Under World Shenanigans

Deera Freedom, Iris’s mother, sat up, looked down at the floor to see a corner of a piece of white paper sticking out from under the bed. She picked it up and knew exactly who wrote the note by the signature and the hand writing. It was Iris’s hand writing, no doubt about it. Deera knew immediately that Iris had written that note when they had left for their work trip.

“Hey, Honey Bunches of War!! Come in here, prease!!” Deera yelled as she held the note up.

Tara Diera, Iris’s father, ran up the stairs and into Iris’s room. He saw Deera holding a paper with a worried expression upon her face. Deera had a holt of one of Iris’s stuffed horses and held it tight.

“She must have written it a week or so ago while we were gone. Prease, read it. I... I cannot bring myself to read it.” Deera said as she handed the paper to him.

He grabbed it from her, she started crying as she hugged the stuffed horse. He read the note aloud, without shedding a single tear. Here is what the note said:

“Dear Madre and Padre,

I knew this day would come. Please, do not grieve for me. I took your places, so you guys could live on. I fought hard but, failed. I ask you to find my brada, Lolo Darius Freedom. If you find him alive, tell him that I love, and I missed him. If you find him dead, please hug him for me and tell him that I loved him with all my heart. I will miss you guys so much. Thank you for the life you guys gave to me.

Your Loving Daughtren,

Daru Daru/Iris

P.S. Please do not come looking for me. I don’t want you guys getting hurt or killed.”

He set the note on the desk and looked down at the desk. He looked up at the mirror and looked back down at the desk.

“I... I cannot believe that she... she gave herself up for... for us to live on... without her.” Tara said as he leaned his hands on the edge of the desk.

Tara looked up at the mirror once again and noticed that Deera was crying. He sighed as Deera looked back at him through the mirror.

“But, at what cost? Why would she do that? Did she do it just for us? How did she know that Lolo was gone?” Tara asked as he curled his fingers, crumpling the note that Iris had written.

“I do not know the answers to the questions you asking but please come and sit. We need to grieve and it’s alright if you cry, my dear.” Deera said as she wiped away tears but, more rolled down her rosy cheeks.

“I am not allowed to cry. I have taken an oath to my people and to myself not to cry since I was little. Now, I must get going now.” He said as he turned around and walked out of Iris’s bedroom, into the hallway.

“Where are you going now?” She asked as she followed him out of the room.

They got to their bedroom entry way when she blocked the entry to their room, where his staff and book were.

“I am going to go find my own daughtren. Move, Deera. I don’t want to hurt you.” He said as he bowed his head with respect to her.

“Why do you elves have to be so cold hearted and selfless? How can YOU be so cold hearted even after OUR daughter went missing or is dead, huh?” She asked him as she turned toward him, still crying, and still blocking the way.

“We elves are what you call cold hearted because we don’t attach ourselves to anything other than family and yet we still don’t cry. I am not cold hearted; I am only honoring the Oath I took. We also have other oaths we can take in honor of our families.” Tara replied.

“What Oath did you take?” Deera growled, with tears in her eyes.

“It was known as the No Attach and Cry Oath. It is one even the Ladens took it if they wanted to. Once we became of age, we could take the Oath if we wanted to, and lived out our lives, whether it’s in the village or falling in love and having a child.” Tara said as he looked at Deera.

“I cannot let you go find our daughter alone. I am going with you, whether you like it or not.” Deera said as she turned into her Black Draginucous form and stepped out of his way.

“That is fine. I do not mind if you go with me. I would love for you to come with me. I wanted someone to scout ahead for any signs of Iris.” Tara said as he walked in and grabbed both the Book of Norawind and the Staff of Riles.

He walked out of the room and smiled at her. They used the magnificent front doors and walked through the gates. Deera flew up and scouted the area for any sign of Iris. She found something even better. She found white wolf fur stuck on a branch of a bush. She flew back to Tara and smiled at him.

“I found white wolf fur that belongs to the Flame Wolf in the park.” Deera reported as she landed next to him.

“Let us go to the park, then.” Tara said as he nodded at Deera.

They both walked toward the park. Tara walked onto the grass and Deera went to touch the grass when a forcefield of some sort burned her paw, she screeched, and she stepped back a ways. She turned into her human form and held her hand as she winced at the pain.

“Are you alright, my dear?” Tara asked as he walked back to her.

