Disclaimer: LazyTown belongs to somebody who isn't me. Can you guess who it is? Huh? Can you? Bet you can't! Huh? Bet you can't, girlie! Ha! Made ya cry.
A/N: Hello, everybody. This is your conscience speaking. How are you? Good, I hope? I'm feeling particularly evil today so I thought I'd try something a little different. A sort of "what if?" kind of story in which our beloved blue sports elf prepares to leave this world and head for the great airship in the sky… I mean, the metaphorical one. Not the real one… you know what I mean.
TRINITY NOTE: This story is NOT RELATED to my previous one entitled "The Trinity" nor is it a continuation. I just did this 'cuz, like I said before, I was feeling evil. Eeeeevil!
UPDATE 7/29: Whoops! I accidentally uploaded the rough draft of this story instead of the final one. Bad MASC! Bad! So for those of you just tuning in, what you see now is what should be there. For those of you coming back, you'll notice a few changes but nothing much. And without further ado, I give you the revamped and DEFINITIVE…
NUMBER 11
It was just a few minutes before dawn when Sportacus descended from his airship. Piloting his air glider across the skies, the blue sports elf finally landed on a hilltop, where all of LazyTown came into view. There he waited patiently for the day to officially begin.
It was then when a ghostly image of a woman in white with long golden locks of hair materialized before Sportacus and hovered in midair. Sportacus bowed his head and kneeled before the woman then looked back up to see her extending her arm out. He grabbed the ghostly woman's hand and helped himself back on his feet and smiled.
"Hello, mother." He said.
"My son." She began. "It is time."
"I know." He paused for a moment. "A replacement has been found."
"Are you sure she's the one?"
Sportacus nodded. "Yes. I know she is. She's ready."
"For the training, perhaps. But is she ready for the truth?"
"That remains to be seen. She'll take it the hardest. I know she will."
"You have no choice but to tell her, my son. If you truly believe she is worthy of carrying on the mantle, then you must do what is necessary."
With that said, the woman in white faded away from view and left Sportacus alone on the hilltop. As the sun came up and illuminated his beloved town, a single tear rolled down the hero's face. He knew this was the last sunrise he would ever see.
Later that day, Stephanie and her friends enjoyed the afternoon playing in the park when an excited Pixel came running towards them. Stephanie caught the Frisbee Trixie tossed her and held onto it as Pixel finally met with his friends and caught his breath. In Pixel's hand was a new device that looked like a water Frisbee connected to a small launch pad.
"I did it!" Pixel exclaimed as he held up the device. "I finally finished my latest invention!"
"What is it?" Stephanie asked, examining the strange toy.
"I call it the Hydro Disc Launcher X-4! It's an innovative way of playing around in the heat while cooling yourself off!"
"It's amazing!" An awe-struck Ziggy said.
"It's mine!" Stingy snatched the toy away.
"It's just a water Frisbee." Trixie concluded .
"It's more than just a water Frisbee!" Pixel defended his creation as he went over the mechanics. "With this patented launch pad and trigger mechanism, the HDL can shoot streams of water as far as the eye can see! Tired of a plain straightforward shot? No problem! It can shoot in circles, make spirals and even wave back and forth like those garden hoses!"
"What are these buttons for?" Stephanie pointed out three colored keys on the pad.
"Oh these? They control the pressure of the water. The yellow one controls a soft, breezy mist." Pixel then displayed the yellow button's attributes before pressing the green button. "Green here gives a more steady and casual water flow. And the red…"
Pressing the red button, Pixel immediately shot back as the pressure of the water stream proved to be too much for him. Unfortunately for Ziggy, he became the target of the water's high intensity and remained pinned against a tree as the back of his throat gargled the water in a desperate attempt to breathe.
"Pixel, you have to turn it off!" Stephanie cried as she tried pulling the device away from the boy. "Ziggy's gonna drown if we don't do something!"
"Ziggy, come on!" Stingy said as he and Trixie tried to pull their friend away from the tree but the pressure of the water was just too much.
"Man, this thing's strong!" Trixie strained. "Pixel, why'd do you have to make the 3rd setting so intense!?"
"I'm trying… to pull… away!" The gizmo guy struggled as he finally pulled the toy away from Ziggy and aimed it towards the clubhouse.
