I would like to thank avatoa and Kerra Quigley once again for investing your time to write a review for me, you guys are like my only two reviews and I thank you guys for giving me the motivation to continue writing. On another note: seems awfully slow today, when I published the third chapter I didn't get the e-mail notification till this morning (Aug. 10). Also it says I have six reviews but when I checked I still have four. Strange.
Anyways, please enjoy the fourth chapter of Cardcaptor Sari!
Disclaimer: I don't own TFA and/or CCS
Big n' Bouncy
Ting… the sound of chimes reached Sari's ears, followed by ripples of light like water.
Ting… there it was again, followed by the same ripples.
Ting… a third time and the darkness dispersed, revealing Detroit at night.
Detroit was basked in bright and colorful lights; a sign the city was blessed with prosperity. At the center, rising high into the sky and shining like a beacon, the epitome of Detroit's fortune was Sumdac Tower. The moon, large and full, glowed softly from the sky. On top of a skyscraper, across from the tower, was Sari holding the Sealing Wand with both of her hands. Next to her, flapping his wings was Kero. Clow Cards fell around them like leaves in autumn. A soft breeze was blowing through the duo as Sari's dress and hair fluttered softly. Sari's mouth moved silently, muttering unheard words. Kero looked away from the tower to Sari. The Cardcaptor took a step forward, towards to building's edge. From the heels of her boots, pairs of three feathered wings formed. Staring towards the tower, Sari took a great leap into the air.
---
Kero sleepily opened his eyes, having been awaken from his slumber from movement behind him. He uncurled himself, opening his mouth wide (showing his small sharp teeth) as he let out a great yawn. Stretching out the cramps from his muscles and rubbing away the gummy substance from his eyes, Kero made his way to the top of the bed. Sari lay, squirming amongst a tangle of blanket and pillows. Kero noticed that she was still asleep, probably having a dream. He took a glance at the clock; it was nearly seven in the morning. He remembered Sari telling him last night that she needed to do something. No point in letting the girl oversleep. He flew next to her and gently shook her.
"Sari! Sari!" he called out.
The girl was quickly brought back to the world of consciousness as she heard her name. Mind fuzzy, she was unable to recognize the voice. The voice called her name a third time. Grumbling, she lifted herself from the covers.
"Who's calling me…" seeing no one, she looked around tiredly. "Did I leave the TV on?"
Her wide screen TV was off, blank, the red light indicated it was not in use.
"What?"
Out of the blue she looked up. She did not expect to see a floating yellow, plush bear staring down at her.
It took her a moment to process the situation…
"AAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH" they both screamed in unison, recoiling from each other.
"Wh-what is it?" asked Kero.
Sari's mind was still hazy but it cleared a little in recognition.
"A plush toy?"
"You're still not awake…" Kero let out a sigh, a hand to his face. "Come on, get a grip!" as he slapped Sari's head a couple of times.
Sari blinked in realization. "That's right! You're the guardian of the Clow Cards!"
"Finally your awake!" puffing out his chest, hands of his hips, a smile on his lips, he pronounced… "I'm Kerberos, the Beast of the Seal!"
"That's right…among the books I found in the factory was a book of magical cards called Clow Cards. After accidentally releasing them I was asked by Kero to recollect them all," Sari was pulled out her thoughts as she heard the curtains being parted. Sunlight flooded the room.
"Well, it's a great morning, Cardcaptor Sari!" said Kero
The Clow book that was lying on one of the nightstands magically levitated into the air. The clasp unbuckled by itself and the book opened to reveal the Fly card.
"You did a great job getting Fly back, you've got potential," the guardian commented.
Sari smiled at the compliment before her stomach left out a growl of hunger.
"Let's go get some breakfast,"
---
After a quick meal of toast and eggs they returned back. A robot was there to help straighten out Sari's garment, a few puffs of steam on her and the wrinkles on the dress faded.
"You have to stay here, I've got to manage my dad's company while he's away. You can watch TV or play some video games, but keep it down," she instructed Kero before closing the door behind her.
"So much responsibility for one so young," he sighed, worry on his face as he flew down and went to his usual cross-legged position. "I swear, they expect more and more from the newer generations," as he turned on the TV and game console. "Let's see what video games they've made over my fifty year nap?"
