[Story] The Future History of Jakob Pettersohn (11/Jul/09 - Final Chapter)

[Tapewolf]

Chapter 10 - Judgements

"No," said Keaton.  "It feels like his mind.  There are a number of differences though.  He may have been brainwashed, or he may perhaps have undergone some life-changing experience.  Either way, he's not quite the same person as he was before the mission, and cannot now be trusted."

"So, what do we do with it?" asked the commander.

"He had a regular Being-type mind-shield, but that was easily dispelled," began the jackal.  "All that prevents me from entering his mind now is his own training.  Let me wait for him to sleep, and I shall then enter his dreams.  I can probe his mind and see what lies within."

"Assuming it does sleep," muttered the fox.

* * *

Commander Ashford returned to the holding pen the following morning.  Keaton sat there looking dishevelled with a strange expression on her face.

"It matches his report," she said, "but he was concealing a number of facts.  Kristofer Ausmann has not resurrected Johan Cross in some strange ritual... he is Johan Cross.  His death was a hoax..."

"I knew it!" crowed the commander.  The succubus glared at him impatiently, but he was her superior and so she waited for him to resume listening.

"...and he has succeeded in perfecting a total-conversion beam..."

"What?" yelped the fox, almost toppling his chair in panic.

"...but it is entirely ground-based and cannot be used as a practical weapon.  He is using it for some strange process to prolong his life.  He claimed to Joshua that he is able to create... artificial souls... which he has been stealing to increase his powers.  Apparently he intends to sell them to other 'cubi to try and wean our race off soul-stealing."

Commander Ashford's mouth hung open.  Her report had exceeded even his own fevered imagination.

"The real Joshua was killed by the Nagristi clan some months ago, just prior to the catastrophic event which destroyed their own base.  This appears to have been the work of Johan Cross."

"So he did murder agent Oswald?"  Ashford was evidently not fully awake yet.

"No. Cross did destroy the base, but he did not shoot Joshua."

"Are you saying that the blast was his doing?  You just told me he hadn't got the total conversion weapon to work!" spluttered Ashford.

"He hasn't.  Their base was attacked using some kind of ion-beam weapon."

"I knew it!"

"'Joshua' believes that Cross destroyed Nagristi to avenge his - Joshua's - murder as well as to ensure they did not threaten Cross' own plans," continued the jackal, rolling over her superior on one of the precious few occasions he had correctly predicted something.

"He is not a corpse," she continued.  The Being we are holding is a robot simulation of him built by Johan Cross.  It seems that the robot does contain a copy of the real Joshua's mind, although given the notoriously devious nature of its creator there remains the strong possibility that the memories have been faked or tampered with to try and lull us into a false sense of security."

She paused to let this sink in.  "Bearing this in mind, what do you suggest we do with the robot?"

"We should X-ray it.  Ensure that it contains no explosives and then dismantle it.  If we can establish how it works, we could build our own."

"No!" shouted Joshua.  "You can't do that!  It's murder!"

The other two canids turned in surprise.  They had forgotten that Joshua was actually present.

"He's right," said the succubus, after a pause.  "It's not just his mind.  Machine or not, he contains Joshua's soul.  While X-raying him is a sensible precaution that we should do as soon as possible, dismantling him would be murder and the press would have a field day when they found out we'd killed one of our top agents in the belief he was a spy."

"I don't think the mayor of Khiann Province will ever forgive you for deciding his son had been replaced by an alien and having him interrogated," she added grimly, as though she was reprimanding a subordinate.

"But he was an alien!  He confessed to it!"

"That little oaf was so twisted on various illegal drugs that he was convinced you were his mother," the jackal reminded him.  "Bringing that out into the open and embarrassing the mayor was the final straw.  In any case, we can't risk a repeat of that kind of backlash so soon after the last time or headquarters might decide you're more a liability than an asset."
Her tone of voice was cool and calculating - she was evidently more concerned about the commander's reputation than Joshua's wellbeing per se.

"You are right as always, Keaton," said the fox.  "I shall think this through carefully."

While Ashford left, Keaton remained sitting in a chair next to the cell in which Joshua was held, staring vacantly into space.  A strange light entered her one good eye and a grim, yet contented smile formed upon her face.

"For you, my dear sister," she murmured to herself.

* * *

"You know, I don't recognise your clan marking, Dorcan," said Jakob, once they had sent Joshua safely on his way.

"We call ourselves the Ja'Fell," he replied.  "I guess we're too small and scattered to be considered a real clan.  The Academy hadn't even heard of us before so my parents had to have a friend from a different clan vouch for us before they'd accept me."

"How did that come about?  Were you victims of the Clan wars?"

