At 08.54 19.3.1998 -0600, The Eternal Lost Lurker wrote:

(part 2 of 2)

	"This stupid," Shampoo said as she picked her way through the piles
of dented metal in the canyon. "Shampoo know better way," she mused,
as she converted her body into a shadow, and slipped down through the
twisted mecha.

(Anna and Uni blink.)

Uni:How did she do that, Anna.

Anna:Wait... (tries to read the notes.) I think she's got a shadow or
something...

Uni:Doesn't everybody have one?

Anna:Beats me. That's what it says here, anyway. (pause) I guess.

	As she passed through the rubble, Shampoo sensed many dormant minds.
Some were simply *there*, others were active...dreaming, she
supposed. *What this?* Shampoo wondered. *This so strange...* Images

Jussi:If it's a big, round and slimy egg and the top is open, run.

of battles long past flitted through Shampoo's mind as she ghosted
among the wreckage.
	Suddenly, one mind reached out to her. *SHADOW MAGE*, rang a voice
in her mind, which seemed to be louder than a gong, while taking on a
whispering quality.

Jussi:Must be surreal. Kinda like garbage that smells like a cake.

Anna&Uni&Lina:Huh?

Jussi:Nevermind...

	*Who there?* Shampoo asked(thought?).
	*WHY DO YOU TRESPASS UPON THIS SACRED RESTING SITE?*

Jussi:'Cause she's a graverobber.

	*Uhhh...Shampoo looking for Mashin?*
	There was a pause, during which Shampoo got the impression that
something was sizing her up. A snarl assaulted her senses.

Lina:Weird snarl if it assaulted anything besides her hearing...

Jussi:Yeah, especially if it assaulted the taste too. Or the direction sense.

Anna:(whispers to Uni) What are they talking about?

Uni:(whispers back) Dunno. Must be some weird human thing.

	The next thing Shampoo knew, she was hurtling through the surface of

Jussi:How can you be hurtling through the surface?

Lina:Maybe it's the exact moment she breaks the surface of the garbage.

the debris pile, as her body reverted to the usual three dimensions
and flesh structure. As she landed rather unceremoniously on what
looked like a Mack truck cab with the front grill bashed in, a large
dark shape erupted from the debris, somehow managing not to disturb
so much as a scrap of wire. The darkness landed a few paces from
Shampoo, who scrambled to her feet and summoned her sword.

Lina:(winces)That looks kinda lika the Realm of Chaos...

Jussi:(surprised) I didn't think you were supposed to remember that.

Lina:I caught the rerun.

	The Amazon found herself facing a large, flickering,
three-dimensional shadow of a large cougar with glowing yellow eyes.

Jussi:(blinks) What's a cougar?

(Lina hands Jussi a copy of Webster's.)

(Meanwhile, Anna and Uni start eating some small bits of metal.)

Said eyes narrowed, and once again the voice that was both loud and
soft said, *AN ESCUDO WEAPON. TELL ME...WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE HERE?*
	"Shampoo come here to find Mashin," the Chinese girl repeated.
"Shampoo have to help friends defend Cephiro from attack."
	*INDEED*, the cat growled. *AND YOU ARE A SHADOW MAGE, I SEE.*
	"If meaning Shampoo have shadow magic, that right," Shampoo said.

Lina:Why do they have to have this bit with every Mashin? "YOU HAVE this-or-that
MAGIC." "Yeah, I have." It's getting more than a little repetetative.

"Guru Clef give Shampoo and others magic to fight here."

Jussi:Guru meditation.

(Lina blinks)

Jussi:Amiga joke. A legendary one.

	*SO, YOU ARE FROM ANOTHER WORLD,* the shadow said.
	"That right," Shampoo said. "Shampoo and others come here with white
rabbit thing."

Jussi:Thankfully it isn't here anymore.

	The shadow cougar chuckled, a sound which caused Shampoo to back up
a step. *VERY WELL, THEN. YOU SEEK A MASHIN TO WEAR IN COMBAT.* The

Lina:(bimbo voice) But doctor! Surely there must be something you can do!

Jussi:What was that for?

Lina:More stock dialogue.

