Disclaimer: This story contains characters from a variety of companies, including Rare and Nintendo. Also, you'll see some dialogue enclosed in *asterisks.* That means that the characters in the present are speaking during the flashback scenes.
After their first encounter with Black Shadow, the Spices reflected upon it back on their ship. Would they keep their word to Mayor Belcus to protect their colony from Black Shadow?
Black Shadow was still pondering about his first battle with the Spices as well. He confided in his trusted minions.
"There's a space colony nearby, called Arturus," he said. "I hear that the Spices have vowed to protect it."
"So?" Valmore asked.
"We have no idea where the Spices hide out," Black Shadow explained. "So if we attack the colony, the Spices will come out to fight. Then we make our move to destroy them."
"So when do we begin the attack?" Morpheyst asked anxiously.
"Patience, Morpheyst," Black Shadow replied. "We need time to plan a strategy."
"Are the Spices that tough?"
"Well, I haven't had much experience with them to determine that. But they were stronger than I had anticipated. And their leader . . ."
"Who is their leader?" Morpheyst asked.
"Tonfa Spice . . . stunning and lovely," Black Shadow replied. "She has already intrigued me . . . such courage and tenacity . . . I think she would make a perfect queen."
"But what about me?" Pandeora asked. "Don't I make a perfect queen, Black Shadow?"
"Of course . . . but with Tonfa Spice, I can conquer the entire Spice Club. With her at my side, her friends will have no choice but to surrender."
Pandeora smiled. "Oh . . . you're right!" She laughed out loud.
"So a horrible accident left you in critical condition?" Fulgore asked when Gazelle told him of his past.
"Yep. The only way to save me was to give me these cybernetic implants," Gazelle said. "I guess I didn't mind . . . that is, until my loved ones reacted to it. So . . . what was your life like as a human?"
Fulgore pondered for a moment. "Hmm . . . this may come as a complete shock to you, but frankly, I was never human."
Gazelle's eyes widened. "You're pure cyborg?"
"Mm-hmm. I was put together by a secret corporation called Ultratech. They originally wanted to use me to take over the Earth, but with all the monster attacks, they reprogrammed me to fight them."
"Wow."
Just then, Jenny entered the room. She stretched before settling at the table.
"Hey, Jenny . . . those people on that space colony seem pretty paranoid," Fulgore said.
"Yeah. I'd be paranoid, too, if I was as poor as those people," Jenny replied.
"Are we really going to protect them?" Gazelle asked.
"Sure. If Black Shadow is attacking them, we should fight," Jenny said. "It can't be any different than protecting Terra Venture from Astronema and Scorpius."
"I see."
Jenny covered her face suddenly. "Man . . . I think Black Shadow is being sweet on me . . . I hate that."
"Oh, here we go again . . ." Gazelle sighed.
Then Arbin and Hanim entered the room and joined the others at the table.
"Boy, what's in a name?" Arbin asked.
"What do you mean?" Gazelle asked.
"I don't see why everyone insists on calling me by my original name," Arbin said.
"And what is your original name?" Fulgore asked.
"Sterling LaVaughn," Gazelle told him.
"Sterling? Your name is Sterling?!" Fulgore exclaimed. "Stick with Arbin; it's a much better name."
Arbin covered his face. "I agree."
"What're you gonna do?" Fulgore asked. "You gonna approach someone and say, 'Hi, my name is Sterling?!'"
"I agree," Arbin said again.
"Arbin, you said that your guardians were a weird couple," Hanim said. "How were they weird?"
"Well, the fact that they named me after the word 'Armageddon' is weird enough, don't you think?"
"But how did you end up with them?" Fulgore asked. "What happened to your real parents?"
"They died when I was a newborn," Arbin replied. "I was told that the weird couple found me in an alley next to my parents' dead bodies. Since I had no clue, I eventually recognized the couple as my parents. But they wouldn't allow me to call them Mom and Dad. So I had to call them by their names, Tymrak and Arianne."
"Hmm . . . weird names," Jenny commented.
"Arianne is a pretty name," Hanim said.
"Too bad she didn't live up to her name," Arbin continued. "She didn't treat me very well. She treated me like a slave. She beat me whenever I overslept."
"Ouch," Fulgore said.
"Every time I overslept, it was the same thing . . ."
A young woman walked downstairs into the kitchen. She went straight to her coffeepot and touched it. When she found that it was cold and empty, she became enraged and slapped the pot across the room.
