Streaks of Purple Saga/Spectrum Force - Heather Ray (best beach reads txt) 📗

into the air, transforming matter into light and streaking to his destination in a heartbeat.

When he arrived at the frozen north, he stared in shock at the scene before him. Earlier, the area was a pristine white, but now a handful of black forms dotted the snowfields.

He hovered closer, trying to get a better view. When he got close enough to discern their grotesque shape, inhale their acrid smell, and feel the vile aura of madness and chaos that surrounded them, Keith felt his stomach flip.

*Guys, get the lead out!* he called, *I need-*

Conscious thought dissolved into panic as one of the creatures suddenly catapulted into the air, directly at him.

The Red Enforcer released a wordless shout, flinging himself skyward while mustering an attack between his hands. He then released his power in a battering ram of energy that met the monstrosity head-on.

Keith didn't let up his attack. He continued pouring his energy into the blast, watching the flailing limbs of the creature smoke and shrink. Then, a flash of energy signaled its departure from this world.

Keith sighed his relief. "One down, four to-" He gasped as the group of creatures formed a circle below. "Hey! Where'd the extra one come from?"

They jumped one at a time, claw-tipped feet slashing mercilessly as they performed leaps that would impress Superman himself. Keith erected a shield around his body, keeping the claws at a safe distance, while zigzagging in the air to avoid as many direct hits as possible. But each time a leg pounded against his shield, he felt a lance of pain in his mind, weakening his concentration.

Whatever these things are made of, it's screwing with my powers!

Keith began to slow down, panting heavily to force his mind into focus, as the creatures renewed their aerial assault. By the eighth head-on attack, the faint red bubble of energy shattered completely, allowing a deadly talon to rip into his side.

It was a shallow cut, but it felt like a red-hot poker had torn flesh and muscle. Keith hissed wordlessly, flipping around and pummeling the creature that assaulted him with all the power he could generate. The creature folded into itself, and disappeared.

The fiery pain didn't relent. Keith cradled his wound, pushing himself further into the air, praying he was capable of flying out of the monsters' reach.

Fortunately, he didn't need to retreat for long. Flashes of purple, yellow, blue, and green energy rained from the skies above, hammering the creatures with enough power to keep them earthbound.

"Keith!" Tamara gasped, hovering at his side, "You're hurt!"

"It's not deep," he assured her, "But it still burns."

"It's not bleeding," Matthew noted, folding his arms. "It's cauterized."

"Meaning?" Keith pressed.

"Meaning whatever cut you is really hot."

"Spectrum Force, fan out!" Rachel called from above, "We need to make some room between us. There's one for each of us, assuming you're up to fighting, Keith."

Red stared at his friend. "There's still

five?? I know I cremated that last one!"

Craig looked down at the ground, recounting the monsters. "Either they're more resilient than you think, or they replicate. Because there are definitely five down there."

"Then let's take them out fast, in case they do replicate," Rachel decided. "New plan: we hit one at a time with all we've got, and see if that does the trick." She pointed at the nearest creature. "Fire on my mark!"

The Force hovered away from each other, making room as each one summoned the totality of their destructive power.

"Now!"

Five beams of radiant energy streaked to the creature all at once, combining to create a rainbow of power. The creature was caught in the explosion of power, and when the light faded, there was nothing left.

Rachel smirked. "Now for-"

Her words were lost in a startled cry as a creature pounced on her from behind, wrapping its legs around her body in a vice.

Craig's eyes widened as he watched his friend plummet, her purple aura slowly fading. "Everyone, Dia-Staffs up!"

Each one pressed their hands together, and slowly parted them, manifesting a narrow pole of seeming granite that steadily glowed with the color signature of its user.

Blue dove to the ground, his Dia-Staff reshaping at his will into a fierce battle-ax. The gleaming blade sliced cleanly into the back of the creature, forcing it to loosen its grip.

Purple hit the ground hard, splashing melted snow and ice in all directions and knocking the nightmarish creature loose. She clutched her head, trying to shake her mind back into focus, as the Force settled in a tight circle around her, each one wielding the Dia-Staff in their preferred shape.

"Rachel?" Keith queried, inching back toward her. "You okay?"

"My head… just won't stop spinning," she sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Yeah," he murmured, "Those monsters broke my concentration before. I think they have the power to disrupt our powers, somehow. Something about where they come from… that aura of evil around them."

"Then we can't let them touch us," she determined, rising onto unsteady legs. "Keep our shields at full power to stop any direct contact."

Her hands began to glow vividly as she channeled her power. "We have to finish this before these things show off some other weird abilities."

Keith nodded, watching as her dual-cannon energy barrage vaporized one creature.

