Act Three

(The story continues with both Carls and Sheens walking down a sidewalk downtown.)

Carl: So, how are we going to get a diamond for the Jimmys?

AR Carl: Where are we even going to find one?

AR Sheen: Maybe we should try going in all the jewelry stores in town.

(The Carls and Sheens stop walking.)

Sheen: (upset) Sheen, (talks nicely) my awesomely dressed, yet dimwitted counterpart, (upset) we can't go inside a jewelry store!

AR Sheen: Why not?

Sheen: Because we're all boys (folds arms) and jewelry shopping is for girls.

AR Carl: (mad) Oh, and you've got a better idea?!

Sheen: As a matter of fact, I do. (taps fingers on each other) Tonight, we're going to rob the Retroville Bank. (Carl, AR Carl, and AR Sheen's eyes widen) First we'll need (Carl, AR Carl, and AR Sheen look behind him and start shaking their heads) a glass cutter and then-

Voice: (clears throat)

(Sheen looks behind him and is surprised to see Officer Tubs, frowning at him.)

Sheen: (chuckles) Just kidding.

(Officer Tubs walks away; Sheen turns back to the others.)

Sheen: Okay, we'll go jewelry shopping.

(We cut to the corner of a building; both Cindys and Libbys poke their heads out and look around; AR Cindy is looking though some binoculars built by Jimmy.)

Libby: It's the same thing everywhere: damaged buildings, Yolkians,...

AR Libby: And people wearing green and purple uniforms or some kind of device on their forehead. (looks at Libby) If you ask me, they need a lesson in fashion.

Libby: (looks at AR Libby) Oh, is that right!

AR Cindy: The damaged buildings are from my reality, (pulls down binoculars) and I've got a feeling that that "supreme'' Jimmy has something to do with those devices. (looks at AR Libby) Do people normally wear green and purple uniforms in your reality?

AR Libby: (shakes head) Nuh-uh.

AR Cindy: (looks at Yolkians) Then, they must have some connection with the Yolkians,... but what? (looks in a different direction, looks through binoculars) Hello... What's this?

Cindy: (grabs binoculars) Let me see! (looks through binoculars) Huh!

(We cut to inside of the binoculars and see Cindy looking at some kind of fortress.)

Cindy: Looks like some kind of fortress.

(We cut back to the girls. AR Cindy grabs the binoculars.)

AR Cindy: We better go check it out.

(Both Cindys and Libbys start heading towards the fortress.)

Libby: Um, do you think that's a good idea?

AR Cindy: (looks behind her at Libby) Well, it is reconnaissance.

(We transition back to the lab where we see both Jimmys sifting through the pile of broken inventions. Jimmy looks up at AR Jimmy.)

Jimmy: Have you found a suitable circuit board yet?

AR Jimmy: (looks up at Jimmy) No, not yet.

Jimmy: Well, keep looking. (both Jimmys start looking again) There's got to be one here somewhere. (stops, pauses) Hey. (AR Jimmy stops and looks at him) I know I said that we didn't have time for this, but what are things like in your reality?

AR Jimmy: Oh! Well, uh,... where should I start?

Jimmy: How about... your relations with the Yolkians! What are they like?

AR Jimmy: Oh, they're okay, I guess, but I just discovered them a few days ago, (Jimmy's eyes widen) so I don't really know much abou-

Jimmy: (slightly upset) A few days ago?! But I've known about them for over a year!

AR Jimmy: (intrigued) Really? Well, how did you make contact with them so fast? By rocket?

Jimmy: No. (looks off in the distance) Back in 2001, I received a message from space, but it got all garbled in the ionosphere, so I decided to send a communications satellite in response to it. (looks at AR Jimmy) The Yolkians got a hold of it and,... (looks down) well,... (looks up) let's just say first contact wasn't pretty.

AR Jimmy: Oh. That must be where our realities diverged; in my world, I received the same message, but instead of sending a satellite, I decided to wait for whoever sent it to try again so I could see if it would come in better the second time.

Jimmy: (intrigued) Whoa. I never even considered that!

AR Jimmy: (looks off in distance) That was around the same time I had one of my favorite adventures.

Jimmy: Really? What happened?

AR Jimmy: (looks at Jimmy) Well, on the day after I received the message, on my way to school, I tried giving Carl a sneak peek at my latest invention and show-and-tell for the day: the Shrink Ray. Carl tried to grab it out of my hand so he could play with it and made me drop it, which caused the whole bus to shrink. The bus driver panicked and the vehicle started spinning. After we climbed out of the wreckage, I discovered that my shrink ray had been smashed to smithereens. So, I started leading everyone on a journey back to my lab to build a new one. It took 3 days to get back there. Along the way, Cindy and I came to depend on each other a lot. Pretty soon, our whole rivalry had dissolved and we started admitting our feelings for each other.

