Beyond What's Known

Chapter 4

"Alana!" Trixie called, loading a Frostcrawler. Alana nodded, her eyes still wide at the sight of Burpy attacking his slinger and friends, but followed Trixie's lead. The two fired their Frostcrawlers in unison.

The megamorphs flew next to each other, breathing out enough ice to create a towering fifty foot wall between the gang and the Darkfurnus. Alana could feel the burst of cold air from where she sat atop Midnight. Alana sighed in relief, taking a few breaths and holding a hand up, beginning to summon light energy to cure Burpy the second he appeared.

But the second that a blue glow began to dance across her fingertips, Trixie grabbed her arm and pushed it down.

"No way," the redhead said, eyes wide with fear. "No powers. Not unless you have to. It'll give you away to that guy. I'd hide Ash unless you need to use him, too."

Alana sighed and nodded, letting the wisps of energy disappear. So many months of freely using her powers, and now she was back to having to try to hide them. Ash chirped sadly, but he nodded and hopped off of Alana's shoulder and into her black backpack.

Eli loaded Doc into his blaster, and the gang was expecting a few more moments of relief from the chase given the size and strength of the ice wall, but with no warning, Burpy shattered through the center of it like it was nothing. Shards of ice clattered down to the ground around the gang, and the Darkfurnus continued his path uninterrupted.

"Cure him, Doc!" Eli called, his voice almost a plea as he fired his healer.

Doc fearlessly grappled Burpy, the white guardian starburst above his head shining bright as ever as Burpy went limp in his arms. Bright green and white engulfed the two slugs, and hope blossomed in Alana's chest when she felt the rush of pure slug energy overtake the Darkfurnus. Eli leapt off Lucky and sprinted forward as the two slugs returned to protoform and fell to the ground.

"Burpy, are you okay?" the Shane asked, dropping to his knees and scooping up his Infurnus. Alana and the others sighed with relief when Burpy nodded and hopped upwards, chirping happily and momentarily rubbing his head against Doc's in thanks.

"Guys," Kord said warningly, getting off his mecha and stepping in front of the others, his blaster at the ready. A pit formed in Alana's stomach when she saw that the Dark Slinger and his marauders had advanced to meet the gang at the bottom of the cliff.

The man in question looked even more sickly up close. His pale skin was tinted green, and Alana could see his veins on his neck and face. Something about the way he looked around at the gang made her feel like he knew something they didn't, although his gaze didn't stay on Alana any more than Trixie, Kord, or Pronto, so he must not have recognized her. He reached down and let his ghoul hop back into his hand, then onto his shoulder.

"That must be a ghouled Boon Doc," Trixie breathed, staring at the vicious dark green ghoul. Alana's eyes widened.

"That's where I've seen it before," she said. "Well, other than the West. Master Shanai. Blakk used that kind of ghoul. So on top of the damage we've seen them do before, they can also ghoul slugs."

Eli winced at the mention of the Unbeatable Master's death, but he stood his ground, his fingers curling into fists as he stared down the Dark Slinger.

"Are you working with Doctor Blakk?" he called out coldly, watching the Dark Slinger carefully.

The Dark Slinger cocked his head, as if surprised at the question. He let out a small laugh and shook her head before speaking in a voice that Alana had heard in her nightmares.

"I know not of who you speak," he snarled. He looked not at Eli, but at his shoulder, where Burpy sat next to Doc. "Is he your slinger?"

Burpy chirped in surprise and confusion, exchanging a glance with Doc before glancing back at the Dark Slinger and nodding carefully. Alana raised an eyebrow. Why would he address Burpy? The guy didn't exactly seem like the kind to respect slugs. The ghouls in his wrist blasters and on his shoulders attested to that.