It was a real pleasure to watch the Kid work... especially considering the fact that I taught him most of what he knows. I had to admit he had gotten pretty good over the years.
"STOP IT!! THAT'S ENOUGH!!" he roared. "I SAID, STOP IT!!!"
Still shouting, he waded into the players on the field who were locked in mortal combat. The ones who were standing he crumpled in their tracks with a gesture... a gesture which I realized as a simple sleep spell. The others he easily forced apart with judicious use of his levitational abilities. Two players who were grappling with each other he not only separated, but held aloft some twenty feet off the ground. As swiftly as it had started, the fight was stopped, and right handily, too.
As could have been predicted, no sooner had the dust settled than a troop of officious-looking individuals came storming out onto the field, making a beeline for Quigley/ Skeeve. While I may have lost my powers, there's nothing wrong with my hearing, and I was easily able to listen in on the following exchange, unlike the restless fans in the stands around me.
"Quigley, you... How dare you interrupt the game this way?"
"Game?" Quigley/Skeeve said coolly, folding his arms. "That wasn't a game, that was a fight... even though I can see how you could easily confuse the two."
"You have no right to ... Put them down!"
This last was accompanied by a gesture at the suspended players. Skeeve didn't gesture, but the two players suddenly dropped to the turf with bone-jarring thuds that drew the same "Ooooo's" from the crowd as you get from a really good hit during actual play.
"... As to my rights," Quigley/Skeeve intoned, not looking around, "I'm under contract to use my magikal powers to help keep the peace in Vey-gus and Ta-Hoe. The way I see it, that includes stopping brawls when I happen across them... which I've just done. To that end, I'm declaring the game over. The current score stands as final."
With that, the cage/wards began migrating toward their respective tunnels, herding the players within along with them. Needless to say, the crowd did not approve.
"You... you can't do that!" the official's spokesman screamed over the rising tide of boos from the stands. "The most exciting plays happen in the last few minutes!"
As a final flourish, Quigley/Skeeve levitated the fallen players on the field down the tunnels after their teammates.
"I've done it," he said. "What's more, I intend to do it at every scheduling of this barbaric game when things get out of hand. My contract is up for renewal soon, and I realized I've been a bit lax in my duties. Consequently, I thought I'd remind you of exactly what it is you're keeping on the payroll. If you don't like it, you can always fire me."
I smiled and shook my head in appreciation. I had to hand it to the Kid. If attacking the dimension's favorite pastime didn't get Quigley canned, I didn't know what would.
"You shut down the game?"
That was Quigley expressing his appreciation for Skeeve's help.
We were back at his place with our disguises off and the magician revived. Apparently our assistance wasn't quite what he had been expecting.
"It seemed like the surest way to get you out of your contract," Skeeve shrugged. "The locals seem rather attached to the game."
"Attached to... I'm dead!" the magician cried with a groan. "I won't just get fired, I'll be lynched!"
The Kid was unmoved.
"Not to worry," he said. "You can always use a disguise spell to get away, or if it'll make you feel better, we'll give you an escort to..."
There was a knock on the door.
"Ah. Unless I miss my guess, that should be the Council now. Get the door, Quigley."
The magician hesitated and glanced around the room as if looking for a way to escape. Finally he sighed and trudged toward the door.
"Speaking of disguises, Skeeve..."I said.
"Oh, right. Sorry, Aahz."
With an absent-minded wave of his hand we were disguised again, this time in the appearances we used when we first arrived.
"Oh! Lord Magician. May we come in? There are certain matters we must ... oh! I didn't realize you had guests."
It was indeed the Council. Right on schedule. I snuck a wink at Skeeve, who nodded in encouragement.
"These are ... friends of mine," Quigley said lamely, as if he didn't quite believe it himself. "What was it you wanted to see me about?"
Several sets of uneasy eyes swept us.
"We... urn... hoped to speak with you in private."
"We'll wait outside, Quigley," Skeeve said, getting to his feet. "Just holler if you need us."
"Well, that's that," I sighed after the door closed behind us. "I wonder what Quigley's going to do for his next job?"
Skeeve leaned casually against the wall.
"I figure that's his problem," he said. "After all, he's the one who asked us to spring him from his contract. I assume he has something else lined up."
"... And if he doesn't? Quigley's never been big in the planning-ahead department. It won't be easy for him to find work with a termination on his record."
"Like I said, that's his problem," Skeeve shrugged. "He can always ..."
The door opened, and the Council trooped silently out. Quigley waited until they were clear, then beckoned us inside frantically.
"You'll never guess what happened," he said excitedly.
"You were fired, right?" Skeeve replied. "C'mon, Quigley, snap out of it. Remember us? We're the ones who set it up."
"No, I wasn't fired. Once they got over being mad, they were impressed by the show of magik I put on at the game. They renewed my contract."
I found myself looking at Skeeve, who was in turn looking back at me. We held that pose for a few moments. Finally Skeeve heaved a sigh.
"Well," he said, "we'll just have to think of something else. Don't worry, Quigley. I haven't seen a contract yet that couldn't be broken."
"Ummm... actually, I'd rather you didn't."
That shook me a bit.
"Excuse me, Quigley. For a moment there I thought you said..."
"That's right. You see, the Council was impressed enough that they've given me a raise ... a substantial raise. I don't think I'll be able to do better anywhere else, especially if they ask for a demonstration of my skills. There have been some changes in the contract, though, and I'd really appreciate it if you two could look it over and let me know what I'm in for."
"I'm sorry about that, Skeeve," I said as we trudged along. "All that work for nothing."
We had finally finished going over the contract with Quigley and were looking for a quiet spot to head back to Deva unobserved.
"Not really. We solved Quigley's problem for him, and that new contract is a definite improvement over the old one."
I had meant that he had done a lot of work for no pay, but decided not to push my luck by clarifying my statement.
"You kind of surprised me when we were talking outside," I admitted. "I half expected you to be figuring on recruiting Quigley for our crew, once he got free of his contract."
The Kid gave a harsh bark of laughter.
"Throw money at it again? Don't worry, Aahz. I'm not that crazy. I might have been willing to spot him a loan, but hire him? A no-talent, do-nothing like that? I run a tight ship at M.Y.T.H. Inc, and there's no room for deadwood... even if they are old friends. Speaking of the company, I wonder if there's any word about..."
He rambled on, talking about the work he was getting back to. I didn't listen too closely, though. Instead, I kept replaying something he had said in my mind.
"A no-talent do-nothing ... no room for deadwood, even if they are old friends ..."
A bit harsh, perhaps, but definitely food for thought.
Chapter Five:
"What fools these mortals be."