Chapter 37
"How are we going to get them all off the Island?" Alex asked between retches. "There's no way there are enough ships to carry them all and I have a feeling the dread yacht won't carry many".
"We call in a few favours. The nearby fishing village has plenty of ships we can borrow" replied Chill.
A faint moaning came from underneath the Island.
"What was that?" asked Alex.
"Probably the wind. Just ignore it" Starstrike answered.
The original squad of Arkeyans had been mixed within the reformed army.
"Right, original robots, come here" Alex ordered "from now on, you are Alpha squad. I'm sick of saying the word robot. Understand?"
"Understood" said Alpha squad
"Right, now to categorize. Any long range weapon users will be the strike squad. Any melee fighters are the ground squad. Any heavy armour Arkeyans are the juggernaut squad. Smaller ones are the scout squad. Any others are the reserve squad. I expect that the final squad will mainly consist of the drillers and other construction tools. Spread these orders. Alpha squad, you shall act as my bodyguard, understood?" Alex said
"And the war machines" a member of Alpha squad said, referring to the giant robots.
"Shall be distributed as I see fit at a later date" Alex commanded. "Now, if you excuse me, I'm gonna be sick". He quickly ran to the side of the Island.
"Oogga booga" shouted Double trouble.
"He said that this is one of the side effects. It'll wear off in about an hour" Starstrike commented.
"An hour. I can't..." He said, right before another wave of nausea.
This time, instead of falling into the abyss, it landed with a splat, followed by a large deep growl.
"That cannot be good" cried out Zook, who Alex realised had a Jamaican accent.
A large snake creature reared its ugly head at the edge of the Island Alex was stood at. It was at least the size of a small house. He quickly jumped back.
"Scout squad, strike squad, fire on the thing" Alex shouted.
"Fire viper" corrected Hex.
"Fire viper" Alex cried.
Immediately, the sky was alight with a multitude of colours. The sound of launching projectiles was deafening. The heat from the plasma scorched the nearby earth. The viper was forced to retreat, it's face smocking.
"Wow. That was quick. Most fights with fire vipers last a couple of hours at least" stated Chill.
"Alright. With some more planning, this could really do some damage. Let's go get ready to head back to the academy" Alex said. 'And increase the range of commands on these robots, I don't want to have to learn the name of every creature in this world' he noted mentally.
Chapter 38
The wait for the transport ships was a long one and with all the portals nearby broken to prepare the land for crops, the only way to get back was on foot or by ship. when they finally arrived, the wait was lengthened when one of them broke down and had to be fixed.
"This is taking forever" Chill moaned.
"Yeah. There are quite a few of them" Alex replied.
Most of the other Skylanders were killing the time on the dread yacht, but Chill and Alex stayed behind to monitor the transport. Apart from the broken down ship, there weren't any problems.
"How are you feeling" she asked.
"Still a bit sick. Can we not bring that up?" Alex asked
"Sure. How are things since the Kaos incident?" She asked
Alex looked down to his hand. The ring was still on his finger. No matter what Alex had tried, it wouldn't come off.
"Odd to say the least. Eon seemed really panicked about it ".
"I'm not surprised. Not only did you deal an impressive blow to Kaos, but you met her".
"About that. Who is 'her' and why would she be interested in me?"
"She was the first portal master. It was in the book that Stealthy read to you earlier. Don't you remember?"
"Not really. Can you tell me again?" Alex asked.
"Sure" said Chill. "Her name has been lost to time, but we know the gist of what happened. When the darkness first appeared in Skylands, it fed on negative energy, like bad feelings and stuff. Anyway, she with the help of the eight elementals built the core of light to repel the darkness. But, to truly keep it away, she had to gave up her soul. There are other rumours about her, about other deeds she accomplished, but that's all they are. Unfortunately, recently the darkness learned to control her, to communicate to those who follow it. You see, Kaos is not the first dark portal master. In the past, there have been several of them at once, but there bloodlines were wiped out until only Kaos was left. But, since you haven't really been here long, it probably wants you to be the next one".
"Huh. Well, I'll think about it" Alex joked.
"Don't joke about that. If there is even a chance of that happening, then, friend or not, I won't hesitate to kill you" Chill said in a darkened tone.
"Alright, alright, jeez. Well, seeing as the mood is a little dark, how about a game of Skystones?" Alex asked
"Wow. Did you really just say that. I... That... Actually sounds like a good idea. It's a good thing I always carry a few on me at all times" Chill sighed.
So, with the sound of construction in the background, the two of them played until the ships were ready.