Operation: Phoenix, Turning Point Battle, Part 13 by CyberPyro (cybrpyro@iac.net) Cries of shock, pain, and surprise came from every Jihaddi's mouth as they fell to the floor. Morgenna lay on her side, incapable of moving or speaking. Windigo's claws flexed weakly as she lay flat on her back, breathing her greatest challenge. All around the room, the ten Jihaddi lay prone. Consciousness found itself to be a fleeting commodity in the helpless sentients. "I ... don't have any ... powers," struggled Owsen. He looked into Samhain's face and knew the same was true for every Jihaddi: most of their life force had just fizzled away with the failed spell. "Why ... *hhhrrrr* ... is the sky .. roiling?" asked Most Holy. "The roof ... *ouch* ... is gone," observed a greatly pained FoxGlov. "o/~ I luv you o/~" sang the Hell Wyrm from the shattered remains of the stairwell onto the top-floor-turned-platform. "Oh, fuck..." sighed CyberPyro. "o/~ You luv me! o/~" screeched a happy B'habii B'hopp. "Not now..." moaned Samhain, thinking how vulnerable everyone was. "o/~ We're a great big happy family! o/~" sang an ecstatic B'hii J'haa. The Trio of Evil pounced onto the platform, their malicious grins spreading from ear to ear. "This is just a really shitty day," growled J-Rock as he struggled to move. "My, my, my!" exclaimed the Hell Wyrm as it flexed it's claws. "What have we here?" "Hehe ... a whole batch of _helpless_ Jihaddi!" chortled B'habii B'hopp. "Oh, it hurts my soul so," giggled B'hii J'haa. "However will we decide which one to kill first?!" "I want Cerberus' head," said The Lavender Lard Lord as he closed in the Jihaddi. "I still owe you for last time." "Let's kill the icky Windigo-poo," said a gleeful B'habii B'hopp. "I want CyberPyro's skull," said B'hii J'haa as he drew his sword and shuffled forwards. His two cousins followed suit, drew their weapons, and closed in on their chosen targets. B'harnii jumped as a ER PPC bolt flew past his snout. "Why, Admiral J-Rock! You've just volunteered to be skinned alive," growled the Magenta Menace as he changed course to where the TRES Admiral lay powerless. The Evil Triad strode forwards, intent on their kills. B'hii J'haa grabbed CP's blondish-brown hair, using his grip to position the Jihaddi's neck for chopping. J-Rock cried out in pain as b'harnii pulled him roughly to his feet by his uniform. Windigo hissed weakly as b'habii b'hopp made practice swings with her blade. "No!" yelled b'hii j'haa as he released CP's head from his claw and started backing up, a single figure emerging from the shadows and roiling smoke. "No!!! Not now!" yelled the Hell Wyrm as he fell back, fear resonating in his voice. "Not here!" squealed b'habii b'hopp as she slunk into the shadows of her cousins. "Not you!! Don't stop us from this!!" screamed It of The One Tooth. The figure strode forwards at a constant pace, the wyrms falling back faster as he reached the Jihaddi. "It is dishonorable to kill powerless, b'harnii," spoke the figure, his gentle voice causing a visible stirring in the Jihaddi. "You won't stop us!" yelled B'hii J'haa as a cup materialized in each Jihaddi's hand. Samhain sipped, found it to be his favorite Sticky Shake[tm] flavor: chocolate. "I won't have to," said Grimace, Patron Saint of The Jihad, as he stepped into the light. It caught his skin, the Royal Purple flaring in a spectacular display of real color. "We'll destroy you!!!" screamed B'hii J'haa, his voice obscuring the noise of ten Jihaddi rapidly consuming their favorite shake. "I wouldn't say that," said Lord Tilden Owsen as he tossed the crumpled remnants of his cup aside and drew The Barney Slayer. "Surprise!" taunted CyberPyro, his powers fully restored by Grimace, as he stood and drew his Claymoor. "Go, my children," gently spoke Grimace unto the Jihaddi, "slay the foul demon and corrupter of children. He is without a soul and consumes the innocent in hope of making his own from their misery." "You lie!" screamed the Wyrm as he backed up, pondering what to