The night air was icy as Arthur stood on the street, looking down at the card the cultists had delivered.
It’d taken mere moments for Augustus to clarify that he’d seen another Imp. One that had dropped the message off and then not stuck around. That annoyed Arthur. He’d have rather it stuck around so that he could make some attempt at questioning it.
“Are you going to pick it up?” Nyssa sounded unsure as she stared at the crowd.
Arthur shrugged.
The birthday card wasn’t much to look at. It was something he would have seen back home. Though he couldn’t fathom why, they picked a card clearly designed for a little girl’s birthday party. From its position on the front of the card, a princess in a poofy dress smiled and waved at him.
However, it wasn’t the exterior of the card that made him hesitate to grab it. That came from the small, round lump in the middle.
“Are they trying to blow me up?” he wondered before shaking his head. “No. That wouldn’t make any sense. There would have to be easier ways.”
“Do you want me to get it?” Theobold asked.
For a moment, the urge to say yes tempted him. To step back and let someone else take the risk. After what Carina had done, he was well and truly done with bombs. But he couldn’t. It didn’t feel right.
“No. No, I’ve got it.”
He did his best to hide his shaking hands as he reached down and grabbed the card. It felt exactly like he expected it to, and so he flipped it open.
The burst of static almost made him drop it. Arthur cursed as both Nyssa and Theobold stepped back in alarm. Inside was nothing more than a small speaker. A device designed to play a simple pre-recorded message or happy birthday song.
His heart beating, he waited to see what they had to say. He didn’t need to wait long.
“Arthur. Welcome. We would like to invite you for lunch today to discuss our previous note. You shall meet with Richard Greenwine, CEO of Catfall Productions, and Dr. Lisa Morre, PHD, CEO of Genomian Incorporated. The imp arriving tomorrow will show you the way. Don’t fret; the place we designated is within walking distance.”
“Walking distance?” Arthur asked, more to himself than the others.
While it was true, he hadn’t gone out often; he knew he’d not seen any intact restaurants, or that many intact buildings at all. For a moment, he thought about meeting a group of business executives in robes sitting on a picnic blanket.
The chuckle he let out got him several strange looks.
“Sorry,” he said. “Theobold, did you see anything that could account for something like that?”
Even as he spoke, he watched Nyssa as she sat nearby. Upon hearing that the Genomian Inc. CEO would be there, she’d gone still. Not even her tail moved as she stared at the card in her hand. From the corner of his eye, he could see Dr. Muriler watching as well.
Theobold shook his head. “No.”
“Well, it’ll be a surprise for both of us.”
“You’re not going alone, right?”
To his surprise, that outburst came from Nyssa. She was still watching the card in his hand, as though it might bite him.
“I—” Arthur started, then stopped.
She was right; going alone would be beyond idiotic. Augustus squeaked and moved up to place a hand on his shoulder. When Arthur looked his way, he bared his teeth and hefted his piece of rebar.
“You want to go?”
Augustus squeaked again, before puffing out his chest and standing tall. Even without words, Arthur got the idea.
“Because you’re my chief of security?”
Another squeak from Augustus as Nyssa slowly nodded. “That would make sense. They’d respect that kind of power play.”
“Oh?”
At his look, she shrugged. “I was a painter, and Dad was wealthy thanks to his job. I met plenty of their type at parties and gallery openings. We didn’t speak much, but you can learn a lot about how people like that act.”
There was a slight smile on her face, and she continued. “Speaking of which. You’ll need a secretary. I believe I could fill that role perfectly.”
He tried not to think about her in business clothes as he nodded. “Should I try to get a suit?”
A gut instinct told him that turning up in his uniform may not be the best plan. It worked, and they were nicer than most of the clothes he’d seen people wearing so far.
However, they marked him as an employee. Someone whose entire purpose was to take orders.
He could imagine any CEO he met would notice it, too.
“It would be preferable. Do you have one?”
“No,” he admitted. “It’s a pity we can’t get in contact with Lady Pigeonette. She might have one from Riccardo’s stores.”
“Pity,” Nyssa agreed. “So, that’s me, you, and Augusts, with Theobold looking after the store?”
Arthur was about to nod in agreement when Dr. Muriler hissed from the doorway. When Nyssa turned to look at her father, the rat man shook his head and pointed inside.
