Part 1 – Where Am I?

ThunderBolt832 slowly awoke, his mind quickly clearing of the fog that had filled it for the last several years.

Looking around, he saw that he was in a green testing container, with hundreds more surrounding it, each one holding a silent, sleeping body.

Why am I here? He wondered as his mind began to clear. Where am I? What even happened?

Hundreds of questions flooded through his mind, but he didn’t even try to answer them.

Whatever he was in, wherever he was, he could somehow sense it was bad.

He had to get out.

Pulling his hands and legs away from the restraints that held them, he lifted his fist and slammed it against the glass wall of his test tube.

Crack! Several tiny fissures spread across the glass where he had hit it.

Pulling his fist back again, he smashed it against the wall again, causing more cracks to form.

Switching to his other hand, he hammered away at the glass until it broke, dropping him down into a white, lab-like area.

Above him was hundreds of test tubes, all exactly like the one he had been standing in for…well, he had no idea how long he’d been in there, but he could tell it had been a long time.

Looking around, he spotted an iron-armoured guard coming down the passage towards him.

Searching the large hallway, he spotted another passageway leading off to the right, and quickly darted down it, out of sight of the guard.

I need a weapon. He thought, grasping the air as if he was used to having a weapon there. I won’t survive without a weapon. Wait, how do I know that?

He was confused. It was as if part of him knew exactly what to do, while the other part had no idea, and was acting upon that part’s knowledge.

Turning a corner, he came to a staircase that descended a few metres, and then ended in another corner.

Blocking his path was another green test tube, a still,  body contained inside.

“I can free these people,” he said out loud as the thought popped into his head. “They deserve to be free.”

Stepping forward, he began to hammer away at the side of the glass container, quickly breaking it as the glass shattered under the strain.

Instantly the person inside opened his eyes and looked around.

“What happened?” He asked as his mind slowly cleared. “Where am I?”

ThunderBolt helped him to his feet. “I freed you. For where we are, I have no idea. I only just broke out myself.”

“I’m Epicraft426,” he answered. “Who are you?”

ThunderBolt answered instantly. “I’m ThunderBolt832. Now come on, we’ve got to get out of here.”

As they climbed over the broken remains of the test tube, a thought suddenly came to his mind. How did I know my name? I don’t remember anything before now, so how could I?

Peering around the corner, he saw a guard standing with his back to them, a stone sword held in his  hand.

“Do you think we could take him down?” ThunderBolt whispered, turning around to speak to Epicraft who was creeping forward behind him.

“Well, if we want to get out of here, I suppose we’ll have to!” Epicraft replied.

Creeping forward, the two companions slowly moved closer to the guard, who was still completely unaware of their presence.

Crouching silently behind the guard, ThunderBolt counted down noiselessly on his fingers, holding them up for Epicraft to see.

Simultaneously reaching forward, ThunderBolt grabbed the guard around the waist, pinning his arms to his sides as Epicraft began to punch him as hard as he could.

Struggling in the grasp of his enemies, the guard kicked out at ThunderBolt, who released his grip as he was sent flying backwards.

Leaping backwards, the guard drew his sword and slashed at Epicraft, taking half of his health in an instant.

Epicraft fell to the ground, helpless as the guard raised his sword into the air.

“No!” Shouted ThunderBolt, reaching forward with his hand as if he could somehow stop him.

Suddenly a large orange ball of fire began to form in ThunderBolt’s hand, then launched itself towards the guard.

It hit him in the back of his head, sending him flying across the passageway to land against the wall, stunned.

“Wow!” Gasped Epicraft as ThunderBolt helped him to his feet. “How did you do that?”

ThunderBolt shrugged, for he was as surprised as his friend. “I don’t know,” he replied. “I’ve never done it before. It just…happened.”

Epicraft walked over to the guard and picked up the stone sword that lay beside the guard.

“Well, however you did it, it saved my life. I am forever grateful.”

***
Several hours later, ThunderBolt sunk down into a sitting position beside Epicraft.

“There’s just no way out of this place!” he said with a sigh, pulling out the sword that they had retrieved from the guard as he spoke.

Epicraft nodded silently, then stretched out his arms in a yawn.

Suddenly a green forcefield of energy formed around the group, causing them to jump to their feet in astonishment.

“Did I do that?” Epicraft asked, cautiously sticking out his hand to feel the green, transparent wall.

As soon as his fingers came into contact with it, it disappeared, leaving no trace that it had ever existed.

“I think there is much more to us than it seems.” ThunderBolt said, looking at his hands in amazement. “I think we were test subjects, and they were testing us with these new abilities. But whatever they were trying to do to us, it was not for a good purpose.”

Epicraft nodded again, then reached forward and opened his hand.

Instantly a green beam of energy shot out from his hand and hit the wall, causing green sparks to fly into the air as the spot began to glow red.

“Cool!” Epicraft whispered. “Maybe we can use our powers to get out of here!”

Reaching forward with his hand opened, ThunderBolt formed a fireball in his right hand and flung it towards the wall.

As it hit, it exploded in a shockwave of fire, destroying part of the wall around it to reveal another room.

Walking quickly forward, they peered curiously into the small room.

It was extremely different to any of the other rooms they had seen, for the floor, and walls were made of mythanium. Also, there was a large, orange cube that glowed brightly in the dark room, a wooden button attached to it’s side.

Reaching forward, ThunderBolt pushed the button in, then stepped back, waiting for something to happen.

Suddenly an alarm began to sound loudly nearby, and a panicking voice called out from a noteblock on the ceiling above. “Alert! Alert! Area 57 has been breached! Protect Experiment 303! Security, stop the intruders!”
The two friends stood beside each other uncertainly, unsure what to do.

Before they could move, a cage of iron bars rose out of the ground around them, trapping them in a small space with the orange, glowing block.

ThunderBolt stepped forward and began to hammer at the iron bars, frantically trying to get out.

Quickly their vision began to blur as they started to lose consciousness, and just before he passed out, ThunderBolt saw a mysterious figure appear in front of him, his eyes glowing a bright white…

Part 2 – We Were Teleported

ThunderBolt slowly awoke to the voice of Epicraft calling in his ear.  “ThunderBolt, wake up! ThunderBolt! THUNDERBOLT!!!”

ThunderBolt sat up. “What?” He asked

Epicraft helped him to his feet. “Where are we?”

ThunderBolt looked around. They were in a large, green forest, with enormous trees extending upwards into the leafy canopy above them.

Suddenly a robotic female voice spoke seemingly from right beside them, but there was nothing there. “Teleportation complete!” It said.

