FicWad

Chapter 6



After about a day and a half of travel, they finally arrived at Brownlick manor. They were all brought into the main room, and the crates began to be opened. Jean-Claude nearly jumped over everyone to get to Yuriya and his children as a joyful reunion began. Karin, Kenta, and Kannon all gleefully embraced, as did Wiener and Maki. Then trouble began. When they got to the crate that contained Ruby, they smelled Hondo. Suddenly, rage came over the face of one of them, and he thundered, "Who put this human trash in with the Fountain of Psyche!"

Everyone knew about Kenta, and the reasons for their union were well known, as well as the reasons for the presence of his mother, so at the least, their presence was tolerated. However, not only was this person an unknown human, the fact that he was in with the "national treasure" so to speak made matters worse. Another came over and began to flip the lid off as the other vamped out and prepared to kill the intruder. Jean-Claude heard all this, and began to deduce who this person could be. He then saw the one Brownlick preparing to hurt this person, and he was on the move. He need not have worried. As soon as Hondo heard the hostile speech, he knew he had to fight, no matter who it was. He had to assume that it was a vampire, so, keeping the vampiric abilities in mind, he began to calculate how he needed to move. He picked up a can of vegetables, and hurled it at his assailant as hard as he could. Normally, his opponent would be able to block something like this, but because he was not expecting it, it caught him square between the eyes and knocked him for a loop. Before anyone could react, Hondo was already out of the crate, in the corner of the room, bounding up the wall, and into the rafters above. Just as quickly, about six vampires were up with him. Hondo decided on the rafters because he knew, though they were fast, they would have the same obstacles to clear, and he could use that to trip them up. He knew he did not want to take them on head-to-head-that would be suicide. Therefore, being crafty would be the best approach, and this is what happened. He was bounding from rafter to rafter, making them chase him, and engage him, putting the fight on his ground. Before long, two or three of them were on the ground, with broken necks or backs from the fall. Because they were vampires, all they had to do was lay in their coffins to heal. Yet, the fact that this mere mortal was able to do what he was doing was amazing. The others were awestruck at what Hondo was doing, while the Brownlicks were horrified. However, the eldest Brownlick there just watched him, left arm across his chest, right elbow set on it, thumb under his chin, forefinger on his lips. He looked like he was contemplating something. Two more found their way to the floor, but the other two managed to knock Hondo off balance. However, Hondo did not skip abeat, and already had a small grappling hook out with a high-test silk cord attached to it. He cast it around a beam, it held, and he swung to the floor. However, at this point, he knew he was surrounded, and now knew it would have to get more severe. In a flash, he had his tonto out, and prepared to swing it at the first vampire that approached. Yet, as he swung, there was the clang of steel as a Marine Corps officer saber caught it and blocked it. A foreleg followed this up to the gut-very hard! Jean-Claude avoided his chest, because his strength and the hardness of the bone in that leg from years of training would have crushed his rib cage and stopped his heart. This way, it would knock the wind out of him, and knock him out of commission. Though he was gasping for air, he was still reaching for the tonto, but Jean-Claude kicked it out of reach, and put the saber to his throat. "Knock it off!" he thundered, then turned his glare to everyone else, and said, "You back off as well! This is one of the Clan's best men..." and turned to Hondo, "...and I am sure he has a good explanation for his actions."

He stepped closer, and said, "I do hope you have a good reason for this!"

He looked at Ruby, who was now being tended to by the ladies, and doted over as if she were a queen. She was not used to this kind of doting, so she was taken back a bit, but she stared at Hondo, all aggravated. All she could think was, "You idiot!"

Jean-Claude said, (just for the sake of setting the Brownlicks at ease,) restrain him, sit him here, and let him talk. Since he was-is-one of my men, Iwant to give him the chance to defend himself."

A vampire who had no love for humans and vampires snuffed, and said, "Why should we listen to you sub-creatures! You have caused more problems than you are worth!"

