Voyagers Saga
Null Chi
Chapter 1: Eternity Means Diddly
Vinovin VII
Sector 15, Nullspace
Vinovin VII was one of the NSC's main magi research centers, places close to Nocturnus-6. Anton wasn't impressed. In his 10,000 years of life he'd seen plenty. What confused him was why OmegaMorph was being sent to raid its supply warehouse.
"This is hardly necessary at all," said Anton, "If we wanted to steal something, we could send in a few drones. Don't you think sending a tank like you is overkill?"
OmegaMorph had just reached the restricted section, tossing the body of a guard he'd fought earlier aside. "You are not required to know," he said before blowing the blastdoor off its runners. The guards inside started firing at him. OmegaMorph grinned as the blasts made only rapidly-healed pinpricks on his skin. "Please, you're only tickling," he said before opening his mouth and sending out a gale of wind.
The guards were sent flying into moaning semi-conscious heaps. Anton looked at some of boxes, stepping over an out cold guard. "This is all alchemy junk. I think your Cybernetics need fixing..."
OmegaMorph and slammed Anton against a wall with his tail. "I outrank you, I am above your questioning, unless you think you can challenge me for leadership."
"Fine..." muttered Anton weakly. OmegaMorph snorted and dropped Anton. Nobody noticed the blinking light of the security camera.
A week later
Matt watched as the security footage ended. "So...why call us for stolen blowfish spines?" he said to General McNeil, head of the NSC's Special Magi Division.
"Because they were stolen a very prominent pair in the Empire," said McNeil, "One of them you're well familiar with. The other...needs little introduction."
Matt nodded. "Commander Anton...I know the nutter," he said.
McNeil said, "It's Captain now. He was demoted after the Banshee Base fiasco. The other is their new commander, OmegaMorph."
"OmegaMorph? Oh, you mean that new Shadow Clone Hamsterviel made by scrapping Nega..." Matt's voice trailed as everyone turned to look at NegaMorph, who had a dark brooding look on his face.
"So...that's your replacement?" Matt said. NegaMorph just nodded and Matt guessed enough to drop it before turning to McNeil. "Forget it...I have my own troubles at the moment."
McNeil smirked. "Yes...Kai, isn't it?"
Matt glowered and said, "I don't stick my nose into your love life."
"How about I have my agents poke their noses in instead?" McNeil said.
Matt lifted an eyebrow and said, "Is that supposed to be a threat?"
"Actually, from his tone, I think that's actually an offer," said Techo.
"Indeed, my agents are the best. I can find your girl in a month tops. All you have to do is head to San Francisco in G-142. You held off NegaMorph with ease. OmegaMorph can't be much harder," said McNeil.
Matt said "I dunno..."
McNeil added, "And you keep the ship."
"Hmm... you're not offering a junk ship, are you? That's what happened last time," said Matt.
McNeil said, "You didn't work for S.M.D. Only the best for our contracted teams," pointing out a window.
A brand new Conestoga Class patrol battlecruiser could be seen being tended by utility drones. "You're kidding," said Matt dully.
"I always keep a promise," said McNeil.
"Put that promise on paper and ink and you've got yourself a deal," said Matt.
McNeil pulled out a datapad, "Sign on the dotted line."
The gang were quite pleased at the change in fortune. "You got us a Conestoga class? They're top of the line," said Chloe
"Yep, and all we have to do is tail Anton and OmegaMorph to some dimension's San Francisco," said Matt.
Chloe said, "Can't be too hard. How bad can this OmegaMorph be?"
"I'd say he'd be pretty bad," said NegaMorph gruffly.
"How would you-" started Chloe before NegaMorph interrupted her.
"BECAUSE HE WAS CARVED OUT OF MY FLESH!" he snapped.
Everyone jumped back. "Ok..." said Chloe.
Matt said, "But we got better guns now."
Contrinus shivered, "Ooooh..."
"Contrinus? What's wrong?" asked Draco.
"I've got this cold, clammy feeling going down my spine," said Contrinus.
Techo said happily, "I always get that whenever Matt thinks a job'll be easy."
"Uh, doesn't that normally mean that it won't be easy?" asked Contrinus.
"How long have you been on this crew?" said Draco simply.
Contrinus said, "Oh...right."
"So, anything of significance in this San Francisco?" asked Chip.
"Nope, the NSC only has a few archeology digs in the Pacific," said Techo.
Lao said, "But you can bet that anything the empire wants, we want first."
OmegaMorph and Anton were at Mountain Lake Park. Their bots were busy setting up a temporary base. "I still think it's a bad idea setting up here," said Anton, "Advanced robots and large black space monsters don't blend in well here."
"It's midnight. We will be gone by sunrise. Once we have the target contained, we shall be gone," said OmegaMorph, as several bots set up the oblong in the middle of the park.
One of Anton's men said, "Last ingredients in, just need a spark of magi and we're on."
"I suppose that's my job then," said Anton.
OmegaMorph knocked Anton over and said, "No, I have the greater reserves of power. I shall do this."
"Then why drag me along?" said Anton.
"To watch my back while I'm concentrating," said OmegaMorph.
Anton sighed. "Fine...let's get this show going," he said.
OmegaMorph fixed a stare on the portal and looked at a datapad, before starting to mutter the strange language on it.
A trooper ran up to Anton. "Boss...NSC ship just warped in...company's coming."
