ALTERNATIVE: Ruby Red Slippers

[Saiketsu]

BACKSTORY:

We were getting overwhelmed by our own innate need to write the perfect story. For years we - Cedar and I - have been working on weaving our plotlines and characters together and working on how it needed to look and be. We have become too expectant of ourselves with writing High Drama^tm that we started losing a sense of fun. This alternative thread seeks to end that and help us find the fun in (mostly) unstructured plot, characters, and imperfect writing.

RULES:

• Each post takes NO LONGER than five minutes to type up.
• Each post has to be improvised - no pre-planning.
• Each post has to be reactionary to the post before it either through dialogue or action of characters.
• The plot can change and move away from the original intentions of this introductory post.
• No post can be edited for clarity, typing errors, or to cover any holes in the narrative.
• Authors cannot use each others' character.
• Multiple characters' perceptions can be used per post.
• There must be a new post at least every other day.
• If other authors would like to enter the story, please contact Cedar or myself for details and ideas.

THE PREMISE:
Chtahzus'aak has been transported into another dimension that resembles the world of Oz. Strange things happen and his goal is to get back to the Earthly plane. He meets some friends (and enemies) along the way.

[The Cedar Witch]

It was an ordinary evening.  All appointments for the day had wrapped up with nothing significant to speak of, projects had been handed off to their respective charges and the West seemed as uneventful as it ever had been and the District Leader was looking forward to an equally uneventful evening to himself.  He'd just taken the elevator down to his living space, quiet and low-lit, and was looking forward to sipping slowly on a glass of whiskey.

That was, until a siren from the thirteenth floor began to blare. 

He'd shrugged off his outer suit jacket and toed off his shoes.  With a sigh--and not bothering to don either of these articles of clothing again--he went straight back to the elevator again. 

It was probably a false alarm--they'd been having them all week.  The first time it happened he was in a middle of an important meeting.  He was less than pleased, saw to it that the one that was responsible for the ruckus was delt with, and went about his day.

When the elevator stopped on the thirteenth floor, Zeus' eyes widened in shock.  The air was filled with rushing wind, his sorcerers were nowhere to be found, and a howling sound seemed to eminate from the very center of the massive chamber.  He took a step forward and was instently sucked into the center--no amount of changing into his demon form made any difference, his strength paled in comparison to this...tornado that seemed to appear at the heart of his compound!

[Saiketsu]

Pierre trodded about, sniffing at some trees on the edge of town when the ground started to rumble. His ears rose high on his furry head, his attention sharpened at the new vibration in the air. His eyes widened as he watched the horizon of the little town of Shirm on the outskirts of Munchkinland.

An enormous cyclone was reaching down from the darkest clouds, hurtling towards the small town at a terrifying pace. The air, once stiff, now pulled at his fur as the winds sucked him closer, weakly at first but growing in intensity. Pierre barked at the cyclone and then twisted to run back to the town, barking madly as he went.

When Damien finally appeared in his ruby slippers - the ones he was not supposed to chew on, Pierre remembered after all the scoldings - Pierre ran past his leg and into the small hutch that was their home.

[The Cedar Witch]

Chtahzus'aak, in all his demonic splendor, crashed into a nearby tree as the cyclone unceremoniously dumped him before going along its way to gods only knew where.  He grunted, clinging to a thick branch like a large cat who had lost its balance, scrambling with hands and feet in an effort to not fall out.

He was unsuccessful and landed on the ground with a large thump.

Grumbling, he stood and stretched, noting that (thankfully) there was no damage in his travel.  Anger stewed in his gut as he peered around at the strange new land with a long, tree-lined, golden brick road.  He stretched his wings out, flapping twice before making an effort to take off.  It seemed his wings would not cooperate, and with frustration, he went back into his less-conspicuous human form. 

Without shoes or jacket.

[Saiketsu]

As Pierre came skittering into the house, tracking mud, leaves and who knew what else, Damien got his first glance of the cyclone and sighed.

