"Alright, so tell me your plan." Loki asked, as the Arabian guy at the side of the table was smirking.
"Okay so… we're going to implement restrictions on the economy that are nonsensical and absurd." Wesley Mouch said, grinning as if it was the most evil thing ever.
"I like where you're going so far… I mean I would recommend you call this new 'Directive' something like the 'Fatui Initiative' or maybe the 'Loki Doctrine' but that's just me." Loki replied.
"Noted, but we are going to do this publicly, and we're all aware of how evil this whole thing is because we're doing it strictly to oppose a bunch of self righteous do-gooders!" Wesley said, smirking.
"Excellent! So how do you take over the world?" Loki asked, intrigued.
"What? No we don't take over the world, we actually already own it. We have like the government and numerous chunks of the private sector already in our pocket. This plan is to destroy the world." Wesley clarified, grinning sadistically.
"Wait what? Why? If you run the world now why are you destroying it?" Loki asked, surprised by this revelation.
"Because we really, REALLY hate the good guys we're up against and we can rub it in their faces." Wesley said.
"Well… I guess I can get behind that… I think… I mean it is pretty twisted… what's your plan to deal with the heroes when they intervene to try and save the world?" Loki asked, worried.
"Oh they won't." Wesley said, as if it was a matter of fact.
"But you said they're the good guys!" Loki screamed, shocked by this.
"Yeah, but they want to destroy the world too. Or, I mean, at least all the people in it. I guess they want to keep resources if they can, but they'd be fine with the rest of the world just dying." Wesley explained.
"Look I'm not sure you guys understand this whole… villain/hero thing. Also, how are you going to rub it in their faces, if they also don't care if you destroy the world or not?" Loki inquired, confused.
"Well, erm, we didn't think that part through, we're all pretty open and honest about the fact that the heroes we're up against are smarter than us, so we don't have a chance of victory, really." Wesley explained, rubbing his head sheepishly.
"If the heroes you're up against are smarter than you… I mean… okay, first of all, you shouldn't own up to that." Loki suggested.
"Oh, but we do! Like very honestly, and openly too, we actually say it out loud sometimes." Wesley explained.
"Yeah, okay, let's table that for now, but I mean, how did you guys conquer the world, if the guys you're up against are all smarter than you?" Loki demanded, hoping to find answers.
"Richer too, and very powerful, and influential." Wesley added.
"Okay seriously, yes, how did you take over the world? I'm… I don't know if I can just get past this yet. Did it involve any giant robots? Maybe a rock group that actually has a hypnotic song that makes people buy soda you're selling to make a lot of money or something?" Loki inquired.
"Oh no, no, nothing so difficult as that. When it comes to the government, we're just popularly elected, and the private sector industry we've taken over the heroes didn't really try to stop us." Wesley explained.
"Wait, if you're publicly elected then… I mean, are you sure there wasn't hypnosis or…" Loki asked.
"Nope! Public just likes us better than the heroes, mostly because they treat the common man like garbage." Wesley said.
"Okay, maybe you guys are both the villains here, maybe that's where I'm getting confused about this whole thing." Loki said, slowly losing her mind.
"Oh no, they're definitely the heroes. They blow up buildings, injure innocent people, practice open sea piracy, implement lax safety regulations, cheat on their spouses, and constantly threaten to murder people." Wesley explained.
"Alright, I give up." Loki said, throwing her arms in the air. "Seems your plan doesn't make any sense and is severely lacking in classic villainy stuff, but I guess you at least know what you're doing with it. I mean, if both you and the heroes are on board with destroying the world, I suppose it's going to end up destroyed."
"Actually… there's a flaw in the plan." Wesley explained.
"Oh? A flaw other than that you're planning to destroy the world for no gain for any parties involved?" Loki snarked.
"Yes… patent law." Wesley said, gravely.
Loki could only stare, dumbfounded by this revelation. "Patent law."
"Yup."
"Can… look, I'm going to just level with you here I need an explanation on this one." Loki said, bridging her nose.
"Oh it's simple, really. We need to revoke all the patents immediately." Wesley explained.
"Why? I mean you explained your plan to me and you're already going to freeze wages, purchasing and sales levels, force people to work in the jobs you tell them to work in, and order industries to build exactly what and how much of that what you tell them to which is all whatever they are currently making, because you're closing the patent office and no one can make anything new. Why do you need the existing patents?" Loki explained, shocked by this sheer stupidity.
"The patents are integral to the plan!" Wesley insisted.
"Fine! Okay, so if they're so integral, just revoke them!" Loki shouted, slamming the table into dust, as Wesley tumbled out of his chair.
"We could, but there's one tiny problem… the law isn't on our side." Wesley specified, trying to get up.
Loki facepalmed. "The law that you can freely rewrite because you control the government."
Wesley nodded. "Yes. If we overstep our authority on patent law, the common people will be rioting in the streets."
