Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King: Science and Romance
Chapter 1
A Carnival Night Gone Wrong
It was a lovely cool, calm Halloween night with the full moon hanging high in the starry night sky as the soft autumn wind gently blew through the orange-red leaves and the sounds of owls hooting as they hunted for their next meal.
In the city of Coolsville, the Mystery Inc gang were spending their night at a local carnival that was located on a port. It was filled with rides from rollercoasters to Ferries wheels. The fun fair game stands with soft toys were scattered all over the carnival ground with many people trying their best to win a prize. The sound of children laughing echoed all across the port along with the screams of threats seekers.
The gang were on a spooky indoor roller coaster. They screamed in a mix of exhilaration and fear as the skull cart zoomed in and out of different dark rooms each of which had an animatronic of a Halloween monster including zombies rising from the dead, a pale vampire ready to attack, an old witch cackling as she stirred her nasty brew and werewolf howling in the light of the full moon. The big standouts were the final two rooms. The first had a lime-green glow with grey stone walls with robotic goblins flying around the largest of them. The last room had a rocky beach cove theme with blue lightning and beautifully hand-drawn animated mermaids swimming on a screen at either side.
The cart came to a stop outside the building with a skull-shaped entrance and the five of them got out.
"Jeepers, that ride was seriously scary. Come on let's go again." Daphne said excitedly.
"How about we don't." Velma respond as she held her stomach.
"I'm with Daphne. The Ghost Coaster is the best ride in the whole carnival." Fred agreed.
"Like that was way too spooky." Shaggy stated, shaking in fear.
"Reah, rpooky." Scooby added.
"Not this again." Velma quietly muttered to herself, slightly lifting her glasses to rub her eyes in annoyance. "Guys those were only animatronic's, there are not real monsters."
"Rhat rtill roesn't rhange rhe ract rt ras roo rpooky."
"It's only a ride. What's there to be scared of." Daphne asked.
"Have you forgotten what night it is? It's Halloween, the night of monsters." Shaggy started causing the woman in orange to groan.
"Shaggy the supernatural isn't real. It's just fantasies nonsense." Fred pointed out.
"But what if is real? What if creatures like goblins and zombies do exist and are waiting in the shadows to attack us?!"
"Reah, you never know, rt rould re real. Ronster rould rome ror rs."
"The day I believe in the supernatural is the day I become a werewolf." Velma dryly stated with her arms crossed over her chest.
"Anyway, what should we do next?" Fred asked.
Shaggy and Scooby pointed to a large blue bouncy castle. Fred and Daphne looked at each other unsure of the idea.
"How about we split up and met back up over at the apple bobbing game." Velma suggested.
"Sounds great." the others agreed in unison. They walked off with the cowardly duo heading over to the bouncy castle, Velma walked off to a nearby gift shop and Fred and Daphne decided to take wander around.
"So what should do?" Fred asked his twenty-two-year-old girlfriend.
"Not sure, we've already done most of the thrill rides." She replied to her twenty-three-year-old boyfriend.
"May one the games?"
"Nah, they're all rigged and besides none of the prizes capture my interest."
They walked in silents for a few seconds before Daphne decided to ask a question.
"You know I was wondering, how do you think you react if you discovered that the supernatural was real?"
Fred thought for a moment. "I'm not sure. Scared at first, but after that, I'm not sure."
Just then they came to a series of cutout boards with artwork of various monsters with a hole where the face would be, where people could get their picture taken for five dollars. The cutouts included green fire-breathing dragons, angry mummies, a pair of werecats at a kill and more. One that caught the lovebird's eyes was a cut out of a vampire in swimming shorts and a witch in a bikini at a beach at night.
"Shall we?" Fred suggested with a sly grin.
"We shall." Daphne agreed with an equally sly grin.
The two made their way over to a young gentleman and handed him the money before getting behind the cutout with Fred behind the vampire and Daphne behind the witch.
