CHAPTER 9: The Sight Of The Blind Master
"Dad, stop!! Please!! Don't hurt him!!" yelled Justin, and barely managing to break out of Dimetro's grip, he rushed over and placed his hands on his father's colossal claws, vainly trying to pull them back. "Don't hurt him!! He saved me from the mutants that were attacking me!! He protected me!!!"
"What?!" gasped David, "There are mutants close by?!!"
"Who are they?! Who are the mutants?!! Is it the X-Men?! Magneto?!" Tricero demanded urgently as hushed and nervous muttering broke throughout the crowd. But it was Blind Master who answered calmly, well, as calmly as one could answer with a gigantic allosaurus towering over him.
"No, it is not them. They are the Misfits, mutants serving the G.I. Joe military unit."
Paul narrowed his eyes in deep thought. He said in astonished realization, "I thought you looked familiar! You're a G.I. Joe soldier! I remember seeing you when Hector Rameriez did that special TV interview with G.I. Joe about mutant soldiers in the American military! You're one of the men and women who adopted the orphans known as 'The Brotherhood' and trained them to be a freedom force for the American army!!"
"The army?! He's from the army?!!" Struthio asked with horror.
"Then that means…we've been discovered!" gasped Teryx as she held her hands to her mouth in fright. This was certainly disastrous. The Dinosaucers were being tracked down by mutants trained under the army, and even if they did manage to fight them off, it wouldn't be long before the American government and armed forces would discover the Lavadome base and hunt them down. The Dinosaucers could not possibly relocate this quickly, and even if they did, their exposure would be damning, forever marking them as targets to the human public. Raptor then growled a solution.
"Correction: we would only be discovered if this soldier manages to return back and report his findings to his superiors."
Struthio yelled at the velociraptor, aghast, "Raptor, this is a human! We can't kill a human being!!"
"Kill or be killed, Struthio. And this human is a soldier."
"Gee, no surprise a Tyrannos like yourself would have no problem with that! After all, after killing so many innocent dinosaurs, what's one human more or less?!!" snapped Compy, obviously disagreeing with the black Dinosaucer.
"Back off, Compy! For the sake of Reptilion, can't you ever shut up?!!" yelled Struthio.
"Raptor is correct, young one," Plateo surmised before Struthio could further protest, "Human or not, if we let the soldier walk free, he would surely report his discovery to the government, and then we would all be truly in danger! None of us would be able to hide so readily without being chased by the military! We would be hunted, trapped, assassinated, or even used as laboratory experiments, as specimen guinea pigs, if it was discovered that we even existed. Raptor has a logical basis…one we must take seriously!"
"Plato, NO!!" This came from the tearful Justin as he turned his head to face the green plateosaurus behind him, all the meanwhile still trying to pry his father's claws off the Blind Master.
Justin pleaded, "You can't kill him! He protected me when the mutants attacked me, and because of it, he got hurt!! It's my fault he got injured, and he had to fight against his friends just to make sure they wouldn't touch me!! He's not evil!"
"But we cannot surely let him walk away! We cannot be sure if we can trust him to stay quiet about our secret!" argued Plateo.
"But the soldier stood up against the mutants to fight for me, and he didn't join them when they tried to kill me!! He saved my life! Doesn't that show he can be trusted?!"
Itchy then said suspiciously, "Justin, it could be a clever ruse, a trick to gain your trust and see if you would lead him to our headquarters before he turns on you and betrays you!! Or it could be the fact that he's a mutant too, trying to fool you with some sort of telepathic power or something!"
David then said, "Actually, I don't think so, Itchy! I have to agree with the kid here on this one! This guy seems pretty genuine, and even though he's from the army, he's not like all the other jerks who've tried to make Justin's life a living hell! That gets a few points in my book!"
By now, it seemed like everyone else was arguing and offering their viewpoints and opinions loudly, the shock of having another human discover their secret making them jumpy and chaotic. Both the Secret Scouts and the Dinosaucers were shouting at each other over the din, wildly trying to come up with a solution…until Allo bellowed, already at his end.
