Merry Christmas, fellow readers and writers! Once again, I apologize for the lack of postings, life and stuff keeps getting in the way. But not today, for this day, December 25th, 2024, I shall post several chapters, and then post several more on New Years Day, so enjoy today and enjoy next Wednesday!

Chapter 14: Escape from Dino- Earth

…Monster High…

"Are you sure this thing is safe?" asked Draculaura as she, Valentine and Amanita wore gas masks and lead-lined coats. They stood in one of the classrooms, well up in the stands, watching Emory Slugworth III direct several Kaijin and enthralled Monsters as they finished setting up equipment for what was to be a truly foul experiment.

"In theory, yes," said Emory as he crawled around an oversized operating table with restraining straps. Next to the table was a large, laser-like device that hummed with insidious energies.

"I don't understand why you need the death ray thingy," said Amanita, "aren't Plasmids supposed to be shot into the blood like a drug?"

"Mostly," said Emory, "but Plasmids were originally meant for Normies and have rather unpleasant side effects, such as physical deformities and insanity. But this Plasmid is for Monsters and requires a special kind of radiation to be fully effective."

"Alright, I have to know," said Valentine, "are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Well…91% sure," said Emory, "experimental science is never truly sure, especially when you're pushing the boundaries into the unknown. Alright, it looks like we're ready. Bring in the test subject!"

Another disguised Kaijin lead in the placid and blank-eyed Manny, his nose still bandaged from when Draculaura cut off his nose ring. The makeshift lab assistants secured Manny to the table, buckling the straps to his arms, legs, chest and head.

Emory then picked up a beaker full of a glowing red fluid and filled a syringe with it. "I will now administer the modified ADAM to the subject," he said as he shuffled over to Manny. He then injected the enthralled minotaur with the red fluid, then slid over to the laser devise.

"Now, are you sure that thing is safe?" asked Draculaura as she, Amanita and Valentine backed up to the top level of the seats.

"She wants to know if it's gonna blow up or something," said Valentine, "or give us cancer. Now, we vampires are immortal, but we can still get sick."

"Eeew!" exclaimed Amanita, "I don't want to get sick! Why am I even in here?"

"You're here because you are to bear witness to greatness," said Irvin as he walked in, "sorry I'm late, I had a conference call."

"How can you stand it?" asked Draculaura as Irvin walked up to her and the others, "the smell, it's awful!"

"What…Emory?" asked Irvin as the slug scientist powered up the laser device, "I simply ignore it."

"I don't see how you can," said Valentine.

"I'm ready now!" said Emory as he aimed the laser device at Manny, "prepare to have your minds blown!" he then activated the device, firing a beam of radiation at Manny. The enthralled minotaur made no resistance or sound as his body was permeated by mutating rays.

Before the horrified and fascinated eyes of Draculaura and the others, Manny began to change, increasing his already impressive height and muscle mass by well over half his original form, while sprouting spikes across his arms, chest and back. His horns grew longer and sharper, while his fists became large enough to crush a man's skull effortlessly.

"That's enough," said Emory as he deactivated the radiation device.

"How can he do that?" asked Valentine as Emory slid around the modified Manny, "that bull's radioactive, yet he's not even wearing lead-lined skivvies!"

"How do you know he's not already radioactive?" asked Irvin. He then got up and walked down to Emory, "well?"

"Better than I expected, Mr. Weis," said Emory, "this creature's already impressive strength has been increased by 63%. There's still plenty of work to be done with future subjects; fine tuning in the radiation dosage and modifying the ADAM formulae, but this," he then looked admiringly at Manny as the lab assistants released him from the table, "this is a hell of a start!"

"Without a doubt," said Valentine as he cautiously ventured down the seating stands and looked at Manny, "point this abomination in the right direction and he'll leave nothing but death and destruction in his wake."

"He'll tear Frankie and her freak friends to bits," said a delighted Draculaura.

"Can I borrow him?" asked Amanita as she walked towards Manny, "of course I can borrow him, you don't mind, do you?"

"The hell I do mind!" snapped Irvin, "this creature is just one of many that'll further Obsidian's goals, perhaps even so far as to tip the balance of the coming Kralizec in Obsidian's favor. At the very least, the creature is what we need to destroy those miserable Kamen Riders."

"Oh, they'll do more, Mr. Weis," said Emory, "my creatures are gonna walk all over those Kamen Riders."

"That thing?!" exclaimed Dr. Ulfberht as she irately walked towards Irvin from the doorway, "that piece of mutated filth!? No, Mr. Weis, your pathetic little science experiment won't be defeating any Kamen Riders, not this year anyway."

"Excuse me," said Emory irately as he slid over to Dr. Ulfberht, "but who the hell are you to say that my experiments are pathetic?!"

"A card carrying member of Foundation X," said Dr. Ulfberht as she pulled out a membership card and showed it to Emory, "and you, don't think we're unaware of your pitiful efforts, Emory Slugworth III, we have far superior candidatesand projects in mind, at least more profitable ones."

"You Foundation fools care nothing for science!" snapped Emory, "all you see are dollar signs and checks to be cashed. I am a visionary, where as you and yours are nothing but greed-driven parasites!"

"Parasites?!" exclaimed Dr. Ulfberht, "I ought to smother you in salt!"

"Later," insisted Irvin as he stood between the two scientists, "now, is there something you wanted to tell me, Dr. Ulfberht?"

"As a matter of fact, yes," said Dr. Ulfberht as she glared hatefully at Emory, whom glared back in kind, "I was going to tell you that I already have several promising candidates for my Dark Rider project and have begun narrowing them down. It's only a matter of time before I find the right wicked human with the right dark heart."

"Oh, a contest is it?" asked Draculaura eagerly, "I can't wait to see who wins!"

Just then Irvin's smart phone chirped with a message, "it's from my superiors," said Irvin as he read the message, "it concerns one of my fellow proxies and…what…WHAT!?" He then pulled up his contact list, selected one and dialed.

"You seemed a trifle irked," said Valentine.

"Oh, you haven't seen me irked," grumbled Irvin, "yes…Sharon? It's Irvin…never mind how I am, WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU HAD A STAR PIECE!"

"SAY WHAT!?" exclaimed Draculaura as she, valentine and Amanita clustered around Irvin as the dark man continued to listen to his colleague on the other end of the call.

"Really…really…well, that's different…that long? And you actually got them to go along with it? I'm impressed…wait…you have WHO?!" at that Irvin let out a viciously delighted laugh, "Cuthbert must be rolling in his grave! Yes…yes, I'll send someone to collect them soon…what…wait a few hours? Oh, alright, no hurry, just make sure it is safe and intact when you're done with it…okay…yes…yes, it's good to hear from you too, bye-bye."

"Who was that?" asked Amanita.

"That…" said Irvin as he pocketed his smart phone, "was Sharon A. Rossburg, an old friend and rival of mine. Not only has she one of the Star pieces, she also has Apple White and Avery Manning at her mercy."

"You're kidding," said Valentine.

"I am not," said Irvin, "apparently, Sharon's been playing the long game on a parallel Earth, one where Dinosaurs never went extinct. She's been manipulating several tribes of intelligent velociraptors, toying with their religious beliefs…oh, they worship the Star piece, the velociraptor tribes."

"Now that's interesting," said Valentine, "so, why do we have to wait to go get it?"

"Yes, let's go now!" said Draculaura eagerly as she clutched the necklace with the Star piece embedded in it, "I want that diamond and I want it now!"

"Sharon's using it," said Irvin, "she started abogus prophecy, something about the Star piece being the key to ascending to a higher plane of existence. In reality, the ritual will turn the stupid bastard dinosaurs into psychotic demigods under Obsidian's control and blow up the planet."

"The Star piece can do that?" asked Amanita, "say, can I borrow one of those Star pieces? I just want it for a while, you know, cause some mischief and enjoy some extra bling, and…"

"No," said Irvin flatly, "anyway, Sharon says once her mission is accomplished, which will be in…" he checked the clock on his smart phone, "in less than six hours."

"I don't want to wait six hours!" whined Draculaura, "I want it now!"

"Well, if you want it now, 'Veruca,'" said Emory, "then go get it."

"An excellent suggestion," said Valentine, "let's go get it," he then looked at the mutated Manny, "and we can take this hulking horror with us. If Apple White and her protector are on that other world, then there's sure to be more of those meddling brats waiting to cause trouble"

"Oh, I can't wait to see the looks on Frankie and the others when they see Manny coming to get them," said a deviously delighted Draculaura. But then she frowned, "no, something's not right, not yet," she then went outside into the hallways, "I know I have something in my old locker."

