A/N: I decided to skip the Recipie for Disaster because I felt it had nothing to do with story itself, plus it would have showen a possiple romance between Lion-O and Pumyra and since Lion-O is dead and Adam has no love intrest in this story I decided to just skip it all.
Also I bet your wondering why I let Carter keep the Guantlet and Sword of Plun-Darr, well I belive it would give them an advantage in this war and Carter does need a weapon aside from his own elemental powers and in case your wondering, no this won't be one of those corruption things like with April and her Aeon Crystal, Carter will be a protagonist to the end.
Adam, Carter and Cassandra were outside the ThunderTank while looking up at the familiar walls of Dog City.
They had been waiting for several days for the disenchantment of the Sword of Plun-Darr to be complete.
Soon enough a dog came back with a cloth.
Carter took it off to reveal the Gauntlet and Sword of Plun-Darr.
It may seem strange but despite it looking the same, it doesn't have an evil aura around it.
The only diffece is with the sword is that it's smaller then it's original form and can fit into Carter's arm.
He took out the sword in awe.
He tested a few swing before nodding to the dog before handing him money and the dog went on it's way.
Then other cats decided to look for Kit and Kat so they can get back to finding the next stone.
Adam went to check on the Book of Omens in order to see what they could find out about the direction of the next stone.
But to his disappointment the Book still directed them straight up.
The trio decided to have gone into the market to find some supplies to stock up on.
"How in the world are we going to go up?" Asked Carter as he was staring down at the book.
"I have no idea." Said Adam. with a sigh.
"We really need to pick up the pace, Mumm-Ra may not the Sword of Plun-Darr but he still can use stones and if he gets to the next stone before us—"
"We're doomed i know, but until that stupid Book of Omens decides to point anywhere but straight up, we're stuck here." Said Adam.
"Do my eyes deceive me?" Asked a familiar voice from behind them.
Adam turned around to see a familiar dog face carrying a bag full of junk pieces who smiled at him.
"Thank the stars you two are still alive!" Yelled the dog.
"Jorma?" Asked Adam in shock.
His surprise turned into joy and he smiled widely at the old man.
"What are you doing here?" Asked Adam.
The old dog went up to Adam with a smile as bright as his.
"After barely escaping the fall of Thundera, I moved the old junk shop back home." Said Jorma.
He turned to get a look at the trio and let out a low whistle when he laid eyes on the ThunderTank.
"Oh my what do we have here?" Asked Jorma as he walked over to it and placing his hand against the cool metal.
"Never thought I'd get to see one up close." Said Jorma.
He turned back to Adam.
"You sure know how to travel in style." Said Jorma.
"You could say that." Said Adam.
Jorma moved to look inside the tank and his eyes widened when he saw the Book of Omens.
"The fabled Book of Omens, for so many years, I've dreamed of just seeing it." Said Jorma.
"Maybe you can help us figure out what's wrong with the book." Said Carter.
"Yeah for some reason that thing keeps pointing straight up no matter where we go." Said Adam.
"Let's get it back to the shop and I'll have a look." Said Jorma.
Adam reached down and took the Book of Omens out of its resting place in the tank and carried it following Jorma with Carter and Cassandra behind him.
Jorma's workshop lay just outside of the city's boundaries underneath a few boulders that had fallen in a landslide a few years ago.
Jorma said the place was perfectly safe from anything outside and was claiming the boulders provided adequate protection.
Inside his shop, the walls and floors had various pieces of technology hanging around.
It was the very same organized chaos that had existed in Jorma's old shop in Thundera.
Jorma plugged a few wires into the book and put on a pair of magnifying goggles and was looking over the book.
After about fifteen minutes of him just looking over different parts of the book.
"A priceless treasure like the Book of Omens requires the most delicate tools, so it may take a little time." Said Adam.
Adam jumped when he felt something tiny moving on his foot and he jumped back to see what looked like a little mechanical bug scurrying across the floor.
"What's that thing?" Asked Adam.
Jorma lifted up his goggles and glared at it.
