[Ace Flashheart]

IC:

"Greetings", proclaimed the figure standing in front of the anti-paladin, "Lord Flashheart I presume, I am very pleased to finally get a chance to work with you I cannot begin to tell you how much I have heard before hand of your escapades over the last 400 years. I'm sure it will be a pleasure to be under your command in this mission."

"Thankyou", LF was a little taken aback at this praise,"Wasen't there supposed to be two of you?"

"Yes the mindflayer, I am afraid that he has gone to find a translater, we are unable to communicate with each other due to my lack of mental attributes."

"Your not smart enough?"

"No, not at all", chuckled the man,"I have an IQ so high that it trancends humanoid comprehention, however I lack a brain and so in the tradiotional sense of the word I have no intelegence at all meaning that I cannot comunicate telepathically."

"Oh... well i'm here now, i'll act as a bridge between the two of you."

Focusing his mind the warrior sent a mental summons to all that would be listening, somewhere in the back of his mind many voices began to speak as one.

"Hello human male, are you the one I have been burdened with accompanying."

"Yes, we are wating at the main octaport for you, I will serve as translater between you and the robot. We are ready to leave whenever you are."

"Good, the citizens here have been most uncoprative I will join you in a few moments."

The icy presense of the mind flayer left the black clad knight's head making LF shudder as the tendrils receded.

"Is he coming?", question the robot.

"Yes... and it's a she, I think... hard to tell with mindflayers, for them gender is more a matter of opinion than anything else.", there was something different about this robot, the more the anti-paladin examined the form infront of him the more the subtle differences became apparent, "Your a new model aren't you?"

"Yes", said the robot, still grinning widely, "I am the lastest version of the current line of robot agents under the controll of Lord Muro and his ally Lord Sword.I use the very latest in memory metals allowing me to change shape at will always returning to my current form."

To deminstrate the robot held out his arm and, as the warrior watched, changed it into a silver blade, the mass of his hand shimmering, seeming to trasform into a silver liquid, before it took back the shape of a hand again. Facing the anti-paladin the robot gave another wide smile.

"Very impressive, you are obviously supirior to the older models."

The robot seemed to light up at these words of praise, it's mouth seemed ready to burst at the sides as it proceded to regale the anti-paladin with a full dicription of the new features that it's model came equipped with.

There was a strage gurgling noise and again the feeling of cold chills down the anti-paladin's spine as the voice reverberating in his head spoke again.

"I am here Human, we must leave now if we are to make it to the tower before the attack from Lord Sheild's forces."

"Thank god", said the exaperated warrior, " I mean thank... goodness, yes thank goodness that you are here, I'm sorry X015 you will have to finish your *facinating* talk afterwards but Yai'k La informs me that we really need to leave this instant if we are to make it to the tower."

The robot looked downcast ad let out a tiny inaudible sniff before walking towards the Octagonal teleportation device.

There was a loud crash as the ground began to shake beneath them, nearly throwing all three of their feet, another loud crash followed and then a moment of calm.

"What the hell was that?", questioned the anti-paladin.

Before anyone could answer his question alarm sirens began sounding around them, out of hundreds of doorways creatures of all races ran, floated and oozed towards the teleporters. A second later the air around the trio began to charge magically and the shimmering wall of magic concealing the island dissapered, revealing that the island had landed on a heavly forested area below them, all around those creatures that wern't desperatly trying to return home were fortifying barricades, or taking up sniping positions with projectiles of wood, steel or magic.

"They are preparing for the attack", said X015 ,"and the lockdown of this dimention. Soon no living being will be able to leave this world, the people who are scrambling away do not wish to be caught in the crossfire when the fighting starts."

"I.e. the smart ones.", sighed the warrior.

"I know that a powefull warrior like yourself would not turn down a chance to bloody himself in battle Ace (may I call you ace?)."

"Yes", it was the mindflayer again, "show us your tremdous power Human.", it sniggered.

The robot looked on expectantly.

"The mindflayer said that it wants to leave now and not take part in any stupid demenstrations of power that could potentially embaress me."

A loud high pitched squeel eminated from the mindflayer, hurting the ears of the anti-paladin as it exclaimed it's disaproval...

Somewhere inside the head of the robot X015, a mssive and powefull intelligence jumped to a totally incorrect conclusion.

"Lord Flash.. while I apriciate that you are thinking of the diplomatic mechanics of our group, I will not stand by and allow you to be insulted by this heathen scum. Which is why, in order to preserve your reputation without comprimising your position as leader of this group I will challenge the members of our trio to a contest of power, safe in the knowlage that you will win hands down.", the robot beemed as it spoke, the look of utter certainty on it's face just worsened the feeling of panic that was rising like bile in the anti-paladin's gut.

"Er... no X015, no reason to do that, as you said I can't demorilise this group by beating you in any silly and totally uneccary competion between us."

The mind flayer let out a gurgling sound that could only be interpreted as laughter, the waving tenticles that covered it's mouth turing upwards in a twisted grimice.

