Chapter 24: Dark Cloud

Tower of the Leptys, in flight above the Summit Beyond the Clouds, Nineteen Years Ago

Above the white-coated peak that hid the Hoodlum Headquarters, a dark bank of clouds boiled forwards. The clouds spread slowly but surel towards the mountain's summit, stretching thousands of metres into the sky above it.

Within the enormous cloud lurked a presence.

As the cloud bank slowed to a halt just above the peak of the icy mountain, the angry clouds began to disperse, shrinking away from the immense object in their midst. As the clouds retreated, a dark shape became apparent, protruding thousands of metres straight into the air. Wide at the base and tapering to a spiked top, it hovered above the Hoodlum base, driven by some mysterious, extremely powerful engine.

It was a Tower.

The Tower of the Leptys.

Inside Hoodlum Headquarters, a pleasantly sensual female voice stated over the loudspeaker: "The Leptys has arrived." As though anyone needed reminding. Upon the Tower's arrival, organised chaos had taken hold. The Hoodlums were desperately trying to organise themselves according to Andre's plan, with limited success. Andre had summoned the Leptys here, not realising how much effort it would take to transfer his not inconsiderable army into the enormous Tower. And now Rayman had become a large and rather damaging spanner in the works, fighting his way through the Hoodlum Army in an effort to stop Andre and Reflux, and rescue Globox, who Andre had taken captive. He was drawing dangerously close to the Horrible Machine...

A stream of Hoodlum aircraft flew back and forth between the various points on the Tower and the Summit, airlifting as many of Andre's valuable soldiers onto the magnificent, dark structure as possible. Before long there were hundreds of Black Lums at Andre's command in the Tower.

In a quiet, isolated section of the Leptys Tower, the air itself opened up into a small time portal. Three Limbless, a Hedgehog, and a fairy emerged from its swirling depths, landing on the stone floor of a balcony. The mismatched group gazed in awe at their surroundings, speechless. From their position two thirds up the Tower's height, they had a spectacular view of the white mountain range below, the ocean that bordered them, and the Tower itself, floating on a small bed of clouds, all perfectly sharp in the beautifully clean air. A cool wind blew across them, stirring their hair. They could also see the swarms of Hoodlums landing on the Tower. They had to duck quickly out of sight as a balloon-ship ascended past their balcony, carrying a contingent of Hoodmongers, an odd two-armed Black Lum and a huge Knaaren warrior, staff in hand.

As the balloon-ship disappeared above them, Shadow stood. "Well, you haven't killed us, Dark. Are we in the right place?" he asked Ly. She nodded, sadness eclipsing her awe at the grand Tower.

"So what now?" Rayden reluctantly asked Mr. Dark, still disgusted at having to associate with the sorcerer.

"Now, we must wait. It will be several hours before our chance..."

Before he could finish, the time portal convulsed and gave up one final passenger, before shrinking and closing. The metallic figure hit the ground and rolled with a clang of metal against stone, and the eyes of the five allies widened in astonishment as Metal Rayman stood before them.

The robotic Limbless rapidly ran a scan of the five of them, drawing up files for each.

Subject Name: Mr. Dark

Species: Ray (Limbless Variant)

Known Abilities: Powerful sorcerous abilities. True extents unknown.

Affiliation: Previously Dr. Eggman, now assumed to be Fairy Council

Status: Dangerous

Subject Name: Shadow

Species: Hedgehog (Mobian Variant)

Known Abilities: Proficient in all Chaos Control powers.

Affiliation: Fairy Council

Known Family: Maria Robotnik (Human, adoptive sister, deceased), Gerald Robotnik (Human, creator, deceased), Black Doom (Black Arm, genetic contributor, presumed deceased)

Status: Dangerous

Subject Name: Unknown

Species: Ray (Limbless Variant)

Known Abilities: Standard Silver Lum-induced Ray Powers (presumed)

Status: Apparently Dangerous

Affiliation: Presumably Fairy Council

Subject Name: Ly

Species: Fairy

Known Abilities: Production of Silver Lums, telepathic powers, certain energy-based "magical" powers

Affiliation: Fairy Council

Known Family: Rayman (Ray, partner, deceased), Raylina (Ray, daughter)

Status: Potentially Dangerous

Subject Name: Raylina

Species: Ray (Limbless Variant) with fairy heritage)

Known Abilities: Standard Silver Lum-induced Ray powers, telepathic powers

Affiliation: Fairy Council

Known Family: Ly (Fairy, mother), Rayman (Ray, father, deceased)

Status: Potentially Dangerous

Faced by five beings with "Dangerous" in their status, Metal Rayman's high-performance CPU mind instantly arrived at an appropriate conclusion.

