Demon Gem

[Alisha Readman]

okay, a bit early, I know! But the way my schedule is, dunno if I'll be able to post this closer to Christmas without being past it. Please enjoy!

 

SHOP OF DREAMS: CHRISTMAS STORY-DEMON GEM

 

Christmas is the time

when children sing,

kindness should reign,

and bells will ring.

But mind what's on your wish list,

for you may just find

a little something under your tree

that a demon left behind.

 

Alfred Munsteir opened the door to the old shop, followed by his three bodyguards.

"Welcome to the Antique Shop of Dreams!" shouted the two girls inside. They were almost identical, with gray hair, green eyes, and a string of prayer beads around one wrist. They both wore a long-sleeved shirt and cap that resembled Santa's, dark red with white fur trimming. The girl with longer hair wore a dark green skirt, and her sister wore black baggy pants.

Plastic garlands hung from the bookshelves, and a Christmas tree stood in the corner nearest the door, decorated with what looked to be small antiques. Underneath it was a black cat curled up and sleeping, with a white crescent on it's forehead.

"Can we help you?" asked the woman who had just come into the room, leaning against the doorway by the cash register. Her black hair was waist length and covered her left eye, and a choker around her neck had a square pendant half-white, half-black. She wore blue jeans and a dark brown sweater.

"Are you the owner?" Alfred asked.

"Yes," she answered. "What can I do for you?"

"I've heard that you have a rare item of interest at your shop here. Of interest to me, that is."

"All of the items in this shop here are semi-rare," the woman replied, gesturing to the clutter in the room. "What are you looking for?"

"The Demon's Eye." Alfred looked the woman square in the eye.

She sighed. "The really rare items are in the back rooms. You only, no weapons." She looked at the bodyguards. "Feel free to browse, but no sticky fingers."

Alfred pulled an automatic pistol out of his coat and handed it to one of the bodyguards. "All right, let's go."

The woman turned to the twins and said something to them in what sounded like Japanese, to which they replied, "Okay, Kaname!"

Kaname turned and went through the doorway, Alfred following her. As they proceeded up the stairs, he asked, "What did you say to your daughters?"

"Their names are Satsuki and Nadeshiko, and they are not my daughters. I told them to keep an eye on your guys. I don't trust mobsters very much."

"Mobsters?"

"Your mug shot is in all the news, Mr. Munsteir. Who else but mobsters would be with you?" Kaname opened a door in the long hallway and stepped in.

"So you're not going to call the cops?"

"I may not like mobsters, but I very rarely turn down a potential customer," she replied, sticking her head back out into the hall. "Come on in."

As soon as he walked into the room, Alfred was dumbfounded. A clear path went through the middle of the room, with various items along the walls. Suits of armor stood guard by chests full of artifacts. Several barrels were filled with a variety of weapons, broadswords, spears, halberds, axes, and katanas among others. Statues jostled for space among these, and a display case stood at the far end of the room.

"Do you even have a license to sell these weapons?" he asked after a couple minutes had elapsed.

"My good man," Kaname said, smiling mysteriously. "This is Chinatown. You can get almost anything here."

Alfred followed her to the display case, where his attention was instantly drawn to the gem at the exact center. The gem was about the size of a child's fist, clear as water, with a black circle in the center about half an inch in diameter.

"Is this the Demon Eye?" he asked, unable to take his eyes off of it.

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Six million."

"That little?" Alfred looked at her suddenly.

Kaname smiled coldly. "With a few conditions."

"Such as?"

"1: do not show it to anyone, not even your family or friends." Kaname sounded as if she was reciting something from a book. "2: do not lie within 50 meters of it. 3: do not kill or injure anyone within 50 meters of it. Think you can do that?"

"I should be able to," Alfred lied. Of course he wasn't going to meet those conditions. Who did she think he was? He gave her the money, she lifted out the gem and gave it to him. Their business transaction completed, Alfred left the room. As she closed the door, he said, "The door wasn't locked, and neither was the display case. Aren't you afraid of thieves?"

Kaname smiled without emotion behind it. "I have a most excellent security system."

Downstairs, Alfred was reunited with his gun, and Kaname sat behind the counter. Just as the mobsters reached the door, Kaname called out, "Mr. Munsteir?"

Alfred turned back, thinking "Now what?"

Kaname asked, "Do you believe in fate?"

"Not particularly, no." Of course he didn't.

"I see." Kaname closed her visible eye about halfway. "If you do not follow these conditions, I can guarantee. . .not even bodyguards will be able to protect you from the fate that will follow. Remember that."

Out in his limousine, Alfred pulled the Demon Eye from his pocket and gazed at it. Was it just his imagination, or was the black center just a little bit wider?

 

Dang, sorry, I'm out of time! I'll try to post the rest soon!

