Fiero and Crimson stood before the stone throne of Quetzalcoatl. The man before them wore an elaborate outfit covered in colorful feathers and ornaments. On his head was an amazing crown with long colored feathers. The face he wore appeared as an aged man of Mayan descent, with a deeper red complexion and ebony hair.
“I don’t know what you speak of. I have not left the sanctuary of this place for a long time. Only when Lord Dragon and Lady Phoenix paid me visits did I entertain anyone.”
Crimson asked, “Why? The others of your kind have lived among humans, though hidden, they weren’t locked away...at least the ones I’ve met weren’t.”
“True. Lord Dragon mentioned this to me, often. He encouraged me to leave and at least see this world. But my sorrow left me fearful of leaving.”
“Sorrow?” Fiero asked.
“When I came here, to these lands, I walked among the humans. I learned from their culture and customs. I wanted to adapt myself into the helpful myth as Lord Dragon had asked of us. I could not find a suitable identity, for their culture was far more complex than I anticipated. Then, one day, I heard a man weeping about the lack of rain. He begged the Quetzalcoatl to bring rain. I asked him about this being. He gave me a small description, and I read from his mind what the appearance should be. I assumed it would be suitable. So, I recreated myself in that image and used my power to create a small rainstorm to water his withering crops.”
Crimson shrugged. “Sounds like a good idea.”
“At first, it was. Truly, it was a mistake. I did not know that the figure he spoke to me of was a chief deity of their beliefs. I had made the horrible mistake of taking on the visage of a god, which was against Lord Dragon’s explicit rules. I tried to be helpful and hide, but they continued to find me and pray to me, make me offerings and tried to build me grand temples. I showed them wrath, so they would leave me alone. But, in my anger, I caused a great storm of lightning. This struck and killed three people, including a small child. I did not intend to cause death. It was horrible. We may have amazing powers, but returning the dead to life is not one of them. I wept and fled. I contained myself here, away from the humans, hoping they would forget about me.”
Crimson said, “They haven’t forgotten about you.” This drew a smack in the chest by Fiero.
She glared at Crimson and then addressed Quetzalcoatl. “Sir, they forgot the real you, the god you impersonated became myth again. They are short-lived people, those that knew of your actions are long since dead and their ancestors have even passed.”
“That may be. But I still feel the shame.”
Fiero drew closer to him. “Sir, the truth is, one of your own has turnd to evil and is now threatening this world. Lord Dragon says you have fought him before. Your insight could help. We need you.”
“You say I have fought this one? The only one of our kind I fought was the betrayer. He conducted a forbidden ritual and turned to darkness. We drew it out of him after a long and bloody battle. Lord Dragon brought him here with the rest of us.”
Crimson
nodded and used his arm to protect a small holo-screen, showing Jinn
as the hooded man. “He’s back at it. He killed a friend of ours,
who was one of your people, and is now hiding, changing himself. We
don’t know where he is or what he’ll do, but we know it won’t
be good.”
Fiero added, “He has already caused terrible
problems, cost lives, and scared this world half to death, and this
is only the beginning.”
“Perhaps it is time I return. I mourn for the pain I caused, and I shall do what I can to prevent one of my kind to bring such pain again.” Quetzalcoatl guided them out of his cave and they helped him up through the pyramid. Soon, they were off toward BADGE HQ.
***
A small group of orange-clad monks shuffled up the steps toward the Vinh Trang Pagoda in Vietnam. The temple was set in a beautiful area and at the top rested the famous Laughing Buddha that drew a lot of worshipers and tourists from around the world.
The monks all stopped as they approached. People rushed back down the steps, some crying in fear.
“What is the matter?” One monk asked.
A woman stopped and pointed back, “MARA!” and then she ran screaming.
The monks hurried their calm movements, not sure what was happening. Defilement of shrines and temples was not unheard of, but rarely here at this place.
The first item they noticed was a giant statue head laying on the ground. The jolly, laughing face of Buddha was on its side, halfway down the top steps. As they continued, more debris was crumbled down the steps, all obvious remnants of this statue.
Then they beheld the horror. The statue on the pedestal now was that of a multi-armed demon, Mara. In its hands it held blades, which dripped blood. The face gazed down at the viewers, giving them a hungry look.
“This is not possible!” Another monk said. “I was here not an hour ago, and this wasn’t like this.”
The lead Monk said, “no statue can be moved that quickly. This is not the work of mortal hands.”
***
Quark stood by the container that contained the statue of Gar, devoid of life. He pulled up a chair and sat. Silent. The unlit room, filled with flowers, had a shaft of light coming from the open door, illuminating Gar’s statue. He seemed so peaceful, Strange Quark thought.
“If you don’t wake up now, I will change your form into a duck, so when we get you back, you’ll be fowl!” Quark mock-threatened Gar, hoping to elicit a response.
It was a desperate hope.
“OK then, I’m going to sit here and tell you every joke I know!”
He glanced at Gar with a mischievous twinkle in his third eye.
“How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb?”
“Just one. But it has to really really want to change!” Quark answered himself.
He thought he saw a petrified look in Gar’s eyes, then remembered that he was a statue after all.
“How about this one: What flower loves to kiss each other?”
“Tulips!” He exclaimed, then giggled, “He he he he he...”
Suddenly he paused, horrified at his own joke, and looked around to see if anyone else was in the room.
Convinced he was alone, Quark continued, “Why couldn’t the duck walk or fly?”
“Because it was a sitting duck!!!”
“HA HA HA HA HA!” He burst out laughing uncontrollably, as tears ran down his face.
His laughing slowed. Finally, what was a chortle became shaky breathing. He softly wiped those tears away as he realized where they truly came from.
“Ah, here you are!” Leprechaun came into the room, a tiny figure up against Quark.
“What do you want?” Quark muttered.
Leprechaun smiled. “I know, it will take time for people to stop being so distrustful of me. But that is my fault. Please. I came in here to see you...and to see him.”
Quark looked up at Gar. “So, that’s your nephew?”
“No. But he has his face and his father’s heart. I wish I had come to know this Gar. He seemed like a wonderful man, now that I learn more about him.”
“He was my best friend on this Earth. We were both outsiders... different... strange... oddballs... He understood me, and I, him. Plus, he was the only one who appreciated my jokes...”
“We will miss him dearly. There’s nothing you can do?”
“I don’t know. Even if I change his form, his life essence is gone. I thought of going back in time to save him. In fact, I did. Ten times.”
“You did?” Leprechaun was surprised. “What happened?”
“Each time I went back to change something, Jinn foiled it. I even tried teleporting Gar to different dimensions in parallel universes, but wherever we went, Jinn knew how to find us. His magic must transcend the multiverses.”
Quark paused and sighed.
“I also tried to change Gar’s form into something else, but Jinn could sense his soul... In the end, I always end up here at this point in space and time, sitting next to Gar’s statue.”
Leprechaun nodded. “Aye. Our power, our magic as you call it, is incredible. Jinn had, at the time, three times the amount of magic any one of us contained. This made him something I shudder to think about. Now that he has Gar’s soul...I don’t know if we can stop him.”
Quark lowered his head and softly said, “I would do anything to get Gar’s soul back.”
“You are a powerful person as well. This is why I came to you. I need your help.”
“In what way?”
“Come with me. I’ll explain on the way to the control room. Nova wants to see us.”
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