1 comments/ 9626 views/ 4 favorites Chaotic Crossroads By: RaistlinMajere Note: This is a sequel to my stories Arrival of the RX-2000, A Keychain of Girls and The Girl and the Top Hat. Chapter 1 - Causality Causality, cause and effect. An event occurs and, through causality, an effect must come of it. This effect is of direct consequence to the event. However, it does not stop at one. Causality is a cascading effect. One event occurs, an effect comes of it and thus another event is caused on account of that effect. All things must have an effect and all effects must have a cause. This is the universe's natural order. None know causality better than the grandson of the legendary magician Daniel. A legend on both Earth and in the Magical World. He was the man who helped reveal magic to the entire world as well as make the majority of the world into magicians. However, this cannot go without a following effect. For a short few years, the world was happy and content with their position and newly acquired magical abilities. But soon after, the Earth grew jealous of the Magical World. On Earth, magical energy is much less potent than in the Magical World. However, one of the stipulations of the peace treaty between the two worlds was that none of the Earth's denizens could live in the Magical World. They would be allowed to visit and train, but not live in the Magical World. This lack of magical energies combined with the inability to live in the Magical World caused the Earth to rise up in revolt. The Earth united and fought back against the Magical Realm. In response, the Magical Realm retreated in on itself and closed the magic gates to Earth, essentially cutting it off. The Earth fought back by tearing a rift between the worlds. A powerful wizard on Earth tore the universe asunder, ripping a massive rift to allow them crossover. Thus the war continued. This was all a chain through causality, because of one man's inhibition to let his granddaughter end up in a foster home. ******* Walt was atop the White Tower. The White Tower was the new capital of the Magical World. It had been built after the first war of the Magical World had been ended and the residence of the Magical World were allowed to reside on the ground again. The war had been between the surface dwellers and those that lived on the floating islands. It had been won by the residence of the sky. Soon after, the White Tower was built in honor of his grandfather. Walt had been allowed to stay in the tower on account of his connection to it. The White Tower was named such for it's nice white marble walls. It was built on the continent on the north pole. Being a warm world, the north and south poles were temperate regions. Walt was standing in the middle of the roof, chanting a powerful spell. He was a third generation magician of Holy Magic, about nineteen years old and one of the most powerful magicians left in the Magical World. Short and skinny, he was built much like his grandfather Daniel. He had cold black hair that was cut short around his ears and cool green eyes. Walt wore crisp black pants, a nice white shirt and soft green robes. His robes were left open in the front and they ruffled about his shoulders. Magic surged through his body and the three magical circles on the roof around him burned brightly. They surged upward and formed glowing white portals. Walt fed them with magic and they slowly faded to a cool cyan color. "Heroes of other worlds. Please come to my aid. My world is in trouble and many souls stand to perish. I beg of you, heed my call and come." Walt called into the portals. Walt was unsure who or where his magic would reach, but this was his last chance to try and close the rifts. No one in his world could close them and dozens had tried. So the only place Walt could look for help was outside their universe. So he had spent the last day preparing and casting a spell that would throw his voice into other worlds. Walt waited for a moment. It shouldn't take but a few seconds for his summoning to work. The portals around him started to waver and he could hear echoes of voices coming from different worlds. None of it was really clear, but it echoed around him and he caught snippets of people talking. "Vwhat is that?" A woman's voice echoed to him. "I think it was talking to us." Another girl murmured. "...I think that's what this portal is from." A third girl said uncertainly. "I'll go get the rifle and sword!" A boy called. There was the meow of a cat from far off. Suddenly all of the portals seemed to hum at the same time and four people appeared out of the three portals. On his right, a pale woman with flowing black hair strode towards him. She was wearing black pants, a blood red ruffled shirt. Walt looked to his left and saw another woman. She was wearing a full black leotard with dark toned stockings, a black top hat and a pair of cute black slippers. Ahead of him, two people walked through the portal. One man and one woman, they were both wearing strange white ear pieces. The man had dark olive hair, black pants, a tight black shirt and he had a rifle slung over his shoulder. The woman had sea-green hair that reached her waist, she was wearing similar clothing and had a sword and sheath on her hip. "Heroes. You've arrived. Thank you for answering my call. Please, tell a little bit about yourselves." Walt said, "My name is Walt and I'm a magician fighting for the safety of my world." "Magic? I thought this was a technological portal." The green haired man said, "I've never heard of magic before." "You haven't? Not surprising, in my world I am but a stage bound actor that is considered a trickster and a sneak." The woman in the leotard said. "What a joke. I could kill you all with a flick of my pinkie." The woman in the red shirt said with a laugh. "Who the hell are you to say that?" The latter woman said with a click of her black slipper. "I am Ark, queen of ice and bride to the queen of vampires." The curt woman said sharply. "Queen of vampires." The woman laughed, "Well then I am Sammy, queen of Vegas!" "So does everyone here have magic except us?" The green-haired woman said. "I think so." Walt said, "Which begs the question, what skills do you two have that is worthwhile?" "We are androids." The woman said, "My name is Susan, I can fly and I'm very fast." "And I am her lover, Josh. I throw walls and can punch people in the face." The man laughed. "Androids? Why don't I believe that? Plus, if you were androids, how could you be lovers?" Sammy asked, "Robots from my world are emotionless and programmed by man." "Should I tear you in half with my bare hands?" Josh asked. "Good luck with that." Ark snorted. "I swear to god I will." Josh said. "Fine, do it! Tear my arm off! Right now!" Ark said, very antagonistically. Josh looked at Susan and she shrugged, so he walked over to Ark and put one hand on her shoulder. In one swift moment, he tore her arm from her shoulder. Blood spurted all over the floor and Ark raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Well, nice. Can I have that back?" Ark said, holding out her other arm as her shoulder bled freely. "Sure." Josh chuckled, giving her arm back. Ark pressed it to her shoulder and put her hand against the bleeding wound. The flesh stitched itself back together and she raised the arm. A quick movement of her fingers and she was satisified with her