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Diplodoc’s Hideout
West Virginia
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	Marie clutched her stomach as the plane touched down. She was use to flight, having rode her broom over Lost Haven for the past year, but never had she flown so high or experienced true turbulence. [i]The next time I need to get somewhere quick, I’ll just use one of Puck’s doors.[/i] She thought, taking a few deep breaths to calm her insides. She wanted a few more moments to let her mind catch up with her, but there was no time to waste. As soon as she and her group had arrived, they were ushered off to their destination by Iron Knight’s voice. 

	Before them lie a dilapidated building, a nondescript factory whose interior was laden with rusted machinery, moss, cobwebs; it looked like something from a bad horror film. Marie didn’t let the eeriness worry her. Afterall, she was a witch. She worked with shadows, drank of poison, and commanded spirits. If anything, the building should have been afraid of her. She and her group traversed the factory’s remains, keeping a watchful eye out for Diplodoc’s subordinates. 

	Iron Knight’s voice entered her ear through the communicator. [color=LightGray]”Guys, heads up,”[/color] he warned, [color=LightGray]”There might be some resistance nearby.”[/color] 

	Marie remained vigilant, but no sooner had the communicator hushed, a transcendental shimmer of light revealed a slender, silver figure. Bathed in the ethereal glow of magic, the Silver Sorceress descended upon them. Marie flinched as the woman waltzed up to the group. She could tell that this fight would be challenging. [i]Am I prepared for this?[/i]

	“I’m surprised it took you all this long to discover our little hideaway,” she taunted, casting a seductive glare at Thunder, who fired back with a classic retort. Moments later, the sorceress lifted her hands above her head, incanting in what Marie believed to be Latin or Greek voces magicae. She was by no means a linguist, but her base knowledge of mystical dialects might prove useful in the coming battle. 

	Another shimmer and the rest of the villains were accounted for, appearing one after another and forming a circle around Marie’s group. The air changed, grew more tense, and everyone readied themselves for a fight. Marie held her broom for comfort. It wouldn’t be of much use to her in such a close setting, but perhaps it would still prove useful. 

	Effigy stepped forward, shifting his appearance to that of War-Pulse, the transformation sickening to witness. Next to the Silver Sorceress stood a small girl wrapped in an emerald cloak, her skin a deep green and her hair a mass of leaves, vines, and flowers. Marie couldn’t tell if she was a mutant or some faerie creature, but it hardly mattered. Her fingers traced the stone floor, then burrowed deep into the concrete like roots. From the ground sprung small fly-traps, whose size was increased by another of the sorceress’s spells. 

	Everything was kicking off. Thunder quickly tackled the shark-man, Effigy came running at War-Pulse, Bast was grappled by an unseen assailant, and the carnivorous plants were wiggling and smashing into the ground all the while. Marie wasn’t sure how to react, but she knew that she would be the most useful in combating the Silver Sorceress and reversing her spells when possible. The sorceress tapped into the Arcane Stream, a force entirely foreign to Marie. But even though their magic was different, it could still interact, it still operated via similar principles, meaning Marie could, hopefully, counteract it. 

	Marie tried her hand, waving an arm at the sorceress. What was meant to send her flying back only made her stumble, turning her attention fully to Marie. She assumed that wouldn’t work, but she had to give it a go. A silver streak shot from the sorceress’s hand. Marie, unable to dodge, but her arms up in defense. She felt the warmth of her opponent’s attack, but not the actual hit. Marie opened her eyes to see the amulet around her neck fiercely glowing and vibrating. [i]I forgot I was wearing this![/i] Marie thought triumphantly. Joseph had gifted the charm to her for protection against all forms of harm. Such a direct magical attack from the Silver Sorceress would be useless . . . for now. Such charms are powerful, but they aren’t indestructible. Marie had to act while she could. 