"Arbin!" she screamed. She ran into the living room and grabbed a poker from the fireplace. Then she raced back upstairs and into a bedroom where a young Arbin Gordon slept soundly. Without hesitation, the woman brought the poker down sharply on Arbin's hip. "Get up!"
Arbin woke up screaming. The woman continued to beat him as he tumbled out of bed and down the stairs. The woman followed.
"I'm supposed to have my coffee before I wake up, you good for nothing brat!" she continued. "Now get out to the poultry farm and get me my eggs!"
"Arianne . . . please calm down," Arbin sobbed as he pulled on his jean jacket and grabbed his basket.
"Go on!" Arianne snarled.
Arbin stumbled out the front door into the yard.
*Did that happen every morning?* Fulgore asked.
*Well, even when I did wake up on time, Arianne didn't seem all that grateful,* Arbin replied. *Tymrak, on the other hand, was a good parent. He educated me, kept me well-fed, and he was nice to me.*
*Sounds like my parents,* Jenny said. *My dad raised me most of the time. My mom seemed to be a good parent, too, but somehow I sensed that she had a dark side.*
Arbin continued with his flashback. *Every morning, Tymrak would get up bright and early and do some yard work. He was a butcher.*
Arbin limped through the yard where a partially bald man was raking up the autumn leaves. The top of his head was bald, and his hair was brown and curly. His eyes were black like marbles.
"Arbin, my man!� he called. �Where�re you headed?�
Arbin looked up at him innocently. "Arianne wants her eggs," he said flatly.
The man, called Tymrak, noticed that Arbin was holding his left hip. "Arbin . . . did Arianne beat you again?"
With tears in his eyes, Arbin nodded. He ran straight to Tymrak and hugged him.
"I'm going to have to talk to that woman," Tymrak sighed. "You're a good boy, Arbin; you deserve better."
Arbin cried harder as he squeezed Tymrak even tighter.
"Arbin, listen to me," Tymrak went on. "Don't pay any attention to what Arianne tells you. You are my greatest treasure; you are my son. Do you understand me?"
Arbin nodded. "Tymrak . . . why does she have to hurt me? I hate it when she hits me with the fire poker. If she keeps this up, I'll eventually become a cripple!"
"That will not happen," Tymrak told him. "I'll take care of it. Now you'd better get those eggs before Arianne throws another hissy fit."
"Yes, sir." Arbin continued on to the poultry farm . . ."
"And that was the typical morning with Tymrak," Arbin told his friends.
"Didn't you get tired of the same old pattern?" Fulgore asked. "I mean, with Arianne beating you, then Tymrak comforting you?"
"You know that I was tired of being tortured by Arianne," Arbin said. "But I could never get enough of Tymrak's love."
"So when did things change?" Hanim asked.
"Things changed when I was a teenager," Arbin explained. "The authorities showed up on our doorstep. They arrested Tymrak and Arianne, and took me into custody."
"Why were they arrested?" Jenny asked.
"They adopted me illegally. It was then that I learned of my true parents and my true identity. Tymrak, Arianne, and I stood directly in front of the judge. Judge Terrible was his name."
"Judge Terrible?!" Fulgore exclaimed. "Good grief! Where the hell were you raised, Eerie, Indiana?"
"No, I was raised in a town called Strangeville," Arbin told him.
"Now that is strange," Jenny said.
Arbin sighed. "I'll never forget that day . . . standing in front of that judge . . ."
"Let's see . . . Mr. and Mrs. Gordon . . . you say that this boy has been in your care all his life?"
"That's right, Your Honor," Tymrak replied, bowing his head.
Judge Terrible looked directly at Arbin. "What's your input on this, young man?"
"It's true; I've lived with them all my life," Arbin said. "They've taken good care of me . . . or at least Tymrak has. Arianne just kept beating me."
"That's not true, Your Honor!" Arianne protested. "He's a natural born liar! He's the worst kid ever born!"
"She beat me for no reason, Your Honor!" Arbin cried, tears streaming down his face. "Here, look at this!" He lifted his shirt, revealing the blotchy scars plaguing his stomach and chest. "This is where she kept hitting me with the fireplace poker! Do you have ANY idea what it's like to be hit with one of those things, Your Honor?! It hurts like hell! And look at this!"
