Nicktoons: Battle for Volcano Island
Chapter 2: Berries and Fruit
The rain forest was hot and seamy; moisture clung to the boys' clothes and face like static. They were following the wise, old crab to find some food for themselves and their friends.
"Man," said Timmy, fanning himself with his hat, "why is it so dang hot?"
Danny shook his sweaty head, "I dunno, dude. We'll ask Jimmy when we get outta here."
"If we survive this heat, that is," moaned Spongebob, wiping his forehead.
"Here we are, Chosen Ones!" stated the crab.
The three boys looked over and saw a clearing in the jungle. After they reached it, there was a small grove of trees and bushes. The trees had round, pink fruit on their branches and the bushes grew bright, red berries.
The crab scuttled over to one of the bushes and plucked a berry. He examined it, rolling it around in his claws and sniffing. After doing the same to the fruit from the tree, the wise crab said to the boys, "These are ripe and ready to be eaten. Help yourselves, Chosen Ones!"
The guys began collecting as much fruit and berries as they could carry. Spongebob couldn't help but pop a few into his mouth.
Smiling, he mused, "Mm, these berries taste good."
"Really?" asked Timmy and he plucked one of the drupes. Chewing it, the bucktooth suddenly felt a sour taste in his mouth.
Spitting it out in disgust, he turned to the sponge, "That didn't taste good at all!"
The wise crab picked up the smushed berry. "Well, no wonder," he explained, "this berry is a little late to ripen."
"Besides," said Danny, his arms full of the harvest, "we have enough ripe ones for you and the others."
Once they were ready, the crab led the gang back through the jungle. When they arrived back at the hut, two of their friends were having a conversation.
"...of course, it's possible that if one were to find out the secret of the multiverse and how it works, the multiverse will disappear and would be replaced by a more complex multiverse," Jimmy was saying.
Sandy nodded, "That's a good point, pardner, but is it also possible that it's already happened?"
"Well, perhaps, because the multiverse may have been destroyed and created many times before and..."
"WE'RE BACK!"
The two inventors were startled by Spongebob's loud greeting. "Spongebob, for Calamity Jane's sake!" said the squirrel, clutching her chest, "ya'll almost gave be a heart attack."
The sponge grew guilty, "Oh, sorry, Sandy. I didn't mean to..."
"That's whacha said when you completely dismantled my anti-matter gun."
Jimmy's eyes lit up, "You have a anti-matter gun?"
"I used to..."
"Can we eat now?" asked Patrick.
Timmy looked over at the pink sea star and said, "I think that's the best idea I've ever heard from Pat; we should eat now."
The three boys placed the fruit and berries on the tree stump table. There were two kinds; one came from the tree and had a pink, smooth skin with an orange hue, while the other was from a bush and was red and bumpy.
Jimmy picked up the pink fruit and studied it. "Are these safe to eat?"
"The crab said these were ripe," replied Danny, grabbing a handful of the berries.
Timmy held the fruit in his hands and asked, "So, who's gonna go first?"
"Ooh! Ooh! Me first! Me first!" pleaded Patrick as he jumped up and down, waving his stubby arms.
He rushed over and took the fruit from the bucktooth kid's hand. The sea star began to nom the food in a messy fashion.
After finishing, he burped and said, "Mmm, tasty."
"Really?" Danny took a bite of the pink fruit. It tasted like a peach but was a watery as a watermelon.
Watching the teen chowing down on his food made Jimmy hungry and he popped one of the berries into his mouth. It had the flavor of a strawberry but a slight sour taste like that of a grapefruit. The others followed suit and were soon enjoying the tropical food.
Soon, the table was empty and the group was relaxing, their stomachs full.
Danny leaned back on the chair he was sitting in and stretched. "Being the Chosen One is awesome!" he said.
"Don't forget why we're here in the first place, though," Jimmy replied. He was looking at one of his devices.
Timmy noticed and asks, "Whacha doin'?"
"I'm studying the abnormalities in this dimension's space-time fabric. It looks like there's an irregularity effecting the island."
The others nodded, still not understanding what the genius was saying.
"What does that mean?" asked Spongebob.
Sam added, "And could you explain it in English, please?"
