Dino Attack: At War's End

Brikman McStudz · May 29, 2012

IC:Zach tore off the remaining chuck of metal that once resembled a hand from his right arm. He winced slightly as another electric shock traveled through his body and dropped the hand. It served me well. He mused as he and Minerva continued toward their target. Well, it the short time between gaining that hand and having it replaced by a Cosmotronic Ray. However, it was complete dead weight now thanks to Provencal and Glados.Zach and Minerva seized their advance as they met Carolyne Provencal. She stood in a semi-crouched position, her staff pointed at them and it's statuette head glowing a dangerous violet color. She had a look of concentration on her face."Time to finish this, Provencal," Zach hissed, holding his knife tightly in his left hand. The fiery anger that burned inside of him would only seize when Provencal was defeated. "You've already lost. What are you to do with Glados, eh?"Provencal smirked. "She provided excellent back-up, but I am more then capable of take care of you both without Michelle by my side.""Oh, really?" Zach snapped, his anger growing at Provencal's calm and somewhat arrogant demeanor. "How are you going to attack. Using magic? We've already seen I can block your attacks, Provencal."At this, Provencal let out a small chuckle. "I'm not clueless, Zachary. I am more than aware of that. But it is rather obvious that your stamina declines with each use of this 'power'. Eventually, you will not be able to block my magic or will be killed trying to exert more energy than you have."Zach felt his anger escalate at Provencal's smugness. She seemed to notice and crossed her arms. "Tsk, tsk," she said as if she was scolding a child. "That temper again. Then again, with you being a Stromling for a few days, I suppose it's justifiable."Zach raised an eyebrow. "What is that supposed to mean?"Provencal smiled as if she knew a secret no one else did. "Never you mind. Not that it matters anyway." Provencal suddenly shot a blast of Maelstrom magic at them. Zach was too stunned to block it, so he and Minerva resorted to fall to the ground as it sizzled over their heads. They rolled away as Provencal fired another blast at the ground.Zach jumped to his feet and watched Minerva open fire on Provencal. The XERRD scientist easily dodged the bullets and kicked the gun out of Minerva's hand. As it flew into the air, Provencal quickly disintegrated the weapon with her staff. Minera charged forward quickly and threw a punch into Provencal's face, knocking her hat from her head. Provencal quickly swung her staff at Minerva's feet, knocking her to the ground."And you," Provencal spat, combing her hair with one hand delicately. "I have no quarrel with you. You are only in this fight because of your boyfriend over there. In fact, I'd almost say I owe my life to you.""What?!" Zach exclaimed swinging his knife at the scientist. Provencal quickly swung the staff into his arm. He winced in pain and stumbled backward, dropping the knife."Indeed," Provencal said, turning her stare back to Minerva. "The one you were with in the fortress was eager to kill me while you stopped him. I've watched the security footage.""Why didn't you kill her?!" Zach exclaimed irritably."Yes," Provencal sneered. "Why didn't you?""I-I-I don't know," Minerva stammered. "I was just...I mean...I don't know!" She turned her head to Zach. "I had just found out you were a Stromling and the thing with Oswald and I...I guess I tired of the mindless killing. I just...I don't know."Provencal kicked Minerva's face, knocking her head into the ground. "You are spineless," Provencal said in a sweet yet condescending voice. "Weak. You choice your ally poorly, Virchaus. How would two make a battle couple when one is too cowardly to get the job. Pathetic."Zach snarled. "Shut up," he hissed. He wanted nothing more to throttle the scientist until she croaked."Anyway, you said something about an Oswald," Provencal continued. "Taking your name into account, would this person happen to be Oswald Fabello?" He saw Minerva's face twist with anger. Provencal smile widened."Excellent. Then you must be the Minerva he spoke about," Provencal sneered."When did you ever talk to him?" Minerva snapped, her guilt at leaving Provencal alive fading away into anger."When I helped convince him to abandon the Dino Attack Team and join XERRD, of course."

Andrewnuva199 · May 29, 2012

IC: Andrew could hear Vinyaya sigh as their group watched Zach and Minerva run off. "That makes two agents I've been given doubts about.""What, di-oh, right, the thing that Trigger was saying about Claw," Andrew responded, turning to her. "Look, I may not know much about current criminals at large, but Claw's been here for a while, and she's been nothing but a good ally. Even if she did have a criminal background, I'm pretty sure she's trying to put it behind her.""Besides," Laxus added, "strange times makes for strange bedfellows, so they say. We have pirates like Greybeard and Elizabeth for allies, for example.""Who was the last one?" asked Vinyaya."One of Zenna's allies," Andrew explained. "Haven't seen her for a while. Hope she didn't end up like Zenna herself.""I hope she recovers," Laxus added. "We could always use more friendly agents like her on the field."Andrew glanced back at the hole in the roof, where T-1s were still hovering in and out of view of. "Speaking of help," he said, reaching for his PDA, "Might be good to give Semick some details on what's been going on."Narrowing down on Semick's signal, he went to audio conversational mode and raised the device to his ear. "Semick, are you listening?"After a moment, the fellow Elite Agent's voice came through. "Loud and clear, Andrew. You've probably noticed that I got in, so I'll cut to the chase. Can you explain better what's going on? It seems that most of the agents are standing still or something in their fights.""Yeah, it's not exactly great news. MOst of the stromlings are down, but the Darkitect himself is operating through the Maelstrom vortex in here, and its got most of everyone caught up in illusions leaning towards their most personal fears, and most of the battle's halted. We've got an ally in dark samurai clothing preparing to do something to help stop them though.""... Freakin' Maelstrom, how does it work? Well, we've got the skies pretty secured from the Mutant Pterosaur attacks, so now I'm just waiting to see if I can provide support from up here. Does your samurai ally have any advice on what help we can lend?""Give me a sec," Andrew said, and he turned towards the cloaked figure in the samurai garb. "One of our commanders is leading the T-1s and wants to try and help with stopping the illusions. Do you think that's possible for them to help with your plans, or are they better off not interfering?"------------------It seemed pitiful for the Mutant Lizard to see Rex acting like this now. Whoever this dead Minifig had been, it had clearly been someone he had cared for, perhaps not unlike the Mutant Dinos he had helped guide some time ago.But what was surprising, and more than a bit annoying, was that instead of trying to focus his grief into anger for a retaliation against his enemy who had apparently killed her, the Minifig was just sitting there crying, like he had lost all hope. Where was his fighting spirit? Where was the bravery and sense of right and wrong the Mutant Lizard had heard so much about? Why was he wasting time mourning when there was still much more to focus on?The Lizard groaned and nudged Rex side, trying to remind him what he should be focusing on. But the fool didn't even seem to notice in the state he was in. He just kept lying there, staring at the former Minifig's form like it was the only thing that mattered right now.As the Lizard sighed and prepared to do something more drastic to get Rex to pay attention, it heard the sound of footsteps approaching from its left. Turning, he was surprised to see the same looking Minifig as the dead one lying before it running up to them. How could this be? Were these Minifigs twins or some-The Lizard glanced for the briefest moment back at the Maelstrom vortex, and its one good eye widened in understanding. Clearly, this entity was very devious and very good at faking things.The Minifig that it and Rex had been fighting moved to try and interfere, but the Minifig who had arrived simply punched him in the face and quickly focused back on Rex. She tried to get his attention by shaking him, but like it had been with the Mutant Lizard, it failed to pull him out of his state.Groaning, the Minifig looked towards the Mutant Lizard and said something to him. "You were fighting with him, so he must be able to notice you. Can you get him to realize he's being fooled?"The Mutant Lizard thought for a moment, trying to think of how it could best get this across in spite of not being able to talk and Rex appearnetly not seeing the actually-not dead Minifig. Then it remembered his days spent learning with Stranger, and it nodded.It turned around and poked its tail into the dirt floor. Slowly, but with as much quick pace as it could muster, it drew the letters for three words that would hopefully convey the message that Rex needed to hear.When it finished, the Lizard looked back at Rex, and thought of how it might best want to try and get his attention. Since shoving and nudging had failed, it seemed that it would have to be direct and blunt. So the Lizard swiped his tail into Rex's face."Ow, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Rex cried out, his voice teaming with grief, shock, and a little bit of anger. "Can't you see-"The lizard ignored his words and simply pointed with its tail towards its own. It watched as Rex read them, hoping he would understand the meaning behind them:ITZ A LYE

that guy from that show · May 29, 2012

OoC:Hertz is 23, strange that the two would be different.IC:The trek the temple was substantially creepy. During the journey they had met up with Helm but it did little to quell the anxiety that that lay in every grotto of the building.“We should address our escape plane,” Said Hertz. Somewhere along the line he had acquired a cosmotronic ray, His broken right arm made it difficult to weld the heavy weapon and he struggled to not let it weigh him down.“The reason I’m here in the first place is so I could plant beacons along our path.” Continued Hertz. “That way we could have a solid way of finding our way back out.”“Like breadcrumbs from Hansal and Gretel.” offered Helm.“Exactly.” Said Hertz. “But I lost most of them when the bridge went down. Without them I feel we’re end up going in circles as we run blindly out of this mad house.”“I understand what you mean.” Agreed Helm. “I get the feeling we’re going in circles already. The maelstrom is affecting our perception of reality. Getting out will be very difficult.”“If we can get out at all.” Muttered Hotwire, “I’m not the only one who heard that blast. The stromlings sealed the entrance into the temple. We’re going to need to find another way out.”Hertz frowned. Helm had recommended he guard the dour but he had followed Hotwire inside anyway. If he had done his job he could have tried to stop the stromlings.Helm seemed to read Hertz’s mind and chucked. “Don’t worry about it kid.” He said. “If I was told to stay put I wouldn’t be able to keep in one place either! Semick just blew a hole in the ceiling, those T-1 typhoons should be able to give us a ride out when we need it.”“What’s that noise?” Hotwire cut in sharply.They stopped and listened. A load pitched shriek echoed down the hall.“It sounds like some sort of bird.” Said Helm quietly.“It’s screams.” Said Hertz.The stopped and lessened again. The sound curtailed there blood and made the hair on the back of there necks stand up.“Before you guys picked up the scientists, Doctor Koplowitz said we’d be facing our worst fears in that chamber.” Said Hertz.“I already saw a darn big snake.” Muttered Helm. “I can’t imagine what we’re going to see in there.”“There is only one way to find out.” Said Hotwire. The elite agent held out his gun and walked down the hall. An eerie purple glow was visible at the end and the sounds of terrier became all that was addible in the cold dead temple.Hertz and Helm shivered and ran after Hotwire into the cold light.

Atton Rand · May 30, 2012

IC: "Trust me," Trigger remarked. "You think I'm dangerous? You don't know Silencia Venemosa."Vinyaya seemed to be concerned. She turned suspiciously toward him."Commander Vinyaya," Trigger said. "I didn't expect to see you here either."Vinyaya was confused. "Should... I know you?" She asked"I don't remember if we ever met personally. You space police commandos all look the same, but I heard quite a bit about you from some of your colleagues when I was busting criminals for them just before this megablocking team decided to hire me, but I don't like to get sentimental and if I'm not mistaken we actually have a job to do here."

PeabodySam · May 30, 2012

OOC: Sorry for long IC... but so little time, so much to do!IC: The samurai paused for a moment, considering her options as she casually blasted away a few Stromling Explorers. "What I need," she finally decided, "is to break the Darkitect's concentration. I've got a few ideas that I'd like to try, but if you think you can help out in any way, I'd most definitely appreciate your support. All I need is the Darkitect's illusions to be broken... even if for a mere second, it would help the others realize that they are fighting illusions and, thus, help them break away."Andrew relayed the message to Semick, and nodded to the samurai. Knowing she could not wait for Semick's reply, the samurai turned away and marched towards the Maelstrom vortex, holding the crystal high above her head.

*****

Rex stared at the markings in the dirt floor. It took him a second to realize that they vaguely resembled letters of the alphabet, but he could not quite make out what they were saying."Oh, come now," smirked Kotua. "Do you actually think that the dumb beast is trying to tell you something? What could it possibly want? Cake?"Stranger's Mutant Lizard snarled, but Rex ignored the Alpha Team agent's comment. Staring more closely, he thought he could recognize the characters, but it made no sense to him at all... what was "I TZAL YE" supposed to mean?"Of course," continued Kotua, "you should never give your Mutant Lizard cake. They prefer raw meat and flesh, and cake has nothing to offer of that category of the food pyramid. Cake is so delicious and moist, but not for Mutant Lizards."For some reason, the word cake really began to nag at Rex. It reminded him of something... something that someone said... but who said it? Where? When? Why? And what was that someone talking about? An old man... deep underground... just a few months ago...

*****

The samurai instinctively froze as the Darkitect took notice of her. His bright red eyes sunken in his pitch-black skull seemed like they were trying to bore into her flesh, like the laser vision of a Mutant T-Rex. Still, she found the strength to maintain her composure. She lifted the Maelstrom Crystal even higher into the air, returning the Darkitect's stare with increased determination.The Darkitect chuckled. "I assume you're not going to just hand it over, are you?"The samurai responded, not with words, but by striking down a few more Stromling Explorers with her lightning."You're a brave one," mused the Darkitect. "But even the bravest have fears. Let me see... what you fear the most!"For a brief moment that somehow felt like an eternity, the Darkitect concentrated on the samurai. As the eyes of destruction itself stared at her, it took all of the samurai's willpower to remain calm and composed. The Darkitect's smile slowly faded away, twisting into a hideous scowl."Why can't I see you?" the Darkitect bellowed. Angered, he waved his jeweled scepter, and a bolt of Maelstrom energy struck the ground where the samurai stood. Only the samurai's quick reflexes and agile movements saved her. He tried again and again to hit the samurai, but each blast of his Maelstrom only hit the stone floor. Each time, the Darkitect grew more and more frustrated."My turn," whispered the samurai, with a hint of darkness in the tone of her voice. With the hand that was not holding the Maelstrom Crystal, she sent out one of her own bolts of lightning. The electricity arced through the air and struck the Darkitect square in the chest.

*****

Just for an instant, the world changed around Rex.Perfect Chaos vanished, as though the water creature had never even existed. Kotua's form melted away, revealing a generic Stromling where the Alpha Team agent stood. The corpse of Amanda Claw dissolved into nothingness... and then appeared, still alive, standing next to the Mutant Lizard. Her eyes were wide with desperation as she shouted, "Rex! It's all an ill-"Then, the instant had passed, and everything was back to how it was, with Chaos looming over Rex, Kotua standing there, and Amanda lying dead on the floor. The only being that had not changed at all was the Mutant Lizard."I must say," murmured Kotua, "I am finding some strange form of amusement in all of this. But, this grows tiresome. Chaos, drown him.""You're not real," whispered Rex in realization.Kotua scowled. "I thought we've been through this already," he muttered. "It's time for you to join your girlfriend Claw and your little pet Trouble!"Before Rex could say anything more, Perfect Chaos grabbed him and hoisted him into the air. Once again, Chaos allowed Rex to be absorbed into his form in order to drown the Dino Attack agent. It all felt so real, as Rex could feel the cold water against his skin and flowing into his lungs.But it wasn't real. It all made sense now. The old man in the cave, he now remembered, had said, "That cake is a lie." Obviously, it had to be coincidence, but it allowed Rex to finally realize what the Mutant Lizard's message meant. "I TZAL YE" was "ITZ A LYE", which had to mean "IT'S A LIE". And Amanda was still alive, but although he could not see or hear her, she was trying to break him free of the illusion.It's not real, Rex thought to himself, closing his eyes. He repeated the thought over and over, with it growing stronger every time.But when he opened his eyes, he was still drowning. In a panic, he wondered once more if it was all real. Regaining his composure, he shut his eyes once again and thought as hard as he could. This time, he did not concentrate on whether or not Chaos and Kotua were real.This time, he thought of Trouble. He thought about all the great times he spent with what was once his only friend. He remembered the thrill of being the first Dino Attack agent to tame a Mutant Dino. He thought about the rest of his friends that he had met over the course of the Dino Attack... Frozeen and Greybeard, to name a few. He thought about his teammates in the Dino Attack Team... Databoard, Zero, Reptile, Hotwire, Andrew, and even Zachary, and what an honor it was to fight alongside them. He thought about the world that they were fighting for.Lastly, Rex thought of Amanda. He thought about all the happy memories that they shared. Through times of short-lived peace and times of intense battle, they shared a bond forged so closely that it could not be separated. Even if everything descended into fire, chaos, destruction, and ruin, Rex knew that he would have the strength to carry on... if Amanda was there beside him.When Rex opened his eyes again, Perfect Chaos was gone. He was lying on the floor, and as he looked around, he saw that Kotua was once more a mere Stromling, Amanda's corpse was gone, and the real Amanda stood beside the Mutant Lizard."What?" gasped the Stromling in a voice that sounded nothing like Kotua's. "Impossible! How could you-""Oh, shut up," Rex grumbled. Apparently agreeing, the Mutant Lizard pounced upon the stunned Stromling and quickly ended its life.Amanda raced over to Rex and knelt down by him. "Rex!" she whispered soothingly. "Can you hear me now?"Rex looked into her eyes. After the sight of seeing her lying dead on the floor, seeing Amanda alive again was the greatest thing he could have ever seen. His own eyes began to tear up as he smiled and murmured, "Loud and clear."Amanda smiled, too. Laughing quietly, they embraced each other on the stone floor.

