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More brain crap stories from TGG.

Started by ThatGreenGentleman, May 17, 2012, 06:33:40 AM

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ThatGreenGentleman

   The group was practically running down the street, the robot and zombie in the lead. "Is this what is was like for you the past several years?" Nano asked casually. The zombie looked at the robot before replying. "Yes, but I didn't get warnings from Death itself." "Are you two quite finished with your tea party over there? We kind of need to find a better place to discuss what is happening," Byte said to the two in the front of this jogging party. As they were throwing sarcastic insults at each other, Valerie remembered she left behind something extremely important that I will name later on. She grabbed Tera by the shoulder, "I have to go back, I left something behind." Tera stared at her as if she had lost her marbles. "Are you sane? You do realize there's a skin stealer back there!" Valerie sighed, "Yea I know, but I need to get that object, it may be useful. If I'm not back in 5 minutes call the police or something." Reluctantly, Tera agreed to Valerie's request and made sure to keep an eye out for payphones. The others weren't exactly happy with Valerie's decision to go back to get whatever it was she needed, but it was a little too late to object because she had already left.

   Valerie arrived back at her property, cautious with her every step. She opened the front door and entered the main room, the lights flickered, but they always did that. Valerie walked down one of the back hallways until she got to her office and opened the desk drawers looking for the object. "Damn, DAMN. Where the hell is it?" While she was busy with her frantic search she didn't notice someone had entered the room with her until the most bone-chilling voice spoke. "Looking for something?" Her eyes went wide with panic and she stumbled backwards until she hit a wall. "You're Niles, aren't you?" Valerie croaked out, her throat getting drier by the second. The man chuckled and his white eyes never left hers. "Yes, I am. You must be friends with the zombie, right?" He moved closer and grabbed her by the neck. She began to shake with fear. "Oh that is so adorable, but don't worry love, I wouldn't steal your skin. I won't kill you either, at least not yet. So, tell me, where is Dante?" He leaned in close, and Valerie did something she would regret. She spat in the skin stealer's face. His face twisted up into a rage and he screeched, "You disgusting little worm! How dare you?" He began to strangle her, but suddenly loosened his grip when a smile grew on his face. "Ah yes, I just thought of something absolutely wonderful. I think you'll like it too. A little gift to thank you for spitting on my gorgeous face." He grabbed a pair of scissors from the desk and dug it into her eyes. She screamed at the pain as her eyesight began to fade away. The last thing she would ever see was Niles face, grinning gleefully and laughing at her. Everything went dark.

   "Valerie. Valerie!" Someone was calling her name, but everything was dark and she couldn't see. "Oh move over, I'll get her up." A stinging sensation danced on her face as someone slapped her. She was finally awake and opened her eyelids to reveal two dark holes in her face where her eyes should have been. "Oh my god, Valerie. What the hell happened?" It sounded like the sentence came from Nano, but she wasn't sure. "I'm not sure... One minute I'm searching my desk, the next I'm getting my eyes gouged out by Niles. By the way, where are we? I can't see a damned thing." Byte venomously bit out, "What was going through your mind that would make you think that going back there to get whatever it was?" Valerie fiddled with the blanket on her lap and muttered out, "I'm sorry." Byte sat down on the hospital bed next to her. "No, I'm sorry. That was a bit too harsh, but it was incredibly stupid of you." After a few moments of silence, the group began to decide what to do next.

   End of part 7.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

Doktor Howl

Molon Lube

ThatGreenGentleman

#17
A Brief History of Niles.

   Since we've gotten a bit of the others' history, it would be unfair if we didn't go into Niles' history. He was born into a wealthy family long ago, of course his name wasn't Niles then, it was Bertrand Lanmont, and he was the heir to Lanmont Industries and the family fortune. He was a bit arrogant and prideful, but overall he was a kind person to those who were close to him. His closest friend was Amelia, a maid in the Lanmont household, they had known each other since they were children. Amelia loved him as more than a friend, however he did not feel the same towards her, Bertrand was in love with Madge Rosecroft, who was also from wealthy family, but had less wealth than the Lanmonts. Now Madge Rosecroft was quite the beauty, but unfortunately her personality didn't match her looks at all. She was vain and greedy, she only loved herself. Bertrand proposed to Madge many times, but every time she refused, until her family fell onto hard times. With most of her family's money gone, and unable to support her lavish lifestyle, she agreed to marry Bertrand. He felt like the happiest man in the world, and poor Amelia was heart broken. When they were newlyweds Bertrand spent every waking moment trying to make Madge happy, but she wasn't impressed, so Bertrand began to ignore his friendship with Amelia. With the family fortune dwindling due to Madge's expensive lifestyle, Madge eventually left Bertrand for another man, leaving the poor fool with his smashed heart. He ended up killing himself, and so he met the Lord of the Dead. Bertrand was left on the Hangman's Tree to suffer for all eternity...

   Amelia wanted Bertrand back, if not as a lover then still as best friends. She summoned Death and when she explained to it her situation, Death let out a deep sigh and said, "You two were not of blood bonds, so there is nothing I can do. However, I can bring him a message." Ever so quick, she wrote down her message to Bertrand and gave it to Death. When Death departed, Amelia couldn't have known exactly what type of seed she had sown.

