Dreamer's Ball 3: Dream's End
Synopsis: The final chapter to BrightStarAngie and my epic delving into the subconscious mind of our favorite Rangers. Once again, Dream (from Neil Gaiman's mind) makes another appearance. This time, he means business when it comes to the intentions of Nightshade and Cresent. Hook escapes Dream's backlash just in time and lives to see another day of looting, pillaging and terrorizing Neverland. Amongst our heroes, there exists Kirby and Klonoa. Thanks to the information given them by Knights and her friends, our Rangers can fight this battle on a more equal playing field.
Chapter 1—Entropy and Order
'Could someone please explain what's going on ?!', Zack finally burst out, his fists clenched. Rocky and Jason calmed him. 'Getting angry about it won't change anything.', Rocky stated, in an even, gentle tone. 'Yeah. Too many times I'd get frustrated over a situation much like this one, but all it does is raise your blood pressure. We need all of our energy for the battle ahead.', Adam added, sagely. 'Good advice, Adam.', Aisha retorted. Knights began that Somnibot's beacon had been a distress signal drawing herself, Kirby, Klonoa and her two human friends to the gemstone ship. 'Kirby has a Shard, and Klonoa has his as well. We're keeping them close. Something terrible has happened to our dreamworlds. They're falling apart.', Knights said, with a tremble in her tone. She almost appeared to be weeping. 'Surely Dream could help us as well. It is his realm.', Billy added. True, that Endless being had assisted them before, without malevolence. However, nothing he did was without a price. In this case, they doubted he would remain neutral. One way or another, he would make another appearance, and most likely the last time any of them would see an Endless and be able to speak of the experience afterward.
Chapter 2—Like Rats in a Trap
Dreamland and Klonoa's world were quickly fortified as best they could be, with the help of the shards, but entropy had already taken root. Nightshade had come out of his slumber and had been oozing through each realm, desperately searching for the Shards. He wouldn't stop until he had the last one in his possession. Cresent hadn't been much better. The negative energy from all the inhabitants of that realm only made him stronger, but many of the residents were more intelligent and intuitive. They wouldn't give in to baser emotions so easily. 'I know Nightshade has outrun me, yet again. I will follow his trail. Where he's gone, the Rangers and their comrades aren't far. I can almost taste the nutrition of the Shards. Once corrupted, the Dreamrealm will become a Nightmaretopia.', Cresent mused, his gnarly teeth forming a distorted smile. His eyes, dark as obsidian as they gleamed in the darkness. He came upon an energy trail that led him directly to his treasure. The inhabitants were already so scared, they dared not stand up to his oppression. 'Like taking candy from a baby.', he said, having stepped inside one of the Dream Realm's throne rooms and snatched the opalescent shard. It was a smaller Universe all of its own and once the Shard was in Cresent's knotty hands, he became taller, more imposing, more sinister, and emanated pure evil. 'Oh, the power ! It flows through my veins !', he exclaimed in ecstasy. One Universe down, no idea how many more left to obliterate. 'I never had any intention of releasing you from your hardback prison. You're destroying everything !', Nightshade seethed, having caught up to his crony. This time the stooge had become the dictator. 'Methinks you protest too much, Aloicious.', Cresent mocked. He knew that his former captor was no better than himself. 'I intend on ruling this whole Realm. It's MINE.', Nightshade vowed. With one Shard already taken, the Dream Dwellers began to feel a loss of their own power. 'No one said this was going to happen !', Knights' female friend said, starting to become frightened. 'I didn't know. They normally don't react in such a way. The corruption...that must've altered their function. They aren't behaving normally.', Knights said. Even if they wanted to fight back, any spell that Somni, Pasithea, Morpheus or counterattack the Rangers wanted to use, it would be totally ineffective. 'So easy. Now if you would allow me...You have a gem, and as do you...', Cresent began. Nightshade got into a rough fight with him until everything stopped.
Chapter 3—Dream's Domain
'Cease. Enough of this chicanery. I have endured all I can stand.', Dream said. The empty, starry space surrounding them grew cold with the Endless' presence. His hematite robe, swirled with novae, galaxies and the countenances of infinite dreamers, was transfixing. A robe that long and lavish would slow any normal human down, but it didn't seem to cause a single misstep for Dream. 'Who are you ? What right do you have to my treasure ?', Cresent said, having wrested another Shard easily from Nightshade's grasp. 'Foolish mortal. I'm Dream. This is my world, and the universes within it belong to me.', he said. With a snap of his finger, Cresent's neck was snapped like a twig and he ceased to exist. 'That's more like it. That moron was such a thorn in my...', Nightshade began. Before his sentence could finish, Nightshade bent over like he had been punched in the abdomen. He rasped for breath and disintegrated, just like Cresent had done. The shards returned to their original owners, and Dream smiled gently. 'Usually I don't do favors, but I don't take kindly to riffraff mucking around in my territory.', he said. With a wisp of sand and light, he had disappeared. The once static Rangers and their friends could now move. 'I think we've had about enough adventure for one day. I know what has to be done with all of these precious jewels.', Somnibot said, asking politely if she could take the helm. Seeing that she had the best possible plan in mind, the crew trusted her infallible, impeccable judgment.
