Beetlejuice

Season 2: The Sleeper Saga

Episode 32: Dark Sides

The evening sun was just beginning to set in the sky, when just outside of town flashes of light and silent explosions signaling an intense battle beyond the forest. Beetlejuice had already met Merlin on the battlefield against multiple Grimnak clones. After using the same duplication spell for the third time after his forces dwindled, Grimnak began to believe victory was in sight until Beetlejuice was knocked down by three of them. In a desperate attempt to stay alive, Beetlejuice's fear overtook him and he lost consciousness. His skin began to darken, and his hair shifted and grew. His crimson fingernails sharpened and elongated into claws as well as his already sharp canines became even more lethal. The whites of his eyes darkened to blood red as his iris changed color to look menacing. His voice deepens and cracked into a growl as his muscles tensed up as he lost his grip on reality and felt nothing but unbridled rage.

As swift as lightning, he thrust his claws through the clones holding him down and set his sights on the one in front of him.

Across town, Lydia was attempting to go on a shopping trip with Claire until a disturbing feeling overcame her. She felt light headed and inexplicably angry, a sensation she recognized and had yet to control. She held tight to her consciousness a much as she could as she stumbled around the shopping center disoriented and apparently suffering from a migraine. Looking at her hand, Lydia noticed her fingernails sharpening by themselves into deadly claws as something in her mouth began to make her feel uncomfortable. Using her tongue she discovered that her top two canine teeth sharpened and lengthened to that of what could be believed as vampire fangs. Her strength dwindled as she struggled to maintain consciousness and control. She quickly staggered her way to the front door until her strength finally gave out completely and she blacked out. In place of the kind gothic girl stood a creature of raw, unbridled fury with no control.

Watching her best friend transform in front of her eyes, Claire quickly thought of what to do and used an arrow from the dragon's ring and fired it into the air above the heads of all of the other shoppers and employees. The arrow burst into silver dust that speedily rained to the ground and those who were enveloped by it froze and faded as if they were partially in this existence and partially in another. She then quickly aimed her next arrow at Lydia and fired it. Once again, the silver light wrapped around and ensnared her. Lydia fell to the ground thrashing and kicking violently to attempt to break free while Claire silently apologized to her friend and called Prudence on her cell phone.

As Claire dialed and waited for the tiny braniac to answer, she watched as Lydia rose to her feet, screamed loudly and forced the silver rope to expand simply by forcing her arms apart. Inevitably, to Claire's surprise, she destroyed her bindings and turned her attention to her captor. Claire dropped the phone just as Prudence picked up and rushed to fire an arrow into the ground in front of her feet. The beams of light expanded along the ground and rose to form a hardened wall of light that was supposed to protect Claire from harm, however the more Lydia pushed with her claws, the farther in they dug through the barrier of silver light. Quickly, Claire fired yet another arrow at Lydia striking her and making her vanish altogether. Claire sighed at her relief and mumbled, "Perhapse she'll do less damage in the Neitherworld." Then, remembering the other lost souls that reside there, Claire began to mentally slap herself, before remembering that if Lydia was transformed like that, Beetlejuice had to be as well.

"Hello? Claire, are you there?" Prudence's voice echoed from the phone. Startled slightly, Claire snatched her cell phone and answered, "Prudence, Lydia transformed and went 'wild' on me again." "Where are you?" Prudence asked worried. "I'm at the shopping center in the middle of town. My dad dropped us off." Claire said now in a full panic, with tears beginning to stream down her face with worry. "Where is Lydia now? And what about the other people there?" Prudence asked trying to remain clam, herself. "I used the dragon's ring to banish her to the Neitherworld and to freeze the shoppers in a suspended animation and keep them from harm." Claire was just about to break down as more and more words escaped her mouth. "We have to find her, Prude! We have to find Lydia." Okay, okay." Prudence tried to calm her down and think. "We need to get ahold of Merlin and make sure Beetlejuice calms down and doesn't hurt anyone either. If she transformed, then so has he.