"A nasty little pest." Replied Jorma.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it." Said Jorma.
He whistled and another little mechanical bug came hovering out of the room behind his workshop and was letting out strange metallic coos as if it was processing data information.
It flew by the group, heading straight for the little robot scurrying across the floor.
The light bulb it carried on its back lit up and a yellow bolt of lightning shot out and, zapping the crawling bug.
Once that was done it flew back to its master and letting out mechanical coos that sounded much happier.
Jorma smiled at it as it landed in his hand.
"That's Flicker, he helps me keep the scavengers away, isn't that right?" Asked Jorma.
Flicker let out a few more happy coos and looking up at Jorma as his body put away the flying blades that had given him the ability to hover in the first place.
"Yes, Flicker, your giga-spark gets them every time, good boy!" Yelled Jorma as he walked over to where the remains of the mechanical bug lay and picking it up.
"This spider-bot probably sniffed out the book's energy." Said Jorma as he threw it over to a corner of his store and when it landed it gave off a small explosion.
Jorma headed back to where the book was and picked up the book and looking over it again.
"Good news, the book is in perfect working order!" Yelled Jorma in happiness.
"So what, the stone is just hanging out on a cloud?" Asked Adam as he looked up.
"The sky may not be as empty as you think." Said Jorma as he was unplugging the cords he had stuck into the book.
He stood up.
"Let me show you a secret." Said Jorma.
The four of them followed Jorma's directions as they walked to a pretty deserted part of the flatlands that existed just outside of Dog City.
At first, there didn't seem to be much but as they came closer to their destination and it became clearer where Jorma was leading them.
It was a huge mountain of abandoned and somewhat broken technology.
It coated just a small portion of the huge land but it was about two miles in diameter.
They had to watch where they stepped to make sure they didn't stab their feet on a rogue piece of shrapnel.
The further in they went the more they had to climb over different junk piles.
"I'm the only one who knows about this place." Said Jorma as he was looking over all the different pieces of tech.
"Wow, the others are gonna be sorry they missed this." Said Cassandra with a sarcastic bite.
Carter reached down into the piles of tech and pulling out one of the pieces of junk.
"You haven't seen anything yet." Said Jorma simply.
There was a strange rumble above them almost like thunder but there was no thundercloud in the sky as well as any kind cloud.
Jorma let out an excited laugh.
"It's almost time, it's almost time!" Yelled Jorma in excitement.
"Are you feeling okay, Jorma?" Asked Adam in concern.
Jorma reached down and picked up a thick sheet of metal and held it over his head as he looked skyward.
"It's here!" Yelled Jorma.
The others looked up into the sky and was seeing small glints of sunlight as it reflected off of something and then they saw huge piles of technology and other junk plummeting down towards them.
They all jumped out of the way, trying to get to safety from the falling debris as it all came crashing down into the ground around them.
After a short moment, it all stopped as smaller pieces of metal fell down on top of the huge ones that had come first.
"Isn't it lovely?!" Asked Jorma with a grin as he looked at all the fallen metal work and putting down the piece he had grabbed to protect his head.
Carter glanced up at the sky and yelped when a final piece of metal landed in front of him.
He glared at it for a moment before regaining his composure.
"Something, someone is up there." Said Adam.
"Whoever it is, they've got technology beyond our imagination." Said Jorma as he was joining the three of them as their group came to form up again.
Adam looked over some of the new pieces that had fallen and was very interested in what had just happened.
"They also have the next stone." Said Adam in realization.
Flicker came zooming over to them with urgent rapid sounds coming from him as he looked to Jorma.
His eyes widened when he realized what the little bug bot was saying.
He looked around worriedly before grabbing a small armful of technology and running towards the tank.
"We've got to go, get back to the City!" Yelled Jorma as he ran.
The trio were confused and were about to say something when they cut off by Jorma.
"You don't understand, they're coming!" Yelled Jorma in fear.
"Who's coming?" Asked Adam.
"The Necro-Mechs." Said Jorma as his voice trailed off as he heard the sound of metal hitting metal in the distance.