Jussi:Oh.

shadow began to flicker wildly. Suddenly, what had formerly absorbed
the sunlight began reflecting it, as the cougar ceased to be a large
shadow, and instead...
	"Aiyah!" Shampoo exclaimed. "You...you is Mashin?"
	The now-solid cougar nodded its smooth, black metal head. "I AM THE

Anna:Ya! More cats! Cool!

Uni:Yeah! Cats! Cats! Cats rule the world!

(Jussi opens his mouth.)

Lina:Jussi, if you start singing about sunrises here, I'm going to fry you.

(Jussi shuts his mought.)

MASHIN OF SHADOW, SABLE. I WILL COME WITH YOU, THAT YOU MAY WEAR ME
IN BATTLE."

Anna:Aren't they, like, lucky, Uni? Everybody's found a machine for themselves!

Uni:Yeah! It's gotta be that dramaty-thing the kid spoke about!

(Lina grimaces at the kid remark.)

Anna:Yeah! Ain't they lucky to have it!

Uni:Yeah!

Jussi:(thinking) Is it just me or are they starting to be a little hyperactive?

	Shampoo sent her sword back into the ether, and slowly walked around
Sable, examining the Mashin from all sides. "Aiyah," she said. She
climbed aboard the cougar, sitting just behind its neck. "We go find
others now, yes?"
	Sable said nothing, but merely leaped out of the canyon and walked
along the edge.

Anna:Yeah! Yeah!

Uni:Go cats go! Goooo!!

(Elsewhere. Leona Ozaki is polishing her tank when a mechanic walks to her.)

Mechanic:Hey, Sergeant! Have gox of aluminium bits anywhere around here?

Leona:(looks up) Uhh... I don't know... I think Anna took it.

Mechanic:Danm! I could still have used it! (turns to leave.)

Leona:Sorry. (turns back to her work. Starts thinking:Aluminium...) Hey wait!

Mechanic:Yeah?

Leona:Did you say aluminium...?

Mechanic.Yeah. There was this box full of quite small pieces of aluminium
plate... What's
wrong sergeant?

Leona:Anna took them. She's an android. And it's aluminium...

Mechanic:(blinks. Then a realisation dawns on his face.) You mean...

Leona:They're going to go hyper...

(Now, back to the theater)

	As Ukyou strolled through the canyon, she amused herself with a few
magic tricks. She drew bits of scrap metal and mecha parts out of the
rubble in the canyon, magnetizing them together in interesting
sculptures. So far she'd managed to assemble scarecrow likenesses of
Akane and Shampoo, a maimed Genma, a headless Kodachi, and a limbless
Tsubasa. She giggled at the last one.

Jussi:That girl disturbs me...

	*Come on, girl, it's time to get serious,* she thought. She spied a
pile of shredded red mecha armor nearby, as well as some flexible
black joint pieces. *Hmmm...okay, one more,* she decided. With a
quick spell, she put together a rather nice sculpture of Ranma. She
sighed. "Oh, Ranchan..."

Uni:Hey! She's an artist!

Anna:Yeah, scluptor!

Uni:Ain't that a suclptor?

Anna:Dunno. Cool still!

	"Nice work," a familiar voice said. Ukyou jumped, and began looking
all around.
	"Who's there?" Ukyou asked, nervously summoning her naginata.
	"Over here," Ranma's voice said. Ukyou glanced over at the Ranma
sculpture...
	...which was currently flexing its arms, and examining itself. It
took a step towards her.

Anna:Hey cool! She made a robot!

Uni:Yeah cool! Robot! Robot! Robotto!

Jussi:(to Lina) What is it with them?

Lina:(whispers) I don't know, but if they won't stop...

Jussi:By all means.

	"What the--? Hold it right there, you..." Ukyou said, brandishing
her naginata.
	The Ranma sculpture made a peaceful gesture, and managed to affect a
hurt expression. "Aww, c'mon, Ucchan. It's me, Ranchan! Your darling
Ranchan?"
	"I dunno what you are, but...but..."
	"But it's true," another voice said. This one chilled Ukyou, as it
was much more familiar. She dropped her naginata in shock as a
metallic Ukyou replica appeared out of nowhere and hugged the Ranma
sculpture.

Uni:There's another robot!

Anna:They're huggin'!! It's robot love!!

Uni:Waaaa-hooo!!!

