Chapter Text
Chapter 12
Johnny and Super Sonic moved away quickly as the mechanical hand struck down on the pair. Looking behind, they ran away to gain more cover. Johnny looked at the situation and shouted for the folk and creatures to get away. Screaming in terror, staff and chao all ran away as the metal tyrant threw its free hand again on the moving hedgehog.
Tightening up to a ball, the hedgehog dashed forwards towards the body centre. However, the robot shifted and lifted its foot to block the attack; sending Super flying off into the debris. Nutzan Bolt watched from his metal pedestal up top, watching his enemies flee from his immense strength. Looking down to his other hand, he saw inside the small bodies of the feline and Fatima.
Ebony looked up as she tried to cover Fatima. But as she rose her hands up to conjure a spell, the container was shaken violently. Laughing, Bolt watched as both girls inside were being pushed and heaved to each side, slamming against the wall. They both fell at the bottom, as they cradled inside for protection. This playtime however, distracted him as the hedgehog speeded from the side.
But unfortunately, that attack was caught as well, as the spare hand slammed Super Sonic down to ground. Looking up, the hedgehog saw the two silhouettes inside the best of the machinal being, as it bellowed with laughter.
“Ha! You think you can sneak us with that? You are dealing with three brains in this machinal beauty.” Rudransh gleamed as he spoke.
The hedgehog bounced up and moved quickly before the foot fell upon him. Running away quickly, he met up with Johnny nearby. The rabbit looked at his friend with desperation, for he looked battered and tired.
“Super are you alright?”
“Barely, but if I’m gonna get a shot on that thing, I need a distraction!”
But then suddenly they looked up from their hiding spot, as they could hear something vast approaching. Both of them looked worried as the tiny Chao creatures, all stormed towards the robot. Confused, the army of Chao started to climb up the legs of the robot, spreading themselves across the whole machinal body. All three of them protested as they tried to swing and kick them away. However, they basically hung onto them with their small cries and shouts.
“Get these blighters off me!” Bolt shouted, as the creature’s latched onto the mechanical head.
Suddenly from the distraction, the hand holding onto the container was loose and accidently let go of the construction, as it fell towards the floor. Johnny cried out, terrified for the girl’s safety, the hedgehog was already on it, as he whooshed himself around the container, slowing its fall down, to a gentle landing.
The Chao continued to distract the metal boss, while Johnny was tasked to fish them out. Ebony pulled herself up, but Fatima however was in trouble. Being shaken around so much, she had collapsed in the heap. The rabbit carefully took her out, to see how badly she was hurt.
Super Sonic didn’t waste a moment as with the distraction made one more direct hit to the chest…and struck gold! Everyone watched as the robot lost its footings, trying to gain composure; still being surrounded by the Chao.
“I’ve had enough of these silly little games!” Rudransh called out.
Suddenly the robot shot out a large booster behind the foot, finally gaining its stance. As they grouped back together, they watched to see the robot was only fazed; not damaged. Super looked at where he had hit…and was only but a dent.
“What is that thing made of?” Super questioned in frustration.
“Oh, come now! Surly you know this material? It is after all, from YOUR planet?” Gordon shouted.
All the Mobians looked at each other, until Johnny noticed.
“Megatal? How did you get your hands on that?” The rabbit questioned, clenching his fists.
“My money goes far and wide you vermin! Behold for yourself what money can BUY!” Rudransh shouted in victory.
Suddenly all the Chao and everyone fled, as Bolt screamed in attack as the machinal body, altered and released weapons galore; guns filled to the brim. Johnny took Fatima carefully as he went somewhere safe to cover. Meanwhile, Super Sonic dashed to collect any Chao from the firing rounds. Ducking, Ebony used her magic to distract the robot, but went into shelter as the bullets showered the whole area. They became stranded in their covers; not even to see where everyone was.
Super Sonic meanwhile was trying to knock down the weapons, only just narrowing the whole gun fire upon him. But how long could he keep this up? Every weapon was unleashed on them, with nowhere to go.
