Shadow sat in quiet contemplation, wondering if the feeling inside her was worth any thought. The shaman knew quite well that she had the power to see everything that happened in the land of Zonia, but this vision was ominous. Then again, most of her visions were ominous.
On the Real World Cable Network (RWCN), a new cartoon had been added to Toon Disney about a boy and five cyborg monkeys. Shadow hadn't really taken any mind of the show; it was just another depiction of a dimension light years away from Zonia, but she knew it existed. She found herself, however, curious about the boy in the city called Shuggazoom. From what she had seen, he was about fourteen years of age and medium in height with black hair, strong arms and legs, and remarkably blue eyes. Shadow became curious and investigated further to find that his name was Chiro. He was the leader of the Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce in Shuggazoom City. The boy apparently was a lot more than Shadow first assumed; his worth immeasurable.
That was most likely the reason he had been kidnapped by the Ultimate Evil of Zonia. Shadow knew this because of the vision she had received. At that very moment, Chiro was being held captive on Evil Island.
The shaman did not know very much about the boy, so she resorted back to the pilot episode of his show. It didn't tell her much. She could only rely on the information given her by the vision. And if her vision was right, the monkeys back in Shuggazoom City would soon notice Chiro's absence.
At the moment, there were only seven beings in the Shadow Lair. The dirt walls of the underground lair absorbed all sounds, and Shadow felt very alone sitting in the main entrance room; the kitchen to her left, the giant computer to her right, the door that led to the small beach entryway in front of her, the door leading to the hospital beside her.
"Shadow?" a soft male voice called from the hospital. A boy entered the room; like Shadow, he had reddish-brown hair, hazel eyes, a light complexion, freckles, and glasses. If it wasn't for Shadow's feminine features, the two would have looked exactly identical. The boy was dressed in a white robe exactly like Shadow's and carried a staff in his hand. Shadow's staff lay against the cot she sat on. The boy crossed the room and collapsed on the cot across from her.
"You still alive?" he joked.
"Last I checked," Shadow replied.
"Have you gotten any more visions of the boy?"
"No. Has Carew?"
"No."
"How are the alphalites coping?"
"They're still alive," the boy shrugged.
Shadow sat back. "Good to hear, after all that they've been through."
"And it's safe to assume that you're not gonna tell me what happened to them, right?" the boy shot back.
This time, Shadow shrugged. "Of course I'll tell you, Max. How could I keep a secret from my twin?"
Max eyed Shadow slyly. "You couldn't. We've got a 'cosmic connection.'" He chuckled. "A 'freaky twin thing.'"
Shadow thrust her thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the room behind her where the five alphalites were. "Those five poor creatures have a rather depressing past."
"I think I can handle it," Max said, folding his arms across his chest.
"Do you remember the Elemental Shower that happened last year?" Shadow asked.
"You mean the meteor shower when large raindrops, stars, fireballs, leaves, and Faeries-know-what fell from the sky?" Max clarified. "Sure, I remember it! All of Zonia remembers it!"
"Well, those creatures in there," Shadow explained, jabbing her thumb again, "use to be the objects in the Elemental Shower."
Max did not grasp what his sister was saying. "What?"
"Those distressed monkey-like creatures in my hospital right now used to be the leaves, raindrops, stars, and fireballs that fell from the sky during the Elemental Shower!"
Finally, Max understood. His eyes grew wide. "For such a shower to take place would take a great deal of magic! And then there's the metamorphosis…"
"Slave traders caught wind," Shadow continued, "of small monkey creatures with tall pointed ears, two antennas, long tails, white muzzles, almond-or oval-shaped eyes, wings, and rainbow-colored fur were running around the islands and forests of Zonia. Immediately, they set to work capturing the alphalites. Five of them were: Celeste, alphalite of Air; Trent, alphalite of Earth; Marina, alphalite of Water; Jasper, alphalite of Fire; and Carew, alphalite of the supernatural. These five are now dreaming restless dreams in my hospital. They were captured and taken to a slave institution to be trained and sold. However, a month later I learned of what was happening and went to the institution, disguised as a slave buyer. I 'bought' the five and brought them back here. Then, I set them free."
"What about the other alphalites back in the institution?" Max asked worriedly.
"They have all been freed," Shadow answered. "However, the small band of alphalites I freed first, the 'Unity Alphalites', insist they stay here for a little while. So, I consented."
"And Chiro was kidnapped a week later?" Max finished.
Shadow nodded sullenly. "Exactly."
"Have the Super Robot Monkeys contacted us yet?"
"They don't know where Chiro is, but they're about to find out. I will need some help from Marina."