In Real Toons, we take the cartoon characters you see on your TV screen and imagine…
What if they learned they weren't real? How would they act on this knowledge? What would it do to them?
That is...What if Toons got real? Rated T for violence.
Real Toons is a mega-cartoon crossover, and as such each chapter will appear in the cartoon area of whichever character is narrating.
(This really ought to be a comic book. Artists, contact me!)
A guide to W.I.T.C.H. is in the Notes at the end of the story.
Real Toons
Chapter 1 - Will's Story
by Shawn Q. Evans
Starring Will & Cornelia of W.I.T.C.H.
Guest Starring Irma, Taranee & Hay Lin of W.I.T.C.H.,
Duke and Snake Eyes from G.I.Joe,
Dustin the Ninja Storm Yellow Power Ranger,
Stella from Winx Club and Danny Phantom
W.I.T.C.H. and related characters copyright Disney Enterprises
Duke and Snake Eyes copyright Hasbro
Dustin the Ninja Storm Yellow Ranger copyright BVS Entertainment
Stella from Winx Club copyright Rainbow Srl
Danny Phantom copyright Nickelodeon
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Hi, I'm Will, the Guardian of the Heart of Candracar. Me and my friends are the Guardians of the Veil. Kind of like superheroes, but more specialized, I guess.
Even though things can get a bit freaky at times, we really do love being Guardians, although we haven't had an adventure in a while. Which is why we get to do fun things like walk to school together.
"Guys! Guys! I had the weirdest dream! I was standing there in my Guardian of the Veil outfit, then everything went red! Dreams are strange, huh?"
That's Hay Lin. She's always so bubbly and energetic. Definitely fun to be around.
"I don't know, Hay Lin. Red isn't the friendliest color, you know."
That's Taranee. She's smart, but I think her smartness makes her a bit too cautious. I really think she could be the most powerful of us all if she put her mind to it.
"It's certainly not a fashion color! Red is so out, it's not even retro!"
That's Cornelia. She likes to talk about silly things like fashion or boys, but I think that's a cover, to hide how much she really cares. We went through a bad time when we disagreed about her friend, Elyon, but I'm so glad we got past that.
"Maybe my subconscious is telling me I don't use enough red in my art, or my costume! What do you think, Will?"
"Oh, uh, red's fine with me! Sunsets are red, right! They look good!"
"Yeah, and Japan is the land of the Rising Sun! I get it!"
"Except Hay Lin's folks are from China, not Japan, Cornelia."
"Chinese. Japanese. Whatever!"
"Can't wait to fill in Irma on this fascinating discussion! Where is Irma, anyway? There's her house, but she's not waiting for us?"
Irma could be impulsive, and she was the jokester of the group, but it's not like her to run off.
"What's got into you? Get off, Martin!"
"No! You tell me - am I just a joke to you? Is that all I am?"
Omigosh! Martin was going all stalkerboy and grabbing Irma! We better…
"I said…get off!"
"Ow!"
Or Irma will take care of it. She just up and punched him! Yay, Irma!
"Hey! That..that hurt."
"Yeah, you better run!"
"You okay, Irma?"
"I'm fine. But that was weird."
"Martin freaking out? Yeah, he never seemed the type."
"No, not that. Well, yes, that. But I'm talking about the pain. I never felt anything like that before."
"Okay, now you're freaking ME out!"
"For a second there I thought my dream might come true. Of me in my guardian outfit, fleeing."
"You mean running away?"
"No. Flying away. But that's crazy! Why would I need to fly away from Martin?"
"Wait. YOU had a strange Guardian dream, too?"
"So? We're Guardians! It's only natural we'd dream about it!"
"Except I had a Guardian dream, also! I was surrounded by fire, and burning up."
"Well, you are the Guardian of Fire!"
"That doesn't explain the burning up part! Hay Lin already told us she dreamed of everything going red. Red's the color of blood. You dreamed of flying away, and I dreamed of burning up! That's more than coincidence!"
"I, I had a Guardian dream, too. But all I dreamed of was a bright, white light."
"Portals are bright, white lights!"
"And Will is the guardian of the heart of Candracar, which makes her the guardian of portals."
"Why are you all looking at me?"
"Cornelia, did you have a Guardian dream?"
"Maybe. But it's stupid!"
"Corny…"
"Okay, okay! I dreamed I had a big fat zit, alright?"
"Ha! Leave it to Cornelia to dream about the important things in life!"