The trio looked back to see a group of robots and all of them made from various pieces of machinery as they walk across the metal piles towards them.
Everyone got ready to fight and glaring at the Necro-Mechs as they stopped.
Their mechanical eyes lit up as they scanned the area.
Once they were through they jumped into action but only seemed intrested with the Trio.
Adam held up his hand and began shooting out its powerful red beam at some of the robots as they narrowly avoided the blast and it hit a pile of metal scraps instead.
Carter used his newley acquired Sword of Plun-Darr to fight off against the Necro-Mechs.
Cassandra used her newly made sword to fight them off as well.
Amidst all this fighting one of the smaller robots got near Adam and found the Book of Omens, it carfully reached and grabbed the book.
Adam looked around and saw the little Necro-Mech that held the red book.
"We have to stop them, they're going for the Book of Omens!" Yelled Adam.
They tried their best in the end, it all failed.
Soon enough the necro-mechs were gone and the junkyard was silent.
Adam groaned as he pushed himself up and was glaring at where the robots had been standing.
"They got the book." Said Adam.
As the others all stood back up and they looked around at all the rubble.
"Got to give those scavengers some credit." Said Carter.
"They were pretty thorough." Said Carter.
"They didn't even leave a trail." Said Adam.
"Well, those bots didn't build themselves." Said Cassandra.
"Indeed." Said Jorma as he was coming over to them.
"Someone called the Soul Sever did." Said Jorma.
"No one's ever seen him, just his work." Said Jorma as he was reaching down to pick up a piece of the tank.
"While these machines are just products of their programming, Sever is working to create robots with souls." Said Jorma as he threw the piece he was holding at Adam who caught it easily.
"Machines with souls?" Asked Carter.
"That's impossible." Said Carter.
"More impossible then anthropomorphic animals, magic, elements and different worlds?" Asked Adam in sarcasm.
"Fair enough." Replied Carter as he threw the piece away.
"Flicker can track the book's electromagnetic signature." Said Jorma.
"He will lead you to Soul Sever and the book." Said Jorma.
Flicker took off while humming happily as he went after the signal he was receiving from the Book of Omens.
"Try to keep up, he moves fast!" Yelled Jorma.
They all ran after the little bot and making sure to keep him in their sights.
"Good luck!" Yelled Jorma as he was waving goodbye.
They followed Flicker through the plains and was heading to a dark part of the area where a storm was coming in a temple with high towers spiraling up into the sky.
Flicker began to fly closer to it and the others followed, passing by many different run-down machines.
One of them happened to catch Carter's eye as they ran.
"I think those are the air ships you saw in the Book of Omens." Said Carter.
"If they work, it could take us up to the next stone." Said Cassandra.
"The next stone won't matter if we can't get the book back." Said Adam.
They approached the doors.
They were wide open and they all walked in.
The room was so cold and seeing all the wires and machinery lying around and going through the walls made it seem even colder and much less inviting.
"The stuff of nightmares." Said Carter as they went further in.
As they came into the main room they saw six tunnels that didn't lead anywhere along the walls and there was a huge piece of machinery on the back of the wall where all the wires that went throughout the building met.
This was behind an important-looking table where the Book of Omens was being suspended in the air by electrical waves that danced all around it.
"It's the book!" Whispered Adam when he saw it.
Flicker wasted no time in flying forward.
"Flicker, wait!" Yelled Adam.
Flicker didn't listen as he went over to the book and was about to use his giga-spark to shut off the machine that held the book when a large hand grabbed him and pulled him away from it.
"What do we have here?" Asked a strange voice.
Everyone saw a strange man whose body seemed to be made almost entirely of machines stood up.
His limbs were long and gangly and he seemed to wear some sort of metallic robe of some kind, but what got them the most were the huge scythes that were folded like wings on his back.
This had to be the Soul Sever.
He looked at Flicker with his bright green eyes.
"An amusing trinket?" Asked Soul Sever.
"You better not hurt him." Said Carter.
"There is nothing to hurt." Said Soul Sever.
