Memoirs of a RAFian

[Cloak]

Really?  AniDragon, why -- never mind.  Don't wanna know.

Anyway, added a new book "A Journey into Her Past", which will feature Noelle. . . .

• Book XXVII: Infinity and Eternity

The Infinity Gems and the Eternity Stones make themselves known.

• Book XXVIII: The Virus Rings

The RAFians are attacked by foes they never thought they'd see again.

• Book XXIX: Soul-Suckers

The RAFians are attacked by Dementors, which have a rather large effect on Cloak.

• Book XXX: Mayhem of the Music Miser

Cloak recalls the RAFians' previous confrontation with the Music Miser three years ago.

• Book XXXI: The Metal-Maker

The RAFians must save their own from a Roboticizer.

• Book XXXII: Richard is Missing

The RAFians must cope without Richard.

• Book XXXIII: Emotional Food

The RAFians must confront a different kind of vampire.

• Book XXXIV: Transformation Confrontation

The RAFians must confront some strange machines.

• Book XXXV: Richard's Horn

The RAFians must get Richard's Horn, a mystical musical instrument, back from Malice, who received it from a RAFian traitor.

• Book XXXVI: Feral Scream

A Wildwethel-centric book, he must deal with his feral side.

• Book XXXVII: Predators and Prey

The RAFians are being preyed upon by some sentient predators.

• Book XXXVIII: A Protean Problem

The RAFians must deal with a powerful snot-nosed kid who, quite literally, can do whatever he wants.

• Book XXXIX: The Horsemen

Four RAFians are captured and converted into four Horsemen of the ancient, rogue Realm Walker Cataclysm.

• Book XL: Sizeable Pain in the Necks

The RAFians must deal with Heinlein aliens.

• Book XLI: RAF's Nightmare

The RAFians must survive their own nightmares.

• Book XLII: Unlucky Charms

The RAFians must contend with a rather bloodthirsty leprechaun.

• Book XLIII: The Piper

The RAFians must contend with a pied piper.

• Book XLIV: Starlight Desire

The RAFians race Malice, Abomination, and the Banned to a wishing star (no, not Estelore).

• Book XLV: A War of Armor

Parker is outraged to see knockoffs of his rather unique armor and what they're being used for.

• Book XLVI: The Worst Plague

The RAFians must weather the worst plague to ever existed -- the Hate Plague.

• Book XLVII: Little Alien Napoleons

The RAFians are caught in the middle of a war between Helmacrons and Fmeks.

• Book XLVIII: Go Away!

The RAFians must deal with the paparazzi who are all of a sudden interested in them.

• Book XLIX: RAFian Tales

RAFians tell various RAFian-themed stories across a lunch table.

• Book L: Maul

The RAFians must deal with the result of one of Demos's experiments.

• Book LI: Erised Orbs

The RAFians must face their greatest desires.

• Book LII: RAFians Alive!

Read the "Mummies Alive" parody in the RAFize songs thread.

• Book LIII: The Pain Reliever

The RAFians must deal with an elderly Vulcan styling himself the "Pain Reliever".

• Book LIV: Beyond the Veils

Aquilai and Aila must confront old foes while the other RAFians must put up with a Czarinian bounty hunter.

• Book LV: Dangerous Deals

Demos meets up with his half-brother, Shenecron, who has a perchant for making deals.

• Book LVI: Of One Mind

Malice seeks out the Unimind.

• Book LVII: The End of Time

The RAFians must contend with two Kryptonians (who think they're Time Lords) and prevent them from ending time altogether.

• Book LVIII: Hematomimic

The RAFians must capture a Plasmavore and put up with it's rather stupid Judoon jailer.

• Book LIX: Sins of Youth

Estelore, Richard, Parker, and Cloak must survive when the entire city and forum have been reduced to two-year-olds.

• Book LX: The Replacements

The RAFians must contend with the fame-feeding Eidolon Consciousness.