"That does seem to wreck your impending doom theory, Taranee!"
"I'm not so sure."
"Can we please talk about something else? How about this necklace I got from a secret admirer!"
"Ha! Your grandma probably sent it to you!"
"Ha Ha Ha"
"Hmphh! You're just jealous!"
The rest of the walk to school was uneventful. But things got strange very quickly as soon as we arrived.
"Uh, guys? Does it seem like people are staring at us?"
"Nothing seeming about it! They are! Hey, like the show?"
"That's not the strangest thing. Did you notice that the ones staring were all from the east side of town? Same as Martin?"
"Oh please! Bad manners are not a conspiracy, Taranee!"
"I'm not saying it's a conspiracy! But there's something odd going on!"
"Do you think it's aliens? Pod people taking over the school? That would be so cool!"
"I don't know, Hay Lin. But we should all be careful."
Just then there was a huge commotion.
"What the heck is that?"
People were screaming. And there were loud noises, like a freight train.
"Let's check it out!"
We ran to a secluded third floor window to see what was going on. It's a good vantage point. You can see the whole neighborhood from there. When I finally saw it, I couldn't, it was so...
It was Lurdens! A whole army of the monstrous, vicious creatures! (Was Prince Phobos back?) Attacking people! No, not just attacking - slaughtering! Killing! Smashing the city apart! I just, we just, stood there. This couldn't be happening!
"Guardians, unite!"
I took out the Heart and mouthed the words by reflex. I didn't understand what was happening, but we had to do something!
We flew down into the fight. The, the Lurdens were chopping people into bits with their axes! There were body parts and blood everywhere! We all saw it, but we had to focus on stopping the attack.
Hay Lin blew a bunch away with her wind. Then I swooped in to rescue a couple of people, thinking I could take them somewhere safe. I wasn't sure where that was, though.
Cornelia put her hand on the ground and it rose up, knocking the Lurdens down. Then Irma created a wall of water and washed away the Lurden army. Okay, I thought, we may have a chance.
Then Taranee used her power.
"Ahhh! It's burning! Help!"
"Taranee? What?"
"OhmyGod! It hurts!"
"She, she has burns on her hands! How can this be happening?"
I barked orders like a good little leader. But inside, I was just as freaked as Cornelia.
"Hay Lin! Irma! Combine your powers to cool her hands off! Then we'll take her to the hospital!"
They did, and created an icy coating on Taranee's hands. I thought we might yet be okay.
But there was still one Lurden left. And we were distracted by our personal drama.
He (it?) lunged at us. Jumped, actually. Man, could it jump. We dodged, but, well, most of us dodged.
Hay Lin, though, was trying to help Taranee get away. And she succeeded in that. But...
It grabbed Hay Lin by her leg and smashed her into the ground.
"Ahhh No!"
It raised its axe, preparing the killing blow, but we reacted instantly.
Irma sent a column of water into it, hitting it away from Hay Lin. Then Cornelia's vines entangled it, so it couldn't attack us again. So he was taken care of. I tended to Hay Lin, but...Dear, sweet Hay Lin. Her face was all cut up, and...
"I, I think it's broke! My leg's broken!"
"Let's see. Maybe it's just a sprain..."
But what we saw on the underside of her leg. There, there was her bone, sticking out! And the blood!
"Gasp!"
And it wasn't over yet.
The Lurdens had regrouped. And they were all converging on us.
This time it was Cornelia's turn to bark out orders.
"Irma, get Hay Lin and Taranee to the hospital! Now! I'll hold them off!"
"Me? But..."
"Unless you're prepared to drown them, go now! Get out of here! Please!"
'Drown them'? It was an odd thing for even Cornelia to say, and ordinarily I would have been concerned, but things were just too wild to worry about something like that. The desperation in Cornelia's voice even convinced the usually skeptical Taranee. So Irma took off with Hay Lin and Taranee in tow, while Cornelia concentrated really hard and the ground erupted with vines that snaked over to the Lurdens and stopped them in their tracks.
And in the distance, there was Irma, flying through the air with her two patients, our friends.
Wait. Flying? Fleeing? Oh no.
More Lurdens showed up. They were trying to surround us, and cut off our escape route. Even Cornelia might not be able to stop so many.
"Corny, we've got to go! There's too many!"
"But I've got to stop them, Will!"
"I know, but..."
"I have to! Arghhhh!"