"Again?" He turned towards Pierre, who cowered under the table, his fur all aquiver and that bottom tooth sticking out beyond his furry mouth. "Why is it that you always bring cyclones with you back into the house?" Damien scowled, keeping the door wide open. The cyclone would be passing, of course, and it was better to leave the doors open to allow the wind to escape on its own, rather than by wrenching the thing off its hinges.

As the storm passed, rustling his newspapers and files about the businesses of Shirm, Damien stood to see what the cyclone had brought to town. Cyclones were good for collecting new things. As he stepped outside, he saw the giant winged creature transform into a long-limbed thing instead. How curious!

"Excuse me!" He called out, stepping out of the doorway towards the tall creature, who was at least five heads taller than he.

[The Cedar Witch]

Chtahzus'aak whipped around, startled by the voice which was familiar (though a pitch higher).  His eyes widened when they landed on the one who'd spoken.

"Damien Evans?"  Was this a dream?  "What are you doing here?"  Had he been sucked into the tornado as well?  Zeus took a second to assess both Damien and the hut he'd emerged from, eyes moving between the two as if he'd come upon some sort of an explanation.  He took a step forward, foot pricked indelicately by a sharp root, and he glared down at the offending thing before meeting the small-Damien's eyes.

"Where are we?  What is this?"  For the moment, he didn't care how ridiculously unprepared his questions made him sound.  He stooped down to rub at the sore spot on his foot, regretting his decision to not put his shoes back on before going down to the thirteenth floor.  Well, he regretting going down to the thirteenth floor entirely now--but that was besides the point.  Was he better off in his demon form in this land after all?  He could do without painfully stubbing his toes.

[Saiketsu]

Damien blinked at the tall being and furrowed his brow. "Evans?" Damien asked. This one was a strange creature, indeed. "My name is Damien TooLoose, the mayor of the town of Shirm, a councellor to the Mayor of Munchkinland. THis is my home, you absurd giant! What are you doing here, coming into town on a cyclone. That's dangerous business in these parts, you know."

THere was a growling sound low at his legs and Damien looked down to see Pierre had emerged from the hutch at last and stood guarding his owner from the giant. He reached down and pat the dog, the long black hair of Pierre's coat whisping back downwards as the small dog calmed to a grumble, his eyes on the giant still. "It's a good thing Pierre found you here. Lots of folks get swept up by cyclones and never get put back down again!"

[The Cedar Witch]

Chtahzus'aak stared, mouth agape, for the entirety of small-Damien's words.  Munchkinland?!

"Wh--what?"  He blinked, wishing incredulously that this was all some elaborate hallucination and the vortex in his basement was made up of some hallucinogenic compound.  His eyes went to look at the laughably tiny dog--Pierre--and it was then he noticed the bright shoes small-Damien was wearing.  It was strange, the Damien he knew was more fashionable than to wear something so gaudy.  He frowned at the slippers before returning his gaze to small-Damien's face.  "I don't understand," he muttered, turning slightly back to the tree the cyclone dumped him into. 

"How do I get back?"

[Saiketsu]

Damien pursed his lips, not understanding what the tall stranger didn't understand. He assumed that riding in on a cyclone was pretty self-explanatory, but perhaps he was wrong. "I suppose it depends on who you are and where you're going, friend." Damien rubbed at his chin thinking for a moment and threw his thumb over his shoulder towards Munchkinland. "Down yonder is Munchkinland, and beyond that is the capital city of Oz." He pointed back towards the grassy plains on which the stranger fell. "If you're looking for Jersey, you'll be heading that way for about 500 leagues... Acrimony is about 300 leagues that way," another direction, "... and the Near Falls Bluffs are that direction.

"What brought you here in the first place?" Damien asked, tucking his thumbs into the belt loops of his khaki trousers. "Maybe I can help you find what you need."

[The Cedar Witch]

Each location small-Damien listed increased the distinct feeling of horror growing within Zeus. 