The two companions jumped violently.

“What was that?” Epicraft asked, a slight quiver of fear running through his voice.

“I don’t know.” ThunderBolt replied. “And I don’t know how we got here either, but we are. And we’re not where we were before, so that’s good. Come on, let’s go and explore a bit.”

Lifting their fists, they began to punch a large tree beside them, watching the cracks spread across the block they were punching until it broke.

When they had destroyed as much of the tree as they could, they sat down on the grassy floor and began to craft.

First they made a crafting table, then some sticks, then a pickaxe, axe, and a spade.

They both already had swords, and so they didn’t need to craft them.

“Come on,” ThunderBolt called. “Let’s go and get out of this jungle. We’ll try and find a settlement, if there are any.”

Pushing through the undergrowth, they began to slowly force their way through the thick jungle.

Pulling out his sword, Thunderbolt began to hack at the vines and bushes that blocked their path, making it a bit easier for Epicraft who was following close behind.

After five or six minutes of slow progress, ThunderBolt stopped.

“This is no good!” He said in exasperation without turning around. “We’ll never get anywhere by doing this!”

Epicraft nodded. “Should we try and climb these trees or somethi-”

His voice cut out suddenly and did not continue.

ThunderBolt turned around. There was no one there.

“Hello?” He shouted. “Epicraft? Are you there? Where are you?”

A faint sound came from behind him. He turned around, drawing his stone sword as he did so.

Something suddenly hit him in the face, and a shockwave of pain flew through his body as he fell to the ground.

Then he knew no more.

Part 3 – The Jungle Tribe

ThunderBolt’s mind slowly cleared, but his vision was blurred and he could not see anything.

His head hurt, and he could feel that some kind restraints were holding him. Of course, this would not be a problem.

Drawing a field of energy around him, he slowly built it up until it was barely containable, then let it go in a powerful, destructive blast of energy that threw off the chains that had been holding him.

Looking around, he realised that Epicraft was not there.

“Epicraft?” He called softly. “Epicraft? Are you there?”

There was no answer. In fact, there was no sound at all. Nothing but silence.

Suddenly the silence was broken by a loud sound of cheering that came from his left, but he could not tell what.

Gathering a small amount of fire in his left hand, he looked around.

He was in a small, dark room with no windows or objects except for the pillar in the centre that he had been chained to.

At the back of the room was a small door, with a rusty lock chained to it, keeping it closed.

Drawing back the hand that contained the small amount of fire, he slammed it into the rusty padlock, blasting the useless object into oblivion.

Cautiously opening the door, he looked out to see two brown guards dressed in brightly coloured clothes, standing side by side in front of the door, sharp spears held in their brown hands.

Taking a deep breath, he began to charge another ball of fire in his hand.

Leaping suddenly forward, he blasted both of the guards before they had time to react, vaporizing them both instantly, their long spears dropping uselessly to the ground.

Picking up one of the sharp weapons, he watched in amazement as the tip began to glow a bright red, then a magical wave flowed over the entire spear, changing the handle to a dark red metal, the tip a deep black, a small flame still burning at its end.

Bending down, he picked up the other spear, which did not change at all however, so he kept it on his back, in case Epicraft needed a weapon.

“Epicraft?” He called softly again. “Where are you?”

Looking around, he saw that he was on a long, narrow balcony that stretched around the sides of the bamboo building he had been contained inside. There were several more rooms like the one he had been locked inside, but they were all empty.

Peering over the edge of the balcony, he saw a large stadium-like arena below him, with hundreds of colourfully dressed natives cheering loudly.

At the centre of the stadium was a post, and ThunderBolt stared as he recognised Epicraft tied to it, a group of angry warriors dancing around him, with sharpened spears held in their hands.

Suddenly a sharp voice cut through the cheering, shouting something in an unknown language. It did not come from down in the arena, but from the balcony he was standing on.

Spinning around, ThunderBolt ducked to avoid a wooden spear that flew over his head, then turned to see a dark-skinned native standing at the end of the balcony, pointing at him half in panic, and half in anger.

“Ai ka ikur! Marrë atë!” The guard called again, then turned to run back the way he had came.

Lifting the fiery spear he held in his hand, ThunderBolt threw it with all his might toward the escaping guard.

It struck him in the back, causing him to disappear with a shout of fear as the ThunderBolt’s magical abilities vaporized him.

Lifting his hand, ThunderBolt watched in amazement as the spear lifted itself off the ground where it had fallen, and flew back to its place in his hand.

Running forward, he smashed through the bamboo thatching that acted as window shading and fell into the middle of the arena, raising a shout of surprise from the watching audience.

Ducking under the sharp spear of one of the warriors, he stabbed at one, vaporizing him instantly, then leaped forward and freed the struggling Epicraft.

Pulling the spear off his back, ThunderBolt handed it swiftly to Epicraft, who took it in his hand and watched as it too, began to change form into a weapon that suited his powers.

Dodging to the side to avoid another jab from a spear, Epicraft watched, dumbfounded, as his spear began to glow a bright green, then changed altogether into a metallic weapon that emanated a viridescent light, the tip a glowing mass of green energy.

Forming a forcefield to block another attack from some spears, he backed away to the other side of the arena where ThunderBolt was desperately fighting for his life.

Gathering a ball of energy in his hand, he blasted the angry warriors, sending them fleeing back to the other side of the arena.

“Quick!” Shouted ThunderBolt. “Get up into the crowd! Escape from there!”

Leaping up into the group of spectators that were watching in amazement, the two friends dodged through the crowd and leaped back into the jungle.

“Come on!” ThunderBolt shouted. “Now let’s get out of here!”

Suddenly a field of golden power began to surround them, lifting them off their feet and into the air, helpless.

“Stop!” A voice suddenly shouted, one full of command and order.

The warriors that had been rushing forward to attack the two friends instantly stopped in their tracks and bowed deeply to the ground in submission.

Struggling to escape the golden field of power that defied gravity by holding them of the ground, ThunderBolt looked around to see a tall figure walking towards them through the jungle, a glow of golden light emerging from his right hand.

“Calm yourselves, my warriors!” The tall man commanded, then continued to walk forward while addressing ThunderBolt and Epicraft at the same time.

“Finally, after all these years, I have finally found you!” He cried, a slight tingle of excitement leaking from his powerful voice.

“What?” Asked ThunderBolt, confused.

“Come, come. I will explain in time.” He replied.

“Um,” asked Epicraft, “Could you please let us back down to the ground please? I’m getting kinda dizzy, and I don’t like heights.”

