OK, things are starting to heat up. I'll estimate (I could be wrong) that there will be two, maybe three more Chapters left of this. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me so far. You guys rock!

Things will get a little confusing during the duplicate/duplicate soldier conversation, but try to make out of it what you can. Thanks!

Chapter 7

Too Late

Calvin, Hobbes, and Socrates were running as fast as possible. They looked up at a signpost. It said, "Town: 2 miles North."

Calvin fell to his knees. "We'll never make that long without supplies!" He moaned.

Hobbes dragged Calvin up to his feet. "C'mon, it's not like we can help it. I mean—"

Calvin cut Hobbes off, and shouted, "Hey! I know what we can do! I know who can help us! Follow me!" Calvin did an about turn and ran off. Without saying anything, Hobbes and Socrates followed.

"He's got another madcap scheme, hasn't he?" sighed Socrates.

"Unfortunately; yes." Hobbes replied.

Meanwhile, in the secret underground backyard base…

The duplicate was reloading the PEZ 6,000,000. He was holding it and pushing candy into the slot; but he was having trouble. The device kept on flying out of his hands and trying to escape.

"STAY STILL!" Shouted the dupe. He was very agitated about something. Finally, he stood up, and walked over to the wall. He began banging his head against it repeatedly.

BANG! WHAM! SMASH! BANG!

One of the duplicate's duplicate army walked in. He said, "Hey, sir, are you alright? Only I heard a lot of banging, and—oh."

The dupe was still smashing his head on the wall. He didn't even look up.

"What's the trouble, sir?" The soldier asked.

The dupe stopped banging his head, and said, very angrily, "If you must know, I'm trying to scrub my brain free of the memory of that boy…because I AM him…and it makes me sick…"

"Sir?"

"Yes?"

"You do realise that, one day, no matter how long you try to suppress it, you're going to have to fight him…"

The dupe buried his face in his hands. "What are we going to do?"

"We can't," the soldier said.

"WE CAN!" The leader duplicate bellowed. "WE ARE GOING TO KILL THAT SCUM, AND I DON'T CARE WHAT IT INVOLVES DOING! HE IS PAYING!" The duplicate slammed his fist down on a table so hard it collapsed.

"Sir?"

"YES! What NOW?"

"You're dead meat. You know as well as I do that there is no way you can secure every possible means of him destroying you. One day, when you least expect it, those two WILL de—"

"SHUT UP!" The duplicate set the PEZ 6,000,000 to "Incinerate" and blew the soldier away.

Pure rage was building inside of him. Those words burned deep inside him…because he knew they were true.

"You know as well as I do that there is no way you can secure every possible means of him destroying you. One day, when you least expect it, those two WILL de—"

"—stroy you…" The duplicate finished. He walked over to a massive computer. The computer asked: "What would you like to know?"

"The whereabouts of Calvin and Hobbes, please," The dupe sighed.

The computer screen cut to a topographical view of town. It showed two tigers and a small boy running down the street opposite their house. The duplicate smiled.

"No. He was wrong. I've got him in my sights. That kid is putty in my hands now. If only you could see how wrong you were, soldier…heh heh heh…I'll kill them both soon…he's mine…"

Meanwhile; on that exact same street…

Calvin, Socrates, and Hobbes had stopped running. They were outside a house of moderate size. Huffing and puffing; Calvin wearily knocked on the door.

A voice came from the intercom on the door.

"Please state who you are; your business here; and the password."

Calvin did the talking. "I'm Calvin, and with me I have Hobbes and Socrates. We want your help to stop a sweetie dispenser from killing everyone. And the password is—"

"Sherman is Vermin," said Hobbes.

"SHUT UP!" screamed the voice over the intercom.

"Just let us in," asked Socrates.

The front door unlocked, and an eight year-old kid with messy brown hair answered the door.

The boy was a very good friend of Calvin and Hobbes. His name was Andy, and he had a very wise; yet sometimes outright annoying, talking hamster; Sherman.

Andy gets along well with Calvin and Hobbes.

Sherman gets along well with nobody; unless he's not being a smart aleck.