"ENOUGH!!!" The roar was sharp enough to cut through the quarrel and forceful enough to echo through the desert, making the very foundation of the Lavadome base tremble slightly. Both Justin and the Blind Master winced at the piercing pain in their eardrums from the shout that could only be measured in the decibel scale. Ryan then emerged out of the Dinosaucers' base, confused and puzzled at the sudden yell.
"Hey, what's going on?!!" Ryan then did a double take, upon seeing the injured Justin and the Blind Master.
"What happened??" he asked, his eyebrows crinkled in shock. Both Sarah and David shot Ryan a dirty look as Sarah accused her brother disdainfully.
"I'm surprised you even had the decency to care, Ryan."
"Sarah, this is not the time," chastised Paul gently as he then started to explain to his friend in the background as everyone else then watched Justin beg to Allo, trying to reason with his still livid father.
"Dad, please, if nothing else, at least give Blind Master the chance to tell his side of the story! I owe him that much! Please, Dad! I trust him! He wasn't the one who hurt me! And I don't think he'll try anything when he's wounded like this! Please, Dad!! Please!!!"
Allo still kept staring daggers at the solider in his claws as Tricero then knelt over to his leader and whispered gently in Allo's ear, "Allo…you always said you relied on Justin's judgment for other people. If you still stand-by that assertion, then let the man speak. You have nothing to lose if you do, but if you follow otherwise…do you want to repeat the mistake you made with Genghis Rex? And unlike Genghis Rex…this stranger helped your son even though he had nothing to gain from it."
Allo twitched from the reminder. After a few tense moments, which crawled by like hours, the Dinosaucer released his hold on the G.I. Joe solider, but he commanded threateningly, "Start talking."
Blind Master winced as he held his bleeding side, beads of perspiration glistening on his forehead as he sat up, the exertion being a bit strenuous for the ninja. Still, the Blind Master shot both Justin and Allo a grateful look, grunting, "Thank you."
Dimetro and Teryx then knelt down next to the African-American Misfit handler, starting to strip the warrior of his leather coat and shirt. Teryx then offered gently, "Don't move too much…we can patch you up while you tell us what in the name of Reptilion is going on and why you are here."
As the two Dinosaucers started applying medical attention to his bleeding wounds, a bare-chested Blind Master then told his story as best as he could. He explained that his real name was Gabriel Moore, a ninja trained by a guild dating back in feudal Japan and how he was a soldier in G.I. Joe, a military unit dedicated to fighting terrorist groups like Cobra and protecting human society. He also explained how the former band of teenage mutants called the Brotherhood were used as soldier pawns by Magneto, a ruthless and powerful mutant bent on the elimination of the human race for a mutant haven of superiority. The Brotherhood were also arch-enemies of the other mutant team in the town of Bayville in New York called the X-Men, but despite it, when Cobra attacked them and exposed them to the world to see, both the X-Men and Brotherhood teamed up with G.I. Joe to stop Magneto and his alliance of the Hellfire Club. Abandoned and deeply hurt from betrayal, all members of the Brotherhood were adopted by G.I. Joe, and General Hawk assigned several G.I. Joe soldiers as surrogate parents for the Brotherhood who then named themselves the mutant freedom force, the Misfits. It was not a hard transition for Shipwreck, one of the soldiers chosen, had five mutant children, with the eldest being a girl named Althea who leads the Misfits, and none of the G.I. Joes were bigoted for they have dealt with mutants, ghosts, genetic experiments, and even had a few former Cobra soldiers join on the side of good. So dealing with mutant teenagers was nothing out of the ordinary of the life of a G.I. Joe soldier. Though it took much work and trust, in time, the Misfits grew to love their new lives and loved deeply their adoptive parents, realizing how wrong Magneto and his minions were about the cruelty of all humans.
Blind Master then explained about each member of the Misfits individually and their handlers, giving each mutant and G.I. Joe soldier a brief profile and what abilities they all had. The Dinosaucers and the Secret Scouts learned about the histories of Shipwreck, Low Light, Cover Girl, Spirit, Roadblock, Wavedancer, Toad, Avalanche, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Xi, Dragonfly, Blob, and Trinity. They also learned about their recent history with the X-Men and how, though G.I. Joe and the Misfits would always be their allies for support, things were a bit tense between the two mutant teams due to a huge blowout revolving around Bobby Drake and Lance Alvers.
