Chapter Three ~ A Familiar Face
Jack was ready for a fight and wanted to morph straight away, but Jordan stepped in his way and called out to the dark shape that lay before them.
€œWe come in peace€ he said €œBut bear in mind there are 6 of us and 1 of you, we will fight if we must€
The outer rim of the shape spun again, and then it rolled out of the darkness...
€œRevenge of Trouble & Strife!€ exclaimed Kody €œI didn€™t expect to meet you down here!€
€œNor did I you€ said Revenge of Trouble & Strife €œWhat brings you to this part of Mechanical Maelstrom?€
€œWe€™re on a quest€ said Kody €œYou see, the trophy for Mechanical Maelstrom: Annihilation has been stolen and we need to retrieve it before the tournament ends!€
€œInteresting€ said ROT&S
€œYou wouldn€™t happen to have seen any shifty looking characters would you?€ asked Joey
€œNo one has passed through here for days, and I haven€™t been above ground for a while€ said ROT&S €œBut why are you down here Kody? When we were at RAF Newton all those years ago you never expressed any care for the dirtiest places around!€
€œThe guards wouldn€™t let us pass€ Kody explained €œIt was either fight them or come down here€
€œThose guards are pretty lame€ said ROT&S €œMy clan and I crushed them when we decided to leave the city€
€œYour clan?€ inquired Kody
€œYes€ said ROT&S €œYou wouldn€™t know of course... I presume none of you are locals of Mechanical Maelstrom City? You all came for the tournament I presume?€
Our heroes nodded.
€œWell€ began ROT&S €œConditions for the people living in the city are quite bad these days - sure it looks great for the TV cameras when there€™s a tournament going on, but the government has become corrupted, aiming only for fame and money from the Mechanical Maelstrom Championships. The only bots that live there now are the ones that either benefit from the fighting or can€™t get past the guards€
€œBut why do you live down here?€ asked Kody €œYou€™re surely not that fond of sewers either?€
€œIt offers safety and shelter€ said ROT&S €œPlus there are some un-used chambers off the main pipes that provide good living quarters. Come to think of it I€™m sure some of our bots have been above ground today, why don€™t you come back with me and ask around?€
€œI€™m not sure we have time...€ said Kody €œWhat do you think guys?€
Everyone looked at each other, but nobody said anything.
€œWhat use will going on blindly do you?€ asked ROT&S €œHow are you following the thief?€
€œSo far we€™ve been following a trail of petrol€ explained Tracy
€œThat won€™t carry on much longer€ said ROT&S €œOnce the thief entered the forest you wouldn€™t be able to follow them, the vegetation is far too thick and dense€
€œOK then€ said Mark €œWhat harm can it do?€
Revenge of Trouble & Strife then morphed into Peter Forsey and led our heroes further down the pipe, but instead of climbing up and out of the sewers they turned left and headed down a narrow passageway that eventually opened out into a massive chamber that ROT&S had described. The chamber was packed with about 40 people, some easily recognisable as famous roboteers while others were from the more obscure side of robot combat. However, their entry into the hall was not received well by the people already there. One man they didn€™t recognise immediately complained to Peter that our heroes would not be offered hospitality just because he knew Kody of old, and that they would have to prove they were not spies in €œthe Mechanical Maelstrom way€.
Peter turned to the heroes €œI€™m dreadfully sorry€ he said €œThey are demanding that three of you meet our leader, the Baron and two of his guards if you are to stay here with us tonight and receive our help€
The heroes looked at one another.
€œWe don€™t really have any other options...€ said Jack
€œWho is the Baron?€ asked Tracy
€œPeter Halloway€ said Peter €œUnless you know his robot form I am not at liberty to disclose it, and I am unsure of the guards. But I need to know, will you accept the challenge?€

Encounter!

1) Peter Halloway/???
2) ???
3) ???

Will you accept the challenge, winning the respect and help of the sewer clan if you are victorious, or try and follow the thief through the forest however difficult it may be? Remember, if you are to fight the Baron then you must select 3 warriors as the Sewer clan are proud believers in fair fighting.