WarTraveller

Mujha looked at the salve applied to her wounds - they had stopped bleeding and now looked a lot better, and what pain there was began to subside with time. The fight with the bird creature had left a few wounds, and perhaps that would inconvenience her further down the line (as it tended to do), but for now she was rested, repaired and ready for action. "...Thank you, kind stranger," Mujha said, gracefully getting out of her bedroll and quickly rolling it up, "I would never have imagined I would meet someone as...mysterious and kind as you in the middle of this wilderland. Now, I suggest you prepare what you have with you..." she paused to place the bedroll in the carriage, then began to slip back into her chainmail armour and find a place for her Explorer's Pack, "We must continue on my selected route as soon as possible. Yesterday was supposed to be the day I would reach this supposedly...eerie city. And I wish to make up for lost time. With luck we might be able to make it by...uh, about lunchtime. Let's go." With the pack in the carriage and the armour on her person, she quickly jumped over the sands to awaken her pack mule.

"Urgh..." Mujha winced at the stinging pain of the salve on the pecking wounds, "Still a bit hot, I see. But this WILL help, right?"

Hours passed as Caleb continued to stare into the fire, watching the flowers ever so slowly boil in the container. The fire's crackling and snapping was beginning to fade as the fire slowly went out, but the heat remained nonetheless. The shifting sands that surrounded them slowly regained their rich amber colours as the sun shifted back into the sky, blanketing the lands in a powerful light. Before long it was morning, the sun shining brightly down on the pair, as the flames slowly gave up their last and went out. Thankfully, the waters within had boiled the flowers more than enough, and a rather unusual smell was emitting from the container. Mujha, who had been seemingly sleeping peacefully throughout the entire night, was now slowly stirring herself awake. She finally got onto her arms, groaning loudly, seemingly in great pain. "Ooow...gah, this hurts..." she turned to look at Caleb, "Morning, Caleb. How're...urgh, how're you?"

"Heh, yeah..." Mujha sighed, "Be careful, alright? I don't exactly want to lose my latest companion right away..." As Caleb turned to get the flowers, Mujha groaned with the pain. Her chain-mail armour clinked and clanked in tune with the wind, and by this point had become quite hot and incredibly heavy. Heaving with the weight of it, she removed the armour and gathered it into a pile by her bedroll, leaving her in her normal clothes; a long black tunic dress that reached to her ankles and was outfitted in a number of golden inlets and accessories. She pulled down the hood over her head, fully showing her scales and golden eyes, then lay in her bedroll once more, her breathing moving in-time with that of the pack mule, once more letting the crackling of the fire help her sleep.

