What Happened To The Twin City

What Happened To The Twin City

'Dot, are you sure Enzo can stay the night?' Dot rolled her eyes. 'Mum, you already asked that ten times. You know I'll take good care of him. Besides, we'll be at the Diner most of the evening, before we go to my apartment. You can contact us anytime you want.'
Ferra, the female sprite with gold skin and red hair, bend over and hugged her daughter. 'I know Dot. I'm sorry. It's just that it's Enzo's first time out, so I'm a bit worried.' Dot hugged her back. 'Don't be Mum. It'll be just alphanumeric.' Ferra looked at Dot. 'I wish you two'd stop that adolescent talk. It gets on my nerves.' Dot smiled.
'Where is Enzo anyway? If we want to reach the Diner before the end of the cycle, its about time we leave.' Ferra looked at her daughter. 'You sound just like me, Dotty.' Then she frowned. 'I think he's at the stables, with your dad. Come on, let's go and get them.' The two sprites got on their zipboards and zipboarded in the direction of the sportssector.

'Come on, Enzo, I just know you'd like riding, if you only tried.' Enzo sat on the fence, while his father, a tall sprite with green skin and black hair, walked around the manege on a brown horse with a white blaze. Enzo made a face. 'Dad, you know I don't like horses. Well, I like them as long as I'm on the ground, but I am not even thinking about getting on the back of one of them. Not even Robin's.' The brown horse pricked up his ears when he heard his name, and looked at Enzo. James stopped the horse in front of Enzo, and it put its head in Enzo's lap. The young sprite rubbed the horse's head, and gently talked to it. 'I know Robin, you're really sweet, but I'm just not brave enough to ride, not after Dot fell of that other horse.' He looked at his father. 'Dad, how important is the experiment you and Mum are going to do tonight?' James shrugged. 'If it works, it can be really useful to the cities. If it doesn't, well, it's to bad.' He got his feet from the stirrups and stepped on the ground. 'Come on Enzo, let's put Robin in his stable for the night.' Enzo jumped from the fence and got hold of Robin's reins. 'Come on boy.'
As they walked to the stables, Ferra and Dot approached the two men. 'Daddy!' Dot jumped of her zipboard and ran the last two steps to her father, before she fell him around his neck. James laughed and kissed his daughter on the forehead. 'Hi Dotty. Party tonight, my girl?' Dot made a face. 'No Daddy. We have to work hard at the Diner and then go to sleep.' 'Ah, Dot!' Enzo halted Robin and gave his sister a disappointed look. Dot smiled at her brother and gave him a wink. Immediately Enzo smiled again. Dot stepped towards the horse and rubbed his head. 'Hi boy. How are you?' Robin snorted and lowered his head so Dot could rub behind his ears. 'I'll take him, Enzo.' Dot got the reins from her brother and took the horse to the stables. James, Ferra and Enzo slowly followed them. Enzo wriggled his head under his mother's arm. 'Mum, is the experiment dangerous?' Ferra hugged her son. 'Only if we're not careful, Enzo. And we will be careful, trust me.' Enzo put his head reassured in his mother's side.

Dot had put Robin in his loosebox and had put away his saddle and bridle. Now she was leaning to the door and gently stroked his head. The horse had put his chin on her shoulder and had his eyes half-closed. Dot gently spoke to him. 'I'm sorry boy, you know I love you, I just sort of lost my nerves when Libby threw me of.' With one finger, Dot rubbed her collarbone. She could still feel the spot where it had been broken. When her parents and Enzo entered the stable, she stopped talking. 'Come on Enzo, let's go.' She gently removed Robin's head from her shoulder and walked towards her family. James put his arms around Dot's shoulders. 'We'll go to the Labs now. If there is anything, just call us. You know the number.' Dot nodded. 'Yes Dad.' Then she turned to Ferra. 'Mum, is there anything that can go wrong with the experiment?' Ferra gave her a mocking look. 'What is this? Don't you two trust us or something?' Dot smiled and got hold of her mother's hand. 'We're just worried. I wouldn't know what I would do without you.'

'Ah, Madame, welcome back!' Cecil held open the door of the Diner, so Dot and Enzo could walk in. Enzo looked around. 'You sure have made a lot of improvements since the last time I was here.' Dot nodded. 'I know. It's been hard work, but I think it was worth it.' She walked to one of the booths and sat down. Enzo followed her example and sat down opposite of his sister. 'Well, would you like an energyshake?' Enzo nodded enthusiastically. 'So, what are we going to do tonight?' Dot shrugged. 'I don't know. What do you want to do?' Enzo gave his sister an innocent look. 'Play a Game?' Dot turned her eyes to the heavens. 'Enzo, you know I don't like Games.' Enzo grinned. 'I didn't exactly mean a Game, but something like a board game. Monopoly or something.' Dot smiled. 'Okay, you nut. Monopoly it'll be.'

