Sean looked around warily at his new location. Brushing the dust off his black trenchcoat, he noticed signs that suggested he was in Halloweentown, in the state of Nevada.
Something didn't feel right, though, as if he hadn't quite arrived in his destination. (He couldn't know that he wasn't yet in an episode that was a multiple of 1000. But he would get there soon enough.)
Still, he figured Nevada = prostitution, so there was a good chance he might get to have some sex before getting flung to another reality.
And then, he noticed the signs. Near the main hall in the main square, he could see signs advertising some "Demon Hunter's Convention." But because he was busy reading a sign, he wasn't watching where he was going, so he accidentally walked right into someone else, stumbled, and fell. As he dropped to the ground, his strange guns (BE-gun, stripperizer, whoriffier) slid out of his over-sized trenchcoat pockets.
"Oh, pardon me," said the woman that he had run into. He looked up and saw a raven-haired beauty, dressed all in black (much as he was), with a backpack poking out of which he could see a variety of strange items, including a crossbow with some strange looking ammunition.
As he quickly moved to grab his guns before anybody else saw them, she asked, "Hey, are you going to the convention too? Those are demon-hunting guns, right?"
"Oh, uh, yeah, that's why I'm here," he lied. "But, uh, it's my first time." Standing up, he put out his hand, "My name's Sean, by the way."
"I'm Carla," she told him. "Carla Darkheart. And don't worry. We'll be gentle," she told him.
When she said her name, he immediately, thought of the woman Clara (since Carla's name was so close to Clara's) that he had left behind in the whorehouse world. Would he ever see her again? And if he was going to meet more women like Carla, would it even matter? "Come on, the hall's over here," she told him, leading him onward.
They registered for the convention, signing the guestbook, and paying their entrance fees. Sean had a moment of panic when he reached into his pocket for money, realizing that he was broke... but then he found his pocket was full of money after all. These pants must be magical, he thought. He wondered if they had any other powers.
But then, the first day of the convention lay ahead. Sean discovered that there was a surprising number of events and seminars to attend, not even counting the dealer's room, where a variety of different equipment was for sale: water pistols full of holy water, books on the best methods for banishing demons of several varieties, crucifixes of all sizes made of a variety of different materials, and so forth. He also saw that there were a number of oddly dressed and coiffed people, carrying a variety of odd gear, wandering through the halls. Throughout the day, he made sure to stick close to Carla, since she was the only person that he knew there (even though he didn't really know her either).
As the day ended, Sean was surprised that he was still here. Perhaps this is where I was meant to be, he thought. In the morning, he woke up and checked the schedule. Today was the day of the awards ceremony and banquet for Demon Hunter of the Year. It sounded boring, but he was sure that Carla was going to be there, so he wasn't about to pass it up. He got dressed, lamenting that he didn't have another change of clothes, and went out to deal with the new day. Eventually, he met up with Carla again, and realized that most of these demon hunters seemed to have limited wardrobes, so his one set of clothes didn't stick out as unusual.
And then, it was time for the banquet. The various hunters (and Sean) filled a massive banquet hall. Sean was seated across from Carla at one table. After everyone had been seated, a man at the head of the room began to speak.
"Welcome, my fellow hunters and huntresses. I am Randigo, your emcee for the evening."
Applause filled the room.
"We're here tonight to honor the boldest achievements in the past year, as well as enjoy a full seven-course meal. So while the staff serves the soup, let's welcome one of tonight's speakers, Corrine, to tell us all about her latest demon hunting concept: maleable darts!"
Applause filled the room again as the catering staff, wheeled out the first carts of their special soup. None of the hunters realized that the members of this staff were really demons in disguise. Sean realized that he was quite hungry, as he hadn't been eating much lately, so he greedily consumed his soup, and saw Carla doing likewise.
It tasted good, very good. There was something odd about it, though, that he couldn't quite put his finger on. But by the time he had finished his soup, the staff was delivering the next course: Caesar salad.
As Carla began to dig in to her salad, she noticed Sean not eating. "What's the matter?" she asked.
"Oh, I'm just not much of a salad person," he replied. "And besides, I don't want to fill up, when there are still so many courses left."
"Then can I have yours?"
"Be my guest," he told her, as she attacked his salad.
"Thanks. But you better eat whatever we get next," she told him, pretending to scold him. "We don't want you to go hungry."
And the staff began serving the next course, Oysters Casino.
Fri Jun 18 13:04:41 2004
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