Next Chapter! ==========-----========== Chapter 11: A Sickened Mind ========== One Year Previous ========== Chucking out time. Again. The young wildcat sighed heavily. She was starting to wonder if it had ever been a good idea, joining the Red Scarves. A group of thieves and killers. Gentlemanly thieves and smart killers, she had to admit, but nevertheless. She had been 'studying' with them for, what, about three years now? Almost every day was spent waking in some low-quality hellhole, then dragging herself to their sorta-underground base to sit on this giant set of seats and listen for a couple of hours on what it took to be a good thief and an even better killer. Joy. Carol always took as many notes as she could during this time, trying to get all the important bits in her head, as many as possible and as fast as possible. She didn't really like it all that much, but she had the terrible feeling in her mind that she needed to know this stuff. The world was changing around her at a dizzying pace, and certainly not for the better; the three kingdoms, when not taking it in turns to try and exterminate the Red Scarves and everything about them, were gearing up for war. Hell, they had been gearing up for war for a good three months now. And while these...crackpots, Carol guessed, fought each other for glory or death, who would be looking after the ones on the streets? Who would be upholding the law? Who would keep negotiable trade routes open? Carol knew things were soon going to go downhill, with rampart crime and rioting on the streets, unseen to these warmongers, and she needed every last skill and advantage she could ever hope to get. Not that those skills mattered in scenarios like this. After the 2 hour lesson came lunch, itself one hour, before one hour's physical training and back to living life. Except Carol had no life to really return to. She was, after all, just another victim of the three kingdoms and their mad power struggles. Her own family was one of the many who was sent to fight in that idiotic civil war between Shang Mu and Shuigang. A lot of people died in that freakin' war. Not that it helped. Almost instantly after this little excursion was over, Mayor Zao was instead turning his greedy fingers towards Shang Tu, and its own power sources. Like that Kingdom Stone everyone talked about. The ultimate goal of the Red Scarves, according to their leader anyway, was to one day steal that thing. Not to use it, apparently, but so the other kingdoms couldn't. Warring kingdoms was bad enough, the last thing that was wanted or needed was a Kingdom with what was essentially the Hand of God. What all this meant for Carol, of course, was that she had no home to return to. The Red Scarves only pushed their lessons on them Monday to Friday; weekends were "private study" returning to their homes and practising their new skills on their own people. But to Carol, this meant returning to the same old filthy mattress somewhere within Shuigang and waiting for the next lesson. No way she was able to steal anything from THESE people, after all. The Shuigang pedestrians thought they were clever and impressively intelligent, but in truth they were no less paranoid than the rest of 'em. Hell, some even managed to keep spears on their person, just in case of an attack. Even if those were often the first thing to be stolen. Carol didn't care. She couldn't steal from these people. She could only wait. Her stomach rumbled underneath her tunic. Great. Hungry with no food...again. Carol sighed. Two days to go with no food and no-one to steal from. Unless she really tried. And, all aside, it looked like she had to. She groaned, sitting up on the dirty mattress she was lying on, plans and rejections massing in her head; well it was almost night time, but she was sure this was when pedestrians got EXTRA cranky and aggressive. So...probably not. Carol continued processing a solution until a sweet and soft humming sound met her ears. In front of her, walking through the city, was a girl. A member of the Red Scarves, if her tunic and red accessories were any indication. She was some kind of dragon too, with light purple fur/skin/something, with two cute little horns poking out the top of her head. Two blue gems hung around the sides of her head while two tendrils hung out of her back and to around her backside. She was smiling, holding a brown paper bag in her arm. To Carol's surprise, she had reached in and grabbed something from out of it; an apple. A Honeycrisp, specifically. Carol began to drool; she LOVED Honeycrisp apples, and this one just looked so...round and...succulent and...perfect! The dragon girl was about to take a quick bite of the apple, but she stopped. She had caught Carol's sounds of interest and was now turning her head to see who it was. She saw the green wildcat, clad in a very similar tunic to her, as well as the red headband and scarf. She looked on with confusion, while the wildcat simply looked away, embarrassed and blushing. The dragon girl looked at her, then down at the apple she was about to eat. She was only getting groceries for her own home, but...well, one less apple couldn't hurt, could it? Carol sighed, thinking she was being incredibly stupid and selfish. It was HER apple, dammit! Not Carol's. Even though she wanted it to be hers. Suddenly, a small red object popped up in front of her face. The Honeycrisp apple! Carol looked up incredulously. It was the dragon girl, her smile warm and radiant, holding the apple out for the wildcat to grab. "Hi there..." she began, "Here, take it. I've got plenty more where that came from..." "I..." Carol stuttered, "I don't know what to say...thank you..." Carol grabbed the apple, slowly and politely, and bit down on it. The juices rushed headlong into her mouth and she recoiled with the heavenly taste of it all. She was right; it was red and juicy and pretty much perfect. The dragon girl giggled at Carol's reaction, "Like it? Old friend of mine from school's got a business selling these, all the way in Shang Tu. Think her name was...Zyo Ling or something. She grows 'em herself." "It's incredible!" Carol said happily, "I...thank you, miss..." "Lilac," the dragon said, sitting by Carol on her mattress, "Sash Lilac." "Sash Lilac, huh?" Carol said, "That's a cool name...what species are you?" "A dragon girl. And, uh...newest member of the Red Scarves. Master Spade told me you would be of great help to my studies." "Studies?" "Well..." Lilac scratched the back of her head, "As I said, I'm new here. Gotta learn the ropes. Gotta know what's up. How to steal and kill...I...don't really want to, though." "Yeah, I get ya..." Carol sighed, "It's not a nice experience is it, getting robbed...but you've gotta learn. Those kingdoms are probably minutes away from launching enough attacks to reduce a good portion of this land to a crater..." "Hmm..." Lilac said, "Yeah, you're probably right. Hey, uh...is this...is this your home?" Carol could sense the dragon girl's timidness in this, so she cut her some slack and answered with a sigh, "...Yes." "Here?" Lilac asked, "On this filthy mattress? With no covers or even a pillow?" "Yes..." "...You poor thing," Lilac said, sadly giving the shivering wildcat a warming hug, "You can't live like this. Tell you what, how about I let you sleep in my room at the HQ?" "No way!" Carol called out in amazement, "You have a room there? Only the best are said to get a room at the HQ!" "Well..." Lilac said, "Spade said I was pretty special, being a water dragon and all. He also said some girl had established the room in advance, just for me. So...yeah, I have a room there!" "That's so cool!" Carol said, hugging Lilac right back, "Thank you!" "You're welcome," Lilac said again, smiling, "I'm hoping one day, after passing my 'classes' at the HQ, I could move into Shang Tu territory. All the people there are snobs who think they can't be touched. Ripe for the picking for us Master Thieves, eh? I'm even thinking of setting up a treehouse there. Heh...come on. We best get some sleep back at the room." Lilac arose, then reached out her hand to Carol. She grabbed it and was hoisted to her feet for her troubles. Carol was blushing, close to tears from the happiness, "I...I really don't know what to say about this...I...thank you. For everything, Sash Lilac." "Just call me 'Lilac'," Lilac said, patting the wildcat's back, "Y'know something? I think this is going to be the start of something...wonderful..." ======= Present Day ======= "And THEN I said, 'Ooh, I think this is going to be the start of something wonderful'! It certainly was, wasn't it? Then she has the nerve to just abandon me! Let me get myself tortured to death by this lanky breadbasket! ARGH!" "Lilac, Sweety!" Sonar was saying, "Please, calm down!" It was the evening, on the cusp of night at this point. Lilac had led herself, Blade and the two hallucinations to the the base of operations for the Red Scarves. For something that would naturally be hidden, it still had quite the imposing look to its high walls and pointed steeple. Even the hallucinations were wondering just how Prince Dail had not noticed this before. Refuge in audacity, perhaps? Still, Lilac had managed to use Blade to cut her past the heavy iron doors and even now the pseudo-group was walking down a metallic corridor, boots clomping as they slowly approached the door to the courtyard. Franky had remained silent the entire trip, while Sonar had been trying to talk with Sonar in an attempt to keep her stable. But this wasn't working. Lilac's mood had taken a turn for the worse; she was getting cranky, twitchy, stressed out and prone to outbursts and rants. She was so far gone from the real Lilac that it was almost scary. Nowhere near the brink of insanity, perhaps, but just enough to say a definite change was taking place. "NO!" Lilac roared back, "That...that...that WILDCAT stabbed me in the back! Left me to die!" "Lilac, you don't mean that!" Sonar pleaded, "That's just your anger talking! Blade's influence! You've gotta remain calm and concentrate." "That hallucination's right," Blade said, "You're only getting stressed out with the knowledge you're gonna go crazy. But if you act like that then you ARE going to go crazy! Faster, too." "Oh what would you know?" Lilac growled, "You're just a possessed hunk of metal! A War God who hungers for blood!" "I know..." Blade sighed, "But I pride myself on having restrictions. Can't just go around killing everyone 'cause they called you mean names. I'm not THAT God of War." "You really don't think much of this, do you?" "Not really," Blade said, "I've been through this scenario countless times, after all. Ever feel like a burden to everyone you meet? As far as Master was concerned, everyone around him died." Lilac looked blank, "Well, I'm still here, aren't I?" "I never said the deaths were physical..." "Look, Lilly, the plan is obvious," Franky shrugged, "Just go in there, establish that mentally you don't have long left and then ask them for help. With the Red Scarves, we could take on the Dreadnought and save the world!" "The Dreadnought?" Lilac asked. "Brevon's ship, remember?" Franky said, "It's his base of operations. It crashed 'cause Torque was a man and shot him down. A ship that size with a ship the size of a shoebox? Don't say that ain't impressive." "Well, take out the energy supplies," Blade said, "And you can ground anything, if you're accurate enough. Anyway, just try to stick to the plan. Get in there, maybe punch the odd gaff who looks at you funny, get Carol back on our side and try to amass an army large enough to take on a battle cruiser the size of a city. Piece of cake." "Just DON'T kill anyone!" Sonar said. "And DON'T die!" Franky grinned. "Great..." Lilac growled, feigning a grin, "Thanks..." She walked off, leaving Sonar and Franky walking along by themselves, "Franky, I'm getting a bit worried. It's only been about seven hours and she's exhibiting symptoms of insanity. Well, at least the build up to it. Her temper's only been getting worse and worse!" "Hmm, I'm getting the feeling we won't stick around for long," Franky said, annoyed, "To be fair, getting electrocuted, then getting a gunshot in the stomach, then being told you'd go crazy, THEN having to walk across a world that actively wants you dead...yeah, I'd be a little unhinged too. Regardless, I don't really want to be replaced by...her. Look, we've gotta try our best to stop her doing anything insane. Like, say, she cuts off her best friend's hand." "Sounds pretty contrived," Sonar sighed, looking sassy, "Urgh, this is annoying. A medic who can't help..." "HEY!" Lilac called out, "You two figments get over here! I want you to see this!" "...We're screwed, aren't we?" Franky asked. Sonar said little, just nodding, before both ran at breakneck speeds to catch up with the damaged dragon girl. They stopped in front of another door, a giant metallic one