Starmen.Net

Chapter 1: One Fateful Night
“All right, guys, it’s been real, but it’s closing time,” Jackie said. It had been a relatively quiet night, and the usual ebb and flow of regulars had come and gone, leaving the bar empty, save two remaining occupants; an out of town couple from Winters on a vacation to Eagleland. The stools had been cleaned, flipped on top of their respective tables, the floor swept, and the glasses washed, dried, and put away upon the shelves behind the counter, pristine ready for tomorrow’s workday. He walked over to the jukebox to unplug it for the night. As the pair left out of the door, the bell chimed out a familiar ring denoting their exit. As he reached down towards the outlet, he heard it ring a second time.

“Look I’m not gonna say it twice, we’re close-”
“Not here for a drink.” A large hooded man stood between Jackie and the exit. He removed the hood of his black jacket to reveal a black bandana obscuring the bottom half of his face, a dirty blond mop of hair, and a pair of blue eyes, the crazed look within them Jackie could remember with a sick nostalgia. Monotoli used to have that look.

“Take the money in the register, then,” Jackie said.
He could feel a cool sweat begin to form on the back of his neck, slow trickles of anxiety in response to his growing sense of unease. The man pointed the metal bat he had been resting on his shoulder when he entered the bar toward Jackie.
“Not here for money, either, mate.”
The man walked behind the counter and let out a whistle of appreciation. “Lookie what we have here.” He hefted a large sledgehammer from behind the bar, laying his bat on the counter. “A right beauty she is! I imagine this situation would’ve gone less than cordial if you’d had this fiery number at your side.” He looked up from his admiration of the hammer to lock eyes with Jackie, who was staring at him intently.
“Look,” said the thief calmly, a chilling contrast to mania lying behind his eyes. Barely contained.
“I know you kept the pieces of it. Just give them to me, and this fine establishment you run will remain intact.”
“Pieces of wh-” Again Jackie was cut off, not by the surprise of an unwanted guest, but by the abrupt shattering of dozens of glasses. The thief had whipped the sledgehammer in a blur of motion, ripping through shelves, glasses, and bottles sending a deluge of alcohol and glass shards flying in all directions. Leaving a dent in the wall.

“Try lyin’ to me again & the next thing I break is you, Jackie-boy.”
“Where. Are. The. Pieces?”
The look in his eyes told Jackie that this was no idle threat. He pointed to a door. “In the storage room.” Compliance would be the only way out; the thief had made that very clear.
“Go on and grab them for me. Being locked in your store room’s not the way I’d like to end my night. I’m at bit touched with the madness, but I’ve never been slow, Jackie-boy,” the hooded man said.
With these words, Jackie’s heart sank. He had pinned his hopes on this thief being careless at the last second. He moved towards the door, the sounds of his boots on the tile and the crunch of broken glass underfoot the only sounds to be heard, save for the intermittent roars of thunder outside, the precursor to a brewing storm. He hoped that couple had made it to a hotel before the rain started.
He opened the door, flipped the light switch on, and headed for the corner where the statue pieces resided, moving a mountain of boxes stacked upon one another in an effort to save space. After Ness had destroyed the foul idol during his last adventure, Jackie had gathered the pieces up into a sack and left them in a box in a dank corner of the storeroom, hoping it’d never again see the light of day; hoping that its corruption would never infect another heart and soul.

“I should’ve tossed them in the sea and been done with it,” he muttered to himself, regretting the decision to keep any memento of the statue, thinking any harm it could do was long past.
He lifted the sack from the box, not even daring to look inside. He knew all too well what was within. It radiated an aura of maleficence causing the hairs on the back of Jackie’s neck to stand on end. He exited the storeroom to find the thief sitting on the counter of the bar, his baseball bat resting on his shoulder and the sledgehammer returned to its covert spot, on the shelf beneath the cash register.
The man hopped from the counter at Jackie’s approach and snatched the bag from his grasp, a murmur of appreciation leaving his lips as he inspected the contents.
“Ahh, there we are! Now, was that so hard?” the thief called over his shoulder as he made his way out the door into the night.

