DARKNESS IN CHIMA
Part One: Out of Place
Chapter III
"King Crominus!"
The King of the Crocodile Tribe—after cracking a scorpion warrior over the head with his scepter—turned to one of his own tribe's warriors who was addressing him.
"My lord, they have breached the vault!"
"Our Chi," Crominus growled. "Re-route all our forces to defend our Chi stores."
Suddenly, there was a rumble. Crominus looked toward the entrance to his territory and saw twenty Lion Speedors racing his way. His son was with them.
Crominus was torn between his pride and his duty; he wanted to be the one to protect his tribe, but he knew the lions' help would be necessary to do so as his troops were tired from the Outland Tribes' constant attacks.
Laval and Cragger, leading the squad, rode up to Crominus and stopped their Speedors.
"We're here to help," Laval said.
"And we brought some new friends," Cragger referred to the three Guardians that accompanied the attack squad.
"I see," Crominus replied. "I suppose you will explain who they are later. It's good to see you, Laval.
"The Outlanders have breached our vault and will soon reach our Chi. I have re-routed my troops to try to prevent this, but I don't know if they'll get in position in time."
"Where is the vault?" Mack asked.
Crominus hesitated, but Cragger nodded to let his father know he could trust this stranger. Crominus then pointed to the giant crocodile head which had been busted open.
"I'll clean them out," Mack said. "Kai and Zee, reinforce the crocs."
"And we'll chase the Crawlers out," Laval smirked, referring to himself, Cragger, and his lion platoon.
"Wait until I flush them out of the vault, so that you can chase them all out in one move," Mack suggested.
"Good idea," Cragger agreed. "We don't want to have to sweep back for stragglers."
"Looks like we have a plan," Crominus said. "Now, put it to action and get those creeps out of my swamp!"
"Grab up as many as you can!" a Scorpion Tribe lieutenant shouted at his scouts plundering the Crocs' Chi safe that they had finally broken into. "Quickly, before they send—"
The scorpion was interrupted by a commotion at the entrance of the vault. He looked to see a single warrior use a bright green light to cripple the dozen soldiers posted to defend the breach from Crocodile reinforcements.
"… backup," the scorpion finished.
"Surrender," Mack said as he slowly approached, twirling the Super Bolt as the wind inside the vault grew to a howl.
"Abort!" the scorpion lieutenant ordered. "Just take what we already have."
One of the scorpions used a ray gun to blast a hole in the vault's ceiling. This must have been an already determined signal, as several Bat Tribe paratroopers instantly charged the hole and carried the scorpions out.
"Next time I won't give you a chance to run!" Mack shouted at the retreating Crawlers.
"Look!" Laval said to Cragger, pointing at the vault. "Those bats are lifting the scorpions out of the vault. Looks like Mack scared 'em off."
"Hopefully before they could make off with too much of our Chi," Cragger added. "If they're out of the vault, then it's time to chase away the rest of these creeps."
"We might not have to, my lords," one of the lion soldiers observed. "Look, they're all retreating."
Cragger nodded. "Guess that's it then."
"I'll regroup my men," Laval put his hand on Cragger's shoulder. "You and your dad debrief Mack and tend to your people. Let the lions know of anything you need and we'll be eager to assist."
"King Crominus," Mack bowed his head as the Crocodile King came into the vault to inspect the damage. "I apologize. I was unable to stop the Scorpions before they could steal some of your Chi."
Crominus half-smiled. "It's alright, my new friend. It appears they only stole a few, and we have plenty more for our people."
"Several of the tribe's warriors are injured," Kai said. "I think Nya would be a good help here for the next few days."
"You're right," Mack agreed. "I'll see if we can get her sent down here from the Lion Temple as soon as possible."
"Any medical help would be appreciated," Crominus said gravely. "We had no choice but to deploy already weary men to defend our home today."
"Laval has offered any assistance we need on behalf of the Lion Tribe," Cragger said as he entered the vault.
"What we need is for these raids to stop!" Crominus growled. "They have grown in frequency and ferocity, and the next time we may not be able to stop them from taking all our Chi."
"God only knows what those creeps want Chi for," Zee muttered.
"They previously denounced Chi," Cragger said. "We're all a bit puzzled as to why they want it now."
Mack appeared deep in thought.
"What's on your mind?" Kai asked, lightly elbowing the Green Ninja.
"If we are going to stop these attacks, we might need to find out why the Outlanders are so hell-bent on attacking the Crocodile Tribe in particular."
"He's right," Cragger agreed. "Lots of tribes have Chi, and most of their territories aren't nearly as fortified as ours."
"It would be much easier to steal from the Bears or the Gorillas, right? So why us?" Crominus bellowed.
"That's what we're going to find out," Mack replied. "But we should be careful not to forget the more important question of why they want Chi in the first place."
Scorm was becoming frustrated.
His new ally was mysterious, which was not in itself a negative, as far as he was concerned; but this ally was at times obnoxiously vague in his motivations. The Scorpion King's frequent attempts to gain some clarity had met with failure.
He could not even obtain the reason it was the crocodiles they must attack; surely there were easier targets, he thought. Scorm suspected this mysterious stranger was testing his warriors' mettle.
From a distance, Scorm had watched his scorpion and bat troops attack the Crocodile Tribe. His troops breached the crocodiles' defenses and reached their Chi—the target of the attack—when backup arrived.
The lions always came to the crocodiles' aid, but this time they brought with them three warriors whose power Scorm estimated to be enough to repel the attacking force times a thousand.
Scorm led his defeated troops back to their new fortress, which their new ally had constructed out of pure shadow (the show of power instantly won the respect of the Scorpion and Bat Tribes). The fortress was located in the deepest recesses of the Outlands, away from the prying eyes of the Chima tribes.
The troops dispersed throughout the fortress while Scorm climbed the grand staircase to the very top, to the observation platform where his new ally stayed. He reached the top and the shadowy creature stood as if having waited for him for a while now.
"Tenebris," Scorm addressed.
When Tenebris did not answer, Scorm continued.
"Our troops brought back a dozen Chi. It's all they were able to secure before the lions arrived."
Still no answer.
"And there were… strange warriors with them."
Finally, Tenebris reacted. He walked slowly toward Scorm, who gulped.
"You are to be commended," Tenebris said as he walked. "Were it not for the lions and their… allies, your troops may have indeed acquired all of the crocodiles' Chi.
"I know you have been frustrated," he said when he had approached close to Scorm, "but now, it's time for you to know what it is we're planning—now that your warriors have proven themselves and resistance has arrived."
Scorm squinted. "Do you know who those warriors were?"
"Guardians," Tenebris snarled. "I suspected they might come, and I thought I sensed them entering this realm."
"Have you fought them before?" Scorm asked.
Tenebris growled. "I was placed to serve under a stubborn, petulant witch who raised an army against them. I killed one of them, but we were crushed, and I fled in humiliation, one of only a few survivors. I escaped to this realm and swore revenge.
"In my travels, I became aware of the power lying dormant in this realm, ripe for my taking. I hoped that amassing enough power in the name of the darkness would draw the attention of the Guardians, so that I could avenge the humiliation I suffered at their hands."
A hideous sneer broke out across Tenebris's face. "And here they are. With their arrival and our acquisition of some Chi, it is time to set my plans into motion."
Scorm's frustration gave way to sheer curiosity at one particular point in Tenebris's brief rant.
"You mentioned your travels, what did you mean by that?" he asked.
Tenebris gestured toward a couple of chairs on the observation platform. "Sit, friend, and I will answer all your questions and tell you exactly what manner of doom we will bring on this world—the terrible vengeance we both will visit on our enemies."
End of Part One