It's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry for the delay, life got in the way. But, I should be able to post a bit more consistently now. Work is calming down, and I've finally managed to get a break from RPing with a friend to recharge my creative batteries, so to speak. Anyways, here's the next chapter of Reality Shfit - Age of Wonderbeasts!
The night was calm, but one street wasn't. A little girl wearing a wolf pelt ran away from two Mod Frogs, trying to escape with her loot. "Get back here you little thief!" Called one.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to find chocolate around here?" Called the other one. The little girl stopped for a moment, and removed one of her shoes. She threw it at the one who just called to her, smacking her right in the face. The other one turned to her for a moment before resuming the chase. The little girl ran towards a large skeleton before jumping up it and dashing beyond it. The first frog continued his chase, but was interrupted by the other one. "Stop!" A tongue lashed out and wrapped around the guy as he attempted to follow the little girl in, pulling him back. "That is, Deathstalker territory." She shivered. The guy frog scoffed.
"She's as good as gone." The two turned and walked away.
"And so is that chocolate."
The little girl came to a stop, panting heavily. She turned back to see that she was no longer being chased, then opened up the box she had gotten away with. She began scarfing down the chocolates, only to be interrupted by something clattering nearby. "Huh?" She turned to the source of the noise, then slowly started backing away, listening and looking around. She turned away and continued moving, missing something coming over a ridge of rubble. She continued eating the chocolate, only to stop again when it got close to her. She turned quickly, coming face to face with a giant scorpion with three tails. Adrenaline flowed through her as her heart picked up speed, triggering her fight or flight response. She started running, and came to a fire escape ladder above her. She tossed the empty box away, then jumped several feet straight up to grab onto it. She climbed up it just as the deathstalker lashed at her with one of its tails. It screeched at her as she scrambled across the boards, nearly falling as one of them fell beneath her. She stopped to catch her breath as the deathstalker walked around to face her. She looked down at it, then moved a bit behind the bars. It followed her movements. Her heart was still pumping quickly as she pulled her other shoe off. She threw it away, hitting some trash can lids and making a loud ruckus. She looked at the deathstalker, and saw that it didn't even turn to the sound. It was still staring at her intently. She gripped onto the bars as she tried to figure out a way out of this predicament, and thought of something. She pressed her fingers into her neck and felt her heartbeat. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. Her heart slowed dramatically, and the deathstalker turned away. It went off in search of more prey to try and get, and the girl just watched it go. She thought for a few more moments, then followed it. It kept going for a while, eventually stopping at a small puddle to get some water. The little girl watched from above on a building, and noticed a metal pole next to her. She grabbed it, then jumped down. Moments later, she had pulled one of the stingers off the deathstalker and was running from it again with her prize.
Fear of humans, fear of what they'll do
Fear of others, no matter where you go
Taken from your home, forever lost
One light in the distance,
But oh so far away,
Run towards the light,
Away from your fear
Flamingos squawked overhead, carrying large lights to let their riders see. They searched in a wide pattern, scanning everywhere they could in their attempts to find what they were looking for. Anywhere in the open wasn't safe from their gazes. As a pair passed overhead, Kipo and Wolf peeked out from the car they were in. Wolf checked the map, then pointed ahead. "The fastest way to your parents' old burrow is through there. Deathstalker territory." The words just hung there for a few moments, only for the tension to be completely broken by Dave.
"Death makes anything instantly more scary!" He said. "Death Dave!" Benson sat up.
"Uh, having the word Dave in anything makes it instantly less scary." Mark sat up, getting between the two, panting heavily.
"Does it, matter?" He asked.
"Deathstalkers don't hunt you by sight or smell," explained Wolf, "they track you through your heartbeats." She put her hand over her chest. "If your heart races, you're as good as dinner. Got it?"
"Got it." Said Kipo. Another flamingo squawked overhead, and the entire group ducked down.
"We need, to, lose them." Panted Mark. The flamingo passed, and Benson took a glance.
"We're clear!" He said. "Go, go!" The group quickly got out of the car and ran to their next hiding place. They ducked behind a large chunk of rubble that was leaning up against a large wooden pole, with barely enough room for everybody.
"They, are, determined." Panted Mark. "I, didn't think, Scarlemagne was, this serious about you."
"We could go through the mountains." Suggested Wolf. "It'd be safer but, it would take a couple of days." Kipo looked back at her.
"We don't have a couple of days!" She whispered. "You heard that Noble! Scarlemagne is forcing all the Mutes in the city to accept him as their emperor at his coronation next week! Who do you think he's going to use to fight the ones that resist?"
"Bears." Stated Dave.
"No!" Said Kipo. "My people! We have to get to my parents' burrow as fast as we can so I can figure out who I am, find an anchor, turn into a Mega Jaguar, and save everyone before that coronation!" She finally took a breath at the end of that statement. Another flamingo squawked nearby, and the group tucked against the rubble.
"Kipo," wheezed Mark, "I get, where you're, coming from. But if, we, die, we can't, save any, one or, stop, Scarlemagne." Kipo glanced around the rubble, kinda ignoring him, then moved towards an abandoned shop. She gestured for everyone else to follow, and Wolf ran in first. She was followed by Benson, then Dave and Mandu. Mark took up the rear, coughing and wheezing. He got in, and Kipo dove in just moments before another flamingo came around. The group hid against the walls as it flew past. Mark panted quickly, trying to catch his breath as Dave and Benson looked at him, a little concerned.
