Thank you for the replies thus far all. And in regard to jp's reply, I honestly don't know why, but when I first started playing, they Spiral Knights just seemed to give me that vibe. I guess it's just all the machinery that was already there. If there is a next time with Spiral Knights fan fiction, I'll make sure to correct that.

Anyways, here is the second chapter. Please note that most of this story is taking place in the 'past.' ;)
Another note, I am used to the forum code, I may miss [i][/i] codes sometimes, those are supposed to be italics.

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Chapter 2: Missing in Action

Five months ago, in the Clockworks...

A green female knight in recruit's gear ran down the halls of a scarlet castle. “We have to shake these Spookats, somehow!” she cried.

“There's too many, we can't fight in these narrow halls.” a red knight in wolver armor replied.

“Up ahead, there's a giant room!” a cyan knight in silver spiked gear pointed.

As the three reached the large room, a large metal gate shut in front of them, keeping them from entering the room. The three knights immediately came to a stop. They turned and backed up against the gate.

“We're cornered!” the green exclaimed..

“Not if I can help it.” the red knight shouted, “If they want a fight so badly, we'll just have to give them one!” He raised his shield up and drew a sword with his free hand.

A large group of Spookats floated towards the group. The red knight charged forward and began to attack. The green knight and cyan knight glanced at each other, worried. The two nodded, as if to say it was okay and they charged into the fray with their partner.

It was very tough for the knights to fight in the narrow hall way, but they got through the numerous Spookats. When it was over, the three knights slumped over, taking a moment to rest.

“That was... intense...” the cyan knight said. He reached into a pouch for a small red and white capsule. His crushed it with his hand, causing a red vapor to waft around him.

“Do you have anymore of those?” the red knight wheezed. Out of all his comrades, he seemed the most hurt.

“No, this was the only one I found. What about you?” the cyan knight asked the green knight.

She shook her head. “I've only found a bunch of fire vials.” she said, “But on the bright side, I think we're near the exit. Can you make it?”

The red knight nodded. “I'm sure I can make it.” he said, giving them a thumbs-up.

There was a rather large growl from behind the gate. As the group turned to find out what the sound was, the gate lowered and more Spookats began coming towards them.

“They don't let up.” the red knight said in anger. He tried to stand up to prepare for the next assault.

“Keep back, we'll stop them.” the cyan knight said, holding his hand out to stop the red knight.

As the Spookats grew closer, there was a sound of gunfire from behind them. A rain of bullets showered at the attacking Spookats, stopping them in their tracks.

The three looked back to see a knight dressed in what looked to be armor fit for a cowgirl. She took a few steps forward, the spurs on her metal boots clicking against the ground. The purple knight raised her white hat and blew the smoke from the gun. “Knight Trista, at your service. I heard there was trouble in this sector of the Clockworks and came as soon as I could.” she said. Trista spun the revolver as she placed it back into its holster.

The green knight immediately stood up and saluted. “Thank you fellow Spiral Knight, your aid is appreciated! I am Recruit Paprika, but you can call me Rika!”

The cyan knight looked over to the green knight and, scrambled to salute. “Th-thank you for you help! I am Recruit Flint!” he stated hesistantly.

The red knight attempted to stand and salute. “I'm Novus...” he said.

“Well, how about I escort you three out.” Trista replied. She pointed to Rika and Flint, “I want you to help Novus. Anything those monsters throw at us will be taken of.” Trista patted the holster where her gun was. After the two recruits helped Novus to his feet, Trista began to head forward and lead the three to the exit.

They entered the large scarlet room and headed for the next hall on the right.

“It sure is quiet, you must'v taken care of all those nasty Spookats already.” Trista said, “Guess it's just smooth sailing out of here now.” They reached the elevator with no trouble. Trista walked up to the lift and began operating the control panel to take them back to Haven, while the recruits helped Novus onto the lift.

“Trista... look!” Flint shouted, pointing down the hall.

Five figures clad in ninja gear seemed to be speeding towards them.

“Drat, we won't get up fast enough. Rika man the controls!” Trista exclaimed, reaching for her gun, “Get Novus to the infirmary in Haven stat!”

“But what about you?” Rika asked, “We can't leave you.”

“I'll keep them busy.” Trista said, running straight towards the figures. “Go!” she shouted back. She began firing at the figures, but her weapon seemed to have little effect on them.

The front-most figure lunged at Trista, pinning her and disarming her. Trista immediately kicked the figure off her. She ran for her gun, but another enemy grabbed for her legs, dropping her back to the floor. Trista extended her arm as far as she could, flailing for her gun.

Rika watched in horror as the Trista fought the attackers.

“Rika, what're you doing, she gave us orders!” Flint shouted. He immediately pressed a bunch of the buttons on the lift, encasing them in a box.

“FOR KROGMO!” the figures shouted as they all lunged at Trista. Trista had finally managed to reach for her gun and began firing at her attackers again.

“Trista... no!” Rika cried, attempting to reach out. The elevator began to rise up, leaving Trista and the strange attackers in the scarlet castle...

Five months ago, in the Arcade...

“Field Scout Kozma and Weaponsmith Brinks, report.” Feron said, saluting to the two knights.

“Good day Captain Feron. The reports for this week have just arrived.” Kozma replied, saluting. She reached over to Brinks, who handed her a clip board. “As you know, over these past few months, we have been seeing an increase in missing knights. Numerous soldiers across all tiers of the Clockworks have simply disappeared without a trace. This week alone, we've lost about 100 knights.”

“Have we found any leads as to what is causing these disappearances?” Feron asked.

Brinks shook his head. “We're still not sure who's behind it. We have reason to suspect Vanaduke, but it seems that most of our enemies within the Clockworks are to blame. We can get an accurate indication as to who is instigating these sudden attacks.” he said.

“Feron!” a voice called from the lifts into the Clockworks.

Rika, Flint, and Novus slowly made their way up to the Captain.

“My word, what are you Recruits doing? Get this man to the infirmary!” Feron ordered.

“Feron, we had just barely escaped out of the Clockworks, but the person who rescued us, she's still there. We have to help her!” Rika cried, “She was ambushed by these strange people in ninja costumes.”

“My goodness, who is the knight that was left behind?” Kozma asked.

“Her name is Trista. She made us return here while she fended them off.” Novus said.

Feron turned to a couple of knights working on computers behind him. “You heard the man, search for the signature of the knight Trista.” he said.

The two knights nodded and began to type away on the computer. “There, in the Scarlet Halls. Wait...” one of the knights said. “The signal, it's fading out!”

Feron rushed to the computers and took a look. Sure enough, the purple dot began to fade away until it was completely gone. “The signal vanished!” he exclaimed.

“If it's any help sir, before we were taken back up here, the attackers were shouting 'For Krogmo' or something like that.” Rika said.

“Krogmo, eh? Well, it looks like we just got the lead we were looking for.” Kozma said, crossing her arms.

Chapter 3: Battle Royal

Trista was lying on the ground in a dark, low-lit room. It was hard to see, but what this room lacked in light, was made up for with the roar of cheering and shouting.

“Get up!” a gremlin in a suit shouted, “Wake up you lazy knights!” The gremlin had what looked to be a flamethrower in his hands. He pressed a switch, but instead of a flame, mist began to spray from the nozzle. “Rise and shine you lazy bums!” The gremlin walked around numerous bodies of knights on the ground, letting the mist spread throughout the room.

The mist swirled around the knights, causing the seemingly lifeless knights to awaken. One by one, knights of various ranks and professions began to rise. Most of them seemed to be unphased by the gremlin's harassment, but countless others awoke and seemed utterly confused.

The gremlin neared Trista's body and, as with the other knights, she began to spring to life.

