Author's Note: I'm glad everyone so thoroughly enjoyed the fourth chapter of The Twilight Ed. To answer Jacksin's question, only "The Other Me" was actually based off of an episode of The Twilight Zone. Every entry from then on out has been and will be either from my own head or inspired from a source other than The Twilight Zone. Now that that's out of the way, it's time for yet another foray into the strange and unknown, this time with everyone's favorite foreigner Rolf...
You unlock this door with the key of imagination, beyond it is another dimension...
... a dimension of sound...
... a dimension of sight...
... a dimension of mind.
You are moving into a land of both shadow and substance...
... of things and ideas.
You've just crossed over into...
The Twilight Zone.
"Welcome to yet another meeting of the Urban Rangers, Ranger Jonny, Ranger Jimmy, and Ranger Plank!" Rolf announced from atop a barrel that he stood on. Jimmy and Jonny both performed the Urban Ranger salute, forming an L on their foreheads with their hands. All of them were dressed up in traditional Urban Ranger uniforms, which consisted of a blue rag that covered their heads, red neckerchiefs around their necks, a blue vest covered in whatever badges they had earned, a yellow undershirt, and blue slacks.
Rolf, age thirteen, is a hardworking young man who breaks his back everyday performing brutal yard work, numerous chores, and running the Urban Rangers. Despite this crushing workload, Rolf enjoys his life and cherishes his house, family, animals, and, above all else, the traditions of his old country. Rolf honors and upholds these traditions everyday, but sometimes honoring these traditions comes with a price.
"Now then, Urban Rangers, you may be wondering what tasks we shall be performing today, especially in this sweltering heat!" Rolf began as he jumped down off of the barrel and landed on the hard dirt of his backyard. Jimmy and Jonny stood at attention, ready for Rolf to explain what their mission today was. Rolf marched up to them and then leaned in toward Jonny, a hard look on his face. Jonny did not falter, however, and maintained his poise and salute. "At ease, Jonny the wood boy! You too, Ranger Jimmy!" Rolf said, causing both Jimmy and Jonny to sigh with relief and lower their arms.
"What about Plank, Rolf? Can he be at ease too?" Jonny asked as he looked down at Plank in concern, who he held in his arm. Rolf chuckled lightly and smiled.
"Of course, Ranger Plank may be at ease as well," Rolf answered before turning away and marching across his yard. "Enough with the formalities, it is time to explain the task at hand!" he announced before turning toward Jimmy and Jonny and leaning on the barrel that he stood on before. "Today, we shall be grooming the animals on Rolf's farm, making sure that they are in top condition so that their work may go on without a hitch!" he explained, Jimmy and Jonny nodding in response. "And if this task is completed on time and with great results, then we shall all be earning our Expert Animal Grooming Badges!" he proclaimed, causing Jimmy and Jonny to grin with delight.
"Oh boy, I love the design on that badge!" Jimmy exclaimed, giddy at the news of another badge up for grabs.
"Oh yeah, isn't that the one with the goat and the pig giving each other a high five?" Jonny asked, a huge grin on his face.
"That's right, Ranger Jonny! But it is not the badge that counts in the end, but the deed that was performed to earn the badge!" Rolf answered as he ripped off the top of the barrel that he had been leaning on. "Now, Rangers, come to Rolf so that he may present you with the tools that you will use to clean the filthy animals!" he commanded, causing Jimmy and Jonny to march forward and stop in front of the open barrel. Rolf stuck his arm in the barrel and fished around a little, his hand grabbing many different tools and tossing them around as he tried to find the appropriate tools for the job. "Aha!" he exclaimed before pulling out a huge wooden brush with yellow bristles. "With this brush, Ranger Jimmy, you shall scrub Beatrice clean of the filth that riddles her body!" he explained before shoving the brush toward Jimmy, who took it quickly.
"Uh... who's Beatrice again, Rolf?" Jimmy asked, knowing that it was probably one of his animals but forgetting which one it was.
"Beatrice is-" Rolf began, but was cut off by Jonny.
"Beatrice is Rolf's cow, Jimmy!" Jonny responded as he looked over Jimmy, who nodded in response.
"Your memory serves you well, Ranger Jonny, and for this you have earned the Animal Name Badge!" Rolf declared before reaching into his pocket and fishing out a badge that displayed a drawing of a dog with the name "Bob" underneath of it.
"Oh boy, I got another one, Plank!" Jonny hollered in delight as he eagerly took the badge from Rolf and placed it on his vest, Jimmy looking on in envy.
"And as for what you will be doing today, Ranger Jonny..." Rolf began as he stuck his hand back into the barrel and rummaged around for another tool. "You shall be removing ticks from Wilfred's underbelly using this pair of tweezers," he said as he held up a giant pair of silver tweezers.
"Me and Plank will have those nasty bugs off of Wilfred in no time, Rolf!" Jonny responded as he took the silver tweezers from Rolf.
"Wilfred is your pig, right, Rolf?" Jimmy asked before smiling eagerly, hoping to earn himself the badge that Jonny had just acquired.
"Oh ho, Rolf can see that Ranger Jimmy desires the Animal Name Badge as well!" Rolf answered before patting Jimmy playfully on the head. "Well, Rolf cannot deny that you have earned it, so Rolf presents you with the Animal Name Badge!" he added before retrieving another one of the badges from his pocket and handing it to Jimmy.
"Yes, it's a dream come true!" Jimmy exclaimed as he took the badge and placed it on his vest. After applying the badge, he looked at Rolf's vest, curious to see if he had it. "Hey Rolf, how come you don't have the Animal Name Badge?" he asked in curiosity.
"You see, Ranger Jimmy, Rolf does not have the Animal Name Badge because Rolf has the far superior Naming an Animal Badge!" Rolf bragged before pointing to a badge on his vest that had an illustration of a stick figure man standing next to a sheep with the word "Name" written at the bottom. Jimmy and Jonny both stared at the badge in jealousy and awe.
"Oh wow, Rolf, you're one lucky guy to have gotten that badge!" Jonny complemented as he held up Plank so that he could see the badge as well.
"As Rolf's comrade Kevin always says, Ranger Jonny, you call it luck but Rolf calls it skill!" Rolf answered before sticking his hand back into the barrel. "But enough with the badge giving and receiving, it is time that we set out to groom Rolf's animals before they wallow in filth and disrepair even longer," he said as he retrieved another tool from the barrel, which was an over-sized file. "Rolf will be sharpening Victor's horns with this file, as they have grown dull and worn from Victor's constant ramming of Rolf's shed," he explained as he held the file up.
"Why do you think Victor was ramming your shed, Rolf?" Jimmy asked as he played with the bristles on the brush that he held in his hands.
"Rolf does not know, Ranger Jimmy, perhaps Rolf will ask Victor and tell you later on, yes?" Rolf joked before laughing heartily, Jimmy and Jonny joining in. "Now, Urban Rangers!" he began as his laughter subsided, causing Jimmy and Jonny to stop laughing as well. "Let us commence with the grooming of Rolf's animals!" he proclaimed as Jimmy and Jonny gave him the Urban Ranger salute and then marched off toward their respective animals. Rolf looked on as Jimmy headed over to Rolf's shed, which Beatrice stood in front of; Beatrice stared blankly into space as she chewed on some grass, barely noticing that Jimmy was heading toward her. Jimmy retrieved a bucket of water and a stool that were nearby, and set up next to Beatrice. He then began to scrub Beatrice's side vigorously, wiping away the dirt and grime that covered parts of her body. Rolf then turned his attention to Jonny, who had managed to pin Wilfred down by Rolf's vegetable patch and was trying his best to remove dozens of ticks that were anchored onto Wilfred's belly.
