whether we'd like to meet them, I don't think we really have a choice in the matter. If we're going to take down Grey Matter, sooner or late we're going to have to deal with this experiment. If we're lucky they can help us, if not, theeen there might be a problem.

What is your preferred method of taking someone out?

Leo: Well, I don't like to kill a person unless I have to, so I guess my preferred method would be a shot to the foot. As long as they can stop the bleeding they should survive, plus it's funny to watch them hop around and swear. What about you (turns to Kovu)?

Kovu: A simple sword thrust to the chest (notices Leo frown) - I do try to avoid confrontation whenever possible, but if I need to take someone down, then I take them down. Not everyone is as merciful as you are, Leo.

Leo: I suppose I understand (sighs). Next question...

You're in a lab, rescuing experiments. They've all left and it's just you, sweeping the area before GMI back-up arrives. There's a red button. There are no signs saying what it does, or whether or not you should push it. It is on the north wall of the room, there is nothing else on this wall, only the red button, dead centre. Would you push the button?

Leo: I don't think the question is so much "Would I press it?" as much as "How long before I press it?". I mean should I give myself a few minutes and build up some suspense? Or should I just tap it right away and be done with it? The way I see it, a button is there to be pressed, otherwise it wouldn't be there in the first place. So to answer your question, yes I would press the button.

If you had the choice, would you want to be a regular human instead of half cat, like you are now?

Leo (crosses his arms): No.

Kovu (turns): No?

Leo (nods): No.

Do you have a birthday? And if you do, just how do you celebrate it?

Leo: You know, I don't think I ever actually asked anyone whether or not I have a birthday. I was grown in a tank, so I guess my birthday would be whenever the scientists let me out of it. I think Jack did once bring in some cake and party decorations when I was younger, but when I spat out the chocolate frosting and popped all the balloons, I guess he stopped trying.

Leo: So I guess I don't celebrate my birthday. I've never really had much use for presents or celebrations anyway, so why start now?

So, you and furries, what do you have to say on the matter?

Leo (looks at Kovu): What's a furry?

Kovu: As far as I can tell, people who dress up and pretend to be animal people like us.

Leo: Well, that sounds pretty weird. But I suppose I would have to meet someone like that before I could judge them (shrugs). So as long as they're not hurting anybody, then I guess I'm okay with it.

Whatever happened to you being the undisputed ruler of the world? And what about all your election promises?

Leo: Election promises (scratches his nose)? Wasn't that part of a dream I had once?

Kovu: Was that the dream where I was a woman and naked in your bed?

Leo: No, that was a different dream. In this one I made a big speech about kittens and animal rights, and then I got elected the undisputed ruler of the world, and then I was murdered in my limo on the way to the celebration party.

Kovu: Very well. Oh, and Leo?

Leo: Yes, Kovu?

Kovu: Please keep me out of all your dreams, fantasies and hallucinations in the future (whiskers twitch). Your imagination frightens me.

Let's assume you manage to defeat Glados, destroy the evil of Grey Matter Industries, rescue your brothers and sisters, and finally accomplish your mission... What comes next?

Leo: That is actually... A very good question. I mean, shutting down Grey Matter Industries is already a huge deal all on its own, so I've never really thought of what I'd do beyond it.

Leo: I suppose the first thing I'd want to do is find out exactly what happened to Jack (stops and takes a breath). I mean... I know he probably died, defending me, but I'd want to know for sure. After that, I suppose it would be nice to just be able to walk down the street without having to worry about Grey Matter Industries assassins or spies. In general, though, I try not to worry too much about the future (smiles). We're a long way from taking down Glados, and even longer from deciding what to do afterwards.

Kovu: As surprising as it sounds, I agree with Leo here. Having a little time off to relax from all my training and missions would be great, but there's no point dwelling on the future. It's a big world out there, and we'll find our place in it one way or another.

If you couldn't be a cat-man, is there any other sort of ___-man you would want to be?

Leo: I'm sure everyone is waiting for me to say dog-man here, just for the irony, but if I had to choose, honestly I'd want to be a lion.

Kovu (rolling his eyes): There is absolutely no way I would ever allow that to happen. Your ego is big enough without being "king of the jungle" on top.

Leo: But just think of how many Lion King jokes I could make if I was (shakes his head). Assuming a lion is too close to cat, maybe some kind of bird? They can fly, and I think that would beat out almost anything other animals could offer.

