Saber Site - Fanfics

Chapter 11.
The Three Trials

The team walked thru the metal corridors, while Ruby had her sensors in the max alert mode.

"This area seems safe, follow me everybody."

"OK Stop. There are laser sensors in here. We must be very careful."

She was interrupted by a voice coming from an intercom.

"Well well well... looky what we got here.
Hello, my dear guests... welcome to my humble abode, heh heh heh...
You'll be glad to know that this is a maximum security zone... you have only 20 minutes to rescue your friends. Or else... heh heh heh heh...

This will be SO fun..."

Ruby was the one who would detect the sensor movements, and was the only one who would pass the area and get to the security clearance panel.

Unfortunately, Cherry's body didn't help much with her long hair.
"I can't pass thru with this body."
"What?" asked Otaru.
"Cherry's hair - it's too long. I need a body with the least add-ons. And yet, the sensors are hardwired into this one."

"You can try the ventilation system", said Emerald.
"Exactly."

She jumped to a hatch in the ventilation system and began crawling.

A few seconds later, she was down.

"That was the easy part. Now i'll have to crack the access code to disable the laser system."

She put her palm in the numeric panel, hoping to get access to the code. She couldn't.

"It doesn't work!"

"Damn!" said Otaru."
"18 minutes left", said Mike, looking at his watch.
"Great!! Ruby, can't you do something?"
Bloodberry asked. "Ruby, what happens if we cross?"
"The sentries will come."

"THE HELL WITH THEM!" she said, as she ran thru.

The alarm was activated. Everyone followed Bloodberry. They could hear some steps.

"5 seconds for visual contact!", said Ruby.

THERE THEY ARE!

50 saber marionette sentries came running.
They carried electrified swords.

"Everybody on guard!"

The 3 saber marionettes started running to meet the sentries. They were careful not to get touched by the swords. The battle was hard. They could beat the sentries, but still they were too numerous, and the battle was getting difficult.

"We need some help here!" cried Bloodberry.
Otaru and Akashi went to help, but Mike hindered them. "Don't - you'll die surely."
"But we have to do something!" Otaru said, while they saw the sentries getting advantage in the battle.

"They're learning!" said Ruby. "Their AI is very advanced!"

Emerald swept one of the sentry's feet and threw her to the other sentries.
This gave the team some time. But the sentries started shooting daggers at the marionettes. Akashi would have died if Mike hadn't thrown him to the floor.

"This is too risky for you! You better hide guys!"
"No, we must help them!"
"DO WHAT I SAY!" Michael shouted, making everybody tremble with fear. They obeyed and hid behind a wall.

Mike took out his sword. He prayed for a moment, and then ran forward, slashing the sentries like pieces of paper.

"Hey, how did you do that!" asked Bloodberry, wondering why Mike's combat speed was as fast as hers.
"Behind you!"
She turned around, and a sentry was about to slash her. Bloodberry avoided her and destroyed her with a punch in the neck.
A saber doll was about to slash Mike, but Emerald kicked her sword away. Then Mike disabled her with a powerful kick.

The marionettes were completely dismantled.

"Second wave!" shouted Ruby.

"Stupid me, we have the EMPs!" Mike shouted. He took his EMP gun, and slashed it, removing the safety cannon. He shot a charge at the sentries, disabling them all.

"Wonderful!" Hanagata shouted. He unscrewed the cannon from his EMP gun. Otaru did the same.
"We have only a few seconds before recovery", said Ruby. The marionettes broke the paralyzed sentries, but the last one got up. Emerald shot at her and disabled her again.

"OK, they're done", Emerald said, as she and Ruby took 2 swords from the floor.

"Third wave!"

I'll take care! said Hanagata, with a prideful air in his voice.
He got forwards and shot at the sentries, but it didn't work. He quickly ran and took cover.

"They're shielded!" said Emerald.

The third group of sentries advanced, but this time the marionettes were prepared.

