Herr's rest under his desk was interrupted by growing screams from outside. He thought it must have been a party. A parade even, but as he dragged himself to his window he found an army descending, and drunken visitors trying feebly to escape the shadows darting out from the darkness of the sky above.

Monsieur stood still on top of the desk. Transfixed on what he could see. He felt an intense regret. If he had known that everything would be destroyed he would have left with Madam yesterday.

The front door to the office is broken down. The night shift of the office breaks into screams.

Herr pulls Monsieur under the desk. Now no longer a place of rest, the desk was now their only form of protection.

Antennas twitch as Herr attempts to understand what is being said. Over and over, a calm voice speaks out, followed by one of the workers screaming about some object in the office, and then, a grizzly skull crushing noise.

Monsieur stares at the body of Monster, still left over. A thought flashes in his mind. Maybe if he eats the body, he could attempt to fight back......

But he knows he is no fighter. Nor is Herr. Fighting back would assure and draw out their deaths. Their best chance at surviving is to stay still.

The screams from the main office slowly dies down. James Drakken ducks his head through the door as he pulls the door to where the two cekekis hid off of its frame. He was a bit sluggish. Not only were his weapons hung over his shoulder, but so was a long rope with hooks. Meant to hold rugs, it was now adorned with dead and dying cekeki office workers.

The giant tipped over drawers to give off the appearance of looting. Other than the rug hooks nothing else in the office was of interest to him. When he stumbled upon Monster, he mumbled- "Ah? Someone was here before me? Strange...... Suppose this area is clear then....."

Time froze as James picked up Monster's body, his hand only a few feet from Monsieur, adding it to the hooks. Slowly the jingle of weapons and chains seemed to move away. For a moment, Monsieur thought they would be safe.

But without warning, James pulled up the desk and threw it back as if it were a toy. "Nice hiding spot!"

"Killing a fellow worker to make it look like a Drakken was already here....very smart.....ah, but no Drakken can ignore the joys of looting. Room was too clean."

"Ah, but I will give you the same game as I gave the others!" James bent down to look at the cekekis closer. "You are all salesmen, yes?"

"Sell me something worth your life, and I will spare it. Simple."

Monsieur did not know what to do. He could only hold out his most prized possession, a shell.

"..................................."

"What is that...? Come on. Sell me on it, Mr. Salesman."

"It is my most important possession. A shell. They are safe. Wonderfully designed and come from the beach."

"Never been to the beach before. Why does the beach make weird rocks with spirals on it?"

"Animals create it, to protect themselves. The spiral is the path they took to create it...."

"...................................."

James eyes light up as he snatches the shell away from Monsieur and holds it up. "It is a castle!"

"It is a shell."

"No, no. It is a castle. It even has its own path to the gate. A king builds his castle brick by brick to protect himself. Even has a main entrance so all the invaders have to funnel in."

"A king's life spared for his castle......mmmmm..."

"Now dat's a good deal!"

James picks himself up, still marveling at the castle in his hand. "Ah, the other salesmen were not so good. Could not do their job if their life depended on it. One of them sold me this rug hook though, to make carrying the bodies easier. Dat one, I let them go. Good sale from them. You and your friend, I will also let go."

"I think you taught me a good lesson here, salesman, about the worth of a King's life. I shall remember you." James trudges out the office, his raid on this building done.