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AS POOR as the odds were, they were about to get even worse As we stood awaiting the onslaught, the huge door behind Hooky opened and four h to join the others That ht to six We hadn’t a hope

"Not so pleased with yourselves now, are you?" Hooky jeered, hobbling forward a few gleeful paces

"I don’t know about that," Vancha sniffed "This just means more of you for us to kill"

Hooky’s snorant?" he snapped

"Neither," Vancha said, gazing calmly at our foes "I’ainst us?" Hooky sneered

"Yes," Vancha answered softly "Were we fighting honest, noble vampaneze, I’d think otherwise But a vaht his battles is a coward, without honour I have nothing to fear from such pitiable beasts"

"Be careful what you say," the varowled "We don’t take kindly to insults"

"We’re the ones who’ve been insulted," Vancha replied "There’s honour in dying at the hands of a worthy foe If you’d sent your best warriors against us and killed us, we’d have died with smiles on our lips But to send these these" He spat into the dust of the floor "There’s no word low enough to describe them"

The vampets bristled at that, but the vampaneze looked uneasy, almost ashamed, and I realized they were no fonder of the vampets than ere Vancha noticed this too and slowly loosened his belts of shurikens "Drop your arrow guns," he said to Steve, Harkat and Debbie They stared at hiruffly and they co-range weapons aside Will you order your pets to do the sae us honourably - or will you have us shot down in cold blood like the curs I think you are?"

"Shoot them!" Hooky screamed, his voice laced with hatred "Shoot them all!"

The vampets raised their weapons and took aim

"No!" the vampaneze to Hooky’s left bellowed and the vaht, I say no!"

Hooky whirled on him "Are you crazy?"

"Beware," the vampaneze warned him "If you cross me on this, I’ll kill you where you stand"

Hooky stepped back, stunned The vauns," he coht with our traditional weapons With honour"

The vampets obeyed the order Vancha turned and winked at us while they were laying their weapons aside Then he faced the vaain "Before we start," he said, "I’d like to knohatwith the hooks is"

"I’nantly

"Really?" Vancha smirked "I’ve never seen one with mismatched eyes before"

Hooky’s eyes twitched exploratively "Damn!" he shouted "It must have slipped out when I fell"

"What slipped out?" Vancha asked

"A contact lens," I answered softly "He’s wearing red contact lenses"

"No I’en My eyes are as red as yours and my skin’s as purple"

The vampaneze to Hooky’s left shuffled his feet with embarrassment "He is a vampaneze," he said, "but he’s only been recently blooded He wanted to look like the rest of us, so he wears contacts and" Bargen coughed into a fist "He paints his face and body purple"

"Traitor!" Hooky howled

Bargen looked up at hiusted, then spat into the dust of the floor as Vancha had moments before

"What has the world come to when the vaht for them?"