WarTraveller

Mujha flashed a twisted sneer of a face, "W-Wait, TWO wives? Is...is one not enough for you?"

We're getting there, people. The penultimate chapter! Everything comes to a head right here, right now! As such this chapter is rather graphic; lots of blood, lots of death, a bit of swearing some good old Deus Ex Machina. Just what every good story needs! But for the record, this chapter contains; Extreme Violence Blood and Gore (Still Censored) Swearing And Disturbing Imagery Here we go. Where We Left Off: The Final Dreadnought has finally begun its ascension into the heavens, and the team have just about managed to land on it and escape the war raging below. Determined to find Milla and the Kingdom Stone (in that order of importance), Lilac must fight off the last of her inner demons and put an end to Clone Master and her encrazed duplicate once and for all. ==========-----========== Chapter 13: Curtain Call "Clone Master sir, I'm picking readings of two life signs within the generator room. They're on board!" "As predicted. Don't worry about the dog. She'll be just enough. Either Milla falls or Lilac turns. I die...or she does. Ready for this?" "Yes, sir." Carol was the first to awaken, a rare circumstance at this point. She was staring at some kind of metallic floor, light blue lines pulsating across it and grates installed into it. She looked at her hands, first her organic one and then her metallic. Her original hand was bleeding slightly, but was otherwise fine, while the mechanical hand responded with same old whirrs that it had since its installation. Generally okay, then. Good. She got to her feet and saw where she was. It was a large, imposing room with green glowing wires in the distance and similar glowing pipes scattered across the walls and under the floor. Even more lights joined the fray, a mixture of blues and oranges, with a distinct purple haze covering everything. But perhaps most interesting? The middle of the room held what could only be described as a generator of some sort, a massive assortment of pipes and wires the stretched from the floor to the ceiling above her. And then, situated within the giant glass tube and glowing a powerful aqua colour, was the Kingdom Stone itself. "Whoa..." Carol gasped for air, before she looked relieved, "The...the Kingdom Stone! It's here! Lilac!" Carol turned to see where Lilac had landed. She was sprawled out across the floor very near to her position, her ad-hoc plating damaged beyond repair from the impact. Even now, there was a giant gaping hole behind them which gave a view of the world below them. The war had escalated quite violently, with what could be seen below now nothing more but a scarred wasteland. Bodies of friends and family lay everywhere, but clearly nowhere enough to stop the fighting. Even now, the two sides were still duking it out, stabbing and spearing and shouting all the while. It almost sickened Carol to an extent. To get a shining rock get in the way of relations. All this dying for something that never belonged to anyone. Oh well. There wasn't the time to think about this. She had a world to save. She sprinted over to Lilac and rocked her awake, which she did with a groan. "Uuurgh..." Lilac groaned, slowly getting to her knees, "Did we make it?" "We did!" Blade said happily, "I've managed to duplicate that Dragon Boost...thing. Think I overdid it, though. Well, there's a hole almost the size of the United Island in the middle of the ship. So that's a hint." Lilac looked dazed, "Where are we?" "I dunno..." Carol said, "Some sorta...generator room. But look! The Kingdom Stone!" "It's...here!" Lilac cried out happily, "It's here! YES!" she got up and sprinted headlong towards the machine, looking at the Kingdom Stone itself. It was shining the same old off colours it always did, an ominous hum slowly and surely emitting and spreading across the room. Lilac stared at it, then at the nearby machine that was connected to the tube. It seemed to be slowly siphoning the energies away from the Stone, a large power bar stuck to its side slowly increasing in light blue rings, "This machine...it's draining the energies!" "Looks like it's trying to refuel the Dreadnought's engines..." Blade grumbled, "Nothing a little Hollywood Hacking won't solve. Just stab the console and I'll see what I can do!" "...Okay..." Lilac said, an uneasy tone to her voice. She raised the Blade up high and brought it down crashing into the computer console. There were a few errant beeps and whirs from inside the machine, but they eventually ceased, "Are you in?" "I am indeed," Blade said, "Right, accessing files now...RIGHT, found the right command. Just activating it..." "CEASE." That single, powerful word suddenly caused a set of sparks around the console, with Blade only letting out a, "Oh shi-" before being flung out of the console and skidding across the floor. "Oh, Lilly..." the voice sounded again, "Did you think I'd let Blade be totally under your control? I'm not THAT insane, you know. Still have to control that thing sometimes. Gotta love DNA backups, eh? Heh heh." Lilac rushed to pick him up, before looking at the source of the voice with a scowl on her face. "Clone Master!" Lilac screamed, "Where are you?!" "Why would I tell you?" the voiced sounded yet again, "I'm not quite finished up here. Gotta run a few more...procedures." "Why're you doing this?!" Carol demanded herself, "Why continue Brevon's work?" "I suppose I owe you a brief explanation, don't I Wildcat?" Clone Master sighed, "Alright, here's the rundown; I'm not exactly the REAL War Master. I'm a clone and I'm dying. I need a replacement. And I'm afraid your dragon girl is the best alternative. Otherwise I'd probably give the Blade to YOU. Imagine that; War Carol. Doesn't REALLY have the same ring to it, though." "And what about all this?!" Carol demanded again, gesturing towards the Kingdom Stone's tube, "Why get the Dreadnought running? Why kickstart this awful war? Good people are DYING down there." "Well, you can't blame me for wanting to go out with a bang, can you?" Clone Master cackled, "My one swan song. Doesn't matter. One glimpse of the world I'll leave behind and it'll all make perfect sense..." Lilac stepped forward, "Show yourself!" "However..." Clone Master's voice continued to ring out, "It's maybe...too late for you. You won't live to see the dawn. Unlike that dog of yours..." Lilac went blank, then went white with the shock. Milla! In all her angst and rage she completely forgot about her! She felt sick and guilty almost instantly; how could she forget about Milla? How could she let her get kidnapped? The amount of pain and suffering she must have gone through... "...Milla!" Carol cried out in anger, "Where is she?!" "She's safe..." Clone Master said finally, "...Actually, how about you meet her yourselves? Brace yourselves. The Warmongers are coming in..." There was a bright flash of light and a diseased cackle as the lights above the two heroines flared up as a sick form of introduction. Clone Master was first onto the scene, slowly emerging from parts unknown. The lights dimmed soon enough, rendering all behind him in the shadows. He flashed another grin, "Lilac, old girl..." "YOU!" Lilac screamed, dashing forward and swinging with Blade once again. Clone Master blocked every swing, using only a single arm holding Brevon's bleeding blade. A vertical swing blocked by a horizontal swing, a slash countered by a swing, liquid splashing across Lilac's face and some of the blood slipping down her throat. She stopped briefly to cough, before swinging the Blade again and catching Clone Master's wrist. He yelled, dropping the bladed weapon in his hand and falling to the floor. Before Lilac could do almost anything else, however, her vision was blocked by some sort of green energy. She was hit quite badly in the chest, the wind knocked out of her and a massive pain spreading across her body, and she flew back before skidding across the floor. She got up, coughing up some blackened blood in the process, before looking up at what had hit her. It seemed to be the Prince himself, standing near Clone Master with a smug smile on his face. "Prince Dail..." Clone Master said fondly, "Nice of you to drop in. Was that your green energy ball?" "No, sir..." Dail said, slowly stepping aside, "But I think I know who did. Miss Basset, if you could be so kind..." "YES, DAIL SIR..." came an almost robotic voice. But a voice that was still all too familiar. The creature slowly shambled out of the shadows and what was there caused Lilac to cry out in denial; Milla! She was standing next to Clone Master, slowly helping him to his feet. She was in the same old clothes as last time, only now a good portion of her once cream fur was a wounded, burnt grey colour, almost like Lilac's own in fact. Some sort of generator, with green pipes connecting to attachments on her arms and legs, was attached to her back. Her eyes, once a radiant green, now glowed a dim red and showed little emotion, while her mouth was quivering frown. "Milla!" Lilac cried out again, "No!" "Yes..." Clone Master giggled, getting to his feet. He stomped around to Milla, "MILLY GIRL! Where do your duties lie?" Milla geared up to bark some more, "IT IS MY DUTY TO PROTECT MY MASTER'S KINGDOM." "You would sacrifice your very life for the good of this kingdom, wouldn't you?" "YES." Clone Master grinned, slowly shuffling to Milla's opposite side, "And you would crush all those who threaten its safety?" "WE MUST PROTECT IT AT ALL COSTS..." "Goooood..." Clone Master, "Sorry Lil. I'm afraid she's mine now. You and her are my...entertainment And, frankly, you're beginning to bore me a little. Either you accept the demons in your head NOW...or Milla's gonna put you through the wringer until you're FORCED to..." "Screw you!" Lilac growled. "Thought so..." Clone Master cackled, "Milla, would you be so kind as to set up the arena?" "YES SIR..." Milla barked once again. She raised her hands and a blinding light filled the arena. Lilac winced and arched backwards, barely seeing the giant green needles erupt from the light and spread around the room. Carol yelled in shock and darted out of the way, looking for cover. It did not take long for the needles, each the size of a car, to slam into the ground and form a neat circle around Lilac and Milla. Lilac was in shock; Milla's powers were never THIS powerful. Milla stopped glowing, looking as if she was in pain, "ARENA COMPLETED...SIR..." "Talk about souped up, eh?" Clone Master chuckled, "That's what that generator is for. Powers up her Sira powers to almost inconceivable levels!" "But that's a massive amount of energy!" Lilac cried out, "Sira powers are already strenuous enough! It's why they have fragile bodies! Any more energy could rot them from the inside out!" "Well then I guess she knows how I feel at the moment," Clone Master