Arbin turned to the side, exposing his more recent wounds. They were treated with white bandages, but the blood was still seeping through.
"Arianne, I can't believe this!" Tymrak cried. "You promised me that you would stop hurting him!"
"Mrs. Gordon, did you or did you not abuse the boy?" Judge Terrible asked.
"I only hit him when he was bad, Your Honor," Arianne admitted.
"Oh nonsense; Arbin was never bad," Tymrak told him. "Besides, people don't use pokers to punish their children!"
"He oversleeps every other morning!"
"That's not a bad thing! You've been using him as a slave!"
"Order!" the judge demanded, pounding the desk with his mallet. "Let's change the subject, shall we? I have the results of the boy's blood test in front of me. It appears that the boy has no living kin whatsoever. However, his DNA pattern matches that of a missing child. That could only mean one thing. This boy IS the missing child. I have your official birth certificate."
Judge Terrible picked up the certificate and held it in front of Arbin. He read the name out loud.
"Sterling LaVaughn? No, that's not mine! My name is Arbin Gordon! It always has been and always will be!"
"Now, now, my boy," Judge Terrible said. "This couple has made you Arbin Gordon. Your true parents wanted you to be Sterling LaVaughn."
*So that was it,* Arbin told the Spices. *That was why they wouldn't allow me to call them Mom and Dad. They weren't my real parents!*
"Tymrak . . . you told me that I was your son," Arbin sobbed. "Why didn't you tell me the truth? Better yet, if you're not my real parents . . . then how did I end up with you?"
"Shut up!" Arianne snapped. "We'll never tell you!"
Tymrak grabbed her shoulder. "He has a right to know," he told her. "Arbin . . . when you were still a newborn, Arianne and I found you in an alley next to your parents' dead bodies."
Arbin gasped. "How did they die?"
Tymrak shrugged. "No one knows."
"And all my life, I thought that you were my father . . . and that I was your son . . ."
"Arbin, listen to me. I love you. You have always been a son to me. I've raised you no differently that I would my biological son."
Arbin smiled. "You're right. You'll always be a father to me, Tymrak."
Judge Terrible interrupted the touching scene. "Normally, I'd be fascinated by all this, but we have a case to decide here . . ."
"Then what happened?" Fulgore asked.
"Well, since I had no living kin, they had no choice but to let us go," Arbin replied. "So I went back to living with Tymrak and Arianne."
"Couldn't they have put you in an orphanage?" Hanim asked.
"They didn't have orphanages," Arbin told her. "Besides, I was almost old enough to support myself anyway. However, Arianne wouldn't let me live independently. She still needed a slave."
"That sucks," Jenny said.
"One day, things changed again," Arbin continued. "I found a monkey's paw."
"Did it grant wishes?" Gazelle asked.
"Yes. I wasn't surprised that Arianne was a greedy person. She forced me to wish for a million dollars . . . so I did."
"Did it come true?" Fulgore asked.
"Yes . . . but only after Tymrak and Arianne went out for the evening. They got into an accident. The car burst into flames and fell off a bridge. Tymrak was killed. Arianne was hospitalized, but she wasn't that injured. We collected on Tymrak's insurance . . . which was one million dollars."
"So you didn't have to make the wish," Fulgore said. "All she had to do was wait for Tymrak to die."
"I guess," Arbin said. "Well, I was miserable after Tymrak's death. I knew about how the monkey's paw tricks people, so I had to be more specific when I wished for Tymrak to come back. So I wished for him to come back exactly the way he was before the accident."
"Did it work?" Hanim asked.
"Well, it worked, but Tymrak was still dead," Arbin said. "I got a phone call from the morgue, so I drove down there . . ."
Dr. Kindell showed Arbin the corpse of Tymrak. It was completely waterlogged and covered with seaweed.
"I hate this," Arbin said. "I could just imagine the car catching on fire . . ."
The woman gave him a surprised look. "There was no fire. Somehow, the police detectives missed this." She turned Tymrak's head to reveal a bullet protruding from his neck. "Before the car tumbled off the bridge, somebody put a bullet in his head. Your father . . . was murdered."
There are times when I feel that I should've been a detective myself," Arbin went on. "Arianne wanted a million dollars. Tymrak's insurance held a million dollars. So Arianne killed Tymrak!"
"Why, that greedy little bitch!" Jenny cried.
