The Shoyru Tamer: Part Four

     "Hey, if you hadn't changed the subject, we wouldn't have gotten stuck in our room for the rest of the night!"

     Curse looked up from his blueprints. "Will you stop fighting, you two? I'm trying to concentrate here!" Duel walked over to him.

     "What's your evil plan this time?" Duel asked, half-sighing. Curse cleared his throat in a sophisticated manner; Duel and Angel rolled their eyes.

     "Well, after investigating the equipment out in the training field, I've figured out a way to combine them into a doomsday machine that could destroy all of Neopia." Angel awkwardly stared at Curse, her mouth hanging open.

     Duel examined the blueprints. She pointed out to one thing. "It was a Maractite Battle Duck, not a Super Attack Pea," she said.

     "Really?" Curse asked. He read over his blueprints. "Well, I suppose the Maractite Battle Duck could have more power than the Super Attack Pea." Curse smiled. "Thank you, my Queen!"

     "My what?" Angel asked in disbelief.

     "He thinks I'm his queen just because I found him in the Lost Desert." Duel sighed. Angel couldn't help but chuckle. "Oh shush." A scream was heard from outside the door. Duel and Angel ran over and flung the door open just in time to see three Shoyrus running down the hall, yelling and screaming. Duel immediately recognized Auo, but she could figure out the other two.

     "Good gravy!" one of the Shoyrus yelled, running down the hall.

     "That isn't right!" the other shrieked, running behind the first one.

     "Brain bleach! Need brain bleach!" Auo screeched. Duel looked down the hall and couldn't help but yell out in fear. Some Shoyru had turned himself Mutant.

     "Stop, don't run!" he yelled after Auo and the others. "I can change myself back! I promise!"

     "Something tells me someone shouldn't have played with a portable Lab Ray," Angel muttered.

     "There's a portable Lab Ray?" Duel asked.

     "There is now." The Shoyru looked over at Angel and Duel.

     "Guys?" he asked. Duel looked at the Shoyru.

     "Wait, Nik?" she asked, quiet confused. The Shoyru nodded. "Nik, what happened to you?"

     Nik sighed. "Auo, the others, and I were trying out a potion to turn meat into vegetables. I got too close and I accidentally bumped into Auo, who was holding the potion. The potion spilled on me, and I turned into this hideous monster."

     Angel raised one of her eyebrows. "By any chance, were you using a Shoyru Transmogrification Potion?" Nik said nothing. "I thought so. How'd you get it, anyway?"

     "Auo bought it the other day. It was supposed to be a prank for his brother, Pantherz, but his owner already shipped him off to here."

     "Kinda risky, wasn't it?" Angel asked with a smirk on her face.

     "I guess so…" Nik looked at the ground in a guilty way.

     "Here, come on inside. I think I've got something to change you back." Angel walked back into the room with Nik tailing her. Duel was the last to enter the room. She saw Nik sitting shamefully on his bed, and Angel was rummaging through her suitcase. Curse was examining Nik closely, and muttering things like "such a good test subject," and "I wonder who he works for," until Duel finally got fed up and kicked Curse to get him to stop.

     "Aha!" Angel exclaimed from her suitcase. "Got it!"

     "Got what?" Nik, Duel, and Curse asked in unison. Angel stood up and held a Shoyru Morphing Potion in her hands. Curse's jaw dropped and his eyes gleamed with excitement.

     "Oh no you don't," Duel said bitterly. She knew what was coming next, so she bent down and scooped Curse up off the floor. "This potion's for Nik. Right?"

     "Right," Angel said. "Unfortunately, it's only a Yellow Shoyru Morphing Potion. You can't change back to Island."

     "Well, it's better than Mutant," Nik said. He got up and snatched the potion from Angel's hands and chugged the whole thing down his throat. Almost instantly, a yellow spark of magic flew around Nik's mutant-like body, and he started changing from Mutant to Yellow.

     Nik looked down at his newly yellow body. "It's okay. I'll see if my dad can buy me a new Island Paint Brush."

     "Well, good luck with that," Duel said. Angel glanced over to Duel.

     "Are…are you okay?" she said hoarsely.

     "Yeah, I feel fine."

     "Your eyes…" Nik looked over at Duel, and his jaw dropped like a weight.

     "Yeah, Duel, look in the mirror, quick!" Duel gulped and ran over to the mirror, Curse still in her arms. She gaped at her reflection; her eyes were turning red, and quickly.