*****

"Eureka!" grinned Frank Einstein. "That's it!""What's it?" Kate Bishop raised an eyebrow, not sure that she was following along."Look, my dear!" Einstein pointed at Rex and Amanda, then pointed at the Imagination orb. Noticeably, the Imagination orb was now a little larger and glowed a little more brightly than before. "The way Rex broke free of Baron Typhonus's illusion," he explained, "it empowered the Imagination! We might have a chance yet of stopping the Darkitect!"

*****

Their romantic moment was interrupted as Frozeen ran up to them, trembling and nearly as pale as ghost. "Rex! Amanda!" he cried. "You have to help me! There's... there's too many of them!"Rex and Amanda traded glances. Looking over Frozeen's shoulder, Rex could see that he was trailed by ghosts that flew all around the red-headed baron. Amanda couldn't see them, but she could tell that he was still fighting illusions. "YTP, Frozeen," suggested Rex. "YTP.""YTP?" repeated Frozeen. Slowly, the realization dawned upon him. "No, wait," he decided. "I have a better idea. But... once they're gone, please snap me out of it, okay?"Rex was confused by that last statement, but he still nodded.Frozeen turned around to face his worst fears once again. The baron smirked as he approached the Alpha Team agent. "Why don't you just give up?" scoffed the baron. "We both know that I am far stronger than you. After all, I am what you... we were destined to be. The Brickster failed when he created you, Frozeen. But when created me, Baron von Brickthief, I proved that I could be worthy of the title of the Brickster's brother!"Frozeen did not reply. Since Frozeen's back was turned to Rex and Amanda, Rex could not see Frozeen's features."Why are you smiling like that?" muttered Baron von Brickthief.Then, Frozeen spoke in a voice that was surprisingly high-pitched. "THE LEPRECHAUNS ARE TRYING TO STEAL MY GOLD!" Screaming wildly, Frozeen began to dance around Baron von Brickthief, shouting random things that became less and less comprehensible. The images of Baron von Brickthief and the ghosts began to shimmer and fade."What's he doing?" whispered Amanda, who appeared quite disturbed."YTP is a method for shielding one's mind," explained Rex. "I figured it was a good way to prevent the Darkitect from seeing into your mind and bringing your worst fears to life... but I think Frozeen likes taking it one step further than most of us."

*****

Frank Einstein observed the Imagination orb grow a little larger and a little brighter. Unsure of what to think, he gave a half-smile as he glanced at what Frozeen was doing. "Well, it's certainly creative," he decided, "and anything creative can help the Imagination."

*****

As soon as Baron von Brickthief and the ghosts were gone, Amanda cautiously approached Frozeen and laid a hand on his shoulder. Frozeen stared at her with a crooked smile and a wild look in his eyes. "They're gone," Amanda informed him.Slowly, the insane expression disappeared from Frozeen's face, which once again resumed his natural, serious-looking demeanor. He nodded to Amanda, cleared his throat, and muttered under his breath, "I can't believe I just did that. I thought I told myself I'd never, ever do that again."Amanda, Frozeen, and the Mutant Lizard helped Rex climb into appeared to be Zed Provhezor's hover-chair. Though it was slightly damaged, it appeared mostly functional. Once Rex was sitting in the operational hover-chair, he focused upon what was going on with Baron Typhonus and, to his surprise, the samurai.

*****

Slowly, the Darkitect recovered from the shock of being hit with the samurai's lightning. The lightning was weak, and it had barely even hurt him, though it was enough to distract him. Rather, the real shock had come from the fact that he had actually been hit by it. No one had ever dared to strike the Darkitect before!But how?Cold realization washed over the Darkitect as he stared at the samurai holding his crystal. His shock turned to fury, and his hideous scowl turned into a downright terrifying expression. "No one," he shouted, "turns my power against me!"With that, the Darkitect waved his jeweled scepter once again. Chain lightning fired from the center of the Maelstrom vortex, raining upon the stone floor of the Maelstrom Temple. The samurai, quick and agile as always, dodged most of these attacks. Furious, the Darkitect swung his scepter once again, and a single bolt of lightning arced through the air and struck the samurai.The samurai's kabuto helmet went flying in the air. It landed near Andrew's group, hitting the stone floor with the loud sound of metal hitting rock ringing through the chamber.The samurai herself, at first, appeared unaffected by the Darkitect's attack. Her torn black cloak billowed around her, concealing her as she recovered from the impact. But when she got up again, ready to fight the Darkitect once more, her cloak instinctively spread out. The samurai froze as she heard a chorus of gasps from her Dino Attack Team allies.Rex was one of many who stared in shock. He now saw that the samurai did not have a torn black cloak as he initially perceived, but it was actually a pair of bat-like wings. And, with her helmet removed, Rex now clearly saw that the samurai's face was not entirely Minifig, but bore the features of a Mutant Pterosaur.As she realized that everyone stared at her, the samurai's battle stance fell away, and she recoiled into a defensive crouch, her wings wrapping around her in a vain attempt to conceal her form once more.The Darkitect laughed, the horrible sound echoing through the Maelstrom Temple. "Well, well. Isn't this a twist to our story? And speaking of stories, here's one of my all-time favorites. Once upon a time... there was a Dino Attack Team who put their faith and trust in a group of twisted experiments created by XERRD. And just when Dino Attack Team needed them the most... they deserted them, betrayed them, revealed their true allegiance to XERRD, and left one of Dino Attack's greatest elite agents as a cripple in a wheelchair.""No..." whispered the samurai in a feeble, barely-audible voice.The Darkitect chuckled. "History repeats itself. But not to worry, Dino Attack Team. Once this war is ended, no matter who emerges victorious, the victor will guarantee that her kind is hunted down and driven to extinction. XERRD would have no use for them anymore, and neither would I... and Dino Attack Team would know that you can never trust a Quasifigus Hybrid.""No!" shouted the samurai, but the damage was done. The Darkitect did not need to see into her mind to bring her worst fears to life.The Darkitect looked around in triumph, and only then did he notice Frank Einstein and Kate Bishop by the Imagination statue. Casually, he waved his jeweled scepter once more, and a wave of Maelstrom energy poured out of the vortex and struck the scientist, knocking him down to the floor once more. This time, Einstein did not have the strength to rise again.The temple shook once more, as Dino Attack's air support led by Semick continued to bombard the roof of the Maelstrom Temple. As Rex glanced around in his hover-chair, even though some of the illusions were already gone and Semick was providing air support, he could not imagine how they could possibly stop the Maelstrom now.OOC: With any luck, my next IC should be tomorrow or Friday, and will wrap up the battle in the Maelstrom Temple for good. That way, we can hurry back to Dino Attack Headquarters and relax a bit... before the final battle that will determine the end of the Dino Attack war.Baron von Brickthief is an unused idea that I had for Alpha Team RPG: Ogel's Last Stand. Had the RPG lived long enough (assuming the BZP forum update never happened), I would delved into the reasons why Frozeen went into hiding... and let's just say that Brickthief is one of them. You're free to do whatever Wild Mass Guessing you want about the relationship between Frozeen and Brickthief could be. As for Frozeen's personal take on the YTP method, it's a Call Back to the "Frozeen goes insane" mini-arc from the original Alpha Team: Mission Deep Freeze RPG.

Edited May 30, 2012 by PeabodySam

Atton Rand · May 30, 2012

IC: "What the znap is that?" Trigger asked."The Darkitect," replied Vinyaya. "The man behind the Maelstrom.""That's impossible," Trigger muttered. "I've been through dozens of these things this guy's supposed to be dead."With that, Trigger raised his pistol toward the mysterious Darkitect, and opened fire.OOC: Out of curiosity, I've been meaning to get back to the Gold City arc. PeabodySam, did you have any particular plans for the Second Headquarters Squad there?

Brikman McStudz · May 30, 2012

OOC: I best start hurrying up, then.IC:"What!?" Minerva stammered, shaking with fury. Zach reached down and helped her back on to her feet."You heard me," Provencal said in a matter-of-fact tone. "The Brickspider Bot sent him to Dinosaur Island via the teleportors in the laboratory on LEGO Island. I'm not sure why, but that is beside the point. Dr. Breen and I sat him down for a talk."Minerva had no idea who this Breen was. "Walter Breen," Zach hissed into her ear. "XERRD's negotiator.""He was resistant, naturally," Provencal continued, waving her hand. "Extremely violent, Oswald was. Tried to kill a Hybrid with his bare hands trying to escape. It was quite adorable. In a sense." At this, her anger faded away into cold sadness. He was violent before XERRD corrupted his mind."After the guard Blaire Darkling finally restrained him, we calmed him down long enough to talk. And he talked. Mentioned how horrible his life had been. His father had died, his mother was an alcoholic, killed his brother, and clinically insane, and how he forced to give up everything to take care of his younger sister."Minerva felt her throat constrict. She remembered the Darkitect's illusions he had placed on her. Her fears that she had lead Oswald to choose the path he did. How everything that had happened to Oswald and Minerva was her fault. It's coming true. She thought sadly."He tried to help her, but she apparently became a petty criminal. A street rat. It did not take a genius to see that he so desperately wanted to escape his life. And so Breen took advantage of it. He and I helped him see the truth. Working with XERRD offered a chance of survival for him. A new life with no restraints. A life the Dino Attack Team would not give him. The Dino Attack Team would prefer he returned to his old life of poverty."There was one final nail in coffin before Oswald finally joined us," Provencal grinned. "'What about my sister? What about Minerva?'" Minerva grimaced. "It was easy. He was already in the palm of our hands. All it took was one small push.""What did you say?" Minerva hissed through gritted teeth."I told him you were one of the sources of his problems. That you ungratefully mooched of off his support. To feed you and clothe you when you didn't steal it. When you went to prison for your crimes. He agreed quickly and angrily. He cut his ties to you, and embraced XERRD."Minerva was silent, trying to absorb everything Carolyne Provencal had just told him. Her fears had more or less came true: Oswald blamed Minerva for their lifestyle prior to the Dino Attack. And it was all because of her. Provencal had corrupted the person she loved into a murderous Stromling and had turned her brother against her. She felt the rage she had felt after learning Provencal had corrupted Zach rise up again, more powerful and angrier then ever."Minerva?" Zach whispered, tapping her shoulders. "Are you okay? Minerva?" She ignored him and stared at Provencal, whose expression bore a wicked grinm as she watched Minerva emotionally fall apart. The temple shook violently. The Agents and Dino Attack Team air force were making quick work of the temple and it wouldn't be long before the entire roof collapsed.Provencal tapped her wrist impatiently. "Nothing?" she said with a shred of disappointment. She glanced at the shaking ceiling of the temple, then at the Maelstrom vortex. "I don't have much more time for this. I think I'll kill you both and be on my way. It was nice-" Provencal never finished as Minerva charged into the Sorcerer, knocking her on to the ground.Minerva fell on Provencal and began punching the scientist in the face. In her mindless rage, Minerva managed to notice the fight was vaguely similar to their earlier fight in the XERRD Fortress. However, she only managed to land a few punches before Provencal punched back. Minerva's head was thrown back, allowing Provencal to shove the Dino Attack Agent off of her.Minerva climbed back to her feet and watched as Provencal quickly struck Zach's knife and kicked him back. Minerva roared in fury and ran at Provencal again. However, Provencal stood her ground and caught Minerva's charge with her staff. As Minerva pushed against the staff, Provencal revealed a sadistic grin."That was the reaction I was looking for!" Provencal said in an almost congratulatory manner. The scientist threw another punch, brushing against Minerva's cheek. Provencal then aimed a sharp kick at Minerva's stomach. She doubled over, groaning. Provencal quickly shoved Minerva back with her staff and stepped back. Minerva glanced up to see Provencal's staff suddenly slam into the side of her head. Minerva collapsed to the ground, her head pounding.Keep...fighting, she thought weakly. Above her, Provencal chuckled darkly. Minerva tried to lift herself up, but only fell. She blinked several times, her vision becoming more blurry. The last thing she heard before falling into unconsciousness was Zach calling her name fearfully.

Andrewnuva199 · May 30, 2012

IC: "Doubt that's gonna help," Laxus muttered towards Andrew in reference to Trigger's gunshots.But Andrew wasn't really paying attention, more intent on assessing the current situation. Freeing Rex and others from their illusion traps was a good step in the right direction, and he had a feeling that the others would hopefully soon follow, and Semick's decision to clear more openings in the ceiling would likely help them stay secure, but there were still other matters of concern.Dr. Einstein, however he had showed up, was down on the ground near a statue with a glowing blue orb that Andrew guessed had to do with Imagination somehow. It was an educated guess that he might've been trying to do something related to helping to stop the Darkitect. He didn't look well, and it seemed rather obvious that he was in need of some assistance.And then there was the matter that had brought the mysterious samurai's helmet close to his feet. Given all that he had seen and heard in Dino Attack, he was only somewhat surprised to see her true appearance be revealed. But clearly that hadn't been the same for everyone, and it seemed that she wasn't too happy about it either, to put it mildly. Visibly distraught at being seen right near the edge of the Maelstrom vortex with the crystal still in hand, she was in a precarious position."Ugh," Vinyaya groaned from behind him, "isn't there anyone here without a troubled background?""Plenty," Andrew responded. "It's just that the untroubled people aren't interesting, I guess. But really, none of that's important right now.""How so? If you know that a person's committed crimes in the past, how can you be so sure they won't do it again, and with you as the victim?""By judging their actions and figuring if they make sense for someone about to stab you in the back." Andrew gestured towards the samurai. "And I don't know about you, but that doesn't seem like someone we should be fighting."Andrew looked back at her, cringing at remembering just how much in control she had seemed before. Just a minute ago she had acted with as much confidence as someone like Semick. Now she was not too dissimilar to how Kate Bishop had been acting recently."She needs help. Needs to realize that her species does not determine how she gets treated."He turned back towards Vinyaya. "See if you can help Dr. Einstein down by the statue. He's not looking very well, and he just might have something that can help us stop all this. Meanwhile, I'm going to go talk to the samurai."Vinyaya looked at him with concern. "You sure that's the best idea?""Nearly an hour ago I helped a guy I barely knew reject the Maelstrom and turn back to the light. He was partially fearful of how Dino Attack might receive him upon return, but beyond a few cases here and there, (Vinyaya raised an eyebrow, wondering if he was talking about her) we've welcomed him in with open arms. I fail to see why not do the same for someone who's willing to stand up the Darkitect himself and get our own agents to get their focus back.""In that case," said Laxus, "it's best that you don't do it alone. I'll help you talk to her, maybe it'll inspire others to do the same."Andrew was about to say something, but then simply nodded. His friend had a point."Okay then, so let's stop talking and do something." Grabbing Laxus's arm, he headed towards the distraught Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur hybrid.------------------"Follow the target line Bluetooth's outlined on radar," Semick cried out on the radio, "We have to get more of an opening without hitting our own agents! And the more we can let the Darkitect know we're hammering down on him, the better!"Semick could only judge what was happening with his line of sight through the hole they had made so far, but he could infer that this ally who Andrew had managed to make contact with had made his or her move. Whether or not it had been fully successful, he couldn't know for sure, but all he did know that it had annoyed the Maelstrom's mysterious leader severely and had resulted in the ally crouching on the ground and barely moving. He could only assume that something had hurt her to some level or another.A buzz from an incoming message alert interrupted him. Two of them, actually. One from Rockford, one from Ospery. Answering them both, he said "Before you say anything, let me know how things are going for yourselves.""The Dino onslaught down here's mostly over," said Rockford, sounding a little suprised from something. "They did respond violently to us trying to stop their charge, and we've got a couple wounded, but for the most part they... just ignored us. They just charged off the cliffside like... lemmings or something.""Andrew's been telling me that they got the Maelstrom crystal Frozeen was sending the odd report about. The thing's supposed to call in Mutant Dinos like how some of our agents react to mealtimes. Guess its call was too resistible for some of them.""Guess so. Anyways, we've mostly got things reorganized back around here. If we need any agents getting to and from the temple, the zip lines should be clear enough.""Good to hear. Ospery?""We picked up some XERRD scientists who surrendered to a couple of your guys near the entrance," said the Agents captain. "We also let Hotwire go in after we treated him with our medical supplies. He suggested you might want to get your medical agents to start getting some orders from us, actually.""I"ll make a note of that. Is that all on your side?""Pretty much. We've got not much else to do since you've been hammering down on that temple.""Well, once we make a bigger hole, I want you to help out. See for yourself how its going down there and if you have advice on how to act next. From what I understand, it's mostly up to our men down there to get that Maelstrom plugged up and/or destroyed. And I don't think bombardment with our weapons is going to help matters.""Understood. I'll remain on standby.""Okay then. So I'm assuming I've answered your possible queries for a status report on my side?""Pretty much," said Rockford."You've summed up all we wanted to know," said Ospery."Alright then," said Semick. "I'll talk again once we're through. Semick out."