"You okay?" Whispered Benson. Mark tried to speak, but couldn't get the words out.
"We have to lose those flamingos!" Said Kipo. Benson turned back to her.
"She's right. We need a diversion."
"I know what you're thinking." Agreed Dave. "Teacup Chop-Chop, or Scoot-n-Shoot?"
"No, we need something bigger." Said Benson. He glanced to the side, and noticed some propane tanks. He gasped. "The Flaming Phantom!"
"Perfect!" Agreed Dave.
"Uh, what in the world are you guys talking about?" Asked Kipo. Leo wiggled himself out of her pocket.
"I'm with her on this one." He stated. "You two aren't making much sense right now."
"We split up." Said Benson. He stood up and went over to the tanks as Dave reached into downed shelves trying to find stuff. "Dave and I create a diversion to distract these flamingos." He picked up a tank. "You get through deathstalker territory." Dave looked out from the shelf.
"We'll catch up with you later." He started rummaging again. Kipo hesitated with the plan.
"I'm not sure." She said. Dave chuckled, pulling out a rainbow on a stick.
"We got this!" He said. "Benson and I have lived through some bad things."
"Kipo, they're right." Said Wolf. "It will be impossible to calm down while being chased by scorpions and flamingos. Splitting up is the fastest way that doesn't definitely get us all killed."
"If I may add my own advice," started Leo, "in the past, splitting up and creating a diversion has been a very, very effective way of bypassing an enemy. I'd go into more details, but we just don't have the time." Kipo considered it.
"Ok." She said, looking at Dave and Benson. "But be careful." Dave pulled back from the shelf.
"Ooh! Do you still have that can of cheese?" He started walking towards Benson, who turned around while holding a propane tank.
"Indeed I do my friend!" He pulled it out and tossed it in his hand a bit. He then tossed it to Dave, who caught it easily. He turned back to the others.
"We'll use Mandu for the mustache!" Mandu squealed, then hid behind Kipo's leg. Dave shook up the can, then popped the cap off. He flipped it over, then began squirting it out on the ground as he started walking. Mandu squealed again and ran over before scarfing down the line of cheese. Benson walked up to the rest of the group as Dave led Mandu out of the building.
"When you see an explosion," he started.
"Two!" Yelled Dave, jumping up to a window. "Flaming Phantoms is two!"
"Sorry!" Replied Benson. "Two explosions, that means you're good to do." Wolf and Kipo glanced at each other.
"I'd better go with them. If they end up in a dangerous spot, they could use me as a secondary distraction." Leo flew over and landed on Benson's shoulder. Benson glanced at him, smiled, then flashed a thumbs up at Kipo and Wolf. He left the building, and Kipo and Wolf peered through the window. Mark coughed a bit, then did the same with the window he was next to.
"I, really hope that, those four don't, get themselves, killed." His breathing was starting to return to normal.
"Hey flamingos!" Yelled Benson. "Over here!" Many squawks could be heard as Benson suddenly booked it away, and moments later half a dozen flamingos rushed at him. A few moments passed, then the building was shook by a massive explosion. The group could hear Benson laughing, and they quickly got in position to leave the building. They saw one of the propane tanks whiz by and crash into the ground, creating another explosion, and more importantly, a giant smoke cloud to obscure them.
"I guess that's our cue." Said Wolf. She stepped out first, followed by Kipo and Mark.
"Let's get going." Agreed Mark. The three ran past the smoke cloud and towards a giant skeleton, heading into Deathstalker Territory.
Hoag approached a vault door and a table, carrying a very volatile substance. He placed a wine glass on the table, and Scarlemagne smirked as he watched. Hoag then grasped a vial of explosive nectar very firmly, and carefully pulled the lid off. He carefully poured it into the glass, then backed away as quickly as he could, dropping the now empty vial. He laughed very uncomfortably, then turned to Scarlemagne. "The nectar bomb is ready, your imperial majesty." He saluted.
"Ah ah ah! Not yet." Reminded Scarlemagne. "I am not officially your emperor until the coronation! Until then, you may refer to me as, future imperial majesty whom I am vastly inferior to for I am nothing but lowly human gutter sludge." He gestured to Hoag with a simple flap of his hand. "Go ahead, refer to me that way." Hoag looked to the side, very uncomfortable.
"I, I can't remember all that." Scarlemagne looked at him, then softened his glare.