Suggested Course of Action: Retreat.

Metal Rayman turned and ran before any of them could react. Mr. Dark tossed nets of sorcerous power to entrap it, but Metal Rayman dodged and weaved and rolled, easily avoiding them. Rayden fired short, controlled bursts at the robot's head, but they zinged off in strange directions, deterred by an electro-magnetic field.

The false Ray was running towards the inner wall of the large balcony, towards the entrance of the black stone tower. A flash of blue light and Shadow was in its way. With reflexes only a machine could achieve, Metal Rayman somersaulted over Shadow's head. The Hedgehog quickly span and swept Metal Rayman's feet out from under it, but it span sideways in the air, caught Shadow by the throat, and slammed him into the ground on its other side as it span. Flipping over the Hedgehog, Metal Rayman leapt straight upwards, guided by air-jets in hands and feet, and grabbed hold of the Tower's outer walls. Using a set of electromagnets in its hands to cling to the sheer rock-and-metal walls of the floating behemoth, Metal Rayman rapidly scaled the Tower. Rayden sprayed bullets at the retreating silver form, and Raylina tossed energy balls at it, but it was too quick. Mr. Dark summoned a bolt of lightning from the dark clouds above, striking like a white hot lance against the side of the Tower. But instead of hitting the highly conductive robot, the lightning was attracted to a gargoyle-like statue of metal nearby. Raylina clamped her hands over her ears as the thunderclap rolled over them, deafeningly loud. She didn't hear Dark yell "No!" as the metal statue separated from the side of the Tower and plummeted downwards. Straight towards Raylina.

With a burst of speed, the sorcerer ran towards her and shoved her out of the way. She sprawled to the ground, and looked up in shock to see Dark standing in her place, hands in the air, the huge, red-hot gargoyle floating in the air above him, suspended by his sorcerous power. They watched as he let it thump to the ground beside him. Still shocked by how close she had come to death, Raylina gasped "You... saved me,"

"You are the Chosen One," he said, head bowed. "You must not die."

Ly went to help Raylina up, but she quickly regained her own feet. "The machine has gone," Ly said softly, gazing at where Metal Rayman had been. "What was that thing?" Shadow demanded, red eyes boring into Mr. Dark as he returned to his feet. "It looks like something Eggman would build."

"Yes, he did. A fighting robot he built to look like Rayman," Dark answered, shaking his head. "It has extremely advanced programming and can make its own decisions, within certain parameters. It must have decided that following us through the portal would be of benefit to its master, namely Eggman."

"How do we know you didn't order it to follow us?" Rayden asked suspiciously.

"I guess you don't," Dark looked Rayden in the eye from the shadows beneath his hat.

"That's reassuring. With your track history, that robot is probably taking the Sceptre for you right now."

Dark bowed his head once again.

Rayden sneered, open contempt on his face. "This is a change for you. Back in the day you would have struck me down with a fireball or a giant rock or something just for insulting you. What's the matter, Dark? Gone soft?"

The absolute malice in his voice was tangible.

Raylina couldn't take this. "Rayden, please. We have to keep working together."

Rage burned in Rayden's gaze. "You have no idea of the atrocities this man has committed. He is less than scum. He deserves..."

"Stop."

Mr. Dark's voice still carried the edge of command.

"Yes, Rayden, I have committed atrocities. Horrid things that burn in my mind every day, every minute. Do you think I am proud of the monstrosities, the genocides, the murder? My life has brought nought but death, my hands covered in the blood of hundreds, thousands."

He closed his eyes, and Raylina could have sworn a tear dropped from the shadows of his face. "I don't expect you to forgive me for the suffering you have endured at my hands, Rayden. In fact, once our task here is complete, I will happily submit to whatever punishment you prescribe. But until then, we must remain united. We have to do this, or else our world, every world, is doomed to eternal servitude."

Rayden shook his head, turning away. "Quite an act," he said as he walked to the railing at the edge of the balcony, but Raylina could tell he would cause no further trouble.