“I... I will be alright. I cannot go through there. I do not know why I cannot go through there. You will have to do it alone. I wish I could help more than what I did.” Deera said as she looked at Tara.

“Hmm, there is a forcefield around the park protect them from any harm done to them by a Draginucous. You go ahead and head back home to treat your hand, sweet heart. I’ve got this, I hope.” He said as he looked at his book.

Deera stood up and left, while Tara walked back through the forcefield. He looked at his book, turned to the page he needed and spoke these words to summon The Flame Wolf of the Under World:

Come Forth Demon of the Under World!!

Taketh my Soul and Taketh it to HIM!!

The Flame Wolf rose from the ground in his human form, stood up tall and looked at Tara.

“Cén fáth ar dhúisigh mé dom as an staighre iontach a bhí agam? Why did you wake me from a wonderful nap I was having?” The Flame Wolf growled at Tara in his Native tongue, Irish.

“Do you think I am that dumb to fall for that? Well, I am not that dumb! I want my daughtren back, now. Give her to me now.” Tara snapped at The Flame Wolf.

“Ó? An bhfuil sé fíor? Ní féidir liom í a thabhairt duit. baineann sí anois leis an Diabhal féin!! Oh? Is that so? I cannot get her to you. She now belongs to the Devil himself!!” The Flame Wolf snarled back at Tara.

“Fight me, Elf to Magical Being of the Under World. Come and get me, you cowardly Wolf Demon.” Tara yelled as he took his stance with a ball of magic within his hand.

The Flame Wolf growled, turned into his wolf form, and took his stance in his wolf form.

Meanwhile, Iris was making a deal in the Under World with the Devil as The Flame Wolf and Iris’s father fought.

“If I win this game, I live and get to go back to the surface. If I lose, I will stay here in this stingy, hot place. Deal?” Iris said with a smirk as she hid the gun she had found earlier.

“Deal. The game is Poker.” The Devil said in a rough and raspy voice.

He tossed her a deck of cards and she shuffled them. She gave out four cards to him and four cards to herself. She set the rest of the cards off to the side. She looked at her hand and she smirked even bigger. She had an Ace, ten and two threes. The Devil looked at his cards and saw that he had a full house. He put in some chips and she folded.

“Show thy cards that you yield in your hand, my dear.” He demanded.

She showed him her hand and he started laughing.

“What’s so funny, uncle?” Iris asked as she smiled at him.

“Nothing. Now, do you want to play another round?” He asked her as a bell rang as she grabbed all of the cards and started shuffling them, once again.

He stood up and walked away from the table. She dealt the cards and gave herself the worst cards while, he was given another full house. He came back mumbling to himself.

“Come and play another round.” Iris said as she looked him straight in the eyes.

He sat down and picked up his cards. He looked at them, bet some chips and she folded once again. She showed him her cards and looked at him with a smile.

“I lost to you twice. I am now yours, Devil.” She said with a smirk.

“Give me your soul, dear child of Tara and Deera.” He said as he opened a jar and smiled wide.

“Hmm... Tempting offer but, I have to firmly say no.” She said as she pulled the gun out of hiding and pointed it at him.

He lost his smile and stepped back a little bit, scared.

“H... How did you get that?” The Devil asked nervously.

“Are you scared of a little gun that I found that was just lying around?” Iris asked him with a smile upon her face.

“N... N... No, I am not scared of... of that gun. I was j... j... just startled that you found it.” He said as he put his hands on the table.

Iris stood up and kept the gun pointed at him. How ironic, the gun kills as the trigger is pulled. Though, the hammer wasn’t pulled back.

“Now, that I have your attention. I am breaking the deal. I want to go home. Send me home, now!” Iris said as she pointed to the “roof” of the Under World.

“WHAT?!?!? THAT WASN’T PART OF THE DEAL!! I am not doing that, you arrogant little pain in the tail!!!” He yelled and pointed at her.

“What can I say? I only learned from the best and you know who he is!!” Iris said as she sat back down.

The Devil was so angry he broke the table. The cards and chips flew everywhere.

“What’s the matter, Uncle? Can’t take losing to your smart niece?” Iris asked sarcastically.

“I cannot take this from you right now!” The Devil snarled as he started walking to the door.

He stormed off and she exclaimed, “It only happens when you’re not here!!”

