Cheetahs Aren't The Only Endangered Species
Chapter Five: HOLY GARDEN! Beware of Guard Dogs!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the OC's
AN: Okay, here's the scoop for this chapter. There will be a few references to other series for techniques that Chris will learn, such as Naruto shadow clones, Ranma hidden weapons techniques, and a few other things. Don't worry however, this will not make him over powerful, and there will be limitations on what the skills he uses can do. As such, he won't be able to make a thousand plus clones, and learn everything a mage needs to know, in less than a week. They're more of a 'I want to do this and this at the same time but only have two hands' kind of thing. Not a training aid. Also, this chapter will focus much more on Chris then the previous chapters. Now that that's cleared up, here is chapter five.
"Hello" speech
'what the...' thoughts/flashback/other
...
Normal POV
Previously, the group of adventurous world savers were given an ultimatum by the evil Lord Gryphon; give up Princess Tyr and her allies, or die. Of course the heroes of the story couldn't have that now could they. Which is why we now find Gina, Cheetah, Chris, and Stripe, now at the home of Dr. Theodore Diggers, while they figure out a plan to destroy Gryphon, and Armageddon, one and for all. Though there has been, unfortunately, little success.
"Gina?" Dr. Diggers called out after he walked down stairs. "I didn't hear you come in."
"Huh! Oh, hi dad. You're certainly up early, it's still only four in the morning." Gina replied distractedly as she continued to look through the books she had acquired from Shangri-La.
"Well I had initially thought you were an intruder. It's not everyday that someone gets into my house without using any of the entrances. By the way, when did you come in? Last night or just now." Dr. Digger asked.
Still reading her books, Gina replied, "Just now. We actually came from Atlantis, but I had to come back here since I didn't want my new books to get wet."
"Atlantis!?"
"Yeah, we discovered it yesterday with the help of a friend from El Dorado."
"Heh, so you've been busy this week I see. Is that where all these books came from." He asked after looking at the pile of books Gina was looking through. Just then however, Chris walked into the room."Actually, we got those from Shangri-La, and several of those are mine. New chi control exercises and all that." He said, grabbing a book from the top of the pile, and sitting down to read, in the process. "Though what we're really doing is looking for a way to defeat a mega huge colossus called Armageddon from rampaging across the world on a path of world domination and destruction!"
"Oh I see. You know if you wanted some privacy for your studying all you needed to do was ask. I do wish you wouldn't play these games with me, and even more that I didn't always fall for them." Dr. Diggers said, turning away from the reading pair.
"I'm not playing dad, and neither is Chris. It's all true, I swear!" Came Gina's indignant reply. "You can go ask Cheetah if you want to. She's downstairs in the gym with our friend from El Dorado right now. I think my clone's gone down to check on them now that we've finished writing the next part of our new series." Chris said, backing up Gina as he continued to read.
"Clone?" Gina and her father inquired at the same time. (an: prepare for info dump)
"Yeah, it's one of the techniques I learned from one of the books I got from Shangri-La. It allows you to divide a small amount of your chi into a construct of said chi, and the resulting clone has all your memories. The only problem is that the energy disperses if they get hit by more force than a pat on the back, or if it loses the energy needed to keep its form, because it does lose energy. So they're not really useful other than distractions, and perhaps a bit of labor work. Though they were a great help in finishing my book. It would have taken forever to finish it otherwise." Chris explained to them. "I'm actually using it to train my chi control, since it's not much use beyond that."
"Oh, okay, but it doesn't let you keep it's memories, or anything else like that one TV show." Gina questioned.
"Nope. Not unless I absorb the energy used back into my body. So they could only give back written information that they've read. It I used them for training them they would just dispel and turn into a waste of energy." He explained to the now interested Diggers.
"Well that is a most interesting technique Chris, have you learned anything else from your books." Dr. Diggers inquired. "I assume that that is not all you have been practising."
Chris rubbed the back of his head nervously as he answered. "Well... I've mostly been practicing the control techniques in the books to get a better grasp on on ki, while it is still within my body, so that I can get more control of my chi after my ki has been converted into it.* So far, I can now walk up walls, push my ki out of my hands as chi to create a ball light, and I can disperse my chi attacks after they have left my body. Beyond that, well, I can use my ki while it's still in my body to strengthen it, and I've almost perfected my three personal techniques."
Gina perked up at that. "Speaking of which, what are your personal techniques. You said you had one supportive, one offensive, and one defensive. I know that the offensive one creates that claw on your hand, but what about the others?" She asked.
Chris looked smug as he gave her a smirk after hearing her deduction. "Actually Gina, that claw technique was a part of my defensive skill. That one creates a thick layer of chi around parts of my body, not only enhancing it, but also acting as armor, you saw this when I fought Empress Lynn."
A look of realisation appeared on Gina's face. "Oh yeah!"
"Anyway, my offensive technique is creating a sword of chi that I can use, either as a sword, or throw, like a knife. And since it doesn't use aether, it won't be dispelled if it comes in contact with metal. I can also combine those two techniques to make a bladed armor. And then my supportive technique allows me to make a connection with another person with my chi, this technique allows me to share my energy, either chi or aura, and give the person I'm connected to abilities similar to mine, like my regeneration, which if you've noticed, is quite faster than Cheetahs. Oh! Speaking of Cheetah, she finally learned how to change at will whenever she wants to."
After Chris finished his explanation, he noticed that Dr. Diggers looked a bit worried after hearing about his supportive technique, but he wrote it off as him being scared he would lose too much energy if he was over using it. (an: info dump over)
"Interesting techniques Chris. They will most certainly be helpful in the future, but remember, it doesn't matter how many skills or spells you have, if you do not use them properly." Dr. Diggers said in a sage like voice. "Though, once you get better at controlling your ki and chi, I would be happy to teach you some aura techniques, if it interests you at that time."
Seeing that the conversation was slowly changing over to that of magic, a topic Gina was not the most interested in, due to her inability to use it, Gina decided to walk out and find her sister and Stripe; see what they're up to and all that. Thus leaving Chris and her father to talk.
Chris was thankful of the offer, but knew he still needed practice. "Thanks Dr. Diggers, and don't worry; I know that I need to spend some more time mastering these techniques before moving on to the more advanced ones. I do wish I had a teacher though; it would make things much faster." He said, getting a bit disappointed at the end.
Dr. Diggers looked thoughtful for a second before speaking up. "Hmm, perhaps when you are not busy I can introduce you to a friend of my wife. She happens to be the best known war mage, as of now, in the Jade realm; that I know of. Perhaps you can impress her and become one of her students." He said as he thought about how he could help.
"However, if you were to become her student it would not be a part time thing. You would have to spend at least six months in the Jade realm studying under her before you could leave her tutelage. Perhaps a bit more or less; depends on how skilled she thinks you are. So think carefully on what you wish to do." Dr. Diggers finished with in a strict, no nonsense, tone.
He realised that this wasn't something that he could just decide on in just a few hours, so Chris decided that he would do what Dr. Diggers suggested.