   At the Hangman's Tree, Bertrand thought of how stupid he was to have thought he was in love with Madge, and Death appeared. "A message for you from Amelia," it said to the dead man. The dead man read it and realized that the one he was actually in love with was Amelia, he was only infatuated with Madge and her beauty. Death departed back to its home, and Bertrand began to think of ways to get out of the Land of the Dead to see Amelia again. The day came when he had his chance, but when he was in the Land of the Living, he saw how rotted his skin had become. "I need a new skin, so I don't scare Amelia with my rotted one." And he found one, in a public park late at night. The poor sod was named Niles, and he lost his skin to the very first skin stealer. Once he was comfortable in his new skin, Bertrand/Niles went off to look for Amelia. He found her, but she had become an old woman though she never once stopped loving him. They had a very short lived reunion, that ended with them finally telling each other how they felt, and Amelia dying in his arms. He was sad and outraged, and wanted revenge for the lost time he could have been with Amelia. And he knew just the person to get revenge on.

   Madge Rosecroft was now an old woman as well, and wasn't expecting to see Bertrand Lanmont again. She begged for her life, but he killed her and fled, knowing Death would show up and he wasn't going back to the Land of the Dead. Bertrand Lanmont threw away his old name, and took on the name Niles. What started as an act of love ended as an act of hatred.

   End of A Brief History of Niles.

Shit is about to get real guys.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

I sense a great foreshadowing/flashback in the force...

   A legend, long forgotten, about how this world came into existence, about two brothers, about Life and Death. Long ago, before time itself had ever started, a world was born but there was not much on it. The creators of this world were far too busy too add any detail to it, so they created two small beings, or "brothers", to design this new world as they saw fit while the creators attended to more important matters. The brothers, the oldest tall and shining like the sun, the youngest short but glowing like the moon, began to build this world that at the moment was nothing more than a smooth stone spinning around the new universe. On this new world there was only one realm, the Land of the Living, but the Rift that would create the Land of the Dead, but only through tragedy and blood.

   Once the world was complete the creators came to look at it and were pleased, so they decided to reward the brothers, but only one could receive this particular reward. The reward was to become the Lord of the Living and rule over the living beings for all time, but the creators couldn't agree on which brother it should be. The first creator thought it should be the older brother, for he was stronger and provided a brilliant light from which other life could spring forth. The second creator thought it should be the younger brother, for he was wiser and was more balanced than the older one. The third creator was cunning and loved to cause trouble, but in this case he had come up with a perfect solution. The brothers would fight one another until there was only one. The other two creators agreed and pit the two brothers against one another...

   The brothers did not want to fight, but were powerless to the will of their masters. For seven days and seven nights the brothers' battle raged and caused much damage to the world, but on the last day (the seventh day), the oldest triumphed and the creators rejoiced in having a victor, but the youngest brother was dead, his moon like glow died out, and his corpse no longer had any color, it was just gray. The oldest brother tried to use his sun like light to bring the younger back, but it didn't quite work. The younger brother's body began to move again, but with only a half of his life. In fact the only reason he came back at all was because he and his brother shared the same blood. The older brother was horrified at what he had just done, his brother was neither alive nor dead, but his flesh was rotting and a grayish green. Once the younger brother got to his feet the world shook, and a hole was torn into the air. It revealed the Land of the Dead, and the younger brother stepped through the Rift and into his new home, his flesh rotting at an alarming rate. He turned back only once to look at his older brother, now they could never see each other again. One belonged to the living for he still had flesh, the other belonged to the dead for he was nothing but a skeleton now. The Rift closed, the creators began to celebrate for now the world was truly complete. It had the Lord of the Living and the Lord of the Dead. The brothers were given these names; Life and Death.

   "You'll remember the words, not the person who spoke them."

End of I sense a great foreshadowing/flashback in the force...

Shit is almost about to get real.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

   In the shadiest parts of town, where no one dares to enter, there lies the lair of the skin-stealers. In the lair is the throne that Niles sits upon. The throne is made from bones, and is decorated with skulls and shiny objects, kind of like a crow's nest. Niles was thinking of ways to go about this new situation. If things went exactly the way he wanted, and the Shift happened, he would become the new Lord of the Dead and then he could do as he pleased. He smirked to himself as his "loyal subjects" merely laid about munching on flesh and cackling about something. He rose from his throne and walked out of the lair, he needed someone- no something- to keep an eye on the zombie and his friends while the skin-stealer began to lay out plans. He would have to make a deal, with the best predator alive; he'd have to ask Styx.

