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galfridus1 · 5 years

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Thank you @amxlm for entering the prize draw I ran recently. Here is a fic featuring Zeldris as the leader of the Ten Commandments. Thanks for requesting this - it was a blast to write. I really hope you like it.

With thanks to @okamideimos for his headcanon about the Commandment of Selflessness which I have used here.

Trigger warning for canon typical violence.

Nine pairs of black eyes. Zeldris looked over the group, examining each of his new charges in turn. Every single one of the team had something different they wanted to say, and he could tell what it was from the way they were looking at him. He felt his impatience rise in his breast. Because of his own brother’s perfidy, he now had to manage these gits.

Actually, on reflection some of the hostility he saw he could cope with. Derieri was glaring at him, hands on hips and her mouth twisted to a snarl, but that was to be expected. She had just lost her sister at the hands of an archangel and had been saved from madness by the traitor himself, not to mention that slut of a goddess his brother had run off with. That humiliation had to sting. And Monspeet’s studied nonchalance as he lounged at her side was most likely in character. Zeldris searched his memory of the Commandment of Reticence and wondered if Monspeet had once smiled since taking his decree.

He sighed to himself. If this were a proper organisation with a proper resources department - like the one he had learned that the goddess clan had, with shiny offices and appropriate policies for things like performance evaluation, parental leave and bereavement - the pair would be having a few days off. But no. His father had zero understanding of effective people management and had flat out vetoed his son’s idea to bring some systematicity to the process.

“This is the elite army of the demon clan,” the king had boomed at Zeldris, “not a damned nursery. Get on with your job and turn them into warriors.”

But it was a damned nursery. The rest of the ‘warriors’ standing before him on the gratifyingly neat training grounds were behaving just like little children. Melascyla was pretending to ignore him, twirling her long pink hair around a thin finger as she looked at Estarossa who was rolling his eyes and flashing his brother some sort of rude sign with his hands. Fraudrin was practically bouncing up and down with eagerness, a slack grin on his sort of a face, and Galand was scratching under his armpits which he does not even have, Zeldris thought with irritation. Gloxinia and Drole were standing off to the side, both with arms folded over their chests but he could sense the nervousness they both felt. Only Greyroad was behaving professionally. She was floating in the air sedately and was clearly paying attention.

“Thank you for coming,” Zeldris proclaimed, lowering his voice to give himself an air of authority. The ‘warriors’ shifted a little at the address but their response was nowhere near satisfactory. Indeed, Zeldris noted with some disgust that Estarossa was picking his nose.

“I am delighted to take on the leadership of this group,” Zeldris forced himself to continue, hands clenched at his sides to stop himself from punching his brother in his self-satisfied face. “Between us, we have the best skills in the demon realm. Greyroad, Gloxinia, Drole, welcome. You are a huge asset to the Ten Commandments and I am looking forward to seeing you in action. But to beat the goddess clan, we have a lot of work to do, and that starts now. Divide up into pairs and duel. You may use any of the powers at your disposal. The winner from each pair will take on another successful opponent, until an overall victor emerges. The champion will receive a surprise reward.”

At the mention of a reward, the group visibly brightened. “Alright!” Galand yelled as he stalked towards Melascyla. “Shall we, my dear?” he asked, his voice echoing over the fields. Melascyla nodded her assent, and the two immediately flew at one another, Melascyla morphing to an enormous, hissing snake as Galand gave a shout and raised his spear in the air.

Zeldris watched with satisfaction as, one by one, the Commandments followed his orders. He was just looking around to see who was left, when Fraudrin sidled up to him, eyes narrowed and teeth showing where his chest ought to be. “Can I have a word?” the former general asked coldly.

“What is it now?” Zeldris snapped. He was tired of this demon. Fraudrin was by far the weakest of the team. He had been a sub-standard general even before his promotion, and Zeldris had serious misgivings about his current employment. But, of course, his objections had been overruled. There were no others suitable soldiers to appoint, so Fraudrin had been chosen by default.