Valentine and the others followed Draculaura to an enormous locker. Draculaura had it open and was rummaging through the massive amounts of items in it. "What is all of this?" asked Emory.

"Draculaura," said Gory as she and Bram passed by, "once a hoarder, always a hoarder."

"I heard that!" shouted Draculaura irately, whom then shouted in triumph as she emerged from her locker, holding Manny's brass nose ring, "I knew I didn't throw it away!"

"You kept that thing?!" exclaimed Valentine as he and the others followed Draculaura back to the lab, where Draculaura re-pierced Manny's nose with the brass ring.

"I thought it could come in handy," said Draculaura as she stood back, admiring her work, "now Frankie and the others won't mistake Manny for something else."

"I see," said an impressed Valentine, "when they see their friend, they'll be unable to fight back, despite his homicidal intention."

"Exactly," said Draculaura as she smiled wickedly, "they won't stand a ghost of a chance."

…Dino Earth…

"So, you've been here for fifteen years?" asked Howleen as she, Chad and Avery, were chained to large stones surrounding an alter atop the mountain. The enemy velociraptors were franticly preparing the temple for the celestial alignment mere hours away.

"Yep, and what a fifteen years it's been," said Sharon eagerly as she walked around the stones, gloating at Chad, Avery and Howleen, "you wouldn't believe how hard I worked to gain the velociraptor tribes' trust, and that's just so they wouldn't eat me. Then I had to convince them that I was a profit from another world, come to announce that the time to ascend to godhood was fast approaching. Believe me, it was so much harder than you could ever imagine."

"So, you've basically been spoon-feeding lies and twisted truths to these people," said Chad irately, "all for what? To destroy a world and create a race of insane godlike beings? Pardon my French, lady, but you're an asshole!"

"I've been called worse," said Sharon, "yes, it's been a long, hard and often painful road for me," she then indicated multiple bite marks and scars on her arms and legs, "I can't tell you how many times I was nearly eaten, and not just by the V tribes. There's plenty of hungry carnivores out there, including a particularly tenacious T-Rex." She then pointed at her right leg, revealing her right calf and foot to be prosthetic, "he took my leg," she then summoned a large glass jar containing an enormous eye floating in preservation fluid, "but I took this, and his pride."

"Is that what you're going to do to us?" asked Howleen nervously, "kill us and take parts of us as trophies?"

"Oh, you'll be trophies, alright," said Sharon as she vanished the glass jar, "but not for me. No," she then glared at Avery, "word from my superiors is that you've been causing a lot of trouble for Obsidian, Avery Manning, AKA Kamen Rider Kabuto," she looked at Chad, "and you, I don't remember your name, but you're becoming quite the fly in the ointment."

"Is that all I am? A fly?" asked Chad in a mockingly insulted tone, "gee, I thought I'd be at least a thorn in the side by now."

"Keep dreaming, kiddo," said Sharon, "you've got about 299 years of growing before you'll be a match for me."

"You're almost 300?" asked an astonished Howleen, "you look so young, what's your secret?"

"Magic, of course," said Sharon, "and the sheer dumb luck to be chosen by Obsidian." She then walked up to Howleen with a warm, welcoming smile, "it can be yours too, Ms. Wolf, if you're interested."

"Don't listen to her, Howleen!" exclaimed Chad, "she's trying to turn you to the dark side!"

Sharon responded by punching Chad hard in the solar plexus, knocking the wind out of him and silencing further protests. "I wasn't talking to you, little boy," she said in a disapproving tone, "the offer isn't for you," she then walked back to Howleen, "it's yours for the taking. Just think of it; wealth, fame, power…"

"I've already had that," said Howleen, "that time I found Gigi Grant's lamp. She offered me 13 wishes. I tried to use them selflessly, but in the end, my greed almost destroyed everyone I loved."

"Your loved ones will be protected, Howleen," said Sharon, "your friends and family, they'll be safe. Working for Obsidian does have its benefits."

"As a pawn!?" asked Chad, "as a slave who sold her soul? Like those traitors back home?!"

Sharon punched Chad again in the midsection, "you're really getting on my nerves, little boy!" she then straightened her slightly wrinkled suit and smiled at Howleen again, "this is no mere recruitment, no. This is far better. How would you like to be an official proxy for Obsidian? Like me, only no mere human, but as a young, powerful and beautiful werewolf?"

"You…you think I'm beautiful?" asked an astonished and flattered Howleen.

"Of course, especially your hair," said Sharon as she walked up to and stroked Howleen's hot pink bangs, "black may be the official uniform of Obsidian, but I've always loved shades of pink, I guess it's the girl in me." She giggled like a schoolgirl as she stroked Howleen's hair.

"Get away from her, you sicko!" snapped Avery, speaking for the first time since he had been chained to the stone.

"Oh, the stalwart Rider speaks," said Sharon as she walked towards Avery, "and here I thought the cat took your tongue. Well? Now's the time to speak your peace, Avery Manning. Aren't you going to thrill us all with one of your grandmother's famous maxims?"

"Where's Apple?!" Avery demanded as he glared coldly at Sharon.

"That's a good question," said Chad as he looked around, "you got us here, but Apple's nowhere in sight. What are you doing to her?!"

"Nothing, yet," said Sharon, "don't worry your silly little heads, boys, you'll see your beloved princess soon enough. Now, back to business," she walked back to Howleen, "you'll get so much more than wealth, fame and power if you join us, Howleen; you'll get respect."

"Respect?" asked Howleen.

"Respect of your pears, superiors and inferiors. You'll have entire worlds of Kaijin and other dark forces to command, the comradery of your fellow Proxies, not to mention the attention and admiration of The Obsidian Council itself."

"They…they'll admire me?" asked Howleen.

"We're doing the work they cannot," said Sharon, "the higher powers that be prevent The Council from directly influencing the countless worlds throughout time and space. Only we, the chosen few, can carry out the will of Obsidian, and for that we have their eternal gratitude."

"Unless you fail," muttered Avery.

"What's that?" asked an irked Sharon.

"I said unless you fail in your missions," said Avery defiantly, "either you die in the line of duty or you're eliminated by your masters. Obsidian has little if any tolerance for failure."

"True," Sharon reluctantly admitted, "the incompetent imbeciles are purged from the organization and are soon replaced. On the other hands, the truly capable have to work hard and long to prove their worth to The Council. I was only made a full Proxy 21 years ago, this is only my second assignment, whereas Cuthbert, Ophelia and Irvin, they're much, much older and have scores of successful missions to brag about.

"But you, Howleen Wolf, you're far from incompetent. You're a bright, determined and ambitious young shewolf with a spark of darkness ready to be kindled in your heart. Come with me to Obsidian, and we'll turn that dark spark into a raging black inferno. Come with me and you'll have the chance to surpass Cuthbert and the others, becoming the greatest of Obsidian's weapons, perhaps even as a leading figure in the coming Kralizec. Come with me, prove your worth to The Obsidian Council," she then leaned closer and whispered with dark pleasure in Howleen's ear, "and I swear that you will have the respect you deserve."

"Respect," said Howleen as she looked at Sharon as she backed away, "it's all I've wanted."

"Don't listen to her, Howleen!" shouted Avery, "you don't know what you're getting into!"

"No, you don't know, Avery!" snapped Howleen, "you don't know what it's like being the youngest, to be the runt of the litter, always trying harder to be noticed by your parents, to outshine your big brother and sisters, to always be treated like a child and looked down on by everyone around you. You have no idea the pain and humiliation I've had to deal with my whole life!"

"If Clawdeen were here…" said Chad.

"If she were here, I'd blame her the most!" snapped Howleen, "she's never seen me as anything more than her baby sister, even when I've tried so hard to be mature and responsible. But no, I've been nothing but Clawdeen's annoying, bratty sister. I'm an embarrassment to her! Even among the others at Monster High I'm an embarrassment, and a joke! I can't even count the number of times the likes of Toralei and Gory made me the butt of a joke! I don't even have respect among other Werewolves! I'm a joke! My whole freaking life is a joke!"

Howleen closed her eyes, "But I don't have to take it anymore! If I can't earn respect from my friends and family, then I'll make them respect me as an enemy!" she then looked at Sharon, "where do I sign up?"

"After we've completed the ritual and left this world to its Moosey fate," said Sharon as she magically unchained Howleen from the stone, "business before pleasure, after all."

"Yeah, about the ritual," said Howleen as she rubbed her sore wrists, "what's gonna happen? And…wait…did you say Moosey fate?"

"Oh, I named the asteroid that became Earth's second moon," said Sharon, "the velociraptors, they just call The Moon 'Big Moon,' while the asteroid is 'Little Moon.' I figured such an important astronomical object deserves a proper name, so I called it Moose."

