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

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

* llearch n'n'daCorna snickers evilly.

Lollipops.

[techmaster-glitch]

Awwwww, even with her tantrum, I think you should have kept in that letter!

[Tapewolf]

Awwwww, even with her tantrum, I think you should have kept in that letter!

There was something kind of insipid about the first draft.  While I didn't really like the idea of the new ending, it does give it a hard edge which the original lacked.  When it comes down to it, I think I do prefer it this way.  That's not to rule out Daryil inadvertently tormenting her with lollipops.  We'll have to see what happens in the next chapter, which will be somewhat more lighthearted.

[Alondro]

[quote author=Keaton the Black Jackal link=topic=2274.msg172820#msg172820

Keaton would hit all of you, too.

She'd hit you all with her mace.

She hits you all because she LOVES YOU.

~Keaton the Black Jackal
[/quote]

Oh yeah, well you're dead and a robot now!  Which makes you a Cyberman, and they always lose!  Ha!   

[Cogidubnus]

Actually, that brings to mind a question. I assumed Daryil just being-ified her - I hadn't considered that she might be a robot, instead. Is she, indeed, a being-ifed Cubi, or did she just get stuck into a robot body?

[techmaster-glitch]

It was implied-maybe even directly said-that Daryil killed Keaton. The only way to bring her back would be to trap her soul and slap it into a robot body.

[Tapewolf]

It was implied-maybe even directly said-that Daryil killed Keaton. The only way to bring her back would be to trap her soul and slap it into a robot body.

It was as though she'd tripped.  The safeties cut in in full flight and she landed head-first in a shocking way that would have instantly killed anyone with a spinal column.  It certainly looked like she was dead, but Jakob knew better.  It didn't stop him from blanching at the impact, though.  With an expression of regret, he knelt, turning her over and punching a code into a small hand-held terminal.  The jackal stirred.


See also:  http://clockworkmansion.com/forum/index.php/topic,2274.msg107520.html#msg107520

[techmaster-glitch]

Ah yes, of course. I forgot all about Keaton falling right over the bed.

[Tapewolf]

Another little item of interest is a cut line from an earlier prototype, before I got the idea of including Lutlakes' mission as a flashback.  In this version he only met Jakob after Keaton had already murdered him, giving this cute little exchange:



"So you're Mr. Pettersohn?" Lutlake asked.  "How interesting!  I heard you were dead."

"I could say the same about you," Jakob said mildly, "although that would be a bit below-the-belt after all you've been through.  Now, may I ask why you're here?"

[Tapewolf]

Chapter 25 - Flapjacks

After the last time, Daryil had determined to ensure that his clan knew about the Ascension party beforehand.  Even so, a number of people had missed the announcement and were bewildered, irritated or even frightened to suddenly find themselves in the middle of a forest, surrounded by dozens of Creatures.  Others hadn't taken the difference in time-zone into account and had arrived in various states of undress.

In the centre of the clearing, Jakob had set up a two kilowatt sound system next to the stage, a simple wooden affair backed by a large tapestry of their clan symbol.
Keaton watched this listlessly, fingering the locket that Daryil had sent her accompanied by a long and rambling apology.  It contained her own ashes.

Once she would have seized this opportunity to escape, free from the constraints within Jakob's ice-bound complex.  Now, here in the middle of the forest, she stayed with them more out of apathy more than anything else.

At the same time, she was gradually beginning to think about planning for her future, such as it was.  Like a 'Cubi she only really needed a roof over her head.  But a 'Cubi could also defend themselves and now, bereft of the darkness, her magic and her innate defensive abilities, she would have to re-learn self defence, have to learn to defend herself against Creatures, in just the way Beings had tried to defend themselves against her.  In that light, it was probably better to stay with Jakob until she was able to survive in the wild.  If Daryil didn't kill her himself, it was unlikely anyone else would be able to touch her while she was under his protection.

At one point, he caught her eye, even gave her a friendly wave, as though it hadn't happened.  She waved back, although he surely knew she was doing it more out of fear than respect.

When everyone had arrived, a jig began to play and Daryil pranced onto the stage.  Thirty seconds later, a second Daryil appeared and taking the hand of the original, the two of them began to dance.  When it was over, the pair of him bowed.  One of them kicked the other in the nuts and the violated fox wavered and faded away.  A tuxedo appeared on the remaining incubus and his eyes were watering slightly.

"My dear friends and fellow clan-mates," he began, "Welcome to my Ascension party.  I have, I believe, learned a number of lessons since the Tree party, hence this will be a much more formal affair that will not take forty days.  As I'm sure most of us know, I now have three pairs of wings instead of the usual two.  Aren't they pretty?"  As he spoke, the hip-wings appeared.  There was some murmuring from those who hadn't seen the news report, which had been repeated many times - including on Furrae's Most Wanted - and wails of terror from at least three unfortunate clan members who still believed they were Beings.