"Of course you can't! You're lowly human gutter sludge!" He jabbed Hoag in the chest with each word. "Step back." He grasped Hoag's shoulders, then shoved him to the side. "All of you, step back!" All of his nobles took several steps back, getting out of the blast range of the nectar. "We're about to make some beautiful music. Now where is my soprano? I need my soprano!" One of the primates shot a hand up next to him, and he looked at her. He bowed to her and gestured forward. She took a few steps forward, and Scarlemagne pushed Hoag further to the side, getting out of the range himself. He looked back at his soprano. "Give us a high C, would you?" She cleared her throat, then took a deep breath. The next moment, the area was pierced by a very high pitched noise. The glass began shaking as it continued, then suddenly shattered. The room was filled with a bright white light as the nectar exploded, and the soprano was suddenly shot out the doors. Scarlemagne peeked out as part of the vault crumbled, and laughed. He walked towards the now open vault. "There was a time you humans waged countless wars to attain wealth like this." He stepped into the vault to look at the literal cubic tons of gold stored inside. "But for two centuries they've been sitting here like a useless pile of bricks." He stepped close enough to see his own reflection in the gold. "Waiting for someone like me to take them. Why? Because I like shiny things." He turned away from the gold. "Everyone, grab some and go! This vault shall be empty by morning!" Each of Scarlemagne's nobles walked up and grabbed a small stack of the gold bars, then moved outside into formation. Over the course of twenty minutes, the vault was emptied, and every noble was carrying at least 4 bars. Scarlemagne got into his vehicle and let them onward. From afar, someone was watching through binoculars.
"Rescuing that many people is gonna be tricky." Said the one in a plague doctor's mask. She turned and started running, followed by the two in gas masks.
Moving past the skeleton, deeper into Deathstaker Territory, Wolf decided now was the time to explain them. "Kipo, Mark, about these scorpions, it only takes one sting to knock you out cold." Wolf jumped off of a slab of rubble to another one below. "Then they drag you back to their lair and prepare you for dinner." Kipo followed closely behind Wolf while Mark navigated behind her. Wolf jumped to another chunk of rubble. "Nothing" she emphasized that word in particular," is immune to their venom. Not even a Mega." The two continued to follow her.
"And with that, I'm gonna try and be calm." Said Kipo. She slid down an old skull of some kind of Mega, then looked back at it. "Somehow." Mark jumped down from the other side.
"The last thing we need to think about is how we can't be stung." He said. "They might be scary, but they're only dangerous if we get scared, right?" Wolf was moving ahead already, and the two started following.
"I'm gonna look at my hands." Stated Kipo. "My calm, calm hands." She got up behind Wolf quickly, then looked down at them. "I am all serious." Mark came up next to her as she put on a brave face and looked forward. Wolf glanced back.
"Well, your arm says otherwise." She said. Kipo looked at her, then at her left arm, then her right, at which point she saw that fur had already started coming out. She gasped.
"Herbs in, herbs out." The fur retracted. Mark shook his head.
"Are we sure that we can even get out of here alive?" He looked at Wolf. "You've obviously been around the block a lot, and my heart can't race, but with her?" He gestured to Kipo. "Can we do this?" Kipo took a deep breath, then looked at him.
"I got this." She said, trying to convince herself. "I just gotta be cool," Wolf suddenly stopped, then put her hand out to Kipo to stop her.
"Inhale for four counts." Said Wolf, before doing so. "Exhale for eight." She again did so. "That's how I keep my heart rate down." She gave Mark a questioning glance, then turned away and kept walking. Kipo thought about what Wolf just told her for a moment, then smiled.
"In for four," she said before inhaling. She started following Wolf, and Mark followed behind her. "Out for eight." She exhaled. "Keep your cool, now you're great."
"Everything ok?" Asked Wolf. Kipo chuckled.
"Oh yeah. I'm rhyme timing. In for four, out for eight, keep your cool, now you're," she paused for the briefest moment, "almost but not really, hardly at all, great." Mark sighed.
"This is not going to work." The trio came to a collapsed section of road, and Wolf easily slid down it on her feet while Kipo lowered herself down. Mark simply jumped down, landing next to them.
"This is kinda intense, huh?" Asked Kipo. They started to move before Wolf suddenly shot Stalkie out in front of them, stopping them. Kipo gasped at the Deathstalker right in front of them. It crawled forward a little, its two stingers rearing back slightly. Kipo glanced down, and tiny hairs began twitching on the Deathstalker's claws. It was practically seeing two racing hearts right in front of it. Wolf took a deep breath in for four counts, then looked at Kipo, who did the same quickly. Then, the two exhaled for eight counts together, slowing their hearts. The hairs stopped twitching as the Deathstalker slowly lost track of them. It then screeched and scampered away. Kipo let out a sigh of relief as Mark watched it go. He glanced at Stalkie, then at the dismembered tail the Deathstalker had. However, before he could say anything, another Deathstalker crawled up towards them, splitting Kipo and Wolf up from Mark as they went to different sides of it. As soon as it passed Mark got over to them quickly as they backed up, taking deep breaths. Then, suddenly, Kipo bumped into a giant plant and screamed. The first Deathstalker's hairs began twitching again as it sensed them, two rapidly beating hearts. It screeched at the three loudly.
"Run!" Yelled Wolf. She turned to the side and booked it, quickly followed by Kipo. Mark tailed behind a few steps as the Deathstalkers chased them. Wolf jumped up the collapsed road as Kipo backed up into it. Mark ran up it and looked back at her.
"This is no time to stop!" He called. Wolf reached down with Stalkie and grabbed Kipo by the shirt, pulling her up. The trip continued running from the two Deathstalkers.
"I just have to say it's taking everything I've got to not mute out right now!" Yelled Kipo. Mark glanced back to see that her ears had changed.
"Well, don't stop yet!" He said. Kipo reached up to her ears and felt them for a moment, blinking a few times, her jaguar eyes coming out as she did.