• Book LXI: Arachnoids

The RAFians must contend with the Arachnoids and finding a cure for one of their own that was poisoned before it's too late.

• Book LXII: Personal Tissues

The RAFians must contend with some one misusing Bibliophaetos's discarded book shell.

• Book LXIII: Memory Today, Gone Tomorrow

The RAFians lose their memory and must find a way to regain it.

• Book LXIV: Appliance Armageddon

A superintelligent computer controls all electronics, and the RAFians must stop it.

• Book LXV: Prodigy and Composite

Some RAFians are merged into two separate entities.

• Book LXVI: The Merging

The Universes begin colliding and merging.

• Book LXVII: Be A Doll

The RAFians are confronted by a Super Chucky.

• Book LXVIII: They're Such Cards

The RAFians are sealed into cards, which end up trapped in an ancient leather-bound book, and it's up to three kids to free them.  An out-of-continuity book.

• Book LXIX: Dinosaur Island

Everyone, except those that bear a Mark, begin turning saurian.

• Book LXX: Corrupted

The RAFians must deal with the son of Cataclysm, Corruptor.

• Book LXXI: Artificial Skins

The RAFians must deal with symbiotes.

• Book LXXII: Separation Anxiety

The RAFians must contend with an ethereal virus.

• Book LXXIII: A Thing About RAFians

The RAFians must contend with Seekers, which home in onto their Marks.

• Book LXXIV: A Planted Idea

The RAFians must contend with a floramaniac.

• Book LXXV: Vacation Photos

The RAFians are sucked into a Polarisoid camera.

• Book LXXVI: A Personal Gremlin

The RAFians must contend with gremlins.

• Book LXXVII: The Rust is Silence

The Rafians must deal with an oxidation ray wielded by a criminal.

• Book LXXVIII: The Toyman Cometh

The RAFians deal with a Toyman-esque character.

• Book LXXIX: RAFian Idol

Yes, just another excuse to put in more of the (as of writing) nearly 800 parodies.

• Book LXXX: Savage Heart

Cloak battles an ancient being called Garrotik.

• Book LXXXI: Slave Islands and Juggernauts

Three RAFians are taken prisoners by the Knights and sold into the slavery of New Genoshia, while the others deal with a juggernaut.

• Book LXXXII: Shredding a King

The RAFians deal with a demonic Shredder-like ghost called Regiphaetos.

• Book LXXXIII: RAF -- The TV Show

The RAFians are forcibly recruited to Mojo's programs.

• Book LXXXIV: The Drinker

The RAFians must contend with a Spirit-Drinker.

• Book LXXXV: The Last Laugh

The RAFians must face Joker Gas.

• Book LXXXVI: It's A Mad, Mad, Mad Villain

The RAFians must contend with mind control cards which are ineffective on them.

• Book LXXXVII: Sight Unseen

Six RAFians are rendered functionally blind, optically-speaking.

• Book LXXXVIII: Don't Let It Snow

The RAFians must face a second Ice Age caused by a Diznee Ice Ifrit.

• Book LXXXIX: The Rachel Toxin

The RAFians must find a cure to a toxin that increases the fearlessness, hostility and aggressiveness induced in people which the Mark cannot protect the RAFians from.

• Book XC: Virus Alert!

The RAFians face a dangerous virus seeking a host.

• Book XCI: A Youthful Thief

The RAFians face a creature that siphons off the youth in its victims, provided they're younger than him.

• Book XCII: Calendar Creep

The RAFians face the Calendar Creep, a criminal whose crimes are holiday themed.

• Book XCIII: The Branding

Faerie fights a witch-boy named Salem (and his magical black cat, Saberhagen) for a magical branding iron in Faerie's possession.

• Book XCIV: The Void Zone

Nothing like a "Subspace Emissary" parody.  Sorry.

• Book XCV: An Epic Yarn

The RAFians' world is turned into yarn and fabric.

