Previously on Protector’s of Worlds:

Having just gotten their items back, our three heroes summoned their armor and headed after Uell Moroo……..

Meanwhile, Roin and the other Iguackos reunited with Velu and Floso while Envi spied on them. It wasn’t long before he was eventually found and compelled to give directions.

While our heroes managed to find Uell, he unveiled his newest creation, a cybernetically enhanced Arctolozex! With the aid of a normal Arctolozex, they were able to defeat the cyborg!

What will happen next? Let’s move on……..

X

Moments after leaving the laboratory, Uell Moroo gleefully strolled through the hallway, confident that the three had been taken care of. As he was thinking to himself what to do next, it was suddenly interrupted by…….

“UUUUUUEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!”

The loud yell of a few people came from behind him as he turned the robot’s entire body to see what was happening. When he did, he saw Julie, Calem, and Marcel in the distance, wounded but still alive and kicking.

“Oh……….Oh, dear,” Uell said, realizing he celebrated way too early.

The fight begins with Marcel charging straight towards him, causing Uell to do the same. When both got close to one another, the two threw their fists which ended up with them colliding right into each other, causing a big shockwave with the result being Uell’s right hand being slightly broken, but still workable. He recuperates and strikes Marcel with a backhand attack, causing him to hit his back against the wall.

Turning to the others, it was Julie who was next with both of her hands gripping her halberd, attempting a downward strike, but Uell managed to block it, having the axe blade hit his right arm instead.

However, this ended up distracting him as Calem came down from the air and plunged his sword right into the middle of the robot’s face, causing its three eyes to flicker on and off. This didn’t manage to stop Uell, only angered him as he tossed Julie away before grabbing Calem and throwing him to the floor. Just when he was about to get up, Uell delivered a powerful push kick to him, knocking him back by just a few inches. He then grabbed the sword impaled in the robot’s head, pulled it out, and tossed it aside.

After shaking off the attack, Marcel gets back in as he wraps both arms around Uell’s right leg, pulling it up which causes the robot to stumble around a bit and eventually lost his balance, falling right onto his back. Still holding on, Marcel gives the leg a quick twist, breaking it which causes the metal to bend and wires to snap before tearing it off completely.

Uell then kicks Marcel back a few inches away as he gets up, despite having just one leg left. He tried his best to balance himself, but it didn’t matter as a large horizontal blade of wind struck the robot right in the stomach, slicing it off from its lower half as the robot's upper body flew forward with its back hitting the ground and the lower half falling forward, sparks coming from both severed ends and thus, rendering Uell defenseless.

Using his two remaining but broken arms, he tried to limp away but proved to be futile with the humans catching up to him in an instant. Marcel puts his foot down on the robot’s chest, stopping him as they look down on him.

“We got you, you bastard,” Julie said.

“Yeah, what a big triumphant for you,” Uell said in a sarcastic manner. “So, do you plan on killing me or not?”

“No, not yet anyway,” Calem said. “That comes later. For now, you’re gonna get our friends off of this ship. Then, you’re going to take us to the planet your ally is on,”

“And why would I do that?” Uell asked but got his answer when Julie summoned her halberd and stabbed the robot’s chest with the spear tip, closely where Uell’s face is. “Uhh………So, let’s get started, shall we?”

Now that he got him in agreement, Calem and Julie started walking forward but for Marcel, he grabbed Uell’s right arm and proceeded to drag him along, while he told them which direction to go.

X Roin, Velu, and Floso X

The Iguackos, after many moments of wandering around the ship and with the unwilling aid of Envi, restrained by two male Iguackos, finally came to the end of the line with one last corridor and multiple doors on the right and left between them and freedom.

‘Which one of these do we enter?” Velu asked Envi, who remained silent until one of the males put his hand on his throat and tightened it, causing him to finally talk.

“None, just keep going straight and take a left,” Envi replied as the male released his grip on him.

“Alright, but you better not be lying,” Roin said as Envi just scoffed at him.

Following the path Envi told them, the group proceeded on, going straight while ignoring all the other doors and doing so with caution, surveying their surroundings for any threat. Once they passed through them, they turned left and came upon an open and huge control room with a holographic projection table in the middle, showing a digital solar system, two massive windows in the center, possibly the ship’s eyes with a command board below, and a single room on the right.