"'Moose?'" asked Chad, Avery and Howleen with extremely confused expressions.

"Well, I couldn't very well call it 'Squirrel,' now could I?" asked Sharon.

"You are a very strange person," said Howleen.

"Thank you," said Sharon smugly.

"Buttering up to your boss already?" asked Chad venomously, "you traitor!"

"Insult her all you want, go on, do it," said Sharon, "get it all out while you still can."

"Why bother? You're gonna kill us anyway," said Chad.

"Where's Apple!?" shouted Avery, "where is she?!"

"I told you, you'll see her soon enough," said Sharon.

"Sorry if I still sound bratty," said Howleen, "but where is Apple? I know Obsidian wants her dead, but making her suffer seems a little too much."

"Sentimentality for a former friend," said Sharon, "you'll get over it soon. Needless to say, Apple's getting ready. She has a very important part to play in the ritual."

"Just what is this ritual?" asked Chad, "what are you going to do to this world and its people?"

"You really want to know?" asked Sharon, "you really can't wait a few hours? Okay, I'll tell you know," she pointed up at the asteroid that had become the second moon, "you see Moose up there? Its orbit is really quick, only a few hours long. When its next orbit brings it back above us, that'll be when the stars are in the right position."

She then summoned a crudely carved stone box and opened it, revealing a large, shining diamond that was almost too bright to look at.

"The Star piece!" exclaimed Avery.

"The idiots of this world think it's their holy grail or something," said Sharon, "I really enjoyed telling them that it has the power to make them into gods. I'm gonna use this to harness the one of the great forces of the universe; Gravity."

"Gravity?" asked Howleen, "how's that gonna destroy a world and create crazy demigods?"

"And here I thought you were a reasonably intelligent creature," said a disapproving Sharon, "use your brain! Look up, see anything that shouldn't be there?!"

"Uh…the second moon?" asked Howleen.

"Exactly!" exclaimed Sharon, "the Star Piece knocked Moose from its destined course, so now I'm going to use The Star piece to bring Moose down to Earth."

"The K-T Extinction Event," said a shocked Chad, "you're going to make it happen after all!"

"I'm gonna do one better," said an eagerly grinning Sharon, "I'm going to use The Star to increase Moose's density and give it a massive acceleration kickstart! I won't bore you with the math involved, but let's just say that the force of the Moose's impact will be easily a hundred times as powerful as it was supposed to be."

"NO! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" shouted Chad as he struggled against his chains, "that much power, it'll…it'll…"

"It'll crack the planet's crust wide open and set the atmosphere on fire," said Sharon, "Dino Earth is going to die, either it'll shake itself to pieces or burn to ashes. Either way, there won't even be bacteria left."

"You'll kill the velociraptors you've duped into helping!" snapped Avery.

"The magics involved in the ritual will allow my dino pawns to ascend to their psychotic godhood upon death," said Sharon, "Again, it'll take way too long to explain."

"And…what about us?" asked Howleen nervously, "how are we going to survive?"

"Magic, duh!" exclaimed Sharon, "we'll live to tell the tale to Obsidian, with a small army of psycho gods, a Star Piece, Apple White's death and you as a new recruit. If this doesn't earn you a commission and me a promotion, I don't know what will!"

"But Apple, what are you going to do to Apple?!" demanded Avery, "you're just going to leave her here to be incinerated by the impact?!"

"I'm leaving you two Riders to be incinerated," said Sharon, "Apple has a very special part to play. You see, the ritual has one essential element for it to work; the desecration of a pure heart and soul."

"You mean…you're going to…?" Howleen could barely ask.

"I'm going to cut out Apple White's heart and burn it," said Sharon as she smiled with vile glee, "I'm going to send her pure, innocent soul to hell forever and ever." She then saw the look of horrified outrage on Avery, "and there's nothing you or anyone can do to stop me!" she then laughed like the villains he was, unaware that an animal that shouldn't be on Dino Earth, a blackbird, perched on one of the tall stones. Without a sound, the bird took flight and few down the mountain.

A short time later, the blackbird had polymorphed back into Raven, whom then explained everything she heard at the temple to Dexter, Clawdeen, Merle and the others, then proceeded to bend over a log and throw up.

"I can't believe it," said a horrified Ashlynn, "they're going to cut Apple's heart out?"

"And use it to destroy the world," said Dexter as he rubbed Raven's shoulders.

"Howleen," said Clawdeen through gritted teeth, "I'm gonna kill her!"

"It's got to be a mistake," said Venus, "it just has to be a mistake. Howleen wouldn't!"

"You heard what Raven said!" snapped Clawdeen, "Howleen's betrayed us!"

"We don't know what Raven heard," said Dexter as he stood by Raven, "it was her first polymorph, anything could have gone wrong. She could have heard everything wrong."

At that Raven stood up, wiped her lips and looked at her friends, "the only thing that went wrong was the species I turned into. I tried for a raven and wound up a blackbird. But there wasn't anything wrong with my ears," she then clutched her stomach, "oh no! Here comes Round 2!" she then bent over the log and resumed vomiting.

"Well, I still don't believe it!" said Venus, "there has to be more going on. There's no way Howleen would betray us like that!"

"Well, what do you think is going on?" asked Hunter.

"I don't know!" snapped an exasperated Venus, "maybe she's under Sharon's control or something, or maybe she's faking it to get close to the Star piece, or something."

"Well, she's certainly on Sharon's good graces," said Clawdeen irately, "I'm gonna…"

"We're not doing anything until we know what to do!" snapped Raven as Dexter helped her stand up, "we'll figure out what to do about Howleen when we have time. Right now we've got less than six hours to stop Sharon from crashing the asteroid into the planet."

"Darn right we've got to stop her!" shouted Venus, "we can't let her wipe out all life on this beautiful world!"

"Well, I'm open to suggestion!" snapped Clawdeen, "the whole mountain's booby trapped! We're outnumbered by those fanatic dinos and no one else is coming to help! Look, even Merle and his people are losing hope!"

Raven and the others saw the velociraptor shaman and his remaining warriors looking dejected and depressed, accepting that there's nothing they could do to save their world.

"No, don't feel that way!" said Raven to Merle, "we're not beaten yet." She then paused as Merle sent a psychic response, "no, I don't know what do to, but…" She then walked over to a nearby rock, sat down and pulled out her spell notebook.

"She's thinking," said Dexter, seeing Merle's inquisitive look.

"Whatever you're looking for, Raven," said Ashlynn, "look for it faster, we're running out of time."

"I know," said Raven as she flipped through the pages of her notebook, "I know we're short on time, so we'll borrow some. Ah ha!" She then pointed her finger at the desired page, "the old hypertime spell!"

"Hypertime?" asked Dexter, "you mean Clocking Up? I can't do that here; at least I don't think so."

"I'm not asking you to risk getting sick," said Raven, "I'll cast the spell on all of us. We'll then run up the mountain at near lightspeed, avoiding enemy velociraptors, traps and whatever else Sharon has waiting for us. We'll then charge the temple, free Apple, Avery and Chad, grab the Star piece and get out before the celestial alignment."

"And getting Howleen too," said Clawdeen as she pounded one fist into her palm.

At that Raven walkedup to Clawdeen and looked the werewolf in the eye, "we're not doing anything like that. I know you're upset over Howleen. Heck, I'd be upset if my sister betrayed me like this, but…"

"But you don't have a sister!" snapped Clawdeen, "I do, and Howleen's my sister!"

"She's also my friend," said Raven, "As are you, and if we're going to remain friends, and alive, we all need to work together, which means no going off on your own to punish Howleen. We'll take her home, alive, where she'll answer for what she's done, but only if you can keep your cool."

At that Clawdeen looked at Raven suspiciously, "you sure your plan will work?"

"I'll do my best," said Raven, "as will we all," she then looked at Venus, Hunter, Ashlynn and Dexter, whom nodded in agreement, as did Merle and his warriors as the shaman heard Raven's plan via telepathy.

"How long do you need?" asked Dexter as Raven sat down with her spell notebook in her lap.

"A while," said Raven, "I need to build up enough magic to cast it on all of us, so…"

"How long?" asked Clawdeen impatiently.

"A few hours," said Raven.

"We don't have a few hours!" snapped Clawdeen.

"Then I'd better get started!" snapped Raven, her eyes flashing with purple malice as her inner darkness briefly rose up, then faded as she calmed herself. She closed her eyes in concentration, deadening herself to the world in mental and magical preparation.

"Just leave her alone," said Ashlynn as she and Hunter sat down, "she'll be like this for a while."

