Twas the night before Christmas, and in the Magical World, one Gabriel the Dream Keeper was sleeping, head swirled. He tossed and he turned as he slept in his bed, for a brand-new adventure was stirring in his head. With Jasiri by his side down the raven went, for this unexpected journey would be one well spent…
"Why are we falling!?" Gabriel exclaimed as both he and Jasiri tumbled through what seemed like an endless sea of clouds.
"I don't know! This might just be a weird dream or something!" the hyena replied.
As the two tried to figure out what was going on, they were both suddenly caught by Sisu, the dragoness tossing them up onto her back as she slowed their fall. "Gotcha! Whew, glad I could get to you two in time."
"Glad to see you here as well, Sisu," Gabriel said. "So, I take it you were dream hopping again and found us here?"
Sisu nodded. "Yep, though I can't seem to find the exit to this dream… Wait, I think I see a ship over there where we can land!"
The trio flew down to the ship, finding it to be a classic pirate ship with a ram's head carved on the front. Once they made landing they were soon greeted by the apparent captain of the ship, a young man with spiky brown hair and fiery orange eyes, wearing a pair of pilot's goggles, a red bomber jacket with a black undershirt, jeans, and a comfortable pair of sneakers. The newcomer looked at Gabriel and sighed. "Let me guess: you're an alternate universe version of myself that fell asleep and woke up falling into the Vortex, only to see my ship and decided to land here."
"You're an alternate Gabriel?" Jasiri asked.
"And you're the captain of the Going Merry?" Gabriel added, getting an odd look from his friends. "What? My brother got me into One Piece so I recognized what ship this was."
"It's only on loan from Luffy," the young man replied. "But to answer your question, yes, Gabriel and I are counterparts. The name is Uriel, and if you want to know why I knew exactly what happened to you, just ask those guys over there."
The trio looked over to see some familiar faces, each of them from the other alternate universes they visited before: Azrael, Porsha, and Shen from the Epic Universe, Ray, Mineru, and Morgana from the Gamesphere, and even Sera, Rev Runner, and Tanya Keys from the Warner Movie Lot.
"I see that you got dragged into this as well, corvus," Azrael greeted, giving Gabriel a firm handshake.
"I have to say, it's pretty exciting to get dragged along for an adventure this time," Sera giggled.
"Though I do have to wonder why we were all brought here…" Ray muttered.
"I think I can answer that," a familiar voice said, before in a puff of pink smoke Long the wish dragon appeared, leaning on Uriel's shoulder.
"Long!" Sisu exclaimed, running up to her boyfriend and giving him a big hug and a kiss.
"Hey Sisu. Sorry for not calling recently. I've been busy helping our Uriel here explore our world," Long explained.
"So that must mean this is the Netflix universe," Gabriel guessed.
Uriel nodded. "Yep. We call it the Netflix Nexus, a collection of worlds surrounding a wormhole called the Vortex of Worlds. We're currently sailing around on the outside of the Vortex right now, which is why I needed the Going Merry in the first place. It can be dangerous to travel between worlds without proper transportation, and for what my current mission is, I need more than just Long's magic to get there."
"Oh, a pirate mission! You've gotta let us come with you then!" Porsha cheered.
"Yeah, as a Phantom Thief, being a pirate isn't far off from what normally do," Morgana nodded.
"Well, since you're all here I can't exactly refuse your help… Okay then, consider yourselves part of the Light Dragon Crew!" Uriel smiled. "As for our mission, I got intel from one of my contacts that someone close to me was kidnapped from her home world, and right before her big Christmas show too. We need to go to go and face the evil Skeletor to get her back."
"A Christmas mission. You can count us in, other me," Sera nodded.
"Did you say Skeletor? I heard the He-Man continuation was… not good," Azrael frowned.
"He's talking about the reboot CGI show, actually. A lot better than Revelations for sure," Long corrected.