Trista arose and lunged for the gremlin, but she was quickly stopped in her tracks as the gremlin used a strange device on her.

“I'm not your target, little knight.” the gremlin growled, “Take your anger out in the arena.”

“Arena?” Trista echoed.

“Yeah, we've been captured.” a female's voice said. A set of pink eyes looked at Trista. “We're property of King Krogmo. Some twisted monster who makes us battle one another for fame and glory.”

“What?” Trista questioned.

“The gremlins figured out a way to control our bodies ability to regulate Cradle's energy. They have control over when we are awakened and with that gremlin's device, they are able to keep our actions in check.” the pink knight replied.

“We need to escape!” Trista cried.

“It's useless.” the pink knight sighed, “We're nothing more than toys to King Krogmo. He has us fight our fellow knights and reaps the rewards.”

“There has to be a way!” Trista shouted, “I won't be some evil monster's entertainment!” Suddenly, there was a bright light on Trista's back and she vanished from the room.

* * * * *

“Welcome everyone to tonight's final show at Krogmo's Coliseum!” Krogmo shouted into a microphone. “Tonight's event is Blast Network, where the Spiral Knights will blow their friends up with bombs.”

The crowd began cheering and shouting. Thousands upon thousands of monsters from the Clockworks surrounded a square arena. To the north, sat a stand where Krogmo was announcing.

“Let's bring the little scamps out, shall we?” he chuckled as he pointed to a large gate opposite of his viewing box.

The gate opened and out step eight knights, each wielding a different colored bomb in their hands. Trista looked around at the others around her. Their faces were an array of fear, confusion and anger. As the eight knights made their way into the arena, the gate slammed behind them.

“We all know the rules, the knight's energy is exhausted as they are hit by their friend's attacks. Once they reach 0 energy, they are out. Last man standing, begin!” Krogmo shouted. The King sat down into a rather large and well-cushioned chair. To his left, the gremlin in the tuxedo had walked up a flight of stairs and took a seat beside him in a small chair. “Ah, if it isn't my dedicated worker, Crash, did Devilite Boss give you a promotion for your hard work today?” he laughed.

The Gremlin snarled, grasping the arms of the chair – he was attempting to hold back a remark to Krogmo's sarcasm. “When I met you that day, you said you were going to catch the Spiral Knights, not make profit out of some game with them.” Crash said.

“Oh Crash, don't you see, the Coliseum eases the worries of our fellow friends. Why I've heard D-Boss' fellow business leaders have been handing promotions here and there. Kats have been much more cheerful in their undeath than they ever were in their former lives. Why, even your Gremlin pals are glad to find something to ease their minds from a stressful day in the factories.” Krogmo said with a smile.

Down below, the eight knights had ran and positioned themselves behind barriers and blocks. Some of them set down bombs, hoping to hit unsuspecting knights.

Trista hid behind a pillar, peeking out to see her fellow knights actually willing to attack their allies. She glanced over and saw a pink knight hiding behind a pillar before her. “Why do they bother fighting, we shouldn't do this!” Trista cried, “Sure friendly duels are nice, but we shouldn't do it for the entertainment of these fiends!”

The pink knight spoke, it was the same girl from the dark room, “I told you, we have no choice. If we resist, we are punished.” As if in a trance, the pink knight raised a bomb up. “I'm sorry, but we must fight.” she said as she placed a bomb down before Trista. The girl ran off down the arena floor as the bomb began to tick away.

Trista immediately sprung up and leaped out of the way, barely avoiding the blast. “If that's how it has to be... I'll play your little game for now.” she said in an angry tone. Trista placed a bomb down as a green knight back peddled into it. The knight was caught off guard and hit. “Mark my words Krogmo, I will find an opportunity and strike.” she said, eying the viewing box above them.

Back in the viewing box, Crash was drumming his hands against the arms of the chair he sat in. He glanced at Krogmo every so often, a fierce storm brewing in his mind. Krogmo seemed to take no notice as he stood up and cheered every so often.

“Crash, you need to relax.” Krogmo said, looking back the brooding gremlin, “Enjoy the games and know that we will capture all the Spiral Knights someday and make them our servants.”

“This is not how it was supposed to be!” Crash exclaimed.

“Hm, possibly, but it was my proposal, sometimes things change when your plans come to fruition.” Krogmo replied, “Besides, just think of the money we are getting. Not only from people paying to watch the games, but from confiscating those knights Crowns and weapons.”

“You are supposed to be giving a fair share to King Tinkinzar for providing you with the man power to make this Coliseum and keep it running!” Crash snapped.

“What Tink doesn't know won't harm him. He gets a fair amount of profit from the Coliseum. Besides, we need our fair share as well.”

Crash eyed Krogmo as if he were mad. “You are no King, merely a con artist.” he frowned.

“If I am the man you say I am, who will you report me to? After all, your own people shunned you for assisting me. They are leery of you.” Krogmo smirked, “After all, the gremlin code states--”

“I know quite well what our code of silence states!” Crash yelled. He stood up and pointed a finger at Krogmo. “I can't wait until the Spiral Knights get wise to your plans. They'll make armor out of you.” Crash said.

Krogmo laughed, “I am ready for the day they storm this place. Until then, enjoy the show.” He stood up and clapped, yelling for the knights to fight. “Crash, do you see the little knight down there?” he asked.

Crash retracted his finger, realizing his threats were upon deaf ears. “Who? The purple one?” he asked, looking down to the arena.

“Yes, I don't recall seeing this one in our Blast Network before. Who is she?”

“I believe the Rektilian Strike Force caught her earlier today. She was slated to start her first match this game.”

“She's quite good for a newcomer. Most of them get annihilated by the veterans, or they stand around taking a pacifist approach and force us to make them fight. Why, I think she's decimated most of her allies energy reserves for the match by herself.” Krogmo said. He pressed a button, causing a scoreboard to rise from the floor. “Marvelous, she has done fantastic work! A few hits herself, but she is doing outstanding for a newbie. Half of the knights have already been defeated.”

Back down in the arena a golden knight had hidden himself in a tiny nook. He looked out every so often to check if anyone else was running by.

Trista ran by the golden knight's hiding spot and planted a bomb beside him. “Forgive me!” she said, as she continued on down the arena floor. The bomb exploded and the golden knight disappeared, almost in the same manner as he had been summoned to the arena floor.

The crowd cheered as the golden knight had been defeated. One-by-one the amounts of fighters in the arena dropped. From a group of eight there were suddenly six, then five, then four. With Trista's recent trap on the golden knight, four became three, until there was only two. There inside the arena remained only Trista and a blue knight clad in Angelic armor.

The blue knight ran from the top of the arena to the very bottom, laying numerous bombs down. In a domino effect, the first bomb went off, then the second, and the third. It was as if the entire arena had suddenly been flooded. Upon realizing his only foe was still standing, he began his bomb barrage again, laying explosive after explosive.

Trista sat behind a pillar, biding her time and waiting for an opportunistic strike. She watched the blue knights pattern, studied it, and laid in waiting. The second wave of explosions went off and as the dust settled, Trista got up and started running towards the blue knight.

The blue knight had set down the first bomb, the second...

Trista was almost within arms length of the knight. The knight was preparing the third bomb. She leaped at him and as he placed the third bomb, he backed up in fear. As Trista began to return to the ground, she immediately kicked off from the bomb the knight placed. She jumped over him and placed a bomb behind him. Trista took cover for the first safe place she spotted.

The blue knight had been taken aback by this absurd move. He looked to his left and right and then made a dash to the left. Frantically jumping over the bomb he had just placed, he began to run down the floor, but by the time he had started running, it was already too late. The first bomb he had set had already caused a chain reaction and he was caught in his own trap. He vanished in a giant burst of light.