"Not really.  We split from another clan.  I don't know what they were called and my parents wouldn't tell me.  From what I understand, they had something of a personality cult based around the leader.  They were really harsh and nasty and anyone who spoke against them was executed."

"It's true," added the Doberman, seeing Jakob's appalled expression.

"Well, my grandparents disagreed with the leader's policy, although they took great pains to conceal it.  Then one of the raids went wrong."

"What happened?"  Jakob whispered, although he had a sinking feeling that he knew what was coming.

"They looted a certain village, " he continued.  "Took most of the Beings as captives, the ones they didn't kill outright, anyway.  But someone messed up and a child got caught in the line of fire.  That really took the wind out of everybody's sails because killing children was the one thing that they wouldn't do.
"People began to say that it was the end of the clan.  My grandfather finally broke his long silence and said that it was an omen, that the gods would punish us for the killing and that we all deserved to die for our crimes.  The leader found out and went berserk... ordered him to be soul-eaten along with grandma."

"This happened after your parents were born, I take it?"  Jakob managed to utter.  He looked like he was going to be sick.

"No.  They managed to escape by Warp-Aci and hid amongst Beings until my parents were born.  After they came of age, my parents moved on.  It was grandfather's idea, to keep us all separated so that we wouldn't all be executed if the clan ever found us again."

"If they are who I think they are, that's not really an issue anymore," Jakob replied.  "That clan is about as extinct as your offshoot, maybe more so.  They were attacked not long after your grandparents fled and left in a state of turmoil, they were unable to defend themselves properly.  They were practically wiped out.  Few tears were shed for them, I might add - their leader made your dead friend the mayor seem like a saint by comparison."

Dorcan shivered as he remembered killing the mayor.  It had seemed like a good idea at the time.  Jakob sensed what he was thinking of.

"I've got to admit, I was worried when I found out what you did," said Jakob.  "And I've been keeping an eye on you ever since.  Now that I know your origins, I am pleasantly surprised.  In fact, I'm actually somewhat proud of you."

"Proud!?  I murdered him!"

"No, not the killing.  Your remorse.  The clan whose name I do not speak thought nothing of killing.  Killing and soul-stealing was their way of life, decreed by their insane leader who believed it was the will of the gods, and as you have said, they ordered the execution of any who questioned this doctrine.  In view of this, I'm proud of that fact that you realised it was wrong.  It's more than I could hope for knowing your ancestry."

"It was grandfather's idea.  He renounced violence and brought up my parents to respect life.  Partly it was because they were forced to live as Beings, and killing them off as we had been brought up to do would blow our cover, but he also believed that it was the only way for our family to redeem ourselves in the eyes of the the gods and escape the punishment that would fall upon the others.

"What I did, in killing the mayor, was a betrayal of their trust, and of the gods themselves."  His voice warbled and he began to cry.

"There, there," said Jakob, stroking his fur and comforting him.  I seem to be doing this a lot these days, he thought, sighing inwardly to himself.

"There's one thing that still puzzles me," said Jakob.  The Doberman had calmed down somewhat, but he still needed something to distract him from the pain of his guilt.

"I was born to a fragmented clan myself," he continued.  "Clan Daryil.  Not despised or feared, but looked down upon or avoided owing to our leader, Daryil.  He's a bit peculiar himself, but something of a pacifist unlike the psycho in charge of your lot, and a really nice guy once you get to know him.

"Anyway.  When my ancestors decided to split, their clan marking remained the same.  Yours is different, and after only two generations that shouldn't have happened unless you were somehow adopted by another clan."

"Yes," said Dorcan, his voice still warbling a little.  "It gave the Academy quite a bit of head-scratching until they finally realised what they were seeing."

"Go on."

"It started out as a way of disguising ourselves from the wrath of the clan, but it became something of a tradition.  We couldn't change the clan symbol, but on the other hand we didn't want to be branded with the symbol of our persecutors.  They had a number of enemies and I doubt they would have given us time if we were captured, to explain that we were no longer affiliated with their foe.
So my parents used magical tattoos to add new lines and curls to my clan symbol until it was no longer recognisable."

"Clever.  Of course your new marking is a magical tattoo, since your fur isn't real.  I guess Daryil must have got the clan marking from your mind?"

"No.  I think he forgot it was a 'Cubi he was dealing with until afterwards.  I didn't come with a mark, so he told me to draw it on a piece of paper, and then he etched it on himself."

"He probably just wanted an excuse to see you topless," muttered Jakob with a grin.

[Sunblink]

Small nitpick: you spelled 'Judgments' wrong at the chapter title.

But that's it in terms of nitpicking. Everything else is top-notch. I am honestly enjoying myself here. I can't wait for the next part to be released.

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Tapewolf]

Small nitpick: you spelled 'Judgments' wrong at the chapter title.

