The three leaders waited impatiently for the portal to work once again. There were a few drawbacks because of the crystal. The source of energy asked a little bit of precision to get what they needed.

Thankfully, the Codemasters managed to make something that would cut precisely. Still, it needed to be tested.

Chaor growled, "How long is this going to take?"

"We have no means to cut precisely like that," Theb-Saar replied.

"Even the melody of vision won't give a proper answer," Aszil commented. She gazed at the portal, "And still no signs of that other tribe. They didn't do anything."

"The creatures are getting a little used to the M'arrillians with us," the Mipedian king commented. They weren't talking to each other, but they had stopped glaring or giving each other death threats. At this point, they could call it an improvement.

They noticed the portal suddenly begin to shine and waited to see who would come.

Then, Maxxor and the others came with him through the portal. They were covered with dirt and were somewhat wet, like they hadn't finished drying off. Their clothes had seen better days and looked very tired.

"That was a big detour," Mudeenu grumbled in annoyance as he gazed at Gal'drad and Vix'ben.

Theb-Saar let out a small smirk, "Looks like you are finally back," he stood up from his chair and greeted them.

Chapter 120: The End Of The Expedition

Chaor walked towards them, "You took your time Maxxor. I thought you were too weak to survive."

Maxxor rolled his eyes, "No. We had no way to just port here and we don't have the Telebracers. From where we sailed, we needed to take a detour to get here quicker."

Codemaster Crellan walked towards them as he raised his hand, "Welcome back Maxxor," he noticed the creature whose body was made of ice and rock, "You must be Tera Motus."

Tera Motus turned towards the Codemaster with a bit of confusion on his face, "Who are you?" His confusion turned into suspicions.

"I am Codemaster Crellan," he put his hand on his chest and welcomed him.

"Do not worry, he is not an enemy. He is one of the few who controls Chaotic and protects this place…until the M'arrillians attack," the ruler of the Overworld replied.

"You are fine," Tera noticed the ruler of the Underworld, "You made it back safely… I can't help but notice how many of you are around."

"The portal isn't fully fixed yet," Crellan replied. He turned towards Maxxor, "Anyway, we want to know what happened to you while Chaor came back."

"And what this detour was," Aszil told them from the chair she was in.

The other creatures approached them, waiting to hear the report. They also noticed the strange creature.

"He looks a little like Magmon," one underworlder commented.

"Is there really a tribe whose bodies are made up of elements like them?" Another one asked.

The conversations between them continued like that.

The red Underworlder grunted as his tail hit the ground loudly a few times in frustration. Chaor stomped the ground, "Enough with those things! Maxxor! Tell us why you were so slow right now!"

Mudeenu sighed, "Just let us have a place to sit. We've been walking since we returned to the continent," he did so and sat on a chair.

The others did so, never giving a chance to the Underworlder to protest.

The only two who couldn't sit on a chair were Tassanil and the elemental creature, who were too heavy for any chairs.

Tiaane was the first one to talk, "We were arrested by the elemental creatures on the island after you escaped. We managed to escape when we had the chance during the night."

"The descent wasn't a fun ride. One mistake and it would have been over," Nauthilax grumbled.

"We would have caught you," Vix'ben grunted as he gazed to the side.

"Maybe," the Underworlder replied.

Gal'Drad said, "No point in arguing. Chaor is ready to release his fury," he pointed at the red creature who was losing patience.

Maxxor went on, "We had to fight to get back to the ship and escape as quickly as we could so no one could follow us."

"They don't know how they can reach the Cothica from whatever portal you took. That's what you mean right?" Crellan asked.

"No. We made sure of that," the Overworlder replied.

"I suggested we take a detour once we sailed back. Since it was far and not a location your tribes explored, we went to the Deep Ocean," Gal'Drad began. He noticed the gazes coming at him, but ignored it, "You may think it was an ambush, but it wasn't. If it was, they wouldn't be here. Us either. The only thing that slowed us down was how short of breath you all were. Except for Tera Motus."

"I don't need to breathe. I just sank quickly underwater," the creature grumbled.

Gal'Drad went on, "We reached our city where the portal was and used it to come back here, that's pretty much it."

"Not the most interesting story," one creature commented.

Vix'ben grumbled, "That was the short version. We are not here to entertain you."

Maxxor quickly cut in as he felt a conflict was about to spark, "This is how we came back here. We will give more details later. We still have more important things at hand."

"The portal isn't on yet. They are taking way too much time," Chaor grumbled as he turned his back to the group.

"Any signs that my tribe came here or anything like that?" Tera Motus asked as he looked around.

The Mipedian king answered, "Nothing yet. No one came here."

"Good."

"We still need to keep our guards up. With your escape, they might be planning something bigger," Crellan said.

The Codemasters and the creatures talked a little more.

The creature of ice and rock ignored the gaze of the others. They were still curious about him and possibly his tribe. Once he noticed the creatures finish with the report, he asked, "Are the humans alright?"