“Congratulations to the little purple knight!” Krogmo shouted into the microphone.

Trista moved from her hiding spot and set her gaze on King Krogmo.

The crowd went wild as Trista came into view. They threw confetti, applauded, and made noise for the purple knight. Trista's focus shifted to the clockworks monsters that were cheering for her.

“That's it for this night's Coliseum match, come back tomorrow for even more fun. We have three games daily.” Krogmo said. He turned to Crash, “Crash, I want to talk with the little knight in private. Ensure she has enough energy to have a chat.”

“Are you crazy?” Crash questioned, “Why are you fraternizing with our enemy, just give her one of your valor coins and leave her be for the night.”

Krogmo raised his hand, ready to snap his fingers.

“I'm on it, sir!” Crash exclaimed as he ran down the stairs of the viewing box.

I am still writing, I have just been preoccupied with the Power Surge Weekend that happened and my friend has been on a Minecraft frenzy. I will be on vacation this coming week, but I'm hoping to crank out at least up to Chapter 6 and maybe write the rest of the chapters while I'm gone (should there be more).

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Chapter 4: Banquet

Trista was teleported back to the dark containment room. She seemed to be the only one still active. That or everyone else was avoiding showing their eyes in the dark. Trista leaned against a wall, or at least what she thought was a wall. She lifted her arm and pushed something, causing a small watch-like device to reveal itself – it showed 10 E. Trista sighed, looking around for someone else to talk to once again, but to no avail.

There was a sound of gears nearby, the familiar ound of an elevator lift. The middle of the room shifted, as a light was visible in the center. A reddish color was illuminated by the light. It was hard to decipher, but as the light grew closer to Trista, it was apparent that it was Crash. “Well at least you knights aren't hard to find in the dark.” the gremlin said, “Come with me, King Krogmo wants to speak with you.”

“Why should I?” Trista barked back.

“I'm not in the mood for your games!” Crash snapped in a similar tone, “You should be honored that King Krogmo even wants to talk with you in private. He never commends his pets in this manner.” He pulled a device out of his pockets, the same device he used to defend himself earlier that day from Trista. “Don't make me shock you into moving.” he growled.

Trista obeyed the threat and began moving. She was led to the elevator that Crash had taken. They took the elevator up one floor. Upon arriving, they were right outside a giant set of purple and gold double doors. The doors had a large K on them encased in a circle.

The room split off into four branches, the Krogmo door entrance, elevator entrance, and two hallways that had a purple carpet with a gold trim. Crash headed for the double doors and pushed the door. The giant doors had to be at least four times as tall as him and from the look of things, it took a lot of effort to open the door.

After Crash had managed to get the door fully opened, he stood with his back against it, waiting for Trista to enter. As soon as she had, he shut the door and stood outside.

Inside sat a long table, covered in a golden cloth. At the end opposite of Trista sat the large king himself in a giant chair embroidered in purple and gold. The table was full of food – an edible fruit arrangement, vegetables with dip, and a roasted poultry dish – most likely the Snipe's larger feathered cousin. There was also a bottle of alcohol seated in an ice bucket beside Krogmo.

The entire room itself seemed to be like something out of a fairy tale, a beautiful rug on the floor, a large golden chandelier, a roaring fire place – it was fit for a king.

“Ah, just who I wanted to see!” Krogmo said with a smile, raising a wine glass to the knight, “Please sit down. Do you creatures consume any of this stuff? What am I saying, you machines wouldn't want any of this stuff...”

Trista pulled the rather large chair on her end out and sat, attentively listening to the man.

“Tell me, what is your name purple knight?” Krogmo asked.

“Trista.” she replied. Trista looked around at the large elegant dining hall.

“I'm sure you're curious why you are speaking with me. You see, I'm quite interested in how well you preformed today. I wanted to commend you in person.” Krogmo said. He took a sip of his beverage and a bite of the poultry dish. “It's not often that new meat is so eager to want blood – as they like to say.” Krogmo spoke with his mouth full. Despite being royalty, his etiquette was atrocious. Krogmo dabbed his mouth and reach into his pocket, tossing a coin marked with a K at Trista.

Trista stared down at it, “What is this?”

“Why it's a valor token, for a job well done.” Krogmo said, “Using it will augment your ability to fight in my Coliseum.”

“I refuse.” Trista said, pushing it away, “I only played that game because I had no choice. Now that you recognize what I can do though...” She got up on the table, kicking the token out of her path as she walked down the table. “...I want you to understand that I'm not here to fight my allies, I'm here to stop you. We Spiral Knights aren't here for your amusement!”

Krogmo laughed as Trista made her way near him. “I like your spunk, Trista.” he said. Krogmo raised his arm and snapped his fingers.

Trista was restrained by three creatures clad in ninja armor. “Let go of me, I refuse to let you do this to us!” she yelled, struggling.

“You have guts, kid.” Krogmo said, “Tell me, do you want to return home, to Haven?”

Trista stopped and stared Krogmo in the eyes. “Excuse me?” she asked.

“You heard me, I will let you go.” Krogmo said, “But let us negotiate this civilly. Sit back down and listen to my... proposition.” He had a wide grin and he motioned to his Rektilian Strike Force members. On cue, they released Trista.

Trista hopped off the table and took a seat on a small chair on the left side of the table. “What do you want?” she questioned.

“When I first began this Coliseum, I did it for my people. I did it to protect us. But I can see, your people are merely doing the same. We're both just fearful. We can't live in fear, we need to make amends. What better than letting you go to your people. But, to make sure you are trustworthy... I want to test your will for your people, just as I had to to protect my people.” Krogmo said, “You will continuing fighting in my arena until you beat the best of the best in this arena.”

“That is ridiculous, what similarities would fighting my friends have with you building a coliseum?” Trista questioned, “I wouldn't do such a thing...”

“Sometimes we have to push our allies around...” Krogmo said, “But I guess you wouldn't understand the trials I went through to protect my allies. I had to be rough sometimes, but I cared deep down. Besides, refusing my terms would mean never seeing the light of day. Think about it, letting you go and releasing your friends or rotting in here with your friends. Not to mention, making peace between you and your people. Why we could live in harmony!”

“How can I trust you?” Trista asked.

“I am speaking to you in private for one... I will tell you what, I will arrange quarters for you. You won't have to stay in that box, your energy won't be regulated...” Krogmo said, “But this will all be revoked if you defy me or lose. What have you got to lose?”

Trista glared. “I don't trust you, but I will agree to your terms for now.” she said.

“I knew you would see it my way...” Krogmo chuckled. He stood up and extended his hand. “Let's shake hands on this agreement.”

Trista reached her hand out, shaking with the king.

“I'll call Crash in, don't forget your valor token on the way out.”

I'm not going to be able to crank out chapter 6 before I leave for vacation it looks like. But chapter 5 is done. I'll be back in about a week, with more chapters to post.

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Chapter 5: Search and Destroy

It had been two weeks since Trista had first gone missing. As her agreement with King Kromo went, she battled in the Coliseum, with the goal of reaching the top – beating out all her fellow knights. She had only done two matches in the arena the first week, but on the second she did three and with week three upon her, she was slated for four matches a week. Today, she was slated for the first match of the day in the afternoon...

“Crash, what are the reports this week about our Coliseum?” Krogmo asked, walking up the steps to his viewing box.

“The D-Boss calculated a steady increase in profits with every week.” Crash said.

“And what of the advertisement?” Krogmo asked.

“The advertisement...” Crash began as he fiddled with his tuxedo pockets. He pulled out a folded paper and opened it. “Here, sir.” Crash said, handing the paper over to Krogmo.