Nodding, the figure released his magical grip on the two companions, who were instantly onto the green forest floor with a thump.

“Now come,” he commanded. “There is much to discuss. And,” he said cautiously, eyeing the threatening guards with disapproval, “They will not harm you. Nobody will.”

Despite the reprimands of the man, the guards still held their spears at the ready.

“I don’t like this,” Whispered ThunderBolt to his friend. “But the only thing to do is follow that guy and listen to what he has to say.”

Nodding, Epicraft began to walk forward down the path the man had taken, with ThunderBolt cautiously following behind.

Part 4 – Explanations

After traversing past hundreds of bamboo huts filled with curious natives, they came to a large, stone palace that stretched up into the tree tops.

ThunderBolt looked up at it in awe, with his friend Epicraft equally amazed, standing beside him.

“Come on, hurry up and get inside!” A voice called. It was the man they had met earlier, the one who had powers equal to their own.

He turned and walked into the large building and disappeared, no longer visible.

ThunderBolt nodded to his friend and began to walk forward. “Come on!” He called, “Let’s find out what’s going on!”

Epicraft nodded, then ran forward until he was side-by-side with his friend, ready for any dangers that might appear at any moment.

Quickly climbing up the huge stone steps that led up into the palace, they walked into the stone building and gasped.

Huge stone pillars held up the enormous ceiling, covered in carvings and symbols. The walls were decorated in equally amazing drawings, and were decorated with all sorts of gems and jewels that glittered in the light of the flaming torches, which were held by countless numbers of dark-skinned guards who marched throughout the palace, looking for intruders.

At the centre of the room that they looked into was a large, stone throne, which the tall man they had met before sat upon, looking down upon them as they walked forward towards him.

“I’m sorry about the incidents before on our way of getting you here,” he said in an apologetic voice. “For I was not informed of your coming until you had already escaped and, well…you know what happened.”

ThunderBolt nodded impatiently, waiting for him to get to the important details of his explanation. “Yes, but who are you, and why do you have powers? Why do we have powers? Does anyone else have powers? And why are you all, like hiding in this jungle, and kidnapping anyone who comes near you?”

The man nodded again then continued to talk. “Firstly, as to what my name is, I never really had a name, but my people call me The Golden Wielder as the prophecy states so that’s what I go by. I have the powers of the sun, but also can overrule all other powers. As for you…”

The Golden Wielder paused for a few seconds, then spoke again. “There is an ancient prophecy spread throughout the depths of this land about 5 powerful warriors that would rise up, each with their own unique abilities that could control the people of this world.”

“I was the first warrior to rise with such power, and for many years after that. But one day another rose, who desired to use his power for evil. He is the Wielder Of Evil, but calls himself Rathkul. Then, you two came along. I believe it was Rathkul himself who developed you, and desired to use you for evil. Thankfully, you both managed to escape, and do not seem to have a desire for evil, despite what he had done to you. There is still another warrior out there somewhere, but whether he is evil or not depends on who finds him first.”

“We have been hiding in this jungle for many years, but did not actually build this civilization, for me and my followers found it a long time ago. We hide here because of the constant spies and scouts that Rathkul sends, searching for me. That is also why we are so cautious about people who come near our settlement.”

Suddenly a huge explosion shook the palace, causing all the guards to bolt out of the palace and into the bright sunlight outside.

“What’s happening?” Epicraft and ThunderBolt asked simultaneously, turning towards The Golden Wielder for an answer.

The leader of the natives had gotten out of his chair and was standing there, listening. Then he charged down the steps and began to walk swiftly towards the door, with Epicraft and ThunderBolt close behind him.

“Yeah, but what’s happening?” Epicraft asked impatiently.

He ran down the steps and looked up into the sky, watching something as it flew overhead. “It’s Rathkul,” he spat, “It looks like he’s found our settlement. And he’s attacking!”

Part 5 – Rathkul Attacks

ThunderBolt ducked under a hail of bullets that came from an enemy helicopter, then formed a ball of fire and blasted the flying vehicle, bringing it crashing to the ground in a mass of flames.

Not bothering to watch the destruction of the machine, he ran on forward, with Epicraft behind, The Golden Wielder in front.

Suddenly several helicopters landed to their left, and a group of armed soldiers leaped out and tried to attack them.

With one flick of his hand, The Golden Wielder sent the helicopter and its inhabitants flying far away into the distance, completely out of control.

The soldiers that had jumped out looked at them in fear, then held up their guns and fired a volley of bullets towards the three companions.

Spreading his arms out wide, Epicraft quickly gathered a field of energy around them and formed a forcefield around them, then blasted the soldiers with a viridescent beam of power.

Pulling out his magical spear, ThunderBolt quickly, and without knowing how he did it, transformed it into a flaming sword.

Running forward, he blasted himself hundreds of metres into the air, then came down in a resounding shockwave in a group of enemy soldiers, destroying them in an instant.

Blocking another volley of bullets, he ran quickly forward, leaving a trail of blazing fire where he had passed.

Within a few seconds, he had trapped several groups of enemies with his fiery path, causing them to huddle together as they realised they had no option of escape.

Leaping through the burning flames, Epicraft formed a beam of energy in his hands and blasted a group of terrified soldiers, transforming them within moments into a few small piles of ash.

Suddenly a powerful presence of evil could be felt in all their minds and bodies; Rathkul had arrived.

Peering through the clouds of smoke and flame, ThunderBolt saw a pair of glowing white eyes staring towards him. Malicious, evil eyes, full of deceit and trickery.

Running forward, he again blasted himself into the air, and landed in a cloud of smoke and flame beside the evil villain.

Drawing his flaming sword, he threw it towards Rathkul, who ducked and drew his own, shadowy scythe to block it.

Rathkul retreated a few steps, then dropped his shadowy scythe and lifted his hands as if he were about to pull something from his opponent.

ThunderBolt suddenly fell to his knees as his power began to drain out from him. Unable to fight, he just lay there as he grew weaker and weaker, watching as Rathkul’s malicious smile grew wider and more victorious.

Epicraft spun through the smoky haze of the battlefield, destroying countless soldiers with his magical weapon, and blasting the ones that were too far away with his powerful energy.

Turning, he saw ThunderBolt kneeling on the ground, and a shadowy figure with glowing white eyes standing beside him, getting ready to strike.

“Noooooo!!” Shouted Epicraft, and took off at a run towards them, his energetic powers allowing him to cover the distance within a few seconds.

Ducking under Rathkul’s scythe, he formed a ball of energy and slammed it into his opponent, sending him flying backwards into the trunk of a tall oak.

