I completely forgot to update this this week when I did on the forums. Is my bad. So far I'm still working on chapter 15, which is coming very slowly at this point. I'll be glad when it's finished. I'm eager to begin work on chapter 16...you'd think that'd motivate me to work more on chapter 15, but alas, not so much. My writing's slowed down some these past two weeks...I've also taken up rollerblading again... trying to reteach myself after maybe 6 years or so. Not that I was any good to begin with. Anyway, enjoy :)
Chapter 11 New Look
It was a few days later when Stormy got the chance she desired to take on Rainbow Brite. Murky had allowed her to train for the coming attacks. It had been his only instructions, but it was also the only thing Stormy felt driven to do. She didn't want to fool with anything else or listen to any more of Murky's lectures at the moment. Zapping rocks with lightning was a more pleasing way to pass the time. She had decided to work with Skydancer later as well. Even though Murky had told her there were no immediate plans for using him, she wanted to be ready. She had to be ready for when that time came.
"Stormy!" called Murky's voice from somewhere behind her.
Stormy turned, letting a lightning bolt go astray. It ended up hiding the side of one of the cliffs, and knocking rock loose. A small avalanche started, piles of rocks sliding down the sides of the cliff before settling in a pile of dust at the very bottom. "Coming!" she replied, angry that she'd slipped up because he'd interfered with her concentration. She made her way to Murky, who stood just outside the entrance to his lair. He had to ruin a good thing.
Murky smirked at her when she stopped in front of him. "It's time for you to help me with Rainbow Brite. You're going on a mission with me. It'll be simple, but I want to see your potential. I'll be your backup."
"What are we doing?" asked Stormy. It wasn't anything big. He only wanted to test her in action. She knew she was capable of much more…she had to be. It's why she was helping Murky, wasn't it?
"You're going to steal some color crystals for me. I need more any way. My supply is almost gone. I'll be a distraction in case you fail," Murky explained bluntly. He wasn't up to sugar coating anything.
Stormy felt anger building up inside of her, but quickly pushed it down. She wasn't going to fail. She would prove to Murky that she could complete his task and collect these color crystals that he wanted. She then realized her problem – she had no idea what a color crystal was. This same realization seemed to dawn on Murky. "I'll need to show you some color crystals," he said. Stormy felt relieved inside. She didn't have to ask about them. "Follow me," he instructed.
Murky led Stormy back inside his lair and up the stairs, beyond her room. He took her to a place she'd never been before. It had to be one of his personal storage rooms. She had known about them, but had been instructed to not to go to places he did not ask her to. She followed his command, and found it suddenly strange that she'd never wanted to explore any of these rooms. They walked through the piles of stacked objects. Stormy covered her nose as they passed one peculiar box that reeked.
"Here they are!" he called happily. He pointed to a large set of boxes. Stormy looked inside the one box that he pointed to. Small pieces of shiny rock barely covered the bottom.
Stormy blinked, wondering what purpose these rocks could serve besides just looking pretty. "What are they for?" she asked.
"These are what Rainbow uses to power that dreaded Color Belt of hers. It's where her rainbow power comes from. I can use these in my gloom potions and to trick those Color brats. They're very handy. I need more. The colors don't matter of course, but blue is always good to have, as is green."
"Do you want every color?"
"Of course! I have many uses for them. I need more and don't have time to take care of it myself. That's why you're going to do it for me. It should be simple enough for you. Understood?"
Stormy nodded. "Got it," she replied.
"Good. I don't need you messing up now. I've spent so much time making sure you were ready to take on Rainbow," remarked Murky as he turned around and headed back toward the door.
Stormy again followed Murky through the piles of boxes and random things he'd tossed about in the room. She glanced around, knowing that she wouldn't enter this room again without his permission. Her eyes settled on a box nearest the door. She glanced inside as they passed it. There was an emerald dress, and a pair of thick leather boots. She felt drawn to them somehow, not knowing why. She reached out a hand to touch the fabric of the dress, but it was smacked away by Murky. "I didn't tell you to touch that!" he yelled angrily.
Pulling her hand back quickly, Stormy rubbed the spot he'd smacked. She had no idea why the box was so important or why Murky didn't want her touching it. What she couldn't shake is why she felt drawn to the items in the first place. Before she could consider it any further, Murky pulled her from the room, shutting and locking the door behind him. He looked her in the eye. "You are to never enter this room unless I'm with you. Now rest up for tomorrow. I'll see you then." Murky turned and headed back for the stairs, descending back down to his laboratory.
