Chapter 9 part 3
I think he expected us to gasp in horror, or applaud him (though how we could do so tied up was beyond me), or something like that. Instead, Xen asked incredulously, "What?", Calla inquired, "Do they not exist?", and I said, "Dude, you are even crazier than Colin Newman."
(Colin Newman: our fourteenth president, and an alchemist. Was in charge at the same time as Abraham Lincoln was for the humans, though lasted a great deal longer than he. Nearly impeached in 1865 for trying to create zombies using the corpses of Civil War soldiers. Though in the name of science, his actions were voted to be unethical, as people thought it best to let the dead rest in peace. His wife finally persuaded him that what he was doing was a really bad idea. That, combined with the fact that his experiments nearly resulted in two of his children being electrocuted to death, caused him to suffer a nervous breakdown, and retire before he could begin his second term. Also passed two bills before leaving the presidency: one making necromancy illegal, the other allowing any monsters to do experiments with science and magic, as long as they were not harmful to other creatures. All in all, not a bad guy, but maybe too obsessed with dabbling in the secrets of life and death. Has his face on our five-dollar bill and penny.)
Fleming flushed with anger at my slight to his sanity.
"Newman was a coward and a failure! He didn't have the courage to press on with his work! I, however, shall succeed where he failed! For I have actually discovered the secret of instilling life in a dead man, and creating a vampire!"
Like any really psycho villain, Fleming could not resist the opportunity to tell us his evil plan, and how he had come to think of it, in complete graphic detail. Despite the precariousness of the situation, I found myself rolling my eyes. He continued, "It is fitting that you should mention him, actually. About a year ago, I was visiting his old house, and by chance, wound up in the attic. It was there, amongst the exhibits, that I discovered the original spell he had been using to try and give his creations life!"
He reached behind the altar, and withdrew a large, glowing ball of light. It was definitely magic, but it was the sorriest piece of magic I'd ever seen; a sickly shade of green, going black and white in some places, and barely with any glow to it at all.
"You'd think he'd want to reabsorb the energy he'd emitted doing that," I murmured.
"No," called Xen, "He didn't want that back in his body, he felt so guilty about what he'd done. It was part of the reason why it took him so long to recover from his breakdown."
"Huh. Wonder why he never destroyed it, then. And nobody noticed that you'd taken it?"
"Nobody. I used many concealment spells; you may have realized my great skill with them, Wormwood."
"Yeah, I did. But wasn't Newman trying to create zombies? Won't that mess with your idea?"
"Not at all! I'm going to adjust it to accommodate with my desires!"
It seemed like this guy had an answer for everything. He was still in a talking mood, which also seemed to be stalling him from his goal, so I finally asked the big question that had been gnawing at me: "Why, Fleming? What are you trying to prove?"
"Haven't you realized, Wormwood?" Fleming stared at me, his eyes protruding even more than usual. "I'm doing this for the benefit of monster kind! After this, we won't have to hide anymore, because the world will be populated by nothing but monsters!"
"Oh?" I glanced over at my comrades, who looked as shocked as I was. Even without looking in Calla's eyes, I could read her thoughts: this guy was a loony.
"Yes! When my vampire comes alive, he will feel a raging thirst for blood, and will go out into the world, drinking that of any human he sees; either they will die, or they will become vampires like himself. Then they will make more of their kind, and more, until soon, the entire world will be covered with vampires! Don't you see?" he pleaded (yes, that was the right word for it, oddly enough), "We won't need to hide! No more concealing ourselves from humans, because there will be no humans left! We shall be free!"
"Except for me, Xen, Calla, and these other nice people you're holding prisoner," I pointed out.
"Well, yes. In fact, because this spell is going to drain your life force to contribute to the creation of the vampire, it will undoubtedly kill you. But your cooperation will be duly noted, after I become supreme ruler of the world!"
Showing posts with label Fleming's plan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fleming's plan. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
TANSTAV part 31
Chapter 9 part 2
I wasn't sure whether or not to be glad there was no one else around. Because on the one hand, it meant we were going into the lion's den unprotected, and nobody would know where we were; on the other hand, if there was anyone who happened to see us, and Fleming noticed, he would probably kill or capture them, too. So maybe it was for the best.
