Week 30.3 – The Cobalt Czar

Previously: Twain knocked Digger out as Metalord squared off against the Cobalt Czar. And now…

“You know what? Maybe I’m not such a good guy after all.” Metalord coiled the cable tighter around Yi Fan, who let out another cry that was little more than a squeak. Then he seized some of the wreckage surrounding Ghost Dragon and sent it flying at the Cobalt Czar.

The Czar staggered a step as he was hit from behind by three cars in quick succession. He turned and dodged out of the way of a fourth, suprisingly nimble for such a bulky man. Then he stretched forth his right arm–it was slightly smaller and smoother than his left, its blue hue just a touch lighter, as if it were newer–and a beam of blue radiance shot from his hand. Another two cars were reduced to atoms when the beam touched them, and Metalord barely managed to dodge out of its way. The air stank of ozone and scorched metal.

***

Twain saw the Czar turn firing bolts of azure destruction after the flying Chinese guy, Ghost Dragon forgotten for the moment. Twain threaded his way past piles of brick torn from the destroyed mansion and fallen trees from the estate. He had to free Yi Fan somehow.

[blockquote type=”blockquote_line” align=”right”]The cars weren’t much good as shields, but their explosions certainly did provide a distracting spectacle…[/blockquote]As he crept toward where she was held prisoner, he watched the Chinese guy fight the Czar. As he dodged through the air, the Chinese guy threw car after car into the path of the blue beams. None of the cars lasted more than a second, their metal bodies bubbling and dissolving an instant before the gas in the tank exploded. The cars weren’t much good as shields, but their explosions certainly did provide a distracting spectacle to allow the guy to keep evading beams. He tried firing back with lightning of his own, but the Czar shrugged it off easily. The guy was doomed.

Twain was now within 30 feet of Ghost Dragon, who also watched the battle, flickering as if he could barely hang on to existence in this world. If Twain could only get to Yi Fan without him noticing.

“What are you doing?” asked Ghost Dragon without turning around.

“You knew I was here,” Twain said.

“I’m a spirit,” the ghost said. “The form you see here is simply a projection. I don’t see with my eyes, and my back is never turned. You haven’t answered my question.”

“I wanted to free her from the cable,” Twain said.

Ghost Dragon turned his baleful gaze upon Twain. “Then do so. But leave the mask outside.”

Twain looked at the swirling maelstrom that formed Ghost Dragon’s body. He would not need the mask in there, but he realized that a small part of him had thought that perhaps he would simply put the mask on her and dispatch the ghost.

But it wasn’t necessary to his plan, and the ghost might still come in handy against the Czar. Once the Czar was taken care of, Twain would have all the time in the world to exorcise the ghost.

Don’t miss tomorrow’s action-packed episode!

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