Anton looked over at some bushes when he heard a rustle. "Might already be here," he said with a smirk, his eyes glowing white.
As he approached the bush, he heard rather strange voices. "Jade, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be training!"
"I am training. I'm training in the field."
"Too dangerous, demon has many minions."
Anton nodded at his men who all charged their blasters. "Good evening. Can I draw your attention to my men? The guys with the pulse rifles. C'mon out," he said cheerfully.
Anton was expecting Matt's crew again. The moment of tension was rather spoiled when four Asian people came out of the bushes, among them was an old man, a Sumo, and a little girl. "Is this a joke?" said Anton.
One of the troopers looked at a scanner. "Timeline specifics," he said.
Anton looked at them. "My name is Captain Anton. You've met my men. And who are you four, the A-Team?"
"That's J-Team to you," said the little girl.
She was about to do a flying kick when the Chinese man grabbed her. "Jade, what part of 'pulse rifles' do you not understand?"
"Oh, but Jackie..." whined the girl.
"Jackie? Name sounds familiar. Well, as you can see, I can't let you all leave with your minds intact. Not that anyone would believe you," said Anton. Behind him, the makeshift portal activated, filling with a red swirling vortex.
As you can imagine, a netherworld is not pleasant by any account, particularly demon netherworlds. Several include flames, pointing rocks, and lots of torment. This particular demon netherworld contained empty space, floating rocks, and utter boredom.
One particular demon couldn't stand the endless abyss. This one had street clothes, bat wings, large ram-like horns, and tentacles growing from his chin. "Ah man, this netherworld bites," groaned Drago, "No wonder Dad and my uncles and aunts want outta here."
A crackling noise got his attention. Lightning crackled in the air near his rock and a rectangle-shaped portal appeared. Unlike the one that had brought him and his dad, the Fire Demon, Shendu to the netherworld, this one was flickering wildly like a badly tuned TV show.
Drago eyed the portal with dubiousness. "Hmm, second-rate magic at best. Probably will mess up with my magic once I get through. But who cares? Anything's worth getting out of limbo."
Back in the real world, Anton had turned to look at the portal in shock. He could sense the energy coming from it and had a good idea what was on the other side. "Now that's impressive," he said, momentarily forgetting about his prisoners.
"Ai ya!" cried the old man, "Portal is allowing access to demon netherworld! Tohru, we cannot allow demons to cross over!"
"Yes, sensei," said the sumo.
Anton turned as Tohru started walking towards OmegaMorph and the portal. He calmly walked in front. It was time these locals knew who they were dealing with. "Can't let you do that," he said, looking up at Tohru's face calmly.
"You are messing with very dark forces, especially him," said the old man, pointing at OmegaMorph.
"Well, that's the main point," said Anton.
"You better stop now or you will be sorry," said the old man, pointing a dried blowfish at Anton.
Anton raised an eyebrow. "A demonstration then," he said and aimed his palm at Tohru. "Goodbye," he said cockily and sent a sonic burst into Tohru, sending him back several dozen feet.
The old man gasped and said, "Jackie, demon's minions have dark chi magic."
"But Uncle, how am I supposed to fight all of- Ow!" Jackie winced as Uncle smacked his forehead with his first two fingers.
"Minions not important, stopping demon is," said Uncle, pointing at OmegaMorph.
Anton sighed. "Do I have to cut something off before you get the message?" he said, drawing and igniting his ion blade. Nobody noticed a shadow grab one of the perimeter guards and pull him into the bushes.
"Oh, you want a piece of Uncle?" said the old man, pointing the blowfish at Anton.
Anton looked. "What ya gonna do? Give me salmonella?" he said before a blast of green light knocked him over. "Ok...that hurt. Ok...I'll take three pieces," he said, his eyes white with fury.
"Will you guys keep it down?" snapped OmegaMorph, "I cannot conjure with you yapping like that."
He had turned just in time to see a guy in NSC kit pop out of a bush to hit one of Anton's men over the head and pull him out of sight. OmegaMorph then proved his difference between him and NegaMorph: he fired a blast at the bush.
Immediately, a white slug-like blob jumped high into the air with a yelp, clutching his singed bottom. As soon as he landed, he made a beeline for the nearest fountain and jumped into it. He sighed with relief as steam came off of him.
The bots and remaining troops...and well...everyone else stared. Anton snapped out first. "KILL...ow!" he began before another chi blast sent him sprawling.
"Uncle, what was that?" asked Jackie.
"Not important, stop demon conjuring!" said Uncle.
OmegaMorph turned as Jackie headed for him and roared at him, nearly blowing Jackie off his feet. A second later, several dozen troopers jumped out. Anton's men seemed to know them as they started shooting wildly along with the droids. Two of the newcomers also had energy blades, putting them to good use on any bot near them.
Just then the blob from before came out of the fountain. "What did I miss?" he asked.
Then one of the energy blade-wielders somehow levitated him and said, "Morph, be distraction!" He then tossed the blob towards OmegaMorph's head.
OmegaMorph was readying an attack on Jackie when the blob splatted across his face, causing him to flail away. Anton however was also headed for Jackie. He aimed a slash, just missing. "Normally I don't kill timeline specifics, but you and your gramps have pissed me off...BIG TIME!" he said, his teeth sharpening to dragon fangs as he yelled the last bit.
"Um, you should see a dentist about those teeth," said Jackie.
"My teeth are just fi-" started Anton before OmegaMorph's flailing tail caught him in the face.