Then, finally, Blind Master explained why he and the Misfits were here along with who had sent them. Justin had to add his own testimony on what had happened, and how Blind Master was the only one who seemed to not give in to the urge to eliminate him, though he was still vague on how exactly the Misfits' attacks were reflected back. The adolescent was still very unclear on what his mutation was and how it worked. Yet, the teenager supported everything the Blind Master told them, and even Paul, Sarah, and surprisingly, David, validated the facts that the ninja told them. Apparently, David, Sarah and Paul were all very aware and knowledgeable about the recent current events with the mutant "crisis" gripping the world, and Paul luckily remembered much from the exposé with Rameriez on the Misfits.
All this, the Dinosaucers listened with respectful silence and growing interest, but the minute Blind Master mentioned Major Cliffton, they all narrowed their eyes in annoyance. Even now, Cliffton was a touchy subject for them.
"Cliffton?!" shouted Tricero in gall, "He's behind this whole thing?!"
"I swear, when I get my claws on that conniving, vindictive, malicious bastard -!!" rumbled Bronto-Thunder.
"You'll what? Threaten his life while exposing yourself to the human public? March up to his headquarters in Washington D.C. and kill him while creating a new mass hysteria about invading dinosaur extraterrestrials? Honestly, the fact that all brontosaurs have a second brain never seems to do much good with your rational thinking, does it, Bronto-Thunder?" sneered Raptor, disgusted and exasperated.
The brontosaurus Dinosaucer made a fist in Raptor's face, growling lowly, "If you wanted me to give you a beating, just say the words, and I'll gladly oblige, Tyrannos!"
"Bronto-Thunder, not now!" Paul groaned.
"Oh, just let Bronto-Thunder kill Raptor!" snapped Itchy, glaring at Raptor poisonously, "We'd all be better off!"
Itchy then eyed the Blind Master suspiciously, reproaching, "Still, you and General Hawk weren't exactly brave enough to simply refuse to follow those orders, weren't you, Gabriel? It seems to me that you and the other Misfits have their own selfish agendas with meeting us, and it could be that you mutant soldiers are no different from the ones Cliffton follows! It could be you're just as bad and hypocritical as this General Eddington!"
"He has a point," admitted Montacera.
"Itchy, that's enough!" Teryx snapped, chastising, "Blind Master explained why he and the Misfits decided to follow this mission through, and if they have suspicions about their own superiors, then of course the Misfits and G.I. Joe would not wish to trust the matter in Eddington and Cliffton's hands!"
Blind Master, meanwhile, tested his arm and side by flexing as he finished drinking the canteen of water Dimetro supplied to him from his pack. Through the bullets ripped clean through of his flesh, it left messy exit wounds out of his forearm and side abdominal muscle, but Blind Master was extremely fortunate to not have the metal shrapnel lodged into his bone. There was no indication of pain in the slightest, and it was practically as good as new, though it was plainly obvious that the ninja master would have to rest and recuperate for several days before the injuries would be nonexistent.
The Blind Master nodded his thanks, saying to the dimetrodon, "It's much better now. Thank you, Dimetro."
The tech-savvy doctor smiled as he also tended to Justin's wounded shoulder. It was easy to see that this Dinosaucer liked the G.I. Joe soldier. He replied, "Though I wouldn't try anything too strenuous, the medical salve we put on your wounds is a special, liquid polymer that hardens enough to keep your injuries airtight from infection and flexible enough to allow full movement of your body. The salve also had quick healing properties that stimulates cell regeneration, so your bullet wounds will recover more readily. In other words, think of the salve as a liquid substitute for medicinal stitches. It's what we normally use to patch injuries and lacerations, including after surgery, and given our tough, leathery hides, it's sufficient enough to mend even our bodies."
Blind Master whistled, impressed, commenting, "Such a tool would be useful back at the Pit where G.I. Joe headquarters reside, not to mention back at the Misfit manor where we have injuries and explosions on an hourly basis."
"Explosions??" David raised an eyebrow at the remark.
"Let's just say we are not what constitutes a normal family, David," Blind Master smiled as he put on his shirt.
"It's easier to say a family of freaks and mutie-lovers is anything but normal," Ryan muttered under his breath. Blind Master frowned as he looked directly at Ryan.