"These sentries aren't as good as the others!" said Ruby.
"There must be some malfunctioning in their control system!" said Emerald, slashing the sentries rather quickly.

"DAMN!" shouted Hess, looking at his screen. "What the hell is happening with the sentries!"
He looked ad the computer display, noticing the ultimate fighting algorithm had been deleted.

"ARGGHHHHHHH!!!! Yang Ming, you're gonna pay for this!"

After they had finished the third wave, the team saw one last sentry with a machine gun running towards them.

"Look out, she's got a machine gun!" exclaimed Ruby.

Otaru's marionettes blocked the bullets with their fast speed, using the sentries' swords as shields. Michael, Otaru, Akashi and Hanagata hid again behind the wall.

Emerald threw one of the swords at the sentry's machine gun, throwing it to the floor.

The sentry ran towards her, yelling, but Bloodberry intercepted her. In a few seconds she was done.

"Look out, she's got a bomb!" said Ruby.
Emerald grabbed her and threw her to another corridor.

"EVERYBODY TAKE COVER!"

7...


6...


5...


4...


3...


2...


1...

BROOOOOMMMMM!

The ground trembled for a few seconds.

"Stage clear."

"Guys, you can get out now, let's go!" said Bloodberry.

The team advanced forward, running as fast as they could. They had only 10 minutes left.

"OK, we're here", said Ruby. They had reached an area with greater security.

"Don't move anyone."

12 minutes left. Fake Bloodberry's last limb was destroyed. Cherry was completely blocked, without being able to feel any emotion. Lime had a difficult time praying.

"Why is this so hard... why..."
Don't give up - we're coming for you, but we need your help.
"M... Mike?"
We need your prayers, Lime, don't give up!

"They're coming... they're coming for us!"
Cherry woke up from her trance, still in doubt. "Lime? What did you say, Lime..."
"Cherry!" They hugged each other.
"We need to pray, Cherry, they need us!"
"THEY WHO?"
"Mike... he's brought people to help us."
"He has?" asked Cherry. Someone's coming for us... She couldn't believe it. They were going to be rescued after all.

Meanwhile, Hess was watching Otaru and the team. "They won't make it in time", he said.
"That is... IF they make it... hah hah hah hah hah!"

Bloodberry slammed a big door and they arrived to a very long room that looked like a corridor. A few steps ahead, there were squares which looked like panels, with bright red lines between them. And no, the ventilation system wasn't available to repeat Ruby's trick.

"What's this?" asked Bloodberry.

They stepped forward, and huge electric arcs were formed between the floor and the ceiling, in some squares. Three of those electric arcs moved across the squares, in an apparently random pattern.

"50,000 volts", said Ruby. "NO human could survive that."
"Oh my God..." Bloodberry said.
I can't believe this, thought Akashi. What can a human possibly do to survive these tests? Bloodberry, i don't deserve you, Otaru can take better of you... i'm not worthy, how could i protect you from all of these things?
His face saddened, but nobody noticed it.

Ruby analysed the algorithm of the pattern. It looked complex, but not random.

"The pattern is rather simple, but it requires adequate timing, and fast reflexes." She drew in the floor a diagram of the room, showing the adequate steps.

"First i'll go, then the marionettes. Do you guys think you can make it?"
"There must be another way, there MUST be", said Mike.

Ruby carefully walked thru the squares, in the pattern that she had drawn.

Front.

Left, left

Right, right

Front

Right

Back

Right

Wait...

Back

Wait...

Front, front, front, front.

Left, left, left

Back

Wait...

Front, front

Right

Wait...

Left

Wait...

Front and left.

Front.

After she finished and got to the safe area, she found a switch.
"This must be the on-off switch". She pulled it, and the pattern changed.
"What the ****?" asked Bloodberry.
"BLOODBERRY!" said Akashi, amazed at her bad words. She blushed. "Sorry."

Ruby turned the switch again, and the pattern changed, but not to the original.
"We're not gonna make it in time", Otaru thought.

