Kaya, the Grandmaster and Dr. Sins (c) CarlottaStudios from YouTube and DeviantART
Detective Fire's appearance design (c) firewolf121 from DeviantART
Btw, guys, check out two stories I've uploaded in my profile that are about the Storm Hawks Fan 3rd Season: the "APFR origins" and the "Video: Everything I Am".
Episode 58 - Clueless
Part 4 - End of the Line
Master Cyclonis and a few Night Crawlers stood in the lab as the doctor just stared at them.
"I have an offer for you." - she said to him - "A unique opportunity to study something no one has ever had access to."
"What's this so interesting research about?" - the merb asked skeptically.
The young Empress laid some scrolls on a table nearby and let him study them.
"I've read that you're not very fond of crystals but you enjoy anatomy, so I think this will pick your interest." - she told him.
He read the scrolls carefully, taking mental notes of everything. His eyes widened briefly.
"This can't be possible." - he said as he picked up two scrolls and read both at the same time - "How did you even come up with this? And the material is extremely hard to find."
"I have more resources than you think." - she smirked - "I've plenty of materials."
"You look set up already, why do you need my help?" - he inquired.
"I have some plans, but the very first prototype wasn't successful." - she explained - "A few tweaks were needed, so I thought I should hire an expert to get it to work."
"And what would I gain from this?" - he asked bluntly.
"You'd have access to endless resources for your researches, not only mine. You'd be able to command your own squadron of Night Crawlers. And you'd live in a very secluded area where nobody'd be able to track you down." - she told him.
He stared at the ground in thought. He was considering his options. So far the offer seemed to be pretty good, he guessed the "Night Crawlers" were probably the Hooded Shadows, so of course, having a squadron of them at his disposal was a great thing. But still, he should think it through first.
Piper and Kyx were in the bar, just chatting about what the rest of the Atmos was like. The girl was served with quite the meal: there was a slice of fancy meat, an exotic salad, and some appetizers of all kinds. They didn't look like anything she had ever eaten before, but they sure tasted delicious.
"So, you have beautiful terras like Amazonia, Blizzaris, Rex, Flora and some dangerous places too, like the Black Gorge, Terra Deep, and The Wastelands." - he summed up a few things she had told him.
"Yes. The Atmos is such a vast world. We still don't know everything about it." - she commented.
"Hehe, no wonder, your Atmos is so much bigger than this land. I've lived here for ages and I don't know everything about the Greatland either. I should be ashamed. I really should travel more." - the man said.
"Do you have time to travel when you have to take care of your business?" - the crystal mage asked.
"Not that much time, I confess." - he lowered his head a little - "And you opened my eyes to things that are more important than just taking care of what I have."
"I'm glad to hear that." - the girl said.
"You know, I am a businessman at heart, but I could start over. A clean start." - Kyx told her - "Maybe, one day, if we get to unite our two worlds, I could start a brand new kind of business, like tourism. People could travel through both worlds. I'd have my way of earning what I need and I'd be giving everyone a chance to see the whole world."
"That's a noble goal. And it might give you a chance to travel as you wanted." - the navigator agreed.
"Yes. But unfortunately, I can't simply destroy what was built in here." - he put his gloved hand on his "chin" - "Even though starting this wasn't exactly a good thing, to begin with, ruining all the effort put into this isn't how it should end either."
"You have a point. Maybe we could get some help from a law force like the union detective Fire works for." - Piper suggested - "They could start inspecting the place and establishing some rules because they've been receiving reports of dangerous activities. The scientists who were unable to abide by that would have to leave. And eventually, the area'd be free of anyone trying to do something unethical."
"That's a good idea." - he chuckled - "No wonder you're a tactician."
"You know that?" - she asked.
"Yes, you've told your perks to my guards. Anything they hear goes through me." - the man explained to her.
"So you knew who I was and that it was me who was granted the pass here all along." - she concluded - "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Well, you were all so wary of me for recognizing two very known people already, I didn't want to appear even more ominous." - he explained - "But, maybe I should've told you that when we were left alone from the start. I apologize."