"Herbs in, herbs out!" Her ears and eyes went back to normal. She felt them again, and continued running. "Phew." Wolf took off ahead, then quickly spun around, coming to a stop next to a wall. Kipo turned and slowed down, ending up a few paces behind her, but Mark took the longest to stop, ending up behind her. Wolf slammed the butt end of Stalkie into the wall, and a fire ladder suddenly slid down. She started climbing up it, and Kipo walked up to it. Looking past it, she saw the Deathstalkers approaching quickly. She started climbing up, then Mark got to the ladder. He looked at where the Deathstalkers were, then let go of it.
"Pull it up!" He called. "I'll be fine!" The Deathstalkers ran up just as Wolf pulled it up.
"Wolf!" Admonished Kipo. "He's still down there!" Wolf looked at her.
"You apparently didn't listen to what he said. He said that his heart couldn't race. If that's true or not, I don't know, but he seems to believe it." Down below, the Deathstalkers were paying no mind to Mark, only 'looking' up at Kipo and Wolf. Kipo glanced down.
"Uh," she started. Wolf started walking towards a window, jumping over a board. She looked back at Kipo.
"Careful, there's a loose rung." Kipo was still looking down as Mark backed away from the Deathstalkers. She suddenly looked at Wolf, then carefully took a step over the loose board. It creaked behind her.
"Whoa! How did you know about that?" Wolf yanked some boards off the window.
"Because this used to be my home." She pulled another one off. "Wipe your feet before you come in."
"Wait, whoa whoa whoa whoa!" Interrupted Kipo. "You had a home before? How come I never knew?!"
"Don't get excited." Shut down Wolf. "It's just a random place I found."
"Not getting excited." Said Kipo. The railing suddenly jumped a bit, and the two quickly looked back to see Mark hanging from the side, Mega Wolf arms out. He pulled himself up, then retracted them.
"So, what'd I miss?" He asked.
"Apparently Wolf had a home!" Answered Kipo.
"Just get inside." Said Wolf, swinging into the window. Kipo pushed the decaying curtain to the side and looked in. She quickly slid inside, followed by Mark, and looked around. She gasped.
"It's a magical place we should totally make into our forever hideout!" She declared. She ran around a bit and grabbed some pom poms, then she looked at Wolf, who was giving her a less than happy look. "Sorry." Mark sighed.
"Even if she calms down, how long would we have?" He asked. Wolf shook her head.
"I get that slowing down your heartbeat to a, normal person level will be tough for you. But you can't make it a game. To get out of here alive, you need to be serious." Kipo suddenly flopped onto a pile of something covered with a large, square piece of fabric.
"Ah! This is where you slept! Your bed is made up of inflatable guitars!" She pulled one out, then looked around a bit more.
"How long can she possibly keep this up?" Asked Mark. Wolf sighed.
"I don't know." She looked at him. "But we need to discuss what you said earlier, about your heart not being able to race." Mark visibly got nervous at that.
"Uh, well," he stalled.
"The Deathstalkers didn't even seem to notice you." Continued Wolf. "Why is that?" She glared at him.
"I, um,"
"Wolf, give him a bit of space." Said Kipo. "Can't you see that he doesn't want to talk about" she suddenly noticed something on the couch and gasped, "you had a teddy bear?!"
"That's a head rest." Said Wolf. Kipo stood up.
"Oh, I can just imagine little Wolf over here, all like," she put the teddy bear's arm forward, "these aren't toys, they're survival tools!" She tossed the teddy bear back onto the couch.
"I've never said that." Defended Wolf. "But that is true." She looked back at Mark. "Now, as I was"
"I get it." Said Kipo, picking something up. "This is a jump rope. That's survival!" She got into position with it, then began using it as a normal person would. "Survival of the fitness!" She began swinging it and jumping.
"It's a hand stopper." Said Wolf, walking up to her. "Why are you jumping in place with it?" Kipo turned to her, still jumping.
"Hand stopper?" She asked. She gave a small laugh. "No way!" She suddenly stopped. "What's a hand stopper?" Wolf put her hand out, and Kipo handed her the jump rope. Wolf walked up to the teddy bear with it, then in moments had it wrapped tighter than a present, all four of its limbs immobilized by the jump rope. "Awesome!" Wolf shook her head.
"Now, back to"
"Ah!" Yelled Kipo, suddenly grabbing three sticks from a box on the table. "I haven't seen these since my fifth grade graduation party!" She suddenly threw the longest into the air and began tapping it back and forth with the other two. "I was really scared to dance, so I played with these the whole time instead." The long one began spinning, and she caught it between the two in her hands. "But then I learned while I was playing, really I was dancing!" Wolf laughed at the sight.
"What are you doing?" She asked. Even Mark couldn't help but give a slight smirk at it.
"I'm doing devil sticks, duh!" Explained Kipo. "And dancing!" She did some complicated moves with the sticks, spinning the long one around all over the place. She suddenly fell back into the couch, sending the long one right at Wolf, who caught it.