"Oh, now you're gonna knock down the treehouse!" Stephanie pointed out as the water began moving the wooden panels back. "Turn it off, man!"
Pixel found the red button and pressed it, immediately drawing the hard water to a close. With a heavy sigh of relief, Pixel eyeballed his invention and tossed it back in disappointment.
"So much for that brilliant idea." He shook his head.
Ziggy coughed up the rest of the water stored in his lungs and almost gagged until a smile spread across his face. "Wow! That was amazing! What a rush! Do it again, Pixel! C'mon!"
"Oh, Ziggy…" Stephanie playfully rolled her eyes and patted him on the back.
A loud creak then caught everyone's attention as they slowly looked up and noticed the treehouse beginning to fall from it support branch. It was only a matter of seconds before they could react and by then, the treehouse was already beginning its descent. Luckily for them, however, their hero in blue arrived just in the nick of time to climb up the tree and pull the house back into its original holding place.
"Sportacus!" The kids all cheered as he met with them on the ground.
"Hi, everyone!" He greeted cheerfully, as if nothing was wrong with him. "What happened? Why is the treehouse all wet?"
Everyone glanced at Pixel, who just chuckled nervously. "Yeah… sorry about that."
"Don't worry, Pixel." Sportacus winked. "I'm sure you had good intentions."
"Well now that you're here, Sportacus, do you wanna play with us?" Ziggy jumped with anticipation.
"Well, I…" Sportacus started to reach for Stephanie but the seven year old managed to pull him away and over to the soccer field.
"Come on, Sportacus! You can be on my team!" Stingy said as he held his soccer ball obsessively.
"Sure." The hero finally gave in, knowing this would probably be the last time he'd ever play with his young friends again. "… Why not?"
"Are you okay, Sportacus?" Stephanie noticed the uneasy look on the man's face. "Is something wrong?"
Sportacus gave the pink-haired girl a reassuring smile. "We'll talk later. Just you and me. Okay?"
She nodded eagerly. "Sure."
Inside his lair, Mr. Rotten curled himself up in a ball and swayed back and forth in his orange chair, desperately trying to drown out the noise Sportacus and the others were making. Having no such luck, the resident villain growled furiously and got on top of his fuzzy orange recliner and banged on the ceiling with a broom that had several extensions duct-taped to it. Yes, like many TV landlords emanating from years past, Robbie Rotten actually stooped as low as to complain like a curmudgeonly old Hungarian.
"Hey!" He banged on the ceiling. "Will you stop that!? Some people are trying to sleep in!"
Still the laughter and playful noises continued much to Robbie's disgust. Realizing he had lost the battle, the Rotten One decided to get dressed and gorged himself in an oversized piece of periwinkle cake.
"That stupid Sportadingus!" Robbie said with an overfull mouth. "Nothing but exercise and good deeds! Oh, it makes me mad! I mean… mad!"
Robbie began pacing back and forth in his lair, continually taking huge bites from his dessert and thinking of a plan to get rid of Sportacus. One idea popped in his head like a fart in a Jacuzzi.
"Hey, I got it!" He smacked his lips. "What if I swipe his boots with another pair and take control over his body and—no, wait. I did that already… Oh, I know! I dress up like a cow and—nope, can't do that one either… Ooh! A pirate! And I'll use my ship and—darn it! That one's been used too!"
As the day progressed, the kids found themselves getting depleted of all energy but as always, Sportacus was there to appease.
"Don't worry, guys." He said. "I'll go get us some snacks." He then seized the opportunity. "Stephanie?"
She looked over to him a bit surprised. "Yeah?"
"Would you come with me, please?"
"Sure." She didn't have to think twice.
Once they were inside the airship, Sportacus lowered the table from the wall and began placing various fruits and vegetables in a basket. He handed the bowl of sports candy to Stephanie and slid the basket over to her.
"Here, go ahead and fill it up with whatever you want." He directed.
"Okay. Thanks." She smiled.
As Stephanie filled the basket up, Sportacus walked over to the ship's controls and pressed a few buttons on the panels. While he did this, the computers beeped and the monitors displayed a message that read:
PROTOCOLS DISABLED.
AWAITING NEW DATA.
