"You guys gonna be alright?" asked the pilot.

        "Yes," Chanoch straightened his suit.

        "You all got your watches synced?"

        "That we do," Holt jangled his wrist, "take care o' yerself dab!"

        "I'll try not to shoot you when I see ya!"

They waved the Ducky off as it floated back towards the northeast, leaving three rather impermeable-looking soldiers in nazi uniforms of jet black with only a violent red armband to break up the colour, heads covered with helmets of a deathless night pallour with eyes of deep   The forest was quiet once more after the ship's departure, the soft jungle breeze whistling through the afternoon as Schroeder took a few deep breaths to steady himself for the gruelling mission at hand.

        "Alright," Schroeder clapped his face, "HOO, ready to go back and potentially die throwing away my freedoms once again!"

        "I feel that," Holt shook his head.

        "Holt, your rank is stabsgefreiter, a lance corporal, meaning you are the lowest-rank of us three so don't talk too much."

        "Gotcha," he clicked his boots, "call me private Schultz."

        "Good good, I like Schultz.  Now, Chanoch, you have the most superior uniform, the oberstleutnant which is like a lieutenant colonel."

        "Hmm," he nodded with his frightening helm styled after a sharp steel hound, "high rank, I like."

        "You not having thuh collar on's gonna be rough," Jeremy nudged his side, "think you'll manage."

        "I learned enough English, thank you."

        "Now, I am a fahnenjunker," said Arnold pulling at his shoulder stripe, "that makes me under you, so you will have to speak for us."

        "Oh, god help us," Jeremy rolled his eyes beneath the visor, "not mister chatterbox himself, might even get more than SIX words out of him."

        "RUHIG!"  Chanoch made a motion to slap across Holt's face!  "Sie werden Ihren Kommandanten mit Respekt ansprechen!"

        "WOAH WOAH WOAH!" he backed up with a start.  "Wot huh FUCK are ya doing?!"

        "Acting," said Jarogniew with halting English, "we are actors, yes?  So, we act good, the audience, believes."

        "Awww fer god's sake, you and yer fucking theatre shite!"

        "He's right though," said Arnold thumbing to him, "we have to make them think we are just three more soldiers in the machine and you have to play the part, it won't work otherwise."

        "I'm startin' to regret comin' on this," he muttered under his breath.

        "Trust me, I regret coming here too, if this plan fails, they will execute me."

        "But that's not gonna happen!" said the box with a thumping crunch.  "Also any of you wanna let me out or what?!"

        "Oh yes, and he'll be dead too."

Schroeder bent down to open the box as Jacob popped out like a spring, his puffed cheeks filling up as he snorted the dust from his nostrils.

        "HOO!  Sheesh those metal parts are a lot filthier than ya think!"

        "You alright?" Schroeder asked.

        "Yeah thanks to the blanket you covered over 'em," he tugged at the collar round his neck, "thanks for lettin' me tag along."

        "I still do not like it," said Chanoch shaking his head, "you are not a soldier."

        "Yeah I kicked them nazi butts when I first met 'em!" he leapt out the box.  "I can do it again, just need to grab my shield from inside that place, PLUS I know how to crawl around the vents inside."

        "That is true," said Arnold nodding, "Jacob is surprisingly good at infiltration through vents."

        "Considering we're all fat old bastards," Holt shrugged, "that's a buzzin' thing to have, but why's he need the collar?"

        "So we keep him in the loop.  Also the box we take inside to the base, best way to move Jacob to a good spot."

        "But for now," the yoshi swung his arms, "I'll just walk with ya, just need to freshen up a little cuz, yeah, feel like King Shroomses inside that thing."

Hoisting the box between them the work was considerably easier without Jacob's weight, despite the fact it still contained several chunks of battered scrap metal as they headed to the shore where the boat still laid, a good 40 minutes walk from their landing spot.

        "Surprised your leg healed up that quickly," Schroeder said clearing the vines, "would have thought you would be out of action for longer."

        "Nah," Jacob shrugged with a stiff walk, "yoshis heal up pretty fast, we kinda have to when we used to live on islands full of poisons and, all kindsa predators."

        "Poisons eh?" Holt looked over him.  "Next you'll be telling me you're immune to 'em."

        "Well if it's anything I can swallow yeah basically, there's only ONE poison in the world that'll hurt a yoshi and it's not around here!"

        "So wot happens if you DO swallow poison?"

        "It just tastes bad," the yoshi grinned, "I mean I haven't tried it cuz that's stupid but I know I'm immune to food poisoning so, uncle James made me a taste tester!"

        "He is a bad cook?" asked Chanoch looming over them like a black monolith.

        "Uncle Koopin banned him from the kitchen, but when he's out the house uncle James tries to do a little thing now and again.  He's really bad, but it's fun!"

        "Sounds like me dad," Holt cackled shaking his head, "absolutely thuh worst bastard in thuh kitchen."

        "Hm," the lizardman turned his head sharp.

        "Alright, here."  Schroeder pointed at the small cove nestled between mountains.  "Boat should be over there aaaaand yes it is, alright we're good!"

        "Hold up you didn't know it wuz still 'ere?!" Jeremy barked.

        "No?" Arnold shrugged pulling away the vines.  "I just put it here and hoped they never found this cove, it's out of the way and really small."

        "Very good," Chanoch nodded grabbing the stern, "smart place to hide."

Pulling the boat from its dock, they pushed it out to sea before loading the empty box on board.

        "When we reach the place," said Schroeder, "they will check this box first, so for now Jacob you hide in the boat's cargo."

        "No prob," he said, "when we tried to steal the boat there was a guy sleeping inside here."

        "Just have to take out the guns."  Schroeder handed a rifle each to Holt and Chanoch.  "That's why I didn't have you bring any, already have them."

        "Not too shabby!" Holt patted his new gun.  "Bit different to whut I normally 'ad."

        "That enough room for you Jake?"

        "Sure is," he climbed into the storage, "jeez I haven't climbed into this many boxes since I was like six!"

        "HAH!" Jeremy cackled on the back seat.  "Right li'l rascal arentcha?"

        "Yeaaah my dad didn't know yoshis love to crawl into all sortsa places soon as they come out the egg, he couldn't find me for three hours once when I was like four weeks old and he was just sobbing in a panic!"

        "Awwww, that's terrible!"

        "I was just a baby!" Jacob cried as the engine rumbled to life.  "I said sorry after when he told me how scared he was."

        "You could talk that young?" Schroeder looked back.

        "Yeah yoshis talk as soon as they come out the egg."

        "Useful," Chanoch nodded from the passenger seat, "can tell father when you need food, or bathroom."

        "Alright everyone, hang on."

With a rev of the motor Arnold shot off towards the southeast, bristling briny white foaming behind the boat as it left the shore and out on the open blue.  Time would pass as the three of them tried to sing songs, recite their stories for the mission and occasionally try to spot a passing fish.  The closer they went to the dreaded Braun base, the more tense Arnold became, tightening his hands on the wheel with a fierce grip as he started to shake with a stuttering breath.

        "//Are you alright?//" asked Chanoch in German.

        "//No,//" he shook his head, "//I hate this, I didn't want to come back-//"

        "//I understand,//" the knight patted his shoulder, "//I'll do most of the talking, if you want.//"

        "//You sure about that?//" Schroeder turned to look at him.  "//You know what these people will do.//"

        "//I have faced demons back in my world.  What's another army of monsters?//"

His voice assured him somewhat as they saw the looming island base, a somewhat-towering place that more resembled a mountain of concrete than an actual research station.  An oppressive facade with a surprising lack of restraint in any symbolism, the Braun Memorial Base stood less like a sore thumb and more like a frigid nail of black rising out of the ocean.  Schroeder guided the boat towards the dock as they braced themselves for entry, Chanoch feeling his tail turn stiff against his back, hidden beneath the folds of his uniform as he felt the sweat coming off of Schroeder.

        "//Be calm.//"  He patted him.  "//We are soldiers.  Act like one.//"

He gave a soft chuckle that almost turned hysterical before he cleared his throat, carefully docking the boat in much to the surprise of the guards and mechanics in the bay.

        "//What the...fuck?!//"

        "//HEY, is that the boat we lost?!//"

        "//Call Frau Grimm, now!//"

        "Ohh fuck," Schroeder muttered turning to the group, "I didn't think they were going to call her, alright, just...say you want to return to your duties, no fuss, she likes hard workers who don't make a big thing."

        "Righ'," said Holt nodding, "just keep calm an' carry on, got it."

        "Chanoch," he pulled him close to mutter en Deutsch, "//Frau Grimm will notice your height, if she asks, just say that Dr. Ingelbaum gave you a serum and it's taking effect.//"

        "//Understood,//" said Jarogniew, "//what if they ask him about it?//"

        "//Then say he won't talk about it, he thinks the serum failed, he's too arrogant to admit it did and won't discuss it.//"

        "//Ahh, good.  And if she asks about the village?//"

        "You should answer truthfully, I fought the panzerhund with the locals, it's dead-//"

        "//And I pretended to be dead when they tossed my corpse out.//"

        "//Right...,//" Schroeder felt for his hip and realised with a wince, "//god I miss having my sword with me.//"

        "//We have our fists,//" said Chanoch moving from the boat, "//when close enough, it is more than enough.//"

        "//Can you push some authority on the dock whilst I swap Jacob?//"

        "//Yes.//"

Approached by several guards and a few mechanics, the knight leapt from the boat which shuddered visibly from his weight as Schroeder offered the box up first.

        "//Where'd you guys find the boat?//"

        "//You would not believe the day we had,//" Schroeder began, "//oberstleutnant over there got the two of us still alive back home, all by himself, and managed to track out the boat the fugitive took, hidden in the jungle on this TINY cove!//"

        "//Shit, seriously?!//"

        "//Yep, we even managed to find a crate from the downed ship to take back, scrabbled some of the panzerhund's parts.//"

        "//Why would you even do that?//" snorted a mechanic.

        "//Need to see what weapons those savages were using, thought the eggheads could make sense of the damage pattern.//"

        "//Huh...alright.//"

He opened the box showing nothing but a bunch of scattered steel pieces twisted by laser burns.  Once he slammed it shut, Chanoch tried to approach the exit of the docks.