coughed violently, "Still, nice to know SOMEONE did the research. Now, Milla...make your master proud." "Milla..." Lilac said quickly, "Fight whatever's in your head! Please don't try to kill me!" "...REQUEST DENIED. BEGINNING ATTACK ON LILAC, SASH. PREPARE, OR PERISH." Milla was the first to attack, dashing forward and conjuring up another green block at the same time. She, rather than throwing it as she normally would, swung it around close to Lilac's head. She missed, the weight of the block throwing her off as well, before she arched up for another swing. Lilac made no attempt to attack her, only trying to block with Blade and pushing the block away. She didn't want to strike the poor puppy, and she wasn't going to. Milla threw the block, bashing Lilac in the side of the head and flooring her. Milla responded by jumping forward, energy needle in hand, and trying to force it into the dragon's chest. Lilac blocked it with the Blade in one hand while grabbing the shard itself in the other. Her vision was going dark, and a scratchy voice was slowly echoing in her mind. "Lilaaaaac..." came the voice, "It's me, your old sister War! I think it's cracking time, don't you?" "No!" Lilac cried out, forcing the shard away, "I won't turn to your insanity!" "You have to!" War Lilac yelled, "Why else do you think he's making you fight Milla? Either you kill her here and let me take over, or we BOTH die! I haven't come this far to die in some dragon brat's battered body! How about I give you a push?!" Suddenly, every synapse in Lilac's brain screamed in rage. Lilac herself had no option but roar herself. She felt weak, but strong, spiraling out of control. She could feel herself push the shard away and push the dog off of her. She slammed to the floor and Lilac got to her feet. She felt only a vague sense of control, like she was still herself but being controlled like a puppet. She dashed forward and swung Blade again, barely missing the dog. She followed up with an upwards kick, uppercutting the dog into the air, from which she jumped up to follow up. Milla, however, had conjured up another block in the air and aimed it downwards. The laser hit Lilac square in the chest and she was pushed back to the floor. Milla wasted no time in following this up, conjuring up a large amount of lasers from almost nothing and firing them in almost every direction. Lilac had no time to think, instead dodging each laser by a hare and swinging with Blade at Milla's feet. She jumped and conjured up another laser, firing directly into Lilac and pushing her to the floor again. She groaned in pain, weak and almost like her entire body was on fire. She could only watch as Milla screamed in pain too and fell to her knees. Lilac groaned in pain, "Milla's body can't take the strain! If you keep this up it'll kill her! You have to stop this!" "No!" Clone Master growled, "Not until one of you dies!" "Yeah, he's right!" came War Lilac's voice again, "This is a hopeless scenario. That dog is DYING. Why not put her out of her misery?" Lilac could feel her arm spring forward with Blade in hand. She panicked and grabbed her own arm, forcing it back and literally fighting back the urge to attack Milla. She was screaming no, but her head screamed yes. "NO!" she screamed defiantly, "I won't kill Milla!" "How...unfortunate," Clone Master sighed, "The average mind is a tough nut to crack. People always think there's a sense of morality, that there's a proper way to deal with psychopaths, a proper way to kill someone. How absurd. It's denial, an aesthetic. I'm here to break down that barrier. You WILL see violence for what it is, what it truly takes to kill people, and you will RELISH in it! YOU WILL-" There was a certain cracking sound and Clone Master's face fell, his rant stopped. He fell forwards, slamming into the metal floor, dazed but very much conscious. In his place, in his red scarf and blue jacket, was a certain familiar face. "Traveller?!" "...Chaos, this clone could waffle for his country!" Traveller smirked under his scarf. He wasted no time, climbing up into the crystal ring and grabbing the struggling Milla. Eventually, she relented and slowly slipped out of consciousness, going limp in Traveller's grasp, "Phew...that was a close one." The crystals around the three slowly eroded into nothing, leaving naught but a thin black circle burnt into the floor. Carol finally peeked out from cover, saw the commotion and sprinted forwards to meet up with the group. "I...I don't get it," Lilac babbled, "How're you here?" "It's a long story..." Traveller began, "Well, you know Amelia? That chick who said she couldn't get in here and wanted to help you? Well she found where Clone War Master abandoned me and Torque and...well, long story short she nursed me back to full health. Tried to keep me bedridden though while she went off and tried to stop Clone Master. She failed, but I managed to find a way in. A good portion of this is my fault, after all. I have to do SOMETHING." "Well, one weapon of war to another..." Blade said happily, "It's good to see you, slugger." "So...how's Milla?" Carol asked, "Is she going to be okay?" "Let me just..." Traveller said slowly, focusing on Milla and concentrating, "...Brainwashing, eh? Even I never did that back in the day. We're in luck, though. It's a pretty lousy Type 2 change, I guess Clone Master didn't have enough time to get a more secure level in. The brainwashing is so weak that it can be overridden by extreme emotion. Such as, say, extreme trauma. So she's gonna be just fine. Actually, might as well remove that infernal generator. Might wake her up. Here goes..." Traveller reached up and flicked the switch on the generator attached to Milla's back, its lights slowly dimming as the whirs and hums it produced began to cease until there was but silence. With that done, he grasped the machine, ripping the wires out of the pack itself so only the tubes secured to Milla's arms remained, then threw the generator across the room. The dog within his grasp slowly woke up, a moaning sound escaping her throat. Her eyelids were heavy, her eyes bloodshot, a small slither of blood dribbling out of her mouth. She slowly looked up and around at the three within her view, before suddenly jerking into a full state of alert, "Ah! I...Lilac? Carol? Wha...what happened?" "You..." Lilac said, fighting back her own mental fatigue, "You were...brainwashed. Tried to attack us. I...almost had to harm you." "Really?" Carol asked, looking over her friend, "Lil...you don't look too good." "On the brink, that's my wager..." Traveller said, "Look, I've seen this before, it ain't too late. Just have to follow a strict set of instructions and we SHOULD be able to restore your sanity. Wipe War Lilac clean off the universe forever. This is what we've got to do..." "NOW, DAIL!" came another scream. There was a violent crash as a large, purple explosion sounded off amongst the group. They were scattered, thrown across the room before skidding to stops within it. Carol and Traveller were floored, too concussed to move, while Lilac was able to slowly get to her knees and study what had got them. It was Prince Dail, some kind of purple energy in his hand, grabbing a struggling Milla with his free arm. Clone Master, his face now an angry sneer, was on his feet and aiming Traveller's Deagle at the group. Clone Master growled again, "Let ONE parasite stand, and you ALL die. This has gone far enough." "I'll say..." Lilac grumbled, "You've got nowhere else to run. Just stand down and we won't hurt you! Heroes don't kill..." "Not even after all I'm done?!" Clone Master bellowed, incredibly irritated, "That won't do! That won't do at ALL! DAIL! Bring me the dog!" Dail did so, slowly arching the struggling Milla towards the Warmonger, holding her to his side so her back was clear. She was held in front of Lilac, still trying to get to her injured feet, while Traveller and Carol could only watch and attempt to do the same, Clone Master slowly approached Milla, drawing Brevon's blade and aiming it forward. His casual demeanour was all but gone. He was sick, dying and clearly at the end of his tether, "I really didn't want to do this, but you leave me little alternative. You brought this upon yourself, dragon girl..." Clone Master said little more, instead strengthening his grasp on the bleeding Blade. Then, to a chorus of pained screams, he thrust the weapon directly forwards, piercing Milla's back and skewering her right through the chest. She did not scream, only gasp and gargle as red and green blood mixed with relative ease. Lilac could only wrench out an agonised, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" as Clone Master quickly tugged on the blade to pull it out of the dog, causing her to stumble forwards a few paces and fall to the ground. Lilac, despite all else, threw herself to her feet and sprinted over to the downed dog. She knelt by the body, checking it over. The wound in the dog's chest was large, crimson blood pouring at at an alarming rate. "Milla, NO!" Lilac wailed, "I...I just...DON'T DIE ON ME!" "Lilac..." Milla wheezed, her breathing stumped, "It...it hurts..." "It's...it's gonna be okay..." Lilac mumbled erratically, her breathing also taken in tiny bursts, "Maybe we can get you yo Torque or that Amelia girl? Fix you up, just like Traveller. R-Right?" She turned to Traveller in desperation, "RIGHT?!" "Lilac..." Milla gasped again, "I'm...I'm sorry I had to attack you. I was...forced to. I was still in there, the entire fight, crying out to stop the pain. I'm...I'm so sorry, Lilac. I didn't want to hurt you. Can...can I touch your..." a violent cough escaped her throat, "Your hair?" "My tendrils?" Lilac stammered, "They're gone, Milla. Cut off." "Oh..." Milla sighed, "Okay...never mind..." Milla's eyes dimmed and she went limp, slipping almost gracefully back to the floor. Lilac could only painfully scream again and collapse over the body, sobbing miserably. Carol could only lie on the ground, her eyes stuffed with tears and small gibbers escaping her throat. Traveller too forced himself to the ground, twitching at seemingly random intervals, his eyes trained on the floor. Clone Master was making a gesture at Dail, who simply stood some space. There was mere silence in the room, with the only possible sound being Lilac's pained, screaming sobbing over the small, bleeding body before her. It took some time, but her sobbing slowly quietened, only to be replaced at the final few moments with something else. Laughing. Lilac's body began to twitch and spasm just as much as Traveller's, it slowly rising off of the dying dog and tensing up. Her laughs started as sobbing giggles, keeping in with her previous activity, but it soon evolved to high-pitched normal giggling. From there is advanced to standard laughter, her mouth slowly opening more and showing small parts of her teeth