"All right Dr. Diggers. I'll take my time and think about it. But I don't think it should take me too long. Don't get me wrong here... but no matter how thankful I am for what you and your daughters have done for me, I still want to get away from things around here for now. Perhaps some time in another world will help." He said to Dr. Diggers
"Well... just let me know and I'll try and-" -ROAR- Dr. Diggers was cut off as a loud roar rang through the house. "-sigh- looks like this conversation will have to wait for a while Chris, it appears as though Gina has done something to annoy Cheetah... again..."
Dr. Diggers was rubbing the bridge of his nose at his daughter's antics. "Just remember to think about my offer before accepting, okay. For now though, let's go see what my daughters are up to."
"Sure thing Dr. Diggers." Chris said as they began walking down the hall towards the gym. "What do you think set Cheetah off anyway. It must've been something big, cause she would've had to shift to her animal form to make a roar that loud, and just cause it's the full moon, doesn't mean that she's gonna change on a whim. Especially if Stripe's with her."
Hearing that last part peaked Dr. Diggers interest. "Oh? And why is that?" As he said this, he slowly began to give off the vibe of a protective father. Chris, not wanting to see the 'flaming skull of doom', told him all about Stripe and their adventure so far, via a brief summary. Luckily it was a bit of a walk to get to the gym.
"All in all, Stripes a good guy, but I'm worried that Cheetahs aggressive behaviour might slowly turn him away, and changing into a full out extra large cheetah, the animal of course, won't really help things. I don't mean that I think they're wrong for each other, quite the opposite actually, but Stripe needs someone to give him a bit of a push to help him reassure himself regarding staying with Cheetah." Chris explained to Dr. Diggers.
Inwardly he was hoping that Dr. Diggers would help Stripe become more sure of himself. In all honesty he didn't think he was the right person to help encourage their relationship. Dr. Diggers, on the other hand, was Cheetahs father, adoptive perhaps, but regardless, he would be a much better help in Convincing Stripe to stick around. "Hey, there he is now, maybe you can say something to him that I just can't."
Dr. Diggers looked towards the large window Stripe was standing by before he gave Chris an amused look.
"You know, trying to use me to help a boy I don't know get together with my daughter wouldn't have worked if I didn't believe that you were right in regards to their situation, but I'll let it slide, this time. Just don't try to do it again." He almost gave Chris the 'flaming skull of doom' but decided not to, as he walked towards Stripe.
Chris just rubbed his head sheepishly as he stood back near the wall. Still within hearing distance, but not so close that he was really intruding, or even eavesdropping, since they were perfectly capable of seeing him listen in. If they wanted him to leave then they could say something. "I'm that see through, eh. Damn!"
"Stripe of El Dorado, I presume." Dr. Diggers said as he walked up to Stripe.
"Huh? Oh!... You must be Dr. Diggers, Gina's father and Cheetah's guardian." He said in response to Dr. Diggers greeting.
"Indeed. Gina and Chris have told me a lot about you. You're the young fellow who Brittany won't leave in peace these days, eh? Well from what I've heard you can't be such a bad guy now can you?" Dr. Diggers asked rhetorically.
Surprised at how civil the conversation was going, Stripe paused for a moment before he began to speak again. "I see... You are worried that I may not be right for your adopted daughter. Well there is no need to fear, I do not believe that she is the one for me."
Hearing this Chris held back a cringe at how certain he sounded.
"Oh? And why not?" Dr. Diggers asked.
Stripe paused again before answering Dr. Diggers question. "In my homeland I was raised and trained to be the strongest warrior there was, in order to protect my people. But after having met Chee- sorry, Brittany makes me feel... small, for lack of a better word. As much as it shames me to admit it, I find her terribly intimidating."
"I see... You know Stripe, I don't think you mean what you say. Oh you mind might think that way, no doubt about that, but I believe your heart, your being, you believe differently. I think that you are simply using what you've mentioned so far as a scapegoat for a different fear. A committed relationship. Just from seeing you for the short time that I have I can see that you do care deeply for Brittany, but these feelings you have are fairly new, since, as you said, you have been raised as a warrior, and I doubt you've had many chances to go on any dates; correct?" Dr. Diggers stated.
"Now, I don't condemn your fears, but there are a great many people in this world who have lost their chance to be truly happy because there had the same fears you have. So please, look at what you stand to gain from this relationship, and reconsider what you have told me so far." After finishing giving his, admittedly long' piece of advice advice, Dr. Diggers started puffing his pipe as he waited for Stripe to answer.
"Perhaps you are right Dr. Diggers. Gina has told me that as a magic user you can read a person's aura; perhaps you know me better than I do. And you are correct in that I have had few chances to date. I will think deeper on the matter." As he turned away from Dr. Digger, Cheetah came around the corner calling for him.
"Stripe? Oh, um, 'scuse us for a sec, dad... look... Stripe...? I'm sorry if I-" "It wasn't you or your actions, Cheetah." Stripe interrupted her mid apology. "I just needed a timeout."
Smiling to himself at how things seemed to be patching up, Chris chose to speak up. "-Ahem- Dr. Diggers?" The mentioned Doctor turned, along with Cheetah and Stripe. "Perhaps we should return to the library. Help out Gina a bit, and if possible maybe you could help me with a problem I'm having with one of the techniques in one of the scrolls I got from Shangri-La."
After hearing his request, Cheetah looked thankful, as did Stripe. Dr. Diggers just looked amused. Clearly, Chris was indeed quite see through. "Very well then Chris. Brittany? If you need me I'll be in the library, and Stripe? I hope to see you around here again in the future." Dr. Diggers said.
"Thank you Dr. Diggers. Your hospitality honors me." Stripe responded. Giving a nod his direction, Dr. Diggers teleported to the library, leaving Chris, Cheetah, and Stripe alone in the hallway.
"Right then!" Chris said as he clapped his hands together. "I'll be off now, you two behave now, ya hear." Turning around, Chris began his walk back to the library. But as he was walking back, he heard over his shoulder the sound of a body tackling and pinning another body underneath their own. 'Hehehe, looks like someone's about to have some fun time. Cheetah better take it easy on him though, if not he might just break.'
...
Back in the library with Gina and her father.
We currently see Gina looking over several maps, each of which have a number of large x's placed on them, as she continues to look over more maps. "Zaporozh'ye? No... Sibiu? No... Matochkin Shar? No... Cleveland? Maybe..."
"Hello, Gina. Have you solved your problem, yet?" Dr. Diggers asked as he appeared on the far side of the room behind Gina. "Almost dad." She replied, not looking away from her maps. "I'm just stuck on one minor detail." "Well perhaps I can help." Dr. Diggers offered as he rubbed his chin. "A little bit of magical knowledge might be just what you need to figure out your problem."
Gina turned to face her father before answering. "I dunno dad... I mean... you always bail me out when the going gets tough, and I want to be able to take care of myself for when the time comes that you can't. You won't always be there for me you know."
