Altruism will guarantee the genuine joy you´ll receive from others. Egoism, however, can sometimes keep you alive
Ian rubs his head and hurting back. He is confused, hurt and has literally no idea how and why he got here. He looks around with a dimmed view. "Flippy? Lifty, Shifty!" As he slowly regains his vision he can barely hold back the joy he is currently feeling. Not even one moment before he had to question how and when they will be able to leave the island and now here he stands, in his shorts, together with Flippy who is still reluctant to stand up.
"Ian! Sniffles your damn machine actually worked!" The ant eater rolled his eyes in annoyance. After all what happened he would be glad about a little amount of trust. But his trustworthy apprentice Mime rests his hand on his shoulders in assurance. The genuine smile the deer gives the scientist is smoothen the edges of his emotions. "Thank you. It is always a pleasure to know that at least someone trusts me with the knowledge that nobody is perfect."
Ian is shortly after enclosed by his two brothers, hugging him tightly. "It´s good to see you either… How have you been after this freaky accident? Did you survive? You didn´t die… Right?" The twins snickered at each other, a little amused that Ian didn´t understand the curse completely yet. "No Ian, we didn´t die. But if it weren´t for Sniffles and Mime, we would be done for today!" Lifty said, but his joyful smile dropped as he noticed the blood aspersing Ian's chest- and jaw fur.
"Woah dude… What happened to you?" Ian blinked puzzled as he realized that he didn´t get the opportunity to clean himself on the island. "Oh, yeah it is nothing severe, so no worries." He assured his brothers who luckily didn´t notice Flippy who crosses his arms in guilt. "Huh, if you say so. Of course it is nothing severe. Every wound you get heals almost instantly…" Shifty pointed out but decided to not interrogate further.
Ian suddenly had a clueless expression. "Who is Sniffles? And who is Mime?" The ant eater and the deer made their steps forward. "That is supposed to be us. Let me introduce myself. My name is, as you already have been informed, Sniffles. I am a scientist but mostly a doctor in this god forsaken place." Mime shuddered at Sniffles statement and got a bit gloomy. "And that is my apprentice Mime. He is mute and only speaks pantomime, but I will be gladly able to translate his gestures to you."
The deer brightened up almost instantly and made an unmistakable gesture. "Nice to meet you too Mime. But where is Flippy? Is he..." But Ian was cut short at this point as Flippy made a grunting noise. "I´m here, I´m fine, I´m alive, I´m confused." It seems that obfuscation his literally filling the room. "Well…" Sniffles began to speak up. "There are many things to clear up right now. Who wants to start?" But curiosity is itching the platonic analyst. "How about you Ian?"
He diffidently backs away a bit. "Well…" He became a bit apprehensive. "I would be glad to know how we got here in the first place. And probably why the landing had to be so rough! I mean, this was literally spine-crushing! And no, I´m not making an overstatement here." But the craved answer didn´t let him wait for long.
"Well, as I already told you, I am a scientist. After your brothers woke up from their injuries, they told me about you and Flippy, that you were tossed over the sea. Regarding the currents of that location there was only one place you two could have landed on. It wasn´t really that hard to find you as I invented a teleporting machine which can, as its name already implies, teleport people from a location to another. I quickly found you two on said place, but the catch was that I had to choose a medium for the teleportation. This medium withal is doomed to suffer a massive ragdoll effect. I don´t have explain what it does as you already experienced it first-hand. Your brothers told me that choosing you would be just fine."
Lifty lifted his arms in defense. "Ian, please listen before…" But Ian just smiled at him, meaning him to be silent. "No need to apologize, you made the right decision. This effect would have killed Flippy most certainly." The green bear couldn´t fathom that he just had to hear. "You would rather put your own brother through massive pain instead of just letting me die? I don´t understand you guys. Why are you all so nice to me all of a sudden? Regarding my past deeds I would have deserved that most certainly…"
But before anyone could say something a certain child made his way to be noticed. "Huh? Who is that?" Ian asked, slowly remembering his brothers telling him something about a child which wouldn´t age for decades. "That is Cub. He has an undying liking for raccoon tails… You want to hold him for a moment?" Shifty asked in excitement but got disappointed quickly. "Sorry Shift, but I have to go somewhere else together with Flippy."
He tilts his fedora a little before he raises a brow inquisitively. "Where exactly are you planning to go?" But Ian doesn´t answer. "Flippy are you ready to go?" The green bear nods in agreement as they are both heading outside the room as they got stopped in their tracks by a deer, giving a certain gesture towards their bodies, but both can´t make anything out of it.
