Chapter 4.31: Out of the Fire and Into the Frying Pan

Journal Entry: Addy Windrush

It was Robin who first noticed the birds. It was as if the forests of the Barony of Boese were being evacuated. Thousands of them filled the air flying away from our destination. It took some fancy flying to avoid the bulk of them. Then we saw the pillar of smoke. It was more like a whole temple of smoke hovering in the air as we approached Boeseburg; the whole town had to be on fire. The atmosphere in my Manaka had became alert and apprehensive; as opposed to the awkward strained silence of most of our flight from Vienna.

I activated the Cheyenne cloaking device. Whatever awaited us in Boeseburg, it was best that it didn’t see us coming. It was impossible to do a fly over of the center of the city due to smoke and explosions. But I did manage to sweep the parameter. At the far north corner a familiar blue glow caught my attention. Through the haze of smoke, I could make out Ashwin and Kavi in full Tecnomance mode. If they were openly using Blue Spirit Magic to Technomance, I knew the situation was dire. Robin claimed to have seen X near the small delivery gate. The scene below us didn’t make any sense, but it would seem that those we knew were headed to that one delivery gate. I chose to hover around the gate to see if I might not need to open the gate by force.

The barometric pressure dropped steeply causing my ears to pop painfully. Turbulence rocked my Manaka, as a storm appeared out of thin air. Everyone’s hair stood on end and the air had a strange quality just before a massive bolt of lightning seared downward to blow the gate off its hinges.

A ragtag bunch charged out of the scorched opening that had once been a gate;  a hodgepodge posse of robots, men, and mutants hot on their heels. As soon as I was sure that the friendlies were clear of the pursuers I started shooting. A rain of blaster fire from heaven was enough to stop everyone in their tracks. Thankfully, Kavi and Ashwin managed to move what I understood to be our people along. Ashwin shot a look in my direction and I knew I was going to have a lot of explaining to do when we finally met on the ground. I covered the group long after they had crossed the river and retreated into the trees, deterring any who would think to pursue.

Once we felt that no one else was going to come out of the gate, Robin ordered me to find our people. I focused on my Blue Spirit Pendant and located Kavi and Ashwins pendant’s. We found the group in clearing uncovering Kavi and Ashwin’s Painted Ponies. Among our people were two I did not know inhabiting giant robot armor. I knew one to be a Nipponese  Shi No Shingai, Death Armor, complete with pilot. Neither machine nor pilot looked to be in great shape. Indeed they whole party looked rather haggard.

I had no sooner come to a full stop than Doctor Fenchurch was out the door assessing his patients. Robin was on the doctor’s heels. An appalled look on his face mirrored my own bewilderment as to what happened in Boeseburg that turned a in-and-out stealth mission into the fiery destruction of a city. Looking around and not finding what he was looking for Robin called out, “Where is X?”

“I am right here, Captain Fancy Pants.”

The voice was uncomfortably close. I don’t know how it was possible but X was in my Manaka and I hadn’t even noticed. I was staring down the barrel of his gun, reaching for my blaster when he held up my blaster saying, “Looking for this? You are not taking any shots at me this time Miss Windrush. But you are taking me to my ship.”

There was a general flurry  from the crew on the ground. I noticed a particularly vicious gleam in that bounty hunter’s eyes. For once, I felt I had something in common with one of those bloodhounds. I scanned my would be rescuers on the ground; Robin and Doctor Fenchurch aside, no one was in any shape to take on a fight against X.

“Uh, uh, uh. None of you are faster than my bullets. I will kill the lovely little Miss Windrush. What do you think sweetheart? You okay with making a pretty corpse?”

I glowered at him and spat out a string of insults, but he just laughed them off. That insolent ruffian was kidnapping me again! I was furious.

“Now, Captain Fancy Pants. You take this message to your employers. I will give back your schematics and the lady reporter. All I want in exchange is a prototype ship of the Good Airship Lollygag. I get a new ship. You get your little sweetheart back.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. X wanted a prototype of The Lollygag?

“There is no way I will be complicit in any deal that hands over a technologically advanced ship to the world’s most ruthless air pirates. You can just go ahead and shoot me.”

“Addy, do as he says.”

It was Robin. I looked at him flabbergasted. The look on his face told me he was serious.

“Addy, please.” There was a faint plea in his words.

I looked to Kavi and Ashwin to contradict him, but they too seemed to want me to comply.

I huffily switched on the ignition to fire up my Manaka.

“That’s a good little reporter.” X tossed something at Robin. “Those have some coordinates and a way to contact me. I know it will take some time to get a prototype ship here from America. I promise to be a gracious host to my new guest.”

“X!” It was Kavi. “If you harm one hair on her head you will have the whole of the Technolized Tribes to answer to! You do not want to make an enemy of Jaidev Stormchief.”

“Any threats you’d like to add Captain Fancy Pants?”

Robin only glared at the Air Pirate. X just laughed and ordered me to take off. I watched my friends and family grow smaller beneath me until they were gone.

Chapter 4.30: Donnern und Blitzen und Vixton

HDRB (Holographic Data Recording Box) Recording #04040214

[I would like to note that this recording is strictly from Drake’s point of view at this point. As the holobox is still lodged in the head of his mechanical suit of armor. So what you see, is what he is seeing. ~Archivist]

The hallway rocks up and down as Drake charges forward in his mechanical wonder and alarms blare with a chorus of resounding thuds from his feet echoing off the walls. Aside from the occasional crash of steel as Drake would kick in yet another door that stood in their way, this scenery seems to be a constant for the first couple minutes of the recording until they rounded a corner. That was when things started getting interesting.

Standing before them was both the answer to their escape, and a gigantic problem. A large double door large enough to fit Drake’s armor through it stood at the end of the hall with a plate above  it labeled ‘Robotics Laboratory.’ (Which was where Ayame’s Death Armor was being held.) However, it was not going to be so easy as just breaking down the door. Two shining, armed to the teeth, robotic monstrosities that were taller than Drake was even in his armor, guarded the door.

Both of the thunder brothers stepped forward and raised their hands as they aimed to make quick work of the mechanical menaces, but Drake held out his hand and advised, “Please, gentlemen, allow me to take care of these two. Save your strength for the way out. You’ll need it.”

Handing off Ayame to Kavi (who was rather hesitant in allowing the scientist to take all the action) Drake draws his sword and raises his shield in front of him as he readies for combat. One can only assume from the tone in his voice that he said the following with a twisted smile, “I’ve always wanted to rip apart the poor excuses for a machine that all of these scientists seem to be so proud of all the time. Now it is time to show who has the superior hardware.”

All of a sudden the door and robots in front of the image begin to rapidly get closer as Drake charges forward. Alerted to the threat, both of the robotic guards turn towards Drake and begin firing off rounds. Though the added concussive thud behind the bullets may lead one to believe that these had a bit more power behind them than your average rifle. Undeterred, Drake simply raises his shield, which temporarily blocks the view of the camera. Like hail on a metal roof, the sound of bullets bouncing off the face of the shield fills the audio for a few seconds.

Before the view changes rather rapidly, as the shield drops down and is replaced with a sword cutting straight through one of the robots in a single, diagonal swipe. Sparks flew as its wires and intricate circuitry was exposed to the environment and the metal guardian crashed against the wall. Shifting quickly to the side, a stream of bullets is briefly in the frame eluding to the fact that Drake had just dodged being shot before the remaining guardian comes into view. With a quick kick that caved in the chest plating, Drake dispatches the last sentinel with a sword thrust to the head.

“And thus, there can only be one,” Drake cackled before making short work of the lab door. Once inside Drake quickly located the Death Armor only to find that his suspicions were correct. Ayame’s death armor was still in pieces. One arm lay on the ground, severed from the main body, and the chest doors that were supposed to protect the suit’s pilot were still crumpled and broken. Only one of which was actually connected to the suit at this point; and only just. “Those bloody idiots couldn’t even get the arm back on,” Drake spat in frustration.