“Are you okay?” Epicraft asked, helping his friend to his feet as he spoke.

ThunderBolt looked up weakly. “I’m no match for him,” he said, struggling to hold himself up with his sword. “But together…”

Nodding, Epicraft pulled out his magical spear and quickly transformed it into a green, shining axe.

Lifting the heavy weapon into the air, he watched in satisfaction as a magical, green wave of energy flowed across its surface.

“We can try,” Epicraft finished, turning around in a circle to look for the glowing eyes of Rathkul in the smoky haze of the battlefield.

Running and jumping over flaming pits of fire, the two friends sped across the battlefield, destroying any of the enemies that remained.

Suddenly a pair of glowing eyes appeared to their left, and they veered off towards it, holding their weapons perhaps a little tighter.

Running forward, ThunderBolt came running out of the smoke, and saw that Rathkul had been waiting for them.

Jumping high into the air to avoid a vicious swing from his enemies scythe, he formed a fireball in his hand and blasted Rathkul with it, sending him back a few steps.

Lifting up his heavy energy axe, Epicraft swung it viciously at his opponent, then quickly formed a green shield of energy to block another attack from Rathkul.

Ducking under a dark black stream of pure evil, ThunderBolt spun around and kicked his enemy in the face, exerting all his force into the move.

Screaming with rage, Rathkul formed two small tendrils of darkness and began to drain the power from both his enemies.

At once they were defenceless, their faces a picture of utter agony as they lay on the ground, not possessing the strength or ability to even lift their weapons.

Laughing with malicious contempt, the evil villain drew his scythe, and, lifting it high into the air, brought it down in a vicious blow that could and would destroy his enemies.

Suddenly a powerful presence appeared beside him and blocked his attempt to kill ThunderBolt and Epicraft.

It was The Golden Wielder.

“Well, well,” cried Rathkul in a malicious tone, stepping backwards as his nemesis unsheathed another golden, glowing sword from his back. “Look who finally decided to show up. ”

Without responding, The Golden Wielder stepped forward and slashed at him, using one glowing sword to block, while the other to attack, driving Rathkul back with each swing.

“You are no match for me, Rathkul!” Spat The Golden Wielder, swinging both his blades as he drove his opponent back even further. “And you will never be!”

Rathkul laughed, then backflipped several metres away and held his scythe at the ready. “Once I find the final warrior, and harvest his powers, nothing will stop me, not even you.” He laughed, then began to form a black field of darkness beside him.

The Golden Wielder stepped back as the sphere of evil grew larger and larger, then disappeared, taking Rathkul with it.

ThunderBolt and Epicraft ran up behind him, their weapons still held in their hands.

“He escaped, didn’t he?” Asked ThunderBolt.

The Golden Wielder nodded. “But it will not be long before he returns. With even more power than before.”

Epicraft slung his heavy axe back over his shoulder. “What did he say about finding the final warrior?”

The Golden Wielder sighed and turned around, looking at all the death and destruction that had happened in the past two hours. “If he finds the last warrior with powers like us before we do, then he will drain his power and give it to himself, which is what he planned to do with you. And if he get’s that, then there will be no stopping him.”

 

 

Part 6 – Ambushed

 

ThunderBolt opened his eyes and stared up into the night sky above him.

Slipping his feet over the side of the bed he had been sleeping on, he looked about him.

The Golden Wielder and Epicraft were sleeping in their own separate beds, each on different sides of the campfire which, ThunderBolt noticed, had burnt out.

Standing up, he grabbed some sticks from the edge of the clearing and dumped them on the fire, throwing sparks into the air.

He waited impatiently for it to catch hold, and eventually formed a fireball and threw it into the midst of the campfire, making it roar up loudly as it started to incinerate.

A small noise came from behind him, and, turning around, he saw that Epicraft had awoke, and was sitting up in bed, watching him.

“Oh, sorry,” ThunderBolt whispered, “I didn’t mean to wake you. I was just making up the fire.”

Epicraft grinned, then stretched his arms in a yawn. “With a fireball?”

ThunderBolt shrugged, then turned around, walked over to his bed and lay down. “Whatever. “ He whispered, then closed his eyes, already asleep.

***

“ThunderBolt!”

ThunderBolt suddenly awoke to the sound of someone calling his name.

He leaped out of bed, to see Epicraft and The Golden Wielder looking at him, their weapons at the ready.

“What’s happening?” He said sleepily, putting his hand to his mouth to stop a yawn.

“Get serious!” Growled The Golden Wielder. “We’re being attacked.”

A look of confusion spread across his face, and then was replaced by one of caution as he drew his flaming sword.

“What do you mean?” He asked. “There’s no one-”

He stopped mid sentence as a volley of purple bullets flew past him and hit the tree near the edge of the clearing, leaving several burning holes.

“Who are they?” He whispered.

“It’s Rathkul again,” Replied Epicraft, deflecting several bullets with his axe.

Suddenly a group of soldiers charged out behind them, each holding a plasma gun firmly in their hands.

Forming a fireball in his free hand, ThunderBolt launched it towards the group, dispersing them quickly.

The sound of helicopters began to fill the air, and two of the enormous vehicles suddenly came swooping down into the clearing, raining volley after volley of bullets on them.

Stretching his arms out wide again, Epicraft formed a semi-sphere of energy around them, blocking any bullets from hitting the three warriors.

“This is getting too dangerous,” Epicraft shouted. “Let’s make a break for it!”

Forming a fireball in his hand, ThunderBolt launched it at one of the helicopters, bringing it crashing to the ground as a distraction, then bolted off into the undergrowth, with his two companions beside him.

Leaping over fallen logs and bushes, they sped through the forest, killing any enemies who got in their way and deflecting any bullets that came near.

A little way ahead of them, ThunderBolt could see a small, narrow clearing that looked more like a path than anything else.

Sprinting forward at an incredible speed, they quickly leapt onto the path and continued running forwards.

Suddenly a figure stepped out of the bushes to his left and threw his hands forward as if forming something.

Time seemed to stop around them (it did) as a transparent semi-sphere formed around them, with each of them directly inside.

ThunderBolt struggled to move, but found he could not. He couldn’t even move his eyes, or blink. Time had stopped in that magical sphere around them, forcing him to watch desperately as the figure laughed, then turned around and walked back into the forest.

A moment later, Rathkul appeared, a dark, shadowy scythe held in his hand.

“Well!” He cried maliciously, an evil grin spreading across his face. “Looks like my little accomplice and I have captured you perfectly! Allow me to introduce Surge204, The Wielder Of Time!”