Stephanie then paused as she noticed Sportacus leaning against his pilot's seat with his head hanging low and the monitors flashing the message.
"Sportacus?" She asked. "Are you okay?"
With a heavy sigh, Sportacus decided it was now time to tell her without sugar-coating it. He turned around slowly and looked deep into her eyes.
"Stephanie." He began. "I'm dying."
"What?" She gave him a confused look, as if he was playing some sort of prank. "Don't say things like that."
"I'm only saying it because it's true."
Stephanie chuckled. "Yeah, right. Okay, Sportacus."
He stepped closer to her. "Stephanie, please. This isn't a joke. I'm serious."
"Would you say you're dead serious?" She let off a small laugh, trying to hide the worry that was now building up inside her.
"Stephanie, it's important that you listen to me."
Stephanie stopped laughing and studied the expression on Sportacus' face. After a lengthy silence, the young girl cupped her hands over her face and realized he was in fact telling her the truth.
"You're… you're serious?" Tears began to form in her eyes.
The hero simply nodded. "I'm afraid so."
"But… how?"
"It's my time."
"Your time?"
"Stephanie, I come from a land where the essence of time doesn't naturally flow through us like it does here. We age slower than others and oftentimes it doesn't show but believe me, Stephanie, when I say that my time has finally come."
"But you can't die!" She pleaded. "You're Sportacus! You're… you're a superhero! You're our hero! You're… you're my hero…"
Sportacus kneeled before the young girl and wrapped her in a tight hug as she let out all of her emotions. But before anything else could happen, Sportacus had to finish explaining to her.
"There's more." He added. "There's something I have to do before I go."
"What?"
"I have to pass the mantle on to someone. Someone has to watch over LazyTown and protect it whenever it or its people are threatened." He then retracted his crystal from the chest plate and offered it to the pink-haired girl. "And I intend you to replace me, Stephanie."
Stephanie backed away slowly with a look of disbelief spread across her face. "You… you can't be serious."
"I am." He nodded again.
"Me?" She put her hand on her forehead. "But… I'm… I can't do this. I can't replace you, Sportacus."
"Yes you can, Stephanie. I have faith in you."
She shook her head as more tears slowly rolled down her face. "I won't do it… I won't…"
"Stephanie…"
"I won't!" She screamed as she lowered the platform and returned to the surface.
Sportacus could only watch as Stephanie handed Pixel the basket of fruit and rushed over to her house in a fit of rage and extreme sadness. Just then, Sportacus' mother rematerialized behind her son and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"She wasn't ready." The hero simply said.
"No one ever is." She softly whispered. "But if you are to pass on what you have learned to her, then you must make peace. Otherwise this town is doomed."
Inside her room, Stephanie buried her face under her pillows as she continued to cry. Milford peeked his head in and decided to comfort his niece. Taking a seat at her bedside, the mayor gently stroked his niece's hair and tried to think of some way to comfort her.
"What's wrong, dear?" He started. "Did you get into a fight with one of your friends?"
"No." Stephanie sniffled as she removed her face from the cushions. "It's nothing like that… well, actually… it's something like that."
"Is it Trixie?"
Stephanie shook her head. "No. It's Sportacus."
"Sportacus?" Milford was taken aback. "But you two have always gotten along!"
"He's dying, uncle."
The mayor's eyes widened even further. "What? Dying? Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. Sportacus wouldn't lie about something like that."
"It's natural to cry in situations like these, my dear. You just--"
"And he wants me to replace him." She interrupted. "He wants me to take his place as hero of LazyTown. But… I don't know if I can do it, uncle. Not without him. I can't do this alone."
"I know you'll do what's best, dear. For him. For this town and… for you, of course. We'll have to give him a proper sendoff."
"I don't think I can say goodbye to him." She then wiped the few remaining tears on her face. "And I don't think I can do what he's asking me."
Down below, Robbie went through the junk in his closet and tossed out several bits and pieces of scrap metal. Forming the mess into a pile, Robbie took out a toolbox and began putting the pieces together without exactly knowing just what he was making.
"I've got to think of something…" He grumbled to himself. "Let's see… if I screw this here and take this out… then add a few of these…"
Robbie wiped a bit of sweat from his brow and suddenly got an idea in his head. "That's it! I've got it now! This plan will be perfect!"
