The Judgement of Sparky.
Clip lay sleeping on the couch, she had fallen asleep soon after dinner. Sparky was sitting in the easy chair, looking at her fondly, with that warm husband love. He kept thinking about what he would do if he ever lost her.
They hadn't gone to the dance, Sparky had feigned sickness. Now he felt bad, for Clip had been disappointed, though she tried to hide it from Sparky.
Yet Sparky thought about the cloaked man. He thought of the terrible power the man held, what that power could do, and worse, what that power could do to Clip...
It chilled Sparky to think about it. He had to do something. His mind ran with the ideas, 'What can I do? God, after me what's to stop him from coming after her? In her condition, she wouldn't fight him, not while risking that babe's life, Clip wouldn't do that. We could move, but no, I can't even avoid him in my dreams...I could face him...'
"No! Sparky! Don't be a fool!"
It was the melodious voice, Sparky looked up, he was used to the voice now, "Then what? How will it end? Nothing else will work, and I can't hide forever, we can't live like this."
"Sparky, if you face him, should you challenge him and win, then it will end."
"Then why not?"
"Because Sparky, you cannot beat him."
Sparky laughed, "Of course. Then what else is there?"
The voice was silent. Sparky waited, then asked, "What will happen, if I face him, and lose?"
Sparky heard a sigh in his head, then the voice spoke, "Then a fate far worse than death awaits you."
Sparky shook his head. It all seemed so complicated, to not face him was to live with fear each passing day, yet to face him and lose was to face something worse than dying, and he understood, though it pained him to know, that he couldn't fight the man, and win...
"Will you be there," Sparky asked the voice, "when I face him?"
"Once you challenge him, I can do no more. After the judgement has begun, it will not end until either warrior can fight no more."
Sparky thought again, he looked at Clip snoring softly on the couch. He smiled at her, his buchi-boo. He remembered all the times they had, all the fun. He remembered when he met her, he had spied her walking home from work, she walked to her home the same way everyday, and everyday he saw her walk by him. One day he had worked up the courage to ask her to dinner. From there, their romance soared. Right before their wedding, Stitch had left. Their wedding was glorious, she had been the most beautiful bride. Their marriage was full of merriment, then, after about a year, Clip told him he would be a father. His excitement had soared that day, everything was going perfect for Sparky, everything...now, some demon wanted to take it all away from him. He looked once more at Clip on the couch, he wouldn't let any harm befall her, he would defend her until his dying breath, through hell and through fire.
Sparky spoke to the voice, "How do I initiate the challenge?"
"Sparky, don't-."
"No, listen to me. I know what will happen, I know the consequences if I fail. I won't have it! I will not see Clip hunted by that bastard, I will not accept it. The choice of ignoring this doesn't exist, there is no other choice. Tonight I will face him, tonight it will end."
The voice was silent for a moment, then it spoke, it's tone shaking, as if the speaker was crying, "You poor man, I'm so sorry...sorry that this began, sorry to what this has done to you."
Sparky shook his head, "It's not your fault..."
"Still, I should be able to do more..."
Sparky waited, and the voice spoke again, "Go into town and wait, he is expecting you..."
Sparky rose, and headed for the door. He touched the door handle, and turned around to look at Clip. He walked softly over to her and delicately kissed her on the cheek, and whispered into her ear, "Should the sun rise, and I not be by your side, I'm sorry. You are so dear to me, and I have to do this. You lit up my life Clip, I now go to defend yours..."
He rose softly and walked out the door, to face what may come.
The street was dark. The pale flittering lights casting shadows on the pavement. Sparky walked down the middle of the street. All was quiet, not a soul stirred. Sparky looked from side to side down the dark alley ways, expecting to see the specter of a man awaiting him. Yet Sparky did not see the man, and he began to wonder if he was going to show.
"Sparky! Of course I came, do you think I would miss this?"
Sparky felt sick at hearing the voice. He looked up the street to see the man lounging on a bus stop bench. The man turned to see Sparky, the only thing visible was his red eyes. Sparky saw him, and began walking towards the man, his fists clenched, ready to unleash the storm's fury at a moments notice.
He reached the bench, and the man motioned for Sparky to sit. Sparky was taken aback, "Sit? With you? What trickery is this?"
The man shook his head, "No trick, after all, I believe this will be the last time you and I speak."