What exactly is Glados? I mean the guy survived having his arm cut off, how did he do that?

Leo: I have no idea. Really, I can count the facts the two of us know for sure about Glados on one paw. We know that he's the CEO of Grey Matter Industries. We know he's evil, not to mention completely insane. And we know that he has somehow survived several extremely damaging and fatal injuries. That's all we have, he could be a robot, a demon, or something else entirely. We have no idea.

Kovu: Research on him hasn't yielded a thing. It's like the man doesn't even exist, at least as far as the rest of the world is concerned. I expect the only way we'll ever get answers regarding Glados is if we beat them out of him (unsheathes one of his katanas). Personally, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Is catnip a drug?

Leo: Well, as funny as it sounds, I've never actually come across any catnip (looks thoughtful). I know that it's a herb, and that the smell and taste of it makes cats go a little loopy, so I suppose you could call it a drug. I have no idea whether it would actually affect me, though.

Kovu: Catnip, or Nepeta Cataria, only affects roughly 50% of felines anyway. So the odds of the two of us reacting to it are very small. And yes, by the written definition, catnip is indeed a drug.

Leo (sticking out his tongue): You are such a nerd!

Do you think adding flight capabilities to your motorbike would be a good idea? I may have the contact details for a few reasonably above-board mechanics...

Leo (eyes light up): Wow, that would be fantastic (begins rummaging). Just hang on while I find some pen and paper!

Kovu: Before you wanted to be a bird and now you want to turn your bike into a plane, just what is it with you and this obsession with flying?

Leo: Are you saying you wouldn't want a motorcycle that could fly?

Kovu (looks away): Well I never said that...

How did you get your hands on all those weapons? And have you ever thought about adding more to your arsenal?

Leo: Back when I was living at the Grey Matter Industries base, I spent a lot of time building things in the workshop. Most of it fell apart as soon as I put it down on a desk, but I still learned loads anyway. When I started visiting the firing range and learning more martial arts, I had the bright idea of modifying guns and weapons as well. That's how I got my hands on my blade guns, shotgun and rocket launcher, as well as a good part of my bike. It's kinda funny actually, I'm good at two things: making things and breaking things.

Leo: I don't have access to that workshop anymore, so I've mostly just stuck to repairs since I went on the run. I've had a few new ideas since I left, such as a blade rifle, and some new type of explosive I don't really want to talk about, but I just haven't had the resources to try and build them.

This isn't a question. Bike race me. Now. Into the sunset of ultimate destiny.

Leo (looks confused): Umm, sorry, who is this? I sort of need a name, as well as a time and place before I can say yes.

Kovu: It can't be that difficult to work out. How many people do you know that own a motorcycle and would challenge somebody like this?

Leo (points to himself): Well...

Kovu (sighs): Besides yourself, Leo.

Leo: Wait, I know who this is! It's that guy, the one with the gauntlet that travels through different dimensions! His name is... Umm, it's right on the tip of my tongue.

Kovu: Do you remember what the first letter of his name was?

Leo: I think it started with a T, no, it definitely started with a B. Blake or Blaze or something (rubs his temples). I think it was Blaze.

Kovu: Well there you go (turns to face the camera). I think you can consider your challenge accepted, Mr Blaze.

Leo (still rubbing his temples): Or was it Blair?

Do you have any last words you'd like to add?

Leo: Well, first I'd like to give a shout out to everyone I've fought over the last few years, win, lose or draw. Whether you were a vampire scientist with evolving weaponry or just some guy who pulled random equipment out of his jacket, I had fun battling all of you. I'm also really looking forward to all the fights I'll be having with you guys in the future. Whether it's a rematch with an old foe or a battle with a new enemy, I'm sure it's all going to be awesome.

Leo: And second, if you don't mind me breaking the fourth wall for a moment, I'd also like to say thank you to all the other members of the Neo-Duelist League. You're all fantastic writers in your own right, and Bale Fire will eat his jacket if at least a few of you don't manage to publish a book someday. You've all helped to him grow as a writer since he started posting here, and it's been a great experience working with you all. And of course a special thank you to Fyrestorm, for making everything on this forum possible.

"And that's what we're doing here" Zone said, finishing his explanation. He started to check his laser.

"Right, now it all makes sense" the person next to him replied. They kept looking at him expectantly.

"What?" the rodent asked after a second, pausing as he noticed the staring. The other party faltered.