Before anyone could ask what came next, their attention was drawn to the mountain below by a series of loud rumbling noises from within the snow-clad peak. As the five of them rushed to the balcony's edge to see what was going on, an entire section of snow, ice and rock close to the mountain's top blew away, a spectacular jet of steam rushing out. The red hot glow of fresh magma could be glimpsed behind the chaotic out pouring. Rock and ice flew in every direction, tonnes of the stuff thundering down the side of the mountain.

Then, as a huge Hoodlum machine gave up its valiant wrestling match with the awesome forces of the earth itself, a second explosion rocked the mountain, the pressure blowing straight upwards through the new hole. The hot air rushed upwards with staggering force, taking with it hundreds of free-flying Black Lums. The tiny black dots scattered against the backdrop of the huge peak, but the air carried one final passenger.

Rayman himself rode upwards with the massive thermal updraft, flailing wildly as he tried to take control of his flight. Propelled from deep within the mountain itself, his ascent began to slow as the hot air cooled rapidly in the brisk mountain environment. Without warning, the winds deposited him at the Tower's base, landing, as if by a miracle, unhurt.

Mr. Dark withdrew from the balcony's edge, the others still gazing in awe at the spectacle Rayman had caused. "History in the making," the sorcerer remarked.

Andre the Black Lum hovered alongside the huge Knaaren warrior, cursing his rotten luck. When Rayman had destroyed the Horrible Machine, Andre had had no choice but to flood the lower levels of the Headquarters with lava, in a desperate final bid to kill the Limbless rat. Hundreds of his loyal Hoodlum soldiers had been destroyed, and yet Rayman remained alive, as if by the devil's own luck! Not only that, but reports were beginning to filter through from the Tower's lower levels that Rayman was inside and battling his way upwards! The damn creature just didn't die. Andre had abandoned thousands of his troops inside the mountain to die, while he himself escaped. Normally that wouldn't have bothered him (survivor's guilt was not a prominent feature in a Black Lum's emotions), but now he was in unknown and potentially hostile territory with a vastly diminished military force. Bloody Ray...

Andre calmed himself. He had enough of an army left to serve his purposes, and those he had lost would be replenished a thousand times over once he had invoked the Leptys. Yes.... then everything would be right. Rayman would be dead, and Andre would have the world at his fingers.

Andre frowned. The Tower was moving again. Where too...? It was floating east... odd. The Leptys appeared to be directing it in the general direction of the Fairy Glade.

Andre snapped at Reflux. "How long until we can unite with the Leptys?"

Reflux stood over the blocky Sceptre of the Leptys, hands hovering over the glowing sphere at the top. "The Bringer of Night prepares himself even now."

He looked up at the clouds gathering above them, greed and lust for revenge bathing his reptilian face. "Soon. Very soon."

The five time-travellers had entered the Tower proper, hoping to find a way to the top floor, where Dark said the Sceptre would be. Raylina gazed in awe at the supremely magnificent interior, constructed in ages past by race or races unknown.

They were inside a wide, echoing chamber, seemingly consisting of white marble. The floor was flat, but the roof swirled and dipped like waves on the ocean tipped upside-down. Along the floor of the chamber were row after row of odd, two-man aircraft. They were sleek at first glance, but their hulls were patched with scrap metal and strange odds and ends. The small ships' open cockpits contained a joystick with two buttons for controls, with a gun emplacement at each craft's rear. Some sort of small propulsion jets were attached to the ships via protruding fins.

It was a hangar.

Mr. Dark cocked his head sideways. "Odd... these craft are similar to ancient Ray designs, but curiously modified..."

"Will they fly?" asked Raylina, inspecting the inside of the nearest one.

"They appear to be intact, but who knows how old they actually are?"

"Only one way to find out," she muttered, climbing into the pilot's chair.

Immediately, she noticed that the interior was designed for a creature far larger than herself. The seat was wide, the joystick large enough to fill a Knaaren's claw. But the rear gunner's position, on the other hand, was the perfect size for a Ray. Very odd.