at that, that seemed almost impossible to surpass. "This is it..." Lilac said, her voice calming and her grip on Blade tightening, "The final door to the Red Scarves base of operations. Ready?" "Do we have a choice?" Franky snarked. "...No," Lilac said bluntly, "I guess you don't. Blade, it's time to show that red-eyed warmonger how to save a planet!" Blade whispered, "If only we could save you." ====== Meanwhile ====== "Carol..." Milla whimpered, "I'm not too sure about this." "Why?" Carol asked, "It seems like the perfect plan. We gather the Red Scarves and attack his base head on. We don't really need Lilac or that Travelling guy. Plus we'll get to show Little Miss Heropants how it's done." "...Little Miss Heropants?" Spade asked, "Lilac?...Well, I suppose you could call her worse. A fitting nickname, nonetheless..." Milla was sighing, tustling and tugging at the small red tunic she had been forced into. The entire group within the courtyard had been shocked beyond senseless by War Master's video. Granted, most of them had calmed down knowing they didn't have a clue who this Brevon was, but they knew that he was a threat. Which made War Master, his killer, a bigger threat. They had spent countless hours getting everything together, preparing for this supposed final battle. All across the courtyard, various members of the Red Scarves were busy hauling around weapons, supplies, medical appliances, everything they had and everything they could hold. It was all going into a giant truck, no doubt pilfered from Mayor Zao after the attacks on Shang Mu. Spade was on a wooden platform in the middle of it all, looking over his troops. His face was still no different from before, and inside he was still busy thinking. This War Master sounded like just another hack out for attention, but is he was what that Traveller guy USED to be...well, this would be an interesting fight. Milla, on the other hand, was terrified. Carol had covered her eyes when War Master slit Brevon's throat, but it had done nothing to stop the screaming. The loud, grating, mechanical screeching mixed in with the sound of War Master roaring in victory and the sound of ripping flesh. Then, the sounds of gurgling and blotted out screaming, before finally ceasing with a thud. Milla's fear had reached new levels from that, the pained screaming far too much for her to bear. She wanted to run, to hide, to stay as far away from this War Master as possible. Carol could even tell she was crying a bit, if only from the outward reaction. But she didn't care. At this point, she couldn't. Brevon may have been someone Torque could've hyped up, since she never saw him in action. But here, she could see what War Master was perfectly willing to do, with no hesitation and a big old smile on his face. This time, action was justified. And action was what he would get. "It'll be fine," Carol said, "I know this looks dangerous, but...look, it'll be fine! He's just one guy with a buncha jokers. We're a whole army of trained ninjas!" "But did I REALLY have to join?" Milla sighed. "Well, it helps with the paperwork," Carol sighed happily, "Besides, you get a few neat extras, like high quality food, good life skills and free pancakes on Sundays! Look, we'll get outta this, don't worry about a thing." "But what about Lilac?" Milla said, almost disgusted, "You just abandoned her to her fate! Don't you feel ANYTHING about it?" "Well..." Carol sighed, "I do feel a LITTLE bad for leaving her to face Brevon alone. But seeing how easy he went out, I doubt Lilac had any trouble..." Milla covered her ears in instinct. Surely such a phrase would invite something bad to happen, as it had countless times before. She was indeed right, her ears protected from the ear-splitting metallic shriek that filled the room soon after. She slowly watched as the other members in the courtyard were reeling from the shock, the two large metal doors in front of them slowly falling off their hinges with green sparks emitting from every edge. Finally, both blew and fell to the floor, crushing some supplies in the process. The dust that gathered from the impact cleared and, there, all alone in the middle of the doorway, was Lilac. Carol's once proud expression had dropped like a stone the moment she saw her, her hands covering her whimpering mouth. Lilac was ravaged, a broken dragons in barely-there clothes. Her arms and left leg were covered in bandages, some still fresh but others stained red with blood. Her clothing was ripped diagonally across the chest, exposing parts of her undershirt, while her gloves had lost their fingers and showed her bare digits for all to see. But the worst was just how damaged she was; her fur was a mess, wild and a charred grey that smelled of smoke, her eyes reddened and twitching, her lips crumbled and bleeding, her horns cracked and blackened. And there were no tendrils that Milla had happily said were like rope in the past, only replaced by more crimson stains and perhaps some flashes of bone in there as well. Finally came her expression; an enraged, tear-ridden, teeth-grinding, death-doling snarl. "Lo, peasants!" Franky cried out, arms out stretched, "We have arrived to kick ass and chew bubblegum! And I'm all outta-" "Franky, it's 2015!" Sonar said quickly, "Everyone's sick of that! Look, no-one can see us, so all we can do is make sure Lilac doesn't kill anyone. At least, not yet. Got it?" "Got it." "CAROOOOOOOOOOOOOL!" Lilac screamed at the top of her lungs, "YOU'RE A DEAD CAT!" Carol had nothing to say, only the deep whimpering that came when every ounce of your strength slowly drained away to nothing. She had thought in the past going to the Red Scarves for help and leaving Lilac to her own mistakes would be the best course of action. But now here she was. An enraged, shattered shell of her former self. She stomped forward, slowly crunching through the courtyard, glaring at anyone who looked at her with fear on their faces. She clambered up to the wooden platform and continued her advance. Carol gulped; Lilac was furious and clearly directing her anger towards her. "Hey, Lil..." she said quickly, "I see you've got a new look. It's uh...it-" "SHUT UP!" Lilac screamed, slapping the wildcat across the face, "I've had enough of your excuses!" "Is..." Carol said quickly, "Is something the matter?" "...Something the matter?!" Lilac shook the wildcat like a doll, "LOOK AT ME! All my grace and beauty, all gone! I'm a shambling wreck with burn marks, doomed to fall victim to the bane of insanity! And it's ALL YOUR FAULT!" "Lilac, don't do anything!" Milla cried out, reaching towards her, but was stopped by Spade. "Out of the way, kid!" He said, "This is going to get to ugly." "My fault?" Carol asked, "How did..." she stopped, her face falling, "Oh no...it's because I left you to take on Brevon alone, isn't it? He proved to be a bit tougher than I wagered, right?" "Yeah, he was!" Lilac said, grinning like a madwoman, "He freakin' was! Attacked me with a robot, nearly burned me to death with lava, cut off my tendrils, tied me to a pole, electrocuted me to within an inch of my life, and then decided to let some other bastard finish the job! All with a smile on his face!" "But Brevon's dead!" Carol cried out, "War Master slit his throat on national TV!" "You think I didn't SEE that?" Lilac growled, her face half-crazed, "I saw it all! In high def! You don't think that screwed with me a little, did it!? All that pain, the searing agony of electricity running through every part of your body, the screaming! Perhaps that's driven me just the little bit..." "Crazy?" "EXACTLY!" Lilac screeched, letting go of the wildcat and arching low, "And if that wasn't enough, I got shot! This...War Master shot me in the stomach! Do you have ANY idea, ANY AT GODDAMN ALL, how much that hurts?" "Lilac dear!" Sonar grabbed Lilac's arm and attempted to pull her back, "Don't do this! You'll regret this for the rest of your life!" "Go AWAY!" Lilac screamed, throwing the hedgehog over her shoulder, "I'm monologuing here! Gunshot wounds hurt like the deepest pits of damnation! And the only way to heal 'em on this planet? THIS!" Lilac punctuated this by holding up her left arm. In it, clenched within her fist, was the Blade of Hysteria itself. Carol's face fell even lower at the sight of such a weapon, "Oh..." "Look kid, I'm sorry..." Blade said, "I'm trying all I can to prevent this!" "SHUT IT!" Lilac barked, "This has gone on too long. You left me behind to face Brevon all alone. You left me to die! And now, I'm here to repay you." "Lilac...please..." Carol pleaded, "I didn't know Brevon would do this to you...I'm sorry!" "That's not enough..." Lilac growled, "Not anymore." "Oh COME ON" came another voice. Everyone stopped and turned to the doorframe Lilac had sliced her way through. Within it was Clone Master, looking very angry, "I'm the one who busts down the doors around here! Does anyone knock in this universe?!" "YOU!" Lilac growled. "The one and only," Clone Master sighed, resuming his grinning nature. "You have quite the nerve to come here!" Spade growled, "Invade my domain, enslave my services, then betray me for all the power you could ever want! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't sic my entire group upon you?" "Hmm. This'll do..." came another voice. Spade turned his head to see Clone Master was gone. Instead, to his side, Clone Master had dashed and grabbed Milla, holding Brevon's bleeding blade to her throat, "Back off! Or the superdog gets it! And then some..." "What're you even here for?" Lilac growled, "You've caused quite enough chaos already." "I'm here for the pancakes," Clone Master snarked, "Nah, I'm just here for a little...cultivation. Carol ain't your friend anymore, is she? I mean she left you to die, by MY hands. Now that's enough motivation to...you know." "Don't listen to him!" Milla pleaded, "He's trying to turn you against everyone!" "Not now, kid..." Clone Master said, bringing the dagger closer to her throat, "I'm working. Now, Lilac, you just have to remember all of the things that'll happen because of this. No Kingdom Stone, no credibility, no hope. All the kingdoms are gearing up for war. And this time it won't be some piddly civil war." "How would you know about that?" Carol asked. "Oh you poor deluded Carol..." Clone Master cackled, "I took part in that war! Well, not ME, per-se. War Master. The REAL one. Said his greatest kill was these two Basset hounds." "Milla's parents?" Carol asked. "No..." Milla sobbed. "Shh..." Clone Master patted the hound's hair, "It's okay, Milly. It's war! It happens. But get this; I wouldn't have got involved if the war never happened. If those moronic rulers you've fought for got along. I probably would never have got the message while multiverse travelling. Think about it, Lil. All this death and destruction. All in the space of a days. The entire planet at war. And this time it wasn't just them. It was Carol too." "What?" Lilac asked. "Carol abandoned you, didn't she?" Clone Master explained, "Left you to be tortured, mutilated, driven to the brink of insanity. All so she could go back to those she hated and get some free shelter." "No..." "Abandoned her sense of morality! Went back to those who would rather rob you than look at you!" "No!" "It's like, 'Oh it's alright, don't worry. I'll just sit here with an iced tea while my best friend gets her limbs cut off and the world crumbles around me'. You ain't no hero, and War Lilac isn't even needed! The world's gonna wipe itself out. And it's all because of her!" "NOOOOO!" Lilac screamed, swinging the Blade with enough force to slice right through the wooden floor. Carol had dodged just in time, and she had the horrible feeling Lilac was too far gone for reasoning. Indeed, she slowly raised her head, her eyelid heavy but slowly opening with slight force. Carol gasped; her eye, the one remaining eye, had faded. No longer was it a bloodshot pinkish colour, it was now black. With a single, small, red dot of a pupil. "Yes..." Clone Master growled, holding the frightened dog tighter, "Give in to the madness! That Blade will give you all the power you could ever want! But at a price..." "GET..." Lilac growled, "GET OUTTA MY HEAD!" "Don't fight it!" Clone Master said again, "This is the transitional period, after all. All Warmongers get racked with anger at this stage. So you've gotta...let it out. And I know the perfect punching bag..." Carol began to panic, "Lilac, you don't need to do this!" "Why not? You'll just be another Casual Tea! Damn you! You've ruined EVERYTHING!" Lilac screeched, lunging forward with the Blade. She missed Carol by mere inches, who yelped and leaped backwards. She didn't want to, but she knew she had to fight her now. She reached into her back pocket and brought out her own weapon of choice; nunchucks. She loved the little things, ever since she first used them during her early years at the