He exited the bar, hastily making his way toward the Monotoli building, the crashing of thunder and the steady tap of his feet on the pavement were all that could be heard. As he neared the front of the skyscraper, a dull light shone at the base of its steps. The bag wrenched itself from the thief’s grasp to land within the light. A dazzling flash erupted forth as the bag tore from the inside out, the light pouring from it barely contained blinding him momentarily. When his vision returned, there stood a golden statue, immaculate, and still glowing with a supernatural light.
Its visage, a horned man plunging a blade into a pedestal.
“Finally!” the man cried out, “No more nightmares, no more visions!” He sank to his knees, something between a laugh and a sob escaping his throat. A voice spoke in his mind.

’You’ve done well. Here is your reward.’
CRASH! BOOM! BANG!

His world went white, then he felt nothing.

Chapter 2: Artificial Flavoring
Ring ring
Ring ring
*Ring ri-

“Hello?”
He answered the phone groggily, waking from what would perhaps be his last peaceful sleep.
“Monotoliit’sadiaster!”
“Jackie? What’s the problem?”
“HetookithecameinwhenIwasclosingthebarandstoleit!”
“Waitwaitwait, slow down I can’t understand anything you’re saying!”
Mr. Monotoli’s sleep-addled mind could barely keep up with the torrent of information the bartender was desperately and hastily trying to convey.
“Who took what?”
On the other line, he could hear Jackie take a deep breath in an attempt to compose himself. After a couple seconds and a few more deep breaths, Jackie spoke.
“The statue, Geldegarde… someone came in… and stole the pieces.”

He was stunned, his mind racing to grasp what the resurgence of that un-holy idol would lead to. It was bad enough he himself and countless others had been swayed by its influence, but now some rogue had made off with its pieces for god knew what reason. Monotoli could feel a deep weight settle in his stomach, and his mouth went dry.

“How long ago did this happen?”
“About fifteen minutes ago.”
“Alright. Call the authorities and let them know there’s been a robbery. If they catch him before he can do anything with the pieces, we might be able to nip this nightmare in the bud.”
“Sounds like a plan. What are you going to do?”
“I’ll try to get into contact with Ness. If anyone can take care of this kind of problem, it’d be that kid.”
“I’ll get right on it. And, Geldegarde?”
“Yes?”
“Stay safe. I have a feeling things are going to get worse before they get better.”
“You too.”

Monotoli hung up the phone and laid back in his bed, memories of his last encounter with Ness and his friends flashing through his mind. He knew firsthand of the corruption that statue instigated. Paula was instantly forgiving. Somehow knowing it had warped his mind and manipulated the weakness in his heart, though he still felt guilty for having such weakness in the first place. His time as a politician had left him greedy and self-centered, making it all too easy for him to be played by Porky, and, by extension, Giygas’ influence.

He rose from his bed several minutes later, turning on the lights in his apartment. A grim but constant reminder of his time as mayor, the many illicit deals and “donations” he had received being more than enough to afford him the luxury he’d once flaunted with such pride and arrogance. Not wanting to dwell on his past transgressions too long, he hastily got dressed, grabbing his hat and a walking stick, Jackie’s warning fresh in his mind.
Making his way to out his door and down the hall towards the elevator, Monotoli was determined to retrieve Ness. The boy was Eagleland’s best hope if things were truly turning for the worse once again.
———
As he made his way into his place of work, Mayor Enrich Flavor thought it was rather odd that there were so many people milling around in front of the City Hall. A closer inspection revealed that most of the people were actually police officers and detectives sealing off a crime scene, with a few nosy citizens poking around to see what was going on. As he made his way towards the crime scene, he could hear snippets of the citizens’ conversations.
“Break in at Jackie’s…”
“Betty said she saw neon lights las…”
“A murder? Things like this never happened when Monot…”
Flavor approached the nearest detective. The man was wearing a simple dress shirt and blue tie with an overcoat, looking like a detective from one of those Noire crime movies, down to the cigarette hanging from his mouth. The man was jotting something down in his pocket-sized notebook when he noticed the Mayor out of the corner of his eye.
“Good morning, Mr. Mayor. I’m Detective Paul Dean," he said as he removed the cigarette from his mouth and dropped it onto the sidewalk, stepping on the remains and extinguishing the embers. "We received a report this morning from a passerby that a man was lying face-down on the pavement in front of City Hall.”

