"I'm veering," Klawmaker told them. "Follow me."

     "Continue our course for the portal," Noel said. "We're going to have to..." 

     Four subway-sized vines rose to reach for them. 

     "Rise!" Estelle yelled, uselessly because Shawnacy was already in the process of causing the van the jet upward.  

     "Brock," Noel said, again uselessly because Brock was already out of the harness that tethered his wheelchair to the inside of the van and headed for the side door. 

​     "I want out, too," Niki said. "I'll turn invisible and fly free. That way I'll be on the outside if you all get caught."

​     "Go," Noel said. 

     "Bye," Niki said, turning invisible.​     ​     

     Shawnacy waved a sensor, and the side door of the van slid open.

     Niki used her anti-gravs to fly up and away.                                                                   Brock flew outside just as the vines of Naturia touched the wheels of the van.

​     He, also, almost ran right into Klawmaker's flying Maserati.

     KIawmaker planned to blast the van with a sonic cannon. Brock saw it as a glow at the front of the vehicle, a glow that grew brighter with each passing moment.

     BRAAAP!

     Brock blasted away at the vines, which took a fair amount of skill because both the vines, Klawmaker's Maserati, and the van continued to rise at such a rapid pace, which meant that Brock had to rise right along with them. 

     No easy task.

     His five years of training with the Azure was paying off.

     Still, although his blasts ripped the tips of the vines to pieces, they continued to rise...

     even as the glow at the front of Klawmaker's Maserati began to blind with its intensity.  

     Brock hit that glow with everything he had left in him.

     BRAAAP!  

     Brock's blast tore the front of the Maserati to pieces.  

     The Maserati pitched forward, out of control, then fell away. Brock could just see Klawmaker at the controls cursing a blue streak.  

     Yeah!

     "Nice," he heard Niki say. She'd stuck around just in case he needed help. "You okay?" 

     Brock felt too exhausted to reply.

     The side door to the van again slid open.                                                                       Brock dropped back inside...

     completely out of energy.

​     He had just enough left to get back in his harness before he collapsed.

​     "Let's get out of here!" he yelled.

     Shawnacy caused the van to go up.

     They managed to stay just ahead of Mother Naturia's grasp as they rose higher, ever higher.

     Finally, Mother Naturia fell away, giving up for the moment.​​

​     Shawnacy stopped the van so they hovered. 

     They needed to get on the same page with their next move.

                                                        CONTINUE

​