"Firstly I'd like to thank Jakob, Azrael, Niall and Ashley for their invaluable work in soul synthesis which ultimately made my ascension possible and should, in time, make the barbaric practice of soul-eating as obsolete as flint axes.  I love you guys.  Secondly, I would also like to publicly humiliate Keaton for attempting to kill me and my sweetheart, Simeon..."  The jackal felt a chill steal through her and tried to pretend she wasn't there.

"...but I think she's suffered enough already.  So instead, I propose a toast."  Some of the crowd began to shuffle and looked at each other nervously, not least because there were no drinks to toast with.  Daryil paused, and then smiled widely.

"I've forgotten what I was going to toast to.  Lollipops.  Great taste at a low, low price..." Each organic member of the party suddenly found a lollipop in their hand.  "Okay?" said Daryil as the partygoers clinked the sweets together in a confused fashion.  Jakob slumped across the mixing board, apparently in a state of some distress.

"Now... oh wait!  To no more soul-eating!  That was it."

He clapped his hands together, replenishing the few who had already eaten their lollipops.
"No more soul-eating!" the crowd chanted, rather more enthusiastically.

"If anyone is interested," Jakob said, "We will be handing out free vouchers for our soul-substitute later on in the evening."

"Yeah!" Daryil concluded.  "Now, let's get pissed."

* * *

Keaton stood apart from the long tables of food and drink which had appeared as Daryil finished his brief speech.  Unable to consume either herself, she stared morosely at the people who could - it had only been about two days but she missed it already.  Wandering like a lost soul amongst the partygoers, she spotted Dorcan with his family.  Mordrith and Julei, a husky she'd never met before... unless it was Neremath?  He was still a puppy when the clan fell.  And that meant the edgy, furtive-looking doberman would have to be his wife...

Meanwhile, a small crowd had gathered, staring at Wils as he pranced and assumed various defensive and offensive postures, asking Joshua, Azrael to open the service hatches in their chests and do cartwheels.  She turned away.  They might enjoy the attention, but there was no way she would be paraded around like Jakob's latest toy.

Suddenly she realised that she wasn't the only one with issues about their new form.  Ephrael brushed past her, heading for Jakob with a look of determination on her face.  Intrigued, Keaton decided to follow the marsupial.  Heck, it would pass the time and besides, she wanted to see the fireworks if and when Ephrael discovered what Daryil had done to her precious tattoo.  Keaton had caught sight of it while the marsupial was changing.  It would randomly display the names of other women, but only when Eph herself couldn't see it.

"Jakob," the marsupial said, "This body is all well and good, but I do miss being able to drink and stuff.  I don't suppose there's any way I can have a real body again?"

"We'd have to... hmm...." he paused.  "I might be able to clone you," he said.  "It'll take about 20 years, and it depends if I still have the lock of hair I took when I buried you..."

Keaton knew right away that she'd made the right decision.  Her death was recent enough that there was surely some DNA still around from her corpse.  If they could make it work for Ephrael... If they could get the DNA... If Daryil didn't kill her completely, she might one day live again... Yeah, tell that to Daddy, she thought.  It was a gamble, but the chance to be a real succubus once more was worth the price of staying in their madhouse.

"Cloning?  Will it work?  Have you done it before?"  Ephrael was asking, somewhat suspiciously.

"Actually, yes.  I made a clone of myself, but that was a bit of a hack since it was built to act as a decoy rather than a person.  But there were two earlier attempts, which were entirely successful."

"Others?  Who?"

"Do you remember the soul-stones I used to carry around my neck?  The two demons I slew as my last act as ruler of Ha'Khun?  It wasn't easy, but I eventually created new bodies for them.  The other difficulty was that their souls were still damaged from when I attacked them, but with the soul synthesis techniques we were able to patch over the damage."

"Weren't they, like, mad at you?"

"Fortunately the stones I used were designed for long-term storage, like yours, Ephrael.  Time slows down for the occupant to help keep them sane.  In any case, it turned out that the parts of their souls which I ate included their memory of what they had done to me... and what I'd done to them."

* * *

Joshua had grown bored of playing demo model, so, replaced by Dorcan, he made his excuses and headed off to find Jakob.  As he approached, the incubus was drifting away, leaving Ephrael and Keaton, who had a peculiarly dreamy expression on her face.  He found it quite frightening.

"What the heck is up with her?"  He asked, tagging along beside the wolf.  "I've never, ever seen her look quite like that before."

"Keaton?  She's hoping I can clone her a new body," Jakob replied, and snickered to himself.

"Each to her own, I guess.  I'll stick with immortality, I think."

"A wise decision.  Anyway... what can I do for you?"