        "//Sir, hold it!//"  The first guard raised his hand.  "//Frau Grimm is coming to inspect-//"

        "//She can speak with me in my quarters,//" replied Jarogniew.

        "//But, sir, it's important tha-//"

His hand was suddenly grabbed by a fierce clenching fist.  The soldiers almost reached for their guns as Schroeder and Holt stiffened with panic.

        "//What rank and name are you?//" he asked calmly.

        "//O-, o-oberstgafreiter Klimmt!//" the soldier stammered.

        "//Hm.  And what is this?//"  He pointed to his shoulder-stripes.

        "//That...th-that is oberstleutnant, sir.//"

        "//And what makes you think, speaking to me like that is ever acceptable?//"

        "//Sir...I-i mean no disrespec-AAAGH!//"

He wrenched the guard's hand downwards before grabbing his throat, lifting him off his feet much to the shock of the nazis around them as the frightened Klimmt stared into the cold piercing eyes of Jarogniew.

        "//I am not some filthy peasant from the Polish ghetto.//"

        "//HNNGH, NNNRGH!//"

        "//I have had, to walk, four days through the swamp, half-deceased, hunting savage beasts to stay alive after feigning death!//"

        "//A-AAARGH!//"

        "//You will address me with the respect I have earned, for the years I have given to this GREAT ARMY, UNDERSTAND?!//"

        "//Y-YES, YES, F-FORGIVE ME, PLEASE FORGIVE ME SIR!//"

        "//HMPH!//"

The lieutenant-colonel threw the corporal hard to the ground almost causing him to skid backwards into a crate.

        "//SCHULTZ!//"

Jeremy stumbled forwards to stand beside with a rigid nazi salute.

        "//Take this oberstgafreiter's name down for the next inspection.//"

        "//Yes SAH!//"

Scribbling down in a notepad, Holt made a very flourishing gesture much to the fear of Klimmt as they walked past.  None of the guards noticed the black-and-blue skinned intruder swiftly sneaking from one box to another, after which they checked the storage of the boat to find just a few guns laying about.  Arnold with the help of Holt, carried the box with a heaving struggle as Chanoch asserted his authority through the halls with help from Arnold navigating

        "Alright," he muttereed, "we drop Jacob at the storage room, he crawls into the vents and follows us from above."

        "That gonna work?" Holt asked.

        "The entire place is ventilated, it would have been gated off for security measures but, Ingelbaum I said before-"

        "Stinkelbaum," whispered Jake within the box.

        "PFFFT, n-not now Jake!"

        "Heeheheheheh!"

        "Hmhmhm, Stinkelbaum," Chanoch muttered, "I like that."

        "Uhhh question," the yoshi asked, "how you gonna get me in storage, aren't they locked?"

        "Oh, dammit," Arnold stomped his foot, "I keep forgetting the damn locks."

        "I can help."

Approaching the nearest storage room with its long steel door, Chanoch flagged down a guard marching down the hall who turned and swiftly saluted in a fright.

        "//You!//"

        "//YES, sir?!//"

        "//Open this door, we have supplies to store.//"

        "//Yes...sir!//"

The soldier tapped in the code as fast as he could, panicking over two numbers before it opened with a swoosh and Chanoch ordered the box to be brought in.  The guard was relieved as the door closed with Jacob slipping out of the box and shooting his tongue towards the vent, scurrying upwards into the ducts as Arnold tapped his comms.

        "Goonie, you read me?"

        "Loud and clear," whispered Jacob, "where we heading first?"

        "Your shield will be over in Experimental Training, I suggest we head there first, let's not do things. too quickly otherwise it's suspicious."

        "I stay with you," Chanoch muttered, "that good?"

        "Yes, you can just bark orders at us to ward off suspicion."

        "Methinks yer enjoying this a bit TOO much," Holt nudged the lizardman, "alrigh' let's keep at it."

Taking a stroll towards the central region of the base, the grand hall of autumn colours with woman's portrait beneath swastika-eagle, Schroeder pointed them towards the Experimental Training sector.  For the most part soldiers avoided them, Chanoch asserting his rank amongst the lower corporals and frightening the troops with vague punishments if they tried to pursue further.  The training labs were marked with a deep blood-orange that assaulted their vision, the sound of rumbling feet in the vents above indicating Jacob's presence still as they passed between rooms where various experiments were taking place.

Sometimes they were testing some new gel that bulged and gurgled inside of a cube, other times they were constructing a new weapon that shot fire suddenly from both ends.  But it wasn't until six rooms after they finally found Jacob's shield, trapped inside of a steel cage with metal fingers clamping it to the table, the mushroom emblem in its centre glistening beneath the light.

        "There it is!" Jacob whispered on comms.  "Is anyone in there?"

        "Two scientists," muttered Holt, "how you wanna do this?"

        "Chanoch?"

Schroeder turned to the towering beast who nodded and banged on the door.

        "//What, who is it?!//"

        "//I have orders from Ingelbaum to examine the shield.//"

        "//Are you-...he never told us!//"

The door opened to reveal two green-suited men in black gas masks, staring at the monstrous kommandant before them.

        "//Whatever you heard or not, does not matter, I am here to examine.//"

        "//What rank are you-GUH!//"

He grabbed one of their shoulders and almost crushed it with a brutal grip.

        "//Look.  At my rank.  Imbecile.//"

        "//G-GUH, YES, S-SIR!//"

        "//If you are too blind to see, take off your damn mask.//"

Shoving him aside he walked into the lab and looked over the shield, tapping it with affirming nods as the two guards outside stood firm to attention.

        "//Have you discovered anything new?//"

        "//Only the material is not of our world,//" said one scientist, "//it is also surprisingly resistant to fire, ice and electrical currents.//"

        "//We are currently trying to determine its matrices,//" replied the other, "//It will take some time.//"

        "//Very good,//" Chanoch leaned over the mushroom symbol, "//this will make a fine armour for our soldiers.//"

        "//Yes exactly, we managed to take some shavings and are running them through the spectrometer as we speak-//"

        "//Have you tested weapons on it?//"

        "//Not...yet, why?//" the scientists shifted nervously.

        "//I would like to take this for a test in our crew quarters.  If it is as durable as you say, it will stand up to our weapons easily.//"

        "//But, sir, we would like to finish the spectrometer read before-//"

        "//Did you not hear of the intruders who escaped?//" Chanoch turned back to them.  "//Or the savages who took down a panzerhund by themselves?//"

        "//Wh-what?!//"

        "//If this shield is as powerful as you say, we would have the advantage over such mistakes.  But I wish to make certain.//"

        "//I thought you said Ingelbaum told you to-//"

        "//Are you questioning me?//"

His voice dipped to a demonic growl that made them balk.  They said nothing further as they unlocked the cage and allowed him to take the shield.

        "//I will return it for further experiments tomorrow, until then you are relieved unless Ingelbaum requires extra hands.//"

        "//Yes, sir, thank you sir!//"

They gave the full-arm salute as he walked out carrying the shield underarm.  Walking back towards the docking bay storage, Chanoch offered it towards the open duct where Jacob's tongue shot out to grab and retract the shield back in his arms, before they walked back to the main reception hall, passing by other guards who largely gave no trouble.

        "Hooooo yeah thank you," he sighed clutching it tightly before fastening it to his back, "now I'm ready to kick butt!"

        "So now wot?" Holt asked.

        "Chanoch needs to find a security key from an officer," said Arnold pointing to the door beneath the giant portrait, "that way lies the elevator to the maintenance level, the keycards for it say Spezielle Wartung."

        "So wot's our job?" Jeremy rubbed his neck.  "All I've done wuz write down garbage."

        "You are lackeys," Chanoch smiled in his helm, "you serve me well."

        "Don't get too comfy, soon as we're back I'm kicking yer arse."

        "You can try."

        "I punched a werewolf in thuh tits, you fucking wai-"

        "SHHH!"

The elevator suddenly pinged before opening, four soldiers stepping out one of whom was clearly female in her long black suit with fearsome red visor covering her eyes.  Chanoch stepped forwards and gave the salute to which she responded, but the most disturbing member of this group was the velociraptor marching behind her.

        "//Frau Grimm.  I have returned.//"

        "//Ah!  Oberstleutnant Spielmann, is that you?//"

        "//Forgive me for my absence.//"  He bowed.  "//I would like to make my report.//"

        "//By all means...but...//" she tapped her finger on his chest.  "//You seem...larger than usual.//"

        "//Dr. Ingelbaum's serum, causes muscular growth during times of great distress.  It has not worn off.//"

        "//OH, typical!//" she swept her hands.  "//Always performing his stupid experiments, does he not understand the point of you officers is that you are already at the peak of perfection?!//"

        "//He will not admit it was a failure,//" Chanoch shook his head, "//you know how he is, Frau Grimm.//"

        "//Indeed I do.  Regretfully, he is not a military man you see, does not understand our ways.//"

        "//Agreed.  We may be human, but we were chosen as the best of humans, as officers by our glorious leader to ensure his vision, even in this blighted world.//"

Frau Grimm stood back and clapped her hands.  Schroeder felt a tightness in his soul throughout all  of this, but the sound of her clapping gave a fear that made his heart wither to a speck as he reached for his gun quietly.  The kommandant however clasped her cheeks with a rosy smile and took Chanoch's hand.

        "//Tell me your report.  The sooner you end it, the sooner I can congratulate you for such...incredible words to honour our Reich.//"

As Jarogniew gave his report well practiced from the boat, Holt and Schroeder along looked towards the raptor behind the two guards of Grimm.  Jacob widened his eyes from the vent, seeing a silver-backed beast frills of metal on her head and a large bolted screw in her chest, her tail swishing behind with two long rusted blades that caught the light in strange means.