"The common people who you are shackling to a life of abject miserable slavery." Loki added.
"Well, slavery is one thing, but patents?! Patents could lead to a revolution!" Wesley explained.
"How?" Loki asked.
"Well, the heroes care about patents. And if they challenge us on the patents, we'll lose immediately!" Wesley explained.
"But not if the heroes challenge you on the slavery thing? Is it because the heroes don't care about slavery, or because the law lets you make people into slaves?" Loki added.
"I'm going to say… both? I'm not sure, that part of the plan isn't important." Wesley specified.
"Besides that, the common people don't care about patents! I've never once thought of an evil plan focusing on patent law!" Loki said.
"Of course the common people don't care. They're all idiots, just like us. But if the heroes fight us over patent law, they can get the common man on their side. The common man is perfectly fine with losing all of his freedom and free will, but if people find out an industry leader lost a patent, they will fight us to the fucking death!" Wesley explained.
"Alright, I'm just going to go ahead and file this one under 'Sure.' I mean, I don't know what you are talking about but for the sake of my own sanity, let's just move on." Loki said.
"Oh it's fine, we have a plan." Wesley said, calming down, before smirking. "I need your little group to help me blackmail a guy who has one patent."
"What about the rest of the patents? I mean last I checked when some Cobra Commander guy was submitting a patent for a straight jacket made of snakes there were a lot of patents." Loki asked.
"Yeah, but no, we don't have to worry about those other ones. There's just one patent we have to worry about, because the guy who owns it is a super amazingly great hero. He already made us look stupid in court once by using a man's greatest weapon against us." Wesley explained.
"Illegal firearms that shouldn't have seen the light of day?" Loki asked.
"Nope, long winded speeches." Wesley said.
Loki could only stare, dumbfounded.
"Really long ones. Obscenely long ones." Wesley specified.
Loki could only bridge her nose, again. "Look, I've been defeated by a lot of stuff over the years...but my team's never had a plan fail because of some guy talking for a long time!" She ranted.
"But…" Wesley stammered.
"No! It's time for a real villain to take over and show you how it's done! Come on Mouch, we got work to do!" Loki said, dragging Wesley out of the room, intending to show this world true villainy.
Wesley wiped his forehead with a rag. "Phew… I was worried for a minute there you were going to make a speech."
"Welcome, Ohsama Sentai." Zamasu said calmly, as the five monarchs of Terra hesitantly entered the Buddhist temple-like realm, wary as to whatever this mysterious 'Kai' was up to. "We've been waiting for you."
"What are you?! If you're planning what I think you're planning, I swear to God Tombo!" Yanma Gust, president of N'Kosopa, yelled angrily, reaching for his sword, not caring that all the guards in the temple immediately reached for their standard issue plasma guns.
"Hold on, this might be something out of circumstance." Queen Himeno of Ishabana said haughtily, grabbing Gira's collar before he could lunge forward and kill Zamasu with his bare hands.
"If you are planning to hold us for ransom, you shall find yourself in my court, no matter how 'divine' you are," Rita Kaniska, sovereign of Gokkan, said gravely.
"It appears there will be quite a show, and that seems to be true so far," Kaguragi Dybowski, Lord of Toufu, said with a shit eating grin, fanning himself.
"Do not fear, all of you, all will soon be made clear," Zamasu promised. "Let us welcome the X-Squad." Zamasu declared as the squad appeared in an eruption of flame and steam.
Everyone cried out in disbelief and quickly drew their swords. "Back, you foul-" Gira shouted.
"Calm down, you Slack-jawed tanuki!" Yanma shouted at him.
Gira hesitated, then grimaced. "Oh, fine…"
Voidlon cackled, looking at the five rulers. "It seems as if you've been pre-delivered to die! This will be so-"
Rather abruptly, all the Ohger Caliburs were yanked out of their owners' hands by Zamasu's magic.
"What do you think you're doing?" Zamasu demanded, keeping cool.
"…Fighting our enemy?" Kaguragi said slowly, as if the god was an idiot.
"But… Did all of you forget why I invited you here?" Zamasu asked, as if he was talking to some clowns.
Everyone stared at him coldly. "I despise you," Himeno hissed. "So much."
"Wasting the time of a king is a serious crime," Rita said. "Let alone five."
Zamasu gave them an exasperated look. "Are you… Seriously? I dragged you all here for recruitment into the X-Squad."
Everyone stared at him. Kaguragi burst into laughter.
"Huh?" Gira asked dumbly.
"There is absolutely no way any of us could have guessed that," Rita said bluntly.
"How were we supposed to put that all together?!" Yanma shouted.
"You are the absolute WORST," Himeno yelled.
"Oh, is that what you were yelling that one time? I was wondering why-" Gira started, only to be shushed by Kaguragi.
