Page 29 of Abraxas

“Usually, a few demons straggle in early and a few late. Right now, everyone wants to gossip about all the excitement on the island," Lu explained.

“You mean the body, the capture, the new demon, and the hand?” Gloria asked.

“No, that's old news. I'm talking about the hunting video. Everyone has heard about it, and some demons may be picked to be in it, so it has caused quite the stir," Lu offered.

“How did they learn about it so soon, and who said there would be extras?” Abe asked.

“I might have mentioned it to one or two demons, and the word spread like crazy. Who knew that everyone would want to be in it? We will have to devise a way to pick those who will be in it, and since everyone is so interested in being in these films, we probably need to make more of them," Lu admitted.

“We already make a music video for each song," Zepar pointed out.

“That's true, but only a small number of demons are usually in them," Lu noted.

“Are you telling me they all want to be in the videos now?” Xap asked.

“It seems like now that they realize that their body parts won't be an issue and that they will be made-up and look cool, most of them do want to be in a video," Lu answered.

“How are you going to manage that?” Abe asked.

“Whoever is chosen for the hunt will be dressed like a wild pack of pirates. Only a few will be shooting. The others will just be along for the ride. We'll have themed videos in which the other demons will be extras. Our fans will enjoy the opportunity to see what some of the other demons look like," Stef explained.

Abe had to admit it was exciting to get the other guys involved in something they would enjoy. Even those who had severe injuries would be able to be involved in some way because of the makeup and the costumes. They probably should target those to get in these films as often as possible. They had finally gotten to the point where they could get out on the beach at certain times, but now they might lose that because of all the guests that would be wandering around once everything was opened up. He knew from experience that putting up a huge fence and calling something private was like a beacon to certain people.

It was one of the drawbacks of getting the business going. Risa was helping those that she could. Several had been able to move upstairs and only visited downstairs instead of living there. Six demons so far were now living as close to normal lives as a demon could. They held some kind of job, traveled with the band, and went on missions. For them, it was like a dream come true. Those missing ears now had ears that worked, and those with missing eyes could now see better than anyone else.

For someone who had joined them under a cloud of suspicion, she had become a much-loved member of demon society. Three more demons would be undergoing surgeries to assist their ability to move about, see, hear, or, in one case, speak. Dante was a demon who had his tongue cut out for research purposes, of course. It did not grow back, but Risa had been having someluck at getting certain parts to start to grow with the assistance of nanonets. Dante needed his tongue, his tail, one arm, and one leg. The evils of Origin knew no bounds.

Abe started thinking that this might be really good for those demons who were not able to get out around people because of their limitations and the way that they looked. Maybe those were the ones who should get prioritized in these films.

“I think the demons that live downstairs should be prioritized in these projects. Maybe 50/50, and I'm sure the other demons would agree since those downstairs never get to do anything or go outside. On a massive hunt, we should be able to use a lot of demons because we can have some running the dogs towards the hunters. The camera crew can catch those doing that in all directions while catching the hunters taking down the dogs," Abe suggested.

“That is a great idea. Many demons can be used that way. We can even have outtakes to have an extra tape to sell or give away," Stef explained. “We will need to start right away because some of the demons downstairs will need to be outfitted with special equipment so that they can get around and look piratey," Stef offered.

“Piratey? Is that even a word?” Lu asked.

“It is now," Stef replied.

“What will I need?” Dori asked.

“We will have to send them to you one at a time so that you can take measurements or whatever it is you need to do to get the magic going," Stef admitted.

“Can we start today? I don't want to be the hang up when it's time to get this going," Dori explained.

He knew it wasn't going to be that easy. Some of the demons were extremely shy and concerned about the way others looked at them. Having parts cut off of you tended to do that. They needed to start by getting some volunteers among the demonsdownstairs. Upstairs was no difficulty, and they could wait until it was time to shoot the video. Dante was the first to come in, and they encouraged him. Abe was surprised that he had come so easily. Hopefully, things were better for the ones downstairs now. Maybe they were coming to terms with the life available because of all the work Risa had done to help their brothers.

Abe had been told that Dante was next on the list for the Super parts, which the demons downstairs called them. They were life-changing, but some things could be done for them before they got their new parts to help them feel like part of the group. Many of the others began to slip out to give Dori the chance to work with Dante alone. He would need something that helped him get around better. A patch over his missing eye would probably be the easiest solution for now. Since everyone knew pirates were brutal, his ear would be left as it was.

It was time for him to go and have supper with Gloria. Maybe things would pick up now that a little time had passed, and new things were happening. He looked around to ensure she wasn't in the room and found she had left. When he hit the cafeteria, he saw Gloria sitting at their table, where she had gotten them food and drinks. Abe wasn't sure how to feel about that because that was usually his job. Was she showing him that she didn't really need him? Or maybe she was just being helpful and didn't know how long he would be downstairs as plans were being made.

“I got your food for you," Gloria observed.

“Yes, I see that. Thank you. Tell me what you think about the video?”

“It's exciting and will give me things to do between the music videos. I feel it will end up being a music video, too. I can just imagine you guys singing about being on the hunt with your pirate gang.”

“That's a good idea. I think I could work with that and develop a really good song. All the guys in the video could help sing thechorus. Thank you for that. Would you like to help write it?” Abe asked.

“I don't know how to read or write music."

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