Lina:That's it! (whirls around) LAGUNA BLAST!!!

(Most of the back of the theater is blown away, including Anna and Uni.
Somehow, the projector is saved.)

	"What the hell's goin' on here?" Ukyou gasped.
	Something behind her giggled. Ukyou snatched up her naginata and
spun around.
	Behind her was a large silver fox. The fox had its mouth covered
with one forepaw. "OH, THAT WAS TOO GOOD. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN YOUR
FACE!" the fox said in an echoing feminine voice.

Jussi:A practical joker Mashin?

Lina:As long as it won't start sprouting anything about secrets, 
I'm all go for it.

Jussi:And here I thought you liked Xelloss...

	"Who...what are you?" Ukyou asked. The Ranma and Ukyou sculptures
walked up to either side of her, and bowed before gesturing like game
show spokesmodels at the fox.
	"She's the mistress of metal..." the Ukyou clone said.
	"...the queen of comedy knocks..." Ranma-sculpture continued.

Jussi:How come this reminds me of TV-Washuu's dolls?

	"A lean, mean, silver Mashin..." Ukyou-clone added on.
	"PLATA!" both chorused. Then, without fanfare, they collapsed into
piles of scrap once more.
	The fox giggled as Ukyou facefaulted. "YOU are a Mashin?" Ukyou said
incredulously.

Lina:How big is this fox anyway?

Jussi:(nods) You have a point. A Mashin-sized fox would better be described as
huge than large...

	"THAT'S RIGHT. SORRY DEAR...I FELT YOU PLAYING AROUND WITH METAL
SPELLS AND I JUST COULDN'T RESIST HAVING A LITTLE FUN," Plata said.

Jussi:I kinda like this Mashin.

Lina:Well, I have to admit she's different from the others.

Becoming slightly more serious, she leaned forward and peered
intently at Ukyou. "YOU'RE HERE LOOKING FOR A MASHIN, AREN'T YOU?"
	Ukyou nodded. "That's right..."

Lina & Jussi:Here we go again...

	"I THOUGHT SO. I'VE NEVER SEEN AN ESCUDO WEAPON QUITE LIKE
THAT...THEY USUALLY COME IN SWORDS," Plata said.
	Ukyou frowned. "Well, it's not what I'm used to. It's a weapon from
my homeworld," she added.
	Plata nodded. "I SEE," she said.
	"I can't figure it out though...I've tried changing this into my
usual weapon..."
	"DIDN'T WORK, EH?" Plata said, her voice taking on an amused tone
again. "THAT'S BECAUSE METAL SPELLS WON'T WORK ON ESCUDO."
	"Oh," Ukyou said, blinking.
	"SO, WHAT'S GOING ON OUT THERE THAT REQUIRES THE SERVICES OF A
MASHIN?" Plata asked.
	Ukyou sighed. "Someone's been causing a lot of trouble...evil spells
cast on the Princess, a town blown up..."

Lina:(imitating Ukyou)...You know, the usual stuff. Now we're roped to help save
the world, since nobody around here seems to actually be capable of doing
anything.

	Plata frowned. "HMMM. ALRIGHT, I'LL HELP YOU OUT."
	Ukyou looked dubious. "I dunno, sugar..."
	Plata rose up to a haughty sitting position, and raised one forepaw.
"I PLEDGE TO SERVE THEE AS THINE MASHIN, THAT THOU MAY WEAR ME INTO
BATTLE TO DEFEND CEPHIRO." She lowered her paw, and leaned over into
Ukyou's face. "THAT SOLEMN ENOUGH FOR YOU?"
	Ukyou blinked. "Uhhh...yeah."
	Plata chuckled. "TRUST ME, WE'RE GOING TO GET ALONG JUST FINE." She
looked off into the distance. "I SENSE THAT SOME OF MY COMRADES ARE
AWAKE AS WELL. WE SHOULD GO CHECK IT OUT."

Jussi:You know, it might have been more interesting if some of them had been
from a competiting unit.

Lina:Or at least like Hammerstein and Blackblood.

Jussi:(Wide eyed) Now, where did that come from?

Lina:I was bored one day and browsed through your comic collection.