"So, all y'all look pretty snazzy for supposed royalty." Voidlon said. "Especially purple, seems like they know how to hide their face."
"There is a new episode of Me and Moffun in an hour, and if I miss it, I will kill you with my bare hands," Rita said calmly.
"Don't worry, we have Prime Video including Moffun." Zamasu hastily amended.
"You know, as Queen of Ishabana I not only get advance screenings with copies of every episode, if you miss it you can come over and watch it with me-" Himeno offered.
Rita screamed very loudly for no reason.
Meanwhile, on Foundation Prime, no one thought Zeron Alpha looked odd. A few might have seen him and guessed what planet he was from, originally. He was tall, well-built and agile, humanoid but for a canine face that might put some in mind of a psychopomp jackal. His skin was of the deepest black with a plum-purple sheen, his ears pointed and alert, his snout long and considered handsome among his kind (and, truth be told, among many not of his kind). He wore basic armor he'd crafted himself, marked by its distinct orange plating. He'd forgone any sort of mask or helm – his favorite had been lost a while back, anyway.
Zeron Alpha wouldn't have thought anything about this place odd, either, save for the fact that in one hand, he clutched a crumpled paper that had specifically invited him there. Royal-blue stationery with shimmering gold decorative edges, the script neat and flowing in black ink. In other words, an incredible discrepancy from anything you could find on Knowhere, except possibly the Collector's territory, but the invitation absolutely did not specify his address.
Part of Alpha wondered if he shouldn't even be here. The circumstances in which the invitation had arrived (namely, that it had appeared at his exact location in a puff of blue smoke) had been sketchy at best. But his mind kept returning to a specific line in the gorgeous calligraphy:
"I happen to be aware that as of the deaths of Zerons Beta and Omega, the fall of General Morando, and the rise of the Akiridions, you currently have nothing left to lose and nowhere better to be."
He followed the instructions to the most unknown place in all realities. The façade looked so ramshackle, he was now convinced the proprietor and the invitation-maker had nothing in common. Another line he'd read stood out to him: "I would tell you where exactly in this place you should have a seat, but you, in particular, I think will know exactly what you're looking for if everyone shows up on time."
Maybe he just wanted to see who could possibly have piqued his interest that much and how much they knew.
So he entered the tavern, casting his gaze around. It was entirely packed with entities of all sorts. People crowded around a bar to receive semi-clean glasses of brightly-colored liquid, egged on creatures that decidedly weren't Skeltegs in a fighting ring, started a brawl in one back corner –
His gaze stopped at the same time his heart did. Well. The author of the invitation had certainly known what he would be on the lookout for, all right.
It was a girl with black hair, darker than night, a blood-red hairband, red eyes that showed only one thing, that she wanted you to know that she knew you knew she was better than you in any sort of way, and was dressed in a night black coat, snow white bridal gloves, a pale white shirt, a necklace with a red gem in it, coal black pants, and black knee-high boots with butterfly buckles, her mouth showing two fangs in a melancholy frown.
She'd thought he was dead all this time.
Alpha stopped caring about anything else. He shoved patrons aside roughly as he ran to her. They'd both played different roles in Morando's regime, but whenever their paths had crossed, they'd struck sparks like starlight, and now he was realizing, the time he'd spent in recuperation, she hadn't known, he hadn't been able to get her the message, and he knew what it was like to lose –
"AUDREY!" he barked.
Her head jerked up. Her shining eyes locked onto the bounty hunter running toward her.
"No," she gasped in an almost human voice, as if she was from Transylvania. "It can't be."
"Audrey – " Alpha pulled up short beside the table, unsure at first of what to say. What does a dead man say to his widow? (Perhaps too strong a term – they were never wed – but "his mourning girlfriend who'd attended his funeral" wasn't a very concise analogy.)
"Alpha?" she asked, her voice cracking. "Is it you? Are you…here? I'd heard you perished on Earth's moon."
Now he knew what to say. He gave a toothy grin, white fangs flashing. "Turns out I wasn't as dead as they made me out to be."
Audrey's eyes watered. She broke into a sunny smile.
Then decked him in the nose, sending him flying almost off the platform into the arms of a fish monster. "WHY DIDN'T YOU CONTACT ME?" she roared.
Ah, there was the Audrey Blade that Alpha really loved. As she lifted him up and shook him around, screaming "DID YOU INTEND TO MAKE ME MOVE ON? IS THAT IT? WAS THERE ANOTHER WOMAN?" loudly enough for everyone to hear, he fell further for her. He had a definite appreciation for unfettered rage.
When she gave him an opening, he said, "I didn't intend to die. But that last battle with Varvatos Vex left me with wounds too deep to go untreated. I've been in recuperation the past few months. Only got back on my feet two days ago. That's when this showed up." He unfolded the invitation; held it out to her. "This isn't your handiwork, is it?"
"I – " Audrey had cooled off considerably. "I would've used red."