eroding until all that remained were sharp fangs lining her gums. The laughter than transformed again, now leading more energetic and deranged laughs, her eye slowly opening to the shock of the crowd. As she raised herself off of Milla's body, her laughs now finalised as deranged, screaming guffaws, her eyes almost dissolved to leave a black void with red, pinprick pupils in their place. Lilac's laughs vanished among the screaming, her gaze snapping to meet Clone Master eye-to-eye. He showed no fear, only grinning and spreading his arms to look like some sort of target. Lilac screamed a final time and rushed towards Clone Master, Blade of Hysteria clenched in hand and mouth almost foaming in anticipation. Clone Master still did nothing, watching the dragon scream towards him and dive straight into his body. He was floored and Lilac raised Blade up high in a dramatic fashion, before bringing it down into Clone Master's chest. He grunted, but Lilac raised Blade once more and stabbed the Warmonger in the chest again. And again. And again. And again. Soon her arm was naught but a blur, stabbing Clone Master in the chest over and over, never pausing for breath and grunting and screaming with every last strike. No-one dared to make a move against her, too scared or too shocked to even approach this grisly scene. "I WILL END YOU!" Lilac roared, "I WILL TEAR OUT EVERY ESSENCE OF YOUR BEING! I WILL MAKE YOU FEEL EVERY LAST OUNCE OF PAIN YOU HAVE MADE ME SUFFER! I WILL PUT YOU IN A F*CKING BOX! DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEERRRRGHH!!!" Eventually, the dragon girl slowed down, each stab punctuated now only by pained and sob-racked yelling, before Traveller finally saw an opportunity. He quickly rushed up behind the dragon and gabbed her, restraining her arms and lifting her up, leaving her to kick the empty space. She was covered in blood at this point, it dripping down her face and body by the litre, Blade still clutched in her hand and drenched in a dark crimson. "Lilac!" Traveller yelled, "For Chaos's sake, he's dead! Let it go!" "NO!" Lilac cried out weakly, her struggles getting weaker and weaker, "I...I will...Milla...I'm..." She finally went limp, unconscious but very much alive. Traveller slowly put her on the floor, pulling her into a hug as he began to silently cry into her shoulder. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, his voice distressed, "I'm so sorry..." Traveller finally set War Lilac down, pressing on her wrist until it relented and loosened its grip on the infernal Blade of Hysteria. He picked up the Blade, twisting the gem on its handle in random directions a couple of time. The glowing lines on Blade faded, before returning. "Backup DNA uploaded," came Blade's almost mechanical reply, "Main User DNA re-established. Guess...you're my Master, again." Traveller said nothing, sneering at the weapon before slipping it into its old holster. If anyone had to bear the burden of this infernal weapon, it would be him and him alone. He slowly hobbled over to see the creature that used to be Clone Master. His chest area was almost unrecognisable, so engulfed was it by blood and torn clothing. Clone Master, despite everything, breathed still, his weak gasps of air removed from his happy grin. "You villain sue piece of sh*t..." Traveller growled, "Why won't you die? Why did you do this?!" "Because..." Clone Master croaked, "The great Warmonger will not die to some mere clone cancer. I have better plans, plans I know Lilly will fulfill. Now you see, don't you? This was destined to happen...it's just that you weren't the one to do it. And yet you still did. War Lilac is born to continue my...no, your legacy. My duty is done, so I can die a happy man. Enjoy your new apprentice...murderer..." Clone Master gave out a final chuckle, chocked with blood and coughing, before the red dots of his eyes went out like a TV screen and he slumped over. Traveller only looked at the body for a few seconds, before finally sighing and stumbling over to the Kingdom Stone's chamber. Carol had gotten to her feet and sprinted towards Prince Dail, knocking him to the floor too and keeping him there with her boot, punching him with her off-hand. She was in no condition to kill him, but she wasn't going to let him escape either. Traveller looked up at the Kingdom Stone, contained within the tube and still giving off its aura, then sighed to himself. "We went all this way..." Traveller groaned, "Killed all these people, lost all these good minds...to get a f*cking battery." "Not just any old battery..." Blade sighed, "A super battery that the Master Emerald has no tabs on. All this death and insanity...for this. You thinking what I'm thinking?" "Yeah..." Traveller growled, "We have to get rid of this somehow. Destroy it, remove it, do SOMETHING with it. Hell, I'd even give it to the Zone Cops, if they'd accept it. This world doesn't deserve this thing. Not anymore." Carol ignored the two, finally knocking the battered Dail unconscious and went to check on Lilac. She was still conked out, spread across the floor. Her breathing was strained and erratic, with gasping wheezes making up most of it. She was on her back, the blood on her face and clothes (what there was of them) slowly dripped down and made a small puddle around her. It was almost impossible to believe that, not four days previous, this dragon girl was happy and smiling, saving the world with the best of 'em. Carol thought back to within the Majister's palace, Lilac promising herself and Milla a night out after all this went away. Nothing now but a promise never fulfilled, not out of laziness but due to tragedy. Carol fought back her own tears and continued her approach. She slowly knelt by Lilac's body and shook her slightly, trying to get her awake. Finally, a single groan escaped the dragon's throat and she slowly raised herself to a sitting position. Her eyes looked no different this time. They were still the red pinpricked voids that they were before. "Lilac..." Carol whimpered, "Are you...okay?" "Okay?" Lilac giggled, a small grin across her face, "I'm...I'm okay. I'm more than okay! I'm freakin' FANTASTIC! I've never felt better in my life! You know..." she turned to glower at the wildcat, "No thanks to you." "Me?" Carol asked, "I guess you've...reverted, right? I'm to blame." "Not exactly..." Lilac sighed, "You're kinda all to blame. You for abandoning me, Traveller for even coming here in the first place, Brevon for thinking himself invincible and allowing all of this to happen, all the members of the three kingdoms for being greedy, power-mad morons!" "Story of our life, more or less..." Carol sighed, "So...are you coming back again? Can I say sorry...just one more time?" "...NOPE!" Lilac shrieked, throwing herself to her feet. She slowly stumbled over to Clone Master's body and, after staring at it for some time, took his bleeding blade and dipped her hand into one of the numerous wounds she had made. She swiped her fingers across her face, leaving two streaks of blood under her eyes, before turning to Carol and started to pose, "I'm afraid Lilac's gone, my dear. Right down the freakin' crapper! Not even gonna bother using 'Sash'. Seriously, what kinda name is that? Look upon me, wildcat! For while Lilac is dead, WAR Lilac has risen from the ashes!" "Well..." Carol said, her lip quivering, "There go all my friends..." "Ahh, cheer up," War Lilac grinned, "If it's any consolation, it's gonna get a lot worse." "...How?" Before another word could be said, there was a violent explosion somewhere within the ship and the entire thing rocked about violently. The group was thrown around, some falling to their feet for like the fifth time that day, scrambling to their feet. Traveller was rushing towards Blade, having stuck the weapon into the computer console to have another go at disabling the generator, "BLADE! What the bloody hell was that?!" "Damn!" Blade shouted, "Specially coded Firewall! Clone Master's managed to keep us out of the mainframe surrounding this thing! It's disabled the generator and redirected the siphoned power elsewhere! The engine room's in pieces!" "Why?!" Carol turned to War Lilac, "How's it gonna get worse?! Tell us!" "Simple, really," War Lilac remained calm, even among the blaring sirens and explosions, "I've had a LOTTA time to think, what with being stuck in your dragon friend's noggin and all. I thought, 'What would someone like Clone Master DO with the Dreadnought and the Kingdom Stone?' And then it hit me. He'd do the same thing I'd do; charge it up to such an extent to get us high in the air, then cut the power and shred the engine rooms. Sufficient force will destroy anything, after all, and the resultant crash should JUST be enough to crack the Kingdom Stone." "She's right!" Blade screamed, "The Dreadnought's falling outta the damn sky! We're gonna crash into the Battle Glacier!" "Oh no..." Traveller's voice went quiet, a look of fear across his face, "All that energy in the Kingdom Stone, released in such a short burst alongside the explosions from the Dreadnought? That'd be stronger than a good fifty nukes, no contest!" "So that was the meteor sized spaceship thing we read about..." Blade realised, "Plunging the Dreadnought into the Battle Glacier with all this energy's gonna wipe a good chunk of the area clean off the face of the earth! It's gonna reduce Shang Mu to rubble! We've gotta get outta here!" "Got it!" Traveller cried, dragging Blade out of the console. This was Clone Master's swan song, then. No time to savour the moment, it was time to get out of Dodge. No use going for the lifeboats, though. No way in damnation they would be fast enough. There was only one way out; the Gary Stu way. Traveller arched Blade upwards and stabbed forward, hitting empty space and creating some sort of rip in the air. He dragged down, enlarging the rip in the air before swinging out of it and leaving a tear in the middle of empty space. It opened to a jagged circle, some sort of howling abyss beyond the realms of imagination, sucking air into it and scattering a lot of debris around the area. "Care to tell me what that is?!" Carol asked. "Don't you remember?" Blade called out, "I can cut through reality itself! This portal should get us to a safe area!" "But-" "MOVE, WILDCAT!" War Lilac screamed, shoving Carol through the portal and watching her yells of shock fade. She looked vaguely satisfied, before going to the slowly awakening Prince and grabbing him by the scuff of the neck, "You too, buddy! I ain't finished with you, yet!" War Lilac dragged Dail through the portal, his screams too fading with time. Traveller was last, as ever. He got halfway to the portal, paused to glare at the body of Clone Master in silent contemplation, then jumped into the portal and vanished into the void as well. ==========-----========== DeviantART Link: http://fav.me/d9dr90g