Fraudrin seemed to quake a little under his leader’s gaze. “It’s about my decree,” he eventually managed to say, his words only just audible over the sound of metal clanging on metal and the fierce rush of the wind, which was being whipped to a frenzy by the onslaught of magical attacks. The air burned with it, the smell of smoke and ash floating on the breeze. “The king made me one of the Ten Commandments. Ergo, I should have a Commandment. I know you have The Commandment of Selflessness in your possession. When am I…”

Zeldris’s laugh cut over this speech, which had all the hallmarks of being pre-prepared. Since when did Fraudrin ever use the word ‘ergo’? He stepped towards the former general, pressing into the demon’s personal space, and despite being the smaller of the two, Zeldris could see the other quiver a bit. “That decree belonged to the greatest mage in the whole of Britannia,” he said sharply, his words cutting through the cacophony of noise. “It is not for the likes of you. We both know that you are only now in this army because of a serious shortage of alternatives. Besides, you are hardly capable of wielding power of this magnitude. It would destroy you…”

“That’s bull,” hissed Fraudrin, and he turned to look very deliberately at Estarossa. “I know he had no power at all before he took his decree. At least I have something. I have my own power, that is mine, that I worked for. So don’t tell me I couldn’t handle it. You know I could.”

Zeldris watched as Fraudrin shook, his emotion threatening to overwhelm him. “Alright,” Zeldris said, conceding the point. “That Estarossa is useless cannot be denied. Very well. I will tell you what I will do. I will offer you a deal. The others are all engaged in battle, so the two of us are left to duel. If you can stand against me for ten minutes then I will actively consider your request.”

Zeldris smirked as Fraudrin visibly swallowed. He was pleased with himself. This solution was neat and meritocratic. “If you end up on the floor though it is all over,” explained Zeldris as his opponent looked at him with uneasy eyes. The prince allowed his hand to stray to the hilt of his sword, excitement running through him as he grasped at the metal. “I will even do you a favour. You may use whatever powers are at your disposal, but I will refrain from calling on my own magic. I do not need to so in order to subdue you, so all you will have to face is my sword.”

Fraudrin moved more quickly than his leader would have expected. Zeldris’s weapon was out of its sheath faster than lightning, deflecting the blasts of Hellblaze which his combatant hurled in his direction. It was almost too easy. He stood still, moving his arm in time with the missiles which rained down on him, not even breaking a sweat as they flew back at his opponent. Fraudrin cursed loudly as he crashed to first one side then the other in order to escape the rebounds of his own attacks. The ground shook as he moved, but the huge demon somehow just about managed to stay on his feet.

Zeldris smiled. “Three minutes left,” he called cheerfully.

“Full Size,” snarled Fraudrin, the frustration he felt clear in his tone. Zeldris watched, amused, as the former general grew to enormous proportions. As if height and girth were an advantage against his own agility. Fraudrin lunged, fist poise to strike. Zeldris waited until the very last second, then sped behind Fraudrin, slashing at him repeatedly with his blade. It was like a knife running through butter; in just a few moments he had carved Fraudrin up into several pieces, all of which thudded like stones to the floor.

Zeldris landed lightly on his feet. “My win, I think,” he intoned, doing his best to keep the triumph out of his voice. He watched as Fraudrin stitched himself back together, limbs reattaching and skin smoothing over to leave no sign of injury. “But you did comparatively well,” he said more kindly as the now-restored Fraudrin audibly ground his teeth. “I was wrong. You may not be as powerful as Monspeet or Derieri, but you do have a place here.”

“Then give me the decree!” snapped Fraudrin.

Zeldris cocked his head to one side and, rather deliberately, shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe, one day,” he said.