“Wait, it only happens when I’m not there? What do you mean by that?” The Devil asked as he stopped and turned around to look at Iris.

“Oh, my learning how to defeat you and your crew of evil beings. How do you think I learned how to fight the stupid Flame Wolf?” Iris said with a wide smirk, showing her sharp Draginucous teeth.

She grabbed a couple of cards off the ground and held them together. He walked away and slammed the door shut behind him. It shook the whole room.

Meanwhile on the surface, The Flame Wolf was trying to bite Tara, but he was dodging the bites. Tara smiled and shot magic at The Flame Wolf, hitting him smack dab center in between the shoulder blades. The Flame Wolf yelped in pain and laid on the ground from a one strike blow. The fur and the skin were singed to a crisp.

“How... How did you know to hit me there?” The Flame Wolf asked as he winced from the pain.

“Déanann tú dearmad gur ELF mé. Tá a lán draíochta ar eolas agam. Tá muid ag magadh leatsa roimhe seo. Tá a fhios agam conas é a shárú. Ós rud é gur ELF dílis mé, labhair le do shaoiste agus iarr air m'iníon a scaoileadh. You forget that I am an elf. I know advanced magic. We elves have dealt with you before. I know how to defeat you. Since I am a sincere elf, talk to your boss and ask him to release my daughter.” Tara said in Irish as he stood up tall and proud, over shadowing The Flame Wolf.

He got up and descended to the Under World to the Devil.

“Sire! Sire! Father of halfen Hybrid wants his daughtren back.” The Flame Wolf yelled as he flew to the Devil’s side.

“I know he wants her back. She wants to see the Over World and she wants to be with her family again. There is no way I am giving up my niece ever again. The only way I will give her up, is if my sister, Deera Freedom fights you and wins.” The Devil said as he watched a couple of screens, one in the room where Iris is and the other where Tara is in the park.

“What shall I tell him, then?” The Flame Wolf asked as he laid down and healed his wounds.

“Tell him, that my sister has to defeat you in order to get Iris back... also, take his life if you can.” The Devil said as the room got dark and only his red eyes were visible.

“Are you sure, sire? The elf is strong. That was really ominous.” The Flame Wolf said as he cleaned himself up.

“Just… Get going!!” The Devil yelled as he kicked the Flame Wolf in the rear end.

“Okay, okay. I am going. Jeez, you don’t have to be so mean.” The Flame Wolf mumbled as he walked away from the Devil.

The Flame Wolf rose to the Over World and looked at Tara.

“What did he say, you unworthy demon wolf?” Tara asked impatiently.

“He cannot release her until his sister defeats me.” The Flame Wolf said with a nasty looking grin.

The Flame Wolf then howls, and skeletons of his ancestral Elves rose. The skeletons started walking toward him. Tara looked at them in utter shock and shook his head side to side.

“No, not my Ancestors. Please, Ancestors. Don’t do this! Rest in Peace and None shall wake you Again!!” Tara exclaimed as a white mist made the skeletons disappear into dust.

Tara fell to his knees and started breathing heavily from casting one of the advanced spells in the Book of Norawind. The spell took a lot of energy to cast. The Flame Wolf took the opportunity in his hands… well, paws, and ran to go bite Tara when, a red and blue flames appeared, stopping the Flame Wolf in his tracks. Deera appeared from the flames and she was in her Black Draginucous form. She looked at Tara and then looked back at The Flame Wolf.

“No one hurts my family and that includes Tara.” Deera growled as she looked at The Flame Wolf.

Tara stood, nodded at Deera, and left to the outskirts of the park to watch them fight. Deera and The Flame Wolf lunged at each other and the Flame Wolf scratched Deera’s cheek as they passed each other. They both landed and faced each other. Deera’s cheek had a fine bright red line that ran horizontally with a bit of scarlet leaking out a little. Deera screeched and the Flame Wolf yelped and held his ears down.

She stopped and looked down upon The Flame Wolf and growled, “Get up, you weak wolf. I will always conquer you!!”

The Flame Wolf got up and started barking and chirping. With that call, bright red flames surrounded The Flame Wolf and Deera. She growled and “whipped” up the flames with her flame tip on her tail. She burnt part of his fur and skin. He healed himself, grew hair back and growled at her. He laughed as he stood up and looked at her.

“What’s so funny?” Deera asked as she looked at him confused.