"Who is Werrew the Usurper?" Joshua asked.

"Imagine someone with the megalomania of Johan Cross, and the sanity of Daryil," he replied with a wry grin.

"I'm not sure I want to!"

"Actually, you won't need to.  He's over there."  Jakob gestured to an Alsatian hound with pale fur and pastel-shaded wings.  He was talking to Daryil and Simeon, who listened raptly, hanging on to every word.

"...after the second attack, King Thias issued a decree that all suspected Creatures were to be arrested on charge of attempted treason or something.  Why, I'm not entirely sure, because it basically meant that he was disposing of everyone who could repel the attackers. As you can probably imagine, some fled and some decided to go down fighting."

"What happened to you?"

"Me?  Oh, the first I learned about the decree at all was when they arrested me.  Anyway, one of my neighbours was a guy called 'Kamdan', a black panther who was a bit of an adventurer himself so it wasn't unusual for him to disappear for weeks at a stretch.  It wasn't until they threw me into his cell that I realised where he'd disappeared to this time, and it wasn't until I saw the wings that I realised he was actually a demon in disguise."

"He was in a really bad way, and I wasn't sure if he was going to make it.  They weren't feeding us well, and I figured that his need was greater than mine so I shared my meals with him.  That helped him keep up his strength, but strangely it didn't seem to make much difference to me, so I gradually gave him more until after a few days he had all of it and I still wasn't getting any weaker.  In fact, I was actually getting stronger.

"Then one day I woke up with these," he said, pointing at his headwings.  "I guess the horrible emotions from the other prisoners must have helped, but anyway...  While Kamdan wasn't a 'Cubi himself he had worked with one, and he was not only able to tell me what I was, he'd also picked up a few tricks as trivia which he passed on to me.
"A few a weeks later, a pair of guards came to drag me away for interrogation and probably death.  But what they didn't know was that I'd spent the last eight days and nights learning spells and basic tentacle control, so as soon as we were out of sight, their heads came off."

"Now I suppose I was a bit biased, but in my opinion, the King simply wasn't doing a very good job.  So I went into the throne room and asked him if I could have a go, but said 'no', so I killed him.
"The captain of the guards didn't like that at all, especially not when he saw me sitting on the throne myself dressed in the dead king's clothes, so I asked him if he'd accept me as his new liege.  Unfortunately he said 'no' too.
"That was when it got kind of messy, because the palace guards didn't like any of this.  Every time I asked if they were happy to have me as King, they kept saying 'no' and I ended up going on a good old-fashioned 'Cubi rampage.  It wasn't until two-thirds of them were dead that they finally said 'yes'."

"You speak rather flippantly of all the people you slaughtered," Jakob said, looking somewhat sick.

"It was only death," Werrew replied.  "A shame, yes, but hardly the end of the world.  And don't forget all the deaths they meted out themselves, upon Creature and Being alike.  In any case, I had a monument to the fallen erected as my second act as King."

"What was your first act as King?"

"'Bring me pancakes!'"

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Uhh... so... what happened to Kamdan?" Joshua asked at last.

"My third act was to have him brought before my throne," Werrew said.  "There I made him Regent."  He proffered a photograph of a handsome-looking black jaguar with dark leathery wings and enchanted armour.  "He's holding the fort in my absence."

"Ooh, I like him..." Daryil said, gazing at the photograph.  "Mrrowrrr!  If I didn't have Simeon, I know where I'd go.  Actually, how's your shapeshifting?" he added, shooting a lascivious grin at his partner, who immediately tried to hide his face.

"I have heard less-than flattering things about your rule," Jakob put in quickly, in a somewhat transparent attempt to change the subject.

"Hey, now.  It's not like I'm Johan Cross," Werrew pointed out, either ignoring or misinterpreting Jakob's wince at the name.  "Although... he did give me a few ideas.  Anyway, it can be very difficult to get the truth out of your advisors when they're mortally afraid of saying 'no'."

"What about the Census?" Jakob replied, his eyes narrowing.

"I was being sarcastic!" he protested.  "I didn't think they'd actually do it!  Who in their right mind would attempt to find Creatures by killing people one at a time?  Or perhaps you've forgotten I spent two months in a dungeon myself, praying each morning that it would not be the day they cut my head off just because I was suspected of being a Creature?  No... I made those guys feel very sorry, I can tell you..."

"I must go,"  Daryil said.  "Time to welcome and/or comfort the new additions to my clan."

"Be gentle with them," Jakob called.

* * *

At two o'clock the following morning, when Daryil had returned his guests from whence they came, he warped Jakob and the others back into the research base in the Arctic.  Though their senses were slightly addled from the drink and the party in general, something happened which brought them all to abrupt attention.