"Beetlejuice roared in wild rage as he felt something apart of him slip away from his presence. He was still being attacked by the Grimnak clones one after another while others were still attacking Merlin to keep him busy. Slashing and clawing at each clone that approached him, Beetlejuice looked around to find what he felt he had lost. An empty feeling in his gut he didn't know before.

In a flash of silver light, Clare and Prudence reappeared at Ben's cabin. More precisely, Ben's bedroom. "That's cool, but why did we need to appear in his bedroom?" Prudence asked out of curiosity. "Because I hoping he was here, or if Laurence could tell us. Besides, would you rather me make us appear in the middle of the battlefield?" Claire sharply responded. "Good point." Prudence answered under her breath. It was then Claire could hear a tree trunk being ripped apart and begin it's abrupt collapse to the earth. The sound could not have been more than two hundred yards away which had her concerned. She needed to subdue Beetlejuice and with her recent encounter with Lydia breaking her silver bonds on where strength alone, Claire was questioning herself whether or not she knew what she was doing and if she had the strength to handle her friends in this state.

Claire once again picked up her cell phone and this time dialed Bertha's number. As the ringing sound repeated itself, Claire thought and pleaded aloud, "Please pick up. Oh, please pick up." Suddenly there was a clicking sound and Bertha's mother spoke. "Hennings residence, Carlie speaking." Quickly, Claire answered, "Is Bertha home?" "Yes, she's in her room." Ms. Jennings responded with clear worry in her voice. "Is there something wrong?" "I need to speak to her now. It's about our friend, Ben.". Moments later Bertha picked up the phone with equal amount of worry in her voice. Their conversation lasted only a few short minutes, however felt like an eternity. They had agreed to meet back at Ben's house after an hour of searching with Claire and Prudence splitting up in opposite directions of the forest, Bertha and her mother on their way to join. Prudence constantly keeping her bearings and Claire quickly downloading an app to keep from getting lost.

Relieved that Beetlejuice was no longer paying any attention to him but now worried that he may wander into a neighboring town, Merlin stayed close enough to keep an eye on him but kept enough distance to not draw his attention.

After an hour of following him, Merlin noticed his behavior and saw that it looked as if he was a dog following a scent. "Interesting", he thought to himself, "I wonder what he's doing.". Beetlejuice continued sniffing around, wandering until he caught the scent of something and began angrily growling at it. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a creature that resembled a dragon from Bertha's favorite game tackled him from behind and roared in Beetlejuice's face. Merlin looked around to eventually locate Bertha herself, controlling the imaginary creature come to life. "Ironic that she uses 'dragons' in that game." Merlin muttered to himself as he watched the large hulking beast square off with an enraged Beetlejuice.

The two circled each other similar to how he and Lydia circled each other over possession of Claire as their prey. The dragon's roar, however majestic in sound, quaked at the roar given off by Beetlejuice. Pure rage etched in every breath, Beetlejuice lunged first at the creature and sunk his claws into the left leg. Oddly enough, as the wound opened up on the dragon, a similar wound spurt open in the exact same place on Bertha's arm. The wound on Bertha was but mere cuts however it finally put to light the consequences of the mirror stone. If the apparition summoned is fatally wounded, what kind of injuries would the wielder of the stone inherit? Bertha herself, however, barely paid attention to the five rose thorn stabs bleeding on her forearm. And certainly paid no attention to her mother watching nearby. Merlin began to worry as the dragon and the demon fought ferociously with Beetlejuice opening wounds in Bertha's flesh every time he struck the dragon.

