PLDN Chapter 20

"Chapter 20: A Special Surprise For a Goat turning 117"

Sub-Entry 191:  "Taking the Train Back Home Again":
"Mission Accomplished.  Three areas complete.  Technically four counting the Core, but that's technically in Hotland so--"

"Commander.  You can relax now.  Mission accomplished."

"Yeah...well...you know me.  When I have something to worry about, I never relax.

I thought back to the conversations I had trimmed in my notes while we were at Alphys' lab. I should probably add some substance to this recollection for future reference as it would change things even further for us all.

We'd already befriended everyone from New Home to the edge of Waterfall.

But if what Bunnie seemed to imply was the case, keeping Alphys in the loop meant taking the next step. It carried a little more risk than giving her total memory recall and entrusting her with so much mind blowing.

I had decided to give her a bit of tech from my organization that would allow her to contact us through the spacial, temporarl, and dimensional barrier separating the Underground from our world.

Yes. I was ready to give her the means to contact us on VGM-098; in real-time. When she needed to talk, as long as the T.A.O. link had a green light, she could do so; without Asriel finding out about it...about his world.

I thought back to how it went down...

Calming Alphys down from her moment of being flustered by Violet's antics was a must. While the others were talking among themselves...

"...excuse me?"

"I've had my eyes in the sky working on this for a while.  And we managed to complete it.  A T.A.O. link not unlike a "burner phone" back in my world.  Very untraceable by anyone in my organization or any other outside group."

"And you're giving this to me?"

"A means of contacting me on my world in case of any problems.  But most importantly, I can't always have KOMMAND be my go-to in case the enemy is plotting something in the Underground.  After so many times of interferring behind my back, it's high time I tighten the surveilance around my nemesis and his minions.

When I'm sure he can't even pick his nose without me knowing about it? Then I can rest easier knowing the mission is going smoothly."

"You're s-sure this will work?"

"Positive.  The modifications were designed to ensure it could connect beyond dimensional barriers.  Through time if need be."

"Wow...I'm REALLY tempted to take it apart and find out--"

"How it works.  Yes.  Please don't do that."

Alphys nodded.

"Remember.  Green; the path is clean.  Red, can't discuss what's troubling your head.  Under no circumstances can Prince Asriel become aware of the existence of this timeline until he comes of age; when he's his own man...monster...hybrid.   He may be about to turn 17...well...117, but he's not ready, yet."

"I understand."

"If it's a dire emergency, we'll have to rely on KOMMAND to be our main lifeline.  Otherwise, I'll have to get creative in order to get here in a hurry without drawing suspicion."

"Understood."

"I know I can contact you, but...on the off ch-chance you need to t-t-talk--"

"Yeah.  I've already considered that.   While this is mainly for emergencies...I haven't ruled out the possibility that one of us may need advice or...at least someont to talk when...there's no one else to turn to."

Alphys looked longingly at it before putting it away.

Which brought us up to this point.

"I guess we gotta go.  I'm going to miss you, Dr. Alphys." Gadget hugged again.

".....I'll miss you, too"Keep it real, Alphie-baby. I'll have some prime anime and manga waiting for you next time in town."

"Eh...right."

"Take care of yourself, Alphys.  Consider getting out more and expanding your horizons a bit.  Get a good meal and some sleep, now and then."

"I'll give it a try."

"We'll be in touch, Alphys.  Take heart and keep your chin up.  But most of all..."

"...?"

"STAY DETERMINED!"

~

"...you're worried that she'll have a moment that she's convinced she's not ready for the responsibility." Bunnie said to me while the others were climbing aboard.

"I swear, Bunnie.  The number of parallels and moments you and the others keep channeling from this world so casually boggles the mind."

"You're referring to the abandoned quiche.  In my case, I'm a quick and thorough study."

"And highly observant.  Never miss a detail, Major.  But yeah. I'm less worried that she will use ot or abuse it just to gossip over anime and such...and more worried that she WON'T use it out of some kind of worry or guilt.  Like she doesn't want to involve us in her problems."

"Sound familiar?"

"...ouch." I grumbled. "The truth hurts, though.  Yeah...I've been down that road.  It's scary amazing how alike we are at times."

"Precisely why you were always meant to reach out to her.  Do not worry about what you cannot control.  Undyne will have the rest in hand once that part of the timeline plays out."

"True."

"Yo, Commander!  You and Buns gonna bump gums or we goin' home already?"

"Whoah.  Pull it in the pit stop, Vi.  Take advice from a racer and learn when to put the brakes on.  Even I know it's just good form to exercise patience." Sally prodded.

"Okay, okay.  I get the message.  You're getting antsy."

I climbed into the Time Train with Bunnie and we all got situated as I fired up the boiler and set the space, time, and dimension circuits for Miranda's train yard station. Again "conveniently" abandoned for "safety reasons" to keep the E.L.B. train a secret.

I took one last scan of Alphys' surveilance network just to make sure Flowey wasn't up to something and that Evil-Chara hadn't been warped in.

"All's clear.  Let's go home." I closed the doors and hit the hover conversion.

Up to 88 MPH and into the time portal we'd go.

Next stop...home.

Sub-Entry 192: "Happy Anniversary, N-Division.  Pit's Unofficial Birthday":
Pit soared overhead, finishing his scouting rounds.

I could always count on him. His loyalty, his earnest nature. It was a rare thing for boys like him and Asriel to be this well-behaved and responsible. And I was lucky enough to have them both on my team.

It was common knowledge that Pit's experience dwarfed most everyone on my team despite his appearance and his personality seeming to indicate the contrary. He was a veteran among veterans.

How I wish I had been around to see the days of the N-Division. Back during the wars in Videoland against Mother Brain and the League of Darkness...or whatever it was she called them. What I knew was that many of our universe's villains were part of it at some point. Heavy hitters like Dr. Wily of Monsteropolis, Count Dracula of CastleVania, and Uranos of Angel Land...and not-so-heavy hitters like King Hippo of Punch-Out and Eggplant Wizard of Angel Land.

Since those days, both alliances--good and evil--had disbanded. Either defeated, destroyed, retired, or went back to old business on their own homeworlds.

"He's coming!" Asriel motioned for us to act natural.

Pit spotted Asriel very quickly and began his descent.

"Scouting rounds complete!" He landed with a salute.

Asriel tried to cover up his grin.

"Hmm?" Pit noticed immediately.

"What's that you've got behind your back?"

Not trying very hard to keep it a surprise, Goat Son, eh?

Asriel brought the small angelfood cake out from behind his back.

"Surprise!  Happy Birthday, Pit!"

Green food coloring for the cake and green icing with a sparkler candle.

"Oh wow, you remembered!" Pit was so excited by it, he spread his wings out.

"Make a wish!"

Pit hesitated at first.

"You...know it's not really my birthday right?  It's...just the day the rest of the UCIAT picked to celebrate.  The actual day the light goddess created me probably doesn't exist on this realm's calendar so--"

Chameleon's shadow drake familiar, Asmirus cut in at that time.

"Personally, I doubt the child even properly recognizes the term of "immortality"." She said in that raspy, smoky voice.

Five years ago, Asriel would have protested about being called a child. But by this point he'd learn to brush aside the jabs.

"I know.  Volt explained it.  The Arcade family picked the day of celebration..." Asriel started.

"...on the anniversary of the day the original N-Division was founded.  That my original team of partners was brought together." PIt finished.

Asmirus reciprocated, clearly seeing that her comments were already ignored and forgotten. In recent years, it had become a lot harder for her to feed off of Asriel's emotions. It still irked her nerves when we called Asriel "Azzy" in her presence; mostly because it Asmirus was all too familiar with that nickname. I guess it just got confusing at times?

"September 9th.  Next year we'll have another full decade to add to that anniversary.  Was it so long ago?"

"Well even so...happy birthday, Pit.  Even if it isn't.   Happy anniversary to the founding of the N-Division you're always speaking of. Wish I could have met them all."

That made me smile. Thinking back to it all.

"I heard that the vampire hunter had pimpy hair." Violet snickered.

Pit looked confused by that.

A whap of the tessan fan from Bunnie.

"I do not know what you are referring to, Violet but please stop."

"Yoo-hoo!  Princess!  I'm here to be your pimp-daddy!" Violet said in her most obnoxious snooty English accent.

Another whap.

"If she means Simon, well...I don't know what "pimpy" means, but he did have rather long blond hair." Pit scratched his head, making the mistake of actually paying any heed to Violet's randomness. "Incidently that sounded nothing like him."

"Yeah, it sounded like you were doing the worst imitation of a British World War I pilot with the biggest ego on the planet." I muttered.

Azzy just shrugged, not understanding what I meant but realizing it probably had something to do with one of the Earth realms.

"Pit.  Just ignore her for your own sanity." I advised.

"Okay..."

"So, what about your other partners?  Tell us about them!"

Asriel had heard tidbits and such from Pit. You'd think by this point he would have told him a lot more about his past. But...then again, it's not like Asriel ever thought to ask him directly about it.

"In fact why don't you tell us about the war in Videoland.  How Neo Arcadia got involved." I decided to make this a story as we packed up and headed to Hestia's.

"Alright.  It began an untold number of decades ago."

"Not THAT long..." I muttered, feeling my age set in.

"I dwelled on in a holy realm known as Angel Land.  It was its own world and it had known its own periods of peace and prosperity as well as toil and strife.  Back then and even before that time, warp zones were a natural phenominon but they were very localized.

The center of the known galaxy was a kingdom called Videoland. It began small--long before I was even created by Palutena. Long before Dr. Light and Dr. Wily had entered academia. And long before the scourge of Dracula had begun in CastleVania.

The ruler at the time would be approached by a young researcher who found his way to our world from this one."

"Garfield Arcade."

"Close.  But it was his father, Giovanni Arcade who developed the first artificial warp zones that could extend beyond Videoland."

"Huh.  Guess I didn't really know gramps at all.  I knew Garfield was working in this field but I always presumed he pioneered most of it."

"You'd be surprised, Commander.  But at the time he proposed an alliance with the good video worlds of the galaxy, simply so everyone's people would not feel like they were all alone in the universe."

"And now I know where my legacy as the King of Crossover began."

"That's amazing!" Asriel was invested in thie conversation.

"Over time our alliances grew into a united coalition of video worlds under the Videoland flag.  We were united under the king but we remained separate, nonetheless."

As time went on, more warp zones were implemented at the heart of our universe. It would have a name but over time, that name would be forgotten in lieu of another one; a name to be used against the N-Division at a time when the League of Darkness nearly won and had free reign over Videoland for over seven days."

"The Videolympics..." Bunnie interrupted us as she joined us.

"Welcome to the conversation, Major.

"Continue, Pit.  My apologies for interrupting."

"As travel between worlds led us to a Golden Age, Videoland celebrated many fancy galas and soirees to glorify our newfound friendships and alliences.  It was a unity that was still young so we still had much to learn about each others' worlds.

One thing remained a constant during that time--we kept our troubles--our local villains and dangerous adventures at home. We didn't know each other well enough to consider asking for help; whether it be the rise of Medusa or the conquest of Ganon."

"Hmm..." Asriel rubbed his chin.

"When Garfield Arcade took over, he foresaw trouble on the horizon.  Rather he predicted that an outside threat could become a common enemy among the worlds of Videoland so he had an idea."

"This would be the part where Violet makes an Avengers reference, right?" Asriel snickered.

"Hey.  Who's telling this story, Goat Son?" I jabbed.

"The king was reluctant at first to consider such an alliance of military forces, much less each world's own hero or heroine.  Garfield knew that his hesitation could lead to things being set in motion, too little too late.

Nonetheless, he laid the groundwork, forming a guild that he refered to as the Game Masters, in preparation--an elite brotherhood of those who would become knowledgable with all worlds under the Videoland flag.

By the time Garfield finished his Game Masters program, he was ready to assemble the N-Division. On the eve of this, Lady Destiny handed down a Prophecy to Garfield, which he was to implement into the most powerful Warp Zone that he and Videoland's elder sages and scientists had created together. The Prophecy which fortold of powers far beyond the kingdom's imagination."

"Oooh." Asriel listened with eager anticipation.

"On the eve that Garfield was about to make his choices for the N-Division, he finished installing the message into the Power Glove at the Palace of Power and had just left for Neo Arcadia to begin the recruitment process.

Before that happened, Videoland was invaded by the recently discoverd artificial asteroid known as Metroid."

"Samus' world?"

"Close.  But it was actually an artificial bio-mechanical station named after the deadliest alien predator that had been discovered in that part of the galaxy and stolen by the Zebesians for bioterrorist conquest.  Resembling a giant brain, it was home to the Zebesians--space pirates said to be decended from the Planeteers of Krom."

"I bet they don't carry elemental rings with them." Violet dropped in on us. Literally.

"You hush up." I pushed her away as she had gotten too close for comfort.

"Its leader was Mother Brain.  And while formidable on her own, she took action and implemented a plan that tipped the balance of power in Videoland.  The very plan Garfield proposed was being used against us!"

"Each of the heroes of Videoland at the time were tied up with their own adventures and their own villains.  Pit with Medusa, Rock with Dr. Wily, Simon with Dracula, Link with Ganon, Mario and Luigi with the Koopa Family and so on." Bunnie reasoned.

Despite the Video War being somewhat before her time, Bunnie had researched it rather thoroughly in the archives. It was no surprise she sought Pit out to be part of Ultra Crew Institute Action Team, in retrospect.

"With Mother Brain now allied with all of those villains, her already vicious army became all but unstoppable.  For seven years, war raged across worlds.  And Videoland's alliance was losing.  Badly."

"Losing?  But you were the good guys."

