On-X and Krys in the lead, they moved through space. A warp portal opened and they passed through it, finding a different arrangement of stars on the other side. In the distance, a dark, roughly square area marked their destination. The nebula ahead was menacing, indeed.
Like a wall of darkness, swirling and boiling. It reflected very little of the starlight that fell on it. At the edges, the light of the stars passed through, being reddened as it did so. It made it look like the nebula was outlined with old, dried blood. They could almost feel a brooding danger lurking within.
"Brrr..." said Indigo, "That's horrible looking."
The others could only agree with her.
"Sen-sors Pick-ing Up Ion Trail From Di-rec-tion Of Plock's Ast-er-oid. Mat-ches That of Sor-rel's Ship," said On-X.
"Good work, On-X!" said Krys, "Let's follow it."
As they approached the edge of the dusty area that marked the beginning of the Coal Sack Nebula, On-X slowed down, then stopped. Rainbow Brite and the Color Kids caught up shortly thereafter. Normally the rainbow was much faster than On-X could fly, but he was leading the way, this time.
"What's wrong?" asked Rainbow.
"Sen-sors Great-ly Re-duced A-head," said On-X, "Must Trav-el Slow-ly To A-void De-struct-ion."
"Do you still have the ion trail?"
"Yes. It Leads Straight A-head."
"Let's go...just be careful," said Rainbow.
"I want to try something first," said Canary.
She stepped to the front of the rainbow, and projected a beam of strong butter-yellow light into the nebula. It struck nothing.
"No Re-flec-tion," said On-X, "A-re-a A-head Is Clear." He moved into the nebula, becoming just a dim object ahead, the blue flame from his rockets bright spots. They followed him in, and suddenly he stopped again. "I-on Trail Is Lost," he reported, "Dust Ab-Sorbs it."
"Let's stay on the same course," suggested Violet, "It might lead somewhere"
"I don't have a better idea," said Rainbow.
"Plan Ac-cep-ted," said On-X, and moved on.
The rainbow they travelled on was dimmed, as were the bright colors of their clothes. There was nothing to see, other than each other. Rainbow glanced down at the Belt. "It's taking much more energy to travel through this. Hope our supply of Starsprinkles holds up."
"Dan-ger! Whinney! Dan-ger!" said On-X, veering to port. A sudden shadow loomed before them, growing larger by the second. It took a moment to become clear to them.
"An asteroid!" shouted Violet, "Look out!"
A surge of her will, and the rainbow suddenly moved to starboard around the asteroid. It continued on its course as if nothing had happened, and was lost in the dust. They stopped, looking around for Krys and On-X.
"Anybody see them?" asked Lala.
"Yes! There!" said Canary, pointing.
Their friends came out of the dust, slowing to a stop just feet from the rainbow.
"Are you all okay?" asked Krys.
"Yes," said Rainbow, "Thank you, On-X. I'm glad you could give a warning."
The robot horse made no reply, but his eyes flashed.
"That must have been a trap Sorrell set," said Red.
"Were we on the correct course?" asked Buddy.
"Yes," answered On-X.
"Then it must have been," said Buddy.
"We'll have to thank him for the heart attacks," said Patty.
As they continued on through the darkness, Rainbow remembered her dream, and almost thought she saw eyes glowing at her. Suddenly the spot she had been staring at grew lighter, revealing itself to be a star.
"Sen-sors In-di-cate A Plan-et Near-by. Fol-low," said On-X.
He changed course, followed closely by the rainbow and its passengers. Finally a planet swam out of the dust, its sun a small orange ball. It was grey and brown world, with navy blue oceans. Shadows stood deep in the valleys between the mountains.
As they entered the atmosphere, Rainbow called, "Does anyone live here?"
"Yes," said On-X, "Sen-sors Show A Ci-ty A-head."
"We'll land outside of town," said Rainbow, "We have to find out if Sorrell is here, and if so decide how to approach him."
The rainbow deposited them in a copse of trees behind a hill, well hidden from town. On-X landed quickly, turning off his rockets so the noise wouldn't attract attention. It was early in the day, but the light was dim, and somehow rather unpleasant. The plants were dull green, and were stunted in growth. There were no flowers.