self-healing. "Damn. You're almost as indestructible as me." Josh chuckled, walking back to Susan. "Alright, so we have a vampiress, an actress and two...androids." Walt said, "So can I get on with my problem?" "Sure." Sammy shrugged. "So, my world is currently at war with Earth." Walt said and he regaled them with the war and the troubles in his world. "A rift in space?" Ark asked, "Now this is getting interesting." "So you're saying that by giving magic to the mundane of Earth, they became jealous of the Magical Realm and launched a war against you?" Josh said, crossing his arms. "Exactly." Walt said, "And a year or so ago, the decision was made to finally close the gates to Earth after twenty years of war. About six months later, a rift tore open in the sky above the White Tower." Walt pointed up at the sky and they all looked up. Josh and Susan gasped at the sight. A tear hundreds of feet across was fluctuating above them. Energy was radiating from it and a city could be seen through the rift. It was a shocking sight that looked like a wound in the universe itself. Because the tower itself was over a hundred feet tall, the rift could be seen much better than from the ground. "It's gotten bigger over the latter months." Walt said, "They have not figured out how to pass through it yet and I was hoping you all could help me close it!" "Close a rift like that?" Sammy asked with a raised eyebrow. "I think I could do that. I've never had a ton of experiences with holes in universes, but why not." Ark said with a shrug, "I've never had a true test of my magical power." "So then why're we here if you just need more magicians?" Susan asked. "I don't know. I left the spell to fate and it chose you four. So you must be here for a reason." Walt said, "So, if you two feel confident enough, would you be willing to help me try and close it now?" "Let's do it." Sammy nodded, pulling a black wand from under her black top hat. "What's the worst that could happen, I mean, Cysero's not around!" Ark laughed at her joke that nobody else understood. "Okay. So we've found that the portal reacts to magic. It begins to fluctuate further. I believe if we flood the space around it with magic, it will force the rift closed. However, it has to be done in a very short amount of time or the magic will actually slip through the portal to the other side." Walt informed them. "So if you've got a world of magicians, why didn't you do it already?" Josh asked him. "Because it has to be done very fast and we don't have the manpower to deviate any of our magicians from their current tasks. So I was forced to summon help from elsewhere. Now, on three." Walt said, counting off. On three, each of them cast their magic. Smooth, silvery magic flowed from Sammy's wand and began to wash over the rift. Cold black magic, jagged and sharp, shot from Ark's hands and struck the other side of the rift. Finally, Walt's bright, holy magic flowed forth and combined it's might with the others. The rift began to fluctuate angrily and it started to shrink slowly. "Good! It's working!" Walt said. Josh flinched and his sensors started to go wild. Massive amounts of radiation were being emitted from the changing rift. It was all he could do to stand still. Every sensor in his body was screaming for him to run because something bad was coming. "Susan, do you feel that?" Josh asked her frantically. "Yes, this isn't going to end well. Walt! Your influence is causing ripples in the fabric of space-time. It's destroying the universe and making the rift worse!" "Then why is it closing?" Walt asked, watching the rift shrink further. "I don't know, but I do know that nothing good is going to come of this! All of my electronic sensors are going crazy. That rift has started mass producing enough radiation to light up this tower! The fabric of space is going to fall apart here if you keep this up!" Susan said hurriedly. "You're beings without any magic, how could you know what is going on anyway?" Walt said, "What's it matter if the fabric or whater you said is destroyed anyway?" "I don't know, it might just end life as you know it!" Susan said, exhasperated. "It's just one little hole. I don't think anything is going to happen, don't stop." Walt said, pouring more magic into the rift. It was little more than a glowing jagged line above them now. "Well fuck. I didn't think I was going to die like this." Josh sighed, crossing his arms. "Who knows, maybe if they succeed in destroying this universe, we'll be thrown back into our own where there are a few less idiots." Susan said, putting an arm around him. Sammy looked nervously at Josh and Susan, mildly aprehensive at their frantic warnings. Ark seemed indifferent. "Just about there. Only a little more...there! It's closed! Good god! It worked!" Walt cried, "See, nothing bad happened, you two just didn't know what you were talking...talking...a...bout..." A screeching sound around them grew to deafening intensity and 'their vision seemed to waver. The fabric of the universe shuddered and there was the sound of a great rending. The sky flashed blindingly and everyone but Susan and Josh hit the ground, trying to hid their eyes from the burning light. It dulled and the others stood back up. Josh sighed and pointed above him. "So what the hell do you call that?" Josh said, looking up. They all looked up and Walt gave a strangled cry. Above them, the entire sky had changed. The rip was now thousands, possibly tnes of thousands, of miles across. It was farther up than the last rip. This time, they could see the entirety of earth through it. Walt ran a hand through his hair and his mouth hung open. "I...I don't...understand...how could this...happen?" Walt said, looking around. "I say we listen to the high tech androids next time." Sammy said, crossing her arms. "But how could they know this would happen?" Walt said, "I was sure the magic would close the rift." "And it did. But when that happened, you stretched the fabric of space around it. Usually it wouldn't be a problem, but your magic was pushing on the fabric as well. It was like trying to stitch closed a tear in a shirt while four big guys pull it in different directions." Susan said, "And so when it's tension was maximized at the moment of closure, the fabric gave way. The fact that we're all still here is nothing short of the hand of god." "Somehow, I think your problem just got a lot bigger." Ark said with a chuckle. "How can you laugh?! My world is doomed!" Walt cried in horror. "Who ever said you were doomed? The fact that we're all stiill here is testament to your universes potential strength and flexibility." Susan said, "If your universe could survive this, I bet we could fix it with the right moves." "We can?" Walt looked over at her. "Yes, but I'm going to have to thoroughly investigate this magic you three are using. I need to know its potential as well as the style of energy it is made of. Does anyone know of a science lab we can go to?" Susan asked, looking around. "Your kidding right? I mean, its obvious that this world is technologically dead because of its dependancy on magic." Josh said. "Then we're just going to have to go to Earth." Susan said, looking up, "Hopefully we're far enough in time that they at least have geiger counters and some short range sensing equipment." "To Earth? We're at war with Earth, how do you expect to get there?" Walt