So did you guys see "A Glitch is a Glitch"? That was so crazy that I thought something was up with my T.V. for a minute. Like, I wasn't really paying attention at first 'cause I was drawing, and then I heard the starting jingle and I looked up and saw the animated opening and thought "What the hell?"
Then I started laughing. I realized it was the episode itself and enjoyed the rest of the episode. Speaking of episodes, how many do you think AT will have left? Like... I heard rumors that this was the last season. If so, I'm really sad. But I hope Pen Ward comes to his senses and makes a Fionna and Cake spin-off. It would be beautiful.
Now, I'm still accepting song requests so if you want to submit one for any main character in this story, shoot me a PM or review.
Disclaimer: No. Just... no.
They followed Adam through the barren land towards the city. It was a few miles away, covered in a thick, hazy smoke that danced upon the tops of the skyscrapers. Fionna asked Adam why he couldn't go inside but he said he didn't know. It just wouldn't let him in. He had tried but... it didn't work. Charlie and Fionna hoped that the city would at least let them in. After an hour of walking, they reached a beat up freeway sign that read: "Memoria City" a few feet away from the borders.
"This isn't a city I've ever..." Charlie said but Fionna suddenly hugged his side, pointing towards the city.
"Look! I can see people!" she shrieked. "Human people!"
Charlie's face suddenly lit up, not really caring whether or not he had never heard of the city. They told Adam they'd be back in a while and trooped towards the city. They stepped onto the street and weren't repelled. They were allowed entry! Fionna was giddy with excitement and Charlie was staring around, his mouth hanging open. The city was huge. Skyscrapers hitting the smoke and vanishing into the black clouds. It was like a storm on its way but it couldn't soil their mood. Just the fact of being surrounded by a bunch of humans was enough to lift their spirits. They grinned at one another and walked onto the side walk. People passed them and the two of them tried to gain their attention but they ignored them as if they were normal civilians. Fionna was getting tired of getting ignored so she tried to grab someone's shoulder. The man she grabbed turned to her and snapped.
"I'm very busy, young lady!" he growled. "You and your boyfriend should go bother someone else!"
Both of them blushed and began to protest but the man stormed off. Fionna grabbed Charlie's arm and tugged him through the crowd until they reached an alley way to talk.
"That was rude," Charlie said angrily.
"What's with everyone?" Fionna said, crossing her arms and looking at the crowd. "They act like nothing happened to the human race."
"Humans are known to be ignorant."
"Yeah but... this is almost too normal, y'know?"
Charlie bit his lip and ran a hand through his thick, brown hair. "Maybe we can ask a few questions."
"A few questions, hm?" a voice said from the shadows. They both turned, fists raised as an old man, a homeless man, bounced out. His clothes were grimy and tattered, fingerless gloves over his hands, and his hair was a rat's nest. He grinned a scraggly grin at them and scratched his stubbly neck. "New around here, aren't ya?" he asked.
"Yeah," Fionna said, smiling that they were finally talking to someone.
The man eyed their clothes and pursed his lips. "Say... what's with the funny clothes you got on?" he said, leaning forward and inspecting Fionna's blue shirt.
She stepped back a little, feeling slightly grossed out and a little worried. This definitely wasn't normal. What was wrong with their clothes now? But Charlie spoke, "What funny clothes?" He looked down at his shirt and gasped. His clothes hadn't changed but the rips and tears he had earned from their travels were gone. Fionna's too. Even her white hat seemed cleaner. Her blond hair was brushed neatly and she was absolutely...
Charlie shook his head and refocused on their clothes. It was then he also realized that their clothes were a little... brighter. It was as if they had stepped into a memory and everything around them was black and white... almost sepia. This wasn't normal but Fionna didn't seem to notice yet. Then it hit Charlie... Memoria in Latin means...
"Look, guy," Fionna said, "we just want answers."
"Like what year is this?" Charlie said.
The man turned his eyes on Charlie with a skeptical gleam. "What do you mean?"
"What year is this?" Charlie repeated.
"Why its 2056, my good man!" the hobo said. "You're in good ol' Boston, Massachusetts. Only safe place on the east coast from the Mushroom Bombs."
"No, we're in Memoria City," Fionna said.
"What now?" the hobo said, looking confused.
