A glanced at my watch. 5:30. Only half an hour left and I am gone. No more whiny kids. No more bossy people. No Darren. Ugh, I hate that guy. Half an hour and I am home. The gang would be waiting and we would have our usual hapless shenanigans. Who knows? Maybe today will be the day I go back. It's been so long since I've been surrounded by the magic. Dragons, elves, evil wizards, mystic creatures.
Skylands.
It's been a little over a year since I was last there. Things had begun to settle down. The rift between Earth and Skylands was now constantly opened. Only a select few knew about it though. There were my friends and I, and Ignitor and his crew. They were stationed in Skylands while we were stationed on Earth. With less evil to vanquish and quests to be undertaken, our side of things were much more boring.
Okay, let me start from the beginning. When a mother and a father really love each other…
Wait, not that far.
I guess it all started one mysterious night. I was sucked into this portal from my bed and was transported to Skylands. As the great Portal Master Eon put it, it was "a magical place filled with wonder and adventure". The Skylanders were the protectors of Skylands and came from all sorts of places. Suddenly I was one of them. Somehow, I had been turned into an undead robot named Chop Chop. Goofy name, I know, but it didn't stop the darkness and Kaos to do his evil deeds. Long story short, I made friends, stopped the apocalypse of both Skylands and Earth, and stayed on our wonderful green planet to defend it in case anymore evil popped up.
So to keep my cover, I graduated high school and began working at an Academy Sports. After an adventure like that, customer service was a huge downgrade. But my athletic capabilities made me a good asset so I've been able to keep my job.
Darren, my boss however, was not a huge fan of mine. My co-worker, Chris, became a good friend and enjoyed hearing me and Darren chuck words at each other. Seeing that tiny vein at the top of his temple was one of the few joys I had in life.
I checked my watch again. 5:32. You would think that a huge monologue like that would have taken more time. I headbutted a rack of foam swords out of boredom.
"Ah, Chandler, I see you're lounging around again?" Darren glared at me from the end of the aisle. I jumped.
"What? No, just…rearranging these, uh, swords. Wouldn't want one to fall and injure one of our precious customers." I spouted. I felt kind of embarrassed. Normally I'm quicker on my feet. He just got the drop on me, that's all.
"You are on very thing ice Mr. Choppin. If you were more responsible you could be like the composer himself." Darren said.
"Well if it weren't for being reckless we wouldn't have electricity." I retorted. I saw the puzzled look on his face. Of course it went right over his head. "You know, Ben Franklin and the kite?"
Darren's face didn't move a muscle. "Whatever. You still have a good twenty-five minutes on the clock. I expect you to use them" With that last comment. Darren walked away. I sighed.
"Wow. That was horrible" I turned. Chris was standing right behind me. "I mean it, one of your worst performances yet".
Chris was a stocky guy. He worked towards the football department. After playing it so much in high school and coaching mighty mites, he had a knack for being kind while being knowledgeable in his field. But when it came to everything else, well he fit the jock stereotype perfectly minus bullying nerds. Somehow, he dealt with rude customers calmly and he managed to get me to cool off plenty of times before.
"I leave in twenty-ish minutes, my brain is fried. Give me a break" I teased.
"Oh no, I want nothing but your best. And lemme tell you, a Ben Franklin reference is WEAK"
I grabbed a foam sword. "You disgrace my honor"
Chris grabbed one next to him. "You're going down"
"You know this is a losing battle for you, right?" I said. I twirled my foam sword in circles around me. It came inches from my face but I knew what I was doing. It was like muscle memory from wielding my Arkeyan sword back in Skylands. I drew it at head length. Chris's face was impressed.
"Ah well, it's a foam sword. What are you going to do to me, break my arm?"
"Don't tempt me" I struck with a swipe. Chris managed to block. Seeing his reaction, I slid my sword down his bladed end and nicked his knee. "If this were real, you would need a peg for that leg, Jock-Strap" I called him out by his nickname.
"Dahh, well, how am I supposed to beat a master swordsman with only one leg? You win." Chris said. I looked back at my watch. 5:55. At least time goes by quicker when I'm in a word war with my boss and a sword fight with a bro.
