Neglect's Revenge: Part Three

      Vendette was speechless; now he could be painted Darigan. "So that means that if I chose to be painted Darigan, I could be?"

      Edna smiled, "Yes, and I know the curse, too. You will be marked somewhere on your face. Now the shape and placement is your choice, but it will appear a bright blue to contrast the dark purple hues of Darigan. What do you choose?"

      Vendette thought about that and knew just what to get, "I choose a letter 'D' almost similar to the 'D' that my owner used to make. I can show it to you as well."

      Edna smiled and handed Vendette a piece of paper and a pencil. "That's even better, I can throw this in the pot. And where do you want your scar?"

      Vendette drew the picture and replied, "Over my left eye, so that anybody looking at it sees the letter 'D' and knows my fate."

      Edna shrugged as she mixed the ingredients together, "Very well, it's ready."

      Vendette took a deep breath, "Well, here goes everything."

      The air above the pot was immediately filled with huge columns of purple smoke. Almost every hue of purple was visible, with some black thrown in. Edna knew that Vendette was getting his wish.

      When he emerged from the concoction, he just stared at his paws. Around his left eye was a noticeable letter 'D'. Edna produced a mirror from her cloak and handed it to Vendette. At first he seemed shocked, then pleased. He was finally Darigan, and his new scar, for lack of a better word, looked marvelous in comparison to the rest of his face. Now anybody who saw him would know at least a small part of his story just by seeing his face.

      Nobody noticed anything different about Vendette; however, a few days later when he was helping Edna give out prizes, he accidentally scratched a pet with one of his claws. This wasn't too unusual, but what happened to the pet was. The skin that Vendette had touched was turning a bright, fluorescent blue like his scar. Troubled, he dragged the pet to Edna and asked if she knew what was going on.

      At first Edna seemed worried, and she wondered where her concoction had gone wrong, but then she realized what it must have been.

      "Vendette, when you jumped in, did you touch your face?"

      Vendette thought about that, while slightly confused, and replied, "I might have, but would that have caused this?"

      Edna answered him lightly, "It must have. When your claw on that paw touched the scar while it was forming, the scar, or in this case the ability to create a scar, was transferred to that claw. Whatever you touch, at least neopets or petpets, will gain a scar like yours wherever you touch them. You must now be very careful with that claw, because I doubt you'd want to accidentally scar someone."

      Vendette looked at his paw and specifically at the claw that could cause something so permanent that it was irreversible. This wasn't part of the deal. Maybe Edna knew all along, but he had a feeling that she didn't. Maybe she did, but it was of no matter. It was both a gift and a curse, so he would use it while he could.

      Innocenza left a note so her owner wouldn't be worried. She promised to return home within two days. She hurried out into the busy Neopian streets carrying only what she needed, which was very little. She looked around quickly as she walked swiftly through the streets. She wove in and out of people so that she could reach her destination in as much peace as possible. Her first stop was the bank. There, she planned to withdraw enough neopoints for a Darigan paint brush. It would leave them poor, but it didn't matter. She had the feeling that someone was watching her, but she ignored the feeling and continued along.

      She saw the perfect shortcut to the bank, but the feeling of being watched wouldn't leave her, so she chose to avoid the dark passage. When she was across the street from the bank something caught her eye. It looked like a neopet in trouble. There was a young Aisha, no older than she had been when she was adopted, being approached by a Grarrl who looked ready to squish the poor pet.

      When Innocenza tried to cry out in protest, the little Aisha waddled into another dark passage. Worried for the pet's safety, Innocenza followed. When she went to pick up the tiny Aisha, however, she was attacked. She saw, almost in slow motion, the Aisha stuff a rag into her face and she could feel the rough hands of a Grarrl keeping her from moving. The young Aisha just stared at Innocenza, her face smug as consciousness left Innocenza and gave way to the satisfying concept of sheer blackness that enveloped her in seconds.

      Vendette was faced with the most difficult decision he had ever faced before. In his hands was a note, obviously written in a hurry. The note was short and simple, like many ransom notes he had seen before. It read: If you ever want to see your precious royal sister again, meet us at the deserted fairground at 12 in the afternoon, Neopian standard time. Don't bother bringing anybody with you, we'll know if you do.

      Vendette didn't understand anything at that time. Why did they want him, how did they know his sister, and how did they know where he was?

      The Grarrl whispered gruffly, "We have the girl and sent the note. What else do you want?"

      Jhudora waved her hand and replied, "Nothing; now go before I feel the need to turn you into a mortog."

      Innocenza was still unconscious, with her owner at home worried about what her other dear pet had gotten herself into.

      While Innocenza lay on Jhudora's floor, unmoving except for her chest moving as she was breathing, Jhudora spoke soothingly to her. "You are the final key, my dear Aisha. You and your brother will fulfill my destiny."

      After safely locking Innocenza away in one of her spare rooms, Jhudora returned to her private library. Nobody knew about it except for her. She scanned over book titles and covers until she came to the one she wanted. She found it, and it was entitled Neglect's Revenge. That book would tell her everything she needed to know, including what to do about Innocenza and Vendette. She read through the passages about the specifications and rules that had to be followed.

      Neglect to one pet and attention to another. A fierce warrior and a helpless child. The Kougra and Aisha shall meet and become one. The scarred one would scar even a sibling to receive riches and wealth. Of Darigan and Royal blood the breeds shall unite, to form one with only one master, the one who unites them.

     Jhudora interpreted that to mean that if she could get Vendette and Innocenza together and help them become a family, she would be the master. She would rule the royalty and the Darigan, not to mention the dark faeries. Her plan was unfolding well. Finding that Aisha had been a stroke of luck. And that Kougra that also worked at Edna's was the perfect match too; he even had a scar around his eye! It was obviously near Jhudora's birthday because not only did she find them both, but they were also actually related.

      Jhudora had the feeling that if she united them on her birthday, nothing could go wrong. Not even the pesky Fyora or Illusen could stop her this time.

      Vendette continued wondering what to do. He was little help to Edna that day, and she knew something was wrong.

      In her usual blunt manner, Edna got straight to the point, "Vendette, you're being as slow and inexperienced as the day you started. What's wrong? Yes I know something is wrong so don't even try to tell me that everything is all nice fine and dandy or whatever. What's going on?"

      Vendette broke down and told Edna his whole story, for he had never told it to her. She knew that he had run away and come to her for help, but that was about it. He never told her anything else about himself, but now seemed like the right time to do so. After he had told his story, he told Edna about the note he had received, and how we wasn't sure quite what he should do.

      Edna thought the answer was obvious, "Don't be daft. Go help your sister. I won't follow you, but I will equip you. I don't battle, but I've asked for some battling weapons. This is the perfect time to try them out. Go look in the basement for a box that says, 'Junk.' It may be very dusty or buried behind everything else, but it should be there."

      Vendette followed Edna's orders and did indeed find a bunch of battling items. Some he knew were junk, but some he recognized as potentially useful items. He said faintly, "I don't care what happened in the past. I'm coming to get you, Innocenza."

To be continued...