Corridgean

UP: Britannia

    Conceive a quiet wood.

Two trees in a clearing west of Trinsic.

In one tree, an owl who is not an owl, sits in a moment of silent loathing.

In the other tree alights a raven, that flows into a gargoyle, and perches clumsily on a low hanging branch.

SWAK! And the gargoyle rolls from his perch, and flows into a huge hairy red daemon, rubbing his chin, askew on his back, propped on his elbow.

"Where�s Seth?" demands the owl.

"I don�t know," grunts the Daemon. His voice barely uttered shakes branches throughout the valley. "P�raps he�s hard at work on your aggressive quotas of the slain, dear brother.�

The owl is silent for only a moment, considering the Daemon with a cold stare.

"You anticipate my displeasure with your apparent idleness, Ba�ab." Continues the owl. "I am disappointed. Where have you been, and where is our brother?"

Anger and spittle spray from the daemon, who still does not rise "Freeing that fool your very dear brother Seth."

"Juo�nar?" the owl eyes squint.

"No! Seth was the idiot that wandered into Britain. He had the most unfortunate luck of getting too close to the throne room, and Nystul found him." Ba�ab pauses to let the implications of this colossal stupidity to sink in.

The owl sighs, and flows down to the ground into the form of a Daemon much bigger than the other, who backs away a few inches in mute apprehension.

"Where is he? You�ve freed him, haven�t you?"

The grimace tells the story, and Anmac Mallachtan grips his brother Ba�ab with searing claws, and howling, hurls him free of his body like a rag. The foul spirit writhes for a second and makes to lunge away, without bothering to assume another form.

"Hold! Hold!!" The Shade screams "It�s not as if I didn�t try!" Grave evil hovers in the air for a moment, and then the Daemon releases his brother, turns back into an owl, and stares with unmitigated contempt toward the north.

"Go and make yourself useful. Go hammer Trinsic.:

And the owl is alone in the woods.

From the Town Cryer - The Journal of Ultima Online, February 10th, 2000.