"I would think that a person who has made friends with dinosaur aliens from another planet would have a more tolerant mindset about mutants and people of their own race, Ryan Whitterson." Ryan's eyes went wide as he gaped like a fish. Sarah and David both gave Ryan a smug yet cold glare, a look that clearly said "serves you right". Allo just looked at Ryan sadly, disappointed but not angry.
"But…wha-…you heard me??"
"I am blind, not deaf, Ryan, and even though I am not a mutant, being a ninja master has trained me to utilize my other senses far beyond normal human capacity. It is quite impressive how much the human body can cope and adapt given the circumstances." Blind Master then sighed as he turned his attention to Allo.
"So that is the reason why the Misfits and G.I. Joe are even here in the first place, Allo. I swear, on my life and honor as a warrior and ninja, I tell you the truth. None of us meant to attack your son willfully, and we are not here to capture or exterminate you or the other Dinosaucers, but to try to extend a bond of goodwill with our government. That was all we meant to achieve, what we meant to try."
Allo frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest. After deliberate thought, the allosaurus then said, "I have a hard time believing this, Blind Master. I truly do."
"I believe him," Justin said stoutly, convinced, while frowning at his father. Damn it, how could Allo act like this, to the person who saved his own son's life?! If Gabriel didn't do the noble thing, Justin would have died easily. And from the look of several of the other Dinosaucers and Secret Scouts, some were tempted to agree. Yet it was clear that none of them, save the naïve Justin, were eager to throw their cautions to the winds. Blind Master then decided to ask a question to Justin.
"Justin…how long have you known you were a mutant?"
"Justin, you don't need to answer that," Itchy piped up sternly, still suspicious.
The teen shivered at the reminder, clearly upset, but he managed to politely answer the ninja, "I…not for very long. It's…it's my birthday today, the day I turned sixteen. But, it was at the birthday celebration when my powers just…they just went haywire for the very first time. I don't know what I did, what I can do, and how I can stop or control it. It just…happened. I'm so sorry if I hurt your friends! Please, I didn't mean to!"
Blind Master was clearly puzzled. He asked, "Wait, young one. You…you have been living here all this time?? Amongst the Dinosaucers? Why?"
Allo then said with a defensive and resentful tone, "He's my son. Gabriel, ten years ago, Justin was nearly murdered by a mob of people from the city where he used to live, and from what I had learned, he had always been in a situation where people were physically and verbally abusive to him for no reason other than spite and cruelty. Justin was abandoned in the desert, and by a stroke of luck, he managed to wander within range of our base's surveillance. When we found him, Justin was on the brink of death, but over time, he recovered thanks to our help and intervention. Since he had no one who cared about him, I adopted Justin and ever since then, he has stayed here at the Lavadome."
"For ten years? Justin, you…you've never gone back to the city?? You never went back to visit your home? Your parents??"
"His home is here, and I'm his parent," Allo snarled, and now, everyone could hear the dangerous anger that was starting to bubble again within the Dinosaucer leader. It seemed like anything the Blind Master was saying, the allosaurus was taking to offense.
Blind Master flatly clarified, "I meant Justin's birth parents, Allo."
Justin ignored his slowly-burning father as he shook his head and spoke before Allo could retort.
"No. I…I don't know who my birth parents even were. I was an orphan, and…I was alone for as long as I could remember. And every time I do go try to mingle with other people, they…well, it's like your Misfits and your friends from G.I. Joe."
Paul further elaborated, "Mr. Moore, Justin cannot interact with most people because for some unknown reason, whenever he tries, they try to hurt him and kill him. We can't tell you how many times myself and the other Secret Scouts had to rescue him from being mobbed and murdered. It's not safe for Justin to go out like that, much less on his own. You, yourself, had just witnessed this with your peers in the desert."
"That's why he's been living here, so that he'd be safe, and the Dinosaucers have been protecting him all this time. Plus, with the additional mutant disasters that have been going on in the world, you can kinda guess why Justin should stay here. If he was hated before, he'll be in bigger danger when people find out he's a mutant," Sarah added.
"Especially people like you," Tricero frowned.
