The Time Stone (49 page)

“
That is truly bizarre”
added Tina.

“
You’re telling me” said
Drax.

“
Just glad we were able to
be successful here” said Mercedes.

“
Yes for now” cautioned
James.

“
The armies are fast
approaching from the north.” Screamed Alana as she led a group out
of the encampment. “We have to lay low to take them by surprise. It
may not be our best strategy and it’s a long shot but it’s all we
got.”

“
What about the travelers
we sent out to find the weapon?” Said one of the troops, dressed in
a long armor and weapon attachments.

“
It’s been a week and we
haven’t heard back. I think it’s safe to say they failed. We have
to do what we have to do to survive.” She replied back. “Get the
barrier guard ready.” She barked orders as the men started around a
wooden cart with several catapults and cannons of energy waiting
for fueling. They prepared to take action to fire them when
ordered. Daryl and his party came out armed and ready with their
laser rifles and flash grenades ready for the onslaught.

“
We received word on the
intercom that another URO army is heading out way from the south”
he yelled walking fast.

“
Great, the Oligarch must
feel lucky today.” She responded. “Too bad our jumper friends
couldn’t find the dark star.”

“
I guess it’s left to the
stuff of legends” said Daryl jokingly then looking up as a blur of
light flashed on the horizon and a single jet stream approached.
“What’s that?” Asked Daryl. The lights began to decelerate and
appear as a red vehicle hovering in midair with its front joints
expanded and scorpion-like tail soaring high made of silver and lit
up like an ornamental rocket, but resembling a scorpion.

“
Oh my God” screamed Alana
as she recognize the occupants. “It’s them. They have
returned.”

“
Great Caesars Ghost”
screamed Daryl as he and his men ran over to the field where the
vehicle was slowly landing. “You made it” he yelled.

“
We made it” yelled James
hopping out as the car struck the dark terrain.

“
And we got the dark star”
said Tina as they all piled out of the car.

“
Amazing” said Alana as
her eyes lit up.

“
No sweat” said
Tina.

“
Just in time… look” Alana
pointed as they saw an immense fighting force approaching over the
hillside near the citadel. The stretching for miles of a line of
beasts armored and suited ready for bloodlust and carnage. They
roared and marched forth waving their scythes in midair as the
citadel loomed overhead beckoning their call and stride. The
balcony below the main pinnacle at the apex of the citadel beheld
three figures who stood overlooking the destruction about to unfold
in proud achievement, three figureheads ruling the Oligarchy
Brigade Guardians from the view of the public, each with their
traditional religious headgear, garbs, and outfits embodying the
main focus of a series of ancient orders knowing they were
protected from harm by their invincible energy barriers. They
turned to one another and smiled as they looked forward then and
held their right hands up each with a relic of historical
melancholy in their sacred orders.

With that General Stormy gave the word
to his Lieutenants who commanded the front lines with pride, “today
we strike to take back our lands and our hopes in the name of the
powers that our forefathers gave their lives for. Today we strike a
blow against the rebel forces once and for all and annihilate the
last visages of intolerance to our way of life. Ready the Scythes!”
The roar from the crowd of beasts emanated into the air to be heard
from miles away in the rebel encampment. The groups of villagers
and poor farmers were prepared with their amateur gear and weapons,
swords from plowshares, and iron-clad laser rifles.

“
We are prepared to die
today but we will fight to our last breathes” said Daryl
proudly.

“
We got our people ready
to hold down the ground forces.” Said Alana, “but we could use some
help from above.”

“
That is why we are here.
Let’s do this.” Said Drax. With that they smiled to one another and
the four entered their vehicle and flew off into the night. The old
priest stood nearby and smiled, “may God be on their foot heels.”
Alana and Daryl looked at one another with a more reassured sense
of confidence as their hopes were increased by their renewed
assistance. They held hands as they marched forward, beckoning to
their own lieutenants to prepare their respective groups for the
move forward.

“
Fire on our mark” she
yelled as they moved on. The two armies of man versus beast marched
toward one another appearing to meet halfway down the line of
scrimmage in the midst of an empty dark terrain. They marched for
yards when suddenly General Stormy acknowledged to his men “like
the days of old, we run when we smell fresh blood” he opened his
mouth revealing a pair of sharp fangs and wide bloodshot red eyes
menacing as with his comrades who appeared like men but had the
bloodline and hunger of the beasts they commanded. “Run when you
see the white of their eyes men” said Daryl. With that the small
armies of farmers and peasants began to run towards their foe with
rage and anger in their eyes and fury in their hearts. The beast
armies ran forth waging their scythes in midair. The rebels fired
their laser rifles as they ran striking their foes. Many of the
beasts threw their scythes and a few struck their prey in the
chests impaling them to the ground. Other beasts approached and
fired energy pellets from their tripod scythe blasters. The
remaining quarries ran forth one another and struck their targets
with all the frustration of their minds and emotions.

CHAPTER 77

Above the epic battle that ensued
below, the scorpion car began its ascent towards the citadel. It
rose through the clouds of smoke in the reddish black skies like a
leviathan seeping out of a large ocean, emerging forward and up
with the a renewed sense of power as the underbelly and
surroundings lit up intensifying. It’s four inhabitants were
steadfast and courageous as they prepared for their moment of truth
as they approached the citadel.

“
Ready to fire the dark
star weapon, James?” Asked Tina.

“
Ready as ever.” James
replied.

”
Try to make it quick”
said Drax steering the vehicle higher and higher. “We have one shot
and then if the Time Stone is ready, we jump out of here. We do not
want to risk too much interference.”