Piper just nodded, until she blinked with a new question in her mind.
"Wait, if you know everything your guards do, you must know about Kaya's records being erased from the main gate of the secluded area too." - the first officer assumed.
"I heard the news the first time from you, really. Right before you nearly destroyed my gate." - he told her - "And I've been working on finding out the culprit since then. By the way, how did you even get through?"
"Stork, our carrier pilot, is studying to become a tech specialist." - she said - "He's able to hack into almost anything."
"That's a useful skill." - he commented - "Still, you seem to be the most versatile one out of your squadron. What else did you do?"
"Besides my official perks, I was the cook for most of the time, but Junko sometimes would come up with some... Exotic meals too." - she told him.
"With all those abilities, how come you're not the one in charge?" - he asked.
"I have some leading skills and I'm very responsible, but I'm just not as good as Aerrow in that matter." - the tactician said - "He's a natural leader, he inspires people to follow him so easily... And he's a great person, I've learned a lot from him." - she put a hand in front of her heart, gesturing to herself.
Because of the gesture with her hand, his eyes were drawn to her necklace.
"Is he the one who...?" - he hinted.
She stroked the crystal that always rested by her neck as she smiled.
"That's another long story, for another day." - she said, squinting one of her eyes knowingly at him.
If he had a face he'd have been grinning widely back at her. Did she have many things to tell! And he could sense that one was something more personal, and yet she was willing to share the story with him, though on another occasion.
"I'll wait for this other day. Your little mystery will make me eager to hear your story." - he said to her, then he looked at a clock and a calendar near one of the walls - "Oh, the package I've requested from Ulok must've arrived already. He was supposed to deliver it to me tomorrow, but I think I'll pay him a visit today. Would you like to come along? I'll have him fetch something useful for you."
"Sure." - she smiled, but then she turned serious.
Wait... Was he talking about the same package Ulok had commented about earlier? Well, time to find out. Both stood up and left the VIP area. A fancy limousine looking hover car was waiting for them right outside.
"Please, after you." - Kyx bowed as he opened the door for her.
"Thank you." - she said.
Was he a gentleman! The boys could learn some lessons from him. Even Aerrow, who was usually the most polite among the guys, wasn't that refined. But, then again, maybe all that courtesy didn't really fit him, or all of the others for that matter. She giggled at the thought in her mind as she entered the car and took a seat. The man entered and sat in front of her.
"To Ulok's office at this instant." - he said to the chauffeur.
"Right away, sir." - the driver responded as he sped up as fast as the limousine could go.
The group remained inside the locked small space in the dark corridor. They'd been examining the walls for quite a while, trying to figure a way out. Aerrow was getting a little tired so he stuck one of his blades on the ceiling to serve as their light source, then sat on the ground.
"Yeah... I'm out of ideas right now." - detective Fire said as she sat near him.
"Well, let's take quick breaks in shifts." - Kaya suggested while she sat between them, then Radarr came to sit by his other side.
The sky knight didn't even react, it was like he wasn't paying attention, or at least not giving a care, about what was going on around him. He stared at the floor in thought. What else could they do? He wished Piper was there to give them a hand. She was always good at figuring out hidden things when no one else could.
"Hey, you okay, boy?" - the woman asked.
He didn't respond, though, he still considered that maybe Piper should have come with them. But then again, he couldn't bring her to danger. Especially when there were so many crazy people with evil intentions after her. They'd all attract a lot of attention: they had already broken through the secluded area, then they got a free pass to the VIP area because of her. Everyone from there most likely knew why they were able to come inside after they revealed that to the shady man in the bar.
Kaya took a brief look at him, then smiled mischievously. Another opportunity to tease him had just presented itself. Plus, maybe that could cheer him up a little since he looked almost hopeless.
"Oh, he's fine." - she said, then she leaned closer to the detective so she could whisper - "He probably just misses a certain someone."