"Leave him alone!" snapped Montacera, "By the mother planet, is it really that hard to believe that there could be some good people in the army?! People not like Cliffton?! After all, we let Raptor join up with us, and he used to be a Tyrannos!"
"Not by choice, I can tell you that," Compy muttered flatly.
"Shut your mouth, carcass-feeder," growled Raptor.
"Bite me, stink-asaur!" snapped back Compy.
"Rat fungus."
"Jackass."
"Spore!"
"Back-stabber!"
"Will you two stop, please?!" groaned Bonehead as he got in between the Dinosaucers, "Honestly, and you guys call me immature!"
"Shut up, Bonehead!" Raptor and Compy shouted at the pachycephalosaurus.
Blind Master, meanwhile, was taking in what he had heard. It suddenly made sense now.
"So that's why you never resurfaced again for the past ten years…" Blind Master murmured.
Stego was confused, overhearing the solider. The Dinosaucer asked dumbly, "Huh? Whaddya mean, Blind Master?"
Blind replied, "General Hawk told us that Cliffton believed that because the Dinosaucers apparently dropped out of sight without any explanation, they must have been planning a sort of doomsday mission for the planet or attempting to commit mass genocide on the entire human race like the Tyrannos have attempted before. While you and the other Dinosaucers have been hiding to keep Justin safe and from being discovered, Cliffton misinterpreted that as a sign that you were all planning a hostile takeover of the planet. That was how he was able to justify an expedition to search for you to our superiors…because our superiors were also suspicious of the same thing. If you truly were a threat to national and world security, it was best to find and eliminate you all as soon as possible."
"What?! But…but we'd never do that!!" Bonehead exclaimed.
"They don't know that…Bonehead, I believe your name is. Keep in mind that though General Hawk won't commit such acts, Eddington and Cliffton would have no problem finding others who will. And since none of the Dinosaucers have ever attempted to first reach out to our government, our superiors would of course start getting suspicious and only think of the worst."
"People fear and suspect what they do not understand," Plateo murmured sadly. Ryan felt a pang of guilt at that sentence.
Teryx then asked, "But…but then why did Eddington and Cliffton want to search for us instead of the Tyrannos?"
"Because Cliffton and Eddington were not able to locate the Tyrannos nor were they able to think that they would trust them to extend an offer for a military alliance with them. However, since Cliffton made it his life's agenda to track down the Dinosaucers, he decided it would be more fruitful if he could use the government's help in tracking you down instead. At least then, he would be able to glorify himself as the person who exposed you," Blind Master answered.
"God, what an asshole," muttered David.
"That is something General Hawk will agree with you on, David," Blind Master smiled before turning to Justin, saying sincerely and warmly, "And as for you, young Justin, I owe you my life. Though it was not intentional, you still wanted to stand by me and took me out of danger from the battle. You pleaded for my defense when your father thought I was the one who had assaulted you, and as such, I will not forget your kindness. Thank you."
Tears of guilt were already spilling from Justin's eyes as he miserably shook his head, sniffing, "You shouldn't be thanking me. It was my fault I got your friends mad at you, and it was my fault you got injured in the first place. If I didn't show up, the Dinosaucers wouldn't be hunted down by the military and you wouldn't have been injured fighting the Misfits. You shouldn't be thanking me. I just caused a lot of trouble, like I always do."
The Blind Master was saddened to hear those words. Even though the child was crying silently, the ninja could hear the teenager's voice threatening to crack, could feel the years of untold pain and hurt that the boy still managed to bear over his shoulders. The teenager certainly didn't deserve the torment he received as a child. Sarah then stared at Blind Master with awe.
"Actually, that's something that has been nagging me. Blind Master…why aren't you affected? Why didn't you act all psychotic and animalistic when you saw…uh, I mean, when you encountered Justin?"
"Yeah, I mean everyone's treated Justin like crap, and yet you're the only person, save us Secret Scouts, that could even get through that. I mean, you sure you're not a mutant?" David asked.
The African ninja shook his head, but he pondered aloud, his brow furrowing deep in thought and reason, "No, but do raise a valid point, Sarah. Though my teammates and friends did attempt to kill Justin, I could sense their feelings, their emotions, their auras…and no, it is not a mutant ability, David. Yes, I could sense you about to open your mouth to ask me, but it is a technique that only the most profound and powerful ninjas can learn and master. After all, I would not be a martial artist if I could not discern or sense things and anomalies in people."