"Oh that's what the third fighting stick was for." She said, spinning it in her hand. "Here, let me show you." Kipo tossed the other two to her, which she caught. "It's all in the wrists." Wolf jumped up onto the table, then spun the two shorter ones around as if fighting. She then tossed the longer one and kicked it, striking the teddy bear and knocking it off the couch. She then landed on her feet and crossed the other two defensively in front of her.
"That is not what I was talking about!" Said Kipo.
"You can do it with no problem once you got the hang of it." Said Wolf. She bent over to grab something. "Ok, so back to what I was saying about" Kipo gasped then picked up a microphone. It suddenly resonated, sending a high pitched wail through the entire room. Wolf yelped at the sudden sound while Mark put his hands over his ears and practically screamed.
"Make it stop!" He yelled. The sound faded after a few moments, and Wolf glared at Kipo.
"This karaoke machine works!" She yelled. She noticed Wolf's glare, then looked to the side to see Mark slowly taking his hands off and glaring at her. "Ooo, sorry." She held the microphone out to Wolf. "I'm sure you're about to tell me your super tough wolfie name for this?"
"That is a hoot-hoot." Said Wolf. Kipo barely kept in her giggles. "Scorpions are afraid of owls. I use the hoot-hoot to make owl sounds like this," she took a breath, then made some very deep, very unowllike hoots.
"Aw." Said Kipo. "Hoot-hoot?"
"I was five when I named it." Defended Wolf. "Now let's try to focus so we can get out of this death trap."
"Oh come on." Argued Kipo. "Does it always have to be life or death? Can't it be 'have fun' for a minute?" Wolf glared at her.
"No." Kipo looked at her, then looked at Mark.
"Don't look at me." He said. "If we want to get out of here alive, you need to control your heart rate."
"Speaking of which." Said Wolf, looking at him. "You still need to explain what you meant." Mark looked at Kipo, who smiled smugly at him.
"Don't look at me." She mimicked. Mark sighed.
"I, I have, a," he took a deep breath. "I have a fake heart, ok! It was remote controlled so that it wouldn't change automatically, so that I could be controlled." He turned away, clearly upset.
"A fake heart?!" Asked Kipo.
"Yeah." Said Mark. "I still remember it clearly. I was brought into one of the testing rooms, and they strapped me in. They injected me with something, then began opening up my chest. They were trying to see if I could live without a heart." He sighed." As you can probably guess, I couldn't, but they couldn't just put my heart back in. Oh no, they had to use one of their fancy fake ones. One that could be remotely changed to either knock me out or push me to the limit." He sat down. "When I broke free, it was set to about 80, if I remember right. And that's where it's been since." He glanced back at them. "I hope you're happy about making me explain it." Kipo looked at Wolf, who looked back at her. She stepped forward.
"Mark," she started.
"Just focus on getting your heart rate down. I'm fine." He was clearly not fine, but neither of the two girls were wanting to push him after that.
"Well, let's get started." Said Wolf. She set up a mat for Kipo, and sat her down on it. "You are going to sit there, and focus."
"Really?" Asked Kipo. Wolf's glare answered her question. "Fine." Kipo closed her eyes and started focusing, then Wolf suddenly yelled at her.
"Bah!" Kipo yelped and jumped to the side, fur popping up on both her arms.
"What was that!" Asked Kipo.
"You need to learn how to focus, even when scared." Countered Wolf. "Again." And so it would go for the next hour or so. Kipo would get back onto the place, Wolf would sneak up on her and yell, rinse and repeat. Mark eventually turned to watch. Wolf Bah!ed her again, and fur still grew on both of her arms as she leaned away. She looked at one. "Try again." Said Wolf.
"Come on!" Complained Kipo. "I was so close that time."
"Close doesn't cut it." Said Wolf. She grabbed one of Kipo's arms, then let go. "We've got to get you to be calm in the eyes of danger, or else we're never gonna get out of BAH!" Kipo fell backwards with a small yelp.
"Ok that time wasn't fair!" She complained.
"Seemed fair to me." Piped up Mark. "You never know when it's going to come." Wolf shook her head.
"Ok, ok. Try again." Kipo got back to her place, then took a deep breath. She waited a bit, then peeked at Wolf, who was just standing there. She closed her eye again, only to peek once more mere seconds later. And she repeated once more, then suddenly jumped at Wolf.
"Ah! Just BAH me already!" She was sounding exasperated and annoyed.
"Kipo," started Wolf.
"I'm sorry!" Interrupted Kipo, getting up and walking around the table. "We've been doing this nonstop for over an hour and I can't focus on focusing anymore!" She looked out the window at the Deathstalkers outside.
"Kipo, it's important." Said Wolf.
"I know it's important!" Yelled Kipo, turning back to Wolf. She then glanced outside again, worried. "But what if I don't have it in me?" She sat down, and Wolf sat down across from her. "Everyone I care about is depending on me to do something I've never done before, and if I don't do it right even one time I'm putting them all at risk, including you guys. And I can't stop thinking about it long enough to focus on being calm! So how am I ever going to control the Mega Jaguar side of me?!" Wolf looked down for a moment.
"The same way I'm going to control the Mega Wolf side of me." Said Mark. "The same way that Atom guy will control the Mega Dragon side of him. We're all in this, together."
"But you don't have anybody you're worried about!" Countered Kipo. "Plus, you don't have to worry about staying calm because of your fake heart!" Mark looked down at that. "Sorry, I'm just so frustrated right now!" Wolf sighed.