We were taken at gunpoint into his house (it looked like any other house on the street, except for the fact that it had two lightning rods instead of one-odd), and then had to stand against the wall in the hallway while Jessup tied our hands behind us, with enchanted unbreakable ropes. I hated feeling so helpless; it reminded me too much of back when I had been living with my parents, and at my father's mercy, so to speak. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why hadn't I looked for the possibility of a trap?!
It's because you're too impulsive, Tristan, the nagging voice at the back of my head said. You need to learn to use your head for something other than to hold up your ears!
Shut up, I told it. This isn't helping.
Well, what do you want me to say?
I don't want you to say anything. Didn't you hear me just tell you to shut up?
At that moment, Jessup shoved me in the back with the gun, ending (temporarily) my internal conversation. Must have been very frustrating for him, having me within his grasp, and unable to do what he wanted to me, merely acting under the orders of a crazed mage. That is, if he was even aware of anything that was happening. You never can tell with hypnotized people.
The five of us left the hall, and entered the living room-only the living room was gone. The furniture had all been moved out, and the place was basically bare, except for what looked like a sacrificial altar in the center of the room, surrounded by five cages. Inside two of the cages were the senator, and the Fonin! Both of them looked the worse for wear; they had lost weight, and were distinctly shabby. They stood at the bars of their cages, staring woefully out at us. Two other cages contained a Ghul, and some small, strange, dark creatures of the phylum Annelida inside a glass container full of water. The fifth cage was empty. Something about their positioning made me wonder...I looked down, and saw that the cages were set at each of the points of a colossal star drawn by chalk, inside of a giant circle.
You have got to be kidding, I thought. This guy is using a pentacle!
(In magical jargon, a pentacle is a symbol of a star inside a circle, and apparently has magic properties. Can be used for summoning things, among other dark rituals. Very commonly used during the Renaissance and medieval ages. There has been some doubt as to their effectiveness, as they are very unwieldy objects.)
Fleming gestured to Jessup, who began leading Xen and Calla over to a wall by the side of the pentacle. Thinking maybe he'd forgotten me, I began to follow.
"Not you, Wormwood," said Fleming. "You come over here." He gestured to the fifth cage.
"What? Why me?"
"Why did you think I tried to kidnap your girlfriend?" he asked disdainfully.
"Uh, technically, she's not my girlfriend, and I assumed it was for whatever you were doing to the others," I replied. I was beginning to see where this was going.
Ignoring me, he continued, "It was to get to you. I needed you to complete this experiment, and knew you would do anything to keep her safe."
"Why couldn't you just use Xen?" I asked, staying where I was.
Looking impatient and annoyed, Fleming gestured to the cage imperiously with the splatter gun.
"I wasn't going to use her dirty half-breed blood! I need a full gargoyle, and you were the closest one available! Now get in the cage BEFORE I HAVE JESSUP BLOW HER AND THE GIRL'S BRAINS OUT!!!!"
I gritted my fangs at the slight to Xen's heritage, but I slowly went to the cage, stumbling a little on my way.
Once inside the cage (which he neglected to lock, probably because I was bound), I asked, "Before you do-whatever it is, can I ask what you are planning to do to us?"
Fleming grinned wickedly, taking the opportunity to rub his wounded side.
"You, my dear Wormwood, are going to be the final piece in this great revolution of mine. I now have the strength of a troll, the shapeshifting powers of a Fonin, the fangs and tracking ability of a Ghul, the near-impenetrable skin of a gargoyle, and the bloodthirstiness of leeches!"
"What about Jessup?" I asked, gesturing over to him with my head. He was still guarding the girls, his face still blank. You know, without his sardonic grin, he was a bit nicer-looking.
"The demon? I need his body."
I raised my eyebrow.
"Does that sound as disturbing to you two as it does to me?" I asked the girls. Xen nodded, while Calla just stood there, looking frightened.
Fleming glared at me.
"He is going to be the host."
"For what?"
"Using all six of you," he said, gesturing to my fellow prisoners and the demon, "I am going to create," his voice rose to an incredible pitch in his excitement, "A VAMPIRE!"
I wasn't sure whether or not to be glad there was no one else around. Because on the one hand, it meant we were going into the lion's den unprotected, and nobody would know where we were; on the other hand, if there was anyone who happened to see us, and Fleming noticed, he would probably kill or capture them, too. So maybe it was for the best.