He was not about to tell Fraudrin he did not have the decree, that the Commandment of Selflessness had vanished with its owner. It would be somewhere up in Britannia, Zeldris was sure, and one day he would locate it. When he himself held all the decrees, he would be able to bring peace to the demon clan, to rule with Gelda by his side. But there was no rush, he reflected as Fraudrin skulked off. The princess was safe in her seal, protected from the ravages of war. There was time to train, to grow, and to learn to handle the power he knew he would some day have to make his own in order to save her.

#nnt #fanfiction #tw: violence #tw: canon typical violence #1500 draw #zeldris #fraudrin #ten commandments #amxlm #thanks for the request!

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pennywaltzy · 5 years

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Alternate Beginnings, Alternate Endings, Alternate Universes (1/5 - An “Adventures In Unexpected Places” Story)

So this is another oldie but goodie that I finished, that I had started ages ago back when I was on LJ, I think, for @fadeddreaming. I’m planning on writing more in this series as I think of differences between the canon DW universe and what I think could happen here, but at least this first story is done!

Alternate Beginnings, Alternate Endings, Alternate Universes - After being sent to the worst school in the whole of England, Amy meets up with the man whose fault it is that she’s there, and things go vastly more differently than anyone expected.

READ CHAPTER 1 | SERIES PAGE | HELP ME SURVIVE? | COMMISSION ME? | BUY ME A KOFI?

2001

Her aunt hadn’t even had the decency to take her. At least she hadn’t had to go alone; when Aunt Sharon made the decree that she was going to send her off to St. Trinian’s, Mels had decided to go as well. “After all, can’t send my best mate off to the madhouse alone,” was what Mels had said. And the school’s reputation fit right up Mels’ alley, but Amy’s? Not so much.

The driver wouldn’t even take them to the front door, not even when Mels offered to double the fare, and then triple it. “Last time it was eggs, and they baked on. Took days to scrape them off,” he said, stopping just outside the grounds. So they hoofed it.

“I heard the place is full of hellions,” Amy said nervously. “Girls that can’t be controlled and all that.”

Mels made a scoffing sound. “They can’t be that bad. And besides, I’m tough, you’re tough. We’ll hold our own.”

“I hope you’re right.”

They were maybe a quarter mile up the drive when Mels stopped her. “We’re being watched,” she said, pointing up to a tree. Amy looked up and saw a girl with camouflage face paint and binoculars. “Oi, you there!”

The girl was so surprised she almost fell out of the tree. “Yeah?” she said warily, lowering her binoculars.

“Why are you spying on us, eh? We’re just new students.”

Her eyes went wide. “You’re the new students?” she said. “I thought you were trespassers.”

“No, we’re new here,” Amy said. “I’m Amelia Pond, and this is Melody Sinclair.”

The girl plucked something out of the bag she had round her shoulder. “Oy!” she said into the walkie talkie. “Do we let them pass?”

“You damn well better let us pass,” Mels said loudly.

“You’re supposed to give ‘em hell,” came the reply from the walkie talkie.

“Toss that down here,” Mels said, dropping her stuff on the ground and going to the tree, and after a moment Amy did the same. “Amy here can climb that tree pretty fast, and we’ll just take it from you if you don’t. You may stay up in the tree, you may not.” The girl paused, and Amy got up to the trunk, grabbed the nearest branch and pulled herself up. The girl yelped, and then dropped the walkie talkie down to Mels. “Listen up, whoever you are. You won’t molest us as we get to the school. So any shenanigans you have planned, scrap them. Anything happens to me or Amy and I’ll unleash holy hell on your head.”

There was a long pause. “We’ll pass the word,” came the cowed reply as Amy dropped back down to the ground.

“We’ll be taking this with us,” Amy said. “What’s your name, anyway?”

“Jones. Kelly Jones. I’m a first year,” she said.

“Anything happens to us, you’re the first one we’re coming after,” Mels said, going back to her stuff.

“Have a nice day,” Amy added as she went back to hers. They gathered their belongings and started walking towards the school again. “You really think they’ll leave us alone?” she asked.