asked. "Fly." Susan said, "Right through the rift." "But doesn't the rift open into outer space outside their planet? How are you going to survive?" Sammy said, looking up at it. "Android." Susan said, pointing to herself, "Speaking of which, Josh, I'm going to need you to come with." "Of course sweetheart." Josh nodded. "What about us? If you go from here to there, they will try and kill you." Walt said, "The people of Earth were unrelenting in the early days when the portals were still open. They flooded our side and tried to overwhelm us by numbers. While we were clearly the stronger, they threw everything they had at us, including guns and bombs." "I doubt they will be able to hurt me with anything short of a nuclear warhead." Josh said confidently. "And I can fly faster than sound." Susan said. "Do me a favor. Take this with you and put it on the ground when you land." Sammy said, handing them her top hat. "For what reason?" Susan asked, taking it. "I can use that hat as a focal point for my magic in order to teleport us there safely." Sammy said. "Aright." Susan said, handing it to Josh, "We'll be there in two minutes." "Two minutes?!" Walt said in disbelief. "Yea, I've got to carry this lug or it could be under a minute. Sorry." Susan shrugged. "Not exactly what I meant." Walt sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Oh?" Susan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Nothing. Just go ahead." Walt said, taking a step back. "Honey, I'm going to have to fly with just my feet and shoulders because I'd rather lose my hand jets than my shoulders. So I'm going to carry you in my arms." Susan said to Josh. "Gotcha." Josh nodded. Susan took a running leap off the white tower. She plummeted over the edge and there was a whoosh of air from below. Susan shot straight up, a blue glow emanating from her hands, feet and shoulders. She performed a loop backwards over top the tower. Josh watched her circle around behind him and shoot straight towards him. Susan shot over the tower faster for any of them to see, with exception to Ark's vampire senses, and she grabbed Josh under the arms. He almost lost the top hat as she shot straight up with another burst of speed. She hit the rift at over five hundred miles an hour, Josh in tow in her arms. Walt watched them pass through the rift and could see them descending to Earth on the other side. "I guess they really are androids." Walt said, "By the way...are androids some kind of artificial being?" "Ha!" Sammy laughed, "They are. Both of them are robotic beings of electricity and metal." "Huh. Do you think they'll make it?" Walt said. "Of course they will. I can feel that they're already in the atmosphere." Sammy said, "Wait just a moment." On the other side of the rift, Susan had dropped Josh. He was plummeting through the atmosphere, aiming at the city far below. The strange thing was that some of the buildings looked familiar to Josh. The tower looked like the famous 109 department store in Shibuya Tokyo. He was hurtling straight towards it and he could see the unmistakable '109' on the top of the building. At over three hundred miles an hour, he struck the front of the tower and smashed through the upper floors of the department store. He crashed to a halt in the basement. Standing up among the rubble, Josh brushed off the hat and jumped up to the main floor. People were screaming and running and Susan strode through the glass doors in front of him. "Was that necessary?" Josh asked her. "Well, you did survive a drop from much higher than that before." Susan said, reaching him. "Yea, but we could have avoided such an entrance." Josh sighed. "Oh well, put the hat down." Susan pointed at the floor. "Yes ma'am." Josh said sarcastically with a smile. He set the hat down with the top open and he stood back. There was a sudden fluctuation above the hat and Sammy appeared out of then air and dropped to the floor. Behind her, Ark touched down gently and Walt hit the floor with a thump. Sammy bent down and put the hat back on her head. "Magicians!" A man cried from the doorway, "Magicians!" "Oh crap." Walt said, holding up his hands to prepare his magic. Three men ran in the front doors and yelled something in Japanese at them. They wore Kevlar riot gear and dark clothing. Each of them carried a riot shield in their left hand and a large black handgun in their right. "What?" Josh asked, looking over at Walt. "Magician hunters. Men and women who use their own magic to protect themself while they try and hunt us down. The Earthen Magicians have discovered ways to completely diffuse magic with their shields and bullets. My wards have no effect and it's difficult to kill them with magic." Walt said hurriedly. "Well it's a good thing I'm not magic!" Josh laughed, grabbing a nearby counter with a register on it. He tore the four foot wide counter from the floor and threw it at the men. One rolled out of the way, but the other two were too shocked to move and it crushed them. Josh dashed forward as the man stood on his feet. He raised his shield and pulled the trigger on his gun. The bullet pinged off his forehead, leaving a bloody mark. Josh punched through his shield and crushed his sternum. The man slumped over backward, dead before he hit the floor. Josh pried the shield off his arm and turned back to the others. Chaotic Crossroads "Holy shit." Walt's jaw dropped. "Hmm?" Josh asked. "You threw a freaking desk at them." Walt said in exasperation. "That's not that great. I could do that." Ark said egotistically. "Without magic?" Sammy looked over at her. "Well, probably not." Ark said. "I'm not here for a contest of strength. We need to find a science lab." Josh said. "Akyatoriama Robotics!" Susan said, putting a fist in her palm, "I bet they'd have everything we'd need!" "What? Are you crazy? Last time we went there, they nearly killed you and Anna." Josh said. "First of all, they never almost killed me, second, we're in what year?" Susan asked, looking at Walt. "The Earthens are in their two thousand tenth year." Walt said. "In twenty ten, twenty years before your time. I doubt they have even constructed an android of their own accord by now." Susan said, "Plus we have serious firepower on our side now." "So where are they then?" Josh asked. "If they're at the same place, it's an office building on the south side of Tokyo." Susan said. "Then let's go!" Josh said, clenching his fist in excitement. "You remind me of myself a hundred years ago." Ark chuckled, following Josh and Susan out the front doors. "Or me two hundred years ago." Sammy chuckled with her. "You're two hundred years old?" Ark stopped and looked at her. "Yea, simple ageless potion that lasts a few months at a time." Sammy said, "It was the late seventeen hundreds when I was born." "Is everyone here older than me?" Walt said, pushing them out the door. "I'm not! I'm only one and a half!" Susan said, smiling back at him, "Well...if you count this new body, then I wouldn't even be one yet." "I'm mid twenties." Josh shrugged. "Ages over with, where're we going?" Ark asked as the ran away from them. "South!" Susan said, leading the way down the street. Chapter 2 - Earth Susan strode down the sidewalk with her partner at her side and her friends behind her. The streets were cleared and they walked down unusually deserted sidewalks. Walt was considerably unnerved by the empty