Cheetahs Aren't The Only Endangered Species
Chapter Two: LOST CITIES! An intro to archeology!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OC's
AN: Yo second chapter here. I hope it's good enough for the critics out there. Don't forget to reread the first chapter now that I've edited it. Also, this will be the beginning of the canon story starting at the four part mini series. Just FYI.
"Hello" speech.
'What the...' thoughts/flashbacks/Other
Normal POV
Last time, Chris finally found the Diggers family, and in the process got invited to go on an expedition with Gina and Cheetah, to find The Lost Temple of Gold.
Three days after the initial conversation regarding Chris' living arrangement, they had finally found the realtor, filled out all the forms, and had payed for the lot in full. No mortgage, or fees, to pay back. Everything on the land he had bought would be his. Too bad the lot was empty, and he would have to wait for another unknown amount of time before he actually got to move into his, yet to be built, house. Luckily since there wasn't anything there the price for the lot wasn't as high as he expected. So he would still have money to fully furnish his house after it was built. He couldn't wait to finally have a library for his book collection. He couldn't have one in any of his previous residences.
Moving on. Two days after the land was bought, we see Chris, Gina, and Cheetah, somewhere over Darkest Peru, looking for a good place to jump ship since there current helicopter ride was being shot at by mercenaries. Luckily there pilot, Kevin 'Ace' Koss, was known currently as one of the best pilots out there. That didn't mean they didn't have anything to worry about since they had still been hit a few times, but nothing serious had been damaged though, so they weren't in deep shit yet. Of course, with Gina putting her flirt on with Ace, you never know if that's gonna change. Hopefully Ace can keep his cool
"Portside engine's history, troops! Our friends are getting better at their shots." Said Ace as he flew the copter away from the three other copters tailing them.
"Oh, I'm sure you can handle it, baby-cakes." Said Gina in a sultry voice, as she lean on Ace.
"Gina! Stop buggin' Ace and help me find the emergency gear!" Screamed Cheetah as she tried to find the equipment needed to jump ship. "Hey Chris, can you try and help me find our gear?"
"Holy shit Cheetah! are your adventures always like this." Chris asked as he stumbled over to where Cheetah was in the helicopter. "And no offense, but your sister is nuts. Seriously this is no time for flirting, especially with the pilot who needs to focus."
-heh "What's wrong Chris. This too much for ya? -oomf- And don't worry about my sister, she's definitely nuts."
Needless to say both Cheetah and Chris were not having fun as they bounced around the back of the chopper. Ace and Gina really weren't helping in that aspect either. Ace with his morbid telling of the damage they had taken.
"Tail rotor's Damaged!" Ace exclaimed as the chopper took another hit. "We make right turns only from now on people."
And Gina, completely oblivious to the danger they were in, simply continued with her flirting.
"We've Been in worse situations, Ace! Why, I remember when you had to out fly...yeek." Finally having enough of Ginas flirting, Chris grabbed her by the back of her shirt and dragged her away from Ace.
"Okay seriously, this is no time for flirting Gina we're in big trouble." Said Chris, slightly worried at how his first expedition was turning out. He had hoped for excitement but this was a bit much.
"Dammit Gina, Hurry up!" Cheetah screamed from behind the three people at the front of the chopper. "You forgot to pack the emergency gear didn't you."
Chris handed Gina over to her sister, after turning around to face the annoyed werecheetah.
"What emergency gear?!" Yelled Gina, upset that her flirty time had been taken away.
"The emergency gear that Cheetah asked you to pack before we left, apparently it was your turn." Chris stated in a matter of fact tone.
"Hey troops, we're over the objective right now, but the choppers taken too much damage. I can't keep her in the air long enough for you to repel down." Ace said looking over his shoulder at his passengers. "I've got to hightail it back to the airport now."
"Thanks Ace we can take it from here." Cheetah said to Ace as she put her sister under her arm. "Hey." "Shut up Gina, hold your stuff." "Why you." "Shut up. Chris! You gonna be okay jumping from here. It's a long drop. This is your last chance to back out."
Chris just glanced at her with an 'are you serious' look, before responding.
"Thanks for the concern Cheetah, but leopards, snow leopards in particular, are the best jumpers and landers out of the big cats, this height is nothing." Chris stated, slightly insulted that she thought a little height would intimidate him. "Besides, I've already come this far haven't I. Backing out now would just be stupid." He ended with a grin.
"Heh... least you got some spine to ya." Said Cheetah as she jumped out the side of the helicopter. "um... POCAHONTAS!"
"That's 'geronimo' you dullard!" Said Gina in a very are you stupid tone of voice.
"I thought I told you to shut up! I'm trinna' concentrate!" Cheetah said back to her sister, slightly embarrassed.
Chris just sighed turning back to Ace one more time before jumping.
"Thanks for the ride man, be careful on your way back." He said, right before he too jumped out of the chopper. "LOOK OUT BELOW!." He screamed.
Cheetah and Gina looked up towards Chris as he descended, and seeing that he was aimed right at them, rather than any of the nearby trees to halt his fall, they were unsure as to whether or not they should catch him. However Chris quickly let them know what to do.
"MOVE DAMMIT, I CAN LAND THIS JUST FINE!"
They decided to listen to him, since he probably wouldn't have just jumped if he didn't know he could survive, and moved out of the way. Though they were still wary of whether or not he would get hurt.
As he landed on the ground in a crouch safe and sound, with only a soft crunch beneath his feet from the leaves and branches, both the sisters began to rethink their previous expectations of what Chris could do. Not to say they didn't expect much. They just didn't expect him to be able to land perfectly from nearly 100 feet in the air without any resistance.
"WOW Chris, you sure can make a landing, huh." aid Gina, pointing out the obvious.
"Yep, and I can jump almost just as high as well." Chris stated with a cheeky grin. "Though I don't really like to., since jumping like that can really do a number on my muscle if I'm not careful."
"Well good thing there's not many times you would need to do something like that." Said Cheetah. "Over taxing your muscle like that must suck."
"Yeah, but thanks to my martial arts training, when I do, do that I can at least mostly control my strength." Chris explained. "There are some people that can do what I just did with no problems. As well as push themselves far past their limits, and natural restraints, to achieve massive power. It's dangerous and self destructive though...So as the old saying goes, 'know your limit, stay within it.'"
"Cool, you know my mom's a the Armsmaster on Jade, so maybe I can introduce you to her when we see her later this year." Said Gina, her tone becoming more somber as she finished her sentence. Chris chose not to ask what was wrong, feeling that this was a family matter that he had no right to intrude on. Cheetah, sensing the now less than happy mood, chose that moment to speak up.
"Anyway, I hope Ace made it back to the airport ok." Cheetah said, looking in the direction the chopper was last seen flying in. "He's a great pilot and a nice guy. I'm glad he's on your science team Gina."
"Yeah he is, and I am too." Gina said to Cheetah. "I wonder what he looks like in a swimsuit." She muttered under her breath.