        "//And so we arrived,//" ended Chanoch, "//the panzerhund salvage we managed to take is in storage for further examining.//"

        "//Good.  See this?//"  Frau Grimm nodded turning to her guards.  "//This is why I sent oberstleutnant Spielmann to hunt down a fugitive, a no-nonsense sort who does the job right, and if you can't do the job because we lacked the information, because of the slippery savage having armaments that were unknown to us, you learn, you adapt, something I think all our fair soldiers should learn!//"

        "//Thank you Frau Grimm,//" the oberstleutnant bowed, "//I will be ready for the field once I have rested a few hours.//"

        "//HAH!//"  She turned back to him with a cackle.  "//Only just returned, half-dead after four days and you want to go back today?!//"

        "//The savages must be punished.//"  He puffed his chest and raised his helmet.  "//They called us demons.  But they have not yet seen the true face of our right.//"

        "//Precisely.//" she slapped his chest eagerly.  "//THIS is the strength of Aryan supremacy, the purest will of the master race within this man!//"

Holt pursed his lips trying not to laugh.

        "//Do you see now Riptor, what greatness we can achieve with such glorious men?!//"

        "//I understand well.//"

A voice came through as the guards parted to let the raptor step up.

        "//Your soldiers are exceptional, to survive that long in the wild is no small feat.//"

Schroeder, Jacob and Holt all clenched along with Chanoch when they saw the ultraraptor's neck laden with a translation collar exact to the model from their base.  Jacob slapped his head and swallowed his frustration as Riptor continued in automated German.

        "//I know the village you speak of, the beasts there are surprisingly well-armed.//"

        "//They...were.//"  Jarogniew shifted his boots.

        "//I have not yet shown you our latest friend.//"  Frau Grimm stepped towards the raptor's side and stroked her head lovingly.  "//This is Riptor, she protected our downed ship and killed another group of humans and machines from some base elsewhere in the world.//"

        "//Really?  But this is a beast.//"

        "//A beast of great intelligence who knows the rightful masters of nature.//"  She stroked underneath Riptor's chin with her gloved hand as the raptor cooed.  "//The moment I walked up to her, she rolled over like a puppy!//"

        "//It is only natural,//" said Riptor translated, "//power begets power, I knew that these strange hairless ones would ensure my pack grow strong for centuries to come.//"

        "//Not unlike the wolf who has become Man's best friend as the fearsome hound, yes?//"

        "//Exactly.//"

        "//This is...remarkable,//" Chanoch rubbed his head, "//and yet it speaks like a man?//"

        "//We discovered this collar left behind by one of the fugitives,//" said Grimm patting it, "//the black one, it was surprisingly easy to decipher.//"

        "//It comes from the other hairless,//" said Riptor nodding, "//I have seen them wear the same odd stone around their necks.//"

        "//Rest assured that Riptor is an obedient addition,//" the kommandant stroked along her back, "//she has already shown her worth, and acknowledging our supremacy, her pack make a fine swelling to the ranks.//"

        "//If you believe so then I will respect your decision Frau Grimm,//" the lizardman bowed with hands behind his back, "//I would have to see them in action myself to come to the same conclusion.//"

        "//Rest assured, it will be soon.  I will be sending a scouting ship out soon to find this other human base, so when the time comes I will need you fully rested.//"

        "//Understood.//"

He clicked his boots with a salute as she did the same, Jarogniew heading to the crew quarters where a long red strip took them down whilst Frau Grimm and her entourage with Riptor went to the Organic Research lab down the green path.  Once they were out of earshot they conferred in a small cul-de-sac.

        "You fuckin' saw that righ'?" Holt whispered.  "Fuck is a RAPTOR doin' 'ere?!"

        "That was one of them that attacked Seaclaw!" sparked Jacob from the comms.  "Not her, but the same kinda look, with all the metal and stuff?"

        "I have never seen them before," Schroeder shook his head, "they...that, thing did not come from my world, that was never on this base until now."

        "She had your collar," Chanoch muttered, "she knows about our base, and Grimm is sending a ship to scout it."

        "Awww fuck me," Holt rubbed his cheek, "we gotta double it up, get this thing outta here before they start any bombings."

        "You're right," Arnold leaned back against the wall, "Chanoch, get the key from an officer, Holt and I will stand by the elevator."

        "What about me?" Jacob asked.  "I wanna know what that lady's planning!"

        "You best stay here with us," said Jeremy looking up, "don't wanna get separated too much-"

        "I wanna know what the heck those raptors are doing, if they're working for this base that's super dangerous!"

        "He is right."  Chanoch nodded.  "Jacob, can you follow her?"

        "Wait wait!" Schroeder put up his hands.  "Holt is right, we should not separate too much-"

        "No one has seen Jacob, he is safe.  Jacob, will you?"

        "You bet," he said from the vents, "I'll do my best, we'll meet back in the hall right?"

        "Yes," Arnold sighed, "be careful, please."

With unease they parted, Jeremy and Schroeder heading to the lift and keeping a sabbatical on the main hall, whilst Chanoch marched alone to the soldiers' quarters and Jacob trundled through the vents to follow Riptor and Frau Grimm.  The yoshi was cautious, trying his best not to bump his shield against the sides of the vent with his ears wide open and his collar firm against his neck.  The smell of beasts trapped in their prisons made his skin crawl and his stomach turn with rememberance, following Riptor and the kommandant who spoke amongst themselves with guards passing to and fro that tried not to look.

        "//How do you like our base?"

        "//Incredible,//" she hissed staring across the windows, "//this cavern of yours is filled with power, such strange stones you adorn yourselves with.//"

        "//No stranger than yours surely.//"

        "//True.  My former masters were far weaker.//"

        "//Are they the ones here?//" Grimm stroked the raptor's neck.

        "//They were from beyond the stars, same as you.  I have learned the hairless ones who already live here, were the ones who brought my pack here by accident.//"

        "//How so?//"

        "//They have this...ah, what would he call it, cold fire?//" she tapped her fingers across her chin trailing behind the nazi.  "//A certain force that can bring worlds together into this, they have done so before...I suspect that was how they brought you here, again by accident.//"

        "//A cold...fire?//" the kommandant stroked her cheek mid-step.  "//Bringing things to other...haaaaah.  Yes, you mean, a portal?//"

        "//I know not what that means,//" Riptor lied, "//but I sense you understand.//"

        "//Yes...more than you can imagine, I will show you when it's up and running.//"  Her smile widened beneath her cold steel visor.  "//This other base, how competent do they manage with their tech?//"

        "//They know not how to wield it, pathetic creatures.//"  The raptor sniffed turning a corner.  "//That said, I have studied their methods, and how every four-hundred-and-eleven days, they always have yet another spark of coldfire that brings something to this world.//"

        "//Really?//" the Jackal mused turning to face her.  "//That, number of days, specifically.//"

        "//Yes,//" the raptor swished her bladed tail.  "//But even with that they are still like children playing with fire, not like your pack who march through the world with strength and confidence.//"

        "//But of course,//" she bowed keeping slightly in front of Riptor, "//you know nothing of the human race and our ways yet even YOU understand the greatness of the Aryan race!//"

        "//Of course I do.//"  Her smile turned to a bitter sneer hidden from Grimm.  "//In my pack, we choose the strongest and smartest of our kind to breed and to lead.//"

        "//Ahh is that so!?  Ohh, Ingelbaum will love you, he is an ardent enthusiast of eugenics, he would love to hear that.//"

        "//The one with the glass eye?  What does he do here?//"

        "//Studying new technology to strengthen our army, though he mostly just wants an excuse to pursue his theses.//"

        "//Is he the one who shall improve Sunscreech?//"

        "//Essentially, yes.//"

Entering a laboratory, they left Jacob's vision as he searched around in the long cold abyss of the ventilation maze to try and find a better view from within.  With dragging knees and pulling fingers he spotted a sealed duct opening with a special cover for aerosol deterrants, allowing enough of a view to see Grimm and Riptor marching up towards the gaunt familiar shape of Ingelbaum with his hooked nose and monocle, standing in front of a console facing towards a large pane of glass.

        "//Are we ready?//" said the kommandant.

        "//Of course,//" the doctor sniffed, "//I have been ready the past five minutes and sixteen seconds.//"

        "//And the others?//"

        "//Science team eighty-eight are teaching them the new orders, also developing more collars to communicate.  We'll build one for the cripple after he's done-//"

        "//His name is Sunscreech,//" Riptor corrected, "//and he will not be a cripple any longer if you do your job right.//"

        "//I am FAR more educated than an overgrown lizard, what damn right have you to speak like that to me?!//"

        "//Ingelbaum.//"  Frau Grimm turned to him.  "//Do not treat our guest with such disrespect, Riptor is but a fine addition to our cause in recognising our supremacy.//"

        "//A child could understand our supremacy.//"

        "//Then why did you spend a career learning it?//"

His face stiffened to a pompous sneer, shaking through his fist as Riptor giggled at his impotent rage.

        "//At least I did not lose an entire camp of criminal degenerates!//" he finally shouted back.  "//You can mock me all you want, but YOU are the reason why Skulte-Marupe was a failure!//"

The Jackal tightened her lips with and walked forwards to grab his monocle.

        "//The only reason I don't strike you now,//" she loomed over his squinting eye, "//is because you are so pathetically feeble-bodied that I fear even a single touch from me would kill you.//"

        "//I agree,//" Riptor sniffed at his coat, "//Sunscreech has no arms and he is far stronger than you.//"

        "//ENOUGH!//" he stepped back twisting his monocle back in.  "//I am a great and noted scientist I DEMAND my respect, for all the work I have done to the Reich I will not be assuaged by your obsession on this lizard, like a little girl with her new pony!//"

        "//Except this pony understands me, and can bite your head off if I choose to.  Now, commence with the experiment, doctor.//"

        "//I would like to speak with him first,//" said Riptor turning to the glass, "//he will be frightened, I can make this easier for you though, for the sake of your cultured grace, I will not sully your ears with our primitive tongue.//"

        "//Very well,//" Ingelbaum sighed tapping the console, "//I respect your advocacy to respect our superior language, but what of the other raptors?//"

        "//They are as improved as me, any further additions would slow us down as inefficient hunters.//"

        "//A perfect balance, I agree,//" said Frau Grimm nodding, "//much as your old masters were useless to earn your respect, their design of your kind was exceptional.//"

        "//Every parent knows, it is one thing to create, but another to perfect.//"

        "//Hah!//" Ingelbaum clapped his hands.  "//Your tribe practice eugenics naturally?!//"

        "//It is but the simplest solution yes?//"  She smiled with a knowing purr.