Flavor casually glanced over to the charred corpse of what once was a man, watching as two officers took pictures and investigated the scene for evidence.
“Well, I’m sure you’ll find the murderer,” Flavor said, giving him an encouraging smile that lacked any genuine warmth; one that didn’t quite reach his eye. A politician’s smile.
“That’s the funny thing. We’ll need to investigate further, but he seemed to die after being struck by thunder. We think it might be related to the break-in at Jackie’s bar last night, but we have no way to confirm if this man and the robber are the same person."
Flavor could believe that. The man had been flash fried, reduced to a ghoulish husk.
“Yo! Pauly, we need you over here!” Another officer called out to the detective for a task that required his attention.

“I’m sorry, will you excuse me?” Paul said hurriedly.
“Of course. Don’t let me keep you,” the mayor replied, letting his smile fall from his face as the man turned away.
Wanting to shake off the incident, Flavor told himself that the good police of Fourside would take care of the situation. He then turned around and entered the hulking City Hall, making his way to his office, strolling past the receptionist on the first floor towards the elevator. The short ride up left him alone with his thoughts.

Mayor Flavor mopped his forehead with his sleeve; he was never good with dead bodies. It wasn’t just the way they looked or smelled, but the fallout Enrich was required to handle. Even though the man had obviously been killed by a lightning strike, the fact that it happened on the steps of city hall would mean about a week of press conferences and interviews, questions about the crime problem and public safety and animal attacks, and a thousand other things he didn’t need to deal with at the moment. As he reached the top floor and the elevator doors opened the smell of perfume wafted about.

“Did you see the man?” Flavor’s secretary, Adrianna asked, looking over her gaudy glasses at her boss as he proceeded to make his way toward her desk.
“The man in front? Yes, yes, they were just carting him away.” Flavor replied.
“Oh my, did they tell you what happened to him? They wouldn’t tell me, they just made me go right inside. Do you think it has anything to do with the robbery last night?”
Flavor dropped his coat next to the rack and opened his door. “I’m going to take a quick nap, so don’t forward any calls,” he said, not acknowledging her questions. She continued on, either not noticing or not caring.
“And that’s not the only strange thing that happened last night, Betty said she and her husband were driving in from Threed and saw bright neon lights flashing in the sky, all the way from Dusty Dunes! I haven’t talked with Margret yet, but she has an astronomer friend so she’ll probably have a better idea—”
“You heard me, right?” He said abruptly, cutting her off.
“Right; don’t forward any calls, Mr. Flavor.”
“Good.” Flavor closed his office door behind him.
“I’ll tell you what Betty says!” Adrianna called through the thick oak doors.

An ergonomic chair, a marble desk, an unused closet, a display case and coffee table; Enrich prided himself on being a minimalist. He closed the curtains and pulled out a bottle of hard rum. He poured himself a glass, but held off on partaking. Something was off. He felt… odd today. As soon as he entered his office, in fact. The day had already started off miserably, so why wasn’t he more miserable than usual? It should be that simple, but as soon as he walked in the door, he felt… it was hard to explain. The stack of meaningless paperwork on his desk, the press schedule, the irritating secretary, his divorced wife and estranged daughter, the dead man on the front steps, nagging constituents… they were meaningless now. He felt…

Cold.
Almost numb to the concerns of this waking world.
He turned his head. The only warmth evidently emanating from the closet door. The alluring pull drawing him from his seat. Drink forgotten, in the unyielding need to investigate.
To find the source…
To Flavor all the world was a dull listless grey. All the world except that closet door. He felt as though the ground beneath him had given way, that he was in a grand abyss that threatened to swallow him whole. His only salvation, the door. But now it looked so… far away, the space between he and it seeming to stretch.