Which depends on if Nintendo is truly capable (or rather, willing) to do so. Nintendo's attitude to change is frankly all over the place.

I doubt they'll just end it. They're making too much money for that. Besides, how can you reboot something with true continuity? They can't exactly remake Red and Blue\Green again... right?

Mujha saw the injured, portly attacker reaching for his weapon, grasping it in his mangled hands and reacted with all the speed her heritage could provide. In a flash, she breathed a slew of misty fog from her snout, slamming into the ground between the attacker's hand and his blade, creating a small wall of spiked ice that blocked any access to the weapon. Mujha picked it up, placing it in her survival pack, before threateningly gripping the handle to her longsword. "Had enough? Or shall we continue to...negotiate?" [Request a...uh, what kind of stat check would see if the attacker was affected by that ice wall and will stand down? I'm guessing Charisma]

Well...that got a bit dark. A few formatting issues (and sentence structure could do with a bit of work) but otherwise a decent read.

Well didn't THAT little outburst just have "BAIT" written all over it?

Mujha grew desperate from this threat, waving her arms to try and explain, "But I DIDN'T strike down your father! I merely asked him where the Merchant's Guild is! He just reacted poorly Will you not listen to me? Do your beliefs blind you from brutal honesty? Please, I do not wish to make this sort of scene!"

There's not really a lot you can do with Cream apart from having her get kidnapped. She was designed to be polite, quiet, submissive and lady-like - it's what the Japanese love and that's why she's far more popular over there than over here. I suppose at best guess one could age her up to a teenager; she's followed Sonic and looked up to him all her life and now she can fight alongside him for real. But she has a lot to learn about heroism and its immense costs, from loss to love to sacrifice and many more. Such experiences would probably change her, and she would likely become just a little unhinged from it, but even Sonic would deem it a necessary evil to train her right for the day she will have to take on Eggman alone. And Cheese would be...uh, Attack Chao?

Well if I HAD to put Amy in, I'd give her some actual character development. She'd start off her usual annoying, borderline-stalker self, chasing Sonic and concocting a number of hair-brained schemes to get with him. But as the series went on, the dangers getting more serious and Sonic becoming more and more homesick, she would eventually realise that Sonic isn't interested and needs a lot more than mere blind-sided affection. So she begins to work with him, not for or against him, helping him fighting his battles in a purely-platonic, "just friends" manner. This would improve Amy as a character and remove one of the most obnoxious character traits in Sonic history. ...Or kill her off in the first episode.