"This place needs some cheering up," said Canary.
"Yeah, Murky would've liked this planet," said Buddy.
"I agree," said Patty, examining a leaf, "I've never seen a plant like this one, and you know how long I've studied botany. All of the plants here are ugly."
"After we take care of Sorrell," said Rainbow, "We'll see about adding some color."
"Right," said Red, "What do we do now?"
"I'll scout ahead, and see if I can find what we're up against," said Krys.
He crept into the trees towards the town.
Some while later he returned, carrying a bundle of cloth and wearing a dull brown cloak and hood over his uniform.
"Here," he said, handing one to Rainbow, "Everyone seeems to be wearing one of these."
"What did you find?"
"They are humanoid. If we stay in these cloaks we should be okay. I got three of them. Who else?"
"Me," said Indigo, taking it and slipping it on. "My skills as an actress may be useful if we're going under cover."
"Be careful, all of you," said Patty, and it was echoed by the other Kids.
They slipped into town, the cloaks making a good disguise. No one even glanced their way as they wandered around, listening for a clue about Sorrell. As they approached the market area, they were debating about asking someone directly, since no one whos conversation they had listened to had seen fit to mention him. The sun was much closer to the zenith, and the shadows were lessening, seeming to add a touch of cheer, if that were possible.
Suddenly Indigo touched Rainbow's arm.
"What is it?" Rainbow asked.
"That couple leaving the stall where baskets are sold," she answered, "There's something...unusual about them. They don't seem to be like the other people here. The way they walk, or move.
something seems familiar. They are trying to act like the locals, and doing a bad job of it"
"Let's follow them, then," said Rainbow, gesturing.
"Who, them?" Krys shrugged, "Okay."
They stayed near the couple, who left the market with their purchases and headed up a main street. The couple kept getting glances from other passerby, though nobody said anything to them. Finally they turned onto a narrow street lined with houses with small yards, and more of the ugly plant life. The houses were well-built, if colorless, and well kept up.
"We'd better catch them," said Krys, "If we're going to."
They walked faster, and caught up to them just as they got to the foot of a short stair leading up to a greyish-brown wooden door.
"Excuse me," said Rainbow.
The couple froze.
"What is it?" asked a male voice, without turning.
Rainbow glanced at Indigo and Krys, who looked back. Indigo made a small shrug.
"We wanted to ask if you know anything about Sorrell the Sorcerer," she answered.
The figures stiffened.
"Perhaps you'd best come inside," said a female voice.
They proceeded up the stairs, and unlocked the door. They stepped inside, followed by the three friends.
One figure closed the door, while the other lit a gas lamp. In the growing light, the couple stepped together, facing them. Their features invisible within their hoods. The couple moved to a living room, and gestured for them to follow and sit down.
"I'm Rainbow Brite, and these are my friends, Krys and Indigo," said Rainbow as the three of them pulled back their hoods. The couple looked at each other.
The girl went into the kitchen, and put on some water to boil. Then they lit more lamps, and took off their hoods. As expected, they were a boy and girl. What wasn't expected is they were of Rainbow and Indigo's own race. They were dressed in dull brown and black clothing. The only color about them were their eyes and hair. The girl's hair reflected the light in every hue of the rainbow, while the boy's was platinum white. Both had blue eyes. To Rainbow's color-aware eyes their hair was dull and lifeless, their eyes dull. They looked away from their guests, putting their hands over their eyes.
"Who are you?" asked Rainbow.
"How did you find us?" asked the boy.
"I know a bad acting job when I see one," said Indigo.
The boy's shoulders slumped. "You'd think after all the time we've lived here, we would be better able to blend in."
"Who are you?" Rainbow asked again.
"Don't you know?" asked the girl.
Rainbow shook her head.
"Don't YOU know us, Indigo?" asked the boy.
Indigo narrowed her brown eyes, and thought. Suddenly she gasped, her eyes opening wide, staring at them.
The boy laughed bitterly. "Comes the dawn"
Rainbow and Krys looked at her.
In a small voice, Indigo said, "They...their names are Troy and Mist... he wore the armor you have on, Krys, and used the Prism, and sh- she was the original wearer of the Color Belt!"