Neverland: Sacred Worship

Bomberman's ship raced from Thantos, heading to Neverland. He actually looked forward to seeing the nature planet again. His past adventures there took him to the dark, hot underworld that surrounded the planet's core. Now he would get to see the wondrous jungles that made up the planet's surface, as well as meet more of the people that inhabited the lush landscape.

"This artifact your people have, where exactly did you find it?" Bomberman inquired.

"Not too long after the war between the Astral Knights and the Nebula, it fell from the sky into a clearing near my village. We dug it from the earth and now we have it under close guard in the village."

"It's really important to your people. I can tell by how excited you are at the mere mention of it."

"It's brought my people joy, but unfortunately it's also brought us pain. The damned Dragon Clan keeps trying to make off with it. We've been able to hold most of them off, but I fear soon they'll send in more warriors than we can handle."

"We'll see about that. When we land I'll get to the bottom of what exactly we're all facing with this artifact."

As the ship passed Epikyur, Bomberman and Niklo could see that the planet was clearly in ruins. No longer the amusement wonderland it used to be, thick smoke rose from the smoldering surface. All that could be discerned on the planet's surface was the ominous orange glow from the many fires still burning down there.

Seeing the fire triggered a memory deep within Bomberman's mind. He remembered fighting Orion on Red Mountain. He remembered the heat and the acrid smell of sulfur as he fought the massive mining machine Orion was in possession of. He remembered everything. He recalled how the high heat levels caused his bombs to explode almost the minute they were thrown. He remembered seeing the being in green armor charging at him.

Orion's origin was impressive. Bomberman recalled the survivors on Red Mountain telling him how successful Orion had been prior to Altair's invasion. Orion had been the head foreman at the mines on Kanatia. He had developed his armor to cope with the intense heat deep in the mines. Once Altair had cast his influence upon him, it was too late to save his soul. Altair had apparently planned to build more of those mining machines and use them as weaponry. Bomberman had no choice but to take Orion out. The armored suits the miners currently used on Kanatia were developed based on his original prototype. It was an impressive legacy.

Bomberman remembered Artemis as well. He didn't know much about her at first, but then he had come to find out she was Orion's sister. She had a brilliant mind, but was at times reckless and lacked the proper control. Altair had stumbled upon them both, and knowing about their influence and success on Kanatia, he was able to take control of their minds and add them to his ranks of impressive fighters.

Niklo's voice snapped Bomberman out of his daydream.

"Bomberman! It looks like we've arrived at Neverland!" He said excitedly.

Bomberman gathered his wits and looked through the windshield at the approaching planet. He could clearly see the lush, green thicket that covered most of the planet. He spotted a clearing that was perfect to land in. It was large enough that he knew the engine blast wouldn't affect the vegetation in the jungles.

He carefully guided the ship in and set it down. Once the engines were powered off and the dust settled, Bomberman opened the hatch and he and Niklo stepped out into the sun-drenched clearing.

"I'll lead you to my people. We must tread carefully. There is a lot of sacred ground in the jungles." Niklo warned.

Bomberman followed him into the dense jungle and down a winding path that cut through the lush canopy. After about an hour of walking, they reached the first of many huts that comprised Niklo's village. At once a large group of natives emerged, excited to see Niklo safe.

"Niklo! You're alive!" One of them shouted.

"We thought those evil beings had killed you!" Another exclaimed.

"They would have, if it wasn't for Bomberman's friends. They saved me and kept me safe. Bomberman here is the one that brought me home."

The natives were tremendously grateful to Bomberman for bringing Niklo home safe. Bomberman was taken into the village and given food and water as thanks. As he got to know the tribe, he became impressed with how close knit the entire tribe actually was. They cared for each other in a way not many beings on other planets would care for each other. Soon however, it was time to get down to business. The group lead Bomberman to a large plaza area surrounded by huts. A withered shaman by the name of Ohano stood before a life sized statue of what appeared to be an angelic figure.