Anton got back up and transformed to his dragon hybrid form...and noticed a difference. "Damn local magi field!" he yelled and charged Jackie.
What Jackie saw was a creature similar to Drago, only cloud grey in color and a different head shape. "Guess these guys are more than just minions," said Jackie before dodging under Anton's charge.
"Stay still and die, you little pest!" said Anton, aiming a slash that Jackie dodged. Said slash cleaved easily through a solid steel lamppost like it was butter.
Jackie gulped and said, "You obviously don't slack off when training."
"Not really. Now stay still and die!" said Anton, sending a sonic pulse at Jackie who managed to jump it. "WHERE THE HELL ARE MY DROIDS?...oh," he said as the head of a battle droid landed at his feet. He looked up to see Matt. "Oh, great...as if it couldn't get worse," he muttered.
Just then, OmegaMorph finally pulled PlasMorph off his face. Morph looked at the glaring super clone and gulped. "Um, hello," he said.
OmegaMorph roared and threw Morph away before looking at Jackie. "YOU'RE DEAD!" he roared before being frozen in place and blasted backwards.
One of the other blade holders blocked a sneaky slash from Anton. "If you don't play fair, then you get disqualified," he said cheekily to Anton who practically screamed with fury.
Just then, Tohru was getting back up. "Tohru! No time for nap! We must seal portal before demons escape!" shouted Uncle.
One demon had escaped. One thing could be said for Matt and company (for it was them attacking Anton's men), they were one hell of a distraction. Drago rubbed his head. Having most of your chi forcibly stripped by an unstable portal hurt. Drago looked around to see the Chan clan fighting his apparent summoners as well as another group fighting them. "Much as I'd like to fry Chan's butt, doctor says I need to take a vacation for my health," said Drago before running off.
Matt and Anton both looked over to see Drago's disappearing form. "Didn't you learn with Malefor? Demon = disaster," said Matt before Anton headbutted him.
"I think your biggest concern is going to be that gaping hole in your chest," said Anton. He was about to plunge his sword down when a hand made of shadows grabbed him around the waist. "What?" He looked backwards to see Lady NegaMorph controlling the shadows.
"Why you little..." he began before a plasma orb hit him under the chin, sending him flying into OmegaMorph, who was still trying to grab Jackie.
"Bull's eye!" said Matt, his hand still smoking.
"Uh, Matt, do you always look like this in hybrid form?" asked Megan.
"What are you talking about?" asked Matt, before noticing his hand had different claws than usual. "Oh, smeg...its Nifspell all over again. I hate magi sooo much," he said with feeling.
Just then, OmegaMorph threw Morph into Jackie, sending them both tumbling downhill. He then turned and saw Matt and Megan. "So, if it isn't the Traveler who's been giving the Empire so much trouble," said OmegaMorph, "And the illegitimate niece of my predecessor."
"Oh look, it's the blob," retorted Matt before trying plasma control to no effect. "Erm...oh crap," he said simply.
OmegaMorph grinned and said, "I came prepared for that little trick." He pointed one of his hands at Matt and the mouth in it opened up. An icy gale came from out of it.
Megan stepped back in worry as Matt was flash-frosted. "...ow…" he managed.
A lightning bolt hit OmegaMorph in the back. "Nobody flash-freezes my brother BUT ME!" yelled Chloe.
"General Silvia, or should I say Ex-General?" said OmegaMorph before turning and smacking the ground, causing it to crack open and Chloe fell in. OmegaMorph turned, grinning to Matt. "Let's see what I can snap off," he said before a green blast shot around him, the end turning into a hand with two fingers that hit him before he was blasted into the distance.
Anton stared before saying, "Er...you win," before running off.
Uncle blew the smoke off his blowfish and said, "Hot cha. Tohru, help Uncle seal portal."
"Yes, sensei," said Tohru.
The portal itself was handling that itself. While magic had been the trigger, it used stolen technology to form the portal...and now the magic was overloading it. Sparks flew from its emitters and the portal faded to nothing. "Hmm, lousy spellcasting," said Uncle, "Time to return to shop." He turned around and spotted Matt and co. "AI YA! DEMONS HAVE BEEN RELEASED FROM VOID!"
"What? Where? Guys, if you see a talking chainsaw, blow its head off," said Matt in a panic.
"Uh, Uncle, you sure about that?" asked Jade, "They seem too weird to be demons. And that one doesn't seem evil at all."
She pointed towards Jackie, who had Morph sitting on his head with a pair of twigs up Morph's nose. "Why can I smell only wood?" asked Morph.
Matt however looked like he was having a fit. "Undead...UNDEAD…" he gibbered.
Uncle got in front of Matt and pointed his dried lizard at him. "Half demon, you shall not trouble this earth," he said.
"Pardon?" said Matt before a blast hit him in the face. "Extra crispy," he rasped before falling sideways.
Techo, Talia, Chris and Lao came into view. "We lost Anton...wow...what we miss?" said Techo.
"Demon has minions! Tohru, good chi binding!" shouted Uncle.
"Uh, I think there's some kind of misunderstand," said Chloe, "I'd gladly explain things, as soon as I can get out of this hole in the ground."
Techo n co were not so cautious, pulling out blasters. "Drop the...fish. I cannot believe I said that," said Chris.
"Uncle, maybe we should listen to them," said Jackie.
"Demons are very cunning. Spin very good lies. We must capture them for questioning!" said Uncle.