That did it, and Jean-Claude's family looked away, knowing what might follow. They were about to see his darker side-something that Yuriya warned the twins about long before. Some of the women had wisely escorted Kannon out of the room before all this, knowing that these things were not for a four year old to see. He then muttered, "Master Brownlick, forgive me for this, please, but an example needs to be made here."

The years had been kind to Jean-Claude, in that, his abilities had only gotten better. With a primal yell, and as quick as a blink, the scoffer suddenly found a saber buried in his upper torso via his collarbone. Silence filled the room at the violent display, and over how fast it came. He extracted the saber, knowing that this would take a long time for him to heal. "Take this time that you will spend in your coffin healing to think about what it means to confront me!"

He wheeled around, enraged, and thundered,"DO NOT CROSS ME! TO YOU, I AM WALKING DEATH! NONE OF YOU COULD DEFEAT ME, AND IF YOU TRY TO HURT ME, OR ANY THAT I LOVE THAT HAVE COME SHALL SUFFER WORSE THAN THIS!"

The scoffer staggered back, and fell to the ground into a pool of his own blood. He was shaking as he was using his remaining blood to stop the bleeding. He was now in a feral state, and he had to be carried off to his coffin, supplied with a lot of blood, to heal. Jean-Claude then said, "I came here in peace, hoping to use this time to prepare for the Inquisition, and prepare to put an end to this madness! All I have seen since I have been here is a bunch of arrogant boobs, wanting to cling to the old ways! Well, I have news for you: life for all of you-as you know it-has ended!"

His tone quieted, but he was no less firm, as he said, "What you see before you is your future. Karin, Kenta, Kannon, Ruby, my kids, and Ruby's offspring, are your hope. If some of you don't already know, the Fount of Psyche SHALL marry a human, and have achild. That child will untie with the other three children, and bring about coexistence between humans and vampires whether you like it or not. It is not certain that humans and vampires would wed beyond this; because there is no telling if dhamphirs could multiply beyond my wife and me. However, when this child is born, that could change. A new era will dawn on the earth, with these children leading the way. This is something that should have happened centuries ago, but you Brownlicks were too greedy for the fount's blood to see the light!"

That hit the Brownlicks like a slap. They were already aware of their foolishness, but there were still some, (by the day's events,) that still did not get the concept. Jean-Claude sought to put an end to it right there, and establish the ground rules. He then continued, "Thus, get used to this sight, because, one day, this will be considered a common sight. It is working in Japan, and it shall work here! You may now despise me, and want to kill me, but if you try, remember what you just saw! You may say, 'This is how you show your thanks for our hospitality?' but since I have been here, not many have been so hospitable. You look at me as off scraping, and you do that to some that had come. THAT STOPS NOW!"

His voice lowered to a grumble, and Yuriya now knew that he was quite angry and serious about his words. He then said, "If I even hear of one bit of harsh treatment to my wife or the humans here, one raised hand, one attack, consider yourselves all dead! This is your one chance at mercy from me. After this, you can forget about mercy, because all you Brownlicks have done is proven yourselves reprobate by your supposed wish to help us. You would not seek to stop the Inquisition because it threatens the future, you would only do so for your hatred of humans! There is a new world dawning, and I shall defend it with my last breath! You shall only stop my blade when you pry it from my cold, dead hand!"

He relaxed a bit, and said, "There is too much trouble out there right now for us to be trying to resort to the old ways. We have too much to do to be worrying about who to trust, to whom to listen, who has priority when protection is needed, because, as far as I am concerned, all life is precious, unless you prove you have no care for that life, and wish to snuff it out. Change your way of thinking, because, if we are divided now, we might as well just invite the Inquisition here and let them do us all in, because that IS what will happen."

He finished, turned to the elder Brownlick, and said, "I am sorry for the harsh display, especially in your home, but the point had to be made in the plainest, strongest way possible. The knot heads had to be made to understand."