Rolf, satisfied by Jimmy and Jonny's diligence in completing their tasks, turned his attention away from the two boys and headed over to the corner of his yard, where Victor was trying his best to rip some weeds from the ground by the fence with his teeth. "Rolf is pleased that you would be so kind to destroy the weeds that infest Rolf's land, Victor," Rolf remarked as he walked up to Victor and stopped next to the goat. Victor looked up at him, a bundle of weeds sticking out of his mouth. "But now Rolf must request that you stay still while Rolf returns your horns to their former glory," he explained as he got down on his knees next to Victor and grabbed onto one of his horns. Victor didn't put up a fight, and he let Rolf bring the file to his blunt horn. He began to move the file back and forth across the tip of Victor's horn, making sure that he didn't go too fast so that he didn't spook Victor.
"Hold still, Wilfred, there's just a few more of these ticks left and then I can let you go!" Jonny exclaimed as he tried his best to keep Wilfred on the ground belly up. Wilfred was squealing and rolling around from side to side, making it more and more difficult for Jonny to keep him completely still. "Come on, Plank, how about some help here?" he asked as he looked over at Plank, who was leaning up against the fence and watching him in amusement. "Oh fine, I guess I'll just do it myself!" he complained before turning his attention back to Wilfred, who had redoubled his efforts to escape his grasp. "Just don't come crying to me when you don't get your Expert Animal Grooming Badge!" Jonny added as he placed the prongs of the tweezers on either side of a tick and clamped them down on the tiny insect's body. He yanked hard and the tick came off of Wilfred with ease. "See, now was that so bad?" he asked as Wilfred stopped struggling for a moment. "Now let me just get the rest of these and-" he began to say in a soothing voice. Unfortunately for him, Wilfred, sensing that Jonny's guard was down, suddenly flipped over and ran away from him, the grime on Wilfred's body allowing him to easily slip out of his grip. "Hey, come back here, I'm not done yet!" Jonny called after Wilfred, who completely ignored him and instead ran straight for Rolf's vegetable patch.
"Ah yes, your horns are slowly reaching the pinnacle of perfection, Victor! Just a few more moments and Rolf will have them at the sharpest they have ever been," Rolf assured Victor as he continued his work. He suddenly whirled around at the sound of a commotion from behind him; a shocked expression appeared on his face when he saw Jonny chasing Wilfred across his yard, Wilfred heading straight for his vegetable patch. "Wilfred once again tries Rolf's patience..." he muttered before turning back to Victor and standing up. He pocketed the file and then patted Victor on the head. "Fret not, Victor, Rolf will return as soon as Rolf assists Jonny in catching the misbehaving pig," he explained before turning away from Victor and running toward Jonny and Wilfred.
"Stop, Wilfred, I don't think Rolf will be happy if you mess with his garden!" Jonny warned as he dashed toward Wilfred, who had clamped his jaws around the top of a turnip and was trying to pull it out of the ground. Jimmy, who was still scrubbing Beatrice, couldn't help but pause for a moment to watch the situation unfold. Jonny reached Wilfred and then grabbed hold of his sides before trying to pull him away from the garden. "Come on, Wilfred, stop it!" he pleaded as he tried his best to yank the pig away from the vegetable patch, although Wilfred was surprisingly strong and wouldn't move an inch, still determined to claim his prize.
"Step aside, Ranger Jonny, Rolf will bring the insubordinate swine under control!" Rolf declared as he ran up to Jonny and Wilfred. Jonny released Wilfred from his grip, letting Rolf get next to Wilfred instead. He grabbed Wilfred and, gathering all the strength he could muster, pulled the ill-behaved pig away from the vegetable patch, although Wilfred had managed to pull the turnip out just as he did so. Rolf carried Wilfred away from the vegetable patch and sat him down on the ground, the turnip hanging loosely from Wilfred's mouth. Jonny ran up beside Rolf, and the two of them stared down at Wilfred, who stared back up at them blankly. "Rolf will be taking that!" Rolf snapped as he reached down and snatched the turnip from Wilfred's mouth, the pig putting up no resistance. "Rolf is ashamed at your conduct, Wilfred! Rolf has no choice now but to- Yowch!" he exclaimed as he felt something sharp jab him right in the behind. He shot up into the air, dropping the turnip, and face planted into the hard dirt.
"Holy crap, Rolf, are you okay?" Jonny asked as he ran over to Rolf, who was moaning in pain and rubbing his behind. Jimmy quickly abandoned his post by Beatrice and ran over to check on Rolf as well.
"Yes, Jonny the wood boy, Rolf is fine but- Victor!" Rolf shouted in anger as he looked behind Jonny and Jimmy. Victor and Wilfred were both tugging at opposite ends of the turnip, and they managed to rip it in half. They then both eagerly began chewing on their halves of the turnip. Rolf quickly got to his feet and dusted himself off.
"Wait, Rolf, you should probably let me take a look at where Victor jabbed you!" Jimmy recommended, although Rolf didn't seem to be paying him any attention. "I do have my Field Medic Badge, after all!" he added, hoping that Rolf would listen to him.
"No need, Ranger Jimmy, the pain in Rolf's rump is nothing compared to the pain that Rolf will inflict upon the rumps of Victor and Wilfred!" Rolf proclaimed before pushing past Jimmy and Jonny, who still had looks of concern on their faces, and marching toward Victor and Wilfred, who had both just finished eating their halves of the turnip. "Victor, Wilfred!" he yelled in fury as he stopped in front of the two animals and crossed his arms. Victor and Wilfred both stared at his feet, both of the animals obviously knowing what they did was wrong. "Look at Rolf when he speaks to you!" he ordered. Victor and Wilfred both slowly brought their gazes up to his face, which had a hardened look on it. "Both of you know the punishment for stealing from Rolf's vegetable patch, do you not?" Rolf questioned as he slit his eyes at Victor and Wilfred, who both began to quiver with fear.
"I wonder what Rolf is going to do to them..." Jimmy whispered over to Jonny as they both watched Rolf carefully; Jonny shrugged in response.
"Now both of you shall wait right in this spot while Rolf retrieves the Paddle of Punishment!" Rolf commanded before turning toward his shed and walking toward it.
"Wait, Paddle of Punishment?" Jonny exclaimed in alarm as he looked over at Jimmy, who had an equally dismayed look on his face. Jimmy and Jonny ran after Rolf and stopped in front of him, preventing him from completing his journey to his shed. "Hold on, Rolf, are you sure hitting Victor and Wilfred with a paddle is the best way to punish them? I mean, they're just animals, they don't know any better!" he laid out as Rolf listened intently, a skeptical look on his face.
"Rolf knows that you are as much of a lover of animals as Rolf is, Ranger Jonny, but Rolf must follow the traditions of his home country, which dictate that those who pilfer vegetables from the very soil in which they grow must be punished with ten whacks on the behind from the Paddle of Punishment!" Rolf explained as Jonny nodded slowly but sadly, obviously not content with Rolf's answer.
"Alright, if that's how it has to be... but me and Plank are gonna wait inside your house while you do it," Jonny responded before turning away and running to retrieve Plank, who was still chilling by the fence.
"I think I'll go keep Jonny company, Rolf," Jimmy chimed in before backing away. "Just don't hit them too hard, okay?" Jimmy added before running to catch up to Jonny. Rolf watched as Jimmy and Jonny walked into his house through the back, both of them saying something to each other that Rolf could not hear. Rolf was sure they were talking about the punishment that he was about to dole out to Victor and Wilfred, but he knew he had to ignore whatever harsh words they may be saying about him and his traditions. After all, he knew that they would never understand why he had to do such things, so he had no choice but to soldier on and block out their words of misunderstanding. He turned back around and resumed his journey to his shed. As he reached the entrance, he patted Beatrice on her side.