"Then let's get sailing," Gabriel said, running up to the front of the boat and smiling widely "We're on the cruise to save Christmas!" A beat started up in his heart as Fantasia came to life, motivating everyone else to join in on admiring the sights as they sailed through the Vortex to get to the world of He-Man.
Come on board and bring along
All your hopes and dreams!
Gabriel sang out proudly to the wind as Jasiri and Sisu came to stand next to him at the head of the ship.
Together we will find everything
That we're looking for…
One Piece!
Azrael rolled his eyes but joined in the song as well, with Ray, Sera, and even Uriel adding their voices to the song as they sailed right into the Vortex.
Compass left behind
It'll only slow us down…
The first destination they sailed through was the kingdom of Xadia from The Dragon Prince. Sisu and Long flew alongside the ship as they waved hello to the dragons of this world, with Uriel having to make a surprise maneuver when a sea monster suddenly rose to the surface.
Your heart will be your guide
Raise the sails and take the helm
The next location was the world of Castlevania, where a dark, gothic castle could be seen on the horizon. Mineru and Morgana stood on guard, having dealt with creatures of the night in their own universe as well.
That legendary place
That the end of the map reveals…
After that was the action-packed universe of the Power Rangers, with the Cosmic Fury team flying over in their spaceship as the Going Merry continued on its journey.
It's only legendary
Till someone proves it real!
Finally, the Going Merry was landing in the world of One Piece itself and its vast oceans. Gabriel could have sworn the monsters they sailed past were the same ones seen in the original anime opening!
Through it all
Through all the troubled times
Through the heartache, and through the pain
As they neared the world that was their destination, the team all got ready for a fight: Porsha powered up her Shooting Star magic, Shen drew his weapon, Mineru summoned her construct, Morgana pointed his sword forward dramatically, Rev posed heroically, Tanya pulled out her transformation leaves, Jasiri powered up her necklace with magic, and Sisu and Long pulled out their dragon orbs, both of them shimmering with power.
Know that I
Will be there to stand by you…
Just like I know you'll stand by me!
Sera winked at the camera and produced a bow staff from her jacket, twirling it around before breaking it into two batons. Ray put on his headphones and focused on his Psyches. Azrael did a flip before drawing his khopesh. Gabriel smiled and summoned Cosmic White to battle with. Uriel's eyes burned with energy as he suddenly sprouted wings made of ethereal fire from his back.
So come on board and bring along
All your hopes and dreams!
Everyone sang along with the song as the waters below them started to turn green, signaling them being close to Skeletor's lair by now.
Together we will find everything
That were looking for…
"There it is! Skeletor's fortress," Uriel called, pointing to a giant castle carved out of stone.
"He's really full of himself, isn't he?" Long snarked.
There is always room for you…
If you want to be my friend!
"We'll get your friend back, Uriel. That's a promise," Gabriel said.
"…Thank you, Gabriel," Uriel replied with a soft smile.
We are…
We are…
On a cruise…!
We are!
Getting close to the evil lair, the group departed from their ship and made their way into the skull mountain, ready to do battle to save the idol singer from Skeletor's clutches. It didn't take long to find the man in question, with Skeletor situated on his throne, a pink-furred fox girl held in chains by his side. "There he is. Now we just have to fight him…" Azrael said.
Uriel held up a hand to stop him. "Skeletor's got some big firepower, even on his own. I'm more focused on getting Nazuna back and home safely rather than winning this battle."
"Hey Long, can't you just wish for Nazuna to not be in Skeletor's clutches?" Sisu asked.
"I would if I could, but I already used my one wish for the day to help set up the Christmas concert," Long replied.
"Then it looks like we're going to have to fight," Ray said. "…You know, you haven't actually told us what kinds of powers you have, Uriel, other than the dragon wings."
"Yeah, I was surprised a version of us wasn't an animal person. That seems to be a consistent thing across the multiverse," Sera nodded.
"Who said I was human?" Uriel smirked. His body glowed orange before his human self faded, transformed into a mighty dragon man with white and orange scales, an aura of fire burning around his body. "I'm a beastman from BNA: Brand New Animal, which means I can swap between my human and beast self. I also have some other minor shapeshifting abilities and fire manipulation to boot, similar to the main characters of that anime."