HQ. Swinging them around, smacking everything around her...damn, it made her feel almost invincible. Perhaps she was; she was never hurt while using them. Now it was time to put it to the test. Lilac swung with the Blade again, just missing Carol's arm, before rearing up and throwing a right punch in Carol's general direction. This did not hit either, throwing Lilac off balance and leaving her open. Carol took the opportunity and kicked Lilac in the face, sending her reeling back and grabbing her face. She regained her balance, her face not changing in the slightest, before dashing forward and swinging rapidly with the Blade in hand. Clearly she had no idea how to use the thing, but that wasn't going to get in her way. She swung vertically, once again just missing Carol's arm, before dashing forward and slicing rapidly at her chest. This did hit and Carol jumped back in pain to which Lilac followed up with a kick to the chest. Carol was flung back from the force, collapsing onto the ground and really close to the edge of the platform. Everyone could only watch the fight unfold; no-one dared to get anywhere near the fighters at this point. It was far too dangerous. Carol attempted to keep up with Lilac's assault, but she couldn't. Lilac was unskilled, but she was fast and incredibly strong. It would be only so long before Lilac found a weakness. And, at last, she found one. She roared and swung Blade upwards, finally catching Carol by the wrist. She screamed and held onto her wrist as the pain increased. Slowly, it dawned on her something was wrong, missing. And there, bouncing across the wooden platform, was Carol's left hand. Severed, twitching, still clasping the nunchucks. Carol felt faint and could only stare at her former friend who had just performed the deed, shivering. "L-Lilac..." Carol whimpered, "What...what have you done?" "I..." Lilac groaned, her voice wavering, "I..." her face began to fall, "I don't know..." she stared at her own hands, now covered in blood, "I...what've...what've I...done?" She began to look at the others, too scared to act, fear across her own face. She began to breath heavily, staring at her hands and at Carol's own singular. Carol noticed that her eyes had thankfully reverted, going back to the old bloodshot eye from before. Not that it helped much, but oh well. Lilac was still breathing heavily, wrestling with her own thoughts, clutching her head. Carol, despite all that had happened, still felt sorry for the dragon girl. She didn't know this was going to happen, after all. She tried approaching Lilac, slowly and cautiously, ignoring the searing pain from what used to be her hand. "Lilly..." Carol said quietly, "I'm sorry. I didn't know all of this would happen. I would've gone with you if I did. I...Lilac?" "Get away from me!" Lilac squealed, pushing Carol away and staring at her, "I'm...I'm a monster..." She turned and ran, sprinting in a jumbled manner out of the doors, gibbering all the way. Carol was silent, as were the others. "Well..." Spade said at last, "That happened. Now then, War Master! Unhand the child or..." "...Where is he?" "Dammit!" came another cry. Everyone heard the voice and began to stare at the rooftop to see someone standing on top of it. Clone Master had warped, again, and was holding a struggling Milla under his arm. He was visibly annoyed, "There's still a bit of the old Lilac in there, somewhere. Oh well. A little more cultivation should set the Warmonger free! Wherever she wants her to or not!" "Darn it!" Carol called out, "How do you keep jumping around like that?" "Short-Range Portal creation, Carol-girl!" Clone Master grinned, "Basic power they teach to ALL MasterSelves at some point." "Disgraceful creature!" Neige called out too, "You swan around as if you're a god!" "What, did the red eyes not tip you off?" Clone Master cackled, his voice switching to a tone far more demonic, "I AM GOD! Now, if you excuse me, I've got a lot to do. Remember; the Dreadnought rises at 5 o'clock! Smack bang in the middle of the Battle Glacier! Don't be late!" "What're you gonna do to me?" Milla whined, still struggling with all her might, "Kill me?" "Kill you?" Clone Master asked, "No, Basset. I won't kill you. Chaos, I ain't THAT sick. But I've still got plans for you..." Clone Master cackled evilly, before suddenly dashing backwards off of the roof. There was a quick zapping sound, which ceased just as it had started up. Clearly the guy had opened a portal below him, having fallen into it after dashing off the roof. Clever. The Red Scarves below remained silent, with a select few murmuring across themselves. "Well, he's gone..." Spade sighed, "I can't believe I was being led by the nose by that hack. Looks like we'll have to double our efforts. Someone get some a tourniquet for Carol's...stump. And resume all actions at twice speed!" "Why?" Neige asked. "If I can't get to my father's killer," Spade grumbled, "I'll go for the guy who killed him. It's all I have. Any questions?" a shrug from Carol, already receiving treatment for her removed hand, "Thought so. Right! All members of the Red Scarves, prepare for combat! We mobilize by midnight!" ========= Meanwhile ========= "No, I can't keep him stable!" "Don't worry Medi-Chick. Give me the defibur...the defibul...the shock pads." "The defibrillator? Mr Freakly, defibrillation can't be used to restart a beating heart!" "Medi-Chick, this is a world where half-zetis and anthro hedgehogs can wear clothes and practice medicine using power derived from glowing crystals. I'm pretty sure the laws of reality aren't strictly enforced in such scenarios." "...Can't argue with that logic. Fine, here you go." "Thank you, Sony." "Sonar." "Whatever. CLEAR!" There was a sudden sound of bursting electricity and Traveller came back to his senses. He wrenched forwards, gasping for breath, before he finally flopped back to whatever he was laying on. He felt empty, hollow, like something was missing from him. He slowly turned his head, his eyes still focusing on the figures in front of him. Some kind of female hedgehog was the first to meet his view, albeit quite out of focus. "He's stable!" she was saying, "It worked!" "It...it did?" Traveller asked weakly, "Did I die?" "Yes..." the hedgehog sighed, "Somehow, we've managed to revive you." "Let's just say...magic," the other figure said, "Loads of magic." Traveller's eyes focused at last, and the two before him were very familiar indeed. Sonar and Franky, to be exact! Only now there were...differences to them. Sonar was almost unchanged, if not for her change of attire; her blue bodysuit from before had long been replaced with a green jacket with nothing underneath, as well as gym pants and a blue ascot tied loosely around her neck. She had also fallen into the while 'Boom Bandages' craze that was sweeping her own world, and wore copious amounts of sports tape around her arms and hands. Perhaps not the best course of attire for a medic, but at least it kept her in fashion. Franky was next to her, and he too had only a few differences, mainly an ill-fitting suit and a few more scars across his chest. "Welcome back!" Sonar said happily, "Genuinely thought you weren't gonna make it!" "Sonar..." Traveller wheezed, "Are...are you the real one this time?" "Real?" Sonar asked, "You've been hallucinating me?" Traveller shrugged sheepishly. "Oh well. Nice to know you think highly of me." Traveller turned his head again, "Franky..." Franky's reply was cold, "Traveller." "Nice to, uh...see you again?" "Don't think so. Last time I saw you, you pushed my entire species to extinction," Franky growled again. "Yeah, uh..." Traveller sighed, "Sorry about that. Wasn't thinking. Look, I questions; where am I, how did I get here and how did you find me?" "Simple, really," Sonar explained, "Someone told us about it. Told us that you and some alien dude would end up stranded in the Ice Caps. All we had to do was find you and nurse you back to health." "AND fight off that damn snake creature," Franky said almost gleefully, wiping the blood off his hands, "Guy took a beating and no mistake. I suggested stuffing his tail down his throat, but Amelia wanted us to just detain him. He's been sent to the No-Zone Prison. Ain't no way he's getting outta there, not after that green hedgehog's breakout." "But...didn't I kill him?" Traveller asked. Franky's cold grin extended into a genuine one. "Exactly..." "Where's...where's Torque?" Traveller asked again. "Torque?" Sonar looked blank for a bit, before she jumped, "Oh! The green alien! We got him too. He wasn't anywhere near as wounded as you were, so we took him back and gave him...minor treatments. He's talking with Amelia right now." "And...final question..." Traveller gasped, "Who's Amelia?" His question was answered shortly after. There was a sound of a door creaking open, followed by footsteps and voices. One of clearly Torque's, but the other was shrouded in mystery. But to Traveller, it sounded...almost familiar. "A Chronomancer, huh?" Torque was asking with interest, "I've never heard of them. Nor have I seen them on the Coalition's databases." "Of course you won't," the other voice was saying, "I'm the first of a new breed. Ever heard of Chronos Energy? No? Well it's what powers the laws of time. Tap into it yourself and the laws of time are yours to control. I haven't quite got the hang of it, though." "Fascinating..." Torque said, "Perhaps we should perform a few studies on your abilities?" "Thanks, but no thanks. The less people know about me, the better. I've got enough problems without the entire multiverse trying to...exploit my powers." "Okay. I will respect your wishes." "Thank you..." the voice sighed, before she was finally in Traveller's sight. She was a hedgehog, strawberry blond fur, quills turned up into a split ponytail. Her skin was pale and her eyes an electric blue. She wore a white shirt with a sleeveless jacket over it which reached to her tights, splitting around her stomach so her belt buckle was visible. Her trousers were black, ending in brown shoes with multiple straps upon them. She wore a choker, red in colour, alongside black gloves that also had red bracelets attached to them. She looked quite solemn, almost drained, with a thousand-yard stare and trembling limbs. Nevertheless, she began to stare at Traveller coldly, yet with a since of familiarity, "Hello, Master." "Traveller..." Traveller grumbled, "It's Traveller now." "Really? I never got it," the figure grumbled back, "All members of your scumbag race seem to be the same. But they have...good memory. Do you recognize me?" "...No," Traveller said, "I've never seen you before in my life." "No? Well here's a hint..." the figure got nice and close, "Remember Delago's last target?" "...Wha..." Traveller was struck with confusion, "But...no! It can't be you!" "It is. It SO is..." "She's the girl from the Knight Island Incident, remember?" Torque said plainly, "You the girl you tried to save." "I left you to rot on that island..." Traveller gasped. "You did," the figure said coldly, "Then someone came along and pumped me full of that Chronos Energy you used to be quite interested in. Restored me. Brought me back to life, gave me powerful abilities! Perhaps the name is familiar...Amy Rose..." "No..." Traveller whined. "Amelia Rosalina..." Amelia smiled, "Time Travel Extraordinaire, at your service. And I'm here to fix the things you've screwed up." "What're you talking about?" Franky asked, "What things?" "Lilac..." Sonar looked blank again, "Never heard of her." "Odd," Franky shrugged, "I have. Some tales and legends of this water dragon going insane and reducing her world to dust...right?" "Yeah," Amelia grumbled. "I knew it!" Torque called out, "I remember now! This...Warmonger creature put Traveller's Blade in Lilac's hand. Said it'd drive her insane!" "...Sh*t!" Traveller tried to get up, "I've gotta go!" Traveller suddenly cried out in pain and collapsed to the floor. Sonar got him back on the bed, "You can't! You're hurt!" "Sorta," Amelia said, "All part of Chronological Reversion. Reverting a person's body to a previous point to alleviate wounds. No more stomach stab wound. But the PAIN can sometimes be a little...out of sync." "Right," Sonar said, "So I and Franky'll stay here to keep you stable." "But..." Traveller gasped, "But Lilac!" "You've ruined enough of her mind as is," Amelia growled, "You've pushed her to the brink of insanity, if only by existing. I'm taking these reigns now. Just rest, and think about it all. Come on, Torque." Amelia turned to walk out of the room, Torque stepping out of the room alongside her. The door slammed shut behind them, and Traveller lay his head back down, closing his eyes. "Chaos..." Traveller sighed, "What've I done?" "It's okay, man..." Franky said, still having a scowl across his face, but a warmer tone, "You tried." ==========-----========== DeviantART Link: http://fav.me/d9c5nqs