[Alisha Readman]

Two weeks passed, and it was Christmas Eve. Alfred had continued business as usual, a good part of it taking place in his office. (As he was a mobster, I'll leave the 'business' to your imagination.) He leaned back in his chair, gazing at the papers on his desk. Amazing how work could pile up, even when he was working his butt off. Standing up, he walked over to the safe in the wall of his office. He pulled the Demon Eye out and stiffened. With the gem still in his hand, he dashed over to his desk, snatched up the phone and barked into it, "Morris? Send someone to pick up that antique store owner. I don't care how she protests, just get her here now!"

 

A half hour later, Kaname was escorted into the office. She carried her coat over her arm and a scowl on her face.

"What do you want!?" she snapped.

Alfred dismissed the guards, and shoved the gem at her the minute the door closed. "What kind of gem is this?!" he almost shouted.

The Demon's Eye's center had expanded until there was barely a half inch of white around the edges. Kaname tossed her coat over a chair and took the gem, walking over to the desk.

The door slammed open suddenly, and Alfred's wife marched in. "So here you are," she said stiffly, "with your lover. I'm not even allowed to look at other men, but you can go and have affairs with whoever you like?!"

"It's not like that!" Alfred snapped. "She's a merchant. I brought her here to examine some faulty merchandise."

"Mr. Munsteir," Kaname said, turning towards the squabbling couple, and leaning back against the desk. She held her hand out in front of her, the gem resting on her palm where they could see it. "Have you kept the conditions I told you of?"

"Of course I have," Alfred said. There was now barely a quarter inch of white left.

"You have not had anyone injured or killed within 50 meters of this gem?"

"No." The gem was now completely black.

"You have not shown this to anyone?"

"No." The gem suddenly cracked through the center, making Alfred and Sara jump at the sound.

"You have not lied to anyone within 50 meters of this gem?"

"N-no." The gem cracked again, causing a small piece of it fly through the air and land on the carpeted floor.

"Mr. Munsteir, do you remember what I told you as you left my shop?"

"S-something. . .about fate."

"If you do not follow these conditions, I can guarantee that not even bodyguards will be able to protect you from the fate that will follow." Kaname smiled and slowly tilted her hand to the side. The Demon's Eye slid from her hand and to the floor in slow motion as her words echoed.

"You have not heeded my warnings. The blood of those you killed, both innocent and guilty, cry for retribution."

The gem reached the floor and shattered. A blinding light filled the room, lasting for several seconds, and when it faded, a large creature stood in the middle of the room.

It had a vague human shape, but a long reptilian snout protruded from it's face. It's eyes were completely black, except for the blood-red pupils. Blood-stained claws were on it's three toed hands and feet, which were more like paws. Matted black hair hung from all over it's body, giving off a fetid odor.

"What is that thing?!" Sara shrieked.

The creature cocked it's head to one side and looked at her, then Alfred. It opened it's mouth in something resembling a smile, showing long, stained and extremely long teeth. With one swift move, it was on it's hands and feet, slowly moving towards Alfred and his wife, like a cat stalking it's prey.

"Stay back, you monster!" Alfred shouted, yanking his pistol out from his pocket and pointing it at the creature. "You!" he shouted at Kaname. "Do something! You brought it here, get rid of it!"

Kaname crossed her arms, smiling strangely. "No, I did not. You wished for the gem. You got it. I told you what not to do. You did it anyway. You see, this is the Demon of Greed, Don'yoku. Always greedy, always hungering for more. You fed it for a while with your emotions while it was in the gem. Now it is out, and it wants more."

Don'yoku cocked it's head to one side and spoke, although it's mouth did not move. "You called me a monssster. If I am one, what doesss that make you two?" It ran a long reptilian's forked tongue over it's teeth. "You. . .you ssstink of greed. . .and blood. . .and DEATH!"

It lunged forward, gaping mouth wide open, and swallowed Sara, cutting short her scream. Alfred fired off several shots, but the bullets passed through the creature, hitting the wall.

By the time the bodyguards came in, their boss had been eaten as well. Don'yoku ate all of the bodyguards, the entire staff both upstairs and down, and would have proceeded onto the next house to continue it's meal, had Kaname not stopped it.

"You've eaten enough," she said, walking over to it.

"But I'm ssstill hungry," it growled. "I'm not going back."

"Too bad." Kaname started to raise her right hand.

"No, you don't!" Don'yoku lunged at her, but she jumped back, landing on a table. She flicked her fingers, and a glowing golden net dropped down over it, pinning it to the floor.

"Who did you think you were dealing with?" Kaname asked, no emotion in her voice or her visible eye. "I am the Time-Keeper, remember?"