“Vixton, I thought you said that we were retrieving a suit of armor so that this woman could pilot it. Not finding a pile of scrap metal!” Kavi commented hotly.

“Yes, well, I had hoped that those blundering fools that call themselves engineers would have fixed this by now. But it seems that we are not so fortunate,” Drake answered. Thinking fast Drake said, “Alright, we can still do this but we will have to work together once more. Put Ayame, gently, into the Death Armor. Yes, like that. Good. Now one of you needs to use your powers to pull it together and make it walk. You can do that can’t you?”

Reluctantly Kavi replied, “Yes.” The same strange blue glow from before surrounded the Death Armor in an instant. As if by an unseen hand, the broken pieces were pulled into place and the machine stood up; much to the pilot’s surprise. With the armor up and running Ayame seemed to be doing just fine now as she made sure all of it was still functional.

“Good, now it’s time for our exit!” Drake said in a bit of a worried tone. The view swings around the room as doors begin to open along the walls and what looks to be seven foot metal men came pouring out of them. Along with about a dozen that were about two feet taller than Drake’s own armor, which stood at twelve feet high.“I was hoping those were deactivated in a time of emergency but apparently I was wrong. We need to get out of here now.”

“And how are we to accomplish this, chaos magician?” Ashwin asked as he used his own magic to take hold of a pair of the advancing guards and caused them to turn on their brethren. This managed to cause quite a bit of confusion among the ranks as robots began tearing each other apart.

“Like this.” Looking upwards, Drake took his sword and thrust it into the ceiling. “Cover your ears!” For a long moment nothing seemed to happen, but just when it appeared that Drake was far more insane that he let on, a loud crack of thunder sounded above them; and was followed by a bright flash, the smell of burning steel and rock, and a very large explosion.

The image goes white and fuzzy once again as the lightning bolt strikes the tip of Drake’s sword and travels down through the suit into the battery on its back. Drake had used himself, or more so his suit, as a giant conductor. And it had worked too, as there was now a whole melted through the ceiling above. Sheathing his sword and shield, Drake reached out and grabbed both Kavi and Ashwin, without warning, and tossed them topside as carefully, but also as quickly, as he could manage.

“Up we go lass,” Drake called as his two silver arms reached out and grabbed a firm hold on the Death Armor. “Brace yourself!” With a heave and slight groan from the joints of the scientist’s armor, he was able to lift the Death Armor above his head and up to where she could make her way out of the hole. And once that ordeal was over, it was finally Drake’s turn.

Taking one last look around him it can be seen that at this point Drake was completely surrounded and the robots were about to open fire on him now that Ashwin’s little distraction had finally come to an end. So with a mock salute Drake yelled, “Sorry lads, but this is my stop.” Leaping straight up, Drake latches onto the edge of the street above and pulls himself onto the surface.

“Well, that was certainly entertaining,” Drake laughed as he stood up and three rather perturbed faces come into view. But, before any of them could voice their complaints, a dozen fifteen foot metal monsters shot up through the street behind them and rocked the ground as they landed. “More of you? Really? Just how many times did these crackpots have to fail before they gave up on their robotics research?”

Drawing his sword, it looks like Drake is about to take them on before both Kavi and Ashwin step in front of him. It seems like it was now their time to intervene. “No, scientist. We will handle this. You take the wounded Nipponese woman and get her to the gate.”

“Brother, we can’t just lead him to the others,” Kavi interjected.

“We have no choice at this point. She needs medical attention, and he knows the way out of here. And we cannot leave him to fight these mechanical beasts, it would take too long for him to make his way through. This entire place would crumble before they made it,” Ashwin insisted.

Kavi did not look at all pleased with this plan. “Brother, please reconsider. We can-”

“Enough! We have no time! Vixton, get her to safety, now! We will be right behind you!” Ashwin yelled as he turned to face the advancing horde.

Kavi growled out of frustration, pulling a leather strap with a strange blue glowing pendant from around his neck. He placed the pendant in Ayame’s hand. She gave him a confused look. “This will keep your armor working. It is bound to the Blue Spirit, it will protect you.”

Ayame’s bewildered expression showed she did not fully understand, but when Kavi step away and let go of his control of the armor it stood on its own and she finally understood.  Kavi turned to Drake, “I swear chaos magician, if you hurt her or any of the others at the gate I will hunt you down.” Without another word the taller brother turned around and the pair began to go to work.

It was a marvel to see as two of the large robots seemed to be taken over by the same strange blue glow as before and turned traitor on their comrades. Metallic fists went flying as the two possessed bots laid into those around them with a flurry of blows. And once those two had been stopped, two more decided to take up the mantle in their stead as the blue glow enveloped another pair.

“I have got to figure out how they do that,” Drake remarked. But without a moment to lose, he turned to Ayame and said, “Follow me.” He also added a few hand signals in there as well, to further get the point across. And from what he could tell she understood. Now with a sense of urgency instilled in him it seemed, Drake turned in what can only be guessed was the direction of the gate, and simply started running.

Plowing through homes and trees alike, Drake stopped for nothing as he smashed, slashed, and crushed everything in his way. Screams of terrified bystanders could be heard as they went. Only once did Drake have to stop in his stride, to take down another fifteen foot robot. And it was at that point that a glimpse behind him told Drake that they were still being followed, but by the seven foot chrome domes like those from the robotics laboratory.

With great haste Drake grabs the hand of Ayame’s death armor and charged forward once again. Luckily it seemed that they were not far, as they came bursting through one final building and found the gate in sight. Picking the Death Armor up from its fallen position, the two armors made a mad dash for the gate. And while Drake did not notice it, it can be seen on the video that apparently in their final run towards the gate they came very close to crushing some ragged looking man and what looked to be a young bear or dire wolf of some kind.

Interestingly enough, it also seemed that Kavi and Askwin had made it there before them. Probably due to the fact that they hadn’t had to have a prolonged battle with a fifteen foot robot in a narrow alleyway. A perk of holding power over technology. And they used that gift once more to dismantle the unwelcomed guests that had followed Drake and Ayame there.

All that they needed now, was to open the door; which just happened to fit right into Drake’s expertise. The sound of the chest doors on his armor opening can be heard as the wind begins to pick up. And just as the tips of Drake’s hands enter into the image, the largest bolt of lightning to be recorded yet strikes down from the heavens and collides with the large steel gates that bar the path to the outside. With a loud boom and the sound of ripping metal, the final image of the recording is metal shrapnel flying away from the group gathered at the gate and the remainders of the doors hitting the ground a few hundred yards away.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about!”

Chapter 4.29: Chestnuts Roasting Over An Open Fire

Journal Entry: Andreas Volstad

Without knowing or caring where we would pop out, Emmett and I burst out of the LABrynth, but the sweet dream of freedom was dashed instantly.  The sky was red and people were screaming, there were explosions, louder up here, and there were gun shots coming from every direction.  The once beautiful city had been shattered, broken, and forsaken.  It is a memory that I try not to remember, my destruction, that I caused, but it is one that I will never, ever, forget.

For a moment I froze, a surge of flames sent my mind hurtling to the not so distant past.  The sound of water and the creaking of wood, ahead of me, men pouring out onto the shanty boardwalk.  The sound of gunfire, the glow in the mist, then the all consuming fire.  I realized in that moment that Kira was like me, using her gifts for good and yet doing so much bad.  My heart broke a little and I thought I might understand why she hadn’t talked about it even once since it happened.