        "//I heartily agree!  Hmm, would never have thought I would be debating with a dinosaur.//"

        "//You just never met the right one, but then I'm sure you met plenty of them who taught you.//"

        "//PFFFT, HAH, hmhahahaha, AHAHAHA, ohhh so very true hhhahahah!//"

        "//Doctor, the experiment?//"

Grimm tapped her foot as a warning before Ingelbaum set the first phase in motion.  Unbeknownst to Jacob, obscured from his view in the vents, a raptor was raised upon a steel table transfixed onto his back in the room beyond the window, held by bindings over his snout and body as he struggled with a snarling fit whilst Riptor clicked off her collar.

        "R-riptor!  RIPTOR!"

        "Hello Sunscreech," she purred from behind the glass, "how are you?"

        "WHAT IS THIS?!  What, why are you there and I am in here?!"

        "I told them how you require a few adjustments, just so you're on the same level as the rest of us."

        "What do you mean?!" he shouted kicking hard as he could.  "Tell them to release me, TELL THEM!"

        "Oh, of course I will...when you tell me what happened to Sulphide."

His eye twitched sharply as she leaned forwards, her smile terrifying him as the fakest he had ever seen.

        "Do you think I'm a fucking idiot, Sunscreech?  Do you think, I believed your story for one second, that your just-so-happens-to-be brother walked out, dazed and confused, and managed to overpower not only you, but my most loyal fighter?"

        "I...Riptor, I swear," he gasped twitching his legs, "that filthy shit escaped on his own, he took me by surpri-"

        "DO NOT MAKE THIS WORSE!" she shrieked to the surprise of the humans.  "You are one of the strongest in my pack, Sulphide was one of the most intelligent, and you are telling me that your 'degenerate' brother managed to outsmart and outfight BOTH of you?!"

        "I am only telling you what happened!"

        "I KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!"  She tapped her head frantic.  "I can HEAR things, I know everything, eeeeverything that goes on in my tribe, don't think I don't know about your pathetic little problems!  So let's fix that."

        "No.  No, please, Riptor," he shook his head faster, "do not let them touch me, d-do not let them touch me!"

        "You should have learned after what I did to Jade.  I don't tolerate the weak and easily-misled."

        "NO!  NOOOO, S-STOP TOUCHING ME!"

A sharp syringe from a metal arm jabbed into his waist, slackening his muscle as he suddenly drooped with a lifeless look despite his screams still evident.  Several other arms came upon him with fiendish blades and long metallic sheaths as one went for his deadened eye to carve through the skull carefully with a circular bonesaw.  The muscle suppressant did not stop the pain as Sunscreech discovered, shrieking howls trembling from the lab as his entire eye socket was scooped out just short of his brain.  The bone disjointed, cracked off his head as he felt the cold clinical oxygen scrape against his exposed organ, soft dripping grey matter bleeding through to trickle down his neck.

        "A-AAAARGH, AAAAAAAAARGH!  RIPTOR, STOP IT, PLEASE I HAVE CHILDREN!"

        "If you beg for my forgiveness," she said still smiling, "then I want you to understand the pain I have dealt with.  To know what humans will do to you, when you are weak and frail.  That is why I need you to not be either."

        "AAAAAAAARGH, AAAAAAAIIIIAAAAAAAAARGH!  METHYL!  METHYL FORGIVE ME, METHYYYYYYYYL!"

        "These humans know nothing of my plan, they trust me even not to listen in on our little conversation.  They are imbeciles, lead by their desperate ego and their desire to control nature itself as an excuse for their weakness."

She watched the machines take him apart, two large limbs of steel ripping the bones of his broken arms fully from their joints to leave bloodied stumps before they brought forth new implements.  Riptor clicked her collar back on with a knowing smile.

        "//He will obey you well,//" she said to Frau Grimm, "//him and I will be at your side making certain the rest of my pack follow.//"

        "//Excellent,//" the woman chuckled, "//whatever did you say to him?//"

        "//Just, in my coarse native tongue that is unfit for your ears, how I assured him that your great supremacy is the true way forwards for the future of our families.//"

        "//Incredible,//" Frederick shook his head amidst the screams from the lab, "//to think even a base reptilian could understand us so well, unlike the African.  Tell me, Riptor was it?  Do you perhaps have time for me to discuss what views you have, and your understanding of the world?//"

        "//You wish to learn more about me?//" the raptor snickered with a bow.  "//I would be glad to share my knowledge with you, as hopefully partners.//"

        "//Hmhmhmhm, partners.//"  Frau Grimm stroked her head.  "//Such an adorable thing you are, to think we could be partners.//"

        "//Did you not say a dog was Man's best friend?  Surely, you see them as partners in one way.//"

        "//Very true.  Alright, we are partners then in that respect, for all the boons you have given me, I think that much should be said.//"

The sounds of suffering continued from inside the lab as Jacob shuffled his way back carefully, mapping the layout in his head well enough to reach the main hall once more in a matter of minutes.  Arnold and Jeremy stood waiting in a small orbit around the room, Schroeder taking over conversations with any guards who tried to strike up a chat before leaving once more.

        "Okay, guys?" Jacob radio'd in once they were alone.  "So that raptor, she's totally working with the nazis!"

        "What did you find?" murmured Arnie.

        "She's got others, there was one that was getting experimented on, I couldn't see but...w-well-"

        "Say no more, I understand."

        "Oh god I hope it's not one of Oddie's," Jeremy rubbed his head, "don't wanna hafta tell 'im that."

        "Let's just focus on the mission," Schroeder patted him, "you still have the device?"

        "Right 'ere," said Holt patting his pocket, "just slip it in an' tap four times."

        "I am here."  Chanoch returned shortly with a silver keycard in hand.  "Jacob is here too?"

        "Yep yep!" he crackled.

        "I'll tell you what he found on the way down," said Arnold, "Jacob you will have to stay here, keep in radio contact if anything changes.

        "The goonie is waiting in the wings, loud and clear!"

Sliding his keycard into the elevator's slot, the doors opened gladly as the three of them stepped in quick as they could.  Schroeder tapped the lowest button as the lift descended, throbbing with a hum of electromagnetic force that shot them to the pits of the island.

        "So," Holt slapped Chanoch's back, "how'd you get that keycard dab?"

        "I stole it," he shrugged, "was not hard."

        "Aw you mean you didn't hafta do summat stupid lahk a drinkin' game or five-finger fillet?"

        "No, they were sleeping, I just took it."

        "Well, glad that went well-"

        "Don't jinx it," said Arnold leaning in, "beyond this is unknown territory, I have never been down here so anything we find is brand new."

        "How do you know wot thuh generator looks like then?"

        "They'll have it marked, it's maintenance after all."

The rumbling elevator continued with passing lights lifting upwards, a soft tremor beneath their feet when it soon stopped and opened towards a deep dark long hall where intense red lights screamed above their heads.  There were voices from beyond, faint but discernible as Chanoch took the lead with the most authority, the humans behind following as they checked each room with various signposts of different subjects.  Despite the name of Special Maintenance, not many of the places indicated such in the black abyss of sinister crimson shadows where long doors reached above their heads that Chanoch opened individually.  The first room they encountered was surprisingly an architect's room, with drawing table and walls full of schematics.

        "Ere wot's this?"

        "Blueprints," Schroeder gasped, "keep an eye on the door, I'm going to look."

He headed over to the table, pulling out a notebook from the uniform as he sketched out as much as he could of the more important details of what looked like two airships, one larger than the other.  Another thing of note was a small collection of swords on the wall similar to that which Arnold had, the electrical charge-length grafted to sit above the blade's edge, but a different hilt in design as a more common variant.  Outside however, an elite mechanic in red togs approached Jeremy and Chanoch.

        "//Hey, what are you doing here?//"

        "//Guard duty,//" snorted Chanoch.  "//Orders from Grimm.//"

        "//I didn't hear anything like that,//" he crossed his arms, "//any schedule change I would know about it.//"

        "//I am working from the schedule I was on before I shipped out, I only just returned from the outside, was there a change?//"

        "//Yes...let me see your number.//"

        "//Hm, fine.//"

Chanoch made a gesture to Holt who tapped the mechanic's shoulder.  The moment he turned, the nazi felt the hands of Jarogniew upon his head and with a sudden KRAKK he twisted the man's neck until he was facing backwards, dragging the body swiftly into the architect's room to dump it in a locker.

        "Had to be one smartarse round 'ere," said Holt pilfering his pockets, "got a keycard on 'im too."

        "Well that's good," Schroeder sighed, "might help us get further in without any trouble."

        "Wot's on them sketches anyhow?"

        "Two ships, one called the Thunder Ghost, the other the Goddess Egg."

        "Two ships?" Chanoch muttered.  "Air or sea?"

        "Air," Schroeder beckoned them towards the prints, "one looks very strange to me, can you look at it for me?"

They walked back over to the blueprints, Schroeder noting the Goddess Egg as a large cylindrical shape with sharp winged edges.

        "The Thunder Ghost looks normal," he pointed at the other craft resembling a horseshoe crab, "but the Egg one is really weird."

        "Yer tellin' me," Holt scratched his head, "thuh Ghost one looks lahk a UFO lahk whut aliens come down in."

        "We must go," Chanoch pulled them away, "now."

        "Wait."  He pointed at the swords on the wall.  "You might want to take one of these, I'll grab one too."

        "Why are they down 'ere?" asked Holt.  "Thought yer sword came from yer family."

        "One of the science team here was working on weapons development, my sword was the prototype for the Elektrokraftschwert and they were making more."

        "I like this."  Chanoch took one for himself.  "Good to have sword."

        "Agreed," Schroeder took the second one, "Holt would you want one-"

        "Naw," he waved his hand, "don't do with swords mahself, just wanna punch an' lunch."