As he spoke, the figure stepped out of the forest again and stood beside Rathkul, an evil grin on his face.

“Unfortunately,” Rathkul continued, “You didn’t get to him first, and he soon decided he liked evil better than good, anyway.”

Suddenly a group of soldiers came running through the undergrowth, staring at the three captives.

“Take them away!” Ordered Rathkul. “They’re annoying to look at. But be warned, they still have their powers.”

Something suddenly fell onto the three friends, causing their vision to turn black, then spin around crazily as they became less and less aware of what was happening around them. Then, finally, they lost consciousness and knew no more, until they awoke in a dangerous and somehow familiar place.

 

 

Part 7 – Back In The Testing Lab

 

ThunderBolt opened his eyes slowly and looked about him. Where was he?

And then the memory of the testing facility he had awaken in came back to him.

Oh no. He thought. Not again.

Looking around, he saw that he was hanging in some kind of laser beam, his arms and legs stretched apart widely in a forced position.

“I see you’re awake.” A malicious voice said.

Lifting his head, he saw that a dark, shadowy figure standing in front of him, a satisfied smile on his evil face: Rathkul.

“Welcome back!” He said, an evil tone filling his voice.

Growling with anger, ThunderBolt began to form a fireball in his right hand.

“Ah…” Said Rathkul, and quickly created two black tendrils of evil that moved towards ThunderBolt’s body.

Looking at his enemy, his eyes filled with hatred, ThunderBolt tried to move away from the threads of black darkness that were moving towards his body.

Suddenly they shot forward and stabbed themselves into his body, their dark forms wrapping themselves around him.

Instantly his body exploded into pain as the power began to drain from him and into his nemesis.

Rathkul’s eyes began to glow brighter and brighter as ThunderBolt’s power began to flow into him, the thin tendrils of darkness quivering as the energy flowed through him.

As the last of his power was drained from him, ThunderBolt’s body sagged and his head fell down to lie on his chest, his strength completely gone.

Laughing evilly with excitement, Rathkul formed a fireball in his hand and threw it towards the wall, making it glow red for just an instant as it made contact.

“You…” Gasped ThunderBolt wearily, “Will not…get away…with this!”

Rathkul laughed again, then turned around, opened the metal door, and stepped out into the passage. “I’ll deal with you later,” He said in a malicious tone, then disappeared around the corner, closing the door behind him.

A moment later, he heard a door open to his left, and then a scream of pain and agony; Epicraft.

His body suddenly filling with rage, he struggled against the glowing restraints that held him, his anger filling him with strength for a moment.

The screaming stopped, and ThunderBolt realised that Epicraft’s powers had also been drained.

Suddenly a huge hole was blown in the side of his cell, and he stared to the left to see Epicraft, hanging by his restraints, and Rathkul, his hand glowing a bright green.

“Thanks again,” The evil villain said mockingly, then opened the door and, stepping out, closed it again

“Epicraft!” He called desperately to the motionless shape in the cell behind him. “Epicraft! Are you okay?”

A small, groaning sound came from his friend, and Epicraft slowly lifted his head to look at him.

“He…took my powers…” Epicraft said, his voice barely audible.

ThunderBolt nodded. “And mine.”

“But what are we gonna do?” Epicraft burst out. “He’s got all our powers! And he’s going to take over the world with them! We have to stop him!”

ThunderBolt’s head dropped back down onto his chest. “There’s nothing we can do.” He whispered, breathing a long, hopeless sigh as he did so.

Suddenly the door opened again, and he looked up.

A group of soldiers came marching through the doorway, carrying a body in their armoured hands.

As they approached the  centre of the room, they dumped the body on the ground and disappeared through the door, locking it behind them.

The body lay still for several minutes, then began to stir. It groaned, and sat up to reveal the red eyes of Surge204.

“Oh,” Said ThunderBolt, sarcasm filling his voice. “It’s you.”

Surge nodded, his eyes barely glowing. “He…took my powers…” He said hoarsely, his voice just audible.

ThunderBolt smiled grimly. “Yep. That’s always the way. There can never be more than one evil tyrant at once. One always desires the most power, and will do anything to get it.”

Surge turned his head away. “I am still new to this world, and did not know what was right or wrong, and, as he was the first person I met, I believed he was right. Not that it’s any excuse for what I did,” He added. “If I hadn’t done that, then we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

He sighed again. “It’s no use.” He whispered, his eyes dimming. I will never change. I will always be evil.”

ThunderBolt nodded. “You can still change, you know.”

Surge lifted his head and stared up at him, his eyes glowing brighter. “What do you mean?” He asked.

ThunderBolt opened his mouth to reply, but Epicraft interrupted him. “You don’t have to be evil.” He explained, “There is always time to change. It is never too late, and the only thing you have to do is put right what you have done wrong, and repair what you have broken.”

Surge turned his head, his red eyes glowing slightly. “So you’re saying that all I have to do is defeat Rathkul and stop him from destroying the world?”

The two friends nodded. “Not that it’s something to take lightly.” Epicraft added. “It’s not like we could have stopped him before, so we definitely can’t now. But if you’re going to try, can we help?”

Surge looked back towards them, got to his feet, walked over to the control panel, and released them from their invisible restraints.

They fell to the ground, their legs giving way for a moment, then grew stronger as they stood up, determination filling both of their faces.

“Great!” Cried Epicraft, “Now how are we gonna stop Rathkul?”

“This probably won’t work,” ThunderBolt said thoughtfully, turning to face his friend. “But Rathkul’s going to destroy the world anyway, so we’ve got nothing to lose. This is crazy, dangerous, and reckless, but if you want to help, here’s what we’re gonna do…”

 

 

Part 8 – The Armoury

 

Cautiously peering through the metal-lined doorway, ThunderBolt searched the corridor. There were no guards in sight

“All clear!” He whispered, then crept forward out of the cell into the passageway, Epicraft and Surge close behind him.

Peering round the corner, he noted thankfully that there were no guards visible.

“Come on!” He whispered to Epicraft, then turned to Surge and asked, “So where’s the armoury?”

Surge thought for a moment, then pointed down the corridor. “Down here,” he whispered.

Cautiously creeping around the corner, he noted thankfully that there were no guards in sight.

They continued to weave their way through the maze of corridors, somehow managing to avoid every guard that stood in their path.

Eventually they came to a metal door that looked heavily reinforced.

“Guys!” Whispered Surge, indicating to the door. “Come on! This is it!”

