ChumpItUp

"They say she came to fight the slavers." "She stood right up to Mister Rit. Kicked him right out of his shell!" "Rightprice went after her. Never came back." "Rightprice?" "That's what they say. Pablo, too." "Eh." "Says on her poster she's a slaver like them." "Well, they would say that, wouldn't they? Don't want to create sympathy." "I heard she gained Host Marcella's trust, snuck into the palace, and WHAM! Just clocked her! "Stole Kroon's best servant away." "They say she was at Lower Tredle." "The idol worshippers?" "Well, that's what they were." "Gentlemutants, if we're to end the corruption at the heart of Limbah, we need a

With a high-pitched roar she flung herself at Gregory – only to be effortlessly restrained by a nearby mutant. "Oh, yes," said Gregory. "Gods, that's good. I never knew anyone could feel such fury." He began to glow. "Embrace it, Ada. Let it wash over you – over us. This feels fantastic!" Adel struggled to get free. "I don't even want to kill her right now, she's like a little ginger battery. It's amazing." He looked to the Elder. "Can we keep her? Put her in a box or something. Cut some holes for food and slurs in re:  her parentage. I'll be unstoppable." "This is highly unorthodox," said the Elder, "but I suppose som

Gregory sighed. "3-C, Tater. 3-C." Tater scrunched her brow with the effort of thought. "That one?" "The one," Gregory said patiently, "where you don't throw anyone out the window." "But Laurie just mopped." "Fair enough." He relaxed. "Where is Laurie?" -- Adel kept her hands clasped around her pot as Laurie pulled her to her feet. "whnuh?" "Come on, get up! We don't have much time." "You - you work for Gregory, right?" said Adel once words had returned. "Work for?" Laurie laughed bitterly. "I'm his slave. Literally. If he thinks I've tried to escape then my life is in danger right now." She glanced around the street. "I didn't as

"D'you do autographs?" "Can you sign my tie?" "What's Nick Corcoran like in person?" "Can we touch your tie?" "Read my spec script!" "Tell us some stories!" "Meet my family!" "Sign my larvae!" Blasts of dark energy flew from Gregory's palms, but the Tredlians crawled over the bodies. Adel stood enraptured. "Back! Back, in the name of the Networks!" A wizened old turtle pushed his way to the front of the crowd. "Give the Lord some space!" He swung his cane in a horizontal arc, knocking Adel back. Struggling with the weight of the pot, she teetered back several feet and crashed to the floor. Mutants quickly filled her space. "Forgive

No one met Gregory at the entrance to Lower Tredle. The gate, a crude configuration of rotted wood, was unmanned. It fell over when they parked the boat. Gregory blew it up for good measure. No one came running. They waited, just in case. "Maybe no one heard that," said Tater eventually. "Maybe no one was listening," said Laurie. "Purple stuff - " " - concentrated negative energy, thank you very much, Tater - " "Concentrated purple stuff ain't awful noisy." "Good!" Laurie spat. "For once can we try to keep a low - " "BOOM!" Tater cupped her hand to her mouth like a megaphone. "BANG! 'Splosion sounds!" "That'll do, Tater." She put he

Nestled in the other boat, Adel sat bolt upright, staring after them. Her jaw hung open. Caprice studied her with interest. "Adelaide?" "Shut up a minute." Caprice had never had a best friend before. At least, she couldn't remember one. She was sure she'd remember someone like Adel, with or without amnesia. "D'you believe in destiny, Cap?" Caprice stopped to think about it. "I - " "Well, you're wrong. You're stupid wrong, and I have proof." "That," said Adel in low worshipful tones, "was Gregory White. And according to that scream he just killed a guy I knew it I knew it I knew it!" "Wow!" said Caprice. "Who's Gregory White?" "Gregor

"You know, girls," said Gregory, straightening his tie, "I think this little vacation was just what we needed." The boat purred along the Canals, barely lit by glowing fungi. "This sewer vacation." "Yes." "In the sewers." "Laurie, Laurie. Must you be so narrow-minded?" The girl squirmed as he put an arm around her. "Think of the positives! No fan mail to swim through, no passersby grovelling at one's feet, no media tracking one's every move. Not that I don't enjoy a bit of worship, but such things get wearing." "That's right." Tater nodded solemnly. "You don't know that, Tater. You're not famous. Neither is Laurie. You. Snail thing." G

"Well?" asked Kroon, now much less amused. "She's taken Marcella's boat and fled down the Canals," reported Huck. "Our tracking reports she's headed in the direction of Lower Tredle." "How? Are you telling me no one was guarding the boats?" "Guard duty for this afternoon was assigned to - " Huck checked, "Caprice." "Caprice." Kroon buried his head in his hands. "What did I do to deserve this? Tell me we can spare someone to track her down." "I could lie," said Huck. "If I might make a suggestion, Overlord?" Seni interjected. "A mechanism to apprehend Miss Adelaide Rhodes with no loss of manpower is at our disposal." "Go on." "Miss Ade