"Hey, Cal-man!" Andy greeted Calvin. "Hey, Hobbes! Hi Crateso! You guys look a bit tired? Want a drink? I've got some lemonade if you—"

"Thanks, but no," said Calvin. "We're here for help. Please…the world depends on it…"

Andy raised an eyebrow. "Again?"

"Yeah, but it's a new nutcase. One of my old duplicates hates me and is trying to kill me with my new invention. He's starting to get desperate. He's even killing his own army."

Andy slipped on a blue and black checkered jacket. "Let's go," he said. Andy scooped up Sherman in his hands.

"Hey, if you think I'M going as well; you're nuts! I—"

Andy stuffed Sherman in his pocket. He grabbed his rucksack, and the five of them ran into the direction of town.

"Target Detected."

"Who?"

"Multiple Targets Detected. Analysis Complete. Identified as Calvin, Hobbes, Socrates, Andy, and Sherman. Recognized as enemies. Threat level 100."

"Kill them."

"Roger, Master. I will serve you to the best of my ability."

Calvin and his friends were flying in the Time Machine. They were flying high above town. It was an incredible sight – the buildings that they weaved in and out of were so tall, it was amazing. People looked like ants.

Calvin looked over the side. He was miserable.

"There are people down there, doing what they always do. Working, walking, talking, the drill. I had the power to defend all of them, and now it's in the wrong hands; and now they're all going to die."

Calvin turned around and looked at his companions with a face of pure determination.

"Mark my words. I'm getting my invention back. And I need help. All in favour say AYE!"

"AYE!" The entire gang shouted.

Five minutes of flying passed. There was pure silence throughout the group.

"I'm hungry," said Hobbes.

"HUNGRY!" Calvin bellowed. "We're defending the planet AGAIN and you're going on about darned food! Forget it!"

Another five minutes of rather uncomfortable silence passed.

Again, Hobbes broke the ice.

"A MILLION BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL, A MILLION BOTTLES OF BEER! IF—"

"OK, OK! BROWN'S GENERAL STORE IS COMING UP! ARE YOU HAPPY?"

The cardboard box dropped altitude; Andy, Sherman, and Socrates laughing the whole way. Once they were low enough, The gang hopped out; and Calvin stuffed the Time Machine into the Hypercube.

They walked towards Brown's General Store. But when they got there; the sight was horrible. The store's roof was smashed, and the door had a gunshot hole in it.

Inside was worse. Cabinets were broken, and shelves were crushed and reduced to sawdust. Hobbes was disgusted. Gummy worms were scattered across the floor.

"Hello? HELLO?" Calvin called, fearing the worst. "MR. BROWN?"

A man with brown hair, a brown beard and moustache, wearing a red and blue checkered shirt with a blue denim apron, rose up behind the counter. He had a black eye, and some nasty cuts up his arms. The gang ran over to him.

"Mr. Brown! Are you OK!" asked Calvin.

"Ow…yes…I'm fine…" Mr. Brown said. "I was behind there in case they came back…"

"It was him, wasn't it!" Calvin shouted, rage in his voice. "The kid who looked like me did this; didn't he! He had a gun, didn't he?"

"Yes," said Mr. Brown, looking shocked. "You know him?"

"We're looking for him," Socrates said. Hobbes looked at the gummy worms. He picked them up and threw them in the bin.

"Gummy worms, your sacrifice will not be in vain. I will avenge you!" Hobbes proclaimed. "That dupe is paying for this!"

"Is Martha OK?" Andy asked. Martha was Mr. Brown's wife; who also worked in the shop.

"Yeah," Mr. Brown replied, picking up shattered wood. "She was out when that kid attacked us."

Calvin reached into his Hypercube. He pulled out three walkie-talkies and handed one each to Andy, Sherman, and Socrates.

"Here's the plan," Calvin began. "I'm going after the duplicate to finish this; this has gone on for long enough. Socrates; you stay here and help Mr. Brown clear this up. Andy, Sherman, you investigate town and make sure everyone's all right. If there's trouble or there's something important; call me. Everyone got it?"

"Got it," everyone replied in unison.

"Great," said Calvin. "C'mon, Hobbes! We're takin' down a duplicate!"

"Oh, wow, fighting. Goody gum drops," he sarcastically commented.

And with that, Calvin and Hobbes left the shop.

Remember, Read and Review, please!