“This…….This is it,” Floso said as she and the others recognized it “This is the place we saw right after we left the room with Envi and Uell,”

“And that’s where we get off,” Velu said, pointing his staff to the room on the right. “Envi, take us home,”

“Screw you, I’m done talking,” A defiant Envi said. “You can do what you want with me, but when Uell finds you here, you’ll regret ever coming out of your cells,”

“Are you sure about that?”

A woman’s voice said, coming from the entrance which caused everyone to turn to see who it was, turning out to be…………Julie!! Alongside her were her friends, Calem and Marcel.

While they were relieved to see them, they became surprised when they saw Uell Moroo with them, being dragged by Marcel as his exosuit was severely damaged. Seeing the mutilated state the doctor was in, Envi was speechless, realizing that nothing will save him now.

“Let’s see what the doctor has to say about this,” Marcel said as he pulled Uell forward to see if he had anything to say, but got nothing.

Uell looked at the crowd and saw Envi was among them. Since none of these things know their way around the ship, he assumes that Envi is the one who told them how to get here, which infuriates him.

The humans walked over to the Iguackos as Floso and Julie ran to each other and embraced in a tight hug, happy to know they are fine while Calem and Marcel checked in with Velu, Roin, and the other Iguackos.

“I’m glad to see you three still alive,” Velu said to them.

“Same to you, sir,” Calem said back as Floso and Julie joined in.

“I knew that you guys would make it out,” Roin said.

“Hey, we have you to thank for that,” Marcel said. “If it wasn’t for your little stunt, we would’ve………” He suddenly stopped.

Wondering why he halted his sentence, Calem, Julie, and Uell looked down and saw Roin’s hands, all broken and bloody, stunning them but amusing Uell as they all saw the distraught in Roin’s face while Floso and Velu looked down, feeling sorry for him.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

“Is that how….” Calem said but couldn’t finish his sentence as Roin slowly nods.“I……I’m so sorry. For you to do that……….”

“So that’s how you caused all of this commotion,” Uell said, ruining the moment. “That’s quite bold, I’ll give you that,”

“Shut up, you!” Marcel yelled out to Uell, who simply rolled his eyes in reply.

“Even so, we managed to get this far, and finally………..” Velu said as he turned to the group. “We can finally escape this nightmare! All the people we lost: friends, family, lovers, some turned into abominations by this fiend!” Velu shouted as he pointed at Uell, who simply scoffed. “They will be avenged! These two will face justice and will pay with their blood!!”

This sentence caused a cheer from everyone else, agreeing with what he said, wanting payback for the terrible crimes Uell and Envi have committed. Uell wasn’t too nervous about this, but the same couldn’t be said for Envi, who knew what was coming to him……..

X

After that speech, everyone made their way to the room on the right and entered it, which was a transportation-type room with a single wide platform and a console board.

“Everyone, get on!” Velu shouted as the group did what he said, standing on the platform along with Envi and his two male guards as Calem, Marcel, Julie, Velu, Roin, and Floso stayed behind.

“I can’t believe we did it,” Floso said. “It seemed like everything went by in a flash. This is a story the others will want to hear,”

“Be sure to give them every detail, okay?” Julie said to her as she and Calem went to the console board while Marcel went to the wall before placing Uell on his back against it.

“I will and…………Wait…” Floso said, quickly noticing what she meant, seeing her friends near the board before approaching them, Velu and Roin right behind her. “What are you doing?”

“Sending you guys home, that’s what,” Julie said to her.

“But…..Aren’t you coming with us?” Floso asked.

“We’d love to, but we can’t,” Calem said to them. “We have to make sure everything is right, so you and the others return to the tribe safely,”

“Besides, everything that has happened was our fault,” Julie joined in. “The only reason Uell came to this planet was because we were here in the first place, so we’re the ones who have to fix this,”

“And once that’s done, we’re gonna have the doctor take us on a trip, paying a visit to the monster we let loose,” Marcel said.

“Ha, good luck with that,” Uell said, taunting them.

“Be quiet!” Marcel yelled, jerking Uell around a bit.