"We were...but...we weren't a team." Pit wrapped his wings around himself. "Each of us...individually was used to fighting his or her own battles; being his or her own hero.  In some cases, getting all the glory..." Pit wrinkled his nose at that.

There were rumors thta some of the lesser heroes on the team had problems keeping their ego in check. Pit was pretty much confirming it.

"King Charles tried uniting us under one team as Garfield had advised...but I'm ashamed to say...we all had our troubles...well...synergizing."

"Now it makes sense."

"Goat Son hit the nail on the head.  No wonder Videoland was losing the war.  You were too busy fighting each other instead of Mother Brain's goons." Violet stated as bluntly as possible.

* THWAP*

"Rude, Violet."

"By this time I'd already met Kitty and was exploring your world, before I was summoned back to Videoland to deal with the Video War.  That's where I met my other team mates.  Some of them I got along with pretty well like Rock.  Others...not so much.  I don't think Samus thought highly of me.  And...at time time I didn't quite understand Link's tendancy to um...rip on me, I think the mortal saying is?"

"Yup.  Guys poke fun at one another to put on a strong act until you earn their respect.  Or so I've been told." I shrugged.

"We weren't used to working as a big team like this."

"Yup.  You really hit all the Avengers tropes.  So which one of you was the genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist--"

* TWHAP*

"Urusai, baka." Bunnie warned again.

"Our greatest shame was that King Charles was captured by Mother Brain's forces and banished to the Mirror Warp Zone."

"The Mirror Warp Zone?" Asriel asked.

"A warp zone with a terrible price to pay.  Once you go in...your evil reflection is free to escape.  And you can't go back through unless your evil copy returns through it." Pit explained.

"Considering the opposite aspect of it?  Unless you're a villain that went through it, your other self isn't going to be...cooperative." Bunnie reasoned.

"This seems like it set up a danger down the road.  If the King was banished then..."

"That's a story for another time.  But...seven years had passed and Mother Brain's force finally pressed their way to the Palace of Power where our remaining ranks had retreated to.  I was among the remaining generals that hadn't been scattered."

"Or hadn't gone AWOL to fight their own war on their own terms." Bunnie crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Still...with Samus' history with the Zebesians and what they had taken from her...it's hardly unexpected.  Her profile stated she prefered working alone and hated following orders."

"I...didn't hold it against her.  I don't know what I'd do if my family were butchered in front of me while I was a mere child."

I saw Asriel's expression turn grim. He understood loss as well or better than any of us.

"So we were at the very end of hope.   That was when the Prophecy spoke to us and foretold of a great Champion from another world who would warp to Videoland and lead us to victory.  And that was when the Ultimate Warp Zone opened to a realm...a dimension not known to us and brought us our Game Master.  The one the Prophecy called...Captain N."

I smirked as did Bunnie.

"So...what was he like?" Asriel asked.

"Honestly?  Not that much different than you.  But human."

"You mean an ordinary high schooler."

"He said his name was Kevin Keene and he was from a place called...Northridge, California...I think?"

Pit's first experience with Earth realms. And hardly Garfield's first."

"We were...too harsh on him.  Our expectations were set to high and...well...the Princess took it hard.  I'm ashamed to admit that I was among those who showed him scorn for not living up to our expectations.  Not when we were the ones who were failing and needing help."

Pit was a good kid even then. He must've gotten caught up in the moment. He must have been as frustrated as the others. Though...on the other hand, some of them were pretty much expecting the Game Master to solve their problems for him. Others felt threatened by his presence and had no intention of giving up any glory.

"We...I think the phrase is...screwed up again.  While we were arguing amongst ourselves, Mother Brain took advantage of the power drain the Ultimate Warp Zone put on the defenses and sent her minions to kidnap Princess Lana.  After all we went through...we couldn't lose another because of our poor choices."

Pit's emotion was very clear and Asriel was picking up on it.

We'd already gotten seated and Mitzi was readying our orders.

"So...what happened?"

"Kevin got our heads on straight...I think that's the mortal phrase, yes?  And tried to rally us to chase after them to Metroid.  Unfortunately we...bickered over which was the correct route to Metroid, despite Kevin's advice.  And...well...shame on us again."

Now logic would said that Simon was the guilty party, but Pit didn't say how many generals were left. And some records had pointed fingers at other N-Team members.

Bunnie had known that Little Mac had a short temper at times when things were going badly. Some iterations of Link were known to be too arrogant for their own good. And even the Double Dragon brothers were known to argue as brothers do. One theory even stated that it always had to be Mario's way or the highway despite Luig's protests...but that's all these footnotes were: rumors. No one but Pit could honestly say who steered the team in the wrong direction.

For all I know, unti I actually met one of them in their prime, who could say who was a decent guy or gal and who needed to pump the narcissism brakes.

"We ended up in Kongo Land."

"As in...home of Donkey Kong?" Asriel noted.

"The same.  You never cross a 100 foot gorilla and not have Tartarus to pay.  After more fumbling around and after Kevin discovered what his Super Power Pad and Zapper could do, he managed to get us back on the path to Metroid.  He even saved my life from that big ape.

After catching a ride on volcanic meteors, we found our way to Metroid and got separated after rescuing the princess. After putting Kevin, her highness, and Kevin's dog, Duke through the corridors of Metroid, it seemed that Mother Brain had all the cards; Captain N had used up all his power getting to the core room."

"And...that's when the team came back together?"

"Very sharp, Asriel, my friend.  Maybe Kevin couldn't beat her alone, but we all could beat her as a team.  And so we did and we escaped.  It was too dangerous to finish her off.  And that ended our first victory.  One battle in a new war.  One which we could take our kingdom back."

"Awesome story, Pit."

"I thank you."

"Well.  Cake's getting cold.  Mitzi, let's get some ice cream to go with it."

"Sounds good to me!"

"You really are a veteran, Pit."

"Yeah...I guess I am.  Even though I don't look it."

"It may not be retirement, but you're definitely living the golden years, my loyal archer scout."

That brought the biggest smile to Pit's face I'd seen in a long time.

Sub-Entry 193:  "Gears of Wardrobe?":
"...I appreciate all your help.  I may be a housekeeping robot, but even I have my limits."

"Just glad to do our part, Roll." Asriel packed up the science equipment and placed it on the shelf.

"I never knew Dr. Light's household was this high-maintenance.  How does one man generate so much clutter?"

"Sometimes...he has help." Roll looked over her shoulder.

"Huh?  What are you looking at me for?" Rock pointed to himself.

Asriel sweatdropped.

"To tell the truth, most of this isn't his fault.  A lot of this is left over from years ago.  Back when--"

"Dr. Wily was his silent partner." I cut in. "Yeah.  Figured a lot of this was Albert's mess."

"Yeah." Roll looked to the side.

"Dark days soon followed after..." Pit said as he landed.

"I bet he left all kinds of crud behind before he walked out on him." Skeeter started juggling some of the parts.

"Careful with this!" Roll snapped.

"You break it, you bought it." Asriel mused smugly.

"Violet taught you that, didn't she?"

Goat Son shrugged with a wink and a grin...the same one I'd seen from Hyperdeath.

"Seriously, Skeeter.  Everything around here must have a story to it." Asriel unrolled a blueprint.

"Like this.  It looks like plans for Mega Man's systems."

"Wow.  I haven't seen those in forever."

Asriel looked over the schematics. "What do these notes mean that it this module shuts down at mode 9 and 10?"

Rock and Roll looked at each other.

"Dunno."

I surmised it had largely to do with Rock's last two adventures--"The Ambition Revived" and "Threat From Space". During those two attempts of Dr. Wily to conquer the world again, Mega Man went in with "bare bones abilities". Namely he was unable to use his charge shot or slide move.

Tango, the green robot cat that Dr. Light had weaponized in the Stardroid adventure was playing with a ball of yarn in the corner, pretty much staying out of our way. Roll happened upon the packaging he original came in before Thomas modified him for battle.

"Hmm." She smiled, glancing at the cat.

"You never really talk about Dr. Wily...you know before he went evil." Asriel looked over the scale model of Gamma.

"There wasn't much to say.  He seemed kind of...put off whenever we tried to help him out.  Almost like he was annoyed at our very presence."

"I think it had something to do with his objections to unresolved issues Thomas had with Blues.  Albert thought he grew to attached to a prototype that he viewed as just throw-away research.  Light never got over certain...guilt over mistakes when dealing with Blues before--"

I clammed up at that moment. Rock didn't know about the defect with Proto Man's energy core. Wily had replaced the faulty solar reactor with a nuclear reactor. It was sealed tight and well guarded, so outside of a REALLY big impact to it, nothing was going to set it off. But the power output was unstable and causing his main power systems to slowly erode.

"Before what?"

"Befooore...he ran away from home."

"But why did Blues do that?"

"I don't know.  I don't think Dr. Light knows, either."

Both lies.

"But that doesn't really tell us anything about Dr. Wily."

"Wily was kicked out of Robot University after...unethical experiments." I explained. Pit was only told partial details but...suffice to say Wily had no one but himself to blame. When he hit...if you'll pardon the pun...rock bottom--"

Asriel snickered. Rock kinda rolled his eyes.

"...Dr. Light gave him a second chance to do what he loved and work with robotics again.  He found ways to work around the ban that the scientific community placed on Wily that forbid him from working in the field or robotics.

The catch was that Wily had to be a silent partner; working behind the scenes. Light would be the face, the both of them would be the brains. At first the agreement was acceptable. But...when Project Robot Master began and more and more of Wily's work went into it...well...the attention Thomas was getting was going from obvious to painfully obvious. And Albert's ego suffered which led to his jealousy getting the best of him.

And then when the Robot Masters were revealed, that was the last straw."  I explained.

"I just can't imagine someone trying more then 10 times to take over the world.  That has to be beyond expensive to build that many castles and hideouts and have that many robots."

"It does.   That's why Wily steals or reprograms a lot of them.  The fourth batch were all Cossack's.  The sixth were stolen from the World Robot Fighting Tournament from other designers.  The ninth batch were all salvaged from the recycling facility where eight of Dr. Light's design were scheduled to be desposed of after their operating license's expiration dates.  And the tenth batch were all infected with the Roboenza Virus."

"For an evil guy he sure thinks economically."

"The minion robots he usually gets mass production models of in bulk and repurposes them.  I couldn't tell you were he gets the resources for the castles, though."

"Dude must of been a weirdo."

"He was...eccentric, yes." Pit tried to sugarcoat it.

"I mean, look at this.  Tell me this isn't Dr. Light's." Skeeter pointed to what looked like an old wardobe cabinet.

"Careful, Skeets.  You don't want to step into that and end up some place very cold while talking to a satyr." Asriel joked.

"Technically you're a satyr, goat-man."

"Nah.  All goat hybrid." Asriel was developing a cocky sense of humor around Vi. But then again it didn't compare to Skeeter's.

"Dibs one whaterver junk the mad doctor left behind."

"Skeeter, wait--"  Roll hollered before.

* CRASH*

"...nevermind.  Just more mess for me to clean up." She huffed, gripping her fists in a hunched over huff, like someone trying to lift a pair of hand weights or small barbells.

"Are you alright?" Pit asked as he and Asriel attempted to unbury the walrus from underneath the ocean of gears that fell out of the cabinet.

"That's one way to get...geared up." Okay, I couldn't resist the pun.

Asriel muffled a snicker.

"Ha ha.  It is to laugh." Skeeter smoldered.

"Well once thing's for sure.  Dr. Wily was a total slob." I shook my head at how unkempt the remaining items in the wardrobe were.

"Hmm?  What's this?"

I reached in and pulled out a rectangular boxy contraption...with what appeared to be one large gear and a pair of smaller gears--one red and one blue--inside, behind a glass window.

I examined the connector plugs on very spots on the machine.

"What is it?"

"I'm not sure.  But it has Dr. Wily's logo on it." I lowered an eyebrow. "The date on it suggests Wily's college years."

"Does it say anything on it?"

"Prototype...Double Gear System?"

"What do you think it does?"

"No idea...but if Wily made it it, whatever it was for was probably unethical." I sighed.

"I know it's probably a mistake, but I want to give him the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe he really was trying to make something decent back then."

His eyes were trading off between green and cyan. His patience and his kindness were in full overdrive. Asriel really did try to see the good in all people. Even insane industrialists.

"We could ask Dr. Light about it." Roll suggested.

"Yeah...but he seems pretty busy today.  I mean that's why we're cleaning up around here and staying out of his way.  I don't want to bother him." Asriel rubbed the back of his head.

"I see." I looked at the device. "If only Gadget or your brother were here.  They could make sense of it."

"Aren't you a scientist?  Don't you know what it is?" Skeeter asked.

"Yeah, but I majored in electronics.  This is fusion of various applied sciences including a form of mechanics I've never seen before.  And besides, it's not like I instictively know what someone else's research was used for."

I really did have to acknowledge my limits. I may have been smart enough to be Egon Spengler's and Emmett Brown's prodigy, but I didn't know everything about technology. I honestly felt like I'd have to discuss it with Thomas Light at a later day.

But really...I had this feeling that maybe Madam Fate or Lady Destiny was giving me a sign that this contraption was not ready to be discovered. Like I had happened upon something that would play into future events before its time.

I eyed the machine for a bit longer. There was a danger here I wasn't seeing. And furthermore...if this was Wily's research...why was it still here? Why hadn't he come back for it? I felt like I had a discussion with Violet about something related to this in the past...but...why wasn't it coming to me?

"Volt, you're spinning your wheels again.  Little joke there."

"You're on a roll, cinnamon roll."

"I try." Asriel shrugged with a grin.