After teaching Chanoch a brief summary on the Elektrokraftschwert, Schroeder lead them out and further down the hall where they snuck into other rooms to avoid the sharper-minded elites that would question their presence, mostly finding maintenance rooms and supply closets full of devices that replaced other devices soon to be fixed.  The sounds of furious machines roared deeper from within, the weight of the concrete roof forming an oppressive cavern of hatred as they turned a few corners before Schroeder noted one unusual sign that said PROJEKT X.

        "Wait.  What is this?

        "Project X?" Holt shook his head.  "That's never a good thing to name."

They opened the door and stepped within.  The lights came on at their presence with a shuddering flick of fluorescent burn that thunked loudly, frightening Holt and Arnold into thinking they had been caught.  But what they saw was even worse.

        "What...my GOD."

        "Oh...ohhh fuck no."

A large circular ring of steel stood before them, somewhat different to one they knew but clear enough in its design to know its purpose.  Across the walls were dozens of diagrams detailing experimental procedures, numbers and theorems tallying up to no end as Chanoch shook his head at the half-dozen consoles connected to the gate.

        "They have a portal too."

        "I...I had no idea, I swear I-" Schroeder gulped, "I never knew, all of this, this place was entirely secret, I-i did not...oh god, what if they-"

        "Let's just think about this fer a sec," said Jeremy patting him, "is this actually being built, or have they finished it?"

        "Let's just...yes, let's just check."

Examining the forbidden gate, Schroeder looked over the documents quick as he could with Chanoch assisting, both of them reading the German notes and scribbles that scientists had left whilst Jeremy kept watch on the door.

        "This has failed," said Jarogniew shifting through papers, "this does not work yet."

        "I'm seeing the same thing," said Arnold sighing, "thank god for that, but it's very weird, apparently this is some sort of testing station for a...discovery in Paris?

        "Thuh fuck's Paris gotta do with it?" asked Holt squinting.

        "Apparently there, is some sort of, this is a replica for a similar machine found in Paris, that they are testing out here before they can perform the actual thing?  Then there's these documents I can't understand that aren't even in German I don't-"

        "Wait."  Chanoch pointed towards the papers Schroeder waved.  "Let me see."

Handing them over, Arnold watched the helm of the "oberstleutnant" read through the papers.  Even without seeing his face, Schroeder felt his eyes widening as his fingers clenched with unnerving shock.

        "...this...this is Hebrew."

        "What?!"

        "Wai-wait, WOT?!" Jeremy choked.

        "Keep your voice down!" gasped Schroeder.  "What do you mean, why is, wha-no, that's not possible!"

        "It is Hebrew."  Chanoch shook his head.  "I...I do not understand."

        "Nor do I," Holt snorted walking over, "fuck is a nazi base doing with that sorta stuff, thought that'd be forbidden to 'em!"

        "What does it say?" Arnold stepped beside Chanoch.

        "This...machine," he pointed to the portal, "cannot start without a...god key.  This can...make the world float, but it also...twists all of space, into a, this, can open...that."

        "I do not know what you mean, they require a god's key?"

        "This is...an artifact they need, called the Da'at Yichud.  Ancient machines, made by...my people?  I have never heard of this."

        "Hold up," Jeremy shook his hands, "you telling me...the nazis from Schroeder's world, found sum ancient Jewish tech to fuck around with and make things lahk this?!"

        "...so the rumours were true."  Schroeder stepped back grabbing his head.  "I had heard, bits and pieces, of Strasse's group and the things they did, but I never believed it.  Chanoch, can they start this machine?"

        "No," he put down the papers, "they do not have the key."

        "Oh thank god, alright-"

        "But they are trying to make one."

        "...what?"

        "Here," he picked up a diagram showing a thick star-shaped object, "they are trying to make this work."

        "Alrigh' lads," Holt took his hand, "this is all super fascinatin' an' quite frankly terrifying, but this is not wot we came 'ere for."

        "No, you are right."  Schroeder backed off heading out to the door, "we might be able to destroy it after damaging the generator either way."

        "Yes," Chanoch nodded following, "write down the details if you can."

        "Yes sir."

Giving a salute with hand to his head, Arnold jotted down what he could before they left and headed to the end of the hall still avoiding elite soldiers and mechanics who would not be so easily fooled, and the closer they came to their target, the greater the sound of its fury.  Once they found the source of the cloaking field that protected the base, a large generator hidden in its own personal room, they felt a shudder through their bones from its tremendous power, clocking insane speeds of revolutions that whirred like a blender inside of its large stocky metallic frame, shaped rather like a furnace more than a generator with a dozen pipes sticking out of its top like the hairs of Medusa.

        "This is it," Schroeder nodded, "Mr. Holt would you do the honours?"

        "Gladly."

Walking up to the machine that burned with an intense power, Holt shifted himself underneath getting as close as he could before its trembling awe scared him, looking as if it were on the edge of exploding itself.  Clamping the remote in the most awkward spot he could find, he tapped the button four times fast as he heard a shrill beep indicating his success, causing the three of them to bolt as soon as Holt was on his feet.

        "How do we get back on the boat?" asked Jeremy.

        "I will," said Chanoch, "I frighten the guards again."

        "Worked the first time," added Schroeder, "can't say it won't the second!"

Heading back to the elevator they shifted between nooks and hid within crannies to dodge round the guards as best they could.  Two times they were spotted and approached, leaving two more dead when Chanoch and Schroeder cleaved through their necks with electric blades and hid their corpses within the darkest rooms before reaching the lift without further incident, shuffling inside and ascending soon as they could.

        "When should it go off?" Schroeder asked.

        "Uhhh," Holt rubbed his head, "not sure if Kevin said actually."

        "Or you did not listen," Chanoch rolled his eyes.

        "You implyin' summat mate?!"

        "No, I said it, not imply it."

        "One o' these days you an' me are gonna have a wrestling match cuz you really know 'ow to put mah soddin' nose outta joint."

        "Hmhm, yes."  Jarogniew grinned with a nod.  "I accept."

        "Righ', sorted."

Lights trailed downwards as they rose closer to the ground floor, Schroeder sighing with a sense of relief as he slumped against the wall.

        "Never want to see this damn place again."

        "You won't."  Jeremy patted him.  "You done good dab, whether Thomas likes you or not, yer in our gang now."

        "Hah, thank you, but I think it will take some time before he accepts me."

        "He will, one day."  Chanoch nodded.  "You have proven yourself."

The lift soon stopped, the doors opening to an empty hall as they quickly stepped out hearing Jacob on the radio.

        "You guys all good?" he asked.

        "It's done," said Arnold, "how are things up here?"

        "Uhhhh, well, the guards all suddenly left like five minutes ago and this place has been quiet since."

        "It...huh."

        "Something is wrong," Chanoch said bracing his gun.

        "We leave now," said Holt doing the same, "Jake follow us fast as you can."

As soon as they rushed for the docks, every door closed down with a six-shuttered thud, blocking every exit with a rattling clank as the soldiers skidded to a halt.

        "HEY, what's going on?!"

        "JACOB GO, IT'S A TRAP!"

        "//Intruders.//"  The ceiling bellowed with a familiar voice.  "//I hope you were not planning on leaving without saying goodbye.//"

        "Awww  fuck," Jeremy pulled on his collar, "we done it now lads."

        "//What is this?//" Chanoch spread his arms barking back in Deutsch.  "//Frau Grimm, are we under attack?//"

        "//Do not pretend to be my oberstleutnant anymore, whoever you are.  You already showed your hand the moment you walked into my architect's room.//"

        "//What do you mean, what room?!//"

        "//Did you really think, I was such a vainglorious fool, that I would not have placed a silent alarm in at least ONE room of my choosing?  Three soldiers, always together, including my supposed subordinate Spielmann, dragging a dead mechanic into a locker, stealing two of our prototype swords and having a GREAT interest in my schematics, all of which I observed from my quarters on my security feed.//"

        "Shit, SHIT," Schroeder clasped his head, "shit she found us, she found us she-"

        "Hey-ey, we're getting outta 'ere," Holt grabbed his arm, "if we 'ave to fight our way out, so be it."

        "//We have what we needed,//" said Jarogniew crossing his arms, "//in time your fascist stench will be rid from this world.//"

        "//Ohh?//"  The voice of Frau Grimm boomed across the tannoy.  "//And you think you will not die with me, when you have no means of escape?//"

        "//You trapped us in a room, well done.  You expect us to starve?//"

        "//Hmhmhaha, nooo, I got bored seeing gypsies do that back in the war.  No, I think we have something better for you.  Doctor, begin the field test.//"

        "//Heeheehahahaaaa YES Frau Grimm!//"

The reception desk suddenly parted into two semi-circles, the sound of a klaxon screaming off as the floor in the centre opened to reveal a rising platform from the depths.  Dark steam fumed from underneath, filling the floor with a damp fog as the sounds of slathering beasts came roaring from the depths.  The soldiers backed up as two looming shapes appeared, a pair of bipedal saurians that towered above them with twisted frames of flesh and steel.  One stood at 10 feet tall with long wicked claws of shining death and a hardened back with armoured head reminiscent of a monstrous turtle.  The other was 12 feet, resembling more a wingless dragon in stooped pose with a skull-shaped helm of black steel and a long dark tail that puffed out steam from its nozzle.

        "//BEHOLD!//" cried Ingelbaum from the tannoy. "//My most fearsome creation to date, patent pending!  Zyklosaurus A and Zyklosaurus B!//"

        "Wot the FUCK?!" Holt took aim as the beasts started to advance.

        "//I was desperately hoping for some uncivilised degenerates to test this on, and lo and behold, three of you little rats fall into map!  And it's not even Christmas!//"

        "//You...you are a sick man Ingelbaum,//" snarled Schroeder, "//YOU THINK THIS IS ACCEPTABLE?!  THESE MONSTROSITIES?!//"

        "//Why not tell me yourself, IF you survive the TEST!//"

The monsters roared with a dying scream before charging at the soldiers, the three of them scattering as the long-clawed Saurus A swung first with razor talons against the wall with a shrieking gouge that went a foot deep.  Saurus B lowered its head and came thundering towards Chanoch, the knight firing off at the skull where its bullets pinged off useless before he rolled fast underneath.  It stopped and turned to slam downwards with a crushing headbutt that he kept rolling to avoid, pulling out his electric sword to slash across its scalp with little success.