Charlie grabbed Fionna's arm and brought her head close to his ear. "Fionna, Memoria in Latin means memory! This is a preserved memory from the war. We're far from Boston, long way away from it."
"Then why is it here?" Fionna hissed.
"I dunno but I don't think this is the only city that's landed here," Charlie said. "Memories must hop around. We ran into a giant talking bird. So I don't think places like this are to be unexpected."
"Pardon me, kiddies," the hobo said. "What seems to be the problem?"
"Sir, we need to go," Charlie said. "Thank you." He and Fionna backed out of the alley and ran down the sidewalk but... their entrance was gone. They couldn't see Adam and they seemed to be sucked into the heart of the city.
"What the gunk?" Fionna said.
"Glob, Fionna... what the heck are we gonna do?"
"I dunno. This is so weird. I've never seen anything like this in Aaa," Fionna said. "Nothing to this extent, I mean."
They walked around, looking for a way out. As they passed people by, they noticed their colors were weak like the rest of the city and their edges were blurred. They were solid but they flickered like static. The city was just like an old movie. The two of them continued to wander about, entering a small park full of locals going about their day. Teens playing with a hacky-sack, frisbee, and walking around the path with friends. Adults jogging or taking a quick lunch break before returning to work. It was as if there wasn't a war going on. A normal day... How ignorant! Fionna thought. A bomb could come out of nowhere and just explode, vaporizing them on the spot.
She and Charlie sat on a bench, watching the people come and go, laughing and talking. The two travelers began to talk about what was going on in this city and why people were acting so normal. It was obvious that the citizens felt like Boston was the last safe place but they both knew, in reality, the people wanted to convince themselves that nothing was going to happen to them. That the war was just going to pass over their heads. Charlie suggested they head out to Adam and Fionna agreed, wanting to leave this creepy feeling in her gut and the city behind.
They began to make their way towards their exit but stopped suddenly as a noise reached their eardrums. Fionna's stomach flipped as she heard the scream of a siren. She had heard things like this in her dreams of the war. The citizens looked up and started to scream and scatter. The two of them were getting pushed around by the crowd but Charlie was able to grasp Fionna's hand and pull her through the crowd. The hobo from before was shouting at them from over the crowd.
"Get outta here! Underground! We're being attacked!" he roared before getting swallowed by the sea of people.
"What are we gonna do?" Fionna panicked.
"My theory, I don't think we'll get killed here," Charlie said. "But I'm not one hundred percent. Let's find cover before the army shows up and they drop a bomb."
"Agreed," Fionna said.
Her nightmares were coming true. She was experiencing the war first hand even if it was in a memory of others. Wherever or whatever this place was, she didn't like. They ran down the emptying streets, trying to find a safe haven. Adrenaline pumped through their veins and Fionna felt tears of terror sting the back of her eyes. She clamped Charlie's hand, not wanting to let go.
"Mother mother mother mother mother!" Charlie said rapidly, running through the threads of panicking people, his forehead sweating.
"Over here!" someone called and they turned their heads. The hobo was waving them over and they ran over. He was opening the entrance to a wooden cellar in an alley way. Charlie and Fionna dived in as the sound of gunfire began to fill the air. The hobo slammed the door behind them and they turned to see the flickering images of other citizens. Men, women, and children huddled together, looking terrified. The hobo cleared his throat at the two teens and smiled warmly.
"Take a seat," he said. He jabbed a finger towards two crates and they sat, feeling so out of place and surreal.
The bunker was small. About fifteen people were against the walls, shaking in fear and anticipation. Several crates of food and water bottles and other supplies were stacked against the wall. A dim light bulb hung from a string from the ceiling and gas masks were stacked in a corner.
"Does this happen often?" Fionna asked, hugging her arms to her chest.
"We've had drills since the war started," a woman spoke. "We never thought it would happen here."
"It's such a sad thing, this war," the hobo said, shaking his head. "Been going on since... what? 2042?"
"Around that time," confirmed another man.
"2042." Charlie repeated so quietly that only Fionna could hear. "Over one thousand years ago."
"Doesn't really sound right but... I suppose," Fionna said. She turned to the others. "What's gonna happen now?"