"He is merely wires and a product of programming, but no soul, he is incomplete." Said Soul Sever as he tossed Flicker away as he turned to them.
"As are all you, perfect souls trapped in imperfect vessels." Said Soul Sever.
"Why have you disturbed me?" Asked Soul Sever.
"We've come here for the Book of Omens!" Yelled Adam as he was pointing to where the book was suspended.
"I'm afraid that's impossible." Replied Soul Sever.
"Not after I've seen the incredible potential of this artifact." Said Soul Sever as he looked at the book.
"And I've seen that potential in the hands of a mad man." Said Adam.
"I won't allow it!" Yelled Adam.
"Then you see technology as an evil?" Soul Sever asked him.
"It's hard not to, after all the trouble it's been causing since we came to this world!" Yelled Adam.
"What you call trouble, is all that gives me hope." Said Soul Sever.
He looked up at something behind him and the others looked as well to see three ghostly white orbs with long wispy tails moving back and forth in cylindrical containers.
"Before technology, my only obsession was my family, but a sickness overwhelmed them, one for which traditional medicine had no cure, so I turned to the Necro-Mechers, a cult that harvested the technology that had been shunned by so much of Third Earth, if anyone could help, it would be these mysterious strangers, they managed to keep my family alive, but there was a price to be paid." Said Soul Sever as he put his hand against his chest.
"They turned me into a weapon to further their cause, their machines prolonged my family's life but it wasn't much of a life, i argued that, if their natural bodies had failed, let us make better ones, the Necro-Mechers warned that that would be a perversion of the balance between nature and technology, they had tried before with disastrous consequence, they would not allow it again, so I destroyed them." Said Soul Sever with emotionless tone in his voice.
"Through further experiments, I succeeded in capturing my family's souls, and here, those precious souls have waited for the perfect host, a task I was beginning to believe was impossible, until this book was brought to me." Said Soul Sever.
"We can help you, and your family." Said Adam.
"But we need the book to do that." Said Adam,
"No one will ever touch this book but me!" Yelled Soul Sever.
"I suggest that if you value your fragile organic life, you will leave now." Said Soul Sever.
Adam sighed and turned to Carter.
"We're leaving." Said Adam.
They began to head out the door.
Cassandra would grab the book and sneak off before Soul Sever had a chance to notice.
"Wait, there was another one with you, a girl if i'm not mistaken." Said Soul Sever.
"Uh, your story bored her so she left in the middle." Said Carter.
Soul Sever's eyes turned red and he looked around the room.
He glanced over to where the book was, and held out his hand and a huge electric bolt shooting out.
Cassandra was hit and fell to the ground.
"Cassandra!" Yelled Adam.
They ran to help her but stopped by the Necro-Mechs.
"You wanted to help my cause?" Asked Soul Sever.
"Then yours will be the next souls to be severed." Said Soul Sever.
Everyone looked at him with wide eyes and before they could blink the Necro-Mechs had grabbed each of them.
They all struggled against the machines but they would not relent until they shoved them down on metal tables and strapping them to it.
Each of the tables connected to one of the six tunnels along the walls.
Adam, Carter and Cassandra were all put on one side.
The tunnels lit up and were humming as they came to life and getting ready to perform whatever task they were made to do.
"Your book has allowed me power I'd only ever imagined." Said Soul Sever.
"No longer must we know our greatest weaknesses, disease, age, pain." Said Soul Sever as he slowly stopped.
"You know, I really don't mind most of those." Said Cassandra as she struggled against her restraints.
"Free us, now!" Yelled Adam.
"You will be freed, of life's greatest restraint: death." Said Soul Sever.
"But first, for the sake of my loved ones, I must be sure the process will work." Said Soul Sever.
"What are you planning to do to us?!" Yelled Carter.
Soul Sever didn't reply as he began typing in some things on the main computer.
The tables which had previously been upright when down on their backs as the machines' hums became even louder.
"Now this won't hurt at all." Said Soul Sever.
"In fact, nothing ever will again." Said Souls Sever.
Everyone began shouting their protests as the machines started to slowly pull in the tables.