"****!!!!" shouted Bloodberry, throwing the broken door at the maze. "WHY THIS DAMMIT!!!!"

"Bloodberry..." said Otaru.
"WHAT!!"
"Did you look at that?"
"Huh?"

"The door, it blocked the lightning for a second!"
Hanagata opened his eyes wide. Being the only one with a fine education, he remembered that metal conducts electricity.

"Hey GUYS, GUYS!!! I GOT AN IDEA!!!"
"Everyone looked at him. We only have to find a shield big enough to cover ourselves, and we can walk thru the maze as if nothing happened!!"
"A shield? Yeah right Hanako, and where do you think you are, the ammunition shop?" asked Bloodberry.

Mike looked back, remembering Ruby's crawling.
"As a matter of fact, we ARE. Bloodberry, quick - follow me!"

A few seconds later, they heard a horrible metallic sound coming from the corridor.

S C R E E E E C H ! ! ! !

They had removed a section of the ventilation system.
"One person fits in here. We can slide it to the other side", said Mike.

Emerald looked at it.
"Why didn't i think of that..." said Emerald with an inquisitive gaze.
Mike patted her on the hair. "Because you're not alive, baby", he said, smiling. "I'll go first", said Otaru.

Akashi just felt useless.
"I shouldn't be here. I'm only making things difficult for you..." he said.
Bloodberry looked at him. "Baby, don't say that."
"But it's true, what can I -"
"Could you two shut up please?", said Otaru. "We're all worried and there's no time for complaints."
Bloodberry and Akashi looked down, ashamed.
"You're right Otaru", she said.

Otaru crawled into the vent section, and Bloodberry was ready to push it to the other side.
"Otaru, cover your ears" said Emerald.
Bloodberry pushed him, and as the ventilation section was sliding thru the room, Otaru heard horrible zaps. He arrived.
The same procedure was repeated with everyone, and the last one to go was Bloodberry.

"HERE I GO!!!" She carefully positioned herself against the wall, and pushed herself with her feet. She arrived.

"Mike, how much left?"
"8 minutes left, let's hurry!"

"Computer, remind me to add spikes to that room for the next time."
"Yes, Dr. Hess."

"What now?" asked Otaru.

A single room with an elevator.

"That's it? Just a simple elevator?" asked Akashi.
"This is too easy", said Mike.

"What can we do?"
"I got an idea", said Emerald.
She got in the elevator, and just when the door was about to close, she got out.

The elevator fell down and crashed in an acid pool.

"Yes, but where?"
Ruby scanned the place. There was no visible door. But the lowest 10 mosaics on the walls were buttons.

They heard Hess' voice again. "Welcome to your last test, brave adventurers... *chuckle*
This last challenge is an easy one. Find the button which opens the secret door.

"But just to make things interesting, i'll send you some toys to play with... heh heh heh."

From the celing, very high, fell three strange marionettes, with mantis appearance. The team had to split in 3 subteams - each one with a marionette and a human.

Team 1. Akashi and Bloodberry.
Team 2. Otaru and Emerald.
Team 3. Hanagata and Ruby.

Mike was in Akashi's team.

"These marionettes don't move..."
"They're expecting us to lower our guards", said Ruby. "Guys, start searching!"

Otaru, Hanagata and Akashi began searching for the right button. The mantis warriors ran towards them, but Otaru's marionettes blocked their way.
The battle had begun.

The humans started pressing the mosaics as fast as they could. Meanwhile the marionettes were battling Hess' mantis warriors. Lucky they hadn't forgotten the sentries' swords.

As they were pressing some buttons, some spikes came out of the floor at random.

"Hey, What's that?" asked Hanagata.
"One of us must have triggered it! yelled Akashi. Hanagata, press the last two buttons!"

Nothing.

"Otaru?"

Otaru pressed a button. Then the other. The spikes came out again.

"OK, found it!"
"OK, keep it handy, might come useful!"
Otaru tried to find something to mark it, so his only idea was to spit on it. It wasn't elegant, but it worked.

