Chapter CXX: What Did You Expect? ~Multehx

The Spectrum had taken to flight some time ago. It had just come out of the Rip a ways over Medghelica. As it neared the planet, most all was a calm, unspoken apprehension. Until something brought that violently to light.


Without warning, the train rocked violently. The riders all fell around the passenger car, prism out of the bed, and C.R. crashed into one of the walls of the engine room. "CRIKEY! Wha' the 'ell is that?!," D'Nel shouted as the Spectrum shook once again. Pseudo growled and stumbled to his feet, hovering a foot off the ground and zipping into the control room. He looked to Omega who was struggling to hold a straight course and using his left hand to key in various buttons on the main controls. "Well, Dammit, what is it, robot?!," Pseudo snarled.


Omega stayed afoot as the train bucked violently again. "It's...the planet's outer asteroid field! But…I could dodge asteroids nothin’ flat; somethin’ is throwing them at us!"


Pseudo threw down his hand in frustration, cursing. "Whyr ******! It's that blasted council!! They're trying to ambush you; they don't know I'm onboard." C.R. steadied himself and nodded. "Yes, I noticed a high density magik field in the area, but I thought it was just the council on the planet." Then, out of one of the windows, a streak of white light rocketed by and vanished on the planet. "What the heck was THAT?!," Omega said in shock. C.R. shook his head. "I...don't know. It's moving too fast to get a direct lock on." They failed to notice Havering chuckling to himself as he floated out of the room.
---


Malachai chuckled to himself and glanced to Orson, who still looked a bit burnt, but was standing, eyes closed, waving his hands about. Sparks of green energy danced on them. Malachai chuckled again. "Having fun giving our 'guests' an unpleasant welcome, Orson?"


"Yes, I quite am, Master Malachai," Orson replied, "But I'm getting a strange life signature from the train. I don't know what it is." Malachai rubbed his beard, then looked over at the two that had just walked up. "Cydak, your special art thing tell you what it is?" The Twilighter shook his head and Malachai frowned. "Nictem, how about you?" Nictem only shook his head. Malachai nodded and looked back to Orson. Nictem removed his hand from behind his back and took up his golden staff, rubbing his fingers over the stone in the head of it.


The aged council leader looked over as there was a burst of pink fire and Fanah appeared in the wake of it. She looked somewhat burnt and beaten in places, but still in superb shape. Malachai crossed his arms. "About time you joined us, young miss seductress." Fanah smiled and brushed aside a lock of her hair. "I had some business, but that proved quite futile." She rubbed a powder burn off her cheek. "Do be a dear, sir, and give me an update of the situation."


"Well, we're currently on Medghelica-" Fanah looked surprised. "Medghelica? But that's a desolate wasteland. Why are we here?" "For the simple reason, we are going to confront those infernal heroes here and raucous them a bit; perhaps take a few from their numbers." Fanah grinned. "Ah, we're here to cause a little upset to them? And let me guess, you picked this planet because it has an unstable Magik field to it, thus spells will behave quite unusually at times unless the caster is of great power?"


Malachai grinned. "My, aren't you becoming the smart one. Had better watch out- that beauty and brains, you'd be quite a fierce opponent." The pink skinned demoness smirked. "But, then again, I am quite dangerous already; lethal many might say." Malachai snickered, then turned as Nero came running up to him. "What is it?" Nero saluted and grinned. "Sir, the heroes are on the planet!" "Ah, splendid, all of them?" Nero shook his head. "No, but we intercepted several messages going out on their transmitter in the Spectrum, and psychically sent ones from the Rip Watcher." Malachai grinned evilly. "Superb...they're thinned out. They're trying to regroup.."


He turned back to Fanah, Vole, and Nictem. "People, wouldn't it be just unfortunate if we were to strike before they regrouped?" Fanah laughed and Nictem grinned, hitting the palm of his right hand with the head of his staff. Vole drew his bo and tensed and untensed his grip on it. Malachai shrugged. "So, in about an hour or so, who's up for a little mayhem?"


The vote was a shut-out.