David was clearly impressed along with several of the Dinosaucers such as Stego, Struthio, Plateo, and Raptor. Blind Master continued.
"At any rate, the thing is, Allo, the anger and hate and rage I sensed from them was…not natural. There was no such way that a human or mutant could possibly exhibit and manifest such powerful and murderous feelings on a whim or on their own willpower. Despite what you may believe, the Misfits and their handlers are not always some sort of carefree, devil-may-care, brash, irresponsible group of party-animals, and they would never attack an innocent. Even if they were attacked, they kill only if necessary. Out of all our enemies such as Magneto, the Acolytes, the Hellfire Club, Mystique, and the Friends of Humanity, we have never ruthlessly taken their lives; we have incarcerated and publicly humiliated or exposed them, yes…but never eliminated them."
Blind Master then looked at Allo before continuing, "Allo, please believe me when I say G.I. Joe and the Misfits are good people, and they are all not in their right state of mind. The people I have known for so long would never have tried to attack your son, and even though he is a mutant, we are not fascist or bigoted, for we are truly fighting for a peaceful existence between mutants and humans. We are trying to help people survive in these changing times."
"We can kind of validate that testimony," Sarah said sadly, "A lot of people we've all known for years and years just turn into completely different people, almost like heartless monsters, whenever they come across Justin. And we don't think this is due to Justin's mutant powers because he always had this problem before they manifested. But the problem is, we don't know why. Without the mutation, Justin's just a normal teenager."
"But that is the thing, Sarah. I can sense something about Justin…and it isn't normal."
"What?" piped up Dimetro, his eyes showing concern and puzzlement.
"Of course it isn't normal. Justin's a mutant," Ryan said coldly before he could stop himself. Immediately, Montacera, Stego, Raptor, David, Sarah, Teryx and Bonehead glared at Ryan. David was angry enough to strike Ryan down. But it was Allo's look of disappointed sadness that hurt him the most as the allosaurus then said solemnly to Ryan, "Mutant or not, he is still my son, Ryan, and he's the one, last remaining shred of what could be a family I have left. Do you know how much it hurts me to see you hate my son like this? Do you know how much your current behavior reminds me of the Tyrannos when they mercilessly killed my wife and daughter?"
Ryan turned red as he clammed up. Blind Master was silent for a moment at this before he spoke to Allo, "I'm sorry for your loss."
Allo then gave the ninja a scrutinizing look before sighing, "Which is why I do not wish for Justin to seek help from the X-Men or people such as yourself for control of his powers."
Paul then broke in, "Gabriel, you said you could sense something about Justin? But…that is really strange. The Lavadome's medical scanners and tools are even more advanced than ones in any top-notch medical organization and hospital, yet Justin has not shown anything odd yet."
Dimetro added, "I have always conducted medical exams and tests and physicals for Justin, ever since he needed to recover from his injuries and dehydration in my medical ward the day he came within the Lavadome. Justin displays nothing extraordinary, and even before, I could not detect anything that indicated he was of special molecular and DNA composition. Could it be possible that you are sensing an emanation or essence from his mutant powers, sort of like a residual trace?"
"No, Dimetro, because I have never detected such a presence from the Misfits, and all of them are growing teenagers with tremendous and destructive mutant powers, more so than Justin's. Yet there has never been such an inborn force surrounding them such as the one I feel from Justin right now. And surprisingly enough, I also sense similar, yet at the same time, conflicting auras around the Secret Scouts. David, Sarah, Paul, and even Ryan, all of them have some sort of mystical presence about them."
"What?!"
All the Dinosaucers and Justin, save Allo, were shocked. Allo looked a bit uncomfortable at the mention. Sarah, David, Ryan, and Paul just gaped at Blind Master.
"You're kidding, right??!" Ryan gasped, stunned.
Gabriel Moore shook his head, replying, "Keep in mind, Ryan, that my senses are far more developed and adequate enough to feel such ki, such life forces. And in a way, it should come of no surprise. You said that everyone Justin has ever met has tried to kill him, correct? Well, that would not explain why you four are immune, and I doubt you are all mutants such as Justin."