Jimmy: (surprised) Wait! You confessed your love for her?!

AR Jimmy: Yeah. That's why it's one of my favorite adventures: because when we finally got back to normal size, we started dating.

Jimmy: (amazed) Wow. By avoiding the Yolkians and making peace with Cindy so soon, your reality must've been relatively peaceful.

AR Jimmy: (frowns) Not exactly. I've had my fair share of tragedies.

Jimmy: Like what?

AR Jimmy: (looks off in distance) Last year, my Cindy got really sick and... she died.

Jimmy: (shocked) Wait! She's dead?!

AR Jimmy: Yeah, but I don't like to talk about it much.

Jimmy: Oh, geez. I'm sorry to hear that.

AR Jimmy: (looks at Jimmy) It's alright. It's helped me to determine (looks up at the ceiling) the important things in life. (goes back to looking, pauses) You started dating your Cindy recently, didn't you?

Jimmy: (embarrassed) Oh, uh... not yet,... but we have discussed it.

AR Jimmy: Well, from one genius to another, let me give you a piece of advice: for as long as you two remain a couple, cherish every moment you have with her.

Jimmy: Okay. (looks to side, points) Look! There's a circuit board! (picks up circuit board)

AR Jimmy: Alright. Let's go install it.

(Both Jimmys rush over to the work table, where Jimmy sets the circuit board inside a remote-shaped device and works on reprogramming it. AR Jimmy watches with anticipation. Jimmy puts the back cover on the device and picks it up.)

Jimmy: Finished. Now, all we need is a diamond.

AR Jimmy: Well, the Carls and Sheens should be back with one soon. In the meantime, why don't we get to work on that astrocar you mentioned earlier?

(We transition to a jewelry store where Sheen is arguing with the man selling the jewelry. Carl, AR Carl, And AR Sheen all just watch.)

Sheen: What do you mean we can't afford it?!

Man: I told you, the cheapest thing we have with a diamond is (holds up diamond ring) this ring, (slams ring on counter) which is worth $300!

Sheen: So, why won't you take our money?

Man: (angry) Because you don't have $300! Geez! Didn't they teach you kids math in school?!

Sheen: (confused) We're not in school now. It's the weekend.

Man: (enraged, slaps head) Oh, for pete's sake! (looks at Carls and Sheens) Never mind! (leans over counter, points at door) Just get out of my store!

(The Carls and Sheens all walk outside the store.)

AR Carl: Well, (smiles) the good news is that it's only $300.

Carl: You're right; it could be a lot more expensive.

AR Sheen: That doesn't help us though.

Sheen: I told you we should've just robbed the bank.

Voice: (clears throat)

(Sheen looks behind him at Officer Tubs again.)

Sheen: (chuckles) Not really.

(Officer Tubs walks away.)

Carl: Hey, maybe we could all get jobs so we can earn the money.

Sheen: Carl! No one's going to hire us when we're in the middle of a crisis involving alternate realities. We're more likely to win it in some kind of competition.

AR Sheen: (rubs chin) But what kind of competition is there where you can win $300?

Carl: Hey, guys! Look!

(Sheen, AR Sheen, and AR Carl look in his direction. Carl points to a poster in the window; it says "Skateboard Contest TODAY! Winner gets 300 bucks".)

Carl: There's a skateboard contest today! And look at what the winner gets.

Sheen: (looks across street) And here comes Nick, (the others look across the street) doing another life-threatening trick on his skateboard.

(Nick rolls down the sidewalk across the street. He hits a fire hydrant and flies off-screen.)

Nick: (off-screen, screams) Ah! (the carls and Sheens wince in pain) I broke my leg!

Sheen: Nope! We're not doing that!

Carl: Then what else can we do?

(Suddenly, a red bouncy ball flies out of nowhere and hits AR Carl in the head.)

AR Carl: Ow! What was tha- (another ball hits him) Oww! (looks in direction of ball) Where did that com- (two more balls hit him; falls down) My scapula...

Voice: Excuse me.

(Carl, Sheen, and AR Sheen look up and see a clown standing in the entrance of a carnival. Their eyes widen.)

Clown: Can you give me my balls back?

AR Sheen: How long has that been there?!

(We transition to inside a weird looking hallway with egg-shaped designs everywhere. The Cindys and Libbys tiptoe across the hallway; Cindy, Libby and AR Libby keep looking everywhere nervously while AR Cindy keeps a serious look on her face all the way down.)