"Close enough, I'm clocking out. Later" I said and tossed my foam sword aside.
The apartment was a mess as usual. I mean, 4 ex-Skylanders still trying to get used to the real world is not an easy task for one measly human.
Foam was splattered across the kitchen table and oozing onto the tile floor I had just cleaned this morning. Paul Finch a.k.a. Pop Fizz was grabbing test tubes and flasks out the wazzoo. A lanky stick of a person, Paul was the human incarnate of all things fidgety. We tried to keep him out of caffeinated beverages. He had an internship at a chemical engineering lab in the city and they had him doing a lot of last minute calculations which he often brought home.
"Pop, what have I told you thousands of times?" I scolded.
Paul froze and looked at me. Or at least I thought he was looking at me. His fogged-up lab goggles made it hard to tell. "Uhh, never bring work home?"
"No, wait to make things explode for when I get here. You know where the paper towels are" I said noting the clutter.
"I know, I'm on it" Paul said and dumped his equipment in the sink.
I plopped down on the couch. Dan Rangers a.k.a. Dino-Rang was lounging in a mini pillow fort he made while flipping through channels. Dan was a muscular guy with a deep Australian accent and was often the object of all the ladies' (and gentlemen's) attention. Only seemed right for the guy to go into a modeling job.
"Looking for anything specific?" I asked while taking off my sweaty sneakers.
"My commercial is supposed to be airing now but I can't find it!" he groaned.
I chuckled, "Yeah, how did your first filming go?"
"How am I supposed to know? I can't find the bloody ad. Jafa probably cut it cuz he was jealous of mah looks"
"You tell yourself that." I said and transitioned to the laundry room. Sitting on the dryer was Sam Shotley, a.k.a. Snap Shot. He had on a blue CPD t-shirt and gym shorts with ear-buds in. He had about the same body structure and looks as Dan. However, his sense of justice led him to be a part of the police force. He quickly passed police academy and was now working his way up the ranks to hopefully Head Detective. I assumed that he was washing up his uniform from a hard day's work. No matter how many awful people came into Academy Sports, I could never complain in front of Sam.
Sam saw me and nodded. He wasn't much of a talker but he was definitely the most controlled of our little trio. If there was a dumb idea, he was the one who would most likely be against it. He was level headed, and a buzz kill. But he cared and was strong, absolutely someone you want on your side. I grabbed my clean laundry that I had left there before work and headed to my room.
Dumping my laundry in their respective drawers was the easy part. The next ten minutes were what a majority of the population would call "crazy".
The first thing I noticed was Rachel Ball a.k.a. Roller Brawl a.k.a. the last of my crazy roommates a.k.a. the hugest crush I've ever had in the history of existence yet I was living with her? She was standing out on the balcony looking into the city. Rachel was the most headstrong of us and wasn't afraid to call you out. She had dark pink hair that came down in a single braid and often wore button up shirts and jeans. She wasn't super girly and would probably get in a fight for a Klondike bar. She had tattoo sleeves on her arms ranging from artistic trees, to mystical creatures she remembered from Skylands, and even the four emblems of the elements we represented on her left wrist. Earth, Water, Undead, and Magic. The five of us went through some crazy times.
Normally when we start a discussion it's light hearted and she's super easy to talk to. Today was not one of the days.
I opened the sliding door that lead to the wooden ledge. I smiled as I was about to speak. She turned, "Do you think I'm worthless?" The smile vanished.
"Woah, uhh, where is this coming from?" I asked. Rachel turned back towards the city. Her pink braid floated in the wind. There was a long pause.
"I, uhh, I got turned down from another job again today." Rachel stammered.
I put my arm on her shoulder gently. "Don't tell me"
"Yeah, the boxing gym. They said I was 'too gruff' and 'made the customers uncomfortable'. Ironic, right?"
"They do know they promote violence, right?" I got a grin out of her. "Not to sound insensitive, but this isn't the first time you've been rejected from a job. What's actually eating you?"