"Sounds like a good set of powers," Mineru commented.
"Looks cool, but we do have an idol to save," Shen reminded the team.
"Then let's show Skeletor our Christmas spirit!" Jasiri cheered as the gang leapt from their hiding spot."
"Ah, He-Man. I was waiting for you to-" Skeletor started, only to pause when he saw who had actually arrived. "Wait a minute, who the heck are you guys?"
"Uriel!" Nazuna exclaimed upon seeing the dragon man.
"We're here to rescue you, Nazuna," Uriel said before creating a fireball in his hands. "Okay Skeletor, give us our idol back!"
"No way! I'm not going to just give up my prisoner," Skeletor laughed. "Besides, you all must be desperate if you came all this way just to save her. Can't live without your Christmas spirit? Pathetic!"
"It's not just about the Christmas spirit, dude. You literally kidnapped a famous idol singer. That's not something people were just going to let slide," Porsha pointed out.
"Yeah, that's super messed up! Christmas is all about being holly and jolly, but you're just being a big Grinch!" Sisu exclaimed.
"I'm evil, hello? Being a Grinch is the best part of the season!" Skeletor retorted. He held up his Staff of Havok and pointed it at the heroes. "But if you insist on taking the idol girl back alive, then try your luck against me!"
"Oh we'll do just that, Skeletor, just you watch!" Uriel shouted, rushing forward and launching a fireball at the villain.
"Gabriel, how about you give us some music?" Jasiri suggested.
"I thought you'd never ask," the raven grinned. As he powered up some Fantasia, Sera's own magic started to mix in as well, the two ravens getting into a groove as the battle to save Nazuna began.
Rockin' on top the world!
Rockin' on top the world!
Uriel got his hit in first, having his fireball met by a havok blast from Skeletor.
The place is hopping
There ain't no stopping
Rockin' on top the world!
"Zorro!" Morgana called, summoning his Persona to create a wind gust that caught Uriel before he could crash.
"Thanks for the save, Mona," Uriel said.
Lift your spirits
Swing that girl!
Rockin' on top the world tonight
Azrael got in close next, pink flames sparking on his weapon as he clashed with Skeletor. The two held their ground for a moment until Mineru came in with backup, summoning a Zonai laser to push Skeletor back.
Rockin' on top the world!
Rockin' on top the world!
That let Porsha jump in for a star-powered shot, backing up her boyfriend as Azrael and Uriel delivered a double-shot of firepower into the villain. Shen and Sisu followed up, the peacock attacking with his guan dao while Sisu whacked the villain with her tail.
The place is hopping
There ain't no stopping
Rockin' on top the world!
Ray focused his power as he summoned a massive bolt of lightning, only for Skeletor to block the attack with his staff. When the villain tried to send the bolt back, Tenya jumped in the way and used her leaves to create a lightning rod, nullifying the attack.
Lift your spirits
Swing that girl!
Rockin' on top the world tonight, yeah
Come on, shorty!
"Come on, try to hit me!" Rev laughed as he sped around Skeletor's attacks.
"Why. Don't. You. Stand. Still!" the villain shouted as his anger spiked.
"Maybe you should pay more attention to who's actually attacking you!" Jasiri laughed as she appeared behind Skeletor, blasting him with the spectral form of an elephant.
"Oh, I've been wanting to see what Jasiri could do since we first met," Sera said in awe.
"Well we can't just stand here and be impressed by our romantic partners. We have to add our own part to the dance!" Gabriel declared, running in and clashing his Keyblade with Skeletor's staff.
Up here where it's freezing
Everybody needs some heat!
No more ringy dinger
Time to get up on your feet!
"You know you can't beat me. You're not even from this world!" Skeletor shouted.
"True, but we're not really here to beat you, just to get Uriel's friend back," Gabriel said with a smirk, watching as Sera used her batons to break the chains holding Nazuna down.