Edited May 30, 2012 by Andrewnuva199

that guy from that show · May 31, 2012

Hertz barley had a chance to take in the spectacular sight of the maelstrom vortex before a football player slammed him into a wall.The hit hurt badly and his broken arm snapped with the impact. His mind flashed back to his undesirable experience as a high school student in LEGO city during which he was repeatedly shoved into steel lockers.Hertz knew that what he was seeing was an illusion by the maelstrom. The face of his attacker resembled that of a particularly unpleasant linebacker named Fitz. His uniform was purple and black: the colors of the maelstrom.As he lay on the ground Hertz considered that his worst fear was apparently reliving his miserable existence in high school. This seemed rather easy for nerd considering that he now held a relatively skilled job as a radio operator and held an advanced degree in cryptology. Fitz the football player currently was the owner of a used car lot.The football player kicked Hertz hard in the chest and he remembered the unfortunate truth. To spite the fact that he clearly could out talk his dim-witted adversary, it mattered little when Fitz outweighed him by one hundred pounds and had the cognitive ability of a duck.“Fitz,” began Hertz as he slowly rose from the dirt floor of the building. “I’m more successful then you, I’m smarter then you, and I finished high school on time. Anything you throw against me means nothing in the big scoo-”He was interrupted by once again being shoved into the wall.“And I’m stronger then you!” bellowed Fitz gleefully. He punched Hertz hard in gut and he crippled to the ground. The pain was as bad as he remembered but if he could take it then he could take it now.“I forgot you couldn’t comprehend logic.” Mutted Hertz.“You calling me a moron?” said Fitz mischievously. “Because I would have a problem with that.”Hertz was slammed into the wall again. His forehead hit the cold stone brocks and blood clouded his vision. His surroundings blurred and he almost lost conciseness.The best thing to do was take it, Fitz would grow board and leave alone. It had worked in high school it would work now.Fitz grabbed him by the neck and slammed him to the ground. “This is different from school Charlie. You can’t hold out forever, there is no one to stop me from beating you to a pulp and leaving you to die in the dirt!”He slammed his foot into Hertz’s side.“Might makes’ right buddy!”And then Hertz felt fear. Hotwire and Helm where off facing there own demons and the remainder of the team had gathered around the vortex in the center of the room. He was alone.The football player descended on him and threw him across the room. He slammed into the floor and spit out blood and grit.“You’re a looser Charlie.” Said Fitz and he slowly walked up behind Hertz. “You will always be an ugly freak, living alone, spending the rest of your life alone. You may have a nice job bodie, but you will never have a life worth living.”Hertz grit his teeth. He had to fight this battle in a way that Fitz would understand. He pulled out his gun and aimed it at the football player.“I’m about to have more of a life then yo-”His one liner was cut short when he was body slammed by the jock. Hertz yelled in pain as Fitz let out a joyous laugh. The gun was wrestled from his hand and thrown across the room to be lost in the shadows.“You say I’m a failure? You don’t even have a girl.”Hertz’s heart sank.“Yes, I know all about Naomi,” smiled Fitz. “You were such an cool dude to propose to her. You just showed her what a creep you are.”Fitz ended every sentence with punch to the stomach.“Naomi will always be out of you’re league.”A second shadow stood above Hertz. She was tall and thin, the image of the popular child. Hertz looked into Naomi’s eyes but instead of seeing the warm hazel eyes he had come to love, he saw disgust.“Who’s this nerd?” were the first words she said.“Why does it matter honey.” Said Fitz as he rose and dusted off his hands. Hertz was now covered in his own blood and he had given up trying to resist. That was how it had been in school and that was how it was always going to be.“That’s that guy who proposed to me.” Said Naomi. “He’s like some kind of creeper or something.”The two laughed and Naomi seemed to take particular delight when Fitz kicked him.“You know what would be funny?” said Naomi as she rubbed her hands across Fitz’s chiseled chest. “We should make out in front of him.”“What an excellent idea.” Said Fitz. He pulled Naomi close to him and rapped his hand around her slender waste. The two beacame interlocked and kissed patiently.It was disgusting.Hertz looked around. He could not allow this illusion to get to him. He knew what he was seeing was fake to spite how real it seemed; Naomi Carver was not a heartless mean girl. He would not allow the maelstrom to dishonor her by warring her face.Hertz slowly rose from the floor to look Fitz in the eye. The jock smiled and kicked him down again. The pain seemed to greatly amuse Naomi but he ignored her glee.He picked himself up again and walked up behind Fitz. He tapped the jock on the shoulder and waited for him to turn around.Fitz looked back at Hertz and scowled. “Can’t you see I’m busy?”Hertz punched him in the noose so hard that he fell to the ground. There was a crack as it broke and Fitz held his hand to his now bloody face.Naomi screamed and slapped him. Hertz staggered back a few steps and looked Naomi in the eye. “If your trying to act like Naomi, you’re doing a really bad job.”She lunged at him but he steeped out of the way. She tumbled to the ground beside the football player.Hertz looked down at the two figures below him. What was he supposed to do? He had no restrictions about killing the jock. He was a bully and a stromling. It was what he had to do to defeat his defeat his demons.He picked up his cosmotronic ray and hesitated. How could he pull the trigger on Naomi’s beautiful face? She was his love, how could he kill her.Fitz smiled. “What’s the matter Charlie? Are you a coward?”He blasted a hole threw his chest. The stromling underneath turned to ash. He then turned the gun to Naomi.She looked into his eyes. “Please Hertz.” A tear trickled down her cheek. “I thought you loved me.”The ray was shaking in his hands. He needed to pull the trigger but he could not kill Naomi.“You’re a lie.” Growled Hertz“Please Hertz,” begged Naomi. “Don’t kill me.”The cosmotronic ray was shaking in his hands. He fumbled with the weapon and his aim wavered. Hertz fell to his knees before Naomi.“I can’t do this.” Said Hertz quietly.Naomi walked up and ran a hand threw his hair. “It’s okay Hertz, it’s okay.”He put his head in her chest and she rapped her arms around him. “It’s okay.”Then stromling smiled and revealed its sharp teeth. The monster reared back its head to take a bit of techy’s neck but he jumped aside. Naomi lounged at him and he slammed his cosmotronic ray into her head. There was a crack and she crippled to the ground.He had broken her neck.Hertz knelt down beside her and held her head in his hands. Its face remained that of Naomi long enough for him to weep over the fact that he had just murdered the one woman he had truly loved.Hertz laid down her body carefully and turned to the maelstrom. Holding his cosmotronic ray firmly in his one good arm and resolutely approached the fight.OoC:That turned out really long. I don’t think I’ll have time to send in Doctor Saran like I would have liked so I think I’ll just insert him onto one of the Typhoons when the team starts pulling out.Hertz can be brought wherever he is most needed

Atton Rand · May 31, 2012

OoC:That turned out really long. I don’t think I’ll have time to send in Doctor Saran like I would have liked so I think I’ll just insert him onto one of the Typhoons when the team starts pulling out.Hertz can be brought wherever he is most needed

OOC: I am thinking about giving him another interaction with Trigger. I'm just trying to figure out exactly how to do that.

Jacks · May 31, 2012

OOC: So, for simplicity's sake I think we ought to assume that Team H, by which I mean Hotwire, Hertz, and Helm, entered the main chamber a few minutes before the latest PeaSam IC?Incidentally, PeaSam, I'd say that was a bit of a Crowning Moment of Awesome on Frozeen's part. xDIC: There were certain things that Hotwire very strongly preferred not to think about. Metaphorical doors in his head that he kept shut. Thoughts that he passed over, forced back, and masked with a grin. So far it had worked. He'd kept those bits of his past out of mind, and had managed to cultivate in himself a sense of optimism.Unfortunately, it now seemed that one of those mental doors had opened, because a figure had just walked out of it and onto the battlefield."Any of your new buddies know your time on this team began with failure, Hotwire?" the figure asked. He was tall and light-haired, and his Dino Attack uniform also sported a small Alpha Team insignia. "Maybe I oughta let them in on those little details.""Swerve, sir, I-- I didn't, I mean," Hotwire stammered."All you had to do," Elite Agent Swerve cut in, "was fix the megablocking radio. That's all it would have taken to save an entire town. No, don't spout more excuses. All four of us saw that horde of dinos headed for Mt. Bricklake, and if you'd just gotten through to HQ we coulda gotten backup. But you just sat there in shock. You never told your friend Fullmetal that you were the one responsible for the utter destruction of his home, did you?" He spat. "That's not even mentioning the fact that you then proceeded to abandon me.""Those were your orders, though. You were cut off by the rockfall," Hotwire protested. "You told us to get back to the nearest outpost for help, not to worry about you.""No, that's what Spectrum told you I said," Swerve growled. "You were a spineless coward for not arguing.""And that doesn't even compare to what you did to me, Dave."No, Hotwire pleaded silently. Not her, not here. But as the new speaker walked from behind him to join Swerve, his dread was confirmed. The DA uniform was the same as Swerve's, sporting the Alpha Team insignia. And the short, reddish hair was the same shade as the fringe escaping Hotwire's cap."You left me for dead," accused Sarah O'Neal, better known as Agent Talon. "My own brother.""But you were dead," said Hotwire. "I saw what that lizard did." He shuddered as the memory sprang up before his mind's eye -- Spectrum at the wheel of Swerve's Iron Predator, speeding down the mountain road with the dinosaurs in pursuit...the mutant lizard leaping from the hillside onto the turret, tumbling to the pavement with Talon in its blood-soaked claws -- and the agony of that moment overcame him. He crumpled in a motion that began as though he would sink to his knees but ended, thanks to the awkward position of his leg replacement, with falling backwards into a sitting position."You should've gone back for me," Talon hissed. "You didn't even bother to stop and save me.""What was I supposed to do?" Hotwire cried. "Leap out of an IP at over seventy miles per hour? Spectrum sure wasn't stopping.""Oh, come on," Talon scoffed. "We both know he was an arrogant son of a Jack Stone. The least you could have done was knock him one upside the head -- or znap, just thrown him overboard -- and stop the IP yourself. No, Swerve's right. You're a pathetic, spineless coward. Unforgivable."Hotwire choked back a sob. With the doors in his mind wide open, there was nothing he could do to stop the wave of anguish and despair that overwhelmed him.Swerve abruptly stepped forward and kneed him in the face. His head snapped back and he lost his grip on the laser rifle, which clattered to the ground beside him. "Get up, coward," Swerve sneered. All Hotwire could do was spit out the blood that was filling his mouth and stifle another sob. Swerve growled. "I said, get UP!" He wound up and kicked Hotwire squarely in the chest, knocking him back a foot."Aw, go a bit easier on the coward," Talon said malevolently. "Can't you see he's a cripple? All he needs is a bit of help." She stepped forward to where Hotwire now lay, grabbed his prosthetic leg and twisted it roughly. Hotwire screamed.At that moment the world seemed to ripple. For a brief second, Swerve and Talon were replaced by Stromlings. Then, in the blink of an eye, they were back to normal, taunting him and lashing out with kicks against his head, sides, severed leg...Hotwire retreated from the physical world, verging on unconsciousness just to escape both the physical and emotional pain wracking his body. But the image of the Stromlings standing in place of his squad leader and sister stuck in his mind. The memory of Helm standing in the corridor, frozen in fear of a giant snake only he could see sprang up, and Hotwire was suddenly filled with a burning rage. He opened his eyes, ignoring the pain. In one smooth motion, he grabbed his laser rifle from where it had fallen and swung it above him in a single arc, striking both his tormentors. Talon staggered back, and Swerve, who had one leg drawn back for another kick, lost his balance and fell over. Hotwire stood slightly unsteadily, using the gun to haul himself upright. He then raised the weapon and pointed it at Talon."You," he snarled, "have desecrated the memory of Sarah O'Neal." He squeezed the trigger, and his 'sister' fell with a smoking hole in her chest. By the time she hit the ground, the illusion had evaporated in a wave of purple smoke, leaving the body of a Stromling laying on the stone floor.'Swerve' gave a shriek and dropped his disguise. He charged at Hotwire, swinging the nasty serrated blade fused to his arm. Hotwire brought the laser rifle up to block the blow, but there was enough force behind it to make him stumble. The Stromling took the opportunity to lash out with another kick that knocked the Dino Attack agent to the ground again. It raised its blade, but at that moment a bolt of energy caught it directly in the face. The Stromling collapsed, and a strong hand pulled Hotwire upright. Helm, Sonic Screamer on his shoulder, aimed a concerned look at the Elite agent."You all right?" he asked."I will be, I think," Hotwire responded, retrieving his laser rifle. "Thanks, I owe you one."Helm chuckled. "I owed you already. If anything, this makes us even." They turned again to face the battle raging around them, as the Darkitect shot a bolt of lightning at the mysterious samurai, and with a look of determination Hotwire forced the doors of his memory closed once again.OOC; So...this actually wasn't the idea I'd had when I last posted. I had intended to write a scene in which Hotwire is confronted by a facsimile of Agent Cane, culminating in Katerina shooting the disguised Stromling. Then I remembered that I'd always intended to tell the grim tale of Hotwire's first mission as a Rookie Agent, but scrapped the story after only three drafts, always intending to return to it at some undetermined point in the future. I dunno whether y'all remember my characters from AT: Ogel's Last Stand, but they were intended for that the whole time, and I realized abruptly that this was the perfect opportunity to finally get that story told....Gosh, I sure do love Writing By the Seat of My Pants. :biggrin:

Edited May 31, 2012 by Jackson Lake

Atton Rand · May 31, 2012

IC: "Megablock," Trigger muttered sternly. "We got to do something fast before this znap gets out of control.""You don't seem to be affected," Snake said."Of course not," replied Trigger. "I've been through hundreds of these megablocking things I learned to resist them. It doesn't seem to be affecting you either.""No," replied Snake. "That's because I don't really have anything that I fear.""Good," replied Trigger. "We don't have much choice. How much ammunition you got?"Snake cocked his rifle. "Plenty," he said."Good," replied Trigger. " 'Cause we're about to go against the Darkitect himself."With that, Trigger raised his pistol, and he and Snake opened fire as they charged toward the mysterious Baron.