With a fiendish cackle, the resident villain started adding more and more to his concoction at a rapid pace. Twisting and turning various knobs and dials, screwing in bolts and removing unnecessary ones, the Master of Disguise knew his latest plan couldn't possible fail.
As the sun began to set, Stephanie walked around the empty streets of LazyTown and took a seat on a nearby bench. She then noticed the mailbox standing across the street and decided to walk towards it. As she jimmied the lever, the empty mail tube slid out and fell in her hands. Stephanie then remembered her first day in LazyTown and how she had first sent the tube in hopes of finding a friend to play with. How lucky for her that her friend turned out to be none other than Sportacus. It was because of Sportacus, that Stephanie made even more friends and learned the importance of being surround by the people she loved.
With a sigh, Stephanie returned the tube into its slot and continued walking. As she wandered around without any particular place to go, she couldn't help but reminisce about all the good times she had with her hero in blue. She remembered his strength and bravery during a crisis, his compassion towards everyone, including his enemies, his gentle and playful nature, and most of all she remembered his determination to keep things in LazyTown safe and out of trouble.
A solitary tear rolled down Stephanie's face as she stopped near the giant billboard. She leaned against the structure of the building and covered her face, releasing more of her emotions.
"I can't lose him…" She said to herself. "Not now… not now…"
A distant crash suddenly caught the girl's attention as she curiously stuck her head around the corner of the building. She noticed a bit of steam coming from the hatch leading to Robbie's lair and wondered if she should check up on the resident villain. With a shrug, the pink-haired girl opened the hatch and slowly climbed down the ladder.
"Okay…" Robbie grinned. "Time to try her out."
The villain flipped a switch that ignited an engine as it sputtered on inside a gigantic metal box of some sort. As the engine hummed, a trail of steam began to peer through and exit through various exhaust pipes.
"Yes" Robbie jumped for joy. "I did it! I actually did it!"
"Did what?" Stephanie startled the man.
"Don't do that!" Rotten snapped at his little pink visitor while clutching his heart. "And anyway, what are you doing here!? Shouldn't you be playing with your friends?"
"What is that?" She pointed out to the machine.
"Oh, this?" He tried to cover it up. "It's nothing!"
Stephanie looked over the man's shoulder and shook her head. "It's another one of your inventions to get rid of Sportacus, isn't it?"
"Hey! I resent the fact you think I have a one-track mind!"
"You do have a one-track mind."
Robbie then thought for a second. "…Oh yeah."
Stephanie sighed as she began to head out. "You won't need it anyway."
"What!? Why not!?" He stopped her in her tracks. "C'mon, tell me!"
"Let's just say you'll finally be getting your wish, Robbie." Another tear fell.
Robbie noticed the tearful expression on the young girl's face, which was usually quite the opposite—provided Robbie never interfered in the first place, of course, and paused for a moment.
"Hey, wait a minute. Why are you crying like that?" He demanded to know. "You never cry unless I make you! And I haven't done anything to you all day! So what gives, kid?"
Stephanie then started to tear up again. "He's dying, Robbie."
"Dying? Who's dying?" After thinking it over a few seconds, the thought hit him. "What? You mean Sporta… cus?"
The young girl nodded as she wiped away her tears in order to stay strong and shot at Robbie almost angrily. "Yeah. But like I said. You'll finally be getting what you want. You'll finally be able to get rid of Sportacus!"
"Uhh… well…"
"Oh come on, Robbie! Don't act so surprised! It's what you've been wanting for the longest time! And now your dreams will finally come true!"
"Yeah but…" Robbie turned his machine off. "…Not like this."
A heartbroken and utterly surprised Robbie sat down in his chair and ran his fingers through his smooth black hair. With a heavy sigh, he turned to Stephanie and opened his arms to her. She moved in and the two wrapped each other in a comforting hug, realizing that the one thing they have in common is their somewhat inexplicable need for Sportacus.
"I'm gonna miss him, Robbie." She sniffled.
"Yeah, kid." He fought back his own emotions as his jaw slightly trembled. "…So am I."