Blimey. That's a bit of a shock. A system shock, if you will. Looks like another icon of gaming is returning.

"Well..." Mujha sounded quite impressed, "Your survival skills are certainly...admirable. Where are you from? Lot's of different places?"

"Heh, I knew there was this joking attitude about you..." Mujha flashed a small smile, before she sighed again and drank some of her slowly-cooling water, "Still, you sound like a very interesting man, Mr Caleb. Me? I'm a traveller too. A travelling merchant, you could say. For years I've tried to fit in with whatever floated my proverbial boat; heck, I even tried to join my local Paladin guild! That, uh...didn't go well. After that I decided to just leave my hometown and become a merchant." Mujha pointed towards her carrige of random stuff, most of it her's but a good deal of it in crates marked "TO SELL". Caleb couldn't tell exactly what was in those crates, but it must have been stuff from elsewhere in their world. Mujha continued speaking; "I enjoy it, actually. Always on the go, always seeing the sights, getting into the local customs. And it makes it easier to get stuff from one end of the world and sell it elsewhere for a decent profit. That is my ultimate goal, really, why I'm here; to make something of myself. Specifically my fortune. I have a lot of stuff from all over the world, even from the cold, cold poles from where my ancestors were spawned. They cannot resist if they tried...uh, hey," Mujha's pained expression returned, "I see you have a good deal of magic. Do, uh, you have any healing magic? These wounds are getting a bit painful now."