Just then Chris walked into the library. "Ah, but Gina this is a world-threatening emergency, isn't it?" Gina nearly jumped out of her skin at Chris' sudden appearance, but realized that he did have a point.
"I guess you do have a point there Chris." Gina said as her heart rate slowed down to regular speeds. "Okay then, for starters, on the table here are two magical artifacts. The Gem of Returning, and The Crown of The Ancients. I plan to use both in order to destroy Armageddon, The stone to nullify the magic, and the crown to protect Stripes other heirlooms that are currently acting as Armageddons power source."
"So what's the problem then." Chris asked, confused as to why Gina was having issues. "It sounds pretty straightforward to me."
Gina answered, looking tired as she did. "The problem, Chris, is that the Crown and the Gem don't work together. One or the other; not both!"
Dr. Diggers stepped in here when he realized that this topic was starting to get to his daughter. "Calm down Gina, there must be something that can make the two work together. If not then you would have sought out a different method to defeat this... Armageddon."
This calmed Gina down, somewhat. "Yeah, you're right dad. One of my books mentions an element the can be used to make the two work together, but I can't find a source of Hindrium anywhere on earth. At least not on these maps anyway."
"Well couldn't Dr. Diggers just conjure up as much as we need?" Chris asked. "I mean, I don't know that much about magic, but I do know that conjuring things isn't impossible. And you also said that you don't need that much, right?"
Gina stopped looking at her maps again to give her father a hopeful look.
Unfortunately he had to dash those hopes away with his next statement. "Sorry Gina, I'm powerful, but not that powerful. Not even any of the deities I know would be able pull off that one." He told them quite seriously. "Hindrium has been around for a long time; longer than Hydrogen, even. And Hydrogen's been around since the beginning of the universe. However, fortunately for you there is a source of Hindrium here on earth, but the only way to get to it is through an elusive anomaly known as The Ether Gate."
"Well alright then, you can just poof us over and-"
"It's not that simple Chris." Dr. Diggers interrupted as he picked up a globe and began to spin it slowly. "The Ether Gate is not in a fixed location. It only appears for ten seconds at midnight, and then magically changes its location on for the next night. No on, mortal or immortal, has ever been able to predict its next appearance."
Suddenly several lights appeared on the globe, at seemingly random locations, with numbers next to each light. "All I can do, unfortunately, is show you where it's been for the last ten days. Perhaps you can do something with this information that no one else has."
Gina bent over to look at the globe closer, and in the background Chris held up his hand and counted down from five. Dr. Diggers just gave him yet another funny look, until he hit zero, at which point Gina pointed at the globe and said, quite certainly, "It'll appear here next."
Dr. Diggers looked at where Gina was pointing at, while also trying to ignore Chris' chuckling in the background. "That's... that's in the middle of the Red Sea."
"Farasan Island, to be exact." Gina corrected.
Dr. Diggers was amazed. "How... no one's ever been able to predict where the gate will appear next before. Gina, you must tell me,please, how did you figure it out?"
Chris leaned in, eager to hear the answer since he was curious as well.
"Well, if you really want to hear how your non-magic using daughter was able to figure out what you couldn't..." She trailed off tauntingly.
"If you please, Gina..." Dr. Diggers said.
"To tell the truth, it was quite easy. You see the gate appears exactly on the line that goes between the earth and the center of the universe. An ever changing angle that I happen to know by heart." Gina explained, as a matter of factly.
"Wait, isn't that the same thing you use to pick your lotto numbers?" Chris asked.
"Why yes it is Chris, and I managed to win said lotto four times in the past." Gina told him, quite proud of herself.
"But you're not old enough to gamble yet. You're only eighteen." He stated.
Here's where Dr. Diggers started giving his daughter an, explain right now missy, kind of look. Seeing said look, she grabbed Chris by his furry arm and began to lead him away to the hallway. "-Hehe- Anyway, toodles, dad. We gotta go grab Stripe and Cheetah, and get the car packed and ready to go."
"The car?" Chris asked, confused. "Why can't we take the light gate?"
"Because it can only take us to places we've been before, now c'mon."
Deciding to humor the illegal gambling girl, Chris picked up the pace to help her find Cheetah and Stripe.
"Now where can those two be?" He heard her mutter under his breath. "Maybe in here?" She said as she reached for the guestroom door knob. Not noticing the do not disturb sign on the door handle.
' Oh god, I know she's blonde but she's not seriously...' "Gina, wait!" But Chris' waning came too late, as Gina had already fully opened the door, giving them both an good look at the -ahem- activity, the two were involved in.
"Cheetah... Stripe... are you two in- WHOOPS!- sorry." As she slammed the door closed as fast as she could Chris could only face palm at the short blondes obliviousness, before immediately writing things down in his notebook.
'At least I got a nice view, seriously, what does Dr. Digger feed these girls. I can honestly say that I've never seen a figure like that on a girl I've been friends with before. Good god, why couldn't she be a redhead. Maybe then I would have gone for her.' As Chris lamented over the fact that Cheetah wasn't a redhead, or of asian descent, all while writing down ideas for another book, Gina got chewed out by her sister about knocking.
"Well then ladies, and Stripe. Shall we be off." He said as he put his notebook away.
The sisters just glared at him. Him and his nonchalance.
...
Several hours later, roughly midday to early afternoon, somewhere low over the Nubian Desert. The Diggers group can be seen flying inside one of Ace's new planes. This one being large enough to hold the new and improved Gina mobile MK3. Complete with hovercar capabilities.
"Alright people, holding steady at 300 knots and an altitude of ten feet." Ace said happily as he continued to fly at an insanely low altitude.
"Are you sure this is safe Ace. I mean, there are reasons why they call it 'the minimum safe altitude', aren't there?" Chris said nervously as he looked out the window.
"Oh don't worry so much Chris. Ace knows what he's doing, right Cheetah!?" "-Hmph-" Needless to say, Cheetah still wasn't happy with her sisters inability to knock.
"Aw, c'mon sis, you can't still be mad at me. Can you?" Cheetah ignored her. "I'm sorry okay. Just talk to me, please?"
Ace looked back at the two sisters before turning to give Stripe a questioning look. "What's up with those two Stripe?"
"Don't worry about it Ace, it's personal." Stripe said as he kept his voice as monotone as he could. Just then, Gina started getting louder with her pleas.
"Hey! Would you please cut the noise back there. Seriously, what happened to you guys back at the mansion." Before Stripe could say anything Chris popped his head forward to ask a question.
"The better question here, Ace, is what's that blinking red dot on the control panel mean?" He said as he pointed out the emergency light that was blinking dangerously on Ace's control panel.
After hearing Chris' question, Ace turned his neck towards the control panel so fast Chris thought he was gonna suffer whiplash. Luckily he didn't. "Oh shit! Someone's got us locked on with a missile. Best transmit my I.F.F. cod so these scrubs don't blow us to pieces." He exclaimed in a panicked voice.
"Blow us to pieces..." Chris muttered quietly. Even Gina had stopped talking at the possibility of death.