"Welcome back, gentlemen," the voice called out.  Jakob turned sharply, and as he did a group of Weres sprang out, shooting spells one moment and reverting to their magic-resistant human form the next.  Before they could even think of a strategy, Daryil fell to be jumped upon, pinned down and an enchanted bracer forced upon his wrist, reducing him to Being level.
Holy shit! Joshua thought, They just took down a Tri-Wing!

"As I was saying... welcome back!"  The speaker was a fishing-cat with rusty brown fur.  He was wearing a business suit and the unmistakable aura of command enveloped him.  Jakob glanced around.  The doors were bolted and the anti-teleportation spells had been turned against them.  "Farlane!  Mac!  Come in!" he yelped, but his watch was blank.

"How did you get in here?" he screamed, as Niall crouched to examine Daryil.  "How did you get past the wards?  How did you know we'd be away?"

"Oh, someone arranged all that for us," the cat said happily.

"WHO?"

"None other than your resident computer genius, Ashley."

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Awww. Keats might get a body back? That'll keep her attention for a while...

[techmaster-glitch]

Treachery!!!


Though, on a total side note, I've had something I've wanted to say every since Jakob perfected the soul-synthesis.
Y'see, with this process, any cubi can live beyond their already extended lifespan, maybe even attain higher powers. I cannot think that the other Creature races, especially the Council, would just sit and let this happen; they must be f@%ing pissed at Jakob for massively undermining the balance. I honestly keep waiting for that coalition army of multiple Creature races who are coming to turn Jakob's little operation into a parking lot with extreme prejudice, if you know what I mean.

[RobbieThe1st]

Treachery!!!


Though, on a total side note, I've had something I've wanted to say every since Jakob perfected the soul-synthesis.
Y'see, with this process, any cubi can live beyond their already extended lifespan, maybe even attain higher powers. I cannot think that the other Creature races, especially the Council, would just sit and let this happen; they must be f@%ing pissed at Jakob for massively undermining the balance. I honestly keep waiting for that coalition army of multiple Creature races who are coming to turn Jakob's little operation into a parking lot with extreme prejudice, if you know what I mean.

Well, somehow I don't think that would be easy to do.

Obviously, you have a small army of 'Cubi, facilities to make as much energy as needed out of matter... And, if worst comes to worst, I don't think any Creature could stand up to being turned into pure energy... Or even being shot at with pure energy generated by said machine.

Of course, any 'Cubi in the coalition army wouldn't be there, I mean, with Jacob's tech, it means *any* 'Cubi with enough money can quickly gain an extreme amount of energy, instead of having to hunt down each target. I think most if not all 'Cubi would move to Jacob's side. Other races however might definitely fight back - A army of Tri-wing 'Cubi would be nearly indestructible!

Just my thoughts...


-RobbieThe1st

[Tapewolf]

Though, on a total side note, I've had something I've wanted to say every since Jakob perfected the soul-synthesis.
Y'see, with this process, any cubi can live beyond their already extended lifespan, maybe even attain higher powers. I cannot think that the other Creature races, especially the Council, would just sit and let this happen; they must be f@%ing pissed at Jakob for massively undermining the balance.

Jakob isn't restricting his market to 'Cubi - Demons and Angels are also able to eat souls and increase their power.  [Interesting idea withheld for possible use in a future arc]
There's also the notion of selling small doses to use as batteries, as Brun suggested earlier.

It's not like he has the manufacturing capacity to flood the market anyway, at least not at this time, and in the final analysis he hasn't put anything on the table that can't already be achieved fairly easily by utterly destroying people.

As for 'commodity Tri-Wings', providing the energy to do that isn't really enough - to quote Amber: "Well...it could be said that for every success for tri-winged...there have been at least a dozen failures.  And not the type of failure that results in a complimentary "good try" ribbon."

I honestly keep waiting for that coalition army of multiple Creature races who are coming to turn Jakob's little operation into a parking lot with extreme prejudice, if you know what I mean.

I'm not sure there is a Creature Council in this future.  I'm assuming that Destania succeeds, which means one less race, and unless they manage to wipe out all Beings (which I doubt) or all technology (which Creatures are liable to enjoy as well) the balance they have will already have been gone for at least a century.

I am assuming that there is some kind of new and better replacement for the Being-Creature, and yes, they are concerned, which is why they sent Mr. Lutlakes to establish the facts.  He may return, since I'm currently trying to figure out a new storyline once the Wils arc ends.  In any case, I'm taking your ideas on board.

**EDIT**

Out-takes time.

The party was originally scheduled for chapter 23 - before Keaton had died.  It was originally going to be the point at which Keaton ran into Page and tried to get her Dad back.  Then I had a brainwave and reorganised it.  Remarkably I managed to keep most of it intact:

Keaton ignored this, more intent on escape now that she was free of the ice-bound complex.  She tried surreptitiously to summon her warp-aci, but it didn't work and from the way Daryil seemed to wink at her, it was pretty clear this was his doing.  Somehow.  Why is he doing this to me?