"Oh well, on to business, let's find us this 'Lost Temple of Gold', and get back home with some loot." Cheetah said seriously.
"CHEETAH! Archeology isn't about looting old temples. It's about history, and discovering a piece of man's past, and how it fits into the big picture." Said a scandalized Gina, appalled at her sisters greedy behaviour.
"Oh whatever."
"You know this isn't like you Cheetah. Usually I have to drag you out by your tail to get you on one of my expeditions." Gina wondered why her sister seemed so ready to help. "This time however, you're all get up and go. What's the deal."
"Well to tell the truth." She began nervously, as she began shifting her weight from side to side. "I'm about sixty-thousand dollars in the hole right now after my latest shopping splurge. And being this much over the limit isn't good. This is the only way I know of to make some major cash quickly." The "without breaking the law anyways," that she muttered under her breath just went to prove how much trouble she was in.
"So you're flat broke, huh? That sucks." Said Chris from behind the two as he sat on a rock. "Has this ever happened before, or is this a rare occurrence?."
"This actually happens more than you'd think, unfortunately." Gina replied. "Don't worry, you get used to it after a while."
"Ugh, whatever. So how are we gonna find this "Lost Temple Of Gold" anyways sis."
"With this little trinket right here." Said Gina as she held up a large red gem that was roughly the size of a golf ball.
"Is that the gem of returning?" Questioned Chris with a slight degree of wonder in his voice. Clearly someone did their homework. "It's said that it's impossible to use if you don't don't solve it's riddle."
"Say what?" Cheetah said.
"That's right but it's riddle was no match for me and my 210 IQ."
"Oh brother!."
"It's corners when measured upon it's facets can produce the trigonomic distance and bearing to the temple no matter where you are in the universe." Gina began to explain. "Provided you know you own location in relation to..."
"Okay, okay. Geez Gina. You're givin me a headache the size of a house." Said Cheetah, in the background Chris had taken out a notebook and had begun writing. "Is that the rock you traded from the museum.? And What are you doing Chris?"
"Yes it is, and it only cost us Greenbeards treasure map from the Bermuda Triangle. Those Smithsonian owners are sooooo thick. And what are you doing Chris?"
Both Gina and Cheetah looked towards Chris who was writing furiously into his notebook. He didn't respond right away, writing one last thing down, Chris then looked up at the two sisters to answer their question.
"Oh sorry, I had just gotten a new idea in my head for a story. I wanted to get it written down before I could forget it." He explained. "Everythings that's happened so far, and what likely will happen, would make for an excellent story."
"Don't you already have, like, three series that you still need to finish. Shouldn't you get those done first before writing anything new?" Asked Gina, Cheetah thinking the same thing. "I mean afterall, if you can't finish what you start you really shouldn't move on to something else."
"That would often be the case, yes. But I've actually finished all the books for the rest of the series I have written. Unfortunately due to certain business rules I can't, or at least shouldn't, publish the next books in the series until at least three or four months after I've released a book." Chris explained getting a look of understanding from the sisters. "Oh, and it's actually four different series, this one here will be my fifth."
"Four? but I thought..."
"The fourth is less than appropriate for most audiences, let's leave it at that and move on shall we!" Chris said in a slightly forceful and embarrassed tone.
Glancing at each other Gina and Cheetah promised themselves that they would discover just what Chris was was hiding that would make him so embarrassed. For right now though they decided to continue on with the expedition and drop it.
"Alright whatever, but you Gina, I think you're the one that got gypped this time!" Said Cheetah to her sister in a doubting tone.
"SHHH! We're near the entrance we can find its exact location by looking through the gems first facet." Gina said, ignoring her sisters doubts. "The temples secret door is this way, just twenty yards."
"Then let's go sis, the sooner we get this done the sooner..."
"Hold up girls!" Chris suddenly said, ears twitching as he looked around. "I think I heard something, and no it's not just some small jungle creature Gina. This is much bigger and humanoid. I think... LOOK OUT!"
Suddenly a shadowed figure leapt out from behind the bushes Gina was standing in front of. "TURN BACK!"
"YEEEEK"
Elsewhere, nearly thirty miles south.
"You're certainly doing a piss poor job here, El Jefe!" Said a clearly upset, yet still quite stunning, dark skinned woman from within a large base camp. "Not only did you allow for Ace and his blackhawk to get away, you also allowed Gold Digger to land safe and sound."
"Well frankly Miss Pincer, I don't give a damn!" Said El Jefe. "Our job was to disable that blackhawk, which is nearly impossible with Ace's piloting skills, and to make sure that Gold Digger and her mutant cat girl couldn't rappel down. Which we succeeded in doing!"
"But they didn't rappel down. They fucking jumped down!" Exclaimed Miss Pincer, clearly not happy at the less than satisfactory work she had paid for.
"That's not mine or my mens problem Miss Pincer." Said El Jefe. "Look, if you don't like how us mercenaries work, then you should have gone to the Cartels!"
"You know what, nevermind, just get a pilot to bring me to her last known location. I'll deal that troublesome competitor of mine a humiliating defeat myself." Said Miss Pincer.
...
Back with Chris and the Diggers
When we had left here previously a new figure had just ambushed Gina and the two werecats. During the time since then Cheetah has been fighting the figure that had appeared. Said figure being a man with pointed ears, tiger patterned fur coat, and wearing only a dark blue loincloth. He was also extremely fit and most definitely had some skill in fighting, since he had yet to be hit by even one of Cheetahs attacks. Regardless of her super speed and strength.
Off to the side were Chris and Gina. The reason they weren't helping was the simple fact that, for one, Gina couldn't do much, being all brains and no brawn, and two, Cheetah had flat out said that Chris should "sit this one out and let the professionals deal with it." Completely disregarding the fact that that Chris was a world renowned martial artist, and would probably have had at least a little less difficulty in fighting the stranger. Regardless, they were both sitting on the sidelines, Gina watching the fight in boredom, and Chris writing in his notebook.
"I don't get it." Cheetah said in frustration after the tiger skin patterned man dodged yet another punch. "How can this guy be dodging my punches. I'm moving so fast that he'd have to know where I'm punching before I throw em?"
"You're telegraphing your moves Cheetah." Said Chris from the sideline not even glancing up from his notebook. "It's like like you're telling him exactly what you're going to do before you do it. You sure you don't want me to take over."
"Hardy-har-har! How about after I finish with him I take on you next."cheetah was clearly getting frustrated.
"Oooo, so scared." Chris sarcastically responded. "No offense to either of you, but from what I've seen here, I could land you both flat on your backs in five minutes tops."
Finally having enough, Gina intervened before things could escalate further. Standing up she called out to the two combatants.
"Look you two, it's been ten minutes already. He won't let us pass, and you won't stop trying to get him to move." Gina was really getting tired of waiting. "Let's try and reason with him Cheetah."
Stopping their fight, Cheetah backed off a little in order to talk with her opponent.
