Cheetahs Aren't The Only Endangered Species
Chapter Three: UNDERWATER KINGDOMS! How long can you hold your breath?
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OC's
AN: Here's Chapter three. Also, just for those of you that might want to know the pairings. Chris will not be matched with any of the Digger sisters. That includes Brianna when she gets introduced. There really won't be a pairing for Chris for several more chapters.
"Hello" speech.
'What the...' thoughts/flashbacks/Other
Normal POV
When we last left off, our exploring heroes had just made the decision to go to the sunken underwater city of Atlantis, in order to stop the evil Lord Gryphon. A man who was now in control of a weapon of mass destruction made by the kryn, a species that which he had enslaved. Their travels have led them to the middle of the ocean, where we now see Chris, the Diggers girls, and several other people that would be able to aid in the success mission, as they prepared to travel down into the depths, to find the sunken city, and save the world. Unfortunately their methods of transportation were causing some slight worry, for a few of our adventurers.
"Okay... we're what?"
"Yeah Gina, run that by us again, and this time don't mumble, cause it sounded like you said we're going to Atlantis in your car."
Chris and Cheetah were starting to wonder just how sane Gina truly was. After all it was impossible to just drive down to Atlantis... Right?
"You two heard me the first time, and I didn't mumble either. We are indeed taking my car to Atlantis." Gina told the two were-cats as she finished some adjustments to said automobile.
"Uh-huh. Right. And exactly how is that going to work Gina." Chris said with more than a little disbelief. "No offense, but regardless of how cool your car is, it just doesn't seem that waterproof to me."
"Agreed! Your car gets its engine flooded whenever you hit a rain puddle. How in the world do you expect us to go 3000 leagues under water without drowning, or being crushed by the pressure?"
"That was the old "Gina-Mobile", Cheetah! Feast you eyes on the new and improved "Gina-Mobile" Gina said to her sister as she stood up to present her wonderful new vehicle.
"Still looks like the same old clunking lemon to me." Cheetah was less than impressed.
"Agreed, though I will say that the concept of taking a car to the bottom of the ocean is a grand idea for a novel." Chris said as he was once again writing in his notebook. "I don't think that my car will be pink and yellow, however. The colors just aren't me, you know."
-che- "Dull minds like the two of yours have always, and will always, scoff at the things that which they can't comprehend. You two are just a couple of Igors." Gina said to her two companions.
"Okay first things first. My degree may only be in english, so a scientist like you may not consider it to be great, but who is it that still needs to attend university at this point. Not me that's who. So don't call me Igor." Chris said in order to defend his intelligence. "And I never said that I didn't believe that it was possible to go underwater in a car. I just said that yours does not look waterproof. Which it really doesn't."
"Fair point. You, Chris, are not an Igor. Just my sister is." "HEY!" "Anyways, you shouldn't judge a book by its cover Chris. I've made dozens of modifications to this car." Gina said as she began her description of the car. "For instance, I've installed a magnetic force field that will allow the hull and chassis to withstand almost any amount of pressure, its tachyon-charged internal combustion engine can move it through water at two hundred knots, and the electron-neutronic field I used to seal the hull make this baby a technological work of art and wonder."
"Well, whatever. I'm going to be going down in Penny's mini-sub with Stripe. Miss self-proclaimed super-scientist. And don't call me Igor, or next time I'll use you face to polish your car." Cheetah said to her sister. "In fact, here he comes now in Ace's osprey. I'm gonna go over to meet them on the helipad. I promised I'd let Stripe see my human form today." She said as she headed over to the area of the hover-carrier that the osprey was landing on.
-heh- "He sounds like he's as curious about you being a were-cheetah as you are about him being a half-cat, half-human hybrid alien called a Kryn from the ancient lost city of gold, El Dorado." Said Chris as he stood up from where he was leaning on Gina's car. "I'll come with you. I've been meaning to talk with Tark and Mesha about magic anyways. If I can, I would love to learn a few tricks. Especially since your father says I have a slight aptitude for it."
That's right, when Chris and the other three had returned to the Diggers home before leaving for the ocean, Chris asked Dr. Diggers why he had been able to withstand Gryphons control like he had. Regardless of the fact that it was only just barely. It turns out that immunity to mind control, and other types of manipulation magic, was the enhanced gifts that the were-leopards received from Iceron when they were first made. Dr. Diggers actually guessed that the reason the were-leopards got away from Iceron was because of this immunity to being controlled.
The reason Chris was only slightly immune, was because his enchantment had only been unsealed for a year, and it would take at least a full month more of him remaining in his hybrid form fully before he fully gained his immunity. This also meant that he might be able to learn some magic after he fully unlocked his immunity. Though according to Dr. Diggers, since the immunity took up most of his aura, the so called 'skin' of the soul, he would only be able to learn low level spells, but he could become a war mage. A mage that utilized their ki, the energy that exists within the soul.
Dr. Diggers explained that when used properly a war mage can focus their ki through seven focal points called 'chakras' as chi, in order to use that energy to affect the physical world. It does this in the form of energy powers, like the ones from Dragonball Z. Some can even use their aura to enhance these powers and even use some minor spells. Chris hoped that one day he might be able to get that far, but without a proper teacher to get him started as a war mage, it might be too difficult.
Luckily however, Dr. Diggers, Tark, and Mesha were able to teach him a few basic exercises to begin getting control over his magic. These exercises would only allow him to learn the lowest level of spells, such as fireball, telekinesis, and mana bolt, until he could better learn to control his ki and chi. But Chris was okay with that, because after learning how to access his ki he was more than excited to begin experimenting with it. He had even begun to start creating a few offensive, defensive, and supportive, techniques, or spells as they were still called, that would hopefully, when finished, aid in his adventures.
"Be sure to tell everyone that I will not be going down in Penny's sub with you guys." Gina told Chris and Cheetah as they walked away. "I'll lead the way in my car instead."
"Maybe I will maybe I won't" Cheetah responded.
"Wait, so there isn't room in there for me to come?" Chris said. "I was hoping to catch a ride in the car."
"Well maybe we can squeeze you in, along with someone else."
"Cool, thanks Gina." Chris said as he went to catch up with Cheetah.
'Well, back to work for me...' Gina's thoughts were cut off as she noticed Penny making her way over to her.
"How the heck do you expect me to move my mini-sub into launch position with you, and that crate you call a car, blocking the entire bow of my hover-carrier." Penny asked as she approached Gina. "Here's the remote for the port-side crane, use it to get that cheap piece of junk out of the way. It most certainly won't be able to move by itself."
"Oh c'mon, what is this. Pick on Gina's car day. Seriously." Gina said in response to Penny's demand. "And get that stupid remote out of my face, before I lose my cool."
"Listen to me now, Gina Diggers, or should I say Gold Digger. This is my ship, and what I say happens, is what happens." Penny said in an effort to take command. "And I say move that ugly hunk of junk NOW."
""Okay fine Penny Pincer, or should I say Penny Pincher, no problemo." Gina said as she grabbed the remote from Penny. Only to quite obviously drop said remote, with the intention of breaking it. Which it did. "Whoops! It slipped." She said in a deadpanned tone of voice.
"OOOOooooohhhh! You'll pay for that you little skank!."
"Whore!"
"SLUT!"
"HEIFER!"
Meanwhile, over at the helipad on the other side of the ship, with Cheetah and Chris.
"Yo, yo! Wassup!" Cheetah said as she got closer to the helicopter.
"Hello, how was the ride?" Chris said as he walked up from behind Cheetah. Giving her a funny look due to her greeting.
"Hello Cheetah, Chris. Ace and I have returned with your friends." Stripe replied in greeting. "And the flight was quite pleasant."
"Hey there guys. 'Scuse me while I finish up my after flight check on this baby." Said Ace as he began checking on his helicopter.
"Hiya Honey-buns! Ya miss me. Well here's a hug." Cheetah said with enthusiasm as she excitedly gave her man a hug.