"We wait," the hobo said, leaning his back against the wall. "Wait until the battle is over. Hopefully our side will win and we can go out before the bomb is dropped."
"How do you know a bomb is gonna be dropped?" Charlie pressed.
"It's like a pattern," a man in the corner said. "The enemy army marches in, a bomb is dropped afterwards wiping everyone out. Some cities are lucky but others... not so much."
Fionna heard screaming and shouting outside and felt her stomach clench. Being in this room with these helpless people was so wrong. They had no idea that they would be annihilated in an instant. She touched Charlie on the arm and he turned to face her.
"We have to get out of here," Fionna whispered frantically. "The bomb is gonna be dropped any moment."
"I know but I'm still trying to figure it out," Charlie said. "Are you up for a fight?"
"Against..." she gulped hard and shivered. "Guns?"
"Worth a shot. Erm... no pun intended. Don't you have any supernatural abilities?"
"Not really... ooh!" She snapped her fingers and grabbed her bag, rifling through it and paying no mind to the others who were watching the pair intently. Fionna pulled out a piece of torn out paper that was slowly yellowing. "This is from forever ago but I can still remember how to do some of these moves."
She mumbled something and the air got a little colder. The other people shivered from the cold but Charlie stared at Fionna with interest. She glanced at the page and then turned it over.
"Still fuzzy," Fionna said. "The powers are weak but it's worth a try." She made a few gestures with her fingers and small ice daggers appeared in her hand. "Ha, ha! There we go. A trick the Ice Queen herself would be proud of."
"Brilliant!" he beamed. "Let's try and make it out, yeah?"
"Yeah," she agreed.
The two of them stood and the others stared. They walked towards the exit and the hobo stood in their way.
"What do you think you're doing?" he demanded. "You'll die out there."
"Maybe. But we need to get out there," Fionna said. "We don't belong here. Thanks for the protection but we're not from here."
"What do you mean you're not from here?" someone said. "Not from Boston?"
"No, Sir," Charlie said. "We're from Aaa."
"Aaa?" a woman repeated.
"Sounds like a lie," spat a teenage boy. "A foreign language."
"Enemy spies!" another woman cried, standing and pointing an accusing finger towards them. "It's the only explanation!"
"They're gonna kill us all!" another teenager shouted. "Get them now and throw them out before we become victims."
"You don't understand! This war's gonna kill all humans!" Fionna said. She pointed frantically between herself and Charlie. "We're the only ones left."
Charlie groaned and smacked his forehead with his palm. Fionna realized what she said and how it sounded. She sucked in a sharp breath of air and muttered an apology to Charlie. The others stared at them, wide-eyed and fearful. Fionna and Charlie exchanged nervous looks. The teenage boy jumped up with the other woman.
"Get them! They're planning something!" he yelled.
Fear induced and wild, the others stood too and advanced towards them. Fionna did a few quick hand gestures and cried out, "Force of Blizzard!" And a storm of snow erupted from her palms. They burst through the doors and slammed it shut, into the heart of the battle.
"Go!" Charlie yelled.
"But what about-?"
"Fionna, they're not real! Memories! Remember that? Just go!"
He and Fionna ran as fast as they could, dodging in and out of alley ways, avoiding the gunfire and shouts of soldiers. The city around them started to flicker and they saw their entry place. They smiled in relief and started to run faster. Suddenly, Fionna was rooted to the spot as a familiar whistle flowed through her ears. She slowly turned towards the sound and in the sky was a flickering dot that was obviously one of the minor Mushroom Bombs. Fionna swallowed hard and Charlie tired to drag her away. He was calling her name but she didn't hear him. His voice was suddenly cut off by a cry of pain. But she didn't notice either. The bomb was bubbling such a deep fear inside of her that she couldn't think straight. Her senses were dulled.
Bang!
A sharp pain ripped through her right shoulder as a bullet flew through it. She swore in old and clutched her wound, the world around her crashing back into reality. Charlie was suddenly in her eye sight and he was patting her cheek rapidly. His face was pain-stricken and his side was bleeding badly. He had also gotten shot and the cry she heard had now obviously come from him.
"Fionna! Stay with me here!" he shouted over the panic, gritting his teeth through the sting in his side. "We can get out. I'll get your shoulder and my side all fixed up. C'mon! Before we both get shot to death!"