"How many demons use pulse blasters?" said Matt, waving said blaster around.
Just then, NegaMorph and Gary appeared through a shadow portal. Since it was nighttime, Gary was in his gargoyle form. "Sorry I'm late," said NegaMorph, "Got held up by Chupy stealing something."
Uncle's eyes practically bulged from his socket. "AIYA! More demons!" Then he spotted Megan and said, "She must be the dark chi witch these demons are familiar to."
"We're not evil. We just helped save your butt, gramps," said Matt, making the mistake of prodding Uncle...who used a sleeper grip on him.
"Doy…" mumbled Matt before falling over.
Uncle looked at the rest and said, "Who else wants a piece of Uncle?"
The others looked at each other before Techo said, "Look, Matt's just had a bad few weeks. We really aren't evil. Looks can deceive."
"Uncle takes no chances. Tohru!" The two of them started chanting and a glowing green ring appeared on the ground surrounding the group.
Techo, Lao, Chris and Talia were separate and were spared and Chloe was still in the hole but the others were stuck. Chloe poked her head out to see this. Luckily, it helped she'd turned back human before climbing up. "Oh, for heaven's sake..." she muttered.
Section 13
The gang was not very happy about being cooped up in cells. "This is ridiculous," said Chloe, "We're not even demons, let alone evil."
"And come on, I can see 12 ways out of here. I saw a guard stop his patrol for donuts on the way in," said Techo.
"Mmm... donuts," said Morph.
"Morph, since you have no bones, can't you just squeeze through and let us out?" asked Chip.
"What about the fish?" said Matt.
The cell opened and the ones called Tohru and Uncle came in. "Now what have we done?" said Matt. The others had threatened to knock him out should he try singing.
"Uncle is testing for bad chi," said Uncle, "We start with dark chi witch."
"What makes you say I have dark chi?" asked Megan.
"You have mouth inside hand! That is not sign of good chi!"
Megan glanced at her right arm and said, "Actually, it's more like I have hand inside mouth."
The others glared. "Not helping," said NegaMorph.
"Quiet, Uncle must be doing inspection." He waved a small lantern on a chain around Megan's head.
The only reaction at all was for Megan's face to wrinkle with disgust and said, "Ugh, that really stinks."
Matt wandered over and sniffed it. "Smells like meatloaf," he commented.
Uncle inspected the lantern and said, "Dark chi is present, but only slightly more than average person."
Matt rolled his eyes. "That's what we've been saying for hours. At least you let me call my ship to stop them bursting in," he said.
"Don't rush Uncle," said Uncle, "I have more testing to do."
"Ok...who's next?" said Matt and turned green as the lantern was shoved in his face. "I had to...ask," he said, gagging on the smell.
Uncle inspected the lantern, which had grown darker. "Ooh, darker chi is present in this one."
"That's just Draconus. He's locked up tight," said Techo. Everyone looked at him. "Oh...we still not telling people about him?"
"He is possessed by demon? That would explain his darker chi and terrible breath."
"Look who's talking," said Matt, "Seriously, what did you have for lunch?"
"Draconus is just a nutcase side of Matt. He was locked up tight in Matt's subconscious," said Chloe and jumped as the lantern was shoved in her face and glowed dark as well. "Erm...my dark side's called Silvia," she said in an embarrassed voice
Then the lantern was held in front of Gary. Surprisingly, it remained slightly lighter than Megan's. "No dark chi, at least not worth mentioning," said Uncle.
"Eh, let's get it over with," said NegaMorph. Uncle hung the lantern near NegaMorph, which also went dark. "I radiate negative energy, ok?"
Tohru said, "It is well known that dark creatures cannot hold items of good chi. It is a fool proof test." With that he pulled out a blowfish and passed it to Matt who grabbed it. "Ok...is this good?" he said when nothing happened.
Chloe also held it for a moment before passing it on. "See?" she said, "There's evil about-"
"Ow!" yelped NegaMorph.
"Aha, demon cannot touch good magic!" said Uncle.
"No, I pricked myself on one of the spines," said NegaMorph.
"Do we pass now?" said Matt in a sarcastic tone, "Or do I need a special card?"
Uncle thought for a minute and said, "Very well, strangers are of no harm, except to themselves."
"Is that supposed to be some Chinese proverb?" asked Draco.
"No, you more likely to blast selves than others."
"Cheeky," said Matt, before waving a hand at the guard moving forward with the keys. "Nah...I'll do it," he said, vaporizing the lock.
Chloe glared. "Brothers," she said, rolling her eyes.
"You may not be evil, but you are very strange," said Uncle, "Especially that one." He pointed at Morph, who poking head back and forth through the bars.
Matt looked at Morph. "You know...I just can't think of a counter-argument to that." he said
"If they are not demons, what kind of magical creatures are they?" asked Tohru.
"Actually, a majority of us are aliens," said Chip.
"Yes, but from what country-"
"No, as in space aliens, you know 'take me to your leader'. Kinda obvious since I'm half machine."
"And how many dragons do you know that carry pulse rifles?" said Matt.
Techo said, "What I don't get is what Nega's freaky bro was up to."
NegaMorph snarled at Techo and said, "Don't ever call him that. I want no relation to him at all."
Techo nodded. "Wow...sorry. That doesn't change the fact we have no idea what overloaded that thing in the first place. Something musta wandered through. I'm sure I saw someone."
"Ai ya! Demon is loose in San Francisco?"
