Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Salty Pepper met us at the club a few hours later. Annie and I had not bothered to change and were waiting for him at an empty craps table. Salty nodded at the security guards as he walked past. He was wearing a black shirt over dark blue denim with black square-toe shoes. His hair was combed back off his face making his eyes seem large. He flicked his eyes around the room as if searching for something, all the while striding towards Annie and I. I could sense Annie's muscles tensing. I knew she did not trust this stranger and that she was extremely on edge about even talking to him.

Salty extended his hand to Annie but she quickly turned her head. Salty shrugged and nodded at me. I asked him why he wanted to see us and he replied by clearing his throat. Annie glared at him. Salty shrugged then and told us that he knew all about the sister pirates Nut and Ren, the Divine Sea Hag, Atalante, and Peri the sea mystic. I asked him why that made any difference at all and that we were all searching for the Disco Ninja together. Salty's eyes shifted at the mention of Fists of the Night, his hands went into the pockets of his jeans. He told us that the reason we had come to Las Vegas was to find FoN but that we would never find him here, or anywhere for that matter. He told us the FoN wasn't just one person. I considered this for a minute as Annie continued to glare at Salty Pepper. We had never actually seen FoN's face: only the mask he wore. He could potentially be several people. Why this stranger would tell us that information was odd though. What could he gain from our confusion? Salty went on to say that FoN was actually a gang, a group of hoods that was organized from an unknown location in order to avenge the leader of the group. I interrupted Salty there - saying that there was a Disco Ninja then, that he was a real person. Salty shook his head. He told us that the leader was not at all a ninja but a shadowy form that could not leave the place where he lived. Salty would not tell us anymore after that. We could not even ask him another question because he simply turned his back and walked out of the club.

Annie and I looked at each other. Perhaps this shadowy leader was the person who had murdered my parents? We needed to find out where to find it - and also where all the disco ninjas were coming from. We decided to go back to the Divine Sea Hag and consult with the sister pirates. We stood to leave and as I flattened the front of my pants I heard a whisper in the air. It was incredibly faint but Annie's sharp ears picked up the words clearly. Annie looked around then slowly made her way around the table, checking under the skirt. She gestured me to come around to where she was hunched over and as I came around, I saw the most amazing thing. It was a very small woman! She was sitting under the craps table, apparently listening to our conversation with Salty Pepper. She told us her name was Tempo and that she was following Salty Pepper for her Master. Annie took Tempo's hand and helped her out from under the table. In the light of the casino, Tempo's eyes glowed an unearthly golden hue. Her skin was lightly coloured, almost Italian, and her hair was kissed with strands of what looked like actually gold. It was a chestnut colour that flowed over her delicate shoulders and ended in curls. She looked as though she would float away in the breeze but after hearing her talk, I knew she could withstand any tempest mother nature could conjure up. Tempo seemed to know me and would shift her eyes to mine while Annie questioned her. I hung back, watching Tempo speak. She almost seemed to float and I could see she was wearing a large back pack. It looked heavy.

Annie turned to me and told me that we needed to leave. She told me that Tempo wanted to meet the sister pirates but had to return to her Master first. Annie had told Tempo to meet us in Hawaii when she could. We would be waiting. We all walked outside together and after wishing us luck, Tempo turned away, her backpack unfurled into two beautiful wings and she flew away, much to the crowd around the entrance of the club's surprise. Annie put her hand on my should and steered me away. We had to get back to the Divine Sea Hag!

2 comments:

Stidmama said...

I was so glad to see this when I checked this morning, and then when I saw you online too, I knew I was supposed to tell you again how much I am enjoying this tale! So many interesting twists and turns; So many new "voices"... well done!

Stidmama said...

Haven't seen you on Babble in a while, hope you are okay. We are going to be in Victoria next Monday for a few hours on our way home from Salt Spring Island. Would you like to meet up for coffee/tea somewhere? Sorry I didn't know another way to contact you.