Ebony glimpsed and luckily saw Johnny. Waving to her, she got the clear to join him and Fatima. Looking back however, she could see the tiny Chaos terrified and scared to move away; cradling each other in groups.
“We need to do something!” Ebony cried over the blasts.
“I know, Super can’t keep them distracted for too long, before he starts burning up!” Johnny replied, as he tried to look at the situation.
“What can take down Megatal? I’m sure you’ve dealt with it before?” The feline asked.
“We have and they only just worked by a small fraction of luck and…heat!”
“Heat!”
“Megatal is strong, but if you burn the metal to thousands of degrees, it will be useless in that state.” Johnny explained.
“And where do you think we can find that here? We need a second sun!”
“Or maybe…” Johnny wondered, as a tiny light bulb went in his head…
Making some space between the robot, Super Sonic jumped through corners and dodged firearms at him. As he speeded, he caught sight of a frightened Chaos, as it cried out for help. Coiling into a ball, he sprinted towards them and caught it before they were blasted away. The tiny creature hung onto dear life as the hedgehog bolted to a safe place. Letting go of the creature, he could see it was clearly shaken by the fast speed. Looking up, he could clearly understand why. As he looked down towards his hands, yellow fur was glowing brightly. Almost feeling hot to touch. Taking deep breaths, he tried to keep calm. But then suddenly looked up, as his cover was blown away by a nearby missile.
Ducking, the hedgehog covered the tiny Chao and looked up to see the robot gazing right above him.
“Found you little pipsqueak! This time I won’t miss!” Gordon yelled with delight.
But then a quick shot struck the robot, followed by a large explosion. Annoyed, all three controllers, looked to see what caused the explosion as they staggered. They witnessed the rabbit felling from the scene, while the feline unleashed some more shots. All three passengers in the robot, yelled out their annoyance as the robot landed on its back on the floor.
“Get this blasted thing up now Gordon!” Rudransh commanded
“Still trying to get used to the controls My Lord.” Gordon replied, as the loud turning and heaving metal pipes, echoed inside the robot.
Bolt meanwhile, shouted out commands, orders; desperation to get back into the fight. As they continued to argue among themselves, Ebony and Super Sonic regrouped. The feline was relieved to see him, but as she stepped closer to him, she could feel the heat radiating from him.
“How long can you keep this up?” Ebony asked.
“Not long I don’t think. My attacks aren’t making a dent on it.”
“Then we have to try another approach…”
Slowing opening her eyes, Fatima felt heavy and strained as she rubbed her head from the pain. All around her, the bangs and echoes of gun fire erupted around her. Staggering up on her feet, she moved somewhere more sheltered, to see the situation.
There she saw folks fleeing for their lives, the tiny Chao withering in fear in their made shelters. And then seeing the rabbit run away from the scene. Moments later, she saw the hedgehog and feline discussing something as she watched the robot tried to lurch itself back up.
And then something happened. Looking at the two Mobians, the hedgehog stepped in annoyance, shouting towards his friend.
“No way! I can’t do that! It’s too risky?”
“But Super if we don’t, Rudransh is going to destroy everything!” The feline replied.
“And if it goes wrong, I’ll be the one that destroys everything!” Super argued back.
Fatima didn’t understand what they were talking about, but gave a small cry to see Rudransh was back on his feet. The robot looked towards them, ready to take aim. She wanted to shout out, but her voice didn’t reach out in the mad inferno. Desperately, she gathered whatever strength she could muster…
Both of the Mobians looked as Rudransh had recovered, as they felt all the tiny red dots on their fur.
“I will not miss this time!” Gordon shouted.
But before he could press the button, a sudden wave of force, pushed them on the side. Confused, they looked to the green genie, smashing them with its large giant green hand. The robot was sent flying to the ground, shaking the ground underneath them all. Fatima collapsed to her knees as her strength vanished, the genie gone.
Ebony raced towards her.
“You need to save your strength! Using too much power will only cut your lifespan even more!”
Lifting herself up, Fatima used Ebony to steady her fragile body.
