Chapter 2

There came a pneumatic swoosh from the door as it glided open. Inquisitively Pollix glanced at the door. What he saw triggered and alertness that few but Zodiac know. In the entrance was a robed figure, whose face was masked by a portentous hood. Every muscle in Pollix tightened, the sinews and tendons stretched taunt.
"Scorpio!" Pollix spat, his dull green eyes tracing the lines of the sinister face concealed in the shadows. The figure reached up with a robed hand to undo his neck clasp. He flung off the garment as one would through off a restraint. Indeed it was Scorpio. His jaw and cheak bone was plainly visible, even as a smile found it’s way across his face. Something evil and malicious glinted in his hazy grey-blue eyes as he watched Pollix. Another figure appeared in the doorway. The delicate curves of woman were clearly defined in her silhouette.
"Who’s that?" Pollix questioned, not allowing his eyes to drift from their target.
"Really hun, you don’t ‘member?" Cancer replied in a soft and most seductive tone of voice.
"Scorpio, what the hell is you wife doing here?"
"She’s a Zodiac now and wanted in on the fun." Scorpio chuckled as he advanced toward Pollix.
"Oh cra…" Scorpio slowly removed a glove from his right arm. The glove came down to reveal a waxy sallow forearm, which morphed into a grotesque green-brown hand. Small lumps and bulges pocked the skin. His fingers were thin, the knuckle point sharp, and the flesh hard and almost scaly. Pointy tips began to protrude from his nail-less fingertips. The unsheathed like claws, but more closely resembled the fangs of a snake.
"CASTOR GET IN HERE NOW!" Pollix shouted. Cancer stepped into the room flipping her light brown hair around her head. She is just trying to distract me. Thought Pollix. Scorpio and Cancer started to circle him. He jerked his head from one to the other. This isn’t going to work; I can’t watch both of them. Pollix dashed to the nearest corner and swung around, ready to fight. Scorpio started to advance on Pollix, but Cancer halted him with her hand.
"I’ll take him." Cancer laughed as jet-black quills wormed their way out of her hands. Pollix looked at the quills with a sense of unease as they stated to lash around as though anticipating some gruesome event. She smiled and lunged at him. Pollix clamped shut his eyes and braced for impact. None came, however. He opened his eyes to find both Scorpio and Cancer moaning on the ground. Next to them, getting off his knees was Castor.
"It’s about time you showed up."
"Oh, come on. I’m not that late."
"She was about to stick those- DUCK!" Castor not only ducked, but also dropped, kicked out Scorpios legs, and stood back up. Before Scorpio could move Castor jumped, landing in a handstand on top of Scorpio. Castor arched his back till his feet were planted firmly on the ground. With a grunt he heaved Scorpio aloft and boar him down on Cancer. The two collapsed on the floor. Cancer pushed her husband to the side and tore, in a monstrous rage at Castor, only to be countered by a jump-kick to the stomach. Both were now rather incapacitated for the moment.
Castor tuned around to see Pollix Curled in a ball in the corner.
"Pollix you really don’t need to charge. I mean, I can handle these two idiots."
Pollix opened his eye. What he saw made him want to shout, but it was too late.
Cancer was flying, probably thrown by Scorpio. She collided with Castor and knocked him onto his face. Before he could turn over she forced her hands onto his back, quills lashing almost hungrily. Castor screamed and thrashed. Almost... come on, come on. Pollix thought feverishly to himself. Pollix rose up and steped over to Cancer. He grabed Cancer by the sholders and let the chemicals in his arms mix. A scream escaped Cancer's mouth as the jolt riped throught her. Pollix lifted her up and pushed her away, sparks leaping between them. Pollix tuned Castor over, he wasn't breathing. Pollix checked his pulse, there wasn't one. Pollix placed his hands on eather side of Caster's heart and let a small shock flow through it. He checked Caster's pulse again, still not there. He tried two more times and finaly got a pulse.
<"Andromeda, Casters been attacked! There are chunks missing from his back, he might have spinal injury. I had to defribu-"> Pollix roled to avoid the poisenous claw fangs. Pollix grabed his leggs and shocked him. Cancer charged and Pollix bent over. She folded over his back and, as he shot up, flew into the air. Scorpio turned on him again. The two evenly matched, Scorpio avoided Pollix's hands and Pollix avoided Scorpio's... almost.

It was just a little scratch on his arm, but Pollix could feal the venom spreading. He looked up a strange kind of hope in his eyes. He know that he was going to die, no one had ever found and antidote to Scorpio's poison. His life matter no more, there was no way to preserve it. The least he could do was save Emporer Leo.

Scorpio and Cancer must have seen this for the took flight down the hall. Pollix gave chase. Electricity lept from Pollix's arms as he ran down the corridor, shorting lights. He caught up with the two of them and grabed their arms in a dead man's grip. Both fought to get free but Pollix only cranked up the juice. As the screams echoed down the hall Pollix pulled them tword the outside bulkhead. The storeholds of chemicals in Pollix's arms started to run dry, the output into Scorpio and Cancer dwindled. The two started to fight, scratching and clawing at his sides. He forced them into an escape pod, and hit the launch panel. He quickly junped into the next one over.

Once out in space he brought the pod around to face the other one. Scorpio was already trying to pilot his pod back to the ship. Pollix checked the controles. Yes, this is a Picies class ship. He set an intersept course with Scorpio's pod, while warming up the gate jump drive. Just moments befor impack he opened the wormhole on a ramdom frequency. The vortex sucked up both pods.

~~~~~

Another vortex opened in the vacinity of a small blue-green and white planet. The pod flew around to the night side of the planet. Little dots of light came from the land masses. Civilisation! Pollix thought. And there might he hope! Might be and Avatar! Pollix set an entry path and activated the inertial dampners and magnetic retro engines.

The pod heated up as it fell throught the atmosphere. It plummeted down into a corn feild. Just feet from hitting the ground it stoped . The magnetic field bushed corn, dirt, and rocks around. Making a loud crash. The pod settled gently and Pollix crawled out, starting to convulse. He pulled him self away from the heat and colapsed. Against the hissing and poping of the red hot pod, he heard foot steps.

Chapter 3...