Insane Cafe 4: The Insane Frontier

[Nick22]

Stripetail stepped forward, his staff glowing brightly ' duspellum' he commanded as the wave of dark enerrgy, was redirected around himself, Bigmouth and vallbaran, and impacted harmlessly on a carve in the tunnel. Stripetail leaned on his staff heavily, taking a deep breath  after his exertion. "Nice work' He said to both of the others.  Dullahans armor lay in pieces, his sword  lying on the floor from where the  monster had collaped, the sword sprawling away after Dullahan had landed and vanished.

  Stripetail sheathed his sword and staff, and stepped forward to look at the blade, which appeared to be undamaged, despite the ferocious battle. mimimus' Stripetail commanded and the sword shrunk to a more portable size, after which Stripetail Slid it into the crosshairs on his back."He  pulled out his walkie talkie and contacted Deimos and Dr Zaniasu. " We got Dullahan. Come on back down, we need to explore the place."
- Kovu and Kiara made their back to the convention room, and picked their way through the sleeping group, until they found an open bed. Kovu let Kiara climb in first, then joined her.
_
 The baths group finally made it back to the Convention Hall, and found that nearly all the beds, bith zol, and normal, were taken.  Gabumon and Agumon managed to find a free bed floating near the ceiiling, and managed to fly up  it in their mega forms. Agumina soon joined them, While Gabuna decided to bunk with  scooby and Dixie.' Flash jumped into bed with the Doos, Aunt Dixie?" Flash whispered, As Dixie stirred " Flash, honey, its very very late. Nows not the time to play." Dixie said groggily. ' I wasnt going to asjk that, but whether we could share  your bed. Theres no other spots."Ok, ok, you and Mona can squeeze in. " I think theres room for 4 more? " Dixie created extra blankets and Pillows for the latecomers. Mina Snuggled up to Scooby, who patted her head, and Dixie held on to Flash, who warmly nuzzled her. Tigress squeezed on the far left on the bed fitting in on Dixies left, While Gabuna fit in , in between Scooby and Dixie. Luca and Tiger got the areas at the foot of the bed.

[Serris]

Deimos and Dr. Zanasiu returned to the cavern.

"What the f---ing hell happened here!?" Deimos exclaimed as he noticed the numerous craters and melted rock that decorated the area.

"Trust us when we say that Dullahan is a tough foe," the Vaalbaran said.

Mr. Bigmouth was busy packing away the remnants of Dullahan's armor for analysis.

"Just curious," Dr. Zanasiu said, kicking away a pebble. "What do you guys expect to find down here?"

Mr. Bigmouth put his messenger bag over his shoulder and went up to the two new arrivals. "We don't know. Since Dullahan mentioned that we must defeat him to control the light, I wager that there is something powerful here. Perhaps something that can help reach the Apollo Lens? Regardless, we should probably split up and look for anything that might be of use."

[Nick22]

I imagine there are lot of valuable treasures down here' Stripetail said. " dullahan wasnt guarding a dead-end passage, He was guarding something or somethings of great power. Perhaps a shield of darkneess to deflect the unbearable light of the sanctum." stripetail said. " lets keep looking. this passage has to lead somewhere.Once we find them, I'lll provide something to drink. Any Requests, gentlemen?' Stripetail looked around.
_
Luca snuggled up against the pillow given to her, which was resting next to Dixie;s left leg ' night everyone.' tigress got up and went over to her ' see you in the morning. do you want  a day off? you've more than earned it' Tigeress said.'we'll pay you, dont worry>." well, i have been busy, keeping an eye on Flash, Oliver and Mona' Luca said. i could use a day off, yeah.' " then Have fun. Goodness knows the girls are a handful' flash, especially" Luca smirked. " very funny' Tigeress said, as Gabuna  climbed over to join them"Hey Girls. Cant sleep either?" the Female Gabumon smiled. "We could swap stories."We dont have a campfire or smores" Tigeress said.
_
 Cynder and Ember stopped in the middle of town. the only place open at this late hour was a place called the Zoo Brew. Nightcaps All Night" Read the tag line." I could go for a drink" ember said ' something sweet, Like Fly-Fly Juice, Or Sheepshead Soda. No sheep were involved in that.' She said.