"Watch the birdy." he said before taking the picture.
The two walked away from the board and took the photograph from the man then thanked him before leaving. The two began to walk back, looking at the photo.
"You got to admit you make a lovely witch." Fred teased.
"Well, you make a hot vampire." Daphne played along.
Meanwhile, Velma was looking around the gift shop in the book aisle, most of them being fiction, but none of them peeked her fancy. She turned around to leave only to bump into someone.
"Oh sorry, I did see you there." the woman apologised. The woman was tall, had a beautiful hourglass, and had long soft free-flowing red hair that went down to her middle. She wore a sea blue dress with a revealing V-neck and matching heels.
"It's ok." Velma stated.
"I see you're a fan of supernatural books."
"Not these ones. All just gimmicks with no story."
"How do you know they aren't any good if you never read them?"
"Just look at the covers, that tells you everything about them."
"Perhaps, but not everything is what it seems."
Velma could only let out a hum of scepticism. "Anyway, I hate to end this conversation so abruptly, but I need to get back to my friends."
"Understandable. It was nice chatting with you ms..."
"Velma Dinkley."
"Nice to meet you, Velma. My name is Tara Ward."
"Well, it was a pleasure chatting with you. Goodbye." Velma said before leaving as Tara waved goodbye.
Soon the three met up at the apple bobbing game where Shaggy and Scooby were already playing. Shaggy lifted his head out of the water with three red apples in his mouth before swallowing them.
"Like top that Scoob."
Scooby put his head in and took four apples out. After swallowing them he stuck out his tongue at the man in green.
Just then the other three noticed a billboard with a poster of an obeast magician dressed in grey. The poster read "The Amazing Krudsky."
"That looks interesting." Daphne said.
"This ought to be good." Velma joked.
"I'll grab tickets before they sell out." Fred said before heading off.
Shaggy and Scooby were still changing each other to apple bobbing. "Alright Scooby, I beat you can't top seven apples." Shaggy confidently said with a smug look on his face.
Scooby grinned before diving into the tub crying out "Scooby-Dooby-Doo!" He landed with a large splash, fortunately for Daphne and Velma it missed them by an inch however, Tara, who was walking by got a small bit of water on her skin. She quickly left to get dry. Velma saw her and she could have sworn that she saw a dark blue scale where the water had landed.
Scooby surfaced with over twenty apples in his mouth. Shaggy crossed him and a grumpy look on his face as the dog chuckled before he swallowed the apples.
"Confounded mutt!"
They turned to see the magician standing nearby.
"Look what you've done. I'm soaked. Urr, wet-dog smell." He complained just as Fred arrived with the tickets.
"Oh, wow. We know you. You're the Amazing Krudsky. We were just on our way to catch your act." The blond stated.
"Act? The Halloween Spectacular is no mere act." The egotistical man said, rudely. "Now, out of the way. I must go blow-dry my cummerbund."
"So, like, I guess we'll be seeing you inside." Shaggy said.
"Well, most of you.
"Rhat ro rou rean?" Scooby asked.
"Three magic words. No dogs allowed." Krudsky said, pointing the Great Dane on the nose. He walked leaving the gang completely flabbergasted.
"Can you believe the nerve of this guy? Daphne stated.
"Master of Magic." Puh-lease." Velma said.
"You know Scoob, I think I know a way to get back at that phoney magician." Shaggy winked at his friend.
"Don't even think about it Shaggy. We're not getting kicked out of the carnival because of some dumb plan." Velma firmly said.
"Oh. You guys go on ahead. Me and Scooby
will be at the Hot Dog stand." Shaggy stated.
A little while later, Fred and the girls were in a tent waiting for the show to begin. The crowd chanted amongst themselves as they waited, Fred and Daphne held hands while Velma sat with her arms crossed.
From behind the curtain, a feminine eye took a peek.