She nodded and they rushed as fast as they could towards the exit, Adam waiting anxiously for them. Fionna turned against her will and saw as the bomb plummeted into the earth, a huge mushroom cloud erupting from the ground. The two travelers were flung apart, colliding into buildings. Fionna's world spun and she blacked out.
Her eyes fluttered open and the pain was throbbing in her shoulder worse than ever. The first thing she registered was the sound of total chaos. Her vision cleared and she saw people running around. Some were on fire and others were growing strange and unnatural things out of several parts of their bodies. Fionna gasped but coughed thickly, the chemicals form the explosion filling her lungs. How she survived was beyond her. And Charlie...
Ignoring the sharp pang from her wound, Fionna shot up and took in another painful breath. She cupped her hands over her mouth and cried, "Charlie!" She hacked another cough, clutching her chest. This definitely wasn't healthy. She felt an odd feeling in her being which she deduced was the radioactivity having a negative effect on her. Moaning in pain, Fionna struggled to move forward, her blue eyes scanning the panic-stricken streets for her companion.
She found him unconscious against a crumbling wall. Rushing over, the pain getting worse, she thanked Glob that he was at least breathing. She kneeled beside him and shook his shoulders gently.
"Wake up!" she pleaded. "Please!" Tears were fighting to escape. The young boy opened his eyes and the tears flowed with joy. "You're okay!" she said, hugging him.
"We lived?" he said as if daring to believe it.
"Come on," she said. "Let's get out of this place if we can." Fionna looked around the crying people and found the flickering exit waiting for them, Adam flying around, trying to look for the two of them. Fionna put his arm around her shoulder and they both limped over, the chemicals infiltrating their systems, making them gag. They were able to pass by the victims and soldiers and exited the memory.
"Oh, goodness! I thought you were as good as dead!" Adam said, looking relieved.
Charlie, Fionna, and Adam turned towards the city and they watched, horrified, as the memory flickered wildly and died. An empty lot stood before them but the cloud of smoke still hung over it. Suddenly, like an invisible force pressed a speed up button, another city was quickly being built. They heard the chiming of a large clock tower and they turned to face it. Charlie murmured "London" with a gentle smile. Life went on and they watched as it soon turned to chaos and then it was destroyed by yet another bomb. Then the cycle began again and turned into another city. Fionna touched her wound but found that it was gone. Her old injuries and scars and rips were back. She took in a deep breath and relaxed as fresh air entered instead of harmful chemicals.
"It's good we got out of there in time," Fionna said. "I dunno how we survived that odd place."
"Odd place," Charlie repeated. He smirked. "That's a name for it, alright. How's your shoulder?"
"It's perfect," she said honestly. She looked down at his leg and saw that it too was completely healed apart from his previous injuries. "I think we got hurt there by their terms or something... confusing."
"Definitely," Charlie nodded.
"What happened?" Adam demanded.
Neither of them answered. Fionna stuffed the ninja paper back in her bag. She and Charlie turned and started to walk back to the main road. Adam sensed it was a sensitive topic and followed them, flying overhead.
The very thought of seeing the calm, everyday life of a normal human go to complete gut-wrenching fear in mere minutes was too much. The panic of the war swallowed everyone into its depths and made them slaves to terror. Fionna was still shaking and she hugged her arms to her chest. Charlie slid an arm around her shoulder and they walked together. Fionna felt tears drip down her cheeks, her breath catching in her throat, the very thrill of being alive making her grateful for everything she had. Charlie felt tears sting the back of his eyes too, also feeling the flow of relief that he had lived another day. The horror of the war and the extinction of humans seeping, burning into their memories and the images running through their heads.
Intense, yeah? I hope you liked it! I always thought, since Aaa had weird places, why not out in the bare, radioactive wasteland? The memory thing seemed, to me, a little too surreal but hey, I've seen weirder. (shrug) I thought it was an okay chapter, though.
Tell me what you think! Do you guys have any suggestions for future chapters? Go ahead and send me an idea. Songs too, still taking those.
I think next chapter will be centered around Aaa and Marshall and Ice Queen. Stuff like that. Maybe more into Gumball and Marshall's mending friendship. What do you wanna see? Let me know! And, as always:
See you next time!