Sari took the elevator and arrived at her dad's office. Seating herself on the long black leather chair, she began the day's work. It was the usual bore, sorting through paperwork, approving or denying funding and projects and validating imports and exports. It was extremely mind numbing for the young girl. But it wasn't compared to the cascade of phone calls that came in. They were from clients and overseas employees that sought the assistant of Isaac Sumdac. The day after her dad's disappearance, Sari had a meeting with the company's advisors of what they should tell the public. She told the advisors what happened, but they recommended her to sugarcoat the truth and tell the people that her dad was on an extended vacation.
There were a lot of things she learned from her dad's fatherly wisdom. And one them was that lying would lead to nothing but more trouble. He was so right. So far all the phone calls have been demanding to know when the professor will return. Not knowing the answer, Sari gave them mixed answers or put them on hold. It was the best she could do. At eight, Sari left the office to attend a company meeting. Taking the meeting in another room (the original meeting room was destroyed when Megatron and his Decepticons blasted out of the Professor's lab) they began. The meeting was a little less than a company meeting; it was more like a chance for the Board of Sumdac System to constantly criticize Sari's attempt to run the company. The biggest loudmouth of them all was none other than Porter C. Powell, chairman of the Board.
"Ms. Sumdac, we do urge you to please stop wasting the company's resources on finding your father. Yes we do regret that he has gone missing, but that doesn't mean you can put this company to a standstill," said Powell. Sari just inwardly groaned and let the meeting to continue. The less she talked back; the sooner it would finish. What felt like an eternity, the meeting finally ended and she was free to live her life.
---
Sari walked back to her room, letting out a loud moan before embracing the soft pillows and burying her face in an attempt to shut off reality. Kero paused his game of Ninja Gladiator and flew towards Sari.
"Hard day?" asked Kero.
"You wouldn't believe it. That stupid Powell, I really wish he would shut up," came Sari's muffled voice.
"Well c'mon. Your finally finished, why not enjoy the rest of the day?" Kero began tugging her arm. It took a moment for Sari to find some motivation before finally picking herself up. She took out her mobile phone and plugged in her AllSpark key into it. A few dial tones later…
"Hello?" came the high voice of Bumblebee.
"Hey Bee, it's me Sari!"
"Sari! What's up?"
"Oh nothing really, had to put up with Powell as usual. Hey listen, if your not busy want to chill out back at the base?"
"Oh sure! We just finished fixing a part of the city; I'll come and pick you up!"
"Kay, see you later, bye!"
"Bye!" and he hung up.
Sari flipped her phone closed and placed it in her pocket. She grabbed her backpack, Kero went in to hide, and closed it (leaving a small opening for him to breath). Taking the elevator down, she waited at the tower entrance for Bumblebee. A small yellow sports car zoomed in front of her, the passenger seat opened. Sari hopped inside and buckled her seat belt and off they drove. A few minutes passed, the traffic began to move sluggishly.
Arriving at the intersection, they saw the cause of the hold up. Parked on the curb of the top right corner of the intersection were police cars and a dirty yellow sports car similar to Bumblebee. A yellow police tape encircled a ruined toy store. One of the display windows was shattered; the glass shards were strewn all over the pavement. The inside, however, looked worse that the outside. It appeared that someone robbed the place but in a very clumsy manner, portions of shelves were missing toys and more toys littered the floor. Sari got out, Bumblebee transformed behind her and walked towards the crime scene.
"Nothing to see here, just move along," came Fanzone's voice from his megaphone, he turned and saw Sari and Bumblebee approaching. "Oh it's you two,"
"What's the problem?" Sari asked.
"Ah it's nothing, just a robbery as usual. Some mook broke in, stole a bunch of toys and scrammed before the police got here. Pretty fast work if you ask me,"
"Sounds like someone like Nanosec or Professor Princess would do this," said Bumblebee. "But both of them are locked up!"
"Whoever it was, it definitely isn't Nanosec or Professor Princess or your usual robber. The CSI examined the place and told me the perpetrator never entered the shop, it seems that the thief was waiting inside the shop till the dead of night to raid it. But what's more troubling is that there's no fingerprints or footprints," Fanzone told the two.
Upon hearing this, Sari had an inkling something was off. "Could it have been a Clow Card? I've got to ask Kero about this later," Sari thought to herself.