        "Wh-what's going on?!" Jacob cried in the vents.  "What the heck are they?!"

        "Sum kinda Frankenstein shit!" Holt cried shooting at Saurus A's back.  "Just stay calm, keep inside thuh vents!"

        "You can't just tell me when you're screaming the place down!"

        "LOOK OUT!"

        "Or shouting LOOK OUT, that's like the least calming thing, right up there with shadow puppets!"

        "...WOT?!" he barked looking up.

        "Sorry, I don't like shadow puppets they freak me out!"

Jeremy's warning however came just in time for Schroeder to dodge the sweeping strike of Saurus B's tail, lashing for his feet as he leapt over the appendage and pulled out his sword to clash against the swinging claws of Saurus A, the monstrous three-feet lengths striking upon his lightning edge with a repelling shock from the electromag force.  The second set of claws came down upon him in turn as he blocked once more, sparks of thunderous bolts crackling off the blade as Saurus A screeched with foul bilious rage in huge diagonal strikes he parried best he could.

Chanoch went on the offensive as he took on Saurus B, raking his blade down its chest to bring its attention back to him and backing up swiftly to avoid its slamming headbutt before slashing the side of its neck armour, scoring a black mark when it shoved its skull forwards into Chanoch's chest with a surprising one-inch punch that sent him rolling backwards to hit the wall.  Gasping with a dull pain, he saw the monster loom above him with its tail pointing directly at his face, a red burning scent starting to thicken as Chanoch dodged out its path when a violent plume of liquid fire burst into the wall and melted part of the concrete with lashing tongues of golden amber.

        "HMPH!"  Chanoch took a deep breath raising his sword with lightning curl.  "Not first dragon I fight.  First to fire from its tail."

Arnold found himself locked against the claws of Saurus A, huge bladed scythes aiming for his head as he ducked the first hand before the beast swung its entire body in a whirlwind strike that he failed to guard against in time, his sword almost crushing against his arm and causing him to fall back with a red streak down his cheek.  Holt came running up in time with a blasting scatter of the rifle, spittling up the side of Saurus A who turned with a furious snarl of its deep crimson eyes.

        "OI, FUCKIN' COME AT ME IF YER HARD ENOUGH!"

The long-clawed monster came for him with a violent shriek, thundering footsteps as its sickles shredded the ground behind it when it swung upwards fast, Jeremy dodging fast with a boxer's strafe as he took pot shots closer to the underside of the beastly head.  Still the bullets rattled off the impervious steel as Holt quickly ran out of range before it lunged with a savage thrust of three claws for his face, ducking under the ruthless stab and rolling across the floor in a duck-and-cover motion to give Schroeder time to get back up.  Arnold went for the back of Saurus A, clicking on his lightning sword and shrieking down its spine to make it snarl with a spasming rage to turn and face him.  Suddenly it bulged its long neck with a gurgling acrid stench, a poisonous fume hissing from its nostrils before vomiting a vile toxic stream.

        "GET BACK GET BACK!"

The river of poison sprayed across the wall leaving a sickening hiss, a gaseous smog hanging upon it like a deathly shroud as the humans quickly backed away.

        "CHRIST this thing's a nightmare!" Holt shuddered.

        "GET BACK FROM THE POISON!" shouted Arnold ducking under the scythes.  "EVEN ITS GAS IS DEADLY!"

        "//I hope you are enjoying my special brand of zyklon!//" cackled Ingelbaum from above.  "//My new pets are full of the stuff, self-producing in liquid form to rain righteous cleansing death upon our enemies from afar!!//"

        "//SHUT UP!//" he snapped rolling out of the monster's reach.  "//YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A FAKE WITH A PHONY DEGREE!//"

        "//SAYS the one who decided to betray us, I recognise that FILTHY English voice from anywhere, SCHROEDER!//"

        "//I...I would...a-ah-//"

        "//IF WE DIE, SO BE IT!//" Chanoch boomed from the side striking against Saurus B's head.  "//BETTER TO DIE AS WARRIORS THAN BE PART OF YOUR WRETCHED CULT!//"

        "//Ohohhh what a coincidence, I would rather you die as WELL!//"

The Saurus A made a flying leap out its whirlwind spin, surprising Arnold who fell on his back as the beastly claws slashed through the vents above its head.  The monstrous fingers caught against the supports, ripping the ducts downwards like a slide as something tumbled out in a roll and immediately clashed with shield against the beast.

        "JACOB!"

        "I DIDN'T DO IT!" he shouted.  "That thing fell on its own!"

        "WATCH YOUR HEAD!"

        "WOAAAH!"

The yoshi ducked and made a diveroll beneath the sweeping claws, blocking the second strike with a backhand bash of his shield that repelled it surprisingly well.  Stepping back to take in the scene, his eyes widened with awakening horror at the familiar shapes of the beasts.

        "Oh...oh no, n-no that...th-those are Oddie's...NOOOO!"

        "I'm sorry Jacob!" Schroeder shouted.  "I warned you about this!"

        "This...this is...h-horrible...YOU MONSTERS!  WHY, WH-WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS-"

        "JACOB LOOK OUT!"

He turned just before Saurus B swung its vile tail towards him, jumping over to dodge when it blasted a fiery streak of burning plasma that scorched across the floor, causing Jacob to leap back and hurl his shield with a deafening clang against the creature's skull.  His tongue shot out to grab it when he ducked and blocked the raking claws of Saurus A and dove between its legs to rejoin Arnold.  Chanoch took his chance when the fire-tailed beast was distracted, launching himself on its back and pulling at the neck with sword in hand to slash over its throat and weaken the armour.

        "W-WAIT, WAIT NO THEY'RE FRIENDS!"

        "Not anymore," Arnold held his hand, "they won't remember you, or their friends anymore."

        "But, but we can still save them, right?!"

        "No.  Trust me, it's better we end them now, than let them suffer any longer."

With heavy heart Schroeder took up his sword and Jacob his shield.  His eyes watered with a soft hiccup in his throat as he braced himself to fight, searching for a weak spot as Saurus A came rushing towards them.  Parrying with his shield the yoshi went low in an uppercut strike, Schroeder going for the leg with a deep low-cut that scarred across the beastly ankle.  The monster kicked him away and reared back its head for another burst of wretched acid.

        "ARNIE!"

Jacob launched himself directly in front, blocking with his shield as the toxic dripped off its plated front.

        "DON'T BREATHE IT IN!"

With Arnold's warning Jacob covered his snout with one arm stepping back from the vile smog, pulling back as they noticed the Zyklosaurus gasped with a wheezing shudder from a moment of weakness.  They took their chance as the yoshi lunged with a rising strike, leaping from underneath the monster's chin to crack its neck upwards with Schroeder leaping onto the shield to slash through its torso and feel the flesh parting between the steel.  Soft velvet red dripped in a thin line upon Jacob's shield as the Saurus A backed up in a brief staggering hiss of something approaching pain.  Its eyes dulled briefly, almost confused looking around itself before resurging in a screech of agony.

        "Hey, that did something!" Jacob pointed.

        "Yes," Schroeder nodded, "but it's not enough, we need to damage it inside as well."

        "How?!"

        "Maybe...Jacob, I have an idea but it's a little risky."

        "Sooner we get outta here the better," he nodded pulling back, "whadda you got?"

Across the hall, Chanoch was wrestling the Saurus B as hard as he could, pulling the sword of lightning edge against its throat in a guillotine motion to try and sever it.  But the steel guard of its plates were much tougher than expected as it swung its head back and crunched Jarogniew's face with its steel dome to send him rolling down its back.  The tail loomed before him with a dangerous trembling of smoke until something grabbed the nozzle hard to shoot it fast towards the other end of the hall, burning a hot jet of magma into the portrait of the woman, melting her face and easily burning the entire painting to cinders revealing an oddly blank almost mirror-like surface underneath.

        "//WHAT, NOOO!  HOW DARE YOU BURN OUR BELOVED BRAUN YOU SAVAGES!//"

        "GET UP CHANOCH!" Holt wrestled with the vicious tail spurting fire across the room.  "CAN'T...FUCKIN' WRANGLE THIS BASTARD!"

The knight shook his head clear of the daze and grabbed the tail to help Jeremy subdue it, launching volleys of thick plasmatic fire across the concrete walls and burning holes through them in pockmarked blasts before trying to aim it backwards.  The smouldering shower splashed upon the back of Saurus B's head, causing it to roar with sudden agony despite the glossy hard dome not melting beneath the caustic fire.  It turned its body round with a giant swing to throw them off its tail, launching itself in a crushing stomp towards Holt who rolled out of its path but received a giant kick to the face, crunching his head against the wall with a crimson spot from his skull.

        "A-aaagh...fuck me," he stumbled up with dizzying head taking aim with his rifle, "alright, alright let's see whut you got!"

Saurus B tried to kick again as he dodged better, slamming its foot into the wall as Jeremy noticed the tail looked rather sluggish.  An idea came to him as he cocked his gun and fired into its nozzle with a full clip, hammering bullets deep into its passage that pinged and zipped with devastating sparks that combusted to a nervous reaction.  The monster shrieked in surprise when a burning sensation swelled within its rear, burgeoning forces that blasted hot plumes from its tail in wrothful smoke that filled the air.

        "HAH, THAT'S THUH WAY TO DO IT!"

        "NOT BAD!" Chanoch leapt beside him.  "I distract him, you shoot the tail!"

        "Sorted, don't wait up fer me!"

The creature howled with its rearing head towards Chanoch, crushing down upon the floor with a devastating crack that sent ripples across the floor as Jarogniew guarded with his blade and teased him with glancing strikes over its cranium.  From their observation deck, above the hall in the elite quarters of the memorial base, Frederick Ingelbaum stared with wonder upon his creations next to Frau Grimm and Riptor, watching through the one-way tinted glass that had been hidden behind the portrait as the hall engaged in battle, furious flames licking across the walls to paint with colours of autumn blood.