And that man in the bar... He did look shady. He knew Kaya and Fire had inspected him and confirmed he didn't have any bad intentions. But still... What if he was just really good at hiding his true colors? What if he was truly evil and had managed to trick them into leaving Piper behind just so he could use her abilities for wrongdoings? He growled angrily in his mind. If that guy dared to do anything to her in his absence, he'd rip him apart like a...
"You mean the crystal mage?" - the woman asked in a low voice, almost as if the two were talking about some gossip - "Why? Are they together or something?"
"Who am I to disclose that?" - the Grandmaster said - "He should answer for himself, huh, Aerrow?" - she nudged him.
His ear twitched and his eyes widened when what they were talking about finally sank in. He turned to them and waved his hands in front of himself frantically.
"Hey, it's nothing like that! Really!" - he said nervously.
Radarr chirped at that. Ah, now his boy was back: acting just like the good old Aerrow.
"Hehe, I knew this would do the trick. You were a little way too serious even for you a second ago." - the little girl told him.
"I was? I didn't notice." - he confessed.
"Hm, don't strain yourself too much, boy. You're so young." - Fire said to him - "You'll pass your life without actually cherishing it. And when you grow old you'll regret this. Hah, I already regret not enjoying things better when I was a kid. Now that I have a time-consuming job I know things will never be easy going like before. Though I do love my job."
He looked at the ceiling and actually reflected about that. It was true... He was acting almost like an old man, worrying too much about "adult business". He knew he had a lot of responsibilities since he was supposed to save the Atmos, but still, nothing should prevent him from having fun and enjoying his life while he was at it, right? His co-pilot poked his head against his arm supportively, making him look at him and put a hand on his head, smiling.
"Yeah, you're right. Guess I was starting to get a little bit on the edge." - he admitted, then turned to Kaya - "But just one question: why me?"
"Because it's not as funny to tease the others about that kind of thing." - she told him - "Finn's a natural flirter so he'd be indifferent, Junko's way too naïve to realize what I'd be hinting at, Stork wouldn't even care because he's way past the age he'd feel awkward about this, and Radarr... Well, he's an animal, I can't tease him about that!"
He just blinked.
"Seriously? That's why?" - he asked.
"Hm, yeah? If you didn't react either, I'd have nobody to tease about this and I'd be so bored!" - she said that sounding like a little kid upset about having nothing fun to do - "So promise you won't change, okay?"
"Huh? Alright, I won't." - he smiled at her.
She quickly moved her hand right in front of his face.
"To make this more official, you better make a pinky swear!" - she grinned.
"What?" - his eyes widened.
"Yep, most sacred of all vows! If you break it I won't ever be your friend again!" - she said to him - "C'mon, Aerrow, I know you'd not change, so you have nothing to worry about."
"It's not that... It's just..." - he trailed off - "It's... So girly and childish. Do we really have to? Aren't my words enough already?"
How awkward was that! Even worse than the teasing! He could tell he was probably starting to blush!
"Aww... Pretty please! This is the only time I'll ever ask you to make a promise like that. Really!" - she nearly begged - "I'll even make a pinky promise about this!"
"Okay... Fine..." - he said as he locked his little finger with hers.
"Yay! Then it's settled!" - she cheered only loud enough for him to hear, then she let go of his hand - "Well, now, what was going on in your head all this time?"
"I was wondering if we should ask for Piper's help." - he told her.
"That's a good idea. But would the communicators work from here?" - she pondered.
"Hm, I don't think so, my scanner says these walls block radio signals." - the woman said as she showed the data from her device - "Plus, even if they didn't, the signal could be picked up and we'd be able to be tracked down more easily."
"What about the link of the mind? You could try that." - the Grandmaster suggested to him - "There's no way someone's come up with something that can block or track down aural signals."
"Okay... I'll try." - he shrugged.
He closed his eyes to concentrate. He had to focus on sending a message to Piper, without anyone else being able to identify it. He opened his eyes again: they were glowing green.
