[3] Group 4 - Caves

[Burter]

27. Krillin
28. Android 20
30. Zarbon

The chief is missing? Wtf?!

This is a big village inside the mountains, so finding him will be tough. GET TO WORK! He could be your clue!

...or maybe not.

[Krillin]

The group waited outside the grand hut while one of the tribesmen chattered away inside in his native language. From the sounds of it, he was getting rather agitated. After only a half-minute, he stomped back through the hut-flap, thumping his feet on the rock.

"Lemme guess," Krillin piped up. "You were in there, cursing away in whatever language you guys talk in, all 'cause your Chief is gone."

The tribesman stopped his speech, somewhat surprised.

"Yes. Exactly."

Android 20 glanced at him in curiousity.

How'd you know?

Easy. This sort of thing happens in the movies all the time. Next, he'll conveniently tell us his name, and assure us that they will be looking for him. They won't find him, though. We'll have to look ourselves.

Twenty allowed that which was being discussed to pass through the physical realm, evidenced in his slack jaw. The tribesman didn't see this, and instead continued with his prophesized discourse.

"Chief Horny-Horse must be praying to our gods. I promise you, we will be looking for him. Until then, do not leave the premises."

Brilliant.

I know.

With that, the tribesman turned on his moccasinned heel and strode out toward the center of the hustle-and-bustle.

"Ready to go, gentlemen?" Twenty asked.

((OOC: Short, but I gotta get SOMETHING up.))

[Zarbon]

Looking at the strange green seeds intriguingly, Zarbon sat relaxed as the midget and their robotic leader sorted it all out inside. The transformer heard swarms of people within the building alongside him chatting furiously about something, but the mutant couldn?t understand a word of it: the wall blocked his ears from understanding any sound that was made. Zarbon fumbled around the seeds with his fingers and rolled him from one side of his palm to next, bored to death from waiting for his companions to return from talking with the chief of this odd city.

?Damnit, can?t they hurry up?? The mutant put his hand on his chin and frowned. He stuffed the saibamen seeds in his pockets and passed the time touching up his make-up and fixing his hair. The tournament was going well so far, and he had no need to worry no matter what the team came out with. At least that was what he thought. The transformer soon was like a doll, and became bored again soon after. He took his seeds out of his pocket and fumbled them again.

?They are taking way too long.? Zarbon moaned as he complained. This contest was a pretty good test of his skill, but at times, he wished it would just end so he could return to his training. ?At least I?m with a good group.? The mutant did find his team to be a fairly good one, and he knew he could win this with them at his side, for at least part of the way. The human Krillin was a goofy guy, and amused him greatly with his antics. He was a good little guy with a kindly attitude. His sarcasm matched even his in amount. 20 was his ally, and he found him a first-rate person to be around, though sometimes a strange like he had two sides to him, but even with all those qualities, they seemed to be a couple of goody-goods, they didn?t share his ambition: but at least he could handle them.

The transformer switched to lying on his back and turned towards the door. Still nothing. He gritted his teeth. ?Damn slowpokes. I wonder what?s going on in there.? He closed his eyes to rest, even with the entire racket around him; he managed it with the sheer dullness of the moment. The world around him faded into black.

***

Tap tap tap

Zarbon awoke awhile later to that noise; someone was walking past him loudly. He ignored it, but it just kept on getting louder, but soon it disappeared right as it came nearby him. Curiosity got the best of the mutant, and he slowly opened an eye and his vision began to focus again. He saw Krillin above him wearing a devilish smirk. The midget spat out a glob of saliva out of his mouth, letting it hang a moment, letting Zarbon see the repulsive sight of it before wagging it off himself and letting it drop down onto the mutant?s face. It spread and stuck onto Zarbon?s skin and smeared his make-up. The transformer jumped up and grabbed at empty air, growling in rage as he did it. ?You little brat! I?ll get you!? Zarbon shouted and jumped from his position towards Krillin.

The little human dodged him and kicked him in the shin. ?That?s payback for the puke buster!? He smirked slightly. ?And trust me: you deserved it! You didn?t even hear 20 when he talked to you!? Zarbon leapt at the midget again and grabbed him by the neck and began throttling him as he went to bite his arm.

?Stop it both of you!? 20 finally came into the picture as he walked up to them. ?We have business!? Gero put on a serious face and both fighters stopped their bickering.

?Business?? Zarbon said forgetting Krillin for the moment. He was glad he finally had something to do after all this time. ?What kind of business is it? Killing spiders? Or did you get the clue? Did the chief have it??

?No,? The android frowned. ?It seems the chief has disappeared and we are going to find him. After all, he might have what we are looking for.?

?Sounds like a plan?? The transformer smiled walked up to him, ready to head out to search. ?What are we waiting for? Let?s move! This tournament doesn?t require us to sleep!? Zarbon moved down into the town and looked from side to side. ?But first?what does he look like??

