Paradox Space Chapter 5: ACT 1-5: Enter, a How to Train Your Dragon + Rise of the Guardians Crossover fanfic

Act 1: The Note Isolation Plays

Chapter 5: Enter

Man, it's been a while since I updated this story. This the fate of side-fics, I suppose! I'm not sure if I have any people following this still or if at all, but whatever, I'm going to keep writing this until I get bored of it.

Once again, mainly Hiro and Rapunzel stuff, but I like to think I balanced those portions out better this time around. Anyways, enjoy.

Hiccup had a sort of grudging respect for the ancient frog ruins. He had to commend whoever built this thing, for it was huge and it surely took a lot of grueling effort to make it. Hiccup was half-convinced this ruin was built by some sort of super-viking ancestors; only someone as stubborn as them would put this much dedication. Still, the auburn-haired teen had to accept that probably wasn't the case. This ruin was far more older than Berk; studies from archaeological experts say it has been on the island before humans even evolved to the point they were able of such archaeological feats, which always struck Hiccup as odd and nonsensical.

There was also the fact that if Berkians had indeed been the ones that had built this ruin, it would surely have been made in the likeness of dragons, not a frog of all things. The critters weren't even reptilians nor close to dragons in any way! As such, the Frog Ruins remained a mystifying mystery, one too deep or perhaps not worth the time of any of the locals sans Hiccup.

Still, though he had been fascinated by the structure, Hiccup also hated it. Climbing up all these stairs was downright hell and the freckled teen was sure that was the reason behind Toothless' choice of it as a hiding place.

"Next time I see him... I-I'm going to give him a smaller basket of fish...!", panted Hiccup as he, at last, reached the doorway of the Frog Temple. Looking over the edge of the platform he was standing on, Hiccup could see almost all of Berk, and even some the island's edge. He also could make the rough edges of the crater the Frog Ruins were sitting on. Hiccup always thought it was a rather odd place to build a ruin in, but who was he to criticize the ancients?

In any case, he had no time to wonder about the fundamentals and motives of a civilization long gone. He had more pressing matters in the present, and as such, he walked right into the dark interior of the amphibian-depicting temple.

Years in the Past...

Like, millions of years backwards.

An island we are all acquainted with lies in the middle of the ocean, ages before humans and/or vikings gave it a name and called it home.

From the atmosphere, a rip in space opens up. A spirograph whimsically shifts in shape before ejecting a large meteor. It's impact zone that same island that will house a talking fishbone millions of years into the future.

Embedding itself on a wooded part of the island, the meteor strikes, the only proof of its fleeting existence being the creation of a crater, and a pool of molten rock in the middle of it. From the fiery lake, a familiar shape rises, flashing in remarkably distinct flashes of green. Soon after the emergence of that dragon follows another figure.

It's rise is followed by forceful shaking. Soon enough, standing majestically in the midst of that crater is a monument, a temple. A ruin. Like a frog squatting in its own pond, a mysterious ruin has been established, its origin or its purpose unknown but unquestioned.

A dragon without name and apparently without teeth. It's origins, also explained and at the same time not quite. But that dragon knows its purpose, its duty. He will wait patiently for the arrival of the one he's destined to protect and guide. Be it a millenia or two, he will wait for the Heir.

Fast-forward to the present...

A soon to be Heir stares at the weird contraption in front of him. Sitting atop a large pedestal lies a flower bud, yet to bloom. On the pedestal's side, a timer can be seen. 8 hours and 15 minutes are counting down.

Hiccup had always wondered what this thing was, and what it was counting down to, but no matter how much he had tried to pry open the flower, he had been unable to even budge it. It was a sore subject; the fact that he couldn't even beat a flower, but there wasn't much the little viking could do about it. Even though he wanted to know what the timer was counting down to, he had a Night Fury to chase down.

There wasn't much to the ruins, despite it's huge size. The flower pedestal was the most striking feature in the single room that comprised the ruins. On the walls there were some runes and drawings of frogs, though Hiccup couldn't exactly read any of them; they were in a language foreign to him.

In the middle of the ruins was a circular engraving, depicting a spirograph with clouds inside of it. It was an interesting, yet baffling, design, and it made no sense to Hiccup, no matter how many times he came here to look at them.