"Piper... We need your help." - he said silently.
Kyx and Piper had arrived at the door of the building Ulok worked at. They exited the fancy hover car and walked towards the lobby.
"I need to speak to Ulok." - the man said to the person behind a desk.
The person blinked.
"Oh, Mr. Boss, sir!" - he said nervously - "Uh... Mr. Ulok is a little teensy-weensy itsy-bitsy tiny wee bit busy right now, he's looking for the... The... The perfect gift wrapper for your package!" - he was sweating a little - "Y-You don't want to ruin the surprise, r-right?"
Kyx stared at him unimpressed.
"Where's he? Give me access to his office." - he said as he walked past the man, Piper following close behind.
"Oh, no... This is bad news!" - he cowered under the desk and picked up a phone - "Mr. Ulok, the big boss is here!"
In his office, Ulok heard the warning.
"W-What?!" - he nearly shouted, then suddenly the door of the elevator opened right behind him, revealing Kyx and Piper - "Oh, Sir Kyx, it's a pleasure to see you again. Please, pardon me for the mess, I wasn't expecting you so soon."
"So, Ulok, do you have the package I've requested?" - the fancy dressed man asked.
"Ah, you see, I..." - the salamander looking man sweated a lot.
"Wait just a minute." - Piper intervened - "Is this package the one you've told us about earlier?"
"Yes..." - he sighed - "I'm terribly sorry, Sir Kyx. I had left it on my desk to put it on a safety box and when I came back it was gone!"
"Someone stole my package under your care?" - the man questioned.
"Kyx, don't be mad at him. He couldn't have known." - the girl tried to reason with him.
"Hah, he's the information broker, there's nothing he shouldn't know about." - he said.
"Not this time." - she told him - "The person who stole the package was most likely someone who was believed dead for many years."
"What? Who?" - he inquired.
"The same person who erased Kaya's records. An old close friend of her family. A merb scientist called Dr. Sins." - she explained.
He laughed a little.
"Now you're just yanking my chain. He just couldn't be alive." - he didn't believe what he had just heard.
"Kyx... We were just as surprised and in denial as you are." - she said to him - "But as we kept going into this case in more depth, we found clues. And all pointed at one thing: he's alive somehow and he's doing bad things in this province."
"This is plain impossible." - he said - "Unless he did... Really horrendous atrocities, there's no way he could've lived for this long."
"That's what we feared the most. We don't know what he could've been doing all these years." - she told him.
"I think I'll have this verified right now." - he said as he picked up a communicator - "I want all the guards ready. You're supposed to look for any sign of him." - he scanned a photo of the doctor that was in his dossier - "He's a main priority target, don't let him get away at all costs."
"Kyx! He can't be killed! We need him to answer why he's been doing this!" - the navigator warned him.
He blinked, then he quickly turned on his communicator again.
"Uh, not at absolutely all costs. Do not terminate him, just arrest him." - he corrected himself.
The girl sighed in relief. Then suddenly her eyes began glowing orange: she was receiving a message from Aerrow.
'Piper... We need your help.' - his voice spoke in her mind.
"It's Aerrow! He's talking to me." - she said.
"You mean through that link you've told me about?" - Kyx asked.
"Yes. He and the others need help." - she was a little alarmed, so she focused to answer his call - "What's going on, Aerrow?"
Back in the dark corridor where the group was stuck, the sky knight received her response.
"Great! She heard me!" - he said excitedly.
"Alright! Quick, tell her our situation!" - Kaya rushed him.
He nodded.
"We're... Kind of stuck in here." - he said a little sheepishly.
'Stuck?! How?! W-Where?!' - she inquired in his mind.
"We found a secret passage leading underground in the main square of the VIP area." - he told her - "We got stuck near a dead end because a wall came down behind us, trapping us here."
'Are you okay? Is anyone hurt?' - she asked with concern.
"We're fine, so far the air is still enough for all of us." - he explained - "But there's no light, except for my blades."