"Aw geez, radio message coming in." "-bzzt- t'anks for confomin' it was youse Ace, ol buddy boy." "Dark Bird!?" "Dat's right, and me and me night flight's is gonna blow youse to smithereens. Ta-ta Ace.-bzzt-" The radio cut out as the now known Dark Bird finished her threat to ace.
"Ummm, Ace? These wouldn't happen to be the same people you pissed off on the way to the helicarrier, before we went to Atlantis. Would they?" Gina asked from the back.
"Why yes they would Gina, but no need to worry, even if they unload all their missiles on us at once, the fact that we're only ten feet off the turf, and my ECM's blasting at full power, everythings a target out here. so there missile with detonate well before they hit us. -KABOOM- Kinda like that." Ace said as the entire missile payload from the the Night Flight exploded several meters behind them.
-BOOM- Unfortunately it looks like Dark Bird had another idea in mind.
"Ace! She just liquidated your right engine!" Stripe called out as he looked out the window.
"I know Stripe, but I can't do anything about that gatling gun of hers. You guys better get outta here... I'll be fine." He said as he began pushing buttons with extreme precision.
"And what? Leave you behind to-" Chris was cut off by Gina's yell.
"Guys! Ace knows what he's doing. Now come on, and Chris, you'll need to shift to your animal form again. Sorry." She said as she prepped her car.
Giving one last look towards his pilot friend, Chris turned to the Gina mobile before jumping in, shifting in mid leap. Luckily the clothes he had on were several sizes too large, and he had another pair of clothes in the car. Unluckily, it was even more cramped since he had grown by several inches since the last time he shifted.
"You know next time I shift to this form I'm gonna be bigger than my hybrid form." He said as he moved to give Stripe a bit more room. "Yeah I know. Dad said you're gonna be like five or six feet at the shoulder when you finally stop quit complaining and let me drive" Gina said as she pushed a button on the dashboard.
As the Gina mobiles roof closed on top of them Gina rolled out the back of the plane. Luckily it was only a ten foot drop to the ground. "Oh stop worrying you guys, this Gina mobile's sturdy enough to survive a drop from the top of a skyscraper. And even if it couldn't, I still got three more at home. Right Cheetah?" Cheetah just grunted. This only partially lowered their fears. "Hey, does anyone else hear the whistling sound."
"Yeah, it's that Dark Bird chick. She and her crew just dropped a bunch of bombs." Chris said from his extremely cramped position near the window.
"Is that what it is, huh. I thought it was my brakes again." Gina said calmly.
As soon as she said this she reached down to the gear shift. "Hold on people, I'm shifting into second gear."
"SECOND GEAR! We're already going at nearly a hundred mile an hour!" As soon as Stripe said this he was pushed back into his seat due to the extreme G-forces.
"WOOHOO, I hope there's no cops out today. A speeding ticket for three hundred and eighty miles an hour is a pain in the ass to pay. Ain't that right Cheetah." Once again Cheetah just grumbled.
Just then, Chris saw that Dark Bird and her Night Flight had pulled away from what appeared to be a large torpedo explosion. "-bzzt- Hey are you guys alright down there?" Came Ace's voice over the radio.
"Yeah, we're all good down here Ace. Nice job Ace." Gina complemented.
"Thanks Gee, but that holographic projector you hooked me up with is what really did the trick." "Naturally. Alright Ace, I'll talk to you later. We're about to go onto the sea." "Alright Gee, TTYL! -bzzt-"
"Hey Gina? How long will it take for us to get there?" Stripe asked.
"Don't worry Stripe. We'll get there before midnight in hover mode." "Um... Gina?" "Cheetah!? Hurray! My baby sister's talking to me again. What can I do for you Cheetah?" Gina was ecstatic at the fact that her sister was talking to her again.
"Turn around Gina. I need to get myself into a nice clean gas station bathroom." Cheetah said in a hurried voice. "Huh?" I gotta go Gina... BAD"
Chris sighed as he gave Stripe a pat on the back with his paws. "We told you not to guzzle down that extra large big gulp Cheetah. We told you."
...
Later, just off the coast of Farasan Island, only a few minutes to midnight.
-TWEEEEEET!- "I'm up, I'm up!" Cheetah and Gina were awoken by the high pitch whistle coming from Chris, who was still hidden in the back corner of the car beside Stripe.
"Oh good, you're up. Stripe and I were worried you had died from the boredom." The two girls just glared at him as Stripe removed his ear plugs.
"There are better ways to wake people up you know." Gina muttered as she attempted to stretch within the confines of the vehicle. Cheetah grumbled, much like she had been doing all day, and It was starting to annoy Chris.
"Okay seriously, Cheetah, your sister saw you fucking your boyfriend because she didn't knock. Get over it. There are worse people that could have seen you Cheetah. Like your father, for example." He said in an attempt to make Cheetah realise that it wasn't so bad.
Cheetah, who was about to retort, shut her mouth and turned away. "It's none of your business Chris. So stay out of it." She said stubbornly.
"Whatever. Just don't let this get in the way of your work okay. We're trying to save the world here, and internal fighting is just the thing we need for a lethal screw up." Chris said seriously as the car arrived at its destination. "Now let's get to work. Armageddon ain't gonna stop itself after all."
As he hopped out of the car, and shifted to his hybrid form, he heard Gina make a few remarks towards her sister. "You know, I get why you're so mad at me sis, I really do. I mean, after seeing... how well built, Stripe is. I totally get why you were-"
"Enough! Gina. That's none of your business. Now shut up, and leave it!" Cheetah shrieked in embarrassment. "Alright fine. Subject officially dropped."
After hearing this, Chris facepalmed, before turning towards Stripe, who looked extremely embarrassed, and gave him a pitying look and a pat on the back in support. "Hold on there bud. Everybody knows that it gets worse before it gets better. It's just how it is. And hey! I'll probably go through the same thing when I meet a girl. So when that happens, you have free reign to help me out, okay." Stripe just gave him a thankful, yet exasperated look.
-FWOOOOOOSH- Suddenly, as the clock struck midnight, a beam of light shot down from the sky and formed a tower several feet wide. "Alright folks, let's do this. LEROOOY JENKIIINS!" Gina, Cheetah and Stripe, just stared, open mouthed, at the Ether Gate Chris had just charged into.
"Well there's a nerd at his finest, wouldn't you say, Gina?... Gina?" Cheetah looked back at her sister, only to see that she appeared to be more upset that she hadn't done that. As opposed to shocked at the sheer stupidity of the action.
"Hey! Wait for me dammit!" Gina screamed before she too rushed into the gate. Her sister and Stripe following right behind her.
"About time you slowpokes came through. Oops, watch your feet Gina, it's really dark here for some reason." Chris said as he helped Gina, who had tripped on a root, to her feet.
"Hey, Cheetah, watch your hands." "Oh, sorry Stripe, hehe." "It's fine, but your hands are cold." Cheetah was clearly enjoying the darkness.