"We've got a full house tonight." Kath whispered excitedly. Kath was a young lady in her late twenties. She had long ginger that she wore in a bun and had a pear-shaped figure.
"Oh boy this will be our best performance yet." Jim, her younger brother agreed. He was two years younger than her. He had short ginger hair and a slim figure.
"Our performance?" Krudsky rhetorically asked.
"I meant your best performance." Jim corrected himself.
"Good. Now get going you worthless go for nothing assistances!" he commanded.
"Yes sir." the siblings said in unison. They quickly rushed to their stations. Jim lifted the curtains and the show began.
"Once a year, on Halloween night..." Krudsky's disembodied voice announced.
"... the powers of the dark
meet the powers of the light" in a flash of purple smoke he appeared on stage.
"People of Coolsville..." He said as Kath brought out a large purple box covered in yellow stars. "...fix your slack-jawed gaze
upon my dazzling powers. Now for my first spell, I shall make my assistant disappear."
Kath stepped inside the box and Krudsky closed the door.
"Abracadabra." he said waving his wand. He opened the door to reveal that she was gone before closing the door again. "Now to make her reappear. Hocus Pocus." he said before opening the door however Kath hadn't reappeared. Krudsky closed the door and said the spell again and again but she still hadn't reappeared.
In the board audience, the three had noticed that every time he opened the door the back of the box seemed to move slightly.
"Um, excuse us, sir." Daphne said.
"Not now madam." he rudely said.
Fred tried to explain "But sir we..."
"I said not now! Can you see I'm trying to do a magic show!"
"But we only going to tell you the trap door is stuck." Velma said.
"She sir." Kath said in embarrassment.
The gang got on stage and helped open the second door and Kath walked out of the box.
"Mum can go now?" a boy asked.
"I thought you never asked." she replied. They left the tent and were quickly followed by the rest of the crowd.
"No. Please. Come back. I can explain."
"Boo you stink." a voice from the crowd yelled.
Krudsky's face turned red as he turned to the three.
"Sorry." Daphne said.
"SORRY! DO YOU THINK SORRY IS ENOUGH TO MAKE UP FOR THIS!? YOU RUINED MY SHOW, YOU IMBECILES! I'll GET YOU FOR THIS, IF ITS THE LAST THING I DO!"
Later the gang stood outside the Carnival having been recently kicked out by security.
"Well, this is just great." Velma sarcastically stated. "Kicked out of the Carnival and we've got nothing else to do."
"Actually there is one Halloween tradition left and it's the best one." Shaggy corrected.
"Reah. Ricky or reating." Scooby said holding out a large sack.
"I don't know guys. We're not in the mode for it." Daphne solemnly said.
"Oh, well could you at least drop us off so we can?" Shaggy asked.
"Rlease." Scooby added.
"Alright." Fred agreed.
An hour later the duo were trick or treating on the streets. Fred was just driving Daphne and Velma home when they hit a pothole in the road and the van came to a halt.
"Jinkies! What was that?" Velma asked.
The three got out to find that one of their tires had gone flat.
"This night just keeps getting worse." He muttered.
"Maybe someone has a spear we could use." Daphne said.
"Well, it's worth a shot."
The three left the van to see if they could find a replacement. They walked down the quiet street until they bumped into a woman whom Velma recognised.
"Oh ur, hi again, Tara."
"Oh hello, Velma. How are your friends?" Tara asked.
"I'm Fred Jones and this lovely woman is my girlfriend Daphne Blake." he greeted.
"It's nice to meet you." the woman in purple said shaking her hand.
"The pleasure is shared." Tara said. "So I take it the Carnival's over?"
"Actually we got kicked out." Daphne admitted in embarrassment.
"We were just heading home when one of our tires broke." Velma pointed out.
"You wouldn't happen to know where we could get a spear do you?" Fred asked.
"As a matter of fact, I do. Follow me." Tara said.
They followed her down the street, unknowing that this would lead to something big.