'O-Okay. Give me just a minute.' - she warned him.
She turned to Kyx with a worried expression.
"So they're in the secret passage. That one leads to an area for the most VIPs of all the VIPs." - he explained - "The corridor has a self-aware spectral barrier that detects the premium VIP pass. If they have the pass, they're automatically teleported to the premium VIP area, if not, they'll just go through it and will end up in a dead end, where they'll be trapped until my guards go find them."
"But, you just told your guards to stay put and watch for Dr. Sins." - she said.
"Yes, which means they won't go look for your friends." - he put a hand on his "chin" in thought - "I think we'll have to do it ourselves now, otherwise they might suffocate before any of my guards even considers going after them."
"Then we should go there quickly." - the girl urged him.
He nodded.
"Very well." - he said, then he turned to the information broker - "Ulok, you better tweak your security. It's supposed to be the best out there, isn't it?"
The salamander looking man laughed nervously.
"Yes. I'll get to it, sir." - he spoke apologetically.
"And I also want you to reserve a few things." - the man told him as he gave him a list - "Ms. Piper will definitely find a good use for this. You better have all of the items in the list separated in your desk until we get back." - he warned him.
"O-Of course! Right away, sir!" - the information broker ran fast towards his archives to search for what Kyx had asked of him.
"Shall we leave now?" - he turned to the girl.
"Let's go." - she said as both walked out of the office.
Inside the underground trap, the group just sat on the ground near Aerrow.
"So, what did she say?" - Kaya asked.
"They're coming here, way back from Ulok's office." - he told her.
"Oh, great, we'll probably have suffocated before they arrive." - Stork complained - "I can already feel the air running out."
And just as he said that, it became harder to breathe.
"Stork!" - Finn shouted at him - "Now the air is really running out!"
"Good job, you just made the situation even worse." - the Grandmaster scolded him since the air was going more scarce than ever.
"We need to find a way to break through these walls now!" - Aerrow shouted as he pulled his blade from the ceiling.
He focused his energy to perform the new sky knight move he had learned. He was enveloped in a blue aura, then charged forward and rammed himself against the wall, but it resisted the impact.
"Let me give you a hand." - Fire said as she pulled out two fans.
"Oh, crystal fans. Cool!" - the little girl commented.
The woman focused as well and dashed towards the wall. She slashed against it really fast and multiple times, but she was unsuccessful in breaking it.
"Guys, I'll try something too." - Junko said while he activated his knuckle busters.
He walked to the wall and punched it with all his might. He felt his arm shake and the trembling sensation traveled through all his body. He screamed as he pulled his hand away and stared at it with puppy dog eyes. Did that hurt!
"So... This wall is indestructible." - the merb commented - "Yeah, I was expecting that."
Everyone looked at him and, except for Mr. Softy and Fire, they all were glaring.
"Now you made us stuck forever for real!" - the sharpshooter yelled at him.
"I'd also be the one taking us out of here if there was any kind of control panel around." - he mumbled.
The others blinked.
"That's it! Maybe there's a control panel in here. It might be hidden somewhere and we gotta make it pop out." - the leader suggested - "C'mon, let's study these walls for hidden buttons or something."
"I guess it'd help if you didn't wear gloves. What if the panel is activated by fingerprints?" - the detective commented.
"She's right." - Kaya said as she removed her own gloves and proceeded to touch the wall - "Take off your gloves and help us search."
He followed the idea and did the same thing. A minute later, detective Fire pressed her hand against a certain point of the wall and a control panel appeared on the other corner of the trap.
"Ah, got it!" - she smiled triumphantly.
They all gathered around Stork who had instantly gone to the panel.
"So, can you take us out, expert?" - the blonde teased him about what he had said earlier.
The carrier pilot rolled his eyes annoyed, then stared at the panel again.
"Better leave him alone now, so he can focus on what he's doing." - the green eyed leader said as he put his gloves back on.
