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This is the long-over-due second part of The Sinister Camarilla. To read the
horribly written first episode, in Issue 108, please go to http://www.neopets.com/newnt/index.phtml?section=13403&week=108.
Ph33r the lack of goodness. ^_~
“Look, boss, why don’t we just call it a day? Loco looks
tired…” Speire suggested, and he glanced sadly at the electric Mynci. The authorities
had let the group out of the Neopian Jail, granted they keep the Meridell Dump
as tidy as possible.
“Loco is fine,” said King Pin, his grip
tightening around an apple core. “We need food, don’t we, guys? You can starve
for all I care, but you’re finding food for me,” he snarled. The shadow-scaled
Krawk rummaged through the garbage. “Are you LISTENING TO ME?” he shouted fiercely,
beady eyes bulging from his skull. “WE NEED GRUB! Speire, Sparx, Loco, Taupé,
MARISHIO, GET TO WORK!”
Without giving him time to draw his Cloud Rod,
the members of the Sinister Camarilla dove into the garbage heap, the disgusting,
slimy trash filling their nostrils with an almost venomous stench.
“Oh, Coltzan, save us…” muttered Sparx, her
elegant skunk coat covered with mouldy gravy. Hay stuck to the brown goop like
glue. “Uggh…”
King Pin stuck to the rim of the pile. He picked
out some old croutons and a squished tomato and dropped them into a bowl that
had been stolen from Princess Fernypoo’s mansion. His Owner had given it to
him before the Flame Riders split apart and the Human had been exiled from the
land Neopia. King Pin blinked back tears as he thought of the good old days:
his Owner on his back, the rest of the gang soaring behind them, heading towards
Sakhmet palace… But the Neopets Team themselves, armed with asparagus blades,
had met them there and taken all the Owners. They had never been seen again.
The rest of the Pets disappeared as well, in the clutches of justice and all
that was good. But King Pin had escaped.
The Neopet had flown directly to the Dank Cave
with a Krawk Morphing Potion—which K.P.’s Owner had stolen and given to him—
after Owner was gone. He’d undergone one heck of a transformation: from a flame-licked
Eyrie to a shadow Krawk. Even he did not comprehend why he was completely ebony,
as he hadn’t been painted shadow, and Krawks weren’t even allowed to
be shadow. But then again, King Pin relished in breaking rules. Having changed
species, he was not forced to go into hiding. Then was the matter of changing
his name. FireDemon was a little conspicuous as news of his escape had traveled
all over Neopia like wildfire. So he changed it to Pinto. Living in Krawk Island
was great fun, but Pinto’s heart longed to soar back to Sakhmet, and to take
from under the nose of Princess Sankara her Scarab Amulet.
And that’s why he had risen to the occasion
when a very good-- although quite dizzy from drinking grog at the Golden Dubloon—
friend had let slip that there was to be a huge gathering of all of Neopia’s
thieves and villains the next month in the Haunted House…
“You okay, boss?”
King Pin started as the nasal voice of Marishio
tore through his memories. He bent down as if looking at a particularly nasty
puddle of mud to hide the tears running down his cheeks. “What do you THINK,
fur-brain? Get scavenging!”
Marishio weakly lifted the large amount of grotesque
food scraps in his arms. “We’ve been digging in there for hours, boss.”
“Ah. Of course. Lazy, good-for-nothing…” King
Pin muttered, brushing of his scaly behind.
***
The sun crept towards the horizon, casting eerie shadows across the dirt floor.
The sky was painted with pastel pinks and exuberant oranges. Taupé sighed as
he lay back on the ground. His black pelt quite resembled a burnished piano
in the fading sunlight, and the flames that licked his limbs were vivid against
the charcoal of his fur.
His blazing coat reminded King Pin oh-so much
of the Flame Riders… He beckoned Taupé to his side.
“Taupé,” he began soberly, eyes illuminated
by the rising moonlight. “You bring back memories of the old, reliable group.
You’re a fighter. I can see it in you.” Taupé inclined his head, a fierce glint
in his eye. “You’re merciless. I want you to come with me. We’ll leave the others
here: they’re a useless bunch of wannabes. Come with me, Taupé. Come with me
to Sakhmet; homeland of the thieves.”
This was more than Taupé could ever wish for.
***
King Pin— who had now decided to take back his chosen name, Pinto— and Taupé
left in the early hours of the night. They went on silent paws to Illusen’s
Glade.
“Oh, for goodness sake, it’s two a.m.! You must
be out of your mind to want a quest at this hour!” Illusen came groggily storming
from her bedroom, face smothered in some sort of icky, avocado-like substance.
Pinto gaped at her.
“There’s a Slorg attacking your face!” he hollered,
visage twisted in a grimace. The Faerie shrieked and batted at her nose, and
glared daggers at the Krawk as realization of her mistake set in.
“For your information, that is my facial cleansing
mask. Good day— er, night.” And with that, she slammed the door in their faces.
“Why, exactly, did you want to see her?” asked
Taupé coolly.
“She would have been able to fly us to Sakhmet,”
replied Pinto, without further explanation. Taupé made a muffled snorting sound,
which was ignored by Pinto.
“How would she be able to fly us to Sakhmet?”
exclaimed Taupé, carelessly raising his voice.
“Shut your yapper!” hissed Pinto. “She’s a rich
little faerie. She’d give up a morphing potion like that,”— he snapped his claws—
“but never mind.”
Taupé rolled his eyes.
“Oh, and how would you make her do that?”
Pinto snarled and towered over him menacingly.
“You forget, kid, that I have a history.”
Taupé glared him right in the eyes and twitched
his nose. “A’ight.”
“And don’t ever question my decisions again,
if you know what’s good for you.”
***
“I miss being a Gelert,” muttered Taupé miserably as he trimmed his wings
and began a descent towards Krawk Island. Pinto ignored him and plucked an emerald
feather from his haunches. Taupé hissed and snapped his beak.
“You look almost like I used to, you know,”
said Pinto reflectively.
“Yeah. Great…” replied Taupé through gritted
teeth.
They hit the soft earth with a jolt, and Pinto
fervently hopped off. He immediately started for the Golden Dubloon, leaving
Taupé to settle into his new Eyrie body.
Pushing open the wooden double-doors, he strutted
in as if he owned the place, and took a seat at a bar stool beside a pirate
Techo. He looked sort of dazed, with a foolish grin plastered on his ugly mug.
“Pinto? Ish ‘dat you’z?” he asked, slurring
his words horribly.
“Yeah, Buck. It’s me, alright.”
Buck gave him a hefty pat on the back, sending
him into the counter. He regained his composure and continued.
“I need to talk to the Sea Thieves, Buck.”
Buck sputtered into his keg of grog. “You need
to talk to WHO?”
“The Sea Thieves,” repeated Pinto calmly.
Buck gaped at him.
“I ‘onno if yeh’ want ter’ do that…”
End of Episode Two
Author's Note: Don't kill me if you don't see another installment for a
long time-- but I'll do my best. *salutes* Thanks so, so much for reading. ^____^
It means the world to me.
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