Fan Fiction Challenge #12: Maleficent at D23
Special thanks to the D23 attendees who voted on this week's Insider Challenge!
On Saturday morning, Disney Studios debuted footage of the new Maleficent movie and welcomed surprise guest Angelina Jolie to the stage. But what if Maleficent, herself, had sneaked into the Expo and interrupted the presentation? Start with Kingdom_Willatree's "Hello, Imagineers. Miss me?" and Finn_Electric's "Don't bother trying to leave. The doors are sealed," and imagine what happens next. What does Maleficent say to the crowd? How do the Keepers (as DHIs or kids in the audience) manage to take her down… Or do they?
An Overtaker Takes Over D23
The audience went wild as Angelina Jolie walked onto the D23 Arena stage, introduced by Sean Bailey—president of Walt Disney Studios. She was there to support her upcoming movie Maleficent. As the two discussed the film, a girl in the audience felt a shiver of excitement run down her back. As a Kingdom Keepers fan, she felt a particular interest in Maleficent. But was it bad to have so much attention focused on an Overtaker? She pushed such thoughts out of her head, wanting to focus on the presentation. After all, the Kingdom Keepers books were technically fictional… weren't they?
The lights went down and the audience fell silent, as a clip from the movie was displayed on a massive screen above the Arena stage. When the clip showed Maleficent casting her curse, her eyes glowing bright green, the girl gasped aloud. That was ominously similar to the Kingdom Keepers storyline. She shivered again, but not from excitement: the room felt strangely cold. She was just imagining it… wasn't she?
The clip finished, and everyone expected the lights to return. But the room stayed dark. One minute, two minutes, three minutes passed in the pitch black. A garbled murmur of worried voices filled the room. A security team rushed Angelina Jolie off the stage as Sean Bailey reassured the crowd that the technical difficulties would be solved soon. Suddenly, a fireball flew across the stage, and Sean Bailey fled in terror. The crowd held its collective breath as a single spotlight illuminated a woman. Not just any woman—a woman with green skin, a purple-and-black cloak, and a horned headdress. It was Maleficent herself! "Hello, Imagineers. Miss me?" she exclaimed triumphantly as the crowd burst into applause, thinking that this was all part of the show. But the applause stopped abruptly as the woman summoned a fireball out of thin air and shot it towards the audience. People leapt from their seats to escape, and Maleficent chuckled. "Don't bother trying to leave. The doors are sealed," she said as the fireball disintegrated right in front of the audience.
As audience members screamed and looked for a way out, the girl sneaked towards the stage, practically invisible in the writhing crowd. She didn't know what she was going to do, but she wanted to do something. She had dreamed of the opportunity to be a Kingdom Keeper, and here it was. She wracked her brain, trying to think of the ways that Finn and the other Keepers had defeated Maleficent. It always seemed so doable in the books. But before she reached the stage, she felt her feet lift off the ground. Struggling against invisible bonds, she couldn't escape as Maleficent levitated her into the air and brought her onstage. "Well, well… what do we have here?" Maleficent purred.
The girl wanted to have a witty retort, but she could only think of one thing to say: "You're supposed to be dead!"
Maleficent laughed bitterly. "Don't believe everything you read, dear. I was… under refurbishment, you might say. But all of this…" She gestured to the audience before continuing, "This is like a bolt of lightning to my system. We get our strength from belief. You might have considered that before giving me my own movie!" Now she was cackling gleefully. "The very people who tried to erase me have empowered me. And now, I will get my revenge!"
Maleficent summoned another fireball, and another, and another, until the stage was filled with floating balls of fire. Looking over the terrified audience with glee, Maleficent smiled. "Did you think this was just pretend? Think again!" she shouted as she aimed one fireball at the girl, who was quickly realizing that Overtakers were much more frightening in person. The girl squeezed her eyes shut and braced herself for the impact. But instead of feeling a burst of searing heat, she felt herself hit the ground. Maleficent had released her from the spell. "Not you again!" Maleficent growled. The girl opened her eyes to see who had distracted the evil fairy. Three glowing teenagers stood on the stage: a girl with dark hair, a girl with blond hair, and an African American boy. The girl recognized them at once—it was Willa, Charlene, and Maybeck! Maleficent shot all of her fireballs at them, but the fire passed harmlessly through their holograms, fizzling out on the other side.
"I told them that they should make a Kingdom Keepers movie instead of a Maleficent movie," Maybeck quipped.
"Well, I told them that it was a good idea to cross us over, just in case," Charlene retorted.
"Actually, that was Philby's idea. Which reminds me… Turn up the heat!" Willa added into a headset. The big screen flickered, and a live feed of Philby appeared. "I'm on it! And while I'm at it, why don't I give you a little more light?" he replied. He pressed a few buttons on the monitor in front of him and the arena lights turned on. Within seconds, the heat kicked in as well. Sweat dripped down the girl's face as she watched the Keepers in awe, her near-death experience all but forgotten in the presence of her heroes. But she was quickly reminded of it when Maleficent—weakened by the heat, but still dangerous—grabbed her by the throat. "Did you really think a little heat could stop me? I might not be able to hurt you, but I can hurt your little friend here."
"You're wrong on two counts. Technically, I've never met her, so we aren't friends. And, you're not going to hurt her, or anyone else here. Unless you want me to hurt you." At the sound of the new voice, Maleficent released the girl, who eagerly jumped up to see her savior. It was a boy holding a sword. If there was any question about his identity, Maleficent cleared it up when she hissed, "Finn Whitman."
"In the flesh. Or rather, in the hologram. I'm sure you haven't forgotten what I did to you the last time we met," he replied, waving the sword threateningly.
"Do you think I'm afraid of you?" Maleficent laughed again, but it sounded false this time. Finn didn't answer; he just took a step closer. Maleficent looked between the Kingdom Keepers and the audience, weighing her options. "You'll regret this. I'll be back, and you'll all pay!" she shouted. There was a huge burst of light and smoke, and when it cleared, Maleficent was gone.
The audience was silent, shocked by what had just happened. Then they burst into applause again, as Willa, Maybeck, Charlene, and Finn took a bow. Sean Bailey returned to the stage, clapping along with the audience. "The Kingdom Keepers! That was quite a show, wasn't it? Thanks for coming, kids. Now back to the presentation," he said with a fake smile. The Kingdom Keepers walked off-stage, pulling the girl along with them. "That wasn't just a show, was it?" she whispered to Finn under her breath.
"Nope. That was the real thing," he answered solemnly.