"What does he want?" Flippy looks at Sniffles who claimed to be able to translate this. "Well, I don´t know whether you two noticed that, but you are only in your underwear. Mime is suggesting that you two get dressed before you go out. It is a cold wind gusting over the place nonetheless." They both look at each other as they blush and giggle in embarrassment.
"Furthermore, I suggest that you two take a shower as well. Wherever you two want to head out, I´m sure you would be more appreciated without dried blood on your fur. So, if you two wouldn´t mind, Mime will show you where you have to go." "Yeah that would be nice, do you actually have some spare clothes too?" Flippy asked. Mime takes their hand and leads them to a room with fresh clothes they normally use to change patients.
After like twenty minutes of silence Lifty spoke up. "What are we supposed to do now? With this toddler I sincerely doubt that Handy will let us in." Sniffles had to crush that imagination further. "He won´t be able to do so. Handy died today. Unless he gave you the keys to his house, and I sincerely doubt that, you won´t be able to go there."
"You two can live in my house for a while…" Flippy got back with Ian, both dressed in normal white hospital clothes. He hands his keys over to the twins. "I would just beg you to not make me regret this decision." Now the twins got overwhelmed by this indication. "You let us live in your house? Although we mostly intended to rob you?" Flippy just nodded. "You two decided to spare my life, getting your brother and me back to safety. I´m in your debt guys. Although I really pity Ian for enduring pain you aren´t supposed to feel anymore…"
Ian gazed out of the window solemnly. "Flippy, let´s go. I´m eager to find out whether my plan will work or…" But Flippy finished his sentence. "Fail?" That thought was literally frightening. What would happen if they fail? What will be the consequences? "Let´s not think about that. I´m positive!" Without talking further, Ian went out of the room rather quickly with Flippy following his tracks. As Cub clutches on Shifty's chest while asleep he decides to go as well, Lifty ensuing him.
"Sniffles, thank you and Mime once again for saving our butts… If we can do anything for you, let us know ok? It is time that we actually repay the kindness." Though Sniffles already knew something. "You two could tell me something about your brother. I do not judge you, just as a disclaimer, but I would like to know why you two had no problem with him suffering this impact and why he had survived it with almost no scratch."
Before Shifty spoke up, Lifty already interfered. "We don´t know all too much about him either. We can only give you this for now. Ian can´t die for some reason. He has something inside of him, a gift keeping him alive and healing his wounds rapidly. We don´t know why and how nor what." Sniffles was a bit disappointed by that explanation. But regarding to Lifty's genuine expression he believed him.
"Ok, he is indeed an interesting person. Full of alacrity either. Well, have a save night you two." They nodded and left the hospital, leaving Sniffles and Mime behind in their schedules. "You know Mime, every time I think this place won´t be able to surprise me further, it seems that it isn´t able to cease the consternation it throws at me."
They both shrieked a little as they abruptly heard a clanging and shrieking sound. "That… came from the morgue… I´ll go check what the heck that was. Could you please finish the sheets for me?" Mime nodded a bit concerned. Sniffles made his way to the morgue. Today they have only one person residing in it and that was Giggles. "I wonder what this was. In this place it can go to a vacuity to instant death."
The moment he got near to the morgue he senses the scent of decomposition and decay. He covers his snout as the smell slowly becomes literally overwhelming. Approaching the morgue slowly, the room is filled with some kind of fog. But Sniffles does not have to enter the morgue as he notices in shock that the port which was keeping Giggles' body was open, without a Giggles.
Mime is almost done with the last bed. He wipes the sweat of his forehead as the last dirty sheets were tossed into the bin. Suddenly he hears slow, shuffling footsteps in the hallway outside the room. This pattern was unlike Sniffles, unless he was injured badly. Mime gets out of the room with a rather quick pace, but even though he can clearly hear where the steps were emitting, he couldn´t see anything.
As he tilts his head a little he can make out a shadowy silhouette standing at the end of the great hallway. It just stands there without moving anything. Mime got startled all of a sudden as Sniffles came from the other end of the hallway. "Mime, what exactly are you looking at?" Mime turned his head again surprised, but the silhouette was gone. Sniffles, however, was coming up with an explanation.
"Giggles body isn´t at the morgue anymore. I guess the resurrection now kicks in faster than before." Mime nodded at that, accepting this explanation but more in hope that Sniffles was right at this point. At the beds are finished and the patient's room was clean again from the minor dirt, they decided to leave the hospital.