   Styx never stayed in one place for too long, but it's never hard to find him, that is if you know how to find him. Normally there are red X's painted on nearby walls, and if they are followed, people eventually end up in Styx's current abode. The places he stays at are pretty nice looking, which is quite a shock considering how Styx is not nice looking at all. Styx looks like something out of a nightmare; skin as dark as tar, extremely thin lips that are as bright as freshly spilt blood, deformed wings, and big white eyes with the smallest black pupils imaginable. When he looks at people it unnerves them, it even unnerved Niles the first few times, but only slightly. When Niles finally found Styx's new hide-out, the scene he walked in on would have most people retching, but Niles wasn't most people, especially since he's a skin-stealer. Styx was in the middle of a meal, and by 'meal' I of course mean a pretty young lady who happened to wander too close to Styx's territory, and an intestine hanging out of his mouth as his thin red lips quirked up into a smile that revealed the tiniest, but sharpest set of teeth that even Jaws would be jealous of. "Hello Niles," the creature hissed out. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Niles walked about the room, admiring the collection of knifes and other sharp weapons before he said, "I need you to do something for me. I need you to keep track of a zombie and his little friends." The tone in Niles voice sounded cheery and jittery, to anyone it would seem as if he was happily talking about his friends, but Styx recognized this tone. It was the tone of a crazy dead being, who would gleefully slaughter if it wouldn't catch Death's attention. Styx's grin grew impossibly wider and he asked with his voice dripping with blood lust, "Only watch them? Not swoop in and tear them to pieces? No bathing in their blood? My my, Niles if I didn't know any better I would say you've gone soft." The skin-stealer turned on his heels to face the creature, his eyes gleaming like marbles. "Soft? How could I, of all beings, go soft? How could I go soft on a FUCKING ZOMBIE WHO ACTUALLY HAD SOMEONE CARE ABOUT HIM? WOULD SOMEONE WHO HAD GONE SOFT GOUGE OUT THE EYES OF THE ZOMBIE'S FRIEND? THEY WERE BEAUTIFUL EYES, SO BEAUTIFUL IN FACT, I ATE THEM. DOES THAT SOUND LIKE SOMEONE WHO HAS GONE SOFT?" Niles stopped in the middle of his mad ramblings, and put on a sickening smile. Styx cackled loudly at the Niles' outburst, and Niles laughed a bit too. "I thank you for that display, Niles; I shall take that as payment, my old friend." The two insane beings smiled at each other and then Niles left, to get the rest of his plans in motion.

   End of part 8.

Shit is still building up guys. It's so built up that Bill Clinton is constipated.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

   He was dreaming, and he knew it. For once he was actually having a dream, and it was absolutely perfect. In this dream he was alive again, his heart beating and his flesh not rotting. His hands were warm instead of cold, and the stitches palooza on his torso was gone. It was nothing more than a dream but he was happy. If he had a choice in the matter, he would never wake up again. Unfortunately reality, and his mind, were cruel, and slowly the perfect dream turned into the perfect nightmare as Niles appeared and screeched in Dante's ear, "IT'S NOT REAL DANTE, NONE OF THIS IS REAL. YOU'RE NOTHING MORE THAN A PATHETIC WALKING CORPSE. I WILL MAKE SURE YOU WATCH ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS DIE. I WILL-" And that was where the mad ranting stopped as Dante sat up stiffly.

   Dante looked around the dark room, making sure Niles wasn't in there with him. He remembered that he was in the Lazarovici house, so if anyone got in an alarm would've gone off, so he calmed down. Dante was too awake to fall asleep again, so he began to walk around the house as quietly as a zombie could. After a few hours of mindless wandering he found himself in the attic that had a balcony and a telescope. Dante killed time with looking at the stars, and feeling a strange emptiness that he could not explain. His thoughts were interrupted when something flying by smacked him across the face. It moved too fast for him to see it clearly the first time, but the second time it came around it perched on the balcony's railing. This time, Dante could it see it clearly. It was a creature with skin as black as tar, thin red lips, and beady eyes. "So you are the zombie called Dante, correct?" It hissed at the zombie. Dante merely stared at it, with his frozen poker face. The creature jerkily tilted its head to the left, then to the right before it gasped as if it had just had an epiphany. "Oh, please excuse my manners. My name is Styx. Do not worry, I am not here to kill you unless ordered otherwise." Styx flashed Dante a sharp grin. To be honest, Dante had no idea what to say to that. "A quiet one, aren't you?" Styx asked before dramatically bowing, then falling backwards off the balcony and flew away. Dante would've shouted something at Styx, but Nano had been alerted by his system that someone had opened the balcony door, and appeared behind the zombie. "Are you alright?" the robot asked. Dante merely nodded and they went back downstairs.

   Something wasn't sitting right with the zombie. If Styx was supposed to be 'watching' them, why didn't Niles just come and finish the job instead of prolonging things? Unable to fit the puzzle pieces together, Dante instead groaned and smacked the table with his head. When he lifted his head again Tera remarked with "Careful now, can't have you splitting at the seams." One of Dante's stitches had come undone, and he groaned again. This seemed to be happening more and more often, his stitches would come loose from the slightest contact with objects. His hand had even fallen off at one point. Dante looked around the room, looking at what everyone else was doing. Byte had been in her workshop working on something ever since Valerie had been allowed to leave the hospital, Nano had been checking through files and data banks to find anything that could possibly help them against Niles, and Tera and Valerie had been out gathering information; but what about Dante? What had he been doing that was useful? Nothing. Other than stitching himself back together like a scarecrow he had done nothing of use. He wasn't going to mope about it of course, he was going to do something useful, but his thoughts were interrupted again when he felt something develop in his throat. Oh god, he felt like he was going to throw up. He had to get to a bathroom before he- too late, he began couching and hacking right there. Nano looked as distressed as a robot could, and Tera and Valerie were growing more concerned when Dante lost his balance and couldn't get up. Finally the thing in his throat became dislodged and he coughed it up successfully. The zombie sat up and grabbed the object. It was a small orb that faintly glowed, and on the orb was a small note. All it said was "You might find this to be of some use. Don't screw it up though, you only get one shot with this. Signed, the Lord of the Dead." Dante stared at it and could only think of this: "What the actual fuck, Death? What is this bullshit? What am I supposed to do with this? Use it to summon faeries and sparkles or something?" And then the zombie coughed up another note. "Don't be a douchebag, kid. Signed, Death." The zombie scowled, or at least attempted to scowl, and pocketed the orb. The robot and two living people looked at him and he assured them he was fine, Death was just being a prick.

