Wizards and Warlocks: Adventure II

Part IX: A Family Feud

"I mean, it seemed like a good idea at the time!" Adeen tugged at the the leopard fur, but didn't undo the knot. Violet laughed at her, but trailed off as she saw the hut. Adeen followed Violet's gaze. "Should we?"
    Violet swallowed hard and nodded. The catlike creature wound around her legs, and she gently picked it up.
    "Maybe we should leave her outside?" Violet said with sympathy in her voice, "She is just a lil kitty cat." She didn't look like she was planning on setting the cat down, though.
    Adeen smiled and said, "She can definitely help us. This is the boss battle after all."
    Violet strode up to the door and shifted the cat in her arms. Adeen stood slightly behind Violet and the cat. She reached out to knock. The door swung open before she touched the wood.
"Why hello there!" exclaimed a smarmy man behind the door. His tall forehead had a translucent sheen, as if his skull was oddly large and thin towards the top. "Oh, why don't you come in for tea? It's so muggy out there!"
Violet blinked. Adeen blinked. The cat did not blink. "O-o-oh.... I guess?" The two girls exchanged a confused look before stepping into the small cottage. It was even more humid inside than out. The hut was obviously one room, but it was divided into two on the inside.  The room was lit by a small chandelier directly above a table. It was squashed into one corner, which the man laid out teacups on. The other corner held a small shrine to Canipedella, goddess of fear and misdirection. Violet eyed it warily.
"You knew we were coming." Adeen stated. The man continued to lay out the cups, and gestured for the two to sit down. The cat jumped under the table, and with a glance, the two sat down across from the man. He sipped his tea contentedly. Adeen squinted down into her teacup at the rosy brown liquid.
"Where's Father!" Violet shouted abruptly. "He has to be in here. I can feel it!"
"Now, now.... Pleasure before business. We're having a tea party."
Adeen blinked and looked up from her scrutiny of the tea for a moment. "It's actually 'business before pleasure'.... It sounds wrong any other way. So inefficient." Violet nodded.
"No one cares, you smart-aleck girl! Now what was I going to say?" He returned to the overly-flattering voice from before. "Oh yes... How's the tea, ladies?"
"Poisoned? Is this poisoned?" Adeen had to know.
"Just shut up and drink the tea."
"Hmm... I don't think so. Tell us your evil plans. Where is our father?" The girls began chanting. "Monologue! Monologue! Monologue!" Violet's heavy fists beat time on the table.
The strange unctuous man rolled his eyes and indulged them. "I have been planning this for quite some time. Really, almost too long for such a simple plan.... But I do love a good intrinsic net. Your dying brother. The prey he hunted. The leopard.... And your cat." Neither girl was making a sound now. Violet felt around for the cat under the table with her feet. It had been there just a second ago.
"I sent these and more after your family, those who taunted me on the edge of my realm. I've watched you through them, the ones I controlled.... But before I mastered my telepathic skills, there was a startling side effect. Milky white eyes. Hence my beautiful guardian leopard, Henry, outside.... You KILLED Henry." He took a deep breath and glared at Adeen's bloody ponytail.
"He was bothering me." This statement was ignored.
"You see, I want this jungle. I want to control all of the beings in it and the magic that all living creatures hold. The jungle, better known as the Dark Forest, is the most powerful source of magic in this dimension. As you know, magic is generated by life, and this area is crawling with it. No one yet has been strong enough to tap its power without being washed away.
"I was doing just fine until I found out about your family. Your father -pah!- experimental magician, not worthy of calling himself a wizard. And yet... he could tap the magic of the forest. I had to find out how... And now? I am the most powerful telepath in the world! It's the greatest feeling, but I need henchmen... Hm." Violet met eyes with Adeen. They both felt more than a little trapped. This guy was addled as the wind and just as insane as Canipedella. No wonder he had a shrine to her in his house.
"Let me offer you a deal as friends; I'll let you stay here with me and that adorable parrot cat and I will let you live. Granted, I will dominate your minds and control you forever, but think of it this way- you can have all the tea you want! The other option is for me to kill you. Right here. Right now." His face grew dark, then brightened briefly. "By the way, my name is Everett. You should know the name of the person who will control you for eternity. Or kill you, but... 0/10 would not recommend."
Adeen's hammer clanked together loudly and she froze. "S...Sorry?"
Evrett gave her the evil eye. "Hands where I can see them." Adeen pulled her hands up slowly...slowly... "Hurry UP. Ugh."
Violet reached behind herself, more discretely than Adeen. With a flick of the wrist, her staff was in her hands. She tried to stand up at the small table. Big mistake. This corner was too small. Adeen hurled two hammers at Evrett, both missing. The cat weaved towards Adeen, who reached for a hammer and then hesitated. Evrett grabbed her forearm across the table.
"NO!" Violet levitated the table upward, severing the connection. Everything seemed anti-gravity for a moment, and then Evrett lashed out. Waves of pain crashed across Violet, crushing her to the ground. She felt like a kitten thrown in a river. Something... Something was... burrowing itself into her brain.
Adeen looked over at Violet. Her eyes were wide, and she was twitching. "Violet...?" It came out as a whisper. Everything seemed to stand still. A smirk grew on Evrett's face.