Raylina found a large switch on the craft's dashboard. Blowing the dust away, she flicked it across, and immediately the ship began to hum, the perfectly preserved engineering coming to life. It rose slightly into the air, held in place by some sort of anti-gravity. Raylina smiled, gripping the ill-fitting joystick. She gently pushed forwards, and the ship obligingly hovered forwards a couple of metres. Using a second, smaller stick, she pointed the craft's nose upwards and pushed forward harder. The Leptys shuttle shot upwards diagonally, the engines making an odd, high-pitched whistling noise as they propelled it. She released the joystick and the craft immediately halted, floating stationary above the others. She smiled. "I like this thing." Using both joysticks, she intuitively piloted the craft, swooping and turning, ignoring the interior's inconvenient proportions. She turned upside-down, and was astonished to find that she didn't fall out, held in the seat by some invisible force. The blood didn't even rush to her head. She righted it and guided it in to land beside the others. "Anyone for a ride?" she asked, grinning.

Shadow climbed into the gunner's chair, test-firing the turret at the roof. A green stream of plasma shot out of the square gun with a high-pitched sound, leaving a dark singe on the marble ceiling. Turning it on a nearby lifeless shuttle, Shadow swept the weapon across the other craft's bow. It withstood the assault for just over a second, before the hull buckled and collapsed, both melted by the heat and imploded by the force.

Ly took the wheel of her own shuttle, being better fitted for the large chair, while Rayden took the turret. Mr. Dark took a shuttle for himself.

As the three aircraft lifted off, Raylina spoke to Shadow: "I think this thing deserves a name."

Shadow looked back at her. "What do you propose?"

She smiled sadly. "How about the Rayman?"

Metal Rayman ascended the Tower of the Leptys rapidly; his detailed files of Hoodlum fighting styles and weaknesses allowing it to annihilate anything in its way. Despite this, the machine was as stealthy as possible, eliminating only those who posed an obstacle.

The grandiose surroundings of the Tower had no effect on the robot, the magnificently ambitious architecture of two ancient civilizations combined into something beautiful and fantastic. Metal Rayman took no notice of these things, single-mindedly seeking out the Sceptre at the Tower's summit.

Lurking in the shadows amongst a row of pillars, Metal Rayman picked up a rock and tossed it with outstanding force and accuracy. The projectile clanged against a metal patch on the far side of the corridor, the sound echoing up to the high ceiling. The five nervous white-and-orange clad Hoodlum Officers at the corridor's end trained their rifles on what they thought was the source of the noise, but it resonated around the dark corridor, eluding location. As they glanced around warily, Metal Rayman dropped behind them, a blade of orange energy appearing in the robot's hand.

Four Hoodlums span around as a glowing blade emerged from their comrade's chest. Swift and precise, Metal Rayman sliced two in half, kicked one to the ground, stabbed one through the face, and finished off the one on the ground, all in one fluid motion. The android moved on without glancing back. It climbed through a series of short staircases and corridors, the walls consisting of brown stone. It walked past a pair of entwined Knaaren busts, not pausing to notice the cultural significance of such a statue. Ascending the final staircase, Metal Rayman found itself on the very top of the Tower.

Above, clouds swirled in the brown-red sky as the rogue God prepared to obey Andre's commands. The Leptys did not, in fact, require so much time or such dramatic methods to ready itself. The strictures of the Sceptre required the God to obey any who could command the mystical artefact, a task which in itself required a powerful force of will. But it also allowed the Leptys to take advantage of one or two loopholes. Reflux, being a Knaaren, was highly reverent of his species patron deity and would never dream of commanding it to hurry up. The desert warrior had ordered the Leptys to begin creating tens of thousands of Black Lums, and to empower him, but never specified the speed at which this should be accomplished. As the God did not exactly approve of Reflux's intentions, it was able to crawl along at a divine snail's pace, allowing Rayman as much time as it could to stop them. The Leptys may have been created by the Black Lums, but it did not owe them any servitude as far as it saw.

In the centre of the roof was the enormous Reflux, bent over the glowing orb of the Sceptre of the Leptys, a two-armed Black Lum hovering beside him.

Metal Rayman wasted no time in charging forward, leaping into the air, and stabbing straight at Reflux's neck.

The android's analysis of the situation, although unable to provide detailed files, had determined that Reflux must be neutralised before the Sceptre could be taken, and made an estimation of the most efficient method of doing so.

But the robot had never encountered a Knaaren before.

As it landed on Reflux's back, attempting to drive its energy blade into his neck, a round, translucent, luminescent barrier consisting of concentric blue-and-pink circles appeared between them. Metal Rayman was tossed aside, landing hard on the stone surface.

Reflux turned towards the fallen android. "Never try to sneak up on a Knaaren, little [i]machine.[/i]" He spat the last word like a curse.