Why? she wondered as she watched him disappear. It didn't make sense. She wanted to know why she had wanted to touch the clothing. Why did Murky have such colorful clothing to begin with? He never wore it. She looked down at her own clothing. It was the same shades as his and certainly not colorful. She'd worn the same plain grey dress and slip-on black shoes for as long as she could remember. Murky had always replaced the outfit when it would wear out, but it was never any different. Always the same, never changing, always colorless.
Meanwhile, Murky paced back and forth in his laboratory. He knew that Stormy would stay away from the room without going near it now that he'd given the instructions. He feared the questions that could come of it. He wasn't sure if she remembered the outfit or remembered how she came to the Pits, and he didn't want her finding out. It'd be so easy to command her never to ask questions about it, but that worried him. Would she pick up on the gloom variant? How she could never do something after Murky gave her the command? He didn't need a mutiny on his hands. No, he'd distract her mind. Without access to the room, Stormy would forget what she'd seen. If he gave her something new, she might very well forget she'd even seen the darned outfit! Why had he kept it so near the door? Why had he kept it at all? It should have been tossed out with the trash. Instead, it had been shoved in that room, collecting dust all these years.
He snapped his fingers, suddenly realizing what he could do. He'd make Stormy a new outfit. He rubbed his chin. It had to be for a purpose though, not just thrown out there. She might become suspicious. Of course, he realized, the reason is so easy. He was sending her to begin attacking Rainbow Brite. She shouldn't look shabby and shoddy. He'd create an outfit befitting to the cause, one that would rival Rainbow's. Where Rainbow's shown brightly with colors, Stormy's would use sharp greys. Instead of a rainbow for a symbol, Stormy would have the lightning bolt, which not only symbolized her power, but also linked her to Murky.
In what could only be called a fatherly effort by a stretch of the imagination, Murky worked on the new outfit throughout the night and much of the next morning. He holed up in his laboratory, even keeping Lurky away under orders to keep an eye on the girl and make sure she trains. Murky had no doubt that Stormy would follow his command from yesterday, so Lurky was merely being kept at bay. He didn't need that bumbling oaf stumbling over fabric or pulling out stitching.
After he finished the outfit, he chose to sleep for a few hours and catch up on sleep. By late afternoon, he felt more like himself and was ready for the next step in his plan. He called for Lurky to come to his laboratory. The outfit was on a nearby table, partially hidden from view. He wasn't having Lurky go and spoil things.
"Yeah, Murky?" called Lurky as he entered the laboratory.
"Bring me Stormy. Tell her it's time to go to Rainbow Land. Then you can get the grunge buggy ready, got it?"
"Sure thing!"
Murky waited patiently for Lurky and Stormy to return, tapping his foot. Within a few minutes, Stormy entered in front of Murky. She looked to him for her instructions.
"I found her, Murky!"
"I can see that. Now go fetch the grunge buggy and wait outside!"
As soon as Lurky was gone, Murky reached for the new set of clothing. "Since you're going to be attacking Rainbow Brite, you needed an outfit that was up to par. I want you to outshine that brat in every way, and that means you'll look the part too." He held out the bundle to a surprised Stormy, who held out her hands to take it. "Go change, and then meet me outside. Lurky will have the grunge buggy ready. Don't take too long, understand?" Stormy nodded, and Murky smirked before leaving Stormy in the laboratory.
Stormy watched as he left the room and then looked down at the clothing in her hands. She quickly ran to her room to change, not wanting to disobey orders. She lay the various pieces on her bed. There was a long sleeve one piece under suit, a puffy dress that went over it, a belt that had a lightning bolt in a cloud, and a pair of thick leather boots, which also bore the mark of a lightning bolt. To top it off, there was a lightning bolt clip for her hair, a striking silver color that gleamed when tilted. She looked at the clothing spread on her bed in awe, still amazed.
Jolted by the memory of Murky's words to not take very long, she quickly changed. Off came the pull over grey dress and simple boots. One went the under suit, which seemed to be made of a stretchy fabric. As she put it on, it fit snugly, but not too tightly. Next came the dress, which opened in the front like Murky's vest. It puffed upwards at the top of her shoulders. She secured the dress in place with the belt, which fastened around the back. She then pulled on each boot, finding the insides comfortable and soft against her bare skin. They came up to her knees. Finally, she fooled with her hair, fastening the new clip into place.