• Book XCVI: RAFian Gladiators

RAFians are kidnapped by Gamesmaster, another rogue Realm Walker, and force to participate in gladiatorial games.

• Book XCVII: The Box

The RAFians must cage thirteen Revenants released from Pandora's Box -- each representing and amplifying a particular feeling (i.e. hatred), while looking for the perfect host.

• Book XCVIII: From the Shadows

The RAFians must save their shadows and the shadows of everyone else from being absorbed (eaten) by the Umbraraptors, but not everything is what it seems.

• Book XCIX: Grimm Prospects

The RAFians discover Malice controlling several "wesen" with control collars akin to April's in "Catwoman from Channel Six" and get stuck in one-on-one battles to the death with them.  One will die.

• Book C: Loop-De-Loop

Everyone's trapped in a temporal loop, but the only ones that realize it are Cloak, Aila, and Aquilai.

• Book CI: Get 'Em, Shaw

The RAFians face a creature native to the planet Gossamer, who's under the control of Malice.

• Book CII: Threadfall

The RAFians must exterminate an epidemic of Thread.

• Book CIII: Siren's Song

The RAFians must deal with a siren and her alluring song.

• Book CIV: Resistance is Futile

The RAFians must deal with a hybridization of the Borg and the Hive chips (Ben 10: Alien Swarm) -- which the Mark cannot protect them from, nor the Unity energy can destroy.

• Book CV: The Titan

The RAFians must contend with the Titan serum and its effects.

• Book CVI: A Stony Glare

The RAFians must deal with a hungry Stone-Biter and a petrifying venom of a Diznee Stone Ifrit.

• Book CVII: Spritely Pests

The RAFians must deal with irritating sprites, which Faerie has had some rather tenuous experiences with.

• Book CVIII: Destroy All . . . What?

The RAFians must contend with a Furon incursion, and it turns out the Nyacs have knowledge of Furons. . . .

• Book CIX: Going Backwards

A grievious malfunction in Aquilai's TARDIS causes time to reverse its flow and flow backwards.

• Book CX: Death Takes A Holiday

The RAFians must convince Death to take up his role again.  A RAFian will die in this book, and it is within the continuity.

• Book CXI: High Price Stakes

Shanker and Gaz must flee and elude Daphne, the vampire hunter.

• Book CXII: A Killer Housing Market

The RAFians must survive and either destroy or escape a killer house.

• Book CXIII: A Silenced World

The RAFians must cope with a world that has become muted and a young sorceress, Melissa Spellman.

• Book CXIV: The Bureau

The RAFians must save their own from the insideous Bureau of Lost.

• Book CXV: To Tell the Truth

Broken's apprentice, Melissa, accidentally casts a spell forcing everyone to tell the truth.

• Book CXVI: Skin Crawlers

The RAFians, repulsed and revolted, must contend with Hundred (who eventually becomes Thousand, then becomes Million, then Billion, and then, finally, Trillion).

• Book CXVII: School of Stepford Lies

The RAFians must save the children from a school that turns them into Stepford students at Terenia's school.

• Book CXVIII: Ol' Salty

The RAFians must deal with the Salt Man.

• Book CXIX: The Great Race

The RAFians hold a race that Aloth cons himself into.  Who will win?

• Book CXX: Ape Escape

The RAFians must help super intelligent apes -- Caesar the chimp, Brutus the gorilla, and Maestro the orangutan -- reconcil their misanthropy.

• Book CXXI: A Different Kind of Unity

The RAFians must contend with a parasitic "unity".

• Book CXXII: The Great Brain Robery

Someone is stealing brains for an unknown purpose.

• Book CXXIII: The Bounty Hunter

The Knights, in their hypocricy, hire a Tsul'Kalu bounty hunter to collect select RAFians (to taxidermy).

• Book CXXIV: New Controllers

The RAFians confront Zirconians.

• Book CXXV: Creeping Crystal

A wave of crystallizing energy is sweeping the land. . . .