Paul was silent before stating, "Well, I do not know about Sarah, David, and Ryan, but I have tested myself, and I do not even have a dormant X-Gene, and even though dormant X-Genes do not cause mutations, it still wouldn't be effective enough to…I guess, make us act differently from every other person Justin has come across. Keep in mind, dormant X-Genes do not exhibit any changes to the human body."
David then supplicated, "Plus, it doesn't sound like even mutants can resist being mean to Justin. The Misfits seemed to go just as psycho as everyone else that Justin came across."
Blind Master then asked suggested delicately, "And yet…Cliffton's reports stated you four were fighting the Tyrannos along with the Dinosaucers when you were mere teenagers, even younger than Justin is now. That is not an easy feat, I can assume. So, am I right to guess that you were given some sort of aid or help to assist yourselves in the war between the Dinosaucers and the Tyrannos?"
Ryan just shook his head as he replied, "Well, we were given hover-motorcycles to help travel and such, but to tell you the truth, we don't have any special powers that helped us…well, check that, except for the Secret Scout rings Allo gave us."
Blind Master's head perked up in interest.
"Could I see these Secret Scout rings?"
Sarah, who was still kneeling next to the ninja master, took a ring from his pocket and placed it gently into the G.I. Joe's extended palm. Sarah then explained, "This ring is Justin's. He left it behind when he ran away because we could have used the signal from the ring to track him down. Think of it as a communicator and weapon, one that can give the bearer increased agility, strength, defense, and speed. In other words, the ring provides a temporary energy boost that increases the wearer's physical capabilities."
The solider lightly felt the ring. It was golden-colored signet ring, a plain band with a flat disc atop, but the disc contained a domed depiction of the planet Earth, complete with the latitude and longitude lines and the continents amid the blue oceans, all carved and sculpted with perfect detail. Blind Master frowned as he handed the ring back to Justin who immediately and gratefully placed the ring on his forefinger.
"That is not a normal ring, then. How exactly does it work and who made such a thing?"
"That's enough questions, Mr. Moore," Allo interrupted suddenly and gruffly, "Now answer a question for our sake: what do we do about your teammates and wards? Since they are mutants, and they are apparently hunting down you and Justin, it is safe to assume that they would eventually find the Lavadome base. The problem is: how soon and what do you plan to do about this?"
Blind Master frowned at the allosaurus Dinosaucer for being so curt. He certainly wasn't making things easier for Gabriel.
"That is something I still do not know, Allo. I cannot fight the entire force of Misfits and the Joe soldiers alongside them. And keep in mind that it is not their fault, that they are not doing this of their own free will! I cannot hurt them for something they cannot control, just like how Justin cannot control his mutant powers or the fact that this 'aura' is causing such chaos in his life!"
"But what are we going to do then? The Misfits and Joes won't have any concerns killing us, especially since they didn't mind trying to kill you for standing up for Justin!" Montacera exclaimed worriedly.
"Could we fight them then?" Teryx asked to Tricero.
"Apparently, we have no choice," grumbled the triceratops, "If the soldiers will be gunning down for Blind Master and Justin, we'd have to fight them or let them kill off Justin and Blind Master, worst yet, finding the Lavadome and reporting it back to Cliffton and Eddington."
"Maybe we could kill them off before they could do the same," Ryan said steely, "That way, we wouldn't have to worry about them sending word to the government that the Dinosaucers exist nor would we have to worry about them destroying the base."
"Not even an option, Ryan!" snapped Paul angrily.
"Why not?! They'd do the same to us, and besides, they're mutants, so it's not like anyone's going to cry much over -"
David then grabbed Ryan by the front of his shirt, while at the same time, raising a fist threateningly in front of the blond-haired man's face, snarling, "I swear, Ry! If you even finish that sentence, I'm gonna deck you so hard!"
Sarah then shouted at her brother, "And how short-sighted can you possibly be, Ryan?! Then does that mean Justin should go seek revenge on our mom and dad, even though they are good people and they couldn't help but treat Justin so horribly?! Like the Misfits?! Grow up, Ryan! Mutants are people as well!"