I wouldn't. I would leave Amy as far away as I could from any Sonic project I worked on. I'd put Blaze in her place. Because Blaze is cool and actually a character in her own right.

Argh, I must stop forgetting this. Don't worry, almost done! This chapter contains; Violence Some mildly distressing imagery And a half-arsed ending. Mainly because I REALLY struggled with this chapter at the time and I'm not totally sure I can fix it now. Well, here we go! Where We Left Off: Lilac, having lost her temper and damaging Carol, has retreated to elsewhere in order to fight for what little remains of her sanity. The Red Scarves plan their attack on Clone Master while Amelia attempts to force her way into this conflict. Meanwhile, Clone Master himself becomes desperate to put Lilac on the path of insanity and war, no matter what it takes. ==========-----========== Chapter 12: The Blade of Hysteria "Another cough? Dammit, not now!" Clone Master's wick was getting shorter, slowly but surely, at every possible opportunity. Freaking clones, why did they have to degrade Chaos knows how many times faster than normal people? It was bad enough when it happened to anyone but it was worse if the clone was a MasterSelf. Which he was, obviously. His outward appearance was still alright, due in part to that small nap in the frozen tundras of Exol 7 preserving him somewhat. But inside, he was ravaged. He had lost count of how many times an organ of his had failed. A little Chaos Energy (or substitute) kept him going for a few months more, but nothing could help him now. Every part of his insides were failing, and at a pretty hasty pace as well. At best, he had a good week left yet before he'd get so weak he couldn't keep himself alive. But that only made him more determined to find someone to replace him. SOMEONE needed to carry on his Carnival of Carnage, after all. And maybe, just maybe, this new one would offer him a way out of this hellhole. Not that he had the time to focus on this now. He was focusing his powers on something a tad more...insidious. He was within the gigantic steel bowels of the Dreadnought, Brevon's old ship that was perfectly capable to reducing an entire planet to ash and dust. A wonderful base for his rampages, had he the time. However, he knew he didn't; some new force was trying to break his way into the ship. Nay, into the universe itself. He, having donned some heavy gloves, was now casting his hands towards what could only be described as a rip in space and time, green beams roaring out of his fingers and slowly filling in the crack. "YOU..." he was grunting, "SHALL NOT PASS. I've come too far for some outward hero to ruin it all!" "You have to!" came the voice, "Do you have no idea about what you could be doing? Lilac can't handle the power you've given her! If you let her go crazy, this world be nothing a large crater in the middle of space!" "That's the beauty of it, Amelia..." Clone Master grunted, "You should know. A girl dying, then being brought back to life, gaining all the energy she ever could want in the process! Just a shame it drives her-" he screamed in pain and weariness, before regaining his composure, "...A shame it drives her crazy." "You did not create me!" Amelia roared, "You know full well that isn't the case! It was-" "Now, now, Amelia, hasten your tongue..." Clone Master cackled, "We need someone like War Lilac. Warmongers are just the cream of the crop when it comes to destruction. The ultimate mercenary!" "Oh yeah, and remember the last time a Warmonger was given free reign? You destroyed an entire universe!" "Meh, it was the Archie universe. No-one's going to miss it," Clone Master shrugged. "That's beside the point!" Amelia cried out, "So what if I went a bit nutty when I first got my powers? Just because it happened to one person doesn't mean it should happen to another!" "Why do you even care? Why get involved?" Clone Master retorted, "It's all Traveller's fault! He could've just turned and walked at any time." "But he didn't!" Amelia said, "So I've got to fix it! Let me in!" "Not a cha-ARGH!" Clone Master buckled over in pain, one arm falling loose. The attack on this rift was certainly doing his steadily weakening body no favours, only speeding up the feeling of internal rotting from the inside out. Still, he remained defiant, keeping his left arm focused on keeping the rift. There was a sudden crashing sound as the door behind him flung open. It was Prince Dail, in the doorframe and looking panicked. "Sir!" he was calling out, "We have problems!" "You're damn right!" Clone Master groaned, "Dail! You've gotta help me!" Dail rushed forward in shock, "How? What's even going on?" "I'll explain later!" Clone Master grunted, "There's a syringe in the back pocket of my bandoleer! Grab it and inject into my back!" "What?" "JUST DO IT!" War Master screamed. Dail did as told, digging into the back pocket and fishing out a syringe that glowed an eerie green. The Prince raised the syringe high and slipped it into Clone Master's back, pushing the plunger down as carefully as possible. Clone Master jerked back, shrieking with power, before raising both hands again. A large green blast of energy shot out of his hands and screamed towards the rip, slamming with full force into it. The rip exploded with energy, creating a shriek across the room, before finally closing. Clone Master sighed, collapsing to the floor, before slowly getting his knees, "Thank...thank you, Prince Dail." "Are you okay, sir?" Dail asked, "You look a bit...pale." "Advanced Clone Degradation..." Clone Master coughed violently, some dark blood splashing onto the floor, "Sealing that rift damn near killed me! But it had to be done. We've got enough lunatics and vigilantes running around this world as it is! That syringe of Chaos Energy was just enough to seal the deal...and the rift. How's the dog?" "She's in pain..." Dail sighed, "The forced use of Brevon's machinery means that she pretty much has to be. But...it's holding." "Good..." Clone Master sighed, "I didn't want to do it, but there's no alternative. Your old employer, Brevon, probably would've mutated her into some hideous creature. What a disgusting and disgraceful thought. Anyway, what's the status of the other two kingdoms?" "It is official, sir," Dail said, "It's war. The citywide broadcasts have been played." "As planned..." Clone Master grinned, flopping into the chair within the room, "Show them." The first screen in above the doorway lit up to a blue background. And indeed, there on the screen was the Majister himself. Clone Master grumbled; the guy was so hard to swindle at the time, being all honourable and crap, so he had the feeling this would be a short message. "Ladies and Gentlemen of Shang Tu..." he began, "I am afraid to say that all conflicts between our great cities have finally become impossible to not act upon. It is war against Shang Mu. All soldiers in the palace and in the army, do your best to prepare. The battle starts at 4.30PM, in the Battle Glacier. Be ready." The screen cut out again, only now it was showing Mayor Zao on a red background. Clone Master began to grin at this. After all, Mayor Zao was much easier to manipulate that anyone else, apart from maybe the Prince himself. All he had to do was tell him that he could get him some more power and he almost instantly said yes. "Citizens of Shang Mu!" the little man barked, "It is WAR with those filthy traitors from Shang Tu! They have tried multiple times to usurp our righteous power, but now the die has cast and it is time to fight back! All soldiers and guards! Battle Glacier at the half past the fourth hour! Be prepared!" The screen went blank again, leaving Clone Master and Prince Dail alone in the room itself. The former sighed, "This is it, Dail. Everything's set. How're the power levels of the Dreadnought?" "We have just enough to get us airborne...but that's it. If we take off now, we'll rise into the air, and then crash." "That'll do..." Clone Master grinned, slowly getting out of his chair and walking towards the doorframe, "Dail, prepare all the thrusters. This is gonna be insane." Dail nodded and Clone Master belted out a cackle, leading to the duo walking out of the room. After all, they had a lot to prepare. Little did they know that, even with Clone Master's power boost, a small trace of the rip still remained, slowly fading but still existing. Two voices slowly echoed out of the rip; "Dammit! Clone Master's sealed us out! We can't get to Lilac now!" "Well, can't we just go back to the beginning and stop Traveller from ever coming here?" "Because I've already done that, Torque. It's No-Zone Rule #443: You can only meddle with a timeline if it is your destiny to do so. Any attempt otherwise results in, uh...strict force." "Darn. Probably should've expected that, really. Otherwise you'd get people continuously changing events for their own gain." "Indeed. Look, we've gotta get to Lilac! I...wait a second, I've got it! We can still contact her! Well, someone. Do you know any of Lilac's friends?" "Well, there's Carol. Clone Master said she went to rejoin those Red Scarves. My ship's database stated it was somewhere near the Shuigang Kingdom, just outside the Battle Glacier." "Great! Then we might be able to get to Lilac after all!" "Poor Lilac. I only hope she's okay..." ========= Meanwhile ========= 'Monster!' 