Edited May 31, 2012 by Atton Rand

Brikman McStudz · May 31, 2012

OOC: I suppose this is a fair warning: this post will be long and may be a bit dark (YMMV). If it ends up too dark, I can change it.IC:Commander Vinyaya quickly jogged over Frank Einstein. She took a quick glance back at the Minfig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid. Andrew was right, of course. The Hybrid's intentions seemed clear enough. She fought down both Stromlings and scientists. She faced the Darkitect himself. However, it was in her nature to be suspicious. She was a cop and she had plenty experience to make her wary of everyone, including Zachary Virchaus and Amanda Claw.She reached the Imagination statue, where she found a girl crouched over Einstein, her eyes wide and fearful. "What is your name?" Vinyaya asked calmly."Kate Bishop," the girl said. Vinyaya nodded in acknowledgement and quickly checked Einstein's pulse and heart rate. He seemed to be alive in the meantime."We need to get him out of here," Vinyaya grunted, glancing back at the sinister skull of the Darkitect. "Help me carry him."************************************Zach crouched next to Minerva. Her breathing was steady and quiet. She was alive and she would be fine as long as he got her out of the temple. He dragged her away Provencal and rested her against the chamber wall. He then turned to face the XERRD scientist.She is evil. That was all Zach managed to think. Provencal had clearly manipulated her emotions until she was angry and irrational. Once she was out of focus, Provencal had no problem with defeating her.He shivered. If Provencal was telling the truth, then what she and Breen did to Oswald was disgusting. He hadn’t expected Minerva brash reaction to Provencal’s revelation. He hadn’t really expected Provencal’s revelation in general. He knew Minerva had a troubled past, but the brief details Provencal had given regarding Minerva and Oswald’s past was terrifying and depressing. He felt pity for both Fabellos for what they had to face.He stopped in front of Provencal, who had a wide smirk on her face as she spun her staff in her hands casually. “You know,” she said. “You two are among the most easily provoked people I have ever met. She blew up like that when she found out about you and your corruption. It was highly amusing. And you...” she shrugged. “Well, you’re angry at everything I do, but I suppose it is justified, isn’t it?” Zach’s scowl deepened as he ran forward, swinging the knife at the scientist.Provencal blocked the blade easily with her staff. “You prove my point.” She shoved Zach away and swung the staff in large swipes, moving toward him slowly. He looked for an opening and jabbed his knife into the chaos. Both he and Provencal shook from the collision. Zach then grabbed the staff and, using it as an anchor, pulled himself toward and punched Provencal with his knuckles, still tightly gripping the knife.Provencal stumbled back, clutching her cheek. She looked surprised, but that quickly faded into calm anger. “Manners, Zachary.” She maneuvered past his knife and slammed her fist into his chest before kicking him in the shins. He wanted to give, but he knew he couldn’t. He brought the knife upward, aiming for Provencal’s midsection. She step-sided the blow and jabbed him with the bottom of her staff.As he retreated, Provencal shook her head disapprovingly. “Disappointing. If you want your revenge, you are going to have to try harder than that!” Zach snarled, brushing his hair out from in front of his face. She swung her staff and started firing blasts of her dark magic. Zach ducked from the first blast and sent the second and third blasts back at Provencal. Unfortunately, she had caught on to his game and easily dodged the blasts thrown back at her. He ran at her again and they engaged in a fierce duel with their weapons. When he found an opening, he kicked Provencal in stomach twice before she swung her staff back at him.“You witch!” Zach hissed, backing away from the blow. Provencal giggled, amused.“Listen to yourself!” she exclaimed, circling Zach like a vulture. “You think you are some Big Darn Hero, don’t you? You aren’t. In fact, in this battle alone you’ve shown a lot of traits of more of an Anti-Hero or, perhaps, a Villain.”“SHUT UP!” Zach roared. Provencal responded by sweeping her staff in front of her in a wide arc. As she swung, a large trail of her dark magic emitted from her staff and shot at Zach. He hit the ground as the heat of the blast traveled over his head. He climbed back to his feet and saw Provencal running toward him, staff raised. He hissed and quickly stepped out of the way, cutting her shoulder with his knife as she passed. She slowed down, and Zach quickly swung his foot through Provencal’s legs, knocking her to her knees.She clutched her shoulder, wincing from the pain. “You think you have escaped,” she muttered, using her staff to climb to her feet. “You think you have escaped the Darkitect’s control. You are sorely mistaken. He still controls you, Zachary Virchaus, and there is nothing you can do about it.”“LIES!” Zach bellowed, now furious. Suddenly, streaks of purple lightning erupted from his finger tips and arm stub and shot at Provencal. They struck her fiercely, throwing her back against the wall. Zach fell to his knees, on the verge of unconsciousness, but feeling immense satisfaction.“You proved my point yet again,” Provencal choked weakly, steadying herself with the wall. She was panting heavily and smoke rose out of her robes. “How can you fire Maelstrom from your body and claim to be purged of it? You will be his slave forever.” Zach struggled to his feet. He felt wobbly and disorientated. His drive to kill Provencal prevented him from succumbing.“And now,” Provencal said triumphantly, picking up her staff. “You are too weak to use that power. This is the end.” Zach looked down, trying to locate his knife. However, his disorientation prevented him from finding it. He glared at Provencal, who wore a small smile of victory on her face. Zach then glanced at Minerva, who was still unconscious. He knew that once Provencal killed him, she would turn her staff on Minerva. He swallowed hard.If I’m going down, so are you. Provencal spun her staff in her hand. Zach started running at her. Provencal fired one blast. It shot over his shoulder, missing by a square inch. He lowered his shoulder and slammed it into Provencal’s chest. She grunted as she fell back against the wall. Her staff fell out of her hands and into Zach’s left.Gripping it tightly, he backed away from the XERRD scientist. She blinked several times, her eyes widening at the sight of her staff in a Dino Attack agent’s hand. She looked at Zach, fear dancing in her eyes. She composed herself, fear changing into a hard glare.“You can’t do it,” Provencal hissed. “You will seal your fate as the monster you are if you do.”Zach looked at the staff, his face cold and emotionless. He wanted to be the bigger person. To prove that Provencal was wrong. But his anger screamed at him to do it, and right now, it was the strongest force in his body. Zach bit his lower lip and lowered the staff slightly. A relieved smile appeared on Provencal’s face.“I knew you-” That was all Carolyne Provencal managed to say as a fiery violet blast from her struck her chest. She slammed into the wall yet again, this time sliding to the floor. Zach’s face remained emotionless as he watched her shriek in pain. She thrashed and shook violently, purple electricity swarmed her entire body. After 20 seconds, her body finally became limp.Zach dropped to his knees, tears flowing down his face. He had done it. She was dead. His revenge accomplished. And yet he felt sickened and disgusted with himself. As he watched Carolyne Provencal die, he had felt pleasure. Sick happiness and glee as he watched her suffer through the last pitiful seconds of her life.“She was right,” Zach whispered shakily. He was a monster. He had become her. Sadistically watching his victim die before him. It was an unseen trait in a Dino Attack agent. It was more commonly associated with XERRD scientists, guards, and...andStromlings.Is the Darkitect still controlling me? It seemed incredible likely at this point. But how? He never had taken actually pleasure in killing beings. It was a necessary chore in war. As a Stromling, it had been fun, but as a Minifig...And his anger and hate. Perhaps it was justified against Provencal, but he had never lost his temper is such a way. In fact, he was only able to shoot that "Maelstrom lightning" when he was furious. Based on that, it seemed his power grew more lethal the more angrier he got. It seemed all to clear the Maelstrom still had some influence over him.He looked at Provencal’s staff that lied on the ground near him. For a second, just a brief second, he considered suicide. He could hardly live with himself after feeling euphoria as he watched a woman die in front of him. And these monstrosity tendencies could get worse. Perhaps it would be best if he just died.No. There was still chance. If the Maelstrom was the cause of this, it can be stopped. It wasn’t in control anymore. It was on the sidelines, trying to call plays. Like it did before I became a Stromling. He could fight back. He had the willpower. He had triumphed over the Darkitect once, he could do it again. He thought back to the clearly Maelstrom-infected samurai that had aided the team in this temple. She was clearly resisting the Maelstrom’s will. He had very little Maelstrom left inside of him. He was more then capable of overpowering the Maelstrom.He looked at Minerva. She almost seemed to be sleeping on the temple floor, despite the bruises all over her body. If there was one good thing that happened to him on Adventurers’ Island, it was meeting her. He loved her. She had saved him from serving the Darkitect for the rest of his life. He almost didn’t believe he had the nerve to even consider ending his life while she still lived.I am a moron. He thought, cracking a weak smile. Zach rose to his feet and wiped the sweat from his brow. Then, carefully, he managed to maneuver Minerva’s body into his arms. She stirred slightly, but remained unconscious. She wake up soon. He thought with the upmost confidence. He then turned toward the Maelstrom vortex and the Darkitect. Many Dino Attack agents were near the vortex. Zach grimaced and starting walking toward the vortex.There was one more battle left to face.

PeabodySam · May 31, 2012

OOC: Use the Force Maelstrom Lightning, Zachary! Use the Force Maelstrom Lightning! Sorry, I couldn't resist, especially after reading Brikman McStudz (the character, not the BZPower member)'s original biography on the LEGO Island Wiki. In full seriousness, that was quite a satisfying death for Dr. Provencal.Also, I must say that I really enjoyed seeing where the "worst fears brought to life" idea has taken us. I saw it as an opportunity to get creative, and I'm glad to see that everyone else has taken full advantage of this opportunity.@Atton: I'm hoping to get a post in that wraps up the Gold City and Castle Cove missions. The former will be necessary, as I require the Second Headquarters Squad to return to Dino Attack Headquarters as soon as possible. Then... we can begin our little Spy Check...@Andrewnuva: Reading your IC reminded me of one of the reasons that I like Pterisa's character. She's neither Semick nor Kate Bishop... instead, she's both. One moment, she can go from being in complete control; the next, she can lose it all to her insecurities. That makes her, I feel, one of my more complex characters.IC: Rex saw Trigger and Snake charge at Baron Typhonus. He knew that their attack would ultimately amount to nothing. As the Darkitect, Typhonus was far too powerful. Even with the ceiling of the temple collapsing due to Semick's air support, the Darkitect seemed confident in his own victory. Debris rained down from above, and some of it was even sucked into the Maelstrom vortex.Rex had been disturbed to find out the identity of the samurai. For all intents and purposes, she appeared to be on Dino Attack Team's side... but, as Rex looked down at his lifeless legs, he remembered all too well that the Minifig/Mutant Lizard Hybrids also appeared to be on Dino Attack Team's side, even fighting against XERRD and Mutant Dinos, only to reveal it was all just a lie. As a result, Rex could not help but feel repulsed by the sight of the Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid.Rex noticed that Greybeard, too, had broken out of his illusion. Rex did not know who was the hooded figure the pirate had been fighting, but Greybeard now was filled with grim determination as he marched towards the Maelstrom vortex. Raising his cutlass in the air, the old pirate proclaimed: "Let this be th' day that ye shall curse forever, Baron!""Oh, Grisbarba L. Pirata," smirked the Darkitect. "That reminds me. Do you remember your old friend, Sir Robert Bat-""Ah, shut up!" grumbled Greybeard. With that, he fired his flintlock pistol and joined Trigger and Snake in their charge.Rex gasped. "He won't stand a chance!" he whispered as Baron Typhonus prepared to swing his jeweled scepter once again. Thinking quickly, he pressed the controls on his hover-chair and piloted it towards the center of the chamber. In flight, he fired his Sonic Screamer into the Maelstrom vortex. As he expected, it had little effect upon the Darkitect, but it distracted him from Greybeard.As Trigger and Snake fired their own weapons into the Maelstrom, the Darkitect simply shrugged. With a wave of his scepter, he sent out a pulse of Maelstrom energy that knocked back Greybeard, Trigger, and Snake. Rex struggled to maintain control on his hover-chair's flight. With another wave of his scepter, the Darkitect rained fireballs upon those that were present.For someone who was only just getting used to flying this thing, Rex had difficulty controlling the flight of his hover-chair. Every now and then, it would glitch on him and go the opposite direction; this was likely attributed to the slight damage it had taken when struck by a bolt of Maelstrom lightning and the subsequent crash-landing that ejected Rex and Provhezor.A few more Dino Attack agents joined Rex, Trigger, Snake, and Greybeard in their effort. They knew that they had no chance of stopping the Darkitect, but they hoped to delay his actions long enough for something to happen. Additionally, in this moment, they pushed aside thoughts of self-preservation and instead thought of hopes, dreams, friends, family, and the world they were fighting for.

*****

Frank Einstien wheezed and, suddenly, reached up and grabbed Holly Vinyaya by the arm. He locked eyes with her, and the Space Police officer could see that his eyes were clouded and distant. "Where's Kate?" he whispered, unable to speak any louder."I'm right here," answered the young Dino Attack agent, peering over Vinyaya's shoulder.His hand shaking, Einstein tried to reach for the injection saw that he dropped when struck by the Darkitect's power, but it was just out of his reach. Kate knelt down and picked it up, looking at Einstein with fear in her eyes. "Do what you must," whispered Einstein.Vinyaya blinked in surprise and stared at Kate, who trembled. "Why me?" murmured Kate."Because... you can," wheezed Einstein. "For.. the good of all.. of us.""But you'll be dead!" cried Kate."She's right," nodded Vinyaya. "We need you now more than ever, professor, and-"Weakly, Einstein shook his head. "My time... is up... but my destiny... my destiny is clearer than ever now. My time is... up, but yours... your time has come. Kate... it is no mistake... that you joined Dino... Attack Team." Smiling gently, he reached up and brushed her cheek with his hand. "You've... grown up... Uncle Wallace would have been... so... proud."

*****

Andrew and Laxus approached the samurai, whom he now saw to be a Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid. Andrew had to admit that she was quite an interesting character. She was the only one of her kind as far as he knew, a nice dressing style (he had to admit, the samurai armor was cool), but most of all, a mix of emotions that made him want to both back away and give her comfort.Yes, I pretty much ripped that from one of our old Steam chats, Drewsko.She saw them approach, which only caused her to wrap her wings even more closely around her form. "Don't look at me!" she whispered.Deep down, it troubled Andrew to see just how insecure the samurai really was. Still, he managed a half-smile and decided to say, "You know, after half the things I've seen in this war, your true identity only comes as a mild surprise to me. Heck, your voice was more eyebrow-raising than your appearance, to be honest."The samurai did not reply. Laxus noticed that she still held the Maelstrom Crystal, but this time she did nothing about a pair of Stromling Explorers lumbering over towards her. The Martian pointed this out to Andrew, who dispatched the Maelstrom minions before they got too close.Andrew knelt down beside her. "Listen. In this war, we've had plenty of situations in which we found trusted allies from unexpected sources. Did we ever think we'd be putting our trust in Evil Ogel's own general and brother? And if you look, you will see Dino Attack agents risking their lives by standing up to Baron Typhonus in an effort to save the world. Just a moment ago, you were doing the same thing. And if I can trust those Dino Attack agents like my own family, what makes you any different?""Because of what I am," muttered the Hybrid. "The Darkitect is right. It was foolish of me to believe that I could defy the reputation of my kind and earn a respected place in post-war society. I'm fooling myself. The world will never see me as anything but a monster."Andrew frowned. She really was messed up, perhaps even more so than he had thought. He could see that she feared rejection from Dino Attack Team, but he could not imagine what she could have endured by XERRD that left her in such an insecure state.He looked up to see Amanda Claw approaching. She also knelt beside the Hybrid and whispered, "What's your name?"The samurai blinked in surprise, as it was not a question that she had anticipated. Quietly, she murmured, "Pterisa.""Okay, Pterisa," nodded Amanda. "Neither of us could see or be affected by Baron Typhonus's illusions. He couldn't even see into your mind. I saw that I could trust you when I could not be seen or heard by Rex. Back then, you were just an unnamed samurai. Why is Pterisa the Hybrid any different?"Pterisa did not reply."Right now," continued Amanda, "Rex and others are fighting what might be the last battle of their lives. They risk their lives doing what you were just doing moments ago with confidence that even Specs would admire. You can still help them.""They don't want my help," muttered Pterisa. "You heard them all when my helmet was removed. They don't trust me. And, just to drive the point home, the Darkitect reminded them about the things that my kind has done."Amanda frowned. "Rex trusts you," she claimed."No, he doesn't," Pterisa shook her head."He does," disagreed Amanda."Then prove it!" snapped Pterisa. "I want to hear him say it! I want to hear Rex say that he trusts me as he looks me in the eyes and remembers that he is flying around in a glitching hover-chair because the Quasifigus lacertilia betrayed him!"Andrew and Laxus traded glances, but Amanda, silently and grimly, stood and walked away. Once again, Pterisa withdrew, and nothing Andrew or Laxus could say could comfort her.Then, Lord Sam Sinister von Barron approached them. Having apparently broken free of his own illusion, he crossed his arms and glared down upon the Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid. "Hand over the Maelstrom Crystal now," he ordered."Now's not exactly the best time to talk to her like that," murmured Laxus."I don't care," Lord Sinister shook his head. "Hybrid, you must give me the crystal. Only I may hold the crystal and do with it what must be done. I shall take it out of this blasted temple and make sure Baron Typhonus never sees it again.""You're not planning on adding it to one of your private collections, are you?" Andrew raised an eyebrow. "Because I would not recommend it... based upon what I've heard, this crystal doesn't belong in anyone's collection."Rather than answer Andrew's question, Sam Sinister declared: "I need a T-1 Typhoon. Arrange one for me immediately. Since we have a nice hole in our ceiling, it would be easiest if one can just drop down a winch and cable and hoist me up."Before Andrew could reply, Amanda Claw returned, this time with Rex following. Pterisa looked up at the elite agent and saw that he was very reluctant to leave behind Greybeard and the others in the battle against Baron Typhonus. Rex looked down upon her, and she could already sense old feelings of contempt. Sadly, she looked away."Pterisa," spoke Rex. "There's something I need you to understand. We cannot change the past, and for the rest of my life, I am confined to a wheelchair... or a hover-chair... because of what the Minifig/Mutant Lizard Hybrids have done to me. As I am Minifig, it is only in my nature to hold onto bitter feelings and be very reluctant to forgive and forget.""That's what I was afraid you would say," whispered Pterisa, who continued to look away.Rex sighed. "But, my personal experience with Mutant Dinos has taught me that they are not Always Chaotic Evil. They can break free of the Maelstrom's influence, defy their masters, and prove to be some of the most honorable and trustworthy friends I have ever known. Just today, I witnessed a complete stranger Mutant Lizard come to my defense, and I was reminded of Trouble, the first Mutant Lizard I had ever tamed who had become one of my closest friends. And, while I was never under the influence of Maelstrom, I too know what it's like to have different morals from the rest of my species, proving that it would be hypocritical of me to judge someone by the actions of others."Pterisa blinked and turned her head, looking up at Rex once more. The expression of bitter contempt was gone, replaced by a gentler, soothing expression."I admit," continued Rex, "it takes a lot of effort to forgive and forget, so I cannot. I can, however, understand that you are different, unique, special. You may fear that we see you as a monster... but your wings are beautiful. They show that you live a harder life than we can possibly imagine, and yet you have the strength to ignore that and carry on. We all saw how, earlier today, you stood up to the Darkitect himself. I cannot imagine anyone else brave enough to do that. I trust you, Pterisa."With that, Rex leaned forward and reached out his hand. With some hesitation at first, but then with renewed confidence, Pterisa reached up with her own hand. They clasped hands, and they smiled together.Lord Sam Sinister cleared his throat. "Yes, yes. Very touching. Now, hand over the crystal and call down a T-1 Typhoon for me." Rex and the others stared at the Lord von Barron. Grudgingly, he added: "Please.""I don't know," Andrew scratched his head. "If we do that, surely the Darkitect will see you and blast you out of the air before..." He trailed off as an idea dawned upon him. "Or we could just get creative."Slowly, Pterisa handed the Maelstrom Crystal over to Lord Sam Sinister. Instantly, a pair of Stromling Explorers marching towards them froze and stared at Sam Sinister, as though awaiting orders. Andrew radioed the message up to Semick, and a T-1 Typhoon moved over the hole in the ceiling and lowered its winch and cable."Now, let's distract the Darkitect," declared Rex. Amanda, Pterisa, Andrew, and Laxus nodded. Then, as one, they joined the others in their battle.Rex continued to fire his Sonic Screamer at the Maelstrom vortex whenever he could. Pterisa resumed firing lightning bolts at the Darkitect, now with renewed confidence. While firing a Cosmotronic Ray, Andrew started shouting: "Two eight-stud LEGO bricks can be combined in 24 ways. Three eight-stud bricks can be combined in 1,060 ways. Six eight-stud bricks can be combined in 102,981,500 ways. Of course, these statistics only apply if all the bricks are the same color; if this does not hold true, then the numbers greatly multiply. And, with eight bricks, the possibilities are virtually endless."The Dino Attack Team's efforts started to frustrate Baron Typhonus, and Andrew's spewing of facts about building started to annoy the Darkitect. "I've had enough of this!" declared the Darkitect. "Who now holds my crystal, and where is that Lord von Barron?"Too late, the Darkitect realized that Sam Sinister had already been hoisted out of the Maelstrom Temple with his Maelstrom Crystal in hand.Furious, the Darkitect tried to use more Maelstrom energy to finally destroy these pesky Dino Attack agents who just would not give up. However, he could feel his powers weaken, now that the Maelstrom Crystal was no longer in such close proximity, and the Imagination orb was now growing brighter and larger than it had in months. A wave of Maelstrom energy that should have instantly deconstructed everyone in sight merely knocked them over for a brief moment.The Darkitect's attention was drawn back to the Imagination orb. "No..." he whispered. There stood Kate Bishop holding an injection saw, which glowed with a bright blue aura. He sent out a bolt of Maelstrom lightning, but it veered off from its course as it neared the Imagination statue. He tried to bring Kate's worst fears to life, but the illusions vanished instantly.Grim, Baron Typhonus lowered his jeweled scepter. "You can't do it, Kate," he growled. "You don't have it in you. You're just a pathetic little girl, so lost and alone in this world. You cannot defeat me, for my power is already far too great in this world. You, and all your so-called 'friends'... will die."Kate Bishop stared at the injection saw in her hands. The bright glow reflected off the tears streaming down her cheeks. She wanted nothing more than to run back home, run back into her mother's safe embrace...But she remembered Frank Einstein. He had sworn to protect her, promising to keep Wallace's family safe. He was a brave man and one of the most imaginative minds of the world. He believed that she could do this.I can do this, she told herself. She looked away from Baron Typhonus, the Maelstrom, and all the death and destruction in the temple. She centered her focus upon the Imagination orb. Then, ignoring the protests of Baron Typhonus, she raised the injection saw and plunged it into the Imagination.A great wave of energy pulsated from the Imagination orb as it grew much larger and much brighter. The energy washed over the interior of the Maelstrom Temple, cleansing it of its corruption and banishing the dark shadows and purple fog. As the wave of pure energy approached the Maelstrom vortex, Baron Typhonus attempted to hold his ground. But, the Maelstrom vortex behind him began to collapse in upon itself, and like a black hole, it began to suck in the Darkitect. He cried out in retaliation, but that did nothing to stop him as he plunged into the center of the vortex. Then, the Maelstrom blinked out of existence.Like the dawn of a new day, everyone rose to a very different Temple of Creation. The signs of battle were still there, as the floor was littered with debris and dead bodies. However, with the Maelstrom gone and the Imagination so powerful, there was something much brighter about the world now."Is he... gone?" someone dared to ask.Rex shook his head. "He's not dead, if that's what you mean. I don't think it's in our power to kill Baron Typhonus here and now. But... I believe, he is gone. He has been banished from the LEGO Planet for good."People rushed up to Kate Bishop and congratulated her, thanked her, patted her on the back. Rex and Amanda approached her, and Rex smiled confidently. "It's been an honor working with you, Bishop," Rex nodded. "You will surely be remembered by history as a remarkable young lady."Kate was silent the whole time. Then, Rex noticed the tears on her cheeks. Concerned, he inquired, "Professor Einstein... is he...?"Holly Vinyaya shook her head, gesturing towards the scientist's lifeless body lying on the floor a few meters from the Imagination statue. Kate reached into her pocket and pulled out a bishop chess piece, handing it over to Rex. "He said this was for you," she finally spoke.A moment of silence passed over the group in memory of Frank Einstein.