Sparky stood for a moment, then sat down. He stared at the cloaked man, who seemed to be interested in the other side of the street. Sparky found this annoying, "You know why I came."
The man nodded, "I know, you came for her. A sickening thing, love, I've never understood it."
Sparky clenched his teeth, "I don't think a monster like you would."
The man looked at him, Sparky had to turn away from those intense red eyes, "Sparky, you don't think I know love? I used to know love, I loved my little sister dearly. Yet we grew apart, conflicted interests of karma I'm afraid. For some odd reason, my sister thinks it's wrong to hunt down people."
Sparky stared at the man, 'No,' Sparky thought, 'he's no man, just some bloodthirsty creature.'
The man looked at Sparky, "Hm, creature eh? So that's what you think of me? Sparky, I thought we were chums."
Sparky wasn't affected by the remark, he was used to the creatures mind reading, "Don't you dare call me your friend."
The man chuckled, and the chuckling turned into a maniacal laugh. Sparky watched him, his anger arising. The man finished and looked at Sparky, the man now spoke in a bitter tone, "You pathetic worm. Merely the thought, of me, having a friend of your likes, makes me nauseosus."
Sparky grinned wickedly, "The thought of the likes of you having a friend makes me laugh."
The man chuckled and looked at the moon, "Ah yes, but my friends annoyed me...so I killed them."
Sparky wasn't surprised, then the cloaked man stood, and spoke, "But come, it grows late. Let us finish this business."
The man walked a little ways off, and turned to face Sparky. Sparky arose from the bench, and took up the opposite side of the street. They stared each other down, Sparky was clenched, ready for the fight. He was already drawing in his power. The hairs on his neck were raised in the anticipation, he began to snarl, the adrenalin pumping him onward, preparing him for the fight. The figure merely stood there, calmly as if he were strolling through the park.
The cloaked man looked at Sparky, "Come, let the judgement begin."
Sparky filled his hands with lightning and charged. His heart pounded, and he reached the figure, and they began to fight hand to hand. Lightning whipped around as Sparky launched punch after punch at the figure. The figure met every blow with an expert guard, blocking Sparky's attacks as if he was fending off a child.
Sparky jumped back and slammed his fists into the ground, producing a shockwave. It spread across the ground, and the figure tumbled. Sparky saw his opportunity, and immediately leapt on top of the figure, and drove blow after blow into the man's hidden face.
Something grabbed Sparky's leg, and he turned to see a dark tentacle lashed around his leg. He felt himself lifted into the air, and the tentacle slammed Sparky into the ground repeatedly. Sparky knew he had to do something, after another blow, he grasped the tentacle and filled it with electrical current. The energy shot to the man, and he screamed. Sparky held on, the electricity pulsing through him, 'Just a little more.'
The man pulled in his hand, and Sparky watched as the darkness came to a point in the man's hand. The man pulled back, and launched a lance at Sparky. Sparky saw it coming, and leapt to the right, but he forgot the tentacle, and he was whipped around, and the lance pierced his right arm.
The tentacle released him, and he fell to the ground. He moaned, and felt his arm, he felt warm blood and pulled back his hand. He stood, he had only one useable arm now...
The figure rushed Sparky, sending a torrent of blows Sparky's way. Sparky tried to defend himself, but found it pointless with only one good arm. The figure pounded him with blow after blow. Sparky, thinking quickly, dropped to his knees, and gripping the man's leg, filled the villain with another shot of electrical power.
The man jerked wildly, and put all his effort into his two fists, and brought them crashing to Sparky's head. Sparky fell, his vision blurring. 'This is it,' he thought.
An image of Clip ran through his head, "No..."
Sparky rolled to the side as the cloaked man's lance fell. Sparky rose and shot an electric bolt at the man, hitting the figure full in the face. The man's cloak fell back, revealing the face he had tried so hard to hide. Sparky stared, "No...no this can't be..."
The figure took this surprise to whip his darkness tentacle around under Sparky's feet. Sparky fell, and the figure formed a giant hammer with the darkness, and brought it crashing down on Sparky's chest.
Sparky felt his ribs crushed. He couldn't rise, he couldn't fight. The figure walked over the barely breathing Sparky. The figure looked at him, and knelt down to examine his prey. The darkness from behind him wrapped itself around Sparky's feet, and began to writhe its way up Sparky's body. Sparky's eyes were glued to the exposed face of the man.