"Ok, let's take a break." Kipo looked at her quickly.
"You mean it?" The fur on her arms quickly retracted, and she stood up just as quickly. "Thank you!" She grabbed the microphone, then stepped up to the TV, which had a book laying in front of it. "Ooh, what song should we sing?" She opened up the book and began flipping through it.
"We?" Asked Wolf. "No one said anything about 'we'."
"I uh, can't sing." Said Mark. Kipo suddenly gave an excited gasp.
"They have one of my favorite songs!" She looked up at the two of them. "It's a duet, so one of you has to sing!"
"Pass." Said Wolf, looking at Mark.
"I can't!" He countered.
"Ok, fine, if you'd rather sulk at the wall on your break, that's on you." Said Kipo. She bent over and started tapping on the karaoke machine, selecting the song she wanted. A screen turned on on the wall next to it, and Kipo looked back at Wolf. "Also, thank you for the break." The music began playing, and Kipo stood up, clearing her throat. Wolf groaned as Kipo walked to the center of the room, and took a deep breath. "Here I go." She cleared her throat once more, then began singing. "When the night is dark, and that outside's so cold," she walked over to Wolf and put the mic in front of her, "Wolf!" Wolf looked at it, then Kipo continued singing. "Heroes on fire!" She looked at Wolf again. "Come on." She walked back to the center of the room. "I'm a child I knew, about a world so true." She ran back to Wolf, holding the mic out to her. "You should pull down the stars!" She glanced at Wolf. "Wolf!" Wolf looked at Mark, who shrugged. Kipo got back up and continued singing. "I needed a hero. If I only knew that the hero was me." Wolf looked back at Kipo. "The hero was you, was you." Kipo pointed at Wolf, who looked away and smiled, before glancing back at Kipo. "Fear pulls me down, reckless and hot." Kipo grabbed one of the inflatable guitars and tossed it to Wolf, who tossed it back onto the table. "It tells me I'm nothing," Kipo walked back over to Wolf and sat down next to her, "when I know that I'm not!" The mic peaked a bit, and Mark covered his ears from the high pitched noise.
"That hurts!" He said. Kipo yanked Wolf up, but she sat back down the moment she could.
"Standing alone in my fire!" Sang Kipo, picking up the guitar. Mark slowly uncovered his ears, then heard something outside. He peeked out, and saw the Deathstalkers scattering. "You're not alone!" Kipo looked back at Wolf, who smirked at her. Wolf then glanced at Mark, who looked back at her. "Future's hanging on a wire!" Kipo gestured to Wolf. "Come on!" She dropped the guitar. "Just take my hand!" She held out her hand for Wolf to grab. "Take it!" She ran back over to Wolf and grabbed onto her. "Literally, come on! Take it!" She yanked Wolf to the center of the room, and held the mic in front of her. "Standing alone in my fire!" Kipo pressed the mic into Wolf, who shied away from it. "You're not alone!" Kipo looked down at Wolf, then back at Mark. She rushed back to the table and grabbed two of the longer sticks. "Heroes on fire!" She began swinging the sticks like crazy. "You and me, baby!" The song started coming to a close, and Kipo's score came up on the screen. She got a 75, whatever that meant. As she took a few breaths, Wolf turned to her.
"Feeling better now?" She asked.
"Much." Answered Kipo. "I'm ready to try again!" She sat back down on her spot, and closed her eyes. "Let's do this." Wolf glanced at Mark, who again shrugged.
"Hey, if she's feeling up to it, who are we to complain?" Wolf shrugged, then started moving quietly around the room, taking her time. She quickly grabbed Stalkie, then slowly climbed over the table towards Kipo. Then, without warning, she jumped down.
"Bah!" She yelled. Kipo didn't respond, so Wolf did something a bit more extreme. She swung Stalkie near Kipo, and yet there was still no reaction.
"In for four," whispered Kipo, "out for eight, keep your cool, now you're great." Wolf looked at her, then lifted Stalkie back up.
"I think we're ready." She said. "Let's go to your parents' old burrow." Kipo stood up, and nodded.
"About time." Said Mark. "I'll take the lead." He stood up quickly, then climbed out the window. The two girls looked at each other, a bit surprised. "You two coming?" Moments later, the fire escape ladder was down, and Kipo slid down it, followed by Mark. Wolf jumped down in front of them. The three began walking, and Kipo still seemed pretty nervous.
"In for four," she said, inhaling, "out for eight." She exhaled. "Keep your cool, now you're great." They slid down the collapsed road again, and Wolf glanced back at her.
"Kipo, just knock it off for a second. I need to be able to focus." They began moving again.
"It's ok, Wolf. This is how I keep calm." Replied Kipo. "I'll do it silently." Mark shook his head, then put his hand on her shoulder.
"Remember, you're not alone." He said. Kipo looked at him, surprised. "What? I might not be able to sing, but I can remember lyrics." She smiled at him, then took a deep breath. She began mumbling her mantra, and Wolf gasped as she looked past Kipo. Mark turned to see what she saw, a Deathstalker.
"Kipo!" Whispered Wolf.