*****

Lord Sam Sinister von Barron stood at the edge of a volcano crater. Down below him, he could see lava boiling and smoke rising. Above him, a T-1 Typhoon remained hovering in the air, waiting for him to grab onto the cable once again. In his hand, he held the Maelstrom Crystal.This was it. All he had to do was drop the Maelstrom Crystal into the volcano, and Baron Typhonus would never dare show his face on LEGO Planet ever again.Why was it so hard for him to let go? He held it over the lava below him, but he could not loosen his fingers from the crystal. He stared into its purple surface, which reflected his face back at him, distorted by the angled faces and vertices of the crystal.You don't have to do this, you know, a voice spoke in his mind. This isn't necessary. Just take it home to Barron and add it to your collection of fortunes. Surely, when others see this crystal in your hands, they will know that you truly are powerful.Lord Sinister hesitated. It was in his nature to be greedy, and with the Maelstrom Temple gone, surely there would be no danger to adding something of this much value to his collection.Johnny Thunder, Jake Raines, Rick Spherus, Hael Storm. They would have nothing on you. Who needs a Golden Dragon when you have a Maelstrom Crystal?Lord Sinister grimaced. No, this wasn't right. These thoughts were not his own. It was a trap.Don't do it!"No more traps!" Sam Sinister gritted his teeth. With that, he flung the Maelstrom Crystal down into the volcano below him. When it hit the lava, he had to shield his eyes from a bright flash. Then, a brief mushroom cloud of purple smoke rose from the volcano crater. At last, finally, the Maelstrom Crystal was destroyed.And that, thought Lord Sinister, is how history shall remember the great Lord Sam Sinister von Barron!OOC: And that is the conclusion to the Adventurers' Island story arc. Sorry if it got a little corny or a little cliche at times. It's been fun, guys. Now, let's go home and relax a bit.

Atton Rand · May 31, 2012

IC: "I don't znapping believe it," Trigger muttered as he lit another cigarette. He held one out to Snake, who quickly took it. Trigger then took a moment to light it. "This team put all its trust in some little girl. The fate of the planet according to them, and it's a little girl who can't shoot to save her own life that gets put in charge. I just hope they actually pay me what they promised."Trigger slowly turned and worked his way to the door, kicking aside Palmer's head along the way.

***

Outside, the sun was starting to go down. Mac smiled as he watched the action below. "I don't know about the rest of you," he said. "But I'm ready to go back and get drunk."One by one the T-1's began moving into position, landing as close as they could so they could pick up the agents inside.

Jacks · June 1, 2012

OOC: Good heavens, that victory was hardly Pyrrhic at all! We done good.IC: Hotwire sighed and pulled off his cap. "We won. We actually won. For once. Here's hoping we can keep this up."Helm glanced around the chamber at the tired, ragged team that had just purged the Temple of Imagination, and happened to spot Katerina Schattenberg across the room. "That's Kat, isn't it?" he sain quizzically. "I thought I heard she died."Hotwire laughed softly as the DA agents and various allies picked themselves up and all began making their way out to the waiting T-1s. "You've got a bit of catching up to do, my friend."--------------------Deep within the confines of his own mind, the tiny piece of Lupus Schattenberg that remained himself silently raged. Not only did the Maelstrom have complete control over him, but Phoenix and Cyrus were bossing him around too. The three of them had been making their way through the jungle towards the Maelstrom Temple, when a sudden stampede forced them to take cover in the trees. It seemed as though every single mutant dinosaur on the island shared their intent. However, as a result, they were still half a mile away from the bridge when all three Stromlings suddenly felt a sickening twist in the fabric of the world. They looked at one another, and as they collectively began to weaken, it became clear what had just occurred.The Dino Attack Team had won, and the Maelstrom was being forced off the planet.Loop's trueself immediately began to grapple for control against his Stromlingself. Without the influence of the Darkitect, this was an easy battle. He immediately began to metabolize the Maelstrom energy that was still contained in his body, and then he walked over to the two Agents, who, having also fought off the Maelstrom's hold on their minds were quite understandably shaken."I suppose we should find Captain Osprey and turn ourselves in," Cyrus was saying.Phoenix nodded. "Maybe they can find a way to cure us completely," she agreed.Loop spoke up. "No need for that." Laying a hand on each of their shoulders, he drew the Maelstrom energies out of their bodies. The two Agents gasped in amazement as their eyes changed from red to black, and their skin back to yellow. Loop stepped back, and began to undergo a similar transition as he finished metabolizing the dark energy, which turned to electricity in his cells.Phoenix and Cyrus, though exhausted, laughed with joy, and the three minifigs continued down the path towards the temple. Neither of the two Agents, walking in front, noticed Loop's odd smile, or the purplish sparks that danced across his fingertips.Their screams and pleas for mercy rang out like music, and for the first time in months, Lupus Schattenberg felt truly happy.

Andrewnuva199 · June 1, 2012

OOC: Wow, now that was an impressive ending. You did Andrew's confrontation with Pterisa better than I could've thought to do. Heck, at some points you had better ideas on how to write him than I did!Hope Brikman's plans didn't get a little messed up there, though. I know he was going on a bit about how Zach's "special case" might help to bring the Darkitect down.IC: After the moment of silence was over, Andrew and Laxus took a moment to reflect upon all that had happened."Man," said Laxus, staring at the brightly glowing Imagination Orb that had been key to their victory, "That was one heck of a fight.""Yeah," said Andrew. "I'm even suprised myself on how well we did. Guess there is something to Imagination as a power source.""How the heck can stopping Dr. Rex come close to topping that?! It's a litle hard to top overthrowing the most evil entity in the universe.""Just wait and see, it'll be something to talk about, I'm sure. That maddino might just go all out crazy on us or something now that his source of Dino mutation is cut out. And who knows what he'll do then?""Good point. Regardless, this war's almost over, for sure. And that's definately good news, isn't it?""Truely." Glancing around, Andrew noticed Pterisa standing near the back of the crowd of agents that had gathered due to the need to congradulate Kate, mourn Dr. Einstein, and see if one could get a lift from a T-1 winch. Nudging Laxus's arm, he gestured towards her and the Martian got the message. The two began walking towards her.She looked much more confident than she had been several minutes ago, but did still look to be a little nervous with socializing along with the others. Andrew understood it well. Even with the biggest welcomes and embrances from others, it would still take alot to join a group that one pictured themselves as a potential emeny of for a long period of time. The example of Zach still stood out well in the LEGO Islander's mind."Hi," he said to the Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid as he and Laxus reached her.Pterisa looked a little startled at Andrew's words. "Hello," she responded back with a bit of nervousness. "I guess I should thank you for trying to help me out back there.""It was nothing," said Laxus, "just doing our duty for our own allies.""I see...""You still feel a little nervous around the team, I'm guessing?" Andrew asked."A little. Rex's words were very reassuring, and I've already met with Specs and your other top leaders, but that still doesn't quite make me feel well about conregating with the rest of your people.""Well, let me tell you about a friend of mine. Not too long ago, I saved him and another agent from an old trap net over a cliffside. A few days and battles later, he was injected with Maelstrom energy by a XERRD scientist and made a Stroming. And he was a paticularily vile and hammy Stroming, I can tell you that much."But I remembered the old him, and had a feeling that I could understand what he was going through given some of my own personal inner experiences. So me and a good friend of his ventured deep into a temple we though was the host of the Maelstrom, intending only to free him from his corrpution. And after fighting tooth and nail both physically and mentally, we managed to free him and bring him back to normal."He's visibly worn from his experience, and he still feels responsible for all he did and who he killed as a Stroming, but our commanders were among the first to welcome him back, and they ensured him that any naysayers objecting to his return would have to deal with them."Semick and Rockford are as good men as Rex, and I'm somewhat equal to them, holding the rank of Elite Agent like most of them. Trust me, if anyone objects to you staying with us, while I can't ensure they're getting a punch in the face, I can ensure that they'll get some good retribution.

Atton Rand · June 1, 2012

IC: Kate took a moment to fully grasp just what exactly was happening. She'd been feigning smiles in front of her fellow agents and their constant congratulations, but there was no real satisfaction. She was still upset over the loss of Frank Einstein. So much happened at once in one day, between being used as a human shield and learning her own mother had lied to her. Still, Einstein seemed so much like Wallace Bishop, at least from what little she could recall, and his story, of Bishop pulling out parts of his own brain simply made her shudder.She could still recall the day her mother had come home and told her everything. Even then, Kate didn't want to accept the loss of Wallace. She still remembered Sarah holding her while she cried. Kate was roughly five or six at the time, and yet that was one memory she could still vividly recall, one that even now, at eighteen, only made her want to cry more.Rotor didn't seem to care much. "Come on," he shouted. "Grow up already."It seemed hard for Kate now. To her, she'd lost everything. Pierce was in Antarctica somewhere, and so was her mother, and now this story of her uncle, and there had been no sign of James McGregor since the rampage of mutant dinos on the rear guard camp.Slowly, Kate blindly followed her fellow agents. One by one the T-1's came in. As the labyrinth of the temple was hard to navigate. Only two or three could land inside at a time. She slowly worked her way into one and sat in the back, alone.

***

As the chopper's rotors came to life, Garry looked at his fellow comrades. They were all talking about what happened within the temple. He could see Vinyaya close by, as well as Wilkes. Some of them were talking about what happened, what they were experiencing in the temple, how it tried to exploit their fears. Finally, Garry decided he had to say something. He knew if Rotor found out he would try to kill him, but he felt he had no other choice."It wasn't playing off of my fear," Garry said. "It was playing off Rotor's fear, and my guilt."This seemed to get attention from the other agents. Garry was trying to figure out the best way to word it, but finally decided just to come out. "I tortured a child," he said. "Me and Rotor, this morning."

***

Cabin quickly climbed aboard the first T-1 she saw. This one happened to be piloted by Mac, who she was pleased to see. There was a short flight before they finally landed back at the familiar sight of Outpost 4.

Brikman McStudz · June 1, 2012

OOC: Eugh. I should probably go alter that. It's almost embarrassing.And so this arc has finally ended. Holy smokes that was a long time. Little more than two years factoring in the BZP forum update, if I'm correct. Without the update, it was still probably a year. And quite an ending and definitely a little more upbeat than the endings of the previous two arcs, one being an almost waste (Goo Caverns) and the other filled to the brim with betrayal, riots, and civil war (LEGO Island and Antarctica). This? The worst I'd say is that Einstein died.Plans? You think i had plans, Andrewnuva? Ha! My planning for this arc ended when you chose to leave the chamber while Zach was still blind (had you chosen to stay, there would've been a ninety-nine percent chance of the final battle between Ahua and Zach). In fact, the battle with Provencal and the aftermath was more relevant to my plans then anything, for both Zach and Minerva.Had there been more time, yeah, Zach and the Darkitect may have had stand off of some sort. But I'm not complaining too much.Finally: What happened to Señor Palomar? He sort of disappeared. Is he fleeing back to Dr. Rex with Glados or something? Or is he a "good guy" now?I suppose this is also important to note: I'll be gone again this weekend for a wedding and since I suppose we should be moving right along, I'm sticking at least Zach and Minerva with Andrew and Laxus and I suppose Vinyaya is with Garry. Nazareno, Martinet, etc. will probably just reappear at DAHQ.Also, I suppose this post takes place before Kate Bishop leaves.IC:Zach grinned happily. He watched the whole scene. The Darkitect had been defeated. Not killed, that was certain, but at least he was no longer on the LEGO Planet. The temple had restored some of its former glory. The warmth of the Imagination in the temple washed over him. For just a small moment, he forget he had ever been a Stromling and his fight with Provencal. Everything was fine. He was alive, Minerva was alive, his friends were still alive. Things were just...fine."Zach?" Minerva whispered in his arms. Brought back to reality, he looked down at Minerva. She was blinking rapidly, as is she was trying to adjust the general brighter atmosphere in the temple. "Is she gone?"Zach nodded. "She's dead, and the Darkitect is gone. We won." Minerva suddenly shot up. Zach was so surprised he dropped her. She landed on her feet easily and looked around the temple, a wide grin on her face."He's gone!" she repeated excitedly. She embraced Zach in a tight hug. He hugged her back, the comforting warmth returning to him. She pulled out once and looked at him."You okay?" Opposed to the other times Minerva had asked him this question, her voice was not filled with concern. She just wanted to be certain at this point."Mostly," he said. Minerva frowned. He thought back to the horrible revelations he had discovered about himself thanks to Provencal. "I'll tell you about it on the way back. But I'm going to make it through." Minerva smiled and nodded once. "One more battle left," he noted. "Dr. Rex doesn't stand a chance now that this primary ingredient to his Dino mutations is destroyed." She nodded again, biting her lower lip, sadness in her eyes. Zach quickly realized that this Final Battle would ultimately lead to confrontation between Minerva and her brother. Fate always seemed to work in that way.He wanted to say something reassuring to her. That there was still a chance to save Oswald or something, but he truly doubted that. Perhaps Minerva could pull him back to reality the same way she did to me. It was a long shot, but so was saving Zach himself."What's going on over there?" Minerva asked, gesturing to the group of agents near the Imagination statue."They are congratulating Kate Bishop," Zach said. "She delivered the final blow that defeated the Darkitect.""Kate Bishop?" Minerva said, surprise in her voice. "Really? I didn't think she was really capable of doing anything here." Zach didn't respond. He had never actually met this Kate Bishop, so he didn't know Minerva's claims were true or not. He decided not to dwell on them and instead wanted to find a familiar and friendly face. A quick search found Andrew and Laxus."Let's go," he said to Minerva, motioning toward the two agents. She nodded and they started walking toward them. It was not long until he heard Minerva gasp."What is that?!" she whispered. Zach was surprised as well. Conversing with Andrew and Laxus was a Minifig whose head was an interesting blur between a Minifig's head and a Mutant Pterosaur's head with long hair flowing from the back of its head."It looks like a Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid to me," Zach stated. As the approached, he noticed the Hybrid was wearing samurai armor. "And it appears it is a she and she is the mysterious warrior that aided us during the battle." It made sense. The Maelstrom he sensed inside of her, the Mutant Pterosaur-like lightening she could fire."Really?" Minerva said with some skepticism. "How can we trust her?""She blasted XERRD's second-in-command into a wall with lightning. She wanted to dispose of Provencal. The Darkitect is gone and nobody is trying to kill her. Seems trustworthy to me.""Fair enough," Minerva shrugged. "I guess I see the samurai thing now. I guess that cape she was wearing were actually wings." Zach nodded as he noticed this trait as well. Finally, Laxus noticed them and gestured them over to the group. Andrew turned and smiled at them."This was the man I was referring to," he said to the Hybrid. He turned back to Zach and Minerva. "I suppose you met her already, but her name is Pterisa."Pterisa. How fitting. "I'm glad to have properly met you, Pterisa. My name is Zachary Virchaus and this Minerva Fabello." They both shook the Hybrid's hand. Zach could see some level on uncertainty and nervousness fade from Pterisa's eyes somewhat. I can't imagine she was extremely well-received following the revelation that she is a Hybrid. He could feel a sense of nervousness while shaking her hand, as if she was afraid of a negative reaction from him now that she was revealed to be a Hybrid."I assume you defeated that scientist?" she said, referencing Carolyne Provencal. Zach nodded. "And she was the scientist who injected you with the Maelstrom?""Yeah," Zach said, scratching the back of his head. "I may have lost control of my emotions a bit while fighting her, but she's dead, and that's all that matters." He did not want to go any deeper into the inner turmoil he experienced after killing the scientist. Andrew clasped Zach on the back in a reassuring manner."One less member of Dr. Rex's pet scientists we have to deal with in the end," he said. Zach showed a small smile as he nodded.