In the background Chris walked over to Tark and Mesha to try and discuss magic with them. Regardless of his inexperience.
"Okay Cheetah, if you say so." Was Stripes much less enthusiastic reply to Cheetah's hug.
" 'If you say so.'? What's wrong Stripe. You're not going cold on me... are you? I thought we had a relationship going on?" Cheetah asked with nervously.
"Oh, it's not that." Stripe explained. "I just thought that you would be in human form right now. I was hoping you would relax today, and let me take care of the rough stuff..."
"And you're curious as to what I look like as a human. Right?" Said Cheetah as she shifted to her human form. "Tadah! The total package. And check out my new stretchy swimsuit too. Like what ya see?"
"Heh. Gina was right. You're incredibly cute... but you're also a complete shrimp as well." Stripe said as he looked Cheetah up and down, approvingly. "It's too bad you're stuck like this for twenty-four hours."
"Wait, you're stuck like that!?" Chris said, breaking off his conversation with Tark and Mesha, from the background when he heard that.
"Well, EXCUUUSE me!" Cheetah said indignantly. "You're the one who wanted to see what I looked like as a human. You..you..."
"Calm down Cheetah. Stripe was most certainly only jesting." Mesha said as she walked over to the couple with Tark and Chris.
"Well he wasn't very funny, Mesha." Cheetah replied.
"Hold on. Back it up. You can only shift every twenty-four hours?" Chris asked Cheetah curiously. "But you've been a were-cheetah for your entire life. You mean you haven't figured out how to change at any time?"
"Well...yeah! Why? Can YOU change whenever you want?" Cheetah asked with a bit of doubt in her voice..
"Of course I can." He said as he did just that, changing to human form, to leopard form, and back to hybrid form. "I managed to do it only a month or so after my enchantments were unlocked." He said as he explained how he learned to change any time. "What do you do when you shift forms. Maybe I can help you learn how too."
"I just focus on the form I want, and just... will myself to change... I guess." Cheetah told Chris. "What do you do?"
"I focus on an image of the moon, as well as the form I wish to take. Along with visualizing my body shifting, and then tensing my whole body and immediately relaxing, right before I will myself to change." Chris explained to Cheetah. "It took me awhile to learn how to do it this way. If you try it, it might not work at first. Just FYI."
Cheetah, after hearing Chris' explanation, closed her eyes in order to try and do as Chris said he did. The five people around her, Chris, Tark, Mesha, Stripe, and Ace, who had finished his helicopters check up, were all looking at her as she attempted to change. For a moment it looked like she was going to succeed, and become a were-cheetah again. Tark, Mesha, and Chris could even feel the energy she was using to change, though the latter only barely. Unfortunately, she seemed to lose focus right before she finished changing. Giving a tired sigh, as she opened her eyes.
-sigh- "Damn. I could feel myself almost change. But it looks like I might need more practice." Cheetah said, dejectedly.
"It's okay Cheetah. It took me a few days practice before I got it. Luckily it gets incredibly easier after you manage to do it once." Said Chris, trying to cheer her up. "But being in hybrid form is always more comfortable, if you ask me."
" Yes, I believe you have also stated that it is more comfortable for you to be in your hybrid form." Said Stripe to Cheetah. "I'm sorry I was so pushy in wanting to see your human form. I just really wanted to see it. Maybe you can practise on the sub."
"Anyways, people. We're all ready to go down to Atlantis with you guys, so let's go!" Said Tark. "Mesha and I are more than ready to assist in any way we can."
""Yes. As elven magic-users, my consort Tark and I are most positive that we will be able to help in defeating that mysterious wizard who attacked Stripe and the rest of the Kryn." Said Mesha, backing up her husband. "Stripe informed us of Gryphon when he told us about how he met you two and Gina."
"We also spoke of how you and Gina rescued Mesha and I from being the slaves of that evil dragon, Dreadwind. I recall that you and Gina were looking for the time machine that Dreadwing had in his possession. The same time machine that helped Dreadwing commit unspeakable horrors." Tark explained to Cheetah. "If you and Gina hadn't in time to stop him from learning how to work the time machine... I don't know what the world would have done with the havoc he would begin."
"Waitaminute. Dragons, time machines, world ending havoc! COOL! You and Gina have to tell me that story when we get back home Cheetah. It would make an amazing story." Chris said as he began gushing about how amazing a novel that story would make.
"Maybe Chris, maybe. And we got lucky on that one Tark." Said Cheetah, ignoring the ravings of Chris from behind her.
"Well I for one, am happy I wasn't involved in that adventure." Said Ace.
"By the way guys. Gina won't be coming with us in the mini-sub. Chris might not either."Said Cheetah.
"Why not? She and Stripe are the only ones that know how to get there. Don't tell me she's not coming." Ace said worriedly.
"Naw. She's still coming. She's just taking her car instead." Cheetah said, as if it wasn't the weirdest thing in the world to say.
"She's what?"
Back with Gina and Penny.
"I have half a mind to make you walk back home right now Gina Diggers. Cause nobody disrespects me on my own ship." Penny told Gina in an extremely frustrated voice.
"HA. You call this a ship? The only thing keeping this thing floating is a cork plug and a prayer." Gina said in response. "You know, I can tell that it was you who built this scrap heap Penny. After all, there aren't many who would make a hover-carrier out of lego, are there."
"Hey Gina!"
"Huh" Gina turned her head to see who had called for her.
"Y'know, for a couple of geniuses with over 200 on their IQ's, you two sure are stupid." Said Cheetah as she walked up with the rest of the explorers.
"She started it!"
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Enough already! Since we're all here let's get this show on the road. Gina. Who're you taking in your car?" Chris said. "You are leading the way. Right?"
"Right. Anybody want to come with me? I drive carefully, I promise!" Gina said as she got into her car.
"I'll go." Came Mesha's reply.
"Mesha!?" Her husband was surprised to say the least.
"It's alright Tark. I'll be fine." She said to reassure her husband.
"Oooh. Wait. Can I go in the car too?" Chris suddenly asked, his attitude pulling an abrupt one-eighty at the chance of riding in the car. "I should be able to fit if I shift to my leopard form. I don't know why, but it's really small compared to my hybrid form."
"I think your hybrid form is so big because the magic that comes from your enchantment simply built it up, since it wasn't being used, but still needed the most magic of your three forms. Your normal for likely grew regularly since you were always in it, and you leopard form hasn't really got a chance to grow at all." Mesha hypothesized. "But now that your enchantment is unlocked it will likely grow to be much larger the more you change into it, due to the magic you now have access to."
"Well whatever the reason, if your feline form can fit then you can come." Gina said.
"Awesome. I got some new tricks I made after learning from Dr. Diggers that I want to try. They should be incredibly useful as well." Chris said as he shifted into a small . "I got three moves, one offensive, defensive, and supportive, that I've been itchin to try out!"
"Show off." Cheetah muttered in the background. She really wished that she could change as well. But she was happy that her animal form was just as large as his. Not knowing that his form would grow by nearly two feet in the coming months, due to a continued use of this form.
""Just get this junk heap out of the way. I need to move my sub into position." Said Penny. "And the others hafta change into their swimsuits."
VROOOOOM
"Che. She's just jealous cause I've got a stereo and bucket seats and she doesn't." Said Gina after she started the car and closed the cockpit on herself and her two companions. "Chris, Mesha. Hold on, it's time to rock and roll."
"Y-you know what Gina. I think I've changed my mind. You and Chris can go by yourselves." Mesha stuttered out as the car drove to the edge of the boat at an extremely fast pace.
"Too late Mesha. You're in this till the end." Chris told Mesha as he sat between both her and Gina..
"Switching to aquatic mode. Better lower my RPMs, don't want blow the hydraulics after all." Gina said right as they went over board and landed on the water. "Oh, goody! We're still alive. My tachyon-wave generator didn't blow up."
"You know you shouldn't joke like that Gina. You're freaking out Mesha." Chris told Gina as he watched Mesha almost have a panic attack.