Rockin' on top the world!
Rockin' on top the world!
"No!" Skeletor exclaimed, pointing his staff at Sera, only to get a gorilla punch to the face courtesy of Nazuna.
"That's what you get for capturing me, you jerk!" Nazuna shouted as she turned her arm back to normal. "Seriously, I've had enough of creepy old guys holding me hostage back in my own world. I don't need it from other worlds as well!"
"Then let's make a tree and leave this place," Uriel said, taking Nazuna's hand. "Everyone, back to the Going Merry!"
The place is hopping
There ain't no stopping
Rockin' on top the world!
The group swiftly made their exit, with Skeletor trying to blast them the entire way as they got back to the ship. Ray and Morgana created a giant wind gust to get the ship sailing faster, and soon enough the group was out of there and heading back into the Vortex.
Move your honey
Swing that girl
Rockin' on top the world tonight, yeah
Uriel let out a sigh of relief before laughing a bit, glad that the encounter was over. "That'll teach Skeletor for trying to mess with my friends in Christmas," the dragon said.
"It seems that you have a lot more friends that I recall, Uriel," Nazuna chuckled. "I don't even recognize half of them. Are they from Outer Worlds?"
"Outer Worlds? What's that?" Ray asked.
"Oh, I can tell you that one!" Long said. "You see, since Netflix frequently rotates what's on its service, us here in the Netflix Nexus have made a distinction between permanent content and rotating content. If you're from a permanent content series like Stranger Things, then you're considered from an Inner World, while being from rotating content means you're from an Outer World."
"Well then, I guess you could say we are all from Outer Worlds, but we got here because Uriel was calling to us in our dreams, apparently," Gabriel chuckled.
"Hm… I wonder if my connection to Long had something to do with that," Sisu wondered, holding up her dragon orb.
Long held up his own orb and hummed. "It is possible, I suppose. Our special connect might have let us connect across universes, bringing all of you guys in to help out."
"Either way, thank you all for the assistance. I don't think Long and I could have fought Skeletor on our own," Uriel said. "Ever since coming to the Netflix Nexus I've been struck with a bad case of amnesia, and it was people like the Straw Hat Pirates, Long, and epically Nazuna here that helped me find my footing. I'd have been lost to the Vortex without them."
"You have amnesia? I'm sorry about that…" Sera said.
"It's fine. I'm sure I'll remember my true self one day," Uriel shrugged. "For now, though, I'll stick to being a hero of people across all the worlds surrounding the Vortex!"
"And you do a great job at it too, Uriel," Nazuna giggled, giving the dragon man a kiss on the cheek and making Uriel blush madly.
"N-Nazuna! Not in front of these guys…" Uriel groaned. "L-Let's just get back to Anima City. You still have that Christmas charity concert to perform at, after all!"
Off to the side Gabriel, Azrael, Ray, and Sera all shared a look. "Nazuna is totally his Jasiri, am I right?"
"Yeah, that checks out."
"I did think she was cute when I watched BNA that one time..."
"They seem like they'll work out just fine to me!"
[***]
With their adventure in the Netflix Nexus over, Uriel brought the group back to Nazuna's home world of Anima City, where the fox girl made it just in time for her Christmas charity concert. Uriel offered for his otherworld counterparts to stay for the show, but they declined, wanting to get back to their own worlds and celebrate Christmas with their friends and families.
"You know, it is midnight now, so…" Long said, flicking his tail as four portals opened up. "There we go! One-way portals back to each of your universes. I even put up signs so you don't accidentally get sent to the wrong world!"
"It was been fun, but I really need to catch up on my Z's," Ray yawned, Mineru rolling her eyes as she used her construct to pick up her sleepy boyfriend.
"Happy holidays to all of you…" Mineru said.
"And a happy New Year!" Morgana laughed as they stepped through their portal. Back in Ray's home base, Mineru set Ray down in his beanbag chair and went off to her quarters to sleep. "Hey, Mineru. Shouldn't we make sure Ray logs out of the game first?"