The paper showed a purple knight. She stood, a hand on her hip, tossing a bomb in the air. The lettering said, ”Come see Trista, the daring knight who has made a bet for her freedom!” Below were times and dates, most likely Trista's schedule of when she was supposed to fight.

“No, I didn't mean I wanted one.” Krogmo replied, handing the paper back. “I wanted to know how the advertisement is doing with getting people to come watch.”

“Oh, well, numbers indicate that it's working. On days when Trista are slated to play, we sell out in a few hours and that's just on pre-order tickets. Most of the tickets for this week's arena are also sold out. We even have additional requests by people who come in the day of.” Crash said, “On an average day, we make about 54,000 Crowns, but with Trista playing we make almost double that. Last week we made nearly 500,000 Crowns.”

“Fantastic!” Krogmo exclaimed, “When King Tink's messenger comes by for his payment, make sure to give him the 200,000 Crowns for last week. I'm sure he'll be pleased to see more Crowns coming his way.”

Crash sighed, “Yes sir.”

The two sat down in their respective chairs once they reached the viewing box and waited for the Coliseum to fill with the spectators. The afternoon match was tightly packed with anxious guests. All across the Coliseum, there was not a single seat left vacant. The crowd talked with one another, awaiting the arena match to start.

Krogmo checked the scoreboard in front of him, which showed the time. He stood up and pushed a button which hid it from view. Krogmo grabbed the microphone from the ledge and began to speak. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to King Krogmo's Coliseum!” he shouted. The crowd roared and cheered in return. “Today is the match you've all been waiting for. Trista – the little knight who bets her freedom!” The crowd cheered again.

“Today is the Sharpshooter Showdown!” Krogmo exclaimed, “The knights have been given special guns to shoot their allies down. Will Trista knock out all the competition, or will she lose? You know the game, last man standing. Begin!”

The gate opposite of Krogmo opened, letting the eight knights – all wielding different colored guns – out and onto the arena floor. The entire arena was made of crystal, with four gear switches on the outer rim. The switches controlled something that must have been hidden by the crystals. All eight knights ran onto the arena floors, breaking the crystal walls and finding places to hide and shoot unsuspecting knights.

Trista had decided to be bold and began shooting at the crystal walls to leave the arena floor devoid of hiding spots. A couple knights, realizing her plan, popped out and attempted to hit her while she wasn't looking. Trista heard the gunfire from behind her and tumbled out of the way. She raised her gun and hit one of the surprised knights, the other managing to take cover and avoiding the second shot. “It would be best if you all don't challenge me... I'm quite the shot.” Trista said, returning to her work once the coast was clear.

* * * * *

Meanwhile, back in Haven, Kozma, Brinks and Flint were diligently on finding more information on the creature known as “Krogmo.” Despite asking numerous Strangers in town, none of them seemed to know who or what Krogmo could be. Their search had lead them to a Stranger named Thyme, a chronicler of Cradle's history and book keeper of a small library hidden in a nook near the Arcade...

“Thank you for granting us permission to look through these books, Thyme.” Kozma said, saluting the large Stranger who was wearing an orange mask with scales on it.

“It is no trouble, little Spiral Knight.” Thyme responded, “Tell me, child, what knowledge is it that you seek?”

“We're looking for someone or something named Krogmo. Fellow Spiral Chroniclers and field scouts have turned up zero results from our recordings of your planet. Considering you have lived on this planet, we were hoping your journals could give us some answers.” Brinks replied.

“Do you know of this Krogmo?” Kozma asked.

Thyme lifted a sleeve to his face in contemplation. “I can think of neither beast nor being that goes by the name of Krogmo.” he said, “But, our library numerous books of the flora and fauna native to our planet, perhaps we can find something. Do you have ideas where to start? Is this Krogmo beast, or construct or...?”

Flint took a few steps forward from behind Kozma and Brinks. “I drew this sketch of the creatures we encountered to the best of my memory.” he said, handing the Stranger a journal.

Thyme examined the page and let out a small gasp. If a face were visible, he probably was in complete awe. “My, you seem to have quite the niche for this, child.” he said.

Flint nodded, “I'm an aspiring chronicler. Do you know what that picture is of?”

“I do... but as far as I knew, they were but a fairy tale.” Thyme said. He placed the journal on a small desk and walked over to a giant row of books. Thyme pulled one out, removing the dust from the old book to reveal it was title, Cradle Mythology. Thyme opened the book and began flipping the pages, pointing at a page from his long sleeve.

“They are known as the Rektilian's a race as mysterious as the clothing they wear. Long ago... before Cradle had the Clockworks it has today and before the War of Three Kingdoms... there were many kingdoms and nations across the surface of the planet. The Rektilian empire was supposedly one of the most magnificent kingdoms. It was a faction of Chroma and Rektilians – a distant cousin of the Chroma. Theirs was an empire of illusion and trickery. They gradually expanded their empire's borders, but it was said they stretched they became too greedy. Their empire supposedly fell near the beginning of the War of Three Kingdoms. It is said that the Rektilians vanished that day. The few Chroma left were absorbed into one of the Three Kingdoms that fought, while the rest died in an effort to protect their kingdom.” Thyme said.

“So, obviously, the Rektilian's still survive.” Kozma said.

“Well, they must exist somewhere, if this young child has images of them.” Thyme said, shutting the book, “But as for this Krogmo, I'm afraid the book doesn't say anything about them. There are a few more books around here about Cradle's history that may talk about the Rektilians. I will retrieve them if you want to try and learn more.”

* * * * *

The crowd was going wild in King Krogmo's Coliseum. Upon the arena floor there was scarcely a spot left to hide – all the crystals had been removed from the arena. The only thing left to take cover behind was the now visible set of walls that were activated by the gear switches; two controlled a set a horizontal walls, while the other controlled a vertical set.

There were five knights left – a red knight in a cowboy hat and poncho, a blue knight in recruit's gear, a yellow knight in a magic hood set, a green knight in jelly armor, and Trista.

The red knight had ran over to a glowing orb that appeared on the floor, causing his weapon to be imbued with the ability to fire multiple shots. He aimed for the blue knight, hitting him and causing him to disappear from the floor.

Trista aimed at the red knight, attempting to hit him with an opportunistic strike. The red knight noticed her and jumped out of the way, returning fire at her. Trista quickly fired at the gear switch, raising a wall in front of her. “Drat, I'm up against another gunner.” she mumbled. Trista laid low while the magic Krogmo gun reloaded itself. She could hear the gunfire around her as the red knight struck the others left.

There was a glow to her side as one of the fallen knights rematerialized near her. The green knight took aim at her.

Trista quickly raised the gun at the knight, hitting him before he had a chance to fire. The green knight was defeated for good. Trista raised her head to take a peak over the wall, but she had to return to hiding as a shower of bullets rained her way.

“It's just ya an me lil' missy.” the red knight shouted, “Ah'd suggest ya just lay down the weapon and give up partner.” He aimed for the gear switch, lowering the wall Trista was hiding behind down. He began firing at her.

Trista ran into a corner, turning back only to return fire. She stopped and stood in the corner, gun poised.

“Ah'd call that checkmate, missy.” the knight chuckled, “How 'bout we make this easy on us all an' ya drop the gun?” He aimed for Trista, preparing to pull the trigger. As the gun fired, Trista ducked and dropped to the floor. The bullets hit the gear switch, raising the walls up and allowing Trista to crawl to safety. “Slippery lil' one.” the red knight sighed. He ran towards the corner and looked towards Trista's hiding spot.

Trista had quickly ran around the wall, making it appear as if she disappeared. “Surprise!” she exclaimed, firing at the red knight.