"It couldn't have been one of the bigger demons," said Tohru, "Dai Gui or Po Kong would attract too much attention. Ow!"
Uncle whacked Tohru with two fingers and said, "Demons are magic! Can take human form! Have you forgotten Hsi Wu?"
"It looked a bit like the Lynches' hybrid form," said Chris. Tohru and Uncle fell silent. "Erm...you know who we're talking about, don't you."
"That was Drago, junior demon sorcerer, but still powerful and crafty," said Uncle.
"Good, I hate demons sooo much. Let's go cut his head off," said Matt in a nasty voice.
Techo said to Uncle, "Long story involving demons called the Doom Weapons, don't ask...seriously."
"We must make locater spell," said Uncle, "If dragon boy is loose, there's no telling what havoc he could wreak."
"We could scan for him. How many dragons are there in America?" said Techo.
Matt nodded. "Would be quick."
"Magic will find magic," said Uncle, "Tohru, we must gather ingredients."
Techo looked up from talking to WARDEN (who had been moved to the new ship.) "Found him, he's in a junk yard," he said.
Chloe glared and banged Matt and Techo's heads together. "Does 'culture shock' mean ANYTHING TO YOU NUMBSKULLS?" she yelled in Splitter.
"Why was lady growling and hissing?" asked Uncle.
"You'd better off if you ignored them when it's not important," said Chip, "Trust me."
"Let's just find this 'Drago' and blast him till he gets the message," said Chloe, sighing.
Meanwhile, Drago decided to recover at his old hideout, if it could be considered one. He removed an old engine block that was in his way and said, "I should have gotten a better place. If the Chans hadn't have beat me at the Space Needle, I'd be ruling the roost and storms there."
Drago sat back and tried a fireball. It blasted a tire. "Least my normal powers work," he said. He then remembered what his father had said when he had been ranting once how had had temporarily succeeded in taking over the world with the Book of Ages. "Hmm, maybe I can take a little vacation in Australia, check out the beaches, see the Outback, rewrite the course of history. Yeah, I wouldn't make the same mistakes Dad has. No chances of resistance for me. I'd get rid of the Chan, their friends, and that small rebel army."
A blast blew a hole in a car by his head. "Bugger, I missed...Ow...what was that for?" said a voice.
Drago rolled his eyes and said, "Ugh, not now. Can't I have at least a day off?"
Jackie came into view, followed by some of the people he'd seen at the portal. "Hi, you're under arrest, scaly," said a female voice from behind an armored helmet.
"No thanks, lady. I've already done my time," said Drago before breathing out a stream of fire. The group scattered to avoid the blast. The other made a glowing blue orb appear that he then chucked at Drago. Drago had the good sense to dodge the missile. Just as well since it blew up an old car.
He got back up in time to dodge a blue-white blade that cleaved a slice off an old girder. "Where you going, buddy?" said Matt.
"Don't recall seeing you before," said Drago, "And I don't intend on seeing you again." He covered his hand in flame and punched Matt.
"Ow...that was unexpected," said Matt, getting back up.
Uncle smacked him with two fingers. "Drago is son of the Fire Demon, Shendu. Of course he can do that!" said Uncle as Jackie and Chloe tried to double team Drago.
"Yeah, he does that a lot," said a voice. Matt jumped and turned to see a girl in an orange hoodie behind him.
"What are you doing here?" asked Matt.
"I'm part of Section 13. My business to deal with zits and scales over there," said the girl.
Matt looked puzzled and muttered, "They're getting younger every year." He then tried another plasma orb, but Drago countered with a fireball before sending another one that nearly melted Matt's foot."That's it, screw magic," he said, pulling out a weapon Chloe recognized.
"Not here! It's an enclosed..." she began before diving for cover as Matt fired the plasma magnum into Drago's side. Drago was thrown far away. Unfortunately, Matt still hadn't gotten around to fixing the recoil problem, so he too was sent flying, but in the opposite direction.
"Victory...and spinal damage is mine," Matt groaned from the rusted car he'd been shot into, looking at the smoke from the truck cab Drago had landed in. "Like I said, we're professionals," Matt said, walking over to it.
However, there was a burst of flame and Drago emerged from the wreckage. "But how? I had a clear shot on him. Ow!" Uncle had whacked Matt again.
"Drago is magic. Magic must defeat magic," said Uncle.
Drago looked quite annoyed and looked directly at Matt. "Who the hell do you think you are, Han Solo?" he snarled, flames licking from his mouth. Drago paused and sniffed the air. "Hmm...I smell dragons, and it's not me."
Matt grinned. "Well...me n Chloe have a little magic of our own," he said before he and Chloe readied their hybrid forms.
Drago looked confused and said, "Don't recall having any siblings."
"How about a family reunion, back in the netherworld?" said Jackie before doing a flying kick.
Matt and Chloe charged too, only for Drago to jump over them and aim a fireball at Jackie. Techo was trying a clear aim with his rifle. "Whatever you're gonna do, do it fast, gramps," he said and winced as Matt was piledrived by Drago.
Drago got up and noticed the group surrounding him. "All of you against one of me, that doesn't seem fair, does it?" said Drago.
Suddenly, an old TV seemingly lifted itself up and then hurled towards Techo.
Techo fired his pulse rifle at it out of reflex, the shells tearing the old TV to splinters. "OK...WHO DID THAT?" he said before a hubcap knocked him out.