   She had spent 58 hours going onto 59 working on this. It was vitally important, mainly because if they were going to stop Niles then everyone was going to have to be able to see. Byte added the final touches to her latest project before calling in Valerie and Nano. "Do you need me to administer the anesthesia now?" Nano asked, and Valerie furrowed her brows. Byte nodded to Nano before saying, "You'll be getting new eyes, Valerie." The eyeless woman was about to say something but Nano jabbed her in the neck and she was out like a light bulb.

   When Valerie awoke, her eye sockets were throbbing with pain. "Wha' happen?" was all she could manage to slur out. "Give them a few moments to turn on." Byte told her calmly. After about two minutes the world flickered into view for Valerie once more. She could see again, in fact she could six times as far than she originally could, there was even an infrared and night vision mode, but she she could see. Valerie sobbed out "Thank you" to the one person she never thought she would ever say that to willingly. In the short time she had been eyeless she didn't realize how much she missed her sight.Byte and Nano both placed a hand on Valerie's shoulders as she cried tears of joy.

   It had been a week since Nano had found Dante up at the attic balcony, and the zombie had returned there every night. Tera woke up when Nano's alarms went off, and Tera began to go with Nano to herd Dante away from the balcony. Each time the zombie muttered something about a strange creature called Styx. "I think he's finally lost it," Tera whispered to Nano when they went up to the balcony for the ninth night in a row. "I don't think that's what is wrong, but there is something strange going on," was the robot's reply. And something strange indeed. They saw Dante talking to the creepiest looking creature to have ever graced their eyes. Beady eyes, thin red lips, and skin as black as tar. When they got close enough, the creature snapped it's head in their direction. "Hello there," Styx called out to them, a wide grin dancing on his face.Tera's eyes went wide and he gulped at the way it seemed to stare through him yet at him at the same time. It was nerve-wracking to say the least. "Goodbye," Styx hissed as he fell backwards then flew away again. "Dante... What the hell was that?" Tera's voice cracked at the last word. The zombie sighed and was the one to herd the man and the robot down stairs this time.

   End of part 9.

Shit is still building up so much that there is now a shit castle in England where the royal family spends the summer in. It's pretty nice looking actually.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

   The Lord of the Dead paced up and down the meeting hall, growing more and more anxious by the minute. It's pace kept getting faster and faster until its bones began to wail and moan under the excessive motion. James was trying to figure out how this plan was going to work, he had grown used to the rattling noises Death's bones made at this point. After awhile, Death stopped mid stride, and if it had eyes, the skeleton would look like an owl. James looked up from his work to look at the cloaked skeleton. "What's the matter?"  Death stood silent for many moments before replying. "...I don't know." James looked confused and asked what it was that Death didn't know. The skeleton's head looked out the large window, pondering a reply that would fit what it was trying to feel or understand. "It's just... Life stopped caring about the fate of the living beings long ago because of his guilt, so why do I still care? Why do I care about beings that do not belong to my realm? I've worked at this, at being Death for so long, I was the only that stuck around. I have no idea where Life went, but he doesn't care anymore... He hasn't cared for a long time." James didn't know how to answer Death, partly because he didn't know if Death was just talking to itself or not. The living man shrugged then went back to work on the plan, but out of the corner of his eyes, he swore he could see Death gaining a slight moon like glow that it hadn't had before.

   End of part 10.

Shit should start happening in the next part. Like an avalanche snow ball effect of shit happening.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

   Niles sat in his lair, having had enough of waiting and planning. It was time to act, but being the gentleman he always was, he'd give the other side a message to let them know shit was getting real. He barked out orders to his subjects who all grinned devilishly. Most of them scampered off to prepare, a few followed their King so he could leave his message. He needed to find the robot, to make his declaration of war loud and clear.

   Nano had been going off to look for information by himself, mainly in dark alley ways and such. It had been raining all week, so it was miserable out, even for the robot. The street was empty, except for the shadows of people off in the distance. He thought nothing of it and kept walking, until a black blur headbutted him into a brick wall. His sensors were off a bit, but he knew who it was; it was Styx. "So sorry, robot, but orders are orders. Don't worry they won't destroy you." Then Styx was gone. Nano was confused, but quickly realized who "they" were. Three skin-stealers grabbed his arms and tore them off; he let out a mechanized shriek. Niles came up to him, a big grin plastered on his face. "Hello Mr. Robot, lovely weather we're having. Do you know what's going to happen to you? Well it's alright if you don't, you'll soon figure it out." Niles slowly removed his gentleman gloves and removed Nano's shirt to break open his covering. Once that was out of the way he began to pull out wires and circuit boards, he was giggling as the robot began to shut down. The last system warning Nano got was "SYSTEM FAILURE: PREPARING BACK UP." And then he was offline, for quite a long time.