“Ya sneaky l--!” the red knight shouted, only to be cut off mid sentence. His body vanished in a flash of light.

The crowd screamed and cheered for Trista, but as a light began to flicker behind Trista, they became silent.

Trista seemed to have become quite adjusted to the fame. She had dropped her gun to stretch after the arduous match, but as she put her hands behind her back, she could hear her 'fans' cheers lull to a hush. Trista reached for her gun, whipping around to see the red knight was re-materializing.

The red knight took aim and fire as soon as he reappeared. Despite his quickness of the draw, his shot missed Trista as she jumped out of the way.

Trista retreated back to the wall. She continued running, firing shots through breaks in the metal wall.

The red knight took aim for the switch and then quickly shot back towards one of the metal walls.

The walls dropped back down into the arena floor, revealing a running Trista. As Trista realized she was wide open, it was already too late. The second bullet the red knight had fire was already too close to avoid. Trista was hit dead on, her body was engulfed in a blinding light.

The crowed let out an “ooh,” as they all moved an inch off their seats.

Krogmo, too, stood up in shock. “My, that red knight is quite the gunman.” he said. Krogmo walked towards the balcony of the viewing box, watching the arena floor carefully.

Even Crash seemed compelled to get up and look.

“I didn't realize you took a liking to the games, Crash.” Krogmo said, “I'm glad you finally see the thrill of these games.”

Crash closed his agape mouth. “I-I'm not interested in these games! I... just... was double checking to see why everyone's so shocked. It's kind of hard to see given my stature.” he quickly replied.

There in the middle of the floor, a beam of light began to appear. Trista began to appear on the arena floor again. The crowd began to applaud.

“Well, Ah'd say this makes us about even, eh? We're both down to our last bit of energy.” the red knight chuckled, “But it wouldn't make no difference if ya had 10 or 100 energy. Lil' missy, this is the end of the line.” He flicked his hat in a gesture of farewell.

“I'm not going to lose.” Trista said in slightly annoyed tone.

“Big talk for ah novice.” the red knight laughed.

Trista raised her weapon and immediately lunged for the red knight. In defense, the red knight leaped backwards and began firing. Trista fired at one of the switches, instead of the red knight – causing the horizontal walls to rise up. Trista was safely hidden behind a wall, while the red knight crashed into the one that raised up behind him. She immediately hopped over the wall and pointed her gun at the red knight. “Checkmate.” she growled, pressing the weapon in his face.

The knight had blacked out briefly from hitting the wall with such force. He opened his eyes to see Trista staring right at him. He chuckled.

Trista was confused at his laughter. “What's so funny?” Trista questioned.

“You must, win a lot of coins...” he chuckled, “And this is one more...”

Trista lowered the gun in confusion. “What does that mean?” she asked.

“Crash...” Krogmo said.

“On it.” Crash said, pulling out the ever familiar shocking device and using it.

Trista was inflicted with a shock. She raised the gun and fired, defeating her opponent and ending the match.

The crowd cheered and threw confetti onto the stage. Despite the crowd's rambunctiousness, Trista couldn't seem to hear a thing. Trista had shut the shut the sound out and could only hear the red knight's confusing words. “I don't understand...” she mumbled, slinking to the ground.

Quite the contrary. :P

================

Chapter 7: Rescue

It was extremely late for a match in King Krogmo's Coliseum, but tonight was the most anticipated match of in the history of the arena's creation. Tonight Krogmo's prized money-maker, Trista, was schedule to play a blast coliseum match against some of the top knights. Outside the coliseum was an ocean of the Clockwork's various monsters, all of them eager to get a seat in the coliseum to watch the arena match.

“Step right up, step right up! Single file line everyone! The seating is first come, first serve for tonight's special match!” a yellow devilitie shouted from atop a crate.

Another devilite opposite from him was taking the money from the antsy guests. “Tonight's special match is 750 Crowns per guest.” the devilitie repeated as a new face asked for a ticket. After receiving the money, he handed them a small purple ticket so they could enter inside.

Meanwhile, inside the coliseum, everyone was preparing for the match that was about to come. Three devilities were tending to the knights slated to fight, giving them some information and rules. Atop the viewing box, Kromgo and Crash sat, waiting for the half-full arena to finish filling up.

“I think this is the biggest turn-out yet, I'm glad I negotiated with that little knight.” Krogmo chuckled, “Say, Crash, what would you think of possibly finding another new captive for me and we do this again? Why, just think of the money we would reap in if we continued doing this!”

Crash simply nodded. “Yeah... uh-huh.” he yawned.

“Tired?” Krogmo laughed.

Crash was irritated by the remark, something that seemed all to familiar for the gremlin to do. “Well, considering I've been working on elevator maintenance and working on a viewing room for the overflow of people for this special match, I've barely had any sleep!”

“I'm sure it also doesn't help when Trista is bugging you.” Krogmo smirked, “I heard from some little birds she's talked to you.”

Crash stared at Krogmo for a moment, a lump in his throat. “W-Well, if you wouldn't have given her access to the royal chambers, I wouldn't have to deal with her pestering me!” he snapped, “She kept saying she was going out for walks...”

Krogmo beamed, “Seems like you two get along fine! Speaking of Trista, you weren't too tired to the point you couldn't give her the last Krogmo coin?”

“The one that's going to suppress her powers this match?” Crash questioned.

“What did you think I meant?”

“Oh... oh! Yes, that one! O-Of course I did, why that'd be silly if I didn't, we don't want that little knight returning to her people just yet.” Crash replied. He turned and looked to the arena floor. Crash couldn't help but grin.

* * * * *

Meanwhile, in Haven, there was a large gathering of knights just outside the arcade entrance. Kozma, Brinks, and the stranger, Thyme, were standing at the entrance, talking to the large group of knights.

“Fellow Spiral Knights, we have requested your presence today to take care of an urgent matter! I'm sure most of you have heard the rumors of an increase in the disappearance of your fellow comrades! Today I'm here to tell you, that these rumors are indeed true!” Kozma shouted.

There were a bunch of gasps and chattering amongst the knights.

Kozma raised her hands in an attempt to lull the crowd. “While we have been taking this matter extremely seriously, it has been a long and winding road to find the culprits behind this. But I am pleased to tell you, we have found who is doing this, thanks to the vigilance of brave soldiers, just like you! We have reason to believe a species once thought to be extinct is behind this. The librarian, Thyme, tells us that a group called the Rektilian's may be behind this, along with their leader, Krogmo! We do not know their full motives, but we have pin pointed some possible areas that these monsters may be keeping our fellow knights captive! I have called all of our highest ranking knights thus far to help us in this effort. Together, we are going to storm the Rektilian's base of operations and free our friends!”

The crowd, composed of 4-5 star geared knights, raised their weapons and cheered. Hidden amongst the group though, stood three knights.Two of the knights were in wolver gear – one a female green knight and the other a male cyan knight, the third was a red knight with a wolver cap and charged quicksilver mail.

The cyan knight was busy writing something down in a journal. He looked over to the green knight and sighed. “Why are we here again, Rika, we don't meet the requirements for this expedition.” he said.

“That may be the case, but I want to help. All those months ago, Trista helped us when we needed it most. She's stuck in the clockworks somewhere and I want to return the favor.” Rika replied.

“But, we've helped out by giving them enough clues to pin point a few locations where she and the others might be.” Flint said.

“I'm not satisfied with just that, I want to make sure they're all okay, even if that means sneaking into this rescue party.”

* * * * *

King Krogmo's coliseum was filled beyond it's normal capacity. Those who were unable to get tickets for a seat right in front of the arena had to settle for seating arrangements in front of a large screen.