"Who says I was joking?" Gina said to Chris. Who now had an incredulous look on his face.
"Can I walk!?" Mesah asked suddenly. "Can I please, please, please walk!?"
"Oh relax guys. The only thing we need to worry about is the electro-neutronic field system." Said Gina in what appeared to be a reassuring gesture. "If that fails on us, then the only thing that we'll lose is our atoms!" Ok maybe it wasn't that reassuring.
AAAAHHH "No brakes! No brakes!" Gina suddenly screamed after they had descended farther down into the water.
"YEEEEK"
Mesha screamed after Gina said that. Closing her eyes and immediately grabbing onto the nearest body that she could. Said body belonged to Chris, who now had his face mashed between Mesha's impressive bust. Not that he was complaining, but he was slowly losing oxygen. As well as cracking his neck.
"Air...need...air!" Chris wheezed weakly.
-giggle- "Geez Mesha. I was only kidding. No need to suffocate Chris with you boobs y'know." "gina told the terrified elf. "Though I doubt he minds that much."
Mesha, who had calmed down slightly, realised what she was doing to Chris and frantically pushed him away, blushing like a tomato the whole time.
"Sorry Chris." She muttered.
"It's no problem Mesha. But you really shouldn't do that Gina. I'd like to actually make it to Atlantis before facing something life threatening." Chris said to Mesha while slightly scolding Gina. "It's pretty down here at least. Even if there's not much to look at."
"Yeah. It is." Said Mesha as she began to calm down. "But shouldn't Penny and the others be down here already?"
"Yes they should. I'll give them a call." Gina said as she grabbed the radio. "Gina to Ace-come in stud-muffin."
Back on deck in Penny's sub, suspended over the water.
"Okay seriously. Someone needs to tell her to stop calling me that." Ace said in frustration.
Penny chose to do just that.
"Dammit Gina, if you try and hit on my boyfriend one more time-"
"One lousy date doesn't make us committed you know."
"Well I was the one who paid for the date. I should get something." Penny replied as she hung up the radio.
"You only paid for it because you dragged me into a fancy restaurant where the meal cost two hundred bucks. I told you before we went that I couldn't afford that, but you didn't listen."
"Hey Ace. Did you tick anybody off on your way here?" Cheetah suddenly asked as she looked out the window.
"Hmm... As a matter of fact I did Cheetah! But it was just some mercenaries trying to sneak past a U.S.A.F. Boeing E-3 Sentry. Four planes, two of which were high-tech MIG-35 Kingfishers, each with a cloaking device." Ace explained for the people in the sub. "I lit them all up with the microwave-laser on my osprey. Made it so only a blind, deaf man would miss them on a radar. Probably messed up their whole operation. But no need to worry, none of them could catch up to us, so we're in the clear."
"You might want to think again Ace." Cheetah replied worriedly. "Cause there's some planes coming up right now."
Indeed there were four planes coming up on the hover decks rear. Each of which had their weapons locked and loaded, and ready to fire on Ace and everybody else in the mini-sub.
"Get us out of here Ace!" Penny urgently ordered Ace to get them moving.
"Righty-o babe. Releasing crane-hook."
KRAAAK -ping- -ping-
"We're hit! Minor hull damage only, but our sensors got knocked out. We're completely blind!" Ace told his passengers. "Twenty feet till water...fifteen...ten...five...we're in the water guys. We should be out of immediate danger now."
"Yeah... but they're razing my hover-carrier, along with your osprey, Ace!" Penny told him.
"THOSE SKUNKS!"
Meanwhile, not far from the mini-sub, just under water.
Chris and Mesha were looking out the window of Gina's car, in order to see what was happening to their friends. Only to see that the hover-carrier was experiencing some difficulties.
"Gina, something strange is happening to the hover-carrier."
"Not now Mesha, I'm on level six." Gina said as she played street fighter on her cars built in game console.
"And the carrier's been bombed." Chris said back, worried about his friends. "It's looks like the others are okay, but...wait... is that..IT IS. Gina we got a couple of Kingfishers coming from behind. Looks like they're after the sub."
bzzzztt
"Gina! We need help now!" Penny said as her face appeared on the screen that Gina had been playing on. "We're under attack by some mercenaries. They knocked out our sensors when they sunk my hover-carrier, and we can't fight back. Help Us!"
blip
The footage suddenly cut out as the sub appeared to be hit by something outside.
"I knew something was foul was afoot." Mesha said.
"Really Mesha, the sinking of the hover-carrier wasn't enough?" Chris said back sarcastically.
"Quiet you two. We need to go save Penny and the others."Gina told her two companions.
"Wow Gina. I didn't think you cared about Penny." Chris said.
"Well seeing as how she owes me thirty thousand bucks, I can't just let her croak before she pays me back."
Chris just looked at her, as if to say that, that couldn't be the only reason she was rescuing them. Gina ignored him. Even though she still had to wonder how he managed to give her a look like that when he had the face of a cat.
"Uh...Gina, Why are we speeding up." Mesha asked, as the car had indeed been accelerating. "I thought we were trying to go slow. And why are we passing them?" She asked as they passed the two planes.
"Heh! This is still like neutral Mesha. Wait till I really punch it." Gina said as she gave Mesha a smirk. Chris and Mesha just gulped nervously. "And we're passing them because the only weapons on this thing are my waterproof land mine launchers. The only way to make them effective is to go in front... and churn up the waters."
The moment she said that the land mines were launched from the back of the car, and sent scattering through the water towards the planes. Unfortunately the planes were clearly being piloted by professionals. Since every one of them missed.
"You missed Gina." Chris stated.
"How dare they dodge my mines. Do they have any idea how much these things cost!?"
"INCOMING! They've opened fire!" Chris suddenly shouted.
KABOOM
"AAAAAAHHHH"
Over in the mini-sub.
"Okay Ace, try the sensors now." Penny said from where she was doing repairs.
"Sensors back. Good job Penny." Ace said back. "Now prep the torpedoes and give em hell!"
"Right"
Penny launched the torpedoes at the two planes, but before they could get anywhere near them, Gina's car was hit by enemy fire.
"Oh, no! The bastards just got Chris, Mesha and my sister with a critical hit!" Cheetah exclaimed as she looked towards the car through the window.
As this was happening, the two planes had managed to, once again, avoid all the weapons being fired at them, and in the process get out of the water and back into the that they would be back to finish Ace off at a later date. Not that the two groups knew that, as they were celebrating over their success in driving the two planes away.
"YEAH-BOY! Look at them 'll be thinking twice before they try and take me on again!" Ace said excitedly. Penny gave him a funny look.
"Hey blowhard. I was the one that did all the shooting!" She said.
"That's not important!" Said a panicky were-cat in human form. "What about the others. They got hit in all the excitement! We need to get to them!"
"Oh right! They might be hurt. Did anybody see where they went?" Ace asked his passengers. Stripe spoke up.
"I believe I know where... and if I'm right... then they are in major peril."
Elsewhere, in the deep dark depths of the ocean, Gina, Mesha, and Chris, are currently spinning out of control, as they descend into a tunnel leading to places unknown.
"I think I'm going to be ill." Said Masha, who was at the time holding Chris to her chest in fear.
"Hey, hey, hey. Not on me you're not. Let go!" Chris said as he struggled to free himself from Mesha's grip. Regardless of how nice it was.
"Hold on you two! The computers almost done its diagnostics program." Gina told them as she examined the computer. "After I find out what's wrong I'll be able to figure out how to fix it, and we can get back to the others."
"But we're still accelerating Gina! How can we get back to the others if we're stains on the ocean floor!?"
"Chris is right Gina! How do we slow down."
"Look I'm currently surprised that we aren't atomized yet so just be patient." Gina said hurriedly. -ping- "Done!Here's the diagnostics report. 'Tachyon Generator on Critical Mass Build-Up... Start Panicking'"
Chris had but one word to say to that. And it summed up their situation perfectly.