• Book CXXVI: The Element Feeder

The RAFians deal with a creature who feeds on a specific element and matures to a different element each time as it matures. . . .

• Book CXXVII: The Rider and the Walker

The RAFians come up against the Ghost Rider.

• Book CXXVIII: Headhunters

What will happen when RAFians lose their heads?  Seriously.

• Book CXXIX: The Color Purple, Man!

The RAFians confront the Purple Man, who manages to turn the entire government against them . . .

• Book CXXX: The Nemetrix Beetle

The RAFians confront the Black Beetle with Nemetrix properties.

• Book CXXXI: It's Tought to Be A Mod

The members of a primitive forum declare Demos and Blue to be mods. . . .

• Book CXXXII: Who-Zilla?

An energy reaction begins turning RAFians into monstrous creatures in 3XXX.  Out-of-continuity book.

• Book CXXXIII: Well, Techadon-ally . . .

The RAFians confront Techadons who assign them qualitive quatilities, and refuse to acknowledge any defeats.

• Book CXXXIV: The Mind's Eye

The RAFians face Spellbinder and his realistic illusions.

• Book CXXXV: Bas-ic Instincts

Bas awakens and attempts to take control of Cloak and other felines.

• Book CXXXVI: Midas Duck

The RAFians must contend with a very strange golden idol and a greedy sneak-thief.

• Book CXXXVII: War with the Warworlds

The RAFians must defeat two heavily-armed Warworlds.

• Book CXXXVIII: Solar Sucks

The RAFians must save Estelore from a device able to suck out her stellar substance and lifeforce.

• Book CXXXIX: Hounded

The RAFians are attacked by hellhounds that only Demos can see, although Cloak can "see" them via Earthsight.

• Book CXL: Politics

The RAFians, much to Cloak's chagrin and irritation, get caught up in the middle of Realm Walker politics.

• Book CXLI: Buggy Afternoon

A Bug is after Parker's blood, to "avenge" their brother slain by the SPARTAN.

• Book CXLII: Cloak's Nightmare

Cloak has an exceedingly vivid nightmare of the Great RAFian Purge. . . .

• Book CXLIII: Cloak and the Olympians

Cloak confronts and defies the Olympians.

• Book CXLIV: Down to Earth

The RAFians have gravity-related problems.

• Book CXLV: Hittin' the Dino-Sauce

The RAFians learn the dangers of Dino-Sauce.

• Book CXLVI: Blood Feud

Shanker's past comes into light. . . .

• Book CXLVII: She's Back! A Dino Story

Pretty much a shameless parody of "We're Back! A Dinosaur Story".

• *Book CXLVIII: A Journey into Her Past

Delving into Noelle's pre-RAFian life and her relationship with Ardnalil-Shicom-Maar.

[Cloak]

First chapter of the day.

CHAPTER FOUR:
The Star and the Element's Son

The auditorium was filled with rather rambunctious RAFians, the younger ones seemingly oblivious to the serious of the situation.  But veterans, like Cloak and Estelore, looked far more forlorn and stern.  They were well aware that a meeting would not have been called, much less one that included newbies and lurkers alike, if the situation wasn't at the most dire.
 
Cloak and Estelore were the only ones in the audience that elected to stand instead of sit (with the obvious exception of the Andalites, which don't do the sit thing).  Cloak had folded his arms, and the only movement from him was from his tail tip, which was unseen to everyone, and caused his cloak to undulate a little.  Estelore held herself rather stiffly, held her elbows in her hands, rubbing her left upper arm in a most agitated way, and her face was deliberately blank.
 
Richard approached the podium, as the mods stood behind him, with AniDragon and Kelly flanking either side.  Underseen seemed to understand the gravity of the situation, although his face kept shifting between a variety colors, features and textures in a most distracting way -- and he didn't seem to realize he was doing it.
 