sidewalks and Sammy could tell something was wrong. Ark simply wandered along with them, her hands in her pockets. Suddenly a loud roaring met their ears and six large trucks stopped in the street near them. One of them mounted the sidewalk and blocked their path. Another reverersed around and blocked the path behind them. The trucks formed a half circle around them and doors opened. Soldiers, eight per truck, poured out onto the street. Each of them wore full military gear and carried rifles. They encircled the five of them and leveled their automatic rifles on them. "Put up your hands and come with us or we will fire." One soldier said in a commanding voice. "Good luck." Josh said, crossing his arms. "We have anti-magic bullets, you cannot stop us. We will take you alive or dead." The soldier said, his voice starting to waver ever so slightly. "Then try it!" Ark said with a smile and she leapt into the air. Every soldier followed her path and when she floated to a stop twenty feet above them, they opened fire. Bullets struck her all over and blood rained down on the street. Ark raised her hands above her and even Josh could tell that there was a massive amount of energy building. "Spirits of Ice, answer me! Heed my call and cast your ever frozen crystals down on these fools!" She said strongly despite the mounting bullet holes in her body. The air grew cold around them and Josh could see snow forming in midair. Suddenly there was a great crunching sound of frozen water and ice crystals appeared all around them. Massive towers of ice appeared all over the soldiers, trapping them solid. The lumps of ice were a few feet taller than each soldier and were sparkling and beautifully clear. Ark spared one soldier, the one that had talked to them. She floated down to the ground in front of the soldier. Before she could get out a word, he raised his rifle and unloaded the rest of his clip into her chest. "You. Cannot. Kill. A. Vampire." Ark said, grabbing the rifle from the man's hands. She tossed the rifle to the ground and grabbed him by the throat. "My voice is the last thing you shall ever hear." Ark smiled and she shoved him to the ground. Hissing and bearing her fangs, she dropped down next to the man. He screamed for but a moment before he was silenced. She stood up a moment later, licking her lips. Turning back to the stunned party, Ark raised an eyebrow. "What?" She said. "You've got a little blood right here." Susan said, putting a finger to the right side of her lips. "Oh, sorry." Ark said, wiping it off. "You just took a thousand anti-magic bullets and sucked a man's blood." Walt said, his mouth open. "Oh yea, sorry about that. I'm sure I must look a sight." Ark said, looking down at her clothes. Her shirt and pants were full of holes all over. The rest of them could clearly see her black bra and lacy black panties. They could also see patches and pieces of her skin. Her left nipple was poking through one of the holes. However, there was no visible damage from all the bullets. Even the back of her shirt was full of holes from the bullets passing through her. "Come on." Susan said, taking a running leap over the eight foot ice chunk. "Does this not faze you two at all?" Walt asked Josh and Susan as he flew over top the ice. "I suppose it should, but then again I'm a time traveler." Josh shrugged as Sammy and Ark touched the ground behind them. "Time traveler you say?" Sammy said, running up next to him, "You too?" "Through science, not magic." Josh said, "Susan was actually the reason, I was just a follower." "Really? I've had some interesting experiences with time traveling before." Sammy said, "And my cat doesn't really help." "What?" Josh asked. "Nothing. The point is that I've traveled all over time as well." Sammy said. "I never went all over time. I traveled back about a week one time and forward three hundred years and back at another time." Josh sighed, "That's how I ended up with this androids body." "Wait, you weren't always in that android body?" Sammy asked. "Nope. I was a human a while back. Then I got all shot to hell and they put me in this android body. I was supposed to have my body cloned and return to it soon after, but the planet got bombed and destroyed. We escaped and I was stuck in this body. Then a few weeks after that, I got upgraded to the point where I am now: Nearly indestructible and can lift a dozen tons." Josh explained. "However I was always an android since creation." Susan said. "Wait a second...how long have you two been together?" Sammy asked nervously. "Yes Sammy, I fell in love with an android while I was a man." Josh said, anticipating her question. "Doesn't that bother you at all? Isn't that like falling in love with a computer?" Sammy said. "Hey, I'm not just a computer!" Susan said, almost offended by her comment. "Yea, she's a computer with a cute butt and a nice set of boobs." Josh said. "Hey!" Susan snapped, "Now I know what's really going on here!" "Oh you know I love you sweetheart." Josh said, nudging Susan. "But what parts of me do you love?" Susan teased him with a smile. "Hey you two, keep your eyes open." Ark said, pointing up, "They've got some kind of contraption following us." They looked up and saw a helicopter following close behind. A loud rumbling started behind them and moved closer. "Get down!" Josh cried, tackling Susan through a nearby store window. They rolled on the ground inside just as a massive detonation in the street shook the buildings nearby. The helicopter had been a spotter for a squadron of jets that had just shot overhead. They had shot a few missiles their direction just as Josh caught them on his sensors. "Is everyone okay?" Josh asked, helping Susan to her feet. "I am." Sammy said from the street. She was standing in the middle of the scorched pavement. Her wand was pointed straight up in the air and a shimmering silvery barrier was flowing out of it and over her. Walt and Ark were nowhere to be seen. "Did everyone else survive?" Susan asked, looking around. "I'm fine. I just jumped out of the way." Walt said, striding back down the street towards them. "How?" Susan asked. "Something called the Shundo. It's a light speed, magic powered jump that carries a person far in one direction. Where's Ark?" Walt explained and then asked. There was a collescing of dark shadows in front of them Ark reappeared, her clothing in burned tatters. She took a breath and her shirt and pants fell off in burnt shards. Her bra went with it and her lacy black panties barely survived. It seemed the only thing that escaped unharmed were her low heel boots. "That'll teach me for not wearing my battle-clothes." Ark sighed, crossing her arms across her bare chest, "It's been a while since something has been able to blow me apart like that." "Can anything kill you?" Walt asked, "Aren't you supposed to be a vampire? What about the sun?" "A paladin. Holy magic I suppose. Silver hurts, but it can't really kill me. Garlic is disgusting, but not harmful. Stakes and such are a joke and running water is a laughable hilarity. As for the Sun...well...I have protection." She held up her right hand where a black diamond ring sat on her ring finger. "So we all survived a missile strike. Congratulations. Can we keep moving before they bust out the atomic bombs?" Susan asked. "Oh I could defeat one of those too.Two hundred years of magic repression