Jimmy looked up at the group and said, "I think I might know what's going on; our monster, the Mawgu, is draining energy in all of our worlds and keeping it for myself."
A fearful expression crossed his face as he continued, "If this goes on for much longer, all our homes will be destroyed!"
Upon hearing the word 'destroyed', Danny sat up straight. "If he's gettin' so powerful, how can we stop him?"
The genius smiled, "I've setting up a blueprint of an invention that could help us; the Neutron Rip-Zipper! It'll use that monster's power to energize itself and close the rip in time and space."
"Great," said Timmy, "so you'll get it done in no time, right?"
Jimmy said sheepishly, "Actually, I'll need some parts for the device. But fortunately we'll find them around the island."
"Do ya'll know what we need?" asked Sandy.
The genius quickly drew a rough blueprint of the Rip-Zipper, did a calculation and stated, "We'd need a stand to hold the device in place, some electronics (which I'll provide), and an energy focus."
"Won't the energy source be the stuff the Mawgu is draining?" Danny asked.
"Without a focus," replied Jimmy, "the energy will escape too quickly; we need something to store that energy for the device to work."
Spongebob was still confused will all the 'sciency' stuff, but inquired, "So, what can we use to make an energy focus thingamajig?"
"Good question," said the genius, "and I think that a stone or crystal would work as a focus."
"A stone, you say?"
The group jumped at the voice and saw the wise old crab standing in the doorway. He looked at the surprised expressions on the Chosen Ones' faces.
"My apologies, but I couldn't help overhearing that you require a stone so you can save our island."
Jimmy nodded, "Yes, we do."
"Well, there is a special stone, called the Amber Stone, hidden deep in a lagoon cave not far from here. Legends say that it shall grant vast power to anyone who finds it."
The genius's eyes lit up, "That'll work perfectly for the Rip-Zipper!"
"Great!" said Danny, standing up, "Let's go and get that stone!"
The crab suddenly blocked the teen's path with his staff. "It's far too dangerous to be traveling after dark, Ghost Boy. The Mawgu's minions are much stronger during the night."
"But the Mawgu might destroy our worlds overnight!" protested Danny.
The crab smiled, "Not to worry; I know a few spells that will disrupt his plans. Although they can't stop the Mawgu completely, the spells will slow him down long enough for you and your friends to find the stone."
Spongebob awed, "Ooh, so you're a magician or something?"
"Actually, I'm the shaman of my village. I may look frail, but I know a good spell or two to keep that monster on his toes."
Sam crossed her arms in pride, "I told ya, guys, never trust a book by its cover."
"So, if we can't go out at night," said Timmy, "what are we supposed to do?"
The wise crab answered, "Sleep! You Chosen Ones need your rest for tomorrow's mission. I'll do the same, after I finish those spells. Sleep well, Chosen Ones!"
With that said, the crab scuttled back to his village, leaving the group alone.
Spongebob climbed into one of the hammocks. "You heard him, let's get some shut eye."
"You said it, Spongebob," replied Patrick as he tried to do the same. The sea star lost his balance while trying to get in the bed and fell to the floor. He tried again a few more times, failing every time, until Danny rolled his eyes and picked him up and placed Patrick in the cot.
"Thanks, could you give me a kiss goodnight too?" asked the sea star in a dopey manner.
Danny dully said, "Yeah no, dude," and crawled into another hammock.
Timmy smirked, already in the cot, "You could give Sam a goodnight kiss..."
He yelped when he flew off the bed and onto the floor. Standing up, the bucktooth kid saw the teen's smoking hand and glaring face.
"Jeez, I was just kiddin'," grumbled Timmy, getting in the hammock again.
Once everyone was in bed, most of them quickly fell asleep. Except for Danny, who was too excited to slumber.
The ghost teen, now in his human form, listened to his friends' quiet breathing. There was a snore from Patrick and he turned on his side, drooling a little. Spongebob mumbled in his sleep, something about talking Krabby Patties.
Outside, Danny could hear insects chirping up a storm. He then noticed a firefly enter through the cracked door. It flew slowly and blinked its light in a soft glow, like a candle. The teen smiled as his eyes started to droop. The firefly's glow made Danny feel comfortable and he soon drifted off to dreamland.