“My time on this planet is already diminished. I will provide support for you both. Just please, whatever you have planned; hurry.”
Both Super and Ebony looked at each other. Super was clearly still not in an agreement.
“Do you trust me?” The feline asked directly to him.
Super was surprised at first, but looking straight at her, he simply nodded. Ebony smiled back at him. Both of them watched as Fatima gathered her strength and ventured forward into battle. The time was now…
Johnny ignored the debris and madness going around him as he ran down towards the prison cells. His long feet sped down the long corridors; not even time to apologise for running into any people. If this was to work, he needed the perfect tool. He just hoped it was there where he left it…
Storming through the disaster field, Fatima conjured up the genie within her. Waiting for its orders, she simply turned towards her former boss, and pointed straight to him. With pleasure, she watched from afar as both robot and genie duke it out. Throwing punches, both powers were unmatched. However soon straight after, Fatima’s powers were diminishing as the genie withered away in front of her. Letting her hands down, she could no longer hold onto the power.
But then screamed as an explosion hit her directly, sending her straight to the ground. The robot walked toward her, as she tried desperately to move and flee.
“You pathetic little child! I gave you a home when your own people casted you out. I gave you food and water, when others would have made you starve! I was even considering, of finding a way to break your curse. And this is how you pay me? With failure and betrayal? Then you really are like your family, a dirty stone amongst the clear sands, that needs to be removed.” Rudransh spoke highly, as he aim to fire upon her.
With tears down her eyes, she closed them as she readied herself for the impact…
Till something nearby caught their attention.
All of them watched as the hedgehog started to run in a large circle, around the feline. Then ran faster and closer. Then faster and closer, heading more inside the circle to where Ebony was. It got so close to her; her black fur felt the hot air emitting from the yellow. Rising her hands up, she conjured the magic to form around the both of them. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the speed.
She could hear his feet passing her, the whoosh of the sudden burst of wind erupting upon the floor. The shrieking sound of sheer force, pressing against her. Then lifting her body up into the sky, she opened her hand and clasped them together in front of her, with a yell.
A blasting light surrounded the pair as Fatima raised her hands to shelter her eyes. Then she could hear it, the fast high pitch sound, the blinding light becoming clear as one clear ring. And in the middle, Ebony was lifted above the ground, surrounded by a fast-dashing ring. Looking closer, Fatima noticed a small shade of red, was that the hedgehog still running?
The robot turned to face her and laughed.
“I’ll get rid of you first!” Rudransh commanded the metal beast, as he commanded to swing a punch.
But as the hand touched upon the ring, the metal fingers were cut clean as they fell to the ground. The robot retaliated and moved away, clutching its damaged hand.
“I don’t believe it! It torn the Megatal like it was paper! How could this happen?” Gordon questioned.
But Bolt however screamed in fury as it unleashed missiles towards the feline; only to watch in shock and awe as the ring, simply cut them in half in a split of a second. The missiles became disarrayed and blasted nearby.
“The hedgehog has turned into a blooming saw! I HATE ALL HEDHEHOGS!!” Bolt screamed, as it no longer cared for anything and was ready to unleash every weapon down.
But suddenly, was caught off guard, as the genie had returned, holding back his hands. It tried to move them forwards, but the large creation simply stood still and kept steady; malfunctioning the commands for the weapon. Fatima was nearby, raising her hands back up.
“I can’t hold it for longer, HURRY!!”
Ebony looked to understood. This was their only chance. Pressing her magic down, Ebony urged her strength as she yelled. The ring was hard to control; the sheer speed and velocity of Super Sonic, made it difficult to keep in balance. One false move and Super Sonic could cut the whole building in half…or worse, bounce attack and cut her in half. It was dealing with a double-edged sword.
Shifting her stance, she took aim towards the metal beast and threw the handmade saw, straight into the beast’s chest. Bolt yelled in annoyance to see the large sparks flying everywhere as the hedgehog cut deep into the metal.
“Stop this, Gordon!!”
