Arriving in a big room with clogs and gears are moving, Pudgy and Frankie rode an elevator. With a stop, the doors open to a big room with a handful of Teddy Bears in the room, circle around something.
"Thimble, what's going on?" Pudgy asked.
Popping up from the circle was Lyn, who had a worry look on her face. Frankie quickly ran to the circle. Her eyes were wide open.
On the floor was Dodger. His eyes were all black.
Before a question could be asked, the building shook violently. One of the Bears ran to the controls where a huge monitor flashed on.
All over the screen were black airships being led by a black pirate ship. On there that the footage wasn't picking up was The Nightmare who held a microphone to his mouth.
"I must applaud y'all on getting the hourglass to work again. You must see my work on your hero. Can't believe he didn't feel my touch. I could've killed him. But I'm a sucker for torture.
"I would ask for the Dragon Rune, but I rather find it through the destruction and your corpses."
The building shook again. The Bears scramble in the room, sitting on a chair of some contraption at the corners of the room.
"Pudgy, Nimble, Powder, and Danny, I want every ship blasted out of the sky! The hourglass is still powering up. The shields won't be up yet. Lyn, can you help us out there?"
Lyn placed Dodger's body on a bed, giving his forehead a kiss before walking off and summoning her lightning bolt in her right hand. "I will destroy them. I will destroy them all for harming my beloved!"
A bolt of lightning struck her and the Goddess vanished. The four Teddy Bears that were called on turned on their screens to see the ships flying around the skies and palace.
Outside, four quadruple barrels begin their defensive onslaught as the battle began.
Frankie held on to the right hand of the sleeping man. "Dodger, you gotta wake up. We need your help."
In the dream, Dodger was on his knees, a look of disbelief on his face.
The sky was a terrifying black with the only light being fire. The fire from all over Carlson. Including the Fayetteville Foster Home. His home.
What was worse was that his father, mother, and the three kids he called brother and sisters were on the ground, lifeless eyes staring at him.
"Oh my god...When was this? H-How?"
Through the dark smoke walked a figure. Coming in eyesight, stepping on the carcasses, Dodger's eye narrowed and stood up to the person in front of him.
"I know what you're thinking. Yes, this is crazy. But you know what they say. Your biggest enemy is...well, you know."
It was himself wearing the electricity super suit, except the yellow and blue were red. His hair was red, as well as his eyes, sparking red lightning.
"Oh, Dodger. The wannabe hero. See what being a hero does? Caring for a bunch of creatures you don't know, you forgot about the people you love."
"N-No, I didn't. I didn't forget about my family."
Picking up the lifeless body of Brenda, Dodger opens her mouth like a puppet. "Yes you did, Dodgy."
"Don't you dare touch her!" Dodger gritted his teeth.
The Power-up version of the Kid toss the body back on the ground and got in the face of his counterpart. A smirk on his face.
"This isn't a job, Dodger, my boy. This is life or death. A job for the bravest. Not some chump who saw superhero movies and thinks he can be one. You're no hero, Dodger. You just nothing."
Dodger shook his head, closing his eyes. "Shut up. This isn't real!"
"Oh, it's real. It's real that you're the reason your real mother died. That you were never good enough to be adopted. That you wasn't that smart to graduate high school. The best part is that you're just a no-name clown without purpose."
The real Dodger growled, charging at himself. But he was sent back far away, hitting the road like a rock skipping on the water.
Rolling to a stop, the Human got back on his feet to a fighting stance. Coming towards him in breakneck speed, Lightning Dodger grabs the head, slams it down on the ground, and proceeds to punch him in the chest multiple times.
"Come on, hero! Fight back!
Back in Cloud 9, Dodger's body was moving violent, groaning in pain. Small leaks of blood start coming out of his mouth.
Frankie rubs his hand to comfort him. But with the chaos of the Palace outside, it wasn't helping him nor her. "Come on, Dodger. You can beat him. I know you can. You beat down a Goddess. You can defeat a dream."
Another tremor shook the large castle. On the upper right corner, Pudgy fell off his chair from the blast, rolling on the floor.
"Pudgy!" yelled Danny the Bear who ordered the group. He checked on his comrade, who laid there injured.
Another shake and the room flash in red lights with alarms blaring.
"We've been breached" Danny said.
A blur ran past the Bear. Entering the seat, Frankie watches the screen and begins to attack the ships. It was uncomfortable as the turret controls weren't made for humans. But sitting around wasn't going to help.
"These bastards are going down! I'm tired of restless nights. I'm going to beat this nightmare. You hear me, Dodger?! I'm going to fight. You better fight with me!"
Down at the destoryed entrance of the Puffy Palace, The Nightmare walked in with an army of red devil dogs. Turtles who were walking on two legs and have tough armored shells. Joining the two species were dog-like creatures who never skipped arms and chest day, wearing black robes with flowing black hair and wands in their paws.
In time, Lyn, who was running through enemy ships outside, flew past the intruders and land on the floor.
The Nightmare smiled. "Hello, Lyn. How's your husband? Surely he's dreaming about you."
"I'll kill you for what you did to him."
"If only humans really have eyes in the back of their heads, he would've seen me touch his back when he fought my demon. Now, he's fighting for his life."
The Goddess charged at the army, blasting electricity at the turtles and devil dogs. The Warlocks and The Nightmare walk to a big door on the far side of the room.
Dodger lay on the ground. He was beaten up. He didn't look like it. But he sure felt like it.
The Power-up Dodger walked over to the fallen man, shaking his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Your dad was a hero as he was a cop. You got to do better, Dodger."
His body felt so heavy that he couldn't sit up. Dodger was in severe trouble if he couldn't get up. The Evil Dodger stomped on the chest a few times, a sickening laugh coming out of his mouth as he changed into The Nightmare.
"I had fun, Dodger. But it's time to kill you. Funny enough, your "family" won't even know that you're dead. You know, since you're in the Dragon Realms and not on Earth."
With a raise of his left foot, The Creature smashes it on the human's head, smashing it into blood and pieces.
"This was your hero, Bianca? Such a disappointment. But don't worry, your family is going to be my dream toys."
The Nightmare smiled, turning around to exit the dream. That smile wiped away when he saw the headless body turn him around.
"What?"
A balloon begins to blow up on the neck, reshaping into Dodger's head. "Wow. I thought that was just a Men in Black thing with that alien clerk."
"How?" asked The Nightmare.
Instead of answering, Dodger punch the Creature in the head followed by body shots. He stayed on the attack like a wild animal on its prey.
"I must thank you for the wild roller-coaster of emotions. Yes, the Fayettevilles would be better off if I wasn't there. Maybe there's a universe that they never met. It's possible. But you made the biggest mistake that will cost. Motivating me."
Dodger punch the chest of The Nightmare with everything he had.
"I wish I was a better son. I wish I was a better brother. I wish I had graduated high school. I wish a lot that I regret. But I'm doing the best I can to do better. To be better."
Another punch into the Monster's chest, breaking through it. Dodger pulled out a heart. A black, gooey heart.
"Even monsters have hearts. Yuck. But I have a question for you, Nightmare. What scares you?"
Laying on the floor, Lyn was guarded by devil dogs and an armored turtle with its foot on her back.
The bipedal dogs known as Warlocks chanted, waving their wands. The Nightmare flashed a smile as he was close to retrieving the Dragon Rune.
The door fell open and everyone looked inside the dark room.
"I hate to inform you. But you're dead."
