Chapter four: "Knock Out Neddy"
"So, where have you been? You had us worried for a while there, Old Boy." Roxton mused as the group, minus Challenger, sat eating Malone's welcome back dinner.
"Everywhere." Malone chuckled. "Actually…. This plateau contains things that even we haven't even seen."
"And what finally brought you back to us?" Marguerite said slyly sitting in her husband's lap. She never fancied herself the type of wife who would do that, in fact she hadn't been that type of wife, but something about John Roxton made her want to show the entire world her affection for him.
"I thought it was the right time," Malone said using Marguerite's old skill of evasiveness. Truthfully he wasn't even sure that if he hadn't of had the vision, he would have ever come back. "Besides what about all of you? What trouble did you get into while I was gone?"
"Well, Challenger invented a time machine, and we got Finn here, Veronica found out about her parents," Marguerite laughed and looked about Veronica, "Our little jungle girl is "the protector of the plateau", or at least the next in line to be so. Unimportant things like that. And-"
"Why are you here?" Finn put in suddenly with a look of rage in her eyes that made all jump back a little.
"Why is who here Finn?" Veronica said gently.
"Him!" she half yelled, half cursed as she pointed to Ned. "He's not supposed to be here."
"Finn, I-I don't understand what you mean." the jungle girl spat back puzzled.
"Forget it," the other blond said as she stalked away to her bedroom.
"What was that all about?" John mused with a shake of his head.
"A bit jealous perhaps?" Marguerite smirked.
'That's probably it." Malone said quickly and turned away. His suspicions had been correct.
The last traces of sunlight were leaving the sky as George Challenger made his way to the tree house --or rather someone who seemed to be George Edward Challenger. He had been out collecting tree samples when it happened. A premeditated ambush at best. Challenger never saw it coming He was now possessed and found himself the pawn in the deadly pursuit of Veronica Layton.
The explorers never saw it coming either, never saw anything coming really, the band of warriors following Challenger as he traveled home, nor the long calculated poisoning that Finn was trying to accomplish.
Challenger's band of warriors found themselves quite fortunate as his friends were found on the grounds beneath the tree house. The puzzled looks on their faces and their unwillingness to fight Challenger also proved an advantage as the warriors began to attack.
"What the hell is going on?" Marguerite screamed in the mist of the fight.
"I don't know." Malone answered truthfully as he swung his staff and sufficiently knocked out three people.
"And where the hell did you learn to fight like that?" she yelled back at him.
Malone smiled, "Probably where I learned to do this," he responded as he grabbed hold of his staff once more, flipped up in to the trees and then down again as the warriors looked up in amazement, movements before they were sent in to unconsciousness.
He landed and turned as Roxton yelled, "Malone get down!" Maybe it was the way he said it, the voice of authority the reminded him of a past he wanted to forget, but Malone lost his concentration and regained his throne for always getting knocked out in the mist of a battle.
*
A/N I hope you liked the chapter, more to come soon.
"So, where have you been? You had us worried for a while there, Old Boy." Roxton mused as the group, minus Challenger, sat eating Malone's welcome back dinner.
"Everywhere." Malone chuckled. "Actually…. This plateau contains things that even we haven't even seen."
"And what finally brought you back to us?" Marguerite said slyly sitting in her husband's lap. She never fancied herself the type of wife who would do that, in fact she hadn't been that type of wife, but something about John Roxton made her want to show the entire world her affection for him.
"I thought it was the right time," Malone said using Marguerite's old skill of evasiveness. Truthfully he wasn't even sure that if he hadn't of had the vision, he would have ever come back. "Besides what about all of you? What trouble did you get into while I was gone?"
"Well, Challenger invented a time machine, and we got Finn here, Veronica found out about her parents," Marguerite laughed and looked about Veronica, "Our little jungle girl is "the protector of the plateau", or at least the next in line to be so. Unimportant things like that. And-"
"Why are you here?" Finn put in suddenly with a look of rage in her eyes that made all jump back a little.
"Why is who here Finn?" Veronica said gently.
"Him!" she half yelled, half cursed as she pointed to Ned. "He's not supposed to be here."
"Finn, I-I don't understand what you mean." the jungle girl spat back puzzled.
"Forget it," the other blond said as she stalked away to her bedroom.
"What was that all about?" John mused with a shake of his head.
"A bit jealous perhaps?" Marguerite smirked.
'That's probably it." Malone said quickly and turned away. His suspicions had been correct.
The last traces of sunlight were leaving the sky as George Challenger made his way to the tree house --or rather someone who seemed to be George Edward Challenger. He had been out collecting tree samples when it happened. A premeditated ambush at best. Challenger never saw it coming He was now possessed and found himself the pawn in the deadly pursuit of Veronica Layton.
The explorers never saw it coming either, never saw anything coming really, the band of warriors following Challenger as he traveled home, nor the long calculated poisoning that Finn was trying to accomplish.
Challenger's band of warriors found themselves quite fortunate as his friends were found on the grounds beneath the tree house. The puzzled looks on their faces and their unwillingness to fight Challenger also proved an advantage as the warriors began to attack.
"What the hell is going on?" Marguerite screamed in the mist of the fight.
"I don't know." Malone answered truthfully as he swung his staff and sufficiently knocked out three people.
"And where the hell did you learn to fight like that?" she yelled back at him.
Malone smiled, "Probably where I learned to do this," he responded as he grabbed hold of his staff once more, flipped up in to the trees and then down again as the warriors looked up in amazement, movements before they were sent in to unconsciousness.
He landed and turned as Roxton yelled, "Malone get down!" Maybe it was the way he said it, the voice of authority the reminded him of a past he wanted to forget, but Malone lost his concentration and regained his throne for always getting knocked out in the mist of a battle.
*
A/N I hope you liked the chapter, more to come soon.