Lynx is found and dealt with finally. But Atikon still remains out there. And the repercussions of his influence reach everyone, as more deaths result. Will the adventurers find him before there is no one left to stop his madness?
Round 38 – Lynx (K), Grids: 1 and 12
The volcanic caldera seemed like even more a steaming, black pit close up. Riddel and Harle had experienced it before, but now, during the night of a new moon that was darker than any night had been before, it seemed alive, waiting to devour whatever foolish passerby coming close to its gaping holes.
Leena shivered with anxiety. It was the perfect place for Lynx to hide, so why not look there? Orlha had taken over the team's leader duties, and she was now in contact with Harle. Harle was searching elsewhere, but it apparently had given her no leads, tracks, or anything to follow.
Riddel put her hands on Leena's shoulders, as if to jar her back to reality.
"Everything will be all right," the princess said. "We'll find the evil Atikon, and kill him. Then, Serge can come back." Riddel was trying to be reassuring, but both women knew the truth. Serge may not come back at all.
Orlha took point with Riddel in the center and Leena in the rear. All three women crept along paths where the sulfurous caverns oozed magma and smelled of rotten eggs and dead fish. Riddel nearly gagged, but then Orlha said to be silent. She heard something up ahead. Gripping Norris's rifle, she found it difficult to line up a shot. It was bigger than she was accustomed too, plus the wound she sustained from Fargo started acting up. She tentatively stepped forward, Riddel casting a spell to help Orlha see better. Leena, the most nervous out of the three, yet still calm, took aim with the smaller firearm Norris had issued for the deer hunt.
Another movement caught Orlha's eyes, from off to the left. In the darkness, she briefly saw a flash of black. Not s-adow black, but jet black. Lynx!
"Here, radio for help!" Orlha passed the walkie-talkie to Riddel, who called Harle frantically, providing the coordinates. Harle mentioned underground passages linked her area to the volcano, and she was on her way.
Orlha took point again, the bolt-action rifle and its high-powered scope seemingly glued to her eyes, with the sight of an eagle thanks to Riddel's spell. She kept on moving, taking quick yet careful steps to keep her eyes ahead.
"Be careful," Leena said. Orlha nodded, and heard the noise again. Was he going to lead them into a trap?
"Ahead!" Riddel cried. Orlha quickly turned forward. There! She had a clean shot, as Lynx was making a move. Maybe it was an illusion, but she didn't care
"For Norris!" she shouted as a war cry. BANG! She fired. The recoil of the rifle was a lot more than she'd anticipated, and she was knocked on her butt. Lynx, however, looked to be in much worse shape than her. He had taken the bullet in the chest, and although Orlha hit no major organs, the fight was knocked out of him.
From the other side, Harle's group came in and surveyed. Lynx had coughed up black blood, and did not look like he was going anywhere. Leena wanted to ask him about Serge, but she doubted that he would listen or answer. Harle went up to him, grabbed him by the collar, and punched him in the face.
"Zis is for all ze people vous killed!" she shouted.
"Idiots!" Lynx's voice, although he had looked weak, was strong as ever. "You think you've killed me, but I'm already dead! I am more powerful than you could possibly comprehend."
"Yeah, yeah," Orlha said, slugging Lynx and knocking him backward into a magma flow. The girls averted their gaze as Lynx's body charred, putrefied, and melted into a sick and disgusting goo.
"So, it's done," Orlha said. She was the first to look at the lava flow.
"And it needed to be done. We could not allow Lynx to destroy us all," Miki added.
"Serge..." Leena started. Everyone looked at her. She was right. Lynx may have been dead, but Atikon was still out there.
"Don't worry, we'll bring him down, by force if we have to," Orlha said. She took a flower out of her hair. She smelled it, and held it over the lava pit.
"And now, with much sorrow, I embrace my fortune. Norris, I have given thee what you deserve. Thy murderer walks no more. My only regret is that you could not share this moment with me. Let the Dragon Gods bless his name." She threw the flower into the lava pit.
"Let's go," Orlha said to Miki and Leena. "This place reeks of too much death."
By: Matt620
Round 39 – Irenes (K), Grids: 2 and 6
Harle, Miki and Irenes entered the area with the waterfall.
"Be careful," said Harle. "We do not want to find anot'er illuzion."
"Don't worry. We'll be careful," said Miki.
"Irenes, you check ze water for signs of Atikon," Harle commanded.
"Ya." Irenes nodded and jumped into the river to search for the source of most of the group's woes.
"Look at the cute fish," said Miki. "They're pretty."
"Miki, we are not 'ere to look at ze fishies. We are 'ere to find Atikon. I don't t'ink he waz 'ere though," said Harle.