Might be a US/UK thing.  The OED gives both spellings.  Thanks for querying it though.

Everything else is top-notch. I am honestly enjoying myself here. I can't wait for the next part to be released.

Well, I've actually put up a preview copy of the next chapter.  You should have the URL for the site in your PMs somewhere, if not, ask me.  Or Llearch 

Thanks again for your help, by the way.

[Sunblink]

Might be a US/UK thing.  The OED gives both spellings.  Thanks for querying it though.

Could be, but I've seen the word been used both ways so many times that I haven't the foggiest clue anymore.

Well, I've actually put up a preview copy of the next chapter.  You should have the URL for the site in your PMs somewhere, if not, ask me.  Or Llearch 

Thanks again for your help, by the way.

After a little bit of digging through my bookmarks, I found it. I'm reading through the preview chapter, and having a blast doing so

And you're quite welcome. ^^

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Tapewolf]

Chapter 11 - Daryil

Ashford lay asleep upon his bed.  Having pondered the problem of Joshua for the entire day he decided to sleep upon it.  The same could not be said of Keaton.
As a succubus she had not needed to sleep since her mid-twenties, and as a consequence she saw it as something for inferior races.  Prey races.  Nonetheless, she was forced to make a pretence of it in order to maintain her facade as a mere Being.

Concealing her wings, she climbed into bed and rolled around in it rather like the way a feral puppy will sometimes do.  If anyone else had actually seen her doing this, the sheer embarrassment would probably have driven her to kill them, but there was a certain method to her apparent madness.  When she finally climbed out of bed a few minutes later, the sheets looked exactly as if she had slept in it for the entire night.  Magic might have been more efficient, but it was considerably less fun.

Locking the door, she made her way back down to the holding pens.  As she walked, she found her mind creeping inexorably to thoughts of her Clan once again.

* * *

When Keaton was about 70 - a mere stripling - the Jyranath city of Harla'keth where she had lived all her life was attacked by a rival clan, the Kamei'Sin, and practically razed to the ground.  Keaton had been one of the lucky few, left for dead and with one eye ruined, she was later captured and nursed back to health in exchange for a lifetime of servitude.  Nearly everyone else she had ever known and held dear had either been slain outright or tortured to death.  Over the following centuries she had carefully plotted her escape, lulling her captor into thinking her broken and harmless right up until the moment that she took his life.
Finally free, she had sworn two oaths - to search for any of her surviving kin, and to bring her wrath down upon the Kamei'Sin in vengeance for what they had done to Clan Jyraneth.

That the Jyraneth were ruled by a dangerous madwoman whose methods were regarded as barbaric even by other 'Cubi did not really register with her.  It was how she was brought up after all, and so she didn't really have a good frame of reference.  Maybe she knew that many other 'Cubi regarded the virtual extinction of Jyraneth at the hands of the Kamei'Sin as a justified act of revenge - or even something of a blessing - but if so, she didn't show it outwardly.

The job she had taken had put her in effective control of a powerful intelligence agency and from this vantage point she had used the resources at her disposal well, subtly influencing her so-called superior's orders so that they might bring her news of other Jyraneth survivors as a beneficial side-effect.
It had meant rubbing shoulders with mere Beings, and indeed passing herself off as one to all but her most trusted colleagues, but the information she had obtained made it well worth the affront to her dignity.

One of the only other survivors she had found so far had been her sister, Lianna.  When she thought about the state they had left her in when Keaton finally rescued her, she came close to crying.

No.  Tears are for the weak and for the helpless.  I am neither.

* * *

Niall and Ashley were playing a pitched game of scrabble in the main living quarters of the base while Azrael was listening to a rock opera about a 'snark' which Jakob had imported from Earth.  Jakob himself lay sprawled upon a large sofa, with Dorcan in a more traditional sitting position.

"Please tell me you did not just say that," he said, in open disbelief.  "You cannot have a gay clan leader.  How would the clan grow?"

"That's not an issue," replied Jakob with his eyes closed.  "I can give you at least three reasons why off the top of my head.  Firstly, just because he prefers other men doesn't mean that he can't sire more children if he decides his duty to the clan calls for it.  Secondly, that particular duty is usually delegated to other clan members.  In any case it isn't something that happens every day to be honest, since Daryil is careful to keep the clan a manageable size.  Occasionally clan members will object to this - as a rule they break away from the clan and form offshoots, which he will sometimes persuade to rejoin at a later date.  Finally, he wasn't like that when the clan was founded."

"He wasn't?"

"No.  He became the way he is now as part of a genetic and metabiological experiment aimed at limiting population growth.  He tested it on himself."

"Oh my gods."