[tempestwheel]

Oliver in his hotel room briefly awoke in the middle of the night to get some water. "I'm thirsty," he yawned. As he went over to the sink, he saw Ollie drinking some soda pop.

"They bought some good flavors," he grinned between sips.

......................

"Kiyo, get ready, we bunch of late night customers," Nick called to his female tanuki employee, "And it sounds like they won't all be ordering the same things."

............

Kiara, having worked extra late along with Kovu, slipped into sleep quite easily once they were back in their bed.

[Serris]

"Beer." Deimos looked around the arena. Surprisingly, upon the defeat of Dullahan, the torches on the wall lit up of their own accord, bathing the area in a cool light.

Mr. Bigmouth shrugged. "Fruit juice." He then examined a stone tablet. It was written in a language that neither he nor the tricorder could translate.

Dr. Zanasiu was looking inside a large pot. "Just water!" he called back.

The Vaalbaran simply shook its head. It noticed what looked like a heavy treasure chest leaning against the wall. "

[Nick22]

Stripetail walked over to the huge chest, which was locked"Well, either we find a key for it, we blow it open, or I Open it, with a spell or potion . " He said loking at the others. 'Give me a minute" he said holding up a a paw before rummaging inside of his robes ' Now where is that "Unlock" potion? i always keep a few vials with me.. ah. here it is' He said, pulling out a vial. He  uncapped it and slid the contents down the crack of chest, and finally with a hissing sound, the chest lid fell backwards, revealing  the treasures stored inside. Stripetail lifted out a large bottle of glowing green water. ' Looks like some sort of healing draught..' he said " speaking of drinks' He gestured" Beer for Deimos, Waterfor Zaniusu, and Fruit Juice for Bigmouth." he said, before reaching in and pulling out a jeweled scepter." Dig in, and gentlemen, and empty this chest." He said.
_
Ember and Cynder entered the Brew, and were welcome by Kiyo ' Hello' Kiyo said " can I fix you a drink, ladies? she motioned to a row of a large bottles. "Got sheepshead Soda?' Cynder asked ' i can make it' Kiyo said with a smile " Two sheepsheads please' ember said " And. umm. a basket of fries to munch on.."Coming up' Kiyo said ' It will be a few minutes on the fries. Just take a seat at the table over there, and I'll bring you your food and drink." Ember and cynder sat down together in the corner, and shared one side of the table.
_
 Gabuna  spat out a blue blaster , and the flames hung in the air in front of the 3 girls "Kinda like a campfire' She said cheerily " Anyone up for a song? Luca said "Singing? No. First, i stink at singing, and if I sang. I'd wake up everyone and make their ears bleed.' Gabuna said.  Second, Its late for singing, and finally , I dont know that many songs anyway."" You;re not THAT bad Gabuna" tigeress said " You're not.. well good at singing, But you keep at it and you'll get better. You cant get worse, after all." Say, Tell us about yourself Gabuna. start us off with stories. Crushes, secrets, come on. spill your guts. I mean thats what late night chats are for ' Tigeress said. you go first, then  I'll follow, and Luca can round us off. "

[Serris]

Dr. Zanasiu gratefully accepted the water, took off his antiradiation suit's helmet and took a long draw. "Thanks. That antiradiation suit really makes you sweaty even with the cooling system. Well, let's see what we have in here..." He reached in and pulled out what looked like a twisted lump of pure darkness. "Huh?"

Mr. Bigmouth took off his helmet and took a a sip of the offered cup. "Thank you," he said as carefully pulled out a large stone tablet. The tablet itself had writing written in that same unreadable text. He placed it on the ground and examined it with his tricorder. Sure enough, it showed a significant amount of magic emanating from it. Luckily, thanks to Stripetail's shield (and the heavy gloves that protected his hands), he was unharmed. He carefully packed it away and put it in his messenger bag.

The Vaalbaran examined small satchel at the bottom of the treasure chest. It carefully opened the satchel and out came several small golden-bronze ingots that shimmered with their own internal light.