"I hate waiting," muttered Clawdeen as she and the others sat down, anxiously waiting for Raven to finish gathering her strength for the conflict ahead.

"Are you kidding me?!" exclaimed Draculaura as she, Amanita, two disguised Orphnochs, two disguised Fangire and the mutated Manny, trudged through the prehistoric jungle, "are you flipping kidding me?! We're lost?!"

"At least we're lost together," said Amanita, "better than being lost alone. I'm just gonna borrow your bug spray if you don't mind…" she reached her hand towards Draculaura's purse.

"I told you to bring your own!" snapped Draculaura as she slapped Amanita's hand away, then pulled out a can of insect repellent and liberally sprayed it across her body, "besides, you're a plant Monster, bugs shouldn't bother you."

Now it was Amanita's turn to ask, "Are you flipping kidding me? Bugs eat plants, especially locusts, aphids and grasshoppers."

"We're relatively 65 million years in the past, ma'am," said one of the Orphnochs, "those insects may not have evolved yet."

"She should be more worried about being eaten by a dinosaur," sniggered one of the Fangire, causing the other disguised Kaijin to laugh.

"Shut up!" snapped Amanita, whom then looked around nervously for any sign of an herbivore.

Just then the jungle cleared enough for the vile party to see the mountain with the temple in the distance.

"See, I told you we weren't lost!" said Draculaura as her eyes set avariciously on the temple, "that's where the Star piece is, and I'm gonna get it, even if I have to rip it out of Sharon's hands!"

"Okay, I'm ready," said Raven after four hours of meditation.

"Finally!" exclaimed Clawdeen as she and the others got up, "let's go already!"

"Just hold on a second, will you!?" demanded Raven, "I'm not casting the spell until I've had a chance to tell you all a few things."

"Like what?" asked Ashlynn, while Clawdeen fidgeted impatiently.

"Like how dangerous this spell is," said Raven, "we're about to travel in Hyper Time, that in itself is very dangerous."

"You have no idea," said Dexter to Clawdeen, while Hunter nodded in agreement, "going that fast, you can cause a lot of accidental harm."

"Remember how much damage a Molted Worm and us Riders caused when we Clocked Up?" asked Hunter.

"We pretty much wrecked Book End a few times," said Dexter, "and that's just what we did to buildings. Imagine how much damage you could do if you even touch something or someone alive while in Hyper Time?"

"My point," said Raven, "is that while we'll be going so fast that everything around us will seem to be frozen or moving really, really slowly, don't touch anything. You could accidentally hurt an innocent, or worse, trip and hurt yourself. Without properly ending the spell, you could decelerate to normal time and seriously hurt yourself, or worse."

"How worse?" asked an uncomfortable Venus.

"You could die very, very painfully," said Raven, "and please don't ask me to explain further, I really don't want to throw up from my own imagination."

"Right, okay, we'll be careful," said Clawdeen.

"And I want you to be extra careful," said Raven to Clawdeen, "we know how eager you are to get to Howleen. Well, once we're in Hyper Time, she's not going anywhere, so don't go running off on your own."

"I won't, so let's get going already!" said Clawdeen impatiently, "were running out of time!"

"We'll have all the time we need soon enough," said Raven. She then closed her eyes, raised her hands and began chanting her spell.

There was a flash of magic and reality brightened and blurred for our heroes, while a rising and falling resonance could be heard.

Raven gave a gasp of exhaustion and nearly fell into Dexter's arms. "I'm alright," she said groggily, "that took a bit more out of me than I thought." She then stood up straight.

"You sure you're okay?" asked a worried Dexter.

"I just need a second," said Raven as she took several bracing breaths, "okay, I'm ready."

With that our heroes and allies once again trekked up the mountain, this time easily avoiding booby traps and guards alike. Yet all the while Raven seemed to weaken; she was unable to keep pace with the others and needed Dexter to help her keep her balance.

"Okay, we're stopping to rest!" insisted Dexter after Raven nearly fell over three quarters of the way to the summit.

"No, we can't stop!" said Raven stubbornly, "we have to reach the temple and do what we have to do before I end the spell."

"You can't keep going like this!" said Venus.

"I can certainly try," said Raven as she stepped forward, only to fall again into Dexter's arms. He then proceeded to sling her onto his back like a knapsack.

"I may not have your magic, Raven," said Dexter as he secured Raven's arms around his neck, "but I can still help."

"What'd I ever do to deserve someone as wonderful as you?" asked Raven as she kissed Dexter on the cheek, "for luck."

With that they continued running up the mountain, albeit a bit slower. But then, just as the temple came within sight, Raven gasped and nearly passed out.

"We have to stop now!" shouted Dexter. He gently laid Raven on the ground as the others gathered around him.

"I'm sorry, everyone," said Raven, "I can't keep the spell going, I have to end it now!" there was another flash of magic as time returned to normal.

"Well, this isn't good," said Venus as she and the others looked around for any signs of enemy velociraptors.

"Maybe not," said Hunter as he and the others realized they were alone, "maybe we're finally getting lucky.

Just then a winded and disarrayed Draculaura dashed up towards the temple, followed by an equally disarrayed Amanita, with the Kaijin and mutated Manny bringing up the rear.

"See?" asked Draculaura breathlessly, "I told you we'd make it!" she then saw our heroes and for a few seconds, both sides stared at each other, before Draculaura spoke, "well…this is awkward."

"Friends of yours?" asked Amanita.

"The hell we are!" barked Clawdeen.

"Who's your friend, Draculaura?" asked Venus, "wait…" she sniffed the air, "I…that scent…it can't be…"

"It is!" exclaimed Amanita, "the one and only Amanita Nightshade, in the flesh! You're Frankie's friends, right? Well, you can tell her that I like totally love her car."

"You mean Hector?" asked Raven irately as she stood up despite Dexter's worried expression, "the car Frankie put her heart and soul into restoring? The car Frankie loves so much? That Hector?"

"Uh…yeah," said an annoyed Amanita, "I'm just borrowing it, she can have it back, when I'm done with it."

"No, you're going to give it back, now!" demanded Raven as she charged her hands with magic, "now!"

"Uh…like no!" said Amanita irately, "I don't have it right now, and I wouldn't give it back even if I did! Anyway, why do you care? You're like from a world that doesn't even have cars. Do you even know what a car is?"

"I know that Frankie's heart is breaking without Hector," said Raven.

"It is?" asked Ashlynn, "I didn't notice."

"I've seen how upset she looks when she thinks no one else is looking," said Raven, "oh, she's trying to keep it from getting in the way of what we're doing, but deep down inside, she's pining for Hector."

"Well, I'm not giving it back until I've had enough of it!" said Amanita smugly, "And at the rate I'm going, I'll probably be done with it a week from next whenever!"

"Oh for crying out loud!" exclaimed Clawdeen, "it's just a car! And we're running out of time!"

"I'm with you on that, Clawdeen," said Draculaura coldly, "we've wasted enough time as it is. I want the Star piece and you ghouls are in my way!"

"And we'll stay in your way!" shouted Dexter as he and Hunter stood forward as their Rider Belts appeared around their waists, while their individual Zecters emerged from portals.

"Oh, be careful, you two," said a worried Ashlynn, "you know what'll happen if…"

"We'll be fine," said Hunter as Drake Zecter docked with his Drake Grip, while Dexter caught Gatack Zecter.

"You girls get the Star piece and save the others!" said Dexter. With that he and Hunter shouted "Henshin!" Dexter clicked his Zecter into place on his belt and Hunter pulled the trigger on his Drake Grip.

HENSHIN

Energy hexagons flowed from both devices, materializing across Dexter and Hunter as the Masked forms of Gatack and Drake.

"Oh for crying out loud," muttered Draculaura. She then looked at the disguised Kaijin, "liquidate them!"

With that the Orphnochs and Fangire assumed their true forms, only to meet a furious barrage from the Drake Grip and Gatack Vulcan. Before the hapless Kaijin knew it, they were destroyed, crumbling into dust and shattering into stained glass fragments.

"Is that all you've got?" asked Gatack daringly.

"No, duh!" exclaimed a slightly nervous but still resolute Draculaura, "haven't you noticed the hulking abomination with me?"

"Yeah, and she stinks!" mocked Venus.

"Hey! I don't stink!" snapped Amanita, "yeah, the Corpse Flower is a bit…pungent, but…"

"Shut up!" snapped Draculaura, "I mean this lumbering lummox!" she then indicated the mutated Manny, "recognize him, Clawdeen?"

