Song- Through the Fire and the Flames, by DragonForce.
We open up with a green arrow crossing the screen, opening up to reveal two figures silhouetted in shadows. A blue arrow then sweeps the screen, revealing a fiery projection of Shelby Marx shadow boxing in a purple void, before turning to the camera and punching up the title, Star Platinum style.
We then cut to the sky, as a hand appears to grab the sunlight. We pan down, to see that the hand belongs to Tori Vega. Zooming into her mind, we see the background slashed apart by her and her friends, all taking heroic poses. The two figures step out of the shadows, taking up arms, but we don't see their faces yet.
We then rapidly cut to Andre, who is playing the keyboard, Beck, who's cleaning his car. Robbie and Cat playing guitar, Trina singing towards the ocean and Jade sharpening her scissors. In the recesses of the Tori's mind, Shelby is bound in chains, and muzzled. Her bindings are undone as we cut to either Tori or Shelby stare at a moonlit stadium. One thing is for sure; next, we see Tori and Shelby switching back and forth as they run down a corridor.
Smash cut to the top of a building, where a man is standing over the ledge. Finally, it is here when the big payoff is revealed. The two figures are revealed to be two characters from the NCU, before quickly cutting to the HA Gang, minus Tori of course, while behind, a girl cries angry tears. We then pan over a collage of famous locations in the NCU, including The Premiere, Bushwell Plaza, PCA and Hollywood Arts.
Tori and Shelby alternate between the singing and dancing on stage and fighting in the ring, sometimes switching locations. As the two NCU veterans stand side by side, before a third woman flashes into the middle of the frame, but just as quickly as she came, she vanishes as the veterans line up with the HA Gang, staring down a shadowy woman of strawberry blonde madness. We zoom out to see the pillar she's standing on, as lightning streaks across a blood red sky. Shooting stars fly over a map. The order in which they appear corresponds to how they act in the story The NCU veterans pull ahead as they lead the charge. As Tori looks on, the back of her head fades away to reveal Shelby Marx, looking in the opposite direction.
Either Tori or Shelby stand in a void, letting out a massive wave of power before the main cast all line up on stage.
Now back to the show
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, a young man's eyes fluttered open right before a tidal wave of shock and horror washed over him. He was bound in shackles and chains, sitting in a classroom chair. The room he was in was dimly lit. Suddenly, in the corner of the room, a large screen flashed to life. On the other side of the screen was what appeared to be a modified Angelic Amber doll. And then; she spoke in a gastly tone.
"Hello, Ryder! Let's play a game. For me, true evil...is when you use others for your own gain, then cast them aside once you're through. That's exactly what you've doing, isn't it? For years, you have used girls to get better grades than you deserve, then cast them aside once they have served their purpose. After Tori Vega exposed you, I'd figured you'd learned your lesson...but imagine my surprise, when I learned that you've transferred to Northridge, and continued pulling your bullshit, to the point where you have obtained a scholarship to a nice college, even though there were others... who are significantly more deserving than someone such as yourself. I highly doubt you even remember their names...Luckily, you get to prove me wrong!"
A spotlight shined on Ryder, and surrounding him, was a carousel-like contraption, hold eight girls, each one tied to a pole. Ryder then looked down, seeing a large tablet.
"Ryder, this is round 1 of 3. I call it; The Wheel of Misfortune! In this round, the eight girls that surround you are girls you have used and tossed aside across your time at both Hollywood Arts and Northridge. In a few moments, the wheel shall begin to turn, then stop on one of the girls, at which point, the tablet will turn on, giving you four possible names. Your job is to correctly guess the names of each girl that appears in front of you. Correct answers will only give you a small shock, incorrect answers, however, will shoot out a metal block, right towards your groin. If you give at least half the wrong names, a cannon will blast your testicals with such tremendous force, the Vagus Nerve will cause your brain to shut down, and you'll die! Live or die, make your choice, Ryder Daniels!"
The Next Day…
The Next Day
When Tori Vega woke up in the early morning hours, her chest cried out in pain. "Augh...Jesus Christ!" It felt like her chest and torso had been run over by a truck. Tori placed a hand on her heart. "Man, my chest feels like it's gonna claps any second, but still, good work last night, Shelby. Just try to be more careful next time," she said.
"Duly noted," Shelby replied.