        "//Look at them, worthless little rats struggling to comprehend my GREATNESS.//"

        "//That little black one is there too,//" said Grimm, "//can you order these things to NOT kill, I would rather like him alive.//"

        "//Why yes, lucky for you I am of superior intellect that I programmed a genetic tracker, all I have to do is put in his sample from this panel.//"

He motioned towards a portable console separated into two parts.

        "//And your future pet will be safe.//"

        "//What reason you have to not kill that creature?//" asked Riptor snarling.

        "//I wish to meet an old friend one day,//" said Grimm clenching her knuckles, "//should that day ever come, I want him to bear witness to the strength of the Third Reich, by taking his own flesh and blood into becoming my most obedient slave.//"

        "//Hhhmhmhmhmhm...oh I like that.  Yes.//"  Her smile widened to almost look human.  "//That is a perfect idea, to show the greatness of your kind...by taking their most beloved as your own.//"

        "//Exactly.//"  She stroked the raptor's face with a gentle purr.  "//You know...we have only known each other for less than a week, and yet, you understand me far more than any Aryan has done.//"

        "//We are leaders, Frau Grimm.  It is only natural that we...understand the path to greatness.//"

Her laugh rippled throughout the room as Riptor smiled still, her claws tightening with relish for things yet to come as Ingelbaum deposited Jacob's sample into the machine.  Almost in an instant, the Zyklosaurus A turned its head towards the yoshi, paused with a soft squint, and then immediately turned to Schroeder with a venomous fury as both its clawed hands came shrieking down upon his head.  Jacob leapt in to block, but when he tried, one of its hands pulled back and stopped short of touching his shield with the other more focused upon Arnold.  With its lesser assault, the soldier managed to parry the one set of claws much easier with a strike of his sword, bolts of amethyst sizzling through the air between as Jacob rushed forth to slam into its retracting hand with a hard bash, following with an upwards slice that raked the dull edge of his shield against the underside of its chin.

Stuttering snarls emanated from the beast as it hissed a gargling spurt of poison acid, belching towards Arnold as the yoshi stepped in front to block its shot once again.  Waiting for their chance, they goaded the monster into vomiting its acid once more as Schroeder fired at its head, forcing it to stutter in its advance as Jacob leapt high with a fluttering kick of his feet to hover onto its head and wrap his tongue fast around its snout.

        "NNNNRGH, THWALLOW YER GREENTH, OR YOU GET NO DETHHERT!"

The Zyklosaurus snarled with a burbling screech in its throat, struggling to force its vile effluence out as best as it could but Jacob's tongue tightened harder like a python.  The beast was forced to swallow its poison back down, building up inside its stomach with a sickening churn that caused its flesh to blacken, its legs crumbling to almost fall forwards with a burning scream inside its lungs before with a surging heave it threw its back against the wall and crushed Jacob hard.

        "A-AAAAGH!"

        "JACOB!"

        "N-NNNNNGH, D-DOWN IN FRONT!"

He pulled himself free before the Saurus A could crush him again, popping out from the wall and leaping off its head whilst it staggered in coughing fits, the lurch in its stomach making it bend over with a heaving shudder as Schroeder came lunging forth with a brutal thrust, gouging through the exposed flesh between the steel joints as rippling cuts of red thickened from its chest in a small curtain of blood peeling down its front.  With a frenzied roar it spun towards them in a savage tornado strike, Jacob dodging the first slash to block the second as Arnold struck against the other hand, both teaming up to bash and repel the whirling claws of death with each defence causing it to slow down.

Then it reversed direction to whack Jacob with the back of its hand to send him flying, focusing entirely on Schroeder with both sets of claws shoving forwards to impale him.  Arnold quickly struck one of its hands in a fierce sidestep and a twirling upwards slash, the other arm ripping his uniform with gouging claws shredding over his back with scarlet lines.

        "HAAAAARGH!  NNNGH!"

        "YOU ALRIGHT?!" cried Jake.

        "Y-YES, FINE JUST GET UP QUICK!"

Stumbling back up the yoshi hurled his shield at the back of Saurus A's head, clonking sharp to make it turn briefly with a snarl as Schroeder backed out of range.  Then he suddenly felt the tail of Saurus B wrap around him tight like a constrictor, clutching him firm to trap his arms as he struggled and fidgeted.

        "HEY, HEY G-GET OFF, GET OFF!"

        "JACOB!"

Holt came running fast until the dome-headed beast slammed its head with such force into the ground a piece of the floor burst upwards in front of him, throwing him back as he teetered on its brink and fell off with a groan before Chanoch came swerving round the side with electric sword slashing down the side of the creature's leg.  It countered in turn with the swipe of its tail still holding Jacob to club Jarogniew hard enough to send him skidding across the floor, guarding with his sword in defending stance with claws scraping backwards across the concrete to stop himself.

        "HEY, CUEBALL!"

The beast turned itself round to receive a shield straight to the face, Jacob catching it with his tongue and walloping the saurus with a hefty bonk to startle it enough and loosen its grip on the tail, giving the yoshi enough time to pull himself free and catch his shield out of the air.

        "Eight-ball in the corner pocket!"

        "Nice one dab!" Holt heaved himself up beside him.  "We're not outta here yet."

        "HOLT, THE TAIL!"

Chanoch's warning indicated Saurus B readying to strike, its tail shuddering to blast another plume of liquid fire as he braced to fire.  His gun clicked empty, his face turning pale as Jacob jumped in front and pulled Jeremy down to duck behind him as the burning magma stream washed over them in a rain of fire.  The shield resisted its molten force, despite the uncomfortable warmth spreading around Jacob's arm as he closed his eyes and pushed hard against the assault.  Once it stopped to recharge, he spun his shield like a discus to crack against the side of its head, spraying flecks of fire off its front and melting parts of its armour.  Chanoch saw his chance when a piece of its shoulder was exposed, rushing towards its back as he hurled his rifle clip towards Holt who kept on gun duty with a fresh load of ammo.

        "FOUL BEAST!"

He plunged his sword deep into its shoulder and ripped it backwards, the monster roaring with sudden anguish as the knight jerked him back with a hard wrench nearly forcing it to topple.  Jacob grabbed the tail on Jeremy's instructions to stop it wrangling about, as Holt planted the barrel of his gun straight into the nozzle and fired off half a clip.  The shuddering jolts of internal combustion rumbled through its lower body with such a start that it threw itself forwards into a vicious headslam that cracked the floor even harder, hurling the lizardman off its back with sword still buried deep.  In its desperation it tried to shoot out its fire regardless, jetting bolts of lava across the walls and smashing its face into the floor with a harrowing screech that made Jacob's heart wince when he pulled back from the growing destruction.

        "D-darnit...why, why can't we stop it hurting?!"

        "It's too late," Holt sighed, "best we oughta do now is end 'em thuh sooner thuh better."

The hall was now roasting with flames covering half the place, painting the walls red with shades of violent orange as the heat swelled within the room.  Then came the explosion rocking the entire place, the depths of the science base trembling as the floor shifted visibly, cracks and sharp rises forming from Saurus B's intensive rage, much to the confusing fury of the nazi commander.

        "//WH-WHAT WAS THAT?!//" cried Ingelbaum.

        "//Seems our little terrorists planted a bomb,//" scoffed Grimm crossing her arms.

        "//How...DARE THEY, I'll eradicate the little vermin myself!//"

        "//Save it for the execution, your head already struggles to carry that brain of yours.//"

        "//Mock me all you want, but when I bring you the heads of these degenerates you shall be personally thanking me, BEHOLD!//"

He slammed a button on the console as something shuddered through both beasts, straightening their backs with a sudden paralysis as they turned their backs to each other and slowly walked backwards.

        "What, what are they doing?!" cried Jacob.

        "I don't know but stay back," Schroeder grabbed his arm, "they're up to something and if Ingelbaum's behind it it's going to be bad!"

        "LOOK!"

Their backs opened up showing deep red circles of power interlacing, turning like tumblrs with electromagnetic force building up that sparked over the air and connected to the other saurus.

        "They doing a fusion dance!" the yoshi cried.  "Oh HECK NO!"

        "A what?!"

        "Just get ready for a bigger battle, here they come!"

The sound of locking steel signalled the change as the beasts straightened their backs, limbs twisting inwards as eight became four with a crunching spasm of creaking bone as their bodies became one, their heads facing opposite sides as Saurus A took over the arms with its savage claws refortifying into larger and thicker lengths, whilst Saurus B controlled the legs with its tail now extending further to wrap round the entire body.  The end result was even more horrifying, and far more difficult a beast that locked its eyes across both sides of the burning hall.

        "Awww, fuck this," Holt sighed with a sweating brow, "can't be fucking arsed with this now."

        "I'll head to the door," Schroeder nodded, "you all distract it while I get in position."

They swiftly leapt to action as Jacob, Holt and Jarogniew took on the beast, Jeremy facing the B-side with its domed head whilst Chanoch and the yoshi took on A with its snorting belch of toxic acid that he blocked with his shield.  The knight took pot shots with his gun to keep the A-head distracted, with Jeremy doing the same as he kept eyes on the twisting tail for any telltale shots it would make.  When Saurus A tried to vomit another burst of venom, the yoshi hurled his shield to crack its neck upwards just before it blew, shooting the vile liquid upwards into a fountain spray that spattered down all over the creatures' bodies, sizzling death that burned into their flesh and gnawed at the steel with growing irritation before they jumped back and away from its own thin-ringed puddle of acid.

Jacob grabbed his shield once the poison stopped falling, as Holt kept firing little shots when he saw the tail rear itself upon him like a deadly cobra.  On his command Schroeder emptied half his clip straight at the head of Saurus B who turned with a shriek of annoyance to blast a scarring wave of thick magma across the wall, sending more fire into the room as Arnold dodged from the shutter and watched the smouldering heat devour the door slowly.

        "IT'S WORKING!" he shouted.

        "Can it melt any faster?!" Jacob cried running alongside the beast.

        "No, what you want me to do?!"

        "I dunno turn up the thermostat or something we still got this guy to deal with!"

        "COME WITH ME!"