He rose gradually, was it this hard to move when he had first entered his office? He couldn’t remember. His only care right now being, making it to that door. All else was washed away in the single minded pursuit of this goal. With each step that weight lifted, replaced with elation, and a vitality he hadn’t felt since his varsity days. Countless hours spent training, honing his body. Another step, another rush of power.

He remembered dominating on the field, a juggernaut of a young man, tearing through defensive lines. Leaving ruin in his wake, back then he had felt invincible. Before he had let him self get over weight, his opponents and even a few of his team mates taunting him for the extra pounds he had gained, saying: “Flavor likes the flavor of anything.”
One more step. One more flood of strength. and with the memory, a tinge of resentment. For not only those in his past who had taunted him, but also those who didn’t appreciate his mayoral prowess. After that fool Monotoli had left the seat vacant, he had kept this city from running into the ground, he fixed the sewer system and mobilized the Fourside police force, to take care of the rampant possessed taxis that had roamed the streets.

He finally made it to the door, feeling like he had been walking for ages. Reaching out for the handle, no longer appearing to have control of himself, like a marionette. As though a being more powerful than himself had led him toward the door. He embraced this guiding feeling for the less he resisted, the more strength he felt, the more self-worth he attained.
The mayor opened the closet door. What he saw amazed him, a statue etched of pure gold. A visage of a horned man gripping the hilt of a blade, the point of the weapon buried in the pedestal on which he stood. He reached out to touch the statue and his vision blurred, his legs becoming unsteady and giving way, leaving him prostrate before the idol. When he could see again, and feeling returned to his legs he was taken aback to find his office had changed, becoming a dark mirror version of it’s original form. The white walls, and marble desk, replaced for neon green and red inversions of the former decor.

His coffee table and large comfy chair now a bright yellow and blue respectively, a neon outline inlaid by a black darker than a moonless midnight. More jarring than the bright neon decor was, the feeling this place had. A palpable weight he could sense throughout his whole body, from the top of his head to the soles of his feet.

His first instinct was to call Adrianna, to see if everything had changed outside his office as well. but he quickly thought better of the idea. Let Betty tell her what’s going on.

“You are wise not to call her in. She couldn’t hear you, anyways.”
“Who said that?” Flavor asked. Jumping slightly from surprise, looking around the his office trying to find the speaker. The strange, almost alluring voice seemed as though it came from all around him. Giving the disembodied voice an echo-like reverb.
“Richard Flavor, I sense in you a drive to excel. A drive not often found in lesser beings.”
Flavor approached the statue sitting in his previously unused closet. “Who are you and, what is it that you want?”
“I am a benefactor, from a far off world. I speak to you through this idol of avarice. My goal is to induct your race into the ‘Collective’, adding your people to an intergalactic community that spans the stars.” The statues eyes glowed green as it relayed the message to Flavors mind.
“And what exactly do you gain from this union?”
“We are a magnanimous race, it is our duty to spread knowledge. One we take quite seriously.”
Flavor crossed his arms and looked at the statue with a skewed eye. “That’s not what I meant,”
“Ah, the shrewd mind of a politician. I knew I made the right choice for a partner.”
“My own stake in this endeavor, is simply to make a point about how things should be done.”

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Flavor’s office returned to normal. The sky outside was blue, and his walls were once again a pure white. The gold statue glowed dully in the closet. He slowly returned to his desk, and sat down in his chair. Taking a liberal swig of the drink he poured when he first entered, downing half of it. The rum settling in his stomach did little to calm him.
“So what’s my motivation for helping you ‘induct’ humanity?”
“Other than going down in your people’s history, as the one who shepherded them into a new technological age the likes of which they had never dreamed of? I offer the power within this Mani Mani statue.”
“Is that what that neon nightmare was? Th-the…power of the statue?”
“In a sense….”
“..What you saw was Moonside, a plane of existence fabricated by the emotions and memories of those who come into contact with the Mani Mani. I can condense this psionic energy and gift it to you. Though magicant made manifest must be accepted wholly, if you have any doubt within your heart you will be devoured by it.”
He was silent for a moment, taking a smaller drink from his glass. Remembering the aura that enveloped him when he touched the statue, Flavor had felt as if he owned the world. Now he actually could.

