Youma Blues
Jadeite Days 4: Promotion and the second interview.


        Checking myself into a hotel after my Sailor V adventure 
I did the only logical thing: I slept.  For about twenty hours.
        But it seemed that somebody didn't love me at all, 
because as I was buisily stacking Z's and going for thirty, I was 
awakened to the tune of forty thousand volts and a pissed Youma 
general.
        All things considered, I prefer birdsong.  The altercation 
went something like this:
        I was, as previously mentioned, sleeping and not at all 
intending on awakening anytime soon.  Then Jadeite shows up in 
my room, having already searched all of Japan for my 'lazy 
disloyal &*!&!' as he later put it, and hits me with more lightning 
.  I screamed - something to the tune of 'ARGH!',  jumped out of 
bed (I'd fallen asleep still clothed) and threw my luggage at him.
        "I'm sleeping! Come back later!" I yelled (big mistake).
Then I lay back down to sleep some more. (bigger mistake, but I 
was -tired-)
        This elicited more lightning, more screaming and (finally) 
me half awake sans benefit of strong  coffee (the *first* thing I 
took the liberty of importing to the dark kingdom).
        "What are you doing here, my servant?  Running from 
me, perhaps?  And with such a stock of energy to -  I might 
think you were trying to betray your calling, Youma."  Jadeite 
positively *delights* in being snide around me..beats me why, 
though.  But I wasn't in the mood to play along, so I was frank.
        "Hiding from Sailors - and not very successfully, either.  I 
spent almost all of -" I looked at the clock and did fast 
calculations -"The day before yesterday dodging one.  I'd have 
more energy for you, but I had to use most of it fighting off Sailor 
V."
        Jadeite just raised an eyebrow.  "You are the mystery 
Youma who was moving in on the Dark Ministry's territory?  A 
very industrious servant indeed..I see I shall have to keep a 
better eye on you.  In the mean time -" He grabbed both gems, 
and pocketed them, and then gestured, teleporting us both back 
to japan. " In the meantime we have work to do.  I am going to 
begin gathering energy in earnest.  If I can move a large enough 
number of people into a subspace I can drain them at my leisure, 
with out the interference of those brats.  You, however, have an 
Appointment with the queen.    She wants to meet my oh so 
successful servant."
        I sighed.    I knew this was going to be a bad day, I just 
knew it.
        
        Now it's time for Dark Kingdom Geography 101.   
Three things:  
1.  There is no sun. The only light is what you bring with you or 
make yourself.  It turned out to be a *very good* thing I see 
clearly in the dark.
2.  The entire place is somewhat dimensionally messed up.  It 
makes maps mostly useless, and teleportation a good survival 
skill.
3. There is no native flora, and the native fauna is all carnivorous.  
The Youma still come out as being the top  of the food chain - 
But only just.  Frankly, I have no trouble seeing why Beryl & co 
want to conquer earth - It would be a much better place to live.  
Well, that and the main food is mushrooms...
        Jadeite, of course, gives me the express teleport 
treatment while he goes into his next scheme.
        Of course, this means I reappear in the center of the 
Dark kingdom party circuit - the only part, in fact, of the dark 
kingdom party circuit: Beryl's audience chamber.
        Beryl.  God I dispise her.
        "Gathered Youma, Servants of the glory of Metallia hear 
me!"  Her voice is the first thing that reaches my ears and I just 
*know* I'm about to be thrown to the wolves.
        I'm right.
        "The being that stands before you serves my greatest 
general!  Jadeite has brought him into our ranks and made him of 
your kind!  And in the service of my general he has achieved a 
level of success unprecedented amongst you!" I checked: Blazing 
red hair, spiky shoulders, insane megalomaniacal smile, gown 
showing off more cleavage than baywatch, yep, thats Beryl all 
right. (Her words, by the way, were my first clue that I'm a bit 
more efficient with the energy drain thing than your average 
Youma - of course, most of those don't come back, either...)
        "But now he must be tested!" Damn, I don't like the 
sound of that.
        "Youma, you may stand!"  That was directed towards 
me - I only then realized I'd been kneeling.  Of course, I stood - 
in the Dark Kingdom, when Beryl says you can do something, 
you *DO IT*.  No question. 
        It was Zoicyte who spoke next, saying, "You who would 
serve in the armies of Atlantis, for the next day you are marked 
as prey for any who seek to take your position. "  His words 
were stilted, formalized, and had the tapings of ritual about them 
- I later found out that it was a ritual, albeit a very bastardized 
one.
        "Give me your name."  Oh damn.  I don't like the sound 
of -that- not one bit.  The marked as prey thing I expected - this 
was Psycho-babe's court, after all.  But the 'give me your name' 
thing, in a magical society - that sounded like name based magic.   
Give them my name, and they'd be able to do what they wanted 
to me, if anything I'd read in the fantasy novels I used to love 
were true.    So I lied.  Good thing Jadeite had never bother to 
ask for my full name.
        "Sheldon James."  Of course, any answer at all was bad 
enough.  
        Nephrite stepped forward from the crowd of Youma 
who circled the chamber.  "You have give your name truly."  
There was a knowing twinkle in his eye as he turned to Beryl and 
bowed.  I guess there was a bit of rebellion in him even them - or 
perhaps, through the stars, he knew just how much of a mockery 
the ceremony was, or maybe he was just bored, and wanted to 
see how far my daring would carry me.  With Nephrite it's hard 
to tell. 
        Then Kunzite stepped forwards.  "His name has been 
given.  He has no name- yet the Youma are not nameless, and the 
nameless do not live.  He must claim one."  He too bowed.  
Now I really didn't like the sound of this.  Then Beryl spoke.
        "His old name is destroyed; It was given into my hands.  
If he stands before me upon the dying of this fire -" And at her 
words a tall, twisted candle appeared and blazed with flame - 
"He may choose a name in my service. " Her lips turned into a 
bloodthirsty smile. "Should he live.  Should he fall I will accept a 
name from any who dare to stand before me at the fire's dying - 
and they shall have his place at my general's side."  She was 
obviously going to enjoy watching the scuffle, too.
        "I have spoken."
        That was obviously a dismissal, given the way the Youma 
were surging greedily towards me;  I didn't stick around to find 
out how promotion worked in the dark kingdom (actually I had a 
pretty good idea).   Instead I took a big gamble and  teleported 
blind. 