"I wonder if Orlha found any clues?" Miki pondered
"I will contact 'er." Harle got out her walkie-talkie. "Paging miz Orlha? Are vous zere?"
"Yes, I'm here. Did you find anything?"
"Non, I am afraid zere waz not'ing 'ere."
"Nothing here either," said Orlha. "Leena almost fell into a hole, but Riddel saved her. You should watch out for traps. There are plenty of them in the ruins, and I am sure they are all over this island."
"We will," said Harle.
"De fish!" exclaimed Irenes. "Dey are attacking me!"
"Irenes, the fish are too little to be attacking you. It is just an illusion," said Miki
Irenes slammed the fish with her tail. But they kept on attacking her. "Help me, Miki!" she cried.
But Miki wasn't listening, as she didn't realize that the cute fish were really vicious piranhas. Harle was too busy arguing with Orlha over how they were going to catch Atikon.
A piranha bit Irenes on her neck. A big gush of blood squirted out. Irenes called for help again. But the words wouldn't come. The wound had affected her ability to speak.
Harle finally stopped talking to Orlha and turned around. "Oh no! Miki, you idiote! Vous should be 'elping Irenes, not watching ze fishies!"
"What? Irenes is just playing with them," said Miki.
"Non, vous idiote! Ze fish are attacking 'er!" Harle ran over to the water and threw her darts at the fish.
Irenes was still fighting, even though she had been bitten several times and was bleeding heavily from most of her wounds. Miki took one look at Irenes, and realized that Harle was right. The fish were attacking Irenes.
"Take that!" Miki spun around and smacked the nearest fish with her hair. Realizing they were fighting a losing battle, the piranhas fled.
"I'm sorry Irenes," said Miki, as she tried to heal Irenes' wounds.
"Ze wounds are too deep. Zere is no way we can save 'er," Harle said, as she held Irenes in her arms.
"Irenes, say hi to Nikki for me," Miki said, sadly.
Irenes gave a faint nod and took her last breath.
"We will bury her at sea, "said Harle. "She would 'ave wanted it zat way. Atikon will pay for zis!"
By: Alanna82
Round 40 – Miki (K), Grids: 5 and 10
It was hard to go to the lake with Irenes' death so recent. However, that did not deter Miki and Harle from their searching. Looking all around the area had proved fruitless, though.
"Mademoiselle Orlha, it'z Harle. Did vous find anyzing?" Harle asked in the walkie-talkie.
"Negative," Orlha responded. "This area is clean. Atikon hasn't been here." She sounded upset, but still optimistic.
"I'm zure we vill find 'im, mademoiselle," Harle said. "Zen ze dead can rest in peace." Orlha thanked Harle and then hung up the radio.
"Eugh, I'm a mess," Miki complained.
"Zis iz not ze time for ze frivolities, mademoiselle Miki. We must search for Atikon."
"I know, I just want to wash my face. I'll only be a minute."
"Very vell, be careful," Harle said. Miki went to the lake and started scrubbing her face. There weren't any piranhas or anything in the water, so Miki started washing her skin, glad to feel something cool on it. She had been trekking around for a while, and although the exercise was wonderful for her figure, it wasn't good for her skin.
"God, my skin feels like tree bark," Miki complained. But then she remembered what Nikki had said.
"He said he loved me, and I'm going to do this for him. That bastard Atikon tricked him, and now he won't get away with it."
"Atikon killed who now?" a voice sounded from behind her. Miki turned around, and found Nikki towering above her.
"Nikki!" Miki shouted.
"Hey, hey, don't get all like that. I'm all right, you're all right, and that's all that matters," he said with a smile. His make-up had been running a little thin, but that was probably due to the quicksand.
"Nikki, how did you...?"
"Remember the underground passages? The quicksand dumped me out there," Nikki responded, still hugging Miki closely.
"I don't understand, but I don't care. We've got a lot to tell you. We got Lynx!"
"You did?" Nikki asked, surprised. "Wow."
"Well, Orlha killed him," Miki responded.
"But he's gone just the same. That's wonderful to hear," Nikki said as he smiled.
With Nikki hugging Miki close, she couldn't see his smile twisting into an evil grin, nor could she see the knife that he held in his other hand.
"Heh," he said, then stabbed her in the back. She yelped out, attracting the attention of Harle.
"You're...Atikon!" she shouted. The stab wound was not immediately fatal, but it was terminal. She wouldn't live for very long.
"No, Atikon's voice sounded as the illusion disappeared. The creature before her was not Atikon. It appeared to be a bipedal lizard creature, with green scales and long claws, which explained the stab wounds. Harle had mentioned something about Atikon and the possibility he could mindlink with lesser creatures. This was the result.