---
Arriving at the base, Sari and Bumblebee blasted the day away with video games and TV. Letting go of the tension of the day, they immersed themselves in entertainment. It wasn't until Prowl came in, shouting above the din that the constant noise was interrupting his meditation. They took it as a cue to leave. Picking up her backpack, Sari felt that Kero was getting a bit restless from doing nothing all day.
"I've got get back to the tower Bee, got some things to do," said Sari.
"Sure thing Sari," Bumblebee replied.
They drove off again and arrived back at Sumdac Tower.
"See you later, Bee!" as Sari waved to Bumblebee.
"See ya, Sari!" the yellow bot waved back, driving away.
When Bumblebee was out of view, Sari let Kero out. The guardian stretched, having been kept inside for so long.
"The day's still young Sari, why do you want to go home so soon?" asked Kero after stretching out the cramps.
"I think another Clow Card is on the loose," said Sari.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure,"
"Well… I've never expected the seal on the cards to break so soon, but I don't think it would hurt to check. Lead the way Sari!" as Kero went back inside her backpack. Sari retraced her way through Detroit. After asking a few questions and looking at a map, they stood in front of the toy store. Luckily the police had left and the streets were empty of people.
"This is the place Kero," said Sari. Kero flew over the police tape and closed his eyes in concentration. A minute passed before Kero returned.
"Sorry Sari, can't detect even a speck of magic," said Kero.
Sari sighed. "Oh well, I guess it was just a false alarm. Let's go home,"
The sun was beginning to set and the street lamps flickered on as they walked a few blocks. Just as they stepped onto the fourth block, both Kero and Sari stiffened. They felt the presence of a Clow Card. For Sari, she felt an exhilarating feeling coursing through her. It was if she was taking a great leap, breaking free of the bonds of gravity. Both of them searched left and right for the magical entity. The sound of breaking glass diverted their attention to a small toy store. Standing amongst broken glass was a pink creature. It had a round, bottle-like body. A pair of stubby arms, topped with three (short) sharp nails on each of them, was set in front of its furry chest. A pair of long, thin ears topped its head. Its eyes were shaped like thin triangles, giving it a glaring look. The color of its eyes was neon green and its pupils were silts. It had a thin jagged tail that ended in a ball of green fur. It stood on a pair of three toed feet, like a bird's except longer. To Sari, it reminded her of a pink stuffed rabbit.
"Is that…" Sari started.
"A Clow Card! That's the Jump Card! Get it Sari!" Kero finished her sentence.
Seeing no one for miles Sari pulled out the Key of the Seal from around her neck. Placed upon the palm of her hands, Sari began to chant.
The Key which hides the power of the Dark
Show your true powers before me
I, Sari, command you under our contract
RELEASE!
The Sealing Wand formed in front of her as she grabbed on to it. The rabbit-creature spotted Sari and Kero. It took a glance behind it, a soft white glow emitted from the store. A wave of plush toys flew to the air and formed into a large ball of dolls. The mass exploded into a rain of plush toys. Sari yelled in surprise as she covered her head from the falling projectiles. None of them touched her, but they were soon levitated into the air and shooting around her like angry bees. She cried out in shock as she felt one of the soft toys bumped into her. It simply fell to the ground.
"I forgot, these are only plush toys!" said Sari.
"Sari, it's only trying to distract you! Catch it!" Kero shouted. Sari nodded and ran though the maelstrom of dolls. Jump, seeing that its move wasn't working, hopped away (with every hop it took, it emitted a comical boing). The plushy dolls followed its trail.
The two ran after the fleeing creature, oblivious to a pair of red optics watching them from above. The shadowy figure transformed into a fighter jet and flew up in the air, following them. Still unaware to the stalking triple-changer, Sari finally caught up with Jump and pounced at it. Not timing herself, Sari only grabbed thin air. Jump had bounced out her reach and onto her head. Taking another jump, the force face-planted Sari into the ground. She picked herself up, rubbing her throbbing nose. With a growl, she chased after Jump. Catching up to it again, this time timing herself, she tackled the pink creature. But Jump seemed unfazed by its capture and simply took a great leap… towards the sky!
Blitzwing watched in amazement, as the pink organic was nothing but a blur as it ascended towards the heavens. He noticed that the female organic, he believed her name was Sari, was clinging onto it.