"What...what is...this?" Sparky spoke, the effort to talk was staggering, "What...is this...devilry?"
The man laughed, "Well, I don't think I look that bad."
The figure laughed hard as he finished the hunt.
Stitch was walking home. As he was walking, he all of a sudden saw a great flash from the west. He looked to the sky to see it perfectly clear. 'What's-.'
He heard a scream, and wasted no time. He ran to see what the trouble was. He leapt on top of a building and continued, leaping from rooftop to rooftop to reach the scream's origin. He reached a building overlooking where the flash and scream had originated, and watched with horror as he saw Sparky being consumed by what appeared to be darkness.
Stitch saw the attacker, and leapt down to attack. Suddenly, a tentacle seemed to appear from behind the man, and it caught Stitch in mid-air and slammed him into the pavement.
Stitch screamed out, "SPARKY! SPARKY GET UP!"
Sparky looked over at Stitch, smiling, he seemed delirious from pain, "Hey...buddy...look after...Clip for...me...tell her I...fought well...and I...love her..."
Stitch watched in horror as the darkness enveloped his friend, and when the darkness left, Sparky was not there any longer. Stitch cried out, "NOOO! SPARKY!"
The man stood, and Stitch got a good look at him, and his mouth fell open with shock.
The experiment turned to face Stitch. His fur was black, his eyes were blood red. And as for the rest of him...
"Hello Stitch, or should I call you older brother? Or would you be more of a father?"
The experiment was the exact likeness of Stitch, down to the last detail. Everything except for the fur color and eyes was Stitch reincarnate. Stitch stared on in an almost fascinated horror, "Wha...what are you?"
The experiment laughed, "Ha! Why I'm you! Or that is, I'm the improved, unflawed version..."
Stitch struggled with the dark tentacle, yet it didn't yield to his strength. The doppelganger approached, mockingly talking to Stitch, "Oh but how I've been looking forward to meeting you. Why, you could say I'm your biggest fan! Ha!"
The experiment reached Stitch, and reached down and took Stitch's head into his hands. Stitch still struggled, but it was no use, "Who are you?"
The experiment looked at Stitch a moment longer, then said, "I am the nightmare that walks the streets. The grim reaper of the night. I Stitch, am your antithesis, your opposite."
He took Stitch's head and slammed it into the pavement, holding it there, and said, "For everything you are, I am the opposite. For everything you believe in, I aim to destroy."
Stitch felt woozy from the last blow. His vision was obscured from the blow. The experiment gazed at him, then the tentacle lifted Stitch into the air, and flung him away. Stitch slammed into a building, creating a dent in the brick wall. The experiment watched him a moment longer, and walked to where Stitch lay. The experiment watched him, and spat on Stitch's face, "You are the reason I came to be, you are to blame."
Stitch saw an opportunity, and rose and punched the experiment in the face. The experiment was caught off guard for a second, and Stitch grabbed him by the neck and held him aloft, "Where's Sparky?" he asked, anger tinted his voice.
The dark experiment chuckled, "Oh? Are you worried about him? He's not dead, if that's what your wondering."
A tentacle shot around and wrapped itself around Stitch's neck, lifting him aloft. Stitch released the experiment, who landed on the ground on his feet. Stitch struggled with the tentacle wrapped around his neck. The experiment looked at him, and said, "Well, I must be going. Though, I will see you again, and I'll count the moments until we meet again."
The darkness enveloped the experiment, and he was gone. Stitch fell to the ground. He sat up, his nerves were rattled. He sat a moment there, thinking, 'His face...he looked just like me...'
Stitch rubbed his neck, "He's strong, whoever he is...Sparky..."
Sparky's final words came back to Stitch, and Stitch remembered, "Clip!"
Stitch stood and took off racing to where Clip slept, his mind once again racing with new revelations...
The experiment reappeared. He stood in the great hall of where he lived. He walked to the end of the hall, where a glass tube was waiting. He focused the darkness into the tube, and Sparky reappeared inside. Sparky, upon entering the tube, was immediately put into a deep sleep. The experiment walked to a control panel, and began examining Sparky.
The computer whirred, and a large red X appeared on the screen. The experiment shook his head, "Not here either. Hm, should have known, well, there's only one option now..."
The experiment turned and looked out the window into deep space, "There's only two others who could hide it, and I believe I know the one."
The hall echoed with his maniacal laughter as he planned his next hunt.