Deserts of Doom
The Wasabi Warriors took a breath as the plane took off into the air. Rudy had managed to haggle his friend Bobby into loaning it to them for their adventure, although he had to pay for it with his new car. "Cheer up, Rudy", said Jack, "At least we got a head start before the Black Dragons could organize". "That may be", said Rudy, "But I lost Bessie. I was so close to planning that road trip". "I think we have more important things to worry about", said Kim. "Yeah, she's right", said Jerry, "We haven't gotten out in-flight peanuts". Elsa, meanwhile, focused on keeping her eyes closed. "First time flying?", asked Eddie as he did push-ups in the isle. "I haven't flown since I was six", said Elsa, "I'd rather not do it again". "I feel ya", said Eddie. "If I keep this up, my powers won't make this a short flight", said Elsa. "You say that like you're dangerous", said Eddie. "I am dangerous", said Elsa, "Don't forget, Grandmaster Po said you guys only stand a chance against Lord Tyrannis because of my powers. I don't even know how strong they are". "Well, I have a feeling we'll soon find out", said Milton, "Look". Everyone looked out the window as the plane touched down in a remote, desert airport.
"Alright, gang", said Rudy, "Our mission is simple. We need to find the clues to lead us to the Island of the Elemental Weapons. So, where do we start?" "I say we check out the museum", said Milton, "The Sahara is home to a lot of historical artifacts that could help us". He took a parchment out of his bag and looked it over. "All this says is that part of the map to it is hidden in the two greatest deserts", said Eddie. "Exactly", said Milton, "We stand in the Sahara. So it would make sense to check out the museum". "Then let's go", said Jack with a smile.
Meanwhile, back at the Black Dragon's Dojo, Lord Tyrannis looked over the pieces of the broken robot. Just then, Ty walked in and looked over. "What are you doing?", he asked. "I'm looking over the pieces of this perfect warrior", said Lord Tyrannis, "Feeling the dark, negative energy that haunts its broken body. Plus, you know, I gotta do something while I search the cosmos for those meddling kids". "If I may", said Ty, "I know a nice burger place. Why don't we go grab dinner and come back later?" "I like that", said Lord Tyrannis, "But those kids could be anywhere on Earth, ready to put a stop to my plans". Just then, the door burst open and Kai walked in. "Worry not, Master", said Kai, "Ive got a lead". "What is it?", asked Lord Tyrannis. "I did some digging at the airport", said Kai, "They took a private jet bound for Morocco. The air traffic control guy wasn't as lucky as they were". "What could they want in Morocco?", asked Ty. "Let's find out", said Lord Tyrannis, "To the portal!"
Back at the museum, Milton lead the gang to a large, stone tablet. Given how small the building was, the tablet was the default star of the show. "OK, Milton", said Jack, "What are we looking at?" "I think it's stone tablet from the time of Mansa Musa", said Milton, "He was at one time the richest man on Earth". "Awesome", said Jerry. "In 1324, he made the pilgrimage to Mecca in accordance to his Islamic beliefs." "So", said Elsa, "He journeyed across the Sahara. We just need to find where he would hide a piece of the map". Just then, Kim noticed something. It was a Japanese katanna that hung on a wall next to a window. "Hey guys", said Kim, "What's that doing here?" "Well, it is a museum", said Eddie. "With mostly local artifacts", said Kim, "But why is this the only artifact that came from Japan?" "According to this", said Elsa, "it was found out in the desert." "Yeah, but where?", asked Jerry. "I think there might be a clue in this somewhere", said Rudy. Elsa then noticed that the sword was pointing to a tall sand dune outside in the distance. She looked toward it and saw something shimmer. "Guys, look out there", she said. "Its just some sand dunes", said Rudy. "Wait", said Jack, "You don't see that shimmer over there?" "Now I do", said Rudy, "We need to get a closer look at that dune". Suddenly, an explosion went off! "Everybody in the corner", cried Rudy as he hid his students and Elsa in the corner.
Outside, a portal opened up and Lord Tyrannis stepped out with the Black Dragons. "Welcome to Morocco, fellas", said Lord Tyrannis, "Let's cut some Wasabi".