	Ukyou shrugged, and leaped onto the silver fox's back. "HOLD ON
TIGHT NOW," Plata said, as she leapt into the air, pulling her legs
under her. There was a roar of jet engines, and Ukyou screamed in
surprise as the Mashin began flying at high speed across the canyon.

(Jussi starts humming the tune of The Ride of the Walkyries until Lina
thwaps him.)

	Ferio cursed as he turned over yet another rusted hulk, digging
through the rubble in the vain hope of finding an operable Mashin.
"This is no good," he grumbled. "I hope the others are having more
luck than I am."
	No sooner than he'd said that, he was buzzed by something silver and
extremely fast, flying low enough to knock him over with a

Jussi:I hope it didn't buzz his nose, since that would have been painful.

Lina:Not to mention childish.

speed-borne burst of wind. "What the hell?" he muttered as he
scrambled to his feet. The silver object paused briefly, and the
sound of laughter carried on the gentle breeze. Loud, ringing,
metallic laughter. The laughter died out, to be replaced by a
familiar human voice, amplified by some unknown means: "Sorry 'bout
that, sugar. She's got a mind of her own...WHOA!" the voice shouted
in surprise as the silver object took off again.
	Ferio scratched his head. "Ukyou?" he wondered. "Did she...?" 	
	After only a moment of stunned hesitation, Ferio leaped to the rim
of the canyon and ran off in pursuit.

Jussi:(blinks hard) He didn't get a Mecha?

Lina:That was a little surprising.

	Akane laughed with glee as Tora charged through the purple sands,
mysterious mechanical parts long unused grinding slightly as they
became accustomed to motion once more.

Jussi:I don't think parts of a machine can become accustomed to anything...

	"YOU ARE ENJOYING YOURSELF, I TAKE IT?" the mighty tiger inquired.
	Akane giggled. "This is cool," she said. She spotted something up
ahead, and her eyes widened. "Oi, Tora..." she said, pointing.
	Tora snapped his head forward, and skidded to a halt. Several meters
ahead of him, a large, dark shape prowled the canyon rim.
	"What's that?" Akane asked her Mashin quietly.
	Tora shook his head. "AFTER ALL THESE MANY YEARS," he said, his

Lina:It's the Return of the Stock Dialogue, part three.

Jussi:(blinks for several times.) That sounded just a tad OOC...

Lina:Like anyone's been IC in this MST, you included?

Jussi:Point.

booming voice dropping in tone, becoming only slightly less
thunderous.
	The black object turned slowly, eyes glowing from its front. Akane
blinked as she noticed a familiar figure sitting upon its neck. "Hey,
that's Shampoo," Akane said. She waved. Shampoo noticed, and waved
back.

Jussi: We're back to the B-movies again. Now it's the part where they've
survived the danger and are all waving to each other.

Lina:I think that does happen elsewhere too...

Jussi:Whatever.

	"Akane? That you?" Shampoo called from her perch.

Jussi:She's got a bad eyesight or what?

	"Yeah, Shampoo! Is that your Mashin?" Akane called back.

Jussi:(Shampoo voice)No, it's a giantic black puma.

Lina:Cougar.

Jussi:Same difference.

	The black cougar finally decided to speak, in its echoing metallic
whisper. "SO, TORA...YOU HAVE AWAKENED AS WELL."
	"YES, SABLE. IT IS GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN AFTER SO LONG, MY FRIEND."
	The other Mashin snorted. "I SUPPOSE," it said dryly.
	Akane and Shampoo dismounted, and met near the two Mashin.
"Aiyah...Mashin know each other?" Shampoo asked.
	"INDEED WE DO," Tora said. "A LONG TIME AGO, WE SERVED TOGETHER AS
PART OF A UNIT. IT HAS BEEN AGES SINCE THE MEMBERS OF OUR UNIT HAVE
SEEN ONE ANOTHER."

Jussi:(Mashin voice)BUT NOW WE'RE BACK TO SAVE THE GALAXY. (Nabiki voice)
For a modest fee, of course.

	"THE OTHERS HAVE AWAKENED, I BELIEVE," Sable added. "I CAN SENSE
THEM..."

Lina:Do a Yoda impression and I'll blast you.

Jussi:(blinks) I wasn't going to...