Satisfied, she picked up a piece of glass off her table. It was large enough to see one's image in, which is what Stormy intended to use it for. She looked her new outfit over, pleased with the way the various greys blended together so flawlessly. This outfit was much better than her previous one, and looked nicer too. Placing the glass back on the table, she left her room, and went to meet Murky. She knew it was time to finally prove herself to him and show that she was indeed competent.
She climbed into the grunge buggy, taking the side passenger car again while Murky clung to the back frame of the grunge buggy. He'd nodded his approval at her outfit, apparently pleased with his work. Lurky didn't notice anything different, and if he did, he didn't say a word. Stormy felt nervous inside, though she'd never let that show on the outside. She knew her instructions, she knew the plan, and knew she could complete it as had been asked of her. Yet, there was still a part of her that felt as though she wasn't up to the task.
Concentrating, she worked to push away the nervousness that was consuming her stomach, the fear she felt at doing something entirely new. She'd trained long and hard for this, but would the actual attack be anything like it? Would she not be strong enough, her training worthless? Of course, she realized that it could be the very opposite. She might have trained so well that she could easily overpower this Rainbow Brite. This was the thought she chose to keep in mind and use to fight the nerves. She looked up at Murky, whose attention was not focused on her, but on the road ahead.
"Drive into the forest once we're in Rainbow Land. We'll leave the grunge buggy there and head to the Color Caves on foot."
"What if they see us, Murky?" asked Lurky as he focused on the road ahead of him.
"They won't. And if they do, I'll take care of them. Just like always," Murky answered with a laugh.
Familiar terrain came into view as the trio crossed into Rainbow Land. Darkness became light, and colors became abundant. Murky closed his eyes at the sight, disgusted by the brightness and all the colors. "I'll never get used to this!" he exclaimed. Stormy said nothing, but squinted at the bright light until her eyes adjusted. Again, she looked around, studying the land, keeping it in mind for later. In the distance she could see activity going on, but couldn't make out any specific details.
She was shook from her focus when Lurky squealed tires as he parked the grunge buggy behind a large clump of trees. She climbed out, and stood beside Murky. She watched as he pointed off in the distance, directly at the mines. She remembered it. "Today I'm going to lead you in the same way as before. This time, however, you'll be on your own once inside. I'll create a diversion at the entrance." He handed over a sack that he pulled from inside the passenger car of the buggy. "You'll put all the color crystals you can grab into this. Remember, I need all colors, but green and blue are the best ones to have."
Stormy nodded. "I get it."
"Good. Let's go then." Murky waved an arm and Lurky and Stormy followed in a line behind him.
Soon, the trio found themselves successfully sneaking around to the back entrance of the Color Caves. Some commotion was taking place near the entrance with a few of the sprites, and the Color Kids' attention was focused there. Stormy gulped as Murky gestured for her to continue forward, knowing that she should head directly for the hollow rock they'd used before. She looked back to see if Murky was still watching her, but he'd vanished. Taking a deep breath, she headed for the hollow rock, and shut herself inside. Now, she'd watch for the chance to collect color crystals when no one was looking.
Meanwhile, an argument between sprites was taking place outside of the mines. The three Color Kids on duty for the day watched as the sprites yelled back and forth at each other, giving them a chance to speak before stepping in. Red Butler stood with his arms crossed, listening to each side of the story. Buddy Blue copied him, and Canary Yellow bit her lip, not enjoying the fact that the sprites were arguing in the first place.
Finally, a lull in the arguing appeared, and Red spoke up. "It seems like as long as you aren't in the way of each other when you're mining, you'll be fine. Red color crystals and orange color crystals aren't that close to each other."
"Right," agreed Buddy Blue. "There's plenty of room in there for everyone. No need to argue about it.
The sprites looked to Canary Yellow for her input. "It's about getting our work done without all the arguing."
The two sprites, one red and the other orange, looked at each other. At first, it appeared as though they were set to argue again. Then, each one broke out into a smile. Red Butler grinned at the triumph. They didn't need the arguing and he was glad that the sprites were talking nicely to each other again. "Let's get back to work and finishing mining color crystals for the day," he stated. "We'll soon be able to rest and enjoy the rest of the day without any trouble."