"Sounds logical to me, I guess." Then, looking down towards the man she had just been fighting, Cheetah asked the two questions that were on everybody's mind. "So who are you? Why are you trying to stop us?"
"I am Stripe." Said the man, surprisingly enough it was in perfect english. "The area you are headed towards was once my home. But recently a great evil has taken root there. I had to prevent you from suffering the same fate that fell upon the rest of my people."
"You and your people. Are they were-cats, like myself and Cheetah here." Chris asked with curiosity in his voice.
Cheetah, hearing this question, focused on his answer.
"I am afraid not," said Stripe apologetically. "Both myself and the rest of my kin are called Kryn."
"Jinkies! A race of cat like humanoids living right here in South America," Gina was amazed that no one had found out about these people earlier, "and this one's making my sister blush!"
"GINA!"
"You've never blushed over a guy before! Do you like him? I mean really really like him?" Gina was clearly having fun with this new dirt on her sister. "He is kinda cute tho..." Gina trailed off there and Cheetah turned back towards Stripe, huffing in frustration.
"Ignoring the bags of hormones over there, all I can say is that your concern is most appreciated Mister Stripe. But we absolutely must seek out the temple of gold." Chris stated with absolute certainty.
"If that is the case then I will come as well." Said Stripe after a moments thought. "perhaps with your help my people can be freed, and the evil lurking within can be warded off."
"But tell me-that is, if you don't mind my asking. Who are you people, and why have you come to my former home?" Striped asked with a large amount of wonder.
"Do you have a girlfriend," asked Cheetah out of nowhere in a very eager and hopeful tone.
Ignoring her her question Gina and Chris answered Stripe.
"I'm the world-famous super-scientist Gina Diggers, and this is my sister Cheetah." Gina said. "Archeology is my specialty and I've come to try and discover yet another ancient secret."
"The name's Chris. Rising star among the Ultimate Fighters Federation and novelist extraordinaire. I'm here with these two to try and get to know the only other werecat on earth, and hopefully get some new ideas for my next series." Said Chris. "I'm also hoping to become an adventurer, and this seemed like a good place to start with that.
"Wait now I'm confused," Stripe said looking towards Cheetah. "Wouldn't Cheetah be Chris' sister, instead of Gina's. I mean, Gina's human and you two...aren't... sooo?"
Cheetah twiddled her fingers nervously. "Well you see... I'm actually her fathers ward."
Cheetah went on from here explaining what had happened to her people and how she had been orphaned. How her people were in a war with another tribe of were-creatures, the were-wolves. She told him how the two tribes had fought tooth and claw, not because they couldn't use conventional weaponry, but because that's one of the only things that can kill a were creature. Luckily, Gina's father had been in the area working as an occult investigator, and was trying to discover the full extent of what was happening. Using his magic, he managed to investigate without being detected and found out. Unfortunately he had arrived too late to save any of the werecheetahs, other than an infant Brittany of course.
"And that's how I came to be Gina's sister. He's been a father to me ever since." Cheetah said, finishing her story.
"Hey! How come you told him that story after knowing him for only ten minutes, and I had to wait over ten years?" Gina was very upset that her sister had chosen to tell a complete stranger her story sooner than herself. "I thought you said that it was superpersonal."
Sensing that strife was soon to arrive at the group soon, Chris chose to intervene before anyone else could say anything. He also saw that Cheetah clearly had feelings for the striped man, and couldn't help but think that they were a good match. Even if they had only known each other for ten or twenty minutes.
"You know Gina, Cheetah might not have told you for so long because she was more afraid of what you would think of her than what Stripe would think of her." He said trying to ease up the tension. "Fear of rejection from a family is much more terrifying than fear of rejection from strangers, trust me, I know."
Gina just recoiled slightly, not having thought of that, while Cheetah just gave Him a thankful look, that turned into a blush when he gestured to Stripe and gave her a wink.
"Excuse me, Gina, since your father uses magic, does that mean that you can use it as well." Stipe asked with curiosity while trying to find the secret door to his city. "It would be most useful if you could."
"Unfortunately no, I can't. My father tried to teach me back in , but I couldn't move even a small two ounce ball." Gina didn't look too happy at the idea of not being able to do something. "But even though I failed at that my Dad explained to me how the laws of the natural were capable of doing far more than what the laws of the unnatural could even dream of doing, and I've been hooked on science ever since."
"Hey Stripe, is that the door we're looking for." Chris called out suddenly, seeing several carvings through the foliage.
"Yes I believe it is."
"Will you be able to unlock the secret buns-I mean-door?" Asked Cheetah, her words slipping up as her eyes wandered up and down Stripe as she stood behind him.
Not noticing, or ignoring, her slip up as Chris snickered in the background, Stripe responded. "I'm not sure. When my people were cursed I fled through the portal and haven't returned since." Stripe bent down to get a better look at the door. "But that doesn't mean I can't try."
"Do or do not, there is no try." Chris said in his best Yoda impersonation.
"Quoting Star Wars now of all times, really." Gina said in a deadpan tone of voice.
"Psst Gina! Get a load of the muscles on Stripes lower back girl. Umph!" Cheetah whispered as she continued to oggle Stripe from behind.
"It's impressive yeah, but a bit too furry for my tastes." Gina whispered back.
"Is that why you stopped staring at me with an excess amount of lust when decided to stay in my hybrid form Gina." Chris whispered from behind the two sisters, startling them both. "Because if I knew furry wasn't your thing then I might have shifted between my human and hybrid forms more often. Oh well, ya win some ya lose some."
"Wait, what do you mean 'switched forms more of..."
"It's open." Said Stripe, interrupting Cheetah and capturing the trios attention. "Our luck seems to be holding up. Let's hope it stays that way."
"You've obviously never heard of Murphy, or his annoying little rule book, have you?" Chris said in a sarcastically accusing manner. Stripe just gave him a funny look. Clearly he hadn't.
Meanwhile... a few miles away in a helicopter, we see Miss Pincer eyeing our four heroes through the choppers infrared mast.
"There they are, and dammit, they've discovered the secret entrance." Pincer said in frustration.
"Shall I shoot them down miss." Asked the pilot.
"No need, I can deal with them myself without bloodshed. Just lower me down, this is where I get off."
"Yes ma'am."
Back with our furry trio and Gina. Inside of an underground cave.
"Wow, was this cavern often used by you people Stripe." Asked Gina as she examined the cavern they had to through in order to get to the golden temple.
"Not really Gina. You see we're a very secluded people. Very rarely did we venture outside of the city." Stripe replied.
"How do you know english so well then? You don't even have an accent."
"My people have studied this planet for a very long time Gina, we know a variety of languages and cultures from the outside world."
"Gina! Stop interrogating Stripe, if you don't then I'll personally make you stop talking." Cheetah said to her sister. She tired of hearing her interrogate the person she was now considering to be her man. "Stripe is kind, considerate, and caring. Confusing him with your little nitpick questions isn't something any of us need. Especially him."