“Well…………If this is where we say our farewells.......” Floso stopped as tears formed in her eyes. “I just want to say……..Thank you for everything,”

“No, It should be me thanking you,” Julie said to Floso. “You and your grandfather allowed me to stay with you, trained me, and made me into what I am. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have made it through all of this,”

Smiling at that sentence, Floso got close to Julie as both pressed their foreheads against each other.

“I’ll miss you,” A sad Floso said, tears running down her face.

“Me too,” Julie said back as she started to cry as well. “I’ll be sure to visit you guys,”

“You better,” Floso said with both of them giggling from what she said. While saying their goodbyes, Calem and Marcel were doing the same to Velu and Roin.

“We wish you the best of luck on your journey, my friends,” Velu said.

“Thank you,” Marcel said. “We’ll never forget the generosity you have shown us,”

“Do come back. We are more than welcome if you do,” Roin said.

Once all of their farewells had been said, Floso, Roin, and Velu went to the platform with their people and awaited transport. Uell, who was intimidated by Marcel as he cracked his knuckles and glared at him menacingly, gave instructions to Calem and Julie as they were able to power on the platform, having it brighten up in a bluish color and enshrouding the Iguackos.

With one final look, Julie and Floso smiled at each other before the Iguackos disappeared…….

Now that they are gone, Julie wiped the tears from her face as Calem and Marcel comforted her, placing their hands gently on her shoulders which started to relieve her, smiling at her two friends, who smiled right back.

“We did it…….They’re safe now,” Julie said, cleaning the rest of the tears off her face.

“Not yet. There’s still one more thing to take care of,” Calem said as all three turned to Uell Moroo, who glared at them angrily.

“Come on, doc. Let’s go see how your friend is doing,” Marcel said as he grabbed Uell’s right arm and started to drag him along, exiting the transporter room.

“So, what do we do first?” Calem asked the doctor as they entered the control room, but his reply from him was just some silent mumbling.

“Sorry, I don’t think we heard that. Wanna try again?” Marcel said as he started to crush the robot’s right arm, bending the metal as Uell watched with worry.

“(Sigh)……….Just go to the table, swipe on the device below, and I’ll tell you which star system to stop on,” Uell said.

Doing what he said, the three went to the table with Calem going through the device’s screen, switching between several star systems. While he was doing this, Uell was thinking of a way out of this, until something popped into his head, causing him to grin……

After going through 7 digitilized systems……….

“Hold it,” Uell said out loud, causing Calem to come to a stop before he could move to the next one. “That’s it, right there,” The three looked at the star system, which was called the “Tobarom System”. “Now, just press its name and we’ll be on our way,”

With that, Calem pressed the screen and thus, activated the ship…….

X

Outside, the tribe welcomed back the others. People reuniting with their mother, father, or sibling, friends getting back with their closest buddies, and lovers cling to each other. While this happened, it came to a halt when they saw that the ship was moving, going straight into the air.

“It’s leaving………………It’s leaving! We’re saved!!” One of the tribe members shouted out with joy.

This caused a celebration within the tribe, knowing that the nightmare is over and they can go back to their lives. Velu joined in with his people, raising his staff high into the air, while Roin and Floso kissed on the mouth.

But for one………he didn’t do anything. Envi just stared right into the sky, watching the ship ascend. His dream of becoming chief and ruling over his people………It’s all gone….

X

Back inside the control room, Calem, Julie, and Marcel watched as the ship went through the clouds. After exiting the planet’s atmosphere, the ship finally entered outer space as the bluish device on its head shot out a blast of energy, which quickly formed into a massive purple portal.

“You know, It’s not too late to back out,” Uell said, delightfully taunting them.

“Sorry, but we’ve made up our minds,” Marcel said back which annoyed the doctor as the ship slowly made its way toward the portal, causing the humans to prepare themselves.

“I’m just saying, you’re heading into untapped territory,” Uell said, regaining his composure.

“It doesn’t matter,” Julie said. “Just as long as we kill the two of you, no one else will get to suffer,”

“Fine, fine………….” Uell said. “But I’m just curious. After you “kill” us, how do you plan on dealing with the others?”

“Easy, we’ll just………….” Marcel stopped when he heard what Uell said. “Wait………Others?”

“Oh, I didn’t tell you, did I?” Uell taunted them, which caused them to have all eyes on him. “You see, just 8 days after he was released, our dear gentleman traveled far and wide, looking for partners. It took him a while, but he was able to recruit four mighty figures, me included, to join him.

