Court Evil

Part One: The Assemblage.

Chapter One: Grand Meetings.

	Queen Beryl was not in her best of moods. Defeat at the hands of 
Queen Serenity and her damned Crystal! Sent back into the Negaverse, at the 
verge of victory! She could TASTE the sweetness of victory, and she was 
defeated by a damned ROCK! Her armies massacred, her pride shattered, her 
generals beaten down and humiliated, her entire Court in disarray and chaos! 
All because she lost to a stupid piece of rock!
	Queen Beryl was not in her best of moods, indeed.
	“Malachite,” she said harshly to the pale-haired man with the equally 
pale cape standing before her. “Go. Alert the Court. We have plans to make.” 
No matter how many difficulties, she would not rest until the Moon Kingdom and 
every last of those who held the Blood of Serenity was dead. Even if it took her 
a thousand years to locate the reincarnated forms of Serenity’s family.
	
	Malachite moved among the dark-cloaked forms, Zoicite, Nephrite, 
and Jadeite in tail behind him. He and the three other generals wore matching 
gray uniforms, with black boots and white linen gloves. Malachite’s cape was 
the only thing that determined his higher status from the three lesser generals. 
Malachite turned his cool, deadly gaze across the remnants of the Court. He 
knew the faces; dark-haired and dark-eyed Diorite, he was an excellent player 
of the Game, and a brilliant tactician, second only to Malachite himself, and was 
often Malachite’s advisor in creating war strategies. A shame that Diorite’s last 
strategy had been totally and utterly countered by Serenity’s Crystal. That had 
been a first; Diorite’s plans had never failed. “A first time for everything,” Malachite 
muttered. His gaze went to a red-haired girl, short, yet strong, with a fine, slender 
figure and high cheekbones that highlighted her blue eyes in her dark-skinned face. 
	Pyrite, she was known, and for good reason. Also a high-level player 
of the Game, she was known for her skills in reconnoitering and confirming the 
hard-to-obtain factors in the Royal Courts of various planets. Her name was the
true name for “Fool’s Gold,” for only a fool would dare fall in love with her, no 
matter how beautiful she was, no matter how soft her red hair was, no mater how 
deep those eyes were…
	Another gaze led to that of Halite, a stern-faced and tall man with a 
square chin. He was no where near as good as Diorite and Pyrite in the mechanics 
of the Game, but he was still good in gathering new soldiers for Beryl’s armies. He 
himself had his own privately funded army, an elite task force that Beryl used for 
the most dangerous of missions that required a vast selection of skills. Halite’s private 
army had those skills and more.
	Dolomite, a voluptuous young-looking woman with a gaze as cold as 
Malachite’s was the poorest of players in the Game. She makes up for her lack 
of Game skills with her expertise in spying. She commanded the largest network 
of spies, assassins, and Infiltrators in the entire Negaverse, perhaps the largest in 
the whole galaxy. Malachite had always wondered how Dolomite managed to 
stay alive, working with the unscrupulous spies and underground agents, and having 
such low skills in the Game, which was even more dangerous than the spy network. 
	Malachite’s last gaze took in the twin brothers, Calcite and Fluorite. 
Being identical twins, they both were of equal height, with the same golden hair 
and pale skin color. However, Calcite had white irises and white pupils, making 
his eyes look like white spots in his head; Fluorite’s eyes were a deep sea green 
color. Both were powerful wizards, and commanded the largest system of mages 
who worked for Queen Beryl. They also commanded the largest collection of 
knowledge and artifacts.
	Pair of eyes pierced through Malachite’s cape and uniform and bored 
into his back, making him feel naked and vulnerable. The pale-haired general didn’t 
need to turn around to know who was staring at him with those weighing, judging 
eyes, that measuring gaze. Zodiac, garbed entirely in black, pulled his black cloak 
around him, making him seem a shadow in the already dark courtroom. Soft black 
boots peeked from under the black cloak, making a soft shuffling sound across the 
cold obsidian floor tiles. Malachite never liked Zodiac. He never will. Zodiac was 
too cold, too calm, and he kept his face hidden behind a black iron mask, and kept 
that mask hidden beneath the hood of his cloak. Too cold, too calm. And too dangerous. 
Malachite did not like those who were so collected. That made the risks simply too 
high. Malachite was good in the Game. Not as good as Beryl or Pyrite. Nowhere 
near their skill, but he knew that he was better than most in the heated levels of the 
Game. But Zodiac was a master. He was better than Beryl and Pyrite combined. 
He played the Game in his sleep. And even then, he was an overwhelming force. 
No one knew where he came from, and they were too afraid to ask. Beryl announced
that he was her Second-in-Command and Primary Advisor almost thirty years ago. 
It was so sudden, for no one had even known Zodiac was there until Beryl announced
 that he was now the second most powerful figure in the Negaverse, next to Beryl 
herself. 
	“Something troubling you, General Malachite?” Zodiac’s thin, whispered 
voice hissed. That voice sent chills up Malachite’s spine like ice down the back of his 
shirt. “You seem…disturbed.” How he hated that cold voice.
	Malachite did turn, this time; to face Zodiac’s black mask. His hood lay 
around his shoulders, hung down his back. Zodiac was so calm. Too calm. “My
troubles, if any are present, are no concern of yours, Zodiac,” Malachite said acidly.
	“The Great Queen Beryl wishes that I be referred to as, His Excellency, 
General Malachite. You would do well to remember your status in the Queen’s eyes.” 
The tone of voice was still level and even; not the slightest change was evident in 
Zodiac’s voice. 
	Malachite cringed inwardly, yet kept his face smooth and collected, though 
inside, he was a raging storm of chaos and frustration. “My apologizes, Your 
Excellency.” He made a rigid bow all the way to his waist in a forty-five degree 
angle to Zodiac. 
	Zodiac turned his head to the left, away from Malachite. The pale-haired 
general followed Zodiac’s gaze. Queen Beryl stepped from the deepest shadows, 
materializing from the darkness itself, her crystal-globe-topped staff in her black-
lacquered fingertips. The Court went to silence at her entrance, every face smooth 
and unreadable. The next session of the Game had been played. 
	“Time to roll the dice and draw the cards, Malachite?” Zodiac whispered 
behind him, his mouth hidden by the black iron mask. 
	Yes, Malachite thought. Time to roll the dice and draw the cards.