"He has it auto-set to log him out if he remains idol for over an hour. He'll be fine," Mineru chuckled, giving the cat a kiss on the nose as he smiled in his dreams.
"It was great getting to see you all again!" Sera said.
"Yeah, we should do this again some time!" Rev nodded.
"Kids, let's get back home before talking about another adventure. I'm sure that Mittens will miss me if I don't get to his Christmas party on time tomorrow," Tanya said.
Sera's team waved goodbye as they went home, appearing in a cozy-looking room with a roaring fireplace. A cat wearing a fancy green vest was sitting by the fire, reading a book as she looked up to see the trio coming in through the portal. "I take it your sudden disappearance was interesting, at least?" the cat asked.
Sera nodded. "Just a random Christmas adventure, Samantha."
The cat, Samantha, just nodded. "You can tell me about it in the morning. Now that your back, I can finally take my cat nap…"
"It was fun seeing you guys again!" Porsha said.
"Now we must be off. The Soothsayer is waiting for me, most likely," Shen said.
"Until next time, corvus," Azrael said, shaking Gabriel's hand before stepping through the portal back to the Epic Universe. "Now then, what were we doing before that…?"
A suddenly explosion went off, nearby, making the wolf look to see fighting going off in the distance. "I think it had something to do with that new fox girl, right?" Porsha recalled.
Azrael sighed. "Right, I promised Po that I'd help him train Zhen since she's a newcomer to the Epic Universe. Hopefully she hasn't caused too much trouble since we left."
With that, only Gabriel's team was left to return home. The raven shook Uriel's hand, while Sisu and Long shared a kiss, the dragoness' tail curling around his. "You know, you could always come with us. I'd love to share a Christmas with you by my side," Sisu said.
Long looked over to Uriel, who just chuckled and nodded in agreement. "Go crazy, old man! I can take care of myself until you get back!"
"Just don't get lost in the Upside Down while I'm out!" Long replied.
"That was only one time!" Uriel laughed.
"Merry Christmas, everyone!" Jasiri sang out as they headed back to the Magical World. It was a surprise adventure to be sure, but one that the Dream Keeper wasn't going to forget for a long time.
Author's Note
Instead of doing a standard Christmas story, I wanted to give one last send-off to Gabriel's counterparts, as well as introduce a new one. I wanted to make a Netflix version of Gabriel for some time, and Uriel was what I came up with. BNA is one of my favorite anime series, so I had to include it here. I hope you found the idea of the Netflix Nexus interesting, as I thought the idea of all the worlds orbiting around a vortex that connected them to be a neat concept.
The songs used this time are "We Are!" the first and most iconic opening of One Piece. My brother is big into the series and after enjoying the Live-Action Netflix series I wanted to pay tribute to one of the biggest manga ever. The other song is "Rocking on Top of the World" from the Polar Express movie. It's a fun song sung by the lead singer of Aerosmith, and it worked well as a Christmas fight song against Skeletor.
Now, as promised I'm going to announce the next Magical World story in this chapter… and that project is actually to continue "Dream Keeper Chronicles" as is! I've decided that, in order for me to focus on other stories and diversify my writing, I needed to step away from the Magical World, but I didn't want to leave you all hanging either. Instead, I'm going to be only doing one chapter a month starting next year, with the exceptions being certain holiday specials or movie tie-ins. To make up for less chapters, however, I'm going to be doing longer chapters with two to three stories in each, much like the dimensional cruise arc, and just like that arc I'll be doing stories for the Epic Universe, Gamesphere, and now the Warner Movie Lot and Netflix Nexus as well as standard Magical World stories.
So then, what about that spin-off I announced? Well, it's going to be a Disney crossover story, but focusing solely on Disney characters and not OCs. I recently got into the Disney Lorcana card game, and it inspired this new story. Be on the lookout in the first half of 2024 when "Lorcana Academy" debuts to bring a new take on classic Disney characters!
Next Time: Rachel and Poe have their big New Years wedding!