“Je zult me niet overwinnen!! You will not conquer me!!” He growled in her native tongue, which was Dutch.

He howled, and skeletons popped out of the ground and dirt was flung. She took a deep breath and turned into her human form. The skeletons stopped moving and looked around very confused. The Flame Wolf looked around for her too. He growled just as he felt a tap his shoulder. He turned his head to see who it was but, Deera punched him smack dab in the jaw which, knocked him down to the ground. The skeletons disappeared as he tried to stand up. His jaw hung loose from the socket.

“Hoe ... hoe sterk ben je? How... How are you that strong?” The Flame Wolf asked in Dutch while he sat up and fixed his jaw.

“I told you, I would conquer you. Did you forget that I am still a Black Draginucous in my human form?” Deera growled as she rubbed her bloody knuckles.

“F... Fine. You have conquered me.” The Flame Wolf whined as he bowed his head with respect.

He howled, and hands made of bones grabbed Deera by her legs. She went through the ground as Tara yelled out for her. She left no evidence that she went through the ground. The Flame Wolf disappeared and appeared next to Deera, who was being held in chains. The Flame Wolf changed into his Human Form and glared at Deera with a wide smile.

“You stay here while I get the boss.” He said with a small snicker.

The Flame Wolf walked out of the room, laughing. Deera screeched and Iris screeched back in response.

“Iris!! Where art thou?” Deera asked as she looked around.

“I… I am in the room behind you, Madre!!” Iris exclaimed as she reached through a small window behind Deera.

She turned around and started running toward Iris but was stopped short by the chains.

“No... No... NO!! Let Iris and I go!! Please, brother. Let us go.” Deera exclaimed as she tried to break the chains.

The Devil, Deera’s brother, walked in and started laughing.

“Why would I do that? I am tired of being under your thumb for years. You are younger than me! I can watch you lose your strength as I control your daughter. I can keep both of you until that... that... PUNY elf that you fell for years ago in High School, fights and dies trying to save you two.” He said with a nasty grin.

“Tara will fight but, not to the death. He is smarter than you give him credit for. He will be here in 3... 2... 1...” Deera said as she saw magic start swirling at the doorway.

“Helldoora Flame!!” Tara yelled as he appeared in the doorway behind the Devil.

“Tara, Honey Bunches of War!! Watch out for The Flame Wolf!!” Deera warned Tara.

Tara turned around quickly and shot magic at him but, he dodged just in time. Deera broke the chains when she changed into her Draginucous Form. The Devil grabbed Iris from the other room and held his claws to her neck.

“Tara!! Stop!! He has Iris!!” Deera said as she turned into her human form again.

Tara stopped fighting The Flame Wolf and looked at Deera, then looked at The Devil.

“Do as I say, or she gets... AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” The Devil screamed as he was thrown across the room by Iris.

Iris stood in her stance as she looked toward The Devil. Tara and Deera stared at her stunned.

“No one messes with my family, and NO ONE THREATENS MY FAMILY!!!” She growled as she grabbed the gun that she had found earlier.

She stood up from her stance but, fell to the floor immediately. Tara and Deera noticed something wasn’t right with their daughter immediately after she dropped. Tara dropped his staff and book and ran over to Iris. Tara noticed she had a deep laceration on her left side, and she was unconscious.

Tara picked Iris up and said, “Dear Heart, grab my staff and the book. We need to get Iris to a doctor and quick.”

Deera grabbed the Staff of Riles and the Book of Norawind. He teleported all three of them to the Over World.

“Tara, why don’t you take her to the doctor, and I will put these away.” Deera suggested.

“No. I... No... Just follow me with them. We may or may not need them.” Tara replied as he looked Iris and his blood-stained shirt.

So, they ran to the doctor that was three streets down from the park. They ran to the doors and…

“Doctor Blue Blood!! We have an emergency!!” Tara exclaimed as they barged in through the doors.

“What’s the... Woah!! It’s Iris!! What happened to her?” Doctor Blue Blood said surprised as he saw Iris’s lavender hair.

“Please... Prease, help her. Prease, Prease!!” Deera pleaded.

“Bring her back here and set her on the bed. We’ll see what we can do for this lady of honor.” Dr. Horseshoes said as Tara laid Iris on the bed.

“We will be waiting for you when you wake, daughter.” Tara said as a few nurses took Iris to the Operating Room with Doctor Blue Blood in tow.