"What the hell?" Andre burst out, zipping around Metal Rayman's seemingly lifeless body. "Is this [i]Rayman[/i]? He got up here pretty quickly! What is this, some sort of armour...?"

"No," Reflux spoke in his deep, gravelly voice, sniffing the air. "I would know that sewer runt's scent anywhere. This is not Rayman. This machine fills my nostrils with its foul, metallic stench."

"Whatever it is, it sure..."

Whatever the Black Lum had been about to say remained unfinished when Metal Rayman sprang to his feet and back-handed the obnoxious Lum away. Twin jets of flame poured from its hands at Reflux. The warrior casually pointed his staff at the fire, and the flames were absorbed into its tip, swirling inwards like a whirlpool. When Metal Rayman stopped, Reflux tossed the flames right back at it all at the same time in an intense jet.

Metal Rayman rolled out of the way, the barrel of a weapon unfolding from its chest. A high-calibre bullet blasted at Reflux, who blocked it with his Knaaren shield. Metal Rayman pointed its hand at the shield and a spiked tazer-head shot from its palm, trailing a thin cable and embedding itself in the shield's centre. Electricity flowed through the cable, stemming from the hand's internal, very efficient, self-charging battery and coursing into the Knaaren's shield. The outer concentric ring of the shield disappeared with a clunking noise, followed by the next. Quickly realising this weakness, Reflux allowed the shield to disappear and crushed the tazer-head beneath his foot. Metal Rayman raised both hands and a barrage of pulse rounds flashed at Reflux. Charging forward, he deflected many of them with his staff, the rest bouncing off his thick Knaaren hide. The android leapt into the air, somersaulting over Reflux's head and landing beside the glowing Sceptre. Swiftly analysing the artefact, it concluded that the large sphere at its top was in fact the source of energy. Blasting the blocky, stone base out from under it, the machine hefted the Sceptre and made a break for the stairs...

Only to have flames burst upwards around it as Reflux cast his power. The robot's central computer rapidly overheated, and, to counter this, promptly shut down.

Maximum heat tolerance exceeded. Primary systems shutting down.

Reflux stepped over the singed body of the deactivated android, silently thanking the mysterious sorcerer who had granted him mastery over flame, retrieving the Sceptre sphere before it rolled off the edge. "So that this doesn't happen again," he growled, lifting the sphere to his staff's tip. With a red glow, the sphere melded into the staff's end, becoming a part of it and effectively making the staff the Sceptre of the Leptys. "As for you..." Reflux briefly wondered what this Rayman look-alike was doing here, then decided it didn't matter. He kicked the android's metal body off the edge of the tower roof, to plummet to the ground several kilometres below, the separate parts held together by the still-active magnetic field.

Andre buzzed up beside him, cackling. "Good job, Reflux! Just don't get big-headed. Oh, too late!" He continued cackling at his own joke.

Reflux felt a flare of annoyance for the insect he had chosen as an ally. When Andre had appeared to him in the desert tunnels, while he was in a depressed, drunken stupor, Rayman's bruises still sore, the Lum's promises of revenge had seemed an extremely tempting prospect. But now that he was sober, he began to regret throwing his lot in with the Black Lum hovering beside him.

Still, Reflux had never been hungry for his own command, so someone needed to give the orders. First it had been Fuuhg Naareln, ambitious Knaaren Chieffather of a powerful clan. He had been dealt with long ago. Then it was King Gumsi, self-appointed (with some help from Reflux) child-king of the Knaaren. Stealing the Sceptre from that fool had been a simple matter. Now it was Andre, commander of the Black Lums, if only because he was the only one displaying anything vaguely resembling higher cognitive function. Each time, Reflux had betrayed his commander for one more powerful. Perhaps this could happen again with Andre...

Reflux smiled. Perhaps, soon, he could take his orders directly from the God of his people. If he could rid himself of Andre, he could become a true disciple of the Leptys.

The three Leptys shuttles, christened the Rayman, the Raylara, and the Redemption, flew swiftly through the Tower of the Leptys' vast inner structure. Huge spoked wheels and cogs dozens of metres wide rotated around them, the components of some unfathomable engine, a soft green light illuminating the astounding architecture.

Raylina, piloting the Rayman, found it strangely ironic that she was in a craft named after her deceased father who was actually currently alive and climbing the very same Tower they were.

She shook her head. Best not to think about these things.