[Nick22]

We take the chest- and all of its contents- along with us' Stripetail said to them. ' whatever ore and bars you've picked up, toss them in too.  Frees up carrying space." He said putting the jeweled scepter back into the chest. and straightened up before turning to the others. " uunless there is any further business, i will magic us to the ship.  We'll all get a couple hours sleep, but not too long. we have a half day before this planet is utterly destroyed.
"
_
Dulcy, Samia  and Korin joined Tigeress Luca and Gabuna around the "Campfire " Dulcy pulled out some marshmallows from her knapsack. ' hope you dont mind us joining/ Korin smiled' but we saw the fire and it looked inviting." No problem.Gabuna smiled. "we're just chatting - oh! you brought marshmallows for toasting " She smiled. Plux and Eris flew over and joined the throng gathered around  the flames."  oh! A campfire ' Plux grinned" you use those cracker things for making snacks in it. " you need chocolate too ' Eris said. You guys bring any? Gabuna asked. 'Cause we don't have it ." The flames grew in size as Skylands casts a lighting ball into it. 'late night party? sign me up the violet dragoness said, flying over and making a spot between dulcy and samia.'just dont burn the bed' Tigeress grinned.  pulling out a popcorn bucket a from the movie and passing the huge  container around. ' now, we were  about to have ' secrets' time. ' crushes, favorite treats, all that fun. "dares? Plux said, blushing>' yeah' Samia smiled.'so, who wants to go first."i'll go' Eris said. "ok' tigeress said.' now your choices are ' tell a secret about yourself, confess to a crush, tell us your favorite snacks, or you have to give one of the group a kiss'' a KISS?' Plux made a face. ' come now Plux. dont tell me you havent done that with someone . 'Eris said." er.. well skylar kissed me once on clover island..' mouth to beak? Eris asked " Nah, just on the cheek. ' plux said. it. umm. ' was for saving me '  skylar said, coming up to them and catching Plux by surprise . ' sorry to intrude.'' no problem ' Eris smiled ' i was.. just about to give Plux here a kiss' she said and plux's eyes became huge ' you're joking..' he sputtered as Skylar smirked. " we have a first kiss here guys ' Dulcy said with a smile. ' popcorn? LUca asked , passing the bucket to skylar. "thanks the cat said taking a seat around the fire. 'so want to join in the game? korin said.'hmm. ok.. ' Skylar nodded. any of the options you are not comfortable with.. ? Korin continued " No.. I'm ok with whatever ' skylar said " I'm rather boring  honestly. i don't have much memory of myself. dont remember too much.  Got my memory wiped, same time as I got my arm here ' She showed the others her mechanical arm. " Dont have any crushes on anyone or anything, dont really have any secrets to tell either- again  mind wipe ' She said as she took  another pawful of popcorn. " snacks.. hmm. i'll have to think about it.  sorry to be so vague everyone. " Don't worry about it Tigeress said " this all about having fun. ' thanks. ' Skylar smiled. and kissing, i'll kiss anyone, its not a big deal to me. i'll kiss.. you' she said pointing to skylands. Skyland started then moved around the flames to sit next to Skylar.' Eris moved over to sit next skylar.' and face Plux>" Just Relax' Eris said,  reached her claws to hold on to pLux, and  noticing the owl was blushing bright red. eris leaned in and locked beaks with Plux as she did so, Skylar and Skylands kissed as well. For a second Skylar closed her eyes feeling the scaly and smooth lips pressed to her own. skylands ended the smooch a couple seconds later. plux broke his kiss shortly afterwards. ' uh. em. ahem. uh'Plux stumbled for words.  not bad, for a first-timer' Eris said with a smirk. ' Next person does snacks '; Skylanmds said  moving back to her spot.

[Serris]

Mr. Bigmouth nodded as he gently placed the tablet inside the treasure chest. Dr. Zanasiu and the Vaalbaran did the same.

Deimos looked around the arena. It had been stripped bare with only some torches and bones left. "Well, I'd say we're ready to go."

The Vaalbaran nodded as it received a transmission from its fellow refugees. It then turned to the rest of the group. "Good news," it said. "The antimatter charges are ready."

Deimos yawned. "A short rest will do us all some good," he said.

Mr. Bigmouth nodded. "Definitely." He put his antiradiation suit's helmet back on, mindful of the burns he had received during a sudden teleportation with Stripetail on Weyard.

Deimos and Dr. Zanasiu did the same. It was then that Dr. Zanasiu nodded. "Okay, we're ready to go."

