As the freefall began to take over nearly ten minutes, Multex began to wonder. Normally, if it took *this* long for the rip to drop you someplace, it must be extremely out of the way, or...
Multex dreaded the second possibility. It had happened a few times before when the rip had gone vert and seemed to last forever. This *was* one of them. As the Rip finally ended in an exit hole, Multex plummeted through and into the stratosphere of the destination planet. Most would think Multex, of all people, would take this with some dignity and refinement; his usual cool air. They would have winced at the echoing "OH Crrrraaaaap!! Nooot AGAAAINNNNnn!" that he shouted. As his velocity neared it's maximum peak, the Agent had finally recovered from the usual shock to get his mind about him enough to try and think of a way *not* to meet the ground at speeds over 50 mph. The usual options of the waiting helicopter, or jet pack not being open in this circumstance, a new idea suddenly flashed into his mind. Reaching back against the raging wind behind him, he managed to free, and keep his grasp upon the Mahogany cane and bring it around, clutching it to his chest. "Now or never.." He thought, sliding the thumb of his right hand to the bend where wood met handle. Working fast, the agent pried up a grip activated latch on the underside of the handle. Barcing himself, tightenign his grip on the cane handle with both hands, and saying over fifteen forms of prayers with the intention of doing many good deeds of charity should he not become a dent in the ground below, Multex moved his fingers around the latch and tightened, pressing it down. With a mechanical revving, he looked up, elated to see the cane's tip being raised as a metal pole from within the cane extended, adding a good three feet to the cane's original length. What got him cheering was when the pole's sides sprung out, becoming two large Rotational blades and with a labored humming, began to spin, increasing in speed. Now the ball was in luck's hands. Though the blades had begun to spin, Multex's accumulated velocity was still too over powering, and the ground was fast rising still. The agent held his breath, or what hadnt been sucked from him in the fall and prayed that his luck would come through. Somehow, once again, fate was taken off guard by the agent's luck throwing the equivalent of a royal flush in it's face. The drop gradually began to slow, and the agent found his weight beginning to rapidly increase, as well as his grip and pull on the cane, now buzzing noisily above the rushing air. Approximately three minutes away from inevitable impact, the cane began to get enough lift to fufill it's purpose. "ALLRIGHT! ALLELIUA! It WORKS! It WOOOOORKS!! Wa-HA! Kiss this Lab guys! A-hahahaha!" the agent cheered as he soared upward. After the initial celebrating, and adjusting to the operations of the cane (swing foward, get the bejezzus scared out of you as you rocket back; Swing back, rocket foward;too far back was foward and *down*), Multex carefully reached into one of the Agent Coat's inner pockets and removed a set of binoculars. "Whew..for a grave dug for me...this place is scenic." The agent mused, steering the Rotor-Cane, as he dubed it, slowly towards an open field. He apparently was over part of a world that had been mostly ecologicaly friendly, with lush forests, fields, and a *lot* of greenery. Then there was the 7 foot, shiny gold figure on one of the nearby Piedmonts, ligning up for a clear shot. Sighting this nearly floored Multex. "My GOD.....he's...ALIVE! Again!" the agent stammered, terrorified at this slap in the face fate was handing him as retalition for his painless survival. Terror was quickly overtaken by the urge to *live* however. "I gotta land and NOW!! Da**! He's almost lined up..sneerin the whole time, the lousy scrap bucket!" the agent cursed, slightly decreasing his grip on the latch. The rotors began to slow and the agent was about fifteen feet from the ground before the echo of a shoulder mounted cannon being fired bellowed over all sounds. Quickly ditching a nice, soft landing for a chance at landing slghtly bruised, but *alive*, Multex flicked the latch back into the handle, the rotor blades quickly refolding and the pole retracting into the cane just as quickly. As he landed in a roll, Multex sprung to his feet to see a small homing missle explode in the precise location he had landed upon. Quickly putting the cane in it's holding strap and tying his hat to the strap as well, Multex set off on a full our run accross the field and into the forest. He didnt bother to stop here, though, as he knew if it meant getting to him, the robot would torch the forest in a split second instinct. After all this time, the horror of the old situation sunk in. Once again, it was a game of the hunter and his prey: The prey being Multex; the hunter, His arch nemisis for many a years- The sadistic, seven foot, mechanical Abomination Known by the code name RATCH. And so, the agent sprinted on, leaping dead foliage, plowing through hedges and plantlife in a dash for *any* sign of civilization. In the back of his mind, Multex knew with the sixth sense he had developed, that Ratch most likely wasn't giving chase quite yet. But he would. When Multex least expected it. So, as he had discovered, it was best to be in an area the Robot would have to enter with some difficulty. Any town or small village would do, his mind logiced, just as long as he reached something- Fast.