He spoke, and said, "Son, I would admit, that was severe, and if this were any other circumstance, I would have sought to have you killed for what you just did! I would have said that your actions were uncalled for, but, things are not normal. It is interesting that you did not seek to kill him, because all you would have had to do was take his head. This is the reason why I am not as sore as I could be, because you did show restraint in the regard of not killing him. I can understand that you were trying to show that, indeed, you are strong, and that you were not to be crossed. That point did have to be made. I am not sure that mutilating him was necessary, but the point was made. I would have had you killed, although I know that many vampires would have been lost in the attempt, had this been any other thing. I guess I am trying to say that, I understand you have a lot of dislike against prejudice and hate, but son, be careful that you do not end up a hypocrite in your quest. If this new world comes, it has to come on its own. You cannot force it."

Jean-Claude looked down, and said, "I apologize for the display. If you want, I shall take my family and head back to Japan."

However, he put his hand on Jean-Claude's shoulder, and said, "No, son, you were right, just off on your judgment in how to react. That man will be okay in about a week, and I do think he is going to keep his distance from you for a time, so no real harm done. Your point is taken, but please, ask me what should be done before you react. Oddly enough I want what you want; I would just like to use you as my right hand to get it done, rather than have you as aloose cannon."

He then turned to his family, and said, "Children, this man has faced much in the way of pain, and it has been seldom that he has known a settled life. None of you have ever really been without, or really had to flee from one thing or another. Thus, none of you could ever know why Jean-Claude here would react the way he does. Sad to say, this family has been the source of much persecution against him, and many Brownlicks are no more because they crossed him. So, know that what he has said were not idle threats. The pattern that this family has established has got to stop. It must change, starting this very night. These people are our guests, our friends, and are here to help us go to the next level as we seek, once and for all, to put an end to the scourge of the Inquisition once and for all. Anyone that speaks even a harsh word, a bigoted word, or even gives the wrong glance to them shall answer to me! After that, you will have to contend with him, (pointing to Jean-Claude,) in whatever way Itell him. Don't destroy our future that stands before you."

Now all the attention turned to Hondo.



The elder Brownlick, (named Richard,)walked over to Hondo, and said, "However, son, you have much in the way of explaining to do."

"Her father charged me with her well being," said Hondo, "and I pledged my own life forfeit if it meant that hers continue. When I saw how things were going, I feared the worse, and when I found her in the crate, it seemed that my fears were not unfounded. I made apledge, and I am a man of my word. I had no idea of any of this, so how could I know what was going to happen?"

He then looked at Ruby Innocent and said,"I know you despise me right now, and I could not blame you. However, even if you were to wish me dead, Iwould never do that to you. Even if you were to hate me forever, know that I would still take a bullet for you. I would never return hate for hate, no matter how much hate you want to show me. I would only show you love, even if you show me hate. So, get that into your head now, that it shall never change. Spit on me, and Iwill hand you flowers. Kick me, and I'll pat you on your back. Slap me, and I'll kiss that very hand."

Innocent stood there, shaking her head, steaming about the way he was acting. Richard said, "You are a man of your word. It sounds like you have much in the way of honor. Since you were pledged to this, and that pledge has not been removed, I thus assign you to continue to do what you have pledged. I just want to know one thing: how were you able to do all of what you just did?"

"I am fully trained as a ninja, and Jean-Claude has taught me much," he said.

"Then I have one more charge for you, that, if you are able to do it, then you have redeemed yourself," said Richard.

"What must I do?" asked Hondo.

"I want you and Jean-Claude to train my sons in what you can do," said Richard, "That way, there shall be more that can fight the Inquisition, and there could be the start for an extension of the Clan into the United States."

"This I shall do without fail," said Hondo.

"Loose him," said Richard, but Innocent was protesting. She said, "I do not want that thing anywhere near me!"

Jean-Claude looked at Richard, and Richard said, "Deal with it."

He went up to Innocent, and said, "This is something you have had coming for some time. Apparently, what we spoke of earlier just isn't getting through."