Everyone struggled against their restraints and trying to get free.
Suddenly with high-pitched mechanical sounds were heard as Flicker came buzzing over to them.
He used his giga spark to stop the machine that was pulling in Adam and the restraints released him.
Adam smiled at the little bug bot.
Flicker let out a sound of happiness before using his giga-spark on Carter's table.
He didn't aim in the same place he had with Adam so his restraints weren't released right away but the machines did stop and he was thankful for that much.
Flicker turned and was about to do the same for Cassandra, but Soul Sever reached out, and flicked the little bug bot away to the floor.
Flicker landed with a small thud on the ground with sparks coming from where his mechanics had been charging up.
Adam turned, drawing his sword just in time to block the scythes that had unfolded from Soul Sever's back.
He swiped at him again and again.
"It's a pity you cannot see what I'm trying to do!" Yelled Soul Sever.
"What's that?" Asked Adam as he started attacking him.
"Rob us of the humanity technology stole from you?!" Yelled Adam.
Since Cassandra's table hadn't stopped she was pulled into the machine completely and she let out a cry of pain as something electrocuted her.
Carter struggled against hia restraints as he was trying to get out to help his friends but it was on pretty tightly.
Adam fell to the ground as he was rolling to the side just in time to avoid Soul Sever's scythe from where it would have pierced his skull.
"I'm afraid nothing can stop progress!" Yelled Soul Sever.
As he spoke Cassandra's soul was sucked out of her body and put into the machine.
The wispy green waves were directed upwards and into the pile of machinery waiting at the top.
Adam watched with wide eyes as the machinery began to move mid-air taking a familiar form that looked something like Cassandra but it definitely wasn't.
This machine had Cassandra's soul in it and it let out a mechanical roar as it came to life.
"It worked! It worked!" Yelled Soul Sever happily as he looked up at the robotic Cassandra.
He turned to where the souls waited in their containers.
"Soon, you will all be in my arms once again." Said Soul Sever.
The robot jumped down from where it had been previously and landing in front of Soul Sever.
He waved his hands toward him as he stepped back.
"Come to me, my perfect creation!" Yelled Soul Sever.
The machine slowly stepped toward him but after the third step it stopped and then the metal body twitching as sparks flew from it.
"No, no, this can't be happening!" Yelled Soul Sever.
The arm shot out and went through the wall and grabbing some mechanics from another part of the building.
The other arm did the same.
Each part of it kept grabbing more machinery and added it on to itself.
"I can fix this!" Yelled Soul Sever frantically as he ran back to the main computer.
"You can fix what?!" Asked/Yelled Adam over the sound of metal against metal.
The robot Cassandra let out another mechanical roar as the body got bigger.
"What's happening to her?!" Asked Adam.
Finally after so much struggling Carter managed to break through his restraints.
He ran to where the mechanical body's appendages were growing at an alarming rate.
He did his best to keep it at bay while Adam was cutting up the strange grey tubes that held them together.
Carter did the same thing with his sword.
It didn't do much good as it just kept getting bigger until it was almost as big as the room itself.
"No, no, I can control this!" Yelled Soul Sever as he was working quickly at the main computer.
"I just have to make some adjustments!" Yelled Soul Sever in desperation.
"This is what the Necro Mechers warned you of!" Yelled Adam as he sliced off another tube.
Soul Sever ignored him as he kept working.
"At this size, she will need to feed on more souls just to stay alive!" Yelled Soul Sever.
He kept working as the robot went over to the containers that held his family's souls.
"Stay away from them!" Yelled Soul Sever as he ran over to stop the robot but the robot knocked him back with a heavy kick that sent him into the wall.
She cracked open the containers and sucked down the wispy white orbs.
"No!" Yelled Soul Sever.
The robot let out another roar and Soul Sever looked at her with his metal jaw agape.
"What have I done?" Asked Soul Sever.
Adam ran up to the computer.
"How do we stop it?!" Asked Adam.
"We can't, only a powerful electrical pulse into the book will disrupt the process!" Yelled Soul Sever.