The merb concentrated on the task ahead the best he could. Their lives were currently in his hands, so he had to work fast and be precise. He pressed some buttons and quickly read all the text scrolling up really fast.
"How does he even do it?" - Junko asked in a low voice. Now that was some fast reading!
"That's called skill..." - detective Fire said amused.
Soon Stork managed to set up a command.
"Ah, I think I got this now." - he told them.
"Great! Good job, Stork." - Kaya complimented him.
But their joy didn't last for too long. Out of nowhere, a spider came down through one single silky thread and climbed in the carrier pilot's head. He froze at that, then he saw the arachnid walk right on top of his face. He screamed and flinched backward, causing him to hit a button on the control panel. And that's where their trouble began: he accidentally activated the wrong command - the command to make the walls come together.
The walls began moving, reducing the space they had on the trap.
"What's going on?" - the wallop asked.
"I triggered the command to activate the trap." - the merb said - "Now we're gonna be crushed by these walls! And there's no way to cancel this!"
Everyone gasped. Aerrow quickly moved to one of the walls and stood his ground, trying to hold it back.
"Maybe you can't undo this, but can you still open another passage or something?" - the sky knight asked.
"I can try, though it'll be unlikely I'll manage this before we're doomed." - he responded.
"Just do it, Stork! We'll keep these walls at bay for as long as we can!" - the leader told him.
Junko, Kaya, and Fire placed themselves by the walls as well and pushed against them with all their strength. But it was tiresome and eventually, they began being pushed back slowly, no matter how much effort they put into holding them back.
"Oh, my God, oh, my God!" - Finn was panicking - "I'm too young to become a sharpshooter pancake!" - he spoke that as if he were mourning his own death, then he screamed in horror from the top of his lungs.
The sound of his voice was so loud it echoed through the whole area. And fortunately, Piper and Kyx were near enough to hear it.
"Is that a girl screaming?" - the man asked.
But the crystal mage recognized the voice.
"It's Finn!" - she gasped - "They're this way!" - she pointed at a certain direction.
"Turn right!" - he ordered the chauffeur.
Not a minute later they arrived where the trap was located and they stood right above it.
"Guys! I'm here!" - the navigator shouted as she crouched on her hands and knees.
Inside the trap, they could hear her.
"It's Piper! Thank goodness you're here!" - Kaya shouted back.
Everyone felt more relieved, maybe except for Finn.
"Help us! I'm too awesome to die like this!" - the blonde was freaking out.
"Hold on, we'll get you out of there!" - Piper told them, then she turned to Kyx - "We need to stop this trap quickly."
"Please, move aside, Ms. Piper, I'll open this door." - the man calmly walked to where she was standing a second before, then he removed one of his gloves.
The first officer could feel a soft gravitational pull from his ungloved hand, and he wasn't even putting any effort into it. That man was definitely powerful, no wonder nobody in the province dared to go against him. He touched the ground and with one deep breath, he pulled his arm up, breaking the stone door off the floor.
Everyone inside the trap blinked surprised. Kyx tossed the door away and put his glove back on. Piper quickly rushed to the edge of the hole and threw her arms there.
"Grab my hand!" - she said.
"Okay, Kaya, Radarr and Mr. Softy, you first." - Aerrow said.
The Grandmaster held the two animals as he lifted her so they could reach the edge of the hole more easily. The little animals jumped outside as the girl got a good grip of Piper's hand.
"Thanks for the boost." - she said as she was pulled out.
The boy jumped and grabbed on the edge then pushed himself up on his own. Detective Fire did the same right after him. The two of them offered their hands to pull Finn and Stork up as Junko leaped to the edge on the other side and was helped by Kaya, Piper, and Kyx.
"Phew, that was close." - the wallop said as the walls collided right under his feet.
Aerrow looked around and noticed they were in an open empty area surrounded by a round wall.
"Where are we?" - he asked.
"This is the premium VIP area lobby." - Kyx told him.
"But this place's empty." - Finn commented.