My mind was suddenly jostled back into the present when a piece of wood cracked over my head.  It took me a moment to realize that I was no longer standing in front of the manhole but that I was actually being carried away by Emmett.  I looked behind me and saw that the manhole was vomiting flames and that the wood that cracked over my head was the wood from a recently abandoned nut cart.  Why Emmett felt the need to crash through that unfortunate cart was beyond me, the nuts were going to be toast whether they were in the cart or on the ground, but regardless I was back and ready to figure out where to go to get out of this nightmare.

Fortunately, Emmett seemed to know exactly where he was.  He ducked, turned, and jumped all while carrying me under his arm.  It wasn’t long until the city wall was in sight and then it was only a matter of following the wall to the meeting point, the university delivery gate.  It only took a few more minutes for Emmett to hike his way all the way back to the university.  Soon we tore onto the main road of the city, the gate to our left and the meeting point to our right.  And then I did possibly the most nerve racking thing of my entire life.  I went over to the little spire used to indicate where the town markets were located, aka the meeting point, and I sat down and waited, for anyone, to make it back.

After what seemed like days two shadows appeared from one of the paths.  Their clothes were tattered, like mine, but they seemed fine enough.  I assumed it was Indian 1 and Indian 2 or whatever their code names were.  After a moment of standing in the clearing, robots surged into the street.  The brothers rose their arms and a blue aura began to emit from their hands.  The robots attacked and the indians went to work.  They ducked and kicked, and suddenly a couple of the robots started attacking the other robots.  The other robots quickly realized that some of their own were attacking their ranks and quickly dismantled them.  It was only moments later though that more robots turned traitor.  Soon, the indians themselves weren’t even fighting anymore in fact, they were out of the circle entirely and the robots took themselves apart one at a time until the last one ripped its own head off.  The Thunder Brothers dusted off their hands and walked calmly over to where I was sitting.

Before we could exchange greetings the roar of whirring metal sounded above us. There were what looked like fifty mini metallic, floating ships, loaded to the teeth with machine guns.  As they drew near, we made out that the two in front had people in them and as they flew over our heads we saw the masks of renegades.  It was X and Magpie.  The two pilots forced their minature ships to do flips and spins and eventually they had taken the majority of the other ships down.

Malencia suddenly had a bullet rip through one of the rotors and she careened off, skidding across the ground and hoping to safety at the last second.  It was in this moment that X chose to shine.  He steered his own ship into another, jumping out and grabbing onto the bottom rail of another ship.   He shifted his weight, flipping the machine around and caused bullet holes to rupture the ships surrounding it.  Then he swung and grabbed onto the next one.  It wasn’t long until he had taken down every single ship, without a scratch or misstep.  He landed gracefully on the ground, the ship crashing down behind him and bursting into flame.  He casually stepped forward, did a quick head count and checked his watch.  “A few more minutes and then we leave, with or without them.”

It was only a minute before Dingo and Moonshine appeared and let me tell you, they looked rough.  Jason was practically glowing, which was really strange, not to mention the unbelievable amount of blood on him.  I didn’t think that it was all his either.  Moon had patches of fur missing, and was panting, but looked mostly ok.  It took him forever to get to us, I wasn’t sure if he would make it, but he suddenly got more inspiration when two robots burst through a house on the main road.  One stayed on its feet, but the other struggled and fell.  More robots, smaller, but many more, fell through the new front door of the new house.  The giant robot still on its feet helped the other up and the both hobbled towards us.  As they drew near, X motioned to Kavi and Ashwin and both stepped forward and the robots began attacking each other again.  As the first giant robot reached the gate the chest cavity burst open and I realized then was a man inside.  He looked surprising like Dr. Sneeze, meaning he looked utterly insane.  He moved his hands and suddenly the sky began to swirl then in a flash, thunder cracked and lighting smashed into the gate, rending it from its place, causing it to clang to the ground.

For the first time in several hours it looked like we might make it out of the wretched city.

Chapter 4.28: Worst. Day. Ever.

Personal Correspondence: Jason McCoy

So there I was, running flat out like a lizard drinking back down the hallways that I had littered with mutant corpses as the fire behind me ate everything in its path. The adrenaline in my veins was still pumping like mad as I was managing to keep pace with Moon at a full out run; with multiple injuries I might add. None of which I felt at the moment as terror of the extinguishing of my life was all that sat on my mind at that point. However I was quickly finding myself trying to make Arthur or Martha of my surroundings and from the little that I could tell about them, I wasn’t within a bull’s roar of an exit.

Just as the icy claws of dread were sinking into my heart, things just had to get worse. I really need to find who has gone and put a moz on my life, because things never seem to go my way. But today, it just seems to have gone into overdrive on just how much life decided to throw my way. So, to further throw me into desperation, a man with a crazed look in his eye stepped out from one of the doors up ahead and fixed me with a maddened stare.

I wasn’t about to stop however, though from the look in the man’s eye and the fact that one side of his head was covered in blood, I don’t think he really cared. A wide grin spread across his face as a maniacal laugh escaped his throat that was almost as terrifying as what was chasing me. “It’s time to die you gun wielding troglodyte! Witness my rise from the ashes of this place as I become the ultimate being! Never has one witnessed such a transfor–”

“Oh give it a rest you big-noting bandicoot!” I shouted. I was fed up with today and wasn’t about to sit through one more speech of supremacy as I was running for my life. So without so much as a pause in my step I whipped my pistol from its holster, relieved the man of what few brain functions he had left, and continued running in that direction. And that sis, is when the implausible happened.

Now I’m no scientist so I couldn’t tell you why or how, but even I can tell you that the liquids from the broken vials that hit the floor had a volatile reaction. Blue flames sprouted from the mixture as I stopped short, now surrounded by fire on both sides. I watched in horror and quite a bit of disgust as the man’s body bloated to the size of two men and his skin began to boil. My first thought was how the hell was this happening. However that was immediately followed by the urge to duck and cover as I jumped to the side and the bloated corpse exploded in what sounded like another bomb going off; only with a bit more of a squish at the end. Yes I know that is gross, but saying that the explosion sounded ‘wet’ isn’t exactly any better now is it?

But the important thing here is that when I looked back around the corner, what I found stunned me like a mullet; like everything else I had encountered that day. The explosion had taken out a good section of the hallway leaving wires hanging down everywhere, fire starting to spread as the one behind me chomped forward and ate hungrily at my behind, etc. However in its wake it left a small glimmer of hope, and my way out.

Apparently the section of the LAByrinth that I was in at the moment was right under the streets of the town. How do I know? Well it just so happened that the bloated corpse had enough explosive power to take out a hole in the street above and had caused it to cave in. It just so happened that the street had continued to crumble for a few yards and had left me with a makeshift ramp to the surface.

Driven by a whole new wave of energy at the thought of escaping this bandicoot ridden bogey-hole, I bolted for my exit with Moon right on my tail. We were up and out of that maze of metal and death just as the fire reached the hole. And for a moment I thought we were safe; how wrong I was. Apparently now that I was on the surface, whatever powers that be decided that I didn’t need to be out of danger just yet. So, to further complicate the wallaby trail ahead, the streets began to erupt in flames and geysers of rock and metal turning the landscape into some sort of hellish terrain.

This in turn let the mutants that somehow survived the explosions from their cages as they began to flood what was left of the streets. Looking forward I watched with a face that most likely read ‘you have got to be kidding me’ as the streets fell away and left me with nothing but crumbling pillars of road suspended precariously by thin columns of land above a fall into an abyss that would likely kill me.

At that point I felt like I had just been handed the roughest end of the pineapple that life could give me; and I was about to shove it back down life’s throat with a vengeance. “Alright Moon, it’s time to leave.”  No longer burdened with anxiety and taken over with a furious determination to foil the universe’s plans to kill me, I ran forward and took a leap of faith. Luckily it paid off. I landed squarely on a pillar of land with a sigh of relief that didn’t last more than a second.