"I'm in a zone here." Replied Kipo. The hairs on the Deathstalker's claws were shaking, detecting a racing heart. It suddenly screeched and charged.
"Kipo!" Yelled Wolf. She moved quickly.
"Wolf?" Asked Kipo, opening her eyes. Wolf jumped up, and the Deathstalker ran past Kipo and Mark to strike Wolf right in the chest, knocking her away. Wolf rolled to a stop, and the Deathstalker walked up to her. Kipo gasped, and Wolf attempted to get up, but fainted from the venom before she could. The Deathstalker grabbed onto her cloak, picked her up, then walked away. Mark made to go after it, but Kipo interrupted him.
"What do I do, what do I do?!" She asked herself. Mark turned to her. "What do I do?" Mark walked back up to her.
"Kipo, calm down!" He said. "Freaking out isn't going to save Wolf. You need to focus!" Kipo looked at him, hyperventilating a bit, but nodded. She took a deep breath, then gasped.
"I got it." She said. "What would Wolf do?" She ran up to Stalkie, picked it up, then booked it in the other direction, leaving Mark in the dust.
"Hey! Wait for me!" He charged after her, racing back to Wolf's hideout. By the time he got there, Kipo was already arming up.
"Hand stoppers." She said, as she put some jump ropes over her shoulder like a sash. She then picked up the two shorter sticks. "Fighting sticks." She took a deep breath, then put her game face on. "Time to be serious." She picked up the mic, then brought it up. "Hoot hoot!" It resonated a bit, creating that same high pitched noise. Mark covered his ears again, groaning.
"Please stop doing that!" He was grimacing. "It's painful!" Kipo looked at him, smiling nervously.
"Sorry." She put the mic down, and Mark slowly uncovered his ears. "Let's go!"
The Deathstalker walked into its den, still carrying Wolf. It walked down a ramp, then tossed her onto a pile of plants. It crawled up to her, then screeched as it felt a heartbeat. It turned around to face Kipo and Mark, but could still only feel Kipo. She took a deep breath, and her heart slowed. "You ready?" Asked Mark.
"You know it." Replied Kipo. The Deathstalker turned back to Wolf and Kipo charged forward. As it went to strike, Kipo threw out the first jump rope, wrapping it around the tails and stopping it. Mark charged forward next brandishing his sword and slicing at its face. However, it moved before he could make contact, heading towards Kipo, who jumped around and tangled up one of its claws with the jump rope. She yanked on it, flipping the Deathstalker over and creating a small dust cloud. Mark looked at her.
"You seem to have this pretty well handled." He said. "I'll watch our back for the others coming back!" He ran towards the entrance as Kipo ran over to Wolf.
"Wolf!" She said. She picked Wolf up, and noticed her pants leg had come up, revealing some fur. "Uh-oh." She started moving quickly, trying to get Wolf out. However, luck was not on her side as the Deathstalker broke the jump ropes and flipped back over. It sensed Kipo's heartbeat easily, then rushed at her. She dropped Wolf and jumped to the side quickly, brandishing the two sticks. She blocked the Deathstalker's claw strikes, but was pushed back. Mark rushed back in.
"Not to alarm you, but the other two are coming back! We've got maybe 2 minutes before they come in!" Kipo swung back up to her feet.
"Not the time Mark!" She moved to avoid the stingers as they were launched at her, then jumped over another claw attack. She landed on the arm, then jumped again as the claw reached for her, landing on its back. She gasped and looked up to see the stingers ready to come down on her. She jumped away, and they crashed down, impaling the Deathstalker with its own venomous spikes. It flipped over and screeched before it fell silent. Kipo took a few breaths, then stepped over it, dropping the two sticks. She rushed over to Wolf and sat her up against a support pillar. "I did it!" She panted. "Really wish you were awake to see it." Mark let out a sigh of relief.
"You know, even if you can't go full jaguar, you have a cat's reflexes." He walked up. "How is she?" Kipo slung Wolf's arm over her shoulder, and Wolf's head turned to her.
"See, what?" Groaned Wolf.
"Wolf!" Yelled Kipo, dropping her. Wolf sank down to a seat at the base of the pillar.
"Shh." Reminded Wolf. "What happened?" She pointed at the Deathstalker.
"You got stung by a Deathstalker and I saved you! And" she was interrupted by some screeching from outside.
"Hide!" Called Mark. He hid behind a pillar. Kipo looked to the exit to see a Deathstalker shadow.
"Oh no." She said. She put a hand to her chest. "In for four," she inhaled, "out for eight." She exhaled.
"Keep your cool, now we're great." Said Wolf. Kipo looked down at her leg, and the fur retracted. Another screech drew her attention, though, and she quickly stood up and hid behind the pillar as the Deathstalkers came in. Wolf huddled near her legs as the first one walked past, then they both froze as the second one pinched at the pillar a bit before moving on. They looked at them to see them start to fight over the third one. Mark looked at them.
"Let's move!" He whispered. Kipo nodded, then helped Wolf up, before handing Stalkie over to her. The trio then exited quickly, trying to avoid any more interactions with the Deathstalkers. As soon as they got outside, they started running away. "That was way too close for comfort."
"Yeah." Agreed Kipo.
