Operation: Pacifica - Systems Overload
by DarkSide, aka Nemesis the Feral (NYAR!)

 Nemesis trudged along behind the large nagenta saurian, resisting
  almost  futily the urge to rip the MENSAn's limbs from their sockets and
  beat it  senseless with them as it babbled along endlessly, regaling in the
  fine, yet  mind-numbing detail of the citadel's inner architecture.

 At last, he could take it no longer, his teeth grinding in
  frustration. He whirled on the saurian, his bright red eyes roiling with
  fire and the dark  grey stripes on his body turning a deep black.   He
  gritted his teeth and jabbed the dino harshly on the snout with his index
  Claw[tm].

 "A'right ye bloody bastard, would y'mind telling Nemesis just why
  ye've been leading th'lot o' us in circles for th'past half'n hour?!?"

 The MENSAn rubbed its sore muzzle.  "You're quite mistaken, my
  schizophrenic simpleton.  It's quite simply impossible that I could have
  lead us astray."

 "Grrrr... impossible our arse!  We 'ave half o'mind t'rip yer
  bloody--" he stopped suddenly, in mid-sentence.  Everything suddenly felt...
  wrong.  Goosebumps spread across his back, forming a surface of miniatures
  spines nestled amongst the larger spikes projecting from his shoulderblades.
  A faint odor  teased his nostrils, one vaguely familiar.  His eyes widened
  as recognition set in-- ozone!

 Nemesis lurched sideways with a "NYAR!", feeling a small pang of
  satisfaction as he hurled himself bodily into the 'saur, knocking it out of
  the path of the mystical blast.  The feeling quickly faded as he realized
  that BlackBlood had not been so lucky.

 The remains of BlackBlood swirled in the air as the remaining
  Ferals turned their full rage upon a purple-clad Lyran stepping from the
  shadows.

 Nemesis convulsed violently as the Holy WarpSpasm[tm] ripped
  through his being.  The rage clouded his mind, focusing his intent on one
  thing... kill.  He snarled, the Warp hitting him at full blast, contorting
  his body.  Taller he grew, his limbs lengthening, boney fingers ending in
  razor-sharp Claws[tm], extended to their full length... His spines
  lengthened and grew, forming a ridge of death down his back.  He roared with
  fury, baring a set of massive, incredibly sharp teeth.

 He charged in unison with the rest of the group, only to be knocked
  back into the wall of the corrider by a strong gust of wind.   His ears
  twitched as he caught the faint sound of whispering, like a thousand voices
  all at once.

 "nynyanyanyaarnyarnyarrrrrrr..."

 The mage lurched violently upward, ripped into by a mass of
  etherial teeth. Another Lyran appeared as the first was tossed aside, only
  to be engulfed in a tornado glassy shards, chewed up as if in a giant
  blender.  The mane of fur along Nemesis' back stood on end as he stared into
  the black swirling mass.  "What the bloody hell...?"

 "nynyanyanyaayaarrnyarnyarrrrrrr..."

 BlackBlood?

...

 Nemesis meandered about the dark passages with the group, grumbling
  softly. It was quite appearant to them now that Percival had no clue as to
  where the hell he was going.  They were all at wit's end by now, and Slider
  was quick to express his displeasure with the saurian.  Needless to say, he
  had to be temporarily restrained.

 Nemesis felt a bit of nagging within, a bit of unrest.  He was
  pulled away before he got to see an end to that Lyran bastard that played
  with his mind-- not that he could really complain... he gained his
  Claws[tm]-- but still it bothered him.  Could the mage meddle with his mind
  still, when it might be most crucial that he have his wits?

 He caught himself striding next to BlackBlood as everyone paired
  off  instinctively, a feeling of foreboding creeping over them as they got
  closer to their destination.  The grinding sound of the walls closing in
  upon them spurred them on faster, BlackBlood being the last to escape, just
  barely.  The MENSAn wasn't so lucky as the stone press reduced him to a
  puddle of red pulp.

 "Such is the price... for betrayal," thundered a voice, resonating
  within the massive domed chamber.  Acres of statues stretched out before
  them, surrounding a massive staircase leading upward into darkness.

 The blackness at the peak exploded and swirled about the platform,
  revealing Charn'El, perched upon his throne.  At a gesture, the hordes of
  statues began to shake and crumble, revealing armies of thanatins ready to
  strike.  Nemesis stood ready, Claws[tm] at full length, but his mind
  wandered.  He needed closure.  That bastard that messed with his head was
  still alive in the fortress somewhere, and he didn't like it.  What if he
  managed to somehow get into his mind again?

 Something furry nudged his leg, and he glanced down at the wave of
  fluffy bunnies that flowed over his feet.  He couldn't help but laugh in
  spite of himself as he scooped up an armful of the pink-nosed creatures.
  All around the Feral Vorpal Bunnies[tm] tore through the hordes of thanatins
  like the rabbit from Monty Python and the Holy Grail on speed.

 Then everything went black.

 Instinctively, Nemesis shimmered from sight, becoming little more
  than a ripple in the air, like a mirage over hot asphalt in the summer.  He
  moved in a wide circle behind Shardik and Hanover, blinking as he tried to
  regain his vision.  Slowly the cloud of black shifted to gray, and around
  him he heard the sounds of combat, and the cries of his companions as they
  went down before the immortal's fury.   When the world came back into focus,
  Slider and Windigo had been seriously injured, and BlackBlood was in pitched
  battle with Charn'El's vortex.

 Nemesis charged in unison with Shardik and Hanover.  He lept first,
  Claws[tm] poised high to rend the mage's head from his body.

 "NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-ar?!?"  Nemesis pounced on empty air.  Pain
  exploded in his shoulder and arm as his shoulderblade was pulverized by the
  butt of the black mage's staff.  He gritted his teeth in agony, cradling the
  useless limb as he dropped to a knee.   Again his skin changed, blending him
  with his surroundings in an attempt to conceal himself as he attempted to go
  into his healing trance, as dangerous as it might be in the situation.

 His eyes shot open, bone barely mended, at the sound of snapping
  metal.  He focused on a hunk of broken Owsenite as it bounced end over end
  and clattered to the floor.  The Barney Slayer?  Surely it couldn't be...!

 His attentioned turned to Jace, held fast by spikes from the ground piercing 
  his body, as the High Mage struck a deathblow.   "NO!!!" roared Nemesis, rising 
  from his place and fading back into view.  In a matter of seconds, nothing 
  remained of Jace but a black smudge on the ground.  The Maenads wept at the loss
  of their comrade.

 "A'right ye bloody bastard," Nemesis muttered, "it's time fer ye
  t'pay!"  He struck swiftly, catching the mage off guard.  The Claws[tm] of
  his good arm tore deeply through cloth and flesh.  The mage howled in pain,
  latching onto the imp's forearm and exploding it in a fine red mist as demon
  teeth came to bare on his shoulder, piercing hard and deep.  Nemesis' jaws
  clamped down tightly through the agony  on the Lyran's shoulder, stubborn as
  a bulldog, and threatened to shatter the bone beneath.  Charn'El howled even
  more, latching a bony hand onto the Feral's face, and muttered a single
  word.

  It was brief, brilliant... a spectacular show of fireworks, a
  blinding white explosion, all within Nemesis' head.  His body jerked
  violently, every synapse in his brain firing at once.  He convulsed, his
  body going numb as the impulse overloaded his nervous system.  His grip let
  loose, and he collapsed to the ground, limp d lifeless.  Slowly his
  conciousness drifted away.

 The darkness consumed him once more.

Copyright (c) 1997 DarkSide Studios