With cuts all over her sides, face, and arms, Bertha pressed on, and mentally commanded her dragon to fight. 'I gotta drag this on until Claire or Merlin get here.' She thought to herself, blood dripping onto the soil below. Her breath was becoming ragged from stress quickly as Merlin finally realized what she was doing catching a hint that it's time to make himself known. Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, an arrow of silver light shot through the forest and bound Beetlejuice's arms to his sides. Just as quickly, Claire emerged from the trees and took aim at her friend and reluctantly fired yet another arrow, but instead of being banished, he froze like a stone statue, unable to move. She silently apologized just as Merlin descended the hill to catch up with them. "Claire, Bertha!" He called to them. Claire turned to him with a start but quickly let it turn a scowl just before she slapped him across the left cheek. "And when were you planning on helping us? I saw you just standing there watching while, Bertha was fighting Beetlejuce. Why didn't you use your stupid magic to stop him?" She shot at him. He began stuttering for a minute as Bertha's mother went to the aid of her child. "I thought you said it wasn't that dangerous." Merlin heard her scold Bertha.

Merlin tried to step around Claire to tend to Bertha's wounds however, she apparently still in anted an answer. "Look if I used magic and accidentally hit Bertha, she'd be in alot worse shape than this right now." He explained as he gently pushed her aside. He then knelt down next to the tired and injured Bertha and examined her injuries. "So the wounds inflicted on her are magic..." He mumbled to himself so that Carlie could hear. She turned to him and asked with worry on her face, "so what does that mean?" she asked. Merlin snickered a bit and answered, "It means I know how it works." Seeing once again the worry in Carlie's face Merlin gingerly placed a hand on her shoulder. "She'll be fine in a minute or so. As the magic wears off her wounds will just vanish. She just needs to rest is all."

In the Neitherworld, Lydia wandered, lost and confused. A wild beast taken from her home territory and thrust into a land she was still not too familiar with. Leery and paranoid about anything that crossed her path she wandered around until her hand bumped into a rectangular object that startled her at first until she looked and found a small book with a reddish-brown leather cover that had the image of am angel embroidered on it. Recognizing the book, Lydia cautiously and gently picked up the strange object. As she held onto it, she felt herself begin to shift back into her original form with Lydia's consciousness returning to her, and the spider silk shining as if it beheld a crimson light sewn into every strand, she opened the angelic journal and began to read. "Outerworld date: October second, twelve seventy three. I went to talk to an old friend today, and he had a message from the future for me. So I write this to the one who wears the spider silk. Peace comes at a price, the battles we fight are necessary to create the future we seek, or is to come regardless. By the time you read this, you must be weary of those who seek to do you harm and take what sits on your shoulders, but fret not, you are never alone in this ordeal. I do not comprehend everything The Seer has said to me but, I suppose that I serve a role in this journey, so from here on I shall dedicate my life to collecting as much information on the mysterious spellwoven objects left behind by Arachnis Widow into these journals, perhapse they shall help you somehow. I only wish to be able to meet you someday. But, who knows what our future's hold for us?". Regaining her full consciousness, Lydia blinked her eyes twice before re-reading the entry. "Is this written... for me?" She asked aloud before turning the page. The entry read, "Outerworld date: October thirteenth, twelve seventy three. Nothing much on the spider silk but I have discovered that the famed Arachnis Widow created countless artifacts that she eventually seized and destroyed due to an incident that ended up destroying a lost soul's essence, a crime unforgivable in any world. The incident in question involved actually two of her artifacts as their wielders and owners fought over power, one protecting the relics from falling into the hands of the other and the other seeking to gather all of the artifacts and rule all of the worlds unopposed and unrivaled. Needless to say, the hero fell to the villain, however, all of his collected artifacts vanished in one night while the villain slept, with only sider threads remaining where they once stood."