Krogmo had given his speech to the crowd about this special match, as he always did. He announced the game to commence and returned to his chair. The gates opened opposite of him, letting loose eight knights with different colored bombs.

Down on the arena floor, the fight instantly got underway. The entire floor was sea of chaos. Knights were running and dodging attacks left and right, the unlucky ones were being hit blast waves.

Trista was hidden behind a set of stone blocks, waiting in ambush for unsuspecting knights. A pink knight in spiky gear ran past and Trista took the opportunity to lay a bomb down. As the bomb exploded, the pink knight quickly rolled out of the way. Before Trista's bomb had finished it blast wave, the pink knight had managed to place a bomb of her own, sending a wave back towards Trista's location. Trista had no time to react as the pink bomb hit her.

There was unanimous gasp at the sight of Trista losing 10 of her energy before she managed to harm anyone else. Meanwhile, up in the viewing box, Krogmo was laughing at what had just happened.

“And so it begins.” Krogmo smiled, “Trista loses her first match, but the coin augments will ensure she's brainwashed enough to want to continue doing matches. We'll have to pick a new knight to toy with after this. Say, Crash, how long do you think she'll last?”

Crash was looking on at the arena fighters, a look of intense concern on his face.

“Crash!” Krogmo called.

Crash looked over with his mouth agape. “Er, uh, hopefully long enough.” he mumbled as he looked back to the arena floor.

“What?” Krogmo asked confused.

“Oh, long enough to keep this an interesting game.” Crash smirked, “You know, to keep the attendees coming.” Crash returned to watching the arena floor.

“Yes, right.” Kromo said, staring at the gremlin in contemplation.

* * * * *

A blue knight with a large array of goggle lenses on his face and circuitry around his armor ran out of the Arcade. “Kozma, Brinks!” he called, nearly stumbling as he reached the two. “Feron and the other technicians have picked up a signature for an unknown area in the Clockworks!” he exclaimed, “And what's more, we've been able to tap into this area's unique code. We have clearance to search this area!”

Kozma and Brinks looked at each other and nodded.

“Fellow knights, thanks to the perseverance of our Clockwork Technicians, we have finally locked on a code for an unknown area of the Clockworks! Ready for battle comrades, for this area is most likely where our friends are being held captive!” Brinks shouted to the crowd, “We request everyone to enter the elevators in an orderly fashion. Onward Spiral Knights, for honor!”

“For honor!” the knights shouted back.

Kozma, Brinks, Thyme, and the Clockwork Technician entered the Arcade, the crowd of knights following suit.

“Are you sure this is where your friends will be?” Thyme questioned.

“There is no guarantee, but we will scour all unknown reaches to bring our friend's back if we have to.” Kozma said determinedly.

Kozma took a place on one of the elevators. “Gather 'round fellow knights, let us face the unknown together!” she cried, waving for a group of the 5* knights to join her. “After the first two groups go, please continue boarding the elevators in groups of at least 10!”

Brinks took his place on another elevator. He motioned to the technician. “Please make sure the arcade remains closed to those without tier 3 access.” he said.

The technician nodded. As the first two elevators filled with a fair amount of knights, Kozma and Brinks controlled the lifts to descend into the Clockworks.

* * * * *

“It's surprising to see Trista still managing to do so well, despite having her strength hindered.” Krogmo smiled, “But it will take only a few more hits until she loses it all.” He laughed as he watch the four remaining knights run around the arena. “There's no way she could make it though, considering that yellow knight and pink knight still have enough fight left in them.” Krogmo chuckled.

There was a loud creaking noise and the arena slightly shook. It was as if something had moved up above them. The crowd paused for a moment as they stared at the ceiling. The only people who didn't seem to notice were the knights on the floor. Their focus on surviving seemed to keep them from looking.

“Crash, what was that?” Krogmo asked, “It sounded like something moved above us. Go make sure the elevators are working properly.”

Crash shook his head. “I'm sure it's fine.” he said, “Besides, I want to see this.” Crash's smile turned into a very large, teeth-baring grin.

* * * * *

A large group of knights flooded the King Krogmo's royal chambers. Kozma tried her best to stay at the head of the pack. “Be careful, knights, who knows what evil lurks behind these doors.” she said. Kozma kept her shield slightly raised, ready for whatever may come after them. She headed for the large double doors, and opened them. Kozma peeked in and, feeling it was safe, motioned for some of the knights to enter and search.

“Seems completely clear.” a knight in Volcanic Plate said, “I don't see anything suspic- The knight jumped back, holding his shield to block something. “An ambush!” he shouted. The knight thursted his sword as a scaly creature in black ninja garb was sent backwards.

“For Krogmo!” began to echo in the hallway.

The knights prepared themselves for their invisible foe. For almost every knight present in King Krogmo's chambers, it seemed there was a Rektilian to fight against them.

Meanwhile, a depth lower, Brink's group was having what appeared to be an easier time. His group arrived to an empty brick room. In the middle of the room was a large gate, which was closed shut. A large roaring noise could be heard on the other end.

“Let's search for a way to open this gate.” Brinks said.

The group began to fan out as they searched for a switch. On the far right was a small door, which began to open.

“I'm sorry, but I think we'll need you to come in on the weekend.” a voice said.

“Yes, with productivity up by over 90%, we need all the devilites we can get!” another voice said.

The voice was owned by a large yellow devilite boss. In his hand was a large mug of coffee. He took a sip and immediately spit it out as his eyes came face to face with the large set of knights in the room.

“How did Spiral Knights get in here?!” a small green devilite exclaimed. He and the others began to panic, as they circled around their boss.

“Well, I think this mistake is going to have to come out someone's paycheck, along with making our business look bad.” the boss said. He pushed a button which raised the gate. “Every devilite for himself!” he cried as he dove through the opening gate, his workers following suit.

“Well... that was easier than expected.” Brinks said.

“Help!” cried the devilities as they ran out onto the arena floor.

Krogmo immediately stood up and slammed his fists on the railing. “D-boss, what is the meaning of interrupting this match!” he shouted.

“There are knights, in the coliseum!” the devilities cried.

“What!” Krogmo roared.

As the gate finished rising, a group of knights stepped through the gate.

“We have been searching months for our missing team mates. Today, we have found them and culprit behind it. Krogmo, under the laws of the Spiral Order, you are considered an enemy of the Spiral Knights and shall be dealt with accordingly!” Brinks shouted.

The crowd began to panic and the denizens of the Clockworks began to run in fear.

Crash chuckled, “I knew they would find you, one day. I knew your plan was flawed. Now what will you do?!” He stared at Krogmo with a smug look.

Krogmo's looked over at Crash for a minute and then back at the intruders. His anger softened and he smiled. “I was waiting for this, just as planned.” Krogmo said, “I expected nothing different from you Crash.”

Crash frowned, staring at the king. He gulped.

“I won't go down so easily though.” Krogmo called. He reached for a microphone, “Rektilian's, your king is under attack, please come to the arena floor and defend him.”

“I'm afraid your army is out of commission for now.” Kozma's voice called. The knight made her way up the steps to the arena box, pointing her sword at the king. “Surrender.” she said, glaring at the king and Crash.

Krogmo looked at Crash, the intruder's who were now making their way across the arena floor and the female knight poised to strike him. He slowly raised his arms up, “I will go quietly.”

Trista stumbled on the arena floor, fatigued from her fight. Her vision was blurry, unable to fully comprehend what was going on. She tried to stay on her feet, heading for the sound of the knights.

“Trista!” called three voices, “We're here to help you.”

Trista eyes faded in and out with color as she continued to try and walk. She finally collapsed to her knees. “Did.. I..” Trista mumbled as she passed out.