Atton Rand · June 1, 2012

I suppose this is also important to note: I'll be gone again this weekend for a wedding and since I suppose we should be moving right along, I'm sticking at least Zach and Minerva with Andrew and Laxus and I suppose Vinyaya is with Garry. Nazareno, Martinet, etc. will probably just reappear at DAHQ.

OOC: Actually, I think Nazareno is back at Outpost 4 with Fuchs and the medics. I'm thinking we should at least come up with some resolution to that plot before we leave the island.

Jacks · June 1, 2012

OOC: And this is probably a good time to remember that I accidentally ditched Septimus before the battle at Hotep's temple even started. Why can I never remember that guy?

that guy from that show · June 1, 2012

OoC:@#%#!@$%*#*$@$$%#%%*@!Garrrgggh! I missed the climax! I’m staying with my dad in Minnesota and did not have access to Internet yesterday!Regardless, it was a good climax, I’m just disappointed that Hertz could not play apart!Hay, with the conclusion of this arc, I think now would be the opportune time for some elite agent promotionsIC:The chamber of the temple of creation seemed to awaken from a deep sleep. Hertz’s eyes were opened as the structure came back to life and light shown in on all it’s glory.He had seen the whole thing. Kate had destroyed the maelstrom, Von Barron had spirited away the maelstrom crystal, a mutant pterosaur minifigure hybrid had been welcomed into there midst, and a hero had died. Hertz was still in incredible pain, his right arm was in terrible shape and he expected that the medical staff would recommend some form of prosthetic. He planed to deny it, Hertz wanted to heal the normal way, it would be hard and painful but he wanted to keep both his arms.His left leg had been gashed open on the rocks surrounding the island. It still dripped blood and it hurt to put his weight on it. He expected that the dirt that had been shoved into the festering wound so might lead to infection and that it would require antibiotics as soon as possible.His chest had been punched repeatedly by the stromling Fitz. Breathing was difficult and speaking was even harder. By feeling his stomach he came to assume that it was bruised on most of its surface. He did not expect internal bleeding but that did little to help the pain.Then there was his head. It had been slammed into every conservable surface over the last few hours. He had blacked out when the Renaissance was destroyed and the same had almost happed when he hit the wet rocks outside the building. On top of all of this a football player had slammed him into the wall with enough force to draw a considerable amount of blood from his temple.In addition to his still burnt hands and feet he considered changing his code name from Hertz to Hurts.Hertz recognized Holly Vinyaya standing over the body of a man he did not know. Kate Bishop was crying as usual but considering what they had all just been threw he could hardly blame her.Also with them was elite agent Rex, somewhere along the lines he had acquired a hover chair. It was evident that he had little control over the craft but it seemed he had enough composure to keep it in one place.Hertz knelt down by the man on the dirt floor.“Who was he?” he asked.“His name was doctor Frank Einstein.” Said Rex slowly. “He may have been our greatest ally. For much of the time we knew him, he had been a mole in XERRD, pretending to be one of Dr. Rex’s must trusted scientists and #2. We would never have gotten where we are today without him. He braved the lion’s den and paid the price.”Hertz carefully closed the eyes of the doctor. “He sounded like a good man.”“He saved my life.” Said Kate. The rookie slowly rose and stared down at the body. “He had treated me like a daughter.”Hertz was about to ask why but Vinyaya stopped him. It was evident that Kate Bishop had some deep connection with the man and she had no desire to talk about it. They did not stop her as she walked across the expanse to a Typhoon.Hertz broke the uncomfortable silence. “Commander Vinyaya.” He began. “I thought you died at the battle of the forbidden ruins.”“I made it out okay.” She muttered. The commando appeared to be in similar shape to Hertz himself. She had burses across much of her face and had a broken lip. A black eye marred the left side of her narrow face and her once blond hair hung in bloody knots around her brow.She made an effort to smile and pointed at her scars. “Courtesy of a particularly nasty Stromling colonel.”Hertz pointed at his own face. “Courtesy of a rock.”The three chuckled before there attention was once more drawn to the body of Frank. “What do you think we should do with him?”“We should take him with us.” Said Vinyaya. “Give him a proper funeral at the D.A. headquarters.”“Perhaps it would be batter to lay him to rest here.” Offered Hertz. “After all this is the temple of creation.”“Lets not worry about it now.” Said Rex. “A lot of good agents died at these two battles, we’re go about paying our respects once we get back to HQ and rest.”Hertz smiled. “Rest sounds like a good idea.”

* * *

Doctor Nicholas Saran jumped awkwardly from the helicopter to survey the people around him.He walked past Kate Bishop on his way to the agents and touched her on the shoulder.“Are you okay Kate.”“I’m fine.” She murmured.Saran frowned. “Kate, I’ve been a therapist long enough to know when someone is troubled.”“I don’t want to talk about it.” Said Kate.“That’s okay.” Said Saran. “But I don’t recommend you become some sort or recluse because of what just transpired here. If you keep these kind of emotions to yourself they will eat you up.”“Thank you doctor Saran.” Said Kate. “But I don’t want to talk about it.”He nodded. “Very well Ms. Bishop, but if you change your mind, my door is always open.”Kate smiled timidly but quickly left to sit alone in a helicopter.That girl has been threw far to much. Thought doctor Saran, so much is expected of her and she knows it, this fight showed us she is capable of incredible heroics but she is also scared.He frowned. This war shows that the greatest wounds are the ones that cannot be seen. Children like Kate will forever be destroyed by it.Nicholas Saran spotted a strange sight in the center of the chamber. He recognized Elite agent Andrew and the Martian Laxus. There was also a third stranger among them. She had displayed valor during the battle but to spite her contribution the agents of the Dino team kept a wide birth around her.“Hello.” Said Doctor Saran. “I just wanted to shake your hand, you certainly displayed heroics today.”The figure known as Pterisa stepped away. “Please, don’t look at me.”Saran glanced at the woman’s body. She was undoubtedly some sort of hybrid but her appearance mattered little to Saran. It was her actions that mattered to him.“Please,” he said. “You may think you are some sort of monster Pterisa, but you can not be more wrong. Today you exhibited incredible bravery, which is what matters to me. I could not care less what you are, what matters to me is who you are.”Saran still held out his hand. The hybrid known as Pterisa hesitated, but then timidly accepted it.OoC:I encourage all of you to use doctor Saran. I created the Psychologist for communal use so anyone is welcome to use his skillsEDIT: As it turns out, yesterday was my two year anniversary in joining this RPG! :wow:

Edited June 1, 2012 by that guy from that show

Brikman McStudz · June 1, 2012

OOC:

Actually, I think Nazareno is back at Outpost 4 with Fuchs and the medics. I'm thinking we should at least come up with some resolution to that plot before we leave the island.

I'm going to leave that up to you. As I remember, Nazareno was supposed to guard Strangebrick and then Palmer sabotaged everything and left all the medics asking "Who dunnut?" I'm only making this IC to address something that will be somewhat related to Nazareno's final role.Also, let's say for simplicities sake that Dr. Martinet is in the temple attending to the wounded, so if you have a wound that needs attending, you can go speak to him if you wish.IC:Nazareno crossed his arms as he watched the medics talk and work from the shadows. There hadn't been anymore incidents of sabotage so Nazareno could only assume this hidden Stromling escaped the outpost and made his way to the true Maelstrom Temple, where he could be dealt with by the Dino Attack Team.The medics had finally gotten back to work with their Maelstrom research. He had assured them that if this Stromling spy made an appearance, it would be dealt with quickly.Beside him, Zelda Frodongan watched the scientists as well. Initially she was fearful of a Stromling being in the outpost, but as time passed, she grew more confident. She had also, more or less, recovered the shock and after effects of the Maelstrom."Do you want to go check the hallways again?" she asked. Nazareno shook his head."I'm more certain than ever that our spy left the outpost with Garry and the others.""Do you think they are alright?"Nazareno shrugged. "I hope Garry and his team made it, but it is extremely likely the Stromling eliminated them on their way to the temple." Zelda bit her lower lip and turned away.Suddenly, Nazareno felt a sharp pain in his chest. His eyes bulged as he clapped his hand over the Maelstrom wound. He fought against the gnawing pain for three seconds before it suddenly faded away. Nazareno breathed out a sigh of relief. He felt better than he had felt in days. Curious, he checked the wound.It was no longer its original ugly blue color. It had faded and almost blended in with his skin. It caused no pain. Strange. Why would the wound just suddenly become dormant. A slow realization came up Nazareno, and he smiled. Perhaps our team has been successful. Perhaps the Maelstrom has been defeated. It was the only likely explanation. He approached the scientists to explain his theory.

PeabodySam · June 1, 2012

OOC: Oh, dear. Err, maybe... Yeah, now that I'm thinking about it, I should have offered: Since there's this whole big gap going on with the Dino Attack agents fighting the Darkitect between "... and the world they were fighting for." and "Then, as one, they joined the others in their battle...", you're free to write about what happened during that time interval and confront the Darkitect if you wish.Problem is, Brikman is right: this has been a long story arc (and, while it isn't entirely my fault, stupid forum update, it did go much longer than I had anticipated), and I wanted to wrap it up as quickly as possible to avoid Arc Fatigue.And yes, I do realize this was a strangely optimistic ending for a Dino Attack RPG story arc. Well, after the Shaggy Dog Story of the Goo Caverns arc and the Diabolus Ex Machina of the LEGO Island arc, I felt that that we needed a true victory to boost our morale for the final battle. If it was too happy for you, well, there's always a certain alternate ending for the story arc which was titled December 21, 2010... And don't worry. This doesn't mean that Dino Attack RPG is going Lighter and Softer. Prepare for death and misery in the next few weeks.@Andrewnuva: Thanks! I did rip one line off an old Steam chat we had about Pterisa, and I tried my best to remain in-character for Andrew. In return, it seems that you, Brikman, and that guy have done an excellent job capturing Pterisa's character.@Brikman: Regarding Palomar's status, he is still officially employed by XERRD (the Walter Breen issue was a one-time-deal, basically). If he isn't taken prisoner by Dino Attack, he'll likely meet up with the remainder of the organization. Although... looking at TC01's original plans one more time, it seemed that Lord Sam Sinister would have finally gotten his revenge against Palomar and chase him away in classic Loony Toons fashion. Might be a little hard to pull off now, but I remember that I took a liking to this idea...

Edited June 2, 2012 by PeabodySam

Atton Rand · June 1, 2012

IC: Wade looked up in surprise as Mac walked into the infirmary. "Mac," Copper said keenly upon noticing him. "What happened.""Long story, Doc," replied Mac. "Windows, what are you doing here?""Someone destroyed the radio," replied Windows. "The radio?""Yes," replied Copper. "Whoever it was also got to the blood."Cabin suddenly entered the room. She very nearly raised her gun at the sight of Zelda. "What's she doing here?" She asked. "You're not even restraining her-""She's cured," replied Fuchs. "We were able to isolate a cure of sorts.""She'd better be," replied Cabin. "Now I don't know about you but we've been through a lot today. I'm going to get something to eat."

that guy from that show · June 2, 2012

iC:The Reclamer landed at the outpost 4 lot without incident. The great transport was remarkably relatively unscathed. Aside from a few nicks and dings the quality UlTech engineering had severed her well.Lutsky was escorted out of the craft in handcuffs by X2. The former commander had since proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he was no longer in what a scientist would define as sane. It was for that reason that he was to be held in the outpost jail until Doctor Saran returned and provided his analysis of his mental before his inevitable shipment to the Antarctica mental institution.There was also concern about what legal actions needed to be taken against the commander. Gahiji Thutmose had not been an official member of the Dino Attack when he was murdered therefore in all intensive purposes Lutsky had gunned down a civilian. The question then became whether his trial would be that of military court or not.Off course it was fully expected that he would be let of on a plea of insanity. Regardless at this stage it was a mere technicality.Dust’s death was of yet relatively unknown among the Dino attack team. Outside of the select members who had witnessed it; Schattenburg, Doctor Cybrog, Lance Williams, and Septimus, only elite agent Semick was aware of the Egyptian’s demise.Actions would need to be taken to clean up the peaces. Dust had not been a bad man but he was disturbed. One could not help wonder if Doctor Nicholas Saran could have provided help in counseling the man. Rockford had theorized that he could have chosen a more righteous path and it was a tragedy that he had been killed when he seemed on the verge of choosing a life of redemption.T-1 Typhoon faired the agents across the miles of jungle back to outpost 4. With them was the XERRD scientist known as Solomon Koplowitz. Koplowitz had led many of the remaining members to surrender and only five members of XERRD had declined to follow him. He had good intentions to cooperate with the D.A to the best of his ability and was expected to play a relativity prominent role in the future.With Doctor Rex as the final advisory, it was expected that defectors like Doctor Strangebrick, Doctor Cyborg, and Doctor Solomon Koplowitz would be essential for defeating XERRD once and for all. Of course cynics like Snake, Trigger, and Rotor would have a hard time trusting there former but even they could not deny that there assistance could prove to be extremely valuable in the future.Tracer, Scratch, Dust, J.D, Frank Einstein, Mur, Arvis, Spino, Raider and many more had all died on Adventures’ Island. Zenna would probably never fight again. Garry Moffat had walked on blurred line of right and wrong and choose a path of brutality. Kate Bishop had witnessed first hand the atrocities of war and seen the horrors that both sides were capable of. Carl Lutsky and Rotor both became monsters in there own right, and Zachary embraced the darkness and had come out forever changed.Everyone lost something on Adventures’ island.

Edited June 2, 2012 by that guy from that show

Atton Rand · June 2, 2012

OOC: I'm just going to take a break from the resolution to tie up one plot thread here, which will lead into a crowning moment of awesome/funny later on.IC: Jenny sat, bruised and battered as Sarah Bishop tried to comfort her."It'll be alright," Sarah said calmly. "You'll be safe here."Jenny remained quiet. The poor girl was just too confused by anything, after all she'd been through, there was a part of her that did not want to leave this one woman who showed her kindness. Pierce was standing close by, and there was something he could see of this. "Why don't we take her with us?" Pierce asked. "Because it will be too dangerous," replied Sarah. "I don't want her getting killed horribly.""I'm sure you can do a good job protecting her," replied Pierce. "Besides, she seems to be more comfortable around you anyway."Jenny seemed to shudder. "Those men," she muttered."Probably Rotor," Pierce said. "Rotor?" Sarah asked. "He's the one who sent my daughter into that fortress.""Yeah," replied Pierce. "He's gotten away with quite a few crimes, but this time we have evidence that should deal with him and whoever else was involved.""I got a few things to say to him anyway," replied Sarah. At that moment, they were approached by Dude. "Hey man," he said. "You guys coming. I mean, like, the helicopter's here man to take us all out to the mainland."There was a momentary pause. "Alright," replied Sarah. "I'll let you come with me for now."Jenny nodded and followed Sarah and Pierce out of the room.

Andrewnuva199 · June 2, 2012

iC:Tracer, Scratch, Dust, J.D, Frank Einstein, Mur, Arvis, Spino, Raider and many more had all died on Adventures’ Island. Zenna would probably never fight again.