"The cyclone appeared in my home--" he sighed sharply, realizing that this place was likely another realm, "--my world.  I was not trying to get here, " he gestured around vaguely, "I wasn't trying to get anywhere."  Except into a bottle of whiskey, he thought bitterly. 

[Saiketsu]

"Ah," Damien said with understanding, "one of those cases." He scratched the back of his head with a sigh and thought. "Well I guess you're heading to see the Wizard then." Damien grimaced at the thought, looking downwards.

It was then that he noticed the stranger's feet.

"You're not going anywhere, stranger, without a proper set of footwear!" He pointed with disbelief at the giant's feet. "You've got a long road ahead of you if you're heading to see the Wizard." His face lit up and without warning, Damien toed off his ruby red slippers and pushed them over towards the giant with a nudge. "There you are. Now those are some proper footwear!"

[The Cedar Witch]

The Wizard.  That didn't sound good, and small-Damien's face confirmed it.  Chtahzus'aak didn't seem to have too many options at the moment.

When small-Damien offered the hideous red slippers, Zeus gave him A Look.  "I won't fit into those," he scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. 

[Saiketsu]

He arched an eyebrow at the giant, holding back a smile so as not to insult him. "Give them a try, I'm sure they'll work perfectly for you." Damien smiled mischievously, knowing full-well the magic of the slippers. "Besides, I have others in here somewhere. Can't have too many slippers in this day and age. But you have to tell them your name, son, if you expect them to work proper. It's only polite, after all."

[The Cedar Witch]

Zeus frowned and looked down at the slippers.  He was no stranger to magical artifacts--were these slippers such objects?  With a heavy sigh, he shuffled closer to the pair and gave small-Damien a skeptical glance before settling his gaze into the small holes that his feet were meant to enter. 

"I am Chtahzus'aak," he mumbled, feeling quite foolish.  Nothing seemed to happen, and he looked back to small-Damien as if to say Told you so.  When he looked back down at the slippers, they seemed to inhale, and when he held a hesitant toe up to the mouth of the shoe, it widened to accommodate him. 

Of course.

Feet clad in ruby red, he exhaled a slow measured breath.  He unbuttoned the top two buttons of his charcoal shirt, rolling the sleeves neatly up his forearm, and rolled his neck to stretch. 

"Okay, now what."  He was impatient to get back to his bedroom bottle of whiskey.

[Saiketsu]

Damien exclaimed at the sheer brilliance of it all, a sharp laugh resounding off the walls of the hutch that made Pierre start and look up at him.

"I forgot to tell you, Chatyousack," he remembered, holding a finger up to the giant as he stepped back into the hutch. "Those shoes are made with magic from the Good Witch whose job is to protect all things. Those won't come off until you're truly ready to take them off." He winked at the creature and proceeded to bustle around inside of his home.

"Now, we have to go to Oz. Fortunately for you, I have some business there that I've been meaning to take care of for a while. Hope you don't mind the company. The road gets a bit long and tedious some times. And you have to be prepared."

[The Cedar Witch]

"Just call me Zeus," he interjected quickly, wincing at the mispronunciation but not wishing to dwell.  At the delayed explanation of the slipper's caveat, Zeus sighed.  This was going to be a nightmare.

He watched the strange small-Damien duck back into his hut, unable to do much besides wait for him to reemerge.  "Prepared?"  Unconsciously his hand went to where an inside pocket of his suit jacket would have been, except he'd left that back in his bedroom as well.  No secret pocketed weapons.  He had absolutely nothing with him and hadn't the slightest clue as to whether or not his natural talents would work in this realm.

[Saiketsu]

"Well, yes, of course," Damien answered loudly from within as he packed his bags full of goods and supplies for the road. "First, we'll have to pass through Munchkinland - hopefully we'll even see the Good Witch there." He adored the Good Witch. Beauty, grace, and a voice like an angel. If he could marry her and make her his wife he would. Ah, but so was the wish of every munchkin man. Still, he had his hopes.