But the moment they entered the hallway towards the exit door they heard a clanking sound again. This time, right above their head. "What the…" Mime's concern turned into a legitimate dread. But the sound just proceeded, it seemed that it was heading to the exit as well. Now in utter fright, they decide to go to the exit at a tremendous pace, they run to be specific. But only a few meters before the exit the ceiling was suddenly crushing in.
There lies something in the debris, but the dust clouds are coating it completely. They both gasp in shock as they see what actually crashed in. Before them lies Giggles' body, her almost completely decayed body. "What the… How? This shouldn´t be happening! Decomposition isn´t supposed to kick in that fast! How did she even get there?"
They both stare at her lifeless body. Her limbs are completely stiff. Her skin is extremely wrinkled, and her body shows every sign that it got completely dried out, like it was laying in the sun for days. Only her hollow expression is directed towards them, her mouth wide open like she screamed. But she just lay there on the ground, completely motionless, causing Sniffles to make a decision.
"We have to bring her back to the morgue." Mime was extremely reluctant. He mostly would do what Sniffles says but this time he really would rather prefer not to. He just wanted to get out of this place as fast as possible. But he did it nonetheless. In their occupation there is no room for such kind of egoism. They got Giggles' carcass on a barrow and brought her back to the morgue.
"So, hopefully she stays here…" He was about to close the port as he was suddenly couldn´t move. In shock he notices the reason as Giggles hand was literally clasping his wrist. "WHAT THE HELL?! LET GO GOD DAMN IT!" But it didn´t take much effort to free himself and he got loose again, Mime was now literally sweating in fear. Sniffles looks back at the corpse in total suspicion. "Must be my mind playing tricks on me…"
The ant eater closes the port slowly, but the moment he did that, Mime could swear that Giggles' skull pierced them with her gaze, and that gaze appeared mostly hostile. After they did what was necessary, they decided to leave as soon as possible, the night courting the happenings of this day.
"So… Are we gonna do a next try at Russell's tomorrow?" Lifty asked his brother. Now it is his time to drive as Shifty still carries Cub. Not that he got deeply attached to the infant now, but he is literally clinging at Shifty's chest in his sleep like a sloth on a tree. "I suppose so… But first we have to deliver Cub back to Pop. I think that he´ll be pretty worried to wake up without his son at his side."
Lifty nodded. "Yeah, I hope he won´t think of us in a bad way when we give his son back to him. But even he has to understand that we wouldn´t go that far to steal a child." Shifty only bit his lips at that. They sure have to come up with an explanation. "I think that if we tell him the truth he won´t be too angry at us. Even Sniffles could hold our backs if he needs someone to prove it."
They remained silent for a little while. "You know, I´m a bit surprised that you two survived this mayhem. It isn´t natural to go out alive in this town." Now it was their driver to speak up. "Well, I guess sometimes even we need a bit of luck." Shifty told the orange haired driver. Although he seems to be on duty he wears this dancing suit nonetheless.
"I guess you are right. Although luck is almost unlikely in this place." Now it was Lifty to speak up. "Well, I have to say that I wonder too how you survived, Disco Bear." He raises his sunglasses and looks at him with his well-known smile. "I didn´t get that bad injured at the accident, and please don´t call me by my nickname. The name's Chase."
Cub sighed in his sleep, emitting a cute sound. The twins had to smile at the look of this. "That kid sure is cute, maybe we should offer Pop ourselves as Babysitters?" Shifty pondered Lifty's idea. If they actually manage to purify their reputation at least a bit, this is idea doesn´t seem to be bad at all. "Maybe, let´s wait until we meet him tomorrow." He looks back to Chase. "Well, nice to hear your actual name. So, you got lucky as we…"
But he got interrupted abruptly as the car suddenly rumbled like it hit a bump. "What was that? Oh baby-girl no, please don´t tell me I just skipped someone with the car…" He came to a halt quickly and got out of the car together with Lifty and Shifty. As they checked upon whatever they´ve just ran over they quickly saw the body of an all too familiar person.
"Flaky? How is that possible? She died at the accident, I´m sure of that!" Lifty said as he approached the body. Upon closer investigation they didn´t get a pleasant sight. "Ugh, what happened to her body? It´s so… rotten…" The twins covered their nostrils at the scent of decay. "I can confirm that, Flaky was definitely dead. Did someone bring her body to the street? Who on earth would do something like that.?"
But all of a sudden Shifty felt someone scratching on his ankle softly. As he looked at Flaky's corpse in shock he notices that her hand is almost clasping his foot. He could also swear that her face, or what´s left of it, didn´t look directly at them. "…The hell?" Although she doesn´t move an inch, he backs away from her feeling awfully uncomfortable suddenly.