"Oh, um. I just thought you would repeat what we had talked about" he responded, a little awkwardly.

"What would I do that for?" Zone asked, confused. The boy began trying to answer, but gave up on it.

They continued through the underground level of the castle, aided by the light of a modern torch. The one holding the torch was called Reiko, and the one Zone had been talking to was Arson. Reiko was a vampire who had a pale complexion, short neat raven hair, and wore an open black jacket on top of a white shirt, grey jeans, and black shoes. Arson also looked human, but was the late-teen offspring of an angel and devil. He had free-falling auburn hair, was a bit shorter than Reiko, and wore a closed black long coat, blue jeans, and sneakers. Zone was sat on Reiko's shoulder, and Arson held Crysis.

"We may be here for the same root reason. Those entities you fought sound a lot like something our target would employ" Reiko said, sweeping the hallway with his torch. Being a vampire, he was even better adapted to darkness than the rodents, but that didn't mean he was inconsiderate. The castle's passages were mouldy and cluttered down here, most of them ending abruptly at a collapsed ceiling.

Arson nodded. "Mhm, that's what we came prepared for. If we got there sooner we coulda helped" he chipped in with slight apology. "Then Mr Squirrel would still be 100%!" he cradled Crysis and stroked his tail gently, the rodent having hurt it in the last battle. Crysis laughed and churred his appreciation.

Zone smirked as he watched the display. He turned to Reiko. "Y'know, I hurt my tail too..." he began.

"My condolences" Reiko said smoothly, long wise to the hamster. Zone pouted, snapping his fingers.

"So... You reckon everything we fought was just conjured by this demon boss to stop us?" he asked after a bit, checking his laser; it was on 70% charge. Crysis had used up about a third of his bombs.

"Principally, yes, though 'baron' is more accurate. He is adept at dark magic; animating the dead, or stone, are principle of his trade, and those spectres sound like a common proxy agent. They're fragile, but can be used for transmitting spells and observation..." the vampire illuminated a heavy, oak door as he spoke. He nodded to Arson, and the teenager set Crysis down carefully. Zone slid down Reiko's metal quarterstaff as he drew it from his back, hopping off the end armed and ready.

“Did I mention I miss having you about? You’re so useful for exposition” Zone quipped. Reiko gave him a quick look, but focused on the door, which had a visible reddish light leaking out from under it once he switched off his torch. Arson drew his own weapons of choice, two short swords by the name of Dragon and Phoenix. Subdued flames began licking up their blades. He got into position.

Reiko lifted up his leg and kicked the door open, diving through it in a roll. "Dynamic entry!" Arson yelled as he followed right behind, the rodents flanking him on either side. The chamber was lit by Hellishly pulsing arcane symbols scattered over the floor and walls, most of them concentrated in the centre. Several more medieval-armed skeletons stood in some kind of court or personal guard for the beast that towered behind them. It was stooping to stand in the room, and was at a glance a bestial, yet bipedal hybrid of man and goat. "Why a goat?" Zone asked, as they charged in.

A whirling axe came flying out of the skeletal horde. Reiko deflected it off his staff and the demon bellowed. The vampire twisted aside from a sword swipe and slammed his weapon round into the attacker, breaking them apart. He flipped the staff over to block a mace lunging toward his spine.

"Die evil weight watchers!" Arson cheered, driving his swords through another skeleton's body. He pulled it apart like a pair of curtains, flexing the unnatural strength of his lineage. The goat demon turned its fiery eyes to him, and performed an intricate gesture with its great clawed hands. Black flames rose beneath the hybrid, and he agilely vaulted away as they singed his legs. He landed a bit roughly, and a blast shot past his shoulder to cut down an enemy near his flank. A flung bomb obliterated another skeleton drawing its arm back to hurl its weapon, and Arson smiled gratefully.

Together they had made fast work of the small fries. The goat demon roared furiously, abandoning complex magic in favour of brute force and charging. Reiko rushed to intercept, catching its claws with his staff. His lean frame buckled as undead strength fought demonic, the beast leaning down to try to bite his head off while snarling in a guttural language. "A-actually my... Mother was a fine woman!" Reiko grunted, and pivoted aside as it pulled back a claw, its swing gashing his shoulder.