"You're probably right.  We shouldn't be fooling around with this stuff.  Just because it was Dr. Wily's we shouldn't be tampering with it.  It's probably too dangerous to destroy, anyway."

"That's a good thought, Rock." Pit nodded.

I smirked at Pit's insistance to not be wasteful. For all we knew, this Double Gear System might come in handy one day.

"Well.  Back you go." I put it on the top shelf of the wardrobe.

"Now what are we going to do about these gears?"

"If they were bolts we could trade them it at Auto's.  Have him make some items." Rock suggested.

"Well right now, it's made a mess of the place, so...if you guys are done bantering, why not help a housekeeper clean it up?" Roll handed Rock a broom.

"Eheh...right, sis."

"Don't think you're getting out of it, Skeets.  You made the mess, you're pitching in."

"Awww maaaan!"

Sub-Entry 194 : "Fun For All at Jellystone Mall":
One last hurrah of summer, I suppose. I figured I'd end up doing this during August but...it ended up having to wait.

"Definitely the most unique mall I've ever seen.  If anything it's more like the set-up I'd expect to see at Comic-Con or the mother of all Renaissance Festivals."

"I suppose 'mall' is a bit misleading, but you know...plenty of food courts and shopping districts and stuff.  If anything it reminds me of Downtown Disney or International Street."

"On those Earth realms, right?"

"The Happiest Place on Earth." I said with a shrug. I hope I don't have to pay royalties for bringing up that slogan.

All kidding asside, Jellystone Mall was a little place in space and time I hadn't visited in a couple of decades. The 90's were a crazy time but y'know...everything 20 years old is like a boomerang. It always comes back in style.

Asriel glanced over the posters advertising the "Magilla Ice" concert. How Huckleberry Hound found a way to make the song "Oh My Darlin' Clementine" hip was beyond me. But I'd take it over "Snaggle Snake" any day. Heavy metal, indeed.

"Lively but peaceful.  I could get into this." Asriel admired the scene and its people.

"Hmm?" He raised an eyebrow, swearing he caught the sight of a little bear on a skateboard.

"Huh...he looks famliar." I rubbed my chin.

"So...I guess we're here for more reasons than just down time, right?"

"Yup.  A bit of a shopping list for a number of people back home.  Arlene wants us to pick something up at the Fitness Center and drop in on the Sports Courts.

Violet wants us to get some memory boards from the Invention Dimension computer store. Gyro asked us to bring him a smoothing from the Broccoli Republic's fountain machine.

Then there's some things we need to do at the Super Imovieplex, Lupe has some plants she needs us to pick up at the Plant Palace, we have an errand on stage at the ampitheater, and lastly, Jon wants us to pick up food from the Picnic Basket Food Court. Whew. I hope that's everything."

"Yikes.  Are just the two of us enough to get all this done?"

"Hope so.  I really should have asked around if anyone wanted to join us before we left."

As we walked around.

"So.  How about some background on this place?"

"Well it recently opened as the brainchild of "Diamond" Doggy Daddy; assisted by his son, Auggie Doggy.  And...well that's about all I know."

"Really?  It's rare for you to have limited knowledge on a place you've been to before."

"I...don't shop a lot." I shrugged.

"And I guess my excuse is I never learned to hang out like most teenagers." Asriel rubbed the back of his head.

"You got the look down pat, though."

"You think so?"

"Probably not the best person to ask about pop fashion sense but...you look alright to me."

It was about that time the two of us about got hit and run by the ugliest looking modified bike with the unruliest punk riding it. And a shaggy-looking dog in the seat behind him. A two-seater with bat-wing fins, and a dangerous orange needle-spike in front. Pukey-looking purple color. It was built like a low-rider motorcycle. This thing was a nightmare on wheels.

"Out of my way, miscreants!"

"Hey!"

"Rude dude!"

"Dick Dastardly has no time to waste on terminally uncool!  Right, Muttley?"

The dog gave the wheeze-iest sounding snicker I'd ever heard.

"Ugh..." I picked myself up off the ground while Asriel was already on his feet.

"Someone should complain about the trash in this place." I growled.

"Here's hoping we don't run into HIM again."

But our luck wasn't going to improve for a while. It would only be a matter of time before the Mall security caught up with us...and gave us the fourth degree."

"...I've got my eye on you.  I make it a protocol to profile every suspicious person that comes in this mall and you two look like troublemakers."

"Really?  Really?" Asriel's eyes were toggling between yellow and orange. His justice and courage were definitely up and he was not having it from another Al Dente archetype.

"I'm sure there's a rule violation over color-changing eyes.  Get yourself to an eye doctor before I cite you for something."

"Yeah, nevermind the punk on the bicycle from the bad place who darn near ran us down, Officer...Smythe?"

"That's SMITH!" Smith snapped.

"You done yet?  You're hassling us when we could be out shopping like good customers."

"Fine.  You're clear to go.  But don't let me catch you doing something that steps out of line!"

"Jeeze, what a hardcase." Asriel grumbled.

"Rent-a-cops these days.  You give them a badge and they think they're Dick Tracy."

"Who's Dick Tracy?"

"...wow, I feel old."

Our first stop landed us at the Fitness Center. Sure enough...

"...I can feel my muscles cramping up already." I complained. "This is Sarge's kind of place."

"We're going to be here for a while." Asriel looked at the rows of treadmills and weight-training machines, and whatnot.

"What is it we're even here to pick up?"

"Arlene says she pre-ordered a "Gruntmaster 9000" and it just came it.

"Ah.  More features than the 6000, huh?" Asriel joked.

"Uh...actually, yeah." I shrugged.

A while of searching through the fitness equipment store part of the center.

"This is hopeless.  Azzy, do you see a clerk around?"

He shrugged.

"Hey, y'all.  Maybe I can help y' out?" I heard the Southern drawl behind me.

In a white dress wtih a stylish belt, matching white go-go boots, and a pink jacket she stood. A bear hybrid with a very Cindi Lauper-ish top-knot in her big 90's hair.

"My name's Cindi.  I'm a regular round these parts.  Y'all look like you could use a hand."

"That would be nice--"

It was about that time Cindi was shoved out of the way by another female bear hybrid; same height and stature but honey mustard yellow-ish brown fur and even wilder punk hair...if that was all possible.

"Well hello there, handsome." She strolled right up to Asriel who I could immediately see was uncomfortable with this. "I can get you to where you need to go.  Just leave it to Roxy."

"Excuse me!  I was helping them out." Cindi scoffed, irrately.

"You?  Clearly you can't see this dreamboat doesn't need help from an amateur."

"Why you--"

"So tell me.  How can I help you--"

I rolled my eyes.

"I'm...sorry, but Miss Cindi did kinda ask first.  I appreciate you being helpful, though." Asriel headed off as Cindi led the way to the right clerk.

"Oooooh!" Roxy snarled in a huff then stormed off.

"Teenagers." I shrugged and put my hands in my labcoat pockets.

A bit later...

"...okay.  One Gruntmaster 9000 loaded into an E.N.G.I.N.E. dot."

We were at the Sports Courts where not only was it a mini sized warehouse mall full of sports equipment for sale, but also featured indoor...well...basketball courts, batting cages, jungle gyms, and more. And yup...lots of big screen TV's showing sports.

"I think I need to sit down." I moaned.

"Easy there, Volt.  We won't be long." Asriel comforted while bouncing a soccer ball between his knees.

We loaded up on the equipment Arlene requested. All the while I heard a distinct song coming from somewhere nearby in the place. It was a rare thing when I could pick out one guy singing over the sounds of hustle and bustle in a sports center.

"Hmm?" I looked at where a blue...canine hybrid was taking it easy on an air matress. Black floppy ears, orangish backwards ball cap, orange turtleneck, under a zipped up blue jacket. Huh...this guy seemed...famliar.

But more famliar was his song.

"Oh mah darlin', oh my darlin', oh my daaaarlin' Clemeniiiine..."

"Huh." I shrugged and decided to let sleeping dogs lay. By that time Asriel had already finished the shopping without me.

"Off to the theater, Volt."

"Yeah, sure..." I know I've met that guy before...at least in some other form.

Outside, the same bear on the skateboard rolled by.

"Hmm." I felt like I should keep an eye on him...like he'd lead us to something important later on.

At the Imovieplex...weird name.

"You have any idea how much trouble it is to find a theater like this anymore?"

"Onlne streaming services are hammering the nail in the coffin of cinema entertainment."

We headed in to pick up the stacks of gift certificates. On our way inside, a pink...pantherish hybrid exited;  clad in jeans, a yellow shirt, and a white and red letterman jacket (Huh...overly familar fashion sense.  I'd have to talk to Pit about this.) passed by us. He was in a conversation with himself over the movie he just saw. A regular Gene Siskel or Roger Ebert, I was guessing.

There was something very...flamboyant about the way he spoke. It was obviously very showbiz inspired...but it was more than that. Like a drama club member doing serious after-school extra credit. A future thespian here, I could tell.

"...Heavens to Merggatroid!  A five-star, first class blockbuster even!  My hat's off to the director.  Truly a tour-de-force!  But with all good things, they must come to an end.  Exit...stage left!"

"He seems happy." Asriel mused. "Maybe we should see what movie he just came out of."

"Later.  When we have more time to spare." I shrugged it off.

Eventually...

"I guess we're done here."

"Yeah, I guess so--"  Asriel stopped abruptly. "Uh-oh..." He checked the magnetic harness on his backpack device.

"What is it?"

"I think I lost my NX Switchboard.  Oh man...Vi's gonna kill me and then Nikita's going to yell at her for it."

"Okay, let's think.  Where were we when we last saw it?"

"That's just it...I don't know where we were.  It's so compact I often forget I'm wearing it."

"Well, it gives off a magnetic signature, right?  I could sense it if we got close to it."

"Yeah...but in a place this big?  That could take all day." Asriel frowned, clearly flustered. Yup. He was still a teenager, despite how mature he'd gotten in five years.

"Excuse me.  You sound like you're in trouble." I heard the voice and turned around. It was the skateboarding bear we'd seen all day. Shorts, yellow shirt...and a purple bowtie?

"My name's Boo-Boo."

Boo-Boo? It couldn't be...I know I've met...this person on a different world.

"I work at the L.A.F."

"Laugh?" I questioned.

"Lost and Found.  A junior member of the security here.  Maybe what you lost got turned in over there."

"Maybe.  It couldn't hurt to try there." Asriel shrugged.

And we were off.

Yup. This looked like a Lost And Found alright  And to my surprise, all the people we'd met on our tour of the mall were there. They all worked here, too? But there was one other I didn't immediately recognize...but I had that same level of familarity as the others.

"Yo, Yogi!" Boo-Boo called out to the one I'd singled out.

Okay. His name was Yogi...wait...Yogi as in...!"

Said bear was clad in a green and yellow jacket with an all too familiar hat and necktie with purple and white sneakers. And he was munching on a plate full of hot dogs with a soda cup nearby bearing...heh..."bear-ing"...the name Picnic Basket Food Court.

"What's the haps, Boo-Boo, my bear-type buddy?"

"We have some people who lost something pretty fancy.  Was anything...high-tech turned in earlier today?"

"High tech like a computer geek with specs, yah-ha-ha-hee!"

Okay, he had a sense of humor. That was good."

"Well...it's kind of like a hoverboard--"

"Don't worry your horns my man, Yogi's the man with the plan.  Your fortune is all good when a smarter-than-the-average bear is in the neighborhood!"

Note to self. Don't let him meet Violet.

Yogi rooted around in the back room of the office before returning...spinning the compressed hoverboard on his finger with no effort.

"It's all rad, in the Lost And Found, dad!  Your state-of-the-art hover ride was inside.  Some nice dude was kind enough to return it and even provide some food."

"Golly!  You're a lifesaver, Mr. Yogi Bear."

"That's what we do here at Jellystone Mall.  Be cool and be kind and be courteous to all!"

That was when I heard something splash down in a puddle after an unruly crash.

"Drat!  Drat!  And DOUBLE DRAT!"

And then there was that obnoxious dog laugh. We all caught sight of Dick Dastardly crash landing in the fountain, distracted by the prospect of finding Asriel's priceless machine.

"I could have been rich if I had only gotten my hands on that!  Drat!  Drat!  Drat!"

Another laugh...which was quickly silenced when Dick emptied the water out of his hat over Muttley's head.

"Grrr...razza-frazzin'...!" I heard the dog grumble under his breath.

"Well...all's well that ends well." Asriel shrugged and hopped on his NX Switchboard as it nanotomically decompressed.

We bid farewell to our new friends and headed home.

Sub-Entry 195:  "Once Again, No Sax, Please.  We're Still Egyptian":
Mental note to self. Violet needs to be smacked again for tampering with my data logs. How does that rabbit manage to continuously ride the border of bad taste and lewd innuendo?

Nevertheless, it began as a normal day in town until Queen Brooke summoned Asriel and me to her chambers. Due to unforseen circumstances, Sally was fortunately able to join us. She insisted that Lupe come with. And unfortunately we couldn't keep Violet away so Bunnie joined us, bringing the number up to six.

"M'lady." Each of us bowed...including Vi after some *ahem*...gentle coaxing.

"At ease, Doctor and company." She said as she ordered the guards and retainers out of the room. Yup. Our ears only.

"You are probably wondering why I summoned you."

"Thought crossed our minds, Brookie-cookie--"

* THUD*  Violet found herself face-down after Bunnie's own take on Shinigami Chop hit home.

A low growl from Brooke. Only a couple people could get away with calling her that. And Violet wasn't one of them. What was she thinking trying to get away with something like that?

"Apologies, Brooke-domou."

"If I may continue." Brooke narrowed her eyes.