She raised her right hand again, palm down, and a glowing circle appeared in the air under her. A thin golden line traced a pattern in the circle, strange symbols on the edges, and in the middle, a ring of chains surrounding a tree. Wind came from the edges of the circle, causing her hair and the edges of the her clothes to whip around her. The hair blew away from her left eye, revealing that it was dark golden with a slitted pupil. As she spoke, the circle's edges shot up in the air, creating a barrier of golden light around her.

"I, Kaname-eientoki, the Time-Keeper of the worlds, call upon the power granted to me by the Council of Yggdrasil, to seal this demon until the time of it's release. Let it be done!"

The net wrapped around Don'yoku, shrinking as it became a dazzling white. With the sound of a muffled explosion, it became the Demon's Eye once more, a clear gem the size of a child's fist, with a black center a half inch inch in diameter.

Kaname sighed as the light and wind around her faded. She stepped down and picked up the gem gingerly, as it felt as if it were on fire. She blew on it, and it instantly cooled. She walked back upstairs and retrieved her coat, pulling it on. Once she was done, she snapped her fingers.

An explosion rocked the house. Flames licked the roof within seconds. Kaname waited until she heard sirens, then stepped back into a shadow and disappeared.

 

It was late morning by the time Kaname got back to the shop. The twins were behind the counter, chatting with a visitor. She was tall and lanky, with black hair pulled into a ponytail, and a easy smile on her face. She was dressed casually in boots, jeans, and a hooded sweatshirt, along with several earrings lining both of her ears, mostly hoops and studs.

"Welcome back, Kaname!" the twins exclaimed.

"Hello, Loki," Kaname said, shutting the front door behind her.

"'Ey, there!" the woman replied, with a cockney accent. "Just thought I'd drop an' say Merry Christmas."

Kaname tossed her coat over a statue shaped like a rearing horse. "Hey, Yue, go with them and make sure it's put away safely," she said, handing the Demon's Eye to Satsuki.

The black cat unwound himself from around a vase painted with dancing bears, and stretched out, first one paw, followed by all the others.

"Kaname, are we still going to have our gift exchange before going out for lunch?" Nadeshiko asked.

"And are we still going to the Chinese buffet restaurant?" Satsuki asked.

"Yes and yes." Kaname say down behind the counter. "Go get out of those Santa outfits and bring your presents and coats down."

"Yay, presents! Yay, Chinese food!" the twins sang as they tromped out of the room and upstairs, Yue behind them.

"Yay, Lo Mein!" Nadeshiko sang.

"Yay, pork an' mushrooms!" Satsuki sang.

"Yay, peace and quiet once you've left," Yue was heard to mutter.

"You're coming with us, Yue!" Kaname called after them. "It's customary, whether you feel you got your sixteen hours of sleep or not!"

"Person'lly, I really like th' fried donuts," Loki remarked. "Y'know, th' ones wi' all th' sugar. 'Ow 'bout you?"

"Fried rice and cashew chicken," Kaname replied. "I assume you'll be inviting yourself along?"

"Why not?" Loki grinned, stretching her long legs out as she leaned back against the counter. "Ye were out wi' th' Demon's Eye, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Ye couldn't let anyone there live?" came the softly-spoken question.

Kaname looked at her, an unreadable expression on her face. "Alfred Munsteir, his wife, and everyone else in that house was rotten clear through. They would not change for the better, only the worse."

"True." Loki changed the subject. "What'd ye get for th' girls?"

"A thousand dollars each," Kaname smiled. "That ought to take care of some of their next costumes. Last year they got me a large mug and a month's supply of each coffee, tea, and cocoa. And they got Yue a bag of cat litter!"

Loki snickered at the thought of Yue, a Demon cat, using a litter box like a common house cat. "So what 'ave they got ye this year?"

"I don't know."

"Can't ye look ahead an' find out?"

As they heard footsteps at the top of the stairs, Kaname leaned back in her chair and smiled mysteriously. "Where would the fun be in that?"

 

END

 

Okay, even if it's just criticism, would you please post a reply to this!?!? If you've read through the whole thing, please just let me know, so I'll know that you thought the start of it was interesting enough to read the rest!! (teary begging eyes)

If you have not read the original stories with the Time-Keeper's gang, just find(somewhere in the Assembly Room) the posts titled "Order of the Worlds".

Hope you enjoyed this tale, and Merry Christmas to all, and Happy New Year!

[AuroraAoD]

I Loved It!

 

ok...heres some more critique besides the obvious. I thought you did a very nice job with the way the story flowed. The progression made sense from one scene to the next. I havent read the original stories, but if they are anything like this one, I will be sure to look it up. You had enought character description for me to understand the players and their basic roles as well as the "who, what,were,why's" Thank you very much for the tale and I look foward to more!

 

...now im hungry for chinese food though.

 

 

Ok, I just read the rest of this "series" you have written and I want to be the first with an autographed copy when you get it published.....Im just saying....1st autographed copy.....me!

Edited November 19, 2008 by AuroraAoD