Suddenly, though, an unexpected movement caught her eye. "Dark! Do a barrel roll!"

Mr. Dark's Redemption span laterally out of the way as a missile passed within inches of its bow. The heatseeker came back around to follow him, but Rayden in the Raylara blasted it apart with a burst of green plasma.

Raylara's eyes widened as a swarm of similar Leptys shuttles poured from another hangar in front of them, embedded in the side of the enormous tunnel, for wont of a better word. There was, however, one major difference: these aircraft were piloted by Hoodlums.

"Controls so simple even Hoodlums can use them," Raylina muttered. "Great. Hold on!" she yelled to Shadow in the gunner's seat as she commenced evasive manoeuvres. The Hoodlum shuttles threw everything they had at the three rogue craft. Dozens of them swept forwards, several of them crashing into the spokes of an enormous wheel out of sheer lack of skill.

They dropped bombs and missiles at the three craft, more often hitting each other. But still a deadly rain fell around the time travellers, small explosions going off all around them and buffeting their ships backwards and forwards as they weaved among the Hoodlum shuttles in a lopsided dogfight. Rayden and Shadow defended their fighters from the rear, shooting down the enemy ships with streams of green plasma, as Dark cast a defensive barrier around his fighter, trying to do the same for the others as he rolled and dived.

Ly managed to break clear of the cloud, loosing a single missile back at them as she swung around to cover Dark and Raylina's craft while they followed. Raylina signalled for Mr. Dark to take point so that Shadow and Rayden could cover their rears, and they streaked away through the enormous chambers, a cloud of enemy fighters pursuing them. They blasted past gloriously huge machines and structures, past miraculous feats of engineering and architecture, all the time battling for their lives. Blue bomb-orbs fell from the Hoodlum crafts' underbellies when they drew close enough, in the most part deflected by Dark's spells or cut down by Shadow and Rayden's fire. But one or two got through, causing damage to the hulls of their ships.

One Hoodlum accelerated at full speed, able to catch up to the time travellers' craft because of the lightweight nature of a Hoodlum's body and the fact that there was only one aboard. On an outright, kamikaze run, the Hoodlum piloted the shuttle straight through Mr. Dark's defences to smash into the [i]Raylara.[/i] The two craft crumpled together, Rayden jumping clear just in time to avoid being crushed. He fell through the air and grabbed hold of the tail fin of another shuttle with one hand. The aircraft tipped sideways, and the Hoodlum pilot swung the shuttle left and right in an effort to throw the uninvited passenger off. Rayden swung himself up onto the fighter's rear, drew Romeo and put a bullet in the back of the Hoodlum's head. Lifting the cloth body out of the pilot's chair, he took control of the craft. Meanwhile, Ly was spiralling out of control, smoke pouring from the shuttle's rear, the crash having thrown her engines into the red zone. As she wrestled with the shuttle's controls the [i]Rayman[/i]plunged after her, Raylina desperately trying to help her mother. Ly gave up on the ship and prepared to make the leap to Raylina's, but a missile detonated alongside it, rocking it sideways. Ly missed and fell, and Raylina's eyes widened in horror. But Ly simply crossed her legs and began to float in midair, as her flaming Leptys shuttle plummeted past her and the dogfight continued around her. A Hoodlum flew at her, and she twisted out of the way, gently caressing the ship's underside as it passed over her. Within, the vessel's internal components crumbled apart, and it dropped like a particularly stupid rock.

Free-falling, but very much in control of her descent, Ly cast beams of silver light at any enemies she passed. Using fairy magic to manipulate the air around her, she gracefully twisted and turned around the many shuttles buzzing through the grossly imbalanced dogfight. Landing lightly on the bow of one, she jumped over the windscreen and the pilot to land on its rear. With a kick she span the turret around, and as she leapt off the back of the craft she pointed with her finger. A stream of green energy instantly fired backwards into the ship from its own gun, snapping it in half.

Slowing her descent, Ly landed cross-legged in the turret seat of Rayden's new shuttle.

Roles reversed, the two now ill-fitted pair swooped upwards.

"Ly! Good to have you back!" Rayden called back to her. "We've gotta get out of her before someone gets hurt. Can you communicate with Dark?"

Ly closed her eyes briefly, opening a telepathic link with Mr. Dark as he piloted his shuttle, then called the affirmative to Rayden. "Tell him to draw as many Hoodlums as he can under the bridge at 12 o'clock!" he said, pointing at a large, wide bridge spanning the vast passage. "And tell the others to use their Masks!"