"Please." I responded.

"Earlier today, the Mirandian Mage Academy was summoned to investigate an unusual phenomenon in Augustgrad."

"Desert territory?" My ears perked up. If this meant what I think it did, I'd be a happy camper in such a hot, dry, sandy place.

"Indeed.  In fact, right in the middle of the desert."

"What kind of phenomenon?" Sally asked.

"See for yourself." Brooke cast a spell, opening up a spherical vision of Augustgrad. The phenominon in question became obvious.

"Is...that a...castle?" Asriel raised an eyebrow.

"Creepy-looking.  From the state it's in, it must be rent-controlled." Vi joked.

"I have an ominous vibe about it." Lupe commented.

Bunnie narrowed her eyes. But it was me who was the most stunned. I recognized it.

"It looks like the one out of CastleVania." Asriel cocked his head.

"You're close.  But wrong.  In fact, I don't know what it's doing on this world, let alone in Augustrad."

"Then you are familiar with it?"

"Indeed.  Ultra Crew, load up and prepare to deploy to Augustgrad immediately.  We may be in for more than we bargained for."

"Dangerous?"

"No...but I guarantee I'll need to raid the aspirin bottle by the time we get back..." I groaned.

"Off with you then, Dr. Arcade and crew."

"Vi, get RDI-001 and WLS-002 ready to deploy in hovercraft mode.  It'll be faster than trying to cross the desert on wheels."

And so...

"...everyone dressed appropriately and carrying enough water and supplies?" Lupe asked.

"We're good." Sally gave a thumbs up.

"Tell us, Commander.  What are we up against?"

"It'll become clear soon enough.  Oh.  And brace for bad jokes, puns, and Transylvanian humor...that sounds oddly very British for some reason."

"Huh?" Asriel scratched his head as he lowered his sport goggles to keep the sand out of his eyes.

"Ah good.  You're here.  We've gone over it with a fine toothed comb and can't pin down any known magic aura.  There seems to be evidence of ancient mechanisms though." Sarina reported.

"Not to mention the weirdest wall-mounted cuckoo clock I've ever seen." Marcel crossed his arms.

"You tried to swipe it, didn't you?" Violet teased.

Marc just shrugged, not even denying it.

I took scans with my equipment while Violet bantered with the others.

"Lupe.  You not sensing what I'm not detecting?"

"No lifeforms inside."

"Marcel?"

"If there's anything supernatural in there, it doesn't feel like anything my necromancy has ever come across." Marcel frowned as Josquin floated by. I caught sight of Kid the Cat drifting in and out of windows around the towers of the castle. After a bit he got boared and reported in to the rest of the task mages.

After a bit of rubbing my temples to prepare myself.

"We're going in."

And so we did. Sure enough it was everything I'd seen in worlds like CastleVania. Every creepy castle I'd ever been in, this one was hitting all the tropes and familiar notes.

We explored, not finding anything.

"Yikes." Asriel gaped at what looked like a behemoth-sized hold through the wall next to the doorway into what looked like a banquet room.

"What do you suppose did THIS?"

It was all coming back to me.

"Commander." Bunnie pointed to something in the library once we got that far.

"Aha..." I narrowed my eyes.

"Yo!  Check this out." Sally blazed in before blazing out again. We followed her light contrails to a portrait gallery.

I facepalmed.

"Yup.  No doubt about it..."

"Uhh...Commander?"

"That's...a lot of..."

"I know." I sighed.

I kept my eyes trained on one portrait in particular. After putting all the clues together I knew what the next move was.

"So...what now?"

"We take the castle back to where it came from and return it to its owners."

"Wait, WHAT?  How are we supposed to do that?" Asriel blinked.

"I believe the Commander knows that there's more to this place than meets the eye." Bunnie pondered.

Sure enough I got to a cellar area where there was what looked like an open coffin standing upright.

"Holy Bram Stoker, Commander." Violet joked.

"It's...just a gaping hole inside." Asriel observed.

"Oh it's more than that." I noted. "Sally, keep an eye on the cuckoo clock upstairs.  We're about to take a trip off world.  And don't worry.  I have a means of returning us home."

"If you say so."

"Everyone...hold on." I approached the coffin...then ran into it.

"I just hope I can make this work..."

As I entered, the coffin strangely lit up...but not with an evil aura or glow...but more like the chaser lights of a carnival ride.

"Uh...is that normal?" Sally raised an eyebrow.

"Everyone...something is happening." Bunnie warned.

Outside...

"What the heck?!?" Sarina gasped as everyone stepped the heck back...as the castle seemed to collapse in upon itself like a weird reverse anime starburst glint...leaving no trace behind.

"Yeah.  Why not?" Marcel wrinkled his nose. "Makes as much sense as everything else about this day.

And so...

"I believe...we have...landed."

"Landed?  But where--"  Lupe asked before her eyes widened as she looked out the window.

"This is...!"

"Let me take a wild guess." I cut in. "By any chance...sandy desert with a pyramid next to us?"

"Yes...how did you know?   I mean it's not Augustgrad--"

"Yup.  We're off world.  And in Egypt.'

"Egypt?" Asriel questioned.

"We should be running into the residents of the castle soon."

"Shouldn't you start explaining so we're not all left in the dark, Volt?" Asriel asked as everyone followed me out the front gates...into the sandy desert.

I put my hands in my pockets.

"Three...two...one--"

"Hey.  That mirage is back again."

Lupe whirled at the sight of two camels. Not hybrids...but speaking Common?

"Hmm.  Curious." Bunnie noted the sets of tracks leading to and from the pyramid to the spot the castle had landed. "This castle has been here before."

"Wait, wait, wait.  Are you saying this castle can teleport?" Sally asked.

I nodded.

"Cooool!" She gave a thumbs up.

"Speak for yourself." Violet fanned herself with one of Bunnie's tessans.

"They shouldn't have gotten far--"

"HEYYYY!" I heard the voice behind me. I took a deep breath, sighed, and turned around.

"Volt...that looks like--"

"Soooo...I guess I know where Howard wound up after his cameos in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies." Violet joked.

"That's not Howard the Duck." I growled as Bunnie thwapped her.

"It's been a while...  I knew it was only a matter of time before I crossed paths again with the one named...Duckula." I placed my hands on my hips as I came face to face with the green-feathered, black-haired, tuxedo-wearing form of the last incarnation of the infamous family lineage.

"Hey heyyyy!  COUNT Duckula." He corrected.

"Count Duckula?" Lupe questioned.

"I know you...you're that werewolf that warned me not to go to Egypt in search of...uh...in search of...er....hey, lovely weather we're having--"

I reached behind him and grabbed the item he was hiding behind his back.

"Really?  Really?" I held it up.

"It's a...saxophone?" Asriel looked confused.

"The Mystic Saxophone." I smoldered. "Trust me when I of all people tell you a saxophone is more trouble than it's worth."

"Will someone please explain what's going on?"

"Let's get inside, first."

Once inside, I spun the tale.

"Castle Duckula.  Home for centuries to a dynasty of vicious, vampire ducks.  The Counts of Duckula."

"I hate this story." Duckula complained.

I cleared my throat.

"Legend has it, these fowl beings--"

Asriel chuckled at the pun.

"...fowl beings can be destroyed by a stake through the heart or exposure to sunlight."

"Standard vampire fare." Violet shrugged.

I glared at the interruption.

"This does NOT suffice, however.  For they may be brought BACK to life by means of a secret rite, once a century, when the moon is in the eighth house of the--"

"Just get on with it." Duckula cut in, not wanting to delve into the unholy specifics.

Asriel stared for a moment. "But...if he's a vampire like Mina...where are his fangs?"

"Oh.  Um.  Funny story." Duckula responded.

"The latest reincarnation did not..."run"...according to plan." I narrowed my eyes at the bottle of ketchup on the end of a shelf full of different kinds of blood samples.

Asriel chuckled nervously at the pun.

"So...that means...?"

"It means I'm a vegetarian." Duckula was suddenly sipping on what appeared to be carrot juice. Wait, where did that come from?

"By the way...where are your servants?"

"Yeah, for a Count, I'd expect you to have a lot more people waiting on you hand and foot."

"They'll be along shortly--"

Suddenly the castle was rocked by a terrible crash from the front entrance.

"Oh my go--"

"That'd be Nanny?" I slumped down in my chair.

"That'd be Nanny." Duckula did the same.

"Here I am, Duckie-poo!"

"Duckie-poo?" Violet mused.

I signaled for Vi to cool it.

We were soon gazing upon the hulking frame of the biggest friggin' hybrid hen in old maid attire that could have possibly existed. Her right arm was in a sling. It was obvious she was not very bright.

"Hi, Nanny." I waved, rather pleasantly, while trying to hide how much I was not trying to be patronizing...not that she'd recognize it. She had a good heart but...it might as well be said she was a living bulldozer with a klutzy streak.

"Ohhh!  I didn't know you had company!  I'll draw you a bath later, m'lord!"

"Very good, Nanny.  For now just...try to stay out of trouble."

"Ohhh, I know!  I'll go fix us some pastries! Be right back!" And with that she crashed through another wall, leaving a gaping hole.

"So you came to the Temple of Ra in light of the prophecy fortelling the day that the priestess, Upshi rises."

"Who?"

"Ra." I should have known Violet was setting me up.

"And Upshi rises?" She followed up before going into a song and dance bit.

"Hoo-rah!  And up-she-rises!  Hoo-rah!  And-up-she-rises!" Violet performed before Bunnie whapped her.

"If you don't mind I've already driven off that bridge." Duckula complained.

Moments later, in skulked a stiff, hunch-backed vulture being in a dark suit and tie.

"Sincere apologies, sir."

"Igor, what kept you?"

"I'm sorry m'lord.  Keeping pace with Nanny when she's worrying about you has become the equivalent of a marathon."

I silenced Violet before she could make light of the obvious cliche in the room. If she made a reference to his world's version of Frankenstein, I was cutting off her Pocky allowance.

"Igor." I said flatly, crossing my arms.

"Master Arcade, you again grace us with your presence.  Terrible shame that you cannot be like the other werewolves."

"Riiiiight.  You just want to watch them tear victims limb from limb to fill a few casks of blood.  You haven't changed at all.  Morbid as ever."

"I do aim to please."

"Please who?" I wrinkled my nose. Suffice to say Igor rubbed me the wrong way. Granted I had a sense of humor about the stereotypes and bad rep some species of werewolves had, but Igor despite everything sounding sugarcoated felt far more insultin than anything I'd heard from the hate-ocracy of the Nature's Call organization.

Jon would take every ounce of restraint to keep from ripping his head off.

"Well, don't think I'm ungrateful.  I'm so happy you managed to return the castle to us.  It would have been just murder getting back to Transylvania on foot."

"Murder, sir.  Ohhhhh savor the thought." Igor mused.

"He creeps me out." Sally whispered to Lupe.

"Unfortunately, the Mage Academy is going to insist that I have the Mystic Saxophone confiscated and locked away in a vault."

"Aww.  After all I went through to get our hands on it."

"Sorry, Count.  The castle was on Augustgrad soil.  Yadda-yadda.  Mages probably want to cite you for a number of questionable artifacts in the castle, so...to cut a long story short, you're actually breaking even when you could probably be in a few million drachmas in debt in penalties and such."

"Well, when you put it that way..."

"Very shrewdly played, m'lord." Igor said dryly.

At about that time we heard the distinct sound of what could only be described as four bodies hitting the ground outside.

"What was that?" Lupe asked.

"Probably Nanny making pastries again."

"...yikes.  Does she use entire bricks worth of flour or just bricks in general?" Sally muttered before sharing a knuckle-bump with Violet.

"It would not surprise me." Igor murmured.

"We must be returning home now.  As must you be; Transylvania awaits." Bunnie stood up. "We thank you, Duckula-hakushaku for your hospitality."

"Aww.  We have to go already?  We haven't even introduced ourselves." Asriel shrugged.

"Another time, Goat Son.  Another time." I acknowledged.

We exited the castle.

I checked my watch. "The recall mechanism should kick in in about 3...2...1..."

And there it went.

"That was a strange experience."

"Indeed it was."

As it would stand, we'd be seeing them sooner than we thought.

Sub-Entry 196: "Goose, Goose, Duck."
"...I'm telling ye' for the last time, Gyro!  NO MORE ROBOTS!" And with that Scrooge McDuck slammed the limosine door shut.

"Duckworth.  Back to the Manor."

"The pedal is to the metal, sir."

Gyro sighed as he carried the box of parts over.

"I guess I'll have plenty of downtime to resume my duties at UCIAT.  At least until Mr. McDuck has everything repaired from this latest setback."

"It's okay, Uncle Gyro.  You did your best.  At least you weren't fired."

"Just on extended vacation until the difference in damages  comes out of my salory."

"Don't let it get you down, Dr. Gearloose.  Edison could wallpaper a room with his failures."

"I guess you're right."

"Cheer up, Doc.  I have just the project for you to work on while you're here.  Gizmo Duck sent over his suit to be serviced and tuned up, since you're its creator and all."

"Well, I suppose I could take a look--"

That was when Asriel came running it at the moment.

"Azzy?  What's wrong?  You look frazzled." Gadget scratched her head.

"We need your brother here."

"Volt?  How come?"

"It's back.  They're back."

"They?"

It didn't take long to figure out what he meant.

"...at least he landed it on the outskirts of the city.  It would be a big problem if he landed it on an existing building." I observed as I looked up at Castle Duckula.

"Sequels.  Am I right?" Violet mused as she arrived on the scene with Mitzi, Gadget, Sally, and Rotor."