We were taken at gunpoint into his house (it looked like any other house on the street, except for the fact that it had two lightning rods instead of one-odd), and then had to stand against the wall in the hallway while Jessup tied our hands behind us, with enchanted unbreakable ropes. I hated feeling so helpless; it reminded me too much of back when I had been living with my parents, and at my father's mercy, so to speak. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why hadn't I looked for the possibility of a trap?!
It's because you're too impulsive, Tristan, the nagging voice at the back of my head said. You need to learn to use your head for something other than to hold up your ears!
Shut up, I told it. This isn't helping.
Well, what do you want me to say?
I don't want you to say anything. Didn't you hear me just tell you to shut up?
At that moment, Jessup shoved me in the back with the gun, ending (temporarily) my internal conversation. Must have been very frustrating for him, having me within his grasp, and unable to do what he wanted to me, merely acting under the orders of a crazed mage. That is, if he was even aware of anything that was happening. You never can tell with hypnotized people.
The five of us left the hall, and entered the living room-only the living room was gone. The furniture had all been moved out, and the place was basically bare, except for what looked like a sacrificial altar in the center of the room, surrounded by five cages. Inside two of the cages were the senator, and the Fonin! Both of them looked the worse for wear; they had lost weight, and were distinctly shabby. They stood at the bars of their cages, staring woefully out at us. Two other cages contained a Ghul, and some small, strange, dark creatures of the phylum Annelida inside a glass container full of water. The fifth cage was empty. Something about their positioning made me wonder...I looked down, and saw that the cages were set at each of the points of a colossal star drawn by chalk, inside of a giant circle.
You have got to be kidding, I thought. This guy is using a pentacle!
(In magical jargon, a pentacle is a symbol of a star inside a circle, and apparently has magic properties. Can be used for summoning things, among other dark rituals. Very commonly used during the Renaissance and medieval ages. There has been some doubt as to their effectiveness, as they are very unwieldy objects.)
Fleming gestured to Jessup, who began leading Xen and Calla over to a wall by the side of the pentacle. Thinking maybe he'd forgotten me, I began to follow.
"Not you, Wormwood," said Fleming. "You come over here." He gestured to the fifth cage.
"What? Why me?"
"Why did you think I tried to kidnap your girlfriend?" he asked disdainfully.
"Uh, technically, she's not my girlfriend, and I assumed it was for whatever you were doing to the others," I replied. I was beginning to see where this was going.
Ignoring me, he continued, "It was to get to you. I needed you to complete this experiment, and knew you would do anything to keep her safe."
"Why couldn't you just use Xen?" I asked, staying where I was.
Looking impatient and annoyed, Fleming gestured to the cage imperiously with the splatter gun.
"I wasn't going to use her dirty half-breed blood! I need a full gargoyle, and you were the closest one available! Now get in the cage BEFORE I HAVE JESSUP BLOW HER AND THE GIRL'S BRAINS OUT!!!!"
I gritted my fangs at the slight to Xen's heritage, but I slowly went to the cage, stumbling a little on my way.
Once inside the cage (which he neglected to lock, probably because I was bound), I asked, "Before you do-whatever it is, can I ask what you are planning to do to us?"
Fleming grinned wickedly, taking the opportunity to rub his wounded side.
"You, my dear Wormwood, are going to be the final piece in this great revolution of mine. I now have the strength of a troll, the shapeshifting powers of a Fonin, the fangs and tracking ability of a Ghul, the near-impenetrable skin of a gargoyle, and the bloodthirstiness of leeches!"
"What about Jessup?" I asked, gesturing over to him with my head. He was still guarding the girls, his face still blank. You know, without his sardonic grin, he was a bit nicer-looking.
"The demon? I need his body."
I raised my eyebrow.
"Does that sound as disturbing to you two as it does to me?" I asked the girls. Xen nodded, while Calla just stood there, looking frightened.
Fleming glared at me.
"He is going to be the host."
"For what?"
"Using all six of you," he said, gesturing to my fellow prisoners and the demon, "I am going to create," his voice rose to an incredible pitch in his excitement, "A VAMPIRE!"