She was sending her power through the earth. I could see it. It was...incredible. Vines snaked up building after building, grabbing every Lurden around. Heatherfield didn't look like a city anymore, but a garden of the Gods. It would have been beautiful, if the circumstances weren't so horrible. Finally, though, Cornelia stopped. I helped the weary Earth Guardian to her feet and we were off.
I looked back, and for a second it seemed as if the vines, rather than just holding the Lurdens, were instead choking them to death. But that couldn't be. Cornelia would never do that.
We continued flying. The scene below was utter devastation. The area to the east, where the Lurdens had come from, was even worse. There must have been a portal there. I was going to tell Cornelia, when...
"Grahh!"
A Lurden jumped at us from the top of a building. We weaved out of the way, but as it fell it reached out and grabbed Cornelia's wings. She tumbled from the sky.
She wasn't hurt, though. Thank God. She wrapped the Lurden up in a concrete straitjacket. But she did have one problem.
"Will! I can't fly! My wings must be broken! Give me a hand?"
"Sure, Cornelia!"
But when I pulled her into the air with me, another Lurden lunged out of the shadows and managed to grab hold of Cornelia's long hair. And he wouldn't let go.
"Not. The. Hair."
Cornelia just, she just reacted. Instantly, pieces of wood launched themselves out of a nearby frame home and shot like a bullet into the creature's back. Then he stopped struggling, and fell.
We looked at the Lurden's lifeless body. Then each other.
"Will, I, I didn't mean for that to happen. You have to believe me!"
"S-sure, Cornelia! Accidents happen, right?"
"Now come on! We have to get out of here!"
I said bravely, as I took her hand. But this time the Lurdens had managed to encircle us. In a city canyon. They were all around AND above us. Scores of them. It was a deathtrap. But at least Irma, Taranee and Hay Lin had gotten away to safety.
I really thought this was it. And I didn't even know what to say. You always hear about 'last words' and whatever. But I had nothing. I just hovered there in the air, holding Cornelia's hand.
"Cornelia, I..."
"I know, Will. Me too."
I was about to make a break for it. And then THEY appeared.
Pokkitapokkitapokkitapokkita
"Hit 'em hard! Hit 'em fast! Sanitize the area! Go go go!"
It was a military man, crewcut and combat clothes included. His gun took out the Lurdens closest to us. Then his masked friend dressed in black hit the Lurdens just beyond them. It was amazing. The gunman mowed down a line of Lurdens, then his friend would knock down one Lurden, then jump to the next. He was good. Real good. The masked man was followed by a rather strange-looking boy who tried to do what the man in black did, but the Lurdens he fought didn't stay down. It almost looked like he was playing with them.
"What the hell are you doing, Dustin?"
"What? I'm fighting them! What does it look like?"
Even with that one snag, the dozens of Lurdens were soon all down. Except for the ones above us, that is.
"B Squad! You're up! Stellar! Danny! Take out those creeps on the rooftops!"
As soon as he said that, a girl dressed in black with long, shiny blonde hair (honestly, it seemed to glow) sped through the sky, aimed her hands at the Lurdens on the roof, and then shot a bright yellow beam out of her hands, blasting the Lurdens.
She was followed by a dark mist, or something. It didn't seem like it was quite there. What's that word from vocab? Insubstance something. Oh, I know. He was like a ghost or a spirit or something like that. There'd be a dark flash next to the Lurden, then the Lurden would go all spastic and start hitting himself and other Lurdens, then he'd fall and there'd be another dark flash, another Lurden would go nuts, and so on. It was incredible.
Not that they didn't have problems. The blonde zappy girl was hitting the Lurdens so fast I think she zapped her spirit friend, too.
"Hey! I was taking care of that guy!"
"Too slow. Move faster."
Even quicker than the men on the ground, they eliminated all of the Lurdens that had surrounded us. There wasn't much to say, then, except...
"Thank you. Thank you very much! But who are you guys?"
"I'm Duke. That's Snake Eyes, Dustin, Stellar and Danny. We've been tracking reality breaches and noticed one opened up here. So we thought you could use a hand."
"Excuse me, what?"
"Reality breach. Notice any strange things happening here today? People acting funny? Experiencing..pain?"
"Y-es. But what's going on?"
"Instead of telling you, we'll show you. Come on, people, move out!"
So we fell in behind these strange men (and one woman) and set off for this 'reality breach'. It all seemed so wrong. Something was very, very wrong. But these people didn't seem to be the cause. And if they could help, why not let them?
"Love the hair! It's so shiny! What do you use?"