"Yes.  He has some strange ideas, does our Daryil.  Dead smart, though."  Jakob sat up properly and regarded the doberman with both eyes.

"So it's true that he's mad?"

"Well, suddenly deciding to make himself and most of the male members of his own clan gay is something that's stretching the bounds of sanity, in my own opinion."

"Does that mean you're..."

"Gay?  No.  It's triggered by various specific conditions which have not occurred."  Yet, he added mentally.  His face took on a slightly perturbed look for a moment.  There was obviously something he was holding back.

"Anyway," he continued, trying to steer the subject back to Daryil.  "I think the thing which really clinched it for me was the Tree Party."

"That... was true?  It really happened?"  Dorcan looked at him with a mixture of awe and horror.

"Unfortunately, yes.  It was to celebrate his 4000th birthday, and he did this in his own unique way.  I still don't know where he got all the fruit from."  Jakob swallowed.

"All the members of the clan were teleported to the party at the stroke of midnight.  He didn't actually invite anyone though.  I guess that technically he didn't really need to, being the Clan Father and all, or perhaps he wanted it to be a surprise.  It certainly was.

"Everyone just appeared in a clearing in the middle of the forest.  I was reading, but others were gardening, sound asleep or making love at the time.  What were you two doing during the Tree Party?" he suddenly called in the direction of the scrabble players.

"I was giving a presentation to the class," said Niall.  "I can't remember what it was about now."

"Teaching mass-energy equivalence," Ashley replied after a moment.  "I'd just told the class that it was possible to convert matter into energy when I vanished leaving only a faint glow.  I'm told they went straight for the geiger counters."

"It was a particularly nasty shock for the clan members who had broken away," continued Jakob.  "Our clan has a relatively high tendency to 'go native' as it were, so some of the arrivals didn't even know they were 'Cubi, let alone lapsed members of Clan Daryil."

Dorcan whistled.  "Was he trying to make the rest of the clan as crazy as him?"

"I don't think it was deliberate.  It certainly created a few mental cases though, particularly among some of the poor sods who still thought they were Beings.  Suddenly being surrounded by a large group of confused and angry Creatures must have been a particularly terrifying experience.
To be fair, most of us had a blast after the initial shock had worn off.  Apart from the bit with the melons.  The celebrations lasted for 40 days and 40 nights, one day for each century of his life.  Then he teleported everyone back to exactly where they had been when he took them."

"I know about this bit.  They came back either catatonic or deliriously happy."

"Well, you would be a bit freaked out if you'd been partying for 960 hours non-stop," Jakob pointed out.

"That would explain it.  In any case, no-one believed the fantastic tale which they eventually babbled about some kind of 'tree party'.  It even had Fa'Lina worried when several students unexpectedly vanished before everyone's eyes, complete with the chair they were sitting in and anything they happened to be holding at the time.  Everyone assumed it was a mass kidnapping.  It was even worse when the empty chairs reappeared with a post-it note on them just saying 'Do not be alarmed, so-and-so is quite safe'."

Jakob swore.  "I knew I should have written them myself.  Fortunately Daryil was able to hire some very capable lawyers."

* * *

"Joshua?" Keaton called.
They had never exactly been friends, since she generally held Beings in contempt and could rarely force herself to be anything much more than cordial unless it served a higher purpose.
But Joshua was not strictly a Being anymore, he was something else now.  Still an inferior, but markedly less so than he had been before.  In any case he had been one of their top operatives and so even then she had afforded him a certain, grudging respect.

"Joshua?" she called again.  There was a rustling as he woke up and got out of bed.

"What do you want?" he asked warily.

"I'm curious.  You don't need to sleep, but you do.  Why is that?"

"Force of habit.  Besides, it's not like I have much else to pass the time with, is it?"
His answer was rather cagey.  He had never seen Keaton in a mood like this before and he found it extremely disturbing.  Now that he knew she was a 'cubi as well, he couldn't shake the idea that it was a trap and that she would destroy him for kicks as soon as he had outlived his usefulness.

"Ah yes," she replied.  "I lost the ability to dream centuries ago, but I can still just about remember the transition.  After that, sleeping hardly seemed worth it... but anyway.  I didn't come here to discuss sleeping habits.  I would like you to make another report for me, containing some of the things which you skipped over in your original paper."

Keaton's manner was frank and easygoing, and it wasn't entirely an act.  The fact that Joshua was virtually immortal, no longer needed to eat or sleep and was still coming to terms with this had given her the strange feeling that she was talking to a young incubus.  And despite the Jyraneth Clan attitude that brutality was a virtue, they had been brought up to believe that children were to be treasured.  Protected.

"What's in it for me?" he asked pointedly.  "You've kept me caged up for days and you still can't even seem to decide if I'm really me, or some kind of spy."