They pressed more and more buttons on the wall.

One mantis jumped high on the wall, and bounced towards Otaru.

Emerald jumped and battled the mantis in mid-air. The mantis warriors regrouped, and jumped all at one same spot. This time was Hanagata's turn.

"Look out!" The three marionettes jumped to protect Hanagata.

The swords couldn't harm the warriors, they were too weak - and the mantis' claws, too sharp.

"Hurry up guys, we have only 5 minutes!" shouted Mike, who was also searching.

*BROOOM*. "AAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
"Akashi!!!" shouted Bloodberry.

"I'm hit, but i'm OK!"
He was burnt by a flame which came from the floor. She looked at his burnt leg, but a mantis was about to jump at her.

"Look out!" Mike jumped and hit the mantis. He cut one claw.
*CHIRP!*
"Alright, one less!"
"That's a very good sword, Mike, where did you get it!" Bloodberry asked.
"You wouldn't believe me!" he said, as he was battling the mantis.

The mantis warriors regrouped again. They were heading towards Akashi.

"Oh no you don't!" said Bloodberry, as she and the marionettes covered Akashi.
But one of the warriors used another as a support, and it jumped towards Otaru.
"OTARU!!!" yelled Bloodberry.
"Ah!"

Otaru moved quickly, he almost got decapitated.
He tried to cover himself with his sword, but the mantis grabbed it with its claw and broke it in half.
Mike tried to jump at the mantis, but another mantis blocked him.

Emerald noticed a weird behavior in the mantis warriors.
She then jumped towards Otaru's mantis, analysing its movements very carefully.
Another mantis tried to cover it, but it was attacked by Ruby.

"These marionettes are too strong for our weapons!" she said. Not even the lightning affected them.

"Just as i supposed!" said Emerald.
She jumped to the front wall, and the mantis ran towards her. She got away, and the mantis turned towards Otaru.
Emerald stepped to the right, near the center of the middle left wall, and the mantis sharpened its claws, looking at her. It didn't move.

"They don't want us to come front!"
"They must be guarding the button!", yelled Ruby.

The battle became fiercer. The humans started searching in the front left wall, while the three warriors tried to stop them at all costs. Fortuantely, the team was 4 versus 3.

*Slash* One claw less. At last, Mike could disable one of the warriors.

"Ruby, take this one!" He threw the broken claw to Ruby, who used it in place of the weak steel sword she was carrying.

*Chirp!*

3 minutes left. Lime was feeling the stress of the battle. She concentrated as hard as she could. "Please God, protect Otaru and the others..."
Otaru...?
She was confused. How could Otaru be fighting while he had been captured?
Nevermind. She continued with her prayer.

The mantis warriors jumped up, and started throwing daggers to the humans.

"Look out!"
The marionettes blocked the daggers with their weapons. It was close.

"CLICK!"
"I Found it I found it!!!" said Akashi.

Guys, get in, quick!" said Bloodberry. They ran after them, and the mantis warriors followed them.

But as the entrance was narrow, Ruby could slash them with her mantis claw.

As they were running thru the narrow corridor, Hess' voice was heard again.
"Hurry up guys, you got only two and a half minutes, heheheh!"

"Two and a half minutes - what will happen next!" wondered Otaru.

Mike stopped running. He fell to the floor, kneeling. Otaru looked at him.

In tears, he shouted. "RUN, OTARU, RUN, WE MAY HAVE LESS THAN A MINUTE!"

Otaru and the team kept running, as they left Mike, kneeling.

They ran, and got to Hess' main lab. There he was! But he had a surprise ready for them.

The floor was electrified. Everyone fell down. The marionettes' limbs were disabled, while Otaru, Akashi and Hanagata were paralysed from the shock.

Hess turned his movile chair around, and spoke.

"Ah, at last we meet, Otaru Mamiya! At last we meet...

heh heh heh heh heh heh!"

End of chapter 11