"Well my my my, you sure do seem overprotective. Doesn't she Gina?" Said Chris from the back of the group.
"I think I'll scout ahead, and find out if it's safe to go further." Said Stripe.
"Hold up, I'll come too." Said Chris, moving past the two girls. "Don't talk each others ears off now girls, we'll be back soon." They both just stuck their tongues out at him.
With Gina and Cheetah.
"Okay Gina what's up with you. You catch the cooties or what?" Said Gina accusingly.
-sigh- "Isn't Stripe just so dreamy?!" Cheetah said in a fluttery tone of voice. "I think I've found a man I wanna settle down and have kids with."
-heh- "You always were attracted to scantily clad men with green eyes and tiger patterned fur coats, weren't you." said Gina.
"He's just so..so..soo...hot. It makes me wanna do the wild thang!"
"Oh brother, now I've got a lovesick lycanthrope to worry about." Gina said in exasperation as she tried to ignore her sisters maniacal claims of Stripe being all hers.
"So what? Are you gonna take him back home and turn him into a personal love toy." Asked Gina.
"It's a thought."
"Hey girls."Called Stripe from further in the cave. "It's safe to continue now."
"Coming sweethear-I mean-Stripe." Cheetah called back. "Don't tell him anything, alright Gina, I don't want him to know how much he turns me on just yet, okay?."
"Okay fine, but if he's been talking with Chris he probably already knows." Said Gina, muttering the last part under her breath. "It's not like you were hiding it that well anyways."
Five minutes earlier, with Stripe and Chris right after they went to scout ahead.
"So Stripe, what do you think of Miss Cheetah." Asked Chris as he and Stripe scouted ahead.
"What do you mean Chris." Stripe asked back. "What does it matter what I think of Cheetah."
"Just wondering if you might like her is all." Chris said casually.
"She is a very nice woman, and I am thankful that she is helping, much like you and Gina are. But I couldn't bring myself to claim a woman that is already in a relationship." Said Stripe after a moments thought.
"Already in a relationship? What?" Chris stopped for a second to look at Stripe, wondering just where he got that idea from.
"Well, yes. Is she not you girlfriend. You are both were-cats after all." Said Stripe looking up at Chris.
"Oh no, I'm not in a relationship with Cheetah. She's not really my type to be honest." Chris said rubbing his neck embarrassedly. "Besides, she was ogling you up and down earlier."
"Oh, I thought she was being flirtatious for the sake of gaining my trust. Are you with Gina then?" Stripe asked.
"Nope. What gave you the Idea?"
"Well it's just that you seem to be very comfortable around the two of them, so I just thought..." Stripe said trailing off at the end, the point being fairly obvious.
"To tell you the truth, I'm just good at being near people I guess. Things like worrying about what people will think of me is just something I don't do anymore." Said Chris as they began to walk to the edge of the cave. "And the Diggers family, as a whole, is very helpful and welcoming. I've only known them for a few days, but when they found out that I had nowhere to really go they helped me buy some land and build a house near their own. So it's really just a matter on them being very helpful towards me and me being very thankful towards them, while being quite friendly in the process. Though our first meeting went less than well"
"I see... how did..."
"Now, back to my question." Chris said interrupting him. He had no desire to retell that story to the guy who likely had the hots for Cheetah. What do you think of Brittany...er Cheetah."
Stripe paused for a second to think before answering. "I think I may very well love her." He said finally. "I am, at the least, very attracted to her, but at this point in time I don't know what to do."
"Well to be perfectly honest, she most definitely has the hots for you. At this point it's really just a matter of going with the flow for now. But don't tell her I told you this unless she asks, I think she wants to be the one to tell you herself."
"Very well then. It appears that we have reached the exit. I will go back and get the girls." Said Stripe turning around.
"Sure thing, I'll just head a little bit further in." Chris replied, walking through the exit and into the city.
"Alright, but be careful." Stripe said as he called to the two sisters. "Hey girls. It's safe to continue now."
The girls came up towards the entrance to Stirpes home and stood at the foot of a large staircase leading up towards the buildings..
"Gina, Cheetah, welcome to my home. A warning however, it's just as dangerous as it is beautiful so be cautious." Stripe said to them in a very wary tone. "Chris has gone to scout ahead, but we must still be wary."
"Funky" said Cheetah simply.
"ZOINKS" Screamed Gina ecstatically. "This isn't the lost temple, or heck even the lost skyscraper of gold. This is the lost city of gold. YEEHAH!"
"Get a grip Gold Digger." Cheetah told her sister. "Is the whole city made of gold Stripe?" She asked curiously.
"As far as I know, yes. It was the only material my ancestors could use to build here. This city..." He trailed off at the end.
"Stripe?" Cheetah put a worried hand on his shoulder.
"This city was once a proud home to my people... now it is home to a race of cursed beings incapable of rational, or personal, thought." He was truly upset for what had happened to his people.
GRROOOOWWLL "AAARRRGG"
A loud scream of pain came from the distance.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Gina yelled in fear.
"I'm not sure what that first noise was, but that pained scream sounded like Chris." Said Cheetah in worry.
"OH NO! They must have found him!" Said Stripe. "We need to go help him."
The trio ran up the stairs towards where they had heard Chris' scream. As they got closer to where they thought he was they saw that several beings, that appeared to be living statues, were surrounding him from all sides. Said werecat was lying on the ground with a spear shoved straight through his leg, not even werecat healing could help him until he got that spear out. Unfortunately that was impossible, since with him being surrounded he had to focus on the statues or else he'd take another spear. Quite possibly through something more important.
"JINKIES! Are those living statues?" Said Gina, asking the obvious.
"These are what remains of my people. They have been cursed to become mindless slaves, bound to the will of the one who made them this way." Said Stripe as he charged into the frenzy of statues.
"But wait, does that mean we can't hurt them without hurting your friends?" Gina said in worry.
"They are cursed Gina. -oof- No matter what destroys them, so long as a single piece remains, they will regenerate." Stripe said as he blocked a blow to his head and destroyed the statue attacking him. The of said statue slowly grew larger, proving that they did indeed regenerate.
"FUCKING OUCH!" Yelled Chris in pain as he rolled over to avoid an overhead slash. "You should have told us we could do that earlier Stripe. I wouldn't have lost focus when I was fighting if I didn't pause, thinking I had killed one of your friends." He said as he kick a statue from below breaking it's legs.
"Less talking, more busting." Cheetah said, as she hit the statue in front of her with over a hundred supersonic punches.
"Right. Set phasers to 'flame broil,' crew!" Gina said shooting her blaster towards the group of statues.
Unfortunately she had the settings wrong and ended up shooting the wrong beam. Thus she was blown off her feet, and missed all the statues she was aiming at. Luckily the shockwave from the blast managed to knock the majority of them away, making it easier to pick them off.
"OOPS! Wrong setting, that was my tachyon beam, I meant to shoot my photon charge." Gina said sheepishly from her place on the ground. "How many did I get?"