"At least Rolf can count on you to behave, Beatrice," Rolf commented in a low tone before heading into his shed to retrieve the paddle. He stepped into the darkness of his shed and took a quick look around, hoping to spot and grab the paddle as soon as possible so that he could get Victor and Wilfred's punishment over with swiftly. He didn't spot it on his first glance around the shed, so he knew that he'd have to dig around to locate the paddle, which he hadn't really used in quite a while. He stepped further into his shed and headed toward a pile of shovels, rakes, hoes, and other assorted farm implements, thinking that maybe the paddle was buried underneath of them. He got down on one knee and moved some of the tools aside, a few of them clattering on the floorboards as he did so. "There you are..." Rolf whispered to himself as he reached into the pile and pulled out the Paddle of Punishment; it was a huge wooden paddle with the design of a crying little baby etched into it. He stood up and sighed before turning around and heading toward the door to his shed.
Victor and Wilfred stood shaking the middle of Rolf's yard, both of them dreading what was coming. They both watched as Rolf stepped out of the shed, the paddle in hand, and shut the shed door behind him. He then shifted his gaze over to the two quivering animals. He began to walk toward Victor and Wilfred, casually patting the paddle on his other hand as he did so. He stopped a few feet in front of Victor and Wilfred, a condescending expression on his face. "If you cooperate, Rolf promises you that this will be over in no time at all," Rolf assured them as his grip tightened on the paddle. "Wilfred, since you are the one who started this nonsense, you must suffer the blows of the paddle first," he stated as he stared down at Wilfred. Wilfred squealed in fear and backed away a little, understanding what Rolf meant. "Now now, Wilfred, take your blows in stride; at least be happy that you do not have to suffer the Hat of Discipline instead," he said as he stepped closer to Wilfred. "Turn around, Wilfred," he commanded as he made a twirling motion with his finger. Wilfred, although scared and shaking, turned himself around and held his rump up toward the tall boy. Rolf sighed deeply and then held the paddle up, ready to bring it down on Wilfred. "Rolf is sorry..." he bemoaned before bringing down the paddle hard toward Wilfred's behind.
"Thank goodness, I think it's finally over..." Jimmy said to Jonny, the sounds of Wilfred and Victor's cries of pain finally subsiding. The two of them stood in Rolf's living room, not really knowing what to do to pass the time until Rolf was done punishing Victor and Wilfred.
"Yeah, but did you hear the noises Victor and Wilfred were making?" Jonny asked as he hugged Plank tightly. "It's the worst thing I've ever heard in my life..." he lamented, feeling terribly sorry for Victor and Wilfred's plight.
"I know, Jonny, but we can't really do anything about it. I mean, they are Rolf's animals, and I don't want to end up on the receiving end of a punishment myself for breaking one of his traditions," Jimmy admitted as Jonny nodded, calming down a little.
"I guess you have a point..." Jonny answered, although the entire ordeal still did not sit well with him.
"The punishment of the two vegetable thieves is now over, Rangers," Rolf announced as he walked into his living room. Jimmy and Jonny turned to him and saluted, trying their best to forget about their misgivings toward him and his punishment of Victor and Wilfred. "Rolf is sorry that they ruined our chances at the Expert Animal Grooming Badge today, but perhaps you both would like another crack at it tomorrow, yes?" he questioned as Jimmy and Jonny lowered their salutes and pondered the offer for a moment.
"Sure, Rolf, I guess we'll try again tomorrow," Jimmy answered before grinning.
"Me and Plank will be there too," Jonny added in, trying his best to appear upbeat about it.
"Rolf is pleased that you are both still enthusiastic about earning the badge!" Rolf responded as he stepped forward and stopped right in front of them. "And for your patience in this matter, Rolf must award you with the Patient Person Badge!" he declared as he pulled out three badges and held them up; all three of the badges had drawings of a clock on them.
"Two badges in one day, I love it!" Jimmy said in excitement as he accepted the badge from Rolf and went about placing it on his vest.
"Thanks, Rolf," Jonny said as he obtained two badges from Rolf. He placed one on his vest and then placed the other on Plank's vest.
"And with this final presenting of badges, this Urban Rangers meeting has come to its end," Rolf revealed as he laid one hand on Jimmy's shoulder and the other on Jonny's. "You both have performed well today, and Rolf hopes that you can repeat this performance tomorrow, hopefully without any problems from Rolf's animals," he said before taking his hands off of their shoulders. "Rolf officially releases Rangers Jimmy, Jonny, and Plank from duty for the rest of the day," he announced as Jimmy and Jonny saluted him once more.
"See you tomorrow, Rolf!" Jimmy exclaimed happily as he removed his hand from his head and walked toward Rolf's door.
"Have a good one, Rolf," Jonny said before following Jimmy out through Rolf's front door. Rolf walked over and closed the door behind them and then sighed contently. Even though the day had turned a bit sour, Rolf was glad to see that it hadn't dampened the spirits of Jimmy and Jonny, and that they were both ready to make another attempt tomorrow.
Rolf entered his backyard clad in his Urban Ranger uniform, a folded up blue cloth in his hand. After a bit of morning preparation, he was finally ready to summon the other Urban Rangers so that they could finally complete their tasks and earn their new badges. He ignored the blazing hot sun as he marched over to Beatrice, who was grazing by his fence. "Rolf requires your assistance once again in summoning the Urban Rangers, Beatrice," Rolf informed her as he unfolded the blue cloth, which turned out to be a large Urban Rangers banner with their official logo stitched into it, which was a a circle with a yellow hand performing the Urban Ranger salute. He draped it over Beatrice's back, although she didn't seem to mind at all and instead went about her grazing in peace. After the banner was adjusted to his liking, he stepped behind Beatrice and grabbed hold of her tail. "Ready, Beatrice?" Rolf asked as he peered around Beatrice's great behind. Beatrice stopped grazing and lifted her head up, signalling to Rolf that she was indeed ready to call the Urban Rangers.
Rolf began to turn Beatrice's tail in a clockwise motion, and she began to moo loudly. He looked around as he continued to turn her tail, ready for Jimmy and Jonny to appear at any moment. After a minute or two, Rolf saw his two fellow Urban Rangers hop his fence and enter his yard, both of their faces looking eager and ready to go. "Right on time as usual, Urban Rangers!" he complimented as he released Beatrice's tail and allowed her to go back to her grazing. Jimmy and Jonny stopped a few feet in front of Rolf and saluted him.
"On time is my middle name, Rolf!" Jimmy answered with a smile on his face.
"At ease, Urban Rangers," Rolf said, allowing Jimmy and Jonny to drop their hands at their sides. "Now that we are all here, we may finally try our hands once again at earning the Expert Animal Grooming Badges!" he proclaimed before walking toward the barrel full of tools, which was beside his shed. Rolf gripped the barrel on each side and carefully lifted it up off of the ground. He then turned around and hauled the heavy barrel back over to Jimmy and Jonny. As soon as he reached them, he sat the barrel down on the ground in front of them with a thud. "Fortunately for us, Victor and Wilfred will behave much better this day now that they have been disciplined, so Rolf is sure that we will be able to-"
"Well if it isn't the Urban Losers!" an annoying and all too familiar voice called from Rolf's fence, causing Rolf, Jimmy, and Jonny to all turn around. They spotted Eddy leaning on Rolf's fence, and Edd standing right beside him, although Edd certainly didn't look too thrilled about what Eddy had said. "What kind of stupid crap are you guys doing today, huh? Oh, let me guess, you're going to give Rolf a bath and get the Washing a Hairy Has-been Badge!" Eddy mocked before bursting into laughter, Edd covering his face in shame.
"Eddy, why do you insist in further cementing everyone's hatred of us day in and day out?" Edd asked as he watched Rolf's face scrunch up in annoyance.
"Ah, Rolf sees that once again the short and sour Ed-boy has come to mock Rolf and his Urban Rangers. But Rolf asks you, why don't come into Rolf's yard and say that to his face?" Rolf questioned as he frowned at Eddy, who wiped tears of joy from his eyes.