     "No…" she muttered, dropping Curse to the ground. "No, not again." Her eyes started returning back to their normal, green color.

     "Duel, what's going on?" Angel demanded.

     "Nothing," Duel said coolly. "It's okay now." She took a cloth and wiped the make up off her face. She then walked over to the water container and poured herself a cup of water. "Man, I was thirsty," she muttered. After that, Duel climbed up the ladder to her bed.

     "You're going to sleep?" Nik asked.

     "Yeah," Duel said. "I'm a little tired from earlier. Good night." She clambered under the sheets.

     "Good night," Nik and Angel replied.

     *****

     Duel groaned and rubbed her eyes awake. Her bladder hurt and she realized she had to use the bathroom. Duel groaned again and climbed down the bunk bed late at night. "Stupid water," she muttered to herself as she touched the ground and walked over to the door. She opened it up and quietly went out into the hall, tip-toeing towards the girls' bathroom.

     Duel stumbled over something, and she made a loud noise. Duel swore angrily without noticing that Mega had opened up the door to his room. "Duel?"

     Duel spun around. "Oh, it's only you," she sighed.

     "You okay? Where you going?"

     "Bathroom," Duel said. "And I'm fine. I just tripped over the trash bin." She bent down and fixed the trash bin so that it stood upright and she quickly threw all the garbage that had fallen out back into the bin. Duel stood back up and smiled at Mega.

     "Oh," Mega said. "Okay, but get back in your room quickly. I don't want you getting caught." Mega retreated back into his room, and Duel ran towards the bathroom.

     A few minutes later, Duel walked out of the girls' bathroom and the sound of a flushing toilet filled the hall. Duel hoped no one would hear her as she crept down the hall back towards her room. As Duel passed by Tamer's room, she heard voices. Angry voices. Duel looked over at the door; it was cracked open a little bit and light was showing through it. Duel tip-toed over to the crack and peered inside. Duel almost gasped at the sight. Tamer was awake and yelling at someone, his helmet tight on his head. Jhudora towered over him, growling with anger.

     "For the last time, Jhudora, I said no!" Tamer yelled. "I'm not coming back with you!"

     "But you were my best apprentice," Jhudora cooed. "You're coming back!"

     "No!" Tamer roared. "I have my own business now!"

     "You're going to have to make up all those neopoints you stole from me!" Jhudora boomed. Purple clouds filled the room, just like what happened to Ray. Jhudora grabbed Tamer's hand, but he quickly kicked Jhudora in the stomach, making her stumble back. "You'll regret doing that," Jhudora said darkly. She pointed her staff at Tamer and green lightning came out of it, zapping Tamer. He screamed out in pain and was knocked into the wall. "I'll be back for you one of these days, kid." The purple clouds covered Jhudora, and she was gone.

     "Tamer!" Duel cried. She flung the door open and ran inside. Tamer was lying on the ground next to the wall. Duel fell to her knees, speechless. Tamer's helmet had fallen off when he made contact with the wall, and the helmet now lay next to him. His brown hair had fallen into his eyes, but Duel could figure his eyes were closed.

     "I…I…" Duel stammered. She quickly put her ear to his heart. He was still alive, but unconscious.

     "Tamer? Are you - Duel?" Duel spun around and saw Mega standing in the doorway, looking astonished. "Duel, what happened to Tamer?" Duel stood up and said nothing. "Duel! What did you do?"

     "Tamer…" Duel muttered. She looked up at Mega. "His name isn't Tamer…"

     Mega blinked. "What? I know my own dad. His name is the Shoyru Tamer."

     "No, it isn't," Duel said, slightly louder. "Months ago, Sammy's best friend, Ray, was kidnapped by Jhudora. The other night she had a dream of what happened on that day. Just a few minutes ago, Jhudora kept telling Tamer to come back with her."

     "What are you - ?"

     "Last night, Dino Master appeared at the door. Dino Master is really Adam, another one of Sammy's friends. When Tamer took off his helmet, Adam looked like he knew Tamer really well."

     "Duel, what are you talking - ?"

     "Tamer really isn't the Shoyru Tamer, Mega! His name is - !"

     "Ray." Duel and Mega looked over at Tamer. He had woken up, and he was now staggering to his feet. "Duel's right, Mega," he said. "My name isn't Tamer. It's Ray."

To be continued...