        I won't go into what the next twenty or so hours were 
like, except to point out that teleporting is much easier in the 
Dark Kingdom.  I did learn that you can - or at least, I can - 
drain energy from other Youma.  It's a lot harder than with 
normals - but not the ludicrous impossibility it is with Senshi.
        Suffice it to say that I learned a lot about myself and 
about (Youma) life in general in twenty hours, and that, when the 
flame guttered and died I was still standing, and, more 
importantly, I was standing in front of Beryl.
        There was a look of...interest on her face, and a look of 
satisfaction on Jadeite's, where he stood flanking her - slightly 
subdued satisfaction, but satisfaction nevertheless.
        Zoicyte looked like he'd swallowed a live frog, while 
Nephrite looked smug. (I believe there was a bet involved).
        Kunzite I could never read - he looked bored, but then 
Kunzite *allways* looks bored.  Except when he's fighting.
        "The flame dies."  Beryl.  Damn she's scary when she 
focuses on you...you get to see just how absolutely insane she 
really is..
        "The one who stands before me is truly a Youma 
amongst my armies; How does it name itself?"  In the past few 
hours I'd learned a bit about this ritual  - including what 
happened to those who tried to take back their old names.  (I 
asked really nicely.)  I'd even managed to put about twenty 
seconds into thinking up a new one.  Around the same time I'd 
picked up the sword, actually.
        "Tenshino Aoi."  I even managed to keep my voice even 
when I said it.  Well, perhaps not entirely even - there was just a 
bit of challenge there, directed at her, over my choice of names.   
I knew she'd pick up on it.   But if she wanted the ritual to be 
honored, she couldn't object - even if I named myself an angel.   
If she didn't honor the ritual she just might have a mass rebellion 
on her hands - and while she could probably take all the Youma, 
she also didn't want to have to kill her own cannon-fodder.    I'm 
afraid *some* of the traditions of Atlantis survived, despite her 
determined attempt to rout them out.
        "So be it."  Of course she could just kill me later, but I'd 
only just thought of that.
        "I make the servant to the generals, Aoi Tenshino; Under 
their hand shall you be trained in our ways.  Now take your 
insolent face from my court  - if you've not learned humility by 
the time I see you next, you will die. "  She somehow knows just 
what it take to warm my heart, I tell you...
        Anyway, that's how I met Beryl.
        My 'education' was of slightly more note...but that's for 
next time.


Gamlain@airmail.net
Gamlain, transuniversal courier & Hero for rent
Sorcerer to the three great Anime demonesses: Ryoko, Marller, and Ifruita 
"So then I shot a goon and I cut the head man's throat, and after that
things got violent." - Tarnkep Protree
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