Track 9: Born to Be Wild

[SunlessNick]

"Island angry," says the beast-man Zara recognizes as the Sayer of the Law.

"Yeah," Zara agrees. "When the others get here we can take off." Trying to take both their minds off the tension of the wait, she says, "I never thanked you. When I was in the lab. All things considered you were kind to me."

[Mr. Handy]

Liz puts her EMP device away, slips out of her dress, and rushes into the water to also help Lota.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

"Yeah," Zara agrees. "When the others get here we can take off." Trying to take both their minds off the tension of the wait, she says, "I never thanked you. When I was in the lab. All things considered you were kind to me."

The Sayer of the Law nods. "Not to spill blood. That is the Law. Bad men spill blood of Doctor, give to the hungry fish."

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Spoiler:

Tony and Liz DEX 14 + 1 Danger Bonus = 15 and 120

Both Tony and Liz are able to easily pull Lota from the water and safely to shore, as La Reina del Pacifico pulls away.

"Bad men tie Lota, make others work hard, hard." She points at the fleeing yacht. "They escape?"

(It is obvious that her increase in knowledge, caused by the blood transfusion, was a temporary effect.)

[jp1885]

"Never mind bad men, they'll get their comeuppance one day," says Tony, wringing out his cravat. "Of more importance is the fact that the volcano go boom soon. We should get to flying ship!"

[Mr. Handy]

"Your people are already on the flying ship, with our friend Zara," says Liz, quickly getting her dress back on and gathering her things.

[SunlessNick]

The Sayer of the Law nods. "Not to spill blood. That is the Law. Bad men spill blood of Doctor, give to the hungry fish."

"It's a good law, even if people don't always follow it." The moment where she shot at Hammerhead flashes through her mind, and she digs around the cabin of the ship until she finds her gin flask.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Lota, who, one presumes, has spent most of her life on this island, in one form or another, is easily able to scramble up to the caldera, where the airship awaits.

Spoiler:

dex 12 and 1401

With some difficulty, Liz is able to follow her. Tony, on the other hand, is apparently feeling the delayed effect of several injuries suffered during this adventure, and fails to ascend. Is there any other way to save him before the cataclysmic explosion?

[jp1885]

“You go on... I’ll only slow you down...” Tony mutters.

OOC,Oh come on, he [i]has[/i] to say that!”

[Mr. Handy]

"We're not leaving without you!" calls Liz. "We'll lower a rope from the airship after we take off, and you can tie it about you. Then we'll hoist you up. Or you could just teleport yourself."

[jp1885]

“Sounds ideal m’dear. Hoist me up and I’ll teleport when you’re in range.”

[SunlessNick]

OOC,Can Tony teleport far enough to make it to the top of the caldera or is it too far?

In between swigs, Zara is lookng anxiously out of the windows at the direction the others will have to come from. "They're coming!" she cries at the sight of Lota and Liz.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

As the rumbling and smoking of the volcano increases, several of the beast men lower a rope from the airship. One of them scrambles down, ties Tony securely, then returns to his fellows. With their great strength, they are able to pull Tony to safety, with a few bumps along the way.

The airship tips from side to side as a particularly strong tremor shakes the island. The investigators rush to the controls and launch the ship into the air, not a moment too soon, as a fountain of lava bursts from the caldera like a geyser, nearly striking the airship, so closely that one can feel the heat. The beast-folk become agitated by the sight of their ancient enemy, fire.

Lota rushes to Tony's side and embraces him, a little too tightly for comfort.

"Ton-nee safe," she says. "Where go now?"

The airship reaches a height from which all can see La Reina del Pacifico fleeing to the west at full speed. To the south, the tiny figure of Hammerhead can be seen emerging from the bat cave, shaking his fist at the sky. Judging from the way his armor glows, he seems to be covered with lava, although this doesn't seem to bother him.

Not long afterwards, the final, cataclysmic explosion tears the island apart, sending huge boulders flying into the air, barely missing the airship. It seems that there will be spectacular sunsets, and cool temperatures, for some time.

[jp1885]

“Good bloody riddance...” a slumping Tony mutters, watching the island disappear before closing his eyes.

“I think a hospital is in order...”

[Mr. Handy]

"The nearest one would probably be in Hawaii, so let's set course there," says Liz. "Lota's people probably wouldn't be able to live there, but there's also the island on which Professor Hinkley and six others were stranded for years. The island should be deserted now, and there must be plenty of food and fresh water for the castaways to have survived there for years."

[SunlessNick]

"I didn't kill him," Zara says quietly. She fishes out some more booze and hands it to Tony. "You deserve some, for sure."

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

As they make their way in the general direction of the Hawaiian islands, careful use of the detailed maps aboard the airship allow the investigators to locate the uncharted desert isle where Professor Hinckley, along with the other passengers and crew of the Minnow were stranded for so long. There isn't a good landing spot for the airship, but it is able to come close enough to allow the agile beast folk to jump down into the warm tropical water, where it isn't too deep, and wade to shore. Lota is the last to remain aboard.

"Ton-nee come with Lota," she pleads.

Meanwhile, there have been numerous news reports coming from the airship's radio concerning the tremendous explosion of the island. (Although the place was known to few, the fury of its destruction made it impossible to miss.) Along with the expected information about the event, there is also a program devoted to so-called unexplained phenomena that makes an extraordinary announcement. According to an anonymous source, claiming to have been in the observation gondola of a Trieste-class bathyscaphe during a routine test dive, a person encased in some kind of protective suit was seen walking on the bottom of the sea, not far from the destroyed island. There is, of course, no corroborating evidence.

[jp1885]

“Alas no, my dear Lota,” Tony croaks. “To-nee very sick - needs hospital. Also, bad men will be looking for me. Don’t want them coming to new island after me.”

He flops back, exhausted by the effort of talking.

[SunlessNick]

"Good luck," Zara wishes the wolf people. "We won't tell anyone where to find you."

"At least it's going to take him a while to get anywhere," she says of the possible sighting of Hammerhead.

Once the trio are underway again, she suggest, "Maybe we should keep the airship. It could be our HQ."

[Mr. Handy]

Liz also wishes Lota and her people luck. "That would be groovy," she says in response to Zara's suggestions. "I'm sure UNCLE would approve. We could go on missions all over the world with this craft."