There was also a point between this change and the final version where Daryil did a longer, more coherent speech, but it was turning into a Steve Jobs product announcement.



As he spoke, Jakob pressed a button and a white screen appeared behind his leader.

"Now, I would like to make a couple of announcements.  As I have just mentioned, we have succeeded in creating synthetic energy fields which any Creature can absorb for sustenance.  In the interest of maintaining my clan, I am considering providing a free supply to all clan members.  It also means that we should again be in a position to increase the size of the clan.  As usual, we will be offering a limited number of places for 'Cubified Beings."

"But first, let us look at what makes this possible."  On cue, Jakob pressed another button and another posted appeared.

"Note that the slides say I can't believe it's not Being.  Thanks to the munchkins at the patents and trademarks office, we have had to rename it 'SoulFood' and the new packaging isn't ready yet.  Fortunately the advert we cut doesn't include the product name - we are going to gradually lead in to what it's about."

This was Jakob's cue.  A faint whirring began... it was Jakob's pride and joy.  Microprocessor-controlled, it had a frictionless full servo transport and a cold light source that acted directly at the quantum level.  It was the world's finest 16mm projector.

[Gabi]

Mac Farlane?

Anyway, I felt sorry for Keaton after reading chapter 24, but now... I guess all I can say is wOrOt.

[Tapewolf]

Mac Farlane?

They're in charge of security at the base.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

munchkins. *giggle*

[Sunblink]

There was also a point between this change and the final version where Daryil did a longer, more coherent speech, but it was turning into a Steve Jobs product announcement.

The mental image of Daryil enthusiastically showing everyone at his party an iPhone on-stage is still a hilarious one for me.

Come to think of it, the entire party was hilarious. Especially this part:

"...but I think she's suffered enough already.  So instead, I propose a toast."  Some of the crowd began to shuffle and looked at each other nervously, not least because there were no drinks to toast with.  Daryil paused, and then smiled widely.

"I've forgotten what I was going to toast to.  Lollipops.  Great taste at a low, low price..." Each organic member of the party suddenly found a lollipop in their hand.  "Okay?" said Daryil as the partygoers clinked the sweets together in a confused fashion.  Jakob slumped across the mixing board, apparently in a state of some distress.

Poor Jakob. He has a lunatic for a clan leader. And not a fucking-insane lunatic like Jyraneth, I mean the fun kind of lunatic. XD

Great chapter.

~Keaton the Black Jackal

[Cogidubnus]

Well, I'm still not really feeling very sorry for Daryil. Not at all, actually. More the opposite. Even so, I think that I have already said everything that comes to mind about that a few pages ago. 

And I do have to say, the party was rather humorous.

"What was your first act as King?"

"'Bring me pancakes!'

Well, if I ever rule become the ruler of a small, independent country, I know what my first act as regent for life will be. Absolutely hilarious.

A very good read.

*Edit* - Oh yes, I just remembered. I was listening to "Princes of the Dreams" yesterday, and I found myself wondering - who exactly is the speaker in that song? The narrator, I suppose you might call it.

[Tapewolf]

Well, if I ever rule become the ruler of a small, independent country, I know what my first act as regent for life will be. Absolutely hilarious.

Close... the Regent is the guy who stands in for the ruler when they are absent or otherwise unable to rule.

Oh yes, I just remembered. I was listening to "Princes of the Dreams" yesterday, and I found myself wondering - who exactly is the speaker in that song? The narrator, I suppose you might call it.

I don't know - you'd have to ask Xss that.  He's on the forum (a PM may reach his email), or you can send him a note via DA ( http://xss-.deviantart.com ), which is what I did when asking permission to include it on the album.  Talking of which, I forgot to let him know it's released now 

[Cogidubnus]

Close... the Regent is the guy who stands in for the ruler when they are absent or otherwise unable to rule.

Well, yes. ;3 - how else do you think I'd become the regent, unless the ruler was, sadly, rendered unable to rule...

I don't know - you'd have to ask Xss that.  He's on the forum (a PM may reach his email), or you can send him a note via DA ( http://xss-.deviantart.com ), which is what I did when asking permission to include it on the album.  Talking of which, I forgot to let him know it's released now 

Ah, thanks then. I'll ask him.

[Tapewolf]

Well, yes. ;3 - how else do you think I'd become the regent, unless the ruler was, sadly, rendered unable to rule...

You'd have to keep him alive, though... just insane or in a coma or something.  I wonder how long you could keep it up...?