“The fact that we threatened them should give us safe passage till we get to the school. After that, we’re fair game. Just remember not to show any fear or weakness. We’re fresh meat to them.” She smiled at her friend. “We’ll just keep each other’s back, that’s all.” Then her smile faltered. “Just don’t talk about the Doctor.”

“I knew that,” Amy said, rolling her eyes. “What do you think got me sent here in the first place, Mels?”

“Maybe it will be a good thing, in the end,” she said. “If we can survive our last few years of school at this place, we can do anything.”

“Yeah,” she said with a sigh.

“What is it?” Mels asked, stopping.

“I hate to say it, but I miss…Rory,” she said thoughtfully, almost whispering his name. “It won’t be the same not having him around. It’s been the three of us, all through school. And he’s in Leadworth and we’re here.”

“There’s always holidays,” she pointed out. “I can pony up the money for you to go back and see him if your aunt won’t.”

“It’s not like he’s my boyfriend,” she said defensively. “He’s just a friend.”

“Sure,” Mels said. “I believe you.”

“Well, he is,” she replied.

“He’s head over heels for you. Has been since you were little. Probably had been since before I moved into town.”

“Rory? Really?” Amy said, her eyes wide.

“Honest to God,” Mels replied with a nod.

Amy reached over and punched her shoulder. “Why are you just telling me now, Mels? Maybe I could have had a long distance boyfriend. It would have made me cool. Or feel cool, at any rate.”

“It’s not as though you’re an old maid,” Mels teased. “Write him a letter or something. Tell him you want to be long distance mates, see where it goes from there. There’s always end of year break. And Christmas.”

“Aunt Sharon doesn’t want me around,” Amy said glumly. “That’s why I’m here, remember?”

“Hey, you can always stay with me,” she said.

“If your parents don’t kill me for you coming here,” she said.

“Amy, hate to break it to you, but I was supposed to come here a year ago,” she said. “I had to behave in order to not go. Do you know how hard it is to behave in Leadworth? At least here I’ll be able to cut loose.” Then she nudged her friend. “We’ll make it work here, you’ll see. You and me, we’ll be large and in charge, you hear me?”

“How do you suppose we’ll make that happen?”

“Easy. I’ll beat everyone into submission and you put those looks and brains to work. We’ll be fine.”

They chatted the rest of the way up, and made it to the main hall where a tall blonde woman was waiting. “Well, you must be the girls who put the scare into the first years. Welcome to St. Trinian’s. I’m Camilla Fritton, headmistress. Now, which of you is Amelia and which of you is Melody?”

“I’m Amelia,” Amy said.

“I find your aunt’s behavior in not seeing you here herself deplorable. We had matters to discuss,” she replied. “Nonetheless, we can arrange to take care of the business through other means. I see you got your uniforms, good. You’ll find our dress code is a little…lax. We’re all for individuality here.” She motioned for the girls to follow her, and they did. “Now normally we would house you with the rest of the girls but we’re a little short on beds, and two unexpected students two months after term started has caused us a bit of trouble in the sleeping arrangements. For now you will be bunking in the unused English classroom. We should have beds in the next week, after it’s seen if Rachelle and Rebecca decide to stay or if their parents send them off to military school in the States instead.”

“Excuse me, ma’am?” Mels asked.

“Yes, dear?” Camilla replied, turning around.

“What’s the policy on retaliation? In case the first years want to get on us for foiling their scheme?”

“Don’t get caught,” Camilla said with a smile. “Now then, let me introduce you to our Head Girl, Millicent Jameson.” They saw an attractive blonde lounging in a doorway. “She’d have been a Posh Totty but she had a few more brains than most of them, I’m afraid. Had to make her own way in this school, lovely girl, and she ended up Head Girl.”

“So these are the girls who stood up to the first years?” she asked with a melodic, almost sing-song voice.

“They are indeed.”