“I can’t, the buttons don’t work!” Gordon replied as he sheltered his eyes from the blasting electrics.
The robot was losing malfunction and was becoming alarming hot. But it wasn’t just a problem for them…
He never created such a fast spin dash in his life. Of course, he wasn’t surprised that Ebony came up with it, but at what cost? They both knew the dangers this brought, it was becoming sooner then he realised, that things were escalating too quickly. The heat was started to become unbearable as his quills cut through the metal. The sparks attacked him back as his fur swallowed up the heat. But there was something else, quickly escaping; the desire…
Clenching his teeth, he could feel the heat torching the chaos energy within. The rush of adrenaline kicked start the dark presence within his head, wanting to take charge. He wanted to rip the metal monster piece by piece; he had done it before, why would this be any different? His concentration was lacking, yelling out in desperation…
Till something suddenly changed. In the scorching heat, it felt something was sucking it away. His body temperature started to cool down; even when the sparks continued to flare it up. The rising of Chaos energy started to wither, the evil lurking within him started to fade. But how? But then he felt his body hit something; at last! He was finally getting through. With one final push, he yelled as he took one final great push…
Ebony heard him yell in the ring. She could feel something lurking that only brought panic within her. Sweat poured from her fur from the immense heat from the attack. Her fingers like they were burning as she winced from the pain. Then she felt the Chaos energy, as she knew quite well what it felt like. She yelled out in desperation to keep control of the ring…
Till someone stood beside her.
“Let me take some of the heat off your shoulders!” Flare spoke as she lifted her body off the ground.
The feline watched as she rose her arms up and witnessed the heat of the ring, heading straight towards her. She took a deep breath as she absorbed the heat slowly, to only realise the sheer power before it. Her whole body erupted with life as the flames in her hair exploded in colour.
“WOW!! Talk about a pick me up! Go for it!!”
Smiling, Ebony looked up and yelled to give it one final great push…
Inside the robot, Rudransh and Gordon covered their eyes from the heat. The arms were no longer working, everything was too hot to touch to unleash anything to counter attack. There was only once other choice; escape. Gordon headed to the back of the robot and ejected the exit. The shutter opened up, just as Rudransh pushed him out of the way to escape; landing on the floor with a heavy thud. Gordon followed quickly, leaving Bolt to himself.
“Oh no you don’t! I’m getting out of here too!” The head shouted back, as it activated the button on the side of its head.
A booster detached the head from the body, making a quick and easy escape.
“This isn’t the last time you see me hedgehog!” Nutzan Bolt declared, as he smashed his way out and left the casino in a hurry.
The golden saw broke through and with one big push, the robot was simply cut in two, letting the metal corpse collapse onto the ground. Ebony finally let go and collapsed onto the ground. The ring pressed through and spiralled directly forward, crashing into a pile of cargo boxes. The area was smashed up, till the sheer volume of the saw, died down, leaving nothing but steam.
Flare was taking it all in, till a sudden cold splash covered her body. The flame wavered and the power was powered down; only hearing the hissing sound of an extinguished fire. Flare looked at her body with disgust as she looked towards Hydran inside the water ball.
“Did you really have to do that! Using your own body like that; it’s disgusting!” Flare argued.
“Did you really think I wanted to waste it on you? Now I’m more of a puddle then anything, so be grateful you don’t have to barbeque us!” Hydran argued back.
Squall and Gravel only gave small smirks as their unknown communication, made them both snigger.
Meanwhile, Ebony steadied herself back onto her feet, wiping the sweat off her face. Looking forwards, the steam had finished. Worried, she raced towards the fallen cargo boxes to find her friend. She was happy to see him safe, but paused as he was kneeling down, cradling his head to the ground. Cautiously, she went to him, keeping her magic in bay for the worse situation.
“Super? Are you ok?” The feline wondered, reaching her hand towards him.
He was silent at first when she approached him. He winced at first, as she touched his yellow fur. He rose his head up and simply sat down, pressing his hands against the head.
“You’ll have to give me a few minutes, the room is still spinning!” The hedgehog joked as he continued to close his eyes.