"It doesn't work as you think. These walls are special warp portals. When you go through them you'll teleport to a special lab reserved just for you and designed to fit your preferences." - the man explained - "But you can only teleport to a lab if you provide DNA proof of the original owner of that reserved lab."
"I remember Dr. Sins used to have a secret lab, maybe it was here." - Kaya said.
"That's very likely. But he probably erased his records so we won't be able to track him down unless we tried to go to the lab the conventional way." - the owner of the province said.
"Well, I have something from him." - the little girl told him as she picked up a small flask - "This was the same soap bubble flask he gave to me on my birthday. He didn't wear gloves, so maybe there's something in here."
"Go ahead and try it, be my guest." - Kyx gestured to the portion of the wall in front of them.
She walked to it and touched the flask against it. A circle glowed around it then a rift opened. Everyone followed her there.
As they stepped out of the portal, they saw a small building with weak light and some individuals inside. The Storm Hawks gasped.
"Night Crawlers!" - Junko warned.
The dark soldiers were wrecking the place, destroying everything inside the building.
"We gotta get inside!" - the Grandmaster said as she sprinted off.
They all ran after her as she knocked the door down with all her might. The Night Crawlers turned around surprised, then hissed at her. They all aimed their guns at her and threatened to shoot. Aerrow saw that and was about to leap in to help her when Piper stopped him.
"Let Kyx handle this one." - she said to him.
"What?" - he was confused, but he followed her gaze.
The man walked towards the entrance of the lab.
"Ms. Grandmaster, please, could you step outside for a moment?" - he asked politely.
Kaya exited the lab to let him enter, then she stood right behind him.
"What are you doing here? And where's Dr. Sins?" - she demanded of them.
"He's long gone now. Our Master has recruited him and he won't come back." - one of the soldiers spoke.
"And we're destroying this place on his request." - another one told them.
The girl stared at them angrily. She couldn't believe it! The doctor had sided with the enemy! But she couldn't understand! What could he gain from that?! What was he looking for?! Why was he doing that?! Then she took a brief look at the lab, and her mouth was agape. Inside of several glass jars were limbs being conserved by the liquid they were immersed in.
Near the window, the rest of the group watched them.
"Wait... So he attached those limbs to himself as substitutes for his own rotting body parts?" - detective Fire realized.
"Yes, just like I had thought, that's how he got his immortality." - Stork said - "I told you it was gonna be something sick and twisted."
"But for that, he'd have to kill people every time he needed to replace something." - the woman concluded.
"That's inhumane!" - Aerrow clenched his fist - "He's not a scientist, he's a murderer!"
"What a monster! How could he do such an atrocious thing?!" - Piper said in disbelief.
"That guy's mad!" - Finn commented.
"He has to be stopped." - Junko said.
Then they heard the others speaking, so they went back to observing what was going on.
"You're surprised by this?" - one of the Night Crawlers taunted - "He's been doing it for quite a while, he even built a reputation for himself."
Kaya gritted her teeth in rage.
"You... How dare you?!" - she was about to step inside to smack that soldier really good when Kyx stopped her.
"I believe you're not welcome in here. You invaded my province, broke through security systems and you've just offended my guest." - the man said - "I have to ask you to take your leave right away and not touch this lab. I'll only give you one chance."
"Or what?" - a soldier challenged him.
"Or I'll have to take some drastic measures." - he turned to Kaya and the others - "You better stay at a safe distance."
The little girl blinked then quickly ran to the group. They all walked further away from the area, as the man nodded. He proceeded to remove his glove, then he revealed his unseen hand. The Night Crawlers just blinked confused. Was that man made of nothing? Was he invisible? Yet, they readied their weapons.
"You caused enough trouble here, it's time you're properly punished." - Kyx said as he generated a strange light where his hand should be.
The soldiers stared menacingly at him until they realized what they were getting themselves into. They suddenly felt a strange gravitational pull. They were slowly dragged towards the man. They tried to grab on something, but the pull on them was way too strong, and their fingers simply slipped. They screamed in horror as they were completely sucked by the light and disappeared. Kyx placed his glove on his hand once he was finished.