"Let me get this straight," Merlin sighed in annoyance, "You showed your parents the stone and what you can do with it the moment you got home after using it against my brother?" "What?" Bertha answered bashfully, "I needed the practice and I was excited about it." Merlin glared at the tall girl with annoyed, half laden eyes, "While we're divulging our secrets, Perhapse you should also tell her about Grimnak and Naria." "I already know." Carlie explained, "I've lived in a haunted house when I was young. One you got to know the Maitlands, they were very nice and helpful." "And they've explained the Neitherworld to you." Merlin asked flabbergasted. "Apparently some lost souls were caught on Earth when the Spirit Gates were sealed. Over time, they took on a transparent form and became invulnerable to physical harm." "Phasing." Merlin answered with an expression of discovery on his face. "In any case, I hope you don't mind if she puts herself in danger like that again." Merlin said bluntly. "Thanks for trying to give me a heart attack." The sarcasm that flew out of her mouth was so thick, it possibly could have punched Merlin in the face. "Guys," Claire interrupted, I think Beetlejuce is changing back."

Indeed, Claire's assumption was correct. Even though he was frozen in place, Beetlejuice began shifting back as if his demon form simply timed out like in a video game. Claire aimed her arrow once again and this time brought back her friend from imprisonment. Beetlejuice collapsed to his knees breathing hard but this time retaining consciousness, just not memory. "What happened?" he asked confused, he then looked around frantically. "Where is Grimnak?" Merlin patted him on the right shoulder blade and answered him, "It's alright, he's gone for now." Beetlejuice released his breath and began to calm down. As he gazed back at the group, he finally noticed one extra member in the group as well as one missing. "Uh, hello, Ms. Hennings." Beetlejuice said bashfully. "What is she doing here?" He tried to address Bertha through his teeth. "I already know who you are, 'Ben'. Bertha is both a horrible liar and poor at keeping secrets, especially if she gets excited." Carlie explained. As Merlin, Beetlejuice, and Claire threw Bertha all angry glares, Prudence used her right hand to face palm herself. Quickly, Bertha blurted out, "What did you expect, my favorite monster came to life right in front of my eyes and kicked butt. Who wouldn't I brag to?" With her hand still covering her face, Prudence snidely commented, "I'm surprised you weren't dragged off to an asylum." Defeated, Bertha sighed and responded, "Alright, I'm sorry. I can have a big mouth sometimes."

Intrigued by the message to her from in a book written thousands of years ago, Lydia flipped through the pages, glancing and skimming through quickly, hoping to find another one or at least a clue as to what the spider silk was and or how it worked. She eventually found some blank pages, 'Looks like I'll be loaning this to Prudence', Lydia thought to herself before looking around at her environment. "How did I get to the Neitherworld?" She asked herself aloud and was about to prepare herself to use the chant when a set of arms wrapped themselves around her mouth, muffling her words. Grimnak then leaned in and whispered, "It would be just so easy to snap your neck and end both you and your guardian ghost in one blow." Suddenly as if arriving as a hero, the barrier of the spider silk thrust his hands off of her mouth and then tossed Grimnak backward around twenty feet. "Blast that silk." he cursed for forgetting. He raised his left hand and thrust lightning from his fingertips, striking once again, the barrier and pushing Lydia back with the force of the impact. Lydia struggled to maintain her footing and eventually toppled onto her back. Gripping the book tightly she felt her body being dragged by the force of his spell and only began to worry when she once again heard the noise of cracking glass. 'In a few seconds, the lightning would shatter the barrier and punch a hole through my body.'. Lydia thought to herself. Just then flowing water wrapped around the barrier, redirecting the lightning around it as an arrow zinged by and struck Grimnak in the left shoulder. The lightning stopped and the electrified water began funneling into a horizontal spout that shot right at Grimnak's feet. As the water rushed over his lower legs, the electricity began coursing through his body. Grimnak let out a shriek as he was being electrocuted for a brief second and dropped to his knees before exploding into black dust. Breathing hard from her narrow brush with oblivion, Lydia looked around to find her rescuers. Eventually a familiar voice and southern accent caught her attention. "Hey, Lydia!" Sierra called. Standing next to her was Sophie, another Atlantian girl that had fought with Lydia and Beetlejuice against Naria.

End of Season 2 Episode 12