"Oh, I know you're Joshua Oswald.  You've got the right soul and all the right memories, at least up to the point of your departure from the base.  That much I have verified.  Of course, one of the things which does concern me is that you could be a spy without knowing it," she admitted.  "Someone who can transfer your memories into a synthetic body would find it easy enough to tamper with them."
And then there's the fact that someone who can create souls might be able to copy them, she added mentally.

"Be that as it may, I think it's worth the risk and I will do my best to convince Ashford to let you go.  In exchange, I would like you to give me all the details you can about the weapons that Cross has been developing."

[techmaster-glitch]

Heehee...the 'Tree Party'...that was good. heh heh...

[Drake Manaweilder]

I still don't know where he got all the fruit from.

Favorite line from this chapter, still grinning from it.

Where'd you get get the idea for the Tree Party?

[Sunblink]

I approve greatly of this chapter! *thumbs up* Another awesome one from you, Tape.

...Yeah, I don't have anything really constructive to say. The quality of the chapters have just been dead-on.

A gay clan leader also makes me chuckle somewhat, mostly because of Dorcan's reaction to it. XD

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Gabi]

Interesting chapter. Did Keaton help you with the background?

I think Daryil is the funniest insane character I've read about.

[Tapewolf]

I still don't know where he got all the fruit from.

Favorite line from this chapter, still grinning from it.

Where'd you get get the idea for the Tree Party?

I'm not quite sure.  I was trying to think of something really horrific that Daryil might have done, something along the lines of Abel's Library incident or the Hedgehog Song where you get a few tantalising glimpses of it and no-one wants to discuss it.
After that I began to wonder what Daryil might have done for his birthday and fused them.  Then I got the idea of him summoning the entire clan unexpectedly.

A gay clan leader also makes me chuckle somewhat, mostly because of Dorcan's reaction to it. XD

I still haven't fully worked out where Dorcan fits into that, not least because Daryil was kind of hoping to pick him up.  I'm trying really hard not to make that Daryil's defining trait but it's a big struggle.  There's more I could say about this but it will have to wait until after the next chapter 

Interesting chapter. Did Keaton help you with the background?

Oh yes, very much so.  She's been very helpful and I get the feeling it's helped her focus on the characters as well.

I think Daryil is the funniest insane character I've read about.

Thanks.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

FWIW, I don't think "gay" is Daryil's defining trait.

Madder than a tree full of cats, yes. Gay is more incidental. :-]

[Gabi]

Posting in agreement with llearch.

[Paladin Sheppard]

Seconded!

[Tapewolf]

Chapter 12 - Kamei'Sin

"With due respect, I got the distinct impression that you weren't being completely honest when you were discussing Daryil's, ah, preferences," said Dorcan.

"Very well," said Jakob, with a sigh.  "I first met Daryil some centuries ago, during that period of insanity when I called myself Johan Cross.  I thought at first that he wanted to kill me and take my empire.  It turned out that he had actually come to seduce me."

Dorcan looked incredulous.  Jakob looked at him and nodded.

"I think you can see how awkward that was.  Daryil left, but remained convinced that I would in time share his feelings after I have sired enough children to trigger his... modifications."

"And did you?"

"No.  But when I first began this project, I immediately realised that the project would require an enormous amount of capital.  Far more than I could readily obtain."  He hesitated.
"I was prepared to... offer my body... to Daryil in order that Azrael might live again."

"Did you have to do that?" whispered the Doberman.

"No!"  Jakob yelped.  "It turned out that he had found someone else by then," he added, the relief showing in his voice.  But his brow flickered slightly with annoyance.
"Fortunately for the project, it also transpired that he was willing to help fund it on its own merits," he continued.  "But anyway.  I have just told you something very personal, so now it's your turn.  Tell me about the Rhu'Hahn."

"What do you want to know about them?" said Dorcan nervously.

"I believe you said they killed half your family.  But you also said you were an offshoot of Jyraneth.  Weren't the Rhu'Hahn their allies?"

"Yes, but they wouldn't have spared us if they knew.  We had renounced the old ways, remember.  In any case, they thought we were Beings when they raided our village.  My sister and brother died in the fighting, but those of us who survived managed to drive them off."

"Weren't you supposed to be pacifists?"

"Not entirely.  Grandfather renounced attacking.  We were all well-trained in defence, although we were also taught that it was to be used only as a last resort."

"Indeed.  What happened afterwards, though?  The Beings must have known."

"They weren't pleased.  Took a fortnight of debate before they could finally agree to let us stay.  The main points in our favour were that we hadn't done any harm in all the time we had been there before our discovery, and that it was likely that the village would have been completely wiped out if we hadn't defended it."

"Talking of defending Beings, it's been a few days since we heard anything from Joshua," said Jakob.  "We'd better see how he's doing."