The thought both scared and excited him. He wondered how the citizens of world react to such a change.
He wondered what Articia would say, would she come crawling back? Or would she be ashamed of him? She always use to say he had become a tyrant, in the months leading up to their separation.
Flavor nodded. He wanted power, craved fame and glory. He wanted more out of life than a stint as a civil servant. What awaited him here? Years of work followed by retirement, and a unceremonious death. Forgotten like so many others, lost to the foggy mists of time.
“I accept your offer, show me how things should be done.”
A golden blade appeared on Flavors desk in front of him, a simulacra of the sword the statue held.
“Take the blade and we shall see the strength of your resolve.”

Chapter 5: Grains in the Glass

“Faster! Mr. Monotoli I think Jeff’s in trouble, I can’t hear his thoughts anymore,” Paula urged the old man. After they picked up Ness from his home, they had made a bee line for Fourside, all the while Paula was concentrating on Jeffs battle in the city. Ness leaned over the top of the passengers seat and asked.

“Is he okay?”
“I don’t know,” She opened her eyes, looking out at the sea as the car traveled over the bridge leading into Fourside. “As soon as he walked into the Mayors office I lost contact with him, I can still feel his presence and emotions but….I can’t talk to him,” She rolled down her window to get some fresh air.
“Jeff won’t go down easily,” Ness said trying offer her some measure of reassurance. She wanted to believe that her friend was fine, but couldn’t shake the feeling that something awful had happened. Couldn’t help thinking it was her fault that Jeff had put himself in that situation.
“And if he is in trouble, we’ll definitely save him.” The young boy added.
She gave him a smile, though she was still worried. Ness always had a rallying effect on her and the other chosen. In their darkest moments, he had always lifted their spirits when things seemed hopeless. So why wouldn’t the uneasiness in the pit of her stomach go away?

“Alright you two, we’ve made it.” Monotoli brought the vehicle to a stop, parking next to the museum.
Across the street was city hall, formerly known as the ‘Monotoli Building’. As Paula got out of the car she noticed people we’re staring and pointing at the top floor, looking up she could see that one of the windows had been blown out.
Don’t worry Jeff, we’re coming.
——-
Flavor sat cross legged on the roofs helipad, picking the remnants of the slime he’d been coated with, off of his suit and out of his hair.

“The boy almost bested you.” The voices tone was one of surprise and contemplation, as if the possibility of that outcome hadn’t crossed its mind.
“He’s a clever one, I’ll give him that,” He rose to his feet, then levitated.
“Indeed, though he may prove to be a valuable asset. Do not concern yourself with him for now. I have other duties that I require you to fulfill,”

Flavor rose higher and higher, till he reached the clouds, the view was immaculate. He could see the whole city and just barely make out the shapes of people, going about their lives. Oblivious to the fast approach of a new era of opulence. His era.

“You must go to Stonehenge in Winters, the shifting sands of the Scaraba desert and to the summit of Mt Itoi,”
“Before I go off on your little scavenger hunt, I need to ask you about a good point the boy brought up during our scuffle, Who exactly are you?” He replied.
The voice ceased speaking within his mind, for moment Flavor thought he wouldn’t get an answer at all.
“I will reward you with the information of my identity, once you’ve obtained what I need from these locations, Have I not already given you power beyond dreaming? When you complete these tasks you will have my trust and in turn my name. Not a moment sooner.”