The mutants had started to climb up the land pillars in an attempt to escape the fires below and it just so happened to be the same pillars that I had to jump across to get to safety. “Well, isn’t this just bonzer,” I muttered. Checking how many rounds I had left I pulled out my rifle and began a game of lethal leap frog.

As I jumped from one column to the next I had to continually fire at the mutants that clambered at my feet, beat down and shove off those that stood in my way, and fire the ones that seemed intent on trying to ‘catch’ me as I jumped from one platform to the next. I’m sure anyone watching me probably thought I was insane, but I doubt any of them can argue with the results, because even with the odds stacked against me I made it. I made it to the gate and the meeting point alive and in one piece, for the most part. Though this particular reunion ended up having a few more guests than I expected. But at least it ended with a bright light and a big bang.

Chapter 4.27: A Debatable Prison Break

HDRB (Holographic Data Recording Box) Recording #04030214

[I have taken on an apprentice! It is a long complicated story and I don’t wish to detour from our present course of adventure so I will elaborate later. My apprentice has been with me for a few weeks and has quickly acclimated and shown great aptitude in undertaking my present task. This is the first official project I assigned to the Archivist Assistant. It took a bit longer to get this little part of our tale ready to post but I believe that my assistant shows great promise!  ~ The Archivist]

As the  recording on the holobox continues, not much can be seen. The HDRB is still within the scientist’s pocket as it bounces around with the rest of the contents. All that can be discerned of the situation at the moment is sound. There are three sets of footsteps echoing off what is assumed to be the hallway walls and a rather distinctive repetitive thud signaling that the nine foot suit of armor is still in tow. But after a few moments the motion of the recording suddenly stops as Drake comes to a halt. “Ah, where are my keys?” A hand reaches into the pocket and fills the screen momentarily before it readjusts and Drake’s face is now filling the view. “Well that’s not what I was looking for. Though I should probably find it a safer place.” Walking to his mechanical armor, Drake actually opens up the face plate and sets the holobox inside. Now giving the recording a perfect view of the three from the suits perspective.

“What is the box wielder of chaos?” the stouter of the darkly garbed men asks.

“No time to explain, but it’s harmless I assure you. And by the way my name is Drake Vixton, not wielder of chaos,” the scientist says with an annoyed frown. “And you know, you could always give me your names as well so I don’t have to keep addressing you as ‘hey you’ or ‘intruders’.”

“Nice try, Vixton, but we’re not about to give you our names that easily,” the taller of the duo replies in a slight sneer.

Crossing his arms Drake shrugs and answered, “Alright then, I’ll just have to come up with names for you.” Smiling, he put a hand on his chin in mock thought and said, “Hmm, how about you be Sir Dinkle, and you are his trusty lanky butler Fiddles. Or, wait, you can be Dr. Stomps-through-Dirt and I will call you Wild-Bushfire”

The look on the two darkly glad figures is still obscured by their masks, but by the way they are tensing up you can tell that they are not too happy with this man making up such ridiculous names for them; and enjoying it as well as the smile on his face only grew wider as he noticed their slight reactions that tipped off their annoyance. “Oh wait, I have it, you can be Professor Teapot, and your tall friend is Sir Obelisk! It’s perfect!” Dr. Vixton exclaimed with a grin.

“Fine,” the stouter of the two says with a raised hand to keep the scientist from proceeding with his absurdity, “We are known to our present company as the Thunder Brothers.”

“If I were you I would have stuck with Professor Teapot and Sir Obelisk,” the chaos mage smirked.

“The power of names is well known to us. Speaking your name in the presence of those who have magic makes you vulnerable Drake Vixton. If you must address us, I am Thunderbird and he is Thunder Cat.”

“Suits me,” Drake agreed as he pulled out his keys and opened the steel door in front of him. “Now let’s go, time is more of the essence that you can imagine.”

“So where are we headed Dr. Vixton?” Ashwin [Thunderbird] asked as the ran start to run down the hallway that was filling with sirens and red light.

“We are going down to the prison ward. There is someone that I must retrieve,” Drake replies in a more serious tone than before.

“Wait, we are breaking someone out of jail?” Kavi [Thunder Cat] asked in a suspicious tone. Already this did not sit well with the Native American.

“Oh don’t be so dramatic,” Drake scoffed, “You are here to blow up this place in this first place right? Which means you most likely believe that the people that run and staff this place are ‘evil’ or at least crooked in some way. So if that is your logic, wouldn’t it be logical that perhaps the people that they are incarcerating here are the opposite alignment in morals and such that they are? Which would mean that they are ‘the good guys’ as you would say, right? So you should be jumping at the opportunity to break out a fellow do-gooder!”

The scientist’s explanation seemed to have had some swaying power on their decision but neither really answered his explanation. Whether it was because they thought that he was right, or simply didn’t want to engage him in the argument is unclear, but either way it did cause them to clam up. Which seemed to be good enough for the scientist at that point.

A few more doors pass them by as the group continues to run forward and Drake opens them with his rather large ring of keys. Their luck runs dry as they approach a double door that had a complicated combination lock on the side other than a key hole and two men guarding it. The guards are decked out in full armor and carrying what looks to be modified rifles. Though knowing their location it is possible that the rifles shot lighting or acid pellets or something far more destructive than simple bullets. Stopping short, the Native Americans automatically dropped into a fighting stance and waited to see what would come of the guards.

Drake on the other hand just walks forward and says, “Hello men, I am Drake Vixton, head scientist of the Lollygag Initiative and need immediate access to this wing of the LAByrinth.” His statement was very authoritative as he showed his badge and waited for the men to respond.

“That is all very well Dr. Vixton but we are under emergency lockdown at the moment. No one goes in or out,” the guard to the right stated. “Besides, you should be heading for the bomb shelter anyway. Allow me to escort you to,”

“Wait a sec,” the second guard interrupted. “That’s all well and good, but before we take him anywhere we need to know who’s following you.”

“These are my personal assistants and a robot of my own creation,” Drake answered with a bit of pride in his voice. The glance exchanged by Kavi and Ashwin makes it clear that they weren’t too keen on the idea of being ‘assistants’ but at the moment it was the only cover they had.

“Oh really? Then why aren’t they in uniform?” the guard questioned.

“I gave them new ones on account that I am not fond of the regulation uniforms at all. Too bland and cookie cutter. There’s no heart or soul put into the design,” Drake answers with a huff of mock indignation.

His acting wasn’t enough to convince the guards.

“Sir, I think we are going to have to ask you to come with us.”

“Oh for Odin’s sake, I tried to be nice about this but I no longer have time!” Drake announced in exasperation. Raising his imposing looking gauntlet, a condensed blast of lightning surged out of its palm and struck the guard to the right square in the chest. Instantly his body convulsed as he was thrown against the wall. His eyes rolled back into his head as the guard’s body slid to the ground with a large blackened scorch mark in his chest. The blast had killed him.

Enraged at this sight, the second guard aims his rifle point blank at Drake in an attempt to get revenge and relieve the scientist of his life. Such plans did not come to fruition however, as a flash of steel preceded Vixton’s rapier knocking the rifle to the side before he could squeeze the trigger. Grabbing hold of the living guard’s face, Drake looked him straight in his frightened eyes and said, “You shouldn’t have gotten in my way.” His statement was finalized by the thousands of volts of electricity that ran through the guard’s body. Once the body had gone limp, Drake released the man’s head and let it thump to the floor like a ragdoll. Face now unrecognizable from the electrical burns.