* * *

Keaton's usual cynical expression melted into an actual smile as Joshua described what he had learned.  She was genuinely pleased, and somehow he found this terrifying.

"Thank you, agent," she said.  "I will have to get your release confirmed by the Commander, but that should be largely a formality.  Indeed, I suspect I will want to send you back to Mr. Cr- uh, Pettersohn... fairly soon, on another mission."

"A followup?"

"Quite.  But I'll give you the details later on.  First I must see to your release."

The smile that had briefly lit up her face flickered and died as she headed up the stairs to Ashford's office.

* * *

Somewhere in the medical wing of the extensive Succubus and Incubus Academy, a female canid lay asleep in her room.  In one hand she clutched a gigantic hammer made from plastic and foam-rubber.  Like everything else in the room it was soft and smooth with no sharp edges that she might have hurt herself upon.
Occasionally she would talk to it in her sleep.  Refusing to part with the real hammer, her carers had substituted it while she slept one night for her own safety and she had not yet realised.  They hoped that when she did it would signal part of her recovery.

Time was on her side.  She had millennia left to her, and time will heal all wounds.  Taken first to a rural healer, and then to Zinvth, she was finally referred to SAIA.  The foremost experts in the field of psychiatry were summoned, 'Cubi and Being alike.  Their verdict was unanimous - she would recover, they were all convinced of this.  But not one of them could say how many centuries it would take.

For now she slept.  This was not normal for a succubus but the medical department believed that it would help her.  No-one was quite sure if she dreamed, and no-one was willing to enter the mind of a madwoman for fear that they might never escape, joining her in a mutual state of near-catatonia.

Back at the office, Keaton strode on, her thoughts haunted once more by those of her sister.  Tears threatened again but she marshalled her thoughts, focusing on hatred and vengeance.

Centuries ago Keaton had been captured by the Kamei'Sin, a rival clan who had sworn vengeance over the death of their co-founder at the hands of Jyraneth, or 'The Queen' as her adoring clan would often call her.  The Kamei'Sin's chance had come, and their enemies were virtually wiped out.

Lianna, like Keaton herself, had been taken in the raid and nearly killed.  A prisoner, she was sold to a cruel master who kept her as a gladiator, forcing her to fight in a slave-pit with barely any sustenance and her 'Cubi abilities restrained by an enchanted bracer.  This unending humiliation finally caused her to to snap, and in a berserk rage she broke free of her Kamei'Sin captors, albeit gravely wounded.  Unable to remove the bracer, she was left without the ability to shapeshift or feed on emotions, forced instead to eat food and sleep like a mere Being.

Slowly recovering, her experience as a gladiator had left her obsessed with fighting and death.  Her upbringing as a Jyraneth raider made her a natural at combat and her talents attracted the attention of the underworld.  Eventually finding her too volatile even by their standards, her erstwhile allies decided that she had to be eliminated.  It was not her who died.   Wandering lost and helpless in a nearby city, she eventually fell into prostitution in order to make ends meet.

The shame at what she was reduced to ate away at her already fragile sanity until she broke down completely, murdering her client and fleeing the city to wander aimlessly, her only companion a large warhammer which she would frequently talk to.

Keaton had spent centuries searching for her kinsmen, ever dreading the thought that she might now be the sole survivor of her entire clan.  She should have been overjoyed to discover that Lianna still lived, but driven insane by her ordeal and scarcely capable of recognising her sister, the rescue brought cold comfort.
Keaton was devastated by the discovery of her sister.  Sometimes she caught herself wondering if it would have been better to have found Lianna's grave instead, but she pushed such thoughts from her mind very quickly. 

When her lover had died, Qaisyne, surviving founder of Clan Kamei'Sin, had sworn to bring about the extinction of Clan Jyraneth.  Looking at the broken shadow of her sister, Keaton had sworn to repay them in kind.

* * *

"We should release Joshua," said Keaton bluntly.

"What?  He could be dangerous!  You said yourself that he could be a spy."

"So we restrict his access.  That at least would give us some idea of how far we can trust him.  Remember, if his would-be-controller was after our secrets, they will already have had ample opportunity to pull most of them from his mind.  If we revoke his clearance for the time being, he will not be able to compromise anything further, and if he is clean, he will make a va-"

At that moment the main office screen chimed and an arctic wolf stared out at them.
"How are you, gentlemen!" he said.

"Drop the act, Cross," snarled Ashford.  "We know who you are."

"Pettersohn," Jakob replied irritably.  With a sigh, he shook himself and his fur darkened to its usual grey.

"What do you want?" Ashford asked cautiously, his hackles up.

"I was just wondering how you were getting on with Joshua now that he has been returned to you."  He peered around the room.  "Where is he, by the way?"