"They're back?  Why are they back?" Asriel joined me as I parked the 57' Chevy.

"Listen...anyone hear that?" MItzi fluttered her mouse ears a bit.

"...I do." I said after a moment. Those screams of anguish and panic were unmistakable.

"Well this is highly unusual." Gyro landed his makeshift helicopter just as Pit caught up to us, having caught sight of us on his scouting rounds.

"Gyro?  What are you doing here?"

"Someone tagged along with Gadget."

At that moment Lil' Bulb climbed out of her backpack and purred.

"Oh, you little devil.  You stowed away in my pack!  What a happy surprise."

"I saw everyone rushing toward this place and I decided to investigate." Pit explained.

"Well.  We're all here now.  Let's find out what's happening."

"And why it sounds like something woke the dead inside." Mitzi crossed her arms.

"Bring on the challenge." Sally cracked her knuckles.

"Brace yourselves." Mitzi agreed.

"Big brother..." Gadget hid behind me.

I could hear it on the other side of the door.

"It's coming.." I charged up my hands with electricity.

Suddenly the door burst open and Count Duckula came running out in a screaming panic.

"Whoah.  Where's the fire, Lord of the Castle--"  I started before he charged past me.

"What's got him all in a tizzy?" Mitzi asked.

"DUCKULAAAAAAAAAA!" I heard the German accented bellow.

"Oh no...what's HE doing here?!" I jumped back.

ANd there I saw the form of...

"Who the heck is that?!" Asriel got out of the way as he jumped on the NX Switchboard.

"Rude dude!" Sally fired up the burners as Mitzi turned on the Jet Anklets.

"Who is this man?!" Asriel pointed toward the goose in the spectacles and plaid Sherlock Holmes-ish getup, complete with spats...holding some kind of modified rifle with a trumpet-bell barrel. Sticking out of the barrel with a sharpened wooden stake.

"Professor Von Gooseling." I snarled.

"You!  Foul servant of Duckula!  I know you're harboring that demonic blight on the world!  Abandon your ties to him or join him in oblivion!!!"

"I don't know who you are, but you're being a real jerk coming into our town and making demands." Asriel pointed an NX Saber.

"Your town?!" Von Gooseling looked around wildly. "Blasphemous creature!  This is a city of sin and vice!  The Devil's Den before my very feet!  Monsters everywhere!"

"Is he for real?" Sally asked.

"I hesitated to call him a man, Sally."

"Don't hurt my friends!" Gadget yelped before ducking behind me.

"You there!"

"Me?" Gyro pointed to himself.

"You seem like a capable man of machinations.  I need my weapons improved to deal with this abominous plague that grips this very world."

At that time.

"Uh.  Something I can help you with?" Fenton asked as Duckula all but flew past him.

"Keep that maniac away from me!  How many times do I have to tell him!  I'm a vegetarian!  Just the sight of blood makes me queezy!"

"Lies!  All lies!" Von Gooseling leveled the weapon as Duckula shoved past Gyro, knocking him over, and knocking his spectacles off.

"Faraday's Ghost!  I can't see!" Gyro groped for his glasses on the ground.

"Psst!  Now or never, Mr. Crackshell." Asriel tried to warn.

"Out of the way, miscreant!  Anyone who dares to shield this fowl being of darkness is enemy to all that is good!"

"Blabbering Blatherscype!!!"

"Here he comes..." Asriel watched as the transformation took place.

"Never fear!  Gizmo Duck is here!"

"What is this infernal mechanization?  A vile suit of armor from Castle Duckula's museum of ancient relics?!" Von Gooseling's gun fired, sending the stake in Duckula's direction...but it quickly found itself bouncing off the metal shell of Gizmo Duck's chest plate.

"Hah-haaaah!  No mere weapon can pierce my armored shell of justice!   I ask you, for the good of all, stand down crazed citizen!  You fight a battle of indignation but you judge this man wrongfully!"

"Yeah!  What the big scary robot guy said!" Duckula peeked out from behind Fenton.

"Back!  Back away, I say!" Von Gooseling backed away. "I don't fear the likes of you, evil mechanical knight!  I will have the scourge of Duckula ended before this day is done or my name is not Professor Von Gooseling--"

The professor was cut off as he tripped and fell over Gyro who managed to find his glasses at that moment.

"Ah!  That's better.  Huh?  What's this?"

"Uncle Gyro!  You're a hero!"

"I'm what?"

"DUCKIE-POO!  I'M COMING, DUCKIE-POO!"

"Oh boy!  Clear the runway!  She's coming!" Sally warned before the crash sent both gates flying off the castle entrance and the lumbering form of Nanny charged forth.

Gadget had managed to pull Gyro to safety as Gizmo Duck rolled backward a bit.

"Oh no...!" Von Gooseling whined before Nanny tripped, fell and...

* SPLAT*

"Oooh.  That is going to leave a mark." Asriel cringed.

"I do not envy that dude." I grimaced.

"Serves him right.  This is no place for bullies." Mitzi grumbled.

"Master Duckula!  Are you unharmed?" Igor came out of the castle next.

"Just fine, Igor.  A lot of help you were!"

"Sincerest apologies, m'lord."

Mitzi and Sally wasted no time in hogtying Von Gooseling who had a loooot of words to shout, most of which I dared not repeat.

"Ohhh!  Cover your ears, Duckie-poo!  I don't want you hearing such bad language."

"You know nothing he's said so far is an actual swear word." Sally shrugged.

"Just roll with it." I shook my head.

"You were awesome, Gizmo Duck." Asriel gave a thumbs-up.

"I'm so proud of you, Uncle Gyro!" Gadget tacklehugged him.

We all got caught up in the moment so much we didn't notice.

"Good work, Heinrich!" I heard Von Gooseling say triumphantly as the severed ropes dropped from above. I immediately saw the ladder leading up the the German dirigible in the sky.

"You haven't seen the last of me, Duckula!  I will return to exterminate the vampire plague of this world!"

And the airship sailed off into a warp zone that quickly sealed up.

"Huh."

I have to look into this link between our worlds another time.

"Are you okay, Duckie-poo?"

"I'm fine, Nanny.  Thanks for asking."

"It would seem all is well again.  We should take our leave from this...pleasant place..." Igor seemed noticeably uncomfortable at the setting of our world. Sometimes I felt like he belonged more in the Adams Family than being the full-time butler to the Duckula can.

"After all that excitement I'm parched and famished.  I could go for some broccoli sandwiches and a carrot juice."

"Oh!  I have just the thing." Gyro opened up his lunch box and thermos and split its contents."

"Hey, this guy's alright.  I just love your taste is cuisine."

"It's a family recipte.  It's amazing what you can do with collard greens and bok choy with a little bit of arugala."

"Tell me more..."

"Oh brother." I shook my head.

"I think I'm going to be sick." It was too much for even Mitzi.

"I wouldn't even put that into one of my power shakes or smoothies." Sally crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out.

"Mortals...still have strange eating habits.

"Yes.  Yes, some of us do." I agreed with Pit.

After squaring things away with the Miranda Border Patrol and such, we let the Duckula clan return to the castle, just in time for it to warp off back to Transylvania.

Sub-Entry 197: "U Can't Touch the Hammerman":
A decade ago, I started seeing the emergence of the boomerang effect known as nostalgia. And I knew even then it wasn't a new concept. People have felt nostalgic when the best years of their lives come back in some form or another; be it the friends, the pop culture, or other that made up childhood and teenage years.

For me the word started having meaning with the return of the 1980's in the form of pop culture and ways of that era coming back a mere 20 years later.

But ask yourself what happens in the ten years after something goes out of style before the next ten years brings it back in style? Well...logically it's been 20 years later from a different era and that's what's in style again.

So by that logic...every decade, what's in style at the time is joined by something that was in style in the previous generation. Something is always cool or cool again.

Having said that, everyone around me as well as myself was catching the boomerang of the 1990's in full force. And if anything at least one data log entry in this set was setting up what could b ea pattern. That said, these entries personified and exemplified the very essence of the 1990's. And when it came to the 90's, two pop stars in the genre of rap music reigned supreme at the time.

The first went by the name of Vanilla Ice. While I'd be no stranger to Ice Ice Baby and Ninja Rap...it was the second name that would spawn a place off world that just overflowed with the 90's...at least until that Adams Family movie gave the rapper who made parachute pants famous a claim to fame for a recognizable movie theme song.

Anyway...I'll get to the point. Once again, Azzy and I found ourselves off world for some unusual hijinx with an unlikely hero.

So why were we doing this?

"...and Prisma asked me to be a junior correspondent for her.  As a roving reporter, I guess I can appreciate the hard work she puts in to getting the facts."

"But...why off world?"

"Well...she suggested I report on what I know.  And what I know is Superheroes.  Violet named dropped this guy that might be worth checking out."

"What guy?"

"Hammerman, of course!"

"Hammerman?" Admittedly my knowledge of 90's era worlds in the Space-Time Continuum had gotten rusty. I'd glossed over my research over them in recent years with the explosion of 80's era worlds making a comeback within our organization. KOMMAND insisted I strike while the iron was hot, so I did. But now...

"You're going to have to get me up to speed, Azzy."

"Let me 'break it down' for you real quick:

Whenever there's a crime, some crooks are gonna do time! They all better beware, cause the Hammerman will be there!"

Wait...was Asriel...rapping?! Violet and I...were going to have a sit-down. Soon.

"Here's how it started, a long time ago.  The Legend of the Hammer and how it began to grow!

He was given magical shoes, from a hip-hop magical dude! Together they had power! They stood up for what was right! But Gramps was gettin' old and he couldn't keep up the fight!

So Gramps and his daughter, they went out on the road! To find a man they knew could jam, who was worthy of the load!

They met a guy..."  Asriel paused like he couldn't remember part of the lyrics"  "...um...who was dancing every night!  He helped the kids, every-day!  His heart was out of sight!"

Was he really buying into this?

"So Gramps opened up the bag, and took out the magical shoes!  He set them on the ground and they soon began to groove!  The shoes knew at once, they had finally found their man!  They hopped right on his feet and he became HAMMERMAN!"

"Okay, time out, Goat Son.  Magical, talking shoes?  You're kidding, right?"

"Hey. Magical goat monster once upon a time."

"I'm not doubting magic...just...magic...shoes.  That talk."

"You'd be surprised what kind of strange monsters existed in the Underground...or...maybe you already know...but you get the point, right?"

I think Asriel was in full comic book worship mode. Well...what could it hurt but to entertain his notion?

Anyway...I continued driving the 57' Chevy down the bridge and into the city through the various streets until I came to the corner of Hip-Hop Street and Rap Avenue. Weird.

After I decided I needed a break driving, I parked close to a Youth Center.

"Well, "Scoops", where do we start looking to find a superhero?"

"Um...I guess I really didn't think this through." Asriel scratched his head. "I mean...Prisma usually has this reporter's instinct to smell a story."

"We could be here for a while--"

At that moment I bumped into a tall African-American dude in glasses. I couldn't help but notice his haircut...the stripes trimmed into the sides; a very 1990's fashion statement if memory served.

"Sorry about that.  Wasn't watching where I was going."

"It's cool."

"Dr. Arcade.  This is my friend Asriel."

"Stanley Burell.  New in town?"

"Yeah, something like that.  My friend here is kinda on the search for a superhero."

"You don't say?"

"Yeah...he's doing a favor for a friend to get a story for the newspaper.  I think he's reading too many comic books lately."

"Hey now." Asriel protested.

"It's all good.  Just keep following your dreams and pursuing what you like."

"Psst!  Stanley!"

If I had been in werewolf form my ear would have cocked in the direction of the elderly whisper.

I caught him out of the corner of my eye. Was this that...Gramps that Asriel mentioned?

"Gotta split.  Maybe we'll catch up later."

"Maybe.  But we probably won't be in town long."

No slight against Asriel. But I thought this was a wild goose chase. I mean, Asriel already knew at least one superhero. He could have asked to interview Fenton Crackshell......buuuuuut...then I remember the whole secret identity thing. He couldn't exactly go there.

Which made me immediately wonder if this story-hunting was doomed from the start.

Well. We were off and Asriel was quickly interviewing people. But to his disappointment the info he got was...limited.

"Oh man..." He sighed.

"Chin up, goat son.  You can't enjoy success in everything.  I mean...failures exist for us to learn from, right?"

"Yeah...I guess you're right." Asriel huffed as we passed by an electronics store...but he did a double take when he saw the news report.

"There!  We might have a lead at the bridge!"

"Huh?"

"It said that a tanker exploded and damaged the bridge!  If Hammerman were to show up it would definitely be there!" Asriel dragged me toward it.

"Hey!  I know you're fearless and bold and all...you get that from Sally...but there's a thing called common sense!  Normal people don't run toward a disaster!"

"Since when are we normal?" Asriel mused, rather amused. "My non-existent Spider-Sense is tingling!"

"Slow down, Peter Parker." I urged.

Sure enough we did make it to the bridge.

It was chaos alright.

"Hang oooon!"

"Hang onnnn!"

"Hang on for Hammerman's sooong!"

Huh? I looked at the twin girls hanging onto the broken support cables, side-by-side. Soul singers? Out and about in a situation like this? This was an...odd thing to see and hear.

Did they just...happen to be there and singing about Hammerman?

"Volt!  Look!"

"What the...!" I saw it only seconds after Asriel pointed it out. There was a guy in a black...or maybe it was purple...suit and parachute pants with myriad gold chains.

"The bridge is fallin', so no long rhyme.  This calls for Double Hammer Time!"

And was he...commanding a tube of water out of the river under the bridge, with what appeared to be animated sheet music without paper sheets, straight into the burning tanker truck?

