Here comes Chap 4! Another great chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

The MDA Chap 4: Flare and Lord Writhe

Keemo had been walking for about an hour now. The vast caverns of the Black Hand hideout were unmerciful. He had climbed over high ledges, swam across moats of black water and felt something swim under him, and had gone through many other tasks. Normally, these tasks would have been a walk in the park for Keemo, but he still had the wingcuffs on. They had been tightened when he got into the vast network of tunnels, and could feel a trickle of blood running down his left wing.

“How much farther is it?” asked Keemo, anxious to meet the leader, take off the cuffs, and tend to hi wings.

“About another five minutes, and then we’ll be there,” responded Onslaught.

Keemo sighed, and continued forward.

“The faster we get there, the better,” thought Keemo now that he had become aware of another red line streaking his right wing. He could even now feel a sharp pain in his left wing, and the right wing quickly followed up with another quick stab. He needed to get there soon, or he might go insane.

* * *

Kala was shocked. She couldn’t believe that the merciless Dark Carnival had tended to her wounds instead of making them worse. The Dark Carnival was known for their cruel tortures. They did anything they had to in order make a prisoner talk. The most feared of all of the Dark Carnival was Flare, a Joker known for his expertise at interrogation, including torture if necessary.

“I want to know why you’re here after the Black Hand,” Zena said sternly, “They have not harmed a soul in the last ten years, and I don’t think they’d start now!”

Kala knew how serious Zena was, and was a little scared. Then she sighed.

“It’d be in my best interest to tell her everything rather than to tell Flare after he had cut my toes off,” Kala thought.

Kala explained everything to Zena. The cell phone, the note, the VSS, and how the Black Hand had been blamed. Zena stood, silent, absorbing everything that came out of Kala’s mouth. Five minutes after Kala was done, she finally spoke up.

“Quite a predicament you have here,” said Zena, “Well, I think you and I are going to go consult Flare.”

Kala froze at the words.

“Flare, oh man,” Kala whispered to herself, “I’m done for…”

* * *

“If I may ask, what is the dark carnival?” Jango was curious as to why he had been familiar with that name.

“Well,” began Sear, “It’s a long story. But here goes…”

Sear explained how the Dark Carnival was once a gang of outlaws who controlled half of the Kalaragi jungle. He told of their awful deeds, and how the MDA had thwarted their plans many times.

“How could you not remember, Jango?” asked Sear, “You infiltrated all five of our six bases. However, our sixth base is open to you now. We have cleaned up our act, and for the past ten years, have been a legit coal mining group.”

Then Jango remembered. He recalled infiltrating bases, but only in flashes. Every once in a while an image flashed before his mind’s eye. He saw Joker sub-breeds and main breeds fall before him and his friends. He recalled driving the remaining force out of caverns, tree houses, and forts in the jungle.

“Why did you turn legit?” asked Jango.

Sear laughed.

“Why not become legit?” he answered with another question, “We have bigger profit, bigger bases, and best of all, no cops breathing down our necks. It’s much more practical to be in legal business. Ever wonder why you lost popularity? It’s cause we turned legit, and when we obeyed the laws, there was no need for you.”

Now Jango understood why the MDA was basically out of a job. There was no job! Their number one customer was out of commission!

“Soup’s ready!”

Sear opened the pot over the fire and revealed a chicken noodle soup. He picked up a roughly carved bowl, poured some soup into it, and handed Jango the bowl. Jango put his lips to the bowl, and drank.

“This is great!” exclaimed Jango.

“Only the best. You see the pieces of chicken?”

Jango looked down and stared in awe. Large chunks of fresh chicken were floating atop the delicious mix. He also noticed large chunks of carrot, celery, and noodles.

“You see, there’s a farm down near the ocean. Every so often a chicken or two escapes from the farm. If that happens, and we find it, it’s ours,” said Sear, “Also; we have gardens where we grow fresh vegetables. You can’t run a business without food for the workers. We make the dough for the noodles, and add a little extra flavor to them. Go on, try one.”