At this, he took off his belt, picked her up, took her to a chair, took her over his knee, and began to waylay into her backside! She screamed, but he was not going to stop. "You selfish, stuck up, arrogant young girl! This boy has displayed true love, and all you can do is spit on him! How dare you!"

He plopped her onto the floor as she bawled like a baby. "Daddy!" she screamed, but Jean-Claude said,"You are old enough, and he is no longer here to cover for you anymore. However, all you are is a spoiled brat as far as I'm concerned! Therefore, if that's the way you wish to act, that's the way you shall be treated!"

She bawled, "I don't want to be here! Daddy, where are you?"

Yuriya walked up, and Innocent thought that help was coming. However, she got into her face, and said, "Guess what, you're here, and if we left you in Japan, you could be dead! All of our kind would then suffer, because our hope would die with you! This human, a creature that once despised us, has sworn his life to be of no worth compared to your own!"

She grabbed her by the shirt and pulled her close. Bridgette wanted to react, but Richard looked her away. "Listen, you female dog, you'd better get your head screwed on straight, because I will not tolerate you standing in between us and our dreams. You need to grow up, and see more than just yourself."

She pushed her back, and the twins were shocked to see this. They had never seen their father so angry, and they had never seen their mother act like this. She went back to the kids, and said, "This is how serious the situation is, and I want you to remember all you saw here. This is what hate brings. Never hate, because, if you two are as powerful as is thought, your rage could destroy the world. Learn from Hondo, and realize that this is the kind of love you need to have, for it can do the world much good."

She then kissed both on the cheeks, and hugged them, to let them know that they were still loved, and that they had done no wrong. "You two are precious to me," she said, "and I want you to turn out right."

At this, Richard said, "I think what we all need to do now is go to our rooms, and think about what we have seen tonight. This has not started well, and we need to start over on the right foot. Put Psyche into the room with the antechamber, and put Mr. Hondo in that, so he can react if there is a need."

With that, everyone dispersed in a somber mood, knowing that there was much in trust that needed to be built. If the Inquisition was to be defeated, they would have to be unified, else, all was lost.



When Jean-Claude and his family arrived at their room, he sat everyone down, and said, "This was not what I wanted, and certainly not the way I hoped it would go. Kids, you saw a side of me that is not pleasant, but I do not want you to fear. I would not show that to you, because I do not think you could make me that angry. Just remember, when I am like that, I am not out of control. Yet, you now know how much I hate...well...hate. I do not like injustice, and I shall fight to the death to see freedom and justice for all sentient creatures. I had a hard world, and that is a world from which I wish to spare you. Therefore, you are going to see daddy do some harsh things, only because, if I don't, I could lose you, and that would break my heart. I love you two-never forget that!"

With that, everyone embraced, and Jean-Claude, "We'll get past this, and all shall be well."

Karin and Kenta arrived at their room with Kannon, and Kannon said, "I heard a lot of yelling."

Karin picked her up, and said, "You're getting to be a big girl!"

She patted her bottom a couple of times, and said, "Its okay, we...just needed to make some new rules so that everyone could be happy."

"Even grown-upth got rulth?" she said.

"That's right," she said, "Because, without rules, everyone would be hurt."

"Uncle looked mad," said Kannon, "Ith he okay?"

"He'll be fine, Pudding," said Karin,"He...just had to set something straight. It's all okay."

Kannon thought for a moment, and said,"I'm thkaird, mommy!"

Kenta came over, and hugged them both, saying, "I know this is all scary, baby. But, mommy and daddy are here, and we'll take care of you, just like we always do."

"Grandmamma too?" she asked, seeing that Fumio was there.

"That's right: grandmamma too!" said Karin.

Everything in their lives was out of whack at that point. They understood the need, but they wished it could have been different. They now knew that they had to teach Kannon English, or she was going to have all kinds of trouble. It was going to be tough, but with Jean-Claude there, they knew that they, somehow, would get through it.