"Ohano, this is Bomberman. He says he may know where our sacred artifact came from." Niklo introduced his guest.

Ohano turned to face Bomberman, his aged face showing signs of exhaustion.

"Welcome Bomberman. Please, feel free to examine our artifact as you wish. It will heal any wounds you may have."

"I appreciate the gesture. I actually have an idea of where this may have come from. The group I belong to thinks it could be linked to a planet that was recently discovered outside the Nebula."

"Is this by chance the golden moon you speak of?"

"It is. We call it Gold 1, but we have no idea what secrets it may hold or where it even came from. We tried to send a ship out there but the Dragon Clan attacked it and took some of our men hostage."

"Those Dragon people are nothing but evil. They've been trying to take our treasure. We've done what we can to hold them off, but I fear they will eventually win."

"Niklo was saying this thing fell from the sky?"

"Indeed. Once we found it, we found that it gives me incredible healing powers. It has helped us evolve as a tribe, and it has brought us joy and success. We can't afford to have it stolen, but the strenuous guarding we've had to do is wearing all of us down."

"I can provide extra protection for your planet. Let me contact my commander."

Bomberman used his communicator to contact Nitros. He answered almost immediately, expecting Bomberman's call.

"What's the status update, Bomberman? Did you get our man home safe?" He inquired.

"I'm on Neverland now, and he's safe. I was hoping to ask for a favor. These poor people can't keep up with guarding against the constant Dragon Clan attacks. Is there any possibility we can get some Guard protection for Neverland?"

"Actually, I have a unit leaving Aquanet now. I'll send them to Neverland and have them stage out there."

"The Guard was at Aquanet?"

"We had to send a unit there on an emergency mission. The Aquanet Coastal Patrol reported that a meteor impacted the ocean just off the western coast. The city of Unda is reporting casualties as well as Dragon activity in the waters off the shore."

"I'll head to Aquanet when I leave here, and I'll assist in any way I can."

"Just watch out for yourself. The city is a mess, and I can't think of any reason the Dragon Clan would have to be there. Something doesn't feel right."

"I'll keep an eye out. Thanks for granting Neverland extra protection. I'll talk to you when I get to Aquanet. Bomberman out."

Bomberman spun around and saw the concerned faces of the tribesmen, most noticeably the look on Ohano's face.

"So it is happening on other planets now. The Dragon people are taking over the Nebula…" He trailed off.

Ohano froze with fear. The trees around the clearing rustled.

"They're back…" He whispered with terror in his quivering voice.

Suddenly, at least forty Dragon Clan warriors stepped out of the jungle into the clearing. There was nowhere to go. Bomberman and the tribe were surrounded.

"Hand over the statue, or you will all die!" One of them yelled.

"I've used my bombs on your kind before, and I'll use them right now. Who wants to be the lucky first customer?" Bomberman retorted, producing a bomb.

Before he could throw it, a scream rang out from the jungle. Not long after, a terrified Dragon warrior ran into the clearing from the jungle in pure hysterics.

"There's something in there! Some kind of crazy woman shooting balls of light! She killed my entire unit!" He screamed.

"WHAT?! Something is killing our men?! Forget the statue for now. We need to get the hell back to the ships!" The head warrior shrieked.

Without warning, lethal balls of light began incinerating some of the Dragon warriors in the clearing. Bomberman lobbed bombs at some of them, but the survivors fled in horror. As soon as they were gone, Ohano spoke up.

"That must have been the sacred light spirit in the jungle. She showed up a few days ago, and we have no idea where she came from or why she's here."

Bomberman looked up just in time to see Zoniha flying off into the sunset. He had to smile at her presence.

"We'll escort you back to your ship. I thank you once again for returning Niklo safely to us." Ohano softly said.

As they walked through the jungle back to Bomberman's ship, Bomberman had an uneasy feeling about Aquanet. He felt uneasy in general. The Dragon Clan was stepping up their presence everywhere. This could only mean something big was on the horizon.

He prayed his feelings were wrong.