"Yes, but after a while you notice what your homeland missed. Stars, sunlight...houses...people..." The screams and the crackling of the intense fires still raged in Mujha's head, but she shook them out with a pained sneer. She took another bite of the meat on her plate, a lush and somewhat savoury taste rolling down her throat as she swallowed it, then turned back to Caleb; "Apologies. My...past can sometimes catch up to me. Regardless, if we are now going about this together it may be wise to get to know each other a little better. So, Caleb. Where do you hail from? And what brings you to Qadesh, this item you're looking for?"

And neither is uPlay, to be fair.

About half an hour had passed, and the smell of cooked...bat monster filled the air. It was a rather unusual smell, mixing the numbers of chicken, veal, ostritch...alligator, maybe? Regardless, it smelled like a wonderous multi-course meal, the sort Mujammed had not experienced for a long time, albeit all encased in a slab of meat on a relatively small plate. Mujha looked up from her plate, a part of the meat still on the bone, and looked at Caleb. The Half-Elf, this mysterious joking man with powers that could seemingly slay demons, was staring into the fire with his flask of water by his side. The water down-stream from their food's carcass was indeed pure, or at least uncontaminated enough to cure by hanging over the fire, and both containers were now full to the brim. Caleb had been supping it all through the meal, and something was clearly on his mind. The night was somehow still young, but Mujha still had a few more questions before sleep could begin; "So..." she started, clearing her throat and accidently releasing a cloud of super-cooled vapor from it, "It's uh...quite a nice night, isn't it? Look at those stars. Don't get star patterns like this back in my homeland...or, whatever may be left of it..."

"Well..." Mujha said, eyeing the beast with a contemplative look on her face, "Now that you mention it, it at least LOOKS edible. Your little lightshow back there might have been enough to cook its meat, though I perhaps a bit of fire magic could be...applied to it. Just to make sure. I have a feeling you perhaps know more about how to properly collect from and cook such a...whatever it is." Mujha turned and began to walk briskly towards the opening she had created with her longsword, picking up the torch she had foolishly dropped during the fight, only stopping when she realised Caleb was not following her. She turned, brushing off her snout as she did; "Well come on, then. I left my waterskin back at my campsite, so I will return there and go downstream to refill both that and your flask. Perhaps it would be within both our interests to carve out some of the bird monster first and let it cook while I find some clean water."

[+1 Wisdom, +3 Survival] "Thank you..." Mujha took the canteen and stored it among her person, the slight of the sloshing water being music to her ears. She spoke again. "Well then. I have made camp a short distance from here, a small fire and what belongings I have with me. I must return before they are taken by the thieves of this land. Perhaps you would like a safe-ish place for the night? That way we can move on to Qadesh together."

"I see..." Mujha said, slowly cupping one of the more profusely bleeding wounds on her person, "Well, perhaps your artefact IS in Qadesh. You could come along with me, if you'd like I could always do with someone to help with my cargo. And someone with water, because I have more or less run out of the stuff. I was going to take some from the lake here, but..." Both she and Caleb looked towards the expanse of water. The body of this creature that had attacked the two with its swarm of ravens now rested lifelessly in the water, its blood spilling into the once fresh-looking reserves and tainting it beyond hope. "...Yes, that appears to be out of the question. Look, I'm just trying to discover the ancient secrets of this city, see if I can...find my way. I have come a long way from my homeland to get here, I am not turning back now." Mujha sighed, winded but still very much active, resting her hands on her knees before looking back up at Caleb; "Tell me. Are you from around here? Do you know of Qadesh?"

Oh yeah, I remember watching that show! The original was always the best, to be fair.

Fair enough. TFA is obviously the start of a long story, so it's probably a bit too early to judge it overall. As an actual film, it was still good. Not my favourite, though. THAT goes to Deadpool.

The Knight, eh? Are you a tyrant of the shade? The spite? The pain repaid? ...Heh heh. Welcome to the site!

I do wonder though. What did you think of The Force Awakens, Stranger? I personally thought it was...alright, I guess.

Mujha groaned a bit, partly from the pain of her wounds and partially from the Half-Elf himself. "Oh, one of those people, are you? The joking ones? Argh, nevermind. My name is Mujammed, Mijha for short. At least it is right now. I...had to change it some time ago. I was just on my way to that fabled land, Qadesh, I believe. Are you on your way there too? ...What is your name?"

I remember my sister used to LOVE The Sims. Still does, actually; one of her little jokes is to ask me to buy her The Sims 4. Which I wouldn't because A: It's an Origin product and therefore evil, B: it is also an EA product and therefore evil and C: it has less content than Sims 3 for a higher price. And is therefore evil.

[Well now I just feel stupid] Mujha blinked once or twice, slowly ignoring the aching pains of her fresh wounds under her armour. One second she had been fighting for her life among the ravens, sustaining a not-unsubtle amount of pecks and scrapes - and the very next second they were gone. Vanished, as the body of the beheaded beast rolled backwards into the once fresh water. She scrambled to get to her feet, frost emitting with every pained breath, as she got up and began to limp towards this mysterious half-elven man. "Greetings, traveller," she began, "That was...well, that was incredible! Tell me, do you speak Common or are you of just another tongue?"

[Not really. I now only have half my health.]

[Black]

[Almost got it...] Mujha's sword swing hit hard, carving a gash into the burned creature's chest. The burned creature reared its head and roared in retaliation, sending a number of the swarm down towards the two travellers. Mujha moved fast, at least as fast as she could, dragging the Half-Elf away from the attack and into a safer place among the bushes. The ravens that once homed their position instead slammed into the ground beaks-first, injuring them but not killing them. Mujha rested the Half-Elf in the bushes nearby and began her attack on the swarm of ravens that had now dashed for the pair. She swung her longsword with great force, slicing into the crowd and killing quite a few ravens in the process. Unfortunately, she had overestimated the amount of them and now they had began to circle her, keeping her trapped in the swarm and pestered with divebombing ravens. Nevertheless Mujha managed to dodge almost every raven she could, continuously swinging her sword into the pack and taking out a number of ravens with every slash. The damage was severe, there was no discussing that, but the swarm was just too vast and the ravens too determined. It would not be long before Mujha would get tried - and overwhelmed.