?Well, thanks to my brilliant telepathy skills, I have a mental photograph of the guy!? Krillin laughed as he boasted about his abilities. ?So we are good, as long as I don?t get amnesia or anything that is, but there is no worrying about that, the chief is probably somewhere around town, chilling out with his pals, watching fine ladies pass by in their skimpy little outfits. Ah, good times??

?Riiight.? Zarbon rolled his eyes at the midget?s perverted thoughts and ignored his attuide. What he thought of Krillin?s sense of humour was now gone. The mutant was now deprived of all happy thoughts. The transformer trotted into town with his group following them. They made their way around the city. They looked in every alleyway, asked people, and checked buildings: but nothing. No one knew anything, there was no evidence, and Zarbon was getting angry about it all. They finally find something to do and it was completely hopeless. It was a waste of time.

After hours of looking, they went by the town fountain to unwind for the day after the failure that had befallen them. Krillin was swimming around in the water like a fish and making ripples as he moved about as Zarbon sat on the wet stone siding with Gero. The transformer had his legs crossed and was leaning back towards the water talking with 20. ?So, about what I mentioned to you in Dante?s Abyss, about your son and you know?? The transformer said sternly.

?Cyber Cell? I didn?t forget. We will have to do something about him in the future?? Gero frowned when he thought about his son again. Zarbon remembered when he had killed his boy, when the scientist was making the mechanised Cell that had beaten him. The transformer hated the creature his son had created, but knew how it must feel to lose someone. The mutant knew he would have to ease off the subject now, and bring it up later.

?Nevermind him now though, as you said, the future, we are in a tournament now, and we have a job to do?? Zarbon turned behind him after he said this to call Krillin out of the fountain, but Gero stopped him.

?We can?t forget him though. My son made a monster, and he must be destroyed.? The android said with a voice as hard as stone. Krillin came out from the water to hear their conversation. When the midget approached, Zarbon nudged 20 hard to give him a solid message: Not to tell Krillin.

?So, what you guys talki-? Krillin started, but was interrupted by Zarbon.

?Nothing!?

?Whatever.?

They all became silent after that, and Krillin went back in the fountain to swim around some more. In the meantime, Zarbon looked around seeing if he could gather more clues from that spot. The mutant took minor glances at minor areas around the group and spotted a man in a purple cloak, walking around in a mysterious matter.

Jackpot.

Zarbon turned to 20 and saw he was looking at the man too.

?I bet you any money?? The transformer started off, but the android was already on his feet and walking towards him. Zarbon saw Krillin raised his head and nodded to him. The midget and the transformer slowly followed 20 as they approached the robed male. Gero caught up to him and tapped his shoulder. The man turned.

?We would like to ask you a few questions sir.? Krillin said when he had finally caught up with the guy.

?Right. So, have you heard of the chief?s disappearance?? Zarbon came up after Krillin with a smug look. The cloaked man looked shocked. The mutant knew this was the guy they were looking for, and there was going to be a bit of running.

?I know nothing!? The robed male spoke in a heavy accent and then twisted around and burst off in the other direction. The group of fighters and shot after him with great speed as he turned into an alleyway. By the time the team got there, he was already out of sight. Zarbon looked up towards the rooftops. Nothing. The transformer frowned slightly after losing their only lead. There was silence between the warriors.

?On the bright side?? Zarbon finally spoke up. ?We know what to look for??

?Right. Split up!? 20 shouted suddenly.

?Got you!? The mutant burst into the air in search of the mysterious man. No one escaped Zarbon. Ever. Especially some random rat in a poor cave town.

OOC: Hope that was good. I thought it was. Sorry if I made your character sound like a goof Krill.

[Ruhiel]

"Why does the guy who knows something always have to run? He could simply tell us whatever he knows and get on with his life, saving us the trouble of having to track him down and beat it out of him?" Android 20 grumbled.

"Well, it could be that we actually have the wrong guy, and we're just bothering this poor man." Gero answered.

"Then why did he run if he had nothing to hide?" Twenty retorted.

"Yeah, that does cause one to wonder. Either way, this suspect may know something about the chief's whereabouts." the scientist thought.

Gero was off and sprinting after the group of three had split up. They had a better chance of finding him this way, rather than running around as a group. Gero could still feel the echoes of life coming from Zarbon and Krillin as they searched for the suspect, however the suspect himself didn't seem to be giving off much of an energy signature, so either this guy was weak, or was actually masking his power.

However, Gero knew that their target was still somewhere in this underground village. If the robed person left and entered the cave system, the isolation of his life force from the others would become evident, and then they could easily track him down. However, because he could not discern the target's location, the suspect was still in the village.

Krillin, the target is still somewhere in the village. Gero spoke telepathically.

What? How can you be sure? the voice of Krillin answered back.

Just trust me. I'd know if he had left. Gero responded.

Out of the corner of his eye, the android spotted a flash of a purple robe. Turning quickly, Gero sprinted off after it. Gero skidded around one of the small huts, and saw the tips of a purple robe turning around it.

I've spotted the target. I've got him. the android spoke telepathically.

Disappearing in the blink of an eye, the android reappeared directly behind the robed figure. Reaching out, he grasped the suspect's robe and pulled him towards him.