Cautiously opening the door, the three companions peered in. Thankfully there was nobody inside.

“Ok,” said ThunderBolt, looking around the room. “We need weapons, armour, and supplies. Epicraft, can you barricade the door?”

This command was immediately obeyed, and the three of them dragged a heavy mech suit in front of it, blocking the entrance of anyone who might have wanted to enter.

Looking around, he walked across the room and took down a sword that was suspended from the wall.

“Not too bad…” He muttered, then turned around as Surge called him.

“Hey!” He called. “Over here! Check these out!”

Turning around, he saw that Surge was indicating to a smaller room to their left, a sign with PROTOTYPES written above it.

“I bet they’ve got some better stuff in here!” Surge said excitedly, then opened the door and went in.

Epicraft and ThunderBolt looked at each other, then followed him.

“Watch this!” Called a voice as they entered the room, and they turned just in time to see Surge pick up a white, metal glove, and aim it at the wall.

Next moment, a huge laser beam shot out of the glove and hit the wall, throwing glowing sparks into the air.

“Awesome!” Grinned Epicraft, then looked around him.

A large, bulky backpack thingy was hanging on a hook on the wall. Above it was written JETPACK.

With a grin on his face, he slipped the bulky gadget over his back, and stared about in surprise as his feet left the ground. Looking down, he saw that he was hovering about a metre or two (yes, I’m Australian) off the ground, a blinding glow of white surrounding the jetpack.

Turning around, he saw ThunderBolt832 walking slowly towards him, his entire body encased inside a giant mech suit.

“Cool!” Epicraft exclaimed, then slipped a pair of metallic pants over his legs, protecting them from any harm. “But this jetpack is too large and heavy. Any boots around with the same effect?”

***

Half an hour later, ThunderBolt832 moved the barricade away from the door and opened it, slowly squeezing the massive bulk of his mech suit through it.

Behind him followed Epicraft426 and Surge204, both fully armoured with gadgets and weapons.

Epicraft had had his request, and was now wearing a set of metal boots that allowed him to hover off the ground when he wanted. The rest of his body was covered in a suit of glowing armour, a powerful gun held in his hand.

Surge204 had two of special gloves on his hands, both of which could shoot powerful laser beams. The rest of his body was encased in a protective layer of mythanium, which made him almost invincible.

The three heavily-armoured companions made their way slowly through the passageways, destroying any guards they encountered before the alarm could be triggered.

“This is no use!” ThunderBolt exclaimed, after they realized once again that they could not just keep searching through the corridors, hoping to find the exit. “Let’s just blast our way out! That’s how Epicraft and me escaped from here!”

Without waiting for them to answer, he lifted his arm and shot a massive fireball towards the wall, incinerating it in an instant.

Moving quickly forward, they emerged through the hole into a large landing pad where a large ship sat, a huge group of guards surrounding it.

Suddenly a door opened at the end of the pad, and two guards stepped out, escorting a dark, shadowy figure between them.

In the figure’s hand was a dark, shadowy scythe that somehow glowed gold, red, green, orange, and blue at the same time.

It was Rathkul.

Suddenly there was a shout from one of the guards; they had been spotted.

Rathkul turned, and was surprised at first to see them, then his face turned to a sneer as he continued to march towards the ship.

“Come on!” Shouted ThunderBolt, running forward to meet the oncoming wave of guards. “If he get’s to the ship and escapes, then the whole world is doomed!”

 

 

Part 9 – Starfighter Battle

 

Lifting the arm of his powerful mech suit, ThunderBolt832 shot a powerful blast of fire at the group of soldiers that were approaching, dispersing them quickly.

Turning the suit slowly, he watched Epicraft fire the gun he held in his hand, pushing him back a few steps with the force. The result was incredible, and destroyed more than half the soldiers.

Activating his jet boots, Epicraft flew up into the air amidst a hail of bullets from the enemy, but they were quickly dispersed by a blast of Surge204’s powerful gloves.

Looking around, ThunderBolt saw Rathkul quickly hurrying up into the large ship, his evil face still staring at them.

“Quick!” Shouted Surge. “Don’t let him get away!”

Bolting forward, the three companions shot their weapons at the ship, but it was too strong for them to do any damage.

Running as fast as he could, ThunderBolt sprinted across the landing pad and up into the ship. Rathkul was waiting for him.

Suddenly a sphere of blue formed around him, and he was stuck; time had stopped inside it, and him with it.

Stepping forward, Rathkul stared at him maliciously, then spoke. “Your efforts are useless,” he said. “Not even with those fancy new weapons and armour can you stop me. The world will fall. Just like The Golden Wielder did.”

Huge jets suddenly appeared out the side of the ship, and it soared off into the sky, leaving the three companions staring up at it.

A moment later the forcefield around ThunderBolt disappeared, dropping him and his mech suit to the ground.

“Come on!” He said in a determined voice. “We’ve got to go after him!”

Without hesitating, the three companions sprinted across the landing pad towards a mini starfighter surrounded by helicopters.

“I bet this is Rathkul’s private form of transport,” ThunderBolt said with a grin, “Because there doesn’t seem to be any like it.”

Leaping into the open cockpit, ThunderBolt and Epicraft sat in the passenger seats (ThunderBolt took up two with his mech) and Surge jumped into the pilot’s position.

Reaching up with one arm, Surge closed the hatch and focused on the controls.

Lifting one arm, he flicked a couple of switches, then firmly pressed a big red button labeled LAUNCH.

The starfighter began to vibrate as the jets underneath it roared to life, slowly lifting the small ship uncertainly into the air.

“Uh…” Said Epicraft uncertainly, looking out the window as he spoke. “Have you ever flown this before?”

Surge shook his head. “Nope, but Rathkul took me with him in here when we went into the forest, and…well…”

ThunderBolt nodded. “Yeah, okay. But do you know how to fly it?”

Surge shrugged and shook his head once more. “More or less.”

Reaching forward, he gripped the handle of one of the levers, and pulled it down firmly.

Instantly they were pressed firmly against the backs of their seats as the starfighter flew away at a terrific speed.

“Now,” Said Surge firmly. “Which way was Rathkul headed?”

ThunderBolt lifted his head and looked out of through the cockpit, then shouted, “There he is!”

Grabbing the controls, Surge turned the ship sharply off to the right, and began to follow the large, bulky starship that Rathkul had flown off in.

“Does this thing have weapons?” Epicraft asked, “Because this might be the time to use them!”

As he spoke, a large hatch opened in the side of the starship they were chasing, and about seven or eight mini starfighters identical to their own flew out, straight towards them.