"Chase… Could we please drive to Flippy's house? Just leave her here, she will be back anyways…" He nodded, and all got back into the car. "This place gets freakier from time to time…" Chase said without looking back.
"Ian, where exactly are we going now?" Flippy is jogging after the overexcited raccoon. He never noticed the hill they´re running across now, Flippy doesn´t share a dislike for many things, but unknown places make an exception. They come to a stop as Ian slows down a bit to catch his breath. He was definitely not floppy, but he was no match for Flippy regarding to fitness.
They stay reticent for a while as they look down at the town. An unsettling chill is running down their spine. "I may know a person who may be able to help you as I already said. She lives up that hill." He said without averting his gaze towards the town. The street lanterns are emitting a weak light, most of them are broken, leaving the town in darkness.
The longer they keep their stare the more they get the feeling that the darkness is staring at them. The fact that they´re surrounded by it on that hill is only enforcing their trepidation. "Let´s go on, we´re almost there." The mansion emerges slowly beneath all the trees. The uneasiness torturing Flippy is rising with any second. "Ian, I really don´t want to go there. I… don´t have the feeling that we should be here."
Ian got concerned as Flippy confessed his worries to him. In fact, Ian shares the same worries as he has no idea whether his plan is going to work or not. But he decides to not tell him that and rest his hand on Flippy's shoulder in assurance. "I know you´re afraid and I can understand that. But we will need special help for your special problem." He smiles genuinely at the worried bear. Flippy trusts his instincts, but he also trusts Ian.
"Ok, lets do this." Ian approaches the door to the mansion, but instead of just entering it this time, he knocks on the door. "Hello? It´s me, Ian. I brought a friend with me. I really don´t want to disturb you but we need your help." But after a few moments of waiting, nothing happened. "Please, I don´t know what to do else. Please help us, I´m ready and willed to do anything in return!"
With that said the door slowly creaks open, disclosing an all too familiar room. At the door's threshold stood the witch, a great female warthog only with a black rugged robe covering her body filled with warts and scars. "A favor for a favor. I´m glad that you´ve learned to not just enter an old woman's estate. Please step in." They both slowly enter the witch's mansion, Flippy's trust towards Ian is now almost equally revolting with his instincts telling him to run away as fast and far as he can.
"So, before we come down to business I´ll ask you. Are you ready and willed for the exchange?" The witch asked Ian who nodded reluctantly, afraid of what is now to come. He tries to tell her their business but shrieks in surprise at the witch dashes towards him with enormous speed. She grabs him by his arm and lifts him up to the air. Regarding their age, her strength is tremendously impressive, especially for Flippy who just stands there unsure whether he should be astonished or afraid.
Suddenly, she pulls a great knife out of her robe and brings it near to Ian, whose fear is awfully rising. The knife is hold near his arm, ready and sharp to cut it off almost instantly. Ian closes his eyes in dread and preparation for the incoming pain. But, different than expected, Ian was dropped to the floor, his arm still attached to him.
"Wh… What just happened?" The witch goes to her cauldron. "I just needed a hair from your fur." Ian couldn´t decide whether he should be relieved or irritated. "Why the hell do you need so much raccoon ingredients?" But he just got a chuckle in return. "I don´t. But you in particular are tremendously cute when frightened. Besides I am mostly all alone in the woods, accompanied by some gargoyles. Grant an old woman a bit fun, won´t you?"
Ian crossed his arms as Flippy suddenly burst out in laughter. "What is so funny?" But Flippy only managed to give parts of an explanation between all of his wheezing. "You… You looked so… Frightened and I… Fell for it too… We… I thought she would really do it you know but she just needed to shave a hair from your arm pit." Ian couldn´t be peeved for long and had to laugh as well.
As soon as the both of them ceased their laughter the witch slowly turned towards them with a genuine smile. "So, care to tell me why exactly you decided to come to me? You did your part, now it is time for me to do mine." Ian got serious again "Well, it is hard to explain…" But Flippy finally mustered the courage to speak to the woman in black and explained this to her.
"You know, I am a war veteran. I won´t pester you with a long story of my past. The problem now is that every time something reminiscent to war, or something endangering my life appears this… Kind of demon inside of me appears and I turn into a berserk killer-machine. Ian told me that you may be able to help me get free of this."
The witch got close to Flippy, resting her hand on his head. Suddenly his black eyes turned green again and his teeth got sharp. He begins to scream as if he was in great pain. She lifts the screaming bear up into the air, just holding his scalp. The great woman in black gazed deeply into Flippy's eyes who doesn´t seem to focus on her. Even though he seems to be in his berserk state he isn´t able to free himself from her grasp.