'James, do you think it's fair we didn't tell the children how dangerous this experiment is? I have a bad feeling about it.' Ferra raised her safety goggles and looked at her husband. He returned her gaze and raised his goggles as well. 'Ferra, if you have any doubts, we should not do this tonight. You know it'll be too dangerous if you're distracted.' Ferra looked worried. 'It was almost as if they knew it.' James gave her a stern look. 'Ferra, stop it. If you think it's too dangerous, we won't do it. If you think we should still do it, put your mind to it and stop worrying about the kids.' He looked at his wife. 'All right?' Ferra sighed. 'Okay.' They both lowered their safety goggles and got back to what they had been doing.

'Haha, Dot, you're on my Baudway. I've two living quarters, so that makes three thousand units.' Dot sighed and gave her little brother her last three notes of a thousand units. Enzo had won the game. 'Shall we call Mum and Dad before we go to sleep?' Enzo nodded. 'But I get to call. I won the game.' Dot smiled. 'Alright then.' She reached out for her organizer, which lay on the table next to them, and gave it to Enzo. 'You do know how to call, don't you? I don't want you to mess up my files.' Enzo gave her an angry look. 'Of course I know how to call.' He pushed a few keys and got the numeral pad with which he could call. He dialed the five numbers of the Lab department, and got his mother's face in focus. 'Hi Enzo! How nice you call!' 'Hi Mum. How is the experiment coming along?' Ferra made a face. 'Well, the preparations are almost finished. Just a few nano's and we'll be able to execute the real thing.' 'Okay. I love you, Mum. Here's Dot.'
Enzo gave the organizer back to his sister. 'Hi Mum. Is everything going according to plan?' 'Yes, sort of. It's not too bad. Don't worry Dotty. I have to go now. Remember, I love you, and Daddy loves you too. Wherever we are. Bye now!' Ferra disconnected, and left Enzo and Dot startled. Dot shrugged. 'Oh well. Come on Enzo, it's time to go to sleep.' Enzo nodded, and followed his sister to the bedroom.

'Okay Ferra, this is it.' James had raised his safety goggles and looked at his wife, who stood at the other side of the workstation. The whole evening, they had been busy on the preparations for the experiment, and now they were finished and ready for the real thing.
Ferra smiled, a little tense. 'James, I love you.' He smiled. 'If anything goes wrong, just remember I will always love you, wherever I am.' The corners of Ferra's mouth started to tremble. She walked around the table and put her arms around her husband. For a moment, they stood motionless, before they parted and resumed their places at the workstation.
'Are you ready?' Ferra nodded. 'Let's do it.' James inclined his head, and reached for the switch.

Dot woke up with a shock. She lifted her head and wondered what had woken her. She frowned. There was nothing. She put her blanket aside and stepped from her bed. Enzo was sleeping tight. He murmured softly in his sleep, and turned to his other side.
Dot gently stroked his hair from his face and smiled. She loved her little brother with all her heart. Enzo smiled in his sleep. Then Dot walked to the vidwindow that looked out over the city. There, in the distance, she could see the lights of the twincity. The two cities were joined together by the beautiful Gilded Gate Bridge. She could see it now, long and with a soft golden shine.
Then, the lights from the twincity seemed to grow brighter. Dot frowned and looked at the city again. With a shock, she realized where the lights came from.

The Science Laboratories!

'Enzo!'

With a shock, Enzo awoke. He blinked and rubbed his eyes. 'What is it, Dot?' Dot was standing in front of the window, her eyes large and unbelieving, in terror. Enzo jumped from his bed and ran to the window. The light coming from the Labs had grown brighter, and as they looked, it made a pulse, and exploded.

Dot threw herself and her brother on the ground, while the sound of the blast reached their ears and small, hard fragments clattered against the window.

For a moment, the room filled with a bright light, then grew darker then ever.

Dot and Enzo reluctantly rose. Dot looked out of the window, afraid what she might see, or maybe not see.

She turned her eyes to the twincity. All the lights had gone. Only a large column of smoke rose from the place it had been.

The corners of her mouth began to tremble. A tear slid down her cheek.

Enzo extended her hand and took hers. Dot's legs started to tremble, and she fell on her knees on the floor.

'No! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'



Nobody had seen the portal open and close just before the explosion.


To Be Continued....


Some time ago, I saw AndrAIa and Nullzilla, and in both episodes they talk about the twincity and Dot and Enzo's father. But no one ever tells what really happened, or how the twincity looked or how it was joined to Mainframe.
So I was thinking about it, and decided to write this. I just hope it worked out...

Indy, 28 November 1999