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
TANSTAV part 30
Chapter Nine
In which we discover the horrible truth, and then I die
Calla showed Xen next; then we all looked at each other.
"I didn't see this coming," I finally said. "Did you?"
Both girls shook their heads. Though, as I thought about it, it began to make more sense. I remembered that when I had been on the Skald property, I had caught a familiar scent in the air, before Jessup’s footprints distracted me. It was only now that I recalled whose smell it had been: Fleming’s (yes, it was Fleming. I congratulate you if you were able to successfully guess that it was him). There was only one logical explanation for why he had been at the crime scene just as it was being committed, and I was staring it in the face.
“So,” asked Calla, “what do we do now?”
“We confront him,” I replied. “We’re not the official police, but we can still capture him and bring him in.”
"Okay."
However, for several moments, we just sat there in silence. We were all a little...hesitant to make the first move. Not that we were scared or anything. It was just that actually confronting this guy made us a tad nervous. In the end, I was the first to get up. And, leaving the evidence there, we exited the forensics room, and went out into the main lobby.
I saw Morty sitting at his desk, typing on his computer, bobbing his head in time with whatever music was playing through his iPod.
"Hi, Tristan," he said, looking up.
"Hey. How're things going?"
"Not too bad. Only a minimal amount of killings, thefts, etc. this week. Xen, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, thanks.”
“Good. How's your missing person investigation going, Tristan?”
"I might have a lead. I just need to get help from-" I glanced around the station. "Where's Fleming?"
"He hasn't been in. Apparently he got in an accident of some kind, had to stay home."
I and Xen both tried not to snort. Oh, he’d gotten in an accident, all right. If you called being stabbed with a palette knife by a young woman trying to defend herself against you an accident.
Unconcerned, and apparently not even curious as to why we wanted Fleming, the Reaper began playing solitaire on the computer.
“Thanks,” I said as we went away. He grunted slightly.
Fleming lived on the southeast side of Styxburg, at 666 Shelley Avenue. It would be easiest to get there by flying, but there was the problem of Calla, who couldn't fly, and also that there seemed to be a storm coming; to fly in that kind of weather would be potentially suicidal. So we took the bus. It was a rather long drive, which gave me time to think that maybe we should have gotten police backup, since this guy was obviously dangerous. Well, Morty knew where we were going...then I remembered that he had been playing solitaire. Once he got absorbed in a card game, he had a tendency to temporarily forget anything that had been said to him in the last twenty minutes. It was a bad habit that Ishida had talked to him about several times, and that might have gotten him kicked out of the police force if he weren't so good at what he did. No, we couldn't expect any help from him.
We got off the bus about a block down the street from our destination, just to be safe. Then I pulled out my phone, and made a quick call. I didn't have long to wait.
"Wormwood, what is it?" asked Ishida grumpily.
"I'm pretty sure I'm about to capture a dangerous criminal who has kidnapped at least two people."
"What?! WHO?!" I heard whooshing noises through the receiver that sounded a lot like two flames spurting from the nostrils of an alarmed police chief.
"Well, you're not going to believe this, but it's-"
My phone flew out of my hand, and smashed itself to pieces on the sidewalk. Dang, that was the second one that had been destroyed on the job! I looked at the others in alarm, when my attention was all at once drawn to a small man who had appeared just in front of us, his arm and shoulder wrapped in bandages, but with a splatter gun in his good hand, pointed at me (Note: a splatter gun is a very nasty weapon invented during our version of the Cold War, designed to produce whatever amount of bullets the shooter wants to hit his [just for argument's sake, let's say it's a him] target[s], and upon impact, does a small explosion from inside the body, causing a very nasty, grisly death if the target is alive. The splatter bullets are able to pierce even gargoyle hide, making them particularly dangerous).
"I presume you know what this is, and what it does," sneered Fleming, in a voice that was very different from his typical whiny, prissy tones. "So I hope none of you will try to be a hero. Even if you had such thoughts, my, shall we say, operative is here as well." He gestured with the gun; we turned to see Jessup, eyes glazed, standing behind us, also wielding a splatter gun.
"Unfortunately, my hypnotism is only effective on demons. So I am forced to deal with you in this unsophisticated manner. Please come with us (as if we had any choice). You are just in time to witness my glory!"