"Shit."
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"
"We're still accelerating Gina! What should we do!" Chris screamed at the two screaming women beside him.
"There's nothing we can do. We'll hit rock bottom in less than a minute, and what's worse is that our atom will be scattered across the galaxy right after we hit!"
"Oh you are so not driving again."
"Hey what about you Mesha?" Gina asked accusingly. "Can't you use your magic to get us out of this!?"
"I could if the metal we find ourselves surrounded by wasn't screwing up my aura!" Mesha exclaimed angrily. She was not happy that Gina was trying to pin this on her. "I'm powerless when I'm near or touching metal. Powerless!"
"Don't blame this on Mesha, Gina. Let's just pray and hope for-"
"Hey! Do you feel that!?" Gina suddenly said. "We're slowing down...no, we've stopped!"
Curious as to why they stopped suddenly, Chris leaned his neck forward to get a better look at the dashboard computer, and saw the empty fuel gage.
"Oh thank god for your forgetfulness Gina!" Chris said happily.
Gina was flabbergasted. "Huh?"
"The tanks empty. You forgot to fill up before we left." Chris explained.
"That means we're safe...right?" Asked Mesha.
"Sure does! Cancels the mass critical build-up too!"
"That's nice Gina. But where are we?" Chris asked.
"Good question. Let me hit the lights to seeeeEEEEEEEEEKKK"
Gina cut herself off with a scream as she turned on the lights. The reason being that there was a large monstrous face carved into the stone wall in front of them.
"Zoinks!" She said out of nowhere. "I've got to get a picture of this statue. Where's my camcorder!?"
"Oh why for the love of god is there not enough room in here for three humans!?" Chris asked in a whiny voice. "I so need to write this down. My next book is getting published soon, and I need more ideas for my next project."
-blink blink-
"Uh... guys. I think that thing moved." Mesha said, unsure of herself.
"It did!?" Exclaimed an excited Chris.
"Oh don't be silly Mesha. Same with you, Chris." Gina said as she continued to look for her camcorder. "It's a statue, it can't move."
-blink blink- -crunch-
"Say that to Stripes people, and the fact that it just opened its mouth!" Screamed Chris.
VWOOOOOOOSH
"Argh, what's happening."
"The statue opened its mouth Gina, we're being sucked in." Answered Mesha.
"LOOK OUT FOR THE ROCKS!"
"WHAT ROCKS!"
CRASH
Later, in an underwater cavern...
Chris, who was still in his feline form, slowly began to open his eyes after having been unconscious for an unknown amount of time.
"Erg... what hit me. I feel like I got hit by a truck." He thought as his vision slowly began to clear up and he started to see straight. He felt something soft stroking his head. "Wait... that statue, the car, GINA! MESHA!"
Snapping out of his still half asleep state, he found himself resting on a cushion with his head on the lap of what appeared to be a set of scaled female legs. The soft feels he had felt earlier was said females hand petting his head. Jumping up in shock he turned to face whoever it was that had been petting him, and growled. For in front of him stood what could only be described as a member of Gryphons people, but better looking. If the gills and scaly skin were anything to go by.
Looking past her however, he saw that there was also a human standing around in what could only be called a toga, along with another fish person, a male this time, who were standing over Gina and Mesha. Each of which was now dressed in similar, if not more simple, garbs, as that of the woman whose lap his head was resting on. Though said clothes were really nothing more than a revealing swimsuit/toga crossbreed.
"GINA!, MESHA!" He yelled, as he jumped from his position from the other side of the room towards his friends, crossing the forty or so feet in a single bound.
Landing on top of Gina's bed near her head, he growled at the green clothed human who stood next to the two beds. Said human was extremely surprised at seeing him talking. As were the fish people, if their sudden and quick speech between themselves, in whatever language it was they spoke, was anything to go by.
"Gina! Wake up, right now!" He said fairly loudly into her ear.
"Hmm, what? Ok, ok, I'm up, I'm..." She trailed off after noticing that she was not in her car. "Good grief! Where are we Chris!? What happened!? And where's my GINA-MOBILE!?" She asked, screaming that last part.
"In order, we're prisoner, since there's fish people. We crashed and these guys captured us. And finally, I don't know, I haven't seen it." Was Chris' response.
"Wait. Fish people?" Gina said questioningly as she looked around more, and in the process saw the other two, awake, humanoids in the room. "Jinkies! They have gills, we must be in Atlantis, and they must be Gryphons people. We really are prisoners."
-mmmmf- -erg-
Looking towards Mesha, the two saw that she was slowly waking up.
"Mesha! Mesha, wake up!" Chris said as he hopped over to Mesha's bed. "Dammit Mesha! WAKE UP!"
Hearing that last part screamed at her woke her up extremely quickly.
"Aahg! I'm up, I'm up!" She screamed back. "Oh, god, Why is it so hot in here. An elf like me needs AC."
Rolling over, she saw Gina and Chris, before she looked around more, and noticed the other occupants in the room.
"Chris? Gina? Where are we? And why are we dressed so... strangely...?" She asked. "Not that it's a problem. It's far too hot for what I wore earlier."
"We appear to be in Atlantis, and if so then the humidity is likely outrageous." Chris explained.
"There's also our guests here as well, Mesha." Gina said while gesturing towards the fish man. Who responded, once again, in their own language.
"What'd he say, Gina?"
"That's the problem. Neither Chris, nor myself have a clue as to what they're saying."
"Well I might have a spell that can fix that. It's called 'True Hearing'. It should make it so that we can understand each other."
Before she could cast it however, Chris interrupted. While, at the same time, he tore the sheet covering the bed off, and covered himself.
"Don't bother Mesha. These people are likely messing with us. We should really just blast 'em!" He said as he shifted back into his hybrid form underneath the blanket. He then proceeded to turn it into a toga, similar to the ones that the other men in the room were wearing. If only slightly less functional. "These guys have been at war with Stripes people for how long? If they can't speak english, then I'm a were-rat."
Right after he finished saying that, his hand became encased in a glowing, green, flame-like aura. With claws taking a rough shape around his fingers. Mesha looked at him, impressed that he had managed to advance so far in just a few days, while Gina looked at him in surprise.
'I guess that's part of his offensive technique he was mentioning earlier.' She thought as she looked at his arm. 'I wonder what his defensive, and supportive techniques are like?'
"Apologies, Chris. We do indeed speak your language." Said the human male. "We are sorry for the deception, but we needed to learn more of your intentions."
"Indeed. We were simply testing you." Said the woman whom which had been petting Chris. "We needed to see if you were a threat, and it seems you might be." She said this as she looked, shocked, at Chris, his transformation, and his glowing claws, which he did not seem to want to put away.
"Yes, please accept our apologies, but Gryphon has a great number of spies. Spies that could, in fact, pretend to be upper-worlders like yourselves." Said the green fish man. "However, with Chris' transformations there is no doubt that you are indeed from the surface."
"Wait, so you're not Gryphons troops." Gina asked. "And Chris, put those claws away. They're not needed... yet..."
Chris did so reluctantly.
"Never!" The man in green vehemently replied. "We are warriors of the true ruler of Atlantis!"
"Who would be me." Said a female voice from behind a curtain covering what must've been the doorway. "I am Tyr, and I am, unfortunately, Gryphons half-sister."
Looking towards the curtain, Chris, Mesha, and Gina, all saw a well dressed and very beautiful woman, who still had scales and gills, Step out from behind the curtain. Unlike the other woman, who was purple, this woman was of the same blue/green coloring that had been previously seen on the very person they had come to defeat. Her apparent half-brother, Lord Gryphon. She, however, wore a crown that looked as though it was meant for her. Unlike Gryphon, who wore the crown that he had stolen from Stripe and his people.