"What's the matter, Rolfy boy, you ain't angry are ya?" Eddy asked, although he was still grinning spitefully. "Oh no, are you gonna hit me with your little paddle like you hit Wilfred and Victor?" he asked as he feigned fear. Rolf's eyes widened at Eddy's comment; how did he know about the incident with his animals? "You know, that reminds me, Rolf, I've been meaning to ask you something," Eddy stated as a grin crept back across his face. Edd was shaking his head in disappointment from behind him, still embarrassed by his conduct and wishing he would just stop. "When are you gonna get your Animal Abuse Badge?" Eddy asked before once again laughing like a maniac, pounding his fist on Rolf's fence as he did so.
"Laugh it up, Ed-boy, but perhaps Rolf really will go retrieve the Paddle of Punishment and use it on you!" Rolf yelled, his anger getting the better of him, although Eddy paid him no mind and kept laughing.
"Eddy, please stop, you're obviously just here to start a fight, and I adamantly oppose starting any kind of conflict over something as silly as Rolf's traditions!" Edd lectured, causing Eddy to turn around and flash him an annoyed look.
"Oh come on, Double D, I'm just having a little fun!" Eddy shot back in irritation. "Besides, Rolf's a good sport, I'm sure he'll just suck it up and-" he managed to get out before something struck him in the head, knocking him off of the fence. He fell to the ground holding his head in pain, and a small gardening shovel fell on the ground next to him.
"Rolf's aim is very good, wouldn't you agree, Urban Rangers?" Rolf asked in jest as he looked over at Jimmy and Jonny, who giggled at Eddy's pain. Eddy stood up and groaned in annoyance as he rubbed his head, which had a small lump on it.
"Why that no good, dirty..." Eddy muttered under his breath as his other hand balled up into a fist. Edd rushed forward and grabbed his arm, causing him to turn and face Edd.
"I think that's quite enough, Eddy! Let's just get out of here before you dig an even bigger hole for yourself!" Edd recommended in a high panicky voice, knowing that if Eddy continued it would likely be bad for the both of them. Eddy sighed in defeat.
"Fine, I bet the Urban Losers have to go congratulate each other on being morons anyway," Eddy remarked as he followed Edd away from Rolf's fence, although it was clear that he was still angry about Rolf hitting him with the gardening shovel. After Edd and Eddy were out of sight, Rolf turned to face Jimmy and Jonny, and, much to their surprise, he had a sour look on his face.
"What's wrong, Rolf? I thought you would be happy that you managed to get rid of Eddy," Jimmy commented.
"Believe Rolf when Rolf says that he is overjoyed that the head-like-a-footstool Ed-boy torments us no longer, but Rolf is confused as to how the Ed-boys even knew of Rolf and the punishment that he delivered upon Victor and Wilfred," Rolf explained as he gave Jimmy and Jonny a knowing and angry stare.
"Don't look at me, Rolf, it was Jonny who went around telling everyone about it!" Jimmy tattled as he pointed over at Jonny.
"Sarah's really rubbing off on you, Jimmy," Jonny commented before sighing. "Besides, it wasn't me, Plank was the one who just couldn't keep his mouth shut!" he explained as he held up Plank. Rolf groaned and slid his hand down his face in exasperation.
"Well, there is not much Rolf can do about it now, so we might as well carry on with the meeting of the Urban Rangers and complete the task of getting Rolf's animals up to Rolf's standards," Rolf explained before turning around to face the barrel filled with tools. He reached into the barrel and searched with his hand for the tools that they needed. He was far angrier about Jonny telling everyone of what he had done to Victor and Wilfred than he was letting on, but he figured that he should just let bygones be bygones and move on. He pulled out the pair of tweezers and the file and then turned to face Jimmy and Jonny. "Rolf will allow Ranger Jonny to once again take care of the insects on Wilfred's stomach, but Rolf feels that Ranger Jimmy should handle the sharpening of Victor's horns today," he explained as he handed Jonny the tweezers and Jimmy the file.
"I guess you want to give Victor and Wilfred some space, right Rolf?" Jimmy asked.
"Yes, Rolf feels it is best if he allows Victor and Wilfred some time to think about what they have done before going near them once more," Rolf answered as he reached back into the barrel and retrieved the wooden brush. "Rolf will handle the cleaning of Beatrice this time," he added as he picked up the lid to the barrel and put it back onto the barrel. "Now let us resume our quest to receive the Expert Animal Grooming Badge!" he proclaimed as Jimmy and Jonny quickly ran to their respective animals.
"Alright, Wilfred, let's try this one more time," Jonny said as he walked over to Wilfred, who was standing idly by Rolf's chicken coop. He sat Plank on top of the chicken coop and then turned to face Wilfred, who was just staring off in the distance at something. Jonny knelt down beside Wilfred and grabbed hold of him before flipping him slowly onto his back. Much to his surprise, Wilfred didn't put up a fight at all. "Huh, I guess Rolf's punishment really did work..." Jonny whispered to himself as he brought the tweezers toward a tick. "I just wish he didn't have to be so rough..." he whispered, his voice filled with just a bit of anger.
"Don't worry about a thing, Victor, I'm an expert with files," Jimmy assured Victor as he stood next to the goat, which didn't seem to pay him any mind and instead stared at something past Jimmy. After gathering his courage, Jimmy brought the file up to Victor's left horn and began to grind at it, and he was pleasantly surprised to find that Victor didn't act up at all. Rolf walked a short distance over to Beatrice, who had returned to ripping small strands of grass out of the ground and chewing on them. Rolf dropped the scrub brush onto the ground beside Beatrice and then turned to face her.
"Allow Rolf to remove the banner of the Urban Rangers from you so that the grooming can commence," Rolf said before grabbing the banner and sliding it carefully off of Beatrice's body. He folded up the banner with great care and then turned toward his house and began to walk toward it, hoping to place the banner in his room and then return to wash Beatrice. He stepped into his house through a sliding glass door and then turned around and shut it carefully behind him. He then turned back around and began to walk across his kitchen. "Whoa!" Rolf exclaimed as his forward foot suddenly slid on something wet. He fell backward, throwing the banner up into the air, and landed with a thud on his tiled kitchen floor. The banner floated through the air and then landed gracefully a few feet in front of him in a puddle of water. "Rolf's aching- What in the name of Rolf's ancestors?" he exclaimed in surprise as he looked around his kitchen floor. A huge puddle of water had formed in the middle of his floor because someone had left on his kitchen sink; even worse, several knives and forks were strewn across his floor, and Rolf had been extremely lucky that he hadn't landed on any of them.
Rolf stood up slowly, being extra careful not to slip on the water again and fall down on top of any knives or forks. He began to walk toward the kitchen sink, which was overflowing as water shot down out of the spigot. He stepped around knives and forks as they moved from side to side due to the water pushing them around. He reached toward the kitchen sink, grabbed hold of the handles, and then turned the water off. He then slowly moved around the edge of the room, trying his best to avoid stepping in the water anymore, and reached out into the puddle and grabbed the Urban Ranger banner, which was soaking wet now. "Son of a gun..." Rolf muttered as he held it up to get a better look at it. Perhaps Rolf's Nano forgot to turn the water off again he thought to himself as he lowered the banner and looked around the room; although the thought was comforting, he couldn't help but think that this was done purposely. After all, why would there be knives and forks scattered all over the floor if his Nano had just left the water on? Rolf quickly took the banner to his room and returned to his kitchen with several towels. Rolf then went about cleaning up his kitchen, absorbing the water with each towel and picking up knives and forks and putting them in a pile as he went along.
"There you go, Wilfred, your belly is free of those bloodsuckers!" Jonny exclaimed as he released Wilfred, who slowly got back to his feet and then just stood there staring off at Rolf's house. Jonny walked over to the chicken coop and grabbed Plank. "Aw, don't worry buddy, I'll put in a good word for you with Rolf so that you can get the badge too," he claimed as he looked around the farm, although he didn't see Rolf anywhere.