[Cogidubnus]

Well, yes. ;3 - how else do you think I'd become the regent, unless the ruler was, sadly, rendered unable to rule...

You'd have to keep him alive, though... just insane or in a coma or something.  I wonder how long you could keep it up...?

Yeah, well. Alright, so I'd just have to usurp the throne. Ah, revolution...

[Gabi]

Ah, yes, the toats made me laugh too. And so did everyone's reactions to Daryil's ideas.

The "I was no Johan Cross" was also an interesting touch.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Yeah, well. Alright, so I'd just have to usurp the throne. Ah, revolution...

... it's revolting?
... it's nothing but a chance to sit and spin?
... the sweet smell of napalm in the morning?
... how do I love thee, let me count the ways?

you know, you'd be ever so much better off if you finished your sentences yourself. ;-]

[Zedd]

Really nice Tape

[Tapewolf]

Oops, forgot to censor the f-words.

Chapter 26 - Loyalties

Keaton stared at the fishing-cat with undisguised loathing.  "He's a f***in' Angel!" she yelled, only to be knocked aside by Jakob as he lurched towards Ashley.  His face was a mask of fury.

The lynx's feathers stood on end and he tried to run, but Jakob was too quick for him.  His body had once been Demon, but now he was an incubus and a feeble, sickly one at that.  He didn't stand a chance.

Pinning him into a kneeling position, Jakob placed both hands upon his head and the magic flared up.  Interrogation techniques he had not used for centuries came out in full force, breaking down the mind shield with brutal efficiency.  The lynx's screams and pleas were terrible to hear.

"I'd stop that if I were you," said the Angel.

"No," Jakob snarled.  The pain at being betrayed by someone he'd called a friend for nearly six hundred years was almost beyond endurance and it manifested itself as hatred.  A burning desire to maim the lynx, rape his mind just as he'd raped their friendship.

"Jakob... stop it!" Azrael yelled.  He'd never seen the incubus go like this in the flesh, but he knew full well what the other could be capable of.

"You should listen to Page, you know.  I really do think it would be better if you didn't do that."

"Not until... I learn... what... possessed him... to betray me..."

"We did," said the cat.

"WHAT?" Jakob screamed, and let go of Ashley, who fell twitching to the ground.  "...jakob..." he cried out weakly.

"Oh my gods... Ash... I'm so, so sorry..."  A teary-eyed wolf was kneeling by him, stroking him.

"I told you it wasn't a good idea," the Angel pointed out smugly.

"You possessed him... How?"  Azrael demanded, as Jakob sat in silence, nursing the fallen lynx.  "Any one of us who was magic-capable would have detected a spell upon him."

"Well that happens to exclude you, but I take your point.  It's in his pocketwatch.  Quite simple!  While he was shopping near your branch headquarters one day, we mugged him.  As 'Cubi go he is pitifully weak, so it wasn't difficult.

"Once he was within our power, we made him forget the attack and put the spell upon his watch.  A beautiful piece of work, that... since his watch is itself powered by magic, we were able to simply disguise our spell as the power source.  He's been under our control for some time, now.  Why do you think you've seen so little of him lately?  He's been very, very busy, doing our own jobs as well as yours."

As Fendrick spoke, Jakob stared into Ashley's eyes and ate his pain.  Reaching into his own coat, drew out a small cube of soul-energy which he pressed into the lynx's hand.
"Please don't ever do that again..." he croaked, and with Jakob's help he was soon standing again.  He leaned heavily upon the wolf, but it would do for now.

Next to them, Daryil struggled on the floor.  There were still a couple of Weres watching over their prisoners, but the rest were sitting upon the fox in order to restrain him.  Fortunately he no longer needed to breathe.
With a sudden burst of effort, he shook himself free of them and lay on the floor, listening calmly as the Angel continued his exposè and ignoring the drama with Ashley.  Fendrick glanced at him briefly, and nodded to the Weres, who watched the fox closely but took no further action. 

Satisfied that Ashley would recover, Jakob turned back to face Fendrick, and the fury he had unleashed upon his friend was now directed firmly against the fishing-cat.

"What do you want, you bastard?" he said.

"He wants our souls,"  Wils said, edging away.  "HE did it!  He had me killed, and now he's come to finish the job!"

"Ah, you must be Wils," the feline said.  "Only one out of three, I'm afraid.  I'm not here for souls.  Yes, we did kill you, but it was never our intention to 'finish the job', as you put it."

"'We'?"  Jakob asked.  "You mean there's more of you weirdoes?  Who are you, anyway?  Who do you represent?"

"My name is Fendrick and I am from the Subtle Paw," he said, ignoring the gasps of shock and disbelief.  Having been subjected to Ashford's long and frequent tirades against the mythical organisation, Joshua was giggling to himself out of sheer hysteria.  Keaton was just staring.  Holy shit, she thought, That crazy bastard was right all along!  Daryil didn't seem to have heard.