"It was I who rescued you from one of Gryphons traps, and I also used my powers in order to heal you all. You were all in pretty bad shape, we were almost unable to save you in particular Chris." She said, startling the three surface dwellers. "We were unsure if we should attempt to rescue what we had thought was a simple, yet large, pet. I have also never encountered a feline before. So even though Atlanteans, Kryn, and Humans, all share similar basic biology, it was difficult to know if I had fixed everything correctly. Luckily you apparently have a very fast healing ability, so I believe there is nothing to worry about."
After hearing this, Chris closed his eyes and entered into a meditative trance in order to assess his body, and make sure that everything was okay. After a few moments, and seeing that he was okay, he opened his eyes again and looked towards Princess Tyr, right as Gina began to speak.
"If that's the case, Tyr, then thanks for saving us, we owe you one." She said to Tyr. "Chris, any problems?"
"None that I can feel, but still, Mesha can you double check for me?"
"Sure thing Chris." Mesha said as she began to scan him with her magic. "All done, and no problems, your self sensing was spot on."
"Thanks." Chris said to Mesha. "And thank you, Tyr, for rescuing us. Though I still need to ask... why. Why did you save us, and how did you know we were here?"
Tyr paused for a moment to think before she responded.
"Not long ago, Gryphon returned to Atlantis, and declared that he would wage war with the surface world, conquering all who would oppose him." She explained. "We had hoped that since you were caught in Gryphons trap that you were his enemy and, in that case, possible ally. So please, tell me, why did you come here? Was it to destroy Gryphon, or to surrender to him."
"That creep! We're here to kill his butt!" Was Gina's reply.
"Indeed. I have several things I wish to do to him before he dies. None of which will be pleasant." Chris said, with a menacing look in his eye.
Mesha didn't say anything, but it was clear that she was ready to help her friends.
"Thank goodness for that. It relieves me so much to hear you say that. For you had this in your possession when we found you." Said Tyr, as she held out the Gem of Returning. "This is a treasure that we absolutely cannot allow to fall into Gryphons hands."
"The Gem of Returning? But I thought that all it was good for was finding El Dorado." Chris said as he looked at the gem. "What else can it do?"
"This gem has a number of powers, as well as information, stored within it." Try explained. "This gem hold information on many of the lost secrets of my ancestors. Hidden treasure, lost cities, ancient artifacts, and immeasurable power, as well as a few secrets of the universe. Only someone with great inner power and control would not succumb to its temptations, and use it for themselves."
"Well we certainly didn't, though that might just be because Gina over there didn't know what it did."
"Hey! Why'd you single me out Chris." At hearing Gina's complaint, Chris just gave her a look, as if to ask her if she was serious. "-grrrr- Whatever...By the way... you don't think that thing has instructions on how to shed some excess weight, do you?"
"I don't think it can work that kind of miracle Gina" Tyr said with a slight laugh.
"Hmmm... what do you think Mesha." Gina said after a moments thought.
"It is as she said Gina." Mesha told her, as she leaned in to get a better look. "This gem holds a very dangerous power within it. The sheer amount of power it radiates is enormous!"
"Yes, and it is with that power that it plan to defeat Gryphon, and save my kingdom." Tyr explained. "However, that means that I cannot return it to you. But in exchange, I will trade it for any treasure you wish to take from me."
At hearing this Gina's jaw dropped, and she began to drool at the thought of the treasure she would get. All for a small gem.
Chris looked at her, exasperated, and rolled his eyes before he closed her mouth with a small -click-.
"The power of this gem has been lost to my family for too long." Tyr continued, as she ignored Gina and Chris. "With it, I finally have the power to stop Gryphon, and halt his plans to wage war with the surface world!"
"Not so fast, Princess Tyr. I'm afraid I can't let you do that." Said the purple fish woman, who stood behind the group, on the other side of the room.
The moment the group heard her say that, and turned to face her, she had summoned four large monsters. Each of which looked mean, ugly, and hungry.
As they attacked the group, Chris managed to charge into, and knock back, two of the monsters, and began to fight the other ones. Cursing, as he activated his chi claws, as he called them, he tried to cut them, only to fight out that they had some very powerful magic resistance. His claws had barely scratched them. "Dammit, this sucks big time." He said as he dodged a swing from one of the monsters.
"Dyranna!? Why are you doing this? Answer me!" Tyr screamed at Dyranna, clearly shocked at seeing someone she had thought was her friend, betray her. "Why have you betrayed us!?"
While Tyr asked this question, the two monsters that Chris had managed to throw away had recovered, and had begun to attack both herself and Mesha. Each of them barely managing to create a shield in time to block the monsters strikes.
"I have betrayed no one, Princess. I have merely been deep undercover for the many long years that I have served you. But with the return of such an important gem, I can no longer remain under cover. Allowing you to keep that gem is out of the question!" Dyranna exclaimed. "These anti-demons will be more than enough to drain you all of you magic, long enough for me to steal that gem."
While she had been talking, the green fish man, and the human male, had both snuck around her and had silently gone for an attack from behind. Unfortunately, it was all for naught.
""Ah, ah, ah. I didn't forget about you two Garen, Tanis. Sneaking up behind me isn't very nice you know. Though I will admit that I''m impressed. Especially with you Garen." As she said this she cast a spell on the two that froze them in place. Since her assailants were incapacitated, she continued her gloating. "You're just a human after all. It's such a shame you didn't drown in that ship wreck all those years ago. But regardless, all these years and none of you even suspected that I was loyal to Gryphon. Now why don't you two non-magic-users just sit in that stasis field, and watch."
In the background, Tyr, Mesha, and Chris, were each having trouble with their respective demons.
"Tyr! I can't hurt these things! My magic bolts just keep bouncing off. They immune to magic." Screamed Mesha, as yet another magic bolt simply bounced off the demon she was fighting. Tyr however, had her own problems.
"Keep trying Mesha. They must have a weakness of some sort." Tyr screamed as she created a shield and blocked a breath of flames from one of the monsters, who had begun to swing around the frozen Tanis like he was a baseball bat.
"Stop complaining you two, at least you have your magic to help you -whoa- I have to dodge everything, AND I have to actually hit them." Chris said as he continued to dodge the demons attacks. He was barely able to get any attacks of his own to hit, let alone do any damage. though his claws were becoming less rough, and more defined, as he continued to use them. They had even begun to slowly do more damage, even though it was still too little to do much.
"Oh be quiet you three you're hurting my ears." Dyranna said as she looked around. "Now where is that human female."
"Hold that pose you sea hag!" Gina screamed as she brought down a large metal pot on the head of unsuspecting the fish hag.
BONG!
Only for it to stop suddenly in mid swing, not far from her targets head.
"What the?!"
"Surprised? My force shield that I cast, after I froze the two nitwits, blocks anything that isn't magic." Dyranna said as she turned towards Gina. "You truly are an incompetent dolt, you know that."
"Uh-oh..umm.. Your shoe's untied..! Uh... Look! There's a spider on your shirt...!" Gina said as she tried to distract Dyranna as she backed away from said fish woman's glowing hands.
"Oh, shut up! Such attempts at distraction will do nothing, you idiot. You've certainly got some nerve though." Dyranna said as she began to charge up her spell. "Now pay the price for your impertinence."
"YOU FIRST, BITCH!" Was Chris' loud shout as he finally managed to do enough damage to one of the demons he had been fighting, to make it back off enough for him to maneuver the other into a position that he could use to throw it at Dyranna. Unfortunately, it appears that even though they were immune to magic, the demons still couldn't get through her force shield.
"HA, is that it. I already explained that only magic can..POW!" Dyranna had begun to talk back to Chris, but suddenly a magic bolt from Mesha, bounced off the demon she was facing, and had flown towards Gina, who had then used the pot she was holding to block it, and in the process the magic bolt reflected right at Dyranna. Thus knocking said woman unconscious.
"Oh my gosh! Gina! Are you alright!?" Mesha asked as she rushed over to Gina and Dyrana.
"Wait, what happened to the demons?" Tyr asked as the demons that everyone was fighting disappeared.