One splashdown later and the flames were out.

A snap of his fingers and more of the disembodied notes and lengths of sheet music coiled around the bridge; up and down left and right in complicated patterns...forming into a rope which he ended up tying in a knot at the top with his bare hands.

"Okay...that just happened." I sweatdropped as Asriel snapped pictures.

But before he could call out to the heroic party in question, Hammerman was already gone.

"Yes!  First contact."

"Oh boy..."

Later that day...

I'd begun to notice that something was off about this place. Everything seemed so...for lack of a better description...choppily animated? Was it just me or was everything certainly not running at 60 FPS? If anything at times it felt more like 6  FPS.

I also seemed to notice...a lot seemed to be very coincidentally incidental. As I'd heard elsewhere described..."context sensative". The bridge was one thing. But as Asriel continued to follow Hammerman, other things seemed...just too convenient and slipped below what I'd consider the realistic barrier.

The latest encountered was at a burning library.

Also...I was noticing every time there was trouble and Hammerman showed up, those twin soul singer girls were there...almost like modern day bards.

In fact when they prompted "Oooh, look!"...the crowd literally pointed and gasped in unison.

This WAS right out of a comic book. Maybe I wasn't reading enough of them.

I was starting to get a feel for Hammerman's powers, though. Seemed those parachute pants could also be taken literally. They seemed to slow his fall at just the right time.

But the more I saw of his powers...the more impossible they became. Like his very dancing and rapping caused an army of music notes to bring a water tower to life and cause it to walk over and extinguish the library flames. Even weirder...the noise of the water splash was actually visualized comic strip style in big bold letters. This was serious reality-breaking.

"We got another emergency, Volt!"

I gasped as I saw the snapped high tension wires come down. They would hit the crowd below if someone didn't act.

And sure enough...Hammerman to the rescue.

"How's he going to--"  Asriel started after snapping a few photos.

"He wouldn't..." I uttered before I saw him invert and catch both ends of the cable with the soles of his shoes.

"Yikes!  He may be a superhero with magic powers, but even I don't know if he can take that kinda juice for long!" I quickly morphed and zipped further down the power lines to the residential transformer. I grabbed both of the output terminals and diverted the current, giving Hammerman time to recover and get the power line problem all tied up.

"What a scoop!" Asriel commented, sounding his most April O'Neill-ish.

Encounter after encounter continued. Also...where the heck was that music coming from? It seemed...so familiar. I felt like I knew the M.C. behind it but--

"Can't touch this!" Hammerman's comment broke up my thoughts on the scene of his battle with a urban graffiti that had been brought to life (don't ask).

"Huh."

Finally the day had turned to dusk and the sunset was signalling it was time for us to go home.

Azzy got plenty of pictures but...no real story to go with it; not without an interview.

"You know, Volt...I've been thinking.  Maybe...maybe I should just let this one go.  I mean...I keep thinking back to why Clark Kent wears glasses to hide his identity...or Bruce Wayne plays the part of a free-spirit playboy party guy womanizer...or why Peter Parker always acts the part of the wimpy guy in his school life."

"Oh?"

"They keep their identities a secret for a reason.  I probably shouldn't go poking around so much.  I mean...it's a big, dangerous responsibility being a superhero, right?"

"Sounds like a pretty responsible thing to say, little man." Stanley had showed up rather suddenly.

"I'm sure if Hammerman were here he'd tell you the same thing."

"Yeah...I guess you're right.  Well.  I hate to disappoint Hestia but maybe the life of a reporter isn't for me."

"Chill, man.  You'll find your calling."

"Yeah.  Anyway...I guess we gotta be going.  Take care, Mr. Burrell."

We piled into the 57' Chevy and I set the coordinates back to home.

That was when I there was movement in the gym bag Stanley was carrying around. An unzip and out popped a pair of...talking shoes.

"Another minute in there and I would have suffocated."

"You don't have lungs, Lefty."

"You were just as uncomfortable as me in there, Righty!"

"Whoah, whoah.  Stop with the arguing.  It was a job well done for all of us, dig?"

As we left town, Asriel and I didn't knotice the sheet music in the sky as it turned into a rainbow.

What a strange place.

I felt bad it didn't work out for Asriel in the reporter biz. Granted, Azzy was too legit to quit, but maybe his calling was something else.

Oh well. I guess this is where we stop... Hammer Time would come another day.

Sub-Entry 198: "Going Into Overtime With the Pro-Stars":
Arlene enjoys this too much. I should have known she'd eventually get to a point where she'd hook up with an old acquantance. And the acquaintance owned the self-named "Mom's Gym".

But it was no ordinary gym. It was where the three biggest names in sports had gathered under one roof to become the extreme athlete versions of yet another in a series of IMF/Phoenix Foundation/F.L.A.G. organizations in charge of bringing down super villains in super hero style. WIth gadgets inspired by the various flavors of professional sports and gold-old-fashioned guts, competition, and sportsmanship.

This was going to be a torturous entry for me. If I hadn't said it before, I'll say it now: I just never liked sports. Don't judge, whether or not it's the World Series or the Superbowl, or the Stanley Cup Finals or the NBA finals. I had my fill of sports with one clash with soccer. And that was that. I traded up for a microscope and a set of encyclopedias while getting a couple chuckles from the Revenge of the Nerds movies.

Yet, even I knew these three's stories despite being very not sports savy. I mean...who didn't? An AU iteration of one of them supposedly appeared in Videoland some time ago to play against the N-Division in a friendly baseball competition. Though in all fairness it wasn't the bull that appeared on Hoopland during a different adventure, but the birdman. To this day, Arlene's said to have a signed basketball from said guy in the green uniform.

"Arlene's really up on getting us old-fashioned training, huh?"

"Her way or the high way." I smoldered.

"I know you had your heart set on a mission in that Jumanji world, but--"

"Yeah...Sarge was insistant.  And even called upon her old gymnasium legend.  Owner and propriater of Mom's Gym."

"It's going to be weird if I have to call her Mom."

"It already is for me."

We headed in.

This much sports and exercise? This was feeling like it has Sarge written all over it.

Well...there they were. Large as life. I wasn't sports-savy, but I would have had to be living under a rock to not know these three.

Michael Jordon. Legendary basketball player for the bulls. I was told he was the smart one of the team and possibly its leader. Pit said a version of him existed as a rival on the world in Videoland known as Hoop Land. Supposedly Captain N had gotten to meet said "birdman" rival. But I guess we had bragging rights for meeting Air Jordon.

Wayne Gretzky. Anyone who had heard of professional hockey knew him. Even I knew he had set more than 300 records.

Bo Jackson. Known by his tagline, "Bo knows..." he was a double threat in both football and baseball. I'd heard Pit mention that a version of him lived in Videoland on baseball world.

And backing them up was of course the owner, coach, and mentor of these pros turned superheroes, Mom. Short. Curly orange hair. Big blue glasses. One big honker of a nose.

I wonder what her real name was? Nevertheless, she had the granny archetype in spades. But boy was she not in a rocking chair. She was every bit as fiesty and energetic as Sarge. I couldn't quite place her accent...quasi-Yiddish/Jewish?

And Denise. Young, attractive girl. Possibly a niece or granddaughter to Mom? I could tell she was the real brains behind the gadgets.

It looked like the Pro-Stars were already in the process of being briefed and getting issued new gear.

"Volt, heads up!" Asriel pulled me down as a baseball flew my way.

I think the lesson to be learned was, if you design a baseball bat to function as a full-auto pitching machine rifle...let the inventor actually demonstrate it. This means you, Mom.

"I think we came at a bad time."

Here's hoping she doesn't show off the grappling hook next...wait, does it have a grappling hook?

"Huh.  I guess it does." I muttered.

After some apologies and introductions, one thing led to another and before long...

"Wait...how did did we get from hellos to Asriel being considered as a temporary fourth member?"

That escalated. I knew Azzy had talent but being asked to take part in a mission.

"Let's see what you got, A."

"Please to be choosing your weapon...er...sport." Mom presented the various choices. Of course...Asriel went straight for the soccer ball.

I had to smirk.

Azzy went to town. Did I forget to mention we were in our human guises at the time? I'm going to assume anyone reading this assumed so already.

"He's got some moves."

"Agreed."

"Anyone else getting hungry watching him?"

Okay...I was under the impression Wayne was the funny one of the bunch; possibly their own Jon Talbain.

"It's just you, Wayne." his partners chastised.

"Bo knows talent when he sees it."

"How about it, Mom?  Can we use the extra back up on this mission?"

"Oy gevalt.  I'm not seeing why not.  But if he messes up, it's on your head."

"Great.   Just what we need...time in the penalty box."

Oh, the sports puns and jokes were not going to stop.

We later met on the roof. I agreed to stay behind and let Asriel have his day out. But more importantly to serve as back up in case they got in a jam too big four four to handle.

I got my first look at Pro Star-1, the team jet...vehicle. And oh my gods...it was in the shape of a sports sneaker.

"I guess it really IS the shoes." I shrugged.

Asriel chuckled.

"Buckle up, big man.  We're in for a ride!"

"Awesome!"

"So.  Dabble in inventing much?" I asked Denise.

"Juuuust a little." She crossed her arms with an obvious confidence. I had the feeling she didn't get much field work if any at all, nor did she make much of an impact amongst the team. But...as I had told Gadget time and time again...there are no small roles. Support roles were just as vital as being on the frontlines.

I decided to head back down and review the tape that the Pro Stars had gotten, detailing their mission.

"Hmm."

Well. The tagline of their operation was "It's all about helping kids."

"Well now.   Sargeant Arlene Pinball had some requests to give you." Mom was quick to put me on an exercise regimen.

"Oh boy..." I groaned and found myself starting on the treadmill in my bare feet. Joooy. Sarcasm intended.

It was a little while later after I was given a period of rest and cool-down before the transmission came through. It was Michael Jordon.

"I've conducted a cursorary analysis and I wanted to confirm your opinion, Doctor."

"Hmm?"

Jordon held up the device.

"A wave generator?  I'd seen that kind before.  It used quantum technology in combination with audio tech to stimulate molecular structures and bring inanimate objects to life on other worlds where science rules were...wonky.

"Exactly.  This clue makes it completely obvious."

"It does?" I wasn't following his logic.

"It seems we're dealing with our old nemesis, Professor Clockwork Delaronge."

"Wait...what was that name again?"

"Clockwork Delaronge."

I paused. "I need a minute." I quickly facepalmed. Why did villains have the most transparent references in their names? When I sounded it out, I got "Clockwork Orange"  Suddenly I felt like I needed a shower...and needed to avoid any renditions of Gene Kelly's "Singing in the Rain". If I explained, this log entry would have to be censored.

"So what's his deal?"

"He swore revenge for his coaches not letting him play centerfield.  I deduce his plan is to hold the commissioner of baseball hostage to force the MLB to bankrupt itself paying his ransom."

Okay, how M.J. figured all that out escaped me. He was the brains.

"How's Azzy working out?"

"Kid's a natural." Bo Jackson cut in. "Some day we might ask have him join the team on a permanent basis."

Oh boy. Was this Azzy's calling? I know he had soccer down pat...but saving the world with sports?

I don't know if I was ready for it.

It wasn't long before Mom sent Denise and I to the museum aboard Pro Star 2 to warn the Commissioner. But of course plans tended to get...well...

"When I woke up this morning, the last thing I expected to see was a giant animated statue of the Sultan of Swat...the Babe himself being used as a giant evil mech robot."

Asriel and company was on top of the situation. Even I was impressed by how well he worked as a team player on a team of Pro Stars.

And in the end...

"Great job, Azzy."

"We saved the day!"

While I could go into specifics of what all happened, this adventure wore me out...or maybe it was Mom's training regimen.

But Asriel got to help a kid and that was reward enough for him. Me? I was ready to go home and soak my feet. Oww.

Sub-Entry 199: "Laser Time!  Game Over For the Corp":
After the last adventure, I was due for something I was more suited to. And quite frankly...bots were just the thing.

Actually, not bots...but BOYZZ. Brain Operated Young Zygoetopic Zoids. I had to say...A.I. this advanced created by someone as young as Ziv "ZZ" Zulander? Color me impressed. Dr. Light might have competition.

At least he would if ZZ didn't have problems of his own on his world.

So who was this Zulander kid? He was the Bots Master. A freedom fighter and creator/leader of the Boyzz Brigade.

I knew him as a master of disguise and an excellent mimic,  as well as a capable fighter. Somewhat of a ladies' man. And he fought his battles with guile and commando tactics.

It was an all-too familiar story that had become an all-too-familar trope out of a movie plot. Evil corporation. World domination. And a resistance to fight against it all. All this and the good guys are lead by an underground rebel who's been labeled a cyber-terrorist by the world, when the real villains are in plain view. And for the bonus, the head villain is out to become the literal president of the world just to cement his iron-fisted rule.

Which left a couple "P.S." things to check off the list. Disfigured, cybernetic mad scientist working for said corporate megalomaniac? Check. Sexy, femme fatale working as second in command with questionable romantic plans for young adult nemesis fighting against the Corp? *shudder*  Check. Anything else I missed? No? Well. I guess now anyone reading these logs is up to speed. So where to Asriel and myself fit into this? Well...

"...so that's the size of it."

Ziv Zulander. Presumably late teenage to early twenties. I was not familiar with employment age on his world, but I was guessing he was probably a prodigy from an early start.

Orange-tan hair in a long crew cut. That stylized double-Z tee-shirt made him seem less like a lab engineer and more like a high schooler.

I pondered for a bit.

"We'll do it."

"Doctor.  If you collaborate with us and you're found out, this will drag Arcade Industries through the mud.  Robotic Megafact Corporation will destroy you and everyone connected.  You'll be linked to a suspected terrorist."