Tori got up and quickly grabbed some clothes and headed to the bathroom. Tori removed her shirt, revealing a baseball sized bruise under her was then that a notification appeared on her cellular phone. "This must be about the Marx-Danger fight. Tori opened up the notification, but what she saw rocked her to her very core.
Uchu Eien Danger has sustained extremely serious injuries in last night's fight against Shelby Marx. Despite their best efforts, doctors were unable to resuscitate her. Uchu Eien Danger is in a coma as a result of her injuries. The
Tori nearly dropped her phone right then and there. Shelby Marx may have possibly ended somebody. It cannot be. As Tori changes her clothes, she notices that there were several bruises and cuts, including a large bruise on her rib area. The same place where Danger had kicked her. "Dammit, Danger!" she cursed to herself.
"Tori, before you go to school, be sure to take a pain pill! I did my best, but that fight did a number on your body."
"You mean; OUR body?"
Hollywood Arts
"Don't worry, Cat. I got you." Robbie helped Cat to the table, where Tori, Jade, Beck, Andre and Trina were waiting for them. "Cat, what happened to you?" asked Beck. "Well," Cat spoke, "After I got home, my roommate, Sam was so pumped up after seeing the Shelby Marx fight, she decided to test out her new Bad Dragon Strap On on my JUSSY!" Robbie shook his head. "That's putting it lightly, Cat! Sam Puckett went SICKO MODE, and she made me watch!" he lamented.
"Well, Robbie...she offered the fuck you as well, but you ran away!"
"Wrong, I used the legendary Joestar Technique! I'm sorry, but I kinda need my butt intact…" Robbie said in a squeamish tone.
Andre cleared his throat. "Right, so...on to a less disgusting topic, Tori, I hope you're tummy is feeling better," he said.
"Uh, yeah. Dysentery sucks!" said Tori.
"I thought it was Super Dysentery," Jade was in a dubious tone. "Why are you acting so weird? Well, weirder than you already are…"
Tori sighed, saying, "I just told you, I had Super Dysentery!"
"I HaD SuPer DysEnTarY!" Jade said, in a mocking southern tone.
Tori rubbed the bridge of her nose as she angrily said, "I. Don't. Talk. Like. THAT! Why do you think I talk like that?"
Jade got uncomfortably close to Tori's face. "Why? Simple. Because, you are a BEYTAAA! Unlike you, I am an ALPHA!" she said smugly. Tori Vega didn't like violence, but Jade was really pushing the limits of her patience. Before things could escalate any further, the bell rang, signaling that it was time for class.
Sikowitz's class was quite easy that day, but Tori was preoccupied with the events of last night, not to mention, her bruise was quite bothersome. Soon enough, the time flew by, and class let out. As she crossed the threshold, Tori came to a stop. "Why did Shelby comatose Danger?" Tori thought to herself. "I could have sworn I had her restrained better than that! I can't lose complete control, otherwise she'll-" *WHACK* Tori found herself on the receiving end of an elbow shot to the ribs. She recoiled in pain, falling to her knees,clutching her ribs. "You were in my way. Get up. I didn't hit you that hard!" Cat and Andre went up to Tori helping her up. "Jade, why did you hit her?" she asked. Jade scoffed. "I barely even touched her! Tori ran off to the bathroom, holding her ribs. In the bathroom, Tori stood around, waiting for the pain to subside.
"Trurururu!" Just then, there was a ringing sound in Tori's head. "Trurururu!" Tori grabbed a roll of paper towels and put it to her head like a phone.
"No, Shelby! You can't kill Jade West, as tempting as it may be!"
"Tori, I told you to take the pills."
"I did, but it's gonna take a while before they fully kick in. I think Jade may be onto us!"
Meanwhile, at the Asphalt Cafe, Jade is deep in thought. "Why did Vega go down to such a weak elbow shot? I kicked her out of her chair once, and she didn't bitch out then? Wait a second!" It was then, that Jade quickly yanked out her phone, pulling up footage of the Marx-Danger fight. She focused in on the part where Danger kicked Marx in the ribs.
"Hey, guys. Look at this. Shelby Marx DOES look a lot like Tori, right? Look at the spot where Danger kicked her. That's the same place where I elbow. That must've been a pretty hard kick!"
Beck spoke up. "Jadonix Lamar Elizabeth West III, what are you trying to say?"