"What... Was that?" - Stork asked almost horrified.
"That looks like how the big boss here deals with evil doers." - Fire said.
"Okay, remind me to stay on his best side." - Finn commented.
The man calmly walked to a table where the flask he had requested laid on.
"I believe this is mine." - he said as he picked it up.
"Mind if I ask what it is?" - Piper approached him and leaned to one side.
"It's just a rare spice I like to put on my drinks, to give them a better aroma, like vanilla essence." - he told her, making her giggle, then he opened it so she could feel the smell.
"You have great taste, Kyx. I couldn't have picked anything better." - she said.
"Hehe, one just can't have too much of this." - he commented.
Later everyone had gathered near the Condor. They had brought some crates from the information broker with a lot of things. Kyx, Ulok, Hont and detective Fire stood there with them to bid them farewell.
"Oh, thank you for saving my hide!" - the information broker said - "I thought I was done for!"
"No problem, Ulok. That's what friends are for, right?" - Kaya said to him.
She put a hand on his shoulder as a friendly gesture. While that, detective Fire and Hont walked to the others.
"Thanks for your help. Without you guys, I'd never have gotten this far in my case." - the woman told them - "And now that tracking this Master Cyclonis down means I'll find the doctor too, I'll help you out right away. So stay tuned for news from my investigation, okay?"
"We will. Thanks, detective." - Aerrow said.
"You also helped me see how faulty was the security, so I'll work on it." - the owl looking man appreciated what they did.
"You might wanna make a few tweaks on the A.I.s in this province. They're lacking a few things." - Stork began, then both started a talk about how to make the artificial intelligence better.
Meanwhile, Kyx was saying goodbye to Piper.
"Ms. Piper, it was an honor having you here." - he said sincerely.
"It was a pleasure, Kyx." - she responded.
"Our talk made me rethink my business, so I decided to change it for the better." - he told her - "And for all your help, I'll pledge my allegiance to you in the war." - he bowed down and offered her a single elegant black rose, which made her smile - "You'll certainly be missed."
Wow, who would've thought they'd leave that place with yet a new ally? A very powerful ally. And to think they were initially going for a quick trip for some casual info and back. Maybe it was a good thing they got to stay longer, explore the place and meet a few new people.
"Thank you, Kyx." - she said as she accepted the rose - "Soon we'll meet again and I'll tell you the story I decided to save for another day."
"I look forward to it. Have a safe trip, Ms. Piper. I hope the books I provided will be enough." - he said.
"I'm sure they will." - she told him as she looked at a very big pile of books about crystal mastery, all gotten from the information broker.
The Storm Hawks and Kaya walked to the ship, and they all proceeded to get on board, except for the little girl.
"Hey, guys, I need you to go ahead to your next destination." - she said.
"Why?" - Piper turned to her.
"I wanna investigate what's left of Dr. Sins's lab with detective Fire to find out more about him." - she told her - "Your next destination is the place where you and Aerrow will learn how to master the bridge of the body. It's not too far, so I'll catch up with you in no time."
"You sure you don't want us to stick around for now?" - Aerrow asked.
"Thanks, but no need. I'll be fine. You guys have a lot to worry about already, so you better focus on your training while I handle this." - she said.
"But you'll come back soon, right?" - Junko looked at her expectantly.
"Of course I will! I can't let you boys slack off. If I'm not here you won't train hard, I know you're prone to being lazy." - she teased them - "Especially Finn."
"Hey!" - he shouted, feeling insulted.
The Condor soared as the squadron waved at the others. Kaya, Ulok, Hont, Kyx, and Fire waved back at them.
"Don't forget your training! I'll know if you've done your tasks or not when I come back!" - the little girl shouted.
The ship turned around and disappeared in the vast blue sky, headed for a new adventure.
NEXT EPISODE:
Episode 59 (parts 1, 2, 3 and 4)