"Whoever they are, they are so gonna regret messing with- WHOA!" Suddenly Jade was lifted up into the air.
"Jade! What are you doing?" called Jackie.
"Um, I think I'm levitating. Or someone's levitating me," said Jade. Then whatever seemed to be holding her started swinging her around very fast.
Matt sniffed. "I know that smell..." he said before throwing a plasma ball at the space below Jade. The plasma blasted into an invisible shape and Jade fell down. At the same time, a dent appeared in an old trailer and a dark voice said "...Ow."
Talia quickly caught Jade and said, "Gotcha kiddo, you ok?"
"Oh... I think I'm gonna hurl," said Jade, whose face was slightly green.
A familiar shape appeared with a groan, a large wyvern with a skull-like face and mummy-like bandages wrapped around its long front limbs. Its appearance made even Drago take a step back. "What in the
netherworld?" he said
"Ghoulwyrm...we don't have time to play," said Chloe, sending a lightning bolt at the dracolich. Ghoulwyrm glared and sank backwards into the trailer before the lightning bolt hit. "Oh right, he can become intangible," said Chloe.
"Ai ya! Another demon!" cried Uncle.
"Actually, he's undead," said Matt, "Which isn't much better."
Chloe glared and pulled a grenade off her combat armor. "Intangible or not, I'm roasting him. This is not the time," she said, priming it and throwing it through a window in the trailer. The trailer exploded a few seconds later. "Well, that takes care of that," said Chloe.
Ghoulwyrm appeared behind Drago and, mistaking him for an ally of the Lynches, sent him flying with a swipe. He quickly realized his mistake and said, "Oh, sorry."
"What kind of monster is that?" asked Jackie.
"Several kinds," said Ghoulwyrm before his muzzle split in four.
"Cover your ears!" shouted Matt. Jackie was about to ask why before his eyes crossed as Ghoulwyrm let out a sonic roar that shook the ground. A junkpile practically vibrated with a rattling noise. "Oh no," said Matt, slowly getting a good grip on his helmet.
Then the junk on the top started tilting forward. "JUNKSLIDE!" yelled Jade before the pile started coming down on them. Ghoulwyrm extended three bandage tendrils and grabbed Drago before pulling him away.
"This is gonna hurt," moaned Matt before a car landed on him upside down. The others got up to see Matt, perfectly ok, having gone through the sunroof. He had a distant, terrified expression. "Nnnnngh," he whimpered, leaving imprints with his claws in his gun.
"Hey, put me down!" yelled Drago, "No one kidnaps me!"
"This isn't a kidnapping, it's a rescue," said Ghoulwyrm.
"Why would I want to go anywhere with you?" said Drago.
"Would you rather go with them?" said Ghoulwyrm, pointing at the group.
Techo had gotten back up and he and Chris were firing at them, the rounds bouncing off...and going through the metal around them. Drago could also make out the sound of Uncle speaking a chi spell chant.
"Ok, if we're gonna leave, we better do it before the old man finishes his spell," said Drago.
Ghoulwyrm made a mock bow towards the group and said, "Until we meet again." The lightning rods on his back released a flash of purple lightning that temporarily blinded the group. When they could look, Drago and Ghoulwyrm were gone.
"Ok...this sucks," said Chloe before being slapped by Uncle. "Ow...stop it..." she said.
Talia said "...and someone help me with Matt. I think we'll need a crowbar to get him to let go."
"Where did Drago and that creature go?" asked Tohru.
"I don't know," said Chris, "But with Ghoulwyrm in town, things got a whole lot darker."
"Great, we got an Empire general running around, a new demon on the loose, and Ghoulwyrm to boot. All that's missing is Taleth and Ka...oh," said Techo as his words snapped Matt out of it.
Matt glared at Techo and said, "I think I've got enough to worry about right now. So, what was this about Drago being the son of a fire demon?"
Down in San Francisco's subterranean city, Drago backed up from Ghoulwyrm. "A damn Dracolich. Who are you and why are you helping me?" he said, a fireball at the ready.
"Relax, sonny," said Ghoulwyrm, "If I had wanted to eat you or something, I would have done it by now. Am I correct to believe that your father, aunts, and uncles are the Demon Sorcerers of the Trigrams?"
"You've heard of my family?" said Drago, suspiciously.
"You've got quite a family history," said Ghoulwyrm, "The name is Ghoulwyrm. Like the Chans' new allies, I too come from another world. I've been boning up on ancient and powerful evils and your father and his siblings came up quite a lot."
"So what do you want from me?" said Drago.
"The thing is that the Lynches are as much my enemies as the Chans are yours. They've spoiled so many of my plans that I thought that I need to acquire a bit more power so I can get them out of my way. And when I heard about you, I thought we could assist each other. I scratch your back and you scratch mine, if you will."
"So...I help you rub out these...Lynches and you help me deal with the Chans and get my family out of that damn limbo?" said Drago.
"Something along those lines," said Ghoulwyrm, "Of course, I've heard a few rumors about you and your father not being on the best of terms. I'm a bit surprised to hear you wanting to break him out."
"It might stop him whining," said Drago darkly.
"I see," said Ghoulwyrm, "Of course, it might take some time to get your family out, but I think we can do plenty in the meantime."
"Fine, whatever, I have a good idea where those do-gooders are right now anyhow," said Drago.
"Yes, I think I know too," said Ghoulwyrm, "Incidentally, there is very something in Section 13's vault that could prove really useful. Your father has told you of the Shadowkhan, right?"