leaves one with a lot of spare magic. I could probably cut a planet in half." Sammy shrugged. "Why repress your magic?" Ark said, walking almost naked down the street with them. "Although it's obvious that you have no inhibitions whatsoever, I do. I live in a world where magic doesn't exist, so I don't get to use all that magic. But my body keeps storing magic and so right now I feel like a bloated whale of magic." Sammy said. "I have inhibitions. I just chose to ignore them. I mean, a breeze feels really nice on your breasts sometimes." Ark said, "Also helps that this isn't my original body either." "You weren't always a vampire then?" Walt assumed. "No, but that has nothing to do with it." Ark said. "What changed then?" Sammy asked. "I was a guy a little over a century ago." Ark said idly as if it meant nothing to her. "What?! You were a guy? Good lord have I been thinking wrong." Walt said in surprise. "Thinking what?" Ark smiled, looking over at him. "Um...nothing. Nothing at all." Walt said, looking away. "You think just because I was a guy five of your lifetimes ago that I don't make a very good girl? What isn't good?" Ark smiled, rubbing her breasts together in his direction. "Nothing at all, you make a wonderful girl, come on Susan, let's hurry up." Walt said, running up to him. "I think I scared him off." Ark chuckled. "Were you really a guy?" Sammy asked, slowing down to walk with Ark. "I was. But I was made into a vampire and then a cursed potion from that idiot Cysero made me into a woman. However, after feeling what I did with my beautiful vampiress of a wife, I opted to stay a woman and I've never looked back." Ark said with a shrug. "Cysero? You said that name before. Who is that?" Sammy asked. Ark told her the story of Cysero and his idiocy-induced experiments. "And you haven't killed him yet? Good god, that man is a danger to every universe and all of existence." Sammy said in shock. There was a rumble of a carrier plane passing overhead. "Tell me about it I..." Ark looked up, "Incoming..." Twenty soldiers were parachuting down towards them. Each of them held swords and shields and wore the same Kevlar riot gear as the others. "Hold! You have violated our airspace and commited acts of terrorism on our city. You have killed many of our soldiers and you will now pay with your blood!" One of the soldiers said. "How about you guys take care of these idiots." Ark sighed, disappearing from view in a small puff of black smoke. "Susan, take the front!" Josh said, unslinging the large rifle from his back. He held it forward and pulled the trigger twice in quick succession. The two front mens' heads snapped backwards and they fell dead from massive chunks of their skulls missing. Susan unsheathed her laser-sword and flicked it on. The edge lit with deadly energy and she dashed forward. One man met her and took a swing at her with his thin, rapier-like sword. Susan cut his sword in half, cut the top of the square riot-shield off and stabbed him through the heart. "Damn you magicians!" Another soldier cursed them and he took a running leap at Susan. His sword might've struck her, but Walt appeared out of nowhere, flying through the air. Golden magic was wrapped around his fist and he smashed the man's face into the back of his skull. The man was sent tumbling head over heels past his comrades. "Burn!" Sammy laughed with a flourish of her wand. Two men suddenly burst into flames. They dropped their weapons and ran screaming past Susan and Josh. The enemy soldiers were starting to get discouraged by their comrades falling. Walt swung a magic gold sword and sliced a man in half from head to toe. Josh fired again, four times this time, and he downed five men. Susan kept slashing, jumping about and dodging with the help of her jets. She would jump over a man, her heel jets firing, and then slash him across the back with a twirl. "This will finsh it." Sammy chuckled and flicked her wand again. The last few men dropped dead for no apparent reason. "What?" Walt said, letting the magic sword disappear from his hand. "Heart rupturing magic. Fairly cruel and very efficient." Sammy smiled, "Cruel indeed." Susan said, cleaning and sheathing her sword. "I'm done with this thing. I need a tank barrel." Josh grunted, dropping the rifle and his extra clip. "A what?!" Walt said, looking back at him. "Oh, in a war zone a while back, I threw two tanks off a bridge and tore a third to pieces. Taking the barrel, I used it as a massive weapon to take down buildings and smash people. It was probably six or more feet long and weighed at least a ton." Josh said, "Solid metal and death to any it touched." "So if these guys are supposed to have anti-magic shields, why can you still light them on fire or kill them?" Susan asked. "Because an anti-magic shield only does good if the magic is hitting the shield. my magic encircled them and lit them entirely on fire at once." Sammy said, "Pretty hilarious if you ask me." "Where's Ark?" Josh said, looking forward at Walt and then back at Sammy. "Right here." Ark said, appearing right in front of Josh in a small cloud of darkness. She was now wearing a black goth dress that reached midway down her thighs. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. "So what now?" Walt said, looking at them, "We're kind of in the middle of a battle here." "We keep going. If my memory banks are correct, Akyatoriama Robotics should be a squat office building around the next corner." Susan said, walking past Walt "What is so important about this place, I mean isn't there..." Walt's voice trailed off as he felt a danger approaching. "What were you saying?" Susan asked, oblivious to the approaching magical power. "Get back! Earthen Mages!" Walt called to her. "What?" Susan asked, stopping. There was a blinding light ahead of them and a tower of light filled their sight. Four men in cold black suits stood in front of them. The men were all between five and six foot Caucasian males with shaved heads and sunglasses. They weren't on the ground five seconds before they cast their first spell. A tandem shower of electricity exploded in their direction and Josh barely had time to shove Susan out of the way. It struck him full in the chest and he was lifted off the ground by the glowing energy. Such a spell would've torn a normal human to pieces, but instead, this power surged through Josh. All of it struck his neutron-star core at once and he cried out. There was an explosion of cool blue fire from his chest and he hit the ground with a thump. Susan gave a strangled gasp of fear. "Fools." Ark smiled, walking past Susan, who was now kneeling beside Josh's inert form. "Submit and you may be allowed to live." The man in the lead said. "Ha! You're funny!" Ark laughed in their faces. "As you wish. The lead man said, holding out his arm. Ark's neck snapped sideways as the man's magic broke her neck. "Good luck with that." Ark smiled, popping her head back in place, "Anything else?" "What are you?" A second man said slowly. "I am but a beautiful young woman." Ark smiled, showing her bleached white fangs. "Kill her." The lead man said without remorse. Magic surged from the men in suits and struck Ark. Fire, lightning, ice and a medley of other magic struck her body all over, ripping her flesh from her bone and tearing her new dress to pieces. They halted their attack and waited for the smoke to