   Everyone was sitting in an unsettling silence. No one knew what to say when Styx showed up with a battered Nano. Byte quietly loaded Nano into her workshop, telling Dante and Valerie to keep Tera out, no matter what happened or what he said. She said it was because if when Nano woke up again, he may not be Nano anymore. Apparently his personality was a unique accident, and when the robot was powered up again, he may be emotionless like he was supposed to be. No longer Nano, just a Unit 758. This would hit Tera the hardest because he was closest to the robot, as silly as it sounds. But Tera didn't try to force his way into the workshop, he merely sat at the table with his head in his hands without saying a word.

   Byte was nervous, because she had never had to repair this much of Nano in one go. It took many hours, but finally she was done. She set down her tools and powered him up, but he didn't reboot. He just sat there like he had the day she and her brother had first found him. Her heart sank, but she knew this was no time to get depressed. It was time for battle. She gathered some weapons she had been working on and left the workshop, but she also left Nano powered up...

   When the news about Nano was said, Tera was angry and wanted Niles' head on a platter. They sorted out who got which weapon, and set out to look for Niles' lair, for Styx had left an address with them when he brought Nano. It was eerily quiet when they saw it. The lair was on the outskirts of the city, near a mountain. It looked like a decrepit old factory that smelled of rotting flesh. Valerie could see movement in the entrance of the building, and pointed it out to the group. They all nodded and went in different directions to set their plan into motion. Let the slaughter of the skin-stealers begin.

   End of part 11.

Shit just got real guys.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

ThatGreenGentleman

   "SHIT." was the only thought going through the zombie's head as he could feel pain going through his lifeless veins. Niles was quite strong for a skeleton with nothing but rotting muscles. The reason for the skin-stealer's new appearance was because Dante had accidentally ripped off Niles' skin. The dead man looked into the skull of Niles, and felt it stare back though it had no eyes. Niles let out a fear inspiring screech and lunged at the zombie. Dante rolled out of the way in time but almost rolled into the sea of fire. The others had carried out the plan perfectly, they had set fire to the place while the two dead creatures had a battle to the death, or well death again, or um... You get what I mean. "TIME TO STOP PLAYING, DANTE," Niles screamed. "MY BONES ARE ACHING, AND I NEED A NEW SKIN. I THINK YOURS SHALL LOOK LOVELY ON ME." Dante grabbed for something sharp, specifically the knife he had dropped moments ago, but to no avail for it was behind the screaming skeleton with rotting flesh. Niles lunged for him again, but this time Dante kicked his legs up and effortlessly launched Niles into the fire, then made a mad dash for the knife. He got the knife, but the skeleton came back out of the fire unhurt, but laughing crazy. Niles was about to strike and Dante sat there staring like a deer in the headlights when a flash of metal jumped in front of him. "I didn't miss anything did I?" asked the robot known as Nano. Dante had a look of "What the hell just happened?" upon his face as the robot began to beat back the skeleton that was currently on fire. After he gained back some strength the zombie got to his feet and resumed the fight. Niles saw an opening and slammed the robot against the farthest wall then went straight for the zombie. "THIS IS A DUEL METAL TRASH. TRY TO JOIN IN AGAIN AND I WILL END YOU FOR GOOD." The power on his left side was down and he was unable to get up, so the robot sat there watching the battle rage on.

   The battle reached it's climax and it looked as if Niles was winning, for Dante was missing both of his arms now. Niles grinning in the way only a skull can grin, loomed over the zombie. Before he could land the finishing blow Death appeared behind the skin-stealer and lifted a menacing spear high above it's head, then brought it crashing down through Niles and Dante. Both were pierced through the heart, and the false life that Dante had soon fled his eyes, and his body stiffened into rigor mortis once more as he let out a sigh of relief. Niles on the other hand did not go so peacefully. He went kicking and screaming out insults. The Lord of the Dead raised it's bony arms and a black swirl went around the trio of dead beings and soon were gone, but what replaced them - rather who had replaced them - was none other than Dante's brother, James. Nano slowly got up and picked up James, and exited the burning building to meet up with the others. Though they no longer needed to worry about Niles, the robot knew it wouldn't be over for Dante.

   Dante the Zombie awoke once more in the Land of the Dead, though he had woken up in Death's castle of Imminent Doom and Despair. Death appeared and the two stared at each other for awhile before the skeleton spoke. "I see you've finally gotten up. Now before you speak, I must tell you a few things. First off, Niles is still around, though he won't be in the Land of the Living because whether you like it or not, it is now your duty to keep him in check. Second, I'm not long for this universe, as my time is almost up, hence why you'll be in charge once I am gone. Hopefully you'll do a much better job than me." Death began to fade, as the shackles of servitude he had worn for so long began to loosen it's tight grip. Death began to look like his old self, when he still had flesh. He was no longer Dante the Zombie, he was now Dante the Lord of the Dead. Before the old Death was completely gone, Dante asked about his brother. "You'll see him someday. But right now I must meet someone I've kept waiting for thousands of years." And then he was gone, and only Dante was left...