"Don't let her fool you Stripe, Cheetah's got infrared vision. So if she grabs you, it's on purpose." "GINA!" "What, it's the truth." -CLICK-
As Gina turned her flashlight on, Chris could see that Cheetah was indeed grabbing onto Stripe, in a very inappropriate manner as well. "Seriously, you two. Get a room already." He said as he looked away from the lovely couple.
"We did, but Gina had to go ahead and-" "Where are we Gina? It looks like we're in a forest of some sort." Stripe asked, interrupting the inevitable outburst from his girlfriend.
"We're still in the Ether Gates dimension Stripe. Though this forest is a bit of a mystery. I mean, it's so thick that not even the starlight gets through. I guess it's just part of the dimension, that's all. Anyway, let's go people, we need to find us some Hindrium!" Gina said, voicing her hypothesis.
Suddenly Chris tensed up, and he could see that Cheetah had as well. "Omigod shut up! All of you!" "What's wrong Chee-"
"Quiet Gina." Chris said as he listened in with Cheetah. "There's something here, something big... something that gets fur on the back of my neck standing on end... and this smell.. it smells like...WOLVES!" He yelled in surprise.
"NOW!" Just as Chris realised what it was he and Cheetah were worried about, two were-wolves, a male and a female, lept from the bushes beside them, aiming for lethal strikes to both Chris and Cheetah. "DIE WERECATS!"
Chris, due to his training, managed to dodge completely. Cheetah, on the other hand, was only able to block the attack, and thus got tackled away from the group. "The girl is mine Thabian! You take the albino and his friends. Don't let them interrupt us." The female yelled to the male.
"Of course Jetta. But be caref-oof-" Thabian was unable to finish his statement as Chris had managed to get him with an uppercut that knocks him back a bit.
"Stripe go help Cheetah!" "But-" NOW!" Chris yelled that last part hoping it would get him moving faster. It did.
As Stripe ran after Cheetah and Jetta, Chris turned towards Thabian preparing to give him the fight of his life. Only to receive a chokeslam right in the face, throwing him into the dirt. "-oof-"
"That was a nice punch were-cat. What breed are you. I know you're not a cheetah; you're far too slow." He said in attempt to taunt Chris.
As Thabian went for another punch, Chris ducked and went for a knee strike, only for it to be dodged. "I'm a snow leopard, what of it, and why are you attacking us." The were-wolf looked surprised at this statement.
"A snow leopard, but your kind were wiped out well before the second fall of Iceron." The two exchanged blows to the face; knocking each other back. Before they once again resumed an exchange of blows. "And to answer your question, we attacked because of you and the were-cheetah, but as you are not a were-cheetah, you may leave. We have no quarrel with you, but the cheetah will die."
Chris flinched when he heard this and Thabian was able to grab hold of his wrists. The two eight foot tall were-creatures were now face to face, having paused to listen to the sounds of Cheetah and Stripes fight with Jetta.
Hearing a scream off in the distance, Thabian grinned. "You see cat, you stand no chance against us, now turn around and-" "-Phew- you stink you know that." A voice said, interrupting the were-wolf and catching him off guard.
"What! -WHAM!- ARRGH! MY ARM!" Thabian was knocked to the ground as he grabbed his arm where Gina had fired a point blank blast from her super pistol.
"Thanks Gina. I needed something to distract him." Chris said in thanks.
"Distract him! That should have liquified him!" Gina was not pleased with the lackluster results her pistol had been making so far. "What the heck are you people made of!?"
"Stuff that's tough, now go help your sister." He ordered.
"What! I'm not leaving you here to fight off that thing!" Gina said as she pointed to a slowly rising Thabian.
"I can take care of myself Gina, and your gun would do more good where it's needed now go!" He said with stubbornness.
As Chris finished telling Gina to leave, he activated his Chi claws. "Now them mutt! Where were we!? -GRAAH-" As Chris yelled as he charged forwards, his whole body covered in hardened aura, Gina turned and ran towards where she could here her sister and Stripe struggling.
As Thabian turned to look at Chris, he was so surprised at the now literally glowing were-cat that he was unable to block the right straight that had been aimed at his face. Because of this, he then went flying through several trees before rolling to a stop. Chris then leapt towards the downed were-wolf with the intent of smashing his head in with his foot. Unfortunately Thabian was able to recover a bit faster than Chris could attack and was able to grab his foot and throw him head first into several trees.
Facing each other once again the two large weres then charged each other at full ramming speed. Just before they connected with each other, however, Chris quickly leapt to the side, landing feet first on a tree trunk, before immediately jumping towards the were-wolf's open side, and slamming him into the ground, and putting him into a submission hold. Unfortunately he had to drop his chi to do this, as it made him too bulky to maneuver properly.
As Thabian struggled to get out of Chris' professional hold, Chris couldn't help but get a few words in to grate on his opponents nerves. "-Hehe- Not so tough now, eh big guy. Don't suppose you could call your bitch over here as well, could you. I really don't want her dealing with my friends."
Thabian realised that Chris was just trying to rile him up so as to get him to call for his partner, knowing that his friends couldn't take her. "I see. Your friends are not as skilled as you at fighting, and yo wish to save them from harm. Well I'm sorry, but there's no way I'm going to call my mate for help when she's about to finish off your friends."
"I was afraid you'd say that, guess I have no choice now. Sorry about this." Chris said as he moved his head towards Thabians neck.
"What are-CHOMP-AARGH!" Thabians question was interrupted with his scream of pain as Chris took as large and powerful bite outta Thabians shoulder, and held on tight as he ground his teeth, knowing that it would hurt do to the lycanthrope weakness they both had. "LET ME GO DAMMIT-AARGH- AHHH-LET ME GO!"
"THABIAN!"Hearing the scream from the female were-wolf, Chris let go of Thabians neck, his face bloody from his bite, and looked towards where the scream had come from, but in doing so slackened grip just enough for him to break his hold.
He then grabbed Chris by his extremely long tail, and threw him towards Jetta. Who saw what had happened to her husband, and was extremely pissed off. As Chris flew through the air towards Jetta,he was barely able to block his vital areas as she clawed up his back as he managed to turn away from her claws.
"AAGH" He screamed as the sudden pain from several sharp, hard as steel, claws digging into his back made him unable to land properly as he hit the ground hard. 'Those claws are far more painful than Cheetah's, but then again the lack of zebra in her diet made it so her claws weren't all that strong.'
Suddenly voices came out from the direction Jeta had come from. "Hey you bitch get away from my friend." Jetta then moved towards her husband and began looking over his wounds.
Turning towards the direction Jetta had come from, to see that Stripe, Cheetah, and Gina, had followed Jetta back towards where he and Thabian were fighting.
"Oh my god! Chris, are you alright?!" Gina screamed as she saw the five deep gashes going across his back.
"Not really, but my spines not severed, so I should be okay." Chris said weakly as he stood up. "How about you guys, any lasting damage."
"No, but the fight isn't over yet, so that could change." Stripe said grimly as he looked towards Jetta and Thabian.
"Are you alright love." Jetta asked Thabian as she checked his wound.