“What do you mean you’re saying no?”
Dr. Muriler gave her a look that even his rat form didn’t change. It was an expression that read: Because I’m your father and I say so.
For a minute, he thought Nyssa was going to stamp her foot.
“So I can go?” Nyssa asked with a smile.
Dr. Muriler let out an angry grunt and glared at Arthur. That was all he needed to know about her father’s opinion on the matter.
“It might be dangerous?” he hedged, trying to think of a reason to say no.
Nyssa glared at him. “I’m going. He needs someone to help him with the social elements.”
Arthur wanted to disagree, but couldn’t. If she was right about having been to parties like this, she would know more than he would. The closest he’d ever gotten was watching them on TV.
Dr. Muriler stayed silent for a moment before he squeaked at Augustus. In return, the larger rat mutated, saluted, and squeaked back.
With a smile, Arthur clapped his hands.
“Right, that’s sorted, then. Theobold?”
“Look after the store.”
“Great. I’m going to bed. Good night.”
***
The Imp arrived an hour before midday.
Arthur almost breathed a sigh of relief as he saw the demonic shape. It was small and blue, a striking difference from the traditional red of their last messenger. He watched as it hovered in the air, spiked teeth showing in its overly wide grin.
Behind it, six slim tails cracked like whips as the tiny bat wings flapped to keep it aloft. The creature waved at him.
“You two ready to go?” Arthur asked Nyssa and Augustus.
Both nodded. He was glad for that, having spent his morning using the boxes to clean himself up and try to make himself presentable. Even his cane had gone through the act of being cleaned.
He knew professional wouldn’t be a word used to describe him by most, however, he still felt like he’d put his best foot forward. A part of him hoped he could strike a deal with them as easily as he’d done it with Lady Pigeonette.
While there was no doubt in his mind that the chance of them giving him things for free was zero, that didn’t stop him from hoping. Perhaps they would have magical reagents that would kill the Slagsouls?
As he watched the demon bob in the air, he got a crazy idea.
“What if they hired those out?”
It would be a money sink, for sure. However, if they could send potentially disposable demons to scout the tunnels, he’d lose fewer customers. That might even things out to some extent.
Arthur couldn’t help but smile as he approached the imp.
That smile died as soon as he got close to it. The creature’s mouth didn’t so much as twitch. Which made the voices he heard from it all the worse.
At first, it was little more than random gibberish. Background sounds that his brain refused to register as actual words. Then he took another step, and the noise turned into something recognizable.
“Failure.”
“Lackey.”
“Wannbe.”
“Slave.”
From the way Augustus and Nyssa paused, it appeared to him; they were hearing something as well. The imp’s grin grew before it turned and flew up the street. To his relief, the words became indistinct once more when it got further ahead.
He turned to Nyssa, who was clenching her fists together. “Do you still want to come?”
One resolute nod later, and they followed the flying imp. The note hadn’t been lying when it said the chosen destination was within walking distance. However, it wasn’t exactly the truth, either.
Twenty minutes later, they followed the flying creatures. Every so often, an obstacle such as bits of rubble or large potholes forced them to detour onto the road. He was glad there wasn’t any traffic or people. The imp kept a brisk pace, and Arthur hoped no one would notice him sweating.
Neither Nyssa nor Augustus showed any signs of discomfort at the pace, and so they stayed quiet. Though he had to fight to keep the relief off his face when the imp finally stopped.
What they stood in front of blew away all his expectations.
“Arthur,” Nyssa said quietly as she looked at the building. “This, I remember this building. I’ve eaten here with my father.”
“Oh,” was all he could think to say as he stared at the sight of the fully intact restaurant.
There wasn’t a single crack or blemish. The tinted windows stopped him from seeing if the inside of the restaurant was in the same condition. Though the slight gap from the open door allowed him to hear the music that drifted out.
It sounded as though they had a full orchestra crammed inside.
Before he could figure out what he wanted to comment on first, the door opened and a woman stepped out. She tied her blonde hair into a professional-looking bun. Her black blouse and pencil skirt that wouldn’t have been out of place back home.
She smiled, her purple-painted lips never parting even an inch.
“Arthur,” she said, her tone professional and somewhat dismissive. “You’ve arrived. Would you care to join us?”
Without another word, she stepped backward and held out the door, gesturing for him to enter.