"My fellow RAFians," Richard said, as his voice echoed from speakers spaced ever so often through out the auditorium so every could hear him clearly and he didn't have to shout.  Richard's tone sounded unusually formal and strange, which indirectly told the rest of the RAFians that this was serious stuff.  The smiles vanished at once from the RAFians' faces.
 
Richard continued after this brief pause, "as you may have noticed, there is a new 'hero' stylizing himself as 'Syphoon'.  This man is no hero, as he stole the powers of Demos and Cerulean, leaving them relatively weakened."
 
At the shocked faces at their faces, Richard fell silent as Kelly piped up, "They'll be fine, they're recovering as well as can be expected."
 
"Be that as it may," Richard said, taking the reins of the meeting again, "the fact remains is that all those with powers are now in danger here, if they want to retain their gifts.  If you don't have powers or have technological means to give you abilities --" he gestured in Parker's general direction -- "you'd be safe from Syphoon's power-stealing abilities. . . ."
 
"Power stealing?" Cloak said in a loud whisper.  Then he looked up and addressed the assembled RAFians as a whole, "It seems to me that this 'Syphoon', aside from having a stupid name, may very well be an Osmosian."

"But then his powers would have wore off by now, and Demos and Cerulean would have their abilities back," Underseen pointed out.  He finally stopped the shifting face thing, and his statement put Cloak into a thoughtful silence, when an idea hit him.

"The Darwin Ray . . ." he said, more to himself than anyone else.

"But it was destroyed," Gaz protested.

"Yes," Cloak said, "but we assumed that he just used it on those aliens and RAFians.  Do we really know just how many test subjects he used?  Not all may have been reported. . . ."

That was greeted with a resounding silence, and, with a heavy look, Richard looked at Estelore and Cloak, and said, "And it is with a heavy heart and regretful mind that I must send you, Esty, and you, Cloaky, into exhile."

There was a moment of silence as the sheer ridiculousness of this statement sank in.

"Say what?" Estelore said.

"You heard me," Richard said, very seriously.  "Can you imagine if Syphoon got ahold of your powers?  Adding them to his power collective?  Do realize just how powerful he would become?"

"He can't even touch me!" Cloak protested.

"He has Demos's regenerative powers!!" Richard said, for the first time in recent memory losing his cool.  "Cloak, how do you think we got you away from RAF when Abomination nearly beat you to death?!"

Cloak said nothing, but, after a few moments, with a face of mingled rue and anger, he Walked back to the Nexus.  Estelore turned her back on the RAFfather, and she shot straight through the ceiling and into the vastness of space, leaving a rather conspicuous hole.

"It's for the best," Richard said.  "I hope."

[Underseen]

Its a good thing that the 2 most powerful members left, but also a bad thing since they were strong leaders

[Cloak]

A lot of things happen that way, IRL, though, Underseen.  Besides, Estelore and I may not STAY away. . . .

First chapter today, and may be a bit on the short side.

CHAPTER FIVE:
Victims

"We need to fortify the defenses," Parker said, breaking the silence that followed after Richard's dismissal of two of the most powerful RAFians.  "He may portray himself as a hero and a savior, but that won't stop him from coming after us."
 
"And how much defenses can we shore up if he decides to come?" Underseen asked earnestly.  "He can narrowly outspeed a Kineceleran and a Citrakayah with Cerulean's power!"
 
"That does not mean we give up so easily," Richard said, coolly.  Then he turned to Parker, with an air of it not being his best judgement, "Take a contingent of RAFians to increase the potency and impregnability of our defenses."
 
"Right!" Parker said, with an rather over-the-top salute.  Then he turned to the audience and said, "Horse, Gaz, Blaze, Ash, and Yarin.  Let's go."
 
"But I urge you all to be careful," Phoenix intoned warningly.  "Syphoon could show up anywhere, any place."
 
"Ah, so long as there's no pressure." Gaz sighed.
 
Blaze said nothing, but kept his sword sheathed, and moved out with the others.
 
"Richard, I have a bad feeling about this," Super Nate confessed.
 
