Rocket Man (Continued)

He shrugged, "I did get mugged earlier."

"Did you win?"

He nodded. "Dunno how. Well, then again, I was fighting bloody flubber."

Cyril ignored that last bit. "Ah well. That means you have some talent at least." Cyril extended one arm and his Clouded Pike materialized in his hand. "Don't panic, but the ground is about to swallow you and take you to our stomping grounds for the next few months."

Ryuzaki nodded, looking uneasily at his feet.

Cyril tapped his pike on the ground and it rose up and swallowed both Cyril and his young ward.

They both popped out on the moon in front of the magnificent Silver Palace. "Welcome to your new home, Ryuzaki." The huge, bejeweled double doors swung open at Cyril's silent command. He bounded up the stairs and into his palace. The walls looked icy and the enchanting white pattern still wove itself through the palace. There was a door on each wall. "A few ground rules first! One: Don't sit in the throne." Cyril gestured to the marble throne at the head of the long, glass table. "Two: don't go through the door behind it unless I invite you. Well.... you can but you'd be killed. Three: do not active the table. Got it?"

Ryuzaki nodded, "What about that pool full of... gelatin?"

"What? SON OF BITCH, NOT HERE TOO!"

Ryuzaki scooped some up and tasted it. "Did you really like your chandelier?"

"Aw, I did!" Cyril looked thoroughly disappointed. "At least it wasn't anything important." Cyril sighed. "Well. The Silver Palace has anything you could possibly want. Just hold an image of what you want in your head and the spirits will guide you." Cyril gestured, "Go on try to find your room."

Ryuzaki wandered around, calling back to Cyril, "All I can find is a greenhouse full of... you naughty thing!"

Cyril frowned. "Full of what?" he shouted to Ryuzaki.

Ryuzaki yelled, "Something you'd get arrested for outside of Amsterdam!"

Cyril took a moment and thought about it. "Marijuana?" he asked. "But... I don't even smoke!"

Ryuzaki started laughing. He returned to Cyril, reading a note, 'Cyril. I needed somewhere to grow this. The Beatles had to get it from somewhere. Love, Bob Dylan. AKA Artik.' Wait. Bob Dylan wasn't orange."

"Dammit Artik, this is a sacred place!" Cyril took the note. "Artik could shapeshift I believe." he explained. Cyril gestured at door and meant for Ryuzaki to go find his room.

Ryuzaki decided to don a blindfold and just walk. Eventually he walked into a protruding something that felt a bit like a doorknob and took his blindfold off. He twisted the knob and entered the room. He looked about, noting the simple, modern flat-style room. A couple of bookshelves, a desk, a bed, a wooden wastebin.

Cyril walked in behind Ryuzaki. "This is yours. How do you like it?"

Ryuzaki gained a monotonous voice, "I need to rig the desk drawer to burn its contents should it be opened the wrong way."

"Right. You do that. Meet me in the courtyard when you've finished with you're... um... little project.." Cyril took his leave.

Ryuzaki opened the closet and found gasoline. "Perfect."

An hour later he rejoined Cyril.

Cyril appeared looking tired. "Hello there, ready to finally begin?"

Ryuzaki nodded sadly, "I had just finished rigging it, when," he held up a tupperware container, "this happened."

"It melted too?" Cyril asked.

He sighed, "Yup. AND I DIDN'T GET TO BURN IT."