***
The inside of the building was as pristine as the outside.
Each of the tables dotted about the room bore white tablecloths that draped to the floor. Cutlery and plates sat on them as though they were expecting a large group of people.
Overhead, dim electric lamps hung, giving the entire area a more intimate feeling.
As his eyes drifted towards the stage, he stopped in shock, and it took a push from Augustus to get him moving again.
There was no orchestra on that stage. Nor what he would call a demon. No, what stood there was a monstrosity. A creature of nightmares that shouldn’t exist in any sane reality. The entire thing looked like a sculptor went mad and decided to work with bricks of wrinkled flesh.
Two of the bricks acted as stumpy legs, quivering as they held up a rectangular body.
Circles filled with teeth covered each end of the body. As he watched them, he found himself mesmerised by the awful display. They twitched and shuddered as they opened and closed in time with the music.
In the middle of the rectangle sat a single human eye, blinking and staring at him. Red veins snaked their way to the solid black iris in the eye’s center.
Arthur hated it with a passion.
It took a gentle cough from the blonde woman, and another push from Augustus to get him moving again. With effort, he pulled his gaze away from the boombox demon and looked to where he was being led.
Two people sat there, both in suits. One was a man, the other a woman. The man looked like the typical CEO type Arthur had seen on TV. Caucasian, short brown hair, fit like someone who frequented the gym.
His suit, as black as his hair, fit him well, as though he’d gotten it professionally tailored.
Next to him was a woman who shared little with her companion, aside from a well-fitting black suit. Her hair was bright blue and loose. Her glasses were old-fashioned and magnified her green eyes in strange ways. She also wore a dirty lab coat over her seat.
Arthur got the impression she didn’t want to be there.
“Ahh, you’ve arrived. Welcome.” The man said in a rich voice. “Thank you, Sandy. That will be all.”
“As you say, Mr. Greenwine.”
Sandy continued walking until she stood behind his chair, and to his surprise, she dug into her purse and pulled out a small tablet computer. She flipped it open and browsed.
“I’m Richard,” the man said. “Please, have a seat. Who are your companions?”
He moved to grab a chair as he answered. “This is my secretary, Nyssa, and my chief of security, Augustus.”
At the mention of Nyssa’s name, Sandy looked up and smirked. Her eyes travelled over Nyssa’s old clothes. To his surprise, Nyssa glared right back. He wondered if bringing her was a good idea.
“Excellent.” Richard nodded. “You may have them wait over there.”
With one hand, he gestured towards a corner where two cheap plastic seats sat, ready and waiting. As Arthur looked over, he felt a strange sensation run up his spine. For a moment, he thought he saw a shimmer, like a haze, in the air.
Nyssa’s tail thwacked into his leg hard enough that it almost hurt.
Beside her, Augustus gave a squeak and hissed at the corner. As Arthur shifted in his seat, he could see that Nyssa looked as though she was about to do the same. Though her gaze kept flicking back to the smug-looking Sandy.
“Is something over there?” he asked.
“Hmm?” the woman said, before she shrugged. “You can keep them with you if you’d like. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Dr. Lisa Morre. Can I study your mutants when we finish this meeting? The work on them is exquisite.”
Her strange question dragged his focus back to the meeting.
“I’m sorry?” He said.
Richard shot her an unamused glance at the same moment, and there was an edge in his voice. “Lisa.”
“Oh, please, Richard.” Lisa raised a hand. “They are valuable specimens. Besides, if he takes the deal, it’s not like adding my request would exactly be an inconvenience.”
“Sorry. Deal? I thought your original message spoke about joining a group?”
“Ahh, yes.” Richard chuckled as he pulled up a briefcase and placed it on the table. “That is something we would like to discuss. However, we’ve been rude. This is a business lunch, so we should eat before we discuss today’s dealings. Sandy?”
“Yes, Mr. Greenwine.”
Arthur could almost feel Nyssa tense as the secretary approached the table. However, she did little more than open the briefcase. Then she started pulling plates of steaming, and clearly fresh, food from it.
With deft movements, she placed the dishes around the table and stepped back.
Arthur met Richard’s gaze, not even bothering to hide his shock. From her position beside the other man, Dr. Lisa looked almost bored with the display.
“Well, Arthur.” Richard gestured to the plates. “Shall we eat?”200Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDioafOfMK8