"You're no terrorist, Zulander.  And I'm prepared to take the risk.  When Ecotropians were prisoners of Vortex Labs, my father figure, Garfield Arcade stuck his neck out and risked an international scandal to save lives.  I can do no less."

"Well then...I guess you're part of the team for now."

Asriel at the time was learning the BOYZZ of the household. As well as its only other human occupant...

"So you expect me to believe you're not even human?  Were you conked on the head or something?"

ZZ's kid sister, Blitzy. Feisty 10-year-old. Taking lessons from Chara, maybe?

Medium-lengnth hair of the same color, vastly unkempt. Pink headband. Pink jacket. Single blue hoop earing in the right ear lobe. Green eyes. Yellow shorts, yellow legwarmers and white tennis shoes. A spitfire, I could tell. Something about her kinda reminded me of a kid version of Jubilee from X-Men. Huh.

"Okay, okay.  The proof is in the pudding.  Or in this case...Unitrix." Asriel usually wasn't one to show off his real identity. But he was taking a calculated risk with earning trust.

"Whoah!  You WERE telling the truth.  What...what are you?"

"Goat."

"Goat?"

"Yeah.  Goat."

After that bit of introduction, Asriel got acquainted with just how many BOYZZ were living under this underground roof.

The Street BOYZZ--a line of construction types. Jammerzz, equipped with a large jackhammer that housed twin lasers on the other end which served as one arm. I quickly discovered he tended to speak in rap and rhyme. And Toolzz. Used a wrench and a drill as weapons. Preferred dismantiling his opponents rather than vaporizing them. He and I shared the same fear of heights.

The Sports BOYZZ--they won Asriel over pretty quick. Front-liners who used their sports skills to lob, hit, kick, drive, smash, and otherwise launch sports-ball-type explosives at the opposition. They included All Ball the volley baller and soccer baller. I think he was Asriel's favorite. Batzz, the baseball expert and most humanoid-looking of the bunch. Bogey...golfer. Need I say any more? And Ace, the tennis master. The only one of them equipped with a laser.

The Science BOYZZ--my cup of tea. D'Nerd; described as a large data bank with a computer for a head. Often replied to statements with the dictionary definitions of words. And trouble-causing Genesix, the engineer of the Boyzz Brigade. Apparently Genesix was the original Boyzz prototype.

Watson. The team doctor/mechanic. Knowledgable in both human and robot physiology. A surprising combination of dry with and unexpected fearlessness made him a field medic comparable to Ratchet of the Autobots.

Cook. Well...I guess human occupants gotta have a personal chef. Definitely not one of the combat-ready.

Ninjazz--the first BOYZZ to be built specifically for combat. Programmed with the greatest martial artists in history as a base persona. Multiple arms made him adept with both sword and nunchuku. An enlightened machine that Bunnie quickly befriended. Speaking of--

"My reconaissance is complete, Commander.  All is in order." Bunnie bamfed into existence with Ninjazz at her side.

I gave her silent thumbs up while we all continued listening and learning.

A bit more banter between Azzy and company, while a bit more discussion and background between ZZ and myself later...

"...this is RM Corp's president and C.E.O., Sir Lewis Leon Paradim."

"Ugh.  The human version of Sigma, no less."

"...guessing that's a major baddie on your world?"

"Not my world.  But yeah.  Major baddie.  A bot known as a Maverick.  I'll tell you about it another day.  Suffice to say they have the same...look." I pointed to my head. "Contrary to belief, bald isn't always beautiful."

"Let's keep on topic.  He's out for world domination.  He's a ruthless businessman and is all too willing to cut his losses when something doesn't measure up.  Losses like me, when I found out about his plan."

"And I'm guessing termination doesn't just mean in the employment sense." I crossed my arms.

The hologram changed images from the intimidating boss who resembled Seth from Street Fighter IV but with normal skin and eyes to a rather drop-dead gorgeous blond bombshell. Hair done up in a short ponytail. Purple tube-dress garment over top of a skin-tight black body suit, small gold shoulder pad coverings, pink knee-high boots and matching pink fold-over skirt. Her voice clips sounded deceptively softspoken...but cruel. Very cruel.

"Lady Frenzy, his second in command.  She has a weird...fascination with me that's...uncomfortable.  In direct command of his shady agenda.  Not to be underestimated."

Secret crush complicated by loyalty to the boss.

"And finally, Dr. Hiss, their resident mad scientist."

Holy crap. It was like someone took the infamous Nazi politician of history, Rudolph Hess and beat him with an ugly stick...then made the remainder of his body into a cyborg. One eye popping dangerously far out of his head, while the other was squeezed almost completely shut. His right leg was gone and replaced with a cybernetic equivalent. One of his hands was missing, replaced with more mechanics. But the disturbing with was the hoses coming out of the right side of his mouth; running over his shoulder and into a life-support system on his back. And from what I could hear from the voice clips? He was lisping BADLY.

"Yup.   These are the pieces on the board." I thought aloud.

"Basically, we have to stop this operating system from going live.  It's just a reskin of their plan to equip all 3A bots with the Krang chip that would completely override them, giving the Corp full control over every last one."

"A chip named after a big, pink, squishy alien brain?" Asriel raised an eyebrow.

The Zulanders looked at each other then at me with a funny expression.

"Don't ask."

Yeah. Pretty cut-and-dry plan for corporate cutthroat plan for ruling the world.

"It'll take us years, even with our underground home's top most capacity to make an army even remotely close to taking them headon."

"So instead, you implemented commando raids rather than outright combat.  Makes sense.  A direct assault would be suicide.  The sensible thing would be to wear them down and take out high value points of their operation while using their strength against them." Asriel reasoned.

Again there was surprise. I think ZZ pegged Asriel as the comic relief after his earlier jokes, but how he was seeing Goat Son's eye for strategy in action.

"That's...exactly right."

A long meeting later and we all had our parts decided.

And so in time...

"Thissssssss time your luck hasssss run out, Zulander!" Dr. Hiss was clearly visible in the open cockpit of his latest giant mech creation.

It seemed he had gotten the best of his opponent, Zulander's biggest and baddest weapon in the war against the corp--the five-part combiner robot gestalt, Jungle Fiver. Knocked flat on its back, it was at the mercy of the doctor's mech and its giant mad scientist surgical weapons--drills, saws, and more.

"Take your choicccccccccce.  Ssssssurrender and exit your machine or I ssssssssssurgically remove you the hard way!"

That was when the chest panel popped open and revealed this wasn't the real Jungle Fiver...but an elaborate copy that I had Dr. Lynx build from scratch. And inside...

"You?!  You're not Ziv Zulander!  Who are you?!"

"Volt.  But all you're getting is a first name." I grinned, having taken my human form.

"Where isssss Zulander?"

"I'm sorry.  I wasn't given that information.  I was told to give you this anagram instead." I cleared my throat. "A PAT SETH RISES".

"A Pat Seth Rises?  What is that supposed to....wait..." A bit of muttering before. "Thissss...is a trap, see--"  Dr. Hiss figured it out too late. "...!!!!"

I quickly morphed and grabbed him by the hoses and discharged a painful amount of electricity, causing him to spasm and cry out in pain.

"Just enough to knock you senseless but not damage your life support.  Oh.  And that part of the anagram, "RISES"...well...it was a little more than that.

And that was when Blitzy, seated at the controls of a magnetic crane, introduced the doctor to a the effects of an electromagnet on bionic implants.

CLANK! An unconscious doctor was convinced to...hang around for a while.

Inside the cab of the bot, I smirked as I knocked over a single chess piece. "Knight takes Bishop."

Elsewhere, some moments prior to this happening...

"A bold move coming straight to me, Ziv Zulander.  Perhaps you've reconsidered my offer to rejoin the RM Corporation.  Your past terrorisms can disappear if you only come back to us."

"Well, you've got me kind of backed into a corner.  I might consider it...if you can defeat me in a game of chess..."

"A sporting chance?  How very...*chuckle*...noble of you.  I will not go easy on you."

And so...

"...Knight takes Bishop."

The look of frustration on Lady Frenzy was obvious. It was like her opponent was reading her every move and it went downhill.

In just a few more moves...

"Checkmate."

A low growl...then without warning Frenzy kicked over the table.

"No more games!" She grabbed Zulander by the collar and brought him in close. "What is your answer.

Ziv gave a cocky smirk.

".......!"

"You're not..!" Lady Frenzy grabbed him by the face and pulled off the latex mask. The gasp told several stories.

"Who...what...are you?"

"Your distraction." Bunnie replied. It seemed she was no slouch at being a master of disguise as well as voice mimicking. To this day I'm still not sure how she manages to fit that rabbit face and those rabbit ears into a human mask. All she'd tell me is..."it's a trade secret".

"You will not leave this place alive."

"One should not make a promise they cannot keep.  Only one of us is leaving here victorious..."

And finally...

"...as promised, I have personally delivered  Zulander, L.L.P.   And furthermore, I've freed Dr. Hiss from his...embarassing humiliation."

"Ssssssilence your tongue!" The scientist retorted.

"Excellent, Lady Frenzy.  Unlike some of my other employees, you never fail me."

A chuckle. "There was...opposition but they were...dealt with."

"Ziv Zulander.  I must say I am dissapointed.  I expect more from my employees."

"FORMER employee."

"I regret to inform you the O.S. is about to go live without any problems.  All A3's will auto-download and install it before you even leave this office.  And you are leaving...you will be going away for a long time."

"We can discuss his future another time...let's discuss...our future." Lady Frezy walked over behind the desk and draped her arms around the boss.

"This is...highly irregular." Paradim curled his mouth into a smug grin.

At that moment she set something down on his desk.

"What is this?"

"A momento of my victory." Lady Frenzy mused as she got closer, seemingly pulling the boss into a kiss.

"It's an unusual one.  A chess piece.  The Queen, no less...hmm?" Paradim's gaze sharpened as Lady Frenzy knocked it over with a single finger...then reached up and yanked off her disguise.

"Knight takes Queen." Bunnie said rather plainly.

"What?!?"

That was when I pulled off my disguise as Dr. Hiss and Asriel pulled off his disguise as Ziv Zulander.

"ZZ was never even on this mission.  This was all us." Asriel taunted. At that moment Ninjazz made his sudden appearance next to Bunnie.

"And you know what we say at a time like this?  LASER TIME, BOYZZ!!!" Asriel called out.

"Security to my office immediatly!"

And boy did he mean immediately.

A battle ensued as multple BOYZZ crashed the party.

Lasers, sports gear, and construction tools turned the penthouse office into pure chaos.

Bunnie and Ninjazz attempted to subdue Paradim. However Asriel and I were shocked at how much of a stalemate of strength it was between Bunnie and the C.E.O. of RM Corp.

Bunnie's eyes widened for a moment before she got out of the way. Ninjazz attempted to intercept but was surprisingly knocked down. How strong was this guy.

After a bit of tussle and bustle the computer at the desk beeped.

"To come so far...only to fail.  It's gone live."

"You sure about that?

"Wh...what is this?  Impossible!  It can't be hacked!  Who...!"

And far away from the action, ZZ hunched over the chessboard, fingers interlocked and peering over his hands, with his elbows on the table.

He reached over with one hand and knocked over the King on the opponent's side of the chessboard.

"Knight takes King.  Checkmate."

Back at RM Corp..

"It's time we made our escape." I mused.

"Ninja...VANISH"  Bunnie threw down the smokebomb.

"There's just one last thing to say." Asriel mused. "Gaaaame Over!"

And so...

"The plan went smoothly.  This was just a small victory but they pile up pretty quick." ZZ shook my hand.

"Thanks for the crash course on voice imitating." Asriel gave a thumbs up.

"Until we are needed again.  We'll be in touch."

We bid our goodbyes.

"Good luck, ZZ.  Any time you need us, you know where to call."

We took the warp zone out of there before Cook could get our thank-you meals served up. As it turned out...his concoction ended up being raw cookie dough. Man...now I kinda wish we had stayed.

Sub-Entry 200:  "The Very Best Seventeeth Birthday Present":
Bunnie and I had been keeping the surprise perculating on the burner for quite a while. It was time.

September 15th. One year ago, today. It was a special time for Asriel then for the age of 16 meant freedom on the road; his own car and an upgrade of his responsibilities and expectations.

How do you top that a year later? Sure we could host the same get-together as last year. But while I didn't have a problem with rehashes, I felt we could do better. And it occurred to me that there was only one present that Asriel deserved that he'd never forget for the rest of his life.

"...why we heading out of the party so early, Volt.  I mean, I'm growing up, yeah but I'm not ready to bid goodbye to this and write it off as kid-stuff just yet."

"I know.  But your big surprise is elsewhere."

"Are we going off world?

"You could say that."

We headed straight to Rabbotou Dojo.

"Sensei?"

"Ah.  Greetings, Asriel-kun."

"You sure got here in a hurry."

"It was necessary to make preparations.  I've already cleared it with your parents and they're okay with this."

"Bunnie?  You're making this sound like it's a pretty big deal."

"You'll just have to see for yourself."

Once inside...

"So...what's--"

"If we told you...it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"

"I suppose not...but you're being more mysterious than usual."

I suppose in a way it was the very mildest of paybacks for keeping me in the dark about him playing that varation of soccer, five years ago under Bunnie's coaching. But that was a petty gripe. Really...I was chomping at the bit to see his face when all was revealed.

"Major...you know what I have to ask of you."

Oh yeah. I hadn't forgotten about...details.

"I understand.  I'll clear the way for you."

"Clear the way?"