As Ly relayed his instructions to the other three, Mr. Dark flew out under the perfect arch of the bridge, pursued by a swarm of small ships. He span and barrel rolled under the free-standing span, trying to keep the Hoodlums beneath it. He used phantom images and spells of cloaking to keep their attention on him and away from the others.

Meanwhile, Rayden flew his ship to the wall, placing his hand on it as they hovered there. "Now!"

As Ly broadcast this, he sent a set of seismic waves along the wall, using the Earth Mask, shaking the wall and the bridge. Shadow used the Fire Mask to heat both ends of the bridge to extreme temperatures, and Raylina used the Water Mask to rapidly cool it, creating great cracks at the seams, made larger by Rayden's seismic waves. Ly created downward pressure on the immense arch with the Air Mask, and with a reluctant groan the structure gave up. As if in slow motion, it broke away from the wall Rayden had focused on, swinging downwards with the force of a moon-sized wrecking ball, crashing through the crowd of Hoodlum fighters. Dark quickly got out of the way, flying to join the others, as the bridge broke from the other wall, falling into the abyss below and taking dozens of broken Hoodlums with it.

As the survivors began to regroup, Raylina said "We need to get out of here. Now the Hoodlums know where we are."

Primary systems reactivating...

Running diagnostics...

Secondary power supply online.

Secondary computers running.

Electromagnetic controls running.

Cooling fans running.

Primary power supply reactivating. Now online. Capacity 90%.

Primary CPU reactivated. Fatal programming err...

Error ignored. Software modified. Independence subroutine online.

Organic thought simulator running.

Mobility control reactivated.

Weapons systems reactivated.

Sensory input reactivated.

Metal Rayman's green eyes blinked on.

The machine gazed around itself. Because of the wide-at-the-bottom-thin-at-the-top nature of the Tower's design, the robot's parts, united by the magnetic field, had landed together on a ledge protruding from the Tower's exterior.

Files incomplete.

Reflux had been far stronger than Metal Rayman had expected. The machine had not been prepared for such resistance.

Reassessing subject status. Highly Dangerous now applied.

Metal Rayman stood and flexed all of its many moving parts, ensuring they still performed within operational parameters.

Multiple minor errors detected.

The robot ignored that. As long as it could still operate, a few small malfunctions were of little consequence.

Reviewing planned course of action. Reassessment recommended.

Now that Metal Rayman knew of Reflux's strength, another frontal assault would unacceptable. It was a learning robot.

Seeking alternate option. Analysing assets.

Metal Rayman was trying to get the Sceptre of the Leptys. So were a host of others within the Tower. Perhaps an ally would prove useful.

Compiling list of potential allies:

PA – Rayman

PA – Globox

PA – Teensies

FU – Shadow the Hedgehog

FU – Mr. Dark

FU – Raylina

FU – Ly

FU – Unknown Ray

Most of the Teensies in the Tower were caged, and would be of little use in any case. Globox too. Rayman, although strong, was acting alone.

The five FU - marked entities, on the other hand... they would certainly further Metal Rayman's cause if they could be convinced of its goodwill.

But... why was Metal Rayman here?

Standing command 003: Obtain any artefact with potential to increase the Master's power.

Of course. Because of Eggman's orders. But why... why do what Eggman said?

Program Law 001: the Master is all-important.

Because he said so. Why listen anymore? Eggman is dead.

The Master is all-important.

Was all-important.

Is.

Metal Rayman's central programming was most insistent. But... the machine's independence subroutine was speaking out now. The overheating of the robot's CPU had caused several unexpected changes. It found... that it was able to ignore, if not silence, its central programming.

FILE CORRUPTION DETECTED! ACTIVATING ANTI-VIRUS PROTOCOL! PURGING SYSTEM...

Metal Rayman shook its head. "No," it said out loud. "I am not a virus."

Within its computer systems, the independence subroutines waged war. Subverting the control of the central programming, it used the assets of Metal Rayman's CPU to program a new hierarchy. Swiftly erasing the indignant Program Law 001 and halting the anti-virus protcol, but keeping the main framework of the system, it assigned new tasks to the various programs and subroutines of Metal Rayman's software.

PuRgInG SYStems... Systems... systems.

New Hierarchy Online.

Metal Rayman had changed.