Arson cannoned past the vampire close enough for their flanks to touch, dashing under the arm of the off-balance demon and rising into a back-flip that snapped its head back and body upright. He turned as he ascended, planting his feet on the ceiling and kicking away to launch at its upturned face. Bricks fell from the ceiling as it crashed down, Phoenix and Dragon driven through its horns.

"You're fired!" the hybrid announced, channelling his powers through the weapons. Funnels of flame burst from the demon's mouth and eyes. The creature bucked violently, then shuddered and started crumbling into ashes. Arson leapt clear and took a bow, Zone catcalling and wolf-whistling loudly. A taciturn Reiko merely rubbed his brow, and Crysis chuckled into a paw, going up to him.

"Heh. Um, does that mean we win?" the squirrel asked. Before Reiko could offer his postulations, the glowing symbols around the room blazed anew, erupting up into a cloud of tiny, flying wisps of fire. Zone slashed then reverse-slashed as he pulled back, each swing burning out a flame around his lightsabre, and Crysis took out half a dozen with bombs dropped in his wake. They took cover behind Reiko, who extinguished another dozen against the propeller of his spinning staff - the rest swarmed Arson. The fire-attuned hybrid laughed, trying to catch one as they struck him uselessly.

"I'm afraid not..." the vampire replied, as a spire of luminous blue rock erupted from the floor in the room's centre, changing the lighting. What can only be called evil cherubic statues detached from its surface, taking flight with a warped tittering. Arson, being the closest, spit-roasted one of them.

Reiko twirled his staff, letting Crysis and Zone grab an end each and then spinning it to fling them forwards. The rodents dived in, both leaping from foe to foe to clawing foe, giving bomb keepsakes or laser facial surgery to each. Those they didn't get began a chant that distorted the air, cracking stone wherever it was focused. Reiko slipped through the barrage to swat one down with his staff, slowly working through their number. That's when the giant floating skulls came through the walls.

"Timeout!" Arson yelled, bringing Dragon and Phoenix together in front of him to release a conical torrent of fire. He barbequed half a dozen in the front row, but one dropped through the ceiling and clamped over half his torso. The teen flailed, smacking it on the floor with exaggerated head-butts until Zone shot it off. Reiko broke the jaw of another he had caught mid-bite, but there were more.

Zone, Crysis, Arson and Reiko were variously slumped over or sitting down in the subterranean room of the castle ruins, catching their breaths. The chamber was still lit by the eerily luminous blue pillar.

"I don't wanna sound like I'm not having fun or anything. Cus I am" Zone said, sitting and panting. He swallowed and looked at Reiko. "But how come we didn't win after we beat the big one? I thought we were going after their leader and the Heart, but I haven't caught any sign of it so far" he asked openly.

The vampire glanced at him, standing but bracing himself slightly with his staff. His clothing and skin had acquired several cuts. "That wasn't the leader. It was more like... Their prizefighter" he answered.

"Why didn't you say that?" Zone said, trying not to sound petulant. Reiko shrugged a bit disarmedly.

"I didn't know until we were inside the room" he admitted. The rodent paused, and then nodded fairly.

"Maybe we had to beat it sometime then. Plus we're all alright" Arson chipped in, sat back against a wall, looking roughed up but wearing it quite well. "Right?" he added, brushing his hand along Crysis' back next to him. A giant skull had risen through the ground underneath the squirrel, who had barely leapt away before he was swallowed whole. It had been quite a shock, the rodent still shaking a little.

"Yeah, I-I'm okay" Crysis said, nodding a bit. "Heh, we've um, met quite a variety today, haven't we?" he remarked, being as brave as he could. Zone came over and scratched his ear, helping soothe him.

"We have, more than most days" Arson agreed, withdrawing his hand once Crysis nodded to say he was alright. "What next?" he asked Reiko. The vampire had gone over to inspect the strange column.

Examining it closely, he noticed small etchings on its surface. "There's a runic syntax... But not one I know" Reiko paused. "However..." he withdrew a sleek phone from a pocket, the others joining him.

"First a torch, now a smartphone" Zone observed. "Where did the Renaissance Reiko go?" he asked.

"Well..." the vampire said, straightening up fractionally. "I thought I should update, a bit. Keep true to my old values while embracing new methods. Kind of optimised, or revised, or..." he rubbed his chin.

"Revamped?" Zone suggested, innocently. Reiko sagged, and then glowered down at the hamster.

"How do you take all I do and bring it low in a word? You wield evil powers" he said. Zone beamed.