"My thoughts exactly. Was I going to spend the rest of my life alone with Arianne?! Absolutely not! Only one thing crossed my mind at that moment: Destroy Arianne! Get her back for the way she treated me . . . and for murdering Tymrak!"
Arbin went straight back home to confront Arianne. She was packing her bags and getting ready to move out. Arbin stormed into the room.
"Murderer!" he screamed.
Arianne spun around.
"You let your greed get the best of you!" Arbin continued. "You wanted the million dollars from Tymrak's insurance, so you killed him!"
"So I did," Arianne admitted. "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for that ridiculous paw! You are a spoiled little brat, Arbin! You had to mess with history, didn't you?!"
Arbin held the paw tightly, concentrating deeply. Then he relaxed and smiled. Arianne aimed a gun at him.
"Give me that bloody paw, Arbin! I don't want you using that last wish against me."
Arbin calmly handed it over. "You won't have to worry, Arianne. I've already used it."
"What?!"
"I'm not as daft as you think. I gave my wish away. I wished that the last wish would belong to my guardian."
Arianne scoffed. "Hmph! I don't want your wish! In fact, I wish that you had your wish back. There, that's done it."
She tossed the paw back to Arbin, who let it fall to the floor.
"No, it's not. You see, I didn't tell the paw WHICH guardian to give it to." Arbin's smile grew wider. "I beat it in its own ridiculous game! That twisted paw . . . gave the wish . . . to Tymrak!"
A roar of thunder filled the room. The front door opened up with a loud, squeaking noise. There stood Tymrak, still waterlogged and covered with seaweed, blood drooling from his mouth. He limped into the house, holding his arms out in front of him. Arianne gasped and shot Tymrak, but it had no effect. Arbin giggled happily as Arianne backed up into a large closet. Tymrak stepped inside with her, and the door closed by itself. As several crashes occurred along with Arianne's uncontrollable screaming, Arbin noticed a padlock hanging on the latch. He took the lock and locked his guardians inside the closet.
"The funny thing is, his wish was to spend a little more time with you!" he called.
With that, Arbin Gordon left the house, vowing never to return.
"Then what happened?" Gazelle asked.
"Then I left the house to live on my own, to discover my destiny. But most importantly . . . to live."
"So what'd you do?" Fulgore asked.
Arbin gave him a look. "Come on, you know what I did; I became a racer!"
"Oh, yeah!"
"I found that I was gifted with skill, technique, and fast reflexes, so I figured that I should put those gifts to good use. And those traits are needed on the race track . . . and on the battlefield."
"So did Tymrak ever get out of that closet?" Jenny asked.
"I don't know," Arbin said.
Jenny sighed. "Well, it's been lovely chatting, but what do you say we get the others and explore the colony?"
"Sounds like a good idea," Hanim said.
So they gathered the other Spices and teleported down to the colony. As soon as Mayor Belcus saw them, he rushed out to greet them.
"Spices, welcome!" he called.
Jenny smiled. "Hello, Mayor."
"Any luck?" Belcus asked.
"Yeah, we found Black Shadow. He's not going to be easy to defeat."
"Is there anything we can do?" Belcus asked. "We'll help."
"Somehow I doubt it," Pico mumbled.
"I hate to say it, but I think we're going to need their help," Jenny said. "But this place does look kind of . . . ancient."
"We're really not as poor as we look," Belcus told her. "Only this area looks like this. The rest of the colony actually looks modern."
"Does this colony have a name?" Spinal asked.
"It's called Arturus. Hey, I'd like to introduce you guys to the colony. Would you like to make a public appearance? Give a speech, perhaps?"
"Really? We'd be honored!" Ruth exclaimed.
"Actually . . . we've never made a public appearance before," Jenny said. "I'm not really good at public speaking."
"Oh, come on, Jenny!" the Cryptkeeper exclaimed. "It can't be any more different than speaking to us."
"Well . . . why not?" Jenny responded. "When do you want us to make the appearance?"
"How about now?" Belcus asked.
"Now?!" Jenny was stunned. "Well . . ."
Let's do it!" Carlos called.
Jenny gave him a sour look. "Thanks a lot, Carlos."
Carlos shrugged.
"Let's go."
Mayor Belcus led the Spices down the road and up onto a stage. Belcus noticed a news crew nearby, so he lead them over.
"I want the entire colony to see this," he said.
"Um . . . is this a big colony?" Jenny called nervously.