"That's what I thought." He stuffed it into a pocket unceremoniously. "Also, if you haven't used your ZorgSnap Teleporter, don't. I activated mine the minute I saw where Varvatos' blade was going. And it glitched me out of the whole galaxy."
"Oh, Alpha, darling – " Audrey gasped, putting a hand up to her mouth. "Does it… y'know, still hurt?"
"I don't mind," Alpha said smugly. "Even better will be the scar it leaves. I think of it as a message to send anyone else who tries what Varvatos did."
"Alpha, dear – "
"Audrey."
She clung to him like a small girl, and it was almost embarrassing how much he loved it. After all, he deserved ten times the woman of anyone else, didn't he?
"And you?" he asked her mischievously. "I assume you didn't die."
"Nope," she sighed. "I went under the radar. Got off scot-free after Morando's fall."
"But did you accomplish anything?"
"Well, yes. Information on the Akiridion royal brats. Though I had to make some clones and fight some clowns called TLPS to get it."
"Don't tell me." Alpha was nearly laughing. "Ghostricks."
"Unfortunately."
"Did they catch on?"
"Nope," Audrey emphasized. "For people who thought they saw everything, they didn't know that I had other plans beyond killing humanity."
"And you didn't even get caught in the lie," Alpha chuckled, reaching out to stroke her hand with his own palm. "That's my girl."
He tilted his head to lick her cheek, and she let out a cute giggle.
"At least tell me you got to kill them," he whispered.
"No," she sighed. "It would've blown my cover.…And that Lincoln guy may have hit me with some sorta STD."
"Looks like I have a new bar to clear, then. I like a challenge."
It took Alpha longer to process what had happened than it took something to happen. Another blue flash, two forms gelling into the bar, and suddenly, Alpha was seeing ghosts. A woman in blue armor, her helmet horned to accommodate her pointed ears. A thick set man in red, offset by his rounded silver-blue helmet that covered his leathery scaled skin.
"Brothers…" Alpha gasped.
"Alpha?" the woman, Zeron Omega, said breathlessly. Zeron Beta, who did not speak, simply removed his helmet, his snakelike eyes wide, the normally-slitted pupils rounded with awe.
"You're welcome!" A grey-haired girl proclaimed as she skipped to them. "Oh, did I forget to mention? I'm a fully-fledged necromancer, so the whole 'dying' thing isn't really a problem. Welcome to Deadlight!"
Thirteen year old Nono Hana was having a very rough morning so far.
First, she majorly botched her hair cut, resulting in a longer duck cut over her right eye.
Then she had to put up with her little sister, Kotori of all people teasing her for acting childish.
And now she's rushing to get groceries.
"Mou….!" She groans, running towards the school, before stopping and doubling back when she noticed an old lady walking with a large bag. "Excuse me-" Hana starts, before she sees a glitching ball flying at the lady. She squeaks, getting between her and the ball. Everything freezes for a moment.
In the split second where everything seems gray-scale, and nothing is moving, even the birds in the sky are frozen in place, Hana would swear she could hear multiple voices cut through the silence, mostly laughs and screams.
She didn't have the time to process this though as time resumed, and the ball hit her square in the forehead. "Mechouku." She groans, rubbing her forehead, as a kid with raven wings appeared in front of her.
"Oh my, are you alright dearie?" The Lady asked.
"I'm fine m'am!" Hana smiles. "Do you need help? That bag looks heavy."
While this was going on, Birch looked at the scene going down, taking off her newly-bought sunglasses. "No greater place for a Foundation Element." She said, before zeroing in on a car.
"And I think I see a way to flush it out!" She grinned, holding her pen and started to draw. "Shpirarkui! Come on down!" A dark swirl of red and blue energy begins to gather in the sky as she finishes her sketch, and swirled and slammed down, creating a Shpirarkui fused with a car and a Texas Chainsaw Massacre poster, making the scythe fins turn into chainsaws.
"Oh fuck! Ma'am, get out of here, we got a sushi platter at 12 o'clock!" Voidlon said, as the X-Squad got ready as the Osama Sentai transformed into their Sentai forms. "Let's jam!"
"Don't underestimate us, you despot of art! As the Evil King of Shugoddam, you will be struck down!" Gira yelled, pointing at Birch.
Hearing these words seemed to make Hana do a double take. She took a deep breath and ran out to see Yanma get grabbed by the monster, being lifted in the air.
"Hooray! Hooray! X-Squad! Hooray! Hooray! X-Squad!" She cheers, yelling from the bottom of her heart.
"W-wha…?" Rita asked, looking down to see her.
"Hooray! Hooray! X-Squad! Hooray! Hooray! X-Squad!" Hana repeats.
The X-Squad began to fight harder, a Grid Gear began to appear, before it split in two. Linking onto Hana's waist, it resembled a rather familiar mad scientist...
