The Gates chapter 4

Chapter 4! Possibly/probably the last chapter of this story.

Benny: Did you expect nothing more from him? He takes shortcuts with these stories half the time.

This will hopefully tie everything together and put the Purgatory series (I guess it's now a series?) to a close.

Benny: Finally, about time.

Anyway, on with the story!


The Kankers frantically pounded on the bubble as Zachary looked up at them with his arms crossed and sternness. Meanwhile, the kids were scattered across the cul-de-sac, hiding in fear. The majority of the children were hiding by themselves with the exception of the pair of Jimmy and Sarah and the pair of Eddy and Eddward.

Ed hid behind a shrub in the front yard of Jimmy's house, the farthest one from the middle of the cul-de-sac. As Ed crouched down behind the shrub, he tried to look through the leaves for the Kankers in case they came by his hiding place. But they didn't so Ed cautiously and slowly stood up and looked around.

Ed thought 'I don't see those three anywhere. Maybe they just got tired of chasing us and they're keeping to themselves instead but that doesn't sound like something the Kankers would do. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if they did.'

Ed began to walk towards the middle of the cul-de-sac in order to find out what was going on. Meanwhile, Nazz was crouched by a tree on the outskirts of the wood, not very far from the playground. She began to feel concerned when she heard no noise, least of all the Kankers' casual but fiery shouting and jeering. She felt worry and fear fester and grow within her as she began to breathe nervously. Unlike Ed, she interpreted silence as a negative thing as even the squeals and cries of young, small children would have been better than complete quiet in this instance.

Nazz thought 'I haven't heard a thing for miles since we all ran off. This is creepy. Maybe I should go and see if everything is OK, especially since we just left Zachary with them.' before she lifted her head up a few inches to see if any foes were approaching her position.

Nazz sighed in relief and got out from behind the tree and looked around. The playground was deserted, of course but she had no idea where the others so she began to cautiously walk back towards the middle of the cul-de-sac, looking over her shoulder every five seconds.

Back in the middle of the cul-de-sac, Lee growled and shouted "Let us out of here, ya freak!"

Zachary replied tersely "I think you three could do with a little bit of punishment. It doesn't feel good, does it?"

Marie said "You better get rid of this bubble or you're gonna regret it, you winged weirdo!"

Zachary responded with "I think you three will remain in that bubble until you learn the lesson of respect and humility towards your peers. Hopefully, we all gain from it."

As Zachary looked up at the bubble calmly, Nazz and Ed entered the middle of the cul-de-sac and saw the Kankers encased inside the bubble. Their eyes widened in shock and surprise.

Nazz said "Woah, what is that?" as she pointed up at the bubble.

Zachary indifferently answered "It's where your friends will spend some time cooling off. As you can see, they are very upset and heated so I think some time away from others is in order. Wouldn't you?"

Nazz responded nervously with "Yeah but…this is a little over the top, isn't it? They're not exactly nice people but keeping them in a bubble is like controlling."

Ed said "That looks like the spaceship in Invasion of the Body Snatchers!" while he pointed to the bubble with the Kankers trapped inside.

Eddy and Eddward were crouched together nearby, far away that the Kankers wouldn't be able to see them but close enough that they would be able to see the Kankers coming near them. Eddy looked faintly nervous and Eddward was both afraid and confused.

Eddward asked "Excuse me, Eddy but do you hear anything right now?"

Eddy looked around and answered "Nah, not a sound, Abercrombie. Something's up. Either they've gone the other way or something bad's happened."

Eddward shivered and said "I certainly hope for our sake that it's the former. Who knows what these three could have done to some of our fellow peers." as he nervously looked around with a hint of fear.

Eddy replied "No offense, Abercrombie, but you're gonna end up being a wheat. Me, I'm gonna be a pip. But the only way I can do that is getting out of here with my tail intact." before he crouched and began crawling on the ground, motioning for Eddward to join him.

Eddward quickly did so as the two quickly but cautiously crawled away from their previous hiding spot. Meanwhile, Jonny and Plank were seated in the sandbox at the playground, supposedly carefree and generally oblivious to the problems that they and the others were facing.

Jonny said "It sure is a nice day out today, huh, Plank?" before he held the wooden board up to his ear and paused.

Jonny continued "What do ya mean, you're scared? What's there to be afraid of, you silly goose?" before he held the wooden board up to his ear once again.

Jonny's smile unexpectedly didn't fall flat when he pulled the wooden board away from his ear but it, in fact, began to stretch out into a semi-grin.