Hearing that, Ebony subsided her magic in relief. At least he was alright. But then suddenly Johnny was calling her name.
“I’ll be right back.” She smiled to Super as she gently patted his back.
Dashing away, she went to Johnny but only see him cradling Fatima in his arms. Kneeling beside her, Fatima was completely drained as she struggled to take breaths. Her wrinkled face had become pale, her body turning fragile. Tears rolled down her face.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t help you enough.”
“Don’t be silly, we wouldn’t have made it without you. Please, hang on. I’m sure there’s something we can do to break this curse; I just need time.”
“I’m sorry, I can’t give you that.” The young girl choked as she cried.
Suddenly from her body, green sparks started to flow from her body. They formed to the shape of the genie as it bowed down to its Master.
“You have served your task well; the contract has now come to an end. My time of freedom has come...”
“No! You can’t! The child is only 12 years old; she hasn’t even turned into an adult! Please, there must be something I can do!” Ebony cried in distress, looking around to see if anything could help…
Back with Super Sonic, he steadied himself nearby as everything slowly stopped spinning. He was still however unsteady on his feet as he walked away from the cargo. But his ears shot up on the raised voice as he watched the genie and Ebony talking. Was Fatima going to die? His friend was in despair and he couldn’t shake off the moaning she felt.
But then he heard a small sound. Looking down, he saw one of the tiny Chaos cradling something in its arms. Looking closer, he saw what it was and knew in an instant, a bright idea…
“Please! You can’t take her life away!”
“We were in an agreement; my service to her and she to be my host. That is the tradition and always has been.”
“And tell me! Did she truly know about the consequences? About dying so young? About being old like this? Tell me, seeing you know your host so well, did she KNOW??”
“Alas, she did not.”
“Then this is completely wrong! She only wanted to pact with the genie, so she could earn her family wealth. To put someone through with that, with no freedom of choice, its WRONG!!” Ebony cried out, clenching her fist in a fury.
“That is none of my concern. My business is now done and so, is she…”
In torment, Ebony looked down to see Fatima was closing her eyes. Shaking her, Ebony tried to wake her up. Then she heard her name being called out. She looked up to see something was being thrown at her. But unfortunately, it wasn’t a good throw as it nearly missed, until a tiny spark of Chao caught it and flew it towards her. Dropping it in her hand, she looked to see what it was.
It was one of the chokers that the slaves wore…and then she had the same idea as Super Sonic. Quickly, Johnny watched as she took no thinking to cling the choker onto Fatima.
“What are you doing?” The genie commanded.
“If I seal her magic with this, you can’t leave her! Meaning, she won’t die!” Ebony stated.
“You can’t avoid the uninventable! I have done my task, so let me be finally unleashed.”
“Please! Let me help you both! Spare her life and I will promise to find a way to set you both free; with her life intact and revert back her youth! Please!” The feline begged.
The genie looked down at the small group, folding his arms and closing his eyes in deep thought.
“You are indeed an Alien of this world. But I feel a magic that is stronger and more creative than anything I have ever witnessed. I shall agree to your terms, but if this curse is broken, I will depart, no matter what state the child is in. Do we have a deal Sorcerer?” The genie responded, opening his eyes and gesturing his hand to the feline.
Johnny watched as Ebony stood up firmly and reached her hand to his.
“You have a deal.” Ebony confirmed.
The group watched as the green sparks started to fade and with a little shiver, Fatima slowly opened her eyes as she took a quick gasp. Steadying herself upright, Ebony held onto her as she was still unbalanced. She looked at Ebony with confusion as Johnny headed his way to Super Sonic.
“Why would you save me? I enslaved you.”
“You only followed orders from Rudransh. Would you have done it, if it was just yourself?”
Shaking her head, she was about to cover her face with her hood, till the feline stopped her.
“No more hiding, no more shame.” Ebony smiled.
Fatima gave a weak smile, until she suddenly felt nervous. Looking behind her, Mother Shyla was making her way towards them both. Looking at the small group, the people carried whatever riches upon their back. Shyla walked in the middle, as she was holding herself with one of Rudransh’s wealthy staffs in her wrinkled old fingers.