Said Cornelia to Stellar. The world could be ending, and she'll talk about haircare.
"It's not hair. It's my excess light escaping through my hair follicles. I cut off all my hair because it was getting in the way."
As Stellar said that, Cornelia 'ran' her hands through Stellar's insubstantial (that's the word) lightshow in place of hair.
"They're what? Hey, uh, I just noticed. Those black things on your back. Are those wings? I've got wings too! Well, sort of. They're a little broke now."
"Used to be wings. Now they're solar collectors."
"Uh huh. I see."
(whispering)"Will? These guys are definitely freak city."
"I know, Cornelia. Shhh."
I said, as the ghost boy darted to and fro through the air.
"But we have to see what's going on. Then we can get the others to handle it."
Hmm. I thought Stellar's outfit was all black. Up close, though, I can see white dots, so she looks kind of like the star field at the planetarium. Wait, are those...tiny points of light?
Our route took us to the eastern part of town. No surprise there. I knew the badness came from that direction. But I didn't expect what we found.
It looked like a portal, but was so much...more. And instead of the bright light of the portal illuminating the area, it seemed to make it look darker. If that makes any sense. I know it doesn't sound like it, but that's what it was doing.
"So that's it?"
"Yep. That's your problem right there. Reality breach."
"It looks like a portal."
"I know. It sort of does. So maybe I can..."
I approached it with the Heart of Candracar, intending to close it. But as I got closer, I heard things. It was whispering things to me. About other worlds. Many, many other worlds. And...oh no.
Then I was blown back by a soundless explosion. Somehow the Heart had reacted, very badly, to the breach. Very, very badly. As I lay on the ground, trying to regain my bearings, Corny ran to me.
"No, Cornelia. Stay back! It's..."
"What? Will, are you OK? What happened? I..."
"I'm okay. But the portal. It's bad. Don't go near it."
"It's, it's talking to me. It's..."
"Don't listen, Cornelia!"
I was too weak to stop her.
"Oh no. It's true, isn't it Will? It's all true!"
"Corny, no. Stop."
"What it's saying is all true! And this is all a lie!"
"Cornelia..."
"We're not real! We're, we're here for someone's amusement! A kids show!"
"Cornelia, it says there are a lot of worlds. We're just one of them. The universe is a big place."
"But you know what it's saying is true! Don't you?"
"Yes. But that doesn't mean we can't have our own life."
"Our lives are a big fat lie, Will! Worse, we're put through this to amuse little kids! Oh no. Caleb. Our love's a lie. It's not real. None of it. Sniff"
I tried to comfort her. But faced with something like this, what can you say?
"Corny, I..."
"All that fighting Phobos and Cedric, and now this! We could have been hurt, or worse! Hay Lin was! All because someone somewhere thought it'd be 'dramatic'! If it hadn't been for these gentlemen. And lady."
"Real sorry, ma'am. It's not easy learning this stuff. It was hard for all of us. That's why we're trying to stop it, by going to the source."
"Take me with you, then!"
"Cornelia!"
"There's nothing here for me anymore, Will! It's all gone! But at least I can make those responsible for it pay!"
"Cornelia, you don't know what you're saying!"
"For the first time in my life...Sorry, existence...I do."
"Welcome aboard, miss!"
"What do you do?"
"Oh, power over the earth. That's all."
"Sounds good!"
As they stood there congratulating her, I didn't think I could convince Cornelia to stay. I didn't know if it was the right thing to do anymore. Heck, I didn't even know what was right or wrong or if it was placed in my mind like that. But there was one thing I did know. To stand by my friends.
"Then let me go with you!"
The words surprised even me, and I said them. But more than standing by my friend, this was a chance for me to do something. Because things were very, very wrong. It wasn't just the 'reality breaches' these guys talked about. For in that moment I was in contact with the breach, the Heart told me something else was wrong. Something I can fix. So I had to go.
"Good to have you with us! So what's your special power?"
"Um, I can fly. And there's the whole portal thing, although it's not quite working the best right now."
"Uh, yeah! Well, that's good too!"
"How do we close this portal, sorry, reality breach, anyway?"
"Oh, it'll close by itself eventually. Then we'll be on to the next world."
"Oh."
"But until then we'll have to guard against anything else happening!"
"I see! So I'll just contact our friends and tell them what's going on."
I reached for my phone, but Duke stopped me.
"You don't want to do that, ma'am."
"What? Why not?"
"Because if you tell them, they'll want to come, too. Correct?"