As Drake sheathed his blade and grabbed the security card from the fallen guard, Ashwin found himself appalled by what he had just witnessed. Kavi however, was the first to speak as he stepped forward and asks in anger, “What was that?! You just killed two of your own men just to get through a door! What kind of a man turns on his own comrades? Our fables tell of chaos magic twisting men into monsters, but I never believed it to be true.”

“Calm down brother,” Ashwin said as he put a hand on Kavi’s shoulder, “This man will answer for his crimes once we escape this place.”

“Oh will you give it a rest?” Drake asks suddenly, his eyes filled with fire as he whips around on the two. “Are you really going to give me that? You and your morals and ethics, seeing the world in such black and white terms!” Now fixing the native Americans with a steely glare of his own the scientist continues his barrage of retorts, “Let me educate you a little on the world we live in. It is not so cut and dry as ‘good’ and ‘bad’. Morality is subjective to the individuals moral compass. Why do you think there are ‘sides’ in the first place? Why do you think there are good and bad people? Because the truth of what is accepted and what isn’t differs depending on who you ask. And if you ask me, what I just did was not ‘evil’ or ‘depraved’ it was necessary.”

“How can you say that?” Kavi shot back angrily, as his temper flared from the scientist’s rant, “Whether morality is subjective or not, murder is still held as wrong by the law and just about anyone you ask would agree that it is an act of evil. So how do you rationalize that into your speech?”

“Because when my own life is on the line, there is nothing I won’t do for survival,” Drake replied. “Everyone has a basic fight or flight response, it is hardwired into our minds to survive. And if you push someone, anyone, far enough and threaten their life they will do anything it takes to ensure that they live. Even you.”

“Your logic is twisted, chaos magician,” Kavi growled, “We aren’t killers like you.”

“Oh really? Then I must have just imagined the fact that you were going to take me out with my own machine back in my lab so that I did not take your lives with a lightning bolt,” the scientist snapped.

“That’s different!” Kavi asserted. “You threatened our lives first, we were simply defending ourselves. And no one ever said we were going to take your life!”

“And that makes it different from what I did how?” Drake asked, “I killed these men because they stood between me and our exit out of here. They threatened my life by not moving out of the way, so I did what I had to so that our survival was ensured.” Their silence egged the scientist to continue, “We were both ready to kill those that stood in our way of survival, I simply had to actually follow through with it. So before you start throwing your morals and ethics at me and how you are so much better than I am, and I’m just a murdering chaos magician, you might want to examine your own motives first. Our world is not black and white, but instead is many different shades of gray. Nothing is completely right or wrong, because there is always someone who will see it differently. You’d do well to learn that.”

“Your words do nothing but free you from the accountability for your actions,” Kavi sniped.

“Let us agree to disagree for the time being,” Ashwin silences Kavi. “The way of the Spectrum Spirits is not in any danger from this man’s actions or speech. But our lives are very much in danger from the actions of our own people, so we’d best move on.”

Turning his back on the Native Americans, Drake flipped the dials and switches on the combination lock by rote and opened the double doors. “Now hurry up, we don’t have much time left after this detour of ours. We need to get to Ayame before things start going further south.” Not waiting for a response this time, the blond haired scientist took off down the halls with the brothers reluctantly following.

The trip from then on was silent as neither side really had anything to say at this point. They reached the prison ward without any further delay and were met by cries of desperation from all sides as those within the cells groveled for their lives. This seemed to stop the brothers in their tracks as they looked around in confusion. One might speculate that they were wondering whether or not they should release them from their cages or not.

Drake had no such indecisive feelings. He ignored the pleas for help as he walked to the end of the hallway and found the person he was looking for. His lips move as he says something to the person on the other side of the bars, but he is too far away from the holobox’s audio to pick it up. Though it can be assumed that whatever he said was probably something to the effects of ‘Stand Back’ from the following events. Pulling out a small vile with a mysterious green substance within it, Drake administered a few drops to each of the bars and watched them melt away within seconds as the acid ate hungrily at the metal.

Stepping into the cell, Drake disappears from the frame momentarily before reappearing with a female. She looks to be of Nipponese descent, with black hair, fair skin, and wearing clothes of her country. Drake has one of her arms wrapped around his shoulders and another around her waist as he helps her walk.

“This is who we came to save?” Kavi asks  carefully assessing the woman who was obviously grievously injured as the two approach.

“Yes, this is Ayame Harumi, and she is very important to me. However she is also still in bad shape; she was taken as prisoner after a great battle and hasn’t had time to recover properly. So we need to get her to her Shi No Shingia- uh, her Death Armor and quickly. If she can still pilot it, it will be much easier to get out of here with great haste.”

The room rocked as an explosion could be heard in the distance. It was soon followed by a chain of echoing booms that started the adrenaline pumping in everyone’s system. The room filled with hysteria as the prisoners yelled and screamed for help, causing Kavi and Ashwin to look around in concern. Even Ayame looked ready to take off running despite her battered state.

“Looks like our time was just cut in half,” Drake shouted above the noise. Handing off Ayame quickly to Ashwin, who hesitantly took hold of her, Drake walks over to the armor and out of view as he circles behind it.

“What are you doing?” Kavi asks as he turns from side to side like a rabbit cornered by predators.

“Speed is of great importance now,” Drake yelled back, “And with us having to carry Ayame we will be slowed down. So instead I will use the armor.”

“I thought you said it wouldn’t work without our magic,” Ashwin questioned in a confused tone.

“The problem with the armor was the fact that I couldn’t get it to jumpstart,” Drake explained, “However now that it is moving, if I patch my lightning battery into its circuitry like this, it should run on its own.” Stepping back into the frame Drake said, “Already, let off your magical hold on the armor and see if it continues running.”

Skepticism plain on his face, but without a better plan, Ashwin reluctantly released his grip on the armor. And to their surprise and elation, it continued to run. “Success!” Drake cheered. Opening up the armor’s chest, Drake disappears into it; which also makes the current holobox point of view his own. Walking forward, one large metal arm reaches forward and gently puts Ayame over his shoulder. She of course protested the movement as she wasn’t at all sure what this man intended, but against such a creation her resistance was futile.

“Alright, now we can go,” Drake said. And the words had not come a second too soon as the floor quaked beneath them and fire began to shoot up from the crumbling floor. “Come on, follow me! We have one more stop to make before we get out of here, and from the looks of it we don’t have much time left!”

Fear fueling their steps now, the trio turned tail and sprinted out the door leaving the inmates to cry in vain for their release. Wings on their heels, they all ran at full speed down the collapsing halls as fire sprouted from the vents and lights flickered erratically. Time was no longer on their side and it was running out on them quickly. Only hope kept them running now, and the fear of the destruction that was nipping at their heels.

Chapter 4.26: Flight of the Navigator

Journal Entry: Malencia De LaVelle

How I escaped death again (Cont’d)

I have only ever heard rumors of what had transpired between Dr. Sneeze and the Baron Von Boesehosen. Each rumor is  more fantastical than the next, but every one of them ends the same way. Whatever truly happened left Dr. Sneeze a broken man burdened with the weight of his humanity and stripped the Baron of whatever humanity he had in the first place. The man I faced had no soul and the only light in the Baron’s eyes was cruelty. My heart uncharacteristically raced within my chest.

My view of the short man with his wild hair was cut off by the cloaked outline of X stepping between me and those cold terrifying eyes. It was clear that X had a weapon trained on the Baron but I did not feel reassured.

“Zare is no need for  ze posturing, Herr X. You are trapped viz no vhere to run.”

“I warned you not to ignore me,” Penny exulted in the moment.

I am fairly certain that simpering fool thought she had taken center stage, but all eyes were on X and Baron Von Boesehosen. I had to forcibly pry my eyes from the pair so that I could assess the entirety of the situation. Behind Boesehosen and Penny the dark of the hallway writhed with movement. A chorus of hissing and rumbling growls was accentuated by the high pitched sounds of scraping metal- all of which was underscored by the whir of clockwork. There was an army of all the horrors we had managed to avoid in the LABrynth waiting for us in that hallway.