'Foul, violent creature!' 'Almost naught more than a murderer!' Lilac kept running. It didn't matter anymore that her head felt like it was ablaze and every voice in her head was screaming in rage, she had to keep running. Where to, she didn't even know, but she had no more words to scream back, no more tears to shed. She didn't even know where she was anymore, just running somewhere along the fields of the planet, all the while bombarded with threats and wails. She was stumbling, pained, footsore, hungry and thirsty. Clearly on the end of her tether, if she even had any left to lose. Finally, her fatigue got to her and she collapsed. She lay there, her breathing heavy, her eyes bloodshot and sore. She was weary, but angry. This wasn't her! A snivelling, terrified little dragon that allowed this madness to consume her! She was Sash Lilac, dammit! Hero of Avalice...right? "Lilac, get up!" Blade was calling out, "We've gotta move!" "What's..." Lilac panted, the voices in her head slowly fading, "What's the use? Why bother trying to change what will always happen?" "That is true," Blade sighed, "But surely we can...you know, do something before you go crazy. Like subdue Clone Master? I mean, he's dying so..." Lilac looked bitter, "Oh, that's a good one. Just lock up the universe-killing maniac. That'll go well." "Well...he's a bit beneath that," Blade explained, "He's a clone, after all. Clones are never perfect." "So..." Lilac sighed, "This guy...who kills many, bests someone like Brevon in a one-on-one fight, can control an entire army without issue...is still weaker than the original?!" "Not exactly," Blade said again, "I mean, he DOES lack a few powers, but the changes are more...mental. The real War Master is far, FAR worse. If anything, you could thank your lucky stars he's so...jokerish. The real War Master was...he was cold, calculative. Unfeeling. He could stab you in the chest and slowly bleed you out, all with the same old scowl on his face. That was the man who reduced an entire universe to ash and dust. The man who killed Milla's parents in that idiotic Civil War. You know what the clone War Master did to Brevon, right?" "Yeah...he slit his throat, made him bleed out." "A quick, clean death. For the actual War Master? That would be rare. Because...well, let's just say the true War Master doesn't share the same aversion to torture that the clone does." "Great..." Lilac sighed, but the sigh cut off; her mind was racing furiously, the voices incoherently screaming within, thinking of almost everything. Lilac's expression dropped, until only a single thought could work its way past her lips, "Wait...if I'm going to become this War Lilac you keep speaking of...which version am I going to be?" "Well..." came a sickeningly deranged voice from off in the distance, "How about you find out for yourself? Look upon me, peasant, and revel in my glory!" Lilac's breath cut out this time. That voice...it was her own! She scrambled to her feet, grabbing Blade and getting into an action pose, ready for whatever was lurking in the darkness. There was a soft crunch that clashed against the howling winds as the figure slowly stumbled out of the shadows. What Lilac saw was almost enough to cause her to drop Blade in shock. For what was standing in front of Lilac was Lilac herself, a sick caricature of her that seemed to lose another ounce of sanity with every step. She was damaged, broken, almost diseased, with dirty dark purple scales and bleached lavender skin that held scars, blood stains and blisters. Her clothes, while nowhere the levels of Lilac's own scraps of cloth, had been damaged and hastily repaired, with parts of a black jacket stitched into the missing gaps. Her face was awash with blood, tears and other unknown liquids, her teeth a row of spikes and her eyes a dark red blot in a blackened void. She too wielded the Blade of Hysteria, now warped into something far more demonic with red, lava-like cracks across its surface. Lilac stepped back in fear. "No..." she cried out, "It can't be!" "Urgh..." the creature sighed, "Can anyone believe ANYTHING around these parts? Why've you gotta be so...dramatic? Oh yeah; it's more fun that way!" "And look," Blade snarked, "She's even got another me! Does it talk?" "OH YES..." the duplicate Blade spoke in a echoing, almost mechanical voice, "IT EVEN LIFTS, TOO..." Blade faked a sniffing sound, "Figures." "So..." Lilac asked, "Are you me? I mean, will you be me?" "Yes..." the creature grinned, "And I will be. Given time. For I am the part of you that wants to breath. To hold someone like Spade down and force the Blade through his chest. I am what will reduce this planet to a mere collection of rocks floating around in space. For I am War Lilac!" "War Lilac..." Lilac gasped, "Just like Clone Master said!" her face of fear slowly turned to anger, however, "Get lost! I'm not weak willed! I'm the hero of this story! I won't just sit around and let you ruin everything!" Lilac turned to run, but she only got a few good metres before the screaming in her head returned, shrieking and screaming various random threats. Lilac was floored, skidding across the grass until she finally stopped. She got to her knees, groaning and yelling, clutching at the sides of her head in pain. She looked up, groaning, to see War Lilac was now directly in front of her. "Yeah, uh..." War Lilac growled threateningly, "I'm afraid it won't be that simple. You see, I've been waiting to get outta your skull for quite some time. Ever since our time together at the Temple, in fact. The Blade has done its fair share and given me a PUSH...but alas, you're fighting with everything you have to stay in control. And I'm done waiting." "You're just in my head! But you're not alone in there!" Lilac threatened. "What, Franky-boy and Medi-Chick?" War Lilac taunted, "Where are they now, then?" She paused, giving Lilac a moment to look around; neither was in sight, "You see? They abandoned you long ago. You became a lost cause, they couldn't help you anymore. But I can. I can make you faster, stronger, give you the ability to rival GODS! All you have to do is let me in." "If you won't get out..." Lilac growled, getting to her feet, "Then I'll force you to!" Lilac rushed forward, swinging wildly with Blade. War Lilac blocked, jumping back and swinging with full force, striking Lilac in the shoulder. She yelled out and jumped back, clutching at her arm. Only when she moved her hand away, no blood was splattered across it. There was no gash across her, just a sharp pain in her head once more. "Argh..." Lilac mumbled, disorientated, "How did you-" "I'm in your head, dummy!" War Lilac growled, "I can't make you bleed." "SO WE HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER WAY..." Demon!Blade growled, "EACH STRIKE WE MAKE UPON YOU WILL WEAKEN YOUR MIND, IF NOT YOUR BODY. EITHER RELENT AND ALLOW US TO ENTER, OR STRIKE US DOWN AND PROVE YOU ARE A KILLER." "But you're just in my head!" Lilac growled back, "You're not there!" "THAT IS WHAT YOU THINK. BUT YOU LACK FOCUS. IF YOU HAD IT, YOU WOULD KNOW..." "That the real horrors are ALL inside your head!" War Lilac screamed, bounding towards Lilac and swinging her own blade towards her. Lilac had no time to dodge, instead blocking with her own Blade and leading into a blade lock. Lilac grunted with the strain as she was forced back through War Lilac's immense strength, "Argh! You don't have to do this! Any of it!" War Lilac grinned, ""Come on, Dragon! Give in to the madness! I'm awake in every braincell and I want to rip my way out of your little, impulsive head and take over! Soon, you too shall relent to the insanity, your ears bouncing to the beating drums of war! And with the taste of blood on your tongue...OOH, it'll be orgasmic!" "I will NEVER become you!" Lilac screamed again, pushing War Lilac back and swinging once more. This time, the Blade struck a cord and slashed War Lilac across her chest, wounding her to a more obvious extent. She grunted, seemingly only mildly annoyed by her now bleeding wound, before she slowly inched forward and dashed, shoulder-checking Lilac and pushing her over. She raised her own Blade above her head and brought it down, only narrowly missing Lilac rolling out of the way, who responded by kicking War Lilac in the leg and flooring her too. Both got up, and War Lilac struck first with another slash across the arm and another across the legs. Both hit and Lilac staggered back, each hit making everything much more fuzzy and numbing her limbs somewhat. The feeling spread quickly and Lilac was very close to being limp, only able to weakly swing the Blade. War Lilac grinned, stepping forward and sending another three strong strikes her way, two across her chest and another across her stomach. She finally buckled, slamming back to the floor, her vision a haze of static. War Lilac cried out in laughter. Nevertheless, Lilac swung with the Blade again, War Lilac dodging and blocking every swing with her own Blade, before the two entered into a blade lock. It was clear to Lilac that both were unskilled with using this weapon, at least at the moment, but War Lilac was stronger