"That brings us to two," he noted, turning to survey the battle scene. Craig and Tamara had teamed up against one monster, while Matt mercilessly pounded the other with his own Dia-Staff.

He then turned toward the cave, and watched with wide eyes as two more creatures emerged from the consuming darkness.

"Hey! They're coming from the cave!" he shouted.

Rachel followed his gaze. "It must be Celea's portal." Her energy field intensified as she leapt into the air. "Go check it out, Keith. We'll keep the existing monsters at bay. Let us know what you find."

Keith nodded, watching as Rachel fired two wide energy strikes, effectively plowing both new creatures away from the mouth of the cave. Keith flew toward the dark aperture, slowing his approach as he reached the melted, muddied ground just outside the cave.

Frowning, he inspected the deep footprints and gouged earth. "I didn't make these marks," he realized. "Someone was here before me."

"Keith!" a voice called from behind. Red turned around and watched as Green flew towards him, leaving a mangled monster behind him that quickly faded into nothingness.

"Did you find anything?" Matt demanded.

Keith pointed to the muddied tracks. "Maybe. We have to investigate this cave, but brace yourself: something is definitely in here. And someone was here before us, fighting these monsters."

Matt's breath caught. "Do you think it was Jocelyn?"

Keith grimaced; the thought had crossed his mind. "I… hope not."

Without another word Matt marched ahead, concentrating his power into his fist to cast a harmless beam of light into the relative darkness. Keith followed closely behind him, inspecting the jagged walls of the cavern for any further clues. Then, Matt's energy beam fell directly upon a faintly glowing portal, which immediately swallowed the light almost hungrily.

"Whoa," Keith breathed, staring into the consuming fiery blackness. He could feel the intensity of the other dimension, as if he held his face before a heated oven. Only, it wasn't just heat. It reeked of death and destruction. "This can't be the same portal that brought Kimberly here. But what happened?"

Matthew glared toward the far wall, and angled the light beam in that direction. "Maybe we should ask her

."

Keith blinked in shock. Lying against the wall, eyes closed and blood trickling down her ashen face, lay the Denebian princess herself.

"Jesus," he murmured, kneeling beside her. He gently pressed his fingers beneath her jaw. "She's… dead!"

Matt scoffed. "We should be so lucky," he growled. "What makes you think she's got the same pulse points as a human, anyway? We don't know squat about Denebian physiology."

Keith shrugged in acknowledgment of Matt's point, and moving aside as the pre-med student took a careful assessment.

"She's breathing," Matt noted, "It's shallow, but it's there. But she's in bad shape. There's a hole the size of a baseball through her shoulder. And all this blood from her head, probably severe head trauma."

"We gotta get her out of here," Keith decided, "Can you tell if it's safe to move her?"

Matt stared as his friend. "You're not serious."

Keith met Matt's gaze evenly. "You're not suggesting we just leave her here to die, are you?"

"Absolutely." Green folded his arms. "This is all her

fault. She summoned these demons from God-knows where, and she got exactly what was coming to her!"

"But she might know how to fix all this!" Keith argued. "Maybe if we help her, she'll help us close this portal, and maybe even get Jocie back."

"Yeah right. Keith, she's a monster

! She won't help us!"

Keith turned back to the fallen princess. "We can't assume that. She might be the only chance we'll ever have to get Jocelyn back. I know it's a long shot, but right now, it's all we've got."

Matt stared at the portal for a long moment, and then back to the Denebian princess. "Okay," he sighed, "Let's get her out of here."

Keith looked down at the helpless girl, a frown forming. "Uh… where we should put her? We can't bring her to the ship. If she woke up…"

His words died on his tongue as an eerie light suddenly filled the cave. Both heroes stared at the portal, watching electricity crackle at its edges. Then, something stretched into the cave.

A leathery wing.

"Keith," Matt instructed, "take Celea and find a safe place to keep her. I'll cover your exit."

Keith nodded wordlessly, slipping one arm behind her neck and the other under her knees. He lifted the girl as quickly as he dared and carried her out of the cave.

Matt's fists flared with energy as the new creature fully emerged from the portal. Unlike the spider-inspired creature, this was more reminiscent of an emaciated wolf, only two pairs of wings sprouted from its oily back. And it had teeth that would send Jaws swimming for its life.

It shrieked as, without warning, a battering ram of power slammed it into the nearest wall.

"Great," Matt sighed, "we're getting a buffet of murderous monsters tonight!"

The Green Enforcer turned, mustering his power for another assault, when a flash from the portal drew his attention.

The eerie blackness disappeared. Instead, he found himself staring at a face.

The face of a white goat, wearing a monocle over one eye, and holding a small black machine in both hands.

"What the hell?" he grumbled, perplexed. "Does this portal connect three universes now?"

Chapter Forty-Three