“Very well partner,” Flavor said, punctuating his last word, a bit of distrust tingeing his inflection. He soared off in the direction of Winters, the golden sword glinting in the sunlight. Rocketing towards the first step of his new destiny.
——-
“IF THE JANITOR DOESN’T COME INTO WORK, THAT’S HIS PROBLEM, NOT MINE! I TOLD YOU, IF I GOT ONE MORE MEMO TELLING ME TO CLEAN THE TOILETS, I’D QUIT. NOWHERE IN MY CONTRACT DOES IT SAY I HAVE TO CLEAN TOILETS!” The maid was all sound and fury, she’d reached the limits of her patience, her distaste for her employer evident in her tone.
“Electra calm down, I’m just the messenger,” Adrianna replied sipping her coffee in the break room as she read the newspaper.
“I’m serious, This is ridiculous!” Electras volume lowered only slightly.
She’d spoken to the mayor about this just last week, told him plain as day; she replaced the toiletries. She. Didn’t. Clean. Toilets. Yet here was Adrianna, bothering Electra on her break. Asking her if she could take care of this and that. It was already bad enough that the woman gossiped constantly, spreading any news that reached her ears with a ruthless efficacy. It’d be almost impressive, if it wasn’t so annoying.

No more. This was the last straw, she was going to give Flavor the verbal beat down he deserved. She wasn’t the only maid in the building who felt this way, she was just the most vocal. Yesterday Betty told her; she’d admired the maids spunk, her willingness to speak her mind was a breath of fresh air she had said. Though Electra suspected what the ground floor receptionist really appreciated was the commotion she caused, the break from the grueling monotony of the work day brought on by her frequent outbursts. She couldn’t begrudge her for that.
Electra got up from her chair, grabbing her apron off the back of it, as she left the break room. Heading for the elevator to discuss her current employment situation with the mayor. As she waited for it to take her up to the top floor, her thoughts drifted to the old elevator attendant; Nicky. Her only friend in her place of work, Betty and the other women in the maid staff were nice enough, and Adrianna was…manageable but Nicky was her confidant. Someone she could come to for advice, knowing her level headed point of view would give her a certain clarity that most simply lacked. She had moved to Summers, when her boyfriend inherited a piece of property there about two months ago. From that point on it was all lavish living and perfect weather, she really needed to get into contact with her old friend, maybe she would after telling Flavor off. She’d certainly have more free time after that, It might be time for a long needed vacation. The elevator came to a stop, the ring denoting she’d arrived at her destination, she took a deep breath and composed herself. Getting ready to focus her indignation into a eloquently worded whiplash. She walked down the hall, put both hands on the door to the mayor’s office pushed them open, and with fists clenched, stomped in.

“FLAVOR! I QUI…”
The sight before her, left the maid speechless, in the middle of the room was a little girl in a pink dress with ribbons in her hair, from her hands flames erupted. Her target; a young boy in a green suit, and black bow-tie. Before him, his hand was outstretched, willing the fire that threatened him, to turn away, allowing it to burn all else around him. She could feel the intense heat on her face and arms from the doorway. In his other hand was a golden gladius stained with blood. Behind the girl was another boy wearing a baseball hat, stripped shirt, and backpack. Holding a wound in his shoulder, as a green luminescence shone beneath his hand. At his side was her former boss; Geldegarde Monotoli. He turned as she burst into the office.
“Electra!? Get out of here before it’s too lat-” Then she felt it, a massive weight pulling her down, to her hands and knees. She and the others in the office were pushed to the floor by an unseen force, the only one unaffected was the boy with the sword.
“I think it’s time for a field trip, it’s getting a little too crowded in here for my tastes,” the boy said as he snapped his fingers. Space seemed to stretch in front of Electra, as if the whole office was made of elastic and a giant was pulling both ends, trying to see how far it’d go before snapping. She felt a wave of humidity, and smelled the dry arid scent of desert air, then everything went dark.
——-
The heat of the sun beat down on her back, as she quickly stepped out of the way of another lash of lightning that leapt from Jeffs weapon, the bolt leaving a hole in the street.
Stupid! It was all her fault he’d fallen under the sway of the Mani Mani, Her fault Ness had gotten cut when she’d hesitated. “Jeff please, we want to help you!” She cried out in frustration.
This time putting up a psychic shield to stop her friends attack, protecting both her and Ness as strike after strike assaulted them, with seemingly no end in sight.
“But you’ve already helped me Paula,” He replied, drawing his laser gun from the inside of his jacket, with his free hand. “I have considerable strength now, let me show you.”