[Nick22]

Mona stirred from where she was sleeping, as she felt herself being shaken , she moved away from Scooby's grasp, and noticed that ollie was still up. ' what are you doing ollie/ She murmured as snatches of conversation from the group at the foot of the bed reached her ears- Li'ella and agumina had joined the group, and li'ella had brought along graham crackers to make smores with. Agumina  and Gabumina were joking about the ' fan club' meetings they had held.
_
 just cant sleep Ollie said.You have enough money left so we can see a kids movie? the theaters open all night?"
_
Cynder and ember were Waiting for their fries and drinks at the bar, and flipoping through the menu to see what foods either girl wanted.
- nice work , all of you" Back to the Hotel, for a short rest" Teleportius" stripetail commanded, and the group was magickered away, appearing in a flash in the middle of the convention room.

[Serris]

The convention room the group had appeared in was thankfully empty so no one was disturbed by the flash of light that heralded Stripetail's teleportation.

"Surprised how much roomier this place is," Deimos said.

Mr. Bigmouth failed to suppress a yawn. "Well, we did have over five times more people than are normally aboard. Anyways, I'm headed for my room."

He headed for the elevator in the main lobby and pushed the button. Deimos was behind him. Dr. Zanasiu didn't even bother and fell asleep in full gear on one of the couches in the convention room.

[Nick22]

mona went over and tapped her mother on the shoulder ' Mom?" she asked quietly, and Luca turned to look at her' Honey? Why arent you sleeping? its 3 am..' i couldnt sleep mom' Mona said 'Ollie wants to go see a movie..' Mona! its 3 in the morning sweetie! its far too late to go see a movie, besides you've already seen two today. " luca said. You're staying up mom'  Mona replied as flash came up to them. 'We want to stay up too. ' tigeress turne and looked at the pups. 'Alright you two, come sit in our laps ' Tigeress said. I wanna go see a movie " Olllie said ' Ollie, its far too late for kids to watch movies, you'd fall asleep partway through and miss most of the movie. " Tigress said. ' we'll go see another movie at the next planet we stop at ok,but for now, you need your sleep."

_ Gabuna smiled at the two pups as they joined the gathering around the fire." hi Girls" she smiled. " it appears we have a full gathering around now. '  Dulcy was toasting smores and then passing them around. Li' ella had plates for everyone, and passed down two more for Mona and flash. ' so what are you talking about mom? Flash said as she began munching on her treat. "Grown-up girl stuff, for the most part.It wouldn't interest you honey."Tigeress said. " did you tell them about the time Hare cheated Dad in a fight?' " thats still a sore subject for your dad honey. You know how proud he is. ' Tigeress said. "But, yes, I did tell them about that. Your father is a powerful monster, and one who doesnt like getting cheated. "nobody likes a cheater" Samia said, nodding in agreement. skylar and li'ella waved at the newcomers." We've mostly been talking about favorite treats.' Ice cream is the consensus favorite' skylands said." agumina used her ring to create a gallon of chocolate chip ice cream"heres a gallon of my favorite ' No ice cream cones?' Samia smirked. " you want cones then you have go to the store and buy some." Eris said. I like ice cream ' Mona chimed in "What flavor? dulcy asked."Mint chip' Mona said, ' especially if you putting toppings on it, you know the kind that harden into a shell?. so i put that stuff on there, and its like putting ice cream inside a chocolate bar. '
_
two female tanuki took seats in front of Nick at the Bar.' Two Good Lucks please.' saidone wearing a pink dress and named Otama ; For Me and Koharu here' She added.

_
Stripetail big the rest of the group good night and returned to his room, to catch a few hours sleep.

[tempestwheel]

"You mean 4, for Gonta and I as well?" Tamasaburo, a male tanuki, said to his mate Koharu. Tamasaburo wore a blue scarf while Gonta wore a red shirt.

Gonta and Otama were married. Koharu and Tamasburo already had 3 cubs back home, and they were just on a vacation.

"I'll pay for the drinks, to celebrate a moment's peace," Tamasaburo declared.

[Serris]

The hours passed incredibly slowly as Captain Carson steered the great ship away from the two planets so she could safely jump to hyperspace. This was necessary as the antimatter charges threw off so much radiation and heat that they were capable of damaging the ship.