Jonny continued "Those girls are just dumb doras, you funny bird! I'm betting you that they've already scrammed off to their little hideout by now." before he got up and walked towards the middle of the cul-de-sac, carrying Plank in his right hand.

Kevin, on the other hand, was seated in the front seat of an old burner car in the junkyard. It had no doors, no gas and the driver's seat was reclined too far back to provide comfort but it had to do, given the circumstances. These Kankers lurking around and trying to beat him up gave him a chill, not that he would have admitted it loud. It actually reminded him of his uncle Ray. He used to yell, drink like a fish and smash anything in the house that he could get his hands on. Kevin dreaded every time Ray came for a visit.

Kevin gripped the hands of the steering wheel and closed his eyes. He began to daydream about driving a nice car around a racetrack and winning first place. He imagined himself in a red race suit, holding up a golden trophy containing the prize money. Then he began to imagine his house with Ray's car parked in the driveway. He imagined himself getting into the passenger seat and his idol, Harold White getting into the seat. He imagined the two of them driving the car over Ripper's Hole and the rest of his friends cheering. Kevin then imagined driving it over Ripper's Hole one last time, only to have it crash into the hole itself.

Kevin then opened his eyes and looked around. The junkyard, even with its many burnouts and scrap parts, was eerily quiet.

Kevin quickly got out of the car and began to head towards the middle of the cul-de-sac as he thought 'This whole thing is giving me the creeps. Where are those chicks?'

In the meanwhile, Rolf was situated in an abandoned barn, looking out the slightly ajar door for the Kankers. The remnants of items in the barn such as a sharpened pitchfork stuck down in the hay and the opened latches of the stable doors made Rolf nervous and uncomfortable but also nostalgic. It made him long for the days where as a little boy, he would scamper around his family's large farm in Eastern Europe whilst the cows, bulls and pigs would feed and roam the acres of the land. Of course, the farm near the cul-de-sac was very small in comparison but there wasn't much that could be compared to his old country.

Rolf thought 'Thank goodness there aren't any bulls here.' with a sigh of relief.

Rolf then crept out of the barn with nervousness and fear pounding through every single beat of his heart. He felt a single drop of sweat run down his forehead. He then looked around and realized the abandoned barn was just that, empty of all other life. Rolf began to walk towards the cul-de-sac in the hopes of finding the blond girl he spoke to and the other kids as well.

The pair of Jimmy and Sarah sat down in the backyard of Ed and Sarah's house, waiting to see if anyone would come towards or past them. A pale Jimmy looked down at his pair of jeans as he picked at the blades of grass off them. He felt that it would make his clothing dirty which was the last thing he wanted. Jimmy found the loud, defiant Sarah a confident ally, similar to that he had in his brothers. Jimmy only wished that he came to appreciate his brothers more but he rarely saw them in school which didn't help his bullying situation.

Sarah ran a hand through her shoulder-length red hair and sighed. She then looked down at the grass with anger. This had to have something to do with stupid Ed, the grody odd ball. He was always doing something he shouldn't have been. Who did those Kankers think they were, anyway? Dolls? Freams were more like it. Somebody was going to have to stand up to them and if it had to be Sarah, she would do it in a heartbeat.

Sarah looked over at Jimmy and asked "How are you feeling, Jimmy?"

Jimmy answered quietly "I feel weezy, Sarah" before he began to breathe irregularly.

Sarah said "Jimmy?" as she started to shake him and he looked over at her with glossy eyes.

Jimmy replied "Yeah?" with embarrassment clouding his voice.

Sarah got up and said "Let's find those Kankers and give it what's coming to them. Come on!" before she grabbed Jimmy's arm and dragged him behind her.

Meanwhile, in the middle of the cul-de-sac, the Kankers were still banging on the bubble and trying to destroy it to no avail. Zachary looked at them with apathy while Nazz and Eddward looked at it with shock in Eddward's case and disappointment and irritation in Nazz's case. Ed was amazed at the bubble itself while Eddy laughed at the Kankers, taking the opportunity to taunt them mildly.

Eddy cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted "Hey, blabbermouths! How are you liking your little bubble booth, huh?"

A fleeting look of shock and surprise appeared on Lee's face before she pounded on the bubble and shouted "Let's see how you like it when you're in here with me!" in reply.

Eddward said "Eddy, don't antagonize them. They're already upset enough and why are they inside a bubble?"

Zachary answered indifferently "These girls needed to be shown the error of their ways. So they have been shown how it feels to be confined from everyone else."

Eddward protested "But by doing this ostracization, you're going to the same level as them. Wouldn't a more positive tactic be suitable here?"

Eddy replied "Sockhead, these dames have been scaring us all day. I'm not too sad to see them getting their just desserts, alright?"