"NONE!" Shouted Chris several meters away from where he laid previously., as he finally managed to pull out the spear in his leg. The wound already closing. "But you did manage to send both myself and half the statues flying with the damned shockwave. Please DO NOT do that again."
"One more thing my friends! Beware their claws, should they touch the blood within your veins you will be cursed just as they are." Stripe said as he jumped over two statues, both of which then crashed into each other and shattered.
"Thanks for the tips Stripe!" Called Cheetah over her shoulder. "Alright, who's ne..."
Cheetah couldn't finish her taunt as one of the statues had snuck up behind her while she was talking and threw her right into Stripe. Knocking them both over, and stunning them, as the statue then charged them.
"Look out!" Chris yelled at the two fallen fighters, rushing towards them as fast as his still healing leg would allow.
"Don't let him get you Cheetah!" Said Stripe from underneath Cheetahs much larger frame.
"NO. Don't worry Stripe. I'll protect you," she said as she rose to try and fight the statue.
Luckily she wouldn't have to.
KA-BOOM.
Since Gina had finally reset her laser to the correct setting.
-whish- "Isn't technology wonderful." She said as she blew over the end of her gum. "You two can get up now. And I saw you coping a feel there Brit. Shame on you sis, shame!" She whispered that last part so that only Cheetah and Chris' advanced hearing could hear.
"I did not...!" Cheetah shouted indignantly before covering her mouth. Stripe gave her a funny look, but he didn't comment. In fact he actually gave a little grin.
A grin which only Chris and Gina saw. To which they grinned back.
The scene changes to that of a computerised scope as the quartets pesky competition, Miss Pincer, spied on them from afar. Their conversation heard loud and clear due to her equipment.
"I was just bracing myself for a counterattack." Cheetahs voice said through Pincers headset. "But thanks for the save anyway Gina!"
-heheh- "Actually, I missed by a foot, but proximity fuse on my Photon Charge's shot took up the slack." Gina said sheepishly.
"You're kidding." Chris said in an incredulous tone as he finally reached his three companions. His leg now healed. "You missed and that...that...uuhg, there are no words Gina. No words."
"We should get moving soon people. They will likely reform very quickly, and we should not be here when that happens." Stripe said as he accepted Cheetahs helpful hand as he stood up.
'Hmmm, looks like Gold Digger hit big. Both in treasure and in danger. I'll have to get to the good stuff before she does.' Thought Pincer as she watched the group of four through her telescope. 'But with those statues roaming around, getting there will have to be something done discreetly. Unfortunately that will be troublesome... unless there's a concealed tunnel that I just found with my infra-goggles.' Indeed, right above her, there was an entrance to a small tunnel. 'Yes, just what I need. -heheh- Gold Digger your treasure is mine!'
Elsewhere in the city, with our four companions.
"Alright people, I'm almost done analysing the information I collected on those statue guys," Gina said looking at the readings on her computer-book." Though I wish we could have gotten more readings before we had to hightail it outta there."
"Couldn't you have used a laptop, or something, instead of this old relic. Seriously, you could probably calculate faster than this thing can." Chris said peering over her shoulder.
Cheetah and Stripe just sat off to the side knowing that they couldn't do much more here. However Cheetah did wonder where Gina got the tech she was currently using, and Stripe began to wonder if it was even working.
"Unfortunately the processing speed does leave much to be desired, but its scanning abilities are top notch. I've already got all the info there is on our petrified friends molecular structure." Gina said as she closed the computer.
"If that's the case then tell us what happened to Stripes people already." Cheetah said to her sister in frustration.
"Sorry Cheetah, but even if I had more data on how they are now I couldn't tell you how it happened. I really haven't got a clue here." Gina told Cheetah apologetically.
"But I do Gina," Stripe said in a very somber tone. "My peoples curse comes from the incompetence and cowardice of their prince and protector."
Stripe explained to them how the prince of the Kryn people relied on their prince to protect both themselves, and the precious artifacts that the Kryn people had kept hidden from the outside world for centuries. These artifacts would, in the wrong hands, be capable of causing immense harm to all those nearby.
"Not long ago an enemy of the Kryn people had infiltrated the city and made his way into the royal keep and the chamber holding the Crown of Ancients. This crown was the source of my peoples protection from our enemies powers." Stripe said as he continued his story. "The intruder was challenged, of course, but the prince was too late. The intruder was able to obtain the crown, and using its power the prince was rendered helpless. With their protections now gone the Kryn were then turned into mindless abominations they now are when the intruder somehow reversed the crowns protective energies."
Stripe paused here, his hands clenched so tight that you could see the whites of his knuckles, even through his fur.
"The prince... I... escaped, and I have lived with the memory of my failure ever since..." Stripe trailed off here, the revelation and memory of his failures taking their toll on him.
"It's not your fault Stripe!" Cheetah told him in an attempt to cheer him up. "Sometimes, there's just nothing we can do, no matter how hard we try."
"Yeah Stripe. Besides, this time around you're not alone." Chris said. "With Gina, Cheetah, and myself here, this'll be a piece of cake."
"Thank you Cheetah, Chris. I appreciate the help." Said Stripe.
"Hey Stripe, how about you and I... uh...scout ahead for a while? Give Gina some time to finish her math." Cheetah said as she pulled Stripe towards a more secluded part of the city.
'Good GOD, that girls just got guys falling into her clutches whenever she wants.' Gina thought furiously. 'It's not fair. I almost have to bludgeon my guys with a spiked bat if I want to get anywhere with them.'
"Holler if you need us, alright!" Cheetah was clearly quite happy.
'God must hate me' Gina clearly wasn't.
"Oy Gina!" Chris called out from beside the computer-book. "I think this things done now."
"Is it?!" Gina moved back over to where Chris was looking at the readings. "-huh- Looks like there's some electron activity coming from the center of the city. We'll probably find whatever it is that turned Stripes people into homicidal lawn ornaments over there. Let's go"
"Shouldn't we go and get Stripe and Cheetah first?" Chris asked as he helped Gina pack up her stuff. "We might need there help."
"Oh just ignore them. Both you and them can probably handle whatever we might find anyway, so it's not like they'll need us for anything either. Unless of course, you want to interrupt a horny seven foot tall werecheetah that's looking for some nookie." Gina questioned Chris as he finished packing up her stuff.
"Nevermind..." He said sheepishly.
Meanwhile, at the center of the city a certain Pincer was already at the place where the artifacts were, and in the center of the room stood the man behind the solidified Kryn.
"Oh my god, it looks like there's enough treasure to last a hundred lifetimes in here.' She thought as she spotted the artifacts from a hidden ledge above the room. "But who's the freaky looking cloaked guy in the center."
"Report, slaves." The figure said to two of the stone Kryn people.
"The prince has returned master... and he has powerful allies." One of the statues said with a very rough and gravelly voice.
"Already he has defeated the outer guard." Said the other, it's voice just as rough.