She had previously discussed the matter with the Vaalbarans and some of her crew had volunteered to land on Vaalbara itself to plant the explosives.

[Nick22]

You can buy your own drinks dear. I've already paid for mine ' Otama replied. " Just order a couple baskets of fries and have them brought to the table." she said.
_
 Ember and Cynder munched on their fries, with Ember putting more salt on to them, before passing the shaker to Warfang. "once we finish eating, we need to go."
_
 as the wee hours passed, slowly, the campfire group broke up. Skylar and Plux went first, Followed by Li Ella and Eris, then by Korin, Dulcy and Samia.  Mona And Flash were fast asleep, snuggled up against their mothers. Tigeress put flash back near Dixie, and Luca put Mona near Scooby. Skylands extinguished the flames with a well placed ghost attack, and she took up a spot on the bed, that had originally belonged to  Warfang. ' Night girls' Tigeress yawned as she moved past the Digimon pair.'Night Tigeress. had a lot of fun tonight. ' Gabuna smiled. '

[tempestwheel]

"Certainly, I love fries," Gonta grinned proudly.

"And I'll take a few cheeseburgers," Tamasaburo ordered.

"And get us some soda," Koharu requested. Sugary soda was a drink all tanukis enjoyed consuming, as it provided them with energy to keep their transformation powers strong.

[Nick22]

better bring that food and drink  up to the room.'Otama said as she looked at-the clock - it was nearly 4- and headed towards the exit.
 Warfang and ember took an order of fries to go- and carried the hot snack with them as they headed back towards the convention room. ember was walking along sluggishly, as they walked along, all of the food they had eaten was making her sleepy. as they stopped in the doorway. warfang kissed ember on the lips, thier dark red lips locked together and for a couple minutes the girls held each other and rubbed tongues. ember broke the kiss and smiled warmly at Cynder " well, i think we should get to bed ' she yawned. 'Hopefully theres enough room." The pair of pink dragonesses  headed over to where the others were.
_
tigeres and luca snuggled up to Agumina and Gabunaand were soon joined by Ember and Warfang. thwe group soon went to sleep.
 (morning0
-  Stripetail stirred from his slumber at aeround 6, and a message from Briggins appeared in front of him. ' Wizard ' I have recieved another message from Solona chong is gathering his forces on Planet Mukow. thats a planet where trouble is always brewing.' Briggins said ' Find Big al on Kerwan  he should be able to help you and your friends.
_
stripettail contacted his team. ' everyone meeting in the lobby in 20 minutes, Everyone , save Kovu and Kiara, they had the night patrol last night and can sleep in."

[Serris]

Ms. Swimmer was the first to arrive. Deapite her getting approximately four hours of sleep, she seemed to be perfectly alert. The steaming hot mug of green tea probably helped.

The lobby was populated only by a few Spirarian workers who were just getting off the night shift. Dr. Zanasiu was still asleep on one of the couches in the room but he was beginning to stir.

Deimos yawned as he exited one of the elevators. "Right, what's on the agenda today?" he asked.

[Nick22]

Briggins sent me a message. we are to contact a gentleman named Al on a planet known as Kerwan ' stripetail said as Sasha entered the room. 'Mr Stripetail?" Sasha  said. ' Lord Stripetail dear ' Stripetail smiled. ' my apologies, my Lord. We have brought aboard 5000 refugees, including King Wo. We are sending them to their destinations promptly.' Thank you, Captain sasha. Please, have a seat. We are headed to your  galaxy next. Captain Qwark has been insisting that we help with his planets problem.' Hes the president, now. ' not for much longer, if more planets keep vanishing. at least, thats the message i got, between the begging, histronics and general unheroic and unleaderlike behavior. How much, Sasha does it cost to fund Q-Force? " 20-25 billion bolts, give or take." Sasha replied taking the proffered seat .  "Galactic defense is a multi-trillion bolt expense, and Q Force is merely the public face of it. Every planet has its own defense too. ' Easy to bilk the public, with so much money lying around.'  Stripetail mused as  Ratchet and Angela entered the room, followed by Clank. they took up a trio of seats at the far end. the 4 digidestined were next, followed by the 5 wolves, both Spyro-Cynder pairs, and Scooby and Dixie.