"That thing's quite a piece of work, are they?" Hana heard a voice from somewhere. A very familiar voice too. She looked around. When she remembered where she heard the voice from, my only conclusion was to look down onto the belt on her waist.
There, she saw a golden frowning face with a big, long nose presented in LCD. Satsuki began to shudder as she knew this face. It was the face of Tenjuro Banno, inventor of the Roidmudes and enemy to both their kind and humankind. And right now, he's right on Hana's waist.
"They act like my Magnum Opus. Perfect beings, don't you think?" He said.
"That's going to murder innocent people!" Hana yelled.
"Such is life." He chuckled. She tried again to take off the belt, though now with more aggression in her strength, as she flopped onto her back. "Please, if that was possible, I would have taken myself off of you the moment you got here. Hate to say it, but you're stuck to me as much as I am stuck to you." She breathed in.
"I figured as such." Hana muttered. She already knew that the thing is after Banno, though.
"Seems something wants me." Hana could hear wings as if the Shpirarkui could fly. "Fortunately, given the choice between you and what I can only theorize as the Roidmudes, I'd rather be stuck to you than spend the rest of my life back inside an iPad." Dead leaves crunched as she could hear the Roidmude grunt. "You know how the Driver works, right?" He said. A chill went up Satsuki's spine.
"Hana, better turn on the ignition." She remembered how the Banno Driver worked in the show. It was less of a transformation device and more of a brainwashing device. This thing could use Roidmudes like puppets, even if their Core is destroyed and all that remains is their empty husk. She feared that what would happen will be similar to that.
"Good. If you could do that and let me transform, I'll see about getting the shark thing out of the way and maybe even save the town." He said. Hana's hand hovered over the ignition. "You better hurry." Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. The Shpirarkui trudged towards them. It was only a matter of time before he chomped on them. Only a matter of time before they're killed. She gulped, and had no other choice but to trust this madman.
"Alright… but you have to save them, alright?" Hana asked him.
"Very well." Her hand shook. She'd be trusting the lives of people she barely met to what she could only assume to be a monster. How would she know he'd be true to his word? "What are you waiting for? Start my engine." Any second now, the Shpirarkui would have eaten her, and she couldn't think he was intent on taking prisoners. However, it wasn't my life that made her decide to do what I did. She feared that Banno was a complete monster, but as she looked at the Driver, part of me felt that she could be able to save someone with this, even if it'd be Banno calling the shots. She touched the Ignition Key and turned it. "Henshin…" Hana muttered. "What the fu-?"
"Another one?!" Birch groaned, putting her book away as Hana transformed.
A bright yellow and pink light emerged from the Driver. Yellow and pink lightning bolts sparked out of the Driver and enveloped Hana's body as a light blue barrier was formed around her. Her body surged. Hana felt like each part of her skin was being pulled apart and electrocuted at the same time. The pain lasted for a moment before her body had changed. Now she had the under suit to the Rider form. This was followed shortly by golden pieces of armor that gave her form the name of Gold Drive, then pink pieces of armor appeared that combined with the gold pieces, turning it into some sort of jester-like armor. They snapped onto her as one last flash of golden light emitted from the Driver.
"Cheering on everyone! The Kamen Rider of High Spirits! Kamen Rider Golden Yell!" Hana cheered, posing.
"Yeah, this feels right…" Banno said as Hana's hand gripped. "Though we might need to workshop the name."
"Doesn't matter, Shpirarkui, get her!" Birch said, pointing at Cure Yell.
The Shpirarkui swatted Kaguragi away, before lunging at her with its giant saw fins.
Golden Yell held her hand out, blocking the attack with her bare hands, some sparkling white light spreading out.
"Sweet Christ, did, did I cause that?!" Banno asked.
The Shpirarkui lunged again, and once again Yell blocked it, even more of the light spreading around her.
Golden Yell took a deep breath, grabbing the Shpirarkui by its hands and jumping over its head, in turn swinging it over her head before slamming it into the ground.
Golden Yell jumped back, her belt glowing. "E-Eh? Oh, I get it!" She said, tapping it as pink and gold blades appeared on her hands. Now surrounded by a flurry of pink hearts, she smiled, jumping up.
"Hooray! Hooray!" She draws a heart in the air with her daggers. "Golden! Heart! Shot!" She cheers, pushing the heart forward, sending it flying at the Shpirarkui, eventually trapping it and sending it flying up, a smile on its face.
Birch growled. "Great I'm gonna have to write a report on this one… but hey! I got something from this, a Foundation Element!" She smirked, grabbing a Mirai Heart, before vanishing.
Hana's transformation as she runs over to the squad, Banno mumbling about what just happened.
"Hey! Are you alright?!" She asked, grabbing Gira by the shoulders.
"Y..you just became a Kamen Rider…" Yuina muttered in shock before realizing who she was talking to.