"Oh my friggin ghoul!" exclaimed a horrified Clawdeen as she and the others recognized Manny, "but…how…why…" she then glared hatefully at Draculaura, "how could you!? Have you no decency? Have you no shame!?"

"What good has decency and shame done anyone?" asked Draculaura as she smiled wickedly. She then looked at the mutated minotaur, "Manny? Walk all over her!"

The twisted minotaur gave a bellow of insane fury and charged at Clawdeen with such intensity that Clawdeen found herself frozen with fear. She would have met her doom, either by the creature's goring horns or trampled by his hooves, had Gatack not gotten in front and grabbed Manny by the horns, stopping the mutated minotaur in his tracks.

"Go!" shouted Gatack as he strained against Manny, the creature bellowing mindlessly as he strained to push forward, while Gatack pushed back, "JUST GO!"

"We've got this!" shouted Drake as he aimed and fired at Manny, his shots easily hitting the mutated minotaur yet left minimal damage.

"Come on, Clawdeen!" shouted Venus as she, Ashlynn and Raven pulled at Clawdeen towards the temple.

"Okay," said Clawdeen as she, the girls and velociraptors dashed into the temple. But Clawdeen hesitated at the entrance for a second to give one last hateful glare at Draculaura, before following the others.

"Now this is what I call entertainment," said Amanita as she sat on a nearby rock, gleefully watching Gatack grapple with Manny while Drake provided fire support, "I only wish I brought some snacks."

"This isn't about satisfying your boredom," said Draculaura coldly, "I want that Star piece and I'll get it come hell or high water!"

"Good grief! This place is a maze!" exclaimed Ashlynn as she, Raven, Merle and the others, hurried through the twisting, turning and branching corridors of the temple.

"Why didn't you tell us it was like this, Raven?" asked Venus, "you flew through this!"

"I was perched on a stone in the inner sanctuary," said Raven, "the rest of the temple had a roof on it, there's no way I could see the inside." She then looked at the walls of the maze, seeing the carved runes covering every inch of the structure, "but there's a reason for the temple to be like this; Sharon, she must have designed it in the shape of one enormous magic circle designed to harness the power of the Star piece."

"Then let's wreck this place before she can work whatever mojo she's got planned!" said Clawdeen as she aimed and threw a punch at one of the walls, only to yelp in pain and clutch at her fist, backing away at the unyielding masonry.

"It's protected by magic," said Raven as Venus examined Clawdeen's hand.

"A little warning would've been nice!" exclaimed Clawdeen as she winced from Venus's ministrations.

"It's just sprained," said Venus as she applied some healing pollen to Clawdeen's wrist, "don't be such a puppy, you'll be fine."

"The only way we're gonna stop Sharon is by stopping her from sacrificing Apple," said Raven as they continued on.

"Assuming we ever find them in this mess of a maze," said Ashlynn.

"Wait a second!" exclaimed Clawdeen as she stopped in her tracks, sniffing the air, "I think…yes! I've got their scent! Apple, Avery and the others, I've got their scent! This way!" With that she dashed ahead with the others rapidly following.

They quickly came to a large circular open space, clearly the center of the maze. Right in the middle of the opening lay another circular wall.

"That's the inner sanctum!" said Raven, "that's where Sharon's got our friends and the Star piece!"

"Then let's go already!" shouted Clawdeen as she dashed ahead, only to be stopped after a few paces by the sight of seven enemy velociraptors in shaman garb.

"'Oh, I almost forgot about them,'"said Raven, speaking for the astonished Merle.

"I don't think they're happy to see us," said Ashlynn nervously as the enemy shamans stalked towards our heroes.

"Oh, come on, you ghouls!" said Clawdeen, "We're so close, we can't stop now because of some dino witch doctors!" She then looked at Merle and his warriors, "you guys out number them! Go get them!"

"They can't," said a worried Raven, "remember, these are the shamans of the other tribes and considered untouchable. To kill a shaman, even one of an enemy tribe, is considered the worst crime imaginable to Merle and his people. His warriors won't fight."

Just then one of the enemy shamans gave several distinct barking shouts.

"He's calling for help," said Raven, "the enemy warriors, they're gonna come charging into the temple and deal with us. We've got minutes before they get here."

"Then what are we gonna do?" asked Venus, "we…wait! I know! Raven, do that mind meld thing you did with Merle!"

"Yeah, that could work!" said Ashlynn, "if Raven can talk with the other shamans, she can convince them that Sharon's been lying to them, that we're here to help."

"It…it's worth a shot," said Raven, "but…" she looked at her hands, "I don't know if I'm strong enough to do the spell, or even if I can do it at all. It's Merle's spell, his magic works differently than mine. Besides," she saw the hateful looks from the enemy shamans, "they see me as an enemy magic user. They won't listen to me."

"Then ask Merle to cast the spell on me," said Ashlynn with righteous determination, "I'm not a magic user, but I can still reason with them, just like I can reason with animals."

"They're not animals, they're people," said Venus.

"All animals are people," said Ashlynn, "and all peoples are animals," she looked at Raven and Merle with pleading eyes, "let me try, please."

Raven and Merle looked at each other in psychic conference, before Merle nodded. He raised his staff, chanting in his reptilian language as the spell was cast on Ashlynn. She gasped as the psychic rapport was established.

"Did it work?" asked a worried Venus.

"It did more than that," said a smiling Ashlynn, "I just learned their language." She then stepped forward and began hissing and growling in the language of the velociraptor. The enemy shamans were highly taken aback, their nictitating membranes blinking in shock as the alien conversed in their words.

"She's telling them that we came here in peace and only wish to keep their world safe," said Raven as Merle psychically translated, "that Sharon's evil and has been lying to them."

"You really think she can convince them that we're the good ghouls?" asked Clawdeen.

"If anyone can, it's Ashlynn," said Raven as she smiled confidently.

Our heroes and allies waited nervously as Ashlynn conversed with the shamans. When she finished, the shamans began speaking among themselves, seemingly in a furious argument that verged on violence.

Finally, one of the shamans spoke to Ashlynn, whom paled nervously but nodded and spoke in acknowledgement.

"Oh, that's not good," said Raven as Merle psychically translated, "Well, it kinda is, but not if we're wrong."

"What's not good and kinda good?" asked Clawdeen impatiently.

"They've agreed to let us pass and to hold off their warriors," said Ashlynn, "but Merle, his warriors and I have to stay here as hostages."

"Out of the question!" snapped Venus, "this isn't…"

"This is that kind of thing!" said Ashlynn, "they're giving us the benefit of the doubt but want assurances that we're not trying to fool them." She looked at Venus, Raven and Clawdeen, "they want a confession from Sharon and if they don't get it by the time of the celestial alignment, they'll kill me, Merle and his warriors, despite the taboo against harming shamans."

"They'll get their confession," said Raven, "I guarantee it." She then looked at Merle, psychically telling the allied shaman her plan. Merle nodded in agreement, then placed one clawed paw on Raven's shoulder, acknowledging her as a friend. Raven returned the gesture in kind and with that, she, Clawdeen and Venus ran into the inner sanctum of the temple.

"It's all so simple," said Sharon as she and Howleen set up a large wooden tripod above a second altar, from which they hung the Star piece, "just before the celestial alignment, we'll cut out Apple's heart. I'll then desecrate it on the second altar, releasing its energies into the temple walls, which will then feedback into the Star piece, while also creating a gravitational anomaly that'll draw and accelerate Moose towards The Earth, by which time you and I will be safely protected by a magical bubble. Long story short, this Earth will explode, the velociraptors will evolve into insane gods and Apple White will be dead, as well as two idiot Riders."

"You'll never get away with it!" exclaimed Avery as he struggled against his chains, "we'll get out of this," he then looked at the main altar, "just hold on, Apple, we'll get out of this, I promise!"

Apple had been forced into a simple white dress and chained to the altar, her body painted with dark magic symbols and her mouth gagged. Her expression was mixed with outraged defiance at Sharon and fear for her life. Yet Avery's words alleviated her terror somewhat, daring to hope that despite the hopelessness of the situation, all would be well.

"Yeah right," said Howleen as she finished tying the Star piece to the tripod. She then walked over to Avery, "this is one time where evil wins, deal with it."

"You can't do this, Howleen!" shouted Chad, "you're not evil! Look, I know how messed up you think your life is, but…"

At that Howleen punched Chad in the solar plexus, knocking the wind out of him and making him go slack against his chains. "Don't try appealing to my better nature, Normie!" said Howleen as she pulled Chad's head up, "you don't know anything about me."

"Then you really have crossed over to the dark side," said Avery.

"Darn right I have," said Howleen as she walked over to and punched Avery in the stomach, "and don't you forget it."