“
We do know a lot more
about the Pregivers and the Time Stone. We could use it to help
other time periods.” Said Mercedes.

“
What happened to trying
to go home and clear our names?” Asked Tina.

“
I agree that is what we
should do but who knows what fate has in store for us.” Said
Drax.

“
The time stone is still
dull” said Mercedes holding it. Then suddenly as they approached
the citadel complex, they saw a large door opening like a two prong
garage door and from within it came a gigantic form of a beast with
a large respirator mask on his face, frail limbs, grey skin, white
hair all over his body, and he leaped upward toward them striking
them with his long skinny arm where his giant clawed hand nearly
crushed them. Drax maneuvered the car around it narrowly avoiding
the harsh blow.

“
What the hell is that?”
Asked James.

“
Company” said Drax,
“maybe we should use the dark star now.”

“
We don’t know how much
power it has” said James looking at it “and we should save it for
the energy barrier around the citadel when we are
approaching.”

“
James’ powers won’t work
on it either but …” Drax said.

“
Milton, give me your
elfin glove.” Said Mercedes. He took it off and handed it to her as
he drove the car around trying to avoid from being swatted like a
fly from the creature who kept hopping around in incredibly long
leaps from platform to platform of the citadel complex as he kept
trying to bat them out with his long arm and gigantic clawed hands.
“I can’t get a clear shot with the scorpion car. This thing is like
a super-fast moving target.”

“
Let me about see that”
Tina said as she grabbed the elfin glove from Mercedes and put it
on. She felt the energy charging up. “Pretty cool” and she fired a
series of blasts towards the creature that moved rapidly dodging
them all then suddenly slipping off one of the platforms and as
Tina fired another round of shots striking the creature in the
chest knocking him back. He reached out with his long arms as he
was about to fall down towards the long narrow valley below and
gripped the back of the scorpion car and hung on to it dragging it
downward.

“
I can’t fight this thing”
said Drax pulling upward on the steering column as he tried to
accelerate faster.

“
I got it” James waved his
right hand and struck at the respirator on the creature’s face
sending him flying backward and downward into the valley below with
a horrific crash.

The momentum sent the scorpion car
flying in the opposite direction with the occupants letting out a
pair of terrifying screams. The vehicle flung to the side as Drax
gained control of the wheel and maneuvered it about barely missing
striking the end of the citadel’s left towers walls. They zoomed
forward and around towards the citadel’s main structure but a red
light started beeping on the main console as the back was
continuing to lag.

“
Uh oh” said
Drax.

“
What’s wrong?” Asked
Tina.

“
The lateral thrust is
off, damaged. I can’t get the car back up.” Drax yelled in
response.

“
We can’t make it to the
top of the citadel without it?” Asked Mercedes screaming over the
roar of the wind.

“
I’m afraid not” Drax
yelled back.

“
Keep pushing it to the
max” yelled James, “I got it from here” he waved his hands over the
back of the vehicle and it slowly began an ascent lifting
upward.

“
Cool” said Drax as he
steadied the vehicle moving it forward and accelerating. Now with
James’ steady hand, the scorpion car was climbing upward past the
citadel towers to the balcony just a few feet short of the central
apex. Drax started to put the car in neutral as James leveled it
from the back end with his powerful hands. “Get the dark star” said
Drax.

Mercedes reached for it as the car
approaches three figures resting in the balcony of the citadel’s
central apex. “What is this?” Said one of the three figure heads in
a French accent.

“
Justice” yelled Tina as
they leveled the car right over the balcony several meters away and
Mercedes held the curved iron-like rod and fired it. A hot white
projectile spiked forward as a ream of energy emanated from the
device and bolted towards the citadel fizzling upon contact with
the orange light shielding and sending electric shocks throughout
the barrier surrounding the entire complex. The barrier then
neutralized in a flash of whirling light causing the bolt to strike
the citadel itself, brick and mortar, the flashes of electrical
light zoomed upward toward the apex and down covering the entire
building, and sent it crumbling downward from the apex to the
ground below. Drax drove the scorpion car downward and around the
citadel spiraling with it as it’s debris came crumbling downward
into the valley below and as the car approached the ground with the
falling structure, the residual bolt of energy flung itself rapidly
away from the falling remains of the citadel as Tina notices it was
about to strike them and she turns the Time Stone and opens the
vortex, the bolt passes through to another side and the vortex
fades.

“
That was close” said Tina
looking back. Drax pulled up on the wheel and with James’ powers
lending a hand, flung the car forward away from the complex and
back to the battlefield starting to dissipate with the victors in
hand as the rebels raised their weapons high in the air having
overcome, taking the remaining beasts’ prisoner. “We did it” yelled
Tina hugging her small crew. Drax smiled as he fist pumped his hand
in the air.

“
Looks like it worked out”
said Mercedes.

“
At what cost?” Asked
James rhetorically but smiling a bit.

“
Yes!!!” Alana yelled to
Daryl as she raised her fist in midair smiling towards the scorpion
car passing overhead zooming away into the night sky.

“
Looks like the time stone
is glowing” said Mercedes.

“
We’re ready to go” said
Tina.

“
Do it!” Said
Drax.

Mercedes held out the time stone as
the five orbs began to glow brightly and turned it causing the
hazing beam of yellow whirling light to emanate and emit the vortex
they were growing accustomed to.

“
Where to now?” Screamed
Tina.

“
Where the wind takes us!”
Said James as the scorpion car approached the vortex, transformed
to a ball of yellow electrical energy as it was almost
instantaneously sucked in. The gate fizzled a little and split the
ball of energy into two sending them in two opposite
directions.