Rachel sighed. "It's not just the rejections. It's having no place at all. In Skylands I could help people. In Skylands I was somebody. But here I have nothing. You four are the only people I know. At least you guys have jobs. I just need something. I hate being cooped up here in this testosterone infested apartment all day while you guys are making money. I feel like I haven't contributed in a while, you know?"
I wasn't sure what to say. Since Skylands I didn't need anyone besides them. Most people treated me so poorly I didn't want any friends. But she wanted to reach out. I couldn't relate. But I did know what she needed.
"You need a night out. See what's out there, look for something your passionate about. And maybe you just need to have some fun. For a while now you just stayed here and took care of stuff. First, we can't thank you enough for that, but I can't imagine being stuck in this apartment all day. So, when I have a day off we are hanging out." I offered.
Rachel smiled. "Yeah, I guess you're right. It's been a while since all of us have-"
"Actually, I was thinking something along the lines of something made for two…"
Rachel eyed me. Was I crazy? "Just the two of us?"
"I mean it has been a while since we've done something with just the two of us. Like that time, we were virtually on the moon on Flynn's ship?" I reminded her.
"How could I forget." She bit her lip. "Okay, I'm in."
I gave her a quick hug. "So, pizza tonight?" I was set for dinner plans when a quick movement in the street caught my eye. Something…bald. I felt like I had been staring so long my eyes almost popped out.
Rachel tried to find what I was looking for. "What's up?"
I stared more intensely. There seemed to be a green pointy ear poking out from some bushes. I started having this uneasy feeling in my gut.
I went back into my room, grabbed my sword, then hopped on the balcony edge.
"Chop Chop, what are you doing?" Rachel asked me.
I had become so focused on the moving target I had almost forgotten about Rachel, which never happens.
"Sorry, I uhh, need to check something out. Order whatever you want." I told her. Then I grabbed the down spout of the gutter and slid down to ground level. The rustling in the bushes started to become violent. I heard slight laughter that sounded all too familiar.
I turned the corner and the absolute last two people I thought I would ever see on Earth where right there. In all his bald and tiny glory was Kaos. And his green butler Glumshanks stood by him.
We locked stares. I tried to rack my brain for something to say. Something like, oh I don't know, WHY ON GOD'S GREEN EARTH WOULD HIS UGLY FACE BE HERE. You know, something calm and collected like that.
Glumshanks lifted his hand to his mouth. "Maybe if we don't move, he won't see us?"
"KAOS?!" I finally got out.
The tiny evil doer pounded on Glumshank's chest evilly. "You fool! YOU moved and he saw us! Now you've done it. When this is over I am sending you to your DOOM"
I grabbed Kaos by the shirt and lifted him. "Alright dirtbag, give me one reason I shouldn't kick your butt so hard I make another rift right into the outlands?"
"Gah, let go of my you small minded buffoon!"
"Alright, that's it"
"Woah! Bella!"
"Who?"
As if on cue for Kaos, I got tackled from the side, making me drop Kaos. The person got off me and stood at Kaos' side. They wore a grey hoodie, bright purple pants, and…were those light up Sketchers?
"Sorry for you, but now I have two butts that need whooping" I said drawing my sword.
The person drew back their hood revealing…a girl? She couldn't have been older than 15 at the most. She had on weird purple glasses and was of average height. She threw her hands in the air. "Wait! I'm so sorry! NO TROUBLE! That is what I have been into, why do you ask. WHAT ARE YOU A COP. No you're not a cop. And even if you were obviously you're not on duty so you can't do anything. Hehe, doodie"
"SILENCE! YOU IDIOT!" Kaos groaned at who I assume was Bella.
Bella snorted "HA, oh Kaos you sure are loud"
"Uhh, miss, the matter at hand" Glumshanks pointed back at me.
Trying to take in the site, I realized that I had gripped my sword so tight the veins in my hand almost burst.
"Ahh! Don't shoot" the girl stammered again.
"…Bella is it?" I choked through gritted teeth.
"Yep"
"Do you know who this is?" I nodded at Kaos.
"Yep"
"Would you care to tell my why…how…when…I mean, of all the people to protect" I had so many questions. I had to generalize. "Would you care to explain to me what you're doing?"
Bella gave a small chuckle. "Oh boy, do I have a story for you."