"Let me explain.  We needed an agent inside your complex.  Unable to breach the protective spells, and mindful of the way you made mincemeat out of the Nagristi Brotherhood, we decided upon a more... subtle approach as befits our name.  We rarely do anything overt, present circumstances excepted of course."

"You call this... 'subtle'?"  Jakob spat.

"...What limited intelligence we obtained - from our plants in Keaton's agency - confirmed that you had the ability to raise the dead from their soul alone.
"The simplest solution was to kill one of our most trusted agents and send their soul to you by post.  With such a bleeding-heart as you have, we felt sure you would resurrect them out of pity and compassion."

Jakob turned to Wils, his eyes blazing with the same hatred he had shown Ashley earlier.

"You...  a plant...  Is - This - True?"

"No!" Wils squeaked.  "I swear!  Read my mind... anything..."

"Your restraint is admirable," Fendrick put in.  "We wouldn't want you to make the same mistake twice, now would we?  No... Wils' death was an accident, one for which I can only apologise."

"You splashed my brains everywhere and robbed me of my soul!  How can you write that off as a f***ing accident?"

"Sadly our records department typed the address wrong," Fendrick said.  "The agent who had volunteered was an incubus, and the agent assigned to effect his... er, transformation... naturally assumed he was role-playing.  An actor's final performance, you might say."

"But that agent was an incubus too, wasn't he?"  Jakob snapped.  "Someone disguised as me, someone who shapeshifted before entering and leaving.  Why didn't they read Wils' mind and know?"

"Actually, they were all Beings," he said.  "Three of them, to create a cover, you see.  In case they were intercepted, only the killer himself knew the entire plan - the others were told only what they had to do, not why.  The first agent entered the house.  Then he left via a warp-aci which he brought with him.  This warp-aci was then able to return with the killer, who carried out his task and was then teleported back with the bullet containing his target's soul.  Finally, a third agent was warped into the property and left via the front door.  The resulting confusion has left the police running in circles to this very day," he beamed.

"But why?  What was it all for?"

"Several reasons," he said, and paused.

"Firstly, it has become necessary to remove Daryil.  His near-deification poses a terrible threat to us all, and that is the reason for our regrettably hasty action today."

"You see, no... one moment..."  He pulled out a notebook.  "Here we are... 'All available evidence suggests that Lord Ikaarion Daryil has been engaging in a series of forbidden eugenics experiments.'"

"What?"  Jakob started.

"I can see it in your eyes, you have half-suspected it.  Why is Ashley so weak?  Or Simeon?  When you first introduced him to Daryil he was a hardened adventurer, a killer whose conscience was untroubled by the deaths of almost a dozen other 'Cubi and untold Demons.  Yet now he is a pathetic specimen as incubi go, barely able to shapeshift on his own, let along defend himself, even against Keaton with her comparatively limited education.  This was done for a reason... not least because Daryil himself prevented Simeon from attending SAIA.  And why does Clan Daryil have a higher than usual tendency to mate with Beings rather than other 'Cubi?"

He paused.

"The evidence we have leads us to conclude that he is deliberately breeding an underrace of 'Cubi for some twisted purpose of his own.  In fact, we believe they were designed specifically to infiltrate Being society and overthrow it."

Daryil sat up, wide-eyed.  The Angel cackled at his shocked face, the expression of one whose darkest, innermost secret had suddenly been posted on the WorldNet.

"You know," he said, "That's a really good idea!"

Fendrick made a soft clucking sound and was silent for the first time since his arrival.

"Just think..."  Daryil continued, glancing at Jakob with a rapt expression.  "Within a few generations I could bring about the paradise that you tried to make of Ha'Khun..."

Few outside of Jakob's close friends knew the original vision of peace and unity that he shared with Page, overshadowed as it was by what came later.  The fishing cat's expression changed to one of abject horror as he tried to imagine what Johan Cross might refer to as 'paradise'.  He seemed to have entirely lost the ability to speak.

"Overthrow Being civilisation?"  Jakob asked, appalled.  "But why?  Clan Daryil has always treated Beings well... Why the sudden change of heart?  What have they ever done to you?"

"Overthrowing..?  Nah, screw that crap,"  Daryil said dismissively.  "Think of the other possibilities!  A kinder, gentler 'Cubi race who can live in harmony amongst Beings and protect them..."

"Okay," said Jakob in relieved voice, oblivious to the twisted utopia that Fendrick was envisioning in mute horror.  "But what about the other points?  Ashley was converted by Fa'Lina, not you, but that still leaves Simeon.  What about him?"