News of Sportacus' imminent demise had already gotten around to the people of LazyTown and so a proper goodbye ceremony was being held at the city hall. As the mayor gave a speech, thanking Sportacus for all he had done for the city, the various children and adults looked down with that same look of grief Stephanie had earlier.
While the proceedings went on, Sportacus looked amongst the crowds but couldn't find Stephanie anywhere. It was then when the mayor presented Sportacus with a special medal, honoring the town hero. A loud wave of applause soon filled the air as Sportacus humbly accepted the token of their admiration.
"Thank you, Mr. Mayor." He said. "But all this really isn't necessary."
"Don't be silly, Sportacus." Milford smiled. "After all you've done for this town, it's the least we can do."
"I know and I really am grateful. But I just don't think it's right. Something about it all feels… wrong."
"Nonsense, Sportacus. You're just modest, that's all."
Inside the control booth of the building, a pair of light operators focused the lights on Sportacus as he waved at his applauding admirers. One of the men flipped a few switches on his control board and noticed something unusual beneath the table.
"Hey, what's that?" He pointed underneath his chair.
"Let me see…" The other turned on the flashlight as he kneeled down. "Oh, I see it. It's just some loose wiring."
"Is it hot?"
He shook his head. "Nah. Must be some redundant output."
Foolishly, the light operator reached for the wire and gave himself a bit of a shock, igniting a spark to fling out across the table. In an instant, more sparks began to fly out from the wiring of the sound mixers which led to the microphones and developed an enormous fire that spread drastically throughout the building.
"Uh-oh." The man said as he realized the trouble he had caused. "Everybody out! Now!"
The people hurried out of the building, trying not to lose their calm as the flames quickly spread to the ceiling. As the kids made it outside, they noticed one of their own wasn't safely with them.
"Wait a minute." Trixie looked around. "Where's Ziggy!?"
Inside the burning building, Ziggy found himself trapped between a fallen piece of driftwood and a wall of fire blocking the exit.
"Hey!" Ziggy called for help. "Somebody help me!"
"I'm coming Ziggy!" Sportacus yelled as he charged inside the building.
Dodging the flames, Sportacus rushed to Ziggy's side and quickly removed the piece of lumber that was restraining him. Unfortunately, more of the ceiling began collapsing which eventually trapped both Sportacus and Ziggy.
Outside as everyone watched in horror, Trixie and the others noticed something was wrong. Sportacus hadn't returned and it wasn't like him to take this long to save somebody.
"He's been in there a long time." Trixie panicked. "Do you think maybe…"
"I hope not." Pixel interrupted her.
Just then, Stephanie came running up to the group holding Pixel's invention and aimed it towards the front of the building, where the flames were more constant.
"Stephanie!" Milford was pleased to see her.
"Hi, uncle. I'm sorry I'm late." Stephanie activated the red switch and miraculously stood her ground as the high pressure of the water began to kill out the flames.
"Stephanie, you're doing it!" Pixel exclaimed. "You're actually doing it!"
"Doing what? What'd I miss!?" Robbie exclaimed as he showed up out of breath.
Once the flames to the entrance of the building died down, Stephanie wasted no time in hurrying inside to free her friends. She covered her face with a small cloth to protect her from the smoke and noticed the fire all around her. After hearing pleas for help, she noticed Ziggy and Sportacus struggling to break free from a cage of burning wood.
"I'm coming, guys!" The pink-haired girl called out as she pressed the red button again.
This time, as the water shot down the flames, Stephanie placed her finger on the trigger and aimed the saucer just right. Upon pulling the trigger, the water Frisbee launched from its pad and spun around the building, using its high powered water pump as a hydrant to kill out the remaining flames. Afterwards, Stephanie helped Sportacus lift the burned out pieces of wood and help Ziggy up on his feet.
"Oh, Stephanie! Thank you!" Ziggy hugged his friend. "And you too Sportacus! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Once they made it outside, another loud round of applause greeted them including an overexcited Robbie Rotten. Of course, this reaction only confused Sportacus.
"Robbie?" He scratched his head. "Are you okay?"
The villain put his arm around his old enemy. "Me? I'm fine! Did I ever tell you… how much I…" He then burst into tears, losing his train of thought.
The hero just stared at him funnily. "You what?"