"Rudy, we have to get out of here", said Jack. "We can climb out the window", suggested Jerry. "Go", said Eddie, "I'll cover you". Everybody climbed out as Lord Tyrannis burst in with Carson and Frank. "We meet again, Eddie", said Frank. He charged and threw a punch, only for Eddie to catch it and kick Frank in the face! Suddenly, Lord Tyrannis fired lightning bolts at him, sending him flying out the window and into the sand! Lord Tyrannis and his goons followed him. "Where are your friends?", asked Lord Tyrannis. "Right here", said Kim as she punched him in the face! Carson came to his master's defense and knocked Kim away! "Like my new glove?", he asked as he extended the three claws it was equipped with. Suddenly, Jack kicked him from behind! Carson then tried to attack him, but Kim swiped him off of his feet! Frank tried to punch Milton, but he ducked and threw Frank over him! Rudy thought fast and jumped into a nearby orange Jeep Gladiator, a pick-up truck-like vehicle, and slammed into Lord Tyrannis before he could blast Eddie! "Get in", cried Rudy, and the kids jumped into the Jeep Gladiator, With Jack riding shotgun, while the rest rode in the trunk. Before Lord Tyrannis and his goons could follow, Elsa froze all three of them in a block of ice!
Soon enough, the gang found themselves driving in the desert. "I think we're safe", said Eddie as he held ice to his forehead. "Here's hoping", said Jerry. "Nice thinking", said Kim, "It'll be hours before the Black Dragon's get out of that ice". "I hope so", said Elsa, "But we need to find where that shimmer was coming from". "Rudy, could you slow down, please?", asked Milton. Rudy eased his foot off of the gas, allowing Milton to stand up and look out at the desert with his binoculars. "There, due east", he cried. "Right", said Rudy, "Hang on". He swerved towards the east, finally seeing the shimmering in the distance. Rudy slammed on the brakes as soon as they saw the source of the shimmering: a Greek style temple complex in ruins, with a single column shimmering in the sun. Jack looked into the site with his binoculars and saw several figures below. "It looks like we've wandered into nomad territory", said Jack. "Nomads?", asked Rudy. "Likely Bedouin", said Milton, "They've traveled through this country and many others for generations". "Well", said Jerry, "they won't come by any of us." "Really?", asked Kim, "Ya might wanna tell them that". Jerry turned and saw two Bedouins standing right behind him with spears raised! Before anyone could attack, Elsa stood between the two groups. One of the Bedouins pointed to her binoculars and gestured for them. Without a word, she handed them to the Bedouins and they dispersed, silently allowing for the gang to enter the temple complex. "Yo, how'd you do that?", asked Jerry. "There are other ways to get what we need other than violence", said Elsa.
They entered the temple complex and marveled at the sandy edifice of a long forgotten time. Milton took several photos as the group walked among the ruins. "OK", said Eddie, "where is the shimmering now?" "Up there", said Elsa. They all looked up and saw something shining from one of the pillars. "I'll try to get it down", said Jack. He took out his grappling hook and threw it onto the pillar before climbing up. "What is it?", asked Rudy. "It some half of a large medallion", said Jack. He looked to the distance and saw something. "We have trouble, gang", he said as he climbed down. "What is it?", asked Kim. "Sandstorm", said Jack, "We need to get to the plane. Fast." "Everybody, let's go", said Rudy.
As soon as they drove off towards the airport, the sandstorm blew towards them! Then, the face of Lord Tyrannis appeared in the sand! "Pardon my dust, Wasabi fools", he shouted as he slammed a sandy fist into the ground in front of them! Rudy swerved around it and kept driving! "Elsa, we need some fire power", said Eddie. "What if I hurt you?", asked Elsa. "Just do it", said Eddie, "We believe in you!" As soon as another sandy fist appeared, Elsa froze it in midair! She then blasted the face of Lord Tyrannis! The sandstorm dispersed just in time, as Rudy stopped the car and everyone ran into the plane. Before Lord Tyrannis could mount another attack, the plane took off and flew into the horizon!