	As if on cue, a white crane appeared overhead, emitting a piercing
cry. The crane slowly lowered itself and landed near the others. A
white-robed figure somersaulted from the large bird's back, and
landed near the girls.
	"Is Mousse," Shampoo said rather unneccessarily. She looked at the
crane. "Mashin perfect for Mousse. Both bird-brain."

Jussi:Come to think of it, isn't Fuu's Mashin a bird too?

	Despite herself, Akane giggled. Even Tora chuckled. Mousse and Sable
remained indifferent. Sutran lowered its head, and stage-whispered,
so to speak, to Mousse, "THESE ARE YOUR FRIENDS?"
	Mousse nodded. "What can I say?" he replied, shrugging.
	The ground began to shake slightly. "Aiyah...what that?" Shampoo

Jussi:Hopefully the end of this chapter. I'm getting sleepy.

Lina:While it's ridden with clichees, it isn't that boring...

Jussi:No, but I'm tired. Bloody exams took all my energy.

asked. "Is earthquake?"
	Akane shrugged. "Doesn't feel like one," she said.
	Mousse peered into the distance, where a large purple dustcloud was
roiling. "I think we've got--INCOMING!" he shouted as he leaped onto
Sutran's back. The white crane lifted into the air and began
circling. Akane and Shampoo jumped onto their respective Mashins,
which moved to a safer location.

Jussi: ie. Out of the dustcloud's way.

	Moments later, the dustcloud settled, and in its place stood the
largest brown boar any of the three humans had ever seen. Tora gave a
loud mechanical sigh. "YOUR ENTRANCES WILL BE THE DEATH OF US SOME
DAY, KJATA."

Lina:Probably on the day when they're sent on an undercover mission.

Jussi:I don't think you send mecha on undercover.

Lina:Happened in Escaflowne.

	Kjata chuckled. "AT LEAST NOBODY CAN SAY I'M NOT A MOVER AND
SHAKER," he quipped.
	Everyone, including the other three Mashin, facefaulted. Ryouga

Lina:Now that's an interesting image.

leapt down from the boar's back, and grinned sheepishly. "Sorry about
that, guys. I tried to talk him out of it, but he's a little
pig-headed."
	"Just like yourself, hmm Ryouga?" Akane said, pointedly turning her
nose up and looking away from the lost boy. Ryouga sighed, his
shoulder slumping.
	Something giggled from above them. "OOOH, I LIKE THIS BUNCH
ALREADY," a feminine voice chimed. "LOTS OF FUN POTENTIAL HERE."

Jussi:I definitely like this Mashin.

	"Hey now...what kinda strange thoughts are goin' through that metal
head of yours, sweetie?" Ukyou said to her Mashin.
	Akane gave a low whistle. "Now that's impressive," she said.
	Kjata snorted. "SURE, JUST BECAUSE SHE CAN *FLY* WHENEVER SHE WANTS
TO," he huffed.
	The silver fox stretched out her paws and landed. "WHAT CAN I SAY,"
Plata commented as Ukyou hopped down from her back. "WHEN YOU GOT IT,
FLAUNT IT."

Lina:Damn straight.

Jussi:Like you use your figure to your advantage?

Lina:(dangerous voice) Now what was that?

Jussi:(sweats) Nothing, absolutely nothing!

	"So, we've all found Mashin now?" Ukyou asked.
	"Where's Ferio?" Ryouga wondered. "Anyone seen him?"
	Ukyou nodded. "We buzzed him on the way here. Looks like he came up
dry."
	"Maybe if that Mashin of yours hadn't divebombed me," came a voice

>from behind the group. They all turned to see Ferio approaching,

obviously winded from running. "Well, at least someone had some
luck..."

Lina:Well, mechas are overrated anyway.

Jussi:Like I said, the Orichalcon Golem isn't a good example.

Lina:Still, I doubt these can survive a Dragon Slave.

Jussi:I haven't seen MKR that far, I won't say anything. (pause) But I don't
know. Giga Slave should finish them off anyway.

Lina:(grimaces) I've come to be a little wary of that spell after a certain
incident
involving Hellmaster...

	Any replies were cut off by a strange, high-pitched droning sound.
The humans held their ears. "What *is* that?" Akane asked.
	"Shampoo not know, but sure loud," the Amazon said.

Jussi:It's high-pitched and droning. We've established that this is like a
B-movie.
It should be easy enough to figure it that the aliens are coming in their
flying soucers.