while Lilac herself was faster. Much faster. War Lilac dashed forward and swung once more, this time vertically, barely missing Lilac and plunging her own Blade into the ground, where it got stuck. War Lilac was left struggling, cursing her own strength, which Lilac took as a final opportunity. She was sure she was going to regret what she was about to do, but it had to be done. She kicked War Lilac in the face, sending her sprawled across the floor. Finally, Lilac raised the Blade above her, fighting off the screaming and the static, before plunging it directly into War Lilac's chest. She screamed briefly, slowly turning to deranged laughter and Lilac sank to her knees in despair. "Well..." War Lilac grinned, "I think you're ready after all." "YES..." Demon!Blade growled, "SHE IS READY. SOON YOU SHALL FALL TO OUR POWER. MAY YOU SPEND YOUR FINAL FEW HOURS WISELY..." "Lilac!" came another familiar voice. Lilac snapped out of this funk, War Lilac's body vanishing in the process, and looked upwards. Her jaw fell at the sight. It was Mayor Zao's truck, just slowly coming to a stop. Lilac couldn't believe her eyes (or at this point, her mind) as the giant mechanical monster slowly skidded to a stop. On it, protected by sheet steel, was a bunch of old Red Scarves members wearing ad-hoc Armour and wielding evidently high quality spears and swords. The wheels screeched as the truck slowly came to a stop, the side door swinging open, with a green wildcat hopping out and sprinting towards the floored Lilac, "Lilac! You're here! As she said!" "Carol..." Lilac shivered, "Why did you come back?" "Real friends don't abandon their own," Carol sighed, giving the dragon a small hug, "Lilac, I'm so sorry. I don't care how many times I need to say it, I'm..." She sighed, "I'm sorry." "It's..." Lilac said weakly, "It's all my fault anyway. How's uh...how's your hand?" "It's gonna get in the way a bit..." Carol said, holding her hand up. What was once a mere stump now had a metallic replacement attached to it, with visible hinges and the right about of digits, "But it's gonna be fine. Look, someone's sent me to get you. She goes by the name of...Amelia, or something. She saved Torque from whatever War Master did to him, but the jackbutt's sealed entry into this universe, so they can't get in. But they have a way to save you!" "Then they better hurry," Blade sighed, "We got into a fight. Of sorts. Turns out Lilac's evil half is getting a bit sick of just idling, so she's tried to fight he way out. And, frankly, that's severed her mental ties. At best, we've got a few hours until there's nothing we can do. Look, what're you gonna do?" "War Master's trying to get the Dreadnought up and running in the middle of the Battle Glacier," Carol explained, "We're using the full strength of the Red Scarves to rush through the area and get to him. Then we...dispose of him in some fashion, get Amelia and Torque here and get you back to full mental health. Sound good?" "Yeah..." Lilac grinned, "Soun-sounds good." "Great!" Carol cheered, "Spade, she's ready to fight! If we make good time, we'll just make it for...about 4:30. Right, Red Scarves, time to roll out!" ===================== 4:30, at the Battle Glacier ===================== "How're you holding up, miss Lilac?" Neige was asking. Lilac sighed and clasped at her head. The journey to the Battle Glacier had been long and tiresome. Lilac, having replaced her bandages and clad herself in the same slapdash Armour that the others had clambered into, had finally collapsed in the truck's cabin for restless and haunted sleep. No dreams, no nightmares, just endless mental thrashing trying to keep everything under control. Even when she woke up several hours later, she felt numb, like she wasn't the owner of this body anymore. Like she was only holding onto it until its true owner came back to...reclaim it. "I'm not...I'm not good..." Lilac grumbled, "I feel sick, distanced. Like I don't belong. This...this madness. It isn't insanity. It's a disease." "Not too well, then..." Neige sighed, "I'm...sorry for asking." "Don't act sorry for asking, kid..." Lilac sighed, a small fake smile across her face, "You're only looking out for me as a fellow Red Scarf member. Heck, I remember when I was like you. Young, shy, willing to steal from anyone to get by. It's probably a bad thing when THAT'S what your glory days are. I mean, clearly, right?" "Yeah..." Neige looked forlorn, staring out against the tumbling world around them. The scenery had shifted to something colder, with blackened snow slowly falling from the heavens. "Hey, chin up..." Lilac retained her smile, "You're fighting for something much more heroic. You're fighting to keep the world safe." "Yeah..." Carol grinned, still sitting in the cabin, "Perhaps if we survive this new war everyone's talking about and neither side survives the crossfire, we can upgrade the Red Scarves to something a bit...greater." Spade, who was driving the truck, seemed to be amused at this remark, "What, rule a whole area?" he paused for thought, "Sounds insane...but perhaps its worth a shot." "Hey, speaking of..." Lilac started, "When is this war supposed to take place?" "I dunno..." Carol scratched the side of her head, "They said there were a couple of city-wide broadcasts, but we never got any. And we were just in range for Shuigang's TV channels." "Perhaps Clone Master's stopped Dail from taking part," Blade pondered, "After all, no need to get his own kingdom destroyed if these two clowns are going to wipe themselves out." "Uh, guys..." came Spade's slightly panicked voice, "I think I know when this war was about to start...say, about...4:30, at the Battle Glacier?" Carol paused, a look of confusion upon her face. She quickly dashed towards the front of the truck and stared out of the windshield, as did Lilac. The two gasped; all around the Battle Glacier was fire and explosions. The war was here! In full swing at the Battle Glacier! Even with all the tiny details missing, everywhere Lilac could see was death and destruction. "Oh no!" Lilac cursed, "I should've known!" "Uh, quick question..." Blade began to ask, "What IS the Battle Glacier, exactly?" "It's where the kingdoms of Shuigang and Shang Mu had their final battle in the Civil War," Neige quickly explained, "They eventually stopped fighting and called a truce. But not before so many people died..." "Hmm..." Blade mused, "So the first battle of the new war is where the old one ended. How depressingly poetic." "Blade, don't go all miserable NOW!" Lilac groaned, "We've gotta get to the Dreadnought before it takes off!" "War Master said the thing will ascend at 5," Carol said quickly, "If we go full pelt, we should make it in five minutes!" "Carol, this truck is large but it's fragile," Spade said quickly, "It won't survive if we go headlong!" "It's all we've got, Spade! Floor it and brace yourself!" Carol said, bounding into the trailer, "Everyone! Get your heads down and keep away from the walls! This is gonna get rough!" Spade sighed, then growled. Guess he didn't have a choice. It was either they died in the middle of a battlefield, or they died by enough lasers to blot out the sun. Hard to tell which one was worse, really. Oh well. Spade yelled and floored the gas pedal, which the truck responded to with a roar and screamed forward into the fray. Everywhere were soldiers fighting, dying, with reckless and endless abandon. Everywhere there were explosions, blood and flames from rudimentary explosives. Bottles full of flammable liquids and rags. Probably not the first time those had been seen. Still, Spade had no time to stall. Every second had to count at this point. Lilac too was in the front now, keeping her eyes on every part of the battlefield. It was almost appalling. Friends, family, all slain. And all for what? A little more power? Great. The truck pressed on, slamming into a couple of soldiers on each side in the process, before finally landing on a more stable part of ground. They had to keep going, no matter what. There was no point getting involved in this war, it would only slow them down. So they didn't, zooming across the packed ice like no tomorrow and still going fast and strong. Eventually, the Dreadnought's remains came into view, and what a sight it was. But alas, the thing was now quite operational, its engines now ablaze and slowly gaining speed. "Carol!" Neige was calling out, "Its rising! We're not gonna make it!" "Yes we are..." Lilac stepped up and held Blade up to her face, "Blade, my Dragon Boost. It was helped by my tendrils, but they're gone. Can you improvise?" "I can do my best!" Blade said quickly, "Why?" "Oh, nothing..." Lilac lied, turning to Carol, "You ready?" "Ready?" Carol asked, "For what?" "For something insane!" Lilac grabbed Carol by the arm and led her out of the still moving truck and onto its roof, "Hang on, Carol. READY, BLADE?!" "READY!" Blade called out, "ACTIVATING DRAGON BOOST!" Carol had no time to scream, as a mystical roar overtook her own and she was suddenly pulled forward. The world became nothing but a violent blur, twisting and turning quite viciously, before finally hitting the steel side of the Dreadnought and blacking out. ==========----========== DeviantART Link: http://fav.me/d9cyuvr

