"John; glad we met you before the natives here got to us," said Chase, holstering his pistol as he approached the adventurer.
"Nah worries, mate," said Johnny, waving a hand dismissively at Chase, before he added, "And it's Johnny; not John. Never call me John."
"Fine," sighed Chase, annoyance in his voice but he greeted Johnny nevertheless. Chase turned around to look at the Master Builders, who mostly sported confused expressions; the blue spaceman that was known as Benny still sported his usual grin.
"This is Johnny Thunder; though it depends on when I find him. He was the contact I was telling you about before the scouts of the Raven Tribe interrupted us," briefed Chase swiftly.
"Wait? 'Tribe?' Are you telling us that there are more of these…things?" asked Wyldstyle, slight alarm in her normally level and calm voice.
"I think that this is the best time for me to tell you about it, yes; thought I think we should most at the same time. Johnny, care to give us a lift to the Lion Tribe?" asked Chase.
"Sure; 'ope in," said Johnny, gesturing to his jeep as he jumped into the driver seat, starting up the vehicle once again; the steadying purring of the engine adding noise to the otherwise silent forest.
Chase got into the passenger seat of the vehicle, and the four Master Builders that had escaped Business' Tower piled into the back; after a bit of shifting around, which involved Benny somehow pulling out wings from apparently nowhere and trying to add them to the sides of the jeep (to which Johnny quickly stomped out), the group were all sitting comfortably.
"So, uh, what are you going to tell us about the people that live in this world?" asked Emmet, as Johnny started driving through the forest, keeping the speed low so that the Master Builders didn't fall out of the back.
"The Land of Chima is a kingdom that is currently inhabited by nine tribes of anamorphic animals, according to the latest updates at my HQ. There's the Lion, Croc, Eagle, Wolf, Raven, Gorilla and Rhino Tribes. There are rumours of Five other Tribes coming back from near-extinction, though are information is limited on these Tribes; they are the Vulture, Phoenix, Panther, Saber-Tooth Tiger and Mammoth Tribes."
"As you are currently aware, this land is home to the powerful natural resource known as CHI, which was formed by a combination of an earthquake and tornado, which somehow formed Mount Cavora; this is the source of the CHI in the world. It flows down the Cavora River and only obtains the power that Dr Inferno wishes to utilise for his own uses when it reaches the 'Sacred Pool of Chi.' This sacred pool is guarded by the Lion Tribe, as I have mentioned earlier," informed Chase, as though he was used to giving information as quickly and as plainly, but as detailed, as possible for debriefings.
"Uh…I…I think I got it; but, just to make sure….tell me the whole thing again, I wasn't listening," said Emmet, shrugging his shoulders with a slightly confused arched eyebrow.
Wyldstyle rolled her eyes slightly in amusement to her boyfriend, while Batman kept his scowl up against the Master Builder mistaken for the 'Special'.
Chase tilted his glasses down slightly, glaring at Emmet before he turned back to glance at Johnny, asking, "Do you think he's being serious?"
"Couldn't tell ya even if I wanted to, mate," replied Johnny with shrug, resting one of his arms on the side of the jeep, over the door. After a few moments, the jeep came to a stop unexpectedly and Johnny said, "We're 'ere."
Emmet perked himself higher up, looking over Johnny's hat to see what he was talking about. Sure enough, a good distance in front of the jeep, was a clearing that lead to a large mountain in the centre of the clearing. But there was something attached to the side of the clearing that was facing the jeep; it had the appearance of a very large castle that Emmet could've sworn he seen in Middle Zealand, only this one was made up of shades of white and gold; unlike the grey stone of the Medieval Castles.
There was also a long, thin river coming down from the top of the mountain into this strange castle; could that be the strange CHI that Dr Inferno was talking about?
"We'll 'ave to travel on foot from 'ere," said Johnny, turning the jeep's engine off once again; filling the surrounding area with an ominous silence once more.
Emmet and the rest of the Master Builders piled out of the jeep and walked after Johnny and Chase. Emmet asked, "Uh…are you sure this is safe? I mean, the last guys we met weren't exactly what you would call friendly."
"Dan't worry yourself, mate; these guys're harmless," said Johnny, waving any worries aside from Emmet as he walked towards the castle-like building.
"Somehow, I don't think that this isn't going to go as well as he plans," said Emmet under his breath, rubbing his chin before he followed after the rest of the Master Builders, Agent and Adventurer.
Yep….not gone to plan; not at all, thought Emmet to himself.
He looked down at the ropes that were tied around his mid-section, tying him and the others in a large circle, around a large stone. They were surrounded by jeering creatures that Emmet guessed were the Lion Tribe that Chase had told them about; he had heard that part, but not much else.
One of the Lion Tribe stepped forward, who Emmet guessed was the eldest and the leader of this tribe of strange creatures; his mane was a light grey in colour, as well as a light grey beard. He had a set of golden armour over his chest, with the same light blue orb over his chest. He had a cape of royal blue trailing behind him, as well as a golden crown over his head, signifying leadership.
"You stand accused of stealing the sacred CHI from the Sacred Pool of Chi! How do you plead?" asked this lion, ancient anger and leadership clear in his voice.
"This is going to be your fault, you understand that, John?" asked Chase.
"Ah, leave it go, mate."