"Yes, he mentioned that he was having trouble with them when the Chans released him. Something about Tarakudo," said Drago, before catching on with a smirk, "I like your thinking."
"Of course, if we are going to get into Section 13, we're going to need a distraction," said Ghoulwyrm. He turned his gaze towards the Bizzaritorium and said, "And I think I know where to find it."
After the battle at the junkyard, the group went back to Section 13. "So, you're saying there were 8 demon sorcerers who were defeated by the Eight Immortals. Shendu, the fire one, managed to break out but got turned into a statue and his powers split into 12 talismans. Now he, the talismans, and his future son are in a demon netherworld with the rest of them?" asked Matt.
"Until now," said Jackie
"Hey, we didn't open the portal. We were trying to stop OmegaMorph," said Matt, on the defensive. He was too used to being the one responsible for magical mishaps.
"How lizard boy escaped is not important," said Uncle, "Sending him back is. Uncle needs time to research proper banishing spell as well as undead dragon with him. We will need special parchment."
"For what?" asked Jackie.
"To place on undead dragon's forehead to immobilize him."
"Actually, I was kinda there when he was still alive and all that. I don't think he's Eastern," said Matt.
Just then, the alarms began to sound off. "Let me guess, security breach?" asked Matt.
"Let's go kick some dragon butt," said Jade.
"No, it's too dangerous," said Jackie.
"C'mon, I've beaten Drago before."
"But what about this Glowworm?" reminded Jackie.
"Glowworm...I gotta remember that," said Matt, happily. Gunshots could be heard and several agents ran by the doorway, one holding half a gun. A large red worm with six tusk-like mandibles crawled round the corner before stopping. "Oh, no. Not these things again," said Matt.
Jade slammed the door on it. "Problem solved," she said before there was a crunching noise and the waste crawler munched a hole in the wall.
"Whoa, these guys have a healthy appetite." The waste crawler paused and spat a green glob at the other wall, which burned a hole into instantly.
"And very unhealthy saliva," said Matt.
The waste crawler turned to spit at the annoying mortals and was torn apart as Matt and the gang opened fire on it with their rifles. NSC had spent millennia living with weird and their weapons were made for jobs like this...except for the slime...
"Ew, gross," said Jade.
"You're telling me," said Matt.
The group looked out to see several more of the waste crawlers, who had luckily decided to eat inanimate objects over living and a strange raptor-like creature. Its hide was of a dark dull brown color and instead of having arms, it had six spiderlike legs and a pair of horns where its eyes should be.
"No...it's not possible..." said Matt, fear making him see something different, an infected. The creature shrieked and charged the sources of magic. It was hungry and the humans so far had been barely morsels. It was practically vaporized as Matt yelled, sending a wall of plasma into it.
"Nice work Matt," said Chloe, "But the girly screams was hardly necessary."
"Um, that was Jade," said Matt.
"Was not!" said Jade.
Matt looked at the pile of ashes that had been the creature and the waste crawlers behind them. Chloe said, "It's ok, we both know they're gone. DARKRIFT took them out," she said. A crash came from the distance.
"The vault!" cried Jackie.
"Che, relax, Jackie," said Jade, "The Talismans and demon chi's long gone. There's nothing left in that vault... except the Mask of Tarakudo!"
"So? It's just a mask…OW!" said Techo as Uncle slapped him.
"YOU WANT UNDEAD TO HAVE POWER OF SHADOKHAAAN?" he yelled at Techo who cringed more out of shock than anything else.
"Uh, Shadowkhan are bad things, right?" asked Matt.
"Very bad," said Jackie.
"Oh great, they're probably undead," muttered Matt darkly.
Ghoulwyrm watched as Drago blew the vault door open. "Impressive," he said, meaning it. The vault security almost rivaled that of an NSC ship.
"Yeah, but we'll need to find some way across the floor with touching it," said Drago, "If it can blow up pens, I don't want it touching my feet."
"Uh, duh, I'm part ghost," said Ghoulwyrm as he floated off the floor and crossed the vault to where a Japanese mask of a red demon's face was hanging on the wall. "Not much to look at," said Ghoulwyrm, lifting up the mask. An explosion further down the hall was heard. "Lynch," said Ghoulwyrm absently and said "Chloe," as a buzzing noise was heard.
"It's gonna be hard getting back out," said Drago.
"Not at all," said Ghoulwyrm as he grabbed Drago, "Don't lose contact with me."
"What are you doing? YAH!" said Drago as he and Ghoulwyrm literally went down through the floor just as the gang came into view.
Uncle's eyes went to the empty wall and he yelled, "Ai ya, they took cursed oni mask!"
"I think they went down." said Matt.
"How much is the floor security worth?" said Chloe, getting a good idea what Matt had planned.
"I don't think they'll mind so much," said Matt as he blasted the floor.
Matt dropped down into the underground tunnel under the vault in time to see Ghoulwyrm.
"Alright, hand over the-" Just then, a scaly arm popped out from under Ghoulwyrm along with muffled yelling. "Oops," said Ghoulwyrm before moving to show a slightly squashed Drago.
Matt backed up as Drago got to his feet with murder in mind. "Oh, I don't think we've met. My name's Captain Lynch. What's yours?" he said nervously.
Drago looked at Matt and turned to Ghoulwyrm. "This is the guy's who been messing with your plans?" he said incredulously.