“Excellent,” she said with a smile. “I’m always encouraging people to give it to the first years. This crowd is especially rowdy. Let me continue the tour. Would you like to put your things away?”

“I’m not putting my stuff away until I’m sure no one’s coming after it,” Amy said, tightening her hold on her duffel bag.

“Tough and smart,” Camilla murmured with a smile. “I think you two will do nicely here,” she added, raising her voice. “Carry on, Millicent.”

“Right,” Millicent said. “Now, if you two will follow me…” The tour went quickly, and the more Amelia saw of the school the more she dreaded attending it. She slipped away when they got to the art classroom and went towards where she assumed Camilla’s office was. She knocked lightly at the door, then waited a moment and put her ear to the door.

“What are you doing?” Mels whispered from behind her, and she jumped a bit.

“I don’t want to be here,” Amy whispered back. “I’m going to tell her to convince Aunt Sharon to let me come home.”

“Well, skulking at the door isn’t going to do it,” Mels said, opening the door.

“…and I’ve got to get back!” a man was saying. Amy looked at him, and he looked at her, and they both yelped in surprise. “Oh. Hello there. This isn’t what it looks like, I swear.”

“You!” Amy said, her eyes narrowing at the Doctor, still in his tattered shirt and pants.

He had a confused look on his face, and then when it hit him who this girl was both his eyes and mouth widened. “Amelia?” he asked cautiously.

“You promised you’d come back!” Amy yelled at the man in front of her. “I waited outside all night for you!”

“I take it you two know each other,” Camilla said with an arched eyebrow, taking a sip from her cup.

“This is the girl I was telling you about,” he replied. “Amelia Pond. But…how did you get big? I’ve only been gone five minutes.”

“Try five years,” Amelia growled. “Five years, four psychiatrists, and a transfer.”

“She’s one of our newest students,” Camilla said.

“That’s the Doctor?” Mels asked.

“Yeah, that’s the lying bloke who caused me all the trouble,” Amy said, crossing her arms and glaring at him. “You were supposed to come back that night and take me on an adventure!”

“And it’s only been five minutes!” the Doctor exclaimed.

“Five years,” Amy said, getting closer.

“I believe you owe her an adventure,” Camilla said.

“Yeah. She waited!” Mels said.

“It’s still not quite right,” he replied. “It just crash-landed in Camilla’s office by mistake. See?” He pointed to where there had been a desk, and she saw the blue police box sitting on it. “It’s not safe enough to take you girls anywhere.”

“Where did you girls get—“ Millicent said from outside. “Oh!” she replied when she saw what was going on. “What on Earth is going on here?”

“Business,” Camilla said, waving her hand. “Why don’t you leave the girls here? This business concerns them.”

“All right then,” Millicent replied, shutting the door behind her.

“Well then,” Camilla said. “What do you need to fix your TARDIS so you can take young Miss Amelia on the adventure you owe her?”

“Parts from your garage,” he replied.

“I’m afraid I can’t let you get them yourself,” Camilla said, standing up. “Write out what you need and I shall go get them for you.” He dashed into the TARDIS, and emerged with three pieces of machinery. “I shall be back in a jiff. You should work this out before anyone else interrupts.” And with that, Camilla left.

“I swear, it was only five minutes ago that I left you,” he explained to Amy.

“And how do I know you’re not lying?” she asked.

He produced the apple she had carved for him and tossed it to her. She caught it, and ran her fingers over it. “You just did that less than a half hour ago. See? It isn’t even brown yet.”

She looked at it, her eyes widening, and then she smiled. “You aren’t lying!”

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Amelia,” he said. “And who is your friend?”

“Melody,” Mels said, going over to him. “You don’t look a lot like her drawings. You look much more delicious.”

“Mels,” Amy said, rolling her eyes. “She and Rory are the only people who believe me when I say you exist. Everyone else thinks I’m a bit daft,” she added, circling her finger around her ear. “But you’re real! You’re really real!”