"And then from there, we'll be on our way to Oz." He reemerged with an enormous pack that weighed nearly as much as he did and was just as tall. As he tightened the straps around himself, he looked up at the giant and examined him. "Are you all ready for your journey? I'm assuming it'll be your first trip to Oz."

[The Cedar Witch]

"Obviously," he replied rather irritably, watching as small-Damien adjusted the comically large backpack. 

"How long will it take to get there?"

[Saiketsu]

"About a day, maybe two total." He answered as he began to walk down the yellow-bricked road, expecting Zeus to follow. His pace was jovial and fast for his size, but he expected that the other would still be able to keep pace. "But it'll only take us a couple hours or so to get to Munchkinland city center."

Damien hummed as he walked, not worrying if his tune was off key or not. Obediently Pierre paddled along at his side with ears raised, casting a glance up at the giant every now and then.

"So tell me a little something about yourself, Zeus," Damien pipped up after only a few minutes on their journey. "Where did you come from and what do you do for fun when you're not riding the backs of tornados?"

[The Cedar Witch]

The lost District Leader muttered a few demonic curses under his breath. Two days!  And who knew how many days passed back in the city while he was trapped in this realm!  They would say that Chtahzus'aak disappeared again, just like after the fall of the Oligarchy.  Maybe McCloud would make a move against him a second time. 

He looked bitterly down at his slippers, hoping they would come off before he left this wretched place.  Zeus would have been content enough not speaking for the entirety of his journey but clearly his guide had other ideas.

"I come from another realm, known to some as the earthly plane, which I can only assume is different from this."  He sighed with agitation.  "I am a District Leader of a city there." He paused, glancing around at the scenery, feeling altogether grumpy and out of place.  The last thing he wanted to do was make small talk with a miniature version of McCloud's campaign manager.

"And I've never traveled by tornado before," he frowned.

[Saiketsu]

"Neither have I," Damien admitted, trotting along contently. "Seems too unruly to me."

He knew nothing about the so-called earthly plane and chose not to respond to the giant man's statement of his home.

They walked along the road with a simply chatter aimed at the other, who seemed reluctant to engage with him in much of any conversation. By the time they reach Munchkinland, Damien was feeling quite defeated.

Munchkinland was bubbling with excitement which meant only one thing. Damien's face lit up and he searched the skies for the tiny pink bubble that would reveal to him the most beautiful creature who had ever lived - the Good Witch! "The Good Witch, Pierre!" Damien pointed towards the air as the bubble began to fall gracefully towards the gathering munchkin crowd. Pierre barked his approval and ran into the crowd before Damien could stop him.

[Black Philip]

The good witch's bubble appeared, and started out pink, before ending in a soft red. A beautiful blonde woman appeared, wearing a fashionable flower power pant suit. Her locks were curly, and rested neatly over her shoulder. In her hand she held a tusk made of ivory. The Muchkins began to sing.

Oh, the good witch is here!
The good witch is queer!
She brings us cheer,
and sometimes even beer!

"I brought a case of Stella today," the good witch replied, a large case being picked up by the munchkins.

"Yay," they proclaimed. The witch pulled out a note card, and read from it. "Hear ye, hear, hear ye, I'm looking for somebody who came by twister. I got shit to tell you."

She looked around, and stopped on Zeus and Damien. "Aw there we go. You're def not from around here."

[The Cedar Witch]

Chtahzus'aak watched the scene unfold before him in a state of shock, eyes wide and bulging.  It took everything he had to dampen the outward evidence of his reactions, and ended up looking strained. 

This was Tess the necromancer!

Immediately he was filled with suspicion.  But if small-Damien was not the Damien, then perhaps this Tess was not the Tess.  Or perhaps this was all her invention.  Did she bring him to a realm where he was powerless in order to destroy him?  He made no effort to announce himself as the witch announced her intentions, further deepening his suspicions.

A quiet sigh escaped his nostrils when he was spotted.  "What do you want?"  He crossed his arms in front of his chest, eyes narrow.

[Black Philip]

The good witch scoffed, and threw her hands up. Then, she did a little dance. It was similae to a waltz, except she had no partner.