   It was bright yet dark, empty yet full. Death was no longer Death, but himself again. He was the moon, and his brother, the sun, had waited for thousands of years to see his sibling again. The sun apologized profusely for killing his brother. "You've blamed yourself for far too long brother... I never blamed you for what happened. Now stop feeling sorry for yourself." The three creators appeared and opened their arms for their creations. "You've both done well, now it is time for rest."

   James was heartbroken to know his brother had died once more. But he learned to get over it finally. Mainly because he was made the new Lord of the Living, and he had been told that he'd see his brother again someday. He started up the old bakery again, though sometimes he'd go missing for days, but he was actually doing his Lordly duties such as reviving dead forests and fixing things that were broken, things that had gone unattended to since the previous Lord of the Living was too busy wallowing in self pity. James took pride in his work though, so he did not complain.

   Valerie and Byte set aside their differences and began to work together. Tera gave up doing shady business, as Nano ceased moving as soon as he brought James out of the burning building. Tera and Byte were sad because they had lost the one who had raised and protected them all throughout their childhood and early adulthood. They still mourned for him, they probably always would, but they had to move on for they were no longer those children who had been abandoned by their parents. Tera never married though, but Byte did. Instead, he went out to the countryside and lived on hill that looked into a valley...

   Which brings us to the present, where Tera is the old man who was lost in his memories for a short while. He let out a tired sigh as he saw someone who he hadn't seen in nearly 60 years. "It's my time, isn't Dante?" Dante, still green and covered in stitches as ever, sat down next to an elderly Tera. "I'm afraid so my old friend, but don't worry. Everyone is waiting for you. You won't be alone." Dante helped Tera up, and a grand looking door opened and on the other side Byte, Valerie, and even Nano were waiting for him. "I didn't know robots could exist in the Land of the Dead." Dante smiled at Tera. "I made an exception."

The End.

Thanks for reading guys, finally done with this story.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

The Good Reverend Roger

" It's just that Depeche Mode were a bunch of optimistic loveburgers."
- TGRR, shaming himself forever, 7/8/2017

"Billy, when I say that ethics is our number one priority and safety is also our number one priority, you should take that to mean exactly what I said. Also quality. That's our number one priority as well. Don't look at me that way, you're in the corporate world now and this is how it works."
- TGRR, raising the bar at work.

ThatGreenGentleman

   "We will meet again." Was the last thing she had said to him before she vanished without a trace. His icy blue eyes that rarely blinked anymore always unnerved the servants. As much as he wanted to place his face in his hands and just cry, he had to refrain himself, lest he ruin the white make up that was nothing but a stripe across his forehead and eyes, for it showed his rank in this strange society. He is privileged, he has an infinite amount of wealth, he is Emperor, but none of those things changed the fact she was gone. The young Emperor wearily rose from his throne, and moved quietly to one of the many balconies in his palace, and looked at the vast city far below him. He hated it here, he hated this palace. It is white, it is sterile, it is lifeless. Everything within its walls is organized, everything is repetitive, everything is void of meaning. The young Emperor wanted there to be color, to be inconsistency, something completely new to him. However, because of his unfortunate birth, he could never leave this prison. He was born here in this white palace, so he would die here as well, but such is the "privilege" of royalty. He was jealous of his eight sisters, for most of them were married out already, which meant they had left this prison of a palace far behind and never looked back. Which also meant they had left behind their only brother, to govern an entire empire by himself. Thinking of his siblings who left him behind brought his thoughts back to her, who also left him behind without so much as a small glance back to him. "Well, who would of thought it? The Emperor can actually close his eyes instead of winning a one-sided staring contest!" an elderly looking maid said with a hearty chuckle. He let a smile dance across his face. "You know dear Bertha, one mustn't speak to royalty in such a way," he said with a light hearted laugh. Bertha, the old maid who had known the young man and his sisters since they were children, walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You know she'll come back one day. She'll come back for you, dear Icarus." The Emperor named Icarus placed a hand on her wrinkled one. "I know, but sometimes I worry she will come back in a casket..."

   Down on the streets in the city far below the palace was a young man, who was quite opposite to Emperor Icarus. This young man was not born into a royal family, or a noble one, or a middle class one. He belonged to no class, he was outside of the caste system. He was so far outside of the caste system that he had somehow created a new class. A class that only he belonged to, that no one else could get into, not like anyone would want to though. This young man is named Atlas, and his eyes are as red as blood, perhaps because of his line of work his eyes were that color, but if anyone asks he says his eyes have always been that color. His name, however, was not always Atlas. In fact, it had been something else a long long time ago, but that is a story for later. The story taking place now, is not a pleasant one. Now, before things continue, let us clear something up. Atlas is a strange sort of mercenary. He doesn't accept money for his work. He takes his pay in secrets. Secrets of others, secrets of those who hire him, for he says secrets are worth more than any amount of gold someone could offer. His current job was given to him by the previous Emperor, a job that had given him a secret that would make all others pale in comparison. Do you want to know what it is? Well that's too bad, because he won't tell you and I can't tell you yet or else that would ruin the surprise. Now shut up and enjoy the damn story. Where was I? Oh yes, Atlas. The last Emperor had given Atlas a strange request. Instead of asking him to kill someone, he had been asked to save someone instead. And this someone was none other than Emperor Icarus himself. According to the old Emperor Thanatos, someone was going to make an attempt on his son's life, which to Atlas was no big deal, members of royalty were always getting killed for the dumbest reasons. Thanatos had made it a very big deal for Atlas. Thanatos had willingly told him a secret that no one should ever hear, one that would make all of this trouble worth it.