Aside from that, the room was pretty much barebones. No places to hide.

"Where is that Night Fury...?", wondered Hiccup aloud, hoping to receive some sort of divine revelation of the whereabouts of his bud.

All he got was a Pesterchum notification that most definitely startled him due to the fact that he was getting used the silence of the ruins. He was ready to rap on his friend for scaring the pants off of him, but he mellowed out when he read who was the sender.

- antarcticanTrickster began pestering tinyGlaurung [TG] at 9:28 AM -

"AT: yo like hey i guess i should probably tell you something really important"

"AT: considering the date that it is today and all"

"AT: and i really want to type something incredibly corny and cheesy and possibly edging on the levels of homosexual"

"AT: but im trying to catch my breath from running around like a jackass because i had to go pick up this lame game you wanted to play and"

"AT: its so fucking hot outside you have no idea bro like its bananas outside and they all melted or something"

"AT: and i forgot what was the point i was trying to make fuck"

Hiccup chuckled as he saw Jackson ramble on, trying to keep up his cool and aloof persona, but he decided to play along. Because Hiccup knew exactly what Jackson was trying to say.

"TG: Thank you for the birthday wishes, Jack!"

"AT: you know it bro always there for ya"

"AT: except when i absolutely cant which is probably more of my fault than anyones really"

"AT: i have to pull all my pranks every day or it just feels like a waste you know"

"TG: You really need to keep your pranking in check, you goof."

"AT: man i dont need you to get on my case about that north already gave me a whole earful about it"

Hiccup smiled. This was ever so familiar.

"TG: Did he use the safe again?"

"AT: see thats what I dont get i just filled some douches with tar and feathers wheres the wrong in that they deserve it"

"TG: I guess parents just cant understand the intrinsic artistry behind the jokes you pull off."

"AT: haha yeah its downright philistine i tell you youre the only one who actually gets my jokes"

"TG: I don't approve of them, though!"

Hiccup really didn't. Or rather, he didn't like it when Jackson got in trouble for it. Especially because, most of the time, the other teen pulled those pranks on people who deserved them. Mostly bullies. But adults on Burgess were always against Jack, or so the auburn and his friends heard. Being infamous sounded like a pain the rear.

"AT: im sure jamie approved of it when i saved his ass"

"AT: of course north somehow got wind of it and thats why i had to sneak out to get my copies of the game"

"AT: i hope you appreciate this as a birthday gesture because ill be in such deep shit if i get caught"

Hiccup bit his lip as he read that. A sense of guilt filled his heart as he typed in the words.

"TG: Honestly, I'd feel bad if you got in even more trouble. I'm sorry about that, I didn't know about it."

The answer to his message took a bit to come.

"AT: nah dont worry your silly head about it its cool"

"AT: really i was just messing with you hic im not mad or anything"

"AT: and tbh it wouldn be a pretty bad birthday gesture to blame you about this so yeah were cool right"

Hiccup sighed with relief as he read Jack's message. His answer was fast.

"TG: Yeah. But really, you better get back home before North notices your absence."

"AT: yeah i guess youre right see ya later hic"

"AT: and for the record"

"AT: not that anyone is keeping track of any of this but whatever"

"AT: happy birthday man keep being you nerdy but cool"

- antarcticanTrickster ceased pestering tinyGlaurung [TG] at 9: 35 AM -

It didn't matter what anyone said about Jackson, Hiccup thought he was a great friend. This message to him was proof of that. Sure, at the beginning, when he first met Jackson through an artistic photography board (a hobby they shared, but that Jackson was definitely more passionate about), Hiccup thought he was, well, kind of a jackass. But further interactions through private messages and later on through Pesterchum changes his perception of the white haired teen.

On the surface he was carefree and aloof, and his way of typing reflected that. But he was more than that, he paid attention to details and cared deeply about people and their perception of him. In a way, Jackson reminded Hiccup of Toothless, and that's why he could relate so well to the other teen.

Speaking of which...

Arriving in a rather flashy and most certainly green-y, sparkling manner was that elusive Night Fury, no doubt lured here by the smell of fish on Hiccup's possession. On the subject of sniffing out fish from any place in space-time as far as everyone is concerned, there is no one better than Toothless. He's simply the best there is.