"Going somewhere?" Gero asked quietly.

"EEK!" came the shrill cry.

"What the-" Gero began to say, when he saw the face of the person he had just grabbed.

It was definitely not their target. One of the native women had apparently just been checking around her home, wearing a purple robe. To the mechanoid's misfortune, he had mistaken her for the target. She screamed at him in the native tounge of the village, and proceeded to kick the wizened android in the place where men just shouldn't be kicked.

Gero's eyes bulged and began to fill with tears as pain welled up in his pelvic region. Dropping to his knees, he curled up into a fetile position, gasping in agonizing breaths as pain seared through his body.

Okay... false alarm... he's still out there somewhere... Gero gasped telepathcially, the pain even affecting his mental train of thought.

[Zarbon]

Hovering high above the village, Zarbon floated there, looking from side to side occasionally hitting his head on the cavern roof as moved from end to end of the town looking for the purple robed figure, but the man eluded the mutant no matter what he did, though Zarbon did think he saw a violent flicker here in there, when he went to look, there was nothing. Frustrated by all of this, the transformer decided to take a more personal look at things from the ground level. Zarbon sped down to the floor and made a skid landing into a village street, slowing himself down to a walk soon after.

The city was a large one, but very primitive. It looked as if it had been slapped together in a few seconds. Zarbon remembered seeing huge cities on Earth with vast amounts of technology and weaponry that defended them from intruders (though it would seldom work on Ki warriors). This place was different though. All buildings were made of assorted materials, though mostly wood and stone. Each structure was different, and most certainly misshapen. To Zarbon, the place was a rathole and was to be treated as such. He saw little rats messing around in the alleyways, and homeless people amongst them, eating what they could find: which was not much less then the people with houses strangely enough.

?What a dump.? Zarbon muttered and sneered as he looked the city over with his golden eyes. He hated anything that even looked to be in some way ?rotten? or ?repulsive?, in fact, the sight of something of the sort made him want to vomit. He didn?t like this village one bit. ?But at least they have a nice town hall.?

As the mutant moved through the mysterious passages of the town, he noticed that many of the people held a sad face, constant as if carved in stone. They walked in a slump, making short strides and keeping a slow pace. They moved in groups all together, side by side throughout the city. ?Something terrible must have happened to these people. It probably has something to do with this asteroid?s past.? Zarbon thought as he saw the citizens like this. ?Hopefully this chief will give us some answers about all of this. Then we can have our clue and move on.? The mutant shifted through the crowds to get to each destination, but every place he found nothing other then rotten wooden boxes and a nasty odour coming from them. Frowning, the teal warrior continued onward in disgust.

After looking at ground level for about a half an hour, Zarbon came to a bazaar. Various merchants were selling their goods, from oranges to beads, they had it, and people swarmed the area. This was actually the only area the transformer had seen so far where people had actually cracked a smile, though it didn?t last long. As Zarbon pushed his way through the crowd, he took a quick gaze at every face in the market, until he saw a lavender streak burst into his eyes. What the transformer spotted was a purple cape fluttering as its owner made its way through the mobs of people around him.

?Want to play Hide and Seek?? Zarbon said softly as he smirked. ?You got it buddy boy.?

The mutant moved swiftly through the swarms of citizens as they continued their daily business. He spotted the tip of a hood in the distance. It was obviously him. ?Same hood type, same colour, and running away.? Zarbon thought. ?What more evidence do I need?? At this rate though, the transformer would never catch the mysterious man. He had to slow him down. The mutant continued to push his way through the crowd towards robed figure: the scene accelerated into a chase.

Zarbon ran over to a fruit cart and grabbed a handful of apples and burst at top speed onward, throwing people to the side so he could gain the speed needed to catch up. The transformer threw apples at the mysterious man, pelting him endlessly in red fruit. The robed figure evaded as best as he could by knocking down another stand in front of Zarbon?s feet, but that didn?t stop them. After making a long leap, was back in pace and attacking the cloaked man once again with his apples.

?Leave me alone!? The familiar voice of the mysterious figure rang into the transformer?s ears. The cloaked man swiped some oranges from a trader?s table and tossed one backward. The fruit slammed into Zarbon?s face, the juice?s oozing out and seeping into his eyes, the weak acids making it sting. Wiping it off, the transformer put on an enraged look as he clutched his eye tightly and took great strides just to try to get him.

?I?m going to have red eye for weeks!? Zarbon whined as he came closer and closer to the runaway. As soon as he got within range he dove for the man?s feet making a grab at them. The mutant barely got his foot, but that was enough to take him down. The cloaked figure hit the ground, spreading dust in all directions. The people in the bazaar, just noticing the scene, gathered around them in confusion.

Zarbon climbed up onto the mysterious man?s back and put his hand down over his neck. ?You have just been caught by ZPD. I?d just like to take you in for questioning.?

OOC: Alright. I have no idea if Burter has some sort of set location for him or not, so I'll give it to him. I guess.

[Burter]

END OF ROUND