“We’ll soon find out!” Surge replied, jerking the controls to the side and narrowly avoiding the squadron of fighters that were flying towards them.

Looking around the cockpit, he saw a button labeled WEAPONS. Reaching  forward, he pressed it firmly with one finger.

Instantly two panels on either side of the ship opened up, and two large laser cannons appeared. At the same time, another set of buttons appeared on the steering controls.

“Now,” said Surge, then, with a quick and complicated maneuver, flipped the ship around towards the group of fighters following behind.

Placing his thumbs firmly on the FIRE button, he waited a few seconds until one of the starfighters was in line. Then he pressed the button.

BOOMMM!!!

Two huge laser beams shot out from the cannons on either side of their vehicle and hit the starfighter, incinerating it instantly.

POWWWW!!

Surge veered the ship away just in time as a large laser beam, equal to his own, shot past, narrowly avoiding them.

Repeating his special maneuver again, he flipped the ship around and destroyed another of the ships.

ThunderBolt suddenly grabbed his arm. “Surge!” He shouted, “Rathkul’s getting away!”

Turning his head, Surge saw the huge, bulky ship that Rathkul had escaped in, disappearing into the distance as it slowly moved away.

Epicraft spoke again. “Guys, I’ve got a plan. It’s crazy, but it’s the only thing we can do…”

***

BOOOMMM!!!

Another starfighter exploded as Surge pressed the FIRE button, giving them the distraction they had planned for.

Opening the cockpit of the ship, ThunderBolt and Epicraft moved forward beside Surge, and tensed their legs, ready to jump.

Staring forward, Surge turned the ship around until it was heading directly for another enemy ship.

Setting the throttle to full speed, the engines roared as the two ships headed directly towards each other.

There was now only 100 metres between them, now 50, now 25, now…

“Now!” Shouted Epicraft, and jumped out of the starfighter with ThunderBolt close behind just as Surge veered away from the enemy.

The two friends landed with a thud on the back of the starfighter, barely holding on as it flew past.

Pulling out his plasma gun, Epicraft quickly ripped a hole in the cockpit, and they jumped inside.

Quickly grabbing the unaware soldier, ThunderBolt blasted another hole in the side of the ship and threw him out.

Grabbing the controls of the starship, Epicraft steered it towards another enemy fighter, then jumped out of the cockpit, allowing the starfighter to collide with a third ship.

They landed heavily on the second ship, but the pilot was ready for them.

The ship suddenly veered upwards towards the sun, and ThunderBolt just grabbed on as he began to fall. With his other hand, he reached for Epicraft, and reached him just in time.

“You do know I’ve got jet-propelled boots?” Epicraft shouted, a grin on his tired face.

ThunderBolt nodded, then slowly moved the bulk of his mech suit forward, letting go of his friend as he did so.

Reaching forward with one hand, he blasted a hole in the cockpit, and jumped in.

The ship suddenly stopped in the air, and began to fall as the jets stopped.

Shoving the pilot out through the window, ThunderBolt grabbed the controls and jerked them upwards, watching desperately as the ground came rushing up towards them.

Jets that had previously been hidden suddenly burst to life, propelling the ship upwards, away from the almost-certain death they had been expecting.

“Phew!” Muttered ThunderBolt. “That was a close one!”

Turning the ship upwards, they flew back towards the heat of battle.

Searching the controls, he pressed the FIRE button firmly, instantly destroying another enemy starfighter.

Suddenly a loud explosion filled the air, and the two friends looked out the window of their ship in horror to see the remains of a wing.

Instantly the ship lost altitude, and began to fall back towards the ground.

“We need to jump!” ThunderBolt shouted, then shoved Epicraft out of the window.

As he fell, Epicraft reached down and activated his jet-propelled boots, instantly propelling himself upwards.

Looking back down towards the damaged starfighter, he saw a large clunky mech suit, with ThunderBolt inside, leap out of the ship, and plummet towards the ground.

“Nooooooo!!!” Screamed Epicraft, watching desperately as his friend disappeared from view into the forest below.

Suddenly a long, metallic rope shot out from the trees and attached itself to one of the enemy starfighters. A moment later, ThunderBolt shot out of the trees, the mechanism in his mechanical suit winding the grappling hook back in as he flew upwards towards the ship.

“Man, that was scary!” He shouted, a barely-audible grin showing on his face.

As he grabbed the wing of the starfighter, Epicraft flew up alongside, and helped him to his feet.

Running forward, Epicraft blasted a hole in the metal side of the ship, and dived in.

A loud pow sounded inside, and a body fell to the ground inside with a thud.

“Epicraft?” Asked ThunderBolt, hurriedly moving forward and jumping in through the hole in the ship. “Epicraft, are you okay?”

 

 

Part 10 – Saving The World

 

“Epicraft?” ThunderBolt desperately called again. “What happened? Are you okay?”

Epicraft’s face suddenly appeared in the door of the cockpit, a grin on his face. “I’m perfectly fine, thank you,” He said mischievously.

“Where’s the pilot?” Asked ThunderBolt.

Epicraft indicated to a hole in the window, then turned around and sat down at the controls.

Out the corner of his eye, “ThunderBolt saw the large ship that Rathkul had escaped in just disappearing into the distance. “Come on!” He shouted. “Rathkul is getting away again!”

Grabbing the controls, Epicraft turned the ship around, just in time to see the starfighter Surge had been flying collide with the last remaining starfighter, creating a massive explosion.

A moment later, a dull thud came from the roof of the ship, and Surge’s face appeared through the hole in the side of the ship. “Anyone home?” He asked, then dived in.

“Here,” he said, “I’ll take the controls if you don’t mind, Epicraft.”

Standing up, Epicraft stepped out of the cockpit and allowed Surge to sit down in the pilot’s seat.

“We’ve got to catch Rathkul!” Epicraft shouted, pointing out the window at the ship of the large ship that was slowly moving away.

Reaching forward, Surge pulled back a lever on his left, and a moment later, the three friends were pressed firmly against the backs of their seats as the ship shot forward.

Within seconds, they had caught up with the large, freighter-like ship.

“How do we get inside?” ThunderBolt asked.

Surge stared forward at the enormous ship beside them. “There should be a landing bay somewhere…there is is!”

Pressing another button, Surge blasted a hole in the ship, and flew the starfighter forward, landing it gently in the large hanger inside.

Opening the cockpit, they climbed out, and ran across to a large door labelled TO THE COCKPIT.

Blasting the door apart, they ran inside and followed the long passage to the cockpit.