"Your right as usual LF", the black knight let out a sigh of relife, "we don't want to be wastefull, so let make our competion usefull by helping the mages clear out a area around Evil Isle in preperation for the assault (just incase they try and sneak up on us)."

The robot hand transformed into a strange metal pole surrounded by rings which he pointed at an area of trees in the distance.

"Let's say whoever creates the largest clearing in that forest is the strongest, agreed. I'll go first as i'm bound not to win." the robot winked at an increasingly more worried LF.

A low humming built in the air as electricity began to gather around the pole... as the lightning grew more intense and the noise grew louder the masonry around the robot's feet splintered under the pressure that the force was emmiting. Suddenly two chains of lightning snaked out towards the trees, making a dozen of the black redwoods (this is the dimention of carnage) explode into splinters.

"Not bad, but he's got nothing on me." Smirked the voice in LF's head as the mindflayer raised it's arms towards the area in question.

The feild of magic in the air suddenly peaked again as the mindflayer began to hiss the incantations for it's spell. Again there was a great release in energies as a massive ball of fire rocketed towards the trees, it's impact creating a pocmark in the landscape that was conciderably larger than the one created by the robot.

"Your turn.", said the voice.

As the anti-paladin stepped up to the challenge the weight on his mind became larger. usually in a situation like this it would have been because of the added pressure and responsibilty... in reality in was the tiny specter of LF's evil and more evil side that were purched on his helmet.

"MAYBE YOU COULD KILL THEM BOTH AND COMPLEAT THE MISSION YOURSELF.", contimplated LF's more evil side.

"No...", mused evil," can't be a good move, Muro did say 'not another failure', killing both his agents wouldn't look good."

As the two little figures argued above his head, the warrior became more and more infuriated, and with a grim sense of determination he dicided what he was going to do.

"DO IT, I'll BE COOL.", encouraged Greater Evil

"No way, I may be evil but I know what goes too far, this will put your own life in danger, not worth it to preserve some robots ideal."

Shutting out all distractions LF let his hands meet, keeping his vision pinned on the space in between them, he began to focus the demonic energies inside.

"Harms..."

The anti-paladin thrust both palms outwards towards the direction of the forest clearing the others had made.

"TOUCH!"

A small ball of black lightning traveled with amazing speed at the intended target, letting off a deep boom as it impacted with the ground. Again the mindflayer projected it's voice inside the anti-paladin's mind.

"That's it? I am unimpressed huma/-"

Yai'k La was cut short as a ball if white light exploded outwards silently, engulfing part of the forest and making the ground shake underfoot. Both the robot and the Mindflayer stood speachless as several treetrunks went flying over heead, another one landing in the centre of some hobgoblins, prompting the others to run for cover.

"That was great.", X015 stood almost parilised watching the smoking crater that had been left by LF's harms touch ability.

"Thankyou", panted the warrior,"don't ask me to do that again for about.... another year, that used a lot of my energy, too much I had wanted to save some of that for a rainy day. Just hope we don't need an attck like that on this mission."

"There is a magical field that protects the tower from attack, we will have to travel on foot, we can't teleport all the way. The bracelets you wear will make the magical gaurdians think your are elves, I am not technically alive nor powered by magic so I will not be detected. We infiltrate the tower, take the sword and kill anything we find inside. If at any point during the retrieval the 3rd level of sucurity is breached on Evil Isle we will be instantly trasnsported back to this location. Understand."

The anti-paladin and mind flayer nodded, and stepped onto the Octogram with X015.

************************************************** ******************************

Muro stood admiring the handiwork of his minions, the area of forest cleared was considerable, but he was he expert. Slamming his fist into his palm he sent a shockwave cascading from the palace tower where he stood, sweeping down towards the ground barely missing the edge of the island obliterating the folidge around the base of the island.

"If they want to attack me they will have to do it head on. Now only one more thing left to do."

Rasing his arms skywards the elven warlord began to chant to the sky drawing stormclouds to the tower. As the chanting grew faster the great machine in the centre of the island came to life, gears turning and chains screching in protest as they come into use for the first time in thousands of years. A thin gray mist gathered around the border of the island, being attracted by the incredible magical energies of the machine. With a final word of power the energy was released sending the gray smoke billowing across the face of the planet, creating a bubble around the Bar and nearly blowing Shade and co. off their feet at is swept past.

Finally the mist dissapered faiding into nothingness, the magical tension having been released. Smiling Muro turned his gaze towards the BG2 bar miles in the distance.

"I have you trapped now Lord Sheild... call in as many adventures as you like, I don't care, but no-one is leaving this dimention as of now."

Rasing a finger Muro tried to create a dimention portal but found instead all that hapen was a sharp flash of energy before the spell fizzled. Satisfied his work was done, he turned his attention back to the task in hand preparing the defense of his Island.

OOC: Sorry for another massive post... must keep story flowing... sleep is for weeklings...