"Your horns are beautiful now, Victor," Jimmy commented as he touched the tip of Victor's right horn lightly; it was extremely sharp. "That's the kind of quality you get when you have an expert in the field of beauty on your side!" he bragged before smiling at his work.
"Hey, Jimmy, didya see where Rolf went?" Jonny asked as he walked over to Jimmy, who turned to face him.
"Uh... well..." Jimmy stuttered as he looked around the yard to see that there indeed was no sign of Rolf. "No, I didn't... I was too busy sharpening Victor's horns to notice that Rolf even left," he explained as Jonny nodded. "Oh wait, there he is now!" he said as he pointed behind Jonny. Jonny turned around to see Rolf coming out of his house, a peeved look on the tall boy's face.
"Oh boy, he doesn't look very happy..." Jonny muttered as Rolf walked toward Beatrice. Rolf stopped by Beatrice and sighed before bending over and grabbing the brush that laid on the ground beside her.
"Now that Rolf has put away the banner, Rolf will now scrub your impurities away," Rolf claimed as he looked around for the bucket full of water. He didn't see it anywhere, and couldn't help but mentally slap himself when he remembered that he had put it in his shed. "Rolf supposes it will be just a moment longer... Rolf must grab his bucket," he said quickly as he dropped the brush on the ground and ran toward his shed to retrieve his bucket. Before he could go any further, Jonny moved in front of him, stopping him a few feet from his shed.
"Hey, Rolf, are you okay?" Jonny asked.
"Yes, Rolf is just fine," Rolf answered before smiling at Jonny.
"Oh that's good," Jonny answered in relief. "But Plank just wanted to let you know that we're all done with getting those ticks off of Wilfred, and that Jimmy is done sharpening Victor's horns," he explained.
"Excellent work then!" Rolf complemented. "Now Rolf just has to grab his bucket and clean Beatrice and then Rolf will commence with handing out all of our Expert Animal Grooming Badges," he added as Jonny nodded and let him move toward his shed.
"Do you need any help finding your bucket?" Jonny asked as he watched Rolf walk up to his shed door.
"No thank you, Ranger Jonny, Rolf is sure he will find it in no time," Rolf answered as he laid his hand on his shed door, which was open just a crack. He thought nothing of it and pushed it open without stepping inside; he leaped back in surprise as his bucket suddenly fell off of the top of the door, hundreds of nails spilling out of it and falling right in the doorway. Rolf stared down at the bucket, which was rolling around on the shed floor, and the huge pile of nails that lay just a foot in front of him, an unreadable emotion on his face.
"Holy cow, Rolf, what just happened?" Jonny inquired, still not clear on what exactly had just occurred. Now Rolf knew for sure that what he saw in the kitchen was no accident; someone was out to get him! Rolf whirled around and stared at Jonny in fury, and Jonny shrunk backwards. "Whoa, why are you looking at me and Plank like that?" he asked, not understanding why Rolf would be angry at him.
"Do not take Rolf for a fool, Jonny the wood boy! Rolf knows that you are trying to hurt Rolf for upholding the traditions of his country!" Rolf yelled as he took a few steps toward Jonny, who continued to back away.
"Me and Plank would never hurt you over something like that!" Jonny countered, fear overtaking every fiber of his being.
"Do not taunt Rolf with your lies! You are attempting to make a mockery of the son of a shepherd, and you must be punished!" Rolf shouted as his fists balled up.
"Wait, don't hurt him!" Jimmy shouted as he ran up and got in between Rolf and Jonny. "Rolf, I think you're overreacting here! Jonny was out here the whole time with me and I didn't see him go over to your shed and booby trap it!" he revealed quickly, hoping to calm Rolf down. Rolf stood there for a few moments, mulling over what Jimmy had said in his head.
"But if he did not sabotage Rolf's kitchen and Rolf's shed, then who..." Rolf said to himself before trailing off into thought. His eyes widened he realized who it must be. He began to grind his teeth together in anger, and Jimmy and Jonny could only look on in fear, not exactly knowing why he was getting even angrier now. Rolf suddenly turned away from Jimmy and Jonny and took a few steps into his yard, his eyes scanning the area for any sign of the perpetrators. "Rolf knows the Ed-boys are around here somewhere, now come out and face the fury of Rolf's home country!" he shouted as he clenched his fists.
"Do you really think that the Eds were the ones who set up that bucket?" Jonny asked, although his voice was low and timid. Rolf turned his head to look at him.
"Use your fortuitous head, Jonny the wood boy! If it was not you who filled with Rolf's bucket with nails and flooded Rolf's kitchen, then it must be the Ed-boys!" Rolf claimed before turning his attention back to his yard. "The scheming Ed-boy is no doubt still bitter over Rolf's superior aim, and has come to exact his revenge upon the son of a shepherd! Well Rolf will have none of it!" he hollered as he began to move around his yard, his eyes still searching for any sign of the Eds. Jimmy and Jonny could only look on in confusion and fear as Rolf ran over to his chicken coop and walked around it once before tearing it open and throwing the chickens out of it. "Gravy-loving Ed-boy, Rolf knows you are hiding in here!" he cried as he stuck his hands in the now empty chicken coop and dug around. His chickens squawked and ran around his yard, Rolf's irrational behavior obviously frightening them.
"What should we do, Jimmy?" Jonny asked as the two of them watched Rolf run around his yard, tearing it apart looking for the Eds. "Rolf is scaring the crap out of Plank... heck, he's scaring the crap out of me too!" he added in fear as Rolf flipped over some barrels that were sitting next to his fence, some produce spilling out of them.
"I don't know..." Jimmy said, his voice shaking a little as he gripped the sides of his retainer with his sweaty hands. "Maybe we should just get out of here before Rolf freaks out even more," he suggested as he looked over at Jonny, hoping that the bald boy would agree.
"But if we try to leave, Rolf might think we're guilty or something..." Jonny answered quickly in a frightened voice as he watched Rolf tear open his shed door and run inside, still hollering about the Eds. Jimmy mulled the whole situation over in his head, although it was tough to think straight when every thought in his head was shouting at him to run for it. A thought suddenly struck Jimmy, and he quickly turned to Jonny and grabbed his shoulders.
"I know! I'll go get Sarah and get her to calm Rolf down, while you stay here and make sure Rolf doesn't do anything too crazy!" Jimmy suggested. Jonny didn't like the sound of him having to stay behind while Jimmy went to go get Sarah, but Jonny figured it was probably their best bet at stopping Rolf from tearing apart his own farm looking for the Eds, who probably had nothing to do with the strange traps that had been laid for Rolf.
"Okay, but please hurry, I don't want Rolf to start freaking out all over me and Plank!" Jonny exclaimed as he peered over his shoulder and at Rolf's shed, which was rattling lightly as Rolf tossed around tools inside. Jimmy nodded and then bolted out of Rolf's yard, leaving Jonny by himself in the middle of the yard. Jonny turned around and stared with great fear at Rolf's shed, hoping that Rolf would spend all of his time within it instead of outside it. "Don't worry, Plank, Jimmy's gonna be back with Sarah in no time, and we'll get Rolf to calm down," he assured Plank as he stared down at the piece of wood. He turned his attention back to the shed when Rolf stepped outside of it. Rolf was obviously started to get a little tired from running around searching for the Eds, but it was also obvious he wasn't done with his quest. He looked over at Jonny, and a slightly confused expression formed on his face. He slowly began to walk toward Jonny, who was literally shivering with terror, fearing that Rolf was about to lay the smack down on him or something.
"Where did frail Jimmy-boy run off to?" Rolf questioned as he stopped in front of Jonny, who was desperately trying to think of an answer that Rolf would find acceptable.