“Vell zis has turned out to be a gute day after all. Putting an end to ze infamouz X will be gute publicity for me. And what of zis exquvisite creature you are trying to hide from me?”

Something in the mad scientist’s tone turned my stomach to stone and I fought to keep upright against the weight of it. It is odd for me to have such a visceral reaction to this kind of situation. My ears began to hum. But  it wasn’t humming it was more like a rhythmic beating of the air- no more like multiple rhythmic beatings of the air causing the air pressure to compound around us.

Looking out the window behind us I spied machines the size of  draft horses each topped with a spinning propeller not dissimilar to Addy’s Painted Pony  when it did vertical take offs. Where a pilot might have sat was a large mounted gun with an endless ammunition feeding belt. Ten of the mechanical terrors observed the exchange through the window with acute interest. We were officially trapped. I felt my hand creep toward my bracelet. I wasn’t keen on the idea of skipping through time with a pirate, but it was preferable to being the experiment of a monster.

The whole world lurched beneath us. Objects rained to the ground from the walls. The floor undulated stealing our footing, but before I could hit the ground I found myself in the arms of X.

“Hahahahaha!”

Laughter was the last sound I ever expected to come from X. Just when I was convinced the most terrifying thing in the equation was the Baron, X’s laughter turned my blood cold. The chilling sound of it will haunt my dreams.

“The day is not over yet, Baron!”

I did not have time to register the insult of being thrown over the pirate’s shoulder. With one arm clamped around my waist like a vice and the other covering me with his cloak so that the world went black I never felt the impact of hitting the window. Only when X flung his arm out to catch a hold of the bottom of one of the flying machines did my eyes focus to see the sparkling remains of the window falling away to the earth and the angry visage of the Baron in its vacant frame.

“Quickly climb aboard and don’t get near that propeller!”

I didn’t question the order as I watched all of the machines turning their guns on us. I have no idea how X qualified this as an escape plan. After today, I don’t think X bothers to qualify any plan. I swear he just does whatever pops into his head! (And I thought Addy was bad!)

I wrapped myself as tightly as I could around the rails that must have been the landing gear of the machine. Hand over hand X made his way to the cockpit. Gripping the upper edge of the machine just below the propeller he kicked out from the side of the cockpit only to slam feet first into the mounted gun. He repeated the process several times trying to dislodge the deadly pilot. So great was his momentum at one point I was certain his trailing cape was going to be sucked up into the propeller a foot from his head.

The gun finally yielded and fell away out the opposite side of the cockpit. The force of the falling gun caused the machine to spin and buck. Deadly gun fire spat in all directions. It is a miracle I only managed to be grazed. I wasn’t sure which would claim my life first, a bullet or the ground.

Slowly the machine leveled out and I watched the cut loose gun fall away below us. That was the first time I saw what had sent the world into chaos. Below us geysers of fire shot out of the ground and fiery chasms consumed whole buildings at a time. Whatever that kid had put in those explosives was a bit too much!

The machine jerked into a zig zag recalling my attention. We shot up high into the air then dropped like a stone before leveling off to navigate the sky like a drunk in a back alley. Indeed I was about to add vomit to the scenario for authenticity when I glanced up to curse the cockpit that concealed our lunatic pilot and caught sight of a gloved hand motioning for me to make my way to the out of control center of our flight.

I don’t think I have ever ducked the scythe of death as many times as I did in the span of a few minutes that it took me to finally climb into the cockpit as we swerved in and out of the other flying machines avoiding their streams of gunfire. My nerves were so frayed by the time I climbed inside the mere sight of X provoked me to slap him across the face as hard as I could. My hand stung from the metal of his clockwork mask and I could feel the warm pricks of blood where I had cut my hand on its sharp facets. Still the satisfaction of seeing him recoil startled by my actions was enough to keep me from feeling the full repercussions of my folly.

Then I swear beneath that mask X smiled. He shook off my assault with a chuckle. Infuriated, I found my throwing knife in my hand. I was done with this character. But the air pirate nonchalantly whipped the knife from my hand and used it to point down to the floor of the cockpit at an exposed bit of clockwork. The deep beating of the propeller above our heads made any form of verbal communication impossible, but it was clear what X was trying to communicate by example. He was teaching me how to fly this monstrosity.

After a few haphazard demonstrations of how to make the machine gain or loose altitude and how to navigate it, X sat back and looked at me. I knew the question he couldn’t ask, he wanted to know if I had followed all of his instruction. Tentatively, I nodded yes. X responded by leaping out of the cockpit onto another of the flying machines leaving me to scramble to keep mine from falling out of the sky.

I have never wanted to strand someone in prehistory as much I do X. I swear if I ever get the chance that air pirate will have to learn to pilot pterodactyls!

Chapter 4.25: Mangling Mammoth Mutants

Personal Correspondence: Jason McCoy

The pain from where that mutant slashed my arm wide open began to actually cause me some trouble as I wondered that nightmarish maze of mad science. Even with the hasty battle dressing I could still feel a slow trickle of blood coming from my wound; and with it went my strength. And I don’t want to put any tickets on myself, but I would say that by most standards I’m fit as a mallee bull. But even that considered, after my brawl with over a dozen mutants I was a bit haggard. Even Moon was starting to show signs of exhaustion.

Which of course, is the exact time that we ran into the biggest of the mutants to be seen. I mean this abomination filled the hallway as nearly a complete wall of writhing organic parts. The man, if I can call it that, stared at me with the hatred of a mad beast that knows nothing but violence. He had tusks that were yellow and broken, one arm that was three times normal size and as hairy as a gorilla’s, and his other arm that had thorns sprouting from it. Bone protrusions came in all shapes and sizes along his head and chest, and his legs were thicker around than my chest. And to top it all off, he was about ten feet tall and had a roar that shook my ribcage from nearly twenty five yards.

“Great lands, this is just bonzer,” I muttered under my breath as the beast of a man let out his bone rattling roar. Predictably enough he charged me right after and my first reaction was of course, to shoot him. Whipping around my beauty of a rifle I unloaded two rounds in quick succession into the man’s skull. Both of which ricocheted off to the side stunning me like a mullet into my spot. The creature, on the other hand, wasn’t even phased and had continued charging.

Moon attempted to stop the man as she jumped and grabbed a hold of his leg with a bite that would have fractured a regular man’s ankle. However the abomination didn’t even stop as he kicked her aside and swung his gorilla arm straight into my abdomen. I won’t lie, a train probably wouldn’t have hit that hard. My body flew through the hallway like a ragdoll and when I hit the ground I couldn’t breathe. My head spun like I had been on the turps as I wondered why life had decided to give me the rough end of the pineapple once again.

Fighting to remain conscious, I tried my best to rise from my fallen position only to be slammed right back into the ground by the two ton abomination. The question of who had put a moz on me certainly crossed my mind as he began to compress my chest into the floor. I could feel my body slowly giving way and it was only a matter of time before the inevitable crunch came along and I was pushing up daisies. That was when the alarms began to blare.

Taking his attention off of me for that second was the abomination’s last mistake he ever made. After I filled my starving lungs with air I reached out and retrieved my rifle from the ground. The first four rounds were at point blank range into the armpit of the arm he was holding me with. Unlike his skull, apparently his arm wasn’t so heavily armored. Screaming in pain, he reared back like a wounded animal and I tell you my adrenaline has never fueled me so fast as it did at that moment. Pain momentarily forgotten, I snarled like a wolverine and charged the beast of a man.