Chanoch grabbed his hand and beckoned the others to follow him, pointing towards the end of the hall where the elevator still stood, beneath the burning portrait and giant swastika-eagle where less structural damage had occurred despite the shuddering earthquake of explosions from down beneath.  The lift suddenly exploded before them, roaring flames and a powerful smoke filling up the room as they started coughing from the increasing fumes.  The monster was also somewhat affected, slightly staggering through the pain and the withering oxygen inside the room as with each step the Zkylosaurus took it crunched another crater under its foot causing more of the weakening floor to part.

        "What's your plan?!" Schroeder asked Chanoch.

        "Get it to charge us," he said, "Jacob, how high you jump?"

        "Uhhh, pretty high?!" he shrugged.  "Why?"

        "When I throw you high, break the eagle."

        "Wh-WHAT?!"

        "HERE IT COMES!"

The monster came hurtling with a roar of the ages, charging halfway before it spun its entire body with an electric force that revved up its motors and turned it into a savage whirlwind of sheer mechanical death, claws shining with a dozen lights that raked through the floor, through the wall and the air between in whirring sounds of devastation that none could block against.  Schroeder learned this too late when his guarding sword was snapped in two, ripped from his hands painfully sharp as the Saurus unleashed its tail to form a ruthless whip that stretched over the ground and swung for their legs.  Chanoch grabbed Jacob in that moment and with all his might hurled him as high as he could towards the giant swastika, the yoshi frantically kicking in a desperate flutter that blurred his boots underneath before grabbing the edge of its crooked cross.

        "A-AAAAGH!"

        "//WHAT, what is he doing?!//" Ingelbaum snapped at Jacob's climb.

        "//Running away up a tree,//" Grimm nodded, "//like a little black monkey hmhmhm.//"

        "//It's a trap.//"

Riptor looked towards them with a roll of her eyes.

        "//Do you not see they lured your beast underneath a giant rock?//"

Their eyes widened in turn with horror as they realised the plan, Jacob puling out his shield and hammering the supports that held the symbol aloft whilst the soldiers underneath kept circling around the monster to keep it close to the burning lift.  Fires still rose and smoke covered the ceiling with Jacob coughing in hard gasps, throwing his entire weight upon his shield to feel one support crack with a sudden slant as he leapt upon the eagle's wings to the other side and pummelled the remaining strut with all his might.

        "GET, KHH-KHHHH UGHHH, D-DOWN, YOU STUPID, CROOK-FACED, GARBAGE BICYCLE CLUB PIECE OF SCRAP!"

Arnold and Holt did their best to keep dodging, shooting from opposite sides at both heads who swung their claws with demonic strength, tearing a piece of the floor itself to lift up and vault straight on top of the humans and almost crush them.  Jeremy managed to escape, but Schroeder was pummelled by a loose rock that cracked his helmet hard and sent him crumpling to the floor.  Holt stood before him trying to force the creature back, but its tail came swiping to beat his face twice and punch him with a jabbing thrust on top of Schroeder.  The burning nozzle reared above them, shimmering hot burning crimson from within before it suddenly jerked back, a screeching howl emanating from both beasts as Chanoch leapt upon its side and grabbed for the sword still buried between their backs.  With a roaring surge as his muscles clenched, he wrenched the sword free with a gouging hole of thick clotted scarlet that poured hotly down their backs and bubbled up violent between the arcing sparks of their rear cores, the smell of burning blood turning heavy as Saurus A backhanded Jarogniew with its fullest strength, crunching his helmet hard as he slammed into the wall with a devastating crack that broke the concrete.

        "CHANOCH!"

For a few moments he did not move.  His head was throbbing with a deep scarlet mist consuming his vision before he managed to pull half his body out of the wall and reveal his helmet had cracked down the middle, half of it falling off to reveal his snarling reptilian face.  He swung his electric sword out to the side and made a full-bellied scream when he charged towards the Zyklosaur, his eye slitted to a blood-searing frenzy when he dodged the first sweep of its claws and jumped over the tail to hurl the sword straight at the burning portrait's remains.  Something shattered from its frame, a crackling of glass as Ingelbaum screamed in fright and the one-way mirror fell apart in a rain of daggers upon the beasts.  Frau Grimm stood unblinking in her observation room of cold-coloured caramel walls with a panicked Ingelbaum stumbling back across the black-and-red carpet, a raptor at her side who shook her head almost in pity.  The monster looked up to see where the glass had come from, just before the mighty eagle had fallen upon it with swastika clutched in its talons.

        "GEEEEEEEEET DUNKED!"

The Zyklosaurus was crushed in an instant, the monstrous emblem of the Nazis cracking in half with a cloud of marble dust as their heads caved into their bodies, their backs separated by the coming failure of their organs as their spines crunched in four places.  Jacob leapt from the falling piece in time to land with a skidding halt upon his shield, almost spinning towards Schroeder who he pulled up soon as he could.

        "You alright?!"

        "Y-yeah...agh," he shuddered clutching his face, "I think that broke my jaw."

        "Oh jeez," Jacob looked nervous around him, "can you walk?"

        "Not...really, without falling over."

        "Alright, get on my back then."

        "...what?"

        "Get on!"  He bent over showing the saddle-seat shell just below the pack on his back.  "I'll carry ya, it's my turn right?"

        "Are you...sure you can carry me?" he gasped stumbling on his feet.

        "That's what yoshis do, come on Arnie I told you.  Friends don't let friends-"

        "Fight bad guys alone, right...hah."

He pushed himself atop the yoshi and much to his surprise he felt Jacob take his weight, staunch scaled legs bending as he gripped his shield and felt Schroeder cling onto his pack.

        "Put your arms round my neck."

        "Why?"

        "Trust me it'll help," Jacob looked back, "distributes the weight, best for both of us."

        "God, starting to feel like I'm riding a horse," chuckled Arnie.

        "Wait what, what's a horse?"

        "Nothing, it's fine."  He put his hands round the yoshi's neck and sat up proper.  "Thank you...for being here."

        "Hey, s'what friends do, right?"

He reached back his hand with a little bump of the fist that Schroeder bapped awkwardly.  The sounds of the alarm continued in the reddening hall, as Chanoch looked upon the face of Grimm with a deep pointed stare before turning to grab Jeremy by the arm and quickly rush towards the now-fully melted door that lead to the docks.  The sounds of gunfire ensued from within as nazis screamed in panic before the rattling of bullets silenced them.

        "//Wh-wh-what...what," Ingelbaum gasped pulling his monocle back in, "what, in the Fuhrer's name was THAT!?//"

        "//An experiment that failed,//" said Riptor looking to him, "//they outsmarted you.//"

        "//L-LIES!//"  He stumbled back on his feet with a spittling shriek.  "//M-my Zyklosaurus was PERFECT!//"

        "//At being dead.//"  She grinned.  "//You underestimated them, and I admit, even I'm surprised at how well they managed to outwit your beasts.//"

        "//We shall not make that mistake again.//"  Grimm shook her head with hands clasped behind her back.  "//Did you notice that one who stared at me?  Not even human.//"

        "//Ah yes, I know that one.//"  The ultraraptor stepped to the edge of the balcony.  "//Chanoch his name is, one of their most powerful.//"

        "//Ch-chanoch?!  No, th-that sort of name is...//" Frederick marched over to her.  "//Are you s-saying what I think you are saying?!//"

        "//What DO you think I am saying?//"

        "//That my creation, my greatest advancement to date was tricked to its death by a SUB-DEGENERATE JEW?!//"

        "//I don't even know what that is,//" she snorted not even looking at him, "//just know that he is dangerous, like all the other humans at this base.//"

        "//I will find them.//"  He balled his fists and clenched his eyes.  "//I will find this base, I will make that little black lizard subhuman suffer and his oafish jewrat as well, THIS! IS NOT OVER!//"

With a screech that almost popped his monocle back out his eye, Frederick Ingelbaum marched with a blistering seethe and left from the room with his shrieking malice turning faint.  Frau Grimm stood watching the carnage from beneath, flames smouldering and the corpse of the monster underneath a pile of rubble.

        "//What did they destroy?//" she asked Grimm first.

        "//The cloaking device,//" Grimm sighed shaking her head, "//they will come to attack-//"

        "//They will not,//" Riptor shook her head, "//they are sending you home, back to your world with their portal technology.//"

        "//Is that so?//"  She walked up to Riptor's side.  "//And how much do you know of these...vermin, exactly?//"

        "//Enough to tell you how many there are, what defences they have, and when is the best time to catch them off guard.//"  The raptor grinned at the flames.  "//I have studied them well, for months at a distance to understand what sort of danger they could be.//"

        "//Yes.//" the Jackal grinned beneath her visor.  "//Very forthright of you Riptor.  Have you a plan already to offer?//"

        "//Not yet...but I will tell you everything you need.  Your friend with the glass eye, he is a problem too easily-misled by basic emotions.//"

        "//I agree,//" she shrugged smoothing her hair, "//regardless he has exceptional credentials in organic research, I will take care of him once he outlives his usefulness.  And once you tell me all, I will ensure our victory when at their weakest.//"

        "//I know you will, my dear master.//"  She looked to her fully.  "//Can you make other things without flesh?  Like other raptors even?//"

        "//Not without a highly-organised brain, the panzerhund for example requires the mind of a dog still to obey me.//"

        "//What if...you had something to control, without the mind inside of it?//"

        "//Do tell,//" Frau Grimm sat up on the console.

        "//Have you heard of...pack mentality?//" Riptor turned with a predator's grin.  "//Because, seeing what your friend tried with those beasts, and understanding the blood of those they should capture and not harm, I can offer you ten, perhaps twenty raptors for every one of which I have with me..//"

        "//Really?//" the Jackal leaned forwards with tenting fingers.  "//And how do you propose that, my dear little raptor?//"

With her best in a restricted language, Riptor explained her ideas thus in hopes of planting the seed much to Grimm's expression widening with wonder.  Beneath them the bodies of two beasts remained, backs torn apart and their heads merely inches from each other, their eyes dim with a fading consciousness as their senses returned just before the end.  Long enough to nuzzle their cold cheeks and taste their last breaths.