If you think there is lack of excitement, I apologize for that. But I promise, we're getting there. People are still going to be missing right now, and we do meet Karena's dad in this chapter. I'm going to start doing one-shots from other characters' points of view on how they felt when they had an adventure with Karena (i.e. Wilbur when he first met her; Leonardo fighting in Helm's Deep, etc.). See chapter 2 for disclaimer, and enjoy!
April and I approached the Los Angeles Central Library, where we were to meet my dad in order for him to help us research about Carl Jackson. Carl, the gold robot Cornelius Robinson invented, stayed at the apartment to try to trace Jackson as well as transfer some stuff to Todayland. Anyway, we found my dad sitting at a desk with his laptop. He smiled as he got off his chair to hug me.
"It's so nice to see you again, Daddy," I said, looking up into his gray eyes. "Thank you for taking time off of work to help us."
"Anything for my only child," my dad replied with a smile. "Besides, a chemist needs time off once in awhile. Who's your friend?"
"This is April O'Neil. April, meet my father, Jonathan Edwards." The two shook hands and smiled.
"It's very nice to meet you, sir," April replied. "My dad's a scientist himself."
"Same to you," my father responded with a smile. "You know, you could fit right in at Los Angeles." April blushed at the comment. My dad had a way to charm strangers who were ladies, which I thought strange because he has been getting gray hairs in his brown hair, his wife had died, and I was all he had left besides his job.
"Let's just get to the research, shall we?" I quickly asked, and the three of us went to the computer.
"Carl Jackson was a student majoring in magic at Indiana University," my dad read as he skimmed through some documents. There's a major in magic? "However, he never graduated; he was kicked out for unethical experiments in the laboratory." My dad turned to me with a raised eyebrow. "Why do you want to know about this?"
"Let me try something." I had my dad get out of the chair so that I could Google search Carl Jackson arrests, but I found nothing. I turned around to see my dad to answer his question. "My boyfriend and a few close friends of April's have been kidnapped by Carl Jackson. My robot friend has proof of this back at the apartment."
"Boyfriend? Robot friend?" Now my dad was suspicious. "Explain." I had no choice but to tell him about my two adventures inside my television set, only because of a funky remote. I also told my dad...and April, since she didn't know yet, about my one-month relationship with Wilbur Robinson, about how he reminded me so much of my mom. April then explained how she was not from this world, but from the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" television show, and that convinced my dad that my adventures really did happen. However, I did not tell him about my moving to Todayland; I didn't think he was ready to know yet.
We left the library after an hour, and we took a short walk to Starbucks to order frappuchinos. I wondered if there was a coffee shop in Todayland and decided to ask Wilbur and Carl later.
"So this Wilbur boy reminds you of your mother?" My dad interrupted my thoughts, and I smiled.
"You'd be surprised," I answered. "When Mom sang to me before she died, I felt so happy in her arms. When Wilbur sang one of my favorite songs, I felt as though his voice gave me confidence, confidence that I haven't had in years, and a new strength. Outside of that, he's a black belt and he's a fast learner when it comes to learning new things. He doesn't give up to help his family and friends, and he keeps moving forward no matter what. But I like his spark of life more than anything else."
"I would like to meet this boy," my dad replied. I pointed a finger at him and smirked.
"Help me rescue him, and you'll get your chance."
"Who replaced my shy daughter with a spunky one?" my dad asked with a smirk. April and I laughed as we finished our frappuchinos, and we left Starbucks to head to my apartment. When we got there, we were met by a very disturbed Carl. I hastened to introduce the robot to my dad.
"Jonathan, Carl from Meet the Robinsons. Carl, Jonathan." The two quickly shook hands and we gathered around the table in the kitchen. "What's going on, Carl?"
"I've got good news and bad news, but tell me what you found out first."
"Jackson majored in magic at Indiana University, but he got kicked out," my dad explained. "That's all we got."
"Well then, the good news is I know where his hideout is and Carl Jackson is, indeed, the Magician," Carl explained. "The bad news is some women named Idrial and Morwen and some guy named Obi-Wan Kenobi are now missing and joined Wilbur and the Turtles at the hideout." I laughed at Carl's mispronunciation of Idrial's name and corrected him, and then I grew serious. These people were friends of mine that I had met two months ago, and I fought alongside them.
"Do you know where they were when they got kidnapped?" April asked.
"The two ladies were fighting in a place called Minas Tirith," Carl replied, mispronouncing Minas Tirith. "Obi-Wan was with Qui-Gon Jinn in Coruscant before the Senate joined together." He also pronounced the Jedi Master's name and Coruscant wrong, and I corrected him on those mistakes.
"Well, let's start in Minas Tirith," I suggested. "Dad, can you stay here and monitor things? If there's a threat, call me with this." I handed to him the remote the Robinsons used to find me along with a headset that I had made, and my dad agreed to the plan. April chose to stay with my dad because she probably would not be welcome during a great war on Middle-Earth wearing her own clothes...or on Coruscant.
"These orcs can be harmful if you aren't carful," I warned Carl. "So be very careful, because they can slice you off with swords and spears. Just concentrated on getting the clues we need; I'll help the group defend you."
"Now you're making me feel uneasy about this," Carl replied with worry, and then he was panicked. "I'm coming with you?!"
"And don't worry about introducing yourself; I'll explain it to them."
I gestured my dad to push the button to open the vortex, and Carl and I were sucked in. Things were not a welcome sight, for we found ourselves battling a Nazgul on the fifth level!