	Mousse fished around in his robes for something to plug his ears
with.
	"IS THIS--?" Tora asked.
	<*HUMANS FROM THE OTHER WORLD,*> rumbled the loudest, deepest voice
any of the Magic Sentai had ever heard.
	"OH CRAP. IT'S THE BOSS," Plata sighed.

Lina:Or then not.

Jussi:Not what?

Lina:Aliens.

	"The...boss?" Ryouga said.
	<*YOU HAVE SUCCEEDED IN AROUSING THESE FIVE MASHIN FROM THEIR
SLUMBER IN THE SACRED RESTING GROUND. HOWEVER, YOU MUST NOW PROVE
YOUR WORTHINESS TO WEAR THEM INTO BATTLE, OR YOU WILL NOT BE

ALLOWED

TO LEAVE HERE WITH THEM.*>

Jussi:Next, we'll demonstrate how the Mashins fight.

Lina:Predictable.

Jussi:So this fic has been, from the start.

	"OH, C'MON, DO YOU *REALLY* HAVE TO DO THIS EVERY SINGLE TIME WE

GET

NEW PILOTS?" Kjata groused.
	<*_S_I_L_E_N_C_E_!*> bellowed the voice. <*DO NOT FORGET WHO IS IN
CHARGE HERE.*>

Lina:Me!

(Jussi snickers.)

	"OKAY, OKAY, I GET THE MESSAGE," the boar complained. The humans
grew sweatdrops.
	<*YOU HAVE TEN MINUTES TO PREPARE,*> the voice continued, <*AND THEN
THE TEST COMMENCES.*> The whining noise ceased.
	"Test?" Akane asked. "What test?"

Jussi:Math test.

Lina:Somehow, I doubt that.

	"What the hell *was* that?" Ryouga wondered.
	Tora frowned. "THAT WAS OUR LEADER. WHENEVER NEW WARRIORS

APPEAR,

SEEKING TO WEAR US, A TEST COMMENCES TO DETERMINE THEIR WORTHINESS."

Jussi:I wonder what kind of funny traditions these fellows have...

Lina:What do you mean?

Jussi:Well we know, that test might be anything from a drinking contest to a
quest. ^_^

(Lina sighs)

He turned to address the other four Mashin. "COMBAT FORMS," he said.
	The six humans watched in awe as the group of Mashin began to
transform. Tora and Kjata went through very simple, anime-esque

Jussi:Gee, anime-esque? That was sooo surprising!

conversions. Sutran underwent a similar transformation, only in a
much more graceful way. Sable cloaked its transformation in shadow,
while Plata simply flowed into her new form, like liquid metal.
	"Aiyah! They turn into robots!" Shampoo gasped.

Lina:They were robots to begin with. Or have you seen living, giantic metal
animals before?

	"Nice trick," Ryouga said.
	Where an assortment of animals had stood before, now stood five
giant robots, each with a shining sphere in the center of its chest.
The yellow robot loosely resembled an armored Samurai, with the
exception of the tiger head resting upon the chestplate. The robot
held a large katana. Next to that stood a massive, heavily armored
brown robot built somewhat like a Sumo wrestler. The jaw of the
boar's head on its chest swung open, and locked into place. It
grasped the tusks and detached them, pulling them free with a loud
clanking sound. The humans gasped as an enormous length of heavy
chain attached to the tusks emerged from the jaw, much like a
manriki-gusari.

Jussi:Isn't that a mandriki-kusari?

Lina:No, that's just how that friend of yours pronounces it.

Jussi:You sure?

Lina:I checked. (holds out a copy of The Beginners Guide to Oriental Weapons.)

	The black robot standing beside them resembled a ninja, complete
with a total lack of features upon its metal face. It held a simple
black saber in a loose grip. A stately, slender white robot with
folded wings stood slightly behind the black robot. This one simply
held something that resembled a cross between a torch and a
flashlight.

Lina:If it shouts 'hikari-oo' I'll scream...

	The final robot was the most impressive. Sleek and silver...and
female. Very female, from the slender frame, to the curves, to the
flowing mane of silver hair. A weapon appeared in her hand. She
frowned at it, and it rearranged itself to resemble Ukyou's naginata.