"Of course." Belcus went onstage to the microphone and spoke into it. "Could I have everyone's attention, please? Gather around, citizens!"
The people began to assemble in front of the stage. Jenny got even more nervous.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the prophecies have come true!" Belcus announced. "This is the team of warriors who have volunteered to protect the colony from Black Shadow's reign of terror. They call themselves the Spice Club. And now let's hear a few words from them!"
He stepped aside, and Jenny took her place in front of the microphone. The citizens were completely silent. Jenny cleared her throat.
"Ladies and gentlemen . . . unaccustomed as I am to public speaking . . . as the Mayor said . . . we are here to fight Black Shadow. My name is Jenny . . . and before I go any further . . ."
She turned to Belcus. "Has Black Shadow ever attacked the colony before?"
"No . . . but he will, I'm sure of it. But . . . how can we contact you when he does attack?"
"You won't have to," Hallie jumped in.
"We'll keep our eyes open," Jenny added. She turned back to the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, we will protect this colony . . . but we'll need your help."
The citizens gasped.
"How can we help?!" one man called. "We don't know how to fight!"
"Pardon me," Arbin said, stepping forward to the microphone. "Your fear of Black Shadow suggests that you have an adequate amount of information about him. We'll need to have knowledge of his power if we are to defeat him."
"Um . . . I think my friends have something to say," Jenny called to the people.
"I sure do!" Fulgore called, stepping to the microphone. "People . . . you've no need to fear . . . for we have nothing to fear but fear itself!"
Spinal stepped forward next. "Four score and seven years ago, I was a lonely warrior wandering the planet with no ambition whatsoever."
Then the Cryptkeeper stepped up. "Read my lips! We will protect this colony from Black Shadow's evil!"
Suddenly, Spinal groaned, grabbing his head with both hands. "Oh no! He's coming! Black Shadow's coming!"
"But sir . . ." Belcus said. "If Black Shadow were to arrive, there would be sirens."
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, sirens began to blare from all directions. The purple lightning crashed on the ground, and Black Shadow, his demons, and his minions appeared. The Spices looked at Spinal.
"How did you know?" C.C. asked.
"I . . . I don't know," Spinal stammered. "I just knew. I just felt it in my mind!"
"Spice Club!" Black Shadow called. "It's nice to see you all again!"
The citizens screamed and fled into their hiding areas. Their curiosity got the best of them. They poked their heads out to see how well the Spices would defend them from Black Shadow's terror.
"I wish we could say the same!" Jenny called back.
"We've come here because we hear that you'll be protecting this colony," Black Shadow continued. "The question at hand is . . . can you?"
"Of course we can!" the Cryptkeeper told him. "We believe in ourselves."
"We'll see." Black Shadow looked back and forth at the demons gathered around him. "Attack the citizens."
The demons complied.
"No!" Jenny screamed as the Spices went after the demons.
A ferocious battle ensued. The citizens watched in terror as Black Shadow watched with glee. Suddenly, his smile dropped, and he slowly raised his hand to his head.
"Master . . . are you all right?" Dr. Clash asked.
"I'm sensing a great deal of fear . . . but it is not mine," Black Shadow told him.
"What do you mean?"
Black Shadow pointed out into the battlefield, moving it slowly. "It's coming from . . . that one!" He pointed at Spinal. "Spinal Spice . . . Dr. Clash, my friend, I think we have something to our advantage. Let me put it to some use . . ."
Black Shadow began to concentrate again. Suddenly, Spinal grabbed his head again.
"No!"
Spinal glared at Fulgore and raised his scimitar. He began to sneak up on the cyborg. Luckily, Fulgore turned.
"What do you think you're doing, little one?" he asked.
To stop Spinal from attacking, Fulgore zapped his hand with his eye laser, causing Spinal to drop his sword and also bringing him back to reality.
"What?!" He looked up at Fulgore. "Fulgore . . . help me! Black Shadow's . . . invading my thoughts! I can't fight him!!"
"Yes, you can, Spinal," Fulgore assured him. "But like every other foe, he feeds on doubt. You must believe in yourself, little one!"
Black Shadow looked at his major minions. "Finish them."
The other henchmen ran into the field. The demons backed off. The Spices turned to face the minions.
"I've been waiting for this moment!" Morpheyst called.
"And now you'll wish that you could forget this moment!" Pico snapped.
"The twins and I will take the short one!" Hallie called, pointing to Skitter.