"Bravo, Howleen," said Sharon. She then looked up at the stars, "just a few more minutes. Soon, very soon, those dumb dinosaurs will get exactly what they deserve; an eternity of psychotic slavery to Obsidian."

"NO!" shouted Raven as she, Venus and Clawdeen dashed into the area, "we won't let you!"

"Ah, the infamous Raven Queen," said a wickedly smiling Sharon, "how kind of you to come a calling."

"HOWLEEN!" shouted an outraged Clawdeen, whom then looked at her sister with wounded eyes, "why? Why are you doing this?"

"You know why I'm doing this, Clawdeen," said Howleen coldly, "it's time you stopped treating me like a child!"

"Oh, I'll stop treating you like a child!" growled Clawdeen menacingly, "I'm gonna rip you to pieces and throw you out like the garbage you are!" with that she rushed towards Howleen.

"I don't think so!" said Sharon as she offhandedly waved her hands in a complex gesture, blasting Clawdeen with a massive dark magic attack that left the young werewolf howling in agony, collapsing to the ground and twitching with pain.

Sharon then blasted Venus with a similar spell before she could react, leaving Venus on the ground, writing in pain. Raven managed to put up a defensive shield as Sharon cast the same dark magic at her, blocking the attack but leaving Raven gasping for breath as the force of the dark magic drained her reserves and leaving her helpless on the ground.

"Well, well, well," said Sharon mockingly, "the famous Raven Queen, the girl Cuthbert obsessed over, beaten by little old me, the new girl in Obsidian."

"I'm just having a bad day," said Raven weakly.

"Well then," said Sharon as she summoned chains that tied Raven, Venus and Clawdeen to stones next to Avery and Chad, "even in your best day you'd be no match for me, I've had hundreds of years to refine my skills in the dark arts." She then looked at Howleen, seeing the fretted look on the young werewolf, "oh, I'm sorry, I should've let you deal with your sister."

"No, no it's better this way," said Howleen as she walked up to the captive Clawdeen, "I don't hate you, Clawdeen, I never did. I hated the way you and everyone else treated me. But no more; after tonight, no one will ever disrespect me again."

"Is that what you want? Respect?" asked Clawdeen, "and this is how you think I'll respect you?!"

"Yes," said Howleen defiantly.

"Don't bother trying to win her back," said Sharon as she placed a darkly loving arm around Howleen's shoulders, "she's part of Obsidian now, or at least she will be once she's sworn in and begins her Proxy training, that and get through the hazing, but that's for another time."

"You never said anything about hazing!" said an annoyed and slightly worried Howleen.

"Oh, it's just a few minor pranks, nothing permanent," said Sharon in a reassuring manner, "when my colleagues see the two of us delivering an army of insane dino demigods, I'm sure they'll forgo the worst of the hazing."

"About the velociraptors," said Raven, "you really pulled one over them, didn't you?"

"Damn right I did," said Sharon smugly, "you wouldn't believe how easy it was to convince them of their 'destiny' after I'd won over their trust. Just dangle a few tidbits of omnipotence, spin a few tall tales of ultimate power and everlasting life, and you've got an entire civilization of superstitious idiots under your thumb. They've no idea that they've sold their souls to Obsidian, that their destiny is an eternity of indentured servitude."

At that Raven began laughing, softly at first, but soon rose to a malicious cackling that gave everyone in earshot goosebumps.

"Uh…you okay…Raven?" asked Venus nervously.

"Huh? Oh, sorry," said Raven as she calmed down, "I didn't mean to scare everyone."

"Well, I'm glad your inner darkness approves of my plans," said a somewhat hesitant and uncomfortable Sharon.

"Oh, I don't approve," said Raven as she smiled victoriously, "it's just that my plan beats your plan."

"What plan?" asked Sharon.

"I've got a psychic link with one of the velociraptor shamans," said Raven, "I tweaked it so that everything I see and hear, Merle sees and hears, and he just heard you confess your crimes against his people."

At that Sharon was momentarily without words. But she quickly recovered her composure and glared at Raven, "oh yeah? So what? I already knew there was one tribe of velociraptors that didn't swallow my sugary lies."

"Well, now there's more," said Raven, "Merle's telling the other Shamans what you did. It's only a matter of time before the whole race is aware of your treachery, and I don't want to know how mad they're gonna get."

It was then that Raven, Sharon and the others heard the distant, wrathful screams of the velociraptors.

"Looks like your psychotic slaves are revolting," said Avery, "and if my understanding of your ritual is correct, your would-be slaves have to willingly give themselves over to the ascension. Good luck with that now!"

At that Sharon looked ready to kill some of our heroes on general principal. But fate intervened as the Star piece flashed brightly and a low, deep humming could be heard throughout the temple.

"The hour has come!" said Sharon, her raging expression turned to that of wicked delight, "the celestial alignment has begun! I may not have an army of insane gods to present to The Obsidian Council," she then summoned a wickedly carved sacrificial knife, "but I can still snuff out the light of this world, and that of Apple White!" she then handed the knife to Howleen, "you want to prove yourself to Obsidian, now's the time!"

"Gladly," said Howleen as she took the knife.

"No! Don't do it!" shouted Raven as she and the others struggled against their chains.

"Try and stop me," said Howleen coldly as she walked over to the altar, a terrified Apple looking up at her.

"Howleen, stop," pleaded Clawdeen desperately, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry for everything that I did that made you feel this way. I'll try to be a better sister and treat you as an adult, just don't do it!"

"It's too late, Clawdeen," said Howleen, "the ghoul you knew as your sister is gone."

"If you kill her in cold blood, that's it, there's no going back!" said Raven, "you'll be evil, through and through!"

"I don't care," said Howleen as she gripped the knife in both hands and raised it up. Apple gave a muffled scream of absolute horror as Howleen brought the knife down.

"NOOOOO!" shouted Raven and the others.

"YESSSSS!" exclaimed a maliciously overjoyed Sharon, "the heart of Apple White is mine!" But then she blinked in surprise as she looked at the altar, "wait…where's the blood, she should be gushing blood by now! Howleen, did you miss? How can you miss!? She's right in front of you!"

"I didn't miss," said Howleen as she tossed aside the broken lock on Apple's chains. She pulled the chains off the confused Apple and helped her sit up.

"What…what the…WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?" shouted Sharon.

"Stopping you from doing a lot of horrible things," said Howleen as she helped Apple off the altar, "what does it look like I'm doing?"

At that Clawdeen began laughing joyfully, "oh my ghoul! Oh, my friggin ghoul! You pulled a fast one on her!"

"She did?" asked a confused Venus, whom then hastily smiled, "oh…well, of course she fooled her. I knew that!"

"Face it, Sharon," said Avery as he and Chad freed themselves from their chains, "you've lost." Avery rushed to Apple and the two of them lovingly embraced.

"What…what…WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" demanded Sharon.

"She's been playing you like a violin," said Chad as he held up a hairpin while running up to Raven. He then looked at Howleen as he began picking the locks on Raven's chains, "thanks for the help," he then winched and rubbed where Howleen punched him, "but did you have to hit so hard?"

"Sorry," said Howleen, while Apple gently felt Avery's midsection for damage, "I had to make it look convincing."

"I get it," said Raven as Chad freed her, "Howleen, you convinced Sharon you wanted to switch sides."

"You played on her desire for recognition among her peers," said an astonished Apple, "using your own desire for respect as an opening."

"All the while tricking her into making you the one to perform the sacrifice," said Avery.

"Yep," said Howleen as she smiled brightly. She then looked up at the stars, then at the Star piece as the diamond's intense glow began to fade, "now that the celestial alignment has passed, the second moon won't hit the planet. Merle and his people are safe."

"And we'll be taking that Star piece if you don't mind," said Raven as she stood with Apple and Avery, while Chad finished freeing Clawdeen and began freeing Venus.

"NOOOO!" shouted a wrathful, disembodied voice. A cloud of bats flew into the inner sanctum, condensing into the highly irate form of Draculaura. "NO! The Star piece is mine!"

"Who the hell are you?!" demanded Sharon, "oh, sorry, you must be that bloodsucking crybaby Irvin said was coming. Better late than never!"

"I would have been here sooner," said Draculaura, "but…" she then blinked in confusion, then glared irately at Sharon, "I am not a crybaby!" She then glared at our heroes, "that Draculaura is dead and loving it! Now, stay out my way!" She then walked towards the Star Piece.

But then the Kabuto Zecter emerged from a portal, flying at and forcing Draculaura to duck as it hovered in front of Avery.