 Sasha smirked at Ratchet ' Well, well, Ratchet.  good to see you again. Qwarks been begging me and QForce to come get you.  Any longer and we would have had to come grab you,  put black bags over your heads, and drag you back to Polaris '" Ratchet chuckled, but the chuckling faded as he saw the look on Sasha's face. He knew her too well, she wasn't the type to joke about serious matters. " Ahem, Sasha, this is Angela. Angela this is Sasha, she is the .. " Daughter of  the Ex-president Pyronix.  I've heard of her.  Nice to meet you Sasha. " Angela offered her hand to Sasha. " and you are Angela Cross, formerly of Megacorp Industries, and the last known female Lombax in existence, at least that we can confirm. We still have no clue where the other Lombaxes went, although we do have a team running down leads. "  Sasha said as she shook hands with Angela. " "Only a handful managed to escape Tachyon, how did you pull it off?" "My Mother Lorna left with the others ' Angela said. " I missed the departure by a few days, by the time I reached Fastoon, the city was empty, and Tachyon's goons were scouring the planet and trashing everything. I was forced to flee, and well, to make a long story short, the Kerchu mistook me for a wanted thief and threw me into one of their prisons. I spent nearly 5 years there. Kerchu food is disgusting." Kerchu prisons are nearly impregnable, how did you manage to get out?' Sasha said crossing her arms. " Stripetail managed to magick me out " Angela said.  ' he pulled me into a meeting with Qwark, and sent me to Ratchet. and well, I've been hanging out with him ever since. "
_
" so you guys know each other?' Luca yawned' well Sasha and I know each other' Ratchet said. ' I dated Ratchet for awhile ' Sasha said and Angela's mouth fell open." So.. why arent you a couple now?' Angela asked " Simple. I got elected as mayor of Metropolis , and thats a 24-7 kid of job. Absolutely no time for a personal relationship of an serious nature. And Ratchets always running around, saving planets and smashing bad guys. so, well,  we had to split up. I didnt dump him, it was an amicable split. " Always glad to see you Sasha " ratchet rubbed the back of his neck. ' Same here Ratchet' Sasha smiled.' so what About you Angela? Anyone catch your eye?' No not really. Ratchets the only other one  left of my kind, now that Azimuth is dead, and  well, I'm keeping my eyes open. being gone for a long time, really limits your social life. I like the job I've got now though. Boy does it put bolts in the bank." Well, working with a wizard is never boring ' Sasha said. "I'm here to help you guys in anyway that I can. By the way Ratchet, Talwynn, is waiting for you at the Apogee Space station." any luck locating Max?" Ratchet said ' No, still missing. And she still misses Cronk and Zepyhr. " They're ghosts now ' Ratchet said. " Dont they visit?" its not the same as when they were, well alive. ' Sasha said sadly. "
-
 Luca turned to Oliver from her seat , and brought  forth the magic belt she had bought him ' This belt will allow you to adjust your size, from normal, to well, as big as a large boulder. helps with bullies and the like.' She added.
_
 so what are we doing, exactly ?' Gabuna yawned ' Well, You are going to on on patrol and keep things in order while we travel to Polaris. I will be operating the Lens, something only I can do. We have 6 hours before impact  and the activity on the planet has become relentless. You can no longer walk from place to place, you can only travel through magic means if you want to go anywhere. Is there anyone who wants to come with me?"
_
 where are Kiara and Kovu?" Vitani yawmed ' They're sleeping in. they worked the night shift, and i promised them they could sleep in.

[Serris]

Sveta, Amiti, Karis and Tyrell had arrived. "Greetings, Lord Stripetail," Amiti said. "I do apologize for interrupting, but we will be honored to escort you to the Apollo Lens."

"I will be able to escort Stripetail further," Sveta added. "I have full set of Umbra Gear".

It was then a little robotic cart that served as an easily available means of visual communication between the ship, rolled up to the group.

On it, Captain Fairchild's muzzle took up the majority of the of the screen. The most striking feature of the living plane was that his battleship grey paint had been replaced with a blinding white coat. "You know, I might be willing to help as well," he said.

"What the hell is up with your coat?" Deimos asked.

"Anti-flash white. I figured it might help against the light in the Apollo Sanctum."