Fatima moved closer behind Ebony, but was stopped as the feline held her hand. Smiling toward her, Fatima took a deep breath and waited as Shyla met them. Ebony’s expression changed in a heartbeat as she gave a cold stare at the old woman.
Ebony needed to get some things off her chest…
Meanwhile, Johnny looked at Super Sonic as he simply sat down; no matter what debris and carnage was around him. The rabbit looked towards the damaged robot.
“Annoyed, those three got away from us.”
“It’s a dessert, surely they wouldn’t have gone too far on foot.” Super replied, as he was still a little dizzy.
“Should we chase after them?”
“No need, someone will pick them up sooner or later. Right now, I could really go for a drink of water.” Super joked.
But then both of them heard commotion from Ebony. Their ears pricked up the heated conversation. It seemed someone was very up in hot collar…
“You have done all of my people proud young Sorcerer. This event will be told, for future generations.”
“Tell me this then. Were the tales of the Mystic Mountains and the pact, fully foretold? Or did you scrap the tiny details along the way?”
The group went silent, looking down at their leader. Mother Shyla looked up, not even budged by her remark.
“Our traditions have been carried down for thousands of years. It is a sheer honour to be accepted by a genie.”
“Really? Then what happens to the child when they say no? Did Fatima here have a choice? Is that why you didn’t explain everything to her? So, she will agree to this SCAM?”
The last word, everyone felt the sting. The calm looks on Shyla’s face, slightly altered as her frown went down and grinding on her only tooth.
“When the pact was created, the child will live the best of their shortened lives. Riches and fortune will be showered upon them and their families. It is not our fault you foreigners intervened and destroyed our customs, changed our laws and altered the way we do things in our dessert home. Like I said before you, young Sorcerer, things changed once the portals were opened to the other worlds; some good and some bad…”
“And because she didn’t provide riches to you, she deserved to be hated?”
“She is a disgrace, due to her working with Rudransh. A tyrant who drained our people dry and forced many of us to work for nothing.”
“I didn’t have a choice.” Fatima quietly spoke up from behind Ebony.
“You told me, that the genie would make everyone happy. That we will finally be out of the slumps. It is not the foreigner’s fault for changing things. It is our fault for not changing who we are. Rudransh promised me money, to keep food on the table. I tried to come to you, but you…you only looked at me with shame. I couldn’t even show my face to anyone; not from looking like this, but of the cruel hate you gave everyone here to use against me. I had no choice but to continue. I didn’t want to hurt anyone, but, if I didn’t…” She stopped, lifting her arm up and sliding up the sleeves.
Everyone looked to see the amounts of small bruises and cuts upon her frail body. Ebony placed her hand upon her shoulder. Fatima simply nodded.
Shyla stood there and simply nodded. The people around waited for her response. The old woman simply tapped her stick three times upon the ground, and turned away. The group slowly followed her in pursuit. Super and Johnny stopped beside Ebony and Fatima as they moved away from the area, carrying their riches behind them.
“What a stubborn old woman! Not even an apology?” Super protested.
However, Fatima looked at them and smiled.
“You don’t understand. The taps of her stick, depending on how many times she does it, means a simple message.”
“So, what does three taps mean?” Johnny asked.
Fatima simply sighed and clutched her hand against her chest.
“It means she is contempt with her decision. The message will be passed down across the slumps.”
“But what does this mean to you?” Johnny wondered.
“I may walk free, but in heart, it will a take a while to be accepted back…that’s if, I make it by then.” Fatima frowned as she finished her sentence.
Ebony smiled and clutched her hands in hers.
“Don’t you worry, like I said to the genie, I will find a way to remove the curse and set you both free. In the meantime, there is one thing you can do for me.”
“What could that be?”
“Well of course, there will be others like yourself. Children forced into the pact. Find them, help them.”
“But how?” Fatima asked.