I most certainly did not need either of them delaying or outright cancelling my appearance at that place.

"Okay.  I had a debate with myself over what would be the best route to go with this.  And...after weighing my options I finally decided to bite the bullet and make this happen."

"Volt?"

"A Combat Pass would be too complicated and there's always the danger of someone mistaking an uninhabited body for being in a coma--"

"Okay.  Now you're making me nervous." Asriel swallowed hard as his eyes turned purple. Yeah...he felt backed into a corner.

"Relax, Asriel-kun.  I promise this will be a good thing."

Good thing? No. For him? The very best thing.

"...okay...I trust you." Asriel's eyes faded back to dark copper red.

"Having said that..."

Bunnie and I got out our Soul Candy dispensers. Megami presented on to Asriel.

"Uh...what's this?"

"On my mark, swallow one."

"Guys...?"

"Asriel.  I know what this must look like.  But I promise it's on the up and up.  All will be revealed in time."

"Ready?"

A deep breath.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"Three...two...one...MARK!"

We swallowed at the same time. The effect was instant.

"WHOAAAAAAAH." Asrile squeezed his eyes shut and braced...then when he looked again. "Volt?  Sensei?  What just happened.  Why--"

Then came the gasp heard around the world.

"Who are...!" He gaped at his body which seemed to be looking right at him...moving on its own without his mind to guide it.

"What's...!" He stopped when he noticed the black kimono he was wearing.

"Now this is much better, Major.  If he goes to Raxis in this, we won't have any trouble finding him."

"Really, Commander.  Five years later and you had to revisit that joke."

Asriel noticed our bodies, too...but he sensed something was off about them.

"What just happened to us?"

"Something perfectly normal in one of our many other responsibilities in the world of the living...and the Soul Society."

"Soul Society?" Asriel knew he heard that word before...but it was so long ago.

"Where...are you...?"

"Hmm?"

"He hasn't adjusted yet.  Give it a moment or two."

Asriel rubbed his eyes a bit...looked again...then he could make out our spirit forms shapes...and then we got clearer to him.

"Can you see us now?"

"Y...yeah....but...why are there two of each of us?"

"Well this is what happens when the spirit separates from the body."

"You mean we're--!"

"Calm down.  We're not dead."

"We have merely become our Shinigami selves."

"Shinigami?"

"Soul Reapers."

Asriel looked like he was starting to catch on. I guess Violet hadn't shown him Bleach yet. Kind of strange. By this point, I'd figured Violet would have gotten him up to speed on almost every anime she'd come across.

"Ready, Major?"

"Opening the Senkaimon now.  As for you three...keep out of trouble and tend to our bodies as if they were your own."

"Yes, way-dee Bunnie!"

"Yo, you can count on us, boss!"

"Too right, you.  We get bored, we'll occupy ourselves with some shrimp on the barbie, mate."

"An Australian soul candy.  Of course.  Why not?" I turned to Bunnie. "I'm going to have a talk with Kisuke about this."

Asriel just looked bewildered.

"Opening the Senkaimon."

And thus became quite a journey for Goat Son. I don't think I'd ever heard him  scream that loud before. But...I had the same reaction on my first go at this so...this was normal. Well. As normal as it got. Oh boy.

Really...I should have some kind of analysis or annecdote to give right about here. Five years ago, I used to flood these log entries with scientific gobbledeegook. Is it possible that mellowing out a bit took some of the scientist out of me?

Nah.

"...you can rest easy, Goat Son.  We're here."

"Where's................here?" Asriel blinked.

"Welcome to the Soul Society."

For the first time Asriel had about a hundred questions to ask. And Bunnie and I were glad to answer each and every one...except for the big 64 billion dollar question.

"Okay, Major...Asriel and I are going on ahead to the Rukon District.  Meet up with us ASAP."

"Understood."

"And Bunnie?"

"Hmm?"

"Try to go easy on him."

That actually made her laugh. Just who the heck did I think she was dealing with? And honestly...me telling her to go easy on HIM? After the dread I had for the possibility of actually having to spar with him?

But that wasn't the only obstacle. There was the researcher I dreaded. There were others with their own quirky personalities and such.

And of course...the big taco himself.

I checked my tail to make sure it wasn't STILL burning after all this time. It was just in my head...but it sure felt like it when I thought of him. But Bunnie assured me she could handle the Commander General. Even though she was clearly no match. At her level of experience, I'd seen her spare with both Shinsui Kyouraku and Juushirou Ukitake at the same time. Even together, both of them barely held their own against old man Yama.

"You worry too much, Commander."

"That I do."

"Can someone clue ME in on things?" Asriel looked totally lost and out of his element.

"Patience, m'boy.  I've never had to remind you of that before but I can see you're way outside your comfort zone."

"I've dealt with a lot of things in my life but nothing like this."

"And all those things in your life were just as new then as this is now.  So...don't let it shake you."

A hesitation...then he reluctantly agreed as we headed toward that place. Question was...would we run into anyone on our way there? And would it cause problems?

"So..."

"Yeah."

"This...this goes back to...well...when the Chara-Wraith attacked...doesn't it?"

"Yes, but it also goes back way longer than that.  Before we met.  Suffice to say I have a real boring story about how Bunnie and I became substitute Soul Reapers but...that's way more time than we have to spare."

"That long a story, huh?"

"Yeah.  Besides...we're celebrating your birthday today.   Old stories can wait for another time."

"Yeah...but...I'm not exactly complaining about a boring old story at this point.  All things in time?"

"All things in time."

As it turned out, we did run into unexpected company. But unlike last time...luck was on my side.

"Mmn?  I thought that was you."

The towering form that stood before us was clad in a lot of additional accessories, plate mail and pauldrons. But the helmet that wrapped completely around his head...

"What are you doing wearing that old thing again.  I'm pretty sure your secret isn't a secret any more.  Not after the events of the "ryuga".  I mused."

"Nostalgia has its place, my friend."

"Well it's only polite that you look upon us with your own eyes.  Just sayin'."

A moment passed before he reached up and pulled off the heavy helmet...and revealed unto us...!

"It's been too long, Captain Sajin Komamura."

The yellow-eyed, wolf-fox like form of Sajin Komamura stood before us. The Captain of Squad Seven. And yes...Asriel put it best in the next thing that came out of his mouth.

"You're...not human!"

"Hmm?  And who is this?"

"An outsider...but a friend."

"Yes...I see that this would be...complicated if you told the specifics."

"Hi...um...Captain Komamura, sir."

In that moment it was like Asriel was 10 again.

"You need not be intimidated by me, young one.  There were indeed outsiders in the Soul Society this day...but it would seem I had something in my ears at the time."

This seemed famliiar. Sajin sure could keep a secret. What I knew about the fox-beast was that he was real hard but with a gentle hand. Strict but fair. Bold but level-headed. Stoic. Yeah...He was cut from the same cloth as Bunnie.

A bit more things cleared up and some good-byes and we were on our way.

However he wasn't the only one we'd run into.

Captain Ukitake ran into us and invited us in.

White-haired. Scrawny. A happy guy who was great with kids...but in the worst of health. Juushirou's respiratory system was ravaged by an incureable lung disease. A disease which left him with chalk white hair since the age of 3. For him to be in Soul Society for that much of his afterlife...

But still. He was one of the most respected people among the entire "Gotei 13" or Thirteen Court Guard Squad for his honesty, loyalty, and personal dedication to justice.

And like I said. He was great with kids...sometimes to a fault as Captain Toushiro Hitsugaya would attest to...but not actually have the heart to protest to someone as frail as Juushirou.

He of course invited us in for tea.

Asriel had to ask a couple times if he was okay after numerous coughing fits. At one point when Asriel wasn't watching, I was rather disheartened by the amount of blood he coughed up. I really felt for the guy. I really did.

I don't think Asriel minded being patted on the head like a little kid...too much.

But we couldn't stay long. The main attraction awaited in the Rukon District.

"Be well!  Come again, my friends!"

"Of course, Juushirou.  Of course."

Once on our way...

"That was...nice.  I mean...I appreciate the time out but--"

"I know, Asriel.  This was a little outside of the plan.  But don't worry.  It'll all make sense soon enough.

And then we were here.

"Well.  Now we wait for the Major to arrive."

"It seems like this place has a lot of good people watching over it."

"Most of them are."

"So...this is the world of the afterlife...isn't it?"

I was surprised Asriel hadn't put it together by then.

"Yeah."

And not a moment to soon did Bunnie arrive.

"I appologize."

"Well.  How bad did you beat him?"

"Captain Zaraki was well-entertained."

Elsewhere at the same time...

"Oooh.  Kenny?  Are you okay--"

Yashiru was interrupted by Kenpachi's bellows of laughter. "Damn...that might have been the most fun I've had in a while..." He managed to pull himself out of the crater. "Heh...I can't wait to have fun with her again..."

Back at the Rukon district...

"And Kurotsuchi?"

"He was not a problem."

And thus...

"DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!" Mayuri was in a mood. "Curse that wench...when I see her again, I will tear her to pieces and put ever last one on a microscope slide to analyze at  my liesure!"

Which left me grinning ear to ear.

"I did clear things up with the Commander-General."

"And you survived?"

"Give me some credit.  I am not that easy to intimidate nor discipline."

"Point made."

"Which left me just enough time to have a brief interlude with Captain Shinsui Kyouraku."

"You didn't...drink him under the table did you?"

"No, you're thinking of Izuru Kira."

Yikes. What a meloncholic guy. I'd have to save that for another explanation.

"We did drink a bit of sake.  He was his usual, laid-back, flamboyant, womanizing self.  Still wearing that flowery pink kimono over his captain's uniform.  Beating around the bush and seemingly shirking his duties.

But I must tip my hat to him. He is a deceptive genius in ways. He's like...if you split the difference between myself and Violet. Peace-loving,  a secret philosopher. But occupies himself with women, games of chance, and putting on an act of being a loitering vagrant seemingly to sleep or rest as much as Jon."

"That's a scary thought....you and Violet in one persona."

"Well.  We've taken up plenty of Goat Son's day with the run-around.

I knocked on the door to the rhythm of Shave-And-A-Haircut. And there came an answering Two-Bits knock.

I entered first and Bunnie entered next.

"So...whose house is--"  Asriel started as he was last in.

"...this?" HIs eyes widened and his expression just told all.

"Aww come on...you didn't just wet yourself did you?" Chara joked. Still teasing her brother.

"Hey.  What's with that face?"

Asriel was...speechless...he was at a loss for words. And then...

"Oh boy...here comes the tears."

"Ch...Ch...Charaaaa!"

I saw him break down and remember what it was like to be 10...110 again.

He ran over and hugged, tears flowing like crazy and just sobbing.

"Still a crybaby.  You'd think someone died, Azzy."

"That's...*sniffle*...not funny.  I...I missed you."

"Hey.  I missed you too, you big fluffy goof.  C'mon.  Stop crying.  You're embarassing yourself on your birthday."

"Volt...Bunnie...you did all this...for me?"

"You deserved the very best seventeeth birthday present.  And well...reuniting you with your sister for a day was the best of the best."

"Well.  You two have some catch-up to do.  Volt and I need to set up the birthday cake."

"It better be chocolate, or let's just say I'm going to be splitting...hares over it."

"I would not if I were you.  Volt and I have more experience than you at this."

"Right, right.  I guess I might as well tell him about that."

"Tell me what?" Asriel cocked his head.

"That I made it in.  I'm going to be a Soul Reaper."

"You...?  A Soul Reaper?  Like Volt and sensei?"

"You kidding?  They're substitutes.  I'm going to be the real deal.  Full-time.  I mean I am dead, remember.  You three have  lives to get back to when this birthday business is over with."

"Yeah...I guess we do."

A moment of silence.

"I got my own car back home!"

"Oh you suck, Azzy!" Chara pretended to be jealous.

"You know you're proud of me." He said smugly, that hint of Flowey somehow making its way in.

"Sooo...you dating yet?"

"Ch-Chara!"

"Oh that look on your face!  Priceless!  You couldn't have made it more obvious!"

"Y...yeah?  Well w-what about you?  Have you been on a date?"

I could see that shut Chara down but...I knew she'd try to save face.

"Ahh, who has time for that when you've got a career in the afterlife to think of."

"Suuuuure you do." Asriel crossed his arms.

"Oh you wanna go, little brother?" Chara challenged.

"Name your game." He put his hands on his hips.

I quickly siddled to the other room where Bunnie was setting up.

And in due time...

"No fair!  When the heck did you suddenly get good?"

"...my how the tables have turned." Asriel looked confident, his eyes glowing red.

"Isn't this the part where you beg me to please stop and just let you win?" He grinned.

A chill went up my spine.

"Checkmate."

"Little brother finally put on his big boy pants."

"Little brother isn't so little any more.  Besides...I'm the same age as you...counting the 100 years."

Technically true. Chara waited a hundred years to catch up to Asriel. And I guess now that she had...sort of...what now?

The banter and the games continued until Bunnie served the cake. And yes...it was chocolate. Triple chocolate in fact.

The candles were blown out. The wish was made. But really...Asriel's wish had already come true.

"Happy birthday, Asriel." Chara hugged, holding back her own tears.

"It is.  It really is."

"Smile, Major.  We brought a dream to life."

"And even if that dream seemed impossible at times...this is the proof.  Dreams are forever." Bunnie agreed.

We hung around for the rest of the day until it was time to return home and remove the soul candies from our bodies.

Just one more year and it would be the big 18. Maybe...that would be when?

I'd worry about it another day. For now...this was his time. This was his place. And this was his dream. May he hold onto it forever.

CRYPTOSMASHER LOGOFF

END TRANSMISSION...

Chapter 21

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