"So do I, Nate," Richard admitted, "so do I."
 

***

The RAFians worked fast and diligently to fortify their protective shielding and improving the extendable wall around their forum.  But, as Underseen predicted so clearly, Syphoon appeared, but hid and watched them work.  Yarin and Parker went inside the forum to work on the controls within, leaving the other four outside.  Rather exposed.
 
Syphoon stole his opportunity to nab Horse and quickly siphon off her powers of hydrokinesis and cryokinesis, and speed away.  But he apparently took something more without realizing it. . . .
 
"Horse!" Blaze exclaimed.  "Horse, what happened?"

Horse only made seal noises and seemed thoroughly upset about it.  She tried to convey what she wanted to say, but failed again.  She lost her power of speech!!
 
"I don't understand you, Horse." Blaze said, seemingly not wanting to accept what happened.  "What happened."
 
"It's bloody obvious what happened," Gaz said heatedly.  "Syphoon's here somewhere and he not only stole Horse's powers, but her ability to talk!!"
 
"What?  Why?" Ash said, nonplussed, "That wasn't a special power!"
 
Horse gave Ash a very ugly look, as Gaz interpreted correctly, "It is for seals."
 
"We have to get out of -- ack!!" Blaze said, as his muscles suddenly tensed and he dropped his sword.  He quickly scooped up his sword -- but his wings and pyrokinesis were gone.  Blaze was thoroughly ticked, "He already had pyrokinesis!  Why pick on me!!"
 
"Your wings, Blaze.  They're --" Ash said, as Gaz started pounding on the wall.
 
Blaze felt his back, and shouted, "THAT BASTARD!!"
 
But Ash and Gaz were soon next, both drained of special abilities.  Gaz's fangs were gone and Ash looked like an average girl, although her Mark clashed violently with her clothing.
 
"Oh no . . ." Gaz said.  "Laserbeak!  Beaky!"
 
The Cybertronian parrot came over to them and took them into the forum, as the force field went back up again.  They were unaware of a strange orangish, blackish, reddish mist filtering into the forum seconds before the force field. . . .

[Underseen]

Horse can't even use sign language with her lack of fingers. Now syphoon is almost an avatar considering all he needs now is earth and air.

[Cloak]

There's still Mithril and . . . and . . . and . . . uh . . . There isn't an aerokinetic RAFian (other than me) is there?

[Underseen]

*checks species log*

You're the only aerokinetic.

[Cloak]

Thought so.

*Goes back to work on Chapter Six.*

Second chapter today.  Bit short.

CHAPTER SIX:
Power Hungry

Unbeknowst to the other RAFians, the mist curled and swirled along the perimeter of the forum, as if it was casing the place.  For a robbery, for a fight, who knew?  But one thing was clear, this mist wasn't any ordinary mist.  It had intelligence and sentience, as it made sure to keep its distance from Gaz, as if it recognized the fact that it itself might be recognized.

Eventually, in an unobtrusive corner of the forum, one that had the musty smell of disuse, the mist collected and coalesced into a roughly humanoid form.  The clothing materialized as well, although it was spandex . . .

Syphoon smiled in the darkness.  He wasn't sure that the test of that newly-acquired vampire power would work, but his hunger for powers was not satiated -- not by a long shot, but he would take enjoyment out of stealing these RAFian's powers.  He was also determined to steal their Marks, which still confunded him that he was unable to do it.  His desire for these Marks was dubious, but it would seem that he still just craved the powers that they afforded him, still unaware what Unity energy would do to him.  What it would do to him considering he was an energy addict before being affected by the Darwin Ray.

He sat and hid for a while, planning on just who his next victim would be.  Had he'd been in the right frame of mind, and had he not been thinking so loudly, things may have turned out differently.  But the events happened to occur in his favor, as Yarin, instead of doing the prudent thing and raise the alarm, decided to investigate this himself.  Alone.