"I think they were dispelled when Mesha knocked Dyranna out." Chris said as he walked back over to Gina and the rest of the group. "She likely kept those demons under her direct control. That way she wouldn't get attacked if she lost consciousness. Her other spells have also dispelled, since Tanis and Garen are moving again."
Indeed, Tanis and Garen were helping each other up after having been used as clubs. Luckily, the stasis field they were trapped in seems to have prevented them from actually receiving any damage.
Over with Gina and Mesha, as they knelt over Dyranna's unconscious form, Gina began to check her over to see how much damage she had taken.
"Is she..." Mesha trailed off at the end of her question.
"No, she's still alive. Unfortunately." Gina replied, though she muttered that last part.
"If she is alive then she can recover in our brig!" Tyr said as she looked around the floor. "A-hah! There you are!" she said as she picked up the gem that she had dropped. "She was Gryphon's spy and she failed. Next up will be her master!"
"Great! When our friends get here we can have a 'kick Gryphons ass' party." Chris said happily as he imagined the punishment they would all be able to dish out on Gryphon.
At hearing this Tyr looked at Chris in surprise, and panic.
"Wait, you mean you have more friends from the upper world... coming here!?"
Meanwhile, back with the other group in the mini-sub.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
"Yo Penny, stop screaming. I can't concentrate on getting us out of here with you bursting my eardrums!" Said Ace as he tried to maneuver the mini-sub out of the danger they had gotten into.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HH"
Penny however, continued to scream, and with good reason, seeing as how she and all the other people on the mini-sub were currently trapped within the grasp of an enormous octopus that had its tentacles wrapped around the mini-sub. The damn thing was huge, and easily capable of devouring the sub whole. If not for Ace's expert piloting. Though Penny was beginning to distract him. But the others were much calmer.
"So how are we gonna get outta this one? There's no more torpedoes, and whenever we break away this thing just grabs us all over again." Cheetah said, fairly calmly for a cat-girl in a flooding mini-sub.
"Well whatever we do, we'd best do it fast!" Stripe said as he glanced around the sub nervously.
"Get us out! Get us out NOW!" Penny screamed as she began to shake Ace's shoulders.
"I'm workin' on it!" Ace replied as Penny continued to shake him. Suddenly Ace snapped his head upwards. An idea having come to him. "Wait,I've got it! Penny, get ready on the manual release for the extra fuel canisters."
"Dammit Ace! I know what you're thinking, and it won't work." Penny screamed as she did what Ace told her.
"Well it's not like you've got any better ideas right now, is it!?" Ace snapped back. "Now stand-by for release."
As Penny waited for Ace's signal, the occupants of the mini-sub all held their breath, as Ace allowed the mini-sub to get entangled by the giant octopus' tentacles. Which in turn, caused the octopus to open its maw, and attempt to eat them.
Of course this freaked out Penny even more than before.
"YAAAH! It's too late Ace! We're all gonna die!" She screamed hysterically.
""NOW, release the fuel cells!" Ace yelled at Penny, who in turn pulled the lever for the manual release for the fuel cells. Though this wa purely out of reflex to Ace's yell, as she was still panicking, and was not fully in control of what she was doing. That changed, however, when Ace gunned the engine the moment the octopus closed its mouth around the two fuel cells. Thus breaking them free from the tentacles, and causing the octopus to recoil in pain since the fuel cells had exploded inside its mouth.
"HA! Told you it'd work Ace!" Penny screamed, having forgotten her previous fear.
"You know what Penny? I'm ignoring you." Was all Ace said in reply. "Alright Stripe, the topographic data from the sonar is on your screen. You think you can find our way to Atlantis with it?"
"Yes I can Ace. We are currently still on course." Stripe replied. "It's straight down from this position."
"Are we absolutely certain that Gina, Mesha, and Chris went down this way." Tark asked from his seat closer to the back.
Cheetah was quick to back up her man.
"Stripe said that he saw them coming this way, Tark. He knows what he's doing." She said to Tark. "Besides, this water's rising pretty fast. We should probably worry about that first!"
"I'm already working' on it Cheetah." Said Penny from the floor, near a control panel that she was taking apart. "Hand me the screwdriver, will ya Tark. The pump's on the fritz again."
"Okay, do you need a screw too?" Tark replied.
"Heh, no thanks. You're not quite my type."
"Was that a joke?"
"Steady as she goes people. We need to focus on...whoa!" Ace suddenly stopped talking in surprise. "What the! Guys! there's some crazy lookin' dude out there with glowing red eyes and hands."
"Glowing red Eyes?" Stripe questioned.
"Yeah! Is that weird or what." Ace continued. "Do you think he's a local?"
"Watch out Ace! That Atlantean must be Gryphon!"
" Well whoever he is, he's gonna regret messing with me." Ace said as he turned back to look at Stripe.
"IS THAT SO!"
Back with Chris and friends.
"Here we are my friends. The Pool of Legends. This is how I knew you were in danger, as well as how I rescued you." Princess Tyr said as she led the group to a chamber, in which was a large glowing pool. "This pool has the ability to transport anyone who enters it anywhere they want, with but a wish."
"Well that's certainly cool. How does it work?" Chris asked as he looked at the pool in wonder. Gina and Mesha were also taking a closer look. With Mesha nearly leaning into it,
"I'm not quite sure, to be honest. I know how to use it, but beyond that the specifics of how it works, are a total mystery." Tyr explained in response to his question. "If you want to use it, then all you must do is picture what you wish to see in your mind, and enter the water."
"How do you get back?" Chris asked.
"The portal doesn't close unless it gets dispelled by magic, or cold iron." Tyr replied.
"Cool."
"Hey Tyr! By the way, what happened to my car?" Asked Gina after she had gotten a good look at the pool. "It didn't get scratched too badly. Did it?"
The two Atlanteans and Atlantis raised human each looked a little nervous at Gina's question.
"It's, well, perhaps you should see for yourself." Garen said as he led her around the corner to take a look at her car. "It's over here."
As Gina followed Garen around the corner, Chris looked towards Tyr and Tanis, the both of then still looking sheepish and nervous.
"By your looks I'm assuming that it's in worse shape than Gina thinks it is." He said blandly.
"MY CAR!" Gina screamed from around the corner.
"Well that answers that question!" Chris said.
"You have no one to blame but yourself Gina!" Mesha said after standing up from her examinations of the pool. "You are the one who was driving afterall!"
After walking around the pool towards the area where Gina's car was, Chris and Mesha got a look at how bad a shape the car was in. And it was bad.
The entire front end had been pushed into a V shape. It had been flattened by around two feet at the hood. The wheels were bent into very non-circular forms. There were more scratches than could be counted, alongside a number of dents, and tears in the frame. All in all, it would not be driven again any time soon.
"We saved as much as we could!" Tanis said as he tried to calm Gina down. "If you were unable to do anything with it, we were going to use it for spare parts!"
Gina wouldn't have any of that. "Sorry Tanis!. But it's my wreck, and therefore I get first dibs on the scraps."
"That's fine... Um... do you still want the stereo deck?" Gina ignored his question.
"Argh, this would be so awesome if I just had my notepad! God, you guys just keep coming up with more and more material for my books. Yet I can't write anything right now. Geez." Chris said as he finally voice his frustration at not being able to take notes for his novels. Gina's personality and interactions were a great inspiration.
"Calm down Chris, you'll get to write something soon." Mesha said. "Now Tyr. Is this pools how you had planned on attacking Gryphon and retaking Atlantis. Is there anyone else that will be helping us?"
Tyr had a crestfallen look on her face as she answered. "This pool is indeed how I had planned on attacking my half-brother. But unfortunately when he took over Atlantis, he used artifacts taken from the upper-world. Tanis and Garen are all that remain of my guard."
"Don't sweat it Tyr, we'll help you out." Gina called over from her position atop her car. "Just give me a few seconds to turn this scrap heap into something that can help. Garen, can you give me a hand!?"