Rika, Flint, and Novus ran to her side, as they picked her up.

Chapter 8: Aftermath

Two months had gone by since the incident in King Krogmo's Coliseum...

Below Haven, just above the first depth of the Clockworks lies a rather fair sized prison-like complex. Currently inside, were two prisoners of great importance. The first was the supposed King of the Rektilian's, the man known as Krogmo. In another cell, was the gremlin known as Crash.

Crash sat on the cold hard pile of cloth that was his bed, staring out at the rest of the prison floor. He looked at a group of gremlin's across from him. They seemed to know him, as they were staring back, and their looks showed displeasure. Crash looked away and sighed. “I should have known by now.” he mumbled, “I can't trust anyone anymore. Hated by everyone and the only one willing to protect me is that dirty trickster Krogmo.” Crash got up, turned and walked to the wall. “I should have never tried to overthrow him, that little knight lied to me!” he punched the wall, “I should have known they would just treat me like villain!”

“Ironclaw Firotechnician Crash.” came a voice.

Crash turned and looked out to a knight wearing Azure Guardian armor. “I don't like the way you're using my title. What have I done now?” he asked.

“As you should know, your king is being questioned this week.”

“He is not my king!” Crash snapped.

The knight cleared his throat as he continued. “You were supposed to be standing trial as well. To be tried and sentenced for being an accomplice. However, there has been some intervention and you are being released.” he said as he reached for a large keyring. The knight unlocked the prison door and let the gremlin out.

Crash stared dumbfounded at the knight. “What are you talking about?” he asked.

“It has come to our attention that you are not a threat to us, merely a victim in this incident as well. The ones who released you stated that you are considered an enemy amongst your own people. We will do everything in our power to make sure you feel safe in this world. Follow me.” the knight said.

Crash followed behind the knight, unsure what could be going on. The two walked down a long hallway of prison cells until they reached a ladder. The knight pointed to the ladder. After climbing to the top and coming out of a hatched door, there were three knights waiting.

“Hello there, you must be Crash.” Novus waved to the gremlin.

“Who in Cradle's name are you?” Crash growled.

“We're some of Trista's friends. We've been fighting for you to be released.” Rika said, “Trista told us all about you.”

Crash blinked at the knights. “Really? She did this?” he asked.

Rika nodded, “Unfortunately she couldn't come to see you get out, she's at that Krogmo fellow's hearing, but she wanted to make sure you were released today.”

“In the meantime, why don't we talk a bit. I haven't gotten to interview a gremlin for my notes before.” Flint said, pulling out a book and pen.

* * * * *

The training hall had been converted into a makeshift courtroom. There was a decent turn-out of knights and strangers sitting in the chairs provided. At the head of the room was Feron with Kozma and Brinks seated beside him. Standing in the center in everyone's view was King Krogmo, shackled in chains.

“King Krogmo has been brought in front of Spiral Order, for his crimes against the Spiral Knights. Krogmo's army would ambush unsuspecting knights that delved into the Clockworks and take them as prisoners. His lackeys would then convert knight's energy tanks to allow control over their ability to act. This tinkering of the energy tanks allowed Krogmo to use knights to fight against each other for his own entertainment. He profited off our knights pain and rewarded them with coins that further controlled them, causing complete loyalty to him.” Feron read off a paper, “In your defense King Krogmo, do you have anything to say about this?”

Krogmo looked down at the ground for a minute as he looked for the words to say. He looked up at Feron, a somber look on his face. “I will not lie, I did capture your people and they were being used as entertainment. But, you must understand my motives, and to comprehend them, you must know the story behind my people's plight.” he said. Krogmo took a deep breath as he prepared to continue speaking. “You see, my family was part of what was known as the Rektilian Nation. It was a large empire that thrived when the civilizations of Cradle still lived on the surface. We were a peaceful nation that kept to itself, but one day, we were invaded. The invaders took everything from us. Our once proud nation was reduced to ashes, few survived and many of those who did fled. The ones who still had pride for their nation banded together in an attempt to return their civilization to what it once was.

Many years passed and eventually I was elected their king. The Rektilian's hid in the shadows of the Clockworks, I wasn't satisfied with this way of life. All this time, I have been fighting to get the Rektilian's their own home, but the Gremlins would have nothing to do with us. Eventually I came to the conclusion that I would have to do something grand to get any help. That's when I came up with this crazy idea to catch Spiral Knights. I got the citizens of the Clockworks to back me up. The Gremlin King finally decided to pay attention to me, but only if I expanded my idea more.

You see, many of the people who joined my caused, or came to watch these matches are merely fearful of you. Even my people feared you. Unsure of the unknown, many people are afraid you are hear to conquer us all. You saw how my patrons and my workers fled in your presence. I just wanted to change everyone's perspective and make peace with all the people of Cradle. I wanted things to return to what they once were, peaceful happier times! Sadly, King Tink didn't see eye to eye with my plans. Give me a chance, now that you all know I can make things right!” The amphibian began to sob.

“So, you are claiming you are merely another victim in this whole thing?” Kozma questioned, “Why didn't you try to do anything to make peace? You continued taking knights for almost a year.”

“Yeah, and what could you possibly do to make things right?” Brinks asked.

“I knew it was wrong, but I was afraid of what Tinkinzar would do if I tried to contact any of you. Besides, the gremlin who worked for me, didn't see eye to eye. His loyalties still remained with Tinkinzar, despite being an outcast. He was the only person who could allow elevator access to Haven and he wouldn't help me. Finally, he caved in, but it took having a knight buying their freedom to make him do that!” Krogmo said. He did his best to reach his sleeve and dry his eyes. “What if I opened the Krogmo Coliseum to your knights, no capturing or doing anything against your wills. It will be like a fun little game and you can earn coins from participating. Maybe I can even get my people to give you schematics for powerful weapons in return. I can try and negotiate with the Gremlin King and maybe this will be one step forward in eventually reaching peace with everyone on Cradle again.”

Kozma and Brinks looked to Feron with strange looks. “We will pause on that note for now, Krogmo. Court will continue its hearing in an hour.” he said.

A few hours passed and the court finished its hearing against Krogmo. After numerous debates between the jury, they came to the decision to let the amphibian continue his coliseum operation. It was hard to pick this, but without enough evidence to show whether Krogmo was lying or not about his sob story, they let him go free.

The knights present at the court, trickled outside into Haven. Trista walked slowly outside with her head lowered to the ground.

“Hey...” came a voice speaking to the purple knight.

Trista looked up to see an all too familiar maroon gremlin sitting on a stone wall. “Oh, hello, I see they released you. Well, at least there's something to be glad about.” she said.

“I take it he wasn't punished.” Crash said, “I'm not surprised, he's a tricky one. I never knew his full motives myself.”

“It wasn't without a catch though, his business is going to be under tight watch by high ranking knights. I'm considering trying to be part of this group, but after all I've been through, I think I've had enough of Krogmo” Trista sighed, “So, what about you? Do you maybe want to go meet up with Rika, Flint and Novus?”

Crash raised his hand. “I didn't come to chat and all that, I've had enough of that with your buddies. I mainly just wanted to thank you for... helping me” he smiled. He changed to a more serious look, “But I think this is where our little adventure ends. I'm not sure what I'll do in this town. Maybe I'll become a technician for you guys, or maybe I'll just sell stuff like everyone seems to enjoy doing here.”

“So, we're going our separate ways then?” Trista questioned.

Crash nodded, “I don't really care for the super happy friendly sunshine thing, but maybe I'll see you guys around town or something.” He reached his hand out to give Trista a shake. “You take care though, okay?” Crash mumbled.

“Okay, you too.” Trista chimed, shaking his hand.