My first act was to stab my eight inch knife into his knee. “Today was supposed to go smooth!” I yelled in rage. Blowing out his other knee with a particularly large caliber slug, I watched as he dropped to his knees in front of me. “It was just in and out without any confrontation!” I cried with force as the butt of my rifle met his jaw. “And you and all your mutant friends just had to go and stir the possum!” Kicking him square in the chest, a thud echoed above the alarms as he fell on his back and I fired off a full clip from my pistol into his chest.

 

Sufficiently done like dinner, the mutant was splayed out in front of me like freshly killed prey in front of a predator. Bleeding from multiple bullet wounds, he struggled to bring himself to a rise but found that none of his limbs would respond accordingly. Placing my heel on his chest, I applied as much pressure as possible and listened to him cry in pain. Only to cut it short by jamming the muzzle of my rifle into the bottom of his jaw. “Sorry mate, but your wallaby trail ended the moment you hurt my dog.” A quick squeeze of the trigger and I had rid the world of yet another freak of nature.

And I have to admit, I felt like a right tall poppy standing on top of that massive pile of flesh. Wouldn’t you know it, Moon seemed to think so too as she ran up and gave a howl. From the looks of it she had fared much better against the beast than I had. Adrenaline draining from my system at that point, I found myself in another level of agony than where I had first started. I’m certain that if I hadn’t just broken a rib or two than I had just gained a whole ton of internal bruising. Now limping from my injuries, I trudged onward to try and reach the hangar before anything else tried to rip my head off only to be shaken nearly to the ground by what I can only assume was an explosion from the sound of the boom.

“You have got to be joking,” was the exact phrase that came from my mouth as a series of booms followed the initial blast; and only got closer as they continued. Within seconds a glow began to illuminate the end of the hallway and a rush of heat cemented my fears. A wall of fire wrapped around the corner and thrashed out towards me with crimson jaws that threatened to swallow me whole.

Adrenaline now replacing my blood, I turned tail and ran for my life. With explosions ringing in my ears and Moon outpacing me as we hauled our backsides as fast as possible in the opposite direction of the fire, you will never guess how I escaped with my life.

Chapter 4.24: Countdown To Impending Inferno

Journal Entry: Andreas Volstad

We had been in the LABrynth for hours.  We had worked our way through traps and passageways all attempting to reach our individual goals.  So when I pushed the button on our way out of the Airstrip to set off the explosives, I really should have known 5 minutes would not be enough time to get out.  Granted, I think I was running faster than I had ever before and definitely faster than I thought possible, even if Emmett was practically skipping in order to keep…well, down, with my pace.  When there are 40 plus soldiers, creatures, robots, and who knows what else chasing you and you know that at any point a wall or floor my suck you up into Odin knows where, you tend to just duck your head and run.  Unless maybe you were X, or Kira, then you could just beat them all up and go about your day.  Anyways…

We rounded several corners, and came to a long stretch of hallway, so large in fact, I wondered how we had never seen it before.  It didn’t matter at that point though, so we took off down the passage to get as far away as possible from those bombs.  We got a good way down the hall before anyone realized what was happening, eventually however some soldiers rallied together ahead of us to form a blockade.  Unfortunately for them, and the technician, Emmett decided it was a convenient time to remove himself of his extra baggage.  The unconscious man flailed through the air and toppled the wall of men like Topple Barrels, which is a rather fun game that I may tell you about at some point, but back to what I was saying.  We jumped the groaning men and continued down the hall.  We took about 5 more steps when a heavy boom echoed through the LABrynth.  It was time.

Several more explosions detonated as we continued to run, but it wasn’t until the boiler exploded that we were shaken to the ground.  I could hear the rending of metal and the air became hot as we scrambled to get back up.  I knew that the last of my bombs had gone off and yet there were more explosions, smaller but many and thats when it occurred to me.  Every lab close enough to those bombs would probably explode and then any lab close enough to those would too.  I looked back over my shoulder and weeped alittle inside.  The labs were exploding and the wall of fire was coming our way.

We veered off to the right, hoping to at least get away from the obvious and soon we found ourselves in a dead end with only a ladder leading up and a lab to our left.  I pointed for Emmett to go up and try the hatch, but as soon as he reached the ladder the soldiers appeared around the corner.  I was almost starting to believe I wasn’t going to make it out, but instead I hurried into the Lab with Emmett behind me.  We raced inside and slammed the door shut behind us.  Emmett stayed and fortified the door with himself, easily holding off the pounding and pushing from the guards outside.  I began looking for anything I could use to get us out.  Beakers, vials, burners, all pretty normal things that i knew nothing about.  But then on a small table over on the side of the room sat a rectangular box.  Of course it wasn’t just a box, the metal sheets placed one over the other leading down into the machine told me it had something to do with creating force.  I turned it away from myself and tested it.  It revved and whirled, whined at a high pitch and then suddenly it shot across the table onto the floor.  What was really amazing was the hole it had created in the stone wall it had originally been facing.  Not only did it create force, but it was able to project it.  I couldn’t believe it and I quickly decided that it would be sufficient payment for my service from when I worked for Boesehosen, which he never paid me.

It was about that time however that the weak attempts at opening the door were replaced with loud clangs and roaring.  Despite Emmett’s fortitude, the door suddenly creaked open and huge metal fingers slithered their way in.  I wasted no time and quickly found a small welding torch to began attaching this nameless gizmo to my blaster.  It only took me a minute, which was really all the time I had, because the beasts whole arm was now inside, slowly pushing Emmett further and further back.  I stepped up, facing the door, and told Emmett to move aside.  He did so, after a moment, and the door suddenly slammed open.  A man, at least, part of a man stepped inside.  He was about 90% robotic and was huge, at least 3 times my height.  He laughed when he saw me, standing there with nothing but a toy gun.  He raised his fists and then came at me.  Luckily for me, I had already been holding down the button to charge my new toy and as I rose the weapon to his chest and prayed it would work, it did.  The man felt the blow rip through him, but due to his oversized body he couldn’t actually see what the damage was.  He fell face first, not knowing what had happened.  In a very careless motion on my part, the gun knocked me flat on my back as well.  Which ended up being a good thing, since the monsters momentum still carried him into the place I had been previously standing.  I looked up over the pile of scrap metal at my feet and realized that the other soldiers had followed the big man in; Emmett had taken care of almost all of them.  The two he hadn’t yet were easy prey when they stopped and gawked at what I had down to their creation.  A karate chop and a backhand later we were out the door heading up the ladder into freedom.

Chapter 4.23: Drake Tangos With Technomancers

HDRB (Holographic Data Recording Box) Recording #04020114

[This next recording is the one that directly follows that of our introduction to the mad scientist Drake Vixton. I believe you all will find this quite entertaining and enlightening pertaining to the current line of entries. ~ The Archivist]

Flickering for a moment, the image of the holobox refocuses on the room from a different angle than before. Apparently the device had been set on the desk but was left on by accident. Drake is seen standing a few feet away listening as the next few strings of bells go off, one hand on the door and his rapier in the other. As the bells start ringing in quicker succession and the footsteps from the hall come thundering closer the scientist decides to back off of the door and stand at the ready. Good thing too, as moments later it was nearly busted off its hinges and two dark clothed figures come rushing into the room.

Finally face to face with the disturbance, the two parties came to a stop as they saw one another. The pair of intruders stared down Drake as he held his rapier level with the two of them; a standoff has now been instated.

“Well unless the quality of the mutants around here has skyrocketed when I wasn’t looking, or the robotics team has been replaced by people of actual intelligence, then I would have to say that you are intruders,” Drake quips.

“Who we are is none of your business,” the taller of the pair retorts hotly, “All you need to know is that moving out of the way is in your best interest right now.”