Hiccup gulped as he saw his friend sneak closer to him, Sburb copy in his mouth. This was it; the moment of truth. He had toiled away for a long time and had gone through intensive bouts of physical activities to get here. There was no feasible way he would mess this up. He was going to go through with this and he would get the copy, get back home and finally play this long-awaited game of his. And we would all witness this.

Psyche.

In a far away kingdom, that could be described as prosperous and certainly surrounded by mountains and close to the sea, a kingdom known as Arendelle, lives a young girl. Her name is Anna of Arendelle, and it must be mentioned that she is of royal blood, lest we forget.

Today is a very special day for the young princess, for today she is going to play a game with her friends and her older sister. A game she has heard is going to change her world. It looked like even the entire castle and town knew about the importance of today's date, for the whole kingdom was bustling with energy not unlike the one seen whenever a large festival is going on.

It was incredibly exciting for Anna. She loved it when the doors of the castle opened to the town's inhabitants. Anna didn't know why Elsa was inviting every citizen of Arendelle into the castle just because they were playing a game, but she wasn't complaining about.

No, what was bumming her was the fact that despite having the game, Elsa hadn't started it up with her at all. In fact, she was being quite elusive all morning, more so than usual. Anna was antsy to start already and so, after wishing Hiccup a happy birthday, she went around the castle to hunt down the elusive sister.

After quite some time and some clumsy bumping around the castle's furniture, she finally managed to narrow down her sister's location. Elsa was looking as stunning as ever, overlooking the flood of villagers into the castle foyer from the balcony overseeing the stairs. Her light blue dress with black sleeves and the purple cape was just a beautiful ensemble.

Anna always felt a little less whenever she was around her elder sibling. That was all there was to say in that matter.

Still, she had to put those feelings of inadequacy aside. With a smile, she approached her sister and greeted her as enthusiastically as she could. What was the point in a greeting if it wasn't in earnest?

"Hello, Elsa! What a nice morning we're having!"

The silver-haired girl broke her stoic expression for a second as she greeted her little sister with a smile, before turning her attention back to the crowd below them. She nodded slightly before answering. "Indeed, the weather has been fairly accommodating with today's procedures, so I can't say I'm displeased."

Anna chuckled at the roundabout way Elsa talked. She had always been the kind of person to try to justify her emotions at every chance she got. Nevertheless, Anna didn't quite understand the motive behind the gathering of people before them. "I still don't understand why you called everyone to the castle, sis. I mean, I get this game is important and all, but you and I are the only ones who are going to play, so I don't-"

"I am not going to play this game."

Elsa's interjection took out the wind of Anna's figurative sails. "W-what? But I thought-"

"What you thought... and what is actually going to happen is not the same.", the silver-haired girl spoke without betraying any emotion. "You will play this game alone. We all have our roles to play and mine is to remain here and to ensure the kingdom's citizens' safety. Yours will be to play this game. That is all."

"No, that is most certainly not all!", shouted Anna, outrage clear in her face. "You told me you were going to play! You lied to me!". Her voice quivered a little. "You told me we were g-going to do this... together! A-and now you're bailing on me again?! That's so unfair."

Anna had been so excited. Ever since their parents' death, Elsa had been so distant and cold, no doubt because of the trauma of the incident and because she had to take charge of the kingdom due to her being the eldest daughter. Through all that, Anna had been lonely. Though she had friends in Hiccup and the others, not being to talk or even interact with Elsa, the one she had been closest to... frankly sucked. And then Elsa one day agreed to play Sburb with her when Anna dared to ask, expecting a rejection. Her agreement to play had elated Anna. She had been looking forward to spend some quality time with her...!

And now...!

"Whether it's unfair or not... that is not the point."

Another cold remark. Another expressionless mask.

"Everyone has a role to play, as I've said. That is all. Now get ready, Anna. You must play this game."

Anna shook her head. "I don't want to play this stupid game anymore! What's the point if you're not in it?!"

Elsa didn't even stutter or pause. "You will play this game, or else you will doom us all. And I know you, Anna. You wouldn't be able to bear it if everyone in this room died because of you."

Anna tried to read the expression on Elsa's perfect poker face, to try to find any sense on her sister's maddening words. "What are you even talking about...?! This is just a game! There's no way a game like that would doom anybody!"