"Well... Jimmy just had to go do something important..." Jonny blurted out, although he mentally slapped himself after saying it, knowing that it was a stupid answer to Rolf's question. Rolf raised one of his eyebrows as he turned Jonny's answer over in his head. A frown suddenly formed on his face, and he huffed angrily.
"You do not fool Rolf," Rolf began as he stepped toward Jonny menacingly, causing Jonny to back away. "Rolf would bet his clam Bobo that Jimmy-boy is in league with the Ed-boys!" he declared.
"Wait, Rolf, that's not how it is!" Jonny began, wanting to defend Jimmy from Rolf's accusation. "Jimmy just went to-"
"Stop doing whatever you're doing, Rolf!" a voice called from Rolf's backdoor, causing Rolf and Jonny to whirl around. Sarah stood with her arms crossed in the doorway, Jimmy peaking out of the house from behind her. Rolf stared over at her for a moment, her sudden appearance obviously a bit surprising; Sarah stared back at him, an aggravated expression on her face. "I don't know what the heck you're doing that scared Jimmy so bad, but you've gotta stop," she yelled as she uncrossed her arms and stepped into Rolf's yard and began walking toward him.
"You do not understand, Sarah-girl, your nincompoop brother and the other two Ed-boys have sabotaged Rolf's farm!" Rolf responded, anger evident in his voice.
"For your information, my brother and his stupid friends started building some stupid scam in my backyard," Sarah informed Rolf in the most know-it-all tone she could muster. Rolf's mouth fell open a little, the information startling him. It was impossible: the Eds had to have been the ones who sabotaged his farm. After all, if neither Jonny nor the Eds had anything to do with the destruction of his kitchen and the trapping of his shed door, then that left no one else who could've done it. No one else had a motive to hurt him.
"Then... Rolf... well..." Rolf stuttered, not knowing how to really respond to the information.
"All we want you to do is calm down, Rolf," Jimmy chimed in as he walked from his hiding spot from behind Sarah and stood next to her. Rolf looked from Sarah to Jimmy, and then over at Jonny, who gave him a small reassuring smile. He returned his gaze to Sarah and Jimmy and sighed.
"Perhaps you are right... Rolf has let his anger get the better of reason, and Rolf apologizes to all for Rolf's outburst," Rolf said calmly, letting all of his anger flow out from his body and into the air around him. Sarah's face relaxed a little, as did Jimmy's.
"Alright, can I go now?" Sarah asked as she turned to Jimmy. "I want to get back to that coloring book," she added, still a little peeved that Jimmy had dragged her away just to deal with Rolf's crazy self.
"Yeah, you can go... I'll come over later and help finish it after we're done," Jimmy answered. Sarah smiled a little and then walked off, leaving Jimmy alone with Rolf and Jonny. Jimmy turned to Rolf and smiled. "Now that that's all settled, how about we all go and clean Beatrice so we can earn the Expert Animal Grooming Badge!" he suggested, hoping to lighten the mood now that Rolf was calm again. Rolf and Jonny smiled widely.
"Rolf agrees, Ranger Jimmy! Let us earn the badge together as one grand Urban Ranger team!" Rolf proclaimed as he led Jonny and Jimmy over to Beatrice, all three of them eager to finally earn their badges.
Rolf flicked the light on in his kitchen before stepping into it, a black plastic bag in his hand. He was tired and it was very late, but he had just one last chore to finish before hitting the sack: taking out the trash. He began to move across his kitchen and toward his backdoor, hoping to finish the task quickly so that he could finally get some sleep. He was quite happy with the way the day had played out; sure, he might've seemed a little crazy in front Jimmy and Jonny when he freaked out over the Eds, but he was delighted to see that Jimmy and Jonny got over it and that they had all earned their Expert Animal Grooming Badges at long last. He slid open his backdoor and stepped outside into the cool summer night, sliding the glass door shut behind him. He walked over to a trash bin on the side of his house and opened it before tossing the black plastic bag inside. He shut the lid and then turned around and began to walk back toward his backdoor, more than read to get some shuteye.
Rolf stopped when he reached his backdoor, sensing that something was wrong. He slowly turned around to take a glimpse at his yard, hoping to quell his feeling of uneasiness. It was very dark, and he couldn't see very well, but he could make out a sliver of light coming from his shed. "Ah, Rolf must've accidentally left the light on in the shed..." he reasoned quietly to himself as he began to walk across his yard. He yawned loudly and picked up his pace, wanting to turn off the light as fast as he could. As he neared the shed, he stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of voices. Rolf furrowed his brow and he began to sneak slowly toward his shed, his feeling of uneasiness now greater than ever. He stopped next to the door of his shed and listened in, hoping to hear whatever the people inside were saying.
"... and that's why we can't let him get away with what he did," Rolf heard a gruff voice say quietly. He didn't recognize the voice, but continued to listen regardless.
"B-But what if he finds out and punishes us again?" Rolf heard a high and squeaky voice answer. Once again, he didn't recognize who it belonged to.
"Stop your worrying... we got away with the two traps we set, didn't we? Besides, we have no choice but to act now before it's too late," the gruff voice said. "And that's why I've brought all of you here tonight... I know that he only punished us two, but it's only a matter of time before he comes for all of you as well," the voice explained, an angry tone raising from within it.
"You're right, pain is bad for me..." Rolf heard a third voice say; this one was almost as deep as the gruff voice, but it had a womanly tone to it.
"I'm glad I at least have your support..." the gruff voice answered. "But what about you? We need you in on this if we are to be rid of that scourge once and for all," the voice commented. There was a moment of silence afterwards; Rolf figured it must've been the second person thinking before answering.
"I suppose I have no choice... I'm in, but this plan better work," the squeaky voice said.
"Good... very good..." the gruff voice said, getting a bit lower. Rolf suddenly heard the sound of shuffling around, as if there were many people inside getting closer so that they could talk much lower. He leaned in a bit more, making sure that he couldn't be seen while still getting a better listen to what was transpiring inside. "Now I think the best way to get rid of Rolf is quite simple..." the gruff voice began, causing Rolf's eyes to widen. Whoever was plotting inside of his shed wanted him gone, and that did not sit well with the son of a shepherd. "We drag him out of his room while he sleeps and bury him alive out in the woods," the gruff voice explained. Rolf began to breath heavily and he gripped his chest. He couldn't believe this: there were people plotting to murder him in his very own shed! "Who's with me? Who will help me finally rid our farm of this accursed son of a shepherd?" the gruff voice asked, its voice filled with righteous fury.
"We will, we will!" a chorus of voices suddenly sounded out, causing Rolf to jump a little. There was a lot more than just three people in there, and that frightened him even more. "Bury the son of a shepherd! Make him pay for what he has done!" the voices rung out once more. Rolf was shivering, and he could feel cold droplets of sweat running down his face and back. He didn't know what to do. If he left, the murderous people within his shed might find out and go looking for him, but if he stayed they might grab him and do exactly as they planned. As he thought about what he should do, he spotted a shovel leaning up against the shed next to him. He gritted his teeth and his brow lowered, forming a scowl on his face. He knew what must be done. Rolf reached over and grabbed hold of the shovel, gripping it firmly in his hands. He relished the feel of rough wood on his palms as he stepped back over to the entrance to his shed.
"Yes! Now let's go find Rolf and bury him for his sins!" the gruff voice ordered loudly as Rolf reached the entrance of his shed.