Jussi:I like the fox more all the time.

(Lina thwaps Jussi.)

	"SHOWOFF," rumbled the brown robot. The white robot smirked at the
silver one.

Lina:Does this mean that it had an expressive face?

	The silver robot shrugged. "LIKE I SAID, WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT
IT."
	Ferio, Akane, Ryouga, Mousse, and Shampoo grew sweatdrops. Ukyou
giggled. "Y'know, Plata...I think we *are* gonna get along great,"
she said.
	"JUST BECAUSE SHE HAS METAL MAGIC, SHE HAS TO SHOW UP THE REST

OF

US..." Kjata grumbled.

Jussi:Hmm... They got emotions... There seem to be different sexes... No, I 
won't go there.

	"I THINK WE HAVE A MORE PRESSING MATTER THAN PLATA'S VANITY," Tora
put in. "NAMELY, PREPARING OUR HUMAN FRIENDS FOR THIS BATTLE." It
turned and looked at Ferio. "YOU HAD BEST STAND CLEAR," it advised.
"THINGS ARE GOING TO GET ROUGH HERE."

Jussi:I'll bet Ferio gets the boss-mecha.

Lina:(nods) Dramatic necessity.

Jussi:I'm starting to hate that phrase.

	Ferio nodded, and moved to a safer location (he hoped) within the
canyon. The Magic Sentai looked around, blinking at each other.
Suddenly, their faces registered alarm as their bodies were engulfed
in colored beams of light.

Jussi:As long as their clothing doesn't start to dissolve or they won't be
transported to another land, all should be fine.

	When their vision cleared, they each found themselves hovering in an
odd vortex, able to see nothing except the empty desert and the other
Mashin standing around.
	"DO NOT BE ALARMED," Tora's voice said to all of them. "EACH OF YOU
ARE WITHIN YOUR MASHIN. ACCLIMATE YOURSELF TO THE MIND OF THE MASHIN.

Jussi:So Ryouga's pig got a cockpit, but it's just for passangers?

Lina:It seems so.

UNITE WITH THAT MIND. IN TIME, YOU WILL LEARN ALL ASPECTS OF HOW YOUR
MASHIN OPERATES IN COMBAT FORM. WE WILL GUIDE YOU THROUGH THIS TRIAL
BATTLE, TO FAMILIARIZE YOU WITH THE USE OF A MASHIN IN COMBAT."

Jussi:Somehow this reminds me of mechwarrior 2... ^_^

	<*THE TEST BEGINS NOW*>, the voice of the Leader boomed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Lina:I think it's over.

Jussi:Finally!

Technical support information provided for
Packard Bell laptops and notebooks:
"Close cover before striking."

Jussi:Still cracking stupid jokes, I see...

---
The Eternal Lost Lurker
"My name is Don Roberto de Lurker. I am the
world's greatest fanfiction writer. I have written
more than 1,000 pages of fanfiction.
--Okay, maybe not."

Jussi:Definitely not.

EternalLostLurker@worldnet.att.net
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Garden/9502

"Having your humble pie and eating it too means
never having to say you farted."
--From the book of Minako-isms
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Lina:That's it.

Jussi:Seems to be. Time to call it a night, I think.

Lina:(blinking)Aren't we supposed to say what our overall
impressions were or something?

Jussi:Guess so. It was OK. Not magnificent by any means, a
bit repetetative here and there and way too corny at places,
but still, overall very entertaining.

Lina:Or at least entertaining enough so we watched it through.

(Suddenly, Anna staggers back to the theater.)

Anna:Owowowowo... Anyone got the number of that tank?

(Jussi looks around. The back of the theater is a mess after Lina's
spells.)

Jussi:I think it's time we start cleaning up or something. Anyway,
I'm Jussi Nikander, your average virtual small green person.

Lina:And I'm Lina Inverse. Your definitely-not-average fictional
genious sorceress.

Anna:(looks confused)I'm... Uh... Anna. Nice to meetcha.

(Uni staggers into view too.)

Uni:Aaannnaaa? Iss daaat yoouuuu?

(Jussi and Lina develop sweatdrops.)
-----------
The Martian.
Jussi.Nikander@alien.nixu.fi
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"Curses! Foiled again!"
	-Skuld