"We have taken your little toy into custody," Ashford snapped.

"Ah," said Jakob sadly.  "I suspected that might be the case.  I should never have let him go, but he did insist.  I trust you have not harmed him in any way?"

"And if we have?"

"Well it depends on what the court will think he is, really.  If they consider him a furre, then killing him would be murder and I would prosecute it as such on behalf of him and his family.  I have some very good lawyers, so they'd lock you up and throw away the key.  I'd see to that personally.

"On the other hand, if they consider him to be a machine and not a person in the eyes of the law, then he is my rightful property and if you have broken him then I shall sue you and your agency for... let me see... nine hundred million gold dollars?"  Jakob had assumed the twisted smile of his wicked alter-ego.  Old habits die hard.

"Calm down," said Ashford, panicking slightly.  "We have not harmed it... him..."

"You considered it though, didn't you?" the wolf said pointedly.

"As I was saying, we should release him." put in Keaton.  Jakob stared hard at her for a moment.  Don't I know you from somewhere?

"Very well," the fox replied, and walked to a safe.  Staring into a lens, he pressed a button and it opened a moment later.  He extracted a pass-key and gave it to his secretary.  Concealing both sets of wings, she ran downstairs.

When they returned, Jakob's headwings were twitching slightly and he had a strange expression on his face as though he was trying desperately not to laugh.  Ashford stood there looking extremely subdued.  What has he said this time...? the jackal wondered as a sinking feeling crept over her.

"Ah!" cried the wolf.  "None too worse for wear, I trust?"

"I've had better accommodation," Joshua sighed.  "They seem to think I'm spying for you."

"I did warn you," Jakob replied.  "I knew you should have made the report by video."

"They wouldn't have believed that either," Joshua pointed out.  "Paranoia is our watchword."

Jakob made a strange snorting sound and began to laugh helplessly.  The link went dead a few moments later, and Keaton gave her boss a foul glance.

* * *

Keaton was already sat at her desk when Ashford came in the following morning.  She looked very happy.  The fox glanced at her and shrugged to himself before settling down in front of his desk screen.  His brow furrowed as he read through the messages, until his face was filled with a look of absolute horror.

"KEATON!" he shouted.  "What have you done?"

"I have sent Joshua to retrieve the blueprints for the ion beam weapon," she replied in a perfectly level voice.

"Why?" cried Ashford.  "That was never the plan.  We must destroy them to prevent it falling into the wrong hands!  Abort the mission immediately!"

"No," she replied.

"Did you not hear me?  I order you to recall him at once!"

Keaton laughed, her happy smile twisting into a look of scorn and contempt.

"You fool," she sneered, her eyes blazing.  "I swore to avenge my sister... My entire Clan!  With the weapons technology that Cross has perfected I can finally realise the dream of six hundred years.  You don't seriously expect me to just throw all that away now, do you?"

"Please, Keaton," he begged, but he could see that she was dead-set on some insane project and it was useless trying to argue.  A feeling of nausea crept over him as he slowly realised that this must have been her whole plan all along.  With an expression of regret, he reached for his belt and drew a wicked-looking energy weapon.

* * *

"I'm afraid I'm going to need a new personal assistant," Ashford said to his watch, carefully placing the still-warm gun on his desk with the self-same hand.

"Ms Keaton has been forced to leave us unexpectedly... a bereavement, I'm afraid...  No, I don't think she'll be returning, so could you please make arrangements to start interviewing for a replacement as soon as possible?  Yes, I know... it's a great shame."

Yes, such a shame...  The commander sighed to himself as he hung up, and then smiled, an uncharacteristically cynical expression forming upon his muzzle as he toyed with a small, glowing jewel.
"If you promise to be very, very good, I might let you go," he told it, before placing the crystal in a drawer in his desk.

In the stationary cupboard, a fox lay propped against the wall.  He was naked apart from a small dress, the one which Keaton had been wearing.  There was a hole burnt through his chest and his face still bore the horrible expression of shock that he had worn as she tore out his soul.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

heeheeheehee.

Why am I not surprised at Keaton's antics? And the AYB reference? Classic.

There's just one small issue I feel I should mention - wouldn't Lianna be better off with a plushie hammer? I mean, if nothing else, it'd be safer for her carers, should she decide to belt someone with it...

[Tapewolf]

There's just one small issue I feel I should mention - wouldn't Lianna be better off with a plushie hammer? I mean, if nothing else, it'd be safer for her carers, should she decide to belt someone with it...

It's hollow.  I got the idea from the my-first-toolkit things which I presume they still make.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

If you'd ever been hit with one of those things, you'd reconsider giving it to someone with more strength. *wince*


;-]

[Paladin Sheppard]

I have to go with the box on this JP those things HURT.