The girl turned away from her older sister, an indignant huff leaving her lips. "Whatever... I'm not going to play it... I'm done with this." And with that, Anna left the room, trying to drown the whispers from the audience that had spectated everything that transpired.

To no one's surprise, Anna's and Elsa's claim that they would never play the game would end up being false on premise. This would have been a more startling development if the premise of this story hadn't been told to all of us before hand.

Through convoluted and nonsensical happenings, both girls would eventually be forced to participate in Sburb.

But those convoluted and nonsensical happenings would be a tale for another time, for now we must focus on the convoluted and nonsensical happenings of a certain other person.

Hiro: Examine stuff deployed from the Phernallia Registry

-terrifyingGrima [tG] started pestering combativeTechnologist [CT] at 9:35 AM-

"tG: Did you finally get everything you need, or are you going to keep wasting my time?"

"CT: Stop whining! man, you sure are a pain the butt! yes, i got everything i needed, hold the phone!"

Hiro let out an exasperated breath as he walked towards the weird object that had been deployed in what was once Aunt's Cass cafe, which occupied the first floor of Hiro's house. Of course, nothing much remained from the cafe, as all the tables had been moved around in order to make space for the gargantuan object. The rest of Hiro's house was in pretty much the same state. The kitchen was being occupied by a rather large platform with a weird pedestal attached to its side. According to tG, this was called the ALCHEMITER, though Hiro had no idea what it did as he couldn't get a reaction out of it. Blocking the door that led upstairs was also another weird contraption named the TOTEM LATHE. It was a long structure that resembled a C, a wide space where something could be placed apparent. Hiro had also noticed that this machine had a slot to insert something on it on its side but just like the other machine, Hiro couldn't get it to start up. So he ignored them and walked to the previously narrated location, where he found...

Another object didn't recognize.

So far, all the visions he had seen had been quite unlike the things he was going through. In his visions, Hiro saw himself flying around a golden kingdom, going in crazy adventures in a weird land and fighting monsters. Not... this sort of meteorite-rain-of-doom deal, that's for sure. Nor had he ever seen the object that was blocking the entrance and only sensible exit from the building.

"Great going, Rapunzel.", thought the Japanese kid bitterly, lamenting the choices of the blonde girl. Still, there wasn't much he could do about it now. According to tG, this thing had to do with the game, and he had to figure out what that "what" was. Approaching the object with caution, he studied it. It was entirely white and definitely made of metal. It had a wide, square base with a LED display, though now it wasn't showing anything, and from the middle of the base rose a shaft which had a lid with a spirograph on top of it, and a black valve handle attached to its side.

Hiro tried the handle, but no matter how much pressure he applied, the valve wouldn't budge an inch. No other changes were appreciable on the weird object, and Hiro was basically stumped. With displeasure, he decided to consult with tG.

"CT: So. this thing. what's its deal?"

"tG: OK, that thing is the CRUXTRUDER. It's basically the beginning of this whole ridiculous and utterly unnecessarily complicated chain of events. This is what will truly kickstart the game."

"tG: You need to remove the lid first. I don't care how you do it, but you have to use something strong enough to pop that thing off."

"CT: And i suppose youre not going to tell me what that is, you apparently-all-knowing-jerk?"

"tG: No shit I won't, Sherlock. You're the goddamn genius of the group of imbeciles you figure it out."

And that's all he wrote. Useful as ever, thought Hiro. Still, he had indeed just the thing to pop that lid off. Still trying to get used to the abstract concept of a sylladex, Hiro summoned from it something he had picked up from Tadashi's room as he went around confirming the location of all the objects Rapunzel had deployed.

A red case was dropped in the floor unceremoniously, and with a beep, it opened up to reveal what looked like a bundled up white balloon. It only took a few seconds for it to inflate itself up, revealing a humanoid, chubby robot with black, camera-like eyes. It blinked a few times as it assessed its surroundings, before clumsily turning around in its place to face the smiling Japanese kid.

"Hello, I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion.", spoke the robot in an earnest yet obviously robotic voice. Hiro was so glad Tadashi hadn't decided to take Baymax with him. He would certainly be useful in this situation.

"tG: Oh god, I forgot about this useless piece of shit. I can't wait for it to get punctured all the time on your journey, that is going to be hilarious."

