Chapter 9

As Mike took off back to the News Stand, Rick glanced at his watch again and whistled, "Hey, check this out buddy," showing his watch face to Stan.

"Are you kidding me?" Stan said, "We burned up a whole eight minutes of our lunch hour? We'd have been hard pressed to make it to Ernie's, much less get seated and served in that time. Well, what do you want to do?"

"Well, I might as well see if this thing will turn into a ring. I am not lugging this around all day, I don't care how 'Honored' it makes me," Rick laughed. "Let's see, Mike said, "just 'think' ring" ... so, here goes nothing." A second later, Rick was wearing the most God-Awful-Silver-Lump on his ring finger. With green, red and blue stones stuck here and there.

Stan was trying with all his might, not to bust a gut but finally lost the battle and as the peals of laughter subsided somewhat, Stan gasped out, "Oh-My-God! It looks like you mugged Liberace and haven't made it to your fence yet!!"

After this short pit stop for breath, Stan ramped back up to speed in what looked to be, the second lap of the Daytona five hundred of hilarity. Even Rick joined in on lap five and if anyone thought that two helplessly laughing police officers in Grant Park, was 'unusual'; well, at least they didn't call the station house.

Mike, knowing he had dumped a world of change on his friends, was in full on -'Worry Wart / Mother Hen mode'- and snuck a quick scan back over to the park. He was just in time to see Rick and Stan laughing their brains out over something.

Then he caught sight of 'The Abominable Ring'. Chuckling to himself, he thought, 'Elven art. You just have to love it.'

Friday 12:05 P. M. City Hall, Chicago, IL

"One more, lousy signature, that's all I need is one more signature from a very nice gentleman named Henry Donaldson. Who, as of this moment is on a 'fact finding mission', in WISCONSIN!!" Izzag screamed. "I'll certainly have to make room on my calendar for Henry's CRUCIFIXION! Where we can discuss the finer points of punctuality, as I eat the liver I've just ripped from his body!" he spewed. At this point, it was a forgone conclusion that if Izzag been able to interact directly with the physical world, it would have been classed as a 'Very Bad Thing', with a blast radius of about five miles.

Joe Buckley just kept staring at the hall clock, chanting, "Come on Five O'clock ... Beautiful Benefits ... Come on Five O'clock...

Samron, and almost an entire quarter of his clan had swept City Hall from top to bottom and were just now finishing with the latter. Out of the four hundred that had participated in this excursion over forty were now recuperating at, what was in effect, the Faery version of an intensive care ward.

The First one of the clan to reach the basement found the sleeping Arthur Simon Silvus hard at work and cutting ZZZZZ's with a vengeance. Upon closer examination of this upstanding Civil Servant, the footprints of Izzag were found in abundance through his cerebral cortex and the traitor's reward was almost immediately dispensed through the sleeping man's right eye.

However, on Samron's arrival, it was decided to kick the issue upstairs and with this consensus Samron contacted Defense Coordinator Kilian and passed on the new Intel.

After much discussion, with many a plan set forward and then dismissed, one plan came to light that all agreed would not only put a stop to this Demonic incursion, but also amply reward this faithful public servant.

At this point, Clan Faery made an exodus from the environs of City Hall, headed for more pleasant climes, while the luckiest Civil Servant on the planet snoozed blissfully on. As the last of Clan Faery were leaving the building a fairly low pitch voice for one of their number was heard to say with a distinct Austrian accent, "Vee'll be baack!"