[1d20 Roll = 10] [Persuasion Bonus = +4] [Charisma Bonus = +2] [Total Roll = 16] [Charisma Base = 14 - Check Success]

"Stalking caravans? Eating sheep? Attacking old people?" Mujha sounded almost offended, but attempted to calm herself and speak more rationally, "My clan does not do that. Heck, my species doesn't do do those things, at least not to my knowledge. A few rogue ones, perhaps, but not my people. Because my people...they're..." Mujha stopped, the flash of the fires in her head once more. She shook her head to clear the thoughts and cleared her throat as well, "I and my companion mean no harm. We are mere tradespeople, merchants, looking for supplies for a safe journey to the land of Qadesh. We are not here to eat your livestock or strike down your elderly. We JUST...want to pass through without getting a dagger in the sternum. Is that possible here? Can you look at a Dragonborne without the urge to kill it?"

There was still no real response from the attackers, so Mujha approached them further, "Nothing to say? I demand to know what is going on here!"

"So, is this your greeting around here?" Mujha asked with an increasingly-irate sneer, "A single minute in your city and you knock me flat on my backside and hold a dagger to me?" She got to her feet in a white flash, streams of enraged mist blowing out of her flaring nostrils, "Never seen a Dragonborne or a Half-Elf before, huh?"

Mujha groaned, holding her aching arm with her other hand, "And pray tell, what was that for? That hurt, you know!"

[I pick Dexterity - better chance of meeting requirements] [1d20 roll = 13] [Dexterity Bonus = 0] [Total Roll = 13] [Dexterity Base = 10 - Check Success]

Mujha gulped, the look of shock and just a touch of fear in her eyes, "Okay. Good talk..." [White]

[1d20 Rolls = 6/1] [Disadvantage Rules = 1] [Charisma Bonus = +2] [Total Roll = 3] [Base Charisma = 14 - Check Fail]

"Heh, yeah let's go." Mujha gave the mule another quick poke and it moved forward, tumbling into the town like it was nothing. The town itself was rather unusual, holding a rather gothic theme in all of its buildings as well as its layout. The way in was marked with what looked like round orbs with a certain amount of magic circling around inside of it, lighting the orb up and acting as a powerful pseudo-torch of some kind. The harsh sands surrounding them slowly gave way to colder cobblestone, albeit still gritty by way of errant particles of sand blown onto it by passing storms. The road led into a strange alleyway, lined on either side with tall buildings and stalls and people putting their freshly-washed clothes out to dry on lines. It all looked incredibly busy, and this was merely the first road into the whole place. Mujha got a small excited look on her face. "All these shopowners. All busy, all buying and selling and trying to get rich. Hmm..." Mujha quickly dashed ahead of the mule and approached a random pedestrian, "Excuse me, are you a local of this village? If so, I have a few questions to ask you."

"Right then!" Mujah cried, tugging on the braying mule's harness once more, "And away we go!" With a kick, the mule slowly began trekking across the sands, lugging the heavy cart behind it with reasonable speed. Mujah did not ride, either in the carriage or on the mule like Caleb, instead staying behind the mule and moving it along with gentle pokes and jabs into its side to keep it moving. It wasn't long before this mini-convoy had begun moving at full speed, and equally as long before the sun's rays began beating down on them once more. It was soon another day in the middle of this vast wilderness, and the heat from the sun swallowed the two travellers in its intensity. The winds were far less harsh but it still managed to throw particles of sand and dust into their faces and barely-aching bodies, irritating them but nevertheless inviting them to push on. Mujha was back in her chain armour, its plating taking the main brunt of the abrasive wind, while she had pulled her hood up over her head, leaving only her pale white snout sticking out of the front. The sand shifted beneath her feet with a worrying intensity, but it managed to hold her weight all the same. Mujha's face remained stoic; the water and meal of the past night had strengthened her quite a bit, and her ice powers were now stronger than ever. Even now the coldness spread through her veins as quickly and as efficiently as her blood, keeping her cool in the vicious heat and allowing her to blow gentle breaths of a chilly fog over the mule to keep it cool and keep it going. The fabled city of Qadesh was near now, she could feel it in her supercooled bones, and any hour now they would be privy to its supposed charms. Finally, after a few hours of this walking, drinking water and sharing stories from her homeland and culture, Mujha noticed it. A shimmering tower from over the hill, one rich and dense and covered in gold and bronze. One tower gave way to two, then three, then finally a whole bunch of them, surrounded by sandstone walls and even a few rather out of place trees encircling them. "This...isn't Qadesh," Mujha sighed, "We're still a continent over. Still, this will be a good place to stock up on supplies before we move out again. We're almost there, I can feel it."

"Come on, beast. Come on!" Mujha shouted with determination as she rushed around the beast, getting it upright and on its four feet in seconds. The beast tried to defy its master, snorting and braying as she pulled it up, trying to keep itself on the floor. But Mujha was having none of it. She was hoping to get to Qadesh as fast as possible, and no mere mule was going to get in the way of that. Mujha, in a sense, had good skill with animals. In her old home she had trained with them many times, partly in preparation for her time as a merchant or merely as a pastime, managing to get them on their feet no matter what. Mujha grunted and growled, almost as if she was trying to speak the language of the mule (...whatever that may be) and waving her arms around in an attempt to calm the creature. The mule continued to relent, but eventually (and slowly) stopped. It stopped trying to sit down and instead calmed, standing up right and merely staring at the dragonborne. "Yes, yes, that's it..." Mujha sighed, stroking the mule under its chin, "Good boy. You're a good...BOY. Now, come this way. Come on..." Mujha led the mule back to the carriage and managed to keep it in place. It snorted and blew hot air from its nose, scattering sand particles across the terrain, as Mujha finished attaching the harness around it. When it was done, she looked at Caleb's confused face, smiling proudly, "Impressed? Let us say I...have a way with animals." She tugged on the harness and the mule brayed in response, walking a bit towards Caleb and nudging him with its snout, sitting its lower half down with an invitational manner. Mujha smiled, "Well look at that. Looks like someone wants to give the helpful stranger a ride..."

[1d20 Roll = 20 w/ +1 for Wisdom Bonus] [Animal Handling Bonus = +1] [Total Roll = 22] [Wisdom Base = 13 / Check Success]