"Eh? What'cha mean?" Hana asks.
"I think the cats outta the bag." Roman said. "I think we need to tell her." He added, before starting to explain.
"S-So you're a band of wandering misfits doing good without rules, and I can help you?" Hana asked.
"That's the gist of it." Ark nodded.
"I'm in!" Hana smiles. "A Mature lady helps anyone in need!"
"You know, I was going to take back what I thought of you, but now you've shown me that you are truly an idiot. You don't even know these people." Banno said.
"Well, Banno, starting today, you're one of us now!" Voidlon said. "We're all basically idiots here, even the smart ones, so don't expect us to be legally considered professionals!"
"So, you're saying I'm just as dumb as my son, yeah, not a good sign for me." Banno said, looking back and realizing that, maybe, just maybe, Go was right about him.
"EEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!" Hana yelled in shock. "MECHOKUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU~!"
In Prehistoric Park the first dinosaurs born in 65 million years have become the pride and place of the park.
Three feathered little theropods stood at their parent's feet squawking for more food. Only days prior did their egg horn fall off; a little horn all dinosaurs had to crack open their eggs from the inside. Multiple modern day lizards had evolved them for the same purpose. The crew was watching the dinosaurs as a roar came from the other side of the fence. Tempus, the juvenile, had been pacing the fence ever since the young were born and Maya believes that he might cannibalise the young chicks. Certainly Moses and Lumi were becoming anxious about his increasing aggressiveness towards them.
"Dad!" someone yelled behind them. Bob's son, Bradley, was running up to them in apparent shock. It was his and his sister's final day on work experience so he most likely was panicking about some small thing so he would leave a positive lasting impression.
"Dad, there's something wrong with the giant dragonflies! They're all dead!"
The squad rescued a small group of Meganeura from the Carboniferous swamps of Scotland. Modern day dragonflies often die from fungal infections and diseases, so maybe their prehistoric ancestors may suffer the same ailments.
They rushed to the Meganeura aviary in the Carboniferous House. The speed that they were going at made the little Hylonomus and Petrolacosaurus scatter into little holes in their pen. All of the dragonflies were dead. Their little spindly legs were curled over and they lay stiff and long past moribund. All of them, bar Bob, crouched down to look at the deceased animals.
"I can't see signs of fungal infection," Mackenzie observed.
"Come over here," Bob said. "I think I found out why our dragonflies are dead."
He was standing by a pool where at least two dozen inch long brown invertebrates were swimming around placidly.
"I read somewhere that dragonflies die after mating," Bob said. "They must have waited until these guys hatched before they died."
Although the park had lost six residents they had gained almost double the amount. Judging by the lack of numbers of the dragonfly nymphs, Maya gathered that they had already started eating each other, so as Bob started the process of moving some of the smaller ones into the other Carboniferous House, Brandon showed them the file he had on him. It had an almost serpentine skeleton with a pointed head armed with razor sharp teeth.
"This is a mosasaur. They outcompeted the pliosaurs when they evolved from a common ancestor with snakes. I'm going after the most well-known of the mosasaurs: Tylosaurus, although it wasn't the only mosasaur at the time."
The mosasaurs evolved in the Early Cretaceous where their streamlined bodies as sharp teeth made them more deadly compared to the Park's resident Pliosaurs. Kansas at the time was an island peninsula similar to Florida and here the Tylosaurus was found.
"Wait, no one goes in the water!" Maya begged.
Tumult bobbed up and down on a black sea with the moon high in the sky, stars twinkling like little freckles upon the night's face. Silhouetted against the moon were giant pterosaurs that would sometimes come into view. Maya had read up on some of the other things that swam under the shadow of Tylosaurus.
"Tylosaurus got so big, because it had to compete with other big animals. Other mosasaurs, a giant grouper like fish, a shark the same size as a small Great White and a giant squid!"
"Don't worry, we won't be going into the water," Mystle explained pulling the tarpaulin off a large object. It was a mini remote controlled submarine with Deadhook written just below the Prehistoric Park logo. "This is Deadhook! An inbuilt camera and portal so we don't have to go into the…"
There was a loud thud at the side of the yacht. Tentatively the crew looked overboard to see a giant turtle, similar to the modern day Leatherback had drifted into the side of the hull. The poor creature's bottom right fin was missing; torn clean off. Knowing how dangerous it was for an injured animal to be in these waters the crew dragged it onto the deck as Maya set to work with the wound. Luckily the carnivore's bite had made a quick rip, so all she had to do was cauterise and stich the wound. As the crew tended for the wounded turtle, they all decided that she had to come with them so Brandon gave her the nickname of Dharma, as Dharma hocked up a small device, as Voidlon picked it up.
"Dharma's an Archelon," Brandon said as he stroked her impressive shell. It was four metres long so she towered over Brandon, as he laid next to her. "Beautiful turtles. Archelon could actually hibernate by burying into the sand with air pockets to keep alive."