Jango held the bowl to his face, and let a noodle slip down his throat. It was a little spicy, and had a nice flavor and texture.

For a good ten minutes, Jango and Sear ate in silence, with the exception of the occasional slurp. Then, Jango spoke up

“Sear, do you know anything about the Black Hand?”

“Sure, they’re our allies. We trade them our veggies for their precious metals. They get fed, we get paid. It’s a good deal, really. I can even tell by the look on your face you suspect them of criminal activity.”

Jango froze, and almost choked on some chicken.

“I was sent here to investigate them on a hint from an unknown client,” said Jango.

“I see,” said Sear, “Well, don’t worry about them. They haven’t done anything wrong in ten years.”

Jango was a bit surprised, but went on with his questions.

“Do you know who their leader is?”

“Oh, best be stayin’ away from him.”

Jango was sure the leader was a criminal, and Sear saw it in his eyes, and decided to explain it.

“The leader of the Black Hand is a Beerock, or a Beaklon and a Golem. His name is Writhe, and he’s one bad dude,” said Sear, but looked at Jango and corrected himself, “Not the illegal bad, I just mean you don’t wanna meat him in an alley after dark. One tough cookie, that one is.”

“What do you mean by this?” Jango wanted to know more about Writhe.

“Tell me this, Jango. Do you know the definition of the word, writhe?”

“No, I don’t,” Jango was a little confused. Was “writhe” an actual word?

“To writhe is to squirm. It usually refers to someone in pain. After he’s done with you, you’ll be writhing for the rest of your life. Best to stay out of his way.”

“Hm,” thought Jango, “I’m sure glad none of my friends will be dealing with him.”

* * *

“Lord Writhe will see you now, Keemo,” Onslaught beckoned Keemo into a vast chamber. The walls were coated with polished gold, and platinum statues lined the hallway. As Keemo walked, he noticed the blood begin to drip off his wings and onto the floor. Onslaught turned and saw the red spots.

“Now, now. We mustn’t have anything staining the lord’s carpet, here.”

Onslaught walked behind Keemo and took off the wingcuffs. Keemo was relieved as Onslaught bandaged his wounds, and cleaned up the carpet. Keemo whirled his wings around, happy to be free.

“Why do you unbind me, as I am an intruder?”

“I trust you. My system has a built-in lie detector. I can tell if someone is lying or not. You came out as true. Everything you said! Not one lie,” responded Onslaught, “Because of this, my lord trusts you. He trusts me, I trust you, and through me, Lord Writhe trusts you. If he didn’t, you wouldn’t be granted an audience with him. Instead, you’d have been put to death.”

“A pleasant thought,” said Keemo.

“Indeed.”

At the end of the hallway, stood a set of golden doors. There were pictures of the sun, the moon, and the earth. Onslaught noticed Keemo’s interest in the picture.

“It depicts creation,” said Onslaught, “The sun, the moons, and the entire earth.”

With that, the doors opened, revealing a dark chamber lined with cobwebs. Keemo didn’t understand it. If Lord Writhe was so powerful, why did he live in this dump? Onslaught pushed Keemo in, and started to close the door.

“Aren’t you coming?” Keemo asked Onslaught.

“Oh, heavens no. I only go in when the master calls. He said to send you in alone,” Onslaught let out an evil laugh, and locked the door.

Keemo gulped. He was trapped in the pitch black with an unknown monster. He had to be strong; after all, he was the leader of the Black Hand. A draft sailed through the room, and Keemo heard a deep voice.

“Come closer to me…”

Will Lord Writhe tear Keemo apart? Will Flare tear Kala apart? What will become of two of our three heroes? Seeing as Jango is safe and enjoying some hot soup with Sear :)

Hope you liked it! Five may not be out so quickly, I have to see where I'm going with this! BRAINSTORM!!!!

Oh, I like it! I hope the plot thickens in five...