Jade smirked, saying, "It looks like our friend, Tori, hasn't been entirely honest with us, has she? Why else has she been going missing all the time?"
Andre was next to talk. "Girl, you'd better not be implying what I think you are!"
"Well...let's just say that….X...MARX the spot!"
"Hold on, there is no way that Tori Vega is Shelby Marx."
Before the conversation could go any further, Sinjin came to their table. "Hey, you guys are needed by Sikowitz in the Black Box theater after school," were the words from his mouth.
Black Box Theater
Perhaps having two souls in one body had it's advantages. The bruises were already starting to heal. Tori was back to her chipper mode by the time the end of the day rolled around. When she entered the theater, she was called up to the stage. Sikowitz continued to suck down coconut milk, saying, "Alrighty, Tori, Jade, Andre, Cat, Beck and Robbie, hop on the stage. "Yeah...get on the stage…"Tori"...if that IS your real name!" Jade sneered. "Wha-WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?" Tori cried out while Cat laughed, saying, "HAHAHA! Hey, that's my line!"
Sikowitz got started on a new coconut. "As some of you may know, Hollywood Arts has been challenged by Northridge to a 'Stage Fight Battle Royale'. To that end, the six of you have been chosen to represent…*Burp* The Arts. "That sounds pogalicious!" said the four eyed twink that is Robbie Shapiro. Jade raised an eyebrow. "Pogawhat? Rob, what the fuck are you on about? Nevermind, I don't wanna know! So, about Northridge, are we gonna go kick their asses, or will they come to us?" she asked Sikowitz. "Well, yes and no! In order to level the playing field, we will be competing in Malibu, a school known as the Pacific Coast Academy, or PCA!"
Tori gasped. "Did you say PCA? Holy crap, my cousin, Lola, went there, and I visited there once," she mused. "Very interesting! Well then. Everyone get some practice and rest. Next week will not be Get plenty of rest and practice. Next week will not be pretty.
"Yes, sleep well, indeed, Vega," Jade said with an evil chuckle.
JADE WEST
Look out, Tori Vega, I know you're hiding a secret, and I will find it Feeling-Suspicious
The Vega House
Nightfall arrived before Tori knew it. She now laid in the bathtub, clouds of suds covering her, protecting her decency, not that it really mattered. She had not entered the bath empty handed. In addition to her clothes and towel, around her neck was a necklace,and at the end of it, there was a black, cracked crystal, roughly the size of a flashdrive. As Tori stated intently at it. Within her psyche, she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, Shelby. What's up?"
Shelby's POV
This secret is both of our burdens. Call me selfish, but it's kind of nice to know I'm not alone. At least I'm here with Tori, even if we share the same body! I wrapped my arms around Tori, as she quietly asked me, "Shelby, what would you do with your life if you had your own body?" I took some time to think about it. "I dunno. Probably go full time in the CFC!" I turned my attention to the crystal. How ironic...that technically speaking...my mother was a shiny rock that could fit into the palm of your hand. I never really liked Tori's mom. I'm fairly certain that the bitch had fucked the policeman's partner. I'd have to handle the situation myself. I really don't want a repeat of the Steven Carson situation. Something about how Tori and the ICarly gang handled that situation left a bad taste in my mouth. "Something wrong, Shelby?" asked a concerned Tori. "It's nothing. I think you're clean now. Let's hit the sack. I'll sing to you. Okay?"
5 Minutes Later…
Tori laid in the bed, staring at the ceiling while Shelby sang in her mind.
BGM-Run With Us, Jake Weller Cover
When darkness falls,
Leaving shadows in the night,
Don't be afraid,
Wipe that fear from your eyes.
The desperate love,
Keeps on driving you wrong,
Don't be afraid,
You're not alone.
You can run with us,
We've got everything you need,
Run with us,
We are free.
Come with us,
I see passion in your eyes,
Run with us.
When the cold wind blows,
Turn your cover to the cold,
Don't be ashamed,
If you need someone to hold.
If you're sinking in quicksand,
And it's dragging you down,
And you feel you're going under,
We'll be around.
Shelby Marx often wished she could physically interact and kiss Tori on the forehead. Tori let out a long yawn as she finally drifted off into dreamland. "Sleep well, Tori…"
Author's Note- Hey, it's me again. Like I said, GIVE ME FEEDBACK! PLEASE!