Chapter 4—Pulling A Fast One On Hook
Before steering the ship toward Mechanus, James T. Hook had arrived in the Jolly Roger. Peter and his friends were a bit tied up at the moment, unable to help their friends. 'Sorry to be late, but I've come to take what's mine. Looks like Cresent and Nightshade are no longer an issue.', James said, preparing to engage the whole lot of them. 'We don't wish to fight you. But we will if we must.', Tommy warned. 'Duly noted, Ranger, but I don't care.', James retorted, curtly, his lips curled in wanton desire of the Shards. This was one pirate who would stop at nothing to control the entire Dream Dimension and rewrite everything according to his greedy rules. Without even warranting a chance for the Ranger's vessel to prepare for an attack, the Roger began a wave of cannon fire. Tommy and the others realized that they had the ability to do anything they wished, so he played his old Dragon Dagger, forming a shield around them. The barrage that had been intended for their ship ricocheted and damaged the Roger. 'Playing dirty huh ? Figured out the only limits are your imagination ? How clever and utterly twisted. Let's play then.', hook growled. Another barrage of cannons whizzed at their vessel, but Kirby ate them, transforming into a giant bomb. 'Quick, toss him !', Klonoa said, passing Kirby off like a hot potato, to Knights who threw him aboard the Roger. It didn't take long for Kirby to blow the Jolly Roger sky high. Hook, Smee and crew fell into the Mermaid Lagoon thousands of miles below them. Peter and the others were caught by Knights and his friends, untied and ungagged. 'Sorry we couldn't have been of assistance. You though, what you did was capital ! ', John complimented. Peter affirmed them and gave them his best impish smile. 'Boy, ol' Hook certainly didn't see that coming !', he laughed, slapping his knee. 'Next stop, Mechanus.', Somnibot alerted, steering the ship to its next course.
Chapter 5—The Clockwork Kingdom
Mechanus was everything that the Rangers had imagined and more. They were sure they saw tears in Somnibot's eyes upon returning to her family, but were in shock that their own enemies were in fact her family. After all, she was royalty to their kingdom and they were ebullient to have their princess return, even if only to place the Shards in their rightful location. Mondo and Machina wanted to have all the details of their valiant deeds and just how nasty James T. Hook could be. 'He's nothing compared to the likes of what Nightshade and Cresent had been.', Pasithea confessed. 'Dream quickly made mincemeat of them. Glad he's on our side. I heard he can be rather capricious and rather self-serving. Most of the time he prefers the sound of his own voice. I shouldn't say this but I've heard it told he has a cat as his only companion, and it is another form of his persona.', Beta said. 'It's a relief, too. He and the Endless keep everything in balance.', Machina stated with a contented sigh. Once the Shards had been put in place, Peter and his friends made their departure after saying their goodbyes. 'This steam punk paradise was extraordinary.', John commented. 'It put Pacifica to shame. I won't tell the mermaids that though.', Peter quipped before he and his friends zipped away out of Neverland and back home to London. 'At long last it's finally over.', Skull took a much needed cleansing breath.
'Do you think it was going to be that easy ? Please. You led me right to the Shards, you pitiful fools !', Dreamcatcher cackled.
Chapter 6—None Shall Pass Dreamcatcher
There she was, an unrelenting vixen, draped in massive voids, black energy and one central dream catcher, resembling her heart. Her eyes, mere shimmering diamonds, were fierce and unforgiving.
'How did you get in ? The alarm should've sounded.', Machina glowered. Somnibot had never seen her parents this livid, but she for once, understood their embitterment.
'I have enchantments working in my favor. I leave no trace and I creep in as soundless as the air.', Dreamcatcher revealed, rather cryptically. She held out her taloned hand and urged the Shards forward into her predatory clutches.
'This realm deserves a better Queen !', she cackled.
'Not on our watch.', Jason vowed, furrowing his eyebrows. The Rangers had been slightly enervated from their battles before, but seeing their friends in trouble had given them a whole new lease on life.
Dreamcatcher's spells were brutal but the Rangers and their friends fought back at full force, matching her blow per blow. Machina, Mondo, Pashitea, Morpheus, Somnibot and Beta tried their best to lure Dreamcatcher into a slumber, but she turned her hands into fans.