Sari, who had her eyes closed from the stinging wind, screamed in horror. Why did she have to look down? Underneath her, the city of Detroit was nothing but fireflies and all around her was a void of emptiness. At the corner of her eyes was Sumdac Tower. She was even higher that it was! Petrified, she clung tightly to the pink fur of Jump. But the rabbit-creature jerked away from her hands and left behind Sari. The girl screamed as gravity pulled her towards Earth, the air whistled through her. She knew she was plummeting towards certain death, she could have simply summoned Fly's power to save her, but her limbs refused to move, mind numb with fear.
"Is this the end for me?" was all she managed to get through her brain.
From a distance, Blitzwing watched the falling girl. He was always known for his cold, calculating character. So why was he feeling a twang of urgency at the girl's life? Like an instinct, Blitzwing rushed towards Sari. Transforming in mid-air, he caught the girl in his servos.
Sari noticed she stopped falling and that she was on a giant, black metallic hand with a purple band wrapped around it. She looked up at her savior, surprised to see…
"B-Blitzwing?!" shouted Sari.
The triple-changer didn't answer back. He too was dumbfounded at his own action, his right optic wide as his monocle as he stared at the child.
"Slag it…" was all he could say.
They soon landed in the deserted park and he placed her on the grass.
"What are you doing here? Decepti-creep," said Sari, not bothering to hide her annoyance.
"Sari! Are you okay?" Kero rushed towards the girl.
"I'm fine Kero, but we got another problem," she gave Blitzwing a glare.
"No time, Jump's going to get away!" he pointed towards the falling pink creature. Blitzwing took this opportunity to run.
Like a feline, Jump landed skillfully on its feet. The height from which it fell didn't seem to affect it at all. It turned to stare at the three.
"Return to the guise-" as Sari lifted up her staff. Jump eluded from the Cardcaptor by leaping away from the Sealing Wand. "Hey, wait a moment!"
The pink-creature hopped from one direction to the next. Faster than Sari could follow, it became nothing but a band of pink. With a swivel, Jump bounded towards the park's exit.
"Not so fast!" Sari pulled out the Windy card as the golden magic circle formed under her. "Become a binding chain, Windy!" she struck the card. A gale blew through the park as the sudden release of magic summoned forth Windy. The winged woman burst from the card. Unfurling her wings she glided towards Jump in wisps of yellow. Windy swirled around Jump before binding it back towards the ground. Trapped, the pink creature squirmed against its bounds.
Hiding behind a wall, Blitzwing watched the spectacle in astonishment.
"Impossible," he muttered.
Seeing that she had finally captured the elusive card, Sari jumped and whooped in victory. But her celebration was cut short as a cloud of plush dolls converged towards Jump. One by one, the dolls began to assimilate into Jump's form. With every doll, the rabbit creature grew larger and wider. Before her very eyes, Sari watched, as Jump grew as high as a skyscraper. Windy, who was still binding the card, broke apart and retreat back to Sari (reforming into her card form). After its transformation was complete, Jump snapped opens its eyes to glare at the two. Sari and Kero just stared; mouths gaped open in fearful awe.
Raising its head towards the sky, Jump let out a… howl? Rather than a roar or shriek, the card let out a long and low howl that reminded Sari of a cartoon sound effect of a spring.
"Boi-oi-oi-oing!!!" Jump let out another.
"Is that supposed to be a 'howl'?" said Sari, it would have been funny but given their current predicament there was no room for humor. Jump went back to glare at the Cardcaptor and the Beast of the Seal. It proceeded to walk towards the two.
"Run, Sari!" shouted Kero. The girl needed no indication to flee.
With every step the colossal Jump took, the earth shook and trees rattled. The nearest object for Sari to take cover was a tree. Underneath the ancient plant, Sari hoped Jump would be unable to reach her (seeing its overly large body and stubby arms). Jump stood in front of the tree for a second, as if contemplating its next course of action. The card decided to flatten both tree and Cardcaptor as it lifted up one of it feet high into the air, preparing for a good squashing. Sari stubbornly stood her ground.
"Move! Jou stupid girl!" Blitzwing was still watching, shocked at her refusal to run.