He flashed a smile that made her nervous, as he reversed his grip and plunged the short sword into the middle of the street, it effortlessly sank into asphalt as if it had always belonged there. The road began to ripple as long black tendrils rose from the ground seeking her and Ness.
She put one hand out as the first strand reached out to try and snatch her up, it froze. Covered in thick layers of ice. But more and more pursued her as she danced out of their range, freezing them as they got too close. Ness at her side, smashed the frozen tendrils after she had stopped them, blasting the others she missed with PSI Rockin. Then she had an idea, speaking within Ness’ mind.

“Ness use Telekinesis on the sand to wrap up Jeff, I have an idea,”

Ness did as he was told sliding his baseball bat into a loop on his backpack with haste, and forming both hands as if he was trying to crush something, clapping them in front of him. The sand rose in respond to his will, rising up on either side of Jeff enveloping him up to the neck in sand, raising him several feet into the air. Paula ran forward, placing both hands on the sand structure and closed her eyes in concentration. Her hands began to glow, and the sand turned a brilliant red orange as it heated and bubbled. She then lept back and flicked both hands downward as if she was shaking water from them. An arctic wind blew hard and fast cooling the sand, trapping Jeff in a makeshift glass prison.
“Good thinking Paula,” Monotoli said, as he and Electra came from their hiding place behind a cactus, the only cover in the desert landscape. Electra still seemed dumbfounded by the events, though she added. “Who’s that coming up the road?” The group turned to see a man in a robe and turbin walking up the road, Ness was the first to recognize him. “Talah Rama!”

He stopped in front of the party, looking up at the glass edifice. “It’s seems you’ve been busy, Ness, Paula, Jeff” He bowed to them as he said each of their names. “I’ve had terrible visions, and thought you might once more need my guidance,” He looked eyes with Jeff “Hopefully, I’m not to late.”
“Of course not, your right on time,” Jeff said playfully, as his eyes began to shine with an unnatural light. A bright gold hued barrier rose from the sands baring access to the desert as the glass prison holding him shattered, sending glass in all directions. Ness put his hand up, raising a shield around the group to protect them from the hailstorm of glass. As Jeff landed on his feet. He reached out, made a fist as if taking hold of something, then yanked his hand backwards. The robed man flew through the air and stopped at Jeff side, like a rope had been cast around his waist, and someone had pulled the other end suddenly with great force.

Talah Rama was suspended in mid-air, held there by Jeff as he said. “This has been fun but, I’ll need to cut this playdate short,” He turned his back to them. “I’ll be back for you later Paula, don’t be a stranger.”
Then with a snap of his fingers, Jeff and his captive were gone in an instant, leaving no trace. The only evidence he’d been there were the holes in the street, the stretched and frozen parts of road that twisted this way and that, and broken glass littered everywhere. The only sound that could be heard was the wind, and finally Electra broke the silence.

“Who was the weird kid with the gladius?”
They all responded with various looks of confusion, “The what?” Paula asked the maid.
“Gladius; the roman short sword he was carrying,” She explained. “Am I the only one who paid attention in history?”
“Apparently,” Monotoli replied.

Electra just sighed. Paula walked over to the translucent golden wall that separated the desert from the road, it rose high into the air and from where she stood, she could see it was not just a wall, it was a cube, boxing off the rest of the world from the dusty dunes. Placing her hand on it, she felt not only it’s solidity, but the strong psionic forces giving it vigor and strength. She swore; she’d break it down, find those responsible for this mess and save her friend. She had to.