   On the outskirts of the city that had a looming palace, was a young woman with strange purple eyes. She was not poor nor was she rich, though she pretended she was of the nobility caste. "Melena! Shouldn't you be getting ready for tonight?" The purple eyed lady turned to face her accomplice. "I'm already done with preparations, Barbados." The man named Barbados grunted in response, then turned his attention back to finish preparing the poisoned knife that Melena would be using tonight at the masquerade at the palace. All the nations leaders would be there, and if they timed it perfectly, they would start a war. She had spent many months wrapping the Emperor around her little finger, so she had to make sure this plan was going to work. With her voice dripping with venom, she quietly whispered, "I'm coming back, Icarus."

End of part 1: Trouble Is Brewing.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

Mesozoic Mister Nigel

"I'm guessing it was January 2007, a meeting in Bethesda, we got a bag of bees and just started smashing them on the desk," Charles Wick said. "It was very complicated."


ThatGreenGentleman

#27
   Icarus was not looking forward to the masquerade, for his mother and his youngest and dearest sister, Helene, would be trying to play match maker for him. He would play along though, because he knew they meant well, but he doesn't want anyone but Melena. He sighed as Bertha knocked on his door. "It is time, sire." He hated when Bertha was formal with him, but he understood why. It wouldn't bring him respect from the others if his maid, who was his oldest friend, called him by his name. So, with a heavy heart, Icarus put on his mask and left his room.

   If there was one thing Atlas hated more than getting gypped with his pay, it was parties with obnoxious royalty and nobles. Thankfully though, the old Emperor kept close to him so as to intervene if anyone came to talk to him, because Atlas was terrible when it came to making up fake background stories on short notice. So he spent his time standing next to Thanatos and observing the crowds. He could easily see who was drunk, who was laying on the charm too much, who would embarrass themselves greatly tonight, and other things no one could see without much concentration. Obscene laughter and garbled speech bombarded his ears, all of them were oblivious of the possible catastrophe that he was waiting patiently for. No one in particular that could potentially be the assassin caught his eye. Before long, the orchestra put a halt to the music, and the Emperor finally made his appearance.

   This was going to be problematic for her. Melena hadn't been expecting the old Emperor to hire him. She was lucky to have blended in so well, for any mercenary or assassin, even the worst pickpocket, knew who Atlas the Eagle Eye was. If he had spotted her and knew what threat she posed to the royal family he could have easily killed her from across the room with nothing but a spoon, she knew this because he had done something similar before. So she mainly kept to the large groups of people, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Melena had been talking about how the commoners need to stop complaining about the taxes when the Emperor finally arrived. She gave a small smile and narrowed her eyes. Her prey had showed up. Let the hunt begin...

   Icarus bowed gracefully and told his guests how grateful he was that they were attending, though he really wasn't. He made his way over to his father who introduced a man named Atlas. The man shook his hand and quietly said hello. While Icarus and his father talked for awhile, Atlas had politely excused himself. After a few minutes his mother and Helene came over.They began to talk at him about potential brides, but he paid no attention and merely nodded every now and then to at least give the impression he was listening to them. He danced with countless people throughout the night, until the clock struck twelve. That was when he saw her. He grinned and went over to her. She smiled back at him. He couldn't believe she was here. "Melena! What are you doing here?" She grabbed him by the wrist and led him across the room. "There is something I must tell you." She led him out of the room, through the gardens, and to a secluded area, which happened to be an abandoned room of mirrors. She closed the door behind them, and secretly took out the knife...

   Surely she now had the perfect chance. The King of her homeland had left at the same time they did, she only had a few minutes to go through with the plan. Melena swiftly turned around and was about to plunge the knife into Icarus' flesh when she saw something shiny come flying her way. Too late she realized it was a spoon, that was no doubt thrown by Atlas the Eagle Eye, however she did manage to move in such a way that it only got her shoulder instead of her neck. "I was trying to enjoy this pudding, but you just had to try to kill the Emperor and make me lose my spoon." said an irritated looking Atlas. Icarus was too surprised to say anything, so Atlas jumped from the bookcase he had been sitting on top of and retrieved the spoon that was currently lodged in the woman's shoulder. He wiped the blood off on her dress and continued to eat, while she glared and viciously hissed at him, "You asshole! Do you know how much this dress cost? Do you realize you've ruined everything I worked so hard for?" She then smacked his pudding away, and he looked as if she had just kicked a puppy into traffic. "You ruined my food!" Melena could feel her rage build up. "Enough of this. Barbados! Now!" As soon as those words left her mouth screams could be heard from the room where the party was being held. She made one last attempt and threw the poisoned knife at the Emperor and fled the room.