Libby: (whispers) Why are we sneaking around in this fortress again?

AR Cindy: (whispers) The design is obviously Yolkian, and I heard some of them outside mention something about a king, which means that whatever they did to the Earth in their universe, they had a leader.

Cindy: (whispers) Oh. So, you think that if we find whoever that is, we can get some answers on how to deal with them?

AR Cindy: (whispers) Exactly, and all we need to do is find their headquarters.

Libby: (whispers) Well, I'm a bit uncomfortable walking around in the open like this. I mean, if someone sees us-

AR Cindy: (turns around, whispers, angry) Hey! (moves hand up and down) Have you seen my outfit lately?! I've been fighting for years! I can handle whatever comes our way. (walks away)

Cindy: (whispers) Not everyone is as bold as you are.

AR Cindy: (whispers) If you'd been through what I have, you would! (stops at corner of wall)

Cindy: (mad, whispers) Then, what-

(AR Cindy holds up a fist and shushes Cindy; everyone stops walking. AR Cindy looks around the corner of the wall.)

Cindy: (whispers) What do you see?

(We cut to AR Cindy's point of view, where we see 2 Yolkian guards in front of a sliding door, designed to look like a cracked egg; on the right side, there's a keypad with 9 buttons and weird symbols.)

AR Cindy: (whispers) 2 guards... a sliding door... (looks back at the others) and a keypad with 9 buttons, all labeled in the Yolkian language.

Cindy: (whispers, sarcastic) Well, that's great. Even if we take out the guards, we won't be able to crack the code in enough time.

AR Cindy: (looks at Libby and AR Libby, whispers) Maybe we don't have to.

(Cindy looks at the Libbys, too)

Libby and AR Libby: Huh?

AR Cindy: (whispers) Can you both still hit a hypersonic note?

Libby: (whispers) Uh, yeah.

AR Libby: (whispers) Yeah.

AR Cindy: (whispers) Great. I need you both to use one. (The Libbys look worried)

AR Libby: (whispers) But won't that get their attention?

AR Cindy: (whispers) Yes, but that doesn't matter, because it'll shatter their armor and short-circuit the lock on the door.

Libby: (looks at AR Libby, whispers) Okay.

AR Cindy: (looks at Cindy, whispers) Plug your ears. (plugs ears with fingers)

Cindy: (nods, whispers) Yep. (plugs ears with fingers)

(Libby and AR Libby start shrieking at an extremely high note. The guards hear and start to panic.)

Guard 1: (yells) What is that?!

(The glass on the guards' armor shatters and they splatter on the floor in a green, goopy mess; the keypad sparks and blows up, causing the sliding door to open. Libby and AR Libby stop shrieking; AR Cindy smiles and pumps a fist.)

AR Cindy: Yes! Let's go!

(The Cindys and Libbys run around the corner and towards the doorway. As they start going through, the guards scowl at them.)

Guard 2: Halt! In the name of the king! (the Cindys and Libbys run past them) I order you to stop! (Libby stops)

Libby: (turns around, hands on hips) Yeah, right! (waves finger at guards) Like you're going to do anything about it!

Guard 1: (looks down at himself, looks at Guard 2) She's right. (Guard 2 looks at him) Just saying!

Guard 2: (mad) Can it, Peugon!

(Libby turns around and looks to her left, where she sees an air vent on the wall. She calls out to the other Libby and Cindys.)

Libby: Hey, guys! (the others turn around) I think we might have a better time sneaking around (points at air vent) if we go through the air vents!

AR Cindy: (frowns) So we might.

(The other Libby and Cindys run to the air vent. AR Cindy pulls out her staff and prys the air vent cover off. The 4 girls climb in and AR Cindy closes it behind them. We transition to carnival, where we see the Carls and Sheens walking around.)

Carl: Wow! The Carnival's in town!

AR Carl: I want to ride on the roller coaster, even though it'll make me throw up.

Carl: Me, too.

AR Sheen: Carls! Roller coasters are in amusement parks, not carnivals.

AR Carl: Oh, right.

Sheen: But how come no one's noticed what's going on?

AR Sheen: Because they're too busy having fun. If a bunch of people and other stuff appeared out of nowhere, they wouldn't notice.

AR Carl: (points ahead) Hey. Isn't that Nick? (Carl, Sheen, and AR Sheen become intrigued)

Carl and Sheen: Again?

(We cut to the back side of a guy. He turns around; he looks like Nick, except he's wearing glasses with tape in the middle, a white button-up shirt with pockets, and has minor buck teeth with a gap in between them. Carl and Sheen look at him oddly.)

End of Act Three