“Oh and by the way, let your little doodle pad friend know that I ain't telling him anything for his little journal or whatever it is. I might be an exile, but the life of the Gremlins are still top secret.” Crash growled.

“Will do.” Trista chuckled.

The two walked their separate ways in Haven, but while two “friends” were going their own ways, another was glad to be with their friends. Within the Clockworks, an elevator was heading down into King Krogmo's royal chambers. There on the elevator platform was Krogmo and waiting for him was a group of devilites and Rektilians.

A red devilitie boss was standing at the head of the group, holding a clip board. “Welcome back, sir!” he said.

“Welcome back sir!” the devilities cheered.

“Hail Krogmo!” the Rektilian's roared in unison.

“So, what are your plans now that you have to have the knights participate freely?” the red devilite asked.

“Oh, this plan couldn't be more perfect. We'll continue as usual, save the little caveat of those knights having their own free will. I play off the fears of the denizens of the Clockworks and I play off the Spiral Knights attempts to extend an olive branch. Can you imagine how rich we will become?” Krogmo boasted.

“I can have my men get a rough estimation of future profits to your desk in... say an hour?” the red devilitie said.

“With both sides eating out of my hands, my plans for domination will come to fruition. Just you wait Cradle, the Rektilian Nation will show you who's in charge just yet!” Krogmo chuckled as he headed for the two double doors across from the elevator.

End

Thank you everyone. I will consider making more. :)

As a bonus for the fact I left the fan fic high and dry, this is just a little thing I made to mimic a journal of the Clockworks done by Flint. It also has very poorly drawn images I made quickly in paint just to tag on to the fact Flint draws images in his journal (but they would be 100x better and have taken longer to draw). Enjoy.

==================The Mystery of the Clockworks==================

An account of the explorations and information gathered in the depths of Cradle. This journal catalogs the various types of life found present within the Clockworks (and the surface of Cradle) from the perspective of the knight named Flint.

http://i.imgur.com/FYPkQ.png
The owner of this journal is as of current, a rank 3 cyan knight with tier 2 access. He currently wears elemental armor with an owlite shield and twisted wrench staff. Many of the blueprints/recipes for this armor and weapon were discovered within the Clockworks themselves. It allows for the owner of this journal the ability to fight at range, while still helping his expedition team. In addition, the owner aspires to work as a Chronicler, a job that is more focused on studying and learning about the Clockworks, not fighting in them.

http://i.imgur.com/GtP2U.png
Rika is currently a mid rank 3 green knight with tier 2 access and is this knight's childhood friend. She is currently working on a wolver set – an ash tail helmet and a dusker coat. She has a dark thorn blade, sealed sword and twisted targe. Rika aspires to be a master swordsman and enjoys rushing into battle.

http://i.imgur.com/Z9VMP.png
Novus is currently a rank 4 red knight with tier 3 access and met the journal owner after helping him in the Clockworks. He is working on upgrading his charged quicksilver mail to mercurial mail. Novus is into demolitions and uses numerous explosives in his arsenal. These include: the nitronome, dark briar barrage, shivermist buster, and graviton vortex. He has other explosives, such as a gremlin bomb he received as gift and other status inducing bombs, but he prefers to use the four listed.

http://i.imgur.com/MF0jb.png
Trista is a rank 5 purple knight with tier 3 access and met the author, Rika, and Novus in the depths of tier 1. She rescued them from a group of Spookats, but was captured by the villain Krogmo before they escaped to Haven. In return, the three friends focused on saving her. After the incident, the group became friends. She wears the oakley hat and vest and has a wide array of firearms which includes: blitz needle, polaris, argent peacmaker, and volcanic pepperbox. Trista thinks highly of her gunslinger abilities and secretly dislikes when people belittle her or boast that they're better. Despite her ordeal with King Krogmo, she has joined a secret watch group which is monitoring Krogmo's action.

http://i.imgur.com/KN0DG.png
Crash is a gremlin who is a former member of the Ironclaw clan. His full title is Ironclaw Firotechnician Crash and he used to specialize in work involving the building of flame-spewing machines when he worked in the munitions factories. Crash was exiled after breaking the number one code of the gremlins: to never let outsiders know any knowledge about their order, despite the fact he had to do it to keep his friends from being harmed by Krogmo. After his exiled, he was forced to seek refuge by the same man who had caused all his problems in the first place. After the incident with Krogmo, Crash is now under the protection and watch of the Spiral Order. Despite his concerns with befriending his very species enemy, his hostility to the Spiral Knights has slowly begun to wane. He currently works in Haven as a technician for the arcade's elevators.

~~Creature Observations~~

Spookat – The Spookat (or Kat in general) is a ghostly being with cute innocent looking face, but looks can be deceiving. The Spookat is a hostile creature that will attack anyone that makes eye contact with them. They can give you a nasty bite and fire projectiles that can cause various ailments. The Spookat also has a larger member of it's family called the Grimalkin. Unlike Kats, these shadowy Grimalkins only appear in the darkness of the areas they inhabit. Any form of light will cause the Grimalkins to vanish.

The Spookats are said to enjoy everything magic and are lured to places with high magical energy. Although the following facts may not be true, the Spookats are normally blamed for the disappearance or near extinction of some of Cradle's civilizations. They are known notoriously for the take over of the Owlite Academy, a famous school that taught the magics of Cradle. Run by the most magically adept species in Cradle's history, the allure and lust of powerful magic was too great for the Kats. They conquered the Owlite Academy, claiming it for reasons still unknown. The academy is now known as the dreaded Candlestick Keep.

In an interview with some Kats in Moorcroft Manor, they seemed to have no idea what I meant about the Owlites or the Academy, but they did claim they enjoyed magics. When delving further and asking if they had any evil or sinister plans with the magic they learned in the Academy, they replied, “What Dark Ritual?”

Rektilian – The Rektilians are still a mystery even to today's scholars in Cradle. It is said that their empire was one of extreme beauty. The Rektilian Nation as a whole encompassed the species known as the Chromalisk and their cousin's the Rektilians themselves. The few sightings of Rektilians today states that they a bipedal race that keeps their identity entirely concealed by ninja-like wardrobe. They have 5 digit hands – which are sharp and 4 digits toes with a sharp back talon. The only visible part of their faces are their yellow cat-like eyes. Some of their scaly skin is also visible and has been seen in various colors.

The Rektilian civilization was rumored to have gone extinct and numerous sources are unable to come to a conclusion about how they supposedly disappeared off the face of Cradle. The belief that they were extinct has since been disproven, but how the Rektilian Nation vanished from Cradle is still unknown. Most sources agree though that they were an empire built upon trickery and illusion.

Some sources believe that they were a greedy nation that planned to expand its borders as much as possible. Their greed caused tension within their own conquered lands and civil wars began to errupt. By the time the War of Three Kingdoms erupted, the former empire was too weak to defend itself. They were absorbed into one of the three powerful kingdoms and those who disagreed were killed. After the war, the Rektilians fled into the Clockworks, never to be heard from again. But they lied in wait, plotting to return their empire to its former glory.

One source that is becoming increasingly plausible, after Krogmo's confession is that the Rektilian Nation was much more peaceful and docile despite what most scholars say. Their aggressiveness only reared itself when they felt threatened. Their empire had designed powerful weapons for their time and were said to have a special magical artifact within their possession. It was said to be a special charm that could allow limited control of foes in battle. By the time the War of Three Kingdoms had erupted, their powerful weapons had become a target. Fearful that the Rektilian's could be a threat, their empire was raided and destroyed with most of their secrets being destroyed in the process. While some things were salvaged, the rumored charm that the Rektilian's had was never seen again.