Hiro ignored tG's scathing message and the fact that he was also able to see what Hiro was doing and turned to face the white, inflatable robot. "Heeey, Baymax! Listen... I kinda need your help, like... urgently."

The robot blinked before talking. "In what manner can I assist you? Are you not feeling well?"

The Japanese kid wasted no time and pointed towards the Cruxtruder. "I need you to turn that wheel so I can get the lid off. Can you do that?"

"Will turning this wheel make me a better healthcare companion?", asked Baymax as he stared at the contraption without moving. Hiro rolled his eyes before responding.

"Considering the fact that I will die if you don't do so, then... yes! Helping me stay alive would certainly make you a better healthcare companion!"

"tG: This is absolutely fantastic, oh how I missed these enchanting exchanges that amount to nothing."

Hiro continued to ignore tG's remarks and watched with small worry as Baymax cranked the valve with problems at first. Eventually, the stubborn mechanism gave to Baymax's strength and the lid unceremoniously popped off, ceremoniously leaving 3 feet in the air before a glowing sphere emerged from it. It was emitting a red light and flashing intermittently, but Hiro could make a spirograph design through its flickering surface. "Gee, someone had a thing for that design in this game", thought Hiro as he tried to appraise what he was going to do with that floating thing.

And that's when he noticed it: the LED display on the Cruxtruder had started up, and now it displayed a rather ominous countdown.

8:15

Eight minutes and fifteen seconds. And counting.

Fishing for his phone far more frantically than he dared to admit, Hiro started to consult with that vitriolic jerk.

"CT: So... OK... I did what you told me and everything but now what? what is this countdown?"

"tG: That, my oriental-flavored loser, is the time you have to figure out this shit down. If you can't figure out what to do you'll be squashed by a meteor and that will be the end of you!"

Hiro gulped audibly. His fingers tapped against the touch screen of his phone even more so.

"CT: OK ok ok... what do i do?"

"tG: That... is for you to figure out."

A cold bead of sweat rolled down Hiro's forehead. Nervously, he typed his message as fast as he could.

"CT: COMEON! you cant just lead me on like this and leave me hanging on the critical hour! this is my life on the line here!"

"tG: Oh look, we've reached the land of "I don't give a single absolute shit" and the population is me and my feelings about your survival."

"tG: I have better things to do than to worry about your lame ass. We all have hot irons on the fire and we need to attend to them."

"tG: That is basically me saying 'get a move on or enjoy a hot serving of fiery rock space', you jerkboy genius."

"tG: All I will say before I leave, though, is this. Take them as hints or don't, I don't give a fuck."

Hiro waited with bated breath for the next set of messages. He wanted to scream at tG more for leaving him alone in this critical moment, but he needed to focus on the primary thing: a way to escape.

"tG: First, that sphere of yours is a KERNELSPRITE. Before anything else, you'll need to throw something into it. That is called PROTOTYPING. It can be whatever, but you need to do this first. What you throw in is up to you."

"tG: My second and last piece of advice is: You remember that pre-punched card you got? You'll need to do something with it and the machines that blonde ditz deployed to escape."

"tG: And, that is all. Adios, Zero. Hopefully, you won't die here this time. Only so I can look forward to more painful possible deaths for you in the future."

- terrifyingGrima [tG] ceased pestering combativeTechnologist [CT] -

"Well, shit."

Hiro was now in real trouble. He was now rethinking his smug position; how could he have thought that he was in the know of everything about the game? He had no idea what a Kernelsprite was or what to do with the pre-punched card and he had no idea what any of the objects aside from the Cruxtruder did. And his server player, Rapunzel, the only one who could possibly help him out, was still offline.

It would be an understatement to say that Hiro was scared. And unsure of how to proceed. He had only wanted to meet his friends, but now, he was in a situation where not only his life was at risk, but the lives of others were in peril as well. If he didn't do something in 7 minutes and 10 seconds he would... he would...!

Through the immense sense of fear he felt, a primal instinct rose. One seen mostly in creatures who, upon realizing that they were pretty much fucked, decided to rise up to the occasion and do something to not die horribly. Self-preservation instincts, if you would.