OOC: Eh, hold that thought. Spartan's been a bit confusing on where Sauro Hunter's (Sorry, I'm just still used to that codename) team has been ever since they ventured off-course to Mount Bricklake, but I'm pretty sure that they weren't on Adventurers' Island when several of his characters died.IC: "Well then," Andrew said, clapping his hands in a cleaning motion, "I suppose we're done here. Semick's having the T-1s winch some of the agents out of here through that hole, but from the looks of things, there's a bit of a crowd." Indeed, being able to winch up only a handful of agents at a time in about a half-dozen T-1 Typhoons was causing a bit of a wait to develop for people to go."We could just take the scenic route out," Laxus said, pointing to the hallway that they had came into the chamber through. "I think there should be a few T-1s stopping near the entrance to pick agents up. And I did kind of want to get a better look at this place in its more nice-looking state, plus I'm sure we could have some nice conversations on the way, too.""Hm, not a bad idea," said Zach. He looked at the stump where his old prosthetic hand had been. "Probably for the best, since I can't exactly hang onto any ropes well right now.""Heh. First thing we do when we get back to an outpost or base," Andrew said, "You're getting a new hand.""I might want to get looked at too," Minerva added. "I'm sure some of the medics would faint over how many beat-downs I've had to shake off this mission.""Yeah," said Andrew. "So how about we get a move on, then?"Andrew started to walk back towards the hallway, with Laxus, Zach and Minerva right behind him, when he looked back and saw Pterisa still standing where she was."There's always room for one more, Pterisa," Andrew said back to her. "Want to tag along with us?"----------------"See to it that we get agents to pick up all these vehicles and deliver them back to the outposts," Rockford told Outpost 5 over radio. "Also, just remember that everyone should be equipped for T-1s coming in from both the temple and LEGO City for the troops heading back to HQ. As the station second-closest to our recent battle area, you should expect some fair amount of traffic. Also, get some people to help Outpost 4 settle their technical difficulties before midnight. I don't want them swamped and unorganized at a critical time like this.""Understood, Commander. And we'll make sure to have a position open for Outpost Commanding. From what we've heard from the battles, you've likely earned enough prestige to have an easy time getting one.""Good to hear. Rockford out."As Rockford switched his radio frequency to Semick's T-1, he briefly reflected on what he had gone through today. He may not be a commander in the same likes as Semick or Reptile, but he had likely proved himself to be close to it at Hotep's temple. Mur was a somewhat prolific man, and he had clearly seen potential by having the former lawyer serve as a sort-of second in command. While he would likely get much posthumous praise for his sacrifice to stop that Stromling Ape, it seemed that Rockford was going to get attention for being able to pick up his lead and helping to take charge. Granted, he felt that it was more due to the team's performance rather than his lead, but he supposed that he might've done as just as much good with helping direct the team as Semick had done motivating and commanding it.He was definitely getting better handling tough agents, that was for sure. In communications with Semick, he learned that Dust's last words had included ones of regret and apology to Rockford for his actions. So he had had an effect on the Egyptian after all. It made the bitterness of his death a little sweeter. And he had managed to not be rocked by Trigger's stubbornness with trying to take command and overly criticize the strategics of the team in general. That was a good thing too, he supposed.Regardless, there was one last matter to address, letting the home team get the news. Semick had told him he was a little tired of speeches for today, and asked Rockford to send out the notice. Rockford agreed, saying he wanted a few minutes to prepare. Now the time for prep was over."You ready?" Semick said over radio."Yes," said Rockford. "Connect me to a frequency strong enough for LEGO City to get."----------------"Bluetooth, you know what to do.""Right-o!" said Bluetooth, modifying the frequency to reach Dino Attack HQ.Semick sat back and let out a sigh as Rockford began his message. It had been quite a day, today. And as it ended, it ended with a feeling of hope in spite of how much was left."To Dino Attack Headquarters and to our Founding Members and other leaders. This is Standard Agent Rockford, acting as Outpost Commander and formally Temple Assult Ground Team Commander. I have been given the liberty by Elite Agent Semick to report the mission on Adventurers' Island as a success.This had been the ultimate test of his command skills. Leading the team responsible for fighting something perhaps much more dangerous than Dr. Rex's forces could ever hope to be. He didn't pretend to know much about the Maelstrom, but he knew that much had been at stake today."Early reports are still a little vague and blurry, but we can report that the Maelstrom's source on this island was contained in a Temple of Creation near the outlands of the island, atop a smaller island in the middle of a large crevice. Upon arrival, agents reported an Orb containing 'Pure Imagination' was keeping the Maelstrom at bay from fully extending its power.He had to give Rex credit again for remembering this temple. Even if it hadn't gone as he planned, it had clearly given them the opening needed to be able to quickly get to work at the Temple of Creation. The agents had gotten out of the battle area at Hotep's temple quickly and effectively, and once the preparations had been made for crossing the crevice to the temple and the call for battle came, everyone had responded like a good agent should."Once a red herring with a temple dedicated to Pharaoh Hotep III was cleared, at the lost of the agent who forwarded the possibility of the temple being the Maelstrom temple, teams arrived at the true temple and infiltrated to help support a team led by Elite Agent Rex, who uncovered XERRD operatives trying to absorb Maelstrom energy from a large vortex their own uses. It was found that Dino Attack scientist Dr. Einstein was among the group, having been undercover as leading XERRD scientist Walter Bishop.Looking out now at the crevice around the temple, the mist had lost the eerie purple color, and was now just as grey as the clouds above often were. Winning this battle definitely had the feel that something much more than simply another blow to the Mutant Dinos. They had done something greater, something that perhaps had ensured the fate of more than just the LEGO Planet's population."Once reinforcements showed up, among them agents carrying the Maelstrom crystal reported of before, it appears that the Darkitect, the alleged former Baron Typhonus who created and now commands the Maelstrom, appeared through the vortex and attempted to acquire the Maelstrom crystal to try and overwhelm the Imagination holding it back from spreading outside the temple. When that failed, agents were apparently forced to fight illusions based off their own deepest fears.There was the little things too that showed just what his team was capable of. How Andrew and Minerva had helped Zach to overcome possession by the Maelstrom, something that few other Dino Attack agents were able to to do, unfortunately. How Dust, though murdered by one of their (admittedly less-sane) own, recognized in his final moments his wrongs, and did his best to make amends. How Kate Bishop had proved herself at the end, in spite of the steady decline in her ability to cope with what had been happening since the XERRD Fortress assault. And of course, how Dr. Einstein had been able to infiltrate and do so much for Dino Attack's cause, up to, like Mur had much earlier, giving his own life so that so many others may live."After overcoming the illusions, the team managed to band together and use all firepower and creative will to distract the Darkitect while the Maelstrom Crystal was taken from the temple. After that, Dr. Einstein sacrificed his life to provide the 'Creative Spark' necessary to bring enough Imagination to overwhelm the Maelstrom and banish it from both the temple and possibly the LEGO Planet entirely.Clearly this war was far from over, but it still seemed like it was closer than it had ever been before. Even if the next few months would perhaps be their most darkest hour yet, something in Semick's mind told him that he had proved himself ready for it, and that no matter what, no matter how many more died, no matter how much it seemed Dr. Rex might still be close to winning, there was no doubt that ultimately, good would be the victor in this war."More detailed reports are soon to follow from agents on the scene, but for now, we can take comfort in knowing that we've accomplished the second most major milestone in crippling the Mutant Dino forces. To repeat in summary; the Maelstrom is gone from this island, and Adventurers' Island has ended in a victory for Dino Attack. Let us hope for more similar outcomes elsewhere." Edited June 2, 2012 by Andrewnuva199

Atton Rand · June 2, 2012

OOC: I think I should point out that you can't actually reach Outpost 4 by radio, since that was among the things Palmer had sabotaged.Also, I apologize if I'm delaying too much in this next post. I'm just being semi-realistic.IC: Cabin took a huge bite out of the sandwich she had in the mess hall, and she certainly was not the only person left tired and hungry by the mission. Most of the team seemed to want to get off the island, but at this point, Cabin was much too tired to even consider flying anywhere. There was a part of her tempted to just fall asleep right there. It somewhat helped when she looked up to see a familiar face."Rotor," she said with a smile.Rotor seemed quite pleased. He was holding a bottle of beer in one hand. "Jumped on the first chopper that came my way," he said, sitting down with her. "Man, I'm hungry.""We could all use some R&R," replied Cabin. "We've been stuck in this place for what? A week. Honestly it felt good just to be sleeping in an actual bed."Cabin took a large swig of the beer next to her.

Brikman McStudz · June 4, 2012

OOC: Alright, so I got an answer concerning Palomar. How about Paulie Gonapus? Whatever happened to him. Deserted? Returned to Dinosaur Island? Killed by a Stromling? Eh?IC:It was clear Pterisa was somewhat uncomfortable around the Dino Attack Agents. How the mighty have fallen. [/font][/font]Zach thought. As the mysterious samurai, Pterisa had been fearless, commanding, and formidable. As a Minifig/Mutant Pterosaur Hybrid, she was much of the opposite.[/font]As it was, Pterisa was uncertain about tagging along with him, Andrew, Minerva, and Laxus. Due to his corruption and how he fought and killed Dino Attack Agents was similar to Pterisa’s ultimate function before she left XERRD and the Maelstrom, Zach wanted to welcome their new ally to the team like how Rockford had so willingly welcomed him, regardless of his past or what he had done. [/font]Especially since I tried to kill him with a massive ape that wore a tie.[/font]“Yeah, why don’t you come along?” Zach said. “No need to fly back alone.” Laxus and Andrew nodded in agreement. He glanced over to Minerva, who had so far remained mute toward Pterisa. He wondered if she was still suspicious of Pterisa’s intentions.[/font]“It would be an honor,” Minerva finally said, revealing a small, reassuring smile. “if you would join us, Pterisa.”[/font]Pterisa allowed herself to smile nervously. “I suppose I could come along.” She walked toward the group. She, Zach, Andrew, Minerva, and Laxus started making their way through the hallway.[/font]“Rather nice thing you did there,” Zach whispered to Minerva. As he thought about it, Pterisa could probably see that Minerva still held some distrust toward her and probably felt uncomfortable around the Dino Attack Agent.[/font]“Hmm? I suppose so,” Minerva said with a smirk. "She did save this mission from being a total wreck. And she needed the confidence boost, so..." She shrugged. Zach rolled his eyes, but accepted the answer. They both moved forward and joined Andrew, Laxus, and Pterisa's conversation.[/font]

Atton Rand · June 4, 2012

OOC: This next bit isn't totally relevant to much, but it was an idea that came to me earlier and I just had to do, if nothing else just for a laugh.IC: Snake slowly walked into the mess hall. He was still dressed in his simple tank top, but he showed no signs of cold. He was about to go about getting food when his attention was drawn by another agent, a tall, middle-aged man. He had short grey hair, covered by a dark grey bandana, and a very thin mustache. His clothes were much more complex, being made up of combat fatigues, and he also had an eyepatch, although one wrapped around his ear for some odd reason. Slowly, he turned and approached the strange man, who was sitting with one or two other agents.The man looked up in confusion. "Snake," he muttered. "I heard you were dead.""Same for you too," replied Snake coldly.The mustached man seemed to be tense. One of the agents tried to calm him. "Calm down Snake," said one of his friends. "There's nothing to-"Upon hearing the name, Snake quickly jumped onto the table and grabbed the man by his collar. "You call yourself Snake, huh?""Calm down, man" replied the other Snake, but Snake would not have it."DON'T ZNAP WITH ME!" Snake shouted. "What makes you think you have the right to steal my name?""I don't know what you're talking about," replied the other Snake. "You stole the name from me-"Snake promptly threw the man backwards, a loud THUD echoed through the room as his chair crashed to the ground. "You little megablocker think you can get away with trying to pass yourself as me. All you've ever done is try to take credit from me."Subsequently, Snake pulled the man to his feet and gave him a thorough punch in the face. By now the rest of the agents in the mess hall had started to notice him, and were watching in a strange silence.The other Snake slowly came to his senses and threw a solid punch to Snake. He fell backwards, but not before he could deliver a rough kick in the stomach to the other Snake. "Shouldn't have double-crossed me," Snake said as he stood up and tossed another punch. He grabbed the other Snake and threw him against another table, knocking over several dishes and leaving a small group of shocked agents.By now the other Snake was mad, like really mad. He stood up and started to approach Snake. He punched him hard and threw him over another table. Snake quickly got to his feet, and punched him in the stomach. The other Snake took a moment to come to his senses before he once again threw Snake over yet another table, getting a rather confused look from Cabin and Rotor. The other Snake pulled Snake off the table and threw him aside, but Snake was quick to get to his feet and push one agent out of his chair. He picked it up and swung it at the other Snake, throwing him to the ground.Snake took a moment to fully catch his breath before he toward the door, leaving a mess of a cafeteria littered by misaligned tables, broken and spilled dishes, a battered and bruised one-eyed man, and a bunch of confused agents.OOC: Free treasure chest to anyone who can spot the inside joke associated with this confusing and mind-boggling scene. Also, feel free to make of these events what you will. I don't have any specific plans for the guy who just got the living daylights beaten out of him but if anyone else wants to put him to use feel free to do so.