The three-foot-tall creature stepped forward. "Short one, you say? We'll see who's short around here."
To the little girls' horror, Skitter began to grow in size. A robotic armor covered his body. He whipped his tail on the ground to intimidate the girls, and it was working. Skitter leaped over their heads and gripped a building. He climbed up a few stories before leaping at the girls.
"Heads up!" Hallie cried.
The girls avoided Skitter's attack. Skitter landed gracefully on the ground and spun around again. He leaped at them again.
"I don't think so, kangaroo!" Rachel called, throwing an energy bubble at him. The bubble popped in his face, and Skitter crashed on the ground.
Morpheyst and Saytaur worked together to fight the Spices. Morpheyst lived up to his name. His fist morphed into a blade and he swung it at Fulgore, who avoided the blows. As the cyborg moved back, Morpheyst kicked him in the chest, knocking him to the ground.
Saytaur pulled out his battle axe. "Come and get me." He swung his axe at the other Spices. Jenny grabbed his wrist and held on tightly. Hanim moved in and kicked his chest. Saytaur punched her away, then grabbed Jenny, wrapping his arm around her neck and squeezing tightly.
"Urgh!! Let me go!!" she screamed.
Suddenly, she felt her neck burning, causing her to scream even louder. It felt as if some kind of acid was eating through her skin. Suddenly, Saytaur felt something stabbing his back. He released Jenny, who staggered forward and fell. She kept her face buried into the ground. Saytaur turned to see his attacker � Carlos.
"I don't know what you're doing, but I'm sure it isn't nice," he said.
"You stay out of this, human," Saytaur growled. "You're as pathetic as the rest of them."
Carlos raised his Lunar Lance. "We'll see."
As he and Saytaur collided in battle, the others gathered around Jenny.
"Jenny . . . are you okay?" the Cryptkeeper asked.
Jenny turned herself over. The others instantly gasped. Her neck was severely burned; the skin was red and black, and blood and pus oozed out. Jenny touched her neck, but the sting was too painful. She looked at the pus now on her fingers. She couldn't see the damage on her neck.
"Eeeuw, that is truly disgusting," Arbin said.
Lenina took some of the pus onto her finger and sucked it off. "Tasty, though."
"Lenina, don't do that," Ruth said. "It's nasty."
Persyra shot a vine from her wrist. It wrapped around Spinal's wrist, and Persyra pulled him to her. Spinal ended up spinning around, causing the vine to wrap around him until he was in Persyra's arms.
"Oooh, what a cute thing you are," she gushed. "How about if I plant a kiss on you?"
"No!" Spinal screamed, struggling against the vines, but they were too strong. "No!! Let me go!! Fulgore, help!!"
"Hang on, Spinal!" Fulgore called.
He fired his eye laser, breaking the vines that bound his partner. Spinal moved away from the female plant-humanoid.
"That's enough!" Black Shadow called. "Demons, return immediately! I've learned all I need to know."
The minions returned to their master's side, and they all vanished in the crack of lightning. The colony citizens stepped out. Belcus ran straight to the Spices.
"You guys okay?" he asked.
"We're intact, but we're not certain about Jenny," Arbin told him.
Fulgore and Spinal ran over and noticed Jenny's charred neck for the first time.
"Eeeuw, gross!" Spinal exclaimed.
"What happened?" Fulgore asked.
"That devil guy burned her neck somehow," Hanim said.
"Well, why don't we get that fixed, shall we?" Belcus suggested.
Jenny stood up slowly. "Is it that bad?"
"It's pretty bad," Carlos said. "It's at least a third-degree burn."
"Don't worry, Jenny," Arbin told her. "I know how it feels; I've been burned before."
"So have I," Jenny replied.
Belcus began to lead the Spices to the hospital to treat Jenny's burn.
Black Shadow returned to his throne to speak to his minions again.
"So that's it! There's some sort of . . . mental link . . . between Spinal Spice and myself."
"Is that good or bad?" Valmore asked.
"It can be either way," Black Shadow replied. "While I can tap into his thoughts at any given moment to retrieve information . . . he can do the same to me. Fortunately, he doesn't know that. Perhaps this can be of use to me."
"But what causes this . . . connection?" Dr. Clash asked.
"That I don't know," Black Shadow admitted. "But it's not important. I'm curious about the little stinker myself."
He sat back in his throne, grinning . . .