Already sweaty from the immense pressure he was feeling from this whole situation, Hiro tore his gaze away from the phone screen and faced the Cruxtruder. Baymax was still cranking the valve and from the hollow shaft came out a single piece of... something. Hiro cautiously picked it up. It was a crystalline cylindrical object colored red. Since it came from the Cruxtruder, it had obviously something to do with the game and what he was supposed to do. But what?

He had no idea what to do, but since it was obviously important, Hiro captchalogued it, in case it would be useful later. For now, he had to focus on prototyping the kernelsprite, whatever that meant. According to tG, he had to throw in something into it. Maybe doing so would clue him in on what to do next? But what could he throw in? Hiro ruled out Baymax; he was too important to Tadashi, and by extension to Hiro, to just throw away. An idea dawned on the Japanese kid's head. Bringing it out from his sylladex, Hiro held in his hand a small bundle of metallic bits.

But not just any metallic bits. This jumble of apparent junk was an invention of his. In reality, they were a number of highly advanced mini robots aptly named MICROBOTS. He had designed them to be controlled with a neuro-transmitter and when ordered to move in large numbers, they could do pretty much anything viable in the physical realm. These were just spares he had as leftovers from the main ones, which now were residing inside a certain package to a certain friend that was set to be delivered because of a certain important life event/date.

There was no way prototyping this would come to bite Hiro in the ass later, soon or otherwise.

With a wind up motion, Hiro threw the fistful of microbots Kernelsprite-wise and the robotic bits disappeared into the floating sphere in a luminous display that blinded the Japanese kid. With bated breath, Hiro peered through the light with narrowed eyes, eager to see what had happened to the kernelsprite...

Rapunzel: Reconnect with Hiro.

"It's no use.", complained the blonde as she tried her computer's power switch, the machine refusing to turn on. "It's a power outage, I can't turn it on." The blonde felt bad for losing power and leaving Hiro hanging, She knew how much the Japanese kid was looking forward to it, so this was almost bordering on rude, disconnecting from him. In situations like these, Rapunzel knew what had to be done.

"So, now what? Can we spend some time together?", asked Flynn looking hopeful. All he got in response was a Pascal being plopped down on his head, the brunette sharing his bewilderment with the chameleon as they saw Rapunzel remove a rug in the centre of the room, revealing a concealed trap door.

"Whoa, um... what are you doing?", asked Flynn as he saw Rapunzel swing the trap door open, dust and creaking sounds resounding on the blonde's room. She looked at Flynn as if the question didn't make sense, before answering cheerfully.

"I'm going to restore power by going to the basement!"

Flynn walked over to where the blonde was standing and peered into the hole the trapdoor was covering. Stairs descended into an almost dark and poorly lit room he had never seen on all his visits before. To say that the view was upsetting him was a misunderstanding. Trying to look unperturbed, Flynn pocketed his hands and gave a noncommittal shrug. "Eh... I dunno... I don't fancy dark places..."

Rapunzel rolled her eyes before answering with a snicker. "And that's why I'm going down there by myself. Pascal hates it down there too, so you both can stay and be buddies while I'm gone."

"Oh, joy.", retorted Flynn before Rapunzel shoved him playfully. The blonde smiled at him. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon. As soon as the power returns, reconnect with Hiro and help him while I return. Knowing him, he might need help!"

Deciding to not comment on the fact that if anyone needed help in this room was Rapunzel herself, Flynn gave her a nod. In response, Rapunzel descended through the darkened stairs with practiced ease and in mere moments, she was gone, leaving an awkward ambiance between reptile and man. Flynn hoped she wouldn't take long...

And ideally, she wouldn't. It wasn't common for the tower were they lived to lose power, and normally, Rapunzel was forbidden to leave her room even when this happened because Gothel would take care of it by herself. However, in times like these when Gothel wasn't home, she was allowed to return power to the tower using the basement's equipment as long as that was all she did. And so Rapunzel did; she enjoyed the occasions when this happened because that meant she could see at least a part of her home she normally had no access to, but she didn't want to get too curious and disobey Gothel. Being grounded sucked.

Rapunzel descended the stairs quickly, trying to not dawdle too much in the room she was passing through; the one below hers belonged to her mother and she was forbidden from being here when Gothel wasn't home. She had ignored this room all the times she had to go down to the basement that she couldn't even describe it, even though she was highly curious about it. But she had to obey... or else...