As they emerged into the large room, they were shocked to see Rathkul himself at the controls, a busy, serious expression on his face.

“Now!” Shouted Surge, and the three friends leaped forward to attack their evil nemesis.

Pulling out his shadowy scythe, Rathkul blocked a powerful blast from Surge, then kicked him in the chest, sending him flying to the other side of the room.

Pulling out his electro axe, Epicraft swung it mightily towards Rathkul, ducked under a swing from his scythe, then leaped into the air and kicked his enemy in the face.

Quickly forming something with his dark hands, Rathkul shot a blast of energy at ThunderBolt, who just pulled out his magnetic shield in time to deflect it.

The beam bounced off ThunderBolt’s mythanium shield, and blasted itself into one of the control panels, causing sparks to fly into the air.

Running forward, the three companions continued to block Rathkul’s attacks, but never got even close enough to hurting him.

Letting out an ear-piercing scream, their enemy formed three tendrils of darkness, and launched them towards his three opponents.

“Are you forgetting something, Rathkul?” Shouted Surge gleefully. “You’ve already drained our powers! We don’t have any left for you to take!”

Growling viciously, The Wielder Of Evil leaped into the air and blasted all three of them with a blinding golden energy.

Lifting their shields, they deflected the various blasts of energy, fire, and darkness away from them, slowly destroying the controls of the huge ship.

Suddenly running forward, Rathkul formed three semi-spheres of time in the room, trapping ThunderBolt and Epicraft inside.

Leaping out the way, Surge ran forward and knocked his enemy to the floor with a blast of his powerful gloves.

Instantly seizing the opportunity, he leaped up onto the control panel and smashed the final screen.

Slowly, with a loud groaning and creaking sound, the large freighter ship began to fall towards the ground, instantly smashing the two spheres of time ThunderBolt and Epicraft had been trapped in.

Surge leaped to his feet. “Quick!” He shouted. “You two get in the starfighter and get out of here!”

Leaping forward, Surge blasted Rathkul again with his glove, then landed on his opponent and struggled to hold him down. “Gooooooooo!!!” He screamed, then fell backwards as his opponent landed a blow.

Running forward, ThunderBolt and Epicraft sprinted through the doors, and ran, panting, up the passageway towards the hanger as a loud air-raid siren (that’s what it sounded like, anyway) began to sound.

Looking out the window as they passed, ThunderBolt saw the large, grassy hillside outside rushing upwards to meet them.

“We’re not going to make it!” He shouted, then fell to the ground as everything went black, the sounds of an explosion filling his ears…

 

Part 11 – Survivor

ThunderBolt832 opened his eyes, and stared up at the white roof that hung above his head.

What happened? He thought, then sat up.

He was lying in a white, metal bed. Clean white sheets had been draped over him, and his head rested on a soft, red pillow.

A door suddenly opened, and someone stepped into the room, a wide grin on his face.

“Hello, ThunderBolt!” The person said, then moved forward towards him.

With a gasp, ThunderBolt recognised as Epicraft. “We survived!” He shouted, and suddenly the whole incident came back to him. “But how?”

Epicraft sat down on the end of his bed. “After the ship crashed, we were all knocked unconscious. I woke up several hours later, and there was no sign of anyone except you. In the distance I could see the wreckage of the ship. I must have been thrown clear when it crashed. I still couldn’t see you anywhere, and spent hours searching through the wreckage before I finally found you.”

“I couldn’t tell if you were dead or alive, so all I could do was hope. For several days-”

 

ThunderBolt stared at him. “You mean I’ve been unconscious for that long?” He asked in surprise.

“Yes,” Epicraft continued. “Anyway, for several days I searched for help, when finally a group of helicopters came into sight over the forest, and I waved them down. A group of people jumped out, and I told them what had happened. They took you away in a helicopter, and I followed.”

“After flying over the forest for several hours, we came to a large town, and landed in a large hanger. I couldn’t believe it, but the first person to come out and meet us was the Golden Wielder! He’d lost his powers, but he was still the same.”

“You were immediately taken to the hospital. We, that is, the Golden Wielder and me, waited several more days for you to recover. And finally, you woke up!”

ThunderBolt leaped out of his bed. “Where is he?” He asked. “And where’s Surge? What happened to Rathkul?”

Epicraft stood up. “The Golden Wielder had to leave a couple of days before you regained consciousness, something more to do with Rathkul I believe. But, unfortunately…Surge didn’t make it. Another rescue team found both his and Rathkul’s body. They’re both dead.”

“Well,” Said ThunderBolt after a minute or two. “At least he put right his mistakes. I thought he was an evil rogue at first, but after he helped us escape, I think we both saw a change in him.”

Epicraft nodded, “At least we saved the world, and defeated Rathkul.”

ThunderBolt shook his head. “We didn’t. He did. Nothing would be left if he hadn’t done what he did.”

 

Epilogue

Somewhere in the jungle, in the middle of Rathkul’s evil testing lab, a dark figure with glowing white eyes stepped into a room.

Looking upwards, he shook his head in aggravation.

What an idiot Rathkul had been. He had had all five of the elemental powers, ALL FIVE OF THEM! And yet he had died, and to make matters worse, he had been killed by the very people he had taken powers from! Oh well,  Rathkul had died, and all the world of evil would learn from his mistakes.

Staring up at the millions of green test tubes that covered the ceiling, each one containing the body of a soldier, he grinned evilly. They were his soldiers now, not Rathkul’s. Second-in-command had never been enough for him, he had always wanted more power. Now he had it.

Pulling something from beneath his dark cloak, he strode up a set of steps in the enormous room, until he was standing on a white platform with a large, pedestal stood. A glowing white light emitted from it, and millions of tendrils of light flowed from it, each connected to one of the test tubes that hung above his head.

Gripping the orb he had pulled from his cloak firmly in both hands, he placed it on the pedestal, watching as four different colours flowed inside it.

Fire could be plainly seen, energy was alongside, darkness was barely visible, but the golden colour was so bright it almost overwhelmed the others.

The bright-eyed person frowned. Why was there only four colours? Surely Rathkul had taken the powers of time from Surge? Yes, he had seen Rathkul doing it. So where was it?

Oh well, four was enough.

Reaching forward, the dark, shadowy person pushed the orb firmly down onto the pedestal, and it clicked into place.

Instantly the white threads of light that emitted from the pedestal changed, and four different colours now flowed through instead. Red, black, green, and gold.

The figure smiled evilly. Now, with an army of power wielders, nothing could stop him. The world would be his.

 

The End.

Note: May be continued in Project Power Mode Y.