'Guys, hold your breath, quickly !', Billy said, before drowsiness overtook him. It was then that Somnibot recalled she had an ability that had been unused for quite some time. From her utility belt, she retracted her Dream Scepter.
'No one puts my friends to sleep and gets away with it.', Somnibot raised her wand and transformed into Super Somnibot. With the power of the scepter, she decimated Dreamcatcher with the concentrated power of pure, unconditional love.
The wind blew Dreamcatcher away and she caught the shards before they shattered on the white marble floor below her. Giving them back to her mother, Mondo and Machina lifted their hands and restored balance to Realm of Dreaming.
'Now you can finally return to the Waking World. She used to be quite the menace, but now she is no more.', Machina said, kissing her daughter lovingly.
'You were incredible, Somnibot !', Kimberly complimented. Somnibot wasn't used to blushing, but this was one time that her cheeks flouresed a bright pink.
'Thank heaven that's finally over. We can finally return home, where we belong.', Skull said with an easy, relieved exhale.
Bulk patted his shoulder. 'All the dream worlds are safe, even our own.', Bulk added, with a satisfied, friendly grin. Although Somnibot didn't want to leave her family, she had to return home to Ranger HQ. Her children, who were getting to know their grandparents and uncles for the first time, received communicators with holographic abilities. Clutching their comms close to their chests, the little bots hugged their grandparents farewell, boarded their moonstone encrusted vessel and sped off, back to Angel Grove.
Epilogue
Having slept on sleeping bags along the floor, it was surprising that none of the Rangers felt sore in any way. In fact, it was the best night's sleep the whole lot of them had experienced since their Christmas in Rocky's cabin months before. 'That was one wild ride.', Zack chortled. 'You're not kidding. Talk about bizarre.', Adam agreed. They all concurred they would enjoy whatever ambrosial concoction Alpha 5 was serving up for breakfast. It smelled heavenly, like s'mores, french toast, eggs, bacon, sausage and gravy, with slices of oranges for garnish. Little bowls of grapes awaited them too, with jam for spreading on toast. Honey was available for whomever didn't care for regular fruit preserves. It was the first day of Spring Break and the whole group wanted to head to Venice Beach to play Frisbee together and surf. It would be a relaxed day full of shaved ice, cold watermelonade and kickin' tunes on the beach. Though Spring Break was short, it was great just to have a time to put their feet up and let their worries be washed away with the tide. Pasithea and Morpheus played volleyball with their parents and had their first taste of shaved ice. It was so chilly it nearly sent their processors into a freeze, but they shook it off quickly. 'You think we'll ever have a shared dream like that again ?', Alpha asked his darling Delta 4. 'I am counting on it.', she retorted with a cute, quirky grin. 'Hey, I hear music !', Pasithea exclaimed, jovially. It was a local band, playing for supporting a children's hospital in the area. They were a non-profit group, hopeful their unbelievable sound would draw people to give them money in order to keep the band going. They had already attracted a huge crowd. Bulk and Skull had set up a bake sale table to up the ante as it were, concerning their funds. 'Home made treats ! Hand made by us truly !', they said. 'Hey, we didn't know you were going to be here.', Jason stated with a wide grin. 'Couldn't resist the cause.', Skull retorted, likewise with a very pleased smile upon his face. 'It was difficult staying away from the cookie dough though. Skull's recipe is killer.', Bulk added. 'Your brownies are the bomb.', Skull complimented, honestly. 'If they're that good, we're buying some.', Aisha said, pulling out her wallet and paying them for a rather big batch of brownies and homemade cookies. 'Gee, thanks.', the two said, in a sense of wonder at how much money Aisha just gave them. 'For a good cause. We're going to keep Oakland Children's Hospital open.', she responded, her sweet smile lighting up the beach side gala. The band, called Spearhead, played long into the night. Tired due to all the entertainment and diversion of the day, the Rangers and the bots headed home. Bulk and Skull gave their earnings to the head singer of Spearhead and he thanked them with a hearty hug and a couple 'Cool, bra ! You really helped us gain a lot of money for the good !' The two did their secret handshake and high-fived the band member, who walked away, laughing. While everyone departed to their homes, the bots returned to HQ and shut down for the night. 'Goodnight, Somnibot.', Beta said, while climbing in his dual recuperation chamber with her. She tenderly spooned with him, holding his hands across her chest. 'Sweet dreams, Beta.', she crooned as they went to sleep. Alpha and Delta were already fast asleep, occupied with of dreams of Edenoi. Pasithea and Morpheus again dreamt of their grandparents back in Mechanus. Somni and Beta dreamt of castles in the sky, rainbows with no end and riding on the back of a giant butterfly together. The Rangers all had their specific reveries, but they all held on to the promise and excitement the next day would bring them.
The End