-hmmph- "Stripe is of no true threat to my plans. Dispatch a suitable force to capture both himself and his allies." The figure said to the two statues. "Both he and his allies will die by my hand alone. That way he will understand the folly of his actions. I shall take great pleasure in watching his torment as I kill his friend in front of him, and later himself as the life fades from his eyes,"
Back with Cheetah and Stripe.
"Wow Stripe, this place is beautiful."Cheetah said while she looked around in amazement as she and Stripe walked up to a very botanical area. "Where are we?"
"This is the garden Cheetah. Before my people were turned to stone, it was a place of meditation and relaxation." Stripe said, responding to Cheetahs question. "Obviously there's not much use for it now... but hopefully soon it will once again be filled with my people."
"You know it's nice to know that we're safe for right now." Cheetah said as she hugged Stripes arm. "Why don't we go and... rest.. on that nice, soft, patch of grass over there."
As Cheetah and Stripe sat down on the patch of grass she began to hold herself closer to Stripe. She sighed airily before speaking again.
"You know Stripe, I'm glad we met. If we hadn't, I don't know what we would have done without you to guide us around." Cheetah began to lovingly lean into Stripe.
"I am happy we are met as well Cheetah. It's nice to have friends around after being alone for so long." Stripe was getting nervous, he knew why Cheetah was acting this way, and how he felt, but this was still something he wasn't used to.
"Stripe...tell me... do.. do you think I'm pretty?" She asked nervously, before her tone immediately became lustful. "Because I think you're very handsome."
"I..I am very attractive to you Cheetah...but this is not the time, or place, to express our affection for each other." Stripe said as Cheetah pushed him over, climbing on top of him in the process. "I mean... what if we're attacked whi..."
Cheetah interrupted him as she locked her lips with his. Not realising that a group of statues were sneaking up from behind them while carrying a net.
"Shh..I'm the only one you should be thinking about Stripe." Cheetah said as she started rubbing up and down along Stripes body. "God Stripe, where have you been all my li..."
Before she could go any further, the statues that had been sneaking up on them trapped them in the net they were carrying. Immobilizing the two of them as the statues began to carry them away.
"Well this isn't good, I hope Gina and Chris are okay. Wherever they are." Stripe said as he and Cheetah were lifted off the ground.
Speaking of which.
Not far away from the garden that Cheetah and Stripe were in. Gina and Chris were standing next to a large structure at the top of a set of stairs near the center of the city.
"Hmmm, this is definitely the building we're looking for, but unless we can find a door we won't be doing anything." Gina said, looking around the building as she sipped on a juice box.
"Yeah, well if you weren't just standin around sipping your juice we might actually be able to find one!" Chris said as he was on his hands and knees looking for a hidden lever or some such thing that might allow for them to get in. " A little help would be greatly appreciated. I can't even write anything right now. Geez."
RAAARRRGG
"YEEEEEK"
Suddenly, another one of the statues jumped on top of Gina from above one of the ledges nearby.
"Oh good grief. Why now of all times." Chris said in a very annoyed tone of voice as he stood up to go help Gina. "Hold on Gina, I'm com..."
Before he could finish his sentence, or even take two steps towards Gina's direction. A second, third and fourth statue leapt towards Chris from around the corner, forcing him to dodge. Unfortunately away from Gina! Not only that, but the statues that he was facing this time were clearly more combat ready, if the metal armor and swords they wielded were anything to go by. Needles to say, Chris was not pleased.
"Fucking hell, are you serious?" He yelled, jumping out of the way of one of their swords. "DAMMIT! WHERE THE HELL ARE CHEETAH AND STRIPE?!"
Not far away, Cheetah and Stripe could hear the commotion. However, since they were a little 'tied up' at the moment, all they could do was hope that their friends would survive.
As Chris dodge, ducked, dipped, dived, and dodged, to avoid getting hit by any of the statues weapons, else he too turn into stone. Gina was trying to get the statue that was on top of her to get off as she reached for her gun.
"Surrender human." Rasped out the petrified Kryn woman that was pinning Gina down. "Your fate is sealed!"
"These things can talk." Shouted Chris, surprised that something that was essentially a moving rock, had the vocal chords necessary to form audible words.
"Oh shut up will you, and get off of me. You're ruining my shirt." Said Gina as she finally got her hands on her gun. "Ah ha, I've got you now...whoops."
Unfortunately for Gina the statue pinning her down managed to knock her gun out of her hand before she could fire even a single shot. Luckily it did get knocked in the direction of Chris and the statues HE was fighting, but getting it would be incredibly troublesome.
"Now little one, I shall turn you into one of us." Said the statue as she prepared to scratch Gina in order to turn her into stone.
"Well I hope you don't mind if I scream as you do," Gina said before doing exactly that. "CHEETAH, STRIPE! WHERE ARE YOU TWO?!"
Unseen, by either Gina, Chris, or the statues, the Gem of Returning, that had previously led them to the city in the first place, had fallen out of Ginas pocket and as it did it began to glow brightly. As the glow became brighter, each of the four statues attacking Gina and Chris stopped what they were doing, and tried to cover themselves from the light, almost as if it caused them pain.
"NO...NO...NOOOOooooooo..." Suddenly, right before their eyes the statues all turned back into their original, unpetrified forms, each giving a weak groan before immediately passing out. "Oooh."
"Jinkies, she returned to normal. The Gen of Returning, it must be magical in some way." Gina said as she gently rolled the now flesh and bone Kryn off of her as she sat up. "It appears that she passed out from exhaustion."
"You'd probably be tired too if you were transformed into stone and back after fighting for who know how long. And here's your gun." Said Chris as he walked back up Gina, carrying the three Kryn he was fighting. "So I guess that little baby right there is the answer to all of Stripes problems, huh?" He asked as he turned around stretching his back from all the dodging he did.
"I guess it is. Now all we have to do is go find him." Said Gina as she stood up from her sitting place on the ground. "Oooh... if we find them and they're just making out somewhere, I swear...Yeep!"
Suddenly a hand reached around Ginas neck, and pulled her backwards into an alley like pathway.
Hearing Ginas small shriek Chris turned only to see a dark skinned woman with very nice features holding a loaded crossbow, tipped with what appeared to be silver, at the side of Gina's head. He froze, as he did not want Ginas death to occur right here and now.
"Get over here now, mutant, we don't want to attract anymore of those statues. But no sudden movements, or Gold Digger here gets a crossbow bolt through the head." Said the woman.
"Wait a minute... PENNY PINCHER! Is that you." Exclaimed Gina as she turned slightly to look at the woman holding a crossbow to her head. "Why are you here!?"
"That's PINCER." Said the now identified Penny Pincer.
"You screw with my name, I screw with yours."
"Uhh, do you two know each other? Because if you do, pointing a crossbow at someone isn't very friendly." Chris asked, wondering just who this lady was, and what was her deal with Gina. "By the way...could you put that down, it's not something we need to have going off in this much of an enclosed space." Chris said as he looked warily at the arrow. If those thing were made out of silver than they would be lethal.