Hearing that, our heroes started to be concerned, thinking that If they thought Uell was bad, how much worse could the other three be………..

“So If any of you wanna live a little longer, I suggest surrendering right now,” Uell said, trying to get them to yield but………

“No,” Calem said, surprising Uell with his answer. “If we defeated you, we can do the same to your allies.”

“You really believe so?” Uell asked as all three nodded in agreement. “Well…………” Uell stopped as the humans heard the sound of machinery moving in the robot’s chest, realizing the alien doctor was up to something. “Why don’t you pay them a visit?!”

Suddenly, the robot’s chest opened, the upper part moving up as Uell’s face somehow sprang out, surprising the three as they fall on their butts as Uell’s true form is revealed. He was just a head with a robotic octopus-like lower half, about 3.5ft tall with six extendable tentacles on each side with glowing blue grass spots, two smaller tentacles in the front under Uell’s chin, and strange implants all over his brain.

All three regained themselves but Uell quickly turned to them before firing two energy shots from his tentacles, hitting the floor near Calem and Marcel. They form into purple portals, shocking the two as they fall right into them.

“NO!!” Julie shouted out with distress, seeing her friends disappear into the unknown while Uell watched on with a smile on his face, mocking Julie’s sorrow.

Julie had little time to grieve as she entered a state of rage, summoning her halberd as she charged at Uell and tried to slash him, but Uell proved to be too agile, no longer impeded by his heavy exosuit as he dodged her attacks effortlessly. One slash caused Uell to jump right over her, landing a few feet away. Julie didn’t stop as she ran before leaping into the air, hoping to strike down and kill him once and for all.

However, Uell just simply pointed one of his tentacles right at her, shooting out an energy blast which then takes the form of a portal, right in front of her. With no time to avoid it, Julie entered the portal before it vanished into thin air……….

“Phew…..” Uell breathed out in relief, knowing his plan had worked and he had rid himself of the humans.

With the entire ship now back in his control, Uell went to the command board and typed in a few things as four symbols appeared on a screen projection. Pressing on the upper left one, the screen changed as it showed the word………..

“REACHING…….”

After a few seconds, the screen began to show the dark humanoid’s room, but not him for several moments until he appeared from the right and sat on his chair in a hurry.

“Doc! Good to see you, buddy,” The humanoid said in an ecstatic tone. “I hope you have some good news to bring me,”

“I know how much you like that, but that isn’t the reason I’m calling you,” Uell said as the humanoid lost his mood as he knew this wasn’t going to be pretty.

“Oh, boy,” The humanoid said. “What went wrong?”

“Basically, everything,” Uell replied. “Despite my estimations, those three were a lot tougher than I thought. I can see why you wanted them dead,”

“Wait…….Did you just say “Three”?” The humanoid asked.

“I did. The third one was found on this planet. Her name is Julie,” Uell said which got the humanoid concerned as he let out a groan.

“Great, now all three are together………..” The humanoid said to himself. “So, what happened?”

“Long story short......" Uell then proceeded to tell everything to the humanoid: how he had the heroes imprisoned for a while, how the Iguackos he had caged escaped and freed the humans along with the doctor's future specimens, destroyed some of his newly constructed cyborgs along with his suit, and how the humans sent the lizard people back home with the doctor's reluctant aid. "And when that was done, they attempted to find you."

“Really?” The humanoid asked. “And what did you do?

“Just tricked them into picking the wrong solar system,” Uell replied.

“Oh, nice one,” The humanoid said, complimenting the doctor. “And are they still with you?”

“No, they are long gone,” Uell replied. “I sent them to the worlds our allies are currently on,”

“Hmmmm……” The humanoid said as this got him thinking. “That’ll make this easier……….”

While this was happening, the ship then entered the portal, taking it to the Tobarom System before the purple portal disappeared from sight.……..

X Dark Humanoid’s Castle X

“Thanks, Doctor,” The humanoid said.

Uell simply nodded before the humanoid ended the call with the computer screen returning to normal, showing the four symbols. He clicked the ones on the upper right, upper left, and bottom right as the word “REACHING” appeared……….

What fate awaits our heroes?! Where has Uell sent them?! Who are the other three he mentioned?!?! Find out in the next arc!!