clear. By the time it had, Ark was fully healed and standing naked in the street. "You know..." Ark brushed off her stomach and kicked off her now ruined boots, "Those were my favorite boots." "No holding back this time!" The lead man instructed, "Burn her to nothing." "Sir!" All of the men said, holding up their hands. A single, deadly tower of fire engulfed Ark and rose to the sky. Her figure could be seen inside the fire, her flesh burning and melting off. Ark strode forward without pause, walking out of the scorching fire that made Walt and Sammy cringe. Ark walked forward, bones and organs showing from the fire. Her skin and flesh slowly melded by together and she stood face to face with the first man, who was a few inches taller than her. "How?" The lead man asked. "Why don't you tell me why you haven't died yet?" Ark said with a smile. Before the man could answer, she put her fist through his chest and out the back. His heart gave a single beat in her hand before she crushed it and dropped it and pulled her bloody arm back through the man's chest. "So what now?" Ark asked, turning to the second man. The Magicians broke and dashed around her. They lunged for Walt, Sammy and the vulnerable androids. Their strategy was that if they couldn't defeat her, they might as well take down her comrades. "Good luck." Sammy smiled, flicking her wand. Her magic bolt struck the second man's jacket and disappeared. "They've got anti-magic clothing." Ark warned without worry. "Gotcha!" Sammy said, seeing the magicians approaching. She raised her wand and a glimmering silver sword appeared above it. She swung her wand down and slashed at one of the men. "They also stop magically conjured weapons." Ark said. "Damn!" Sammy said, lunging backward with the help of her magic. The second man through his hand forward and a cone of fire almost caught Sammy as she flew backwards. Sammy flicked her wand to the side and a large chunk of concrete ripped from the side of a building and struck the second man. He crashed to the ground and his blood splattered the ground. One of the surviving two gave chase after her as Walt fought back and forth with the fourth man. "Do I have to kill them all?" Ark sighed, leaping forward with a single burst of magic. She appeared suddenly in front of the third man that was chasing Sammy. The man cried and leapt back. Without pause, she slashed her hand at an angle from his shoulder to his hip. A purple line followed across his suit and he gave a cough. His body split in twain down that line and fell apart. "How did you do that?" Sammy asked her. "No anti-magic force is full proof and all powerful." Ark said, looking over at Walt. Chaotic Crossroads Walt used the Shundo to dash forward and drive his fist through the man's sternum, crushing his rib cage. "And brute force always overcomes anti-magic ability." Ark smiled. "Is he going to be alright?" Walt asked Susan, "Josh took quite a blow." "I don't know. His Neutron-Star core has ruptured and died. His energy cells are almost burnt out and his power is fading." Susan said, frantically trying to fix Josh from the large burnt hole in his chest. His entire right pectoral was blown apart and there was a large burnt hole in his chest where the Netron-Star core had been. Susan was hurriedly touching wires and different circuits, trying to gauge what to do. "He just needs energy right?" Sammy asked. "Yea, anything greater than a hundred volts should power his systems." Susan said, "Why?" Sammy pointed her wand at Josh and a small stream of magic coursed into his body. Josh gave a shudder and his eyes opened. "Holy shit!" He cried suddenly, "Damn that was a rush!" "Josh? Josh, you're okay!" Susan said. "Yea, why, oh damn...that's not good." Josh said, looking down at the hole in his chest, "Shit, and my energy cells are burned out too. Why am I awake then?" She pointed at Sammy, who's wand was still producing a thin stream of magic. "So I'm being powered by magic then?" Josh chuckled, getting to his feet, "My right arm doesn't seem to want to work right." His right arm just hung limply at his side. "Don't worry about it. This is like flying, it takes absolutely nothing." Sammy shrugged, "Let's just worry about how to get you fixed." "I'm going to give him my core." Susan said flatly, "But we have to get to the science lab first." "No, no and no!" Josh said strongly, "You will not." "Why? My energy cells still work. I can run for a day or two at a time, You'll just have to recharge me often." Susan said to Josh. "Then just give me your energy cells." Josh said, "And you can charge me." "Look, there's no point in arguing about it now. Let's just go!" Sammy said, pointing down the street. People were watching from nooks and crannies, seeing what was going on. Susan turned and led them down the street. However, as they turned the corner, a strange thing happened behind them. Three dark souls came out of the second, third and fourth man. They swirled through the air like smoke and came down to enter the lead man's mouth. His chest healed and closed over. His eyes opened and he got to his feet. "That little bitch is a pain." He sighed, putting a hand on his chest, "Damn it, where did my heart go?" He found the crushed and dirty organ. Brushing it off, he shoved it back in his chest and let it heal itself. When his blood was pumping again, he looked up into the sky and disappeared in a tower of bright light. Chapter 3 - Akyatoriama Robotics, 2010 "So this is Akyatoriama Robotics in the early twenty first..." Josh said, looking up at the large glass office tower, an easy thirty floors high. "How're we gonna get in there without killing everything?" Walt asked, "Because I'd like to avoid that." "Like this." Ark said, raising her hand. A glowing red spell launched from her hand and erupted with a deafening explosion. Many of the windows around the center of the building shattered and glass rained down on the streets. People ran in terror, screaming and hurrying away from them. The five of them stood in the middle of the street as people ran screaming from the nearby buildings. Ark threw another fireball in another direction and Sammy flicked her wand skyward. A bolt of lighting shot straight up and thunder cracked around them. Josh wavered for a moment before Sammy returned her magic to him. "Wait a second...isn't this also going to attract all of those anti-magic soldiers?" Susan asked. "Probably." Ark shrugged, "But good luck getting inside the building when I encase it in ice or something like that. "Really? Damn that would be cold." Walt said. "Haven't you ever heard of heating spells and ever-frozen ice? We can heat the inside to whatever we want, the ever-frozen ice won't melt and they'll have a helluva time getting through it." Ark smiled as people ran down the fire escapes and ran from the building. "Come on, that's enough people cleared out. We can control the rest with fear." Susan said, pushing forward through the panicking people. "You're diabolical." Josh chuckled. "You love me." Susan shrugged, "Ark?" "One second." Ark said as they passed through the front doors. They stood in the open entrance way as people watched them run in. "You have ten seconds to clear out before the building is frozen and you are trapped." Susan said in a booming voice from her electronic vocal cords. People heard this and screamed, rushing for the door even