	The sorceress grimaced. “Your counter-magic will only do you so much good, witch!” she shouted, waving her silver hand and sending forth a torrent of debris from the surrounding area. Marie held up her free hand in retaliation, stopping a few of the larger pieces from striking her, but smaller chunks of shrapnel whipped past and cut her exposed arms. She winced, but didn’t lose her composure. Their magic was different alright, and pitting one against the other would yield interesting results. While Marie struggled to fend off what objects she could, the sorceress began a low chant, her free hand shining brilliantly, the silver swirl of arcane forces turning swiftly into orange sparks. A ball of flame engulfed her hand, and soon it was sent hurdling toward Marie. She stood her ground, hoping that her amulet would combat the onslaught of fire. 

	Sure enough, the flames subsided as soon as they neared Marie, but not before they set alight some of the surrounding area. Marie used this to her advantage. With some effort, she managed to send the largest pieces of debris back at the sorceress, who was taken by surprise. In the time it took her to move out of the way, Marie used her own skills in conjuring fire to mobilize the flames that surrounded her, sending them across the floor toward the sorceress. The Silver Sorceress reacted immediately, as Marie hoped she would, calming the flames with her magic. While she was distracted, Marie quickly removed her book of tricks from her cloak, flipping through its pages to find the appropriate spell; there seemed to be none. While the sorceress combated Marie’s mystical flames, one of the flytraps leaned down and swiped at Marie, who glided out of the way with more finesse than she thought possible at the moment. [i]Dammit! Is there nothing in this book?[/i] she raged internally, furiously flicking through its pages while trying to stay out of the heat of battle.
    
	Her peace was short lived. The Silver Sorceress returned her attention to Marie, who had no choice but to sheath her book and think on her feet. 

	Turning to the girl in the cloak, the sorceress called out, “Sister, bring her to me!” The girl responded by displaying her arms, which turned into long, vine-like tendrils that came speeding toward Marie. She took a moment to assess the situation, finally coming to the realization that such an attack would be rendered useless by her amulet. Marie stood her ground. The girl’s limbs, when they neared Marie, began to smoke and recoil. She hissed in pain. Marie whipped her free arm across her body, sending the girl flying back into one of her plant creatures, momentarily stunned. The Silver Sorceress glared at Marie, reading herself, but a cyclone created by Thunder stopped her. She used her magic to disrupt the whirlwind and send her shark-headed companion flying toward Thunder.

	Marie took the opportunity to think of a way to destroy the plant monsters. She recalled a spell from an old grimoire that was once used by witches to sicken crops and livestock. While a giant, raging, venus flytrap didn’t quite fit either description, and seeing as how she couldn’t conjure enough flames to burn them all, it was all she had. Traditionally, the spell called for a concoction made from powdered animal parts, poisonous extracts, and far more than what she could possibly whip up on a moment’s notice, so the best she could do was the incantation. 

	Marie began chanting in an old Welsh dialect, her words echoing throughout the battlefield and carrying with them an eerie chill. She focused on one plant creature in particular, hoping to see some signs of success. She repeated her chant as many times as needed, the Silver Sorceress becoming less distracted as time progressed. Marie began to worry, but she continued her incantation, letting her hate build in a forlorn stare. Suddenly, a loud shriek pierced everyone’s ears as a few of the plant monsters began to shrivel and wither to nothing. Others remained, but enough had fallen prey to Marie’s spell that they would be less of a threat.

	The Silver Sorceress let out a loud groan. “You bitch!” she yelled, gliding swiftly over the ground in Marie’s direction. Her path was obstructed by falling pieces of ceiling, which threatened to crush her if she didn’t move back. From above came Boom and company to aid in the fight. There was now a direct path outside.

	“Hey!” she called to the sorceress, who had fallen just behind some rubble. She picked herself up and once again charged at Marie, who lifted her broom into the air and began to levitate out of the opening in the roof. Now seated, Marie zoomed upward, the sorceress trailing fast behind her. [i]If I can get her away from the rest of the group, they’ll be safe from her magic.[/i] The two now floated above the factory, readying themselves for the others’ attack.