"You know!" He playfully nudged him. "Me, you? Buddy? Amigo?"
"Okay…" Sportacus laughed as he found himself being hugged by Robbie.
Suddenly, a sharp pain to the chest and Sportacus could feel his mother's ghostly presence creeping up behind him. With only a matter of minutes left, the hero in blue approached his young pink friend and kneeled before her.
"Stephanie?" He put his hands over hers. "Are you ready?"
She simply nodded. "I am. I'm ready to take your place now. I'm not afraid anymore."
"You shouldn't have to be."
Everyone watched in awe as Sportacus began to glow, indicating the beginning of his departure. The hero removed the crystal from his plate and placed it in Stephanie's hands, causing the young girl to emanate an eerie glow herself.
"What's happening?" She started to panic. "What's going on?"
"Don't worry." He grinned. "Nothing's wrong. I'm going to transfer myself into the crystal."
"You're what?"
"Just trust me."
As the glowing intensified, Stephanie became enwrapped in a new superhero costume that was identical to Sportacus' but different from her SportaStephanie one. The pink and white design had greater detail and now the young girl had a hat of her own to place on that pink hair of hers.
"Wow." Stephanie smiled at her new costume as the glowing stopped. "Sportacus, it's--" She then gasped as she noticed Sportacus beginning to fade away within the glow.
"It's time." Sportacus said, prompting Stephanie and the others to cry again.
"Sportacus." She hugged her friend close. "I don't want to lose you."
"You won't lose me, Stephanie. I promise you."
"But what if I'm not ready for this? What if it's all in my head?"
"You'll do just fine."
The girl sniffled as she looked up to her hero. "…I love you."
Sportacus smiled warmly and placed a gentle kiss on the girl's forehead as he began to transfer his light beams into the magic crystal. As he did this, the crystal in Stephanie's hand blinked slowly and grew stronger.
"Remember, Stephanie." The hero's voice echoed as his soul finally entered the gem. "No matter where you go, no matter who you save and no matter what the obstacle… I will always be with you… I love you all… Goodbye, my friends…"
With Sportacus' spirit inside the crystal, Stephanie took one last look at the gem's glowing center and placed it inside her chest plate, which displayed the number "11" in the center. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she turned her attention over to a very depressed looking Robbie Rotten.
"Robbie?" She sniffled. "Are you okay?"
The villain remained silent and gave the new hero a halfhearted smile. "Yeah… sure."
"I guess this means I'm your enemy now."
"Let's just say we'll grow to hate each other."
"You forget one thing. Sportacus never hated you. And neither did I."
"Yeah. Me neither."
As the people of LazyTown went home, saddened for their tremendous loss, Stephanie gave her friends and uncle a comforting hug.
"Don't worry." She said. "The town's still in good hands."
"I know it is, my dear." Milford said. "It always has and it always will."
"Go get 'em, Steph." Trixie nudged her best friend.
"Good luck, Stephanie." Stingy hugged her. "…Make sure nobody takes my things, okay?"
"Okay." She softly chuckled.
"You'll do good, Steph." Pixel reassured her. "You were trained by the best."
Ziggy then gave her yet another hug. "I believe in you, SportaStephanie!"
"Thanks, Ziggy." She smiled.
Back in the airship, Stephanie noticed the computer monitors displaying the same old message:
PROTOCOLS DISABLED.
AWAITING NEW DATA.
Stephanie knew exactly what to do as she took over the pilot's seat and pressed a few buttons on the control panel. After giving the computers an update, the entire airship was given a new color scheme to match the new hero's. Stephanie then plotted a course to circle around LazyTown as the moon shined through the night sky.
"I won't let you down, Sportacus." She said to herself as the clock on the wall chimed. "What do you know? 8:08. Time for bed."
THE END
A/N: Wait for it… wait… okay, now! Let the hate mail begin! C'mon! Hit me with your best shot! C'mon! C'mon! And now I think it's time to do the "Evil Dance".
"I am Evil Homer! I am Evil Homer! I am Evil Homer! I am Evil Homer!" Yeah, sing with me! Ha ha!
Okay, that's it for now. When I come back, I'll have a BETTER story with me and one that actually has a HAPPY ending. The Trinity lives on! See ya soon!