"Believe me, he's a lot tougher than he looks," said Ghoulwyrm, "And a major stake in the neck."
Drago said, "He's just hu..." before a blast hit him in the chest and knocked him into the wall. "Oh yeah, now I remember," said Drago, barely singed.
"You really need to be more picky with the lackeys you pick," said Matt, "This Drago's as tough as a skink."
Suddenly, Drago leapt off the wall and did an axe kick on Matt's head. "Oh, I think I'm at the top of the reptile family," said Drago before punching Matt into a wall.
Matt snarled angrily, turning hybrid before aiming a punch at Drago. "Little pink...WHOA!" said Matt before Drago grabbed his arm, pulled him closer and kicked Matt in the chest before flipping him over his head. "Call yourself a dragon?" said Drago.
"Nah, I call myself a mercenary," said Matt, before send a plasma blast into Drago's shin. Drago hopped back and turned as Matt got up and got him in a headlock. "Say 'Night night'," said Matt and was headbutted in the face before being roundhouse kicked to the floor.
"Night night," said Drago cockily.
"Most impressive, Drago," said Ghoulwyrm, "Now how about we take this mask where it will be useful?"
Drago looked at Matt. "I thought you wanted this guy dead," he said, prodding the groaning Matt before a lightning bolt split a brick next to his head.
"THAT'S why. His sister's more competent and a better shot," said Ghoulwyrm.
"So why not take her out?" said Drago.
"Because since you knocked out her brother, she'll be too much to deal with," said Ghoulwyrm, "Trust me on this one."
Chloe proved this by landing in a crouch, her eyes solid red and snarling. "Hurt my brother, would you?" she said in a terrifyingly demonic voice.
"Ok, she's not really as tough as she looks, right?" asked Draco.
"Trust me, a female's wrath is scarier than that of a male's," said Ghoulwyrm.
"I'll crush your spine," hissed Chloe.
Drago said, "She reminds me of my family with that attitude," before a lightning bolt literally blew a hole in the wall. "Kinda like Uncle Chang Tzu, only hotter," said Draco. Chloe growled even louder.
"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention," said Ghoulwyrm, "She hates flattery."
Chloe grabbed Drago, jumped up and planted both her currently taloned feet in Drago's chest in a double kick. Ghoulwyrm grabbed Drago and got ready to phase through a wall. "See ya, got a family reunion to plan," he said and went through the wall with Drago, avoiding a bolt of energy lightning.
Chloe snarled at the wall where Ghoulwyrm disappeared before turning to help Matt up. Matt groaned and said, "No one said that dragon boy knew kung fu."
Chloe said angrily, "You stupid idiot, he almost turned you into a pair of boots." Matt was helped up and pulled his sister up out the hole.
A second later, they both got smacked by Uncle. "You let evil dragons escape with mask!" yelled Uncle, "Do you know what kind of evil they could unleash?"
"I'm sorry, I was busy making sure my KIDNEYS WERE STILL IN!" yelled Matt
"Kidneys are least of problem when demons will be unleashed to steal our souls!" snapped Uncle.
"Again?" muttered Techo.
"So what's so dangerous about this mask anyways?" asked Chloe, "I've seen scarier ones in Lilo's room."
Tohru said, "The mask of Tarakudo contains the spirit of 10 Oni demons that command the legions of Shadowkhan," he said.
Draco gulped, "That'll qualify."
"And these Shadowkhan guys are like demonic ninjas?" asked Matt.
"There are 9 different tribes of Shadowkhan, each with its own unique and deadly style," said Tohru.
"Oh goody. We've only been here, what? 18 hours and already demons want to eat us," said Matt, gloomily before bursting into tears on Jackie's shoulder. "Why is it always undeaaaad?" he wailed.
"I know how you feel," said Jackie, "There are plenty of times where I wish I could just have a normal day."
"Che, normal's boring," said Jade, "Getting to kick evil butt again's totally cool."
Matt twitched at this and started giggling. "Oh yes...being shot at every other hour is SOOO MUCH FUN...HAHAHAHA!" he said before falling over.
"Uh, is he ok?" asked Jackie.
"Imagine all the turmoil you go through, make it daily, and add sci-fi dangers as well," said Chip.
Jade said, "Oh...he's just nuts."
Chloe looked impressed, "Hmm...nice guess."
Techo said, "Well...we were sent in to make sure whatever OmegaMorph was trying would fail, looks like we're staying till lizard boy's back where he belongs."
"Cool!" said Jade, "You can hang out at Uncle's shop!"
"Uncle runs antique store, not a hotel," said Uncle.
"Uh, I think we find lodging somewhere else," said Chris, "There's probably some good hotels here in San Francisco."
"Plus it's not like we're short on funds," said Chloe, pulling out an NSC credit coin.
Uncle picked up the coin and bit it between his teeth. "Real gold," he said, "Worth plenty, if you can find place to sell it."
"It's only a credit," said Chloe before Techo and Chris both tackled her.
"Does 'global economic collapse' ring a bell? NO CREDITS!" yelled Techo.
And here's the first chapter of a new story. Obviously, this takes place after the series finale. The gang's met up with the Chan clan and looks like they'll be working together against Drago, Ghoulwyrm, and OmegaMorph's forces. Not to mention that they have the Mask of Tarakudo to worry about as well. This is only the tip of the iceberg so I suggest waiting for the next chapter which should be along soon. Please review.