"I am fine Jetta, He didn't bite anything vital, and the bleeding is not severe. I think his goal was to make me scream so that you would come back. He was not aiming to kill me." Jetta looked confused at this but refused to back down from the fight.
"That doesn't matter, if you can fight then we shall fight. Now c'mon, let's get them." She said as she helped her husband stand up again.
The two groups faced each other in preparation to take each other out, and unfortunately Jetta and Thabian were in better shape than the Diggers, Stripe, and Chris.
"Alright people, Gina you stay back while me and Cheetah charge in, -cough- Stripe, you watch our backs and use hit and run tactics to act as distractions." Stripe looked unhappy at this.
"Chris, you can't be serious, that's a serious wound you have. We need to get you treated, and now that we've been here we can uses the light gate to get back." He said trying to get his friend to see reason.
"Not enough time." Chris said stubbornly. "And nothing you will do will injure them, since their only weaknesses are me and Cheetah, that and silver, but we don't got any on us right now. So this is our only shot. GO!"
As soon as he said this Cheetah charged Jetta as Chris leapt towards Thabian. His thoughts filled with silent screams as he continued to tear open the flesh on his back. Unfortunately, his wound began to affect his fighting faster than Thabian's, slowing his movements from the blood loss. Something Thabian took advantage of.
As he dodged Chris strikes, which were getting weaker by the second, Thabians thought were going a mile a minute as he tried to figure out the enigma before him. 'Why, why does this boy fight. He is severely injured, and from his scent holds no blood ties to any of his companions. The females are sisters, he said so himself, the cat is adopted of course, and the cats scent is all over that other man. Lovers perhaps? Either way... this man doesn't seem to hold any strong relation to any of the others. So why does he fight, when he knows that he is severely injured, why.' Thabian was actually quite impressed with Chris' will to fight.
"Thabian! Stop daydreaming and fight seriously. That albinos movements have slowed considerably. So end him already!" Jetta ordered Thabian as she threw Stripe, who had missed his attack, into a tree, knocking the wind out of him and stunning him. She then caught Cheetahs wild punch and placed her into a choke hold. "Now watch, were-cat. As my husband tears out your albino friends throat."
Jettas demand snapped him out of his thought as he deflected one of Chris' strikes and grabbed him by the neck, he then raised him into the air to choke him as his feet dangled limply and he attempted to break free. "Sorry were-cat, but the missus wants you dead, but even with that bite you gave me, no hard feelin- BANG-AARGH- JETTA!?"
Hearing a loud bang, and the scream from his wife caused him to turn, dropping Chris in the process.
Unfortunately, the loss of blood, the choking, and the sudden fall, regardless of how short, were enough to make him black out. His last sight being an image of Jetta holding her leg in pain as it began to smoke, from what appeared to be silver, and Gina screaming at him as he fell over, before it all faded to black.
...
An unknown amount of time later, we can see Chris floating in a large cylindrical tank, while being hooked up to various types of medical equipment. It appears that he is unconscious, but the sudden twitches his fingers make says otherwise, and Chris' eyes slowly open.
'What the hell. Where am I.' As he looks around he sees that he's in some sort of lab, begins to panic, thinking that he was captured by some sort of government organization that was going to dissect him to figure out what makes him work. He was so distracted that he didn't even realise that he didn't feel any pain on his back where he had been slashed. Luckily, before he can do anything drastic, like punch a hole in the tank, a door off to the side opens up and his friends all walk in.
"Chris! you're awake! Here just hold on a minute and I'll get you out of there." Gina said before moiving over to the control panel.
After the tank empties and Chris towels off and gets dressed, he walks over to where Gina's waiting for him.
"So what happened Gina, and what where are we? You didn't bring me to a secret lab on the outskirts of a desert to heal me up and dissect me, did you?" He asked curiously.
Giggling slightly, at his questions, she just shook her head. "No Chris , you're at my house in my personal lab. That tank was my rejuvenation chamber. I helps with the recovery of any and all wounds. Even those caused by magic. Though you should still be careful. You still need to heal a bit before you're at tip top shape. Now c'mon. I only came down to check on you, but if you're up to it everybody's upstairs."
Nodding towards her,Chris followed her through the doors towards the elevator. He winced in pain, however, when the elevator began to rise. "Damn, hurts more now that I'm outta that tank." He said as he carefully rubbed his tender back.
"That's to be expected, the tank was giving you anesthetics after all." Gina explains.
"How long was I out for anyway?" He asked suddenly
"Three days, roughly. It would've been longer, but my dad, and our other magic friends, Mesh, Tark, and Tyr helped get you stable again. You lost a lot of blood you know." The lift arrives at the top of the elevator.
As the two get out of the elevator, Chris looks around and realises that he is indeed in a house.
After walking into the kitchen he notices that everybody was there. Except for Stripe and Tyr, but they probably had duties to attend to in their respective kingdoms. "Hey peeps, how it go- oof"
A sudden blonde bullet hits him before he can finish his sentence, and tears form at the corners of his eyes due to the pain of having his wounds squeezed by the were-cheetah that was hugging him. "Nice to see you too Cheets, but you're squeezing my wounds." He managed to squeak out.
"Ohmygosh. I'm so sorry." Cheetah said as she let him go.
"No problem Cheetah, I'm just a bit tender is all. Now tell me, what happened, I mean, I'm guessing we won since we're not all dead, but how exactly did we win. What happened to those were-wolves after I blacked out." He asks before waiting expectantly for an answer.
Gina and Cheetah glanced at each other before turning back at him. Before they can speak though, their father talks first.
"Are you sure you want to hear the story, Chris. Perhaps you should rest a bit more before we go into that." Dr. Diggers said from his position next to Tark and Mesha, athe the head of the table.
"No, I'm fine. I'm happy you're thinking about my health, but I want to know what happened." Chris said stubbornly. The Digger sisters sighed in unison before explaining what had happened.
Right before he blacked out Gina had shot Jetta in the leg with a silver bullet, a bullet that narrowly missed Cheetah. Thabian, who had dropped Chris at this point, rushed over to his wife and ran away as fast as he could all the while carrying his fallen wife.
After the were-wolves had left Gina had rushed over to Chris' side and began to apply what little first aid she knew, in order to stop his bleeding, with Cheetah and Stripe helping as best they could. Unfortunately nothing was working, so they had to let Cheetah use the light gate to get back carry him back to Dr. Diggers mansion, with the hopes that Dr. Diggers would be able to help. Since lycanthrope wounds are magical in mature.
As this was happening, Gina and Stripe continued on to get the Hindrium, which they found in several flowers on the outskirts of what they discovered to be the Garden of Eden. After picking the flowers, and light gating them into Armageddon, they then returned home to help get Chris fixed up, and move him into the new and improved healing tank at Gina's house.
It was silent around the table as Gina and Cheetah finished their tale. Each of them wondering how Chris would react to what happened.
"Well... that's certainly an anticlimactic ending, isn't it." Every one nearly face faulted at his statement.
"Wait, what. That's all you have to say about what happened." Cheetah said incredulously.