As Garen moved to help her, Gina got that look in her eyes, that only appears when she's about to go boys crazy. Chris noticed this and called her on it.
"OY GINA! Focus on helping first,would ya!"
"Tch fine. Okay handsome... can you lift that big heavy orange box over there." Gina said as she told Garen what to do.
"Where should I put it?" He asked.
"Just over there please. Say, are you doing anything this weekend?"
"GINA!"
"Fine. Fine. Spoilsport."
As Chris kept Gina on track, Tyr was preparing the pool to teleport them to Gryphons location.
"Get ready my friends. I'm am going to use the pool to view Gryphon unnoticed so that we may know when to strike." She said.
"Neat! Can you get any good channels on it too?" Chris asked.
"No... only soap operas, and cartoons."
"You know it's a good thing that my nuclear resonator, and piezoelectric generators still have some juice in them." Gina said from the background as she continued to work on her tech. "Otherwise a meltdown would have occurred when the magnetic bubble on the plasma field collapsed and... I'm just so happy I don't have to clean up that mess."
"There... the image has formed. We can now see what Gryphon is now up to." Tyr said as she used the pool, revealing a terrible image. "It appears he has captives."
"God dammit! That bastard's got our friends captive! And he's torturing them too!" Screamed Chris, furious at seeing his friends being hurt. For indeed, the image that the pool showed, had Gryphon standing in the middle of a circular chamber with their friends being within red fields of energy that were clearly causing them pain, as they floated around Gryphon.
"TARK! He's torturing my Tark!" Mesha cried out, as Gryphons began to focus on Tark before moving on.
"They must have been captured on their way here." Tyr said.
"No, really. Your powers of observation amaze me." Chris stated sarcastically. "We need to do something now!"
"And I've got just the thing to blast Gryphon all the way to kingdom come!" Gina said from behind the group.
Turning around, the three turned around to face her. Only to see that she was sitting in a modified recliner that was floating on what appeared to be pieces of her car; only they were heavily altered.
"Ta-da! I present to you, the lazy-boy from hell!" She said to the slightly shocked trio. "It comes equipped with anti-gravity propulsion, photon torpedoes, and a back massage. Overall, it's the perfect thing for taking out Gryphon, once and for all!"
Chris grins at the thought of all the pain Gryphon would soon be going through, and on his anthropomorphic face it looked absolutely terrifying.
"Perfect timing Gina. Now let's go before that slimy bastard can hurt our friends anymore than he already has."
In the middle of the cavern in which Gryphon is torturing Chris' friends, Stripe can be seen trying to distract Gryphon from torturing the others.
"Let them go Gryphon! This is between you and me, just like always! They have no purpose in being apart of this!" He screamed as he saw that he was approaching Cheetah. "Or are you a coward who would involve simple bystanders."
Gryphon paused in mid-step and turned towards Stripe before responding.
"You are in no place to be making demands of ME, Stripe, oh Lord of El Dorado! With the powers I have, thanks to your peoples artifacts, I could destroy you, and your friends, with but a thought. Just like I did my previous masters, the Lords of Atlantis!" Gryphon said as his eyes took on a menacing glow. "And your friends are no mere bystanders, Stripe. They have also interfered with my plans, and thus they deserve the same fate as yourself. I do so enjoy torturing you and your friends, as my armies prepare to invade the surface-world alongside my ultimate weapon."
"Dream on psycaaAAAHHHRRRRGGG!" Cheetah screamed, as Gryphon turned to focus his torture on her.
"SILENCE!" He screamed at her. "Ah yes. You. You're one of the lycanthropes that attacked me at El Dorado. Where' is the other one. I would love to make him into one of my statues. Yet again."
"Dammit Gryphon! If you harm her, I swear..."
"Silence fool! There is nothing you can do but watch." Gryphon said as he began to increase the magic that was hurting Cheetah.
"AAAAAHHHHH" She screamed as the pain became far worse than it had been.
"That's it! Scream. Scream in pain as I slowly take your life! AHAHAHAHA!" Gryphon laughed as he listened to Cheetahs screams.
"HEY ASSHOLE! PUT MY SISTER DOWN!"
"YOU TELL HIM GINA!"
Suddenly, a gateway appeared at the edge of the room, and out flew Gina on her chair, and Chris encased in a glowing armored aura.
"Who!?...YOU!" Gryphon screamed in rage at seeing just who it was that had interfered with his fun.
"Your tyranny ends here, dear brother." Yelled Princess Tyr as she and Mesha both blasted Gryphon with their magic, but unfortunately their blasts merely bounced off the shield Gryphon conjured.
As this was happening, Chris ran over to his floating friends, and began to try and rip apart their bindings. It worked a little bit, but not enough to truly be helpful.
"I see... you have the gem of the ancients, don't you, Tyr!" Gryphon said as he cast a beam of magic towards our heroes. "It is the only thing that would allow you to break past my wards, but it is not enough to save you!"
"Mesha! use your powers to 'wizard lock' this chamber!" Tyr yelled as she deflected Gryphons blast. Had she blocked it it would have destroyed her shield. "We cannot allow him to summon reinforcements. Tanis, and Garen can defend the doors."
"FOOLS!" Gryphon screamed, as he increased the power of his beams, finally breaking past Tyr's shield, and stunning both herself and Mesha. Though not before Mesha managed to 'wizard lock' the room.
"Pathetic. To think I was almost worried, but now.. I'm...wait,... what's... happening...?" Suddenly a light appeared from the ceiling, and Gryphon began to lose power as he fell to the ground in pain, unable to continue using his magic.
"I'm happening Gryphon." Gina said from her chair, ten feet from the floor at the center of the room. "I figured that if you atlanteans are an aquatic race, you must need lots of water in the air. Hence the humidity. My ion-accelerator should be able dry you up into an unrecognizable husk."
"Wait, Gina. Turn it off!" Chris screamed, right after he managed to free Stripe and Cheetah.
"Huh?"
"Have you forgotten that Tyr, and Tanis are atlanteans too? You're killing them" Chris explained as he pointed out Tyr and Tanis to Gina. Each of which were on the floor, weakly trying to get away from Gina and her chair.
"Oh my gosh! Tyr, Tanis, hold on I'll turn it off right now!" Gina said as she began the shut-down for her chair. "Garen! Grab the gem and help Chris free the others."
"Right!" He replied.
"Mesha! 'wizard lock' Gryphon, so that he can't use magic anymore!"
"Of course!" Mesha replied. "My power is more than enough to seal him, in this state." "You'll pay for this!" "Be silent or I'll lock you mouth!"
As Garen helped Chris free the others, and Mesha locked Gryphon, Gina landed her chair and went to help Tyr, and Tanis. Both of them having recovered quite quickly.
"Are you two alright!? I swear I had no intention of getting you two caught up in my chairs weapons." She said as she helped Tyr and Tanis.
"It's alright Gina! Thanks to you and your device Atlantis is now safe, and Gryphons warmachines will soon be dismantled." Tyr said as she assured Gina that all was okay.
"Wow Gina. Is this your car? What happened to the rest of it?" Penny, who had been freed by Garen, suddenly questioned in a sing-song voice from behind Gina's chair.
As Gina and Penny started yet another argument, everyone else began to celebrate the fact that they were all okay. Mesha gave Tark a great big bear hug, after Chris had freed him, Cheetah was standing behind Gryphon, flicking his head as she told him how much he deserved this, Stripe stood off to the side and just gave her a few funny looks, and Garen was still freeing Ace from his confinement, as Chris had decided to help Cheetah in flicking Gryphon in the head. Though there were still some things that needed to be discussed. As such, Stripe decided it was time to speak up.
"Princess Tyr." He said. "The threat of Gryphon is gone... but the affairs between our respective countries are not!"
"Lord Stripe? I hadn't realized you were here!"
"Regardless, I speak of the war between our two homes, Atlantis, and El Dorado. The war has lasted for centuries, and it is time it stopped."