“The collars. It can slow down the process of the pact; your own magic can withhold it, until I find the cure.” The feline explained.
“I…don’t know if I could that on my own.” Fatima replied sheepish.
“Sure, we can give you a hand”.
Turning around, Flare joined in with the conversation, followed by her elemental comrades.
“I thought you wanted to get out of this dessert quickly?” Super asked.
“Well as you can see, we’re not moving anytime quicker. So might as well help out.” Flare winked.
“And don’t worry, we got a just reward” Squall responded, showing off the gold they collected from the secret vault.
Fatima bowed down with a thank you and the group saw her leave with the elemental four. But before Flare joined in the group, she managed to sneak a tiny whisper in the hedgehog’s ear.
“Nice girl; defiantly worth fighting for.” She winked, leaving Super blushing as she went off.
Confused, Johnny and Ebony looked at him. Shaking his head in denial, he simply complained that he needed that water now, storming off to find the nearest bar….
Crossing the dessert, complaining about the sands in his golden slippers, Rudransh continued to stroll through the hot abyss. Gordon covered his head with his shawl as he took one swig of his water. Only to be snatched away by Rudransh, watching him take down every ounce of water in the pouch. In annoyance, he chucked the sachet away into the sands.
“Curse this place! Curse those people! They ruined everything!”
“Where are we going boss? There is nothing for miles around. Soon it be too hot to walk upon these sands.”
“Ah not to worry. We are close to the crypt as we speak.”
“Crypt? What crypt? I thought all the collections came to the vault?”
“Hah! You think I store all my riches in one basket? Not at all you simpleton! I always have a backup. And this one will help me buy the best of soldiers, the best of troops and we will head back to the city and destroy those disgusting vermin! I shall claim my throne back, just you wait and see…”
But then he stopped. Gordon looked forward and saw to his amazement, as they crossed over the dessert hill, they came across the large pirate ship from the Casino. And to their horror, watched the people opening the Crypt and ransacking everything they could see. But before they could move, a sword was placed behind their back. Gordon turned with his weapons, only to be surrounded by the people. To his annoyance, some of them wore their troops uniforms, others looked like from the slumps.
Annoyed, Rudransh commanded who was in charge of this folly, only to be confronted by the large blade pointing to his large belly. Captain Plunder smiled, with his large hat covering him from the menacing sun.
“You! How did you find the Crypt?” The large creature erupted in anger.
“That’s quite simple you see; I can smell the scent of money a mile away!” The captain teased their captors.
“Actually, we found your Vault first, before anyone else did. Good Captain here isn’t a fool that everyone else thinks.”
Plunder looked at Filch with a sudden death stare.
“You filthy barbarian! If that was so, how did you get inside without the code or card key?” Rudransh commanded.
Gordon winced and pointed towards Filch. Waving his hand through the light, he was completely transparent. Cursing under his breath, the ghost would have no problem entering and leaving the vault. But what did they take?
“Every pirate knows never to keep their stash in one place; for the bigger prize is hidden further away from the port. Only took me a moment to find a map of the location and informed the captain the coordinates.” The ghost replied delightfully.
“Just like finding a treasure trove!” Plunder laughed, nearly knocking off his tiny bid off his shoulders.
Gordon looked at the people and shook his head in embarrassment. Clearly the Captain promised them riches if they joined him on this quest as he still watched them pulling out crates filled to the brim with coins.
“So, what do you want? Jewels or gold? Surely, we can come to some good arrangement?”
But suddenly there was commotion from the Crypt as Simpson ran straight towards the Captain with a large scroll in his hand.
“Captain! I’ve found it.” He gave his biggest smile as he unfolded for the group to see.
The Captain held a large grin on his face as he looked down at Rudransh. Looking down at the scroll, it was an old treasure map. Old writing and hieroglyphics, scribed onto the paper.
“You see Rudransh. I came to you looking for a particular object in mind, and you said that if I won the big fight, you’ll let me have it. And now, thanks to your kind “contribution” I have now what I need. And now, I have the person to help me decode this here map, and get me what I want.” He shouted as his merry group cheered.