   Icarus had been too shocked that Melena had tried to kill him to notice the knife that was currently making its way to him. However by the time he noticed Atlas had already batted it away. The red eyed man quickly mourned his lost pudding, and then quickly made his way back to the bookshelf. "What are you doing?" Atlas turned to look at him and simply said, "Getting you out of here of course." The Emperor stood there dumbly, unable to process what was happening right now. Atlas finally found the right book, and the bookshelf moved out of the way to reveal a secret passage. "After you," Atlas said and Icarus was pulled away from his thoughts. The Emperor and the mercenary swiftly made their way down the secret stairs...

End of part 2: Ruined Plans.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.

EK WAFFLR

"At first I lifted weights.  But then I asked myself, 'why not people?'  Now everyone runs for the fjord when they see me."


Horribly Oscillating Assbasket of Deliciousness
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ThatGreenGentleman

   Sydney was a quiet girl who sat on a stool at a cash register in a shop in the city that was far below the palace. She sighed as she saw the celebratory fireworks go off, they reflected in her eyes as she noted how well they looked with all of the thousands of stars in the night sky, but was soon torn from her thoughts as the shop's front door swung open. Sydney knew who it would be, but wasn't expecting the extra guest. Atlas nodded at her and mumbled a quick greeting as he disappeared into the back room, and the other man she recognized as the Emperor because of his caste marking on his face. Sydney merely just stared at Icarus with wide eyes, and he stared right back at her. Atlas reemerged from the back room with common looking clothes, no doubt their disguises, and tried to explain the situation to quiet girl. "So where do you plan on hiding him?" Sydney asked as she quickly looked out the window to make sure no one suspicious was heading towards her store. "Well, I was thinking of hiding him here. At least until I can find a ship to Lilliput, or perhaps to the Cannibal Islands, just somewhere that they wouldn't think to look for him," replied the red eyed mercenary, who was quite exhausted from making sure that they got out of the escape tunnel that was filled with nothing but traps that the Emperor seemed to set off without even trying. She turned to look at him as if he were crazy. "Have you lost your mind? Hide him here? You do realize that they'll search the city first before checking anywhere else, and they'll have the port closed for at least a week to make sure no one comes in. Just really, how do you expect to hide an Emperor in a city where everyone knows what he looks like. And even if you do manage to disguise his face, they'll be checking peoples hands. They'll know who he is because his hands aren't calloused." Icarus looked at his hands and saw she was right. His hands were smooth because he has never needed to do hard labor. They would know, and they'd find him. He looked like he was going to be sick when Atlas spoke up. "How stupid do you think I am, Sydney? Of course I know they'll be checking hands, and I know that there won't be an outgoing ship for at least a week, which is why I have a plan. I made sure to get two jobs at a coal mine so as to get his hands to become rough, and to also get enough money for passage on a ship. And they won't recognize him without his caste marking." The girl sighed and said, "What makes you so sure that I will hide you both here, or that I won't turn you in?" Time stopped and all three looked at each other, until Atlas finally said, "I know you won't turn us in because of Penelope and Alexander." Sydney's face turned white at the mention of those names. Icarus looked at the both with confusion, for he did not know of the meaning of those names, he did not understand the importance those names held for both Sydney and Atlas. Sydney muttered something about how this would be the last time she'd allow him to guilt her into doing things with those names, and led them to the attic. "This is where you'll be staying. Don't make too much noise, and don't bother me for food." She said to them and went back down the stairs. In the attic there was nothing but hay, which was strange because Sydney did not own animals, and this was not a farm. All was quiet until Icarus asked, "Who are Penelope and Alexander?" Atlas did not look at him, but instead looked out the attic window before speaking. "Penelope was a woman who took care of her younger brother and her son, Alexander..."

   Once, a long time ago, there was a woman named Penelope who had a son named Alexander. She was married, but her husband had died in a war. So it was just her and her child, until her parents had a son of their own. Her parents died when her brother was born, so she decided to raise her brother as well. Years went by and the small family was happy, until a new Duke came to power. The old Duke had died of heart troubles, so his arrogant and greedy son became the new Duke. This Duke wanted to marry the most beautiful woman in all the land, which happened to be the boy's older sister, Penelope. No matter what gifts the Duke gave her, she would not accept his hand, for she still loved her dead husband. This went on for months before the Duke was fed up with it, and wanted to make her an example for those who would dare to oppose him. One day, the boy went off to make sure the cows didn't stray too far from the grazing grounds, and his sister and nephew were left alone at the house. The Duke came and set fire to the house, which forced the mother and her son to flee. The boy came back and saw the house up in flames, but he also saw the Duke killing Penelope and Alexander. The boy held their bodies in his arms and swore revenge against the Duke. The boy then sneaked into the Duke castle, and made sure the Duke's bedroom door was locked from the outside, and set fire to the Duke's house, and so he got his revenge. A mercenary, who had been hired to kill the Duke by some rival nobleman saw how well the boy had done and decided to make the boy their apprentice. When the mercenary asked the boy's name, the boy threw away his old name and said "I bear the weight of guilt and revenge on my shoulders, my name is Atlas."

End of part 3: Story Time.
As a gentleman, it is my duty to wear top-hats.