Flicker flew up beside Adam and he looked at the little bug bot with wide eyes.
"Like a giga-spark!" Yelled Adam as he turned to it.
"Flicker, you know what to do!" Yelled Adam.
The little robot gave off a sound of agreement and began to hover over to the book but Soul Sever grabbed him and stopping him from going any further.
"What are you doing?!" Asked Adam in confusion.
"I can't let this happen!" Yelled Soul Sever.
"It will destroy more than that beast, your friend's soul may have a body to return to but my family does not!" Yelled Soul Sever
Soul Sever looked back at the remains of the containers that held his family's souls.
"I can't lose them!" Yelled Soul Sever.
"You already lost them, now it's time you let them go!" Yelled Adam.
Soul Sever stared at him for a moment before he opened his hand and Flicker flew over to the Book of Omens and his giga-spark shooting out and zapping the book.
Once he had the book responded with a pulse of its own that threw Flicker back.
The entire room became bathed in red light as the book was able to stop the robotic Cassandra from moving.
The light coming from the book grew brighter and brighter and suddenly it stopped.
Released from the electrical hold that the machine had on it the book fell to the floor.
The souls that the machine had swallowed all flew out of it and the machinery turned into a pile of rubble on the ground.
Cassandra's soul went back to her own body while the other three circled around Soul Sever's head as though they were saying goodbye.
As they flew up Soul Sever called out to them to try to stop them but they didn't listen.
"No, no, no!" Yelled Soul Sever as they flew up into the sky until they were no longer discernible among the storm clouds.
"No." Said Soul Sever as tears fell from his's eyes as he looked up at where his family had disappeared to.
Adam and Carter went over to Cassandra and releasing her restraints as she regained consciousness and pushed herself up.
"How're you feeling?" Asked Carter..
She shrugged.
"I've been worse, I think." Said Cassandra.
The pair helped her off the table and was helping her to get her bearings again as she got used to being back in her organic body.
Adam went over to the book and picked it up.
He glanced to the side and looked sadly on what he saw.
"Flicker." Said Adam as he saw the little bug bot was on the ground and his light bulb broken, and his wings damaged.
There was no hum of electricity going through him and he didn't move.
The reaction pulse of the book severely damaged his inner-workings.
Adam didn't expect the little guy to come back at least not without some serious repairs being done.
Soul Sever gently picked up the little bug bot's remains and holding it in his hand.
"He knew this would be the consequence but his programming shouldn't have allowed it." Said Soul Sever in amazement.
"Which means something else did." Said Adam.
"Something greater but in the end, technology isn't the disease or the cure and it can't blame it for how evil minds may use it." Said Adam as he knew how people in his world is so dependent on technology for every little thing.
Soul Sever leaned back against his desk with his head in his hands.
"Now go, take your book and let me grieve in peace." Said Soul Sever.
They did as he wanted and left him alone.
They were silent as they walked out of the building.
Cassandra had recovered quickly and seemed completely fine as they left to get back to the others.
The group kept walking on heading back to Dog City where their friends waited for them.
"Where were you three?" Asked Panthro as he couldn't believe they would just leave without a reason.
"Long story, but the short version we think we know where the stone is now." Replied Adam.
This shocked them.
They told the whole story and plans to make a journey for the third stone, tomorrow.
As Panthro was placing the book back where it was he noticed the book was glowing.
"Hey guys, look at this." Said Panthro as he called the attention to the others.
Cheetara, Tygra, Kit and Kat went over as Panthro opened the book.
It read in blue letters:
Before Adam could gain the Third Stone, one of the newcomers from Dog City will turn against him.
This shocked the group.
That means either Cassandra or Pumyra could be the traitor but the question is, why would they betray him?
Meanwhile Mumm-Ra was watching.
"You think that preventing me from getting the Sword and Gauntlet of Plun-Darr would stop my plans, but you only set them into motion and when you find out about Andrea's gift, it will be to late." Said Mumm-Ra as he laughed.
The laughter echoed throughout the Black Pyramid.