“And as soon as I get the TARDIS fixed I’ll take you on an adventure,” he said. “You’ll be good here. I know the school has a reputation, but Camilla loves every girl here and she’ll make sure you come to no harm.”

“But she can’t protect us from the girls all the time,” Mels pointed out.

“But she won’t need to,” the Doctor replied. “I’ll make sure you stay safe. I answer calls. Not always right on time, but soon enough. Camilla has the number.”

“Can I go on the adventure?” Mels asked slowly.

“Yeah, can she?”

“I don’t see why not,” he replied. The two girls gave each other high fives. “As soon as I get the old girl fixed, I’ll pick you up tonight on the roof. I’m sure two enterprising young girls can find your way up there. What year is it?”

“2001,” Amy replied. “Five years, remember?”

“Five years, right, right,” he said with a nod. “Tonight, on the roof, at seven.”

“Seven it is. And if you’re not there we’ll beat you up,” Amy said.

“Then I’ll definitely not be late,” he replied. “So, what all has happened in five years?”

The three of them chatted until Camilla brought back the needed supplies. The Doctor took them, thanked her, told her about the promise for that evening and took off. Amy watched the TARDIS dematerialize and turned to Camilla. “How do you know him?”

“He’s a friend of the family,” she said. “So long as a Fritton has run this academy, he’s been there. My mother, bless her, introduced us when I was but a child. He looked different then, and has changed many times since I’ve known him, but he’s still the same man. A bit daft at times, but solid as a rock.” She smiled at them. “Now. Why don’t you get settled in? I will let it be known, through my own sources, that you two are to be…untouched…by those with more power than you.”

“Won’t that just make us bigger targets?”

“Not when I’m done,” she said. “Now go on. You still have classes to attend.”

The two girls picked up their things and stepped out into the hallway, talking excitedly. They stashed their things and made their way to what their first class was supposed to be. It was hard to get through the day, but the other girls left them alone. Kelly had come up to them at dinner and asked if they really knew The Doctor, like it was some rare thing. When Amy said she did, she squealed with delight and asked to know all the details. Other girls came around, and Amy told them the story of how he had crashed into her shed five years ago.

It seemed as though the girls in the school knew of him, and if he asked to meet you it was a real honor. All the Head Girls got one adventure with him, right before graduation. It was tradition. And they were getting an adventure on their first day! Everyone made them promise to tell them all about it, and the girls were accepted, just like that.

As seven o’clock neared, Amy and Mels made their way to the roof. Millicent went with them, just to be sure they were okay, and then left them alone as the clock struck seven. And then it appeared, the blue police box, and out stepped the Doctor, dressed all differently. He was wearing a tweed jacket, a white shirt, brown pants, suspenders and a bow tie. “You look odd,” Amy said.

“Not nearly as delicious as before,” Mels said.

“Well, you’re too young to be having those kinds of thoughts,” he said. “So I traveled a little forward in time, took care of a problem in Leadworth, checked on a few things…and made it back here at seven on the nose.” He grinned at them and they grinned back. “Now, then. Would you like to see my home?”

“Yes!” they said simultaneously. He moved to the side and motioned for them to come in. They went inside and both of their eyes went wide. “It’s bigger,” Mels breathed.

“Of course it is,” Amy said, rolling her eyes and scoffing slightly. “How else would a swimming pool fit in the library?”

“Well, girls,” he said, and they turned to him. “All of time and space, everywhere and anywhere, every star that ever was. Where do you want to start?"

They looked at each other. “The future!” they chorused.

“The future it is, then!” he said, going to the controls. “Girls, hold on tight. 2012, here we come!”

#doctor who #st trinians #amy x rory #fanfic #fanfiction #amy pond #mels zucker #kelly jones #camilla fritton #eleventh doctor #the doctor #multipart: alternate beginnings alternate endings alternate universes #my au: adventures in unexpected places

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