"Well sure. I mean, you're all okay, and no one but me got really hurt. The only reason I wanted to know what happened so much was because I wanted to know how I was supposed to end the story." "The story!?"
"Yeah, the story. I didn't take all those note while we were travelling for no reason you know." Gina, Cheetah, Tark, and Mesha, just looked at him dropped jaw amazement, but Dr. Diggers looked at him in understanding. "Let me guess, you all thought I would be beating myself up about the fact that I wasn't able to do anything in the end; right?"
There were nods all around, since that was exactly what they all thought. "Well nope. The only reason I would beat myself up about something, would be if I failed in protecting my friends, which in this case didn't happen. Now then! If it's no trouble with you guys, I would greatly appreciate it if someone could help me hobble next door to my house. Since I'm assuming it's done if this one is."
Dr. Diggers was the first to reply to his request. "I'll help you out Chris, I was just about to leave anyway to be honest. But are you sure you don't want to stay here and celebrate your good health." Dr. Diggers asked.
"Nah, I'm too tired to party right now, it's after dark anyways. And before you say anything Gina, I refuse to spend a single second more than necessary naked and suspended in a giant fish tank. Right now what I need in my own bed for some nice R and R, nothing else." Chris said as he walked to the exit with Dr. Diggers. "Thank you for the wonderful adventure you two. If it's alright with you I'll be over tomorrow for a check up tomorrow morning, just in case."
"Sure thing Chris, in fact. Here's a spare key to the house. You're already keyed into the security. So just come over whenever you want. Okay." Gina said as she handed him a key.
"Thanks Gina, see ya tomorrow." He said with a big grin on his face. Gina just smiled back, happy that her friend was okay.
As Dr. Diggers and Chris walked over to Chris' new house. Dr. Diggers mood became slightly worried. "You're not really that okay, are you Chris?"
Chris' smile dropped and he was silent for a few seconds before answering. "No. No I'm not. I may have said I succeeded at protecting my friends, but I wasn't. I lost to probably our most dangerous obstacle yet, and became a liability in the end because I lost my grip on the enemy for less than a second. And why. All because I wouldn't kill him. I had the chance, but I didn't take it, and because of that I got to hurt to fight, and my friends could have died."
"Is that what you think, Christopher. Because I think that you're completely wrong in that aspect. I think you did quite admirably, for someone who was completely new to adventuring. And trust me, I know quite a bit about adventuring, having been an adventurer for the majority of my young adult life." Dr. Diggers said as he help Chris keep walking. "And to face a pair of fully trained and matured were-wolves is no simple feat,even if you didn't win. You simply relied too much on your Chi, and healing abilities granted to you in your hybrid form. The fact that you haven't lost a fight in several years may have also added to it, but I have no doubt in my mind that you could've won that fight easily. Your opponent just got lucky that's all."
Once again Chris was silent as he he and Dr. Diggers arrived at the door to his house. "Dr. Diggers. About that offer you made to me before we left to get the Hindrium... I want to go. I want to train in the Jade Realm!"
Dr. Diggers gave him a look, as if he was expecting this outcome. "Then I guess it's a good thing I contacted my Karia before you woke up, eh." He said with a grin.
"You did, but how'd you know..." Chris trailed off the end of his sentence as he tried to figure out how Dr. Diggers seemed to know his so well.
"Like I said Chris, I too was once an adventurer. I know what it's like to feel helpless. Right now you have the skill, but not the experience. Gina and Brittany may not be as skilled as you in fighting, but they are more experienced with unexpected situations on adventures. During your adventure, I believe you had come to think you were prepared for anything when you had run into those were-wolves. What with you going to El Dorado, Atlantis, Shangri-La, and what was apparently the Garden of Eden, I can see why this might be." Dr. Diggers explained. "However, because of that, along with your previous fights, I think you got cocky, which is why I said your opponent got lucky. I don't think you're the kind of person that gets overconfident. Your trip to the Jade Realm will let you learn exactly where you stand when it comes to your power, as well as help you gain the experience of an adventurer you so desperately want."
After hearing Dr. Diggers talk, Chris realised that he had indeed gotten cocky, and in doing so got careless. He smiled a truly happy smile for the first time that night. "Thanks Dr. Digger, I thinks that's just what I needed to hear right now."
As he said this Dr. Diggers unlocked the door to his house with the key he had. "Indeed. Here's your key Chris. Now you'd best get a good nights sleep. After you get your check up tomorrow you'd best pack up, you'll be leaving in the afternoon. Goodnight"
Surprised at how soon he would be leaving, he just nodded, saying a quick goodnight as he closed the door to his house.
...
The next morning, at the entrance to Cheetah and Gina's house. Chris can be seen, standing in his human form, at the entrance to the house waiting for the residents of said house to answer the door. -ding dong- But after several minutes of waiting in minor soreness from his previous injuries, Chris decided to put the key he was given to good use, and opened the door.
As he walked into the house he noticed three things. One, no one was in the kitchen. Two, no one was in the living room. And three, the elevator did not appear to have been used. As such, the obvious conclusion, for as to why no one was answering the door was that, simply put, no one was awake. But just to be sure he walked down the hallway towards Ginas room and knocked on her door. He then heard a muffled groan from within the room. Turning around, he then walked out the door and went straight back to his house to grab something.
"Geez are these guys serious. It's nearly ten o'clock already, and they're still sleeping. God." He said in exasperation as he walked back into Ginas house with the item from his house. Said item just so happened to be an air horn. -HOOOONK- Which was loud. -YEEEK- "-Hmmm- Three girly shrieks and a manly scream. I guess Tark and Mesha spent the night here for some reason instead of going back to Dr. Diggers."
"Christopher Climbers, what the hell is your problem!" Gina screamed as she walked out of her room half dressed in nothing but her panties and a shirt. The other occupants were also slowly coming out of their rooms in various states of half nakedness. Or in Mesh and Tarks case, the guest room.
"My problem, Gina, is that I usually don't get up later than eight thirty to nine o'clock, but here you are sleeping in until ten, way past that if I hadn't woken you up, when I'm supposed to be getting my final check up to see if everything's okay." Chris explained calmly. "By the way, I know you're all still half asleep, and yes I mean you three as well, but seriously, you all might want to go get dressed before we continue this conversation any more than we already have."
After he said this the four recently awoken sleeping beauties looked at their current states of dressed, and rushed back into their rooms to change.
Except for Tark. But for guys it's okay to walk around in just a pair of pants at home.
"So Tark. Can you cook." Chris asked as he they both walked towards the kitchen. "Not really, but I can work a coffee machine." "Well good! Cause I can't, since I don't drink coffee."
Chris and Tark spent the next twenty minutes cooking brunch for everybody as they waited for the girls to finish getting ready for the day. "You ever wonder it's like to take more than five minutes to get dressed for a regular day that's not something formal." "Nope" "Me neither."
Just then Mesha entered the kitchen, lured in by the aroma of a healthy brunch. Following her was Gina and Cheetah, who were also enjoying the mouth watering scent. -growl- "Well, well, well, someone's hungry." Chris said as he put the food covered plates on the table. "Alright folks, eat up. This here's my apology for using an air horn on you guys."