Alright! Next Chapter at last! This chapter contains; ...Uh, not much, actually. Just the same stuff as the last chapter Where We Left Off: Things look bleak for the crew; Lilac is heavily injured in all fashions, Carol and Milla are still MIA, and Torque and Traveller have been left to die by the monsterous Clone Master. And somehow, with a heavy dose of anarchy, betrayal and rising instability, things are about to get worse. ==========-----========== Chapter 10: History's Taken Toll "Cripes, where is she?" "Well, she's gotta be around here somewhere, Sonar. Keep looking!" "Right, got it! Now where would she be...no...not here...nope...AH! Frank! I found her! Right, accessing console...argh, it's locked out! Genetic signature too. Hmm...got it! Ahem...SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" A piercing shriek met Lilac's ears and she was thrown awake from the ringing. She could feel the locks that had kept her prisoner slowly unravel and retract, with each second bringing a better loose feeling. Finally, they gave way and she collapsed to the floor, coughing and spluttering. She lay there for a few seconds, taking in precious lungfuls of air, before she finally managed to force herself to her knees. She could feel a wet, matted sensation on her clothes and the faint smell of rust told her that she was bleeding. Pretty badly, too. She cautiously opened a single eye, eyelid creaking open, before two figures came into focus before her. The first was Franky yet again, looking the same he always did, but another was by his side. She was a hedgehog, a brown one, with wild and wavy quills. "Damn..." Franky sighed, shaking his head, "We're too late." "Poor girl..." the girl sighed, "She's a wreck! I mean, look at her scales!" "Hmm..." Franky nodded, "Wrong shade of charred and bleeding grey for the season. Bit of a shame we're hallucinations and all, otherwise we could patch her up." "Sadly, we can't. I guess it's all up to that infernal demonic weapon. Even when I first met Traveller, I knew that thing would be trouble." Lilac only stared as the two bantered, silent and unblinking. Her mind was awash with memories, painful reconciliations of brief past events. War Master's grand entrance. Brevon's withering grin as he grabbed his spraying throat. The gunshot's pain. Oh, the pain. There was a highly agonising pain sat somewhere in her stomach, like a small sharp object had lodged itself in there and caused the area to become inflamed. Her breathing was getting heavy, every painful memory making it heavier and heavier. Finally, in her hyperventilating state, she glanced back up at the two in front of her, who were looking over her again in worry. "Is, uh..." Franky said, "Is she okay?" "Of course she isn't!" the girl cried out, "She's going into shock! Look around, there's gotta be some sorta box of painkillers somewhere! If you can, look for a blue box with yellow highlights. Certain brand from this world, should be strong enough." "Yes, Miss!" Franky said, almost mockingly, before ambling out of the room. The girl looked back on Lilac, lying on the floor and desperately trying to get fresh air in her lungs, before running over and embracing her. "Hey, hey!" she called out in a calm voice, "Look at me, look at me..." Lilac did, fighting through the pain to stare at the apparition's face, "Good. Right, try to remain calm, everything's going to be fine. We don't need you going into shock." Lilac looked a bit blank. After all, she had fallen into shock a good two times already. In fact, after all this, she was genuinely surprised she was still alive. Not to mention terrified; she thought during the torture that she was going to die, but now she was scared she might not. She was so caught up in her panic that she had still failed to notice Blade in her hand, her ruined fingers still clutching at its handle. Soon, Franky came back, nothing in hand. "Okay, I've found something," Franky said, "But I can't grab it. We'll have to get her to move." "Got it!" the girl said, turning back to the borderline catatonic Lilac, "Right, sweety? We're gonna try and move to the next room, alright? Right. Ready...one...two...THREE!" Lilac did as ordered and threw herself to her feet. Her stomach did not react well to this in the slightest and the pain increased tenfold in intensity, causing her to scream and fall to her knees. Both the girl and Franky looked at each other. "This is gonna be hard..." Franky said, scratching his head, "Sony, you're the doc here. Any suggestions?" "...I do," Sonar said quickly, "It's a long shot, but it might work. Ever heard of the Placebo Effect?" Franky nodded, "Good. Then you know its the phenomenon of some quack science actually having a positive effect because the patient believes it does. That won't work with the pain, but if we...'help' her, carry her across the room, she might just make it the cabinet. Ready? Right, lift her up!" Franky did so, taking Lilac's left arm and helping Lilac to her feet. She felt Franky's arm wrapped around her's, despite all her knowledge of this being a hallucination, and she felt far less pain as a result. Sonar took her right arm and, with both in tow, Lilac began to slowly hobble towards the next room. The pain in her stomach still rang out and she grunted with every other step, but the pain was nowhere near where it once was. She soldiered on, determined to stay heroic and stoic no matter what, and finally crossed the room and into the other. This was the entry point from which Clone Master had attacked the group, and it showed with the shards of metal and the faint smell of smoke. Some of the robots under Brevon's employ, such as the red orbs with eyes, lay broken by the wayside and scattered across the floor. Lilac looked towards the girl seemingly called Sonar, who simply and silently nodded towards something in the corner of the next room. Inside was a green box hanging on the wall, a white cross inscribed on it. Lilac reached out her hand and grabbed the handle, giving it a pained twist and throwing the door to the side. "Alright, we made it!" Sonar patted Lilac, "Nice! So, where was it?" "About..." Franky pointed to the corner of the box, "Here. Behind the bandages. Might wanna use those too." "Right..." Sonar said, "Right, Lilac, we'll leave you be while you sort yourself out. We'll scout ahead and be back with a way outta here. okay? Okay." Lilac sighed, looking to talk to Franky again, but he was gone. Lilac's face twisted into a confused sneer and she turned back to Sonar, who naturally had vanished too. She shrugged, unknowingly dropping the still offline Blade into her belt and slowly reaching for the painkillers in the back of the cabinet. She checked the logo; blue, with yellow highlights and "PAINAWAIT" on the front. A very high quality brand indeed, despite its obvious and somewhat laughable typo. But Lilac didn't care. Even with the fake help, she was in almost crippling agony and any relief was desperately needed. She opened the box and removed the contents; a syringe full of extra-powerful painkillers. She quickly slipped the needle into her wrist and pushed down on the plunger. It took a while, but soon the pain slowly vanished, allowing her to relax. It felt so...quaint, being this numb. She felt incredibly detached from this world, like she no longer belonged. Perhaps, she thought, this was what Traveller felt like. She snapped out of it, shaking her head to offset her lightheadedness, before grabbing the bandages. She cut off a section and wrapped it around her arm. Then another around her leg. And another around her head. She wasn't even bleeding for the most part, but with the bandages on she felt a sort of comfort, an odd warmth in the covered areas that made her feel better about herself. Lilac sighed; she wasn't acting herself and she knew it. Quiet, timid, taking solace in removing pain. Seeing things, too. A lot of things. What on Avalice was wrong with her? She suddenly felt faint, hitting the wall and sliding down to the floor. "Wha..." Lilac mumbled, grabbing her head, "What's going on? Where am I? What's wrong with me? So many questions, not enough answers!" "That's kinda what you get when you wake up too early," came a disgruntled voice. Lilac looked shocked for a split second, before she reached down into her belt, pulling the obstruction she could feel out. She let out a pained moan when the object in her hands was the Blade of Hysteria, glowing the same old bright shade of green it always did. "No..." Lilac moaned, "It wasn't a nightmare!" "Sadly, no..." Blade said, "On the plus side, you're my new Master now! On the minus side...well, you're my new Master now. Sorry." "I'm your Master?" Lilac asked, "How? Can't you just...fly off?" "No," Blade sighed, "Y'see, the Hellbloods were primitive, but they certainly weren't dumb. They didn't want the Gods in their Blades just leaving, so they managed to make the Blades...complacent. Have different modes and always be tied to one specific user no matter what." "So...the Blade itself won't let you leave, is programmable and has different 'modes'?" Lilac asked. "Yes." "...That sounds like something a twelve year old would dream up." "Yeah..." Blade sounded a bit annoyed, "But that's how it happens. This thing's got a number of states, too; there's a mode for that Hysteria thing, then a form for recharging afterwards, a mode to absorb foreign DNA for testing and integration purposes and even a mode when I can be used as a boomerang!" Lilac's face lit up, "Ooh!" "Don't try that one though. Took off two of Master's fingers when he first used it, heh heh. Good thing the healing factor helped to sew them back on!" "Well if you have a healing factor..." Lilac said, pointing to her already stained bandages, "Why'm I still...well, like this?" "I was getting to that," Blade sighed, "Before he gave me to you, War Master activated the Adaptation Mode. That's where the DNA signature of my main user is erased and a new one is copied in through touch. Mainly...yours." "And you did that!?" "I kinda had to," Blade explained, "Clone or not, War Master still have a similar DNA structure to good old vanilla Master. Enough to force me to obey his commands, anyway. And he made REAL sure you couldn't just give it to someone else. He went to great lengths to knobble one's healing factor, leaving it active just enough to heal the gunshot before shorting out afterwards. He also reduced the separation range to a mere two metres...He even disabled Adaptation Mode, and I'm FAIRLY sure you don't know the combination to unlock it And frankly, it's been so long I've forgotten it too. Basically? You're stuck with me." "But I don't want to use you," Lilac sighed, "You're a weapon of war, you drive people insane!" "Well, I don't, really..." Blade said, "But I tend to make the scenario of insanity a bit more likely. Amplifies that Sound of Madness. Remember that?" Lilac paused. Yeah, she remembered that. That little voice in your head that told you to perform heinous deeds. A little whisper, a suggestion. Lilac had heard it before, a small whisper in the back of her mind, often talking about Spade or her own past. 'Keep stealing...' the voice would say, 'Those richer ones deserve it. They steal from the poor all the time, with only excess as their forte. Steal from them, give them payback...' And every time, Lilac would shake her head and the voice was vanish. For how long, only time would tell. Sometimes it would be a week, sometimes a month. But it'd soon return. Soon be there. And now, in this quiet, the voice was back. But it was no longer a mere suggestive whisper, not anymore. 'Come on!' it was shrieking, 'You should've killed Brevon yourself! He was scum, every last part of him! You really think you could just let him go so you could battle him another day? Yeah, just let the world-killing maniac go! THAT won't bite you in the backside or anything!' "G-Get out of my head!" Lilac yelped, "I've already got two voices in there already!" "I'll take that as a yes, then," Blade said, "Look, Lilac. Your impending insanity isn't the main concern right now. We're still in the Thermal Base, which Clone Master seems to be in the process of cannibalising for his own deeds. Look!" Lilac looked up. There was a screen nearby, seemingly linked up to a security camera. In it was Clone Master, sitting in another room somewhere topside. His cloak had been hastily removed and spread across the torture chamber's floor, so Lilac could see his upper torso quite clearly. Unlike Traveller, he wore no scarf but otherwise had very similar apparel, His jacket was the same dark shade of navy blue that the other had been, only now with a few obvious signs of repair and a green bandoleer loosely hung over his left shoulder. His sleeves were bunched up at the elbows, carrying on as either bandages or sports tape until ending in the same black fingerless gloves Traveller used as well. At the moment, he was lazily spinning around in a chair, talking into some kind of recorder. "Well, I don't know..." Clone Master was sighing, "I really don't understand how he didn't get my arrival. I thought planting that copy of Five Nights at Freddy's The Movie would've tipped him off for sure! Oh well. Next time, I won't be so subtle..." "We need to move and we need to move now." "You're right, Blade..." Lilac said, "But...what about the other two?" "Other two?" Blade asked, "You mean you see 'em too? Franky and that medic chick?" "Sonar, yeah," Lilac shrugged, "Said they'd find a way out for us! Let's try and meet 'em halfway, eh? No point sitting around wailing." Lilac grabbed the wall and, even with her weak grip, slowly inched up the wall until she finally got to her feet. She slowly stumbled back over to the main Torture Room, her walking motion a angled shamble. She stopped to stare at Brevon again, his once loud and foreboding figure now crumpled and shrinking in his slowly diminishing blood spurt. Lilac could not bring herself to believe it; Brevon was dead. This madman, this devil among devils, a destroyer of planets across the universe. Dead. A crumpled, bleeding lump with all of his energy sapped and drained by this brand new threat. "It's...it's kinda funny," Lilac said, "How someone who destroyed so much went down so fast." "Not the first of his type to end up like that," Blade said, his voice haunting, "Even if you can kill for your country, it won't make you stronger. Everyone dies. Even Gods bleed. So don't think you're invincible just because you have me at hand. Just...far less likely to die. Just like Brevon. You're certainly not invincible mentally." "I know..." Lilac sighed, slowly hobbling over to a shard of glass on the nearby wall, "I knew this was insane. I knew I couldn't take on someone like him. And he was right. Why DID I throw my life away to try?" "Because you wanted to be the hero," Blade mumbled, "Because you knew the alternative would be worse. Remember, even without Clone Master, Brevon would have free range over the universe if you weren't there to try and stop him. There are many universes and timelines that provide evidence for that. There's nothing wrong with the being the hero...just as long as you never try to do it alone." "What about Traveller?" Lilac asked, bitter, "He went alone." "Not really," Blade said, "He's spent a lot of time with temporary allies. Hell, when we first set off on our path for redemption, we had help from about seven other people! It's just that you...I mean, War Lilac, got us at a poor moment." Lilac said nothing more, only looking at herself within the glass shard's reflection. She was an aboslute mess; what wasn't charred grey fur was blistered purple skin, or the white and slowly stained bandages that crossed both arms and the right side of her head. Her eyes were bloodshot, her horns were cracked and had small patches of ash stained onto them and a small trickle of blood was rolling out of the side of her mouth. But, perhaps the worst, was the lack of her tendrils. Lilac tried to reach to where they would've once been, but nothing. Empty, cold, wet space that smelled faintly of rust. Lilac went nauseous again; she had had those tendrils all her life and the fact they were just...gone was literally hard to stomach. It almost felt like she had one of her arms cut off at the shoulder. Hell, even THAT would have been preferable, since at least she could get a new arm from somewhere. Perhaps the Royal Palace's surgeons could make a new one. But not the tendrils. And not now. It almost brought tears to Lilac's eyes, if she had any left; her beauty and grace, her purity, her innocence...taken. Stolen from her by heartless space warriors and equally disgusting madmen from beyond her comprehension. The voices were coming back now, even louder. 'Look at you...' 'Destroyed, disabled. half comprised of ashes and flames...' 'No better than the last couple of fools who fell under Brevon's rule.' 'YOU' 'ARE' BROKEN.' 'And it's all because of Carol....' "Wha..." Lilac mumbled. 'Carol abandoned you!' 'Went back to Red Scarves, back to the ideals she tried to leave behind!' 'No better than Spade! No better than Traveller!' 