The man’s threats do not seem to elicit the response he was looking for, as the blond haired scientist simply laughed. “My good man, I believe you are mistaken on who has the power in this situation. You are attacking me in my own lab; even the dullest of creatures knows that such a thing is a fool’s errand.”

Grunting, the intruder turns to his partner saying, “Brother, let’s take him out, we don’t have time for this. They may already be in place.” The shorter of the two nodded in acknowledgment and both simultaneously advanced on Drake.Both are tall and have an imposing presence, but one is more broad and solidly rooted, his movements backed by the strength of the earth itself. The other man is other more lithe and willowy, with graceful, quick, and agile movement. It would appear the scientist is tangling with more than capable opponents.

A wicked grin crosses the scientist’s face as his eyes flash. The recording goes white momentarily as a bolt of lightning strikes directly between the three of them. When the image comes back into view there is a smoldering crater in the floor with the intruders on one side staring wide eyed at Drake who chuckled, “Oh I’m sorry, did I forget to mention my ability to wield magic?”

Anger is plain in the taller man’s body language as he growled, “By the Blue Spirit, you’re about to be sorry.” With the clenching of his fists, a strange blue glow surrounded the mechanical monstrosity in the corner of the room. It was a strange looking device resembling a suit of armor that had elements of both samurai armor and that of the Nordic Vikings. However this particular mechanical wonder was nine feet tall and was open chested as if to fit a person inside it.

As the glow encompasses the machine its chest seals shut and it rises from its kneeling position to its full height as if called to arms. A shield folds out from one arm as it retrieves the slim bastard sword from its side and three pairs of unfinished wings flared outward from its back. The stouter of the intruders found it pertinent to speak now as they had obtained the upper hand, “Wielder of the lightening of chaos, I believe we are now the ones calling the shots. If you would be so kind as to move out of our way, we can still let this conflict end without anyone getting hurt.” His comment on avoiding violence get a rise out of the taller of the duo, but the protest is silenced with a grunt.

Drake on the other hand, has completely lost interest in the pair by this point. Indeed the wasn’t listening to a word they were speaking. Instead he has crossed the room to his now standing suit of armor and is staring at his unfinished masterpiece as it looms over him ready to strike at any moment. “How did you do that?” he asks in awe as he turns back to the two intruders. “I’ve been trying for months to get this thing to work, I almost had the answer, but then you just come along and raise the thing from the ground without even touching it! How?”

Taken aback by the sudden change in subject and pace, the pair exchange a glance but don’t say anything. It is evident that the stout one was about to reply when a rather loud and annoying tone begins to blare over the intercoms of the entire LAByrinth. All three look up at the flashing red lights along the ceiling before returning back down to stare at each other.

“You wouldn’t happen to know what that is all about, would you?” Drake asks with a raised eyebrow.

Deciding to take advantage of the situation, the taller of the two speaks confidently, “Yes, we are here with an entire squad that is currently setting explosives in the hangar of your maze of metal. And if you don’t want your lab to be the next victim you’ll move.”

Drake’s eyes spread out to the width of dinner plates at the comment. Not because of the threat, but for an entirely different reason. “Wait, you’re not serious are you? You didn’t actually go and place explosives in the hangar?” From the hesitant looks on the pair’s face, Drake assumes the answer was yes. “By Odin, you have just doomed us all! The propulsion systems for the Lollygag recreations are already in place along with the ammunition for the upgrades that the Barron made! Triggering any sort of explosion in that room will cause a chain reaction that will ripple throughout the entire town! Do you have any idea how many flammable and volatile experiments are in this LAByrinth?!”

“Tell me follower of the ways of chaos, how do you know about what’s in the hangar? None of the other scientists here knew anything about it,” the shorter of the duo demands with a narrowed stare.

“Because I am the head scientist for reverse engineering the designs!” Drake shouts in a frustrated tone as he rushes around the room. In a flurry of motion he begins to grab what he values most out of his work before the impending explosion obliterates it all. His Lightning Battery was already slung across his back as he straps a rather intricate looking gauntlet to his arm and begin tossing vials and papers in the myriad of pockets on his person. “But we don’t have time for that now, we must go before this entire place is incinerated.”

The pair of intruders hesitate at the idea of accompanying the scientist.  As Drake finishes his packing and opens a secret back door to his lab he turns to them and lets out a deep sigh, “Look, we can go back to fighting one another if you would really like too after we escape, but for right now our top priority should be survival, and the only way we are going to do that is to set our differences aside for a moment.”

After a moment of consideration, the shorter of the intruders comments, “Alright, lead on scientist. But we’re watching you.”

“Watch away,” Drake shrugs with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Oh, and do bring my armor will you? We may need it. Ah, and can’t forget this,” Drake reaches out towards the holobox once again and this time picks it up and tosses it in his pocket with what looked to be a set of keys, a vial of some sort of green liquid, and some sort of wrapped candy. “Come on, we don’t have much time and I have someone to save before this entire place goes up in smoke around us.” Three sets of footsteps and the thudding stomps of the suit of armor followed as the group heads out the door as they now race the clock that has been unintentionally and almost unknowingly set against them.

Chapter 4.22: Penny Dreadful

Journal Entry: Malencia De LaVelle

My Account of How I Escaped Death…Again:

     We shimmied our way into the ventilation system, despite protests from Penny. She did admit that Boesehosen’s office is in the topmost tower of the above ground university building hiding this LABryth. So our best course of action was up. Hands and knees, we crawled till the vents reached an elevator shaft. The car was below us; the cables seemed to run all the way to the top. Penny gasped at the distance downward.    “Afraid of heights?” I quipped. I tried, I really did try to bite my tongue, but her belligerent attitude was starting to grate on me. I swear, I thought I heard her say “You should be afraid…” under her breath. But X was already rigging up a sort of climbing apparatus and motioned for me to grab ahold of him. As awkward as it was, I draped my arms across his shoulders and wrapped my legs around his chest. Penny had to grip onto his belt, her legs dangling precariously. X then proceeded to ratchet the device up the cables. It was a slow but steady process. Upon arriving at the top, we were able to swing onto the ledge of the elevator entrance. There was an ornately-carved gate that closed off the hallway from the elevator shaft and Penny almost pushed me back down the way we came to reach the lock of the gate-apparently to show her own lockpicking skills. Once in the hallway there seemed to be several doors to choose, but Penny motioned to the one farthest down the hall. The thick double doors were locked as well, and just as Penny moved to them again, X grabbed her by the collar and yanked her back.

  “Not until I see if it’s empty.” He pulled out a thin, jointed tube and snaked it under the bottom of the door, rotating it left and right as he gazed into one of its glass ends. Several moments later, he nodded to me and I was able to use my own lock pick set. The room felt like some of the more eccentric aristocrats’ studies I’ve seen, but with more gears, bottles, and confusing contraptions. A thick, iron safe sat in one corner, brandishing a complicated combination dial and intricate couplings. I pulled out my own tube-this one of rubber with a small metal cone on each end, and pressed it to my ear. I had seen this type of lock advertised and had admired its complexity. Now I was beginning to curse its ingenuity. A full ten minutes went by before I finally heard the last tumbler fall into place. Holding my breath, with X breathing down my neck, I tugged on the door. To my relief, it gave way and revealed the rolled up documents that were the Lollygag schematics. Just as I grabbed them, a loud ringing sounded down the hall. An Alarm! We both turned to run when X said, “Where’s Penny?”

  We frantically scanned the room, hoping she was merely cowering in a corner somewhere but the mouse was nowhere to be found.

   “Confound it. Let’s just go,” X hissed. But as we both turned to the doors, they swung open. In stepped a man, small in stature but terrifying in expression. And behind him stood Penny, wringing her hands but a look of smugness on her face. Realization hit. She was the one who had sounded the alarm. And standing before us was none other than Hans Von Boesehosen, the Baron of Boese.