“And what makes you think I will help you?”
Plunder then pulled him forward by his white shirt with a cold stern look.
“Because if you don’t, then I’ll leave you here to burn to a crisp.”
Rudransh and Gordon looked at each other; there was little choice they had. Nodding his head in agreement ad dismay, Plunder turned around and commanded his comrades to collect everything and get it on the ship; not one coin was left behind….
Days later…
Metropolis city and the sun continued to beam down all across the zone. The Mobians continued to enjoy the heat and many found new opportunities and ways, to coping with the immense weather.
Carrying the water guns, Johnny and Cream crossed the busy road, to head towards the neighbourhood. The constant nattering of the girl, could be heard a mile away, as she bombarded the poor hero’s ears, asking the million questions in five minutes. She had been asking them since they joined together on the train.
“What are the people like there?” “What their homes look like? “What ever happened to that little chaos?”
Before he could answer that question, they had arrived at the Groovy Train, but with alarming bells as they could hear raised voices from inside. The rabbits tried to peep in through the front doors, but with it being too hot, the team decided to close down early for a siesta. Quickly, they dashed to the back door and quietly walked inside. Peeping round, the raised voices were getting worse, till it erupted with a huge clash and bang.
Worried, Johnny ordered Cream to stay where she was to see the situation. But when he did, he ducked away from the floating creature as it ran away in a hurry. Super Sonic was cursing behind it, raising the brush over his head. But then as he saw Johnny and Cream, he quickly raised it down behind him.
“Didn’t hear you two come in!”
“What are you doing?” The rabbit asked as he headed inside the café.
“Trying to stop that little blob from making a mess! He’s already taken down cups and plates; smashing them all over the place. It’s a right klutz!”
“Sure, it’s no big deal.” Johnny replied, smiling.
“Who do you think is going to get the bill?” Super asked sharply.
Slightly awkward, Johnny turned around to see Cream and the Chao were making quite an introduction of themselves.
“Is this one of those Chaos you saved?” The little rabbit asked, as the creature used her fingers to play with.
“That is Cheese. Unlike its other friends, this one didn’t want to go home. Also seemed it made quite an impact on Pyjamas as well, so she agreed to keep it.”
But then he couldn’t ignore Super’s rant as he went on saying “nuisance” and “not babysitting the thing” as he continued to clean up the smashed pieces. Suddenly the back door was opened again, letting Ebony and Pyjamas walked in. The group was all together and now, to the final act…
Everything was ready. Water guns were filled, ice cream was resting in the cooler, and bringing up the drinks, Ebony smiled as walked upstairs to the balcony, ready to soak in the sun. Wearing her shades, she passed a drink to Pyjamas, who was wearing her over shawl, sitting down on the resting bench. Also relaxing in on their own seat, Johnny thanked Ebony as he sprinkled some of the cool water towards Cream, as she held her feet in the small paddling pool. Ebony rested her drink to the side, with a smaller drink for Cheese. And then finally, resting on the bench chair with a large umbrella above him, Super thanked for his drink.
When the feline finally settled on her chair, the hedgehog couldn’t help but to conclude as he took a large sip of his drink.
“Now this is how you spend a bank holiday.”
Just before he yelled out, as Cream and Johnny got the hedgehog with the water guns…
But back in the sands of Shanazar, the rumours were spreading of a legend.
A Captain and his crew, sailing across the desert sands to find a lost treasure. They have crossed many sand tides, met interesting new horizons; from the dunes, to the new and perilous dangers of the currents.
Will the Captain find his lost treasure?
Will Captain Plunder, with the map in his hand as he steered with his hook, knew he shall! His comrades commanding the sails to turn west, and his new associates Rudransh and Gordon, showing him the way, the eternal bad luck curse was bound to be removed from him. And then, and only then, will he return to Mobius, throatful and dangerous, urging for victory.
Until, the engine on the boat exploded; well, what did you expect from using a staged ship from a casino? Will this bad luck ever end????
You’ll just have to wait and see…
THE END