Crellan nodded, "Yes. They are safe and sound. We did collect a few bits of intel from Aval'par and Bahrakatan."

"Bahrakatan?" Mudeenu asked.

"Yes. He is another M'arrillian under military custody on Earth," the Codemaster replied.

"They captured another one?" Tiaane couldn't believe that. He approached the Codemaster, "How?"

"Bahrakatan surrendered himself after he abandoned his tribe. He didn't try to fight back. The creatures managed to get a few things. We will explain it later," Crellan closed his eyes, "Yes. Okay," he turned towards the elemental creature, "The other Codemasters want to talk with Tera Motus."

"Sure. If there is anything they want to know about my tribe, I can answer it. If it can protect the portal and save the humans," he put his hand on his chest, "And when this is over… I want to see the Cothica with my own eyes," he let out his intentions immediately.

"That will be a decision that the humans will make. Anyway, come with me, I'll bring you to the others."

The three leaders followed them. Theb-Saar stopped and gazed at Maxxor, "Aren't you curious?"

"We talked about his tribe while on the ship. I'm also exhausted," Maxxor stretched himself.

"No problem kiddo," he let out a small grin as he joined the others.

The green creature rolled his eyes. Later, he intended to talk with Tom and see for himself if the boy was fine.

Tera Motus was a little confused when he faced the other Codemasters in the room he was in. It felt like he was in a weird dream, or hallucinating from some weird substance. The strange light that shone above him. It looked like a torch, but there was no fire. He couldn't smell anything. There wasn't even a hint of oil in the air.

Also, the Codemasters. They all wore different sets of armors. Not only that, but he had the feeling they weren't flesh and blood somehow. He felt more attune to them compared to the other creatures. He was certain they weren't human. He could only believe it was the power of the Cothica at play there. It was the only way all of this could make sense.

He felt a little tense as he didn't have any creatures he knew by his side. The two of them behind him were strangers and Chaor, he barely knew him.

Hotekk gazed at the others, "I'll do the talking. Everyone, focus on your task."

"Yes," the others replied in different tones.

The Codemaster began, "We would like to know more about your tribe. Knowledge could help us defend against them and maybe reach a peaceful agreement."

Tera Motus nodded as he thought back, "I can tell you that my tribe is one that has a leader that represents each element and forms a council. They are the ones that make the decision among our tribe. You met them at the worst time when you came to one of our abandoned cities."

"Why was it abandoned?" Theb-Saar curiously asked. He noticed the glare from Hotekk, but simply replied, "I am not a Codemaster."

"Fine."

"There are less of us than before. The portals were built when we prospered the most. It changed long ago. I don't know how, but there are less of us and we left a few islands and mostly retreated from Perim. That is what I learned," the rock and ice creature answered.

"So, it cannot necessarily be entirely true," the Codemaster concluded.

"Right."

"How do you think they might try to attack Chaotic?"

"I have no idea how. They have that battlegear that allowed them to teleport around. How they are going to use it, I have no idea. There are just a few of them, so they cannot send an army. I guess the wind elemental creatures or water elemental creatures might come and try something, as both can be very discreet, with proper training," Tera explained.

"Those are the elemental creatures we should expect," Hotekk grumbled as he already planned some countermeasures for when the time comes, "Anything else?"

"They aren't going to wear any clothes to infiltrate this place. They cannot just change forms or go invisible with their clothes."

"Unlike my tribe," Theb-Saar muttered to himself.

"That is their best course of action. They wouldn't use such a tactic if they could bring an army. They would have struck as quickly as possible," the elemental creature said. He put his hand on his forehead as he tried to make a few more guesses. He had nothing else to tell them about his tribe, "That's pretty much it. I don't know if they have other plans."

"This will be enough for now," the Codemaster replied.

"So, they are going to get sneaky. We will keep an eye on the portal. It's always illuminated when someone uses it, so posting guards will be useful," Chaor decided.

The Mipedian king had a better idea, "It might be better to let them come and take them by surprise. My soldiers can guard it while being invisible. We will have a chance to deal with them at the perfect time, while minimizing damage."

Aszil sighed, "In case you forget, the creatures cannot be invisible with clothes on. They are going to wear their battlegear to come here. We will see those floating in the air until they let them go," she got the attention of everyone, "Which means that your plan can work Theb-Saar, but we need to attack them before they get rid of their battlegear. How many were confiscated?"

"Two or three, from what I remember. I still have mine. Maxxor and Muddenu were the one who also wore them," Chaor thought back.

"Then it's settled. We will focus on a defensive plan with this information. We also have ways to see them if they pass you. This will be all for now," Hotekk said as he turned towards the other Codemasters.

The creatures guessed it was over and went with their own defense strategy.

AC: This is the end of this chapter.

Next: Tera Motus Meet The Humans.

Maxxor communicated with Tom and told him of his adventure. Meanwhile, Tera Motus observed it and was presented to Tom and the others.