Scarlemagne looked upon the mountain of gold that he had gathered with glee. He was soon interrupted by some screeching, though, and he looked at its source. Lemieux came down with her flamingo, landing in front of him. She dismounted. "Lemieux, I see you're alone." Stated Scarlemagne, clearly displeased. Lemieux walked up to him. "Why do you return to me empty handed when you know I'll feed you to my flamingos for it?" Scarlemagne got in her face. "I expected you to bring me the one called Kipo." He stepped back to let Lemieux speak.
"We lost her trail." She explained. "But then we tried picking it up again, and that's when we found, that." She pointed to another two flamingos coming in, carrying the Mega Monkey's collar.
"The Mega Monkey's collar." Said Scarlemagne, surprised. "It's gotten free!" He thought for a brief moment. "I want the monkey! We must find her immediately! Gather everyone to search for it!" He pointed at Lemieux, then turned away and started walking, leaving his nobles to finish placing the gold. From afar, the strange group still watched, seeing the collar.
"No." Said the one in the plague doctor's mask. "He's going after the monkey. We have to get to her first."
"Kipo, you were amazing back there!" Said Wolf as the trio continued to walk. "You learned all the stuff I taught you so quickly!" She was clearly excited about it all.
"Thanks." Said Kipo. "I had a good teacher." Mark chuckled.
"Doubly so since you care about her." He said. Kipo sighed.
"Sorry I wasn't focused before." She said. "If I had been better at it, maybe you wouldn't have been caught in the first place."
"Nope." Argued Wolf. "I got myself caught. I, worried about you." She smiled at Kipo. "But you did it!" She looked forward again. "You were focused, calm, and cool." Kipo laughed a bit.
"I was, wasn't I?"
"And if you can rescue me from Deathstalkers," started Wolf, before she and Kipo jumped over a gap in the rubble, "then becoming a mega jaguar and saving your people should be as easy as pie." Mark jumped over the gap, watching their backs.
"You think so?" Asked Kipo as they slid down a small chunk of rubble.
"No." Admitted Wolf.
"Me neither." Agreed Kipo. "But at least I'm not alone." She stopped for a few moments to catch some running water to drink.
"Tell me, have you ever been alone?" Asked Mark. "I have never seen you without somebody at your side." Kipo smiled at him.
"That's how I know I'm not alone." She replied. Mark stopped for a moment to process that. "Ok, time to focus on getting to my parents' burrow." She got moving again. "Nothing can stop us now." Mark shook his head then ran to catch up as Kipo slid down another chunk of rubble. As she did, though, Wolf started humming something familiar. As soon as Kipo got to the bottom, she turned to Wolf, surprised. Mark gave her a sideways glance, in a similar state. "Wolfatha Christie the Fourth," Kipo stood up and turned to her, "are you humming?!" Wolf slid down, groaning.
"It's that stupid song." She said. "I can't get it out of my head." Kipo walked around her very excited, then put her hands on Wolf's shoulders.
"You what?!" She exclaimed. She then turned to the side, as if thinking. "How did it go?" It was very clear what she was trying to do, and Mark shook his head as he slid down. "I, I forget how it goes." Wolf looked at her as she gestured for her to start.
"When the night is dark," sang Wolf, very quietly, "and the outside so cold," she looked at Kipo.
"Heroes on fire." Said Mark. The two girls looked at him. "What? Like I said earlier, I can remember lyrics, I just can't sing." The trio was suddenly interrupted by Mandu squealing. Dave came flying in, carrying Benson and Mandu. Leo was perched on the front of Benson's hat.
"Whoa!" Said Dave. "Did I hear Wolfie singing?"
"I know right!" Exclaimed Kipo as they came in for a landing. "Wasn't it amazing?" She looked at Wolf, who gave a half smile back. Wolf then took in their getups. Benson was dressed like a cowboy, Mandu was covered in a lot of white fuzz, and Dave was wearing a trench coat.
"Wait, what happened to you three?" She asked. Mandu oinked.
"Long story." Said Benson, looking at Dave and Mandu. "Tell ya later."
"Nope, nope, no." Said Leo. "We will not be going into specifics of what happened."
"Fine." Said Benson. "How about this instead?" He took a quick breath. "Fear pulls me down, reckless and hot!"
"It tells me I'm nothing, when I know that I'm not!" Joined in Dave and Kipo. Wolf took a step back, right into Mark. Kipo gestured to them.
"Take it!" She said. Wolf and Mark looked at each other, and both realized they couldn't get out of it.
"Standing alone in my fire." Said Mark and Sang Wolf, in her quiet voice.
"You're not alone!" Sang Dave, Benson and Kipo.
"Whoo!" Yelled Benson.
"I have no idea what's happening." Said Leo.
"Just go with it." Answered Dave.
"Standing alone in my fire!" Sang everyone but Mark, who just said it.
"You guys, this is our song now." Said Kipo.
"You're not alone!" They continued singing.
"You're not alone, girl." Ad libbed Dave.
If you've read this far, then I know that you probably like my work. I've taken up streaming a bit, and I usually stream on Tuesdays with the aforementioned RP friend. Feel free to drop by at some point. I go by the twitch name Atom_Kuso, and my friend goes by lostgamerscolive. Maybe I'll see you there! And hey, if I don't, no hard feelings. Just putting it out there.