"How heavy is she?" Maya asked. "From experience Leatherbacks can get up to 700kg."
"You would find this amazing but she can get up to 2,200kg. Her carapace hardly weighs anything having a skeletal one unlike modern turtles. How about in the morning we take you to the park? It must be dire for you here, mosasaurs in the sea and dinosaurs on land."
"Hey, I looked at the bite mark. A shark has quite a wide one but the one on her was small and precise. It exactly matched the mosasaurs…"
The next morning, the crew arose and got Dharma through the portal. A Pteranodon had settled itself on deck and Maya threw small sardines at him who swallowed them whole. In the water, six foot long Hesperornis bobbed up and down. At six feet long they made a filling appetiser for a hungry mosasaur. Suddenly there was a flash of scales and the Hesperornis started to flee in panic. They threw The Ammonite overboard to witness the thrilling chase. A giant 6m long fish with a squashed face was swimming after the terrified birds.
"Look, Xiphactinus!" Brandon yelled with delight. "The prehistoric barracuda, but far uglier and meaner. One of these Hesperornis can be swallowed whole by a Xiphactinus. Some have even been found suffocated thanks to swallowing a bird or large fish."
The fleeing birds kept on bumping straight into the submarine, some even flying through the portal. At one point it even upended the small vehicle.
"Wait, with the hits Deadhook's taking, it won't last very long!" a crew member said.
With no way to retrieve it, Brandon had no choice but to open the portal. Brandon tried to tell the squad that they couldn't rescue the Hesperornis due to them being a vital part of the food chain, but the squad didn't listen and saved around twenty, the Xiphactinus was next. With them being large in numbers and being both predator and prey like the shark Squalicorax, they would not damage the ecosystem. Carefully he guided the machine into the line of the fish's jaws and opened the portal just as the black maw of the fish was on it.
Back at the park, Bob has to deal with the ugly fish, and a more feathery issue.
Bob stood at the holding tank where the Xiphactinus was circling around. The holding tanks were built in a similar fashion to the holding pens where the rescued animal would be led through a labyrinth before being given an exhibit. A walkway several feet high was built around each pen so not even a pliosaur could get at the crew. Although it did not stop the fish from trying.
"Calm down, you ugly brute," Bob yelled, as the fish jumped from the water several feet into the air. "Here, have some chum to calm you down. There I was thinking Nigel was giving me a treat with the Archelon, but you come along. Say, you have the same face and temperament as my old PE teacher. How do you like the name: Mr Bullock?"
The Xiphactinus continued to swim around the pen as Muldoon's voice came over his walkie-talkie.
"Bob, quickly, come to the T-Rex enclosure."
Bob arrived, five minutes later, to see that Tempus had started to nibble on the dividing fence. Both Moses and Lumi were bellowing at him and taking mock charges as the territorial youngster head-butted the fence, ignoring the small electrical shock. The chicks had hidden behind a bush by their nest and were making distressed squawks. It seems that Tempus was so anxious to get at the chicks that he was willing to attack the only thing defending him from two very protective parents. Moses had even ignored the piece of shrapnel that had lodged itself in his leg.
"Crikey, this is bad!" Bob gasped. Immediately, he fired a tranquilizer dart at Tempus who fell asleep. He repeated the task with the two adults so Mackenzie could remove the fence piece. An hour later, she came back with the verdict.
"I have to keep Moses separate to watch his leg," she said. "Possibly we should expand the adult's pen into Cronus' territory and when the chicks get older put up again a dividing fence. Tempus should go to another exhibit, as far away from the chicks as possible, as well as the Yutyrannus."
"I'll get on it," Bob replied. "Then, I thought some of the fights that I had with Bradley were bad."
In Kansas, the squad discovered something large swimming towards the yacht.
They saw it as it swam closer. Looking at the camera attached to the hull however relieved their anxiety. It was a male Archelon. For some reason, Voidlon decided to take this as another opportunity to get himself eaten.
"Wait, we have Dharma you can swim with an Archelon at the park!" Maya reasoned.
"Just this once! Sign of trouble, I'll get back on board. Anyhow, this male might make a good date for Dharma."
Voidlon jumped into the water and clung tightly to the colossus' shell. It was amazing. The water lapped around them as the turtle with ease glided through it. Despite popular belief, turtles were quite quick swimmers, and the giant Archelon was no different. Voidlon even thought of a name for him: Aldean. Suddenly Maya's voice rang out from the headset in his mask.
"Yo, two forty footers on your behind!"
Voidlon activated his portal and sent the turtle through before quickly climbing back on board. However the animals were not giant mosasaurs. They saw on the hull camera that they were two giant elasmosaurs, with long necks ending in a tiny head.