Good chapter though

[Tapewolf]

I have to go with the box on this JP those things HURT.

How about a foam-rubber head on the hammer?

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

That'd probably do it.

Admittedly, it's your story, but I can't help but think of the hammer my son has - he's snapped the head off it, and had a tendency, for a while there (at least until he did it to me) to poke things with the snapped off end of the handle - which, as you'd expect, was rather pointy.

Anything given to a patient locked up in a ward would, if it was my call, be limited to things that they couldn't use to hurt me. Of course, at SAIA, that'd be a whole different ball game, but even so, overestimating the people you have locked up can't hurt...

[techmaster-glitch]

but even so, overestimating the people you have locked up can't hurt...

Heh heh, especially if you do things like this...

[Sunblink]

I've already totally built a shrine in honor of your awesome plot maneuver shortly after I read the draft, but I still totally am fawning over this. That was SO within Keaton's character to mercilessly tear someone's soul out of their body and impersonate them, so I commend you for that, good sir! As well as the All Your Base reference. That was full of win.

This chapter is made of win and candy, quoting a friend of mine.

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Gabi]

What a great return you've made! So Joshua's a double-agent now?

I won't argue about the hammer because I don't have much experience with toy hammers, except the one I had as a child which was made of thin, soft plastic with accordion-like ends. It squeaked when it hit something.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

...

Ok, now I have a mental image of a huge, great soft plushie hammer with a squeak inside it.

I feel for Lianna, but, y'know, that'd be -far- cooler than the original hammer, so I can see why she'd want to keep the new one, really...

*grin*

*squeak!* "Keep!" *squeak!* "Out!" *squeak!* "Dammit!" *squeak!*

[Tapewolf]

What a great return you've made! So Joshua's a double-agent now?

Thanks Gabi, and indeed Keaton.  I was going to run this by you (Gabi) and James at AC, but the chance never really came up
My laptop needs a new battery and will only run for 15 minutes so I couldn't use it on the plane or in the Zoo very much.

Yes, Keaton is intending to use Joshua as a double-agent.  He doesn't trust her anymore though, and he owes too much to Jakob to go through with it anyway.  And that is assuming Jakob doesn't deduce / thought-read his mission.  (Keaton must know that too, mind... this may take a bit of thought)

I haven't fully decided what's going to happen next - or indeed how I can outdo the last scene at all - so the next chapter is going to be something of a diversion until I can get my act together.  I only have about 1/3 of it so far, so anything could happen.

CJP 31 is similarly skinny, I'm not sure when it will be ready, but there will be one.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Yes, Keaton is intending to use Joshua as a double-agent.  He doesn't trust her anymore though, and he owes too much to Jakob to go through with it anyway.  And that is assuming Jakob doesn't deduce / thought-read his mission.  (Keaton must know that too, mind... this may take a bit of thought)

Ah. So, Keaton is using Joshua as a triple agent, without him knowing he's a triple agent - he's thinks he's a double-agent for Jakob, which would cover that side - Joshua would think he's double-agenting for Jakob, so Jakob wouldn't have anything in his mind to be worried about - not that Jakob would be reading Joshua's mind, being a polite sort, whereas Keaton, being evil and stuff, wouldn't give it a second thought.

And I'd expect Jakob to be thinking something along those lines - particularly if he has another conversation with "The Commander" and The Commander doesn't know what he said last time - and perhaps quadrupling the agenting. Does he tell Joshua, and have both of them attempting to think their way through the maze, or leave him in the dark and leave Keaton thinking she has pulled the wool over Jakob's eyes, because Joshua doesn't know that Jakob knows that Joshua knows that Keaton knows that Joshua knows that Keaton is TC...

Ooo. We should get together for beers sometime and talk it over. I sense great evil in this one.... ;-]

[Gabi]

because Joshua doesn't know that Jakob knows that Joshua knows that Keaton knows that Joshua knows that Keaton is TC...

Ooo. We should get together for beers sometime and talk it over. I sense great evil in this one.... ;-]

Joshua knows that Keaton is TC, and she knows it?

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

No. But if Jakob figures it out (eg, say, next time he calls Ashford, Ashford doesn't know what it was that Ashford said -this- time around - that'd be a definite hint right there), and tells Joshua, then Keaton will know that Jakob knows. So Jakob might click, but not tell Joshua.

Shell game - who knows what is a big twist, and you're all trying to guess what is where, and who knows what limits, and everyone is playing dumb...

[Zedd]

Probley I smell danger a 30 miles away now

[Tapewolf]

After a couple of discussions with Llearch and Keaton, I've patched Lianna's history to cover the plot-hole as to why a succubus would need to earn a living.