"David, stop! Don't hit him! Please, don't fight!" wheedled Justin as he tried to placate David by placing a hand on his arm in gentle restraint.
Bronto-Thunder then stated, "And besides, it may not be an easy battle! These are mutants and trained soldiers we're talking about, not some stupid, incompetent Tyrannos. We all may be powerful, but we have never dealt with mutants who could control water or the earth! Or who could curse us with bad luck or psychic attacks of the mind! We may suffer heavy losses if we take them head on!!"
"That's a nice thought," commented Stego sarcastically, making a face.
"I vote we sacrifice the Tyrannos moocher here first!" piped up Compy snidely, "After all, we could finally use Raptor for something meaningful other than taking up space, stinking up the joint, and eating all our food!"
"How would you like me to use you as a dinosaur-shield for the incoming bullets, you little pipsqueak?!" growled Raptor. As the two kept insulting each other, Teryx turned to the Blind Master.
"Is there any way you could call General Hawk or the other Joes? Explain to them what is going on and somehow get Hawk to call off the Misfits?"
"Teryx, what are you doing?! You actually want soldiers to find us?!!" protested Itchy. Blind Master just shook his head, indicating his broken wrist-communicator.
"I cannot, Teryx, for unfortunately, my communicator that allows me to teleport via the Mass Device and send transmissions to the Pit was damaged from the battle when I had to help Justin. Blob must have held me so tightly, he accidentally crushed the communicator, and it's badly damaged. Even if it could be fixed, it would still take some time, and if we need to save the Lavadome base and you Dinosaucers as well, time is something we cannot afford. And I would doubt your base's communications would suffice for the job; not only would it bring danger in alerting people about the coordinates of the Lavadome, it would also not be able to hone in on the unique broadcast signal emitted exclusively to the Pit. And even if it were successful, General Hawk probably could call off the Misfits, but in their insane anger, the order would probably be ignored. And I cannot take Justin to the G.I. Joe headquarters because then the soldiers will try to kill him as well. I can't even use the Mass Device to teleport Justin to a safe, isolated location if I wished to, but that is just as well, considering Trinity could use their tracking sensors to locate where I last teleported -"
Blind Master then stopped as a horrible realization came to his mind.
"DAMN IT!!!"
"What's wrong?" Dimetro queried.
"I forgot!! Even though my communicator is broken, it still contains a unique chip that constantly emits a micro-frequency can be traced instantly! This means that for the past two hours or so, it has been emitting a homing signal for the Misfits!!"
"WHAT??!!! ARE YOU KIDDING?!!!!" chorused the Dinosaucers and the Secret Scouts. Yet it was clear that the ninja master was deadly serious. Allo was now enraged and immediately accusing.
"You led them to us!!" the allosaurus roared angrily.
"It was not on purpose, Allo!" Blind Master snapped back heatedly, his temper threatening to get the better of him while competing with worry and dread. Allo was right that it was partially his fault that the signal was even being broadcasted from the Lavadome base, but Blind Master was more concerned with helping Justin and tending to his serious injuries to think of it.
"How soon do you think the Misfits could track down on the signal?" Dimetro asked briskly. Yet a sudden crackle of energy sounded in the hot, desert air as a blue wave of hex-bolts flashed through and struck Struthio in the side, sending him flying back several feet and landing heavily on his back.
"Struthio!" cried Montacera as she rushed over to her friend's side. Luckily, the hex-bolt was not powerful enough to render the struthiomimus unconscious, and due to his thick hide, the Dinosaucer managed to stand up without much dizziness. However, the Dinosaucers, Secret Scouts, and Blind Master immediately turned from where the attack originated only to see a daunting sight.
There, standing forebodingly on the crest of a tall sand dune and gazing coldly down upon the Lavadome base and the Dinosaucers, were the Misfits and their parents, all of them still coursing with rage and warlike fury of hatred as they spotted Justin amongst his family.
"Shit," cursed Blind Master.
"Troops: search and destroy!! ALL of them!!" ordered Roadblock to the Misfits and his fellow soldiers as he loaded his machine gun with a final click.
Author's notes: Check back next Friday for the upcoming action-intense battle between the Dinosaucers and the Misfits in the chapter, "Things Just Got Worse"!
Sarah: Gee, what a way to name a chapter!