"You need not waste your time looking for Rolf, for Rolf is here to rain vengeance down upon ye!" Rolf shouted defiantly as he ripped open the door of his shed and jumped inside, shovel at the ready. Rolf, who was so filled with fury and an undying will of survival only moments before, found himself almost dropping his shovel in shock at what laid before him. Instead of the crowd of murderous hooligans that he expected to be standing in front of him, Rolf found himself face to face with his animals, who all stared at him with blank expressions. Victor, Wilfred, and Beatrice all stood near the back of the shed, while his chickens all stood in front of them. Rolf just stood there silently, his mouth hanging open slightly as he took in what he was seeing. Could it be possible that he was hearing things? It had been a long day on the farm, and he knew he could just be hearing things. But the voices seemed so crisp and clear... no, he knew what he had heard. Animals or no animals, they were plotting to kill him, and Rolf knew that he had no choice but to stop this here and now before it was too late. He just hoped his elders would understand what he had to do to save his life and that of his family.
"Rolf should've known this day would come..." Rolf began before sighing, his grip on his shoveling once again tightening. "All the back-breaking work that Rolf has performed in service to his animals, all the time Rolf spent taking care of you all, and this is how you wish to repay the son of a shepherd?" he fumed as he stepped toward the animals, who all took a step back, slight expressions of fear suddenly replacing their blank stares. "Well Rolf will not stand for this! If you so badly wish to avoid the punishment for misbehaving animals such as yourselves, then let Rolf help you by sending you all to where Rolf can no longer punish you: Hell!" he screamed before rushing toward the animals, his shovel raised far above his head. The animals all squawked and bleated before scattering, wishing to avoid death at the hands of the deranged farmhand. Rolf swung his shovel at one of his chickens, striking it hard in the side and sending it flying into his wall; the chicken slid down the wall and landed on the floor with a thud, now silenced forever. He whirled around and saw that the animals were trying to get to the shed door to escape, so he quickly rushed toward the door and got in front of it, blocking their escape. One of the chickens tried to squeeze through the crack in the door, but Rolf hit it with the shovel, crushing it to death against the wall.
Victor and Wilfred ran into the far left corner of Rolf's shed and they began ramming it, trying their best to escape the death trap before Rolf came for them as well. "Take this!" Rolf shouted before slamming his shovel down on another one of his chickens, killing it instantly. Beatrice stood in the far right corner of Rolf's shed, trembling in fear and knowing that her turn was most likely coming soon. Rolf swatted a few more chickens away with his shovel before looking up at the only three animals left in the shed with him: Victor, Wilfred, and Beatrice. "Now it is the time of reckoning for you three! Rolf will show you no mercy!" he cried as he began to rush toward Victor and Wilfred, who both shrieked in fear before renewing their struggle to escape. Rolf whirled around at the sound of his shed door being kicked in, stopping only feet from Victor and Wilfred.
"What in the world is going on in here, man?" Kevin shouted as he took a step into Rolf's shed. Kevin looked down when he felt his foot bump into something, and his mouth fell open in horror when his gaze fell upon a chicken with its head caved in. "Whoa..." he said as he took in every detail of the dead chicken.
"Plank wants to know what's in there, Kevin!" Jonny called out from behind Kevin. Kevin looked around the shed, which was covered in feathers, blood, and dead chickens. He spotted a shivering cow in the corner, and he spotted a wild-eyed Rolf with a shovel in his hand standing over a quivering pig and a terrified goat. His locked onto Rolf's, and the two of them stared at each other in silence for a moment.
"Dude... step away from the animals," Kevin began in a calm and collected voice as he slowly stepped into the shed. Kevin's suggestion only caused Rolf's grip on his shovel to tighten. Rolf saw Jonny, Edd, and Eddy all standing at the entrance of his shed, and he could see their expressions slowly twist into ones of horror as they too saw what lied inside of the shed.
"Holy crap..." Eddy muttered as he backed away a little from the shed.
"My word..." Edd whispered to himself as he cupped his hands around his mouth.
"What are you doing to your animals, Rolf?" Jonny cried as he ran inside of Rolf's shed and stopped a little behind Kevin. Jonny looked around the shed at all the maimed chickens, tears beginning to well up in his eyes. "Why are you killing them?" he screamed before rushing toward Rolf. Rolf suddenly held up his shovel, and Jonny stopped dead in his tracks.
"Stay back, Jonny the wood boy! You know not what you do!" Rolf proclaimed as Jonny stared up at him fearfully, Plank held closely to his side. "These filthy cretins plotted to end Rolf's life! Rolf had no choice but to end theirs first!" he explained further, although it was clear his explanation did not sit well with any of the kids that stood before him.
"Rolf's gone bonkers, Double D," Eddy whispered as he nudged Edd lightly in the side with his elbow.
"Eddy, we have to do something about this before Rolf hurts something besides his animals," Edd whispered back, although he didn't seemed thrilled by his own suggestion.
"Now you're sounding crazy, sockhead," Eddy countered as he looked up at Edd. "There's no way I'm going into that shed and letting Rolf play whack-a-mole all over my head with that shovel," he added.
"I'm not happy about it myself, but if we don't this will end badly," Edd shot back with a frown on his face. An apprehensive expression formed on Eddy's face, but he slowly nodded, knowing that Edd was right.
"Come on, man, you're sounding like a whack job!" Kevin exclaimed as he stood his ground. "Just drop the shovel and calm down!" he ordered as he pointed up at the shovel that Rolf held in his trembling arms. Rolf began to breathe heavily, angry that Kevin and Jonny didn't understand why he was doing what he was doing but also scared that they might stop him and allow his animals to run free.
"Rolf cannot do that, Kevin! If Rolf lowers his defenses, these fiends will be upon him like savages!" Rolf shouted fanatically. "Now leave Rolf's farm, lest you be harmed as well!" he commanded as he pointed toward the entrance of his shed. Rolf stared at the entrance of the shed as he pointed at it, a little confused. "Wait... where is the head-in-sock Ed-boy and the scheming Ed-boy?" he questioned, knowing that he saw them only moments before.
"Now!" Eddy shouted as he and Edd leaped toward Rolf from the corner of the shed that Beatrice stood in, having successfully sneaked around the walls of the shed.
"Stay back!" Rolf ordered as he tried to swing the shovel at Edd and Eddy. Eddy successfully ducked under his swing and grabbed hold of his arm, trying his best from letting him make a second attempt.
"Stop this madness, Rolf!" Edd pleaded as he wrapped his arms around Rolf's midsection and tried to restrain him. Despite Edd and Eddy's best efforts, it was clear that they alone would be unable to restrain the struggling and terrified boy by themselves; seeing this, Kevin quickly ran forward, shoving Jonny out of his way.
"You should've just listened to me and dropped the shovel!" Kevin yelled as he tackled Rolf, sending all four of them falling to the floor. The shovel that Rolf once held in his hands flew through the air and landed with a clatter in the middle of the shed.
"Release Rolf or feel his fury!" Rolf screamed as he began to swing his fists at his assailants, striking Edd, Eddy, and Kevin several times in the upper body and faces.
"That's it, you asked for this!" Kevin seethed before lifting his fist into the air and punching Rolf in the face. Rolf suddenly wrenched one of his arms free from Eddy and punched Kevin right in the jaw, sending him flying away. Rolf grabbed Eddy roughly by his three hairs, causing him to yelp in pain. He then tossed Eddy across the shed and into one of the walls.
"Wait, please don't-" was all Edd managed to get out before Rolf grabbed hold of him and tossed him beside Eddy, who had slid down the wall and was now moaning in pain.
"Why you did not listen to Rolf's warnings Rolf will never understand!" Rolf cried before stomping toward Edd and Eddy, who both shivered in a prone position next to the wall of the shed.
"We were just trying to help!" Edd cried as he hid his face behind his hands. Rolf raised his fist in preparation to pound Edd and Eddy to a pulp. Before he could proceed with the beating, however, he felt something hard and metal smack the back of his head, and blackness enveloped all he could see.
Rolf's eyes flicked open, and his entire vision was a massive dark blur. He blinked a few times, hoping to restore his eye sight. "Rolf's head..." he moaned as a searing pain flared up from the back of his skull. He moved his hands up to his head and rubbed it, but the pain persisted. He looked around slightly and could see that he was in his bedroom, although everything was distorted.