Edited June 4, 2012 by Atton Rand

PeabodySam · June 4, 2012

OOC: I was debating whether or not to do this. Since we didn't have enough deaths this mission, I decided to go with it. This post takes place at a theoretical time after the Dino Attack Team leaves the Temple of Creation; let's just say that Rex and co. were airlifted by T-1 Typhoon and are taking a bit of a scenic route.Speaking of which, Pterisa would gladly accept your offer, Andrewnuva. Oh, would you look at that? Looks like Brikman posted while I was writing this, and Pterisa did gladly accept your offer.Regarding Gonepus's fate, I'm considering that he regrouped with the rest of XERRD after leading the Dino Attack Team to the Pharaoh's Forbidden Ruins. He might appear in the final battle... or I might not find the time/place to fit him in. I do intend, at some point, to delve into the reasons why he was accidentally captured by Mr. Cunningham... let's just say that it's no mere accident.IC: Rex breathed a sigh of relief as he looked out over the horizon from aboard a T-1 Typhoon in flight. It was over. The Maelstrom had been destroyed, Baron Typhonus had been banished, and it was, for once, a Dino Attack victory that came without huge costs.There were costs, though. Frank Einstein, a man who had manipulated the Dino Attack to work in Dino Attack Team's favor from behind the scenes in ways one could not have possibly imagined, had sacrificed his Creative Spark to save the day. Others, such as J.D., Mur, and Tracer, had also lost their lives in battle. Luckily, it seemed that none of them were unneeded sacrifices made in vain... there were no major betrayals, there were no horrible riots, and at the end of the day, Dino Attack Team had actually accomplished something.Rex turned his head and smiled at his comrades, Frozeen and Greybeard, who smiled and nodded back at him. The two of them had lived through a lot, and now they could add "defeating the Maelstrom on Adventurers' Island" to the list. Earlier, Frozeen was telling them about his own mission to Adventurers' Island back in 2004. It seemed amazing how much had changed since then.Then, Rex turned his head the other way and held out his hand. Amanda Claw smiled gently and took his hand in hers. They did not need to say anything; their feelings were silently summed up in their expressions.Rex looked back out at the horizon. The sun was setting, and Adventurers' Island looked beautiful at sunset, with its exotic jungle canopy and the shining sands of the desert to the east. With the Maelstrom gone, the island was returning to its state of a paradise waiting to be explored. It was truly a remarkable place to be, and the scenic view was perfect. Rex reached into his pocket and felt the ring which Greybeard had given him back in the Goo Caverns, which felt so long ago. He wondered if there would ever be a better moment to finally propose-"Look down there!" shouted Frozeen, pointing down to an old Adventurers outpost. "Looks like there's a gathering of native dinosaurs and the TumTum Tribe!"Curious, Rex called to the helicopter pilot to land them at the outpost, which luckily had a helicopter landing pad for the Adventurers' own helicopters. When they landed, Amanda, Frozeen, and Greybeard climbed out of the vehicle, while Rex activated his hover-chair and floated out.Almost immediately, they were greeted by the TumTum tribesmen, who shouted with pride and triumph. The islanders were clearly grateful for the Dino Attack Team's part in saving their home. The dinosaurs, for the most part, kept their distance, but Rex could tell that their roars carried no malice.Then, Rex and his company were approached by two familiar faces: Achu and Chompy. Frozeen, excited to see Chompy again, rushed up to the T-Rex and stroked his nuzzle. Achu, however, seemed much more grim as he approached Rex. "We fought alongside the Dino Attack Team at the Pharaoh's Forbidden Ruins," he explained. "It was too late to warn them that they had the wrong temple, though there was an army of demons waiting to ambush them. With our help, the demons were vanquished, allowing your team to quickly rush to the corrupted Temple of Creation.""Thank you for your assistance, Chief Achu," Rex nodded respectfully. "We will always be in your debt.""You saved our home, and so your debt is repaid," Achu shook his head. Then, his voice turned darker and serious. "Unfortunately... the demons were powerful, and so while we emerged victorious... we paid a great price as well." The tribal ruler held up a large necklace made from minifigure skulls, and a T-Rex skull adorned with bright feather plumes.Chompy sighed. "Our alpha had passed," he growled. "She was a great warrior, just as I remembered her... but the demons were far too powerful."Rex swallowed. "Our alpha? You mean the alpha female T-Rex? The one I met in the Tribe Ugalego ruins?"Chompy nodded slowly. Frozeen gasped and then tried to comfort the T-Rex, and Amanda caught enough of the conversation to understand what happened. Rex quickly explained everything to Greybeard, and even the old pirate knew that this was a great loss."The T-Rexes need a new alpha," continued Achu. "And that, Rex, is where things get a little complicated. From what Chompy had told me..."Chompy cut to the chase. "You're the new alpha.""What?" blinked Rex, shocked.Frozeen stared at Rex in surprise, then nodded slowly. "Of course," he murmured. "I should have known. When he recognized you back at the Dino Attack Headquarters hospital wing, Chompy explained to me in private that you were his eldest sibling. And that qualifies you as the alpha female's heir.""The alpha female was... our mother?" Rex's jaw dropped. He knew that there was something subconsciously familiar about her, but he would never have dreamed that he was one of her sons.Chompy nodded. "Remember our sibling rivalry?" he rumbled. "It was born because I was her second-oldest hatchling. While you were her heir, I believed you would make a poor alpha and thought that I was better qualified. That is why our relationship turned violent. But things are different now, Rex. I have seen you as a great leader. I have no doubt now that you would make a great alpha male."Rex bit his lip. He glanced at Achu, Frozeen, and Amanda. Although Achu held out the necklace and the T-Rex skull, Rex shook his head. "I do not mean this disrespectfully," he quickly explained, "but I do not believe that I should be the alpha now. Right now... I've already got a team that follows me. They need me to lead them, and they need me now, in the present. I cannot stay here and be the alpha. I'm afraid, Achu and Chompy, I must respectfully relinquish the position of alpha male.""Then what do you do?" inquired Achu. "They need an alpha.""I am more than willing," continued Rex, "to pass my title on to my younger brother Chompy. He is the second-oldest offspring of the previous alpha, and it should be fair that, since I have no mate and no children of my own, that he should be next in line. And, since I am technically no longer a T-Rex, that leaves me unfit to lead the pack. Chompy, do you accept?"Chompy blinked in surprise. He remembered his early years, how he so desired to be the alpha male. He had since given up on that hope and suppressed that dream when he became affiliated with Alpha Team. But now... Slowly, he nodded. "I accept.""Then let this be the day," proclaimed Achu, as he adorned Chompy with the skull necklace and placed the T-Rex skull over Chompy's head, "that the T-Rex pack remembers as the day that Chompy became their new alpha male."The other T-Rexes in the vicinity roared, and Rex could tell that they approved their new leader.Chompy looked down upon Rex and Frozeen, a little sadly. "You realize this means that I must stay on this island now," he explained. "I must lead my pack, and I cannot go with you to LEGO City, Rex, or join you on future Alpha Team missions, Frozeen. But I shall remember you two fondly, and as long as I am alpha, any friend of Rex and Frozeen shall be met with peace on this island.""I'll miss you, old friend," Frozeen spoke, and it sounded like he was choking back tears. "I'll come back and visit you whenever I can." He hugged Chompy's leg, while Rex met his brother's eyes and simply nodded silently.Then, after one last goodbye, Rex, Frozeen, Amanda, and Greybeard boarded the T-1 Typhoon and took to the air once again, leaving Adventurers' Island and heading back to LEGO City.OOC: Hope you don't mind, Atton, but I'm going to wrap up the Gold City mission now so that the Second Headquarters Squad can return to Dino Attack Headquarters ASAP. In fact, I'll go ahead and say that this next section is in the past so that, in my next IC post, the Squad will already be back at LEGO City.IC: Dietrich "Medic" Luzwheit, Ivan "Heavy" Tzenovich, and Jim "Spy" Covalent charged towards the turrets set up alongside the mine cart track. There were two of them, set up on either side of the track and manned by Hybrids. "Keep zem busy," whispered Spy. "I'll go disable zem.""YEAH!" boomed Heavy, who revved up his machine gun and started firing at the turrets.The Hybrids finally noticed the Dino Attack agents and began firing at them, but they were just out of range. The Hybrids' attacks landed in the sand just in front of Heavy and Medic, kicking up the tiny rock particles and allowing them to be carried by the wind. Heavy and Medic began to strafe around the Hybrids' defenses, and they continued to fire at them, kicking up even more sand. On a positive note, this hid Heavy and Medic from sight, shielding them from the Hybrids, and gave Spy the opportunity to slip away so that he could sneak around and disable their defenses from behind.On a negative note, the sandstorm blinded Medic as well. One moment, he was strafing beside Heavy. The next, Heavy was nowhere to be seen. "Err, Heavy?" he whispered, not daring to call out and possibly attract the Hybrids' attention.Nervous, Dr. Luzwheit crept around the area. Then, he noticed that he somehow ended up right behind one of the Hybrids' turrets. The Quasifigus lacertilia was apparently very unhappy, because some of Heavy's bullets had become lodged in the turret's workings and caused it to malfunction. Growling, it climbed off the turret and started repairing it.Medic glanced around, and saw that Spy was busy dealing with the other turret. Narrowing his eyes, he looked back at the Hybrid who was repairing the turret. He grinned as he realized it was completely defenseless. And so, Medic took out his bone saw, loomed over the distracted Hybrid, and hissed, "I can only promize you zat zis next prozedure... vill be excruciating!"The Hybrid froze. Before it could turn around, Medic proclaimed: "VOR ZCIENZE!" and proceeded to hack away at the Hybrid and its turret with his trusty saw. By the time Heavy and Spy arrived, they could only stare in a mixture of shock and awe at Dr. Luzwheit, standing victorious over a Hybrid corpse and a disabled sentry.With the Hybrid's defense out of the way, the bomb cart was free to drive itself along the track towards Fort Legoredo. Accompanying it was Sergeant Ronald "Soldier" Army, A.J. "Pyro" Orange, Erik "Demoman" Paulson, Bob "Scout" Rutherford, and Tex "Engineer" Holdem. The entire Second Headquarters Squad was shouting battle cries and taunts with vigor and enthusiasm, ready to plow down any Hybrid that dared to stand in their way.Surprisingly, the track was empty. No Hybrids were in sight. Then, a group of westerners came riding up to the Second Headquarters Squad, and Sergeant Army gritted his teeth and grumbled, "Oh, no, not these maggots again!" It was Clint Wayne, Angel Eyes, and their posse."Dudes, get outta the way!" shouted Scout. "We got a bomb comin' through!""Oh, no, you don't," Clint shook his head. "We've already gotten this far, and you're not blowing up Fort Legoredo.""Now, look here," grumbled Engineer. "That thing is a beautiful creation of mine, and I ain't seeing it going to waste!""Hold on," Spy held up one hand. "What do you mean, 'gotten zis far'?""We've taken care of all Hybrids up to this point," boasted Maria. "The only ones that remain are in that fort.""Impossible!" snapped Sergeant Army. "There's no way a little lady like you could have done such a thing! Why, in Sun Tzu's The Art of War, it specifically stated 'Thou shalt not let your men act like cowardly ladies on the battlefield, or Sun Tzu shall come down from the sky and KICK YOUR-'""You really want to talk about my qualifications?" Maria threateningly raised an eyebrow. "Just because I'm a woman don't mean that-""Come here, sweetheart!" scoffed Army. "I'd like to see you - hey, hey, stop that, that is an order! That's cheating! I'm calling a foul on this one! Someone throw a yellow flag! You know what a yellow flag is? It's a white flag! That's for surrendering! But it's yellow, because it represents your ladylike cowardice, and therefore it was STAINED BY - AGH, MY SPINE! You little-"As Sergeant Ronald Army and Maria exchanged blows, both physical and verbal, nobody seemed to notice that the bomb cart was still driving itself down the track. At least, not until Demoman enthusiastically shouted: "Ka-BOOM!"With that, Fort Legoredo exploded. Splinters of burning wood and flaming Hybrid corpses were sent flying into the air. Demoman laughed with glee at the sight, while the westerners looked on in horror."Ah, come on," shrugged Engineer. "Don't be that way. We can always build a new one.""Zere could have been documents," mused Spy, "of interest in zat fort. Perhaps, even, something dealing with XERRD's mole in ze Dino Attack Team...""Aye," Demoman chuckled darkly, "but there ain't nothing left - no documents anymore!" Clint Wayne, Angel Eyes, and Maria stared at Demoman after he made this comment."Boys!" proclaimed Sergeant Army. "I'd like to congratulate you all on a job well done! Each and every one of you deserves a medal! Now, let's head home as men! Hah! I'd like to see the looks on their faces! They won't be calling me 'Soldier' any time soon after they see what a fine job we did!"OOC: The whole Medic scene was inspired by actual Team Fortress 2 gameplay. I was a BLU Medic, it was on the Dustbowl map, and I was separated from my Heavy at Stage 2, Point B, at which point I ran into a RED Engineer about to build a sentry. Thinking quickly, I pulled out my Bone Saw and hacked away, smashing the halfway-built sentry and then killing the Engineer. FOR SCIENCE!Just to confirm by Word of God that the Hybrids were soundly defeated at Fort Legoredo; there's nothing left there.

avmatoran · June 4, 2012

OOC:Of course you couldn't have waited a few days for the climax. Ah well, the mission was still fun.IC:"Wait up!" Dr. Cyborg cried. He could see Zach, Minerva, Andrew, Laxus, and Pterisa going into the tunnel out. He ran toward them. "Hello, Dr. Cyborg," Andrew said. Dr. Cyborg nodded back."Pterisa," he began, lowering his voice so only she would hear what he was saying, "I can see you are uneasy around us. But think of this, for one thing: I am a cyborg, and a former XERRD scientist at that. If anyone is to be rejected, one of them would be me. But I have never been rejected. Ever. Plus, you are not responsible for what XERRD did. I partially am. You are the victim. I am one of the agressors. Just because you are a XERRD creation is no reason to reject you. And on your statement that you are a monster, I personally think your species, out of the four, is the most graceful and beautiful."OOC:Just trying to help make her self-confident.I say the spy (Lower-case 's' spy) is Demoman.

that guy from that show · June 4, 2012

OoC:I just want the record to reflect that Saran is with Andrew, Doctor Cyborg, and Zach's party. Hertz also left on the same helicopter as Rex so he'll be present. I'll do an iC latter today but on my laptop. I can't get the spell check to work on the computer I am using.

Edited June 4, 2012 by that guy from that show

Jacks · June 4, 2012

IC: "I never got a chance to mention why I left Antarctica, by the way," Helm mentioned conversationally. Hotwire stopped staring at the jungle as it passed under the T-1 and looked over curiously. "Ice snakes aside, things were going pretty well down there, especially since I found April once the riots calmed down.""Your wife?" Hotwire presumed.The mariner nodded. "Turns out I got all worried up over ShadowTech for nothing. We just evacuated in different group at different times, and the mess of bureaucracy made it difficult for us to reunite.""What about your son? Was he there too?"Helm grinned. "Now that's the crazy part. Apparently, he decided to join the Dino Attack Team, and from what April said he volunteered right around the time we were leaving the Goo Caverns. So he was on his way to Lego City while I was on my way to Antarctica. We must've passed each other on the way. Hopefully I'll be able to find him once everyone is back in HQ again."Hotwire laughed in astonihment. "That's...that's fantastic. Make sure you introduce me when you find him."

Edited June 4, 2012 by Jackson Lake

Atton Rand · June 5, 2012

OOC: I'm surprised nobody got the joke in my previous post. I was honestly worried I'd made it too obvious when I wrote it.PeabodySam: I don't mind you finishing that. The main reason I was stalling was because I wasn't sure if there were any plans you had. All I would have really done was a few action scenes in which Clint and the others get to kill a bunch of hybrids. By the way, while you more or less nailed Maria's character, I think you might need to practice writing a "Texas Drawl" accent like hers.Also just a point, one thing I've been bringing up in my previous posts, but I think we might need to discuss, especially after reading PeabodySam's post. I know this is going to delay things a little, I'm just being realistic.In PeabodySam's last post, he described the T-1 Typhoon heading straight off of Adventurers' Island. Again, this is just my pointless nitpicking, but technically speaking wouldn't it make more sense for everyone to stop back at Outpost 4 or other posts. It just occurs to me that after all everyone's been through, they're probably tired, hungry, and the T-1's are most likely low on fuel, so it just seems to make a certain amount of sense that they'd at least temporarily stop at one of the Outposts just to refuel and maybe get something to eat (after all, it's been a full day, has anyone here eaten anything?). Again, I'm just being somewhat realistic, but since it's come up in a few of my own posts I felt it was worth addressing.

Jacks · June 5, 2012

OOC: Don't worry, I got it. I just didn't bother to comment.And I don't think it's a problem if some groups leave the island straight off while others stop off at the outposts first. The latter course of action would be necessary for agents who have been stationed on the island for an extended period of time and would therefore probably have personal belongings to collect, whereas others who simply came as part of the mission would not necessarily have to do so and could just head straight back to Lego City. T-1s are probably stocked with provisions as well, so that could solve the food issue.Though for what it's worth I was planning to have my characters stop off at an outpost before leaving for good.

Edited June 5, 2012 by Jackson Lake

Atton Rand · June 5, 2012

And I don't think it's a problem if some groups leave the island straight off while others stop off at the outposts first. The latter course of action would be necessary for agents who have been stationed on the island for an extended period of time and would therefore probably have personal belongings to collect, whereas others who simply came as part of the mission would not necessarily have to do so and could just head straight back to Lego City. T-1s are probably stocked with provisions as well, so that could solve the food issue.Though for what it's worth I was planning to have my characters stop off at an outpost before leaving for good.

OOC: Actually, I can somewhat see the whole thing about food. I guess it makes sense that they'd have a few basic rations on board. The main reason it seemed necessary to me was more so to refuel the helicopters. Considering how long they've been in use all day I don't think I'd be too comfortable taking them oversees. Then again I guess it varies between different people. I mean Cabin's both starving and didn't exactly get much sleep last night, so I can imagine she's in no real position for flying. Rotor, too for similar reasons (though he probably won't admit to it). IC: Exhausted and confused, Garry slowly stumbled into Outpost 4. The medics looked up in surprise as he stumbled into the infirmary. "What's going on?" He asked. "Windows, what are you doing here?""Someone smashed up the radio," replied Windows. "He got to the blood as well," Copper continued."Right," replied Garry."Nazareno here, thinks whoever did it went with you," Copper said."That would be Palmer then," replied Garry. "It's alright, we took care of him. A man died in the process, but we got him."The other doctors seemed somewhat saddened by the remark. "Palmer didn't kill him," Garry said. "I shot him. I was led to thinking he was a Stromling when he wasn't. Any news with Zelda?""Yeah," replied Crusher. "It's the strangest thing. The Maelstrom just seemed to disappear from her, and Nazareno for that matter."Garry nodded. "Interesting," he said. "We're just refueling the choppers. As soon as they're ready to go we'll start taking people out. In the meantime you might want to get something to eat."OOC: Jackson, I suppose if you're planning on heading to an Outpost, you could come over to Outpost 4 and write a humorous reaction to the Snake vs. Snake fight. For some reason I'm curious to see how any other character would have observed that.

Andrewnuva199 · June 5, 2012

IC: Andrew smirked as Dr. Cyborg gave Pterisa his compliments. It was pleasing to see that others were taking the same stance as he was regarding the Hybrid's remaining anxiety with being part of the team."Thanks for helping out the welcoming committee, doctor," the LEGO Islander said when he was done."My pleasure," said Dr. Cyborg. "Care if I join you?""Not at all. Now let's go." And with that, the group of six (Andrew, Laxus, Pterisa, Zach, Minerva, and Dr. Cyborg) then proceeded into the hallway. With the Maelstrom now gone, Andrew couldn't help but admire the design of the structure around them. Grand arches, great stone columns, it was like everything Greece, Rome and Atlantis had thrown together in a masterpiece of architecture. And from what he could glimpse from the occasional chamber linked to by alternate corridors, the style continued to every room. It was something everyone could admire."This has to make me admire what Nexus Force does," said Laxus, "fighting off the Maelstrom with so much valor. Protecting places like this as well as common cities and other lands, that's definitively a strong cause to get behind.""Truely," said Dr. Cyborg. "And it reminds you just how much the Maelstrom can transform what it possesses, turning a place like this into some kind of infernal temple of doom, and making good people become horribly corrupt.""And a little hammy," Andrew muttered. He released a small snicker, which earned him a glare from Minerva until Zach joined in briefly."No, I'll admit that's true. I think forces of evil must have a natural urge to be playful and dramatic when they feel oh-so-superior to everything like that. But it does confuse me at times. Where the heck did that Stroming-me get the idea of that line about sticking a cupcake in his eye?" Everyone snickered."Who knows," Pterisa added in a quiet tone. Andrew was briefly surprised to hear her join in the conversation, but he quickly told himself to embrace it."Yeah," Andrew added, "all we can say is that pure evil always has some connection to craziness."After a few more humored smirks, the group continued down the halls for a bit until Pterisa said something again. "So... guessing by what you said earlier, and by the presence of your companions here, I'm to presume that the team ha several non-minifig allies?""Oh, definately," Andrew responded. "The list goes on a sizable bit.""Now you've done it," said Laxus, nudging Pterisa with an elbow. The Hybrid looked confused, but as Andrew started to ramble, all was made clear."For starters, awhile back, I believe there was an agent who had a dog that was really some alien humanoid wolf creature or something, but that was a really old uncitated report, so I'm not sure if it's true. Then there's Libo, who's a large mechanical spider-esque robot from an old secret crimefighting team akin to Alpha Team. Frozeen was in this exosuit with four arms, wings and and a skull-like face for the longest time, and General has the same kind of suit as well. Then there's this agent called Databoard was mutated into a Mutant Lizard Hybrid, and after getting his mind straight, he went around in that form for a while before getting cured. And there's an agent by the name of Sauro-Hunter (who's with a group of friends somewhere on some personal business) whose posse includes a guy with dragon wings, several tamed Mutant Dinos who are more bonded to his group than Rex's-""Okay, okay, I think that's enough," Pterisa said, her hands held out in a stopping gesture. "Guess I know who to talk to if I need more background info.""I'm one of the best," Andrew said with a smirk.Not long after that, the group reached the entrance of the temple and walked back once more in the light of the setting sun. With no battle going on, the space between the edge of the rock and the temple entrance was a bit better suited to the small crowd that had gathered to use the zip-lines and board the T-1s.Andrew took a moment to admire the pristine exterior of the temple, then turned to his group. "Bit of a crowd, but I'm sure it won't take long to board something. Though just out of curiosity, does everyone just want to head back to HQ, or should we try for a rest here at an outpost first? It's a rather long way back, but there's no hurry. Plus we might want to handle any matters of fatigue, medical attention or nutrition."OOC: That Guy, I'm not ignoring Saran, but I figure what I'm doing with my character group (exiting the temple) might not be what she's intending to do, which is I believe brief psychological analyses of the agents. Feel free to try and have her reunite with them, though.

Edited June 5, 2012 by Andrewnuva199

avmatoran · June 5, 2012

Ahem. Dr. Cyborg is meant to continue with the group.

Dino Attack: At War's End

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