harder. Ten seconds later, Ark held up her hands. A glowing white magic flowed from her and seemed to slither across the floor like a cold fog. Outside the front doors, large ice crystals formed and began to climb the sides of the building. Within a minute, the entire building was encased in cool, clear ice. People ran at it outside the front door and some people were even captured inside it. When the people reached the ice and started to pound on it, it spread inward, coating their arms. The ice grew quickly over their bodies and around their feet, encasing them in the ice as well. People screamed and jumped back from the ice as it stabilized around the assaulting people. They cleared a wide swath around the five and the room slowly grew silent with exception to some crying and whimpering. "Stay where you are and remain unharmed. Stop us and you will be brushed aside. You have seen my power and know what I can do." Ark warned loudly. "We are simply here for a science experiment. Point me to the central science lab. Somewhere with extensive electronic sensing equipment." Susan announced. "T...That way...sixth...sixth floor." A secretary said uncertainly, shaking with fear as she pointed towards the elevators. "Thank you." Josh said with a nod. The small group piled into an elevator and Susan clicked the 6 button. "So what are we doing here?" Ark asked, "I've kind of missed the whole reason behind it." "I need to find out the entire inner workings of magic itself. We also need to transfer my energy cells to Josh in order to keep him alive until we get back to his world and see if we can get him repaired." Susan said as the elevator whirred upward. It beeped and the doors opened on the fourth floor. Six people were waiting eagerly in front of it. They started for the elevator, but Ark held up her hand. A fireball sparked into life in her palm and started to grow. The people outside the elevator screamed and ran as Susan clicked the button to close the doors. "Smooth..." Walt sighed. "I wasn't going to ride this elevator with any more humans than I have to." Ark sighed as the elevator stopped on the sixth floor. The stepped out into a smooth, white tiled hall with a nice off white walls. It was bustling with activity as scientists in white jackets ran back and forth around the hall, seemingly hurrying to get something done. "Everybody halt where you are!" Susan called loudly. The scientists in the hall stopped and looked at them. Others glanced at them and scurried off. Some ignored them completely and kept going about their work. "Stop there or die!" Ark called, throwing a loud bolt of lightning down the center of the hallway. No scientists were hurt, but it scared many of them terribly. "I am commandeering this science lab for my own means, please do as I say or we may be forced to kill you." Susan said in a kind voice. They walked forward and through the main doorway. It led them into a massive room full of electronics and computers that were humming and crackling, buzzing and popping. Every scientist in the room, all about sixteen of them, had their eyes on them. "Now, I am going to need a number of sensors, the least of which is a Geiger counter. On top of that, I'm going to need a clean table, a large amount of precision computer tools and a power source able to provide over a hundred volts." Susan demanded. "Who are you to demand such things of us just because you can use magic?" An older looking scientist said, walking over to them. "I'm an android that can rip your throat out with a single motion. Now, if you don't obey me, I will be inclined to do so." Susan said to the man. He seemed to turn a little pale, making his gray beard and thick gray hair stand out even more. He adjusted his jacket and glasses. "Alright Missie, since this seems to be in a direction of scientific pursuits, I will assist, but first I must have your name." The man said. "I am Susan." She said simply. "No last name?" The scientist asked. "No, I never chose one. What about your name?" Susan asked. "I am Doctor Bishop, why do you not have a last name?" Doctor Bishop asked. "Because I told you, I am an android and I chose my own name." Susan said, "Now where is what I asked for?" "Here is a table for you." Doctor Bishop turned and led them across the room. In the center was a large stainless steel table big enough for Josh. "Alright, a power source?" She asked. "Here's what you're looking for, a regulatory power source all the way up to two hundred and forty volts." Doctor Bishop said, taking a black box from another scientist. "Thank you." Susan said, plugging it in on the side of the table, "Josh, up you get." He climbed onto the table and laid down. "Wow...he really is an android. This is amazing. In my wildest dreams...I never thought I would see a fully functioning, self sufficient unit. I mean...we have programmable ones...but nothing near this realism..." Doctor Bishop seemed enthralled as he looked over the large wound in Josh, "But this wound...ionized burns...clearly a detonation from inside...his power source exploded?" "It was a neutron star core that was overpowered by a lightning magic." Susan said, reaching into Josh's chest with two wires. "Neutron star...that's suicidal, no wonder it exploded!" Doctor Bishop said in surprise as the rest of the group milled around the table. "Actually no, quite stable. I have one in my chest right now." Susan said, tapping her breast, "There we go. You can stop now Sammy, we're alright." The small black power source whirred with electricity from the wall and fresh power washed over Josh's circuits. "So what're we doing?" Doctor Bishop asked, "Terrorists or not, you definitely have my attention with this." "I need to transfer power cells from me into him. His core was destroyed and his power cells were burned out." Susan said. "Power cells? Well...I can't help but wonder if there's a better way. Because, surely those power cells are backup equipment?" Doctor Bishop presumed. "They are, but it's all we have besides my core." Susan said, taking a box of computer tools from another scientist. "Why don't we make another core?" Doctor Bishop suggested. "It was prototype equipment three hundred and twenty years from now. What makes you think you could even do it?" Susan said, looking up at him. "We have magic. I think it would be possible." Doctor Bishop said, "We've been doing extensive studies into magic and we've almost understood the composition of magic itself. I believe we could make it happen." "You do, do you?" Susan said, "And a reason I should believe you?" "I am in this simply for the scientific pursuits, politics and war mean nothing to me." Doctor Bishop said. "So what have these studies of magic shown about it?" Susan asked. "That it permeates everything in the world. I've never had a very close look at magic, I've only been able to study it in the surrounding area." Doctor Bishop said, "If one of you were to assist me...well...I could figure out enough about it to finish my machine." "Your machine?" Susan looked up at him. "I have schematics and theories for a machine that can turn magical energy into solid reality. It is a machine that can defy the laws of physics or space-time through absorption of magic." Doctor Bishop said, "But I've never had a source of magic large enough to even try and complete the machine, let alone test it." "Well my magic probably