'She left you to DIE!' "NO!" Lilac screamed, thrashing around, "STOP SAYING THAT! STOP IT!!!" "...Lilac?" came Sonar's voice above all the self-loathing. Lilac snapped out of her struggles and turned to see the brown hedgehog behind, "Hon? We've found a way out. We've gotta go, now!" "Yeah!" Franky scooted into view too, "Look, Clone Master's gathered up all of his troops and has taken all the materials he can from the base. We really don't wanna be on this thing when the charges blow and it goes under!" "Y-Yeah..." Lilac said, her voice wavering a bit, "Let's get going." "After we get out, we can plan where we're going to go," Sonar said, "Unless...you have an idea already?" "...I do..." Lilac said, her voice growing slightly angry, "We're going to the Shuigang Outskirts. To the Red Scarves' base of operations. We're gonna pay some...old friends of mine a visit..." ======== Meanwhile ======== "You make an...interesting point, Carol. Even though I still don't quite believe you." Carol sighed, but at least she knew Spade knew what he said. He was reluctant to say it, but he seemed to be glad that Carol had returned to the Red Scarves. It had been a good three or so hours since Carol had abandoned Lilac and that Travelling psychopath to go back to the closest thing she could call home; the Red Scarves. A bunch of murderous thieves that only stole and killed for themselves, but at the very least they kept it local. Unlike...others. Carol had no regrets, no sadness in her heart, no tears in her eyes. This was all Lilac's fault, she was sure of it. Gallivanting off around the planet, getting herself killed, performing work for people who actively hated her. And that meant pretty much everyone; The Majister wanted her head now that Neera had been...disposed of, Mayor Zao cared little for anyone but himself and Prince Dail was still insane and working for Brevon. Well, to her at least. That only left two alternatives; go back to the treehouse (which was within Shang Tu's jurisdiction, just) or do the unthinkable and return to the Red Scarves to see if they could do anything. Carol chose the latter, obviously, and she was currently in Spade's 'room', as it were, within the base. He was leaning against the wall while Carol had helped herself to a chair within the room. She had spent the last five minutes talking to Spade about what had happened, from the first part with Torque's ship crashing to when she had left Lilac behind in the rain. Spade was staring at her, his face never changing from the stoic sneer it always was, but even then Carol was getting the impression he was slowly accepting what she was saying. "But, it's true!" Carol said, "Every part of it! We've been led halfway around the world by a weedy alien and a psychopath! I just...wanna get away from that." "Interesting..." Spade said again, "At least now you're making valid arguments. A lot more than your scarved friend from before." "He's insane," Carol said bitterly, "Struck countless down in cold blood, just because he wanted to. At least when I was with your killers, I...we did it to keep ourselves going." "We are much more than that," Spade sighed, shaking his head, "It's just that goody-goody heroes like your old friends are blind to middle ground. We're all either paragons of nicety or baby-eating monsters like my brother. Only fit to kill and take over the land with its Freedom Fighters. Until they become the thing they hated most. It's almost a shame. You speak so lowly of your old friend. Considering how you two met in this very base, it's not like you at all." "I'm not putting my neck on the line for people who actively want me dead or incarcerated," Carol said, "Lilac's gone off the deep end and I don't want to follow anyone in the jaws of death." "Hmm. Well, welcome back, Carol. For all that's worth." "Thanks, Spade." "Master Spade!" came a new voice. It was one of the members of the group, a female snowcat, white in fur colour with yellow eyes and wild hair. She was clad in clothing very similar to Carol's own, but a bit more basic. After all, she was just a recruit while Carol had jumped up higher before she quit. Regardless, the snowcat kept speaking, "Apologies for intruding, but we have an intruder in the base's courtyard! A female, some sorta dog, answers to 'Milla'?" Carol sighed wearily, "I knew she'd come for me. Spade, I'll handle this. Wanna watch the fireworks?" "What, like the ones you pulled off in the past?" Spade said, his face still not changing, "I'd never turn it down. Thank you for the heads-up, Neige." The snowcat nodded, smiling, before running out of the room, alongside Carol and then Spade. The three dashed down the hallway, lined with purple wallpaper and wooden supports, before bursting out of the doors into the courtyard. It was still now in the middle of the day, the night having long since been chased away, covering everything in a clear light. Other members of the group, both cloaked and not, surrounded the many exits and were sitting in the seats against the west wall, stacked almost to the ceiling. And there, waiting patiently, was indeed Milla. She was standing stock still, upright and arms by her side, clearly terrified but maintaining herself anyway. She looked at Carol and the others entering the room, taking note of Carol's clothing; far from her original black shirt and shorts, she was now clad in a stylised red tunic of some sort, cut into strips at the bottom and with lavender bandages tied around the waist like a rudimentary belt. She was also wearing a red headband, red gloves very similar to her old ones and some red boots to match. Finally, she wore her old red scarf and a broach as well, one with some odd language Milla couldn't understand. "Carol!" Milla cried out, obviously happy to see her old friend, "It's me, Milla!" "Milla..." Carol said, "What're you doing here? Are you here to join us? 'Cause I GUESS the Red Scarves could do with a few more members..." "No!" Milla said, "Carol, I've come to take you back! Lilac and the Master guy've gone storming Brevon's base! They might get killed!" she began to go a bit teary-eyed, "I don't want them to get killed..." "Well too bad for them!" Carol grumbled, "Seems like I got out at the last second. Why even come here?" "Because Traveller told me to," Milla explained, "He left me a note and everything!" She quickly took out the note and gave it to Carol. She scanned the letter with intent, reading it out loud. "Milla..." Carol began reading, "Lilac's gone and I have a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach this is the day it all goes wrong. My mission was to keep Lilac sane, doubtless I've already driven her mad with shock and grief. If I'm not here when you wake up, leave this cave and find Carol. Best guess she's gone to re-join the Red Scarves, it's not like she's got any other possible crutches at this point. I know you want to help, but Lilac's right; you shouldn't be put in the line of fire because of some dumb mistakes others made. Trust me, you'll be safe. War Master..." "Keep Lilac sane?" Neige asked. "He told us about this old form of his called 'War' or something..." Milla said, "He scares me!" "War Master..." Carol sighed, "His destructive alter ego. What turned him into the untrustworthy...thing he is. What made me turn my back." "What did he do?" Neige asked again. Carol looked bitter, "Stabbed Neera-Li in the chest. Went crazy and cleaved her head clean off." "Hmm..." Spade said, smiling, "This explains why he said he wasn't a killer anymore. I mean, clearly!" "He said this is the day something horrible happens to Lilac!" Milla cried, tugging on Carol's arm, "We've gotta go save her!" "NO!" Carol yelled, pushing Milla away, "If Lilac wanna goes toe-to-toe against some kill-crazy madman and get herself killed or worse, leave me out of it! I'm not throwing my life away for some idiotic cause!" "HAHAHAHA..." came a scratchy voice, "A shame. You were doing such a good job up until now..." Carol stopped dead in her tracks. That voice...scratchy, scrambled, laced with static...it was familar. It was the voice of that cloaked fellow from within the Majister's prison cells! "That voice!" Carol called out, "I know that voice!" "Sir!" came another member, "There appears to be an errant transmission coming in on the TV in room 24. And room 46. And room...EVERYWHERE!" "A worldwide broadcast..." Spade said, "Been quite some time before we've had that. Punch it up to the courtyard TV." Carol looked up. The good old Courtyard TV. One of the biggest TV screens in the region, about the length of the tower it was attached to and quite high as well. It was set up high up in the courtyard, sitting opposite the stand seats. Many a day had Carol been here during her lessons, watching the giant screen and noting all of the things on it. Like, EVERYTHING. Just in case there was a test. A thief had to be smart as well as strong, after all, and this large screen helped many of 'em over the years. Now, however, it was awash with static and monstrous sounds. There was a sudden shriek and then the picture focused. It was indeed the cloaked figure on the screen, his red pinprick eyes all that was visible. "This is a message from the Order..." the creature started with his mangled voice, before he quickly stopped and walked off screen. The voice stopped, returning to a more normal voice, "Oh f*ck, wrong franchise, um..." "Him again?" Spade asked. "Wait...you know him?" Carol asked too, turning to the leader himself. "Yes..." Spade said, hanging his head, "He appeared in our base, took out our best guys and...beat me in a one-on-one fight." "Well that's not hard..." Carol teased, "Dodge those cards and get in close and you crumple like a soggy slice of bread." "Yes..." Spade growled, "And after he was done...fighting, he said he could help me and my group. Make us stronger. Tell me who my father's killer was." "Did it happen to be a certain Lilac, Sash?" Carol asked, to which Spade nodded, "Of course. The guy's been playing us all for fools. Leading us to this...trap, I guess." "But who is he?" Neige asked. "I don't know..." Carol said, looking back at the screen, "But I sure wanna find out..." "Right..." the creature walked back up to the screen. His mangled voice was now completely gone, instead being an almost generic voice, "Ahem. Ladies and Gentlemen. This is a worldwide broadcast, designed to reach the leaders of the three warring Kingdoms; Shang Tu, Shang Mu and Shuigang. I have assisted all of you at one point or another, helping you make more ground, telling you what will happen and what to do, all so you could get to this point. And I'm sorry, but..." he drew back his hood and grinned, "I've been playing you for all the fools in the world." Carol looked on in shock while Milla whimpered in horror; the creature was a brown hedgehog, with sunglasses and wild and unkempt quills. It was Traveller...or was it? His skin was paler, his quills were wilder, his teeth were fangs and his eyes were the red pinpricks the cloaked creature had. Gears were turning furiously in Carol's head until, finally, she reached the only possible conclusion. "No..." she said, still in shock, "It can't be him!" "IT IS!" the creature roared, almost as if he heard Carol, "Tremble before me, Planet Avalice, for I am the War Master!" "War Master?!" Spade called out. "The one and only..." the creature said, a deranged grin across his face, "Uh, sort of. I will be your psychopath for the evening, doing...psychotic stuff. Destroying buildings, shooting to wound! And executing the wounded, of course. But I am not here to brag at you. Never goes well for a villain. Instead, I am here to show my dominance and give you fair warning. For all those who have lived in fear of the great warlord, Arktivus Brevon, I assure you...he won't be going anywhere anytime soon. Play the tape, Dail me old boy!" The screen conked out for a few seconds, before it showed a video. It was directed in a room, some sort of red room with lava flowing nearby. A room in this "thermal base", then. And indeed, in the middle of the floor, was Brevon himself. He looked ghastly, with only a single arm to his own. He was kneeling on the floor, some shadowed figure holding him there, with blood slowly pooling around his barely upright form. "You're looking at this right, people..." Clone Master was saying, his voice clearly an overlay, "Lord Arktivus Brevon. Warlord. Murderer. Killed, destroyed and tortured his way across the universe. A man that many have seen before they die, often by his hands. But none of that mattered...none of that mattered at all..." The video kept playing, only now Clone Master was in the video, walking towards Brevon with some glowing blade outstretched. Again Carol's lips went dry; that was the Blade of Hysteria, no doubt about it. And it only got worse. The voiceover went dark and and gravelly. "...When he met me!" There was a single second before the video showed something truly horrific. Clone Master had put the Blade up to Brevon's throat and now began to slice it across his throat. Brevon's screams were drowned out by the roars of Clone Master and the screams of some of the Red Scarves in the crowd. Carol acted fast and shielded Milla's eyes from the video while she screamed alongside them. Clone Master finally got through the entire throat and stepped back, while the figure in the back let go of Brevon's arm. Brevon grabbed his throat to stem the blood flow, but it was nowhere near enough. He finally crashed to the ground, dead. "Ladies and Gentlemen..." the screen faded back to Clone Master's ravaged smile, "Dragons and Wildcats. Basset Hounds...and the entirety of the Coalition of Planets. Lord Brevon, killer of a thousand worlds, is dead. Killed. Slain. By MY hands..." the creature growled, "Think about that. All that training, all that bravery, all those soldiers and weapons...mattered little to someone like me. So what kind of trouble will I have defeating some bird king who lets his lackeys do all his bitch work and some garishly garbed midget bloke who's head is stuffed up his backside?!" there was a pause, where Clone Master's smile vanished, replaced by a growling sneer, "The Dreadnought rises tomorrow. 5PM. Be prepared..." And with that, the video cut out. ============== Meanwhile, again ============== Snow. Lots and lots of snow. It was all Torque could see when he finally opened his eyes. A howling white wasteland with almost no other features to speak of. He groaned, getting to his feet. He was footsore, hungry and thirsty, but at least he was uninjured. Well, beyond a black eye, he noted. He prodded the swollen eye itself and he winced from the pain. The extreme cold was helping, slightly, but it still hurt. He thought back to the events of before. Clone Master dragging his weapon across Brevon's throat was the only thing that came to mind. Well that, and him giving Lilac the weapon itself. He sighed. Brevon was dead, but someone seemingly even worse had taken his place. For all his talk of standards, Clone Master was not bound to the affable characteristics that Brevon had stuck to. He was not polite, or concerting, all he was was brutal. Even Brevon give his victims a quick death (knife in the chest of his commander notwithstanding), while Clone Master made his own as drawn out and agonising as possible. How ironic. Still, Torque had failed in his mission. And, seeing that Blade change hands, so had Traveller. But now he was nowhere to be found and Torque was alone. At least, he thought he was. Torque began to squint and soon found a body-like shape half-buried in the snow. He rushed over there, rolling the figure onto his back and brushing as much snow off of him as possible. It WAS Traveller. He was unconscious, scarf removed and sunglasses shattered. His jacket had ripped at the midsection, and so had his stomach wound. Even now fresh blood was pouring out of the wound, though now in small supply. "Oh no!" Torque panicked, "The wound! Wake up!" he brung his hand up and slapped it across Traveller's face. He responded instantly, jerking to the side and groaning. "Ahh, Chaos..." he groaned, "How many people are gonna slap me today?" "Traveller!" Torque called out again. "...Torque!" Traveller called out to, seemingly happy despite his own state, "You're alive! Good..." "Good?" Torque called out, "You're dying and we're stuck in a wasteland! Where are we?!" "The Ice Caps..." Traveller said, chuckling softly, "Cheeky devil. Coldest place in the region. Completely uninhabitable. Leave someone here to die and no-one will ever find 'em." "You're bleeding out badly, just hang on!" Torque said, "I can get you some help, we just gotta get out of here!" "No, that won't do..." Traveller sighed, his eyelids going limp, "I...I've fucked up enough in my life, Torque old boy. My time is way past. But you're still young, smart, innocent. You can do all the things I never did. The multiverse needs someone like you...and not me." "Traveller, no!" Torque said, shaking the nearly limp body, "Don't do this!" "Why?" Traveller sighed a final time, "I've got nothing left to live for. I've failed my last mission, lost my only friends...now all that's left is to...well, throw it all away. I'm just...gonna take a nap. Wake me up...when I'm not some kill-crazy bastard anymore..." Traveller said no more, only falling to the snow again. His eyes shut. His breathing ceased. "Traveller..." Torque cried out, "TRAVELLER NO!" he pounded furiously on his chest. Nothing. Finally, he gave up and collapsed next to the body. He was at his wits end; no plan, no backup...no hope. Even his thoughts of it not getting any worse were swiftly removed from reality, because there was a similar slithering sound slowly approaching from the front. It was a certain cyborg snake, a single functioning laser pistol in his hand, his eyes glowing in the heavy storm. "Serpentine..." Torque growled. "Commander..." Serpentine growled too, a grin across his face, "I suppose you got dumped here too, huh? Well, allow me to do you a favour..." "...Fine..." Torque sighed, sensing no way out of this, "...Make it quick." "I will..." the snake cackled a final time. Torque shut his left eye, slowly awaiting the laser bolt that would end this whole mission. It fired, its shot sound whipping the air...but Torque felt nothing. Instead the bolt had sailed harmlessly into the air, because at the last second some shadowy figure had burst out of nowhere and tackled Serpentine to the ground. "C'MERE, A**HOLE!" the creature growled, some sort of grin across his face too. Serpentine obliged and charged, screeching all the while. They fought, with Serpentine throwing two punches and landing neither. The black creature responded by throwing a punch directly into Serpentine's face, sending him reeling. Serpentine soon recovered from that and swung his pistol at the creature three times, the last time causing him to jam the gun into the snow, where it got stuck. The creature was all too happy to take this opportunity, kicking the snake in the back and following up with a left AND right hook, which sent Serpentine crashing to the ground. Finally, the creature grabbed one of the robotic arms and pulled with all his might. He strained with the effort, but soon wrenched the arm completely free from the socket of the suit and brought it crashing down upon the snake's head, throwing him to the floor and knocking him out for good. Torque watched in amazement, slowly going numb from the cold, while the creature brushed his hands and then looked at him and Traveller. "There he is..." the creature said, "Oi! Medi-Chick! Amelia wasn't lying! I've found them!" ==========-----========== DeviantART Link: http://fav.me/d9bbqab