"You awake, Rolf?" Kevin asked as he suddenly stepped into Rolf's vision. Rolf blinked a few times, as if he didn't understand what Kevin had said; Kevin was extremely blurry, but he could still tell it was him from his voice.
"Is he up?" Edd asked as he stepped up beside Kevin, Eddy and Jonny right behind him.
"Yeah, he is, but he looks dazed," Kevin answered as he came a little closer to Rolf's bed. "Hey, can you understand me, man?" he questioned as he knelt beside the bed and stared Rolf in the eyes.
"Yes... yes, Rolf can understand you," Rolf replied, causing Kevin and the others to collectively sigh with relief.
"Thank goodness," Edd said before smiling a little. "I was afraid you had hit him a little too hard with that shovel, Jonny," Edd commented as he looked over at Jonny.
"Sorry, Double D, but at least he's okay," Jonny responded before turning his attention back to Rolf.
"Rolf apologizes for his behavior earlier in his shed..." Rolf said solemnly as he looked away from Kevin and the others. He didn't know what to make of what he had heard inside of his shed, but he was starting to think that maybe he had really just gone a little loopy from the day's exertions. Still, he felt guilty about killing some of his chickens and hurting Kevin, Edd, and Eddy; he found it difficult to even look them in their faces.
"Hey, it's alright man, at least you're better now," Kevin answered as Rolf turned his gaze back toward him.
"Rolf may be okay, but Rolf's animals will be forever frightened by Rolf's conduct today," Rolf lamented as a melancholy expression formed on his face.
"They're just animals, you can always get new ones," Kevin reasoned before standing up.
"Rolf supposes you are right..." Rolf muttered, clearly not happy with Kevin's solution. He loved his animals dearly. In fact, they were like family to him. He felt that he had hurt his family, and that they would never forgive him. He knew that Kevin's idea, however horrid it may seem, was probably for the best. He would have to be rid of Victor, Wilfred, and all of his other animals and start again. He suddenly hissed in pain, his headache flaring up again.
"You should probably get some rest, Rolf. You'll most definitely need it," Edd recommended.
"Alright, then can we go? Rolf's little hissy fit just cost me at least an hour of shut eye" Eddy asked, obviously impatient and wanting to get to bed.
"Eddy, don't you think you should be a little more sympathetic to Rolf's situation?" Edd questioned, taken aback once again by Eddy's callous behavior.
"Don't sweat it, Double Dweeb, your little dorky friend is right: we better get out of here and let Rolf get some sleep," Kevin stated before Eddy could respond to Edd. With that, Edd, Eddy, and Jonny marched out, each of them yawning and stretching as they did so. Kevin turned around and gave Rolf a thumbs up before leaving as well. Rolf watched as Kevin closed the door behind him, leaving him alone in the darkness of his room. He took in a deep breath of air and stared up at his dark ceiling, which was finally coming into focus as the pain waned a little, although he could still feel a dull ache in the back of his head. Rolf knew he should just get to sleep, but the thought of having to replace his animals stayed firmly rooted into his head. He felt like a nutcase after what he had done earlier. He had shamed his family with his idiotic and rash behavior, and he had even cost them the lives of their chickens. He figured he would have to give away the rest of his animals and then beg his parents to purchase new ones. He closed his eyes tightly at the thought, knowing that his parents would likely have a harsh punishment in store for such misbehavior on his part. Luckily for Rolf, exhaustion slowly dragged him into a deep slumber, and the thoughts of his animals, as well as any punishment that was in store for him, slowly drifted off into his subconscious.
"Rolf, where are you?" Jonny called out as he and Jimmy stepped into Rolf's house from the backdoor. Both of them were clad in their Urban Ranger uniforms, ready for the Urban Ranger meeting that was supposedly scheduled for noon that day. Jonny and Jimmy both looked around Rolf's kitchen, although there was no sign of their leader.
"Where could he be?" Jimmy asked as he looked over at Jonny, who had a clueless look on his face.
"I don't know..." Jonny answered as he rubbed his chin. "What's that, Plank?" he asked as he looked down at Plank, who smiled up at him. "Oh yeah, that's right!" he exclaimed as he slapped his forehead in remembrance.
"What is it?" Jimmy inquired, curious to find out what Jonny had remembered.
"Well, everyone already knows about Rolf freaking out yesterday and stuff, but we put him to bed after we had knocked him on his noggin, so he's probably still laying down, recovering from the pain," Jonny explained as Jimmy nodded.
"In that case, shouldn't we just call off the Urban Rangers meeting today?" Jimmy asked, realizing that it might be better to just let Rolf continue to rest.
"Yeah, we probably should..." Jonny trailed off as he stared blankly at a wall. "But we should check on Rolf before we leave to make sure he's doing okay," Jonny suggested.
"I guess it couldn't hurt," Jimmy answered before shrugging. With that, the two of them walked out of Rolf's kitchen and toward his room. They stopped in front of Rolf's door and Jonny raised his hand.
"Hey, Rolf, are you okay?" Jonny asked through the door as he rapped on it a few times. He and Jimmy waited a few moments for an answer, but there was no response.
"Are you sure Rolf didn't go to sell his animals or something?" Jimmy questioned. "I mean, I didn't see Victor, Wilfred, or any of his other animals out there." Jonny looked over at Jimmy and raised his eyebrow.
"Maybe..." Jonny responded as he looked down at the carpeting outside of Rolf's door. "I guess we can just go and-" he began to say, but suddenly stopped when he spotted an anomaly on Rolf's floor. "Hey, what's that on the floor?" he asked no one in particular as he knelt down to get a better look.
"What do you mean?" Jimmy questioned, not knowing what Jonny had seen. He got down on his knees with Jonny to see what he was looking at. There were several lines of muddy shapes that went toward Rolf's door and away from it as well. Jonny's eyes widened when he realized what they were.
"Holy cow, Jimmy... I think those are... animal tracks!" Jonny exclaimed in a slightly fearful voice as he and Jimmy locked eyes. They both shot to their feet and Jonny grabbed hold of Rolf's doorknob before twisting it and throwing the door wide open. Jonny and Jimmy stared into Rolf's room and their eyes fell upon his bed: it was empty.
Rolf's eyes slowly opened as he finally drifted out of his sleep and into the world of the living. He felt a dull pain still throbbing in the back of his head, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Even so, he was still so tired and felt like he should go back to sleep, but he knew he had to get up and start his day. After all, there was an Urban Rangers meeting at noon, and he didn't want to miss it. Rolf looked over to his side in search of his clock, but instead only saw more darkness. "Hmm..." he mumbled as he began to sit up.
Rolf, a boy who lives for his home country's traditions, has chosen to uphold them no matter what. As Rolf will discover, however, sometimes it's best if some of these traditions are buried six feet under the cold, hard dirt rather than kept alive in all their brutal ugliness. For in the Twilight Zone, old traditions lead to new consequences.
Rolf's head suddenly bumped into something wooden as he began to sit up, causing him to moan in pain, the sudden thump on his head reinvigorating the aching in his skull. "What is this?" he asked as he began to feel around him. His hands moved over smooth wood instead of soft bedsheets. He began to move around a little, but found that he could barely move at all. Realization washed over Rolf like the tide coming in. "No... no... no!" he cried as he began to pound on the wooden coffin that encased him.
Six or so feet above Rolf's new home stood a crowd of animals, all of them watching a plot of freshly dug dirt. Two animals, a goat and a pig, stood in front of the animals, both of their eyes locked onto the pile of dirt. The goat and the pig suddenly gave each other a high five before turning away from the mound of dirt, both of them ignoring the muffled screams that emanated from underneath of it. The group of animals disappeared into the forest, leaving behind the only boy who had ever cared for them in a tomb that knew no sound.