And the most awkward of things happened. It would have appeared that Sari would face certain doom, but gravity proved itself to be a great friend. Jump began to wobble back and forth from the sudden shift in its balance. The card's form began to flounder and morph like bath foam. Till finally it fell back and exploded, showering the park with all the plush toys it had collected. Sari just stared, bewildered by the sudden (anti-climatic) event. Amongst the mess of toys was Jump, in its original shape and size. The card was clearly knocked out, as it made no movement to get off the ground.
"All right, let's seal it off while we can!" said Kero.
Sari hmmed in reply as she pointed the Sealing Wand towards the downed card, raising it above her head she chanted:
Return to the guise that you were meant to be in!
CLOW CARD!
Sari brought down the staff, hitting the invisible barrier (the sound of chime bells followed) as soft light rippled forth from its 'beak'. A rectangular glowing body formed as Jump was lifted into the air. It disintegrated into ribbons as it was pulled back into its card form. A Clow Card floated in the air before sliding down into Sari's hand. On the card was Jump, except its form was different from what Sari saw. The Jump on the card had a pair of wings on its back and looked more like a rabbit. Printed on the sun symbol (on the upper part of the card) was '跳.'.
"Well done, Sari!" Kero flew next to her. Sitting in mid-air, a smile on his face, he looked at the card. "It's not surprising what happen, Jump is a bit stupid…"
"Really? Well at least we sealed it. But what are we going to do about all these toys?" Sari pointed to the plush toys that were randomly scattered in the park.
"Ah, leave it to the police. I'm sure they'll be happy to see all these goods returned," said Kero. "Who was that robot anyways? Another friend of yours?"
"Not a friend, just another problem to take care of," Sari turned around to find the triple-changer. "Alright Blitz-brain! Show yourself!" But too late as Sari saw a retreating jet fly off, leaving behind a streak of purple light. "Aw man, now the Decepticons know about my new powers!"
"He's a Decepticon?! But I thought you said all of them were evil, why did he just save you?" asked a baffled Kero.
"I don't know, Blitzwing's always doing crazy things. His head isn't screwed on right," said Sari.
"Well even if they do know, they're no match against a Clow Card nor can they harness its powers. So I wouldn't be too worried if that's what you're thinking," said Kero with an offhanded voice.
Still, Sari was a bit unnerved by the Decepticon's appearance. She wasn't the only one feeling the same way. Soaring through the air, Blitzwing had thousands of thoughts passing through his processor. But the strongest of his thoughts was…
"Vhy did I save that girl? Vhat the slag is vrong with me?"
"You valking glitch-head! I hope you're happy, blowing our cover like zhat!" Hothead bellowed in his processor.
"And zhey say I'm the crazy von? Hahahaha!!!" Random's high, child-like voice chortled.
"Vell vhatever zhe case is, it does not affect zhe mission. Zhe girl has acquired some interesting powers, unlike anything we've seen. Ve must continue observing her, even if she has spotted us. Zhis is a chance too rare to miss," Icy reasoned with his other personalities as they continued to glide above the city.
End of the fourth chapter!
Dun dun da da daduuun dun dun!
Leave it to Kero!
"Hey-hey-hoo! Once again it's time for Leave it to Kero! Today we have…" and the background behind Kero changed to a picture of a well-known tower. "Sumdac Tower!"
"This time for Leave it to Kero, we're going to something a bit different. What catches my eye the most about this tower is its structure. After sleep- I mean, being sealed inside the book for many years, a lot has changed in human architecture. First off, the base is built in an unorthodox way. The tower starts off slim, eventually widening for the body and ending at a tip. A tower would usually have a large, strong base, but Sumdac Tower boggles the mind as it stands proud and tall,"
Again, Kero shows his love for the camera. "And now, Kero's Check!"
"After comparing various modern tools and gadgets, I find that Sumdac Tower look more like a giant spark plug. What a tribute to technology!"
With a pipe in hand, and donning the pink bow, Kero begins to conclude the segment. "I think I'll wrap it up around here. If I introduce too much at once, there won't be much for later. I'm such a nice guy! See ya!" Kero waves his arm in farewell.
Hope you enjoyed it and please don't forget to add in your review! I'm still a little irked by the sudden disappearance of two of my reviews. But I guess that would be my fault since I deleted the previous chapter and reposted it. Why don't I ever listen to that little voice in my head?