The other children began to arrive and looked at the bubble in curiosity, shock, surprise and in one case, excitement. Jonny began to jump up and down while he held Plank up.

Jonny said "Look, buddy, isn't that bubble the berries?"

Kevin shouted "Hey, psychos, having fun up there? You look pretty happy to me. Maybe we should let this guy keep you in that thing."

Sarah shouted "Yeah, you stuck up freaks! Why don't you go back to Mars or that dump you call a house in the trailer park!"

Eddy laughed and shouted "Having fun in there, Ginger Snap?"

Jonny said loudly "Hey, look, Plank, one of those dumb doras is trying to bash on the sides. Can you believe that? Trying to pop a perfectly good bubble."

Rolf said "Has the buck-toothed freckled one managed to fix her teeth on the sides of the bubble?"

Jimmy replied "That blue-haired one's still running her mouth out. I think she should have it washed out with soap. Then again, I don't think any of them have learned to take showers." while a few of the other kids, Eddy notably included, laughed at his remark.

The only kids who didn't take part in the taunting were Eddward who felt that taunting the already furious Kankers was only escalating the situation, Nazz who thought putting the Kankers in the bubble in the first place was "overboard" and Ed who silently perceived the taunts as bullying which he firsthand experienced as a child.

Zachary shouted "That's enough!" in an angry tone.

The kids turned and looked at him, the Kankers included. Some of them had shocked and afraid looks on their faces while others appeared annoyed or angry.

Sarah said "What's the big idea, huh? Yelling at us like that?"

Zachary replied "These three were placed in that bubble to show them the consequences of their actions. It wasn't to be used as a stage and a holding cell for them to be treated like animals while you yell out venomous barbs and insults." before he lowered the bubble down, close to touching the ground.

Zachary continued "You all will be in this realm for quite a while so the least you can do is attempt to get along with one another. Time is too short to let yourself get concerned with revenge." before a blue light suddenly appeared from the sky.

A tall, middle-aged man with light brown hair and green eyes who was dressed in a blue robe and had a pair of large, angelic white wings descended down to the ground and stood still and silent.

Zachary cleared his throat, put his hands together, slightly bowed his torso towards the man and said "Phadedrus. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Phadedrus gave Zachary a look of anger, disappointment and a bit of confusion and responded with "I'm afraid this is displeasure I'm conveying right now, Zachary. Are you aware of how many Angel Council treaties and laws you have broken simply by entering this realm? The Council and the Fury are displeased and who can blame them?"

Phadedrus continued "I'm afraid I'm left with no choice but to close the Stream permanently and force you up to Heaven. There, you will go before the Council and face a tribunal. Do you object?"

Zachary looked at the children. He knew that what he did may have been legally wrong by Council rules but he wasn't about to let these children break each other into pieces. But what could he do? The closing of the Stream would be done, regardless of whatever he did.

Zachary sighed, stood straight, put his hands behind his back and clasped them together.

He then answered "I offer no objections to this forced tribunal, Phadedrus. You know that best."

Phadedrus nodded and solemnly said "Very well. You will now be forced to the tribunal." before he raised his right hand towards the bubble.

He said "Confractus bulla" and the bubble suddenly burst, releasing the confused and angry Kankers.

The blue light then surrounded Phadedrus and Zachary as they both began to ascend. At a certain height, the two vanished along with the blue light. The kids looked up at the sky then at the each other with confusion.

Nazz said "So what do we do now?"

Eddward responded with "I'm afraid I don't know but it appears that we are stuck here. The length of time for which we are, I can't determine."


There we go. The last chapter of the Gates is finally done!

Benny: Emphasis on finally. What the hell took you so long? It's not like you went into a coma or anything, you moron.

I'm sorry that it took so long to get this chapter out to you guys. I have been busy over the past few months with school, college applications, exams, family and overall life.

Benny: *cough*garbage*cough*

Thankfully, I found the strength to finally finish this chapter and thus, this story. There probably won't be a sequel to this. A stand-alone story connected to the Purgatory might be a possibility but I doubt it will happen.

Benny: Yeah, that will go into the Imagination Junkyard just like most of your other horrible "ideas".

You didn't need to make air quotes there, Benny. You could have just…said it?

Benny: Not when they're not ideas. That would be lying, darkshadow and there's no need to lie to your readers. *mutters* Not that it stops you from doing it…

Anyway, thanks for sticking around for this long! I'll be finishing Social Care by New Year's Eve and then I'll see where things go from here.

Benny: Don't tell me you're still gonna do those horrible Total Drama stories. They're not going to work out.