"Maybe, probably, yes. So?"
"So that would be a bad idea. Very bad!"
It was Stellar who answered that time.
"I don't..."
Duke continued.
"This world, your world, exists because of you and your friends, yes?"
"I, I guess so. Yes, okay, it does. But what does that have to do with..."
"So what do you think will happen if you and all your friends leave it? I mean totally leave it. Not just 'visit another realm' or whatever you do here?"
"Y-you don't mean..!"
"Yes. I'm afraid so. Your world will be alright if one or two of you go, but if all of you do? It'll...lose cohesion."
"It'll cease to exist. All of it!"
Her again. Stellar. Why?
"Listen to Stellar. She knows all about it. Because it happened to her."
"She...lost her whole world?"
Then Stellar, who had seemed so hard-edged before, softened. Almost like she suddenly became another person. Just as quickly, though, that girl left, and the hardened girl returned. Then she turned away.
"So in order to save my world, I have to leave it and everyone I know, or it, and they, could be wiped out of existence?"
"Yeah. That's about the size of it."
I'm Will. The guardian of the heart. And right now, it's all I can do to keep that heart from breaking.
Next: Cornelia's Story!
(Cornelia changes more than her outfit!)
The fate of Meridian!
(Get ready for a real shocker!)
More on the Real Deal Crew!
More humor! More tragedy!
And...Batman and the Joker? Working together?
It happens...when toons get real!
Miss it not, toon fans!
Notes
I'm not an expert on all of these characters, so if I get anything wrong, let me know. (But don't be nitpicky)
The W.I.T.C.H. girls are based on Season 1 of the W.I.T.C.H. cartoon.
This story is NOT 'Alternate Universe'. These are the characters from the TV shows. They've just learned they're not real, so it's more of a 'What If'.
Each chapter will be narrated by a different character. So we'll find out who all of these people are and what happened to them. Some have gone through big changes. Some not so much. But all will be explained.
Dustin the Ninja Storm Yellow Power Ranger is in Real Toons because Power Rangers airs on Toon Disney and it always seemed like a live action cartoon to me. He's also the comic relief, even though he rejects that and tries to make his own destiny.
Dustin is 'live action'. That's why Will says he's strange-looking.
Other toons will join the current cast as the Real Deal Crew is on a 'recruitment drive' (they're not the only ones with a grudge against the 'real world'). So look for appearances by the Teen Titans, Kim Possible and many more! But who will join the team?
Plus even more surprises! (Not all of the Crew are as they seem)
Action, drama, guest stars galore and the meaning of life - this has got it all!
Hay Lin was the most liked, most innocent of the girls, which made her target number one, unfortunately. It packs the biggest dramatic punch.
Her power (air) and Irma's (water) were the weakest, so they weren't considered for the Real Deal Crew.
Taranee just didn't have the emotional range I was looking for. And her power (fire) didn't have much potential, Human Torch notwithstanding.
But Cornelia? Power of the earth AND emotionally unstable? I'm there! Plus, she's a blonde.
I also noticed everyone else's power (air, water, fire) comes out of their hands, but Cornelia affects the world around her. That makes her the most powerful.
Will's the emotional anchor, the one everyone relates to. So she had to be in it. We'll experience the story through her.
What you need to know about W.I.T.C.H.
The first two chapters of Real Toons are based on Season One of W.I.T.C.H., an episodic, action/adventure cartoon about five girls with special powers.
W.I.T.C.H. are not real witches. Rather, they're five girls (Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia and Hay Lin) who possess the powers of energy, water, fire, earth and air, respectively.
Will, their leader, uses a jewel, the heart of Candracar, to transform the girls, open & close portals to another dimension, create 'astral drops' (duplicates of the girls) and perform other magical acts.
Their enemy in Season One was Prince Phobos of Meridian, who sent various monsters and adversaries after the girls, but who was ultimately defeated by the W.I.T.C.H. girls and his sister, Princess Elyon, who grew up on Earth and was a lifelong friend of Cornelia's.
Martin is the nerdy boy whose constant attempts to win the affections of Irma usually result in humorous rejection. He and the trollish creature of Meridian, Blunk, are the comic relief.
The girls have some stereotypical qualities, but on the whole are far less stereotypical than most cartoons. The creators of the show tried to make them more like real girls than cartoon girls.
In Season One, Hay Lin received visions of the future.
At the end of Season One, Cornelia had a budding romance with the rebel leader, Caleb.