wouldn't work because I'm not from this world." Sammy said. "Nor mine." Ark shrugged. "Alright, I'll give you a hand then." Walt shrugged. "Come this way please." Doctor Bishop said, walking over to the other side of the lab. "Damn that spell did some damage...." Susan said, cutting dead wire and burnt metal shards from Josh's chest. "I know what it feels like when people say they feel like they got struck by lightning." Josh chuckled. "So what now?" Sammy asked. "I've got a lot of work to do here, why don't you go see if you can help the Doctor." Susan waved them off. Over on the other side of the lab, Doctor Bishop unlocked a door into a side room. He flicked on the lights and Walt's eyes grew wide. The room wasn't that big, but the walls were covered in papers and notes. There were things just simply written on the white walls or even on the plain wood floor. Tables were covered with dozens of pieces of technology and there seemed to be some sort of conglomerate of technology sitting on the center table. A small machine only a few inches tall sat there with dozens of wires spreading from its base. It was made up of a black base and a glimmering crystal orb. "Alright...this is the prototype...I've managed to make it light up with the magic that passes through the room, but I want to try and give it a...a super charge! But before I do that, I need a closer examination of the essence of magic. I need to know exactly what it is made of and how it reacts to other things around it." Doctor Bishop said, grabbing a device with two large tines out the top of it, "Can one of you summon up a...a force of pure magic. Something stable that is only the purest form of magical energy?" "Sure." Walt shrugged, holding up his hand. A glowing silver ball sparked into life and grew to a small size. It glimmered and rippled like a ball of molten silver floating above his hand. "Oh wow...this is more magic than will pass through my device in a week. This is amazing. Look at these readings." Doctor Bishop said happily as he brought the beeping device closer to the orb of magic. He insisted Walt stay still and hold the ball of magic exactly as it is while he ran dozens of more tests that included everything from getting his computer to scan it carefully to simply prodding it with a pencil and watching the reaction. When he was done an hour later, he clapped his hands together and laughed. "Of course! It's all so simple! How could I have not seen it before? Quick, you, one of you girls. Come here and do the same." Doctor Bishop said, holding up another device that had a small antennae in one hand and a box in his other. "Alright." Sammy said, holding up her wand, she produced a similar ball of magic. "I'm right! It's so simple! Magic is not a magic at all! It is the mysterious fifth dimensional element behind all science and scientific pursuit. It's the mysterious thing that holds all of the universe together!" Doctor Bishop said with resounding laughter to himself, "It's the same in all universes, it's just more or less potent and common in each of your universes as in ours." "So how did you find that out?" Sammy asked. "See these readings?" Doctor Bishop said, pointing to the computer, "It's all there. The surrounding fabric of space, how it's changed. It's reactions to other things. The ability to see it with my technology here." He rattled on for another few minutes before Sammy finally held up her hands to silence him. "Okay, okay. What do we do now?" She asked. "Well...let me calibrate this and clean this off." Doctor Bishop said, shoving all of the equipment from the table next to the center one. Hundreds of devices and pieces of technology crashed to the floor with a shattering sound. He turned to the computer that was wired to the strange device and he started to type on it. "Alright, now I want you to strike here...right on the crystal...with a good amount of pure magic." Doctor Bishop said, pointing at the crystal sphere, "Go ahead, don't worry about it." Sammy let a thin stream of magic flow from her wand and towards the crystal. The moment it got near, the crystal swallowed it up hungrily and started to glow. It continued to absorb all of the magic Sammy let flow into it. "Good good, stop now...watch this..." Doctor Bishop said. He clicked a few keys and the crystal glowed brightly. It started to whine and a bright light shot from it in a wide beam. It struck the table and a dome grew into existence. The light died and the machine shut off. Suddenly, there was a shiny red apple sitting on the table. "It worked! It worked! I was right! Magic can be stored and treated just like a type of energy!" Doctor Bishop said, running back into the lab. "Alright, so what next? Can you create a new core for him?" Susan looked up. "Well...no!" Doctor Bishops said with a smile and a clap of his hands. "So then what the hell are you so happy about?" Susan said, slapping down her tools. "Because my machine works! Something I've been working on for months finally works!" Doctor Bishop said, throwing his hands up happily. "How sure are you that it works one hundred percent?" Josh said, having heard everything that happened in both rooms. "A hundred and ten percent! It's design is perfect and I have it calibrated it the proton." Doctor Bishop said confidently. "Then put it inside me." Josh said. "What?!" Doctor Bishop said in shock, "No! Definitely not! Most definitely not!" "And why the hell not, I mean, if this thing can power him, why not?" Susan said, walking towards Doctor Bishop. "Because I've barely tested it or even put out it's potential. I can't give up something like this." Doctor Bishop said, "Who even said it would work with his systems or even power him?" "Well doesn't that let a computer use magic to create things? Then he's a computer and it should work for him too right?" Susan said flatly, "Let's put it in him. You can always make another one." "Make another? Make another!?" Doctor Bishop cried, "That crystal is made of synthesized, energy absorbing Uranium-Tetracarbide. It's a million dollar piece of technology. I can't just...make another!" "Do you forget that I am a desperate terrorist that can rip you in half and destroy your building." Susan said through gritted teeth. "But...I...We can't...just..." Doctor Bishop said with a frantic tone. "Doctor. Think of the scientific possibilities. If you allow us to put that core inside me, I'll give you extensive schematics of my body." Josh said, "With exception to my head." "What makes you think I'll give it up for just an android schematic?" Doctor Bishop said flatly. "I'm a few hundred years from the future, think of the technological advances your company could make with my schematics." Josh said. "Well...I...alright...damn it, let's do it!" Doctor Bishop sighed, walking back into the other room. An hour later, Susan and Doctor Bishop were bent over Josh, slowly attaching the magic core inside Josh's chest. It had to be reconfigured to fit inside his chest comfortably and safely. As they soldered the wires and electronics into his chest. He could feel the device as it started to connect with him. Doctor Bishop connected the last bit of sensory equipment to him and touched it with a hot soldering iron. "Okay. That's that. Now...the programming should already be in the device...I'll flick it on and...there! Now it should be working." Doctor Bishop said.