"You...bastard..." Miki whispered.
"And you fell for it. Must be good huh, man. Acting that sappy was making me gag. I think I'll throw up after this is done," he sneered, not really listening to the dying woman's curses. Then he heard someone coming.
"Crap," Atikon said, before breaking his link with the creature. He didn't have to risk anything anymore. Miki was dying and that was good enough.
"Miki!" Harle shouted. She had radioed for Orlha and they were almost there. The dancer girl had a knife wound in her back, and she didn't appear like she'd live for much longer. The culprit was a large bipedal lizard that lived in the jungles around the island, and Harle quickly threw a knife at it, embedding the small blade in the lizard's throat. It died immediately, unable to do anything else to the dancer's prone body.
"It was...Atikon," Miki said. "He...had that thing disguise...itself as Nikki. I...can't believe I let him...get me."
"Don't blame yourself," Harle said. Miki smiled, and then her eyes shut.
"We're...too late," Orlha said as the group came up.
"Zere was, nozing we could do," Harle said, burying Miki far enough away from the water so fish would not probe her body. "At least, in ze last moments, she zaw Nikki, even if it only was an illusion," Harle said sadly. She looked at the other girls and couldn't help but feel a little jealous.
All of them had a brief period in which they had a moment to share their happiness with a man important to them. Orlha had Norris, her fallen soldier. Riddel had Karsh, her dead lover's best friend. Leena had Serge, her childhood friend. Even if he was Atikon now, Serge was out there still.
"Harle, why are you staring at us?" Riddel asked. Harle didn't realize she was lost in her own thoughts.
"It'z not'ing," Harle responded.
"Well," Riddel said. "I will go with you now. We do not want anyone searching alone."
"Yes," Harle said. "Let'z keep moving. Again it feels as if zere is...too much death here."
By: Matt620
Round 41 – Orlha (K), Grids: 3 and 8
"Harle? Where did you go?" Riddel was wandering through the forest searching for her lost partner. "This is not good. Harle! Where are you? Wait, what is that?" Through the leaves of the treetops, Riddel could see a thin trail of smoke rising into the clouds. She picked up her pace and pushed back the last of the bushes that blocked her progress. At last, she emerged from the forest and into..."Someone's backyard? That smoke was from the chimney on this house! This is a town! Wow, I didn't know there were other people living on this island."
Riddel walked around the house while avoiding the flowerbeds and stepped onto the street. The town appeared quiet and peaceful. Along both sides of the street were friendly cottages lined up in rows, with plenty of breathing room between them. Most of the houses had small vegetable gardens behind and delightfully aromatic flower gardens in front. A few houses even had playground equipment in their backyards. While all of the houses were unique, the majority were two stories with pointy roofs.
As Riddel came upon an intersection, she noticed a building much larger than the surrounding houses, as it was three stories tall and covered a great area. The building had many windows, double doors at the entrance, and an immense playground behind. Suddenly, a bell rang and children poured from the back doors. These children were dressed in bright clothes suitable for the warm weather and they all sported a backpack. Riddel watched as the children ran, jumped, skipped, and laughed with each other.
"Excuse me, miss? Are you lost? Do you need any assistance?" Riddel turned her head away from the blissful sight and faced a man wearing a navy blue outfit and a matching hat: a local police officer.
"I am new to this town and I am looking for a friend. She is dressed as a jester with red pointed shoes and baggy pants. Have you seen her?" Riddel inquired.
"I'm sorry, miss. I haven't seen any jesters around here," the officer answered with a laugh. "But if she is here, she is most likely at the town hall. I'll escort you," he offered.
The Lady of Viper Manor nodded and followed the kind officer. The pair turned a corner and Riddel gasped. In the sky was a translucent image of Guile! Once again, his eyes gazed down at Riddel with concentration, determination, and hope. His eyes then rose above Riddel's head and into the sky behind her. "Guile! What is it? Please, tell me! Maybe I can help you! I want to!" Riddel pleaded to the image of the mage. His eyes, now glistening with unshed tears, went back down and looked into Riddel's as he shook his head. Again, he raised his eyes and stared behind the lady. Riddel did as Guile hinted and turned around, and her eyes followed a bright rainbow arcing upward as she turned. At the height of the rainbow was a slightly more solid image of a blond girl with a bright smile and warm eyes. "Kid?! Is that you? What is it you are trying to tell me?" The image looked at her with loving eyes from behind the colorful rainbow. Riddel looked around her and nodded with understanding. "Ah, yes. I understand, Kid. We will make sure it happens. Thank you!"