"I don't think so Mr. Cat." "Chris" "Whatever. So long as I have this I have the upperhand." Said Penny as she nudged Gina with her crossbow.
"Alright fine, but what are you going to do now?"
"First I'm going to take that freaking hand-cannon from Gold Digger here." "HEY." "Next I'm going to pay her back for what she did to me in Budapest."
"And what was tha..." WEDGE!
Chis was cut off as he looked on in bewilderment, utterly stunned, as Penny grabbed the back of Ginas Daisy Dukes, and yanked upwards...HARD.
-guurhg- "Dirty, down-low unfair. I didn't get you that hard back in Budapest." Said Gina as she rubbed her sore hiney and tried to unwedge her underwear.
"True. And two wrongs don't make a right. But they do make us even." Penny said smugly before she got a serious look on her face. "Now let's get down to business. I need you two to go and rescue your two other mutant friends."
"What!?" Asked Chris and Gina.
"Your two furry friends got captured not long ago. They were taken to the leaders lair." Explained Penny. "I know a secret passage that'll get us there, but we need to go... now!"
"Oh I get it now." Gina suddenly spoke up. "You want me and Chris here to go and distract the leader so that YOU can go and get all the artifacts by yourself."
-heheh- "You're not as dumb as you look, are you Gina." Said Penny. "One of the reason I took your gun was because it ends fights too quickly, and I need your distraction to last as long as possible."
-grrrr- "Why you..."
"Enough Gina! As much as Miss Pincher," "Pincer!" "Is making me want to strangle her right now, we need to go save your sister and Stripe." Chris said seriously, as his whole demeanor changed. "In this situation we need to focus on saving our friends...even if it means we need to sacrifice some treasure."
"Chris..." Gina didn't know what to say. Chris clearly had some issues with the idea of losing his friends.
"Excellent! That's exactly what I wanted to hear. Now how about you Gina. What do you have to say?" Penny asked, far more happy than Chris and Gina would have liked. Their friends were in danger after all.
"You don't want to hear what I'd like to say Penny... but what I will say... is okay."
A Little While later, in the throne room of the palace.
"We have brought you the prince and his thrall, Lord Gryphon." Said one of the statues carrying Cheetah adn Stripe.
"HEY! Who're you calling a thrall !"
"SILENCE!" Said Lord Gryphon in a commanding tone."I was told there were four of them. Where are the human and the other were-cat?"
"They have eluded our detection so far, but we will find them soon. It is only a matter of time." Said another statue, this one holding a spear in its hands.
-psst- "Hey Stripe, what's a thrall?" Cheetah whispered questioningly into Stripes ear. Clearly she wasn't too worried.
"This isn't the time Cheetah. I'll tell you later." Stripe whispered back.
"No matter." Said Gryphon. Not noticing his two prisoners conversation. "Neither of them are important to my plans, kill the human if you see her, but enslave the werecat if you can. He will make a fine addition to my army."
Turning to look at his two captives, Gryphon stood up to walk over and gloat.
"So young prince. I see you have returned to die." Gryphon taunted as he stood over the two prisoners.
"Dammit, I can break steel wires like they were made of noodles. Why can't I break these damn ropes, this is just like that net." Cheetah said as she continued to try and escape her bindings.
"It's no use Cheetah. Gryphons powers make these bindings unbreakable, same with the net he had trapped us in earlier." Stripe told Cheetah as he watched her struggle. "As much as I hate to say it, we can do nothing as we are right now."
"That is correct Stripe, and now that I have taken over your city and have you at my mercy, the wars between the Kryn and the lords of Atlantis are finally over, and my victory complete." Gryphon said as he removed his hood, revealing that he was wearing the Crown of Ancients.
Unseen by those in the throne room however, Penny, Gina, and Chris were all looking on from over head in the hidden ledge. Perfectly safe from those below.
"Did you hear that Gina, that guys from Atlantis." Said an amazed Penny from within the alcove.
"Nevermind that girls. Gina, you grab that drape and swing down after me. I'm gonna knock some sense out of this guy." Chris said impatiently as he prepared to jump down.
"You mean 'knock some sense into him'... right?" Asked Gina.
"Nope"
"You should have stayed away when you had the chance Stripe!" Gryphon said as he charged the crowns power. "Now, there is nowhere to run. Farewell fools."
But before he could release the energy he had built up in the crown, Chris came jumping straight down on top of him.
"BOOT TO THE HEAD BEEYOTCH!" He screamed as his foot connected with the side of Gryphons head, breaking his concentration, and releasing the spells holding Stripe and Cheetah. "That's what you get for kidnapping my friends!"
"Way to go Chris. Now me and Stripe can open a can of whoop ass on these stone heads." Cheetah said as she turned to punch a couple of statues.
"Heeeelp meeee!" Or she would have, if not for her Tarzan swinging sister, who was kicking them out of the way as she swung by hanging onto a drape. "Somebody... GET ME DOWN FROM HERE!"
"Damn, you take care of the others Stripe, I'll go grab my sister, and Chris can take on Mr. Wizard up over there." Cheetah told Stripe as she went after her sister.
"Very well Cheetah."
Over with Chris and Gryphon, Chris had managed to land a clean headbutt to Gryphons face before he sent a punch into his stomach.
While this was happening Penny had managed to climb down, and was getting a closer look at the extremely large twenty-four karat twelve pound ruby.
'This is perfect, with Gina and her flunkies making such a ruckus over there, the treasure is mine for the taking.' She thought as she grabbed the ruby. 'Oh if mama could see me now.'
Her musing were cut short as Gina rammed into her as she was swinging on the drape.
"Well fancy meeting you here Penny." She said casually.
"Gedoffame."
"Well well well. Who do we have here." Cheetah said as she walked up to Gina and Penny. "PINCHER. Didn't you learn your lesson back in Budapest."
KRAKATHOOM
"ARRG"
The three girls and Stripe look towards Chris from their positions in the room. Only to see that his fur is charred in several areas, with several more patches slowly re-growing fur, as he is held aloft by Gryphon.
"Dirty bastard -cough- that crown aint your only weapon,is it? -cough- shoulda known. -cough-" Chris said weakly as he slowly healed from the magical lightning attack.
"HOW DARE YOU STRIKE ME LIKE THAT! Prepare for an eternity in purgatory you worm!" Gryphon screamed at Chris directly in his face.
"-cough-, dammit. How'd you -uhg- get... so... stro..." Chris couldn't finish his question as Gryphons hands began to glow, and he quickly turned to stone.
"Oh that is not good. I need to...oof" "Get knocked out!" Said Stripe and one of the statues, as Stripe got hit in the stomach by the statue that snuck up on him.
-AHAHAHAHAHA- "Another statue for my collection." Gryphon laughed as he turned Chris to stone. "And now my new minion, kill those worthless little guests of ours."
"Yes master." Said a now petrified Chris. "These next few moments shall mark the end of their lives."