"But I do attend SAIA," Simeon piped up, snapping Fendrick back to attention.  "I just didn't want to have to leave dear Daryil, not for so many centuries...  So I've been attending part-time, which obviously takes a lot longer to become proficient than a full-time course would."

"Looks like it's none out of three for you, Mr. Fendrick," said Wils.

"Uh?  Oh."  The Angel pulled himself together and resumed control of the situation.

"Um, Right.  Yes.  Now it is time to explain where you fit into this, Jakob.  The second reason I have come here tonight."

* * *

Parting was hard for Dorcan.  It was hard for his family as well, although not as hard as his death.  They hugged each other, but much as she loved her son, Salomere had a price on her head and she had to flee.  As the wards Daryil had cast upon the forest clearing faded away, the possibility of their discovery rose with every passing moment.

"You could come back with me," the doberman suggested.  "I'm sure Jakob wouldn't mind.  Even if he did, he wouldn't tell anyone unless you posed a direct danger to us."

"Actually, how are you going to get back, Dorcan?"  Neremath asked.  "The others have left and you can't teleport on your own anymore."

"I have an amulet," he said.  "Crude, I know, but it should take me back to the base.  Mum too, I think."

She took him by the hand and he touched the amulet.  There was a brief flicker.

"That's odd," he said.  "Maybe it will only work with one person."

"Thanks for the offer," Salomere said.  "It would have made things a lot easier."

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

"I've made it this far," she replied, but even without his empathic abilities, he could tell she was lying.  With a sad wave, he touched the amulet again.  Nothing happened.

Oh shit.

[Ryan_Galen]

Ok, after reading all twenty six chapters in one sitting, and of course letting it all stew in my mind overnight, I have a few things to say.

1) First and foremost, good job.
2) A small part of me does have to admit that certain sections do seem a little... forced. The joke concerning the resurection of the Dark God. The fact that we're quickly getting a larger main cast of andriods then cubi. The portals to Earth. Keaon's good girl routine.
3) Certain other parts are just more confusing then it feels they should be. Maybe it was my lack of sleep by the time I got to it, but the entire chapter concerning Keaton's death was hard to follow. Honestly thought it was a dream sequence at first. Probally has something to do with the forced feeling of her good girl routine.
4) Daryil... is... just... cool. Nuff said.
5) Andriods or soul food... it is often hard to tell which is the main subject of the plotline. Of course they are both directly connected to the greater subject of immortality, which oddly hasn't been commented on as much more then a passing subject as of yet. One can only wonder why...
6) ...I've actually run out of comments to make. At least over the great and spanning storyline. One can only wonder what will come next.

[Tapewolf]

2) A small part of me does have to admit that certain sections do seem a little... forced. The joke concerning the resurection of the Dark God. The fact that we're quickly getting a larger main cast of andriods then cubi. The portals to Earth. Keaon's good girl routine.

Thanks for your comments.  Some of my ineptitude can be put down to this being my second attempt at writing fiction after a break of about 15 years, CJP being the first 

Maybe the Dark God bit could have been done a bit more subtly, but it seems to have worked for most readers.  The portals to earth were part of the backstory from the original CJP series, which this is a followup to.
Indeed, one of the things I feel I've slipped with in this one is that it probably doesn't make as much sense if you haven't read CJP first.  At some point I'm going to start migrating these to DeviantArt, and I'll probably make a few corrections and tweaks at that point.  Yeah, the section with Keaton is somewhat overly moralistic.  She is an extremely evil person, though.

In all honesty, one of the few things I really feel was forced was the bit with the aircraft - that was actually a crossover from another project of mine. 

Certain other parts are just more confusing then it feels they should be. Maybe it was my lack of sleep by the time I got to it, but the entire chapter concerning Keaton's death was hard to follow. Honestly thought it was a dream sequence at first. Probally has something to do with the forced feeling of her good girl routine.

I have a strong tendency to go for 'what the heck happened', especially in chapter starts.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it can be a bit hard to follow.  The underlying concept with that one was to run it almost backwards using flashbacks.

5) Andriods or soul food... it is often hard to tell which is the main subject of the plotline. Of course they are both directly connected to the greater subject of immortality, which oddly hasn't been commented on as much more then a passing subject as of yet. One can only wonder why...

Yes, the basic theme is immortality.  In effect, Jakob started to get jittery as he approached 1000, and realised that he'd have to make a choice between dying or eating souls.  So he looked for alternatives.  Truth be told, these were originally two separate story ideas, but they kind of coincided.  However, they are complementary.  Soul Food won't work on Beings, and an android frame is a detriment to a 'Cubi as Keaton and to a lesser extent, Dorcan, have discovered.  However it makes a good emergency measure.

[Gabi]

Ok, I've managed to read this before I was fetched. I'll see if I can read the other one too, but I can't promise anything. Nice work, sorry I can't come up with good comments right now.