"Sorry, Draculaura," said Avery as he caught his Zecter, while his Rider Belt appeared around his waist, "but we're kinda on a roll today."

"We're not gonna let you ruin our winning streak," said Chad as he took out and put on his Faiz Belt and took out the Faiz Phone and began dialing.

5 5 5

STANDING BY

"Henshin!" shouted Chad above the klaxon of the phone as he raised it over his head. He then brought the phone down and clicked it into place on his belt.

COMPLETE

Red energy flowed out form the belt over Chad, materializing with a flash of light as the armor of Faiz

"Henshin!" shouted Avery as he clicked his Zecter into place on his belt.

HENSHIN

Energy hexagons flowed from the belt, materializing over Avery as the Masked form of Kabuto.

"Well, this is awkward," said Draculaura as she saw the two Riders advance towards her, "Oh wait, it isn't! MANNY!"

Just then Drake slammed through the sanctum walls and rolled to a dazed stop in front of Sharon.

The mutated minotaur then charged through the opening with Gatack barely holding on for dear life by the creature's horns. Manny abruptly stopped, sending Gatack flying by the force of momentum. Gatack slammed into one of the large stones and fell to the ground.

"What…what is that?!" asked Apple as she stood behind Raven and Venus.

"The first of a new army for Obsidian," said Draculaura as she stood proudly behind the angrily panting Manny. She lovingly patted the mutated minotaur on the arm, "Manny, dear, walk all over them!"

Letting out a maddened bellow, the mutated minotaur charged at Gatack, only to be stopped by a massive punch from Kabuto. The blow barely phased the creature yet allowed Gatack and Drake time to get back up. With that they, Kabuto and Faiz began fighting the mutated Manny.

"He's stronger than your average Kaijin," said Draculaura fondly as she watched the mutated Manny shrug off the attacks from the four Riders, "and when we're done with the others back at Monster High, Obsidian will have an unstoppable army at its command."

"NO! That's my plan!" shouted Sharon, "I was supposed to make a new army for Obsidian!"

"Well, I don't see it," said Draculaura as she looked around. But then her eyes locked on the Star piece hanging form the tripod, "MINE!" she shouted as she dashed for the diamond.

But someone was quicker, someone who grabbed the diamond off of the tripod and held it protectively to her breast.

"Howleen!" exclaimed Clawdeen.

"Howleen?!" exclaimed Draculaura.

"If you want this," said Howleen, holding the Star piece tighter as she looked at the wrathful vampiress, "you'll have to take it from me!"

"Oh, I'll take it from you," said Draculaura, "I'll take it and enjoy taking it from you, with extreme prejudice."

"No!" shouted Clawdeen as she rushed at Draculaura, only for the mutated Manny to grab and throw her into one of the large stones.

"I'll finish you later, Clawdeen," said Draculaura. She then glared hatefully at Howleen, "now give me that diamond!"

"No, give it to me!" snapped Sharon, her hands throbbing with dark magic, "I'm not done with it!" She then backhanded away an attack spell cast by Raven

"Your mission failed!" shouted Raven as she charged up another spell, "what good is the diamond to you?!" she threw the spell at Sharon, whom effortlessly swatted it away. Raven charged up and threw more spells at Sharon

"I can still get Obsidian it's army of psycho slaves!" shouted Sharon as she swatted away Raven's attacks, "even if it takes me another twenty years, I'll deliver, just wait and see!"

"No one's getting the diamond!" shouted Howleen, "I'll destroy it first!" With that she began squeezing the diamond as hard as her werewolf strength would allow.

"You can't destroy the diamond, you idiot!" snapped Draculaura, "the Rosskarnians couldn't and they made the Star pieces." She then walked up to Howleen, reaching for the diamond, "Now give it to me or I'll…"

That's as far as she got as an intense white light shone from the diamond, illuminating the area brighter than the brightest day.

"What…what is this!?" exclaimed Draculaura as she unsuccessfully tried to shield herself from the overwhelming illumination, "STOP IT! I CAN'T STAND THE LIGHT!" With that she ran out of the sanctum like a bat out of hell.

"Howleen!" shouted Clawdeen as Venus and Raven helped her up, "are you…?"

"I…I'm fine," said Howleen as the light began to fade from the diamond, "I…what just happened?"

"You're dead, that's what!" spat Sharon as she aimed and fired a killing curse at Howleen, "the diamond is mine!"

The curse hit Howleen and knocked her down, yet Howleen got back up completely unharmed.

"Well now," said an astonished yet composed Sharon, "it seems the diamond has somehow granted you protection from magic. But I doubt that protection extends to others!"

With that she levitated Clawdeen in the air and began strangling her with a dark spell.

"Clawdeen!" shouted Howleen.

"You've got a choice, mutt!" shouted Sharon as the curse tightened its grip around Clawdeen's throat, "either give me the diamond or watch your sister die!"

"Don't…don't…do…it!" gasped Clawdeen.

"Shut up!" snapped Sharon as she tightened the curse even more. She then looked at Howleen, "well, little pup? What's it gonna be?" She then cried out in surprise as something slithered up her leg, something that turned out to be a vine growing out from the temple floor.

Her concentration broken, Sharon's curse faded out, dropping a gasping and coughing Clawdeen, where she was dragged to safety by Apple and Raven.

"You're a real piece of garbage, Sharon!" shouted Venus as she knelt on the floor, her palms spread out as the vine climbed and wound higher up Sharon's leg.

"Let me go!" shouted Sharon as she blasted the vine with dark fire, reducing it to ashes. But then more vines burst from the ground and began ensnaring her.

"This world is as pristine a world as can be!" said Venus as her powers summoned more vines, to trap the vile proxy, "a perfect balance between flora and fauna. Even with the velociraptors becoming civilized, they know not to take more than they need. They love and respect Mother Nature."

By now Sharon was ensnared up to her waist by the vines. She still kept blasting them with dark fire but more and more vines kept coming. One vine bust up and wrapped itself around her left hand, dragging it down. A now terrified Sharon tried to burn it away but another vine grabbed her other hand. More and more vines rose up to constrict around Sharon, until she was so completely ensnared she lost her balance and fell to the ground.

"But you," said Venus as she stood up and walked to Sharon, "you would sacrifice an entire world just to appease your masters. I can't think of anything lower and more pathetic than you."

"Don't you dare disrespect me, bitch!" spat Sharon as she glared hatefully up at Venus, "don't you ever disrespect me, you bitch!" she began chanting a curse, but another vine wound itself around her mouth, cutting off the dark spell before its completion.

"'If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all,'" quoted Venus, earning a round of laughter from Clawdeen, Ashlynn and the Wolf sisters.

Just then everyone heard Gatack shout in surprise as he was slammed into one of the stones hard enough to shatter it.

"Dexter!" shouted Raven.

"I'm alright, Raven," said a dazed Gatack, only for Drake to be slammed into another stone.

"HUNTER!" screamed Ashlynn as she rushed over to Drake.

"He's out of control!" shouted Kabuto as he flicked the horns on his Zecter. Energy crackled as his armor segments separated.

"NO! DON'T!" shouted Apple, "he's not himself!"

"Darn right he's not himself," said a still dazed Gatack.

"Well, I'm open to suggestion!" said Kabuto after canceling the Cast Off, then dodging a mad rush from Manny that would have impaled him on the mutated minotaur's horns.

But then Manny rushed at Howleen, chasing her towards one of the stones. Before she knew it, she was backed up against the stone and Manny charged at her. But he wound up piercing his horns into the stone and getting stuck, with Howleen right between them. Bellowing and snorting with blind rage, Manny tried to claw and bite at Howleen, yet his oversized horns prevented him from getting close, while on the other hand, Howleen couldn't get away.

"Howleen!" shouted Clawdeen, but found herself restrained by Venus.

"Manny, you've got to calm down!" shouted Howleen, flinching every time Manny tried to bite or claw at her, "It's me, Manny! It's me, your friend!" She then managed to grab Manny's face, "we're your friends! Remember! Remember, Manny!"

Just than an intense white light pulsed from Howleen's hands into Manny. The mutated minotaur gave a bellow of fury and pain as he pulled himself free of the stone. Steam gushed from his body as he convulsed about. Before our hero's astonished eyes, Manny returned to his normal shape and size.

"Uh…what's going on?" asked Manny as he looked around in confusion, "where am I?"

"Manny? Are you…are you…you again?" asked Howleen.

"Uh…I guess so," said Manny, "wait, where's Iris? Where's Iris?!"

"We don't," said Raven, "maybe back at Monster High. But that's not important right now."

"You're your own monster again, that's what's important," said Avery after he, Chad, Hunter and Dexter powered down.