And so that's how Syphoon obtained telepathy, although it took him about two hours to learn how to control it.  Unfortunately, Phoenix came to look for Yarin, and when he found him, Phoenix was involuntarily stripped of his powers, which Psyphoon already added to his vast bank of powers.  It was the hunger for powers that drove him to take Phoenix's, as it would have been rather redundant to take them otherwise.

Smiling to himself, he made himself into a bat with black wings and an orange body, and he flew to the deepest bowels of RAF.  It was now clear what his motive was, but how he knew of it was in question . . . until one considers that he had stolen Yarin's telepathy, and most RAFians aren't very guarded with their thoughts.

He was at the door that housed the cage, the prison of one of the most vile creatures in existence, second to only one species*.  He would open these doors, and do something that he would have regretted, had he any mind outside this power addiction of his.  The RAFians realized too late where he was and what he planned on doing, and they dashed to stop him.

"STOP!" Parker screamed as he was the first to make it to Pootang's subterranean paddock.  Psyphoon already had the doors opened, and, with a roar, the Pootang lunged at him, with gnashing fangs.

"You're too late," Syphoon said, quietly, as he held Pootang by the throat and immediately began to absorb it's powers.  The Pootang soon loss all its color and became grayscale -- still alive, but barely.  Syphoon was now unstoppable. . . .

---
*Namely, Toepick's species.

[Underseen]

Well although Parker has enhanced strength, reflexes, and speed he is in pretty powerful armor that Syphoon may not be able to get past.

[Cloak]

That's rather apt, Underseen.

Parker, in this narrative anyway, seems to rely on technological weaponry rather than natural powers.  Granted, Syphoon considers those without powers or "powerless" as useless and not worth notice.

[Gaz]

Yikes! Stripped of my fangs. That can make a vampire feel naked.

[Cloak]

It's about to get worse, Gaz.

First chapter today.  Probably a bit short.

CHAPTER SEVEN:
Resistance is Futile

Hidden by his helmet and visor, Parker's shocked expression went unnoticed, although the other RAFians mirrored it.  Pootang layed there upon the ground, except for the odd twitch, it laid there motionless, eyes shut.  It was odd to see the beast look so weak, old, and powerless.
 
"But," Syphoon said, a malicious grin upon his face now, although his voice seemed to be a bit higher and lost some of its humanity, though he still retained a humanoid form.  "Unfortunately for you and your little friends -- I am still HUNGRY!!"
 
"Run!" Parker told the others as he turned his twin fusion cannons at the monstrous Super Osmosian, without any real conviction that he would be able to do any real lasting damage to him.  While he still looked like a teenage Osmosian, Syphoon's real horror came from the terror-inspiring, unseen dark aura that he casted, quite unintentionally around himself.
 
Soon enough, only Parker, Sakki, Oceanspray, and Rocklobster remained to hold off the monster, hoping futilely to contain the beast.  They did not delude themselves into believing that they could destroy it . . . if they only knew, if they only realized, if they only had time to consider.
 
Syphoon thundered up the stairs and seized Parker's wrist.  With smile and reckless abandon, he attempted to absorb Parker's powers, not really thinking and not realizing that Parker wasn't a robot but a person in a armored suit.  His attempt only succeeded in giving Syphoon a material shell of the substance of Parker's armor.  Syphoon didn't look very happy at this.

"What's this?!" he snarled.  "Where are your powers, robot?!"

"Robot'?" Parker spat with a remarkable amount of dignity.  "I am a SPARTAN, sir.  I am NOT a robot!"

"You are worthless," Syphoon said, grabbing Parker's wrist again, and using Pootang's strength, threw the SPARTAN over his shoulder as if Parker was nothing more than a handkerchief.  He landed with a resounding THUD, and wasn't seen any more.  Of course, that didn't mean he was dead.