"So you've come to surrender Kryn?" Garen asked arrogantly.
"No, Garen." Tyr said as she looked towards Stripe. "I agree with Lord Stripe. The fighting between our people must end!"
As she said this, she walked over to where Gryphon was still bound, before reaching for the crown on his head.
"With the Evil Lords of Atlantis dead, thanks to Gryphons evil, peace can be achieved between our people. My thanks brother. It appears some good came from you after all."
Gryphon merely glared at her, as she took the crown and walked back to Stripe.
"I return all that he has taken from you Stripe. Here is the crown he first took from you." She said as she bowed to Stripe, and presented his crown. "I shall return any and all other items that he may have taken, when they are found. My there be peace between us."
"Speaking of which. Where are the rest of Stripe heirlooms!?" Cheetah asked.
"Why don't we ask our evil little buddy here." Chris said as he walked over to Gryphon and placed a hand on his shoulders. Gryphon said nothing, and continued to glare at the people in the room. Chris decided to be a bit more forceful, as he began to squeeze a bit harder, causing Gryphon a great deal of discomfort. "Need I ask again!?"
Gryphon kept glaring for a few more seconds before speaking.
"They are over there. In my vault." He said as he gestured to a pair of large doors.
"Oooh, I'll get it. Maybe there's some extra stuff you don't need in there." Gina said excitedly as she went to open the door.
Suddenly Tark and Mesha, who had been focusing on keeping Gryphon bound, looked towards the door Gryphon had referred to.
"Mesha! I sense evil behind that door!" Tark exclaimed.
"GINA! DON'T TOUCH THAT DOOR!" Mesha screamed. Just as Gina touched the door.
Jerking her hand away, Gina looked back at her friends. Just as Chris charged towards her. "Uh-oh. I already di-." "GET DOWN!" She was cut off as Chris tackled her to the ground, and covered her with his body, in an effort to protect her from whatever was behind the doors
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
Suddenly, the doors to the vault were blasted off their hinges, an explosion of great magnitude having engulfed both the doors, and Gina and Chris. Who had both been at ground zero when the trap went off. Out from the doors came a colossal machine, that stood over a hundred feet tall. It had the body shape of a human, but had three heads, each with its own demonic look, with the center one having horns. Two left arms, each roughly the same size, and three right arms, the lowest looking nomal, the middle having claws, and the top being only half the size as any of the others, and coming out of the shoulder.
"There are you precious artifacts, Stripe! They power the most destructive weapon on earth!" Gryphon yelled in joy, as he saw his creation begin to move. "ARMAGEDDON! KILL THEM MY SLAVE! KILL THEM ALL!"
"MOVE! IT'S STRIKING!" Stripe yelled as he grabbed Cheetah and dove out of the way. Everyone else doing the same thing, with Ace grabbing Penny, and the others using magic.
"INCOMING!" Cheetah screamed as Armageddon's fist hit the floor. Right where Gryphon was still bound.
"There is no escape! HAHAHAH-" Gryphon was crushed by his own creation.
"My god! That behemoth just killed Gryphon!" Mesha exclaimed as she landed from her dodge.
"Good riddance." Was all that was said by everyone else.
"Did anyone see Gina and Chris. They weren't disintegrated by that explosion, were they!?" Stripe asked.
"Never mind them Stripe! That things about to barbeque us!" Screamed Penny, as Armageddon reared back its three head, each with a mouth full of flames.
"Quickly! Everyone get under my 'force wall'. It should be enough to block the heat from those flames!" Tyr yelled as she cast her spell.
"Geezus, Where's King-Kong when you need him!" Ace asked sarcastically. "We could certainly use a big ass monster of our own right now."
CRASH
"Oh no! It's broken through the citadel!" Tyr said in panic.
"What's so bad about that Tyr? Just let that sucka leave!" Ace yelled.
"It's worse than you think Ace!" Tyr replied. "Now, not only can it destroy the cities of the world! But it's also letting all the water out there in here!"
Right as she said that, Armageddon managed to fully get through the citadel. Allowing the water to flow into the room with more force than Tyr's wall could take.
"The water pressure is too great! Tanis and I will survive... but the rest of you will most certainly perish!"
"The shield is weaken-SPLOOSH- MY HAIR!" Penny shrieked.
"Girl! This is not the time to be worrying about your hair!" Ace yelled. "Is there any way for us to get outta here!?"
"THERE!" Tanis yelled "The portal we came through earlier! Hurry, before it's too late!"
As the group ran towards to portal Armageddon began charging it's weapons and fired an enormous beam of energy at the room it had previously been in, destroying everything that had been in its path.
FWOOOOSH
Back in the Pool of Legends Room.
"GAAH"
"It's Cheetah! She made it!" Garen yelled as Cheetah surfaced in the pool. "That's everyone. We all made it through okay!"
"Quickly help her out!" Stripe said as he and Penny dragged her out of the pool.
"-sniff- Phew. Cheetah! You smell like a wet kitten" Penny exclaimed as she helped Stripe drag Cheetah out of the pool.
"She is a wet kitten Penny." Said Stripe as he stood up after Cheetah was out of the pool.
"Yeah Penny, and you don't wanna to know what you humans smell like to us were-cheetahs" Cheetah said as she glared at Penny. "At least my twenty-four hours are up. This human form is just too useless for me. I'll hafta practice changing forms again. Later, when Chris can teach me a bit better. I'm going hybrid."
Immediately after saying this, she changed forms.
"Uh... mind if I shake?" She said as she prepared to do just that. Stripe, by the way, had moved a fair distance away from Cheetah, the moment she mentioned her time limit being up.
"YES I MIND!" Said an indignant Penny.
"Too bad. Need to anyway. Reflex and all that." Cheetah said.
"Don't you- eek!"
Meanwhile, over with the mature survivors.
"That creature will most certainly rip Atlantis apart." Tanis said as he stood next to Tyr. "We will need to figure out how to defeat it quickly!"
"But what about Chris and Gina!?" Mesha exclaimed. "We need to help them,and we could use their help as well."
"Indeed., but where are they?" Tyr asked.
"I was hoping your pool could tell us." Mesha said as she gestured towards said pool. "When that trap on the vault activated the explosion, I quickly cast a teleportation spell to get both of them out of there. But the magic in the explosion, interfered with the magic of my spell. It's only thanks to Chris running forward and flaring his chi, that I was able to lock onto them with the spell at all. Unfortunately, it also changed the location of the spells destination."
Sensing his wife's distress, Tark held her tightly as he reassured her that they were fine.
"Don't worry my one. I'm sure they are safe. Not only is Christopher hard to kill. But Gina is an extremely resourceful girl. I'm certain that wherever they are they will be fine."
"I pray they are safe Tark. I couldn't even consider forgiving myself if anything happened to them. Especially since it would be all my fault!"
Meanwhile, in the Himalayan Mountains.
"W-w-w-w-what-t I-I-I w-wouldn't g-g-give f-f-for a h-hot cup o-of t-t-t-tea r-right n-n-now!" Chris stuttered out as he limped along the icy mountain side carrying Gina, with half of his fur burned off, charred skin showing signs of healing, though it was slower than normal since the burns were magical. 'God this sucks, what the hell happened when that door opened. Seriously. I should be dead right now. Not freezing my ass off on a snowy mountain!'
"C-c-chris I-I-I'm-m c-cold-d" Gina stuttered as she lay in Chris' arms. She was in much better condition, with absolutely no wounds, as Chris had covered her and protected her from the blast. "I t-th-think-k... I'll... t-take... a... n-nap..."
"What! NO!" Chris said in a panic. "Do not fall asleep Gina! Gina! Can you hear me Gina! Do not fall asleep Gina!..."
"Gina!?..."
"GINA!"
AN: So... Yeah. Like I've said before, this story won't really deviate from the original storyline too much. But after the next two chapters it will hopefully become more personal in style, rather than an oc in a novelization of the comics. If you like it please review. If not, then fine, but don't flame my writing please.