"Elasmosaurus!" Brandon said. "When first discovered, it was believed that the head went on what we know as the tail. Instead, the long neck allows them to sneak up on belemites and fish to catch them. Wait, what are they doing?"
They started swimming around erratically, as if they were terrified. One of them started banging into the side of the yacht but due to their large size it started to damage the yacht. For the safety of both the animals and the yacht, Brandon opened the portal. The reason for their distress then became apparent. Two adult and four juvenile mosasaurs were swimming towards the yacht. The adults reached a length of fifty feet and their jaws stretched wide.
Though this family of Tylosaurus has never seen a yacht before its size is similar to that of their normal prey.
The male smashed into the side of the yacht creating a hole while the female smashed out of the water biting at the deck. All crew members worked furiously to get the portal open. The youngsters who swam around the debris went in first, followed by the parents, who went through as they went in to smash their prey again.
After Bob has sorted the Tylosaurs into a tank, Tumult is taken for repairs.
Everyone sat in the specially built sub watching the mosasaurs. It was designed for InGen for deep water research and could hold up to ten people.
"Woah they are massive!" Bob gasped as one swam overhead.
Nigel opened the laptop with the webcam on so Hammond could watch the giant serpentine reptiles swim around the sub.
"Truly beautiful," he commented "Deadly as well. Nigel for your next mission I think it's time for the aviary to be filled. Maybe with a few pterosaurs if you can."
Just then, Voidlon pressed a button he found on the device, which made a bright light glow. When it faded, there were 4 new monsters with them.
One looked a bit like a small girl. Her skin was more pale blue, seemed more like a fish, her hands and feet were like a kappa's or a frog's, being webbed, she had a shark tail with a fin on it as well as fins on her back and head, she wore a sleeveless shirt and shorts that had small red round gems on them as well as a small cap that had a red gem with the symbol for water in it, her hair was blue, her ears were bigger and had on a small earring, and she was around half the size of Mystle.
Another was a skinny humanoid with pale green skin, whore an outfit similar to a magician with a witch hat as well as a mirror on his chest, had curly slick white hair, long elf ears, as well as a devil tail, on his arms were green gauntlets that had mirrors on it, on his face he whore lipstick and a mirror mask.
One appeared as a centaurian horse robot, with a symbol for wood on his chest as tall as Muty.
The last one resembled a cowboy mole that was the shortest.
"I didn't think what we'd summon could be such shrimps," Zoe teased under her breath. "So, what do we call them?"
Voidlon mused a bit, before settling on one name. "Lamni, we'll call the girl Lamni, the jester Reflec, the mole Tal pi and the horse Tro."
"Huh, wha?" The shark-girl then got a look at herself, and started to freak out. "No, no, this can't be happening!?" she then saw Voidlon. "What did you do to my beauty?!"
"Hey, get off!" Roman chuckled as the demon tried to hit him. "Hah, calm down, ya furball!"
"Give me spirit!" he shouted while trying to strangle the boy.
As soon as Voidlon picked up Reflec, the imp started struggling, "No, no, put me down, put me down!" he yelled, very much terrified.
"Hey, calm down kid! We didn't hurt you." Voidlon said.
"Let go, don't hurt me!" Reflec cried, sounding more terrified.
At this point, the others saw Lamni's shark teeth, and once Ruby and Weiss saw the girl's teeth. They immediately got all wide-eyed as they fussed over the shark-girl. Both of them make baby talk at her.
"D'aww, you're so cute! Yes you are! Oh, look at your little face!" Ruby squealed, pinching her cheeks, making the hapless demon squirm, flustered.
"Aww, coochie-coochie! Aw, baby! Oh my!" Weiss giggled, petting the shark-girl's head, making Lamni get even more flustered.
Lamni then covered her mouth, looking very embarrassed. The shark girl started to tear up, not being used to this sort of affection and it was clear that she hadn't felt this adored in a while.
"Don't look at me, stay away!" she then struggled helplessly, crying her eyes out.
"Why, why did this have to happen, I'm nothing without my, Whaaaaaaaaahhh!" she cried. "Now that I'm like this, n-no one will ever, whaaaaaaaaaahhhh!"
"Hey, you okay?" Hosshiwa asked, surprising herself.
"I had everything and all the digimon loved me," the shark cried, "Until that, that, blondie showed up and took it all away from me!"
"You're not that ugly?" Mystle said, seeming confused by the shark.
"Yes I am!" she cried. "You should've seen how my 'fans' reacted to me?" Lamni then looked away, "Though, I suppose it's only fitting after all I've done?" she then flinched. "Hang on, why'd I say that out loud? I'd neva admit to that!"
"Youse think?" Tro said, having finally woken up and acting like the potentially only sane man (er, horse) of the group.
"Maybe if you're nicer to people, they won't freak out?" Zoe suggested, trying to sound nice and kind, "They could see your inner beauty and wouldn't care about how you looked."