do now that the odds were massively against him. "b'harnii, you destroy hearts and minds out of jealousy for those who have what you do not. It is just that my children summoned me here so I could help them destroy you," countered Grimace as the Jihaddi backed the trio of evil toward the edge of the 801 Grand. "Well, we'll just have to see about that..." said the Wyrm as it opened a pendant around its neck. A blinding light issued from the pendant, temporarily blinding the Jihaddi. "Looks like the odds have changed," sneered b'harnii as ten figures, each one a mirror image of a Jihaddi, formed a wall in front of him and drew their weapons. "What the hell?" asked Cerberus as he looked at himself. "Now, *my* Jihaddi, help my cousins and I kill these vermin and their pathetic 'lord'," sneered the Great Satan of Back Stage Fondling. "Praise be to you, Lord Barney," said the anti-Samhain as he prepped his swords for battle. "This is a slight tactical problem," said Owsen as he sized up the situation. Things weren't good; the Jihaddi could kill the Evil Triad with a some effort, but add in their evil halves? Odds of winning weren't good. "Well, let's do some killing," sneered b'harnii as he looked for a target. A strong gust of air blew across everyone present, stripping away the smoke so the stars and moon shone brightly on everyone present. A body appeared between the two groups where nothing used to be. Her black, glistened scales contrasted sharply with the snowy white of her robes. [You will not interfere in the Challenge of X'hiouluq'x!] thundered the X'hirjq Empress' thoughts as positioned herself solidly between the two groups of combatants. "WHAT?!?!" screamed B'hii j'haa. "Where did The Cloud go?!?!?" demanded the Hell Wyrm as Grimace's Jihaddi breathed a collective sigh of relief -- the continuous assault on their minds had ended. [Before you is the most sacred test of a warrior] continued the Empress' thoughts, washing over everyone present like a strong, clear, cold stream of water [You, your kin, and no outside forces shall disturb this process, b'harnii.] "You *BITCH*!" yelled b'hii j'haa as he started to charge, b'habii b'hopp following "You've turned again--" B'hii J'haa slammed backwards, his charge nullified, a noise like a cracking whip accompanying a thick sheet of his blood as it flew through the air. His feet lost contact with the floor, his chest cavity opened from left hip to right shoulder by the Empress' sword, as her spell descended on him. Fire, lightning, coils of energy, cold, and streams of acid washed over the Yellow and Evil One. His cries found themselves mute, his throat disappearing in a wash of acid. The barrage of magic carried the evil yellow plushy across the 801 Grand platform, dropping his smoldering body near the edge. B'habii b'hopp, unable to react fast enough, squealed in agony as the hilt of the Empress' serrated sword slammed into her lower chest, completely impaling her. The Evil and Green One's face lost its form, erased by the 8" razor sharp claws of her foe. B'habii b'hopp's cries ended, the remains of her throat sliding from the Empress' other clawed hand as another blow came whistling in. The Green Pussbag began to loose her balance, her chest opened from two, blindly fast claw swipes. The Empress seized the hilt of her sword and ripped it out of the Green and Foamy evil. A whistling round house kick sent b'habii b'hopp rolling past the gawking Hell Wyrm and its Jihaddi. [Interference will not be tolerated] spoke the X'hirjq Empress. b'harnii and the twenty Jihaddi present all jumped in shock. It took them more time to process the actions of the White Clad X'hirjq than it did for her to maul those who would have attacked her. "heh .. well," said the Indigo Infant Ingester as it eyed the mutilated bodies of its cousins. "Since you're so insistent..." [Then the combat begins] pronounced the Empress, the eyes of each Jihaddi locking with those of his/her evil half. CP Copyright, Pyrokinetic Productions, Inc. (1996)