The officer, completely puzzled at the lady's conversation with the sky, tapped her on the shoulder, "Are you alright, miss?"
Riddel bowed to the officer. "Oh, I am sorry, sir. I was...thinking."
The officer was relieved. "Alright." Then he started to gently shake the lady's shoulder and grew a French accent. "Wake up, mademoiselle Riddel! Wake up!"
Riddel's eyes fluttered open and saw the unfocused face of Harle peering down at her. After she rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes, she sat up and took in the surroundings. They were in a dense tropical forest and in the same spot they had settled down on last night. Riddel didn't go anywhere and she hadn't lost Harle; it was a dream...again. "Good morning, Harle!" Riddel cheerfully greeted.
"Iz closer to afternoon, mademoiselle Riddel. Vous decided to sleep late," Harle replied, a bit annoyed.
"No, I overslept?! I apologize, Harle. Let us make haste and begin the search." The two gathered their things, had a light meal, and set off.
Meanwhile, in another part of the island...
Orlha and Leena waded through the tropical undergrowth, sifting through the waist-high plants for any clues, or Atikon himself. The day started promising with the discovery of footprints in the moist soil, but their hopes of finding Atikon in the area dwindled as the day wore on.
The two girls paused for a break and took some sips from their canteens. "I really wish I brought long pants with me to this island," commented Orlha as she looked at the scrapes and scratches on her legs.
Leena ran her hand over her purple dress and sighed, "My dress doesn't help much against these plants. The bottom has turned into rags! Hey, what's that sound?" The girls listened carefully and heard a "Hiss!"
"No! We are surrounded! Get out your weapon!" Orlha gulped. Like the Guldovian said, on all sides and closing fast were no less than a dozen Shadow Cats.
Leena took out her pan and complained, "These are Lynx's Shadow Cats! Lynx is dead, so what are they doing here?!"
"Atikon must have 'adopted' them," Orlha presumed as she put up her fists. "But don't worry about that! Just worry about surviving!"
"Right," Leena agreed. The demons crept closer and stopped about twenty feet from the girls. Back to back, the two girls stared down the demons as the two parties sized each other up. At last, the cats pounced at lightning speed and the battle began. With a dozen cats jumping at them, it was impossible for them to dodge every single one, especially in those surroundings. Leena whacked away several that attempted to strike her, but two managed to bite her, one on each arm. Orlha didn't have a large weapon to shield herself, but she valiantly punched any cat that came her way. She was also hit, unfortunately: one on each leg and one on her right arm. Orlha kicked two of the cats back and punched the other until it fell to the ground. She put her good left arm around the shoulders of Leena, who had just knocked back the cats who had bitten her arms.
"Leena! We cannot stay here and fight a losing battle; we have to run!" Orlha advised breathlessly. Leena nodded and the two ran from the crowd of Shadow Cats as quickly as the brush would allow. Orlha ignored the stabbing pain in her legs until the adrenaline numbed it and she glanced over her shoulder. The cats were advancing on them and would be on top of them in a few seconds. Her legs were rapidly losing all feeling, not from adrenaline anymore, but from blood loss. When her feet started to stumble on the roots, she made a split second decision. "Leena, take this and don't stop running! Keep going and don't stop no matter what!" She forced her walkie-talkie and Norris' gun into Leena's hands.
Leena looked back and cried out, "Orlha..." The barkeep had stopped running and was swarmed by the demons. Leena looked into the Orlha's eyes and stopped her protest. Orlha's mind would not be changed. She shouted as she continued to run, "Orlha! I will never forget this! Thank you for all you have done! You know that we will--"
"Yes, I know you'll avenge me!" Orlha interrupted as she desperately tried shaking off some of the cats. "Kill the bastard and free Serge! Now go!" Leena took one last look and focused her attention on running as fast as she could. "I hope...I bought enough time..." coughed Orlha as she fell to the ground.
Leena stopped once she could no longer move. None of the cats followed her. Leaning against a short tree, she caught her breath somewhat and took out the walkie-talkie. "H-Harle? Are you there?"
"Oui. What iz it, mademoiselle Leena? Did you find 'im? We found not'ing 'ere," was the reply.
"No, just footprints. O-Orlha...She...She was one of the best friends I ever had..." Leena found herself unable to say the words.
"...Mademoiselle Leena, I know. She waz a very good friend..." Harle knowingly responded. "Stay where you are and we will find you. It iz important now more than ever zat we stay toget'er."
"Okay. I-I will," Leena hung up and sank down into a sitting position, with her knees to her chin. "Serge, I will find a way to bring you back...I swear it. I will find a way..."
By: TenkoStar17