"Zeus and Hera sitting in a tree, from his loins comes a little baby. Does he care? No. He's out, even as the girl's mother knocks her about."

The Munchkins gleefully laughed, and formed a ring of joined hands. They danced around the good witch, like they were playing Ring Around the Rosey.

"You will be haunted by three spirits," she said now, shoving three fingers in Zeu'ss direction.  "The first shall have no brains, the second no heart, and the third just needs help paying a parking ticket."

Tess pulled out a wad of cash and tossed it at Zeus's feet. "For the parking ticket, and oh. Look at your feet!"

On Zeus's feet were now a pair of silver shoes.

[The Cedar Witch]

The suspicion he had grew into a knot of anger sitting in the base of his gut as the necromancer and small folk did their little song and dance.  He was mortified (not that he would admit such a thing) and knew that this little song was about Sabrina.  Who else would it be about?  But how did Tess come to discover what no one save himself and Sabrina (well, and all of the demons in The Block) knew?  Did someone talk?  How widespread was this knowledge now?

Does he care? No.

Zeus' eye twitched at this as his rage grew, but faltered when the song abruptly stopped.  Three sprits.  Brain, heart, parking ticket.  Before he could ponder further, his attention followed the money to his feet and his eyes widened in astonishment as he confirmed that the slippers had indeed changed color.

"But what does it all mean?"  He murmured, mostly to himself, as he stooped to take the wad of cash.  He looked back up to the witch, confusion dominating his expression

[Black Philip]

"Yo bro, I think you're overthinking this," she chided. The Munchkins made up a new song to celebrate the good witche's newest proclamation.

Zeus has such a big brain,
but does it help him gain?
We say no, we say it causes him sorrow.
We say imagination is something he should borrow!

Tess laughed along with the Munchkins. "God, you full grown adults keep me young," she observed. "Watch out for the bad witch," she added. "She's kind of a hack but don't tell her I said so."

With that the good witch opened a Stella, and declared to the Munchkins. "Who wants to see how many of these I can drink without puking?"

"Us, us, us," they called out in singsong. "Damien, you coming," she asked. The good witch began to walk away hand and hand with the Munchkins.

[Saiketsu]

Damien danced along with the other Munchkins, knowing the dance well and losing himself in it. As the beer was passed around, he took a bottle for himself, cracked it open and drank eagerly. He kept his eyes on the Good Witch and enjoyed the ways her body moved. When she addressed him, he started and blushed. The Good Witch was speaking to him! She knew his name!

"Yes!" Damien squeaked, dropping his pack of goods and following after the Good Witch. "Coming, Ms. Tess! But uh..." he looked back at the big stranger who was watching from the sidelines. "Here," Damien said, handing his pack over to Zeus. "You may need this on your journey. When the witch summons, you follow her! But you can take Pierre!" The dog barked, annoyed, growling as a response. "He loves adventure!" And with that, he followed the other munchkins, never looking back to see if Zeus responded.

[The Cedar Witch]

If there was one thing Zeus wanted nothing more in that very moment it was to roast the little singing...munchkins on a spit over an open flame -- anything to stop the wretched singing and taunts.  He was very grumpy. 

When small-Damien handed over his pack -- and dog -- Zeus stared incredulously between the two before looking back to small-Damien.  Didn't he have somewhere further to go?  Wasn't small-Damien supposed to bring him somewhere besides this godforsaken miniature village?  Why couldn't he remember?  Before the demon could open his mouth to ask any of these things, small-Damien left without even so much as a backward glance.

Chtahzus'aak glared down at the growling dog, tempted to viciously growl back -- or at the very least see how far he could kick it.  Instead, he glared at his surroundings and slung the discarded pack over his shoulder.  With a sigh, he turned to the golden road.

"Are you coming with me, then?" he murmured through the corner of his mouth to the dog, trying his best to not feel ridiculous speaking with a creature that would not speak back and hoping no one would catch him doing it.  With that he began to walk down the pathway, wary of what he would find along the way.