In which we discover the horrible truth, and then I die
Calla showed Xen next; then we all looked at each other.
"I didn't see this coming," I finally said. "Did you?"
Both girls shook their heads. Though, as I thought about it, it began to make more sense. I remembered that when I had been on the Skald property, I had caught a familiar scent in the air, before Jessup’s footprints distracted me. It was only now that I recalled whose smell it had been: Fleming’s (yes, it was Fleming. I congratulate you if you were able to successfully guess that it was him). There was only one logical explanation for why he had been at the crime scene just as it was being committed, and I was staring it in the face.
“So,” asked Calla, “what do we do now?”
“We confront him,” I replied. “We’re not the official police, but we can still capture him and bring him in.”
"Okay."
However, for several moments, we just sat there in silence. We were all a little...hesitant to make the first move. Not that we were scared or anything. It was just that actually confronting this guy made us a tad nervous. In the end, I was the first to get up. And, leaving the evidence there, we exited the forensics room, and went out into the main lobby.
I saw Morty sitting at his desk, typing on his computer, bobbing his head in time with whatever music was playing through his iPod.
"Hi, Tristan," he said, looking up.
"Hey. How're things going?"
"Not too bad. Only a minimal amount of killings, thefts, etc. this week. Xen, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, thanks.”
“Good. How's your missing person investigation going, Tristan?”
"I might have a lead. I just need to get help from-" I glanced around the station. "Where's Fleming?"
"He hasn't been in. Apparently he got in an accident of some kind, had to stay home."
I and Xen both tried not to snort. Oh, he’d gotten in an accident, all right. If you called being stabbed with a palette knife by a young woman trying to defend herself against you an accident.
Unconcerned, and apparently not even curious as to why we wanted Fleming, the Reaper began playing solitaire on the computer.
“Thanks,” I said as we went away. He grunted slightly.
Fleming lived on the southeast side of Styxburg, at 666 Shelley Avenue. It would be easiest to get there by flying, but there was the problem of Calla, who couldn't fly, and also that there seemed to be a storm coming; to fly in that kind of weather would be potentially suicidal. So we took the bus. It was a rather long drive, which gave me time to think that maybe we should have gotten police backup, since this guy was obviously dangerous. Well, Morty knew where we were going...then I remembered that he had been playing solitaire. Once he got absorbed in a card game, he had a tendency to temporarily forget anything that had been said to him in the last twenty minutes. It was a bad habit that Ishida had talked to him about several times, and that might have gotten him kicked out of the police force if he weren't so good at what he did. No, we couldn't expect any help from him.
We got off the bus about a block down the street from our destination, just to be safe. Then I pulled out my phone, and made a quick call. I didn't have long to wait.
"Wormwood, what is it?" asked Ishida grumpily.
"I'm pretty sure I'm about to capture a dangerous criminal who has kidnapped at least two people."
"What?! WHO?!" I heard whooshing noises through the receiver that sounded a lot like two flames spurting from the nostrils of an alarmed police chief.
"Well, you're not going to believe this, but it's-"
My phone flew out of my hand, and smashed itself to pieces on the sidewalk. Dang, that was the second one that had been destroyed on the job! I looked at the others in alarm, when my attention was all at once drawn to a small man who had appeared just in front of us, his arm and shoulder wrapped in bandages, but with a splatter gun in his good hand, pointed at me (Note: a splatter gun is a very nasty weapon invented during our version of the Cold War, designed to produce whatever amount of bullets the shooter wants to hit his [just for argument's sake, let's say it's a him] target[s], and upon impact, does a small explosion from inside the body, causing a very nasty, grisly death if the target is alive. The splatter bullets are able to pierce even gargoyle hide, making them particularly dangerous).
"I presume you know what this is, and what it does," sneered Fleming, in a voice that was very different from his typical whiny, prissy tones. "So I hope none of you will try to be a hero. Even if you had such thoughts, my, shall we say, operative is here as well." He gestured with the gun; we turned to see Jessup, eyes glazed, standing behind us, also wielding a splatter gun.
"Unfortunately, my hypnotism is only effective on demons. So I am forced to deal with you in this unsophisticated manner. Please come with us (as if we had any choice). You are just in time to witness my glory!"
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