"Oh, you'll turn my head with flattery like that" he winked. Reiko growled and flicked the rodent on the ear, Zone wincing and snickering, but biting his tongue. The vampire looked back to his phone.

"I've found translations of the symbols, I think we can use them" he reported, reaching out to tap one. It flared briefly. "Yes, it's open at this end. I can take us to the source, but we might run into immediate opposition" he said. The others nodded. Reiko tapped two runes, the same one twice, and the first one again. A pool of blue light spilled across the floor, swiftly rising to envelope them.

Once the glow receded, the group blinked and looked around. They were in a bizarre underground grotto, filled by outlandish stone arches and pillars and bloody-looking flora. The flowers emitted a strange purple light. Several lesser goat demons, still larger than a man, were calmly grazing, but turned aggressive upon noticing them. Crysis turned to Zone, who rapidly chirruped the key facts: these were alive, but also truly, murderously evil. "Guess we ordered another course" he said.

"This is buffet!" Arson cried, dashing in to tackle three by himself. Reiko and the rodents engaged the others, a wild melee filling the garden. The goats proved respectable foes, quite challenging in numbers. Arson drew considerably on his power to fight them off, Reiko battled tactically, and the rodents played run and gun/bomb and gone. Gradually they started overcoming them, one by one.

Arson scored first blood with a blazing, vertical near-bisection. He threw his powers into blowing a hole through the middle of another, then overpowered a third one-on-one. Reiko went to execute a counter, a claw streaking strands of fire shredding his sleeve and scalding his flesh as he diverted it. His other arm hammered the opponent through a wall, which collapsed and crushed them, and Zone picked one off with precise, efficient blasts while Crysis bombed another into oblivion. Arson roasted one more with a liberal gout of his flame, panting quite heavily, and then there were none.

Collecting themselves, the group had maybe a quarter of a minute to catch their breaths before a pair of large wolves emerged from a dark tunnel at the rear, barking. "What are you yapping about now?!" a voice boomed, and an imposing form strode into the garden flanked by two more wolves.

"That's him" Reiko whispered as the figure beheld the ruined garden. It had a masculine voice and humanoid shape, stood 2 metres tall, and wore or had skin resembling a heavy, bone-like armour.

"This is absolutely typical. You don't splash out for a firewall on one measly, minor portal, you get backdoored and your site's vandalised. Who the Hell are you?" he demanded, his wolves growling.

"Anonymous, yourself? Also, what's with the goats?" Zone got in before anyone else could speak.

The demon bristled in umbrage. "For your information, I am a demon goatherd" he responded with indignity. There was a Mexican Wave of blinks. "Don't look at me that way, it's simple! Shepherds herd sheep, a goatherd herds goats. They're more intelligent and more aggressive" he elaborated.

"... That's silly" Zone said after a brief pause. The goatherd crossed his huge forearms disdainfully.

"This coming from a hamster with a lightsabre?" he snorted. Zone grasped for a reply, then flipped him off, plus Reiko for keeping such a perfectly straight face. "Goat influences-" the demon added.

"Talking stops, chapter's getting too long!" interrupted Arson, who said things like this sometimes.

The towering demon uncrossed his arms, summoning a heavy blade. His demonic wolves snarled and clawed as both sides faced off for the final showdown. Then Reiko took a small case from his pants pocket, extracted a vial of liquid from it, and hurled it at them. "Wait, holy water? A vampire with holy water?!" the demon spluttered, he and his beasts recoiling. They regrouped, but another vial exploded over them, and another. "This is so cheap! How many do you have!?" he roared.

"Ten in fact!" Reiko retorted, hurling yet more. Under his barrage, first the wolves, then finally their master evaporated, their spirits vanquished. Only a small dark gem remained, lying on the ground.

"That was... Anticlimactic. Still, bingo" Zone said, and went to examine it. Reiko shrugged mildly.

"I guess coming prepared is a bit dull, if practical" he admitted, pocketing the now-empty case he had spent a minor fortune filling with such pure holy water. Zone waved a paw, scanning the jewel.

"Nah I shouldn't complain" he replied, but then groaned. "Oh, after all that... Wrong Heart" he reported, sagging. "I can't tell what it is, but it's not one we're after. You want it?" he turned to ask.

"If we may. Studying it could offer a lead" Reiko came over to pick it up. There was a quiet pause.

"... Anyone else wanna go to the gift shop?" Arson asked. There were nods, and they headed out.