No one said anything, since they were too engrossed in devouring the delicious food that was in front of them. But when they finished they let him know how much they enjoyed it.
"Good god Chris, did you go to chefs school as well. Seriously, that was one of the best meals I've ever had, and it was just a simple meal too!" Cheetah said as she finished her meal. "It wasn't as good as tuna, but it was closer than anything else I've ever had."
As the rest of the group finished eating and began to help put everything away Gina began to pull Chris towards the elevator. "Alright guys me and Chris gotta go down to the lab to finish his check up. back in a few."
After reaching the lab and going through the embarrassment of having to stip naked to get into the tank to be scanned, Chris came out with a clean bill of health. Though he would still have scars on his back from his encounter with the were-wolves. They then did some Checks on his hybrid and animal form, confirming that his animal form had stopped growing at five foot six inches tall, and that he was in more or less tip top shape.
"Alright now Chris, you're good to go. So now what are you gonna do." Gina asked as she and Chris walked into the living room where the other three were waiting. "And why are you hanging out in your human form."
"Actually I need to talk to you guys about that." He said nervously. "And it was out of habit I guess. I'll be hanging around more were-creatures soon anyway so I guess I better get more used to my hybrid form anyway." He said right before shifting.
His statement gained the attention of the rest of the rooms occupants. "You see, not that long before we left to get the Hindrium Dr. Diggers offered to get in touch with one of his war mage friends in the Jade Realm. Last night night just got back to me and told me that he contacted her, and got me a place at her school. So later this afternoon I'll be going to the Jade Realm to receive training from Master Karia." Silence was what greeted his statement.
"What?... But... why? You just got home and your house just got built. Is this because of what happened? Because it's not your fault, not at all." Gina said, unable to comprehend why Chris was just leaving. She was starting to really enjoy his company.
"That's part of it, yes. But the truth is that I really enjoyed the adventure we went on, and I want to keep going on adventures in the future. Unfortunately there's some things I need to do before I think I'll feel comfortable doing something like this again." Chris explained to his saddened friends. "If I want to keep adventuring I need to focus more on my martial arts, but I feel like I've reached a wall in what I'm currently doing. There's no schools here that can help me improve, and just fighting constantly in the arena won't help me fast enough. That, and after going on the adventure we just had, I just want to see even more things that I've never seen before. If I go to Jade then I can do all that and more."
Gina and Cheetah looked upset at what Chris was saying, but they seemed to understand what he wanted. "If that's how you feel Chris, then I guess that's how it is."
"Thanks for understanding you guys. But that isn't all I came over for." Gina, Cheetah, and the elves gave him a questioning look. "Heh, I was also wondering if you guys would be able to house sit for me while I'm gone; and help me pack."
His four neighbours just gave him an amused look, before following Chris back over to his house so he could show them around.
"Alright guys, I don't really think there's much you need to do to take care of the place. But I'll show you around anyway. By the way Gina your robots did an excellent job moving things in for me." He said as he led the group into the house.
As the group made their way through the house, Chris pointed out the main places of the houses main floor. Living room, kitchen, dining room, den, and the bathroom. Upstairs he showed them the master bedroom, the connected library, and the two small guest bedrooms. None of this was all that impressive, but then they went to the basement. Which was far more impressive than the other floors.
"Finally we have the basement. My pride and joy." Chris said as his guests jaws dropped in amazement.
The basement itself was shaped like a large gym, being nearly twice the size of the above floor, it was very open concept, having been built like a bomb shelter. Thus it didn't require many beams to keep the house from collapsing.
It was very spartan in design, only having mats on the ground and a bathroom/changeroom, on the side. The two features that really stood out however, was the sauna on the opposite side of the room to the bathrooms, and the wall on the far side from the entrance. The wall covered in an assortment of ancient weaponry.
"Wow Chris, I didn't know you collected weapons. Where'd you get them, heck, when did you get them." Cheetah said as the group went over to the large collection of nearly a hundred assorted weapons.
"Truth is these are mainly family heirlooms. Most of them were passed down from parent to child, but recently they've just been in storage." Chris explained as he went over to a specific section of the wall. "Apparently it was tradition to pass a weapon that you yourself had made on to your descendent when you thought they were ready."
Chris picked up a pair of short staffs off of the wall. "My father died before he could pass these on to me directly, but I think it's time I put these to good use." He said before turning the staffs into nunchucks, and then changing them back
"I didn't know you used weapons Chris. Why didn't you use any before when you were fighting." Mesha asked as she and the others walked over to him.
Chris sighed before answering. "The truth is that I usually do use my own short staffs when fighting, but they broke before I met you guys. I hadn't been able to replace them before we left, and these weapons were all in storage. I can actually use all these weapons, but I'm best with these staffs."
"Wow! You must know a lot about weapons then, huh." Cheetah said as she once again looked towards the large wall covered in weapons.
"-sigh- My father tried to teach me as much as he could before he died. So I can make and take care of them fine, but my mother tried to make me forget it all after he died. So I hope to polish my declining skills when I go to Jade." He said as he began to pack up more of his things. "When I come back I also want to try and learn more about my family history. I have a feeling that my dad wasn't able to teach me everything he could before he died."
Having finished the tour of his new house, the group then went upstairs to help Chris finish packing. The only things he decided to bring were several changes of clothes, his staffs, a couple of notebooks to write his adventures into, the books he copied from Shangri-La, and his necklace, given to his from his father.
Just then a light appeared outside the house in the backyard. It was Dr. Diggers, waiting for him, next to what appeared to be a portal. Looking at the clock on the wall, they realised that it was already mid afternoon.
"Well guys, this is it." He said as he turned to the group to say his goodbyes. "I'll see you guys in a few months, I guess. Maybe sooner if I get the chance to come back and visit."
"See ya soon Chris, and the next time we go on an adventure you'd better be ten times better than you are right now. Alright!" Gina said as she said her goodbyes.
"Sure thing Gina. But I'll be sure to be a thousand times better than I am right now." He said as he walked towards the portal. "Okay Dr. Diggers, let's get this show on the road!"
...
AN: Well there you have it. The end of Chris' first adventure. I'm sorry to say, but it's also time for me to put this on a hiatus of unknown length. You see I wrote this story using the mini-series comics as a template and general outline. I don't plan on doing that for the next little bit of Chris' life. I want to make it more original. More revolved around Chris. Don't get me wrong. I still plan on having him go on adventures with the Diggers, but I want him to also develop more individually, so that he can become more than what he is currently. So I'll be putting this story on a short hiatus in order to write some outlines for the next few chapters, which will be about Chris' time in Jade, before he eventually comes back to earth. There will also be more revealed in regards to Chris' family as well. So don't think I'm just gonna leave it as is.
So now that, that's out of the way, please review. I'd like to know my readers opinions about what I've written. They help out a lot, unless they're insults or flames. Those can go straight to the trash.