"Oh geez! H-here's your pistol back Gina." Penny stuttered out behind from behind both Cheetah and Gina, handing Gina's gun back to her, as Chris stalked towards them.
"T-thanks Penny, but I don't think it'll do much in this situation it looks likes here's made of harder stuff. Cheetah, do you think you can take him?" Gina said as she nervously took her gun back from Penny.
"I don't think so Gina. I can try... but I've seen him practicing in the mornings before we came here, and I gotta say, he's really good."
"Oh wonderful." Penny said sarcastically.
"Wait the Gem of Returning. I can use it to change him back." Gina said as she reached into her backpack. "Oh SHIT! It's not here. I must have dropped it when I was swinging around. Penny, help me find it!"
"Hurry up Gina. I don't know why, but his movements are more strained than they should be, Though that doesn't mean you can take your sweet time right now." Cheetah shouted at her sister as Chris jumped towards her at an incredible speed. "Aaaah" she screamed as he tackled her to the ground.
As Gina and Penny continued to look for the gem Cheetah began to fight with Chris, and although it was true that his movements were indeed strained for some reason, she was still starting to lose.
"Eat my 'Stasis Arrow,' cat boy!" Screamed Penny as she fired an arrow at Chris when she saw he had grabbed Cheetah by the neck.
"And here's some 'Tachyon Beams' from me!." Gina yelled alongside Penny. Unfortunately besides knocking him away and into a wall, neither of their weapons did all that much damage to them, and the damage he had received was already healing. He was obviously a lot tougher than the other statues.
"Is that it?" The petrified form of Chris asked as he pulled himself out of the wall. "Because I must say. That only barely tickled."
As he charged towards the three girls again, Stripe, who had awakened and disabled the statue that had knocked him out, rushed over from the side and managed to tackle Chris to the ground. Cheetah, seeing this opportunity, also rushed him, and with each others help they managed to pin him under their combined weight.
"Please my friend. You must stop this! You must break free from Gryphons control!" Stripe pleaded to Chris as he tried to hold him down.
"Yeah, c'mon Chris, you can beat this. Just focus on not hurting us please!" Cheetah also said, trying to get Chris to not kill them.
"Useless. Your pathetic words will not break me free of my masters control." Chris said as he finally managed to throw off both Stripe and Cheetah.
"YES, HERE IT IS!" Gina yelled from the other side of the room, having finally found the Gem of Returning.
Gryphon, seeing the gem and knowing what it could do, ordered Chris to stop her.
"Dammit no! Slave, kill her, KILL HER NOW!" He screamed at Chris.
Forced to obey, Chris jumped as hard as he could towards Gina, with the intent of either slashing her with his claws, or crushing her with his stone body. But he missed, and instead ended up ramming face first into the wall.
"WHAT, NO." Gryphon screamed as he saw his slave miss in a way that could have only been on purpose. "How did you break my control."
But before his question could be answered, the Gem of Returning began to glow blindingly brightly. Nearly a thousand times brighter than before, and was turning all the statues back to normal. Even the ones in other parts of the city. The throne room must have amplified the gems energy.
"Jinkies, this place must be a major source of magical energy, cause that gem didn't work that well before." Gina said as she tried to blink away the bright dots now clouding her vision.
"Geez Gina, warn a girl next time you decide to light up a freaking supernova." Penny said as she rubbed her eyes.
-groan-
"Chris! Are you okay!?" Gina screamed in panic.
-hack-arrg- "Yeah, I'm okay. Now where's that fishy son-of-a-bitch. I need to kill him for making me hurt my friends." Chris said as he stood up.
-hmmp- "You fools," Gryphon said as he looked towards his slowly rising foes. "The power I now wield is more than you could possibly imagine. It will be a simple matter to change you all back into stone."
"I highly doubt that, you scaly bastard." Said Chris as he saw all the unpetrified Kryn rising up. "When you did that the last time Stripe was alone. But this time you have to deal with not only us, but the rest of the Kryn as well!"
hmm "Perhaps you are right." Gryphon replied as he looked around the room. "I shall retreat for now, but know this. You will all be destroyed by my hand!"
"He's fading away! Stop him!" Gina screamed out as Gryphon started to disappear.
"Hey the artifacts are fading too!" Penny said, as the ruby she had once again picked up also began to disappear.
"Nevermind that junk!" Cheetah yelled as she rushed over to Stripe. He was just getting up after Chris had knocked him into the wall. "Stripe! are you okay?"
"Christ Stripe, are you alright man. I swear I didn't mean to hurt you guys like that." Chris said as he looked at Stripe apologetically.
"It's alright Cheetah, I'm fine, and Chris, I know it wasn't your fault so I don't blame you in any way."Stripe said as he reassured Cheetah of his well being, and Chris of his innocence in his attack. "In fact, it appeared as though you were actually managing to fight his control off. If you jumping into a wall was any indication."
"Why did you do that anyway Chris!?" Cheetah asked.
"I don't know how... but for some reason, when I was turned into stone, I was completely aware of what was happening, and was able to fight off Gryphons control slightly." Chris explained, unsure of what had truly happened. "But as you all saw, it had so little an impact on my actions. It was a miracle that I could hold back as much as I did. And when he ordered me to kill Gina, I was only barely able to change my direction."
"Well regardless, you managed to stop yourself from killing us, so thank you my friend." Stripe said to Chris before he turned towards several of the Kryn that had just entered the room. "Now however, we must determine if he has the means to control the artifacts he has stollen."
"Unfortunately my prince, he does." Said Kryn that was dressed much like a scientist. "Not only that, but while we were under his control he forced us to make him a weapon of most terrifying power!"
"Then he means to use our artifacts to power said weapon. Obviously to either give to his masters the Lords of Atlantis. Or to use it against them and take control. Neither option is good. We must go to Atlantis to stop him!" Stripe said.
"I most certainly agree my prince. If Gryphon isn't stopped it could mean the end of the world." The scientist said, agreeing with Stripe. "But with atlantis being so far away, it will be impossible to get there in time."
"Don't fret folks." Gina said as she picked up her hat. "I can get us to Atlantis in no time flat, and Gryphon won't know what hit him...and I guess you can come too Penny."
"Sounds like fun, Gold Digger."
"Don't call me that." Gina said when Penny butchered her name once again. "Anyway... It's not everyday that I can discover two lost civilizations on the same expedition. And this also gives me a chance to skip my professors class tomorrow too!"
"I guess it's settled then." Chris said excitedly. The thrill of another adventure making him anxious. "Pack your swimsuits guys and girls. We're off to Atlantis!"
AN: So that's chapter two. Please let me know what you think via reviews. The third Chapter will hopefully be up soon. That chapter will also not have as many, if any, authors notes. Except at the end for any explanations. Also, for explanations, I chose not to deviate too much from the original storyline, for right now, and the next few chapters, because I'm still new at this and I truly enjoyed the original story. This fanfiction is what I wish I could do if I were to be inside the story. Kinda like a self insert, in regards to my OC's personality. Just not in regards to family background.