Everyone took a breath before looking over the medallion. "OK, Milton, what are we looking at?", asked Jack. "A medallion that must have been sawed in half", said Milton, "Wait. There's some sort of writing here". "That's just part of the culture", said Jerry. "Not in Morocco", said Milton, "The writing here is Mongolian". "That's right", said Kim, "and the parchment said that the pieces of the map were hidden in the two greatest deserts". "Looks like we're headed for the Gobi", said Eddie. Elsa looked out the window, seeking any sign of Lord Tyrannis. "I don't think he's going to follow us now", said Eddie. "I think it best to keep on our toes", said Elsa, "You never know if a storm is magic or just the weather playing tricks on you". "It's going to be a long flight", said Jerry, "Time to get some shut-eye". "I agree", said Rudy, "Night everyone". Soon enough, practically everyone had gone to sleep.
A little while later, Eddie woke up to find Elsa tossing and turning in her sleep. "You alright?", whispered Eddie. "Fine", said Elsa, "You ever have one of those dreams that feels like you're reliving a memory?" "Only once", said Eddie, "On the way home from the war. Sadly, everything they said about it was true, and I hope to never see anyone go through anything like that". "What made it so bad?", asked Elsa. "The usual thing: death", said Eddie, "Like I said, no one should have the carry the burden of killing for any reason". "I feel similarly", said Elsa, "That's why when I hope to never use my powers again". "Why do you feel that way?", asked Eddie. "I just do", said Elsa, "How would you feel if every you had to walk on eggshells? For everyone to be afraid of you?" "That's the beauty of having friends like me", said Eddie, "You'll never have to". Elsa pondered this point before falling back to sleep.
They landed at another remote airport, this time in the Gobi Desert. "OK, Milton", said Jerry between yawns, "What now?" "Look", said Kim. She pointed to a massive temple, and Milton noticed the medallion was starting to glow. "This can't be a coincidence", said Milton, "Whether we know it or not, we keep finding ourselves near these ancient sites". "Then let's go find the other piece", said Jack, "The sooner we do that, the sooner we can take down that demon". They all raced off towards the hidden temple.
Meanwhile, Lord Tyrannis and the rest of the Black Dragons stood on a cliff over looking the rocky desert. "Let me take them, Master", said Kai, "I can destroy them all for you". "No", said Lord Tyrannis, "Have patience, my boy. You get your revenge soon enough. But for now, we can use the army of dead Mongols to dispatch your cousin's friends". Then, Lord Tyrannis sent out some of his dark energy into the temple.
The gang soon found themselves inside an ancient Buddhist temple, with many fallen pillars, a hole in the ceiling from which the moon shone through, and a giant statue of the Buddha himself. "Awesome", said Milton. "Hey look, a treasure chest", said Rudy. Eddie walked over and opened it, revealing another half of the medallion. "Well", said Eddie, "We got what we came for. Let's go". Suddenly, a large army of glowing, green zombies burst out of the ground! "They're blocking the exit", cried Jerry. "Then let's unblock it", said Jack. One zombie ran forward, but Jack kicked its head off! Kim then knock two zombies to the ground before kicking another through the chest! Rudy grabbed one of the discarded swords and cut four zombies in half! Eddie tossed the medallion to Elsa, then chopped at the nerve endings of one zombie, turning it to dust! Jerry and Milton fought off a large horde of zombies with just their fists, but soon, they were overwhelmed! Then, Eddie ripped the arm off of a zombie and used it as nunchucks to beat back five other zombies! When one zombie tried to slice Eddie with a sword, Elsa punched through its chest! "Is that all of them?", asked Rudy. Suddenly, more zombies emerged from the ground to attack! "How much more do we have to take down?", asked Jerry. "As many as it takes", said Kim. Elsa stepped forward as the zombies surged forward. With all her strength, she sent out a blizzard that froze the zombie army in the waves of ice! "Whoa", said Eddie. "Let's get out of here before more arrive", said Jack, "Nice work, Elsa". Elsa stood in shock at her own power before running off with her friends.
"Looks like she's more powerful than we thought", said Ty nervously. "I don't think that will be a problem", said Kai. "No", said Lord Tyrannis, "After all, everyone has an equal. Wouldn't you agree?" Just as he said this, a tall robot walked over, causing the other Black Dragons, especially Kai, to back away in fear.
To be continued...