"And we've got the fourth Star piece," said Chad.

"NO!" exclaimed Sharon as she finally freed herself of the vines, "that diamond is mine! And I'm taking it back!" she then raised her hands at our heroes to cast a curse, yet found her fingers wouldn't move right.

"What…what is this!?" exclaimed Sharon as she looked at her hands, "why are my hanss numbbb?" She then blinked in shock, "why arb by blips bumb!?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Venus as she smiled, "I forgot to tell you; that species of vine, apparently its sap produces a numbing sensation to anything it touches."

"Looks like you won't be using magic any time soon," said Raven.

At that Sharon screamed with fury and pulled out a black ring with a purple stone on it.

"Oh, of course, magic items," said Raven as she and the others backed away while Sharon fumbled with her numb fingers to put on the ring.

But then came a scream of rage as Merle tackled Sharon to the ground, while several more velociraptors entered the area and surrounded Sharon.

"I think you've got some explaining to do, Sharon," said Howleen.

Sharon glared hatefully at Howleen, but then looked in absolute terror as she saw just how enraged the velociraptors looked at her. With one final cry of fury, the Velociraptors closed in and began tearing Sharon to pieces with their teeth and claws.

"'It's done,'" Raven psychically translated for Merle, "'The Land is safe, my people are safe and you have the Star piece.'"

"We couldn't have done it without your help," said Apple, at which Merle nodded in acknowledgement after hearing Raven's psychic translation.

"Hey, the sun's coming up," said Hunter as he looked east at the brightening sky.

"It's a new day for the world," said Raven, "a new day for Merle and his people." She looked at Merle, "here's hoping your people grow to become a great people." At that she received Merle's mental thanks and well wishes.

With that our heroes said their farewells to Merle and his tribe, taking their leave of Dino Earth.

"Do you think they'll really be alright?" asked Howleen as the wormhole opened up and our heroes walked through, "what if Obsidian sends someone else to bother them? Someone worse than Sharon?"

"If they do, we'll come back to help," said Raven, "I gave Merle a spell for contacting us if there's trouble; I just hope he doesn't have to use it."

…Monster High…

"You Bloody Damn Idiot!" shouted Irvin at a sunburned Draculaura, who sat in the infirmary while Valentine applied a healing balm to her damaged skin, "you let the bloody damn Star Piece go! It was right there and you ran away!"

"I had to!" whined Draculaura, "I couldn't take another second of that horrible light! It was worse than the sun!"

"Clearly that particular Star piece had some interesting magical properties," said Valentine as she applied more balm to Draculaura.

"And we'll never know what properties!" snapped Irvin, "you didn't even get close!"

"At least you can't fault her for failing to kill Apple White," said Valentine defensively.

"Yes, that was on Sharon," said Irvin in a calmer tone, "she always was an ambitious little twit. I hope this failure teaches her a valuable lesson." He then glared at Draculaura, "and I hope you learned your lesson about wasting time on a mission! You could have gotten to the diamond if you hadn't messed around with those Riders!"

"It wasn't my fault!" shouted Draculaura, "they wouldn't die when they were supposed to!" she then glared at the nearby Amanita, "and you! You could have at least helped me!"

"I didn't do anything," said Amanita as she idly filed her nails.

"Exactly!" snapped Draculaura, whom irately shoved Valentine away, "and you cut it out! The balm's not helping!"

"You're right," said Valentine as he tossed the balm away, "but I know what will. I'll be back in a flash!" with that he dashed out of the room.

"Where do you think you're going?!" demanded Irvin as Amanita got up too.

"Away from here for now," said Amanita, "you guys totally don't want me around, so I'm going for a drive. Laters!" with that she walked out.

"At least one thing went right this mission," said Emory as he stood nearby, reading a book, "my mutating Plasmid proved itself most assuredly."

"Yeah, those Riders could barely touch Manny," said Draculaura.

"And yet there's no word of Kabuto's destruction, or of any of the others," said Irvin, "if one of those Riders had fallen, the Council would know and I'd be informed."

Just then Irvin's phone chirped with an incoming message, "that could be word of a fallen Rider now," he said as he opened the message, then frowned as he read it, "my mistake. Sharon has failed. Apparently she faked her own death, using an emergency doppelganger spell to fool Raven and her fellows, while the copy was eviscerated by velociraptors."

"Try saying that five times fast," said Amanita from the doorway. She laughed at her joke before skipping out of sight.

"I really don't like her," said Draculaura coldly. "So, what else happened after I left?"

"It seems that Mr. Slugworth's creature did prove his worth, to an extent," said Irvin as he read more of the message, "Manny was all but unstoppable. Neither Kabuto, Gatack, Drake or Faiz could harm him," he frowned, "but one of the Monsters, Howleen Wolf, she used some form of magic to reverse the mutations and free Manny's mind from the enthralling vapors."

"Impossible!" shouted Valentine from the doorway.

"Inconceivable!" exclaimed Emory, "nothing can reverse my Plasmid!"

"Well, it happened," said Irvin irately, "I'm sorry the fact clashes with your view of reality. The point is that your formulae worked for a while but it is flawed. I suggest you figure out how to prevent it from happening again."

"It won't, Mr. Weis," said Emory, "failure is not in my vocabulary." With that he slid out of the room, just as Dr. Ulfberht and Dr. Flamberge came in, the later looking angrily at Irvin.

"Mr. Weis!" snapped Fr. Flamberge, "what's this about finding one of the Star pieces without me!?"

"We found it by accident," said Irvin, "not that it's any of your concern. Just focus on finding the others before those meddlesome brats find them first."

"Oh, I'll find them," said Dr. Flamberge, "and when I do, I expect full credit!"

"And I expect credit too!" said Dr. Ulfberht, "I'm down to the final four candidates for my Dark Rider program. Another day or two and I'll find the right one!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," said Valentine, "now, come, my dearest," he said to Draculaura as he took her by the hand out of the room, "I've got exactly what you need." He led Draculaura to an empty classroom, where two terrified human girls lay huddled in a corner.

"My ghoul, Valentine," said Draculaura as she glared at him, "they…they can't be more than seven years old each," she then smiled with wicked delight, "perfect. Young blood is exactly what I need." She bared her fangs as she advanced on the girls.

…The Steam Vault…

"I think we should tell her," Venus whispered to Lagoona as they nervously looked at Frankie, whom was with Apple and Avery, whom were trying to help Manny remember anything from when he was under the influence of the enthralling gas.

"Tell her what?" asked Lagoona, "that her car's been stolen by a weed? I don't think so. She'll go ballistic."

"She may try to go after Amanita by herself," said Robecca, "Frankie doesn't know what she's getting into."

"What are you talking about?" asked Clawdeen, "I saw Amanita, she's an idiot."

"An idiot who destroyed Atlantis," said Robecca, "I did my research; Amanita Nightshade's more dangerous than she looks."

"Well, we could always get her another car," said Gil, "I think I know someone who can help us with that."

"We'll worry about it later," said Clawdeen as they saw Frankie walk over. She then spoke normally to Frankie, "anything?"

"Sorry," said Frankie, "Manny doesn't remember anything," she looked over at Manny, whom hand hung his head in a dejected manner, "he's really upset that we can't go back for Iris."

"We will, when the time's right," said Robecca.

"I know," said Frankie, "and Manny knows."

Just then they all heard Howleen growl irately. "I don't know how I did what I did!" exclaimed Howleen.

Frankie and the others looked and saw Howleen talking with Raven, the former still holding the Star piece.

"You where there, Raven!" said Howleen, "I don't know what happened!"

"Okay, okay, take it easy," said Raven in a placating manner, "I'm trying to help you figure out what happened to you, that's all."

"Well, I know what happened," said Clawdia as she walked over and placed her arm lovingly around Howleen, "my baby sister outwitted the bad guy, that's what happened!"

"Yeah, you really fooled Sharon," said an impressed Chad, "And all of us too."

"Well, it was either that or let Sharon have her way with us," said Howleen, "I figured if I could earn her trust, I could figure out how to help everyone."

"And you did," said an impressed Clawdeen, "from now on, whenever you want to go on a mission, you're more than welcome."

At that Howleen was at a loss for words. Instead, she hugged Clawdeen with joyful tears brimming in her eyes.

Just then Ghoulia moaned urgently.

"She just decoded another message!" said Frankie as she and the others walked over to Ghoulia's computer.

"It's Abbey!" said Lagoona as she looked at the computer screen, "And…she's where?!"

"Where? Where's Abbey?" asked Frankie as she craned her neck to see over everyone's shoulders, "Wait…Abbey's in Antarctica?!"

…The End Is Just The Beginning…