Instead of dwelling on this train of thought, she went down to the next floor. And another. And one more. All of these rooms blended together to Rapunzel since she wasn't allowed to be here. The only room she vaguely had an idea about was the kitchen and much like the next room and the basement, she was only allowed here when Gothel was home.

The floor before the basement was special. And it was the only room Rapunzel was explicitly allowed to go to all the times. Almost suspiciously so. But she didn't mind. After all, this was the room where all her brothers and sisters lived, as Gothel would said. It was a pretty oddly furnished room, the only piece of furniture on it being, well, a horribly large tea table, enough to hold about 20 chairs around it. And sitting on all of them were the previously mentioned "sisters and brothers". They were all Gothel's puppet collection.

From a young age, Rapunzel was told to think of these puppets as her siblings. And though she did think that during most of her childhood, now she knew she didn't hold any relation to them. They were still pretty cute, so the blonde was happy to refer to them as her siblings. All of Gothel's collection of puppets came in two variations: black puppets and white puppets, and they had the same basic design, which was minimalist to a fault. Completely painted in white or black paint, they all had the same round head, bead-like eyes and cylindrical torso, with jointed arms and legs. The only thing that was unique among them were their clothing, the white clad in yellow and blue pajamas with a moon crest on the chest, and the black clad in purple and gray pajamas, a similar crest on them as well. All in all, in Rapunzel's opinion, they were sympathetic looking chaps and she usually came here after she got bored a little of staying cooped up in her room. They were all good company.

Well... not all of them, precisely... Gothel's favorite puppet was an... interesting one, to say the least. Completely unlike the others in design, LIL CAL was, in Gothel's words "the most important one" in her collection. Wearing a gray hat backwards and featuring pronounced cheeks, red solid dots on them to simulate blushing against a pale skin, and possessing striking red lips, a toothy grin with an eye-catching gold tooth and blue eyes, Lil Cal was certainly an oddity among his string-manipulated peers. Clad in a blue t-shirt with the word CAL printed on the front and wearing a golden chain, Rapunzel could only say something for certain about this particular sibling.

It freaked her out a lot.

She was sure it was just her mind playing tricks on her, but she could swear Cal would often stare at her whenever she came to this room. She could also swear the puppet sometimes moved on its own to different positions in the room, and she would often think that he could hear it laugh. But it was all in her head, surely. So she at least paid her respects to it, as Gothel instructed.

But that was neither here or there. Rapunzel descended the last flight of stairs and entered her destination. The basement.

This room was completely unlike the others in the tower. Encased in gray tiles and walls, it had a somber feeling to it. The most prominent feature on this room was a giant LED monitor attached to a station primed with a keyboard, a random assorting of buttons and lights, and a panel with a bar that was flashing the words "EMPTY" and a dial currently set to a moon symbol similar to those seen in the clothes of Gothel's puppets. Rapunzel found this odd; it wasn't unusual to see the dial set to that spot at all, because whenever her mom went away on one of her long trips, she usually used this machine to do so. This machine, appropriately named the TRANSPORTALIZER, was capable of sending anything and anyone to where the dial was set to.

What Rapunzel found odd was the fact that the Transportalizer had been used at all. Whenever Gothel had to leave for a long time, which meant use of the machine, she announced so but this time around she actually left through the window, using Rapunzel's long hair as a rope to leave the tower. The fact that the energy bar was displaying "EMPTY" further proved that the machine had been used; transportalizing took a huge amount of URANIUM to use and the tower's energy grid was shared with the machine. The power probably went out because Gothel had used the machine, depleting the uranium. But why would her mom go out of her way to use the Transportalizer in such a roundabout and hidden way? Was she up to something?

Though Rapunzel was quite curious about where her mom had gone to, she decided not to let her curiosity get the better of her. She had to help Hiro. The blonde approached the station and typed away the simple instructions needed to resupply the energy source with uranium. The machinery in this room was sophisticated and yet it needed commands typed by humans to load more uranium in cases like these... it was ironic, in a way, probably. It took only a few seconds for the radioactive material to be supplied to the tower, done so in the background. With the power back on, Rapunzel only had to get back to her computer to get the game back in action.

Hopefully, Hiro wouldn't be in too much trouble.

Hiro: Figure this out already