After a short while she drops him, him turning to normal again. Flippy's panted deeply as his white clothes are soaked in sweat. "I cannot get rid of that "Demon" you call it because it is a part your personality. One part is way too friendly while the other part is way too vicious. The balance between these two parts has to be restored, so your real personality can be formed."
Flippy and Ian got confused at her cryptic last statement. "What do you mean with a new personality?" The explanation came shortly after. "The state he is currently in isn´t the state he is supposed to be. Neither the berserk state, nor the state we´re facing right now." But Flippy's confusion only rose. "Does that mean that if we reach my "balanced-state" I´m a totally different person? May it be possible that I´m on a permanent killing-spree then?"
But she just shook her head. "Your personalities are the opposite to each other. You may have less repression to kill someone, but you won´t do it just for sports I´m sure of that." Ian cocks his head while rising a brow questionably. "So… do you recommend to restore his balance or..?" But the witch just shrugged her shoulders. "If you want his life to be less miserable, then I highly recommend it."
Flippy suddenly felt a spark of determination rising in his chest, if restoring the balance is the way he needs to do then it has to be done. "How do we restore it then?" The black-robed warthog turned around, opening a door which seems to lead to the basement of the mansion. "Follow me." They do as they´re told without hesitation and follow her to the destination she is heading to.
Ahead of them is a long stairway. The stairs themselves are just plain concrete stairs, but the walls are decorated with many kinds of some kind of inscription. But Ian and Flippy can´t make anything out of it. "This sure is a damn long staircase…" Flippy's anxiety is rising again for some reason. He surely trusts Ian and somehow even the witch. But the nescience about what is bound to happen is eating him from the inside out.
"Ian are you sure we´re doing the right thing?" The grey furred raccoon tried to mask his uncertainty with a weak simper. "I know that you´re afraid. But she managed to help me as well as the children who I was unable to save were haunting me in my mind. I´m sure she will be able to help you with this as well." Flippy smiled back feebly, he just got to hope that this is going to work.
The witch got to a stop in a circular room. At the edge of the circle are bones scattered neatly on the floor. The torches attached to the wall are shining with a green flame, the smell of sulfur is filling the room. In the center of the room is a pentagram drawn on the bottom with red paint, they just assumed it was red paint. "The pentagram is often mistaken as a symbol of the devil, but it just has an elemental meaning. The ends at the left and right are representing the four elements air, fire, water and earth. The last end represents the ether, the essence and culmination of your soul. The representation of balance."
They just remained silently next to the witch. "The task that has to be done is easily understood but can be hard to perform. Your friend must stay in the center while you´re staying in front of him. You must hold eye contact Ian. Your gaze isn´t allowed to avert from his." Flippy crossed his arms. "I have a name…" But the witch only countered. "Yes I´m aware of that common occurrence. But I am a witch and not a clairvoyant. So, unless you tell me your name finally I won´t be able to call you by it."
The green bear blushed a bit at his fail to introduce himself and just emits meekly. "It´s Flippy…" She smiled "Nice to meet you, Flippy. So, as I already told you two, you must keep eye contact. As long as the ritual keeps going." Ian cocked his head a little. "Where is the catch in this?" The witch ceased her smiling and got disturbingly serious. "If you fail to maintain eye contact, his berserk side will win him over and I cannot tell you whether his other personality will be able to stop him then. You´re all alone down here. The greater problem comes with your gift, Ian. During the ritual, no kind of course or anything else is able to last in it. So, if his berserk side wins him, you´ll be in deadly peril."
Ian gulped at this. That is indeed an unsettling thought, but how hard can it be to keep eye contact? "Are you two ready to begin?" They nodded in unison. "Fine then, please take a seat at the spots I´ve shown to you." Without hesitation Flippy cautiously stepped inside the pentagram, at the same time Ian takes place right in front of him outside it. They stare at each other silently as they sit down in a tailor seat.
"The ritual shall begin; your soul shall align with the elements lingering inside of you. Fire and air from your barbarous side. Water and earth from your pacifistic side. They must stop to batter and enclose each other. They shall coordinate!"
They are shortly after engulfed in an aura of various colors. "Let´s hope for the best. If anything goes wrong, I won´t be able to interfere." The ritual finally began but suddenly a rumbling sound disturbs the serene scene. The witch abruptly pried her eyes wide open in shock. "This isn´t supposed to happen! Something isn´t right!"