Syphoon then seized Sakki by the throat, and found that he couldn't absorb her powers either.  Then Sakki recieved the same treatment as Parker, as if Syphoon considered her existance pointless.  Then he did the same to Oceanspray, to the same effect.  Rocklobster was prohibited by his programming from fighting back, and Syphoon could not absorb his holographic projectors, so he literally threw him away, and entered RAF.  Entered the forum to feed again, not caring that the four were stirring at the bottom of the staircase.  He considered them meaningless, and did not consider them threats, which Parker took as a personal insult.

[Underseen]

Well that was a big mistake on Syphoon's part, but seeing that they did no damage to him makes it a smaller mistake.

[Cloak]

Maybe, Underseen, but remember, he's now being very one-minded about his goal, arbitrarily dismissing and overlooking what he shouldn't, if he wasn't really being consumed with this power obsession of his.

CHAPTER EIGHT:
Addictions and Contingencies

Syphoon strolled out into the dull, dawning light that was already prevalent in the forum by this time.  The night had come and past, and Syphoon was displeased (but not altogether unsurprised) that RAF was barren.  Even a tumbleweed bounced and rolled along before Syphoon, who, with narrowed eyes, incinerated it with a glance.  He had a vast array of powers, but he still lacked the power that all RAFians had but he apparently could not suck or drain away from them.
 
But why?  Why was he unable to?  He was so much more than other Osmosians before he absorbed these powers, before he was hit by that ray!  All the powers these worthless insects had belonged to him.  All for him!!  But, deep down inside, he knew that those powers would not satiate this gnawing hunger, this unbearable thirst, this intractable desire for power.  Part of him knew that this desire would never be able to be satisfied, and he'd seek more and more and more powers.  He knew that this was an addiction, and instead of making excuses, trying to suppress it, or denying its existence, he instead chose to embrace it with full gusto.
 
So, he put his mind to the task at hand.  The RAFians decided to flee and he had no idea where they were headed to.  He may have been able to absorb energy, material, and powers, but he cannot absorb the intangibles of memory and thought.  He shrugged off the annoyance he felt at that, he would rectify that shortcoming soon enough.  Granted he had no idea how, or even why he desire such a thing, but he planned on thinking about that for the future . . . when he controlled all that is, and had every power conceivable.

In the meantime, he decided that he would enjoy the hunt. . . .

***

Meanwhile, back at the Knothole Village-esque fallback bunker, Richard had arrived.  Only Esplin and SuperNate were there before him.

"Anyone else here?"

"Just us." SuperNate replied heavily, gesturing to the depowered.  "It's just us here."

<The perimeter is secured,> Esplin said, then added rather harshly, <as if it matters.  That Osmosian boy could penetrate it with ease.  We're as helpless here as we are anywhere.>

"We should make our stand here," SuperNate said.

<Stand?> Esplin said, in nearly a sneer, dripping with Andalite and Yeerk arrogance, <Our stand?  Nate, how do you honestly expect us to stand up to that boy?>

"We cannot simply do nothing, and sit here to await our own destruction."

"You should really write greeting cards," Goom said, popping out from Richard's pack.  The group assembled turned on Goom and made sure that it was him, eventually ending with Yarin pointing out that Syphoon had his telepathy, so any answers they give would be immediately the right ones.

"Yes," Richard agreed, "had we been thinking of the right answers."

"Where's everyone else?" Gaz wondered, she looked far paler than usual.  She was apparently experiencing some power withdrawl of some sort.

"Dunno," Goom said, "we had to leave in rather a hurry."

"With luck, Parker and the others were enough to delay him." Blaze said.

<Not likely,> Esplin said, cutting through that theory, <Who knows how many powers he's already absorbed by now?  Perhaps an armada of Incursions or a space faring fleet of Pool ships would be sufficient to stop him.>

"Little